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The spinster and the ladies who were alone Madame Lerat, Madame Fauconnier, Mademoiselle Remanjou discreetly placed their five-franc pieces in it first. Then the gentlemen went to the other end of the room, and made up the accounts. They were fifteen; it amounted therefore to seventy-five francs. When the seventy-five francs were in the plate, each man added five sous for the waiters.
Madame Fauconnier declared she had had a very disappointing meal; at home she could have had a finger-licking dish for only two francs. Madame Gaudron bitterly complained that she had been shoved down to the worst end of the table next to My-Boots who had ignored her. These parties never turned out well, one should be more careful whom one invites.
His mother could eat nothing, and Gervaise, who was dying of thirst, drank glass after glass of water barely reddened with wine. "This is my affair," said Coupeau, going to the counter where he paid four francs, five sous. The guests began to arrive. Mme Fauconnier, stout and handsome, was the first.
Coupeau and Lorilleux held the door, she exclaiming violently: "Let me go; I tell you I will go!" Her husband having induced her to listen to reason, Coupeau went to Gervaise, who was calmly conversing with her mother-in-law and Mme Fauconnier. "Have you nothing to propose?" he asked, not venturing to add any term of endearment.
You'll see, he'll soon turn up, he's got a hollow nose, he can scent the grub from afar. I say he must be amusing himself, if he's still standing like a post on the Route de Saint-Denis!" Then the wedding party, feeling very lively, sat down making a great noise with the chairs. Gervaise was between Lorilleux and Monsieur Madinier, and Coupeau between Madame Fauconnier and Madame Lorilleux.
They alluded to their future marriages, their homes and their children, and the girls touched each other under the table, giggled and grew very red. Lantier asked them if they did not have little husbands already, and Nana blushingly confessed that she loved Victor Fauconnier and never meant to marry anyone else.
But she was still proud, reminding everyone of her former status as boss of her own shop. When Madame Fauconnier hired Madame Putois, Gervaise was so annoyed at having to work beside her former employee that she stayed away for two weeks.
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.
If they ran it was to show their slender ankles, and when they stopped and panted for breath it was sure to be at the side of some youths young workmen of their acquaintance who smoked in their faces as they talked. Nana had her favorite, whom she always saw at a great distance Victor Fauconnier and Pauline adored a young cabinetmaker, who gave her apples.
"There is your money," he said; "take it, and never again will one of us step a foot under your roof!" "I want six francs more," muttered the man. The women gathered about in great indignation; not a centime would they give, they declared. Mme Fauconnier had had a wretched dinner; she said she could have had a better one at home for forty sous.
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