eum."

And he stroked his chin, as he blinkingly consulted the other members of
the party.

"There are antiquities, pictures, paintings, a whole heap of things. It
is very instructive. Perhaps you have never been there. Oh! it is quite
worth seeing at least once in a while."

They looked at each other interrogatively. No, Gervaise had never been;
Madame Fauconnier neither, nor Boche, nor the others. Coupeau thought he
had been one Sunday, but he was not sure. They hesitated, however, when
Madame Lorilleux, greatly impressed by Monsieur Madinier's importance,
thought the suggestion a very worthy and respectable one. As they
were wasting the day, and were all dressed up, they might as well go
somewhere for their own instruction. Everyone approved. Then, as it
still rained a little, they borrowed some umbrellas from the proprietor
of the wineshop, old blue, green, and brown umbrellas, forgotten by
different customers, and started off to the Museum.

The wedding party turned to the right, and descended into Paris along
the Faubourg Saint-Denis. Coupeau and Gervaise again took the lead,
almost running and keeping a good distance in front of the others.
Monsieur Madinier now gave his arm to Madame Lorilleux, mother Coupeau
having remained behind in the wineshop on account of her old legs.
Then came Lorilleux and Madame Lerat, Boche and Madame Fauconnier,
Bibi-the-Smoker and Mademoiselle Remanjou, and finally the two Gaudrons.
They were twelve and made a pretty long procession on the pavement.

"I swear to you, we had nothing to do with it," Madame Lorilleux
explained to Monsieur Madinier. "We don't even know how they met, or,
we know only too well, but that's not for us to discuss. My husband even
had to buy the wedding ring. We were scarcely out of bed this morning
when he had to lend them ten francs. And, not a member of her family at
her wedding, what kind of bride is that? She says she has a sister in
Paris who works for a pork butcher. Why didn't she invite her?" She
stopped to point at Gervaise, who was limping awkwardly because of the
slope of the pavement. "Just look at her. Clump-clump."

"Clump-clump" ran through the wedding procession. Lorilleux laughed
under his breath, and said they ought to call her that, but Madame
Fauconnier stood up for Gervaise. They shouldn't make fun of her; she
was neat as a pin and did a good job when there was washing to be done.

When the wedding procession came out of the Faubo