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Ursus went on,--
"The women are worse than the men. The moment is unpropitious, but it
doesn't matter! Let us try the power of a speech; an eloquent speech is
never out of place. Listen, Gwynplaine, to my attractive exordium.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am a bear. I take off my head to address you. I
humbly appeal to you for silence." Ursus, lending a cry to the crowd,
said, "Grumphll!"
Then he continued,--
"
I respect my audience. Grumphll is an epiphonema as good as any other
welcome. You growlers. That you are all of the dregs of the people, I do
not doubt. That in no way diminishes my esteem for you. A
well-considered esteem. I have a profound respect for the bullies who
honour me with their custom. There are deformed folks amongst you. They
give me no offence. The lame and the humpbacked are works of nature. The
camel is gibbous. The bison's back is humped. The badger's left legs are
shorter than the right, That fact is decided by Aristotle, in his
treatise on the walking of animals. There are those amongst you who have
but two shirts--one on his back, and the other at the pawnbroker's. I
know that to be true. Albuquerque pawned his moustache, and St. Denis
his glory. The Jews advanced money on the glory. Great examples. To have
debts is to have something. I revere your beggardom."
Ursus cut short his speech, interrupting it in a deep bass voice by the
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