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An Old Maid-Part9_Honore de Balzac(1799-1850)_Translated Works(翻译文学)-第2页

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all priests should have acted thus during the days of wrath and

terror, and he preached by example. While presenting to the world a



calm and smiling face, he had ended by detaching himself utterly from

earthly interests; his mind turned exclusively to sufferers, to the



needs of the Church, and to his own salvation. He left the management

of his property to his niece, who gave him the income of it, and to



whom he paid a slender board in order to spend the surplus in secret

alms and gifts to the Church.



All the abbe's affections were concentrated on his niece, who regarded

him as a father, but an abstracted father, unable to conceive the



agitations of the flesh, and thanking God for maintaining his dear

daughter in a state of celibacy; for he had, from his youth up,



adopted the principles of Saint John Chrysostom, who wrote that "the

virgin state is as far above the marriage state as the angel is above



humanity." Accustomed to reverence her uncle, Mademoiselle Cormon

dared not initiate him into the desires which filled her soul for a



change of state. The worthy man, accustomed, on his side, to the ways

of the house, would scarcely have liked the introduction of a husband.



Preoccupied by the sufferings he soothed, lost in the depths of

prayer, the Abbe de Sponde had periods of abstraction which the



habitues of the house regarded as absent-mindedness. In any case, he

talked little; but his silence was affable and benevolent. He was a



man of great height and spare, with grave and solemn manners, though

his face expressed all gentle sentiments and an inward calm; while his



mere presence carried with it a sacred authority. He was very fond of

the Voltairean chevalier. Those two majestic relics of the nobility



and clergy, though of very different habits and morals, recognized

each other by their generous traits. Besides, the chevalier was as



unctuous with the abbe as he was paternal with the grisettes.

Some persons may fancy that Mademoiselle Cormon used every means to



attain her end; and that among the legitimate lures of womanhood she

devoted herself to dress, wore low-necked gowns, and employed the



negative coquetries of a magnificent display of arms. Not at all! She

was as heroic and immovable in her high-necked chemisette as a sentry



in his box. Her gowns, bonnets, and chiffons were all cut and made by

the dressmaker and the milliner of Alencon, two hump-backed sisters,



who were not without some taste. In spite of the entreaties of these

artists, Mademoiselle Cormon refused to employ the airy deceits of



elegance; she chose to be substantial in all things, flesh and

feathers. But perhaps the heavy fashion of her gowns was best suited



to her cast of countenance. Let those laugh who will at this poor

girl; you would have thought her sublime, O generous souls! who care



but little what form true feeling takes, but admire it where it IS.

Here some light-minded person may exclaim against the truth of this



statement; they will say that there is not in all France a girl so

silly as to be ignorant of the art of angling for men; that



Mademoiselle Cormon is one of those monstrous exceptions which

commonsense should prevent a writer from using as a type; that the



most virtuous and also the silliest girl who desires to catch her fish

knows well how to bait the hook. But these criticisms fall before the



fact that the noble catholic, apostolic, and Roman religion is still

erect in Brittany and in the ancient duchy of Alencon. Faith and piety



admit of no subtleties. Mademoiselle Cormon trod the path of

salvation, preferring the sorrows of her virginity so cruelly



prolonged to the evils of trickery and the sin of a snare. In a woman

armed with a scourgevirtue could never compromise; consequently both



love and self-interest were forced to seek her, and seek her

resolutely. And here let us have the courage to make a cruel






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