Camille - Chapter 19

None

Episode Transcript

(00:01):
Chapter nineteen of Camille. This isa LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are
in the public domain. For moreinformation or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox
dot org. Reading by Bologna Times, Camille by Alexandre Dumma phil translated by

(00:25):
Edmond Gass, chapter nineteen. Inhis first three letters, my father inquired
the cause of my silence. Inthe last, he allowed me to see
that he had heard of my changeof life, and informed me that he
was about to come and see me. I have always had a great respect
and a sincere affection for my father. I replied that I had been traveling

(00:49):
for a short time, and beggedhim to let me know beforehand what day
he would arrive, so that Icould be there to meet him. I
gave my servant my address in thecountry, telling him to bring me the
first letter that came with the postmarkof Camille. Then I returned to Bougevard.
Marguerite was waiting for me at thegarden gate. She looked at me

(01:11):
anxiously, throwing her arms round myneck, she said to me, have
you seen Prudence, No, youwere a long time in Paris. I
found letters from my father, towhich I had to reply a few minutes
afterward, Nanine entered, all outof breath. Marguerite rose and talked with

(01:33):
her in whispers. When Nanine hadgone out, Marguerite sat down by me
again and said, taking my hand, why did you deceive me? You
went to see Prudence? Who toldyou Nanine? And how did she know
she followed you? You told herto follow me? Yes, I thought

(01:57):
that you must have had a verystrong motive or going to Paris after not
leaving me for four months. Iwas afraid that something might happen to you,
or that you were perhaps going tosee another woman. Child. Now
I am relieved. I know whatyou have done, but I don't yet

(02:17):
know what you have been told.I showed Marguerite my father's letters. That
is not what I am asking youabout. What I want to know is
why you went to see Prudence tosee her? That's a lie, my
friend. Well, I went toask her if the horse was any better,

(02:39):
and if she wanted your shawl andyour jewels any longer. Marguerite blushed
but did not answer, and Icontinued. I learned what you had done
with your horses, shawls and jewelsand are you vexed? I am vexed
that it never occurred to you toask me for what you were in want

(03:01):
of. In a liaison like ours, if the woman has any sense of
dignity at all, she ought tomake every possible sacrifice rather than to ask
her lover for money, and sogive a venal character to her. Love
you love me, I am sure, But you do not know on how

(03:23):
slight a thread depends the love onehas for a woman like me. Who
knows? Perhaps some day, whenyou were bored or worried, you would
fancy you saw a carefully concerted planin our liaison. Prudence is a chatter
box. What need had I ofthe horses? It was an economy to

(03:45):
sell them. I don't use them, and I don't spend anything on their
keep. If you love me,I ask nothing more, and you will
love me just as much without horsesor shawls or diamonds. All that was
said so naturally that the tears cameto my eyes as I listened. But
my good Marguerite, I replied,pressing her hands lovingly. You knew that

(04:10):
one day I should discover the sacrificeyou had made, and that the moment
I discovered it. I should allowit no longer. But why, because,
my dear child, I cannot allowyour affection for me to deprive you
of even a trinket. I too, should not like you to be able

(04:31):
in a moment when you were boredor worried, to think that if you
were living with somebody else, thosemoments would not exist, and to repent,
if only for a minute, ofliving with me in a few days.
Your horses, your diamonds, andyour shawls shall be returned to you.
They are as necessary to you asair is to life. And it

(04:55):
may be absurd, but I likeyou better showy than simple. Then you
no longer love me, foolish creature. If you love me, you will
let me love you my own way. On the contrary, you persist in
only seeing in me a woman towhom luxury is indispensable and whom you think
you are always obliged to pay.You are ashamed to accept the proof of

(05:19):
my love in spite of yourself.You think of leaving me some day,
and you want to put your disinterestednessbeyond risk of suspicion. You are right,
my friend, But I had betterhopes, and Marguerite made a motion
to rise, I held her andsaid to her, I want you to

(05:42):
be happy and to have nothing toreproach me, for that is all,
and we are going to be separated. Why, Marguerite, who can separate
us? I cried, You whowill not let me take you on your
own level, but insist on takingme on mine. You who wished me
to keep the luxury in the midstof which I have lived, and so

(06:06):
keep the moral distance which separates us. You who do not believe that my
affection is sufficiently disinterested to share withme what you have, though we could
live happily enough on it together,and would rather ruin yourself because you are
still bound by a foolish prejudice.Do you really think that I can compare

(06:30):
a carriage and diamonds with your love? Do you think that my real happiness
lies in the trifles that mean somuch when one has nothing to love,
but which become trifling? Indeed,when one has. You will pay my
debts, realize your estate and thenkeep me. How long will that last?
Two or three months? And thenit will be too late to live

(06:51):
the life I propose for Then youwill have to take everything from me,
and that is what a man ofhonor cannot do. While now you have
eight or ten thousand francs a yearon which we should be able to live.
I will sell the rest of whatI do not want, and with
this alone I will make two thousandfrancs a year. We will take a

(07:15):
nice little flat in which we canboth live. In the summer we will
go into the country, not toa house like this, but to a
house just big enough for two people. You are independent, I am free.
We are young. In Heaven's name, armand do not drive me back
into the life I had to lead. Once I could not answer. Tears

(07:40):
of gratitude and love filled my eyes. I flung myself into Marguerite's arms.
I wanted. She continued to arrangeeverything without telling you, pay all my
debts and take a new flat.In October, we should have been back
in Paris and all would have comeout. But since prudence has told you

(08:03):
all, you will have to agreebeforehand instead of agreeing afterward. Do you
love me enough for that? Itwas impossible to resist such devotion. I
kissed her hands ardently and said,I will do whatever you wish. It
was agreed that we should do asshe had planned. Thereupon, she went

(08:24):
wild with delight, danced sang amusedherself with calling up pictures of her new
flat in all its simplicity, andbegan to consult me as to its position
and arrangement. I saw how happyand proud she was of this resolution,
which seemed as if it would bringus into closer and closer relationship, and

(08:46):
I resolved to do my own fare. In an instant, I decided the
whole course of my life. Iput my affairs in order and made over
to Marguerite the income which had cometo me from my mother, and which
seemed little enough in return for thesacrifice which I was accepting. There remained
the five thousand francs a year frommy father, and whatever happened, I

(09:09):
had always enough to live on.I did not tell Marguerite what I had
done, certain as I was,that she would refuse the gift. This
income came from a mortgage of sixtythousand francs on a house that I had
never even seen. All that Iknew was that every three months my father's
solicitor, an old friend of thefamily, handed over to me seven hundred

(09:33):
and fifty francs. In return formy receipt. The day when Marguerite and
I came to Paris to look fora flat, I went to the solicitor
and asked him what had to bedone in order to make over this income
to another person. The good manimagined I was ruined, and questioned me
as to the cause of my decision. As I knew that I should be

(09:56):
obliged sooner or later to say inwhose favor I made this transfer, I
thought it best to tell him thetruth at once. He made none of
the objections that his position as friendand solicitor authorized him to make, and
assured that he would arrange the wholeaffair in the best way possible. Naturally,

(10:16):
I begged him to employ the greatestdiscretion in regard to my father,
and on leaving him, I rejoinedMarguerite, who was waiting for me at
Julie Duprat's, where she had gone. In preference to going to listen to
the moralizings of prudence, we beganto look out for flats. All those

(10:37):
that we saw seemed to Marguerite toodear and to me too simple. However,
we finally found, in one ofthe quietest parts of Paris a little
house isolated from the main part ofthe building. Behind this little house was
a charming garden, surrounded by wallshigh enough to screen us from our neighbors

(10:58):
and low enough not to shut offour own view. It was better than
our expectations. While I went togive notice at my own flat, Marguerite
went to see a business agent,who, she told me, had already
done for one of her friends exactlywhat she wanted him to do for her.

(11:18):
She came on to the Rue deProvence in a state of great delight.
The man had promised to pay allher debts, to give her a
receipt for the amount, and tohand over to her twenty thousand francs in
return for the whole of her furniture. You have seen by the amount taken
at the sale, that this honestman would have gained thirty thousand francs out

(11:39):
of his client. We went backjoyously to Bougevall, talking over our projects
for the future, which, thanksto our heedlessness and especially to our love,
we saw in the rosiest light.A week later, as we were
having lunch, Nanine came to tellus that my servant was asking for me.

(12:01):
Let him come in I said,Sir said he your father has arrived
in Paris and begs you to returnat once to your rooms, where he
is waiting for you. This pieceof news was the most natural thing in
the world. Yet as we heardit, Marguerite and I looked at one
another. We foresaw trouble. Beforeshe had spoken a word, I replied

(12:24):
to her, thought and taking herhand, I said, fear nothing,
Come back as soon as possible,whispered Marguerite, embracing me. I will
wait for you at that window.I sent Aunt Joseph to tell my father
that I was on my way.Two hours later I was at the Rue

(12:45):
de Provence. End of Chapter nineteen