Page:The Bohemians of the Latin Quarter.djvu/103

Schaunard and Marcel, who had been grinding away valiantly a whole morning, suddenly struck work.

“Thunder and lightning! it’s hungry!” cried Schaunard. And he added carelessly, “Do we breakfast to-day?” Marcel appeared much astonished at this very inopportune question.

“How long has it been the fashion to breakfast two days running?” he asked. “And yesterday was Thursday.” He finished his reply by tracing with his mahl-stick the ecclesiastical ordinance:

Schaunard, finding no answer, returned to his picture, which represented a plain inhabited by a red tree and a blue tree shaking branches; an evident allusion to the sweets of friendship, which had a very philosophical effect. At this moment the porter knocked; he had brought a letter for Marcel.

“Three sous,” said he.

“You are sure?” replied the artist. “Very well, you can owe it to us.”

He shut the door in the man’s face, and opened the letter. At the first line, he began to vault round the room like a rope-dancer, and thundered out, at the top of his voice,