Страница 30 из 3800

Le charmant Hippolyte was surprising by his extraordinary

resemblance to his beautiful sister, but yet more by the fact

that in spite of this resemblance he was exceedingly ugly. His

features were like his sister's, but while in her case everything

was lit up by a joyous, self-satisfied, youthful, and constant

smile of animation, and by the wonderful classic beauty of her

figure, his face on the contrary was dulled by imbecility and a

constant expression of sullen self-confidence, while his body was

thin and weak. His eyes, nose, and mouth all seemed puckered into

a vacant, wearied grimace, and his arms and legs always fell into

unnatural positions.

"It's not going to be a ghost story?" said he, sitting down

beside the princess and hastily adjusting his lorgnette, as if

without this instrument he could not begin to speak.

"Why no, my dear fellow," said the astonished narrator, shrugging

his shoulders.