All the same, and notwithstanding my friendship for him, I certainly
could not think of explaining to him the strange situation in which he
had in his ignorance placed himself. To proclaim Kondjé-Gul to be my
mistress would be to banish her from the society into which she had won
her way: it would have wounded her spirit to the quick and determined
her degradation, without reason or advantage either for Kiusko or for
myself. Moreover, did I not owe a stricter fidelity to her than to this
friend of yesterday?
I resolved accordingly to keep my counsel, and wait upon events. I felt
too confident of regulating them in my own interests to be afraid of the
consequences. However, I was surprised by an incident which at first
seemed insignificant. Having been informed of my aunt's projected visit
to Kondjé's mother, I went to her the same evening, thinking that she
would at once tell me about it, but she said nothing. I thought, of
course, that some obstacle had occurred which had deferred my aunt's
negotiations.
The next day, without seeming to attach any importance to the matter, I
questioned my aunt about it. She informed me that she had been to Madame
Murrah's the day before.
"Did you commence your overtures on behalf of Kiusko's grand scheme?" I
asked her.
"Yes," she answered.
"And--were they entertained?"
"Oh, you are going too fast! According to Mussulman usage, matters don't
proceed at that rate. We did not get any further than the preliminaries.
I explained our amorous friend's eager anxiety, and the next step is to
consult Kondjé-Gul."
"Meanwhile, does the mother appear favourable to your request?"
"It was not her duty to declare herself at the first interview," said my
aunt. "She has, as you know, all the fatalistic composure of her race;
still, when I described Daniel's fortune, I fancied she listened to me
with some approval."
"Did she tell you what dowry she could give her daughter?"
"Dowry! are you mad? We talked in Turkish and discussed the matter in
the Turkish way. I think I should have surprised her exceedingly if I
had given her the idea that I was asking, not only for Kondjé-Gul
herself, but for some pecuniary remuneration to the noble Kiusko for
taking her. That would have been sufficient to upset all her ideas, for
don't you know that in the East it is the husband, on the contrary, who
always makes a present to the parents of the girl he wants to have? This
arrangement, by the way, seems to me more chivalrous and more manly.
Kiusko, for that matter, cares about as much for money as for a straw:
he loves her, and that is enough for him."