Monsieur Cherami Part 57

"They are not there either; I shan't have my cue this evening. This is enough for to-day; but I am well pleased with the effect I produced in that last place: they all laughed, even the mistress herself laughed like a madwoman! It was very amusing to see the gayety on all those female faces--and all because I asked for a ham! After all, a ham was more absurd than a coat, shirts, or children's caps! Well, to-morrow I must ask for something even more absurd. Oh! I shall think up something; I'm never at a loss. Meanwhile, let's go and have a game of pool at the usual place. When my pocket is well lined, I play superbly, I handle my cue magnificently. I am sure of winning, according to the proverb: 'Water keeps flowing to the river.'"

The next day, after dinner, Cherami returned to Rue Saint-Denis, saying to himself:

"I know how far I went yesterday, and where I must begin to-day. I have something very amusing to ask for. How I'll make them laugh! Oh! I propose that not even the forewomen shall succeed in keeping a serious face. They will fancy they're at the Palais-Royal when Gra.s.sot plays _La Garde-Malade_, or _Le Vieux Loup de Mer_."

But, since the preceding night, certain things had happened in Rue Saint-Denis which our grisette-hunter could not divine.

In a quarter so wholly given over to business, there are brokers and under-clerks who go about almost every morning inquiring as to the course of prices, articles most in demand, etc.; this is commonly called _faire la place_. Now, when one of these brokers entered a certain feather-shop, the girls asked him laughingly:

"Have you brought us some children's caps? we had a call for some last night."

"Caps? you are joking!"

"No, indeed!"

And thereupon they told him about their customer of the night before.

The story made the broker laugh, and that was the end of it. But at another shop they told him about a man who had wanted to buy a coat.

"This is a strange thing!" he exclaimed; "over yonder, somebody asked for a child's cap. Can it be the same man?"

At that, the proprietor's interest was aroused.

"I must go to see my confreres, and find out whether they also saw this person."

"That is right," said the broker; "we must go to the bottom of this; for it seems to me as if someone had made up his mind to play a practical joke on you. I'll go with you."

They soon learned that Cherami had visited four shops; but they also satisfied themselves that he had been to no more. The dealers in feathers took counsel together, and those who had not received a call from the jocose gentleman said to one another:

"Perhaps the fellow will begin again to-morrow night; we must prepare to give him a warm reception."

The tradesmen, at whose establishments he had asked for caps, a coat, shirts, and a ham, said to their confreres:

"Allow us to come to your shops to-night and wait for this man, so that we can have our share in the reception you propose to give him."

Everything being agreed upon, in the evening they divided up into groups and waited impatiently for the party of the night before to appear.

Our hunter of feather-makers entered Rue Saint-Denis, far from suspecting all that had been plotted against him; he waved his switch about, looked to right and left, then said to himself:

"I went in there--and there. I recognize the shops perfectly. Ah!

there's my number three. There's only one more--the fourth--there it is; yes, I recognize the forewoman, who had a very amiable expression, laughing as she did with all the rest of them. Now, I will go into the next one I see, and we'll have a little laugh. Oh! the question I am going to ask will be so laughable! the girls will fairly howl. I won't even answer for it that I can keep a serious face myself.--Ah! there's a feather-shop. A fine place--forward!"

Cherami made but one bound to the shop he had discovered; he entered, struck a graceful att.i.tude, and ogled the workgirls, not noticing several young men who had stepped behind the doors when he entered.

The forewoman looked at him in a strange way, but asked him, none the less, in a polite tone, what he wanted.

Cherami replied, with a winning smile:

"What do I want? Mon Dieu! fair lady, a very simple thing. I would like--I like to think that you keep them--I would like a broomstick."

"Certainly we keep them, monsieur," the forewoman instantly answered.

"How lucky! we have just laid in a stock. You couldn't go to a better place."

While Cherami listened in utter amazement to this reply, which he was very far from expecting, the young men, who had, as it happened, provided themselves with broomsticks, came forth from their hiding-place and fell upon him at close quarters, crying:

"Ah! you want broomsticks, do you? well! you shall have 'em!--to teach you to go into shops as you did last night, to make sport of honest tradesmen! Take that, and that! how do you like broomsticks?"

Cherami, who was unprepared for this attack, tried to parry the blows with his switch, but the switch was no match for the weapons of his opponents; so he thought of nothing but making his escape.

"I will wait for you in the street, messieurs," he cried; "I challenge you all, one at a time."

But they made no reply; they simply pushed him into the street and closed the door on him. Somewhat ashamed of the result of his jest, our friend, who had received a too well-aimed blow from a broomstick over his left eye, walked away, holding his handkerchief to the wound, and saying to himself:

"What a d.a.m.nable idea that was of mine, to ask for a broomstick! This time, I have my cue!"

XL

THE BANKER

Cherami's left eye was so badly damaged, and retained so long the marks of the blow it had received, that the ex-beau was obliged to keep his room six weeks, because he did not choose to go out with a bandage across his face.

Madame Louchard, who was frequently intrusted with the duty of dressing the wounded organ, said one day to her tenant:

"How in the world did you get that _trump_?"

"You call that a _trump_, my amiable hostess! It would be a deuced fine hand which was full of such trumps!"

"You fought another duel, did you, hot-head?"

"I am forced to confess that I was beaten this time; I wasn't strong enough; there was a whole regiment against me."

"That wasn't done by a sword, was it?"

"No, unluckily! A sword puts your eye out, but doesn't force it out of your head. But I got it for the sake of two girls!"

"Aha! so you must have two at once! G.o.d! what good reason I have to hate men!"

"However, this forced retirement has compelled me to be economical; I have given you a superb payment on account."

"Twenty-five francs! Do you call that superb?"

"Everything is comparative; I usually give you only a hundred sous. My eye is getting well, thank G.o.d! I shall soon resume my activity."

"And run after your girls again, I suppose?"

"No, on my word as a gentleman, I shan't begin that again; I've had enough of it! I have my cue. I am going to try to find my friend Gustave; he may have been in Paris since I have kept my room. My first visit will be to his uncle, a by no means amiable party, who presumes to look askance at me; but, so long as he tells me where his nephew is, I will allow him to make faces at me, if it affords him any pleasure."