Chapter VIII

When, on the morning after this dinner, which was to form an era inher life, Mme. Favoral woke up, her husband was already up, pencilin hand, and busy figuring.

The charm had vanished with the fumes¹ of the champagne²; and theclouds of the worst days were gathering³ upon his brow.

Noticing that his wife was looking at him,"It's expensive work," he said in a bluff⁴ tone, "to set a businessgoing; and it wouldnt do to commence over again every day."To hear him speak, one would have thought that Mme. Favoral alone,by dint⁵ of hard begging, had persuaded him, into that expense whichhe now seemed to regret so much. She quietly called his attentionto the fact, reminding him that, far from urging, she had endeavoredto hold him back; repeating that she augured⁶ ill of that businessover which he was so enthusiastic, and that, if he would believe her,he would not venture.

"Do you even know what the project is?" he interrupted rudely.

"You have not told me.""Very well, then: leave me in peace with your presentiments⁷. Youdislike my friends; and I saw very well how you treated Mme. deThaller. But I am the master; and what I have decided⁸ shall be.

Besides, I have signed. Once for all, I forbid you ever speakingto me again on that subject."Whereupon, having dressed himself with much care, he started off,saying that he was expected at breakfast by Saint Pavin, thefinancial editor, and by M. Jottras, of the house of Jottras& Brother.

A shrewd woman would not have given it up so easy, and, in the end,would probably have mastered the despot, whose intellect was farfrom brilliant. But Mme. Favoral was too proud to be shrewd; andbesides, the springs of her will had been broken by the successiveoppression of an odious⁹ stepmother and a brutal¹⁰ master. Herabdication of all was complete. Wounded, she kept the secret ofher wound, hung her head, and said nothing.

She did not, therefore, venture a single allusion¹¹; and nearly aweek elapsed, during which the names of her late guests were notonce mentioned.

It was through a newspaper, which M. Favoral had forgotten in theparlor, that she learned that the Baron¹² de Thaller had just foundeda new stock company, the Mutual¹³ Credit Society, with a capital ofseveral millions.

Below the advertisement, which was printed in enormous letters,came a long article, in which it was demonstrated that the newcompany was, at the same time, a patriotic¹⁴ undertaking¹⁵ and aninstitution of credit of the first class; that it supplied a greatpublic want; that it would be of inestimable benefit to industry;that its profits were assured; and that to subscribe¹⁶ to its stockwas simply to draw short bills upon fortune.

Already somewhat re-assured by the reading of this article, Mme.

Favoral became quite so when she read the names of the board ofdirectors. Nearly all were titled, and decorated with many foreignorders; and the remainder were bankers, office-holders, and evensome exministers.

"I must have been mistaken," she thought, yielding unconsciously tothe influence of printed evidence.

And no objection occurred to her, when, a few days later, herhusband told her,"I have the situation I wanted. I am head cashier of the companyof which M. de Thaller is manager."That was all. Of the nature of this society, of the advantageswhich it offered him, not one word.

Only by the way in which he expressed himself did Mme. Favoral judgethat he must have been well treated; and he further confirmed her inthat opinion by granting her, of his own accord, a few additionalfrancs for the daily expenses of the house.

"We must," he declared on this memorable¹⁷ occasion, "do honor to oursocial position, whatever it may cost."For the first time in his life, he seemed heedful of public opinion.

He recommended his wife to be careful of her dress and of that ofthe children, and re-engaged a servant. He expressed the wish ofenlarging their circle of acquaintances, and inaugurated his Saturdaydinners, to which came assiduously, M. and Mme. Desclavettes, M.

Chapelain the attorney, the old man Desormeaux, and a few others.

As to himself he gradually settled down into those habits fromwhich he was nevermore to depart, and the chronometric regularityof which had secured him the nickname of Old Punctuality, of whichhe was proud.

In all other respects never did a man, to such a degree, become soutterly indifferent to his wife and children. His house was for himbut a mere¹⁸ hotel, where he slept, and took his evening meal. Henever thought of questioning his wife as to the use of her time, andwhat she did in his absence. Provided she did not ask him for money,and was there when he came home, he was satisfied.

Many women, at Mme. Favoral's age, might have made a strange use ofthat insulting indifference¹⁹ and of that absolute freedom.

If she did avail herself of it, it was solely²⁰ to follow one of thoseinspirations which can only spring in a mother's heart.

The increase in the budget of the household was relatively²¹ large, butso nicely calculated, that she had not one cent more that she couldcall her own.

With the most intense sorrow, she thought that her children mighthave to endure the humiliating privations which had made her ownlife wretched. They were too young yet to suffer from the paternalparsimony; but they would grow; their desires would develop; and itwould be impossible for her to grant them the most innocentsatisfactions.

Whilst turning over and over in her mind this distressing²² thought,she remembered a friend of her mother's, who kept, in the Rue²³ St.

Denis, a large establishment for the sale of hosiery and woollengoods. There, perhaps, lay the solution of the problem. She calledto see the worthy²⁴ woman, and, without even needing to confess thewhole truth to her, she obtained sundry²⁵ pieces of work, ill paidas a matter of course, but which, by dint of close application,might be made to yield from eight to twelve francs a week.

From this time she never lost a minute, concealing²⁶ her work as ifit were an evil act.

She knew her husband well enough to feel certain that he wouldbreak out, and swear that he spent money enough to enable his wifeto live without being reduced to making a work woman of herself.

But what joy, the day when she hid way down at the bottom of adrawer the first twenty-franc-piece she had earned, a beautifulgold-piece, which belonged to her without contest, and which shemight spend as she pleased, without having to render any accountto any one!

And with what pride, from week to week, she saw her little treasureswell, despite the drafts she made upon it, sometimes to buy a toyfor Maxence, sometimes to add a few ribbons or trinkets to Gilberte'stoilet!

This was the happiest time of her life, a halt in that painfuljourney through which she had been dragging herself for so manyyears. Between her two children, the hours flew light and rapidas so many seconds. If all the hopes of the young girl and of thewoman had withered²⁷ before they had blossomed, the mother's joys,at least should not fail her. Because, whilst the present sufficedto her modest ambition, the future had ceased to cause her anyuneasiness.

No reference had ever been made, between herself and her husband,to that famous dinner-party: he never spoke²⁸ to her of the MutualCredit Society; but now and then he allowed some words or exclamationsto escape, which she carefully recorded, and which betrayed aprosperous state of affairs.

"That Thaller is a tough fellow!" he would exclaim, "and he has themost infernal luck!"And at other times,"Two or three more operations like the one we have just successfullywound up, and we can shut up shop!"From all this, what could she conclude, if not that he was marchingwith rapid strides towards that fortune, the object of all hisambition?

Already in the neighborhood he had that reputation to be very rich,which is the beginning of riches itself. He was admired for keepinghis house with such rigid²⁹ economy; for a man is always esteemed³⁰ whohas money, and does not spend it.

"He is not the man ever to squander³¹ what he has," the neighborsrepeated.

The persons whom he received on Saturdays believed him more thancomfortably off. When M. Desclavettes and M. Chapelain hadcomplained to their hearts' contents, the one of the shop, theother of his office, they never failed to add,"You laugh at us, because you are engaged in large operations, wherepeople make as much money as they like."They seemed to hold his financial capacities in high estimation.

They consulted him, and followed his advice.

M. Desormeaux was wont³² to say,"Oh! he knows what he is about."And Mme. Favoral tried to persuade herself, that, in this respectat least, her husband was a remarkable³³ man. She attributed hissilence and his distractions³⁴ to the grave cares that filled his mind.

In the same manner that he had once announced to her that they hadenough to live on, she expected him, some fine morning, to tell herthat he was a millionaire.

1 fumes   

n.(强烈而刺激的)气味，气体

参考例句：

• The health of our children is being endangered by exhaust fumes. 我们孩子们的健康正受到排放出的废气的损害。
• Exhaust fumes are bad for your health. 废气对健康有害。

2 champagne   

n.香槟酒；微黄色

参考例句：

• There were two glasses of champagne on the tray.托盘里有两杯香槟酒。
• They sat there swilling champagne.他们坐在那里大喝香槟酒。

3 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

4 bluff   

v.虚张声势，用假象骗人；n.虚张声势，欺骗

参考例句：

• His threats are merely bluff.他的威胁仅仅是虚张声势。
• John is a deep card.No one can bluff him easily.约翰是个机灵鬼。谁也不容易欺骗他。

5 dint   

n.由于，靠；凹坑

参考例句：

• He succeeded by dint of hard work.他靠苦干获得成功。
• He reached the top by dint of great effort.他费了很大的劲终于爬到了顶。

6 augured   

v.预示，预兆，预言( augur的过去式和过去分词 )；成为预兆；占卜

参考例句：

• The press saw the event as a straw in the wind that augured the resumption of diplomatic relations between the two countries. 报界把这件事看作是两国之间即将恢复邦交的预兆。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• This augured disaster for 1945. 这就预示1945年要发生灾难。 来自互联网

7 presentiments   

n.（对不祥事物的）预感( presentiment的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His presentiments of what the future holds for all are plainly not cheering. 则是应和了很多美国人的种种担心，他对各方未来的预感显然是不令人振奋的。 来自互联网

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 odious   

adj.可憎的，讨厌的

参考例句：

• The judge described the crime as odious.法官称这一罪行令人发指。
• His character could best be described as odious.他的人格用可憎来形容最贴切。

10 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

11 allusion   

n.暗示，间接提示

参考例句：

• He made an allusion to a secret plan in his speech.在讲话中他暗示有一项秘密计划。
• She made no allusion to the incident.她没有提及那个事件。

12 baron   

n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王

参考例句：

• Henry Ford was an automobile baron.亨利·福特是一位汽车业巨头。
• The baron lived in a strong castle.男爵住在一座坚固的城堡中。

13 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

14 patriotic   

adj.爱国的，有爱国心的

参考例句：

• His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
• The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。

15 undertaking   

n.保证，许诺，事业

参考例句：

• He gave her an undertaking that he would pay the money back with in a year.他向她做了一年内还钱的保证。
• He is too timid to venture upon an undertaking.他太胆小，不敢从事任何事业。

16 subscribe   

vi.(to)订阅，订购；同意；vt.捐助，赞助

参考例句：

• I heartily subscribe to that sentiment.我十分赞同那个观点。
• The magazine is trying to get more readers to subscribe.该杂志正大力发展新订户。

17 memorable   

adj.值得回忆的，难忘的，特别的，显著的

参考例句：

• This was indeed the most memorable day of my life.这的确是我一生中最值得怀念的日子。
• The veteran soldier has fought many memorable battles.这个老兵参加过许多难忘的战斗。

18 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

19 indifference   

n.不感兴趣，不关心，冷淡，不在乎

参考例句：

• I was disappointed by his indifference more than somewhat.他的漠不关心使我很失望。
• He feigned indifference to criticism of his work.他假装毫不在意别人批评他的作品。

20 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

21 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

22 distressing   

a.使人痛苦的

参考例句：

• All who saw the distressing scene revolted against it. 所有看到这种悲惨景象的人都对此感到难过。
• It is distressing to see food being wasted like this. 这样浪费粮食令人痛心。

23 rue   

n.懊悔，芸香，后悔；v.后悔，悲伤，懊悔

参考例句：

• You'll rue having failed in the examination.你会悔恨考试失败。
• You're going to rue this the longest day that you live.你要终身悔恨不尽呢。

24 worthy   

adj.(of)值得的，配得上的；有价值的

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• There occurred nothing that was worthy to be mentioned.没有值得一提的事发生。

25 sundry   

adj.各式各样的，种种的

参考例句：

• This cream can be used to treat sundry minor injuries.这种药膏可用来治各种轻伤。
• We can see the rich man on sundry occasions.我们能在各种场合见到那个富豪。

26 concealing   

v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Despite his outward display of friendliness, I sensed he was concealing something. 尽管他表现得友善，我还是感觉到他有所隐瞒。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• SHE WAS BREAKING THE COMPACT, AND CONCEALING IT FROM HIM. 她违反了他们之间的约定，还把他蒙在鼓里。 来自英汉文学 - 三万元遗产

27 withered   

adj. 枯萎的，干瘪的，（人身体的部分器官）因病萎缩的或未发育良好的 动词wither的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• The grass had withered in the warm sun. 这些草在温暖的阳光下枯死了。
• The leaves of this tree have become dry and withered. 这棵树下的叶子干枯了。

28 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

29 rigid   

adj.严格的，死板的；刚硬的，僵硬的

参考例句：

• She became as rigid as adamant.她变得如顽石般的固执。
• The examination was so rigid that nearly all aspirants were ruled out.考试很严，几乎所有的考生都被淘汰了。

30 esteemed   

adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 )；敬重；认为；以为

参考例句：

• The art of conversation is highly esteemed in France. 在法国十分尊重谈话技巧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He esteemed that he understood what I had said. 他认为已经听懂我说的意思了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

31 squander   

v.浪费，挥霍

参考例句：

• Don't squander your time in reading those dime novels.不要把你的时间浪费在读那些胡编乱造的廉价小说上。
• Every chance is precious，so don't squander any chance away!每次机会都很宝贵，所以不要将任何一个白白放走。

32 wont   

adj.习惯于；v.习惯；n.习惯

参考例句：

• He was wont to say that children are lazy.他常常说小孩子们懒惰。
• It is his wont to get up early.早起是他的习惯。

33 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

34 distractions   

n.使人分心的事[人]( distraction的名词复数 )；娱乐，消遣；心烦意乱；精神错乱

参考例句：

• I find it hard to work at home because there are too many distractions. 我发觉在家里工作很难，因为使人分心的事太多。
• There are too many distractions here to work properly. 这里叫人分心的事太多，使人无法好好工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》