Imagine a
great red ape with a black snout, grinding his teeth like a madman, and
throwing himself furiously on this poor little unfortunate, who, not being
able to defend himself, had been thrown down at the first blow, and lay
with his face to the ground, in order to protect it. Seeing this,
Gargousse, his master setting him at the child continually, mounted on his
back, took him by the neck, and fell to biting him, until he made the blood
come. 'Oh! the spider of my dream--the spider!' cried Gringalet in a
stifled voice, believing now that he was going to be killed. Suddenly there
was a knock at the door!"
"Ah! the Alderman!" cried the prisoners with joy.
"Yes, this time it was he, my friends; he called through the door, 'Will
you open, Cut-in-half? will you open? Do not sham deaf; for I see you
through the keyhole!"
"Cut-in-half, forced to reply, went grumbling to open the door for the
Alderman, who was a rough, as solid as a bridge, in spite of his fifty
years, and with whom it was worth no one's while to joke when he was angry.
"'What do you want with me?' said Cut-in-half to him, half opening the
door. 'I want to speak to you,' said the Alderman, who entered almost by
force into the little yard; then, seeing the ape still savage after
Gringalet, he ran, caught Gargousse by the nape of his neck, and tried to
take the child away from under him; but he only then saw that the child was
chained to the ape.
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