"My poor M. Pascal, you must see that I am distressed not to be able to render you the first service you ask of me. I need not tell you how deeply I regret it." "What is impossible in it?" "Believe me, do not think of this marriage." "Does not Mlle. Antonine deserve--" "Antonine is an angel. I have known her from infancy. There is not a better heart, a better character, in the world." "What you tell me, my dear Madame Dutertre, would suffice to augment my desire, if that could be done." "I say again, this marriage is impossible." "Well, tell me why." "In the first place, think of it, Antonine is only fifteen and a half, and you--" "I am thirty-eight. Is it that?" "The difference of age is very great, you must confess, and as I would not advise my daughter or my sister to make a marriage so disproportionate, I cannot advise Antonine to do so, because I would not at any price make your unhappiness or hers." "Oh, make yourself easy! I will answer for my own happiness." "And that of Antonine?" "Bah! bah! for a few years, more or less--" "I married for love, my dear M. Pascal. I do not comprehend other marriages. Perhaps it is wrong, but indeed I think so, and I ought to tell you so, since you consult me." "According to you, then, I am not capable of pleasing Mlle. Antonine?" "I believe that, like Charles and myself, and like all generous hearts, she would appreciate the nobility of your character, but--" "Permit me again, my dear Madame Dutertre,--a child of fifteen years has no settled ideas on the subject of marriage; and Mlle. Antonine has a blind confidence in you. Present me to her; tell her all sorts of good about the good man, Pascal. The affair is sure,--if you wish to do it, you can." "Hear me, my dear M. Pascal, this conversation grieves me more than I can tell you, and to put an end to it I will trust a secret to your discretion and your loyalty." "Very well, what is this secret?" "Antonine loves, and is loved. Ah, M. Pascal, nothing could be purer or more affecting than this love, and, for many reasons, I am certain it will assure Antonine's happiness. Her uncle's health is precarious, and should the poor child lose him she would be obliged to live with relatives who, not without reason, inspire her with aversion. Once married according to the dictate of her heart, she can hope for a happy future, for her warm affection is nobly placed. You must see, then, my dear M. Pascal, that, even with my influence, you would have no chance of success, and how can I give you my influence, with the approval of my conscience, leaving out of consideration the disparity of age, which, in my opinion, is an insuperable objection? I am sure, and I do not speak lightly, that the love which Antonine both feels and inspires ought to make her happy throughout her life."