IV

Madame Levaille sedeva a ciglio asciutto sull’erba breve del pendio, colle sue gambe massiccie protese, e i suoi vecchi piedi volti all’insù, nelle loro scarpe di panno nero. Le sue sopra scarpe di legno le stavano vicine, e più lontano l’ombrello giaceva sull’erba secca, come un’arma caduta dal pugno di un guerriero vinto. Madame Levaille sat, dry-eyed, on the short grass of the hill side, with her thick legs stretched out, and her old feet turned up in their black cloth shoes. Her clogs stood near by, and further off the umbrella lay on the withered sward like a weapon dropped from the grasp of a vanquished warrior.

Il marchese di Chavannes, a cavallo, una mano inguantata sul fianco, abassò gli occhi su lei mentr’ella si alzava a fatica, gemendo. The Marquis of Chavanes, on horseback, one gloved hand on thigh, looked down at her as she got up laboriously, with groans.

Sulla stretta carreggiata dei carri dell’alghe quattro uomini portavano a terra il corpo di Susanna su una barella, mentre molti altri seguivano alla rinfusa. Madame Levaille seguiva coll’occhio la processione. On the narrow track of the seaweed-carts four men were carrying inland Susan’s body on a hand-barrow, while several others straggled listlessly behind. Madame Levaille looked after the procession.

55Sì, Signor Marchese, ella disse pacatamente, nel suo tono calmo di vecchia donna ragionevole. C’è della gente disgraziata su questa terra. Io non ebbi che una figlia. Soltanto una! E quell’una non sarà sepolta in terra consacrata! “Yes, Monsieur le Marquis,” she said dispassionately, in her usual calm tone of a reasonable old woman. “There are unfortunate people on this earth. I had only one child. Only one! And they won’t bury her in consecrated ground!”

I suoi occhi si empirono immediatamente, e un breve scroscio di lacrime rotolò giù per le sue grasse guancie. Ella si strinse tutta nel suo scialle. Il marchese si chinò leggermente sulla sella e disse: Her eyes filled suddenly, and a short shower of tears rolled down the broad cheeks. She pulled the shawl close about her. The Marquis leaned slightly over in his saddle, and said:

È molto triste. Capisco il vostro dolore. Parlerò al curato. Ella era indubbiamente pazza, e la caduta fu accidentale. Millot lo dice chiaramente. Buongiorno, Signora. “It is very sad. You have all my sympathy. I shall speak to the Curé. She was unquestionably insane, and the fall was accidental. Millot says so distinctly. Good-day, Madame.”

E andò via al trotto, pensando tra sè: Designerò questa vecchia tutrice di quegli idioti e amministratrice del podere. Sarà sempre meglio che non aver qui uno di quegli altri Bacadou, rosso repubblicano magari, a portarmi la sovversione nel comune! And he trotted off, thinking to himself: I must get this old woman appointed guardian of those idiots, and administrator of the farm. It would be much better than having here one of those other Bacadous, probably a red republican, corrupting my commune.

Printed in Great Britain by Turnbull & Spears, Edinburgh

TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES

Table of Contents added by transcriber.

The individual Italian and English pages were merged into one page with the Italian on the left and English on the right.

P. 3, changed “scrupulosa” to “scrupolosa”.

P. 7, changed “mesi a mesi” to “mesi e mesi”.

P. 30, changed “trascicata” to “strascicata”.

P. 37, changed “stupidita” to “stupidità”.

P. 46, changed “colle le braccia” to “colle braccia”.

P. 51, changed “pôrci” to “pórci”.

P. 53, changed “comme” to “come”.

Spelling errors in Italian were left uncorrected except as noted.

Silently corrected English typographical errors and variations in spelling.

Archaic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings retained as printed.