Home > Authors Index > Honore de Balzac > Pamela Giraud: A Play in Five Acts > This page
Pamela Giraud: A Play in Five Acts, a play by Honore de Balzac |
||
Act 4 - Scene 1 |
||
| < Previous |
Table of content |
Next > |
|
________________________________________________
_ ACT IV - SCENE FIRST SCENE FIRST (The stage represents Madame du Brocard's salon, from which can be seen the Court of Assizes.) Madame du Brocard, Madame Rousseau, Rousseau, Joseph Binet, Dupre and Justine.
MME. ROUSSEAU. M. Dupre! DUPRE. Yes, madame, the court adjourned after the speech of the prosecuting attorney. And I came over to reassure you personally. MME. DU BROCARD. I told you, sister, that some one was sure to come and keep us informed of things. In my house, here, which is so close to the court house, we are in a favorable position for learning all that goes on at the trial. Ah, M. Dupre! How can we thank you enough! You spoke superbly! (To Justine) Justine, bring in something to drink--Quick! ROUSSEAU. Sir, your speech-- (To his wife) He was magnificent. DUPRE. Sir,-- JOSEPH. (in tears) Yes, you were magnificent, magnificent! DUPRE. I am not the person you ought to thank, but that child, that Pamela, who showed such astonishing courage. JOSEPH. And didn't I do well? MME. ROUSSEAU. And he (pointing to Binet), did he carry out the threat he made to us? DUPRE. No, he took your side. JOSEPH. It was your fault! But for you--Ah!--Well--I reached the court house, having made up my mind to mix up everything; but when I saw all the people, the judge, the jury, the crowd, and the terrible silence, I trembled! Nevertheless I screwed up my courage. When I was questioned, I was just about to answer, when my glance met the eyes of Mlle. Pamela, which were filled with tears--I felt as if my tongue was bound. And on the other side I saw M. Jules--a handsome youth, his fine face conspicuous among them all. His expression was as tranquil as if he had been a mere spectator. That knocked me out! "Don't be afraid," said the judge to me. I was absolutely beside myself! I was afraid of making some mistake; and then I had sworn to keep to the truth; and then M. Dupre fixed his eye on me. I can't tell you what that eye seemed to say to me--My tongue seemed twisted up. I broke out into a sweat--my heart beat hard--and I began to cry, like a fool. You were magnificent. And then in a moment it was all over. He made me do exactly what he wanted. This is the way I lied: I said that on the evening of the twenty-fourth I unexpectedly came to Pamela's room and found M. Jules there--Yes, at Pamela's, the girl whom I was going to marry, whom I still love--and our marriage will be the talk of the whole neighborhood. Never mind, he's a great lawyer! Never mind! (To Justine) Give me something to drink, will you? ROUSSEAU, MME. ROUSSEAU, MME. DU BROCARD.(To Joseph) Dear friend! You showed yourself a fine fellow! DUPRE. The energy shown by Pamela makes me hopeful. I trembled for a moment while she was giving evidence; the prosecuting attorney pressed her very hard and seemed to doubt her veracity; she grew pale and I thought she was going to faint. JOSEPH. And what must my feelings have been? DUPRE. Her self-sacrifice was wonderful. You don't realize all that she has undergone for you; I, myself even, was deceived by her; she was her own accuser, yet all the time was innocent. Only one moment did she falter; but darting a rapid glance at Jules, she suddenly rallied, a blush took the place of pallor on her countenance, and we felt that she had saved her lover; in spite of the risk she was running, she repeated once more before all those people the story of her own disgrace, and then fell weeping into the arms of her mother. JOSEPH. Yes, she is a fine girl. DUPRE. But I must leave you; the summing up of the judge will come this afternoon. ROUSSEAU. You must be going then. DUPRE. One moment! Do not forget Pamela! That young girl has compromised her own honor for you and for him. JOSEPH. As for me, I don't ask anything, but I have been led to expect-- MME. DU BROCARD, MME. ROUSSEAU. We can never pay our debt of gratitude to you. DUPRE. Very good; come, gentlemen, we must be starting. (Exeunt Dupre and Rousseau.) _ |
||