FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83  
84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   >>  
e was a knave who had imposed upon the honest simplicity of Candide, and that the officer was another knave whom they might easily silence. Candide, advised by Martin and impatient to see the real Cunegonde, rather than expose himself before a court of justice, proposed to the officer to give him three small diamonds, each worth about three thousand pistoles. "Ah, sir," said the man with the ivory baton, "had you committed all the imaginable crimes you would be to me the most honest man in the world. Three diamonds! Each worth three thousand pistoles! Sir, instead of carrying you to jail I would lose my life to serve you. There are orders for arresting all foreigners, but leave it to me. I have a brother at Dieppe in Normandy! I'll conduct you thither, and if you have a diamond to give him he'll take as much care of you as I would." "And why," said Candide, "should all foreigners be arrested?" "It is," the Perigordian Abbe then made answer, "because a poor beggar of the country of Atrebatie[28] heard some foolish things said. This induced him to commit a parricide, not such as that of 1610 in the month of May,[29] but such as that of 1594 in the month of December,[30] and such as others which have been committed in other years and other months by other poor devils who had heard nonsense spoken." The officer then explained what the Abbe meant. "Ah, the monsters!" cried Candide. "What horrors among a people who dance and sing! Is there no way of getting quickly out of this country where monkeys provoke tigers? I have seen no bears in my country, but _men_ I have beheld nowhere except in El Dorado. In the name of God, sir, conduct me to Venice, where I am to await Miss Cunegonde." "I can conduct you no further than lower Normandy," said the officer. Immediately he ordered his irons to be struck off, acknowledged himself mistaken, sent away his men, set out with Candide and Martin for Dieppe, and left them in the care of his brother. There was then a small Dutch ship in the harbour. The Norman, who by the virtue of three more diamonds had become the most subservient of men, put Candide and his attendants on board a vessel that was just ready to set sail for Portsmouth in England. This was not the way to Venice, but Candide thought he had made his way out of hell, and reckoned that he would soon have an opportunity for resuming his journey. XXIII CANDIDE AND MARTIN TOUCHED UPON THE COAST OF EN
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   59   60   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71   72   73   74   75   76   77   78   79   80   81   82   83  
84   85   86   87   88   89   90   91   92   >>  



Top keywords:
Candide
 

officer

 

country

 
diamonds
 

conduct

 
Normandy
 

Dieppe

 

foreigners

 

committed

 

Venice


brother

 
Martin
 

honest

 

Cunegonde

 

thousand

 

pistoles

 

horrors

 

people

 

monkeys

 
Dorado

beheld

 

provoke

 
tigers
 

quickly

 

harbour

 

reckoned

 

opportunity

 
thought
 

Portsmouth

 
England

resuming

 

journey

 

TOUCHED

 

CANDIDE

 
MARTIN
 

vessel

 

mistaken

 
acknowledged
 

ordered

 

struck


attendants

 
subservient
 

Norman

 

virtue

 

Immediately

 

Atrebatie

 

crimes

 

imaginable

 

carrying

 

orders