Page 2161 - les-miserables

ter. There he would inevitably find himself blocked between
the perpendicular wall on his right, the river on his left and
in front of him, and the authorities on his heels.
It is true that this termination of the shore was hidden
from sight by a heap of rubbish six or seven feet in height,
produced by some demolition or other. But did this man
hope to conceal himself effectually behind that heap of rub-
bish, which one need but skirt? The expedient would have
been puerile. He certainly was not dreaming of such a thing.
The innocence of thieves does not extend to that point.
The pile of rubbish formed a sort of projection at the wa-
ter’s edge, which was prolonged in a promontory as far as
the wall of the quay.
The man who was being followed arrived at this little
mound and went round it, so that he ceased to be seen by
the other.
The latter, as he did not see, could not be seen; he took
advantage of this fact to abandon all dissimulation and to
walk very rapidly. In a few moments, he had reached the
rubbish heap and passed round it. There he halted in sheer
amazement. The man whom he had been pursuing was no
longer there.
Total eclipse of the man in the blouse.
The shore, beginning with the rubbish heap, was only
about thirty paces long, then it plunged into the water
which beat against the wall of the quay. The fugitive could
not have thrown himself into the Seine without being seen
by the man who was following him. What had become of
him?

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