A Wedding Gift

7/24/2019 A Wedding Gift

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A Wedding Gift

For a long time Jacques Bourdillere had sworn

that, he would never marry, but he suddenly

changed his mind. It happened suddenly, one

summer, at the seashore. One morning as he laystretched out on the sand, watching the women

coming out of the water, a little foot had struck

him by its neatness and daintiness.


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e raised his eyes and was delighted with the

whole person, although in fact he could seenothing but the ankles and the head emerging

from a flannel bathrobe carefully held closed.


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Then he was held by the charm of theyoung girl's sweet mind, so simple andgood. He was presented to the family

and pleased them. He immediately fellmadly in love. When he saw Bertheannis in the distance, on the long

yellow stretch of sand.


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When he was near her he wouldbecome silent, unable to spea! or

even to thin!, with a !ind of throbbingat his heart, and a bu""ing in his ears,and a bewilderment in his mind.


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Was that love# He did not !now orunderstand, but he had fully decidedto have this child for his wife. Her

parents hesitated for a long time,restrained by the young man's badreputation.


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$t was said that he had an oldsweetheart, one of these bindingattachments which one alwaysbelieves to be bro!en o% and yetwhich always hold. Besides, for ashorter or longer period, he lovedevery woman who came.


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Then he settled down and refused,even once, to see the one with

whom he had lived for so long. Afriend too! care of this woman'spension and assured her an income.

&acues paid, but he did not even

wish to hear of her, pretending evento ignore her name. (he wrote himletters, which he never opened


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)very wee! he would recogni"e theclumsy writing of the abandonedwoman, and every wee! a greateranger surged within him against her,

and he would uic!ly tear theenvelope and the paper, withoutopening it, without reading one

single line, !nowing in advance thereproaches and complaints which itcontained


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As no one had much faith in his

constancy, the test was prolongedthrough the winter, and Berthe's handwas not granted him until the spring.

The wedding too! place in *aris at thebeginning of +ay. The young couplehad decided not to ta!e theconventional wedding trip, but after a

little dance for the younger cousins,which would not be prolonged aftereleven o'cloc!


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$n order that this day of lengthyceremonies might not be tootiresome, the young pair were tospend the rst night in the parentalhome and then on the followingmorning, to leave for the beach sodear to their hearts, where they had

rst !nown and loved each other.


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-ight had come, and the dance wasgoing on in the large parlor. 'The twohad retired into a little &apanese

boudoir hung with bright sil!s anddimly lighted by the soft rays of alarge colored lantern hanging from

the ceiling li!e a gigantic egg.


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Through the open window the freshair from outside passed over their

faces li!e a caress, for the night waswarm and calm, full of the odor ofspring


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They were silent, holding each other'shands and from time to time suee"ingthem with all their might. (he sat therewith a dreamy loo!, feeling a little lostat this great change in her life, but

smiling, moved, ready to cry, oftenalso almost ready to faint from oy,believing the whole world to bechanged by what had ust happened toher, uneasy, she !new not why, andfeeling her whole body and soul lledwith an indenable.


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He was loo!ing at her persistently

with a /ed smile. He wished to

spea!, but found nothing to say, andso sat there, e/pressing all his ardorby pressures of the hand. 0rom time

to time he would murmur1 2Berthe32


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And each time she would raise her

eyes to him with a loo! oftenderness4 they would loo! at each

other for a second and then herloo!. They found no thoughts toe/change. They had been left alone,but occasionally some of thedancers would cast a rapid glance at

them, as though they were thediscreet and trusty witnesses of amystery


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A door opened and a servant

entered, holding on a tray a letterwhich a messenger had ust brought.

&acues, trembling, too! this paper,

overwhelmed by a vague andsudden fear. He loo!ed for alongtime at the envelope, the writingon which he did not !now, not daringto open it, not wishing to read it,with a wild desire to put it in hispoc!et and say to himself1


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2$'ll leave that till tomorrow, when

$'m far away32 But on one corner twobig words, underlined, 25ery urgent,2lled him with terror. (aying, 2*lease

e/cuse me, my dear,2 he tore openthe envelope. He read the paper,grew frightfully pale, loo!ed over it

again, and, slowly, he seemed tospell it out word for word.


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When he raised his head his wholee/pression showed how upset hewas. He stammered1 2+y dear, it's66it's from my best friend, who hashad ,a very great misfortune. He hasneed of me immediately66for a

matter of life or death.


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Will you e/cuse me if $ leave you forhalf an hour# $'ll be right bac!.2

Trembling and da"ed, she stammered12Go, my dear32 not having been his

wife long enough to dare to uestionhim, to demand to !now. Hedisappeared. (he remained alone,

listening to the dancing in theneighboring parlor.


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He had sei"ed the rst hat and coat hecame to and rushed downstairs threesteps at a time. As he was emerging

into the street he stopped under thegas6et of the vestibule and reread theletter. This is what it said


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7($81 A girl by the name of 8avet, anold sweetheart of yours, it seems,

has ust given birth to a child thatshe says is yours. The mother isabout to die and is begging for you.

$ ta!e the liberty to write and as!you if you can grant this last reuestto a woman who seems to be very

unhappy and worthy of pity. 9ourstruly, :8. B;--A8:


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When he reached the sic!6room thewoman was already on the point ofdeath. He did not recogni"e her at rst.

The doctor and two nurses were ta!ingcare of her. And everywhere on the=oor were pails full of ice and rags

covered with blood


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Water =ooded the carpet4 two candleswere burning on a bureau4 behind thebed, in a little wic!er crib, the childwas crying, and each time it wouldmoan the mother, in torture, would try

to move, shivering under her icebandages. (he was mortally wounded,!illed by this birth. Her life was =owing

from her, and, notwithstanding the iceand the care, the mercilesshemorrhage continued


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(he recogni"ed &acues and

wished to raise her arms. Theywere so wea! that she could notdo so, but tears coursed down her

pallid chee!s. He dropped to his!nees beside the bed, sei"ed oneof her hands and !issed it

frantically. Then, little by little, hedrew close to the thin face.


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;ne of the nurses was lighting themwith a candle, and the doctor was

watching them from the bac! of theroom.


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Then she said in a voice whichsounded as though it came from adistance1 2$ am going to die, dear.

*romise to stay to the end. ;h3 don'tleave me now. :on't leave me in mylast moments32He !issed her face andher hair, and, weeping, he murmured1

2:o not be uneasy4 $ will stay.2


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$t was several minutes before she

could spea! again, she was so wea!.(he continued1 2The little one is yours.$ swear it before God and on my soul. $

swear it as $ am dying3 $ have neverloved another man but you 66promiseto ta!e care of the child.2He was trying

to ta!e this poor pain6rac!ed body inhis arms.


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+addened by remorse and sorrow, hestammered1 2$ swear to you that $ willbring him up and love him. He shallnever leave me.2 As soon as she felt alittle calmer, she murmured1 2Bringhim here and let me see if you lovehim.2


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He went and got the child. He placed

him gently on the bed between them,and the little one stopped crying. (hemurmured1 2:on't move any more32

And he was uiet. And he stayedthere, holding in his burning hand thisother hand sha!ing in the chill ofdeath, ust as, a while ago, he hadbeen holding a hand trembling withlove


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0rom time to time he would cast auic! glance at the cloc!, which

mar!ed midnight, then one o'cloc!,then two. The physician hadreturned. The two nurses, after

noiselessly moving about the roomfor a while, were now sleeping onchairs. The child was asleep, and

the mother, with eyes shut,appeared also to be resting.


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(uddenly, ust as pale daylight wascreeping in behind the curtains, shestretched out her arms with such a

uic! and violent motion that shealmost threw her baby on the =oor. A!ind of rattle was heard in her throat,then she lay on her bac! motionless,

dead.


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The nurses sprang forward and

declared1 2All is over32 He loo!ed oncemore at this woman whom he had soloved, then at the cloc!, which pointed

to four, and he ran away, forgetting hisovercoat, in the evening dress, withthe child in his arms. After he had lefther alone the young wife had waited,calmly enough at rst, in the little

&apanese boudoir.


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Then, as she did not see him

return, she went bac! to the parlorwith an indi%erent and calmappearance, but terribly an/ious.

When her mother saw her aloneshe as!ed1 2Where is yourhusband#2 (he answered1 2$n his

room4 he is coming right bac!.2


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After an hour, when everybody haduestioned her, she told about theletter, &acues' upset appearance and

her fears of an accident. (till theywaited. The guests left4 only thenearest relatives remained. Atmidnight the bride was put to bed,

sobbing bitterly


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Her mother and two aunts, sittingaround the bed, listened to her crying,

silent and in despair. The father hadgone to the commissary of police tosee if he could obtain some news.


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At ve o'cloc! a slight noise was heardin the hall. A door was softly openedand closed. Then suddenly a little cryli!e the mewing of a cat was heardthroughout the silent house.


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All the women started forward andBerthe sprang ahead of them all,pushing her way past her aunts.

&acues stood in the middle of theroom, pale and out of breath, holdingan infant in his arms.


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The four women loo!ed at him,astonished4 but Berthe, who hadsuddenly become courageous, rushedforward with anguish in her heart,e/claiming1 2What is it# What's the

matter#2 He loo!ed about him wildlyand answered shortly1 2$66$ have a childand the mother has ust died.2And with

his clumsy hands he held out thescreaming infant.


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Without saying a word, Berthe sei"edthe child, !issed it and hugged it to

her. Then she raised her tear6lledeyes to him, as!ing1 2:id you say thatthe mother was dead#2 He answered


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29es66ust now66in my arms. $ hadbro!en with her since summer. $ !newnothing. The physician sent for me.2

Then Berthe murmured1 2Well, we willbring up the little one.2

A Wedding Gift

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