Dom Casmurro

by Machado de Assis

XLVIII - Oath of the Well

-No! I exclaimed suddenly.

"Not what?"

There had been a few minutes of silence, during which I reflected a lot and ended up with an idea; the tone of the exclamation, however, was so loud that it frightened my neighbors.

"It does not have to be this way," I continued. They say that we are not in the age to marry, that we are creations, creançolas, - I already heard creançolas. Good; but two or three years pass quickly. Do you swear a thing? Do you swear to marry me?

Capitú did not hesitate to swear, and I even saw his cheeks red with pleasure. He swore twice and a third:

"Even if you marry another, I will keep my oath, never marrying."

"Marry another?"

"It could be, Bentinho. You can find another girl that you want, fall in love with her and get married. Who am I to remind you of me on this occasion?

-But I swear too! I swear, Capitú, I swear to God our Lord that I will marry you. Is this enough?

"That should be enough," she said. I dare not ask for more. Yes, you swear ... But let us swear by another way; let us swear that we shall marry one another, if there be any.

You understand the difference; was more than the election of the spouse, was the affirmation of marriage. My friend's head knew how to think clearly and quickly. Actually, the previous formula was limited, only exclusive. We could end up single-minded, like the sun and the moon, without lying to the oath of the well. This formula was better, and had the advantage of strengthening my heart against the ecclesiastical investiture. We swore by the second formula, and we were so happy that all fear of danger disappeared. We were religious, we had the sky as our witness. I never even feared the seminar.

"If you are very stubborn, I will go; but I realize that it's a collegio any; I do not take orders.

Capitú feared our separation, but ended up accepting this proposal, which was the best. We did not afflict my mother, and time would run to the point where marriage could take place. On the contrary, any resistance to the seminar would confirm the denunciation of José Dias. This reflection was not mine, but it.