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Updated: June 27, 2025
"The youth of my young 'confrere' astonishes you. It is his fault. Why the devil did he have his long hair and his light curled beard cut?" If Madame Dammauville had not released the lampshade, she would have seen Saniel turned pale and his lips quiver. "Mais voila!" continued Balzajette. "He made this sacrifice to his new functions; the student has disappeared before the professor."
Happily for him, he had only to let Balzajette talk, for if he had spoken he would surely have betrayed himself by the quivering of his voice. However, Balzajette seemed coming to the end of his explanations.
Happy to have a complaisant listener, Balzajette did all the talking, so that Saniel had only to reply "yes" or "no" from time to time, and of course it was not of Madame Dammauville that he spoke, but other matters of a first representation on the previous evening at the Opera Comique; of politics; of the next salon.
Balzajette cut short this conversation, which was idle talk to him. "Good evening, dear Madame. I will see you tomorrow, but not in the morning, for I go to the country at six o'clock, and shall not return until noon." "Did you observe how I cut the conversation short?" Balzajette said, as they went down-stairs. "If you listen to women they will never let you go.
I cannot imagine why she spoke to you of this assassinated man, can you?" "No." "I believe that this assassination has affected her brain to a certain point. In any case, it has given her a horror of this house." He continued thus without Saniel listening to what he said. On reaching the Rue Neuve-des-Petits-Champs, Balzajette hailed a passing cab.
Although Balzajette read only a morning paper, and never opened a book, he had heard of Saniel's reputation, and because he was young he thought he might manage this 'confrere', who seemed destined to make a good position.
"See Madame Dammauville often," he said to Phillis, "and note all that she feels; perhaps I shall find some way to repair this impediment, something that I may suggest to Balzajette without his suspecting it.
You should not think me awkward enough to put you forward clumsily; it would not be a good way to make you acceptable to an intelligent woman, and I value your dignity too much to lower it. I believed that another doctor than Monsieur Balzajette would find a remedy, some way, a miracle if you will, to enable Madame Dammauville to go to the Palais de justice, and I said it.
"I must tell you," Balzajette interrupted, "that before occupying this house that belongs to her, Madame Dammauville lived in a more modern apartment which was heated by a furnace, and where consequently it was easier to maintain an even temperature to which she was accustomed."
Saniel improved the opportunity to refer to his stupidity in frankly expressing his opinion on the solemn Balzajette. "It is probable," he said. "It is certain? Do you believe that during one year nothing has appeared in Madame Dammauville's disease that should demand new treatment? Do you think the solemn Balzajette is incapable of finding it all by himself?" "He is not so dull as you suppose."
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