Madame Butterfly

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1903 edition. Excerpt: ... "'bout Birds" ONE day she took her courage, and the maid's too, for that matter, in both hands, and called upon the American consul. She saw the vice-consul. There was a west wind, and it was warm at Nagasaki. He was dozing. When he woke, Madame Butterfly was bowing before him. At a little distance was the maid with the blond baby strapped to her back. He was unable to account for them immediately. "Goon night," said Cho-Cho-San, smiling amiably. The consul glanced apprehensively about. "Night! Not night, is it?" They both discovered the error at the same instant. "Ah! no, no, no! Tha' 's mw-take. Me--I 'm liddle raddle'. Aexcuse us. Tha' 's not nize, mak' raw-take. We got call you good morning, I egspeg, or how do? What you thing?" "Whichever you like," he answered, without a smile. Then Cho-Cho-San waited for something further from the consul. Nothing came. She began to suspect that it was her business to proceed instead of his. "I--I thing mebby you don' know me?" she questioned, to give him a chance. "Oh, yes, I do," declared the consul. In fact, everybody knew her, for one reason and another--her baby, her disowning, her beauty, her "American" marriage. "You are O ChoCho-San, the daughter--" he forgot her father's name, though he had often heard it. "You used to dance, did you not?" "Aha! See! Tha' 's what I thing. You don' know me whichaever. I nobody's daughter; jus' Missus Benja--no! Missus Frang-a-leen Ben-jameen--no, no, no! Missus Ben-jameen Frang-a-leen Pikkerton. Aeverybody else outcast me. Aha, ha, ha! I liddle more raddle'." "Oh!" The consul was genuinely surprised, and for the first time looked with interest at the child. Cho-ChoSan, to aid him, took Trouble from the maid. Finally he politely asked her what he could do...