Page:Marquis de Sade - Adelaide of Brunswick.djvu/69

 man who has been deceived by his enemies. But no matter what be the case, you can rest assured that when it will be necessary to leave this earth, our graves will be ready and we will show as much courage as you show barbarism."

"Milady," said Schinders with impertinence, "you speak as if you were still on the throne of Saxony."

"I shall always have the sentiments which made me worthy of being there."

"There are moments in life when that type of energy becomes only a weakness."

"It can only become a weakness with beings as ferocious as you are."

"Ah, Milady, do not antagonize your executioners."

"What does it matter," said Adelaide, "what does it matter whether we breathe a few hours more or less. One cannot leave such monsters early enough."

"Sir," said Bathilda, "do not be surprised at our language, and realize that the hope of dying soon gives the right to say anything."

"You are out of your heads, Miladies," said Schinders. "The attitude which you are taking is bad and it will bring you even more disagreeable things."

At that he put his head out of the door and yelled: "Stolbach! I am putting you in the place of the blind man. You will be better than he is to keep these ladies and you will answer to me for them with your head."

This new guardian was the most frightful looking being that it was possible to see. His legs were small and crooked and his arms were extremely long. There was an enormous hump between his two shoulders which balanced one even larger on his chest. His voice resembled that of the cry of peacocks. He had the ears of an ape and the face of an old dog. His mouth was like an oven on the edge of which one had placed a few horse teeth at a great distance one from the other. His thick reddish hair gave him the appearance of a fox, but from his meanness, one would take him to be a wolf and from his ferocity, he seemed like a tiger. It was hard, by looking at him, to determine whether his origins were human or animal. The two