Чума
Part IV
Someoftheirpropheciesevenappearedserializedinthenewspapersandwerereadwithquiteasmucheagernessasthelovestoriesthatweretobefoundthereintimesofgoodhealth.Somepredictionswerebasedonbizarrecalculationsinvolvingthenumberoftheyear,thenumberofdeathsandthenumberofmonthsalreadyspentundertheplague.Othersestablishedcomparisonswiththegreatplaguesofhistory,bringingoutthesimilarities(whichthesepropheciescalled"constants")and,bymeansofnolesspeculiarcalculations,claimedtoextractinformationrelativetothepresentoutbreak.Buttheonesthatthepubliclikedbestwereundoubtedlythosewhich,inapocalypticlanguage,announcedaseriesofevents,anyoneofwhichmightbetheonethatthetownwascurrentlyenduring,theircomplexityallowingforanyinterpretation.NostradamusandSaintOdilewerethusconsulteddailyandneverinvain.Whatremainedcommontoalltheprophecieswasthat,inthelastresort,theywerereassuring.Theplague,however,wasnot.
Hence,thesesuperstitionstooktheplaceofreligionforourfellow-citizensandthisiswhyPaneloux’ssermonwasgiventoachurchthatwasonlythree-quartersfull.Ontheeveningoftheevent,whenRieuxarrived,thewind,whichwasseepingincurrentsofairthroughthegreatswingingdoorsofthefrontentrance,circulatedfreelyamongthecongregation.
