Chapter 4

From this time, the charming Adrienne frequently visited the bleaching
grounds, always accompanied by her grandmother. The presence of
Georges was an excuse, but to watch the improvement in our
appearance was the reason. Never before had Adrienne seen a fabric
as beautiful as our own, and, as I afterwards discovered, she was laying
by a few francs with the intention of purchasing the piece, and of
working and ornamenting the handkerchiefs, in order to present them to
her benefactress, the dauphine. Mad. de la Rocheaimard was pleased
with this project; it was becoming in a de la Rocheaimard; and they
soon began to speak of it openly in their visits. Fifteen or twenty
napoleons might do it, and the remains of the recovered trousseau
would still produce that sum. It is probable this intention would have
been carried out, but for a severe illness that attacked the dear girl,
during which her life was even despaired of. I had the happiness of
hearing of her gradual recovery, however, before we commenced our
journey, though no more was said of the purchase. Perhaps it was as
well. as it was; for, by this time, such a feeling existed in our extreme
cote gauche, that it may be questioned if the handkerchiefs of that end
of the piece would have behaved themselves in the wardrobe of the
dauphine with the discretion and prudence that are expected from every
thing around the person of a princess of her exalted rank and excellent
character. It is true, none of us understood the questions at issue; but
that only made the matter worse; the violence of all dissensions being
very generally in proportion to the ignorance and consequent confidence
of the disputants.

{napoleon = French gold coin worth twenty francs}

I could not but remember Adrienne, as the commissionaire laid us down
before the eyes of the wife of the head of the firm, in the rue de --------
. We were carefully examined, and pronounced "parfaits;" still it was not
in the sweet tones, and with the sweeter smiles of the polished and
gentle girl we had left in Picardie. There was a sentiment in HER
admiration that touched all our hearts, even to the most exaggerated
republican among us, for she seemed to go deeper in her examination of
merits than the mere texture and price. She saw her offering in our
beauty, the benevolence of the dauphine in our softness, her own
gratitude in our exquisite fineness, and princely munificence in our
delicacy. In a word, she could enter into the sentiment of a pocket-
handkerchief. Alas! how different was the estimation in which we were
held by Desiree and her employers. With them, it was purely a question
of francs, and we had not been in the magazin five minutes, when there
was a lively dispute whether we were