Chapter 18 Two Prudence Proposed by Wisdom

That evening the Bishop of Digne, returning from his walk in the town, shut his door, and remained in his room until quite late.At that time he was engaged in a gigantic work on the subject of "obligations", which unfortunately was not completed.At first he was careful to sort out what priests and doctors had said on this serious matter.His work is divided into two parts; the first on the duties of the general public, and the second on the duties of individuals in all classes.The obligations of the public are important obligations.There are four types.Duty to God (Matthew 6), duty to oneself (Matthew 5, verses 29, 30), and duty to others, according to the instructions of St. Matthew (Matthew 7, verse 12), duties to all beings (Matthew 6, verses 20, 25), and other duties, the bishop is in another place Gathered instructions and regulations concerning various other duties, the duties of masters and subjects, in the Epistle to the Romans; the duties of officials, wives, mothers, young men, as laid down by St. Paul; husbands, fathers, children 1. The duties of servants and maids are found in Ephesians; the duties of believers are found in Hebrews; the duties of maids are found in Corinthians.He is painstakingly working to weave all these rules into a coherent whole for the world to read.

At eight o'clock he was still at work, and while Madame Magloire, as usual, went to fetch the silver from the cupboard next to his bed, he was writing with difficulty on a small square of paper, for a volume was open on his knee. A thick book that gets in the way.After a while, the bishop felt that the table had been set and that his sister might be waiting, so he closed his book, got up and went into the dining room. The dining-room was a rectangular room, with a fireplace, with a door (as we have already said) on the street, and a window on the garden. Madame Magloire had just set the table.

Although she was busy with her work, she still chatted with Miss Baptistine. A lamp was placed on the table near the fireplace.A considerable fire was burning in the furnace. It is not difficult to imagine the two women, both over sixty years old: Madame Magloire is short, fat, and active, and Miss Baptistine is gentle, thin, and frail, a little taller than her brother, wearing a flea-colored silk dress. The gown, which was a popular color in 1806, was bought by her in Paris that year, and has been kept until now.If we use vulgar words (some ideas are often written on a page before they can be expressed clearly, but can be expressed in a single vulgar word), Madame Magloire has the air of a "village woman", Miss Baptistine. But like "Madame".Madame Magloire wore a cap with a white fringe, and around her neck hung a little golden cross, which was the only jewel in the house.She was wearing a black and green tweed gown with wide and short sleeves, a snow-white scarf showing from the neckline, a cotton apron with a red and green square pattern tied around the waist by a green belt, and a breast scarf of the same fabric, which was fastened with a pin The upper two horns, wearing a pair of big shoes and yellow socks that Marseille women wear.Miss Baptistine's gown was cut in the style of 1806, with a short bodice, tight waist, high shoulders, and braided buttons.She covered her grizzled hair with a toddler-style wavy wig.Madame Magloire's air was bright, lively, and good-natured, and the corners of her mouth, one high and the other low, with a thick upper lip and a thinner lower lip, made her look melancholy and irritable.As long as the bishop is silent, she always chats with him in a respectful and informal manner; when the bishop speaks, she is like that girl, obedient and obedient, everyone has seen it of.Miss Baptistine did not even speak.She stays within the scope of obedience and love.She was not pretty even in her youth, with her blue eyes filling her face and her long, curved nose; but her whole face and whole person had that indescribable virtuousness of which we spoke at the outset. of.Her nature was kind, and faith, compassion, and desire, the three warming virtues of the heart, gradually raised that kindness to a holiness.She was born a tame sheep, but religion has made her an angel.Poor saint!Sweet memories that cannot be regained!

Miss Baptistine had narrated so many times what happened that night in the Bishop's Court, that the few people who are still alive can remember it in great detail. Madame Magloire was talking cheerfully when the Bishop entered.She was talking to the "girl" about a subject familiar to her and accustomed to the bishop, that of the bolts of the gates. It seems that Madame Magloire overheard many conversations in several places while she was shopping for supper.It was said that there was a strange young man, a suspicious-looking villain, who was probably somewhere in the city, and that people who planned to go home late tonight might suffer, and the police were very bad. The mayors are also incompatible with each other, and they both want to cause some accidents so that they can blame others.Therefore, the wise man has to take up the responsibility of the policeman himself, and protect himself well, and he should be careful to lock up, bolt, and block up each house well,

Madame Magloire uttered the last remark a little louder, but the Bishop came in from his cold room and sat before the fire, thinking of other things.He did not allow what Madame Magloire had just said to affect him.She had to say it again, and Miss Baptistine, in order to save Madame Magloire's face without offending her brother, said softly: "My brother, did you hear what Madame Magloire said?" "I have heard a little," replied the Bishop. Then he turned his chair halfway, put his hands on his knees, and with the fire from below lighting his smiling, sincere face, he raised his head and said to the old maid:

"Okay. What's the matter? What's the matter? Are we in some serious danger?" Madame Magloire then began the whole story from the beginning, without inadvertently exaggerating a little.It is said that a vagrant, a barefoot man, and a beggar had arrived in the city at this time.He had gone to the house of Jacques Rabar to seek lodging, but Rabar refused to take him in, and he was seen walking along the Via Gassande, wandering in the fog in the street.He was a man with a bag, a rope, and a sinister face. "Really?" said the bishop. Since he was willing to ask her questions, Madame Magloire naturally became more energetic. It seemed to her that this showed that the Bishop was on his guard. She followed up triumphantly:

"Yes, Bishop. That's right. There's bound to be trouble in the town tonight. Everyone says so. Policing is so bad (it deserves to be mentioned again). Living in the mountains, at night the street There's not even a street light! It's a black hole outside the door. As I said, Bishop, the girl over there said the same..." "I," said the girl, "I have no problem. What my brother does is always good." Madame Magloire went on, as if no one had opposed her: "We say the house is not safe at all, and if the Bishop will allow me, I'll go to the coppersmith Poulein Musebois and ask him to come and put the old iron bars back on, and they're all there, and it's only a matter of a minute. And I say, Bishop, that there should be iron bars even for this night, because, I say, there is nothing more dreadful than a door with a deadbolt that anyone can let in from the outside. Besides, the bishop always lets people come and go as he pleases, and even in the middle of the night, O my God! No need to ask permission..."

At this time, someone knocked on the door, and knocked quite fiercely. "Come in," said the bishop.