I Rose Up, Therefore, Determined To
Find Some Place Where I Could Sleep.
I asked this friend of mine how
much there was to pay, and he said 'fourpence'.
Then we exchanged
ritual salutations, and I took the road. I did not leave the town or
village without noticing one extraordinary thing at the far end of it,
which was that, whereas most places in France are proud of their
town-hall and make a great show of it, here in Flavigny they had taken
a great house and written over it ECOLE COMMUNALE in great letters,
and then they had written over a kind of lean-to or out-house of this
big place the words 'Hotel de ville' in very small letters, so small
that I had a doubt for a moment if the citizens here were good
republicans - a treasonable thought on all this frontier.
Then, a mile onward, I saw the road cross the canal and run parallel
to it. I saw the canal run another mile or so under a fine bank of
deep woods. I saw an old bridge leading over it to that inviting
shade, and as it was now nearly six and the sun was gathering
strength, I went, with slumber overpowering me and my feet turning
heavy beneath me, along the tow-path, over the bridge, and lay down on
the moss under these delightful trees. Forgetful of the penalty that
such an early repose would bring, and of the great heat that was to
follow at midday, I quickly became part of the life of that forest and
fell asleep.
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