Monsieur de l'Estorade knew that Sallenauve was far too wise to be the dupe of any artifices he might have used to bring about his introduction to the minister.He therefore went straight to the point, and soon after Rastignac's arrival he slipped his arm through that of the statesman, and, approaching the deputy, said to him,--"Monsieur the minister of Public Works, who, on the eve of the battle, wishes me to introduce him to a general of the enemy's army.""Monsieur le ministre does me too much honor," replied Sallenauve, ceremoniously."Far from being a general, I am a private soldier, and a very unknown one.""Hum!" said the minister; "it seems to me that the battle at Arcis-sur-Aube was not an insignificant victory; you routed our ranks, monsieur, in a singular manner.""There was nothing wonderful in that; you must have heard that a saint fought for us.""Well, at any rate," said Rastignac, "I prefer this result to the one arranged for us by a man I thought cleverer than he proved to be, whom I sent down there.It seems that Beauvisage is a perfect nonentity;he'd have rubbed off upon us; and after all, he was really as much Left centre as the other man, Giguet.Now the Left centre is our real enemy, because it is aiming to get our portfolios.""Oh!" said Monsieur de l'Estorade, "after what we heard of the man, Ithink he would have done exactly what was wanted of him.""My dear friend, don't believe that," said the minister."Fools are often more tenacious of the flag under which they enlisted than we think for.Besides, to go over to the enemy is to make a choice, and that supposes an operation of the mind; it is much easier to be obstinate.""I agree with the minister," said Sallenauve; "extreme innocence and extreme rascality are equally able to defend themselves against seduction."Here Monsieur de l'Estorade, seeing, or pretending to see, a signal made to him, looked over his shoulder and said,--"I'm coming."
And the two adversaries being thus buckled together, he hastened away as if summoned to some duty as master of the house.
Sallenauve was anxious not to seem disturbed at finding himself alone with the minister.The meeting having come about, he decided to endure it with a good grace, and, taking the first word, he asked if the ministry had prepared, in view of the coming sessions, a large number of bills.
"No, very few," replied Rastignac."To tell the truth, we do not expect to be in power very long; we brought about an election because in the general confusion into which the press has thrown public opinion, our constitutional duty was to force that opinion to reconstitute itself; but the fact is, we did not expect the result to be favorable to us, and we are therefore taken somewhat unawares.""You are like the peasant," said Sallenauve, laughing, "who, expecting the end of the world, did not sow his wheat.""Well, we don't look upon our retirement as the end of the world,"said Rastignac, modestly; "there are men to come after us, and many of them well able to govern; only, as we expected to give but few more representations in that transitory abode called 'power,' we have not unpacked either our costumes or our scenery.Besides, the coming session, in any case, can only be a business session.The question now is, of course, between the palace, that is, personal influence, and the doctrine of parliamentary supremacy.This question will naturally come up when the vote is taken on the secret-service fund.Whenever, in one way or the other, that is settled, and the budget is voted, together with a few bills of secondary interest, Parliament has really completed its task; it will have put an end to a distressing struggle, and the country will know to which of the two parties it can look for the development of its prosperity.""And you think," said Sallenauve, "that in a well-balanced system of government that question is a useful one to raise?""Well," replied Rastignac, "we have not raised it.It is born perhaps of circumstances; a great deal, as I think, from the restlessness of certain ambitions, and also from the tactics of parties.""So that, in your opinion, one of the combatants is not guilty and has absolutely nothing to reproach himself with?""You are a republican," said Rastignac, "and therefore, a priori, an enemy to the dynasty.I think I should lose my time in trying to change your ideas on the policy you complain of.""You are mistaken," said the theoretical republican deputy; "I have no preconceived hatred to the reigning dynasty.I even think that in its past, striped, if I may say so, with royal affinities and revolutionary memories, it has all that is needed to respond to the liberal and monarchical instincts of the nation.But you will find it difficult to persuade me that in the present head of the dynasty we shall not find extreme ideas of personal influence, which in the long run will undermine and subvert the finest as well as the strongest institutions.""Yes," said Rastignac, ironically, "and they are saved by the famous axiom of the deputy of Sancerre: 'The king reigns, but does not govern.'"Whether he was tired of standing to converse, or whether he wished to prove his ease in releasing himself from the trap which had evidently been laid for him, Sallenauve, before replying, drew up a chair for his interlocutor, and, taking one himself, said,--"Will you permit me to cite the example of another royal behavior?--that of a prince who was not considered indifferent to his royal prerogative, and who was not ignorant of constitutional mechanism--""Louis XVIII.," said Rastignac, "or, as the newspapers used to call him, 'the illustrious author of the Charter'?""Precisely; and will you kindly tell me where he died?""Parbleu! at the Tuileries."
"And his successor?"