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warders' towers in old castles。  Here; are the long monotonous

miles of canal; with the great Dutch…built barges garishly painted;

and the towing girls; sometimes harnessed by the forehead;

sometimes by the girdle and the shoulders; not a pleasant sight to

see。  Scattered through this country are mighty works of VAUBAN;

whom you know about; and regiments of such corporals as you heard

of once upon a time; and many a blue…eyed Bebelle。  Through these

flat districts; in the shining summer days; walk those long;

grotesque files of young novices in enormous shovel…hats; whom you

remember blackening the ground checkered by the avenues of leafy

trees。  And now that Hazebroucke slumbers certain kilometres ahead;

recall the summer evening when your dusty feet strolling up from

the station tended hap…hazard to a Fair there; where the oldest

inhabitants were circling round and round a barrel…organ on hobby…

horses; with the greatest gravity; and where the principal show in

the Fair was a Religious Richardson's … literally; on its own

announcement in great letters; THEATRE RELIGIEUX。  In which

improving Temple; the dramatic representation was of 'all the

interesting events in the life of our Lord; from the Manger to the

Tomb;' the principal female character; without any reservation or

exception; being at the moment of your arrival; engaged in trimming

the external Moderators (as it was growing dusk); while the next

principal female character took the money; and the Young Saint John

disported himself upside down on the platform。



Looking up at this point to confirm the small; small bird in every

particular he has mentioned; I find he has ceased to twitter; and

has put his head under his wing。  Therefore; in my different way I

follow the good example。







CHAPTER XIX … SOME RECOLLECTIONS OF MORTALITY







I had parted from the small bird at somewhere about four o'clock in

the morning; when he had got out at Arras; and had been received by

two shovel…hats in waiting at the station; who presented an

appropriately ornithological and crow…like appearance。  My

compatriot and I had gone on to Paris; my compatriot enlightening

me occasionally with a long list of the enormous grievances of

French railway travelling:  every one of which; as I am a sinner;

was perfectly new to me; though I have as much experience of French

railways as most uncommercials。  I had left him at the terminus

(through his conviction; against all explanation and remonstrance;

that his baggage…ticket was his passenger…ticket); insisting in a

very high temper to the functionary on duty; that in his own

personal identity he was four packages weighing so many kilogrammes

… as if he had been Cassim Baba!  I had bathed and breakfasted; and

was strolling on the bright quays。  The subject of my meditations

was the question whether it is positively in the essence and nature

of things; as a certain school of Britons would seem to think it;

that a Capital must be ensnared and enslaved before it can be made

beautiful:  when I lifted up my eyes and found that my feet;

straying like my mind; had brought me to Notre…Dame。



That is to say; Notre…Dame was before me; but there was a large

open space between us。  A very little while gone; I had left that

space covered with buildings densely crowded; and now it was

cleared for some new wonder in the way of public Street; Place;

Garden; Fountain; or all four。  Only the obscene little Morgue;

slinking on the brink of the river and soon to come down; was left

there; looking mortally ashamed of itself; and supremely wicked。  I

had but glanced at this old acquaintance; when I beheld an airy

procession coming round in front of Notre…Dame; past the great

hospital。  It had something of a Masaniello look; with fluttering

striped curtains in the midst of it; and it came dancing round the

cathedral in the liveliest manner。



I was speculating on a marriage in Blouse…life; or a Christening;

or some other domestic festivity which I would see out; when I

found; from the talk of a quick rush of Blouses past me; that it

was a Body coming to the Morgue。  Having never before chanced upon

this initiation; I constituted myself a Blouse likewise; and ran

into the Morgue with the rest。  It was a very muddy day; and we

took in a quantity of mire with us; and the procession coming in

upon our heels brought a quantity more。  The procession was in the

highest spirits; and consisted of idlers who had come with the

curtained litter from its starting…place; and of all the

reinforcements it had picked up by the way。  It set the litter down

in the midst of the Morgue; and then two Custodians proclaimed

aloud that we were all 'invited' to go out。  This invitation was

rendered the more pressing; if not the more flattering; by our

being shoved out; and the folding…gates being barred upon us。



Those who have never seen the Morgue; may see it perfectly; by

presenting to themselves on indifferently paved coach…house

accessible from the street by a pair of folding…gates; on the left

of the coach…house; occupying its width; any large London tailor's

or linendraper's plate…glass window reaching to the ground; within

the window; on two rows of inclined plane; what the coach…house has

to show; hanging above; like irregular stalactites from the roof of

a cave; a quantity of clothes … the clothes of the dead and buried

shows of the coach…house。



We had been excited in the highest degree by seeing the Custodians

pull off their coats and tuck up their shirt…sleeves; as the

procession came along。  It looked so interestingly like business。

Shut out in the muddy street; we now became quite ravenous to know

all about it。  Was it river; pistol; knife; love; gambling;

robbery; hatred; how many stabs; how many bullets; fresh or

decomposed; suicide or murder?  All wedged together; and all

staring at one another with our heads thrust forward; we propounded

these inquiries and a hundred more such。  Imperceptibly; it came to

be known that Monsieur the tall and sallow mason yonder; was

acquainted with the facts。  Would Monsieur the tall and sallow

mason; surged at by a new wave of us; have the goodness to impart?

It was but a poor old man; passing along the street under one of

the new buildings; on whom a stone had fallen; and who had tumbled

dead。  His age?  Another wave surged up against the tall and sallow

mason; and our wave swept on and broke; and he was any age from

sixty…five to ninety。



An old man was not much:  moreover; we could have wished he had

been killed by human agency … his own; or somebody else's:  the

latter; preferable … but our comfort was; that he had nothing about

him to lead to his identification; and that his people must seek

him here。  Perhaps they were waiting dinner for him even now?  We

liked that。  Such of us as had pocket…handkerchiefs took a slow;

intense; protracted wipe at our noses; and then crammed our

handkerchiefs into the breast of our blouses。  Others of us who had

no handkerchiefs administered a similar relief to our overwrought

minds; by means of prolonged smears or wipes of our mouths on our

sleeves。  One man with a gloomy malformation of brow … a homicidal

worker in white…lead; to judge from his blue tone of colour; and a

certain flavour of paralysis pervading him … got his coat…collar

between his teeth; and bit at it with an appetite。  Several decent

women arrived upon the outskirts of the crowd; and prepared to

launch themselves into the dismal coach…house when opportunity

should come; among them; a pretty young mother; pretending to bite

the forefinger of her baby…boy; kept it between her rosy lips that

it might be handy for guiding to point at the show。  Meantime; all

faces were turned towards the building; and we men waited with a

fixed and stern resolution:… for the most part with folded arms。

Surely; it was the only public French sight these uncommercial eyes

had seen; at which the expectant people did not form EN QUEUE。  But

there was no such order of arrangement here; nothing but a general

determination to make a rush for it; and a disposition to object to

some boys who had mounted on the two stone posts by the hinges of

the gates; with the design of swooping in when the hinges should

turn。



Now; they turned; and we rushed!  Great pressure; and a scream or

two from the front。  Then a laugh or two; some expressions of

disappointment; and a slackening of the pressure and subsidence of

the struggle。 … Old man not there。



'But what would you have?' the Custodian reasonably argues; as he

looks out at his little door。  'Patience; patience!  We make his

toilette; gentlemen。  He will be exposed presently。  It is

necessary to proceed according to rule。  His toilette is not made

all at a blow。  He will be exposed in good time; gentlemen; in good

time。'  And so retires; smoking; with a wave of his sleeveless arm

towards

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