Four chairs and a table
completed the furniture. The shop looked bare and frigid; the goods were
done up in parcels and put away in corners instead of lying hither and
thither in a joyous display of colour.
As a rule two women were seated behind the counter: the young woman with
the grave profile, and an old lady who sat dozing with a smile on her
countenance. The latter was about sixty; and her fat, placid face looked
white in the brightness of the lamp. A great tabby cat, crouching at a
corner of the counter, watched her as she slept.
Lower down, on a chair, a man of thirty sat reading or chatting in
a subdued voice with the young woman. He was short, delicate, and in
manner languid. With his fair hair devoid of lustre, his sparse beard,
his face covered with red blotches, he resembled a sickly, spoilt child
arrived at manhood.
Shortly before ten o'clock, the old lady awoke. The shop was then
closed, and all the family went upstairs to bed. The tabby cat followed
the party purring, and rubbing its head against each bar of the
banisters.
The lodging above comprised three apartments. The staircase led to a
dining-room which also did duty as drawing-room. In a niche on the
left stood a porcelain stove; opposite, a sideboard; then chairs were
arranged along the walls, and a round table occupied the centre.
Pages:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25