"The Piece of String" (french: La Ficelle) is an 1883

short story A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the oldest ...

Guy de Maupassant Henri René Albert Guy de Maupassant (, ; ; 5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a 19th-century French author, remembered as a master of the short story form, as well as a representative of the Naturalist school, who depicted human lives, destin ...

. It is included in the short story collection "Miss Harriet".Guy de Maupassant, ''Miss Harriet'', V. Havard, 1884, III-251 p.
''WorldCat''
/ref>

Summary

On market day in the French town of

Goderville Goderville () is a commune in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region in northern France. Geography A farming and light industrial town situated to the south of Fécamp, at the junction of the D10, D925 and D139 roads, in the Pays ...

, among those present were a

Maître ''Maître'' (spelled ''Maitre'' according to post-1990 spelling rules) is a commonly used honorific for lawyers, judicial officers and notaries in France, Belgium, Switzerland and French-speaking parts of Canada. It is often written in its abbre ...

Hauchecorne and his enemy Maître Malandain. While walking along, Maître Hauchecorne saw a piece of string in the road and thought that he could make use of it in the future, and so bent to pick it up. He noticed, however, Maître Malandain was watching, and he knew that he would be embarrassed if Malandain saw him picking up a small string, so the proud Hauchecorne acted as if he were searching for something. That day, news came out that someone lost his

wallet A wallet is a flat case or pouch often used to carry small personal items such as paper currency, credit cards; identification documents such as driver's license, identification card, club card; photographs, transit pass, business cards and oth ...

. Quickly, Maître Malandain accused Maître Hauchecorne of stealing the wallet, and the town believed him, despite Hauchecorne's innocence. The town of Goderville did not believe Maître Hauchecorne was innocent, even though someone found the wallet in the street and returned it. In irony, Maître Hauchecorne died of a broken heart, despairing of being thought a liar.

References

External links

* 1883 short stories Short stories by Guy de Maupassant {{story-stub