Happiness and virtue exist above and beyond both art and
genius."
"Bravo, Butscha!" cried Madame Latournelle.
"What did he say?" asked Canalis of La Briere, failing to gather from
the eyes and attitude of Mademoiselle Mignon the usual signs of
artless admiration.
The contemptuous indifference which Modeste had exhibited toward La
Briere, and above all, her disrespectful speeches to her father, so
depressed the young man that he made no answer to Canalis; his eyes,
fixed sorrowfully on Modeste, were full of deep meditation. The Duc
d'Herouville took up Butscha's argument and reproduced it with much
intelligence, saying finally that the ecstasies of Saint-Theresa were
far superior to the creations of Lord Byron.
"Oh, Monsieur le duc," exclaimed Modeste, "hers was a purely personal
poetry, whereas the genius of Lord Byron and Moliere benefit the
world."
"How do you square that opinion with those of Monsieur le baron?"
cried Charles Mignon, quickly. "Now you are insisting that genius must
be useful, and benefit the world as though it were cotton,--but
perhaps you think logic as antediluvian as your poor old father.
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