“What!” she exclaimed, striding angrily toward her husband; “you brought the children to their uncle before I had washed and dressed them and combed their hair?”
“Well! what of that, my dear love? must they be in their Sunday best to bid their uncle good-morning?”
“It isn’t a question of Sunday best; but I should have liked Eugène to see them first when they were decently clean; and when they have once begun to play, it isn’t possible to keep them looking decent. But you do everything without consulting me!”
“I assure you, my dear sister, that I consider them very nice as they are.”
“Come, young gentlemen, breakfast is waiting.”
The word breakfast caused my little rascals to decamp at once; they were soon off my bed, and I was able to rise.
It seemed to me that examples of wedded bliss succeeded each other rather swiftly under my sister’s roof. But I was inclined to think that, if I should marry, I should not take them as patterns in the matter of bringing up children. But I had arrived only the night before, and it was fair to wait before forming a final judgment.
I went downstairs and joined the family in the dining room. While we breakfasted, Amélie and her husband described their daily life to me. In the morning, business, housekeeping, and a walk when they had any time to themselves; in the evening, Déneterre went to the café to play pool, while his wife dressed to go out. Every evening in the week was taken: Monday, at the notary’s, a small and select party. The most notable of the townspeople met there. There was little card playing, but much political discussion, and one could learn there the news of all the cabinets in Europe; the interests of each of the powers were discussed, and the Moniteur was read aloud. Tuesdays, at the house of a retired merchant; he was a rich man and entertained handsomely: beer, cake, and sweetened water flavored with orange. The play was for very high stakes: boston for six blancs, and écarté for five sous; the bets sometimes went as high as seventy-five centimes! But all games were played there; whist and boston with great skill. No one called for six tricks unless he had eight, or stood unless he held an indépendance; so that it was very unusual to see a remise in the course of the evening. Wednesdays, the evening was spent with the widow of the justice’s clerk, who had four daughters to marry and no money to give them. There they played innocent games or acted charades or proverbs. In the first place, those games do not wear out cards, and require fewer candles; in the second place, the young men soon become well acquainted with the young ladies while playing such games. They talk and laugh together; and many a passion has had its birth in crambo, or the little box of amourettes. While whispering a confidence, one can easily put in a word of love; while pretending to sulk, one can say many things! That is the way more than one marriage is made; and when one has four daughters to look after, no means should be neglected. However, everything was all right at the widow’s; the games were carried on with the strictest decorum, and blind-man’s-buff seated was prohibited. Thursdays, the meetings were at an ex-councillor’s. Everybody was not received there; only the cream of society. The guests were forbidden to talk politics, war, affairs of state, or newspaper rumors. There was no card playing, because that was a bad example for the young; there was no dancing, because madame la conseillère, who was old but coquettish, could never obtain a partner; there were no charades, because they disturb the orderly arrangement of a salon, and may result in marring the furniture and tearing curtains; there were no innocent games, because the councillor considered them indecorous; there were no refreshments, because well-bred people never need anything of the sort. With these restrictions, one could say and do whatever one chose, and, of course, enjoy one’s self immensely. On Fridays they met at the house of an elector, whose wife, who was young and pretty, followed all the fashions of the capital. There you did whatever you chose; no restraint, no ceremony. Dancing was permitted, and singing, when anyone desired to sing. Sometimes there was instrumental music, because there was a piano. All sorts of games were played, from loto to chess; and you could risk a sou or a louis at your pleasure. Everybody said what came into his head; they laughed and joked and talked as they liked; opinions were free; almost all the newspapers were to be found there, and all sorts of refreshments were provided. It was after the style of the receptions in the Chaussée d’Antin at Paris.
On Saturdays—ah! that was the day when they all met at my sister’s.
“You will see what fun we have,” she said to me; “such a noise, such go! You can’t hear what anyone says, but we laugh, and everyone tries to be merrier than the rest. Why, sometimes the time passes so quickly, that they are still here at half-past ten!”