Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc Mark Twain (motivational books for students txt) š
- Author: Mark Twain
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āAlas, poor Franceā āFrance is lost!ā said Pierre dāArc.
āSince you sniff so at others, why donāt you go to the wars yourself, Pierre dāArc?ā
āOh, I havenāt been sent for, either. I am no more a gentleman than you. Yet I will go; I promise to go. I promise to go as a private under your ordersā āwhen you are sent for.ā
They all laughed, and the Dragonfly said:
āSo soon? Then you need to begin to get ready; you might be called for in five yearsā āwho knows? Yes, in my opinion youāll march for the wars in five years.ā
āHe will go sooner,ā said Joan. She said it in a low voice and musingly, but several heard it.
āHow do you know that, Joan?ā said the Dragonfly, with a surprised look. But Jean dāArc broke in and said:
āI want to go myself, but as I am rather young yet, I also will wait, and march when the Paladin is sent for.ā
āNo,ā said Joan, āhe will go with Pierre.ā
She said it as one who talks to himself aloud without knowing it, and none heard it but me. I glanced at her and saw that her knitting-needles were idle in her hands, and that her face had a dreamy and absent look in it. There were fleeting movements of her lips as if she might be occasionally saying parts of sentences to herself. But there was no sound, for I was the nearest person to her and I heard nothing. But I set my ears open, for those two speeches had affected me uncannily, I being superstitious and easily troubled by any little thing of a strange and unusual sort.
Noƫl Rainguesson said:
āThere is one way to let France have a chance for her salvation. Weāve got one gentleman in the commune, at any rate. Why canāt the Scholar change name and condition with the Paladin? Then he can be an officer. France will send for him then, and he will sweep these English and Burgundian armies into the sea like flies.ā
I was the Scholar. That was my nickname, because I could read and write. There was a chorus of approval, and the Sunflower said:
āThat is the very thingā āit settles every difficulty. The Sieur de Conte will easily agree to that. Yes, he will march at the back of Captain Paladin and die early, covered with common-soldier glory.ā
āHe will march with Jean and Pierre, and live till these wars are forgotten,ā Joan muttered; āand at the eleventh hour NoĆ«l and the Paladin will join these, but not of their own desire.ā The voice was so low that I was not perfectly sure that these were the words, but they seemed to be. It makes one feel creepy to hear such things.
āCome, now,ā NoĆ«l continued, āitās all arranged; thereās nothing to do but organize under the Paladinās banner and go forth and rescue France. Youāll all join?ā
All said yes, except Jacques dāArc, who said:
āIāll ask you to excuse me. It is pleasant to talk war, and I am with you there, and Iāve always thought I should go soldiering about this time, but the look of our wrecked village and that carved-up and bloody madman have taught me that I am not made for such work and such sights. I could never be at home in that trade. Face swords and the big guns and death? It isnāt in me. No, no; count me out. And besides, Iām the eldest son, and deputy prop and protector of the family. Since you are going to carry Jean and Pierre to the wars, somebody must be left behind to take care of our Joan and her sister. I shall stay at home, and grow old in peace and tranquillity.ā
āHe will stay at home, but not grow old,ā murmured Joan.
The talk rattled on in the gay and careless fashion privileged to youth, and we got the Paladin to map out his campaigns and fight his battles and win his victories and extinguish the English and put our King upon his throne and set his crown upon his head. Then we asked him what he was going to answer when the King should require him to name his reward. The Paladin had it all arranged in his head, and brought it out promptly:
āHe shall give me a dukedom, name me premier peer, and make me Hereditary Lord High Constable of France.ā
āAnd marry you to a princessā āyouāre not going to leave that out, are you?ā
The Paladin colored a trifle, and said, brusquely:
āHe may keep his princessesā āI can marry more to my taste.ā
Meaning Joan, though nobody suspected it at that time. If any had, the Paladin would have been finely ridiculed for his vanity. There was no fit mate in that village for Joan of Arc. Everyone would have said that.
In turn, each person present was required to say what reward he would demand of the King if he could change places with the Paladin and do the wonders the Paladin was going to do. The answers were given in fun, and each of us tried to outdo his predecessors in the extravagance of the reward he would claim; but when it came to Joanās turn, and they rallied her out of her dreams and asked her to testify, they had to explain to
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