And, indeed,
as he reminded himself, were not these honest comedians, who had rescued
him from his misery and despair, entitled in all fairness to profit, so
far as they could, by this unexpected and overwhelming favour which he
had all unwittingly gained? So, resigning himself as philosophically as
he could to his fate, he buckled his sword-belt, draped his cloak over
his shoulder, put on his mask and calmly awaited his call to the stage.
As the receipts were so large, Herode, like a generous manager, had
doubled the usual number of lights, so that the theatre was almost as
radiant as if a flood of sunshine had been poured into it. The fair
portion of the audience, hoping to attract the attention of the valiant
Captain Fracasse, had arrayed themselves in all their splendour; not a
diamond was left in its casket; they sparkled and flashed, every one, on
necks and arms more or less white and round, and on heads more or less
shapely, but all filled with an ardent desire to please the hero of the
hour; so the scene was a brilliant one in every way. Only one box yet
remained unoccupied, the best situated and most conspicuous in the whole
house; every eye was turned upon it, and much wonder expressed at the
apathy manifested by those who had secured it, for all the rest of the
spectators had been long settled in their places.
Pages:
338
339
340
341
342
343
344
345
346
347
348
349
350
351
352
353
354
355
356
357
358
359
360
361
362