Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Epilogue of eight thirteen eight thirteen by Maurice Le Blanc
epilogue The Suicide to Horse, said the Emperor. He corrected
himself on seeing the magnificent ass which they brought him
to donkey rather, Valdemar, are you sure this animal is
quiet to ride and drive? I will answer for him
(00:23):
as I would for myself, Sire, declared the Count. In
that case, I feel safe, said the Emperor, laughing and
turning to the officers with him, Gentlemen to horse. The
market place of the village of Capri was crowded with sightseers,
kept back by a line of Italian carabineers, and in
the middle all the donkeys of the place, which had
(00:43):
been requisitioned to enable the Emperor to go over that
island of wonders. Valdemar, said the Emperor, taking the head
of the cavalcade, what do we begin with? With Tiberius
as villa, Sire? They rode under a gateway and then
followed a roughly paved path, rising gradually to the eastern
promontory of the island. The Emperor laughed and enjoyed himself,
(01:04):
and good humoredly chaffed the colossal Count van Valdemar, whose
feet touched the ground on either side of the unfortunate donkey,
borne down under his weight. In three quarters of an hour,
they arrived first at Tiberius's Leap, an enormous rock a
thousand feet high, from which the tyrant caused his victims
to be hurled into the sea. The Emperor, dismounted, walked
(01:24):
up to the hand rail and took a glance at
the abyss. Then he went on foot to the ruins
of Tiberius's villa, where he strolled about among the crumbling
halls and passages. He stopped for a moment. There was
a glorious view of the point of Sorrento and over
the whole island of Capri. The glowing blue of the
sea outlined the beautiful curve of the bay, and coal
(01:45):
perfumes mingled with the scent of the citron trees. The
view is finer still, Sire, said Valdemar. From the hermit's
little chapel at the summit, let us go to it.
But the hermit himself descended by a steep path. He
was an old man with a hesitating gait and a
bent back. He carried the book in which travelers usually
write down their impressions. He placed the book on a
(02:07):
stone seat. What am I to write, asked the Emperor.
Your name, sire, and the date of your visit, and
anything you please. The Emperor took the pen which the
hermit handed him, and bent down to write, Take care, sire,
take care. Shouts of alarm, a great crash from the
direction of the chapel. The Emperor turned round. He saw
a huge rock come rolling down upon him like a whirlwind.
(02:30):
At the same moment, he was seized round the body
by the hermit and flung to a distance of ten
yards away. The rock struck against the stone seat where
the Emperor had been standing a quarter of a second before,
and smashed the seat into fragments. But for the hermit,
the Emperor would have been killed. He gave him his
hand and said, simply, thank you. The officers flocked round him.
(02:53):
It's nothing, gentlemen, we have escaped with a fright. Though
it was a fine fright, I confess all the same,
but for the invention of this worthy man. And going
up to the hermit, what is your name, my friend?
The hermit had kept his head concealed in his hood.
He pushed it back an inch or so, and in
a very low voice, so as to be heard by
none but the Emperor, he said, the name of a man, sire,
(03:16):
who is very pleased that you have shaken him by
the hand. The Emperor gave a start and stepped back,
then at once controlling himself, gentlemen, he said to the officers,
I will ask you to go up to the chapel.
More rocks can break loose, and it would perhaps be
wise to warn the authorities of the island. You will
join me later. I want to thank this good man.
(03:38):
He walked away, accompanied by the hermit. When they were alone,
he said, you why I had to speak to you, Sire?
If I had asked for an audience, would you have
granted my request. I preferred to act directly, and I
intended to make myself known while your Imperial Majesty was
signing the book. When that stupid accident, well, said the Emperor,
(03:59):
the letter which I gave Voldemar to hand to you, sire,
or forgeries? The Emperor made a gesture of keen annoyance. Forgeries.
Are you sure, absolutely sure, sire? Yet that Malreich Malreich
was not the culprit, then, who was? I must beg
your imperial majesty to treat my answer as secret and confidential.
(04:23):
The real culprit was Missus Kesselbach, Kesselbach's own wife. Yes, sire,
she is dead. Now. It was she who made, or
cause to be made, the copies which are in your possession.
She kept the real letters. But where are they? Exclaimed
the Emperor. That is the important thing. They must be
recovered at all costs. I attached the greatest value to
(04:44):
those letters. Here they are, sire. The Emperor had a
moment of stupefaction. He looked at Lupage, looked at the letters,
then at Lupey again, and pocketed the bundle without examining it. Clearly,
this man was puzzling him. Once more, Where did this
scoundrel spring from? Who, possessing so terrible a weapon, handed
it over like that generously, unconditionally. It would have been
(05:08):
so easy for him to keep the letters and to
make such use of them as he pleased. No, he
had given his promise, and he was keeping his word.
And the Emperor thought of all the astounding things which
that man had done. The papers said that you were dead.
He said, yes, sire. In reality, I am dead, and
the police of my country, glad to be rid of me,
(05:28):
have buried the charred and unrecognizable remains of my body.
Then you are free as I always have been, and
nothing attaches you to anything. Nothing, sire in that case,
the Emperor hesitated, and then explicitly, in that case, enter
(05:48):
my service. I offer you the command of my private police.
You shall be the absolute master. You shall have full
power even over the other police. No, sire, why not?
I am a Frenchman. There was a pause. The Emperor
was evidently pleased with the answer. He said, still as
(06:09):
you say that, no link attaches you. That is one, sire,
which nothing can sever. And he added, laughing, I am
dead as a man, but alive as a Frenchman. I
am sure that your Imperial Majesty will understand. The Emperor
took a few steps up and down. Then he said,
I should like to pay my debt. However, I heard
(06:29):
that the negotiations for the Grand Duchy of Valdenz were
broken off. Yes, Sir, Pier Ludduc was an impostor. He
is dead. What can I do for you? You've given
me back those letters, You've saved my life. What can
I do nothing, sire? You insist upon my remaining your debtor. Yes, sire,
(06:49):
the Emperor gave a last glance at that strange man
who set himself up in his presence as his equal.
Then he bowed his head slightly and walked away without
another word. Ahah, Majesty, I've caught you this time, said Lupeye,
following him with his eyes and philosophically, no doubt. It's
a poor revenge, and would rather have recovered al sass lourene.
(07:11):
But still he interrupted himself and stamped his foot on
the ground. You confounded, Lupey. Will you never change? Will
you always remain hateful and cynical to the last moment
of your existence? Be serious? Hang it all? The time
has come now or never? To be serious. He climbed
the path that leads to the chapel and stopped at
(07:32):
the place where the rock had broken loose. He burst out, laughing,
here was a good piece of work, and his Imperial
Majesty's officers did not know what to make of it.
But how could they guess that I myself loosened that
rock that at the last moment I gave the decisive
blow of the pickaxe, and that the aforesaid rock rolled
down the path which I had made between it and
(07:55):
an emperor whose life I was bent on saving. He sighed, Dupain,
what a complex mind you have, all that trouble because
you had sworn that this particular majesty should shake you
by the hand. A lot of good it has done you.
An emperor's hand five fingers has no more. As Victor
Ligau might have said, he entered the chapel, and with
(08:17):
a special key opened the low door of a little sacristy.
On a heap of straw lay a man with his
hands and legs bound and a gag in his mouth. Well,
my friend, the hermit, said, dupag, It wasn't so very long,
was it? Twenty four hours at the most. But I
have worked jolly hard on your behalf. Just think you
have saved the emperor's life. Yes, old chap you are
(08:39):
the man who saved the emperor's life. I've made your fortune,
That's what I've done. They'll build a cathedral for you
and put up a statue to you when you're dead
and gone. Here take your things. The hermit, nearly dead
with hunger, staggered to his feet, Dupang quickly put on
his own clothes and said, farewell, O worthy and venerable man.
Forgive me for this little upset, and pray for me.
(09:01):
I shall need it. Eternity is opening its gate wide
to me. Farewell. He stood for a few moments on
the threshold of the chapel. It was the solemn moment
at which one hesitates in spite of everything, before the
terrible end of all things. But his resolution was irrevocable,
and without further reflection, he darted out, ran down the slope,
(09:21):
crossed the level ground of Tiberius's leap, and put one
leg over the hand rail. Lupey, I'll give you three
minutes for play acting. What's the good? You will say,
there is nobody here well, and what about you? Can't
you act your last farce for yourself? By jove, the
performance is worth it. A sen Lupey heroic comedy in
(09:42):
eighty scenes. The curtain rises on the death scene, and
the principal part is played by Lupeye in person. Bravo, Lupey.
Feel my heart, ladies and gentlemen, seventy beats to the
minute and a smile on my lips. Bravo. Lupey, Oh
the rogue, what cheek he has? Well? Jump, my lord?
Are you ready? It's the last adventure, old fellow. No regrets,
(10:06):
regrets what For heavens above, My life was splendid, Oh, dolores,
dolorous if you had not come into it, abominable monster
that you were. And you Marlraich, why did you not speak?
And you pierreluduc Here? I am my three dead friends.
I'm about to join you, Oh Genvieve, my dear Genvieve.
(10:28):
Here have you done your old play actor? Right? You
are right, you are. I'm coming. He pulled his other
leg over, looked down the abyss at the dark and
motionless sea, and raising his head, Farewell, immortal and thrice
blessed nature, moriturus tis salutat, Farewell all that is beautiful
on earth. Farewell, splendor of things, Farewell life. He flung
(10:52):
kisses to space, to the sky, to the sun. Then,
folding his arms, he took the leap Sidi bel abess
the barracks of the Foreign Legion. An adjutant sat smoking
and reading his newspaper in a small, low ceilinged room
near him, close to the window opening on the yard.
Two great devils of non commissioned officers were jabbering in
(11:14):
guttural French mixed with teutonic phrases. The door opened, some
one entered. It was a slightly built man of medium height,
smartly dressed. The adjutant rose glared angrily at the intruder
and growled, I say, what on earth is the orderly
up to? And you, sir, what do you want? Service?
This was said frankly, imperiously. The two non combs burst
(11:37):
into a silly laugh. The man looked at them askance.
In other words, you wish to enlist in the legion,
asked the adjutant. Yes, but on one condition. Conditions, By jove,
what conditions that I am not left moldering here. There
is a company leading from Morocco. I'll join that. One
of the non combs gave a fresh chuckle and was
(11:59):
heard to say the Moors are in for a bad time.
The gentleman's enlisting silence, cried the man. I don't stand
being laughed at. His voice sounded harsh and masterful. The
non calm, a brutal looking giant, retorted, here, recruity, you'd
better be careful how you talk to me, or or
what you'll get something you won't like. That's all. The
(12:23):
man went up to him, took him round the waist,
swung him over the ledge of the window, and pitched
him into the yard. Then he said to the other,
go away. The other went away. The man at once
returned to the adjutant and said, Lieutenant, pray be so
good as to tell the Major that Don Luis Padena,
a Spanish grandee and a Frenchman at heart, wishes to
(12:44):
take service in the foreign legion. Go my friend. The
flabbergasted adjutant did not move. Go my friend, and go
at once. I've no time to waste. The adjutant rose,
looked at his astounding visitor with a bewildered eye, and
went out in the tamest fashion. Then lu Pee lit
a cigarette, and, sitting down in the adjutant's chair, said aloud,
(13:06):
as the sea refused to have anything to say to me,
or rather, as I, at the last moment refuse to
have anything to say to the sea, will go and
see if the bullets of the moors are more compassionate,
And in any case it will be a smarter finish
face the enemy. Loupenge and all for France, end of
eight thirteen by Maurice le Blanc
Epilogue of eight thirteen eight thirteen by Maurice Le Blanc
epilogue The Suicide to Horse, said the Emperor. He corrected
himself on seeing the magnificent ass which they brought him
to donkey rather, Valdemar, are you sure this animal is
quiet to ride and drive? I will answer for him
(00:23):
as I would for myself, Sire, declared the Count. In
that case, I feel safe, said the Emperor, laughing and
turning to the officers with him, Gentlemen to horse. The
market place of the village of Capri was crowded with sightseers,
kept back by a line of Italian carabineers, and in
the middle all the donkeys of the place, which had
(00:43):
been requisitioned to enable the Emperor to go over that
island of wonders. Valdemar, said the Emperor, taking the head
of the cavalcade, what do we begin with? With Tiberius
as villa, Sire? They rode under a gateway and then
followed a roughly paved path, rising gradually to the eastern
promontory of the island. The Emperor laughed and enjoyed himself,
(01:04):
and good humoredly chaffed the colossal Count van Valdemar, whose
feet touched the ground on either side of the unfortunate donkey,
borne down under his weight. In three quarters of an hour,
they arrived first at Tiberius's Leap, an enormous rock a
thousand feet high, from which the tyrant caused his victims
to be hurled into the sea. The Emperor, dismounted, walked
(01:24):
up to the hand rail and took a glance at
the abyss. Then he went on foot to the ruins
of Tiberius's villa, where he strolled about among the crumbling
halls and passages. He stopped for a moment. There was
a glorious view of the point of Sorrento and over
the whole island of Capri. The glowing blue of the
sea outlined the beautiful curve of the bay, and coal
(01:45):
perfumes mingled with the scent of the citron trees. The
view is finer still, Sire, said Valdemar. From the hermit's
little chapel at the summit, let us go to it.
But the hermit himself descended by a steep path. He
was an old man with a hesitating gait and a
bent back. He carried the book in which travelers usually
write down their impressions. He placed the book on a
(02:07):
stone seat. What am I to write, asked the Emperor.
Your name, sire, and the date of your visit, and
anything you please. The Emperor took the pen which the
hermit handed him, and bent down to write, Take care, sire,
take care. Shouts of alarm, a great crash from the
direction of the chapel. The Emperor turned round. He saw
a huge rock come rolling down upon him like a whirlwind.
(02:30):
At the same moment, he was seized round the body
by the hermit and flung to a distance of ten
yards away. The rock struck against the stone seat where
the Emperor had been standing a quarter of a second before,
and smashed the seat into fragments. But for the hermit,
the Emperor would have been killed. He gave him his
hand and said, simply, thank you. The officers flocked round him.
(02:53):
It's nothing, gentlemen, we have escaped with a fright. Though
it was a fine fright, I confess all the same,
but for the invention of this worthy man. And going
up to the hermit, what is your name, my friend?
The hermit had kept his head concealed in his hood.
He pushed it back an inch or so, and in
a very low voice, so as to be heard by
none but the Emperor, he said, the name of a man, sire,
(03:16):
who is very pleased that you have shaken him by
the hand. The Emperor gave a start and stepped back,
then at once controlling himself, gentlemen, he said to the officers,
I will ask you to go up to the chapel.
More rocks can break loose, and it would perhaps be
wise to warn the authorities of the island. You will
join me later. I want to thank this good man.
(03:38):
He walked away, accompanied by the hermit. When they were alone,
he said, you why I had to speak to you, Sire?
If I had asked for an audience, would you have
granted my request. I preferred to act directly, and I
intended to make myself known while your Imperial Majesty was
signing the book. When that stupid accident, well, said the Emperor,
(03:59):
the letter which I gave Voldemar to hand to you, sire,
or forgeries? The Emperor made a gesture of keen annoyance. Forgeries.
Are you sure, absolutely sure, sire? Yet that Malreich Malreich
was not the culprit, then, who was? I must beg
your imperial majesty to treat my answer as secret and confidential.
(04:23):
The real culprit was Missus Kesselbach, Kesselbach's own wife. Yes, sire,
she is dead. Now. It was she who made, or
cause to be made, the copies which are in your possession.
She kept the real letters. But where are they? Exclaimed
the Emperor. That is the important thing. They must be
recovered at all costs. I attached the greatest value to
(04:44):
those letters. Here they are, sire. The Emperor had a
moment of stupefaction. He looked at Lupage, looked at the letters,
then at Lupey again, and pocketed the bundle without examining it. Clearly,
this man was puzzling him. Once more, Where did this
scoundrel spring from? Who, possessing so terrible a weapon, handed
it over like that generously, unconditionally. It would have been
(05:08):
so easy for him to keep the letters and to
make such use of them as he pleased. No, he
had given his promise, and he was keeping his word.
And the Emperor thought of all the astounding things which
that man had done. The papers said that you were dead.
He said, yes, sire. In reality, I am dead, and
the police of my country, glad to be rid of me,
(05:28):
have buried the charred and unrecognizable remains of my body.
Then you are free as I always have been, and
nothing attaches you to anything. Nothing, sire in that case,
the Emperor hesitated, and then explicitly, in that case, enter
(05:48):
my service. I offer you the command of my private police.
You shall be the absolute master. You shall have full
power even over the other police. No, sire, why not?
I am a Frenchman. There was a pause. The Emperor
was evidently pleased with the answer. He said, still as
(06:09):
you say that, no link attaches you. That is one, sire,
which nothing can sever. And he added, laughing, I am
dead as a man, but alive as a Frenchman. I
am sure that your Imperial Majesty will understand. The Emperor
took a few steps up and down. Then he said,
I should like to pay my debt. However, I heard
(06:29):
that the negotiations for the Grand Duchy of Valdenz were
broken off. Yes, Sir, Pier Ludduc was an impostor. He
is dead. What can I do for you? You've given
me back those letters, You've saved my life. What can
I do nothing, sire? You insist upon my remaining your debtor. Yes, sire,
(06:49):
the Emperor gave a last glance at that strange man
who set himself up in his presence as his equal.
Then he bowed his head slightly and walked away without
another word. Ahah, Majesty, I've caught you this time, said Lupeye,
following him with his eyes and philosophically, no doubt. It's
a poor revenge, and would rather have recovered al sass lourene.
(07:11):
But still he interrupted himself and stamped his foot on
the ground. You confounded, Lupey. Will you never change? Will
you always remain hateful and cynical to the last moment
of your existence? Be serious? Hang it all? The time
has come now or never? To be serious. He climbed
the path that leads to the chapel and stopped at
(07:32):
the place where the rock had broken loose. He burst out, laughing,
here was a good piece of work, and his Imperial
Majesty's officers did not know what to make of it.
But how could they guess that I myself loosened that
rock that at the last moment I gave the decisive
blow of the pickaxe, and that the aforesaid rock rolled
down the path which I had made between it and
(07:55):
an emperor whose life I was bent on saving. He sighed, Dupain,
what a complex mind you have, all that trouble because
you had sworn that this particular majesty should shake you
by the hand. A lot of good it has done you.
An emperor's hand five fingers has no more. As Victor
Ligau might have said, he entered the chapel, and with
(08:17):
a special key opened the low door of a little sacristy.
On a heap of straw lay a man with his
hands and legs bound and a gag in his mouth. Well,
my friend, the hermit, said, dupag, It wasn't so very long,
was it? Twenty four hours at the most. But I
have worked jolly hard on your behalf. Just think you
have saved the emperor's life. Yes, old chap you are
(08:39):
the man who saved the emperor's life. I've made your fortune,
That's what I've done. They'll build a cathedral for you
and put up a statue to you when you're dead
and gone. Here take your things. The hermit, nearly dead
with hunger, staggered to his feet, Dupang quickly put on
his own clothes and said, farewell, O worthy and venerable man.
Forgive me for this little upset, and pray for me.
(09:01):
I shall need it. Eternity is opening its gate wide
to me. Farewell. He stood for a few moments on
the threshold of the chapel. It was the solemn moment
at which one hesitates in spite of everything, before the
terrible end of all things. But his resolution was irrevocable,
and without further reflection, he darted out, ran down the slope,
(09:21):
crossed the level ground of Tiberius's leap, and put one
leg over the hand rail. Lupey, I'll give you three
minutes for play acting. What's the good? You will say,
there is nobody here well, and what about you? Can't
you act your last farce for yourself? By jove, the
performance is worth it. A sen Lupey heroic comedy in
(09:42):
eighty scenes. The curtain rises on the death scene, and
the principal part is played by Lupeye in person. Bravo, Lupey.
Feel my heart, ladies and gentlemen, seventy beats to the
minute and a smile on my lips. Bravo. Lupey, Oh
the rogue, what cheek he has? Well? Jump, my lord?
Are you ready? It's the last adventure, old fellow. No regrets,
(10:06):
regrets what For heavens above, My life was splendid, Oh, dolores,
dolorous if you had not come into it, abominable monster
that you were. And you Marlraich, why did you not speak?
And you pierreluduc Here? I am my three dead friends.
I'm about to join you, Oh Genvieve, my dear Genvieve.
(10:28):
Here have you done your old play actor? Right? You
are right, you are. I'm coming. He pulled his other
leg over, looked down the abyss at the dark and
motionless sea, and raising his head, Farewell, immortal and thrice
blessed nature, moriturus tis salutat, Farewell all that is beautiful
on earth. Farewell, splendor of things, Farewell life. He flung
(10:52):
kisses to space, to the sky, to the sun. Then,
folding his arms, he took the leap Sidi bel abess
the barracks of the Foreign Legion. An adjutant sat smoking
and reading his newspaper in a small, low ceilinged room
near him, close to the window opening on the yard.
Two great devils of non commissioned officers were jabbering in
(11:14):
guttural French mixed with teutonic phrases. The door opened, some
one entered. It was a slightly built man of medium height,
smartly dressed. The adjutant rose glared angrily at the intruder
and growled, I say, what on earth is the orderly
up to? And you, sir, what do you want? Service?
This was said frankly, imperiously. The two non combs burst
(11:37):
into a silly laugh. The man looked at them askance.
In other words, you wish to enlist in the legion,
asked the adjutant. Yes, but on one condition. Conditions, By jove,
what conditions that I am not left moldering here. There
is a company leading from Morocco. I'll join that. One
of the non combs gave a fresh chuckle and was
(11:59):
heard to say the Moors are in for a bad time.
The gentleman's enlisting silence, cried the man. I don't stand
being laughed at. His voice sounded harsh and masterful. The
non calm, a brutal looking giant, retorted, here, recruity, you'd
better be careful how you talk to me, or or
what you'll get something you won't like. That's all. The
(12:23):
man went up to him, took him round the waist,
swung him over the ledge of the window, and pitched
him into the yard. Then he said to the other,
go away. The other went away. The man at once
returned to the adjutant and said, Lieutenant, pray be so
good as to tell the Major that Don Luis Padena,
a Spanish grandee and a Frenchman at heart, wishes to
(12:44):
take service in the foreign legion. Go my friend. The
flabbergasted adjutant did not move. Go my friend, and go
at once. I've no time to waste. The adjutant rose,
looked at his astounding visitor with a bewildered eye, and
went out in the tamest fashion. Then lu Pee lit
a cigarette, and, sitting down in the adjutant's chair, said aloud,
(13:06):
as the sea refused to have anything to say to me,
or rather, as I, at the last moment refuse to
have anything to say to the sea, will go and
see if the bullets of the moors are more compassionate,
And in any case it will be a smarter finish
face the enemy. Loupenge and all for France, end of
eight thirteen by Maurice le Blanc
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