"Coming?" "Not a chance." "It's too late." "Call's in five minutes." "Go on, bootlickers!" "When are you reenlisting?" "Go on, patriots!" " How vulgar these women are." " Come on." "Forget it." "Georges!" "Hey, Georges!" "Watch where you're going!" "You're not Georges!" "I practically got run over." "Couldn't you say it wasn't you?" " What wasn't me?" " Georges!" "My name is Georges." "You're not the only one named Georges." "I thought you were a guy from Ploubalec." "Where's that, Ploubalec?" "It's in Finistere." "That's where I'm from." "Oh, hell!" "You think I look like I'm from Ploubalec?" "What did you want with your Georges?" "He's an acquaintance from back there, before I came to Paris." " You been in Paris long?" " Ayear." " And a whore?" " Also a year." " You look so much like Georges." " That's enough." "Besides, maybe he's the one who looks like me." "Bye." "Listen, come to my place." "It's better than the barracks." "Maybe so." "But curfew's in five minutes." "And I don't have any money." "For you, it'll be free, because you look like Georges." "You must be the girl Buzard told me about." "Who's Buzard?" "Don't know him." "It has to be you." " Are you ever on the Omnibus terrace?" " Sometimes." "So?" "Well, it's a girl from the Omnibus Cafe." "Buzard picks her up." "She goes back to his place." "She wouldn't take anything from him." "And Buzard's really ugly." "He told me about it often." "He couldn't get over it." "You know, I've brought home a few from the Omnibus." "I wouldn't remember." "If your Buzard is ugly, it wasn't me." "Rather, it wasn't him." "Shall we go then?" "Well, you're in quite a hurry, now that you know it's free!" "I have curfew in five minutes, so you see, the sweet-talking..." " Where's your place?" " Ten minutes from here." "You're kidding me!" "That's too far." "I like you, but I'll lose my Saturday leave if I mess around." "Come Saturday." "It will still be free!" " Okay." "Give me your address, quick!" " You won't come." "I will." "If that's not bad news, she's needy already!" "Jerk!" "He knows he has a pretty face." "Wait a minute." "Come to the fortifications if you won't come to my place." "Nature and me, you know." "I know a little spot." "Come on." "Grass does smell good!" "I'd like having a guy like you for a lover." "I'd make you too jealous." "I always like to change." "I might make you get over that." "There was no greater ladies' man than Georges when he met me on my parents' farm." "We were so attracted, he didn't sleep with another girl for three months." "It's really something to take pleasure in each other like that." "It's almost as beautiful as sentiment." "Damn!" "I missed it." "That romance of yours is going to stick with me for a while." "I'm screwed for Saturday." "You could at least say thanks." "Yeah, okay." "Let me get out of here." "Listen, five francs is too much, but at least give me 1 0 sous." "1 0 sous?" "What do you take me for?" "Then give me a cigarette." "What do you think I am, a sucker?" "I'm losing my Saturday leave, isn't that enough?" "Get lost,jerk!" "Bastard!" "Lout!" "It's a beautiful thing, the French army." "If that's what they're hoping to wash the flag with!" "Monsieur Deroulede can just chuck his patriotic revenge." "Hopping the wall, eh, buddy?" "You'll do two weeks!" "With your friend the private" "You never leave each other's side" "For you're both natives of Arras" "The capital of Pas-de-Calais" "And later in life" "You will often say It's true in the regiment" "We really lived it up" "We passed the time well" "Swell" "Here goes, third round." "Damn!" "Here I go again." "K.O." "You're so strong." "I'm in the dragoons." " Would you like to dance?" " Yes." " Do you come here often?" " No." "It's the first time." "I usually go out in Wagram, it's my neighborhood." "But I'm meeting a friend who comes here often." " So it's a bit of luck that we've met." " Really?" "The bastards, they revoked my leave at the barracks." "Then how did you get here?" "What are walls for?" "They're built for climbing." "Gracious!" "I'd never have the nerve." "What if you run into the sergeant?" "That won't happen!" "I'm lucky." "Something told me that I had to come here tonight." "Really?" "I knew I was going to meet you." "It's destiny." "I'm very sentimental, aren't you?" "Look, there's my friend!" "We should let her know we're here." "An old friend of your friend." "What's your name, again?" "Germaine." "An old friend of Germaine!" "And friends of your friends, are your friends!" "What's your name?" "Rose." "That's an uncommon name!" " May I offer you a beer?" " Come on." "The bosses had a dinner party tonight." "I thought the dishes would never be done." "Luckily, the cook let me slip away!" "So, my dear, will you let me buy you that beer?" " What about me?" " You, too, of course." "What do you take me for, a cad?" "Women, I swear!" "They're so suspicious." "This way, Mademoiselle Rose." "Here's a good table." "Waiter!" "Waiter, three beers!" "No, a half shandy for me!" "Are you sentimental, Mademoiselle Rose?" "I am unbelievably sentimental." "She doesn't stop, that one." "You'll dance with me soon, won't you?" "You really love dancing?" "With you, yes." "Great, a polka!" "Shall we?" " Would you like to dance?" " Yes." "We're outside!" "I didn't even know where I was anymore." "Yes." "A little fresh air does you good." "I love dancing so much." "I could never stop." "There wasn't a prettier girl at the entire ball." " Have you tried them all?" " You can tell while dancing." "Hey!" "You're very bold." "Easy, you'll rip my buttons." "And besides, you should show more respect." "You think?" "We're not exactly on familiar terms." "Exactly, we have to get to know each other." "That's what we're doing now." "I don't like when people are familiar with me right away." "But it's not right away." "We've danced three times." "No, Monsieur Georges." "It's too fast." "Be good, someone might see us." "Come look over here." "It's funny." "There's an abandoned house." "Monsieur Georges." "What are you doing?" " Let's go back where there are people." " What do you want with other people?" "Monsieur Georges!" "If I'd only known." "Oh, that." "You're so soft." "Like butter." "I can't see your face." "What?" "My face?" "Well, my pretty, don't want to stay here all night, do you?" "Help me up." "There you go!" "Now what has he done?" "You're a naughty boy, aren't you?" " Are you going to make me suffer?" " Of course." "But wait a little." "Listen, please be nice!" "I am nice." "But I can still have a smoke." "That doesn't get in the way of sentiments." "Hold me tight, like you did just now." "It's so dark." "Let's go back." "It will be brighter." "You don't want to be in the dark anymore?" "But at least tell me you love me." "Girls like that." " Haven't I proven it?" " Yes, but you have to say it too." "Women, I swear!" "They're so complicated." "Listen." "That one's fun." "It's the ""Polka des Mirettes."" "You don't want to kiss me again?" "There will be too much light later." "Okay." "There." "Now come dance." "You still feel like dancing?" "Of course." "That's what I jumped the wall for." "I have to go home." "My mistress is very mean." "She doesn't want me out past 1 1 :00." "I thought you could see me home." " See you home?" " Of course." "It's sad to go home alone." "Where do your bosses live?" " Near Les Invalides." " All right then." "It's on my route." "But my curfew isn't till midnight." "Besides, your friend is waiting for us." "Because it's her turn now?" "You have to be polite." "And I did invite her, didn't I?" "Damn!" "Are you happy now?" "We missed the ""Polka des Mirettes."" "Women, I swear!" "Great, it's starting again." "Mademoiselle Germaine!" "This one's for me." "May I?" "If you want me to see you home, you'll have to wait." "Fine, I'll wait." "Have yourself a beer." "Women, I swear!" "I'm sure you're not like that, Mademoiselle Germaine." "Would you like to dance?" "No, thank you." "I don't want to dance anymore tonight." "My darling, it's Sunday," "You, I'm sure, are having some fun right now." "I'm by myself." "The cook went out." "And the master and mistress have gone to the country." "There's only the son of the house, who's studying for an exam." "It's sad, in this beautiful weather." "It's sad, in this beautiful weather." "Come in!" "Monsieur Alfred rang?" "Yes, Rose." "I rang." "What did I " "Would you close the blinds?" "Yes, it's cooler when the blinds are closed." "Very well, Monsieur Alfred." "Monsieur Alfred rang?" "Rose, is there any cognac in the house?" "Certainly, Monsieur Alfred." "But it's probably locked up." "That's right." "It's Sunday." "I don't know what's going on with me." "Monsieur Alfred works too much." "Monsieur Alfred should relax a little." "Rose, bring me a glass of water." "Very well, Monsieur Alfred." "Thank you, Rose." "Let it run for a while, so it will be nice and cool." "Give it to me." "Sorry." "I'm exhausted." "What time is it?" "Nearly 4:00, Monsieur Alfred." "4:00?" "Thank you, Rose." "Here." "Tell me, Rose." "I was just thinking." "It's not important, but the professor hasn't arrived." "I would have heard him ring." "It's surprising." "He's usually early." "Unless he rang while Monsieur Alfred was ringing for me." "Rose, come here." "No, closer." "Yes, closer." "There, like that." "I'd thought that..." "What, Monsieur Alfred?" "It's about your blouse." "It's black, isn't it?" "It's black." "It's a very beautiful black." " In winter, it's blue." " Yes, but it's summer!" "So it's black." "It's been terribly hot this summer." "These are little buttons, all these?" "Yes, Monsieur Alfred." "They're little buttons." "But you mustn't undo them, Monsieur Alfred." "But why not, after all?" "It's silly to leave buttons buttoned, isn't it?" "What fair skin you have, Rose." "Monsieur Alfred flatters me greatly." "But now I have to button up my blouse." "Not right away." "That would be too sad." "Don't do that." "Do you have a beau, Rose?" "A beau who " "No, Monsieur Alfred." "Why do you sigh when you tell me that?" "It's not right." "You're so pretty." "It's unhealthy." "Your little shoes!" "And your stockings." "They're black, aren't they?" " If someone rang " " Who cares!" "We couldn't care less!" " Who would ring now, anyway?" " But the professor" "The professor?" "What can he teach me?" "Besides, administrative law isn't really so useful in life." "Whereas your legs..." "Your legs!" "I've admired you for a long time, Rose." "You hadn't noticed?" "I did." "Sometimes while serving, you'd bend over to change the plates." "Your belly brushed against my back." "Did you know that?" "In fact, I always pushed my back out as far as possible." "Did you notice?" "I no longer knew what I was doing." "One day I even responded, "Yes, mademoiselle, '"to Monsieur Poincare." "whom Papa had invited to lunch." "The expression on Papa and Grandfather's face.!" "I could no longer control my actions." "I ate with whatever came into my hand." "One day, I even started to eat my soup with a fish fork." "Did you notice?" "Yes, Monsieur Alfred." "We had a good laugh over that in the kitchen." "Your teeth.!" "Rose, when you laugh, you have teeth.!" "Like everybody, Monsieur Alfred!" "No, not like everybody!" " Sit down so I can see them better." " But I'm going to fall." "People look so silly seated like that!" "What a ridiculous position, all right angles." "It's artificial." "Here, lie down." "That will be more natural." "Yes." "I never would have believed you were such a naughty boy." "No, it's too bright, Monsieur Alfred." "No, that's just an idea." "It's practically pitch dark." "You know, I've already seen you." "There's a small window above the door to your bedroom." "One time, I climbed up while you were bathing." "How naughty of you." "No, don't say that." "It was lovely." "If someone rang." "Then we wouldn't answer the door, that's all!" "In front of your father!" " Papa?" " There." "It's not just that." "Do you at least love me a little?" "It's the professor." "I can't answer the door looking like this." "He'll have to go teach administrative law somewhere else." "Perhaps I was a bit..." "It wasn't true what you said." "You've already had a lover, haven't you?" "Yes, Monsieur Alfred." "Don't worry." "That's what I thought!" "Naturally, for my mother, we'll have to be very careful." "From now on, I promise to avoid being alone with you, so that this doesn't happen again." "We let ourselves get carried away, you know." "I'm sorry!" "You really are charming." "And you're a wonderful girl." "But all that, it's just between the two of us." "As much for your sake, as for mine." "Of course, Monsieur Alfred." "I'm thinking of you." "Are you faithful to me... at least?" "Sophie, you must agree to see me alone." "Sophie, my darling." "Not right away." "It's too much." "Sophie, I knew you'd come!" "No." "I was so afraid that " "Excuse me, Father." "Do you need anything?" "No, thank you, madame." "Sometimes, when people move..." "But I'm at your disposal." "You're very kind, madame." "But you see, I've brought everything." "I am discreet." "But if I can be of any use." "No, no use." "Old hag!" "At that rent, she could at least keep hidden." "It's for me." "Alfred, I'm scared to death." " I'm going to faint." " No, not here." "At my place." "Come faint at my place!" "But where are you taking me, Alfred?" "Sit down, Sophie!" "Thank you." "Alfred, let me go." "I beg of you." "Where am I?" "At my house." "Have you lived here long?" "Not very long." "Won't you take off your hat?" "What's come over you, Alfred?" "I told you I could only stay five minutes." "At least take off your veil." "There are two." "Well, both of them then." "I do have the right to look at you, don't I?" "So you do care a bit for me, Alfred?" "It's so hot in here." "It's summer." "I'm leaving." "I'm leaving." "Take off your hat." "I'm leaving." "Alfred, I'm leaving." "Put the pins on the mantel." "Otherwise you can never find them afterwards." "What happened, Alfred?" "Were you pricked?" " You've never been so beautiful." " You promised you'd be good." "It's so hot in this room." "Take off your gloves." "Yes, my gloves." "Put them next to my hat." "And now, good-bye, Alfred." "I'm leaving." "Alfred, what have you done to me?" " I wrote you a long letter." " I didn't get it." "I didn't send it." "In it, I told you that I wouldn't come." "I don't understand it myself, Alfred." "I have a husband, a little girl." "It's awful, we're star-crossed!" "That's what it is, isn't it?" "A star-crossed couple?" "I don't know." "One more kiss." "The last one then." "Not on the lips." "Alfred, if you love me, you have to let me go." "Oh, my hat." "There's another room next door?" "Yes, a little bit." " What do you mean, ""a little bit"?" " Well, I meant " "What's that room, Alfred?" "A sort of sitting room." "Do you have many guests?" "No, no one." "But in case I did." "Alfred, swear something to me." "I swear." "No, nothing." "Give me a glass of water and I'll go." "And let the tap run so it'll be nice and cold." "Damn, there's no water." "You wouldn't prefer a little port?" "A tiny bit then." "A farewell drink." "I'll go look for a corkscrew." "Of course, no corkscrew!" "Damn!" "What are you saying all by yourself in there, Alfred?" "That I'm unhappy." "That life is too difficult." "It's a desert where you meet no one and find nothing." "Damn!" "Damn!" "Alfred, what have you done?" "A clumsy gesture." "I don't know what I'm doing anymore." "Life is so short, Sophie!" "Alfred!" "That's no reason." "You're going to mess up my hair." "Alfred, my sister's waiting for me." "She has a fever." "So do I." "The one, the only, true fever!" "The one you only find once!" "Alfred, you promised to be good." "And I believed you!" "It's so bright in here, Alfred." "What are you doing, Alfred?" "Where are you taking me?" "It's darker in the next room, my love." "In the other sitting room?" "It's a bedroom, Sophie." "A bedroom." "Alfred, if I'd only known." "What are you doing to me?" "You told me it was a sitting room." "That's so bad, Alfred!" "Not on the bed!" "Alfred, we who never saw each other except at mass... or the Ice Palace." "Come quick, Alfred." "I'm cold." " Do you have your watch?" " I'm coming, my love!" "I must love you too much." "Yes, that's it." "I love you too much." "I was like a madman." "I've been half crazy for several days." "It was like I had a premonition." "Don't torture yourself, darling." "You're so nervous." "Calm yourself." "It's very understandable, though." "Have you read Stendhal?" "Stendhal?" "Yes." "The Psychology of Love." "It's a book by Stendhal." "Why do you ask?" "In this book, there's a very significant story that Stendhal recounts." "Really?" "What story is that?" "It's the story of some cavalry officers who get together." "And?" "These cavalry officers talk about their romantic adventures." "And each one explains how he felt the first time he was with the woman he loved most." "And they all confide, all of them, that with that woman, the same thing happened to them as happened to me today." " Really?" " Really!" "Apparently, it's a classic." "But in any case, you'd promised you'd behave." "Please!" "Don't try to be witty." "I'm not trying to be witty!" "In fact, I find this story of Stendhal's very instructive." "But up to now, I'd always thought that it was only older people, or people who've had too much to drink who'd..." "But that has nothing to do with it!" "It's a question of intensity of feeling." "No, the most beautiful thing in the story by Stendhal is what one of the cavalry officers recounts at the end." "He tells how he spent six nights - or three nights, I don't remember very well anymore - with a young woman he'd desired for weeks and that they'd both spent every one of those nights weeping for joy." "Both of them?" "Yes." "Both of them." "Beautiful, isn't it?" "Yes, very." "But there are some who don't cry, don't you think?" "Yes, but this is an exceptional case." "It was an exceptional love!" "Oh, right!" "I'd understood that Stendhal was saying that all cavalry officers in those circumstances " "Go on, make fun of it." "Of course, it's easier than understanding." "I've already put it out of my mind." "Don't you think about it anymore either, darling." "You're not going to cry, I hope." "See, there you go again." "But, darling, I'm so happy." "Do you remember our first conversations?" "You said to me, ""We'll be two angels."" "Well, we are two angels." "What time is it?" "I don't know." "How soft your skin is." "Oh, no, Alfred." "It's too late now." "My sister is sick." "I promised I'd go see her." "Angels, we had to be angels." "You're still reading?" "You're going to hurt your eyes." " Have you finished your newspaper?" " No, but there's nothing interesting." "We live in an era decidedly without history." "1 91 4 will be a year in which nothing happened." "We should go to sleep, dear." "What are you reading?" "A fairy tale... where nothing happens either." "You're charming." "You have a particular sort of glow tonight." "Tonight?" "Yes." "You do know that I'm still in love with you?" "Sometimes I think I forget." "You have to forget sometimes." "Really?" "Why?" "Because if we were always in love with each other, the marriage would be something imperfect." "If in five years of marriage, we hadn't forgotten at times that we were in love," "we no longer would be." " You think?" " I'm certain of it." "Marriage is not just an affair." "It's necessary to have a plan for the future." "So, basically, you've made preserves of your passion, and you open a can of it from time to time." "What I was trying to say was much more poetic." "But it's something like that." "You're charming, and so childlike in your manner of expressing yourself!" "." "You are really adorable tonight," "I don't know why." "Neither do I, dear." "But since you find me so adorable tonight, am I to understand that you've decided to open a can?" "By God, how funny you are." "You are truly the most delicious little being I have ever known." "Come closer." "Put your head on my shoulder." "Understand what I'm saying, marriage is a sacred thing." "And we men sometimes forget the meaning of it, because of the adventures we've had before we met you." "Because, in truth, what creatures have we had dealings with?" "Yes, what creatures?" "I've often wondered." "Pathetic creatures, believe me!" "But let us not cast stones at them." "They've had their use, anyway." "You don't know the misery that forces these unfortunate women into sin." "Do they all always give themselves for money?" "No, that's not what I'm saying." "I'm not speaking only of material misery." "There also exists - how can I put it - a moral misery, a notion that is somehow incomplete, of what is good and what is bad." "But from time to time I've passed one on the street, in restaurants, and they didn't seem so unhappy." "They laughed all the time." "But what sort of laugh!" "You must not forget, my child, that these creatures are destined, by their nature, to fall lower and lower." "There is no limit to their fall." "Perhaps it's pleasant to feel yourself fall, like in dreams." "Sophie, how can you talk like that?" "Tell me about it." "I like when you tell me about it." "About what?" "About those creatures, the women who commit sins." "What's come over you, Sophie?" "You promised when we first married, that one day you would tell me everything you'd done in your youth." "That interests you?" "Aren't you my husband?" "Is it not right that I know everything about you?" "Well, a young man's past is something that's best forgotten, my child." "It would be like a profanation." "No, it wouldn't profane anything." "Tell me, Henri." "How many women have you held in your arms the way you're holding me now?" "But, Sophie, it's embarrassing." "I don't know." "Henri,you promised." "You shouldn't ask me such questions." "It's really in bad taste." "You, such a pure, well raised young lady." "Yes, well raised in living rooms, but it's just the two of us in a bed." "But it's our conjugal bed." "I'd so much like to know." "Listen, Sophie." "I'm not going to describe to you " "You're my wife." "Think of our little daughter sleeping in the next room." "But I'd also like to have a little boy." "Come on, tell me about the others." "Was there a married woman among them?" "Why are you asking?" "Just to know!" "There must be married women like that." "I know there are, but I'd like someone who's known one to tell me about them." "But tell me, Sophie." "I hope you don't know such a woman." " A married woman who " " Why, no, dear." "It just intrigues me." "My child!" "You can't imagine what the existence of these unhappy women is like, caught in a web of lies, depravities, betrayals, dangers." "Of course." "They pay dearly for their meager happiness." "They pay dearly for their bit of" "Pleasure?" "What do you mean, pleasure?" "How can you call that pleasure?" "But they must get a little bit, otherwise they wouldn't do it." "Just a brief moment of drunkenness." "Yes, drunkenness." "It's ignoble, of course." "But tell me if you've had one experience with one of those women, among all the others." "Well, yes." "But it was my saddest experience." "Who was it?" "Tell me." "Do I know her?" "What has come over you?" "Henri, was it a long time ago?" "Well before our marriage?" "Don't ask me anything more." "Please!" " Did you love her very much?" " Don't talk about that, I beg of you." "I have only ever loved one woman, you." "You can't love anything but purity, sincerity." "Anyway, she's dead." " Really?" " Yes." "It's silly to say, but I have the impression that all those women die young." "You think?" "What?" "Is pleasure dangerous?" "And if you love your husband very much like that, do you also die?" "My innocent little child." "That's darling." "It's so sweet." "It's refreshing." "No, of course not." "You're sure you don't die?" "On the contrary." "In marriage, it's very healthy." "If you were always... in love like that." "What would happen if I were always..." "I mean that I'd know you love me." "In a marriage, you can't always be lovers." "Why not?" "You're not just a woman I fancy." "You are socially my wife." "And I wouldn't want for my wife, even with me " "Yes, even with me " "You see, you used the word ""pleasure" a little while ago." "Well, that's something else." "You think?" "It's something totally secondary." "that concerns part of us that's not - well, that's less - to which we must not grant " "How to tell you?" "Life is a serious thing, my child." "And pleasure is only the dessert." "It's late." "I love dessert." "Up to now, you've served in drawing rooms." "You believe you know your profession." "Wrong!" "You don't know it yet." "You have yet to learn the most difficult thing for young people:" "serving in a private lounge." "What is a private lounge?" "It's a small room where someone who doesn't want to be recognized or disturbed, invites one or several friends." "I said, ""recognized or disturbed."" "The staff never recognizes." "In an establishment of the first order, the staff has no business recognizing." "What is it?" "You will speak in a moment." "The client of the private lounge, whether he is with friends... or, let's not be hypocrites, alone with a lady, desires, above all, not to be disturbed." "But at the same time, the client must eat, that's what he's there for, apparently." "For him to eat, you have to enter in order to bring him the dishes." "And that is where psychology comes into it." "Be quiet!" "You'll speak in a moment!" "General rule:" "As soon as he rings, go in." "You'll say, ""It's been a half hour since they finished the shellfish." "What are they doing?"" "Answer:" "It's none of your business." "They do what they want." "But as soon as they ring,jump!" "Why do you keep interrupting me, my man?" "But Number 1 2 has been ringing for five minutes straight, Monsieur Albert." " Why didn't you tell me, imbecile?" " But I couldn't speak." "Excuse me, monsieur." "I have 30 years of experience, my friends." "And this is the exception to the rule, the only case of its kind." "He was ringing, but I shouldn't have gone in." "Monsieur was lying on the bell." "Your lips taste like whipped cream." "My lips are always soft." " Someone told you that before?" " What do you think?" "How many men have you already kissed on the mouth?" "First of all, I haven't counted." "And second, why are you asking?" " If I tell you, you won't believe me." " Why not?" "Fine!" "Then guess." "I don't know, I wouldn't want to make you mad." "Let's see, 20?" "Why not a hundred?" "What do you take me for?" "It's true, you're still very young." "Ten?" "Clearly, a girl who lets herself be picked up in the street and follows you to a private lounge must be capable of all manner of horrors." "Have you been in a private lounge before?" " You want me to tell the truth?" " Yes." "But not how you think." "With a friend and her fiance, on Mardi-Gras." "There you go." "In any case, it wouldn't have been a big deal if you and your lover" "No, it wouldn't have been a big deal, but I don't have a lover." "What?" "You wouldn't have me believe that you " "At least, I haven't had one for six months." "All right." " Who was it?" " A man." "You're teasing me." "Was he your first?" "Yes." "And I'll tell you, he looked like you." "And if you want to know, that's why I came with you right away." "He had a look." "That man could do whatever he wanted with me." "And you left him?" "No, he went back to a foreign country." "He was a foreigner." " A little more champagne?" " No, I have to leave." "I'm really going to get it from my mother." "You live with your mother?" "Of course I live with my mother." "What do you think?" "And your father?" "He died." "A long time ago." "But at your mother's, you live alone with her?" "You kidding?" "There are five of us." "Two boys and two more girls." "Come sit next to me." "Sit down." "So you're the oldest?" "No, I'm the second." "My sister Leonie is." "She works at a florist's." " And what do you do?" " I stay home." "Is that so?" "Someone has to be home to take care of the little ones." "My mother works, too." "What do you tell your mother when you get home late?" "I manage." " What will you tell her tonight?" " That I was at the theater." "Do you get tickets often?" "Yes, my brother is a hairdresser." "He does Madame Rejane's hair." "Naturally, hairdressers are very important." "Hey, don't mess up my hair!" "And your other brother, what does he do?" "He goes to school." "He wants to be a teacher." "But why are you asking me all these questions?" "Because I'm interested." "And you have one more little sister?" "Yes,just a kid." "I really have to keep an eye on that one!" "She's 1 2 years old, not even, and believe it or not, the other day, I caught her with a boy!" " Can you imagine?" "1 2 years old." " 1 2 years old." "Oh." """Oh." Exactly." "It's appalling!" "There are no more children anymore." "My poor little dear." "Here, have a little champagne." "Here." "And how old are you?" "Nineteen." "Darling, my little darling." "My dear child." "But it's marvelous." "I've just understood that it's marvelous." "What's marvelous?" "Why, you." "You haven't even said your name." "Andre." "Damn!" "What?" "That's my uncle's name." "Now what's happened, poor dear?" "I'm looking for my pearls." "You broke my necklace." "And to say that now, after a career of 30 years," "I still have to ask myself whether I should enter when they ring." "What are you doing, my friend?" "Playing cowboys and Indians?" "Bring me the bill, please." "Do you know what time it is?" "No, but you're going to tell me." "1 1 :30." "Is that so?" "Well, I don't care." " What about your mother?" " What do you want with my mother?" "Nothing." "You lied to me before, didn't you?" "She's used to you coming home late." "I'll say I was at the theater." "And if she asks you to describe the play?" "You're not much of a liar, are you?" "I could give you lessons if you want, for your wife." " For my wife?" " You aren't married?" "You must be married." "What makes you think that?" "Just an impression." "I'd like to know what." "I don't have a wedding ring." "My foot!" "You have it in your vest pocket." "You keep checking all the time to see if you've lost it." "Would it bother you much if I were married?" "I would've preferred you be single." "But you know, life doesn't give a damn what you'd prefer." "You wouldn't have married me anyway." "Do you feel regretful when you think of my wife?" "Your wife must do the same thing you do." "I forbid you say such a thing!" "There are certain comments it's just not permissible to " "See, you are married." "Look, I like you." "I like you a lot." " Really?" " Yes." "I want to see you again, to see you often." " And me?" " What about you?" "Do I want to see you again?" "Just a moment." "Let me ask myself." "Yes, I think I like you a little bit." "Only, you understand that for that," "I'd have to be sure of you." "I don't just mean on a moral level." "I also mean..." "Well, you understand." "Now, in my situation, professional as well as private," "I naturally would never have the time to keep an eye on you." "And I know some men who would,just for fun, be very capable some night " " In a private lounge?" " Yes, in a private lounge, or" "Don't interrupt, please." "And try to understand me." "The first rule is simple:" "Never respond if someone approaches you in the street." "Just keep walking." "If he's persistent, pick up the pace." "Above all, never stop in front of shop windows." "They'll take advantage of it to talk to you." "You'd better believe they're just waiting for that to approach you." "Then if you answer, even some banality, he'll think everything's permitted." "And if by misfortune it rains, he'll take advantage of it and offer you his umbrella as far as his car." "Naturally, you'll refuse haughtily!" "Let your dress be ruined, my sweet." "Don't hesitate." "You know very well I'll buy you another." "But above all, do not accept his arm." "I am going to sing ""The Carriage" by Monsieur Xanrof." "This woman has unbelievable talent." "I always take great pleasure in applauding her." "Me too." "At least then your hands are busy." "My God, you are funny." "You know it's very rare to meet such a funny girl as you on the street?" "That's just what I was thinking!" "You know what we should do?" "No, but you're going to tell me." "Instead of listening to ""The Carriage," which is not a song for young girls, we should get into my automobile, and go have a little drink at my place." "Just for a minute." " No kidding!" "An automobile?" "You really are an original!" "It's a De Dion. 40 horses." "And they all fit inside?" "Marvelous." "You are marvelous." "You are Paris." "You are Paris herself." "Well, you're wrong there." "I'm from Argenteuil." "That makes no difference." "You're still Paris." "Well, quite a mess you have here." "Who does your housekeeping?" "I have a Chinese valet." "But he has a very particular way of putting things in order." "He simply moves the objects around." "He is content simply to put the disorder elsewhere." "That's China for you." "It's kind of hard to see in here, isn't it?" "I only work in semi-darkness." "Your adorable eyes will get used to it." " These adorable eyes won't have time to." " Why not?" "I'm only here for a minute." "Isn't that what we said?" "Take off your hat, my dear." "For a minute?" "There you are." "You should rest a bit." "But I'm not tired." "We came in a car." "But you're not comfortable in that Egyptian armchair." "It was probably comfortable in the time of Ramses II, but since then, our behinds have been made with other ideas." "Put yourself over here, my dear." "As if by chance, a sofa." "That's most curious." "Women sometimes offer you chairs, but with men, it's always sofas." "But what do you want?" "It's a couch." "Put your head there, on the armrest." "But I'm not at all tired." "But you are." "At your age, you have to take care of yourself." "I bet you're not even twenty." "Nineteen." "Nineteen is a critical age." "Go on, lie down." "Adorable!" "She's just adorable!" "I'm going to make something of this little being!" "Take her out of her shell, polish her, metamorphose her." "Pygmalion." "Do you hear me?" "Pygmalion." "I am going to be your Pygmalion!" "But you aren't a little gaga sometimes?" """Gaga."" """Gaga!"" "That's adorable." "She's so adorable." "Let's see." "Where did I put the port?" "Gaga!" "I'll repeat that to Anna de Noailles, she'll be thrilled!" "Gaga!" "Here's the port." "You really are a little dear." "Are you thirsty?" "No, I'm not thirsty." "I'm hungry." "What a nuisance." "I would have rather you be thirsty." "There's never anything to eat here." "So ask your Chinese." "He only knows how to make birds' nests, and it's not really the season." "Come sit down, my dear." "Come." "But that's a very good idea." "I'm going to send him to Larue and have him bring us back a nice little supper." "But what I really wanted was a slice of salami." "Salami!" "She really is admirable!" "Absolutely admirable." "Salami!" "Come sit here, my dear." "Come here." "I'll send him to ask for salami at Larue." "What a face they'll make." "It's too funny." "I have an idea." "What if the two of us simply went?" "Where?" "To Larue, for dinner!" "No." "I don't want to go anywhere." "I wouldn't want to run into someone I know." "Do you know that many people?" "Not that many, but all you have to run into is one, and then it's a disaster." "Who are you, little mystery?" "Well, this is pretty." "It comes from a good fashion house." "Who gave it to you?" "A friend, eh?" "I'm sure you have a very serious friend, and he's the one you're afraid of running into at Larue." "You're a little Tanagra!" "And you already belong to a brute!" "Who is he?" "He's someone a lot less gaga than you, at any rate." "A businessman?" "Good God, how awful!" "I'm sure he's a businessman!" "But businessmen are abominably boring!" "You are a little pussycat." "A tiny little pussycat and you don't know anything at all." "But you may have noticed that when a man busies himself with making money, he becomes a complete idiot." "You have money." "It's not the same thing with me." "I don't earn it." "I steal it." " No way, you're a thief?" " Practically." "I'm a writer." "A writer!" "I was thinking, ""He sure has a lot of papers."" "It's incredible." "It's admirable." "Paris!" "Paris, what an amazing city." "I don't see the connection." "Why, my dear, I'm known all over the world." "I could have won the Nobel Prize, if they'd thought of me." "The Guilty Woman, The Lady and the Lover." "The Weeping Serpent." "Haven't you heard of those?" "Yes, The Weeping Serpent." "I saw that one." "It was beautiful." "But how I bawled." "That was one mine!" " It was really you who wrote the play?" " Yes." "Then tell me why that jerk Armand doesn't marry her at the end." "After all the suffering he's put her through!" "You're so sweet." "You're so sweet." "My dear child, my little pussycat, my simple girl." "Oh, to become simple again!" "To become a virgin again, by your side." "You really are gaga." "Now you want to be a virgin again." "You don't understand anything, not a thing." "She doesn't understand a thing." "It's precious." "It's priceless." "I've got an idea." "I'm going to put you on stage." "As silly as you are, you surely have a lot of talent." "You've never had any desire to be on stage?" "At school, my friends and I put on plays,just for fun, but " "But?" "But what?" "I'm going to take charge of you." "I'm going to sculpt you." " I'm going to knead you." " Gently!" " What do you mean, gently?" " Knead me gently." "You're going to wrinkle my bodice." "How sweet she is." "How sweet she is." "She doesn't understand a thing." "I was speaking ""morally," my dear!" "Exactly." "If it's morally, you can do it from a little farther away." "Why?" "Aren't you comfortable next to me?" "It makes me feel hot to hold you like this, gently... without doing anything." "Yes, when you don't do anything, it's good." "Nothing but the heat." "It's good." "That's true." "Of course, men don't ask anything more than to hold you tight." "Except..." "Except what, my pussycat?" "They have wandering hands, so you have to defend yourself, and then finally, you move." "And it's only without moving that it's good." "If I'd had a lover..." "If you'd had a lover." "I would've wanted him to hold me for a long time without moving." "Tonight, for the first time, it's my heart that's happy." "You understand?" "That big bad wolf who always bites Little Red Riding Hood." "Who knows if he too didn't dream of something else?" "It's so rare, a brand new little heart that gives itself up." "Careful." "I don't give." "I only loan." "You truly are a little darling." "Why don't you want me to make you into... a great artist?" "That would be too hard." "Not for me." "I've launched actresses in Paris before." "I have an extraordinary flair for digging up talent." "I don't know why, but you seem full of talent." "We can try, anyway." "Do you want to?" "We'll try right now." "I'll have you read something, and we'll see if you've got it in you." " Take off your dress." "Right away!" " My dress?" "Of course." "I'm going to drape you in something else." "You can't play tragedy in a tailored suit!" "Go on." "In theater, what matters above all is the figure." "Pull it off." "Take off your dress." "Yes." "There." "That's good, my pussycat." "More." "There." "That's it." "How slender you are." "And finely molded." "A real actress!" "Drape yourself in that." "Look." "You'll be charming." "Look, charming." " You wouldn't think it was me." " But it isn't you anymore." "You aren't yourself." "You're Psyche." "Yes, that's it." "Psyche." "Come, pussycat." "Let me tell you something." "The classics " "Let's see." "There's nothing like the classics." "You're full of talent." "I'm sure you are." "It's evident." "Here." "Read calmly, and think about what you're saying." "I'll read the other lines." " But gosh!" "It's in verse." " That doesn't matter." "Just say it as if you're talking to me." "Good, I'll explain it to you." "Psyche is a young girl who has been kidnapped by Eros." "By Eros." "Who has taken the appearance of a monster, do you follow?" "Good." "Let's start." "I am Eros." """Here is your serpent, your pitiless monster, that a great oracle has prepared for you," "and who is, perhaps, not as frightening as you'd imagined."" "Now you read." """You, Lord, must be that monster with which the oracle threatened my sad days." "You who seem, rather, a God... who by some miracle deigns to come to my rescue."" "But I don't really understand what I'm saying." "It doesn't matter, my dear." "You are very beautiful." "It doesn't matter." "Come, my pussycat." "My little Psyche." "My little Tanagra." "My simple girl." "I'm crazy about you." "The author!" "Don't be sad, dear heart." "I'll buy you a theater." "I thought they weren't together anymore." "Two weeks ago, she was with Fulcus." "The Fulcus who's in oil?" "No, his cousin, the one in sewing machines." "He was with that little Lulu from the variety shows?" "That's right." "Two years ago, they were together." " Six months ago, they weren't." " They are tonight, that's for sure." "If you want my opinion, it's immoral." "Or very moral, you never know with them." "It's a scandal, hanging around together... when everyone knows they've split up four times!" "Look at that." "He's taking her hand." "It's shameful." "You can leave a man, but at least don't talk to him again." "You see, I only believe in love when it's in music." "I could try to learn an instrument." "Idiot!" "You know, we were right to leave everybody in that bistro in Les Halles and to come here to celebrate the premiere together,just the two of us." "All those cafes are really too snobby." "It's only at Maxim's that you really feel at home." "Yes." "It's simple cooking, but I love that." "Besides, the waiters have known us since the very beginning, right, Antoine?" "For myself, I'm a creature of habit." "Really?" "There's one habit you've sort of lost." "What if you came and had a little drink at my place tonight?" "I can see right through you, werewolf!" "." "Maximilienne, it's been so long." "I feel like I'm just making your acquaintance." "You have a pretty face, a very pretty face, but I wonder how you're built." " Why don't you ask your friends?" " You're so cynical." "What a pity." "I feel frightfully sentimental tonight." "So do I." "It must be the violins." "I feel like bleating." "Gypsies should be forbidden." "Eating is disgusting." "I'd rather nourish myself with rose petals." "Do you think the lobster was bad?" "Like with women, it's a question you always ask yourself too late." "Anyway, if the lobster was bad, that's the little detail that will save my life." "To think that people pay 1 00 sous to sit and listen to your witticisms." "If they had any idea how dull they can be." "Thank you." "There are those who pay 1 00 sous to hear you speak them." " If they had any idea " " Of what?" "Nothing, I adore you." "Let's not argue." "We'll ruin our evening." "Oh, hello!" "Who are you cooing at?" "Grandsac." "Grandsac." "Isn't that charming!" "You know very well that Grandsac was my lover, and that I adored him." "All of Paris knows." "You made yourselves quite ridiculous with your fights." "That doesn't change the fact that he was willing to die for me." "And with Des Epinglettes, did that last long?" "One month in Monte Carlo." "It took him a month to ruin himself, in my regard as well." "Hello, you dog." "You've got some nerve giving me a hard time about Grandsac when you've slept with every little actress in Paris!" "With every big one, too." "It's no more difficult." "Thank you." "I'll admit you pleased the big ones, but the little ones..." "You're starting to fade a bit." "What bit?" "Do you ever give these girls the roles you promise them?" "It's not just about the role." "There's also my charm." "It's true." "I forgot that your charm is famous in Paris." "It should practically be a tourist attraction." "What if we went back to my place?" "Who will you betray if you go home with me tonight?" "All of Paris is in this room." "And I'm sure, absolutely sure, that your current lover is somewhere in here." "Guess." "Say a name." "But how can I guess, my dear?" " I'd need a whole Who's Who." " Scoundrel!" "The moon." "You could live just with your spotlight." "It must be beautiful in the country." "You just gave me an idea." " Let's go to Senlis." " Senlis?" "Yes, to my aunt's house." "But what will we tell her?" "She died three months ago." "But she left me a little country house." "It will be ideal for our reunion." "We'll sleep in a bed as tall as a triumphal arch, with a big red eiderdown." "But I don't have a thing with me, darling." "No matter, I'll give you one of my aunt's nightgowns." "Was it in 1 908 or 1 907 that we met?" "It was in June, 1 907, I think." "Do you remember the strawberry Chambery on the terrace of the Tortoni?" "I had just come from an audition with Bernstein." "You saluted me with a big wave of your hat, right?" "You were wearing green and brown houndstooth." "You wore a dress in broderie anglaise." "And that night, you held me so tightly to you, in the coupe that the pattern was imprinted in red on my skin." "And then I erased each little spot, one by one." "And then you made others." "It was love." "It's extraordinary, the first day." "It feels like you're discovering America." "Go on, Christopher Columbus." "That night, he couldn't get enough of discovering America." "What a night!" "We didn't go out for three days." "It was going to last a lifetime." "Why did we split up two weeks later?" "I don't remember." "Neither do I." "It's stupid." "We could've loved each other." "Yes, it's stupid." "We could have." "But what can you do?" "It's not the only thing in life." "No." "Well, let's go to sleep." "Does my knee bother you?" "I like it." "Is it true that I snore now?" "A little." "But with me, it doesn't matter." "Good night, my dear." "Good night,Jeanne." "That's funny." "What's funny?" "You weren't paying attention." "You just called me by my real name." "What are you doing there?" "I knocked." "You said, ""Come in."" "It wasn't to you." "It was in my dream." "It was a baker's boy who was knocking." "They were bringing me a vol-au-vent." "I've been here for five minutes." "I thought I was permitted." "It's twelve past noon." "Noon!" "But it's dawn for me!" "I'm exhausted." "I beg your pardon." "But not so much that I can't take pleasure in seeing you again." "Come closer, my dear Count." " Take a chair." " Of course." "Your performance was wonderful last night." "The people around me were real fans." "I was next to a friend from my club, Count Zaki." "How he applauded!" "I hadn't seen him applaud since the Ballets Russes." "Your flowers were marvelous." "I've never seen so many orchids at once." "They're the only flowers I tolerate." "First of all, because they don't look like flowers." "And secondly, because they have no scent." " I positively detest nature." " How about that!" "But you're very far away." "Come sit on the bed." "It doesn't really follow protocol, but may I ask your permission to put down my cap?" "Permission granted." "You have a very pretty hand." "Very slender... and strong, at the same time." "Thank you, Mademoiselle." "I'm a pianist." "I love Debussy." "I've also won several saber competitions." "I was very surprised and flattered when I received your card at the theater." "It must be quite a burden for a young man to carry a title like yours." "I don't know." "You get used to anything." " So you liked me in the play?" " Divine." "In fact, it's the first time I'd seen you." "But I knew you by name, of course." "Nowadays, they talk of nothing else at Maxim's." "So I was curious." "Besides Maxim's, how do you spend your time, young old man?" "I'm an officer, mademoiselle." "I have duty." "My remaining time is spent dining at Maxim's with Count Zaki." "That's all." "That's all?" "But there are women, I hope, at these little dinners." "Of course, from time to time." "Those whom it's decent to have." "But most of the time, we dine alone,just the two of us." "We often philosophize, Count Zaki and I." "He's a very somber spirit." "The first Monday of every month, he plays Russian roulette." "And if the bullet is in the barrel?" "That's it." "There's no more waiting for the next Monday." " Isn't that terribly dangerous?" " Quite." "Last time, we killed a maitre d'at Maxim's." "They have strange pastimes in the Hungarian army." "Do you play Russian roulette, too?" "No, mademoiselle." "Count Zaki is a free thinker." "I am a practicing Catholic." "That game is forbidden to me." "But I risk my life in other ways, in automobile races." "I took second place from Paris to Madrid in my Panhard-Levassor last year." "And I've had my fair share of duels." "Life is positively tedious when you don't risk it." "Well, my little dear!" "I'm your little dear?" "Yes." "Are you shocked?" "It's rather unexpected, but amusing." "And what did your mother teach you?" "My mother, the duchess, died very young." "Who took care of you?" "I was raised by old women and old priests." "And later, Saint-Cyr, Saumur." "Yes, I see." "Always a certain discipline, and little contact with what you'd call the realities of life." "And yet, I'm 1 00 years old." "I don't know what's left for me to do in this world." " Travel, perhaps?" " I've traveled, of course." "My father made sure that I saw all there is to see at a very young age." "I learned cricket, fox-hunted in Sussex with my Windsor cousins." "My uncle, the Duke of Alba, initiated me into Spanish art." "It's true that in Madrid, I saw little of the museums." "I tried to understand the Russian soul... at least what I could, for I'd had so much vodka." "So my traveling is finished." "I've seen it all." "Mademoiselle, the purpose of this visit, which I didn't mean to be so long, was to ask you to dine with me tonight after the theater." "I'd like that." "I'll meet you in the alley with my coupe." "That will be more discreet." "We can find some entertaining place." "And afterward, if you'll permit me to see you home..." "Come closer." "You're that informal?" "Yes, I'm that informal." "Listen, my little Count ofTurlutu." "You bear one of the greatest names in France." "You're a young man in the thick of things." "You are as deep as the tomb." "And you've never eaten a boiled egg anywhere but Maxim's." "But just think, I'm Maximilienne de Poussy." "It's a name I came up with all on my own." "And I can't even explain where I come from." "Because it would be like talking about the moon." "But I made it out of the place I come from." "I no longer have any need to dine out with a young man loaded with dough, even if he's sad and distinguished." " Dough?" " Yes, dough, my dear." "You can look it up in a dictionary with Count Zaki." "So if I understand correctly, you're declining my invitation?" "Do I look like I'm declining it?" "It's just that I'm less complicated than you are." "I don't think." "And when I like something, it's right away." "But, mademoiselle, it's 1 2:3 5 now." "I just came to pay you a simple courtesy visit." "This makes no sense." "You have to create an atmosphere." "You're so cute." "Come closer." "I like you very much." "I like you because you're sad." "Close your eyes." "Lost little dogs," "I put on a leash." "You smell good!" "So, you can be informal after all." "Good-bye, mademoiselle." "I'll wait for you tonight in the alley, as agreed." "I like you too much." "I'll never see you again." "My head." "What happened?" "Oh,yes." "I was supposed to meet that famous actress in the alley." "Oh,yes." "Zaki was looking all over for me." "His archduke hadjust been assassinated in Sarajevo.!" "He was called back to Vienna." "It was his last night in Paris." "He told me I couldn't abandon him." "We absolutely had to have an extraordinary bash, to celebrate this war between our two countries." "We knew we'd be obliged to fight against each other, maybe even personally kill each other." "The certainty of soon having to kill each other... gave our evening a sort of charm." "Afterward, we went around to all the nightclubs." "Naturally, Zaki wanted to break the glasses." "Zaki's always breaking the glasses." "This time, he even wanted to bring along the Gypsy." "We ended up in more and more vulgar places." "Zaki has a passion for vulgar places." "And then there was that business with the Gypsy's bow and the man who didn't like music, or the Hungarian accent either." "I didn't know what was going to happen in this war." "But in any case, we were the victors this time, the two of us, together, which is nice for friends." "After that" "I don't remember a thing." "No running water in this hotel?" "I wonder why I came here." "Oh, someone's there." "Are you going to kiss me?" " I was going to leave." " Well, good-bye, then." "Are you coming back?" "Do you want my address?" "Because you were really sloshed last night." "You don't even remember where I brought you." "Please excuse me, mademoiselle." "I must've been very embarrassing for you." "You know, in this business..." "I've brought home others who were even drunker than you." "You had a pretty nice way of being drunk." "But when someone talked to you about the war..." "The war?" "I talked about the war?" "Yes, with your friend, the one with the accent." "What did you call him?" "Kiki?" "You said it would ruin your vacation, a woman was waiting at Trouville, a big nuisance." "You were so gone I had to pick you up." "I didn't like you much, but I'm a patriot." "So am I, when I'm not drunk." "You see, it may be a nuisance, as you say." "But if we have to go to Berlin, well, we'll go!" "My point of view exactly." "I'm happy to see that it's yours as well." "Forget everything I said last night." "Hey, you're going a bit far!" "Why?" "My hand." "May I ask you where my cap is?" " On the table." " Oh, yes." "There it is." "It only remains for me to thank you for your hospitality." "I've left you 50 francs." "Is that sufficient?" "You're a funny one." "You pay me twice, and you ask if it's enough!" "Since you've paid twice, you could even..." "No?" "Thank you, mademoiselle." "I don't want to upset you." "You're very desirable, and I wouldn't want to offend you, but I have my duties at the barracks." "That's all right." "Go do your job, since it's time for business." "Listen." "It's good for what ails you." "You're so cute." "Don't be afraid!" "On the cheek." "If you have to go to war..." "You know, this doesn't happen to me often." "This business makes you rather chaste." "But last night, I was there." "You went where, mademoiselle?" "You're so cute!" "You don't understand a thing!" "You mean that last night, the two of us..." "And how!" "You're a funny little chap, you know." "And you don't even realize it." "I'm a funny little..." "Without your good manners, of course." "But last night, you didn't have good manners at all!" "Oh, no." "You're worrying me, mademoiselle." "I control myself rather badly, when I'm drunk." "Did I let myself" "You let yourself all night long, if you want to know!" "So, you see, you had to please me." "Because overtime in this job..." " I'm very flattered." " You can be." "When a hooker tells you that, you know." "Society women have had it with violins playing, not us!" "Well, so long." "And if it's war, try not to get killed." "That would be a shame." "Adieu, mademoiselle." "Hey." "I know there's not much chance you and I will see each other again." "But you should always say ""good-bye." ""Adieu" is bad luck." "Give the old lady a coin on the way out." "Excuse me." "Thank you." "Don't worry, Lieutenant." "We'll get them." "We must hope so, madame." "This business of the assassinated archduke," "I'll work it out with Zaki somehow or another." "War is an adventure." "You die a little, at least you know what you want." "It's life that has no meaning and no end." "It's youth that says that!" "If you'd seen me in the time of the emperor." "I went to all the balls." "You would've been in love with me, Lieutenant." "I, too, was once beautiful!" "I, too, danced the round oflove."