To the baron, therefore, reproduction was a great law of Nature, and to be respected as the sacred and divine act which accomplished the constant, though unexpressed will of this Universal Being; and he at once began a campaign against this priest who opposed the laws of creation. It grieved Jeanne to the heart, and she prayed to the Lord, and implored her father not to run counter to the curé, but the baron always answered:
“It is everyone’s right and duty to fight against such men, for they are not like human creatures. They are not human,” he repeated, shaking his long white hair. “They understand nothing of life, and their conduct is entirely influenced by their harmful dreams, which are contrary to Nature.” And he pronounced “contrary to Nature” as if he were uttering a curse.
The p
