Jacques Bonneval | Page 4

and ran to his
assistance; but he was so prickly all over, that it was difficult to lay
hold of him. His needles and pins ran into my fingers in a dozen places.
To make matters worse, his nose began to bleed, so that he was in a
pitiable plight. However, I picked him up at last, found he was not
seriously injured, gave him a clean handkerchief (which he promised to
return), and started him off again in his cart, in a sitting position this
time, and much crestfallen.
The throng increased as we approached Beaucaire, and when we got

into the streets there was frequently a complete stoppage. Oh, what a
lively scene it was! and what a noise! Music playing, bells ringing,
people talking at the top of their voices. What joyous meetings I what
hearty welcomes! what various smells of fried fish, hot soups, and roast
meats! Truly, the Fair of Beaucaire exceeded my liveliest imaginings,
and yours will certainly never come up to it.
The fair, you have perhaps heard, is held on a wide open ground
between the Rhone and the castle rock. This space was covered with
streets of booths and sheds, in which all kinds of merchandise were
displayed. The river was choked with heavily-freighted barges. As for
the streets, they were hung from their upper windows with the richest
tapestries; silks, damasks, velvets, and goldsmiths' work were displayed
in the richest abundance; the most costly valuables exposed, almost at
the mercy of jostling wayfarers; banners flaunting overhead, and
casting fleeting shadows beneath. Languages of all nations mingled in
strange medley--German, Spanish, Italian, Turkish, Arabic, Russian.
Ah, it was like a dream!
My uncle Nicolas received us most heartily; and, while my father and
M. Bourdinave went about their affairs, I had the pleasing charge of the
women, and showing them what was to be seen. My mother, with a
child in each hand, Madeleine and I, each with another child, Gabrielle
and old Alice close behind us, formed such a phalanx that we made
way for ourselves, or had it made for us, wherever we went, and saw
everything we wanted to see. We even saw the dentist, and Alice would
not be foiled this time, but almost thrust herself on his notice. He made
her sit on the ground, put her head between his knees and dragged out
the tooth by main force. She screamed horribly, and said, "You
engaged to give no pain!" "To myself," said he, "but I could not engage
for you." So there was the laugh against her. However, the tooth was
out, and he generously gave it to her; so we walked away laughing.


CHAPTER II
.
THE FEAST OF ST. MAGDALEN.

We looked about us till dinner, and after dinner we looked about us
again; for the women and children seemed as though they would never
be sated with sightseeing; and as for me, I was never sated of going
about with Madeleine. All at once she cried out in a frightened voice,
"Where is Gabrielle?"
We looked about and could see neither her nor Alice; and as it was
nearly the hour they call vesper, though the days were still pretty long,
we were greatly alarmed at their disappearance. Little Louison,
however, plucked my sleeve, and said, "I think they went in there,"
pointing to a church-door; so, although my father specially objected to
my setting foot within a Catholic place of worship, Madeleine and I
went in to look for her sister; but my mother kept the children outside.
As soon as we entered we found ourselves almost in darkness, what
little light there was proceeding from great wax candles; and there was
a good deal of tawdry finery and trumpery all about, and a strong smell
of incense. I was looking about me with curiosity and interest, mixed
with a certain repulsion, when Madeleine, in an eager undertone,
exclaimed, "There she is!" and pressed forward, I close following, to a
little side-altar, where Gabrielle and Alice were listening, with amused
wonder, to a priest, who was telling a group of people about him that
what he was exhibiting to them was one of Mary Magdalen's bones;
and that she and Lazarus, and Martha his sister, had put to sea in an old
boat, and in process of time, after being sorely buffeted by winds and
waves, had been cast ashore at Marseilles, where they preached the
gospel to the natives, and converted them all.
I did not believe one word of this, nor did Madeleine, who drew her
reluctant sister away; and when we got her into the open air, rebuked
her for doing what their father would not approve. Gabrielle looked
inclined to defend herself, and make a joke of