SCÈNE I
Au lever du rideau, Charles, en livrée élégante et tenant 5 à la main des lettres et des journaux, est debout devant un chevalet placé à gauche du public. Leonie entre par la porte du fond.
Charles, regardant le tableau posé sur le chevalet. C'est charmant ! . . . charmant ! . . . une finesse ! une io grâce ! . . .
2 premier plan : see plan. It connects with a corresponding side scene {pan coupé) through which there is a passage called coulisse. Of such plans, pans coupes, and coulisses, a stage has from three to four, numbered first in front, and third or fourth in the rear. The rear itself is called fond. As the stage slightly rises toward the rear an actor is said to "go up" {monter), or "go up again" {remonter), when he walks toward the rear, while he "descends" {descendre, redescendre) in walking toward the front, or premier plan. The general term for the side scenes is cantonade; an actor speaking from the side, but not yet seen, speaks à la cantonade, or dans la coulisse.
LÉonie, qui vient d'entrer, apercevant Charles. Qu'estce que j'entends? . . . (Après un instant de silence et d'un ton sévère.) Charles ! . . . Charles !
Charles, se retournant brusquement et s' inclinant. 5 Mademoiselle !
LÉonie. Que faites- vous là?
Charles. Pardonnez-moi, mademoiselle, je regardais le portrait de madame votre tante, notre maîtresse . . . car je l'ai reconnu tout de suite . . . tant il est ressemio blant !
LÉonie. Qui vous demande votre avis? Les lettres? les journaux?
Charles. Je suis allé ce matin à Lyon à la place du
cocher, qui n'en avait pas le temps, et j'ai rapporté des
15 lettres pour tout le monde. Pour mademoiselle, d'abord !
Leonie, vivement. Donnez ! . . . (Poussant un cri.) Ah! . . . de Paris! . . . d'Hortense . . . mon amie d'en-
3 Charles has to be called twice because this is not his real name. The explanation follows later. (Cf. the text of the letter on p. 13, and note 15, p. 22.)
7 Mademoiselle, madame, monsieur, are politely placed before such nouns as mère, père, oncle, tante, sœur, etc., also before titles and the like. Charles takes a liberty in adding votre tante, a familiarity of which a regular servant would not be guilty. A servant says Madame, or Madame la Comtesse, when speaking of his mistress.
"13 Je suis allé: "I went." The English imperfect, not the perfect, is the proper equivalent of the French perfect, called passé indéfini, when the verb denotes time definitely past. This latter in French is regularly used for a definite past. Cf. ' ' I have received a letter to-day," 4 'I received a letter yesterday." In French fai reçu is the proper tense for both. Theoretically, the definite past, passé défini, is correct, but such forms as f allai, etc., are rarely used in conversation; they are limited to books.
