There the barber of the neighborhood
came, twice a year, to cut Monsieur Grandet's hair; there the farmers,
the cure, the under-prefect, and the miller's boy came on business.
This room, with two windows looking on the street, was entirely of
wood. Gray panels with ancient mouldings covered the walls from top to
bottom; the ceiling showed all its beams, which were likewise painted
gray, while the space between them had been washed over in white, now
yellow with age. An old brass clock, inlaid with arabesques, adorned
the mantel of the ill-cut white stone chimney-piece, above which was a
greenish mirror, whose edges, bevelled to show the thickness of the
glass, reflected a thread of light the whole length of a gothic frame
in damascened steel-work. The two copper-gilt candelabra which
decorated the corners of the chimney-piece served a double purpose: by
taking off the side-branches, each of which held a socket, the main
stem--which was fastened to a pedestal of bluish marble tipped with
copper--made a candlestick for one candle, which was sufficient for
ordinary occasions. The chairs, antique in shape, were covered with
tapestry representing the fables of La Fontaine; it was necessary,
however, to know that writer well to guess at the subjects, for the
faded colors and the figures, blurred by much darning, were difficult
to distinguish.
At the four corners of the hall were closets, or rather buffets,
surmounted by dirty shelves.
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