Page 2443 - les-miserables

His breath had become intermittent; a little rattling
interrupted it. He found some difficulty in moving his fore-
arm, his feet had lost all movement, and in proportion as
the wretchedness of limb and feebleness of body increased,
all the majesty of his soul was displayed and spread over his
brow. The light of the unknown world was already visible
in his eyes.
His face paled and smiled. Life was no longer there, it
was something else.
His breath sank, his glance grew grander. He was a
corpse on which the wings could be felt.
He made a sign to Cosette to draw near, then to Marius;
the last minute of the last hour had, evidently, arrived.
He began to speak to them in a voice so feeble that it
seemed to come from a distance, and one would have said
that a wall now rose between them and him.
‘Draw near, draw near, both of you. I love you dear-
ly. Oh! how good it is to die like this! And thou lovest me
also, my Cosette. I knew well that thou still felt friendly to-
wards thy poor old man. How kind it was of thee to place
that pillow under my loins! Thou wilt weep for me a little,
wilt thou not? Not too much. I do not wish thee to have any
real griefs. You must enjoy yourselves a great deal, my chil-
dren. I forgot to tell you that the profit was greater still on
the buckles without tongues than on all the rest. A gross of
a dozen dozens cost ten francs and sold for sixty. It really
was a good business. So there is no occasion for surprise at
the six hundred thousand francs, Monsieur Pontmercy. It is
honest money. You may be rich with a tranquil mind. Thou

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