ke a
drunken man.'"

The words were feigned; but the monk, animated by pious zeal, uttered
them with real warmth. Thais gazed, without displeasure, at this strange
being who had frightened her. The rough, wild aspect, and the fiery
glances of his eyes, astonished her. She was curious to learn the state
of life of a man so different from all others she had met. She replied,
with gentle raillery--

"You seem prompt to admire, stranger. Beware that my looks do not
consume you to the bones! Beware of loving me!"

He said--

"I love thee, O Thais! I love thee more than my life, and more than
myself. For thee I have quitted the desert; for thee my lips--vowed
to silence--have pronounced profane words; for thee I have seen what I
ought not to have seen, and heard what it was forbidden to me to hear;
for thee my soul is troubled, my heart is open, and the thoughts gush
out like the running springs at which the pigeons drink; for thee I
have walked day and night across sandy deserts teeming with reptiles and
vampires; for thee I have placed my bare foot on vipers and scorpions!
Yes, I love thee! I love thee, but not like those men who, burning with
the lusts of the flesh, come to thee like devouring wolves or furious
bulls. Thou art dear to them as is the gazelle to the lion. Their
ravening lusts will consume thee to the soul, O woman! I love thee in
spirit and in truth; I love thee in God, and for ever and ever; that
which is in my breast is named true zeal and divine charity. I promise
thee better things than drunkenness crowned with flowers or the dreams
of a brief night. I promise thee holy feasts and celestial suppers.
The happiness that I bring thee will never end; it is unheard-of, it
is ineffable, and such that if the happy of this world could only see a
shadow of it they would die of wonder."

Thais laughed mischievously.

"Friend," she said, "show me this wonderful love. Make haste! Long
speeches would be an insult to my beauty; let us not lose a moment. I am
impatient to taste the felicity you announce; but, to say the truth, I
fear that I shall always remain ignorant of it, and that all you have
promised me will vanish in words. It is easier to promise a great
happiness than to give it. Everyone has a talent of some sort. I fancy
that yours is to make long speeches. You speak of an unknown love. It
is so long since kisses were first exchanged that it would be very
extraordinary if there still remained secrets