In Saint-Firmin-des-Prés, three residents are squabbling over the only pull-cord that rings the old washhouse’s bell.
At stake: honoring a nine-month-old tradition and the peace of the hens at the neighboring farm.
Since Tuesday, the communal washhouse’s pull-cord has been tied to a stake, to a bench and then, according to witnesses, to a bag of potting soil. Each setup has triggered a new complaint to the festivities committee, which is responsible for preserving the daily 4:42 p.m. ringing.
“If we shift the bell by two minutes, the hens think it’s feeding time,” says Mireille Poncet, who feeds the poultry at exactly 4:44 p.m. Her neighbor, Gérard, insists on the contrary that the pull-cord must remain within visitors’ reach, “especially those who don’t dare ask where it is.”
A meeting is scheduled for Saturday under the bike shelter. Until then, the town hall has put up a sign: “Please do not pull the cord without a valid reason,” without specifying what counts as a valid reason.
As we write these lines, the bell rang at 4:42 p.m. The hens, for their part, waited for the feed.
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