When the cancer broke, she dressed it every day; sometimes
she brought him some cake and placed him in the sun on a bundle of
hay; and the poor old creature, trembling and drooling, would
thank her in his broken voice, and put out his hands whenever she
left him. Finally he died; and she had a mass said for the repose
of his soul.
That day a great joy came to her: at dinner-time, Madame de
Larsonniere's servant called with the parrot, the cage, and the
perch and chain and lock. A note from the baroness told Madame
Aubain that as her husband had been promoted to a prefecture, they
were leaving that night, and she begged her to accept the bird as
a remembrance and a token of her esteem.
Since a long time the parrot had been on Felicite's mind, because
he came from America, which reminded her of Victor, and she had
approached the negro on the subject.
Once even, she had said:
"How glad Madame would be to have him!"
The man had repeated this remark to his mistress who, not being
able to keep the bird, took this means of getting rid of it.
CHAPTER IV
THE BIRD
He was called Loulou. His body was green, his head blue, the tips
of his wings were pink and his breast was golden.
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