I
War. The incredible yet long predicted had come to pass. People woke in the mornings with a sense of disaster, but these were the old who, having known war, remembered. The young men of France, of Germany, of Russia, of the whole world, looked round them amazed and bewildered; yet with something that stung as it leapt in their veins, filling them with a strange excitement—the bitter and ruthless potion of war that spurred and lashed at their manhood.
They hurried through the streets of Paris, these young men; they collected in bars and cafés; they stood gaping at the ominous government placards summoning their youth and strength to the colours.
They talked fast, very fast, they gesticulated: “C’est la guerre! C’est la guerre!” they kept repeating.
Then they answered each other: “Oui, c’est la guerre.”
And true to her traditions the beautiful city sought to hide stark ugliness under beauty, and she decked herself as though for a wedding; her flags streamed out on the breeze in their thousands. With the paraphernalia and pageantry of glory she sought to disguise the true meaning of war.
But where children had been playing a few days before, troops were now encamped along the Champs Élysées. Their horses nibbled the bark from the trees and pawed at the earth, making little hollows; they neighed to each other in the watches of the night, as though in some fearful anticipation. In bystreets the unreasoning spirit of war broke loose in angry and futile actions; shops were raided because of their German names and their wares hurled out to lie in the gutters. Around every street corner some imaginary spy must be lurking, until people tilted at shadows.
“C’est la guerre,” murmured women, thinking of their sons.
Then they answered each other: “Oui, c’est la guerre.”
Pierre said to Stephen: “They will not take me because of my heart!” And his voice shook with anger, and the anger brought tears which actually splashed the jaunty stripes of his livery waistcoat.
Pauline said: “I gave my father to the sea and my eldest brother. I have still two young brothers, they alone are left and I give them to France. Bon Dieu! It is terrible being a woman, one gives all!” But Stephen knew from her voice that Pauline felt proud of being a woman.
Adèle said: “Jean is certain to get promotion, he says so, he will not long remain a Poilu. When he comes back he may be a captain—that will be fine, I shall marry a captain! War, he says, is better than piano-tuning, though I tell him he has a fine ear for music. But Mademoiselle should just see him now in his uniform! We all think he looks splendid.”
Puddle said: “Of course England was bound to come in, and thank God we didn’t take too long about it!”
Stephen said: “All the young men from Morton will go—every decent man in the country will go.” Then she put away her unfinished novel and sat staring dumbly at Puddle.