Fabiola : or, The church of the catacombs - Digital Repository Services

pealing to himself; " She has refused Jacques.
that
THE XOT.UtY'S DAl'UlITEB.
She lias sent me
It was a day or two after the opening of the chapel that M.
Lrscalle came l>ack to La Ciotat, and lie lost no time in obeying
the Count's summons which he found on his arrival. But be-
tween that arrival and his visit to the chateau, short as the inter-
val had been, something had happened which made him look
singularly radiant. Pleasant thoughts were evidently in his
mind, and he kept rubbing his fat hands together every five
minutes, as if to relieve the overflowing exuberance of his
spirits.
The fact was, that an hour after his return he had received a
visit from M Richer de Montlouis, the lather of M. Artemon,
nd that after a few preliminary remarks that gentleman had
said to him
" M. Lescalle, my object in calling upon you is an important
one. I come to ask your daughter's hand in marriage for my son
Artemon."
The notary rather expected this proposal, but he thought it
right to appear surprised.
"
How comes it," he said, " that auch an honor is done to us by
the first family in the town? "
For the best reason possible in such a case, M. Lescalle.
Artemon could not meet your lovely daughter and remain indif-
ferent to her great attractions. She has made the deepest impression
on rny son's heart, and you will make him the happiest of
men if you accept him as a son-in-law."
"Rose is very young. M de Montlouis."
"That is a defect which will always go on diminishing," the
banker said, with a broad smile.
" 1 am afraid the fortune I can give her will seem to you very
small."
" You give her
"Forty thousand francs."
"
"
I have been told sixty thousand francs."
"
No. M. de Montlouis, forty thousand; and I assure you that
even tliat is almost beyond my means."
"
\Vell, you will perhaps reconsider the matter before we fi-
nally fix the sum, my dear M. Lescalle. I do not want you to give
me a positive answer at once, not to-day I mean. You must
wisli nf course, to consult Madame Lescalle, only I flatter myself
that if you are friendly to us there will be no difficulties in
the way.'
' You hnve no doubt, I hope, of my friendly feelings? "
" Well, well, my dear M. Lescalle, you have not always been
our friend."
" "
What do you mean, my dear sir?
"Come, let us speak openly. We are on the eve of an elec-
tion. My brother is golag to stand, and you know that you
promised to support M. Cesairc de Croixfonds."
"Ah! I thought as mush,' inwardly ejaculated the notary.
The election is at the bottom of the marriage, to a great de-
gree, at any rate."
" What I promised," he answered, " was to help M. de Croix-
fonds to qualify himself by the purchase of an estate in this part
of the. country."
'Yes, exactly so, to set up another candidate. Thanks to
your good offices, he was very near purchasing La Pinede for a
song."
" I acted as his lawyer and a friend of his family. I have no
wish to injure your brother's position."
" But if we come to an agreement regarding this proposal I
have just made to you, I suppose that in the event of any one
"
else standing we can reckon on your support?
"
I am not pledged to any one
"
Then I can solicit your votes for my son's uncle. On another
occasion you will give them of your own accord to" your
son-in-law."
" "
What does your son intend?
"Artemon has no settled plans of the kind; but seeing that for
the last ten years he has set his face agaiust marriage, and now
his career.
of steadiin
I am sure that as a married man he will be a model
"
It is never to late to mend, certainly; but I suppose there ia
room for improvement," M. l.e.scalle said.
" Oh, of course, he has been a little wild, like all young men.
There is no harm in that. He has sown his wild oats. You
were just as unsteady once, and only think what an excellent
husband you have made."
M. Lescalle did not much like this allusion to his past life; but
as it was a home thrust that could not well be parried, he
thought it best to drop the subject, and the two gentlemen parted
on the most cordial terms.
As soon asM. de Montlouis was gone, M. Lescalle rushed to
his wife's room.
"Virginie," he said, "we are going to marry Rose."
" To Artemon Richer? "
" Then it is no surprise to you? "
"I saw his father going into your office, and I immediately
guessed what he was come about. I knew it would end in that
way."
" I suspect that their anxiety about the election and securing
my votes hurried on the proposal. I shall not think of giving
them more than forty thousand francs with Rose; it is quite
enough, considering that it will be my doing if M. Jules Richer
is elected."
"
Oh, certainly, it is quite enough, and Rose such a pretty girl,
"
too, in the bargain.
"Very pretty, no doubt; but I can tell you, Madame Les-
calle, that her blue eyes would not have made up for the loss of
twenty thousand francs, if
command."
it had not been for the votes I can
"
Artemon is very much in love with her."
"
So much the better. And "
Rose has she seen him?
"I don't know; I have looked after her very closely. M.
Artemon is apt to flirt with young ladies, and I was determined
that nothing of the sort should go on till he had proposed."
" You were quite right, but now you can speak to Rose. Do
you think she will be pleased? "
"I should fancy so, indeed such a tall, handsome fellow,
and so admired by everybody. There she is, Toussaint, just
come back from Les Capucins. She has spent the morning with
Aunt Mede. Leave us together. I shall speak to her at once.
It would be too formal if 3-011 were iu the room."
" Very well," M. Lescalle answered, and away he went to his
office.
A moment afterwards Rose came into her mother's room.
She looked like one of Greuze's pictures in her large straw hat,
ornamented with a wreath of wild flowers; her pretty soft
hands and arms holding up the skirt of her pink gingham
frock, which enabled her to carry an immense bunch of flowers
gathered in Mise Medc's garden. With her fair hair hanging
about her face, the color in her cheeks deeper still than usual
after her walk, and ihit harvest of roses, no painter could have
sketched a more perfect image of spring. Breathless and smiling,
she ran up to her mother and kissed her.
"See, mamma, what lovely flowers! I have ransacked
Medc's
Mise
"They arc beautiful," Madame Lcscallc answered, dancing at
the roses; "but I am not thinking of nosegays now. Can
"
you
what I have heard'/
guess
"No; what, is it, mamma?"
" Somr- one has proposed for you, my dear."
"For me really? Who, mamma?"
" Can you guess? "
,
"No, mamma," Rose answered, opening very wide her large
blue, innocent -looking eyes.
"
Well. Artemon Richer tie Montlouis wishes to marry you."
Rose's countenance changed, her hands loosened their hold of
and all her flowers fell at her feet.
her gown,
" You said the other day, mamma, that I was too young to bo
married."