Saturday, 10 July 1875

Murderous mood!
I do not go out; I am tormented and sad. I want to see no one.
I dine alone as always in the main house; I no longer go to the pavilion at all.
So here it is, this fête at the Jardin Public. A pleasure for everyone — for me, a torture! One can only enjoy it if one is a patroness.
All those silly women of Nice are patronesses. But why describe my eternal torment!
Girofla is selling tickets from a booth; we buy some from him, but not many.
I am bored to death. I am furious. I want to leave, but at the gate, despairing, I change my mind and we go back. I am with my two Graces and my aunt with Nina.
The illuminated garden, those three orchestras, those singers, that public — everything sets my nerves on edge!
Audiffret's tombola is drawn at half past ten; there are some very amusing prizes.
Wine, a live sheep, a peacock, and so on and so forth. Girofla is a great lord among all those people — dressed in grey as in the days when he imitated the one who is — he runs about, hurries, is everywhere, and all of this with very good bearing and very good composure.
But he abandons his tombola and comes toward us; I yawn like a wretch and pay him no attention.
[Written across the page: Why did I show him such coldness! I may have pushed him away!]
He goes away and Godard comes and stays the whole time with us. I make the most of him as best I can, and toward the end I am livened up and cheered, so that when Girofla comes for the second time he finds me laughing with my Désiré. I scarcely address a word to him; often I pretend not to hear what he says to me — as he has done to me.
In a word, if Audiffret cares for me only as much as 1 care for him, I shall say nothing more to him. For this boy has angered and humiliated me several times. I believe I have given as good as I got. I cannot bear him or stand the sight of him — since it is not me; but I believe it is.

In English in the original
He leads us to the buffet; on leaving I take Godard's hand and salute my object from afar.
We spoke with my aunt about all this, and I told her that catching him would be difficult because he is not an innocent boy but a rake of the first order. And I added that it would not be unpleasant to catch him, that I would be delighted, and that then he would see what a miserable wretch I could, what I., etc. etc. etc.
Godard sits his examinations in a week's time; it reminds me of the horrid Pole.
The Sapogenikoffs get into their carriage and we into ours, and at midnight we go to fetch Smirnoff from his hotel, but he is at Monte-Carlo.
Did I mention that there was a fireworks display, which gave us a topic of conversation with Désiré.
I cannot write; I am on edge.
Now Audiffret is handsome, noble, a great lord, charming, and so on and so forth. Because I scorn him aloud my aunt praises him to the skies. I enjoy hearing him extolled by her, who spoke nothing but ill of him when I spoke well of him.