As long as she had entertained any hope of
preventing this marriage she had not hesitated to express and even
exaggerate her objections and repugnance. But her point of view
was entirely changed when conquered by the strength of her son's
passion, she at last yielded a reluctant consent. The young girl
who was destined to be her daughter-in-law at once became sacred
in her eyes; and it seemed to her an act of duty to watch over
Marguerite, and shield her reputation. Having considered the
subject, she had decided that it was not proper for her son's
betrothed to run about the streets alone in the evening. Might it
not compromise her honor? and later on might it not furnish
venomous Madame de Fondege with an opportunity to exercise her
slanderous tongue? Thus the puritanical old lady had come to fetch
Marguerite, so that whenever occasion required she might be able
to say: "I was there!"
As for Marguerite, after the trials of the day, she yielded
without reserve to the feeling of rest and happiness that now
filled her heart. Again and again had Pascal spoken of his
mother's prejudices and the inflexibility of her principles. But
he had also spoken of her dauntless energy, the nobility of her
nature, and of her love and devotion to him. With Marguerite,
moreover, one consideration--one which she would scarcely have
admitted, perhaps--outweighed all others: Madame Ferailleur was
Pascal's mother.
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