XV
LOVE, LIFE, AND DEATH
From above there came the shrill, rebellious cry of a woman. Below, in the court, the tenants were gathered, seeking refuge from the heat of the night. A few lights upon the sheer walls and the faint glow of the descended moon illuminated the dim groups: the men against the wall, the women clustered in the center. The cry was repeated, rising shriller. From the wall the exclamations arose:
"It isn't gay!"
"Sangdieu, two in a week! There's no peace left!"
"Eh, citoyen, if we're to fight all Europe, we must have soldiers!"
A peddler, a transient from la Mère Corniche's cellar, added in high tones:
"Thank God, just the same, we're men!"
The crones listened critically, without emotion, resuming their old wives' tales when the cry had ceased. Once a child, more keenly responsive to suffering, burst into a frightened whimper; but the mother, with an exclamation of impatience, sprang up and with a slap silenced the child, crying:
"Little brat, who told you to do that!"