SAINT-LOUP 311
Two other complications prevented him from visiting the
bereaved Antoine in Roumania. Early in December he signed a
contract with Alfred Val1ette, editor of the Mercure de France and
director of the publishing firm attached to that periodical, not
only for La Bible d' Amiens but for a new translation of Sesame
and Lilies. On the evening of his quarrel with his mother and
Fenelon he had threatened, by way of revenge, to cancel the
contract, but soon thought better of it. The manuscript of La
Bible d' Amiens, which by now he had succeeded in extracting
from 011endorff, had to be revised and handed in on I February
- Also ('this marriage couldn't have come at a more in-
convenient time') his brother Robert had become engaged to
Mile Marthe Dubois-Amiot, of 6 Rue de Messine and Aix-Ies-
Bains; and Proust was faced with the dreadful duty of getting
up in the daytime, first 'to make the acquaintance of the young
lady, whom I haven't met yet', and then again in order to act as
Robert's best man. He was also entrusted with the sending of
invitations to the wedding, and was horrified to find, only a week
before the great day, that no less than a hundred of these had
failed to arrive. Perhaps his jealousy of his brother, repressed and
replaced though it was by a genuine and lifelong affection, had
risen at this crucial time nearer to the surface. Robert, for once,
was the centre of attraction. He had taken his doctorate of
medicine in February 1902, and was now in practice; he would
soon be a husband and support a family of his own; he had
proved his manhood and his normality as Marcel never would.
A stay-at-home prodigal, a feeder among the swine of Sodom,
Marcel saw with shame and indignation his allowance cut while
the fatted calf was slain for his virtuous brother. Inevitably, he
was ill for the wedding.
The ceremony took place on 2 February 1903 at noon, in the
church of Saint-Augustin. In his capacity as best man Proust
took the traditional collection for the poor after the service,
assisted by his eighteen-year-old cousin Valentine Thomson.
The girl's pleasure in her pretty dress and the bouquet of orchids
Mme Proust had given her was spoiled by his distress and lament-
able appearance. Marcel's white tie and tails were hidden beneath
three overcoats and an indeterminate number of muffiers; his
chest was wadded, his col1ar al1 too visibly caulked, with swathes
of cotton-wool. Thus accoutred he was too bulky to pass along