The Bath Keepers Volume I Part 11

"Not without my helping to defend him!" e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed Master Hugonnet, running to take his stand beside the travellers, still carrying his basin and shaving brush.

"And I will not allow that girl to be insulted, without doing what I can to help her!" cried Ambroisine, following her father and placing herself in front of Miretta.

"That is right! good! good for _la baigneuse_!" cried all the women, who had been drawn to the scene by the noise of the quarrel. "You are on the girl's side, and we too will defend her!"

"All these ne'er-do-wells are fit for nothing but to insult women!"

"Let us pick up stones and throw them at the villains!"

"No, no! by Notre-Dame!" cried Hugonnet. "No stones, I entreat you! You will break my windows and my sign, and I shall have to pay for all the damage! We shall be able to settle this business without you!"

The young gentlemen were embarra.s.sed, for, although eager to fight and having little fear of their adversaries, they were afraid that in the scrimmage they might injure the pretty traveller and Ambroisine.

The latter, divining what held them back, took delight in defying all those fine cavaliers, who were in the habit of making love to her, and several of whom called out to her:

"Come away from there, _belle baigneuse_; that is no place for you!"

"You are in our way. Besides, you ought not to take sides against your customers!"

"I don't care a fig for customers! Let these travellers go their way, and I will agree to shave all of you."

This proposition seemed to make an impression on several of the young men; but the Sire de Jarnonville, irritated by all this discussion, drew his sword and strode toward the horse's head. With a few pa.s.ses he soon sent the famous Roland flying through the air. Pa.s.sedix, disarmed, called loudly for another weapon.

The Black Chevalier thereupon turned his attention to the dogwood staff, but he had not so simple a task as with the Gascon's sword.

At that moment, a young page, who had stolen forward to unseat Miretta, was confronted by Master Hugonnet; and he, having no other weapons than his basin and shaving brush, instantly covered the page with a thick coating of lather, filling his nose and mouth and even his eyes with it; whereupon the a.s.sailant began to shriek at the top of his voice. All eyes were turned in that direction. At sight of that face completely covered with lather, a roar of laughter burst from all who were present, friends and foes, combatants and lookers-on; it was as if they were trying to see who could laugh the loudest.

This incident suspended the combat for a moment. But the Sire de Jarnonville, who alone had taken no part in the general merriment, immediately renewed his attack on the peasant's staff. Whether because Cedrille's arm was tired, or because the sight of that gleaming weapon, whirling through the air and sometimes striking sparks, dazzled his eyes, he began to defend himself less vigorously. At last, a blow dealt with more force than usual broke the staff.

The peasant was beaten; the Black Chevalier's weapon was already on the point of forcing him to dismount, when Ambroisine, who had left her post a moment before, suddenly reappeared, carrying in her arms a little boy of three or four years; and darting in front of Jarnonville, she held the child out to him, crying:

"Take care, seigneur, you will wound this child!"

Those words and the sight of the little boy produced a magical effect on the Black Chevalier. He paused and dropped his arm, which was raised to strike; the warlike ardor which enlivened his face gave way to an expression of sadness, almost of tenderness. He gazed for some seconds at the little fellow, who, not realizing that he was in the midst of a battle, was not in the least frightened, but smiled up at the chevalier, crying:

"I'd like to fight, too!"

Jarnonville stooped to kiss the child's forehead, and replaced his sword in its sheath. Then, turning to the young n.o.blemen, who were utterly amazed at the change that had taken place in him, he said to them:

"It's all over, messieurs; the treaty of peace is signed!"

"What! all over? How so, if we are not satisfied?"

"I tell you that it is all over! This peasant has been conquered, disarmed; what more do you want?"

"We want him to apologize."

"We want most of all to kiss the pretty girl whom he has _en croupe_."

Jarnonville's only reply was to push aside with his arm all those who stood in front of the horse, thus clearing a pa.s.sage for him. Then he made a sign to the peasant, who understood him and dug his heels into Bourriquet's ribs. This time the poor beast seemed to share his master's desire, and asked nothing better than to leave the field of battle. He trotted off at full speed down Rue Saint-Jacques, and Cedrille and his pretty companion soon disappeared from the eyes of the crowd.

All this had happened so quickly that Miretta hardly had time to grasp Ambroisine's hand and say:

"Thanks! thanks! you have saved us! I shall come to see you, and to tell you how grateful I am!"

"Come; you will ask for Ambroisine, the daughter of Master Hugonnet the bath keeper, on Rue Saint-Jacques."

IX

CAUSES AND EFFECTS

Ambroisine's first care was to take the child back to its mother, a woman of the people, who was there by the merest chance, having come to find out why such a crowd had collected in front of the bath keeper's establishment, little dreaming that her child would be the means of adjusting that great quarrel.

Hugonnet's daughter kissed the little fellow, put a coin in his hand with which to buy a cake, and returned to her home, curious to learn how the gentlemen had taken the conclusion of the affair.

Senange, La Valteline, Monclair, and their friends, were dazed for a moment by the sudden departure of Cedrille and his companion. Some of them were inclined to run after the peasant, others wanted to fight Jarnonville, whom they accused of betraying them; they were all displeased, and another battle was imminent perhaps, when general attention was attracted by shouts and oaths proceeding from the place recently occupied by Bourriquet.

A battle with fists was in progress between Master Hugonnet and one of his neighbors, named Lambourdin, a dealer in ribbons, tags, fringes, and other toilet articles, whose shop was not more than fifty yards from the baths.

The two neighbors were ordinarily very good friends; they met sometimes at the wine shop, which both were fond of frequenting; they laughed and talked and drank together, and no one would ever have supposed that they would one day entertain the inhabitants of the quarter with a genuine pugilistic bout.

But who can foretell the future?

The most trivial cause is sometimes sufficient to embroil amba.s.sadors and to bring about war between two nations that could get along very well without it; and we too often see old friends suddenly become declared enemies.

In our day, politics sometimes produces such revolutions by its gentle and benignant influence. In the good old times, there were sometimes conspiracies of great personages, n.o.bles, and persons in high station, but the people paid little heed to their plots. They went to see them hanged at Montfaucon, but they were not tempted to meddle with matters that led to such results. In those days, the workman thought of nothing but working to support his family, to save a marriage portion for his daughter, and to make sure of a home in his old age. That was the sum total of his politics; it made him neither ill, nor infuriate, nor insane, nor sophistical, nor evil-minded! It made him happy!

In that respect we may well regret the good old times.

Let us return to the two neighbors.

Lambourdin, the dealer in small wares, was by inclination, and, above all, by virtue of his trade, of the faction of the young n.o.bles and the courtiers. When a n.o.ble personage entered his shop and made a purchase, Lambourdin puffed himself out like the frog in the fable, and never failed to proclaim from the housetops that he supplied monsieur le comte, or monsieur le marquis, or messieurs the pages attached to the court.

And so, when he learned the cause of the gathering, which he could see from his shop, the dealer in small wares hastened to the scene of the combat, fully disposed to take up the cudgels for the young n.o.bles, to whom he was intensely anxious to display his entire devotion.

But the young men did not require the a.s.sistance of Master Lambourdin, and he had had no other opportunity to show his interest in their victory than by addressing an insulting remark or a threat to Cedrille from time to time.

But when Master Hugonnet besmeared a page so successfully with his lather, Lambourdin, far from finding that amusing, flew into a transport of rage, especially as the page who was so thoroughly lathered had bought two beautiful bows of ribbon at his shop that morning.

And so, as soon as the Black Chevalier's sword play had ceased, as soon as Bourriquet had trotted away with his travellers on his back, Lambourdin elbowed his way through the crowd to Master Hugonnet, and said, eying him with a furious expression:

"Do you know, Neighbor Hugonnet, that you have behaved very badly throughout this affair?"

"Ah! do you think so, Neighbor Lambourdin?" rejoined the barber, in a bantering tone; for the wrathful expression blazing in the other's eyes gave him a comical appearance, which inspired merriment rather than alarm.