Moths by Ouida — page 37: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

MOTHS. 33 ever hurts God? One might fancy even Deity wounded by neg: lected gifts. What do you say ?” He plucked a little lavender and some sea-pinks, and wound them together with the rose. ** When the fools throw me flowers they hurt me; it is bar- barous,” he said. ‘‘To throw laurel has more sense; there is a bitter smell in it, and it carries a sound allegory; but flowers ! —fiowers thrown in the dust and dying in the gas glare! Thea little live birds thrown at Carnival are only one shade worse. Ah ! here is the lad that I sent to find your waiting-woman.” The rose, the song, the magical charm, seemed all dissolved before Yere as by the speaking of some disenchanter’s spell; the hardness and fearfulness of prosaic fact faced her. The fisher-lad explained that he had been miles in search of the good woman, but he had not found her. Men he had lately met had told him they had seen such a figure running hard © back to the town. ‘* What shall I do?” she murmured aloud. ‘‘I have beew for- getting all the trouble that Ichave been to you. Show me the way back—only that; I can find it—I can go alone. Indeed I can, M. de Correze.” ‘‘Indeed you will do nothing of the kind,” said Correze. ‘¢ Your woman is quite safe, you see, so you need fear nothing for her. No doubt she thinks you have gone that way home. Mademoiselle Herbert, if you will listen to me, you will not distress yourself, but let me take you in my little boat that is down there to Trouville. It is impossible that you should walk in those wooden shoes, and carriage or even cart there is none here. Come, it is half-past nine only now. The sun ig still temperate; the sea is smooth, Come, I will row you home in an hour.” ‘‘But I have been such a trouble to you.” ‘¢ May I never have worse burdens!” ‘¢ And my mother will be so angry.” ‘Will she? Madame Dolly, a mother and angry? I cannot picture it; and I thought I knew her in every phase. My child, do not be so troubled about nothing. Wewill drift back slowly and pleasantly, and you shall be in your mother’s house before noon strikes. And every one knows me. That is one of the uses of notoriety; it has many drawbacks, so it need have some compensations. Come. I rowed myself out here. I studied music a year in Venice when I was a lad, and learned rowing on the Lido from the fruit girls. Come.” She did not resist much more; she thought that he must know best. Withthe gray lavender and the rose at her throat, she went away from under the cherry-trees; the old woman in her blue gown gave them her blessing; the lark left his nest and began to sing again; the sunny hour was over, the black steep head of the cliffs was soon between them and the litt!e hamlet. They walked down by an easier way to the shore. The little boat was rocking on a high tide. ‘¢Can you steer?” said Correze. 1 OAM sa ‘Oh, yes,” said Vere, who was learned <n ail sailing and boat- (E(@) comicbooks.