Constance and Valentine admired him, while Marianne jested
and turned him away each time that he greedily put out his little hands
towards her.
"No, no, monsieur, it's over now. You will have nothing but soup in
future."
"Weaning is such a terrible business," then remarked Constance. "Did he
let you sleep last night?"
"Oh! yes, he had good habits, you know; he never troubled me at night.
But this morning he was stupefied and began to cry. Still, you see, he is
fairly well behaved already. Besides, I never had more trouble than this
with the other ones."
Beauchene was standing there, listening, and, as usual, smoking a cigar.
Constance appealed to him:
"You are lucky. But you, dear, remember--don't you?--what a life Maurice
led us when his nurse went away. For three whole nights we were unable to
sleep."
"But just look how your Maurice is playing!" exclaimed Beauchene. "Yet
you'll be telling me again that he is ill."
"Oh! I no longer say that, my friend; he is quite well now. Besides, I
was never anxious; I know that he is very strong."
A great game of hide-and-seek was going on in the garden, along the paths
and even over the flower-beds, among the eight children who were
assembled there.
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