Candide — Chapter 25 in French
By Voltaire
Candide et Martin rendent visite au Signor Pococuranté, un noble Vénitien Candide and Martin Pay a Visit to Signor Pococurante, a Noble Venetian
Candide et Martin allèrent en gondole sur la Brenta, et arrivèrent au palais du noble Pococurante. Candide and his friend Martin went in a gondola on the Brenta, and arrived at the palace of the noble Pococurante: the gardens were laid out in an elegant taste, and adorned with beautiful marble statues; his palace was architecturally magnificent. Le maître du logis, homme de soixante ans, fort riche, reçut très-poliment les deux curieux, mais avec très-peu d’empressement, ce qui déconcerta Candide, et ne déplut point à Martin. The master of the house, who was a man of sixty, and very rich, received our two travellers with great politeness, but without much ceremony, which somewhat disconcerted Candide, but was not at all displeasing to Martin.
D’abord deux filles jolies et proprement mises servirent du chocolat, qu’elles firent très-bien mousser. First, two very pretty girls, neatly dressed, brought in chocolate, which was extremely well frothed. Candide ne put s’empêcher de les louer sur leur beauté, sur leur bonne grâce, et sur leur adresse. Candide could not help praising their beauty and graceful carriage.
« Ce sont d’assez bonnes créatures, dit le sénateur Pococurante ; je les fais quelquefois coucher dans mon lit : car je suis bien las des dames de la ville, de leurs coquetteries, de leurs jalousies, de leurs querelles, de leurs humeurs, de leurs petitesses, de leur orgueil, de leurs sottises, et des sonnets qu’il faut faire ou commander pour elles ; mais, après tout, ces deux filles commencent fort à m’ennuyer. “The creatures are well enough,” said the senator; “I make them lie with me sometimes, for I am heartily tired of the women of the town, their coquetry, their jealousy, their quarrels, their humours, their meannesses, their pride, and their folly; I am weary of making sonnets, or of paying for sonnets to be made on them; but, after all, these two girls begin to grow very indifferent to me.”