Arranged Round The Walls, Was So Cold And Stiff That Madeleine Could Not
Help Feeling She Must Move About Noiselessly, Or Sit Demurely In a
Corner. At Fanny'S Her Feelings Were Very Different; Everything Seemed
So Inviting; And The Difficulty Was To Choose A Seat Among The Many
Comfortable Armchairs And Sofas.
Morten Never Seemed To Be Perfectly At Home In His Own House, Where His
Heavy Form Was Quite Out Of Place. Fanny Took But Little Notice Of Him,
And His Opinion Was Never Consulted. However, He Was Easy-Going, And
Preferred To Keep Pretty Much To Himself.
Morten Garman Had The Reputation Of Being A Good-Natured Fellow, But At
The Same Time Of Not Being Very Easy To Get On With. To Do Business With
Him Required The Greatest Circumspection; A Single Word Might Spoil
Everything, And If Once Anything Upset Him, It Was Almost Impossible To
Get Him Right Again. Old-Fashioned People, Therefore, Preferred Going
Out To Sandsgaard, And Dealing With The Young Consul Personally; It Was
A Slower Process, But The Result Might Be Reckoned On With The Greatest
Certainty. The Young Man Had A Habit Of Suddenly Looking At His Watch,
Breaking Off The Negotiations, Getting Into His Carriage, And Driving
Off To Sandsgaard Or Elsewhere, Leaving Behind Him Nothing But Loose
Statements And Half-Concluded Business.
Fanny Had Never Troubled Her Husband With Any Demonstrative Affection,
And Certainly Never With Jealousy. She Understood Him Well Enough To
Know That If At Any Time She Should Have Occasion For His Forbearance,
There Were Quite Faults Enough On His Side To Weigh Down The Balance In
Her Favour.
"There Goes Your Admirer, Pastor Martens. Look, Madeleine, How He Is
Eyeing Us, The Worthy Man! He Is Taking Off His Hat.--Good Morning,"
Said Fanny, Bowing, And At The Same Time Beckoning To Him To Come In.
The Pastor Was At The Other Side Of The Narrow Street, And Seemed To
Consider A Moment Before He Made Up His Mind To Cross. In The Mean Time
Fanny Rang The Bell And Ordered Chocolate. She Dearly Loved These
Morning Visits, With A Cup Of Chocolate Or A Glass Of Wine, And
Chapter 7 Pg 47
Accordingly Always Kept Her Eye Upon The Street. Martens, Who Was The
Resident Chaplain, Was Among Her Most Frequent Guests, Especially Since
She Had Taken It Into Her Head That He Admired Madeleine. There Was
Nothing Remarkable That Fanny Should Have Her Attention Taken Up In
Finding A Suitable _Parti_ For The Chaplain. The Whole Congregation Was,
In Fact, Busy In The Same Direction; For Martens Was A Man Of About
Thirty, Not Otherwise Than Prepossessing In appearance, And It Was Now
More Than A Year And A Half Since He Had Lost His First Wife, So That
Nothing Could Be More Natural Than That He Should Be Thinking About
Another.
"Good Morning, Ladies; Good Morning, Miss Garman. I Hope You Are Both
Well," Said The Chaplain, As He Came Into The Room. "I Could Not Resist
Your Kind Invitation, Although I Knew By Experience That A Visit To You
Is Far Too Agreeable To Be Of Very Short Duration."
"You Are Really Too Kind, Mr. Martens; And Your Complaisance To Such A
Child Of The World As I Am, Always Causes Me Great Astonishment," Said
Fanny, Giving Madeleine A Look.
"A Great Many People Are Astonished At It," Answered The Chaplain, Not
Understanding Her Meaning.
"No, Really! Who? Who?" Cried Fanny, Curiously.
"Ah, You Can Scarcely Understand," Martens Began To Explain, "To What An
Extent We Poor Clergymen Are Observed By The Hundred Eyes Of Our
Congregation; And The Fact Is, There Are Several Most Respectable Old
Ladies Who Have Taken Offence At My Frequent Visits To Sandsgaard And To
Yourself."
"No! How Amusing! Do Listen, Madeleine!" Cried Fanny, Beaming.
"It'S All Very Well For You To Laugh," Said The Chaplain, Good
Humouredly; "But It Might Be Very Embarrassing For Me, Were It Not That
I Can Rely On The Support Of The Good Dean."
"So Dean Sparre And You Get On Now. I Was Under The Impression That The
Relation--"
"Yes, At First; Only Just At First. But I Am Not Ashamed To Confess That
The Fault Was On My Side. You See, When I First Came I Took Up With Some
Of Our So-Called Evangelical Neighbours; Respectable, Worthy People,
Too--I Should Be Sorry To Say Otherwise--But Still, Not Exactly
Such--Such--"
"_Comme Il Faut_?" Suggested Fanny.
"Well," Answered He, Smiling, "That Was Not Exactly The Expression I Was
Looking For; But Still, You Understand What I Mean."
"Perfectly!" Said Fanny, Laughing, As She Took The Cup Of Chocolate
Which Madeleine Had Poured Out For Her.
Chapter 7 Pg 48
"I Am Sorry To Say I Took Up A False Position With Regard To The Dean,
Which Led To Many Annoyances Until I Learnt To Know Him; Then Everything
Smoothed Itself Down So Nicely That, If I May Venture To Say So, The
Relations Between Us Became Almost That Of Father And Son. He Is An
Extraordinary Man," Repeated The Chaplain Several Times.
"Yes, Is He Not?" Said Fanny. "I Think He Is The Nicest Clergyman I Have
Ever Seen; And If One Did Not Understand A Word Of His Sermon, It Would
Still Be Most Edifying Only To Hear Him Read The Service. Then The
Charming Poems He Writes!"
"Yes. For My Part, I Consider His Last Poem, 'Peace And Reconciliation,'
The Best Thing Of The Kind That Has Appeared In Our Literature For The
Last Ten Years. Can You Imagine Anything More Charming Than The Lines--
"'I Sat, In Silent Peace Of Even,
On Humble Bench Before My Cot'?"
"Was He Poor Once?" Asked Madeleine, Quickly.
Fanny Laughed; But The Chaplain Explained, In a Clear And Good-Natured
Way, That The Poem Had Been Written After Sparre Had Become Dean, And
That The Cottage Was Merely A Poetical Way Of Expressing His Great
Simplicity.
Madeleine Felt That She Had Asked A Foolish Question, And Went To The
Window And Looked Out Into The Street.
"Yes," Continued The Chaplain, "There Is Something About The Dean I Can
Never Quite Understand. I Never Can Quite Make Up My Mind Exactly Where
It Lies; But When You Are Face To Face With Him, You Feel His Power And
Superiority. I Might Almost Say He Seems To Fascinate You. When He Is
Made A Bishop--"
"A Bishop?" Asked Fanny.
"Yes, Indeed; There Is No Doubt That The Dean Will Have The First
Bishopric That Becomes Vacant. I Have Heard It Publicly Mentioned."
"No, Really! I Should Never
