第38章

Anideaoccurredtohim，alastidea，aflashofinspiration；

hedrewfromhispockettheendofBrujon’srope，whichhehaddetachedfromthechimneyoftheNewBuilding，andflungitintothespaceenclosedbythefence。

Thisropefellattheirfeet。

"Awidow，"[37]saidBabet。

[37]ArgotoftheTemple。

"Mytortouse！"[38]saidBrujon。

[38]Argotofthebarriers。

"Thetavern—keeperisthere，"saidMontparnasse。

Theyraisedtheireyes。Thenardierthrustouthisheadaverylittle。

"Quick！"saidMontparnasse，"haveyoutheotherendoftherope，Brujon？"

"Yes。"

"Knotthetwopiecestogether，we’llflinghimtherope，hecanfastenittothewall，andhe’llhaveenoughofittogetdownwith。"

Thenardierrantherisk，andspoke:——

"Iamparalyzedwithcold。"

"We’llwarmyouup。"

"Ican’tbudge。"

"Letyourselfslide，we’llcatchyou。"

"Myhandsarebenumbed。"

"Onlyfastentheropetothewall。"

"Ican’t。"

"Thenoneofusmustclimbup，"saidMontparnasse。

"Threestories！"ejaculatedBrujon。

Anancientplasterflue，whichhadservedforastovethathadbeenusedintheshantyinformertimes，ranalongthewallandmountedalmosttotheveryspotwheretheycouldseeThenardier。

Thisflue，thenmuchdamagedandfullofcracks，hassincefallen，butthemarksofitarestillvisible。

Itwasverynarrow。

"Onemightgetupbythehelpofthat，"saidMontparnasse。

"Bythatflue？"exclaimedBabet，"agrown—upcove，never！itwouldtakeabrat。"

"Abratmustbegot，"resumedBrujon。

"Wherearewetofindayoung’un？"saidGuelemer。

"Wait，"saidMontparnasse。"I’vegottheveryarticle。"

Heopenedthegateofthefenceverysoftly，madesurethatnoonewaspassingalongthestreet，steppedoutcautiously，shutthegatebehindhim，andsetoffataruninthedirectionoftheBastille。

Sevenoreightminuteselapsed，eightthousandcenturiestoThenardier；

Babet，Brujon，andGuelemerdidnotopentheirlips；atlastthegateopenedoncemore，andMontparnasseappeared，breathless，andfollowedbyGavroche。Therainstillrenderedthestreetcompletelydeserted。

LittleGavrocheenteredtheenclosureandgazedattheformsoftheseruffianswithatranquilair。Thewaterwasdrippingfromhishair。

Guelemeraddressedhim:——

"Areyouaman，young’un？"

Gavrocheshruggedhisshoulders，andreplied:——

"Ayoung’unlikeme’saman，andmenlikeyouarebabes。"

"Thebrat’stongue’swellhung！"exclaimedBabet。

"TheParisbratain’tmadeofstraw，"addedBrujon。

"Whatdoyouwant？"askedGavroche。

Montparnasseanswered:——

"Climbupthatflue。"

"Withthisrope，"saidBabet。

"Andfastenit，"continuedBrujon。

"Tothetopofthewall，"wentonBabet。

"Tothecross—barofthewindow，"addedBrujon。

"Andthen？"saidGavroche。

"There！"saidGuelemer。

Thegaminexaminedtherope，theflue，thewall，thewindows，andmadethatindescribableanddisdainfulnoisewithhislipswhichsignifies:——

"Isthatall！"

"There’samanuptherewhomyouaretosave，"resumedMontparnasse。

"Willyou？"beganBrujonagain。

"Greenhorn！"repliedthelad，asthoughthequestionappearedamostunprecedentedonetohim。

Andhetookoffhisshoes。

GuelemerseizedGavrochebyonearm，sethimontheroofoftheshanty，whoseworm—eatenplanksbentbeneaththeurchin’sweight，andhandedhimtheropewhichBrujonhadknottedtogetherduringMontparnasse’sabsence。Thegamindirectedhisstepstowardstheflue，whichitwaseasytoenter，thankstoalargecrackwhichtouchedtheroof。Atthemomentwhenhewasonthepointofascending，Thenardier，whosawlifeandsafetyapproaching，bentovertheedgeofthewall；thefirstlightofdawnstruckwhiteuponhisbrowdrippingwithsweat，uponhislividcheek—bones，hissharpandsavagenose，hisbristlinggraybeard，andGavrocherecognizedhim。

"Hullo！it’smyfather！Oh，thatwon’thinder。"

Andtakingtheropeinhisteeth，heresolutelybegantheascent。

Hereachedthesummitofthehut，bestrodetheoldwallasthoughithadbeenahorse。andknottedtheropefirmlytotheuppercross—barofthewindow。

Amomentlater，Thenardierwasinthestreet。

Assoonashetouchedthepavement，assoonashefoundhimselfoutofdanger，hewasnolongereitherweary，orchilledortrembling；

theterriblethingsfromwhichhehadescapedvanishedlikesmoke，allthatstrangeandferociousmindawokeoncemore，andstooderectandfree，readytomarchonward。

Thesewerethisman’sfirstwords:——

"Now，whomarewetoeat？"

Itisuselesstoexplainthesenseofthisfrightfullytransparentremark，whichsignifiesbothtokill，toassassinate，andtoplunder。

Toeat，truesense:todevour。

"Let’sgetwellintoacorner，"saidBrujon。"Let’ssettleitinthreewords，andpartatonce。TherewasanaffairthatpromisedwellintheRuePlumet，adesertedstreet，anisolatedhouse，anoldrottengateonagarden，andlonewomen。"

"Well！whynot？"demandedThenardier。

"Yourgirl，Eponine，wenttoseeaboutthematter，"repliedBabet。

"AndshebroughtabiscuittoMagnon，"addedGuelemer。"Nothingtobemadethere。"

"Thegirl’snofool，"saidThenardier。"Still，itmustbeseento。"

"Yes，yes，"saidBrujon，"itmustbelookedup。"

Inthemeanwhile，noneofthemenseemedtoseeGavroche，who，duringthiscolloquy，hadseatedhimselfononeofthefence—posts；

hewaitedafewmoments，thinkingthatperhapshisfatherwouldturntowardshim，thenheputonhisshoesagain，andsaid:——

"Isthatall？Youdon’twantanymore，mymen？Nowyou’reoutofyourscrape。I’moff。Imustgoandgetmybratsoutofbed。"

Andoffhewent。

Thefivemenemerged，oneafteranother，fromtheenclosure。

WhenGavrochehaddisappearedatthecorneroftheRuedesBallets，BabettookThenardieraside。

"Didyoutakeagoodlookatthatyoung’un？"heasked。

"Whatyoung’un？"

"Theonewhoclimbedthewallandcarriedyoutherope。"

"Notparticularly。"

"Well，Idon’tknow，butitstrikesmethatitwasyourson。"

"Bah！"saidThenardier，"doyouthinkso？"

BOOKSEVENTH。——SLANG

CHAPTERI

ORIGIN

Pigritiaisaterribleword。

Itengendersawholeworld，lapegre，forwhichreadtheft，andahell，lapegrenne，forwhichreadhunger。

Thus，idlenessisthemother。

Shehasason，theft，andadaughter，hunger。

Whereareweatthismoment？Inthelandofslang。

Whatisslang？Itisatoneandthesametime，anationandadialect；

itistheftinitstwokinds；peopleandlanguage。

When，fourandthirtyyearsago，thenarratorofthisgraveandsombrehistoryintroducedintoaworkwrittenwiththesameaimasthis[39]athiefwhotalkedargot，therearoseamazementandclamor。——"What！How！Argot！Why，argotishorrible！

Itisthelanguageofprisons，galleys，convicts，ofeverythingthatismostabominableinsociety！"etc。，etc。

[39]TheLastDayofaCondemnedMan。

Wehaveneverunderstoodthissortofobjections。

Sincethattime，twopowerfulromancers，oneofwhomisaprofoundobserverofthehumanheart，theotheranintrepidfriendofthepeople，BalzacandEugeneSue，havingrepresentedtheirruffiansastalkingtheirnaturallanguage，astheauthorofTheLastDayofaCondemnedMandidin1828，thesameobjectionshavebeenraised。

Peoplerepeated:"Whatdoauthorsmeanbythatrevoltingdialect？

Slangisodious！Slangmakesoneshudder！"

Whodeniesthat？Ofcourseitdoes。

Whenitisaquestionofprobingawound，agulf，asociety，sincewhenhasitbeenconsideredwrongtogotoofar？togotothebottom？Wehavealwaysthoughtthatitwassometimesacourageousact，and，atleast，asimpleandusefuldeed，worthyofthesympatheticattentionwhichdutyacceptedandfulfilledmerits。

Whyshouldonenotexploreeverything，andstudyeverything？

Whyshouldonehaltontheway？Thehaltisamatterdependingonthesounding—line，andnotontheleadsman。

Certainly，too，itisneitheranattractivenoraneasytasktoundertakeaninvestigationintothelowestdepthsofthesocialorder，whereterrafirmacomestoanendandwheremudbegins，torummageinthosevague，murkywaves，tofollowup，toseizeandtofling，stillquivering，uponthepavementthatabjectdialectwhichisdrippingwithfilthwhenthusbroughttothelight，thatpustulousvocabularyeachwordofwhichseemsanuncleanringfromamonsterofthemireandtheshadows。Nothingismorelugubriousthanthecontemplationthusinitsnudity，inthebroadlightofthought，ofthehorribleswarmingofslang。Itseems，infact，tobeasortofhorriblebeastmadeforthenightwhichhasjustbeentornfromitscesspool。

Onethinksonebeholdsafrightful，living，andbristlingthicketwhichquivers，rustles，wavers，returnstoshadow，threatensandglares。

Onewordresemblesaclaw，anotheranextinguishedandbleedingeye，suchandsuchaphraseseemstomoveliketheclawofacrab。

Allthisisalivewiththehideousvitalityofthingswhichhavebeenorganizedoutofdisorganization。

Now，whenhashorroreverexcludedstudy？Sincewhenhasmaladybanishedmedicine？Canoneimagineanaturalistrefusingtostudytheviper，thebat，thescorpion，thecentipede，thetarantula，andonewhowouldcastthembackintotheirdarkness，saying:"Oh！howuglythatis！"Thethinkerwhoshouldturnasidefromslangwouldresembleasurgeonwhoshouldaverthisfacefromanulcerorawart。

Hewouldbelikeaphilologistrefusingtoexamineafactinlanguage，aphilosopherhesitatingtoscrutinizeafactinhumanity。

For，itmustbestatedtothosewhoareignorantofthecase，thatargotisbothaliteraryphenomenonandasocialresult。

Whatisslang，properlyspeaking？Itisthelanguageofwretchedness。

Wemaybestopped；thefactmaybeputtousingeneralterms，whichisonewayofattenuatingit；wemaybetold，thatalltrades，professions，itmaybeadded，alltheaccidentsofthesocialhierarchyandallformsofintelligence，havetheirownslang。

Themerchantwhosays:"Montpelliernotactive，Marseillesfinequality，"

thebrokeron’changewhosays:"Assetsatendofcurrentmonth，"

thegamblerwhosays:"Tiersettout，refaitdepique，"thesheriffoftheNormanIsleswhosays:Theholderinfeerevertingtohislandedestatecannotclaimthefruitsofthatestateduringthehereditaryseizureoftherealestatebythemortgagor，"theplaywrightwhosays:

"Thepiecewashissed，"thecomedianwhosays:"I’vemadeahit，"

thephilosopherwhosays:"Phenomenaltriplicity，"thehuntsmanwhosays:"Voileciallais，Voilecifuyant，"thephrenologistwhosays:"Amativeness，combativeness，secretiveness，"theinfantrysoldierwhosays:"Myshooting—iron，"thecavalry—manwhosays:

"Myturkey—cock，"thefencing—masterwhosays:"Tierce，quarte，break，"

theprinterwhosays:"Myshooting—stickandgalley，"——all，printer，fencing—master，cavalrydragoon，infantry—man，phrenologist，huntsman，philosopher，comedian，playwright，sheriff，gambler，stock—broker，andmerchant，speakslang。Thepainterwhosays:

"Mygrinder，"thenotarywhosays:"MySkip—the—Gutter，"

thehairdresserwhosays:"Mymealyback，"thecobblerwhosays:

"Mycub，"talksslang。Strictlyspeaking，ifoneabsolutelyinsistsonthepoint，allthedifferentfashionsofsayingtherightandtheleft，thesailor’sportandstarboard，thescene—shifter’scourt—side，andgarden—side，thebeadle’sGospel—sideandEpistle—side，areslang。

Thereistheslangoftheaffectedladyaswellasoftheprecieuses。

TheHotelRambouilletnearlyadjoinstheCourdesMiracles。Thereisaslangofduchesses，witnessthisphrasecontainedinalove—letterfromaverygreatladyandaveryprettywomanoftheRestoration:

"YouwillfindinthisgossipafultitudeofreasonswhyIshouldlibertize。"[40]Diplomaticciphersareslang；thepontificalchancellerybyusing26forRome，grkztntgzyalfordespatch，andabfxustgrnogrkzutuXI。fortheDuedeModena，speaksslang。

ThephysiciansoftheMiddleAgeswho，forcarrot，radish，andturnip，saidOpoponach，perfroschinum，reptitalmus，dracatholicum，angelorum，postmegorum，talkedslang。Thesugar—manufacturerwhosays:

"Loaf，clarified，lumps，bastard，common，burnt，"——thishonestmanufacturertalksslang。Acertainschoolofcriticismtwentyyearsago，whichusedtosay:"HalfoftheworksofShakespeareconsistsofplaysuponwordsandpuns，"——talkedslang。Thepoet，andtheartistwho，withprofoundunderstanding，woulddesignateM。deMontmorencyas"abourgeois，"ifhewerenotajudgeofversesandstatues，speakslang。TheclassicAcademicianwhocallsflowers"Flora，"fruits，"Pomona，"thesea，"Neptune，"love，"fires，"beauty，"charms，"ahorse，"acourser，"thewhiteortricoloredcockade，"theroseofBellona，"

thethree—corneredhat，"Mars’triangle，"——thatclassicalAcademiciantalksslang。Algebra，medicine，botany，haveeachtheirslang。

Thetonguewhichisemployedonboardship，thatwonderfullanguageofthesea，whichissocompleteandsopicturesque，whichwasspokenbyJeanBart，Duquesne，Suffren，andDuperre，whichmingleswiththewhistlingoftherigging，thesoundofthespeaking—trumpets，theshockoftheboarding—irons，therollofthesea，thewind，thegale，thecannon，iswhollyaheroicanddazzlingslang，whichistothefierceslangofthethieveswhatthelionistothejackal。

[40]"Voustrouverezdanscespotains—la，unefoultitudederaisonspourquejemelibertise。"

Nodoubt。Butsaywhatwewill，thismannerofunderstandingthewordslangisanextensionwhicheveryonewillnotadmit。

Forourpart，wereservetotheworditsancientandprecise，circumscribedanddeterminedsignificance，andwerestrictslangtoslang。Theveritableslangandtheslangthatispre—eminentlyslang，ifthetwowordscanbecoupledthus，theslangimmemorialwhichwasakingdom，isnothingelse，werepeat，thanthehomely，uneasy，crafty，treacherous，venomous，cruel，equivocal，vile，profound，fataltongueofwretchedness。Thereexists，attheextremityofallabasementandallmisfortunes，alastmiserywhichrevoltsandmakesupitsmindtoenterintoconflictwiththewholemassoffortunatefactsandreigningrights；afearfulconflict，where，nowcunning，nowviolent，unhealthyandferociousatoneandthesametime，itattacksthesocialorderwithpin—pricksthroughvice，andwithclub—blowsthroughcrime。Tomeettheneedsofthisconflict，wretchednesshasinventedalanguageofcombat，whichisslang。

Tokeepafloatandtorescuefromoblivion，toholdabovethegulf，wereitbutafragmentofsomelanguagewhichmanhasspokenandwhichwould，otherwise，belost，thatistosay，oneoftheelements，goodorbad，ofwhichcivilizationiscomposed，orbywhichitiscomplicated，toextendtherecordsofsocialobservation；

istoservecivilizationitself。ThisservicePlautusrendered，consciouslyorunconsciously，bymakingtwoCarthaginiansoldierstalkPhoenician；thatserviceMoliererendered，bymakingsomanyofhischaracterstalkLevantineandallsortsofdialects。

Hereobjectionsspringupafresh。Phoenician，verygood！

Levantine，quiteright！Evendialect，letthatpass！Theyaretongueswhichhavebelongedtonationsorprovinces；butslang！

Whatistheuseofpreservingslang？Whatisthegoodofassistingslang"tosurvive"？

Tothiswereplyinoneword，only。Assuredly，ifthetonguewhichanationoraprovincehasspokenisworthyofinterest，thelanguagewhichhasbeenspokenbyamiseryisstillmoreworthyofattentionandstudy。

Itisthelanguagewhichhasbeenspoken，inFrance，forexample，formorethanfourcenturies，notonlybyamisery，butbyeverypossiblehumanmisery。

Andthen，weinsistuponit，thestudyofsocialdeformitiesandinfirmities，andthetaskofpointingthemoutwithaviewtoremedy，isnotabusinessinwhichchoiceispermitted。

Thehistorianofmannersandideashasnolessaustereamissionthanthehistorianofevents。Thelatterhasthesurfaceofcivilization，theconflictsofcrowns，thebirthsofprinces，themarriagesofkings，battles，assemblages，greatpublicmen，revolutionsinthedaylight，everythingontheexterior；theotherhistorianhastheinterior，thedepths，thepeoplewhotoil，suffer，wait，theoppressedwoman，theagonizingchild，thesecretwarbetweenmanandman，obscureferocities，prejudices，plottediniquities，thesubterranean，theindistincttremorsofmultitudes，thedie—of—hunger，thecounter—blowsofthelaw，thesecretevolutionofsouls，thego—bare—foot，thebare—armed，thedisinherited，theorphans，theunhappy，andtheinfamous，alltheformswhichroamthroughthedarkness。Hemustdescendwithhisheartfullofcharity，andseverityatthesametime，asabrotherandasajudge，tothoseimpenetrablecasemateswherecrawl，pell—mell，thosewhobleedandthosewhodealtheblow，thosewhoweepandthosewhocurse，thosewhofastandthosewhodevour，thosewhoendureevilandthosewhoinflictit。Havethesehistoriansofheartsandsoulsdutiesatallinferiortothehistoriansofexternalfacts？DoesanyonethinkthatAlighierihasanyfewerthingstosaythanMachiavelli？

Istheundersideofcivilizationanylessimportantthantheuppersidemerelybecauseitisdeeperandmoresombre？Dowereallyknowthemountainwellwhenwearenotacquaintedwiththecavern？

Letussay，moreover，parenthetically，thatfromafewwordsofwhatprecedesamarkedseparationmightbeinferredbetweenthetwoclassesofhistorianswhichdoesnotexistinourmind。

Nooneisagoodhistorianofthepatent，visible，striking，andpubliclifeofpeoples，ifheisnot，atthesametime，inacertainmeasure，thehistorianoftheirdeepandhiddenlife；

andnooneisagoodhistorianoftheinteriorunlessheunderstandshow，atneed，tobethehistorianoftheexterioralso。

Thehistoryofmannersandideaspermeatesthehistoryofevents，andthisistruereciprocally。Theyconstitutetwodifferentordersoffactswhichcorrespondtoeachother，whicharealwaysinterlaced，andwhichoftenbringforthresults。Allthelineamentswhichprovidencetracesonthesurfaceofanationhavetheirparallels，sombrebutdistinct，intheirdepths，andallconvulsionsofthedepthsproduceebullitionsonthesurface。Truehistorybeingamixtureofallthings，thetruehistorianminglesineverything。

Manisnotacirclewithasinglecentre；heisanellipsewithadoublefocus。Factsformoneofthese，andideastheother。

Slangisnothingbutadressing—roomwherethetonguehavingsomebadactiontoperform，disguisesitself。Thereitclothesitselfinword—masks，inmetaphor—rags。Inthisguiseitbecomeshorrible。

Onefindsitdifficulttorecognize。IsitreallytheFrenchtongue，thegreathumantongue？Beholditreadytostepuponthestageandtoretortuponcrime，andpreparedforalltheemploymentsoftherepertoryofevil。Itnolongerwalks，ithobbles；itlimpsonthecrutchoftheCourtofMiracles，acrutchmetamorphosableintoaclub；itiscalledvagrancy；everysortofspectre，itsdressers，havepainteditsface，itcrawlsandrears，thedoublegaitofthereptile。Henceforth，itisaptatallroles，itismadesuspiciousbythecounterfeiter，coveredwithverdigrisbytheforger，blackedbythesootoftheincendiary；andthemurdererappliesitsrouge。

Whenonelistens，bythesideofhonestmen，attheportalsofsociety，oneoverhearsthedialoguesofthosewhoareontheoutside。

Onedistinguishesquestionsandreplies。Oneperceives，withoutunderstandingit，ahideousmurmur，soundingalmostlikehumanaccents，butmorenearlyresemblingahowlthananarticulateword。

Itisslang。Thewordsaremisshapenandstampedwithanindescribableandfantasticbestiality。Onethinksonehearshydrastalking。

Itisunintelligibleinthedark。Itgnashesandwhispers，completingthegloomwithmystery。Itisblackinmisfortune，itisblackerstillincrime；thesetwoblacknessesamalgamated，composeslang。Obscurityintheatmosphere，obscurityinacts，obscurityinvoices。Terrible，toad—liketonguewhichgoesandcomes，leaps，crawls，slobbers，andstirsaboutinmonstrouswiseinthatimmensegrayfogcomposedofrainandnight，ofhunger，ofvice，offalsehood，ofinjustice，ofnudity，ofsuffocation，andofwinter，thehighnoondayofthemiserable。

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