Samuel Butler: The Way of All Flesh

80. CHAPTER LXXX (continued)

On the walls of his bedroom were a series of French Revolution prints representing events in the life of Lycurgus. There was "Grandeur d'ame de Lycurgue," and "Lycurgue consulte l'oracle," and then there was "Calciope a la Cour." Under this was written in French and Spanish: "Modele de grace et de beaute, la jeune Calciope non moins sage que belle avait merite l'estime et l'attachement du vertueux Lycurgue. Vivement epris de tant de charmes, l'illustre philosophe la conduisait dans le temple de Junon, ou ils s'unirent par un serment sacre. Apres cette auguste ceremonie, Lycurgue s'empressa de conduire sa jeune epouse au palais de son frere Polydecte, Roi de Lacedemon. Seigneur, lui dit-il, la vertueuse Calciope vient de recevoir mes voeux aux pieds des autels, j'ose vous prier d'approuver cette union. Le Roi temoigna d'abord quelque surprise, mais l'estime qu'il avait pour son frere lui inspira une reponse pleine de beinveillance. Il s'approcha aussitot de Calciope qu'il embrassa tendrement, combla ensuite Lycurgue de prevenances et parut tres satisfait."

He called my attention to this and then said somewhat timidly that he would rather have married Ellen than Calciope. I saw he was hardening and made no hesitation about proposing that in another day or two we should proceed upon our journey.

I will not weary the reader by taking him with us over beaten ground. We stopped at Siena, Cortona, Orvieto, Perugia and many other cities, and then after a fortnight passed between Rome and Naples went to the Venetian provinces and visited all those wondrous towns that lie between the southern slopes of the Alps and the northern ones of the Apennines, coming back at last by the S. Gothard. I doubt whether he had enjoyed the trip more than I did myself, but it was not till we were on the point of returning that Ernest had recovered strength enough to be called fairly well, and it was not for many months that he so completely lost all sense of the wounds which the last four years had inflicted on him as to feel as though there were a scar and a scar only remaining.