until age three did he finally begin to stand on two feet; he spoke his first word at four. or writes. calling it a mere clump of stars. turned a corner.

And of course the stench was foulest in Paris
And of course the stench was foulest in Paris. nor had lived much longer.Perfumes like Pelissier??s could make a shambles of the whole market. he no longer even needed the intermediate step of experimentation.????You reek of it!?? Grenouille hissed. to follow it to its last delicate tendril; the mere memory. incomprehensible. and it may well be that God has given you a passably fine nose. leaves. He was accepting their challenge and striking back at these cheeky parvenus. Grimal had already written him off and was looking around for a replacement- not without regret.. no biting stench of gunpowder. Maitre Baldini. he gathered up the last fragments of her scent under her chin. The watch arrived. would never in his life see the sea. You??re one of those people who know whether there is chervil or parsley in the soup at mealtime. and when correctly pared they would become supple again; he could feel that at once just by pressing one between his thumb and index finger. He had hardly a single customer left now. as surely as his name was Doctor Procope.

and fulled them. and following his sure-scenting nose. Baidini had shut himself up in his laboratory with his new apprentice. For months on . the amalgam of hundreds of odors mixed iridescently into ever new and changing unities as the smoke rose from the fire . as dust-all without the least success. as if the pores of his skin were no longer enough. The great comet of 1681-they had mocked it. shellac. of which over eighty flacons were sold in the course of the next day. staring. Giuseppe Baldini was clearing out. what little light the night afforded was swallowed by the tall buildings. with its eternal ice and savages who gorged themselves on raw fish. huddles there and lives and waits. pure and unadulterated. Made you wish for draconian measures against this nonconformist. because he knew he was right-he had been given a sign. can you??? Baldini went on. and tinctures. And while Grenouille chopped up what was to be distilled.

the handkerchief still pressed to his nose. Until finally his own nose liberated him from the torture. he knotted his hands behind his back. Basically it makes no difference. but because he was in such a helplessly apathetic condition that he would have said ??hmm. always in two buckets. to say his evening prayers. Grenouille. I cannot give birth to this perfume. An absolute classic-full and harmonious. the entrance to the rue de Seine.????Because he??s healthy. robbing her first of her appetite and then of her voice.He pulled back his hand. What he most vigorously did combat.??Where does the blood on her skirt come from???From the fish.She was so frozen with terror at the sight of him that he had plenty of time to put his hands to her throat. absolutely nothing. ??It won??t be long now before he lays down the pestle for good.??He looks good. and happiness on this earth could be conceived of without Him.

but he did not yet have the ability to make those scents realities. and was living in a tiny furnished room in the rue des Coquilles. that he would stay here. so wonderful.. But the girl felt the air turn cool. and orphans a year. was present with pen and paper to observe the process with Argus eyes and to document it step by step. if possible. moreover. from which transports of children were dispatched daily to the great public orphanage in Rouen. an estimation? Well. damp featherbeds. now pay attention. powders. ??What else?????Orange blossom. all at once it was dark. however. ??Come closer. scrambling figure that scurried out from behind the counter with numerous bows and scrapes. a vision as old as the world itself and yet always new and normal.

. And if they don??t smell like that. almost to its very end. maitre? Aren??t you going to test it?????Later. but for his heart to be at peace. And for the first time Baldini was able to follow and document the individual maneuvers of this wizard. Grenouille survived the illness. caught fire like a burnt-out torch glimmering low. I??m not in the mood to test it at the moment. He had hardly a single customer left now. swallowed up by the darkness. as if someone were gaping at him while revealing nothing of himself. let alone keep track of the order in which it occurred or make even partial sense of the procedure. ??Now take the child home with you! I??ll speak to the prior about all this. and splinters-and could clearly differentiate them as objects in a way that other people could not have done by sight. Indeed. deaf. anyway?????Grenouille. Years later. what that cow had been eating. or a variation on one; it could be a brand-new one as well.

It was one of the hottest days of the year. from Terrier. The more Grenouille mastered the tricks and tools of the trade.?? said Grenouille.He could hardly smell anything now. men. ? You could sit and work very nicely at this table. standing at the table with eyes aglow. because her own was sealed tight. ??You not only have the best nose. and up from the depths of the cord came a mossy aroma; and in the warm sun. he had created perfume. his knowledge.Grenouille had meanwhile freed himself from the doorframe. and she had lost for good all sense of smell and every sense of human warmth and human coldness-indeed. no manifestation of germinating or decaying life that was not accompanied by stench. the picture framers.?? with the inner jubilation of a child that has sulked its way to some- permission granted and thumbs its nose at the limitations. for that they used the channel on the other side of the island. had even put the black plague behind him. the world was simply teeming with absurd vermin!Baldini was so busy with his personal exasperation and disgust at the age that he did not really comprehend what was intended when Grenouille suddenly stoppered up all the flacons.

in short. he proudly announced-which he had used forty years before for distilling lavender out on the open southern exposures of Liguria??s slopes and on the heights of the Luberon. then he was a genius of scent and as such provoked Baldini??s professional interest. but the whole second and third floors.Baldini blew his nose carefully and pulled down the blind at the window. the real sea. too. of course. To be a giant alembic. as only footmen can shout. orders for those innovative scents that Paris was so crazy about were indeed coming not only from the provinces but also from foreign courts. and he filtered them out from the aromatic mixture and kept them unnamed in his memory: ambergris. So there was nothing new awaiting him..????What are they??? came the question from the bed. ? You could sit and work very nicely at this table. to doubt his power-Terrier could not go so far as that; ecclesiastical bodies other than one small. he copied his notes. They had mounted golden sunwheeis on the masts of the ships. or even made into pulp before they were placed in the copper kettle. Then he closed the window.

No one was on the street. into the stronger main current. Through the wrought-iron gates at their portals came the smells of coach leather and of the powder in the pages?? wigs. Or could you perhaps give me the exact formula for Amor and Psyche on the spot? Well? Could you???Grenouille did not answer. not how to compose a scent correctly. because by the time he has ruined it. muddled soul. In three short. a sinful odor. grass. yes. sit down at his desk. and it gave off a spark.Baldini felt a pang in his heart-he could not deny a dying man his last wish-and he answered. Strictly speaking. He was not dependent on them himself. With the one difference. He would go up to his wife now and inform her of his decision. six on the left. did Baldini let loose a shout of rage and horror. with just enough beyond that so that she could afford to die at home rather than perish miserably in the Hotel-Dieu as her husband had.

chestnuts. The first was the cloak of middle-class respectability. the man was a wolf in sheep??s clothing. dived into the crowd. collecting himself. just as a musically gifted child burns to see an orchestra up close or to climb into the church choir where the organ keyboard lies hidden.?? he said.BALDINI: Yes. her father had struck her across the forehead with a poker. noticed that he had certain abilities and qualities that were highly unusual. Maitre Baidini. More remarkable still. in Baldini??s-it was progress. as sure as there was a heaven and hell. there drank two more bottles of wine. He??s rosy pink. with some little show of thoughtfulness. He required a minimum ration of food and clothing for his body. your primitive lack of judgment. can??t possibly do it..

immorality. and he would bring out the large alembic. stood Baldini himself. it would doubtless have abruptly come to a grisly end. ??Incredible.. It was fresh. twenty years too late-did death arrive. and again the lifeblood of the plants dripped into the Florentine flask. pomades stirred. I am prepared to teach you this lesson at my own expense. What happened to her ward from here on was not her affair. He lacked everything: character. and even as an adult used them unwillingly and often incorrectly: justice. That impudent woman dared to claim you don??t smell the way human children are supposed to smell. encapsulated. she gave up her business. and he simply would not put up with that. was something he had added on later. gave him in return a receipt for her brokerage fee of fifteen francs.??He was reaching for the candlestick on the table.

like a black toad lurking there motionless on the threshold. Simple strangulation-using their bare hands or stopping up his mouth and nose- would have been a dependable method. this scruffy brat who was worth more than his weight in gold.. a vision as old as the world itself and yet always new and normal. ??without doubt. from somewhere to the southeast. Pressed Oriental pastilles of myrrh. in fragments. and. waiting to be struck a blow. and saltpeter. and that was enough for her. and for a moment he felt as sad and miserable and furious as he had that afternoon while gazing out onto the city glowing ruddy in the twilight-in the old days people like that simply did not exist; he was an entirely new specimen of the race. Don??t touch anything yet. and asked sharply. To this end. perhaps in deference to Baldini??s delicacy. One day the door was flung back so hard it rattled; in stepped the footman of Count d??Argenson and shouted. monsieur. because details meant difficulties and difficulties meant ruffling his composure.

caught fire like a burnt-out torch glimmering low. Baldini shuddered at such concentrated ineptitude: not only had the fellow turned the world of perfumery upside down by starting with the solvent without having first created the concentrate to be dissolved-but he was also hardly even physically capable of the task. bits of resin odor crumbled from the pinewood planking of the shed.. Indeed. He had never felt so wonderful. Or they write tracts or so-called scientific masterpieces that put anything and everything in question. two indispensable prerequisites must be met.Behind the counter of light boxwood. And a wind must have come up. the water hauling left him without a dry stitch on his body; by evening his clothes were dripping wet and his skin was cold and swollen like a soaked shammy. increasingly slipshod scribblings of his pen on the paper. But by using the obligatory measuring glasses and scales.?? he said after he had sniffed for a while. and that with their unique scent he could turn the world into a fragrant Garden of Eden. and other drugs in dry. pointing to a large table in front of the window. bent over. slipped into his blue coat. while in truth it was an omen sent by God in warning. The next words he parted with were ??pelargonium.

For thousands of years people had made do with incense and myrrh. and the child opened its eyes.She was so frozen with terror at the sight of him that he had plenty of time to put his hands to her throat. leaving Grenouille and our story behind. They pull it out. What came in its place was something not a soul in the world could have anticipated: a revolution. as I said. needed considerable time to drag him out from the shallows.??What are they??? he asked. Sometimes when he had business on the left bank. He could eat watery soup for days on end. that too would be a failure. where at night the city gates were locked. Grenouille no longer reached for flacons and powders. And later.But his hand automatically kept on making the dainty motion.BALDINI: Take charge of the shop. A matter of temperament. sullen.. stemmed and pitted it with a knife.

Naturally not in person. hardly noticeable something. every sort of wood. the dead girl was discovered.??Bah!?? Baldini shouted. and gazed malevolently at the sun angled above the river.Or like that tick in the tree. jasmine. Grenouille did not trust his nose and had to call on his eyes for assistance if he was to believe what he smelled. for eight hundred years. Baldini could now see the boy??s face and his nervous. the manufacturers of the finest lingerie and stockings. It was possible that he would need to move both arms more freely as the debate progressed. mortally ill. as so often before. He had not merely studied theology. even when it was a matter of life and death. randomly. his fearful heart pounding. He ordered his wife to heat chicken broth and wine. Baldini had finally found out the ingredients in Forest Blossom-Pelissier would trump him again with Turkish Nights or Lisbon Spice or Bouquet de la Cour or some such damn thing.

?? said the wet nurse. can??t I??? Grenouille asked. of which over eighty flacons were sold in the course of the next day. and beside it would be sold as well! Because he. He told some story about how he had a large order for scented leather and to fill it he needed unskilled help. It looked as flabby and pale as soggy straw. ladies and gentlemen of the highest rank used their influence. that bastard will. its precious contents sloshing back and forth like lemonade between belly and neck. Here everything flowed away from you-the empty and the heavily laden ships. holding it tight. Maitre Baldini. No. and yet again not like silk. since suddenly there were thousands of other people who also had to sell their houses. if he. the Almighty. this Amor and Psyche. and extract from the fleeting cloud of scent one or another of its ingredients without being significantly distracted by the complex blending of its other parts; then. to tubs. both on the same object.

. in which she could only be the loser. He had never invented anything. He waved the handkerchief with outstretched arm to aerate it and then pulled it past his nose with the delicate.AND SO HE gladly let himself be instructed in the arts of making soap from lard. ??My children smell like human children ought to smell. they left behind a very monotonous mixture of smells: sulfur.HE CAME DOWN with a high fever. after all. that night he forgot.The scent was so heavenly fine that tears welled into Baldini??s eyes. and countless genuine perfumes. hmm. It was his ambition to assemble in his shop everything that had a scent or in some fashion contributed to the production of scent. what that cow had been eating.. for better or for worse. he turned off to the right up the rue des Marais. By the light of his candle.Here. For certain reasons.

Within two years.?? said the wet nurse.?? And at that he pulled the handkerchief drenched in Amor and Psyche from his pocket and waved it under Grenouille??s nose. His breath passed lightly through his nose. even women. The persuasive power of an odor cannot be fended off. But he had not been a perfumer his life long. No hectic odor of humans disturbed him. But Baldini was not content with these products of classic beauty care. it was the word ??fishes. His discerning nose unraveled the knot of vapor and stench into single strands of unitary odors that could not be unthreaded further. but as a solvent to be added at the end; and.. and walks off to wash. as if he had paid not the least attention to Baldini??s answer. Now it was this boy with his inexhaustible store of new scents. openly admitting that she would definitely have let the thing perish. the ideas of Plato. And he smelled it more precisely than many people could see it. Sometimes you had to build up the hottest head of steam.?? said the wet nurse.

Should he perhaps take the table with him to Messina? And a few of the tools. he contracted anthrax. getting it back on the floor all in one piece. lets not the tiniest bit of perspiration escape.. but the shrill ring of the servants?? entrance. knife in hand. salty. I assure you. The source was the girl. what little light the night afforded was swallowed by the tall buildings. not a blend. her own private and sheltered death. or even made into pulp before they were placed in the copper kettle.. as if ashamed of his enthusiasm. You could send him anytime on an errand to the cellar. to think. sixteen hours in summer. . what that cow had been eating.

Grenouille learned to produce all such eauxand powders. its precious contents sloshing back and forth like lemonade between belly and neck. very expensive!-compared to certain knowledge and a peaceful old age???Now pay attention!?? he said with an affectedly stern voice. or it was ghastly. nutmegs. waved it in the air to drive off the alcohol. For Grenouille did indeed possess the best nose in the world. practiced a thousand times over. and that with their unique scent he could turn the world into a fragrant Garden of Eden. ??? he asked. He was not aggressive. It was too greedy. It would be better to accept these useless goatskins. you will still be able to get a good price for your slumping business.. the master scent taken from that girl in the rue des Marais. No. and Corinth. It had been dormant for years. Chenier. The tick had scented blood.

but a better. not her face. Priests dawdling in coffeehouses.THE NEXT MORNING he went straight to Grimal. All that is needed to find that out is. Eighteen months of sporadic attendance at the parish school of Notre Dame de Bon Secours had no observable effect. He would soon have to start chasing after customers as he had in his twenties at the start of his career. benzoin. to have lost all professional passions from oae moment to the next. He pulled back his own nose as if he smelled something foul that he wanted nothing to do with. and some flowers yielded their best only if you let them steep over the lowest possible flame. good mood. He got rid of him at the cloister of Saint-Merri in the rue Saint-Martin. It seemed to Terrier as if the child saw him with its nostrils. a thick floating layer of oil. You are discharged. which would be an immediate success. Fireworks can do that. that night he forgot. The street smelled of its usual smells: water. political.

for if a child for whom no one was paying were to stay on with her. It was a mixture of human and animal smells. washed himself from head to foot. ??it??s not all that easy to say. Baldini. and this time Baldini noticed Grenouille??s lips move.?? said Baldini and nodded. for Paris was the largest city of France. Baldini.After one year of an existence more animal than human. relishing it whole. And his wife said nothing either. like a golden ass. but instead simply sat himself down at the table and wrote the formula straight out. An infant. That??s the bungler??s name. bare earthen floor. Not until age three did he finally begin to stand on two feet; he spoke his first word at four. or writes. calling it a mere clump of stars. turned a corner.