The Deputy of Arcis............................................................................................................................................1

Honore de Balzac .....................................................................................................................................1

PART I. THE ELECTION ......................................................................................................................2

I. ALL ELECTIONS BEGIN WITH A BUSTLE ..................................................................................2

II. REVOLT OF A LIBERAL ROTTENBOROUGH .........................................................................6

III. OPPOSITION DEFINES ITSELF ....................................................................................................9

IV. THE FIRST PARLIAMENTARY TEMPEST ...............................................................................14

V. THE PERPLEXITIES OF THE GOVERNMENT IN ARCIS ........................................................18

VI. THE CAMPAIGN OF 1814 FROM THE HOSIERY POINT OF VIEW .....................................22

VII. THE BEAUVISAGE FAMILY ....................................................................................................26

VIII. IN WHICH THE DOT, ONE OF THE HEROINES OF THIS HISTORY, APPEARS .............28

IX. A STRANGER ...............................................................................................................................32

X. THE REVELATIONS OF AN OPERAGLASS ...........................................................................37

XI. IN WHICH THE CANDIDATE BEGINS TO LOSE VOTES ......................................................44

XII. THE SALON OF MADAME D'ESPARD ....................................................................................52

XIII. PREFACE BEFORE LETTERING .............................................................................................58

PART II. LETTERS EXPLANATORY ...............................................................................................61

I. THE COMTE DE L'ESTORADE TO MONSIEUR MARIEGASTON ........................................61

II. THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE TO MADAME OCTAVE DE CAMPS .............................63

III. THE COMTE DE L'ESTORADE TO MONSIEUR MARIEGASTON ......................................64

IV. THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORAADE TO MADAME OCTAVE DE CAMPS .........................70

V. THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE TO MADAME OCTAVE DE CAMPS .............................71

VI. THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE TO MADAME OCTAVE DE CAMPS ............................74

VII. THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE TO MADAME OCTAVE DE CAMPS ..........................77

VIII. THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE TO MADAME OCTAVE DE CAMPS .........................80

IX. DORLANGE TO MARIEGASTON ............................................................................................82

X. DORLANGE TO MARIEGASTON .............................................................................................87

XI. THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE TO MADAME OCTAVE DE CAMPS ............................94

XII. DORLANGE TO MARIEGASTON ..........................................................................................99

XIII. DORLANGE TO MARIEGASTON .......................................................................................101

XIV. MARIEGASTON TO MADAME LA COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE ...............................110

XV. MARIEGASTON TO THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE .................................................114

XVI. MARIEGASTON TO THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE ................................................116

XVII. MARIEGASTON TO MADAME LA COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE ..............................120

XVIII. CHARLES DE SALLENAUVE TO THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE ........................126

XIX. MARIEGASTON TO THE COMTESSE DE L'ESTORADE ................................................130

PART III. MONSIEUR DE SALLENAUVE .....................................................................................130

I. THE SORROWS OF MONSIEUR DE TRAILLES .......................................................................130

II. A CONVERSATION BETWEEN ELEVEN O'CLOCK AND MIDNIGHT ...............................135

III. A MINISTER'S MORNING .........................................................................................................139

IV. A CATECHISM ...........................................................................................................................142

V. CHILDREN ...................................................................................................................................150

VI. CURIOSITY THAT CAME WITHIN AN ACE OF BEING FATAL ........................................159

VII. THE WAY TO MANAGE POLITICAL INTRIGUES ..............................................................175

VIII. SOME OLD ACQUAINTANCES ............................................................................................186

IX. IN THE CHAMBER .....................................................................................................................198

Before beginning to describe an election in the provinces, it is proper to state that the town of

The arrondissement of Arcis votes at BarsurAube, which is forty miles from Arcis; consequently there is

Discretion, required in a history of contemporaneous manners and morals, dictates this precautionary word. It

is rather an ingenious contrivance to make the description of one town the frame for events which happened

in another; and several times already in the course of the Comedy of Human Life, this means has been

employed in spite of its disadvantages, which consist chiefly in making the frame of as much importance as

Toward the end of the month of April, 1839, about ten o'clock in the morning, the salon of Madame Marion,

widow of a former receiver general of the department of the Aube, presented a singular appearance. All the

furniture had been removed except the curtains to the windows, the ornaments on the fireplace, the

chandelier, and the teatable. An Aubusson carpet, taken up two weeks before the usual time, obstructed the

steps of the portico, and the floor had been violently rubbed and polished, though without increasing its usual

brightness. All this was a species of domestic premonition concerning the result of the elections which were

about to take place over the whole surface of France. Often things are as spiritually intelligent as men,an

The old manservant of Colonel Giguet, Madame Marion's older brother, had just finished dusting the room;

the chambermaid and the cook were carrying, with an alacrity that denoted an enthusiasm equal to their

attachment, all the chairs of the house, and piling them up in the garden, where the trees were already

unfolding their leaves, through which the cloudless blue of the sky was visible. The springlike atmosphere

and sun of May allowed the glass door and the two windows of the oblong salon to be kept open.

An old lady, Madame Marion herself, now ordered the two maids to place the chairs at one end of the salon,

four rows deep, leaving between the rows a space of about three feet. When this was done, each row

presented a front of ten chairs, all of divers species. A line of chairs was also placed along the wall, under the

windows and before the glass door. At the other end of the salon, facing the forty chairs, Madame Marion

placed three armchairs behind the teatable, which was covered with a green cloth, on which she placed a

Old Colonel Giguet arrived on this battlefield at the moment when his sister bethought herself of filling the

empty spaces on either side of the fireplace with benches from the antechamber, disregarding the baldness of

"If, after receiving every night, for twentyfour years, the whole society of ArcissurAube, a single one of

my regular visitors fails us on this occasion" began the old lady, in a threatening manner.

"Pooh, pooh!" replied the colonel, interrupting his sister, "I'll name you ten who cannot and ought not to

come. First," he said, beginning to count on his fingers, "Antonin Goulard, subprefect, for one; Frederic

Marest, procureurduroi, there's two; Monsieur Olivier Vinet, his substitute, three; Monsieur Martener,

"But I am not so silly," said the old lady, interrupting her brother in her turn, "as to expect officeholders to

come to a meeting the object of which is to give another deputy to the Opposition. For all that, Antonin

Goulard, Simon's comrade and schoolmate, would be very well pleased to see him a deputy because"

"He is dressing," she answered. "He was wise not to breakfast, for he is very nervous. It is queer that, though

he is in the habit of speaking in court, he dreads this meeting as if he were certain to meet enemies."

"Faith! I have often had to face masked batteries, and my soulI won't say my bodynever quailed; but if I

had to stand there," said the old soldier, pointing to the teatable, "and face forty bourgeois gaping at me,

their eyes fixed on mine, and expecting sonorous and correct phrases, my shirt would be wringing wet before

"And yet, my dear father," said Simon Giguet, entering from the smaller salon, "you really must make that

effort for me; for if there is a man in the department of the Aube whose voice is allpowerful it is assuredly

"In 1815," said the little old man, who was wonderfully well preserved, "I did not have to speak; I simply

wrote out a little proclamation which brought us two thousand men in twentyfour hours. But it is a very

different thing putting my name to a paper which is read by a department, and standing up before a meeting

to make a speech. Napoleon himself failed there; at the 18th Brumaire he talked nothing but nonsense to the

"But, my dear father," urged Simon, "it concerns my life, my fortune, my happiness. Fix your eyes on some

"Heavens!" cried Madame Marion, "I am only an old woman, but under such circumstances and knowing

"Too eloquent, perhaps," said the colonel. "To go beyond the mark is not attaining it. But why make so much

of all this?" he added, looking at his son. "It is only within the last two days you have taken up this candidacy

of ideas; well, suppose you are not nominated,so much the worse for Arcis, that's all."

These words were in keeping with the whole life of him who said them. Colonel Giguet was one of the most

respected officers in the Grand Army, the foundation of his character being absolute integrity joined to

extreme delicacy. Never did he put himself forward; favors, such as he received, sought him. For this reason

he remained eleven years a mere captain of the artillery of the Guard, not receiving the rank of major until

1814. His almost fanatical attachment to Napoleon forbade his taking service under the Bourbons after the

first abdication. In fact, his devotion in 1815 was such that he would have been banished with so many others

if the Comte de Gondreville had not contrived to have his name effaced from the ordinance and put on the

Madame Marion, nee Giguet, had another brother who was colonel of gendarmerie at Troyes, whom she

followed to that town at an earlier period. It was there that she married Monsieur Marion, receiver general

of the Aube, who also had had a brother, the chiefjustice of an imperial court. While a mere barrister at

Arcis this young man had lent his name during the Terror to the famous Malin de l'Aube, the representative

of the people, in order to hold possession of the estate of Gondreville. [See "An Historical Mystery."]

Consequently, all the support and influence of Malin, now become count and senator, was at the service of

the Marion family. The barrister's brother was made receivergeneral of the department, at a period when, far

from having forty applicants for one place, the government was fortunate in getting any one to accept such a

Marion, the receivergeneral, inherited the fortune of his brother the chiefjustice, and Madame Marion that

of her brother the colonel of gendarmerie. In 1814, the receivergeneral met with reverses. He died when the

Empire died; but his widow managed to gather fifteen thousand francs a year from the wreck of his

accumulated fortunes. The colonel of gendarmerie had left his property to his sister on learning the marriage

of his brother the artillery officer to the daughter of a rich banker of Hamburg. It is well known what a fancy

In 1814, Madame Marion, halfruined, returned to Arcis, her native place, where she bought, on the

GrandePlace, one of the finest houses in the town. Accustomed to receive much company at Troyes, where

the receivergeneral reigned supreme, she now opened her salon to the notabilities of the liberal party in

Arcis. A woman accustomed to the advantages of salon royalty does not easily renounce them. Vanity is the

Bonapartist, and afterwards a liberalfor, by the strangest of metamorphoses, the soldiers of Napoleon

became almost to a man enamoured of the constitutional systemColonel Giguet was, during the

Restoration, the natural president of the governing committee of Arcis, which consisted of the notary Grevin,

his soninlaw Beauvisage, and Varlet junior, the chief physician of Arcis, brother inlaw of Grevin, and a

"If our dear boy is not nominated," said Madame Marion, having first looked into the antechamber and

garden to make sure that no one overheard her, "he cannot have Mademoiselle Beauvisage; his success in this

"Cecile!" exclaimed the old man, opening his eyes very wide and looking at his sister in stupefaction.

"There is no one but you in the whole department who would forget the dot and the expectations of

"But it seems to me," said the old soldier, "that my son is not to be despised as a match; he is your heir, he

already has something from his mother, and I expect to leave him something better than a dry name."

"All that put together won't make thirty thousand a year, and suitors are already coming forward who have as

"Then what do the Beauvisage family want?" said the colonel, looking alternately at his son and sister.

It may seem extraordinary that Colonel Giguet, the brother of Madame Marion in whose house the society of

Arcis had met for twentyfour years, and whose salon was the echo of all reports, all scandals, and all the

gossip of the department of the Aube,a good deal of it being there manufactured,should be ignorant of

facts of this nature. But his ignorance will seem natural when we mention that this noble relic of the

Napoleonic legions went to bed at night and rose in the morning with the chickens, as all old persons should

do if they wish to live out their lives. He was never present at the intimate conversations which went on in the

salon. In the provinces there are two sorts of intimate conversation,one, which is held officially when all

the company are gathered together, playing at cards or conversing; the other, which simmers, like a well

made soup, when three or four friends remain around the fireplace, friends who can be trusted to repeat

For nine years, ever since the triumph of his political ideas, the colonel had lived almost entirely outside of

social life. Rising with the sun, he devoted himself to horticulture; he adored flowers, and of all flowers he

best loved roses. His hands were brown as those of a real gardener; he took care himself of his beds.

Constantly in conference with his working gardener he mingled little, especially for the last two years, with

the life of others; of whom, indeed, he saw little. He took but one meal with the family, namely, his dinner;

for he rose too early to breakfast with his son and sister. To his efforts we owe the famous rose Giguet,

This old man, who had now passed into the state of a domestic fetich, was exhibited, as we may well

suppose, on all extraordinary occasions. Certain families enjoy the benefit of a demigod of this kind, and

"I have noticed," replied Madame Marion to her brother's question, "that ever since the revolution of July

Madame Beauvisage has aspired to live in Paris. Obliged to stay here as long as her father lives, she has

fastened her ambition on a future soninlaw, and my lady dreams now of the splendors and dignities of

"I think so; but the thing is, to please the mother and grandfather. Though old Grevin himself wants to oppose

my election, my success would determine Madame Beauvisage to accept me, because she expects to manage

"Well, within the last three months, Antonin Goulard and the procureurduroi, Frederic Marest, have

"Heavens!" cried the old man throwing up his arms. "What days we live in, to be sure! Why, Lucie was the

daughter of a hosier, and the granddaughter of a farmer. Does Madame Beauvisage want the Comte de

"Don't laugh at Madame Beauvisage, brother. Cecile is rich enough to choose a husband anywhere, even in

the class to which the CinqCygnes belong. But there's the bell announcing the electors, and I disappear

Though 1839 is, politically speaking, very distant from 1847, we can still remember the elections produced

by the Coalition, an ephemeral effort of the Chamber of Deputies to realize the threat of parliamentary

government,a threat a la Cromwell, which without a Cromwell could only end, under a prince "the enemy

of fraud," in the triumph of the present system, by which the Chambers and the ministers are like the wooden

puppets which the proprietor of the Guignolet shows exhibits to the great satisfaction of wonderstricken

The arrondissement of ArcissurAube then found itself in a singular position. It supposed itself free to

choose its deputy. From 1816 to 1836 it had always elected one of the heaviest orators of the Left, belonging

to the famous seventeen who were called "Great Citizens" by the liberal party,namely, Francois Keller, of

the house of Keller Bros., the soninlaw of the Comte de Gondreville. Gondreville, one of the most

This banker, recently made count and peer of France, expected, no doubt, to transfer to his son, then thirty

years of age, his electoral succession, in order to make him some day eligible for the peerage. Already a

major on the staff and a great favorite of the princeroyal, Charles Keller, now a viscount, belonged to the

court party of the citizenking. The most brilliant future seemed pledged to a young man enormously rich,

full of energy, already remarkable for his devotion to the new dynasty, the grandson of the Comte de

Gondreville, and nephew of the Marechal de Carigliano; but this election, so necessary to his future

Since the accession to power of the bourgeois class, Arcis had felt a vague desire to show itself independent.

Consequently, the last election of Francois Keller had been disturbed by certain republicans, whose red caps

and long beards had not, however, seriously alarmed the bourgeois of Arcis. By canvassing the country

carefully the radical candidate would be able to secure some thirty or forty votes. A few of the townspeople,

humiliated at seeing their town always treated as a rotten borough, joined the democrats, though enemies to

democracy. In France, under the system of balloting, politicochemical products are formed in which the

Now, to elect young Keller in 1839, after having elected his father for twenty years, would show a monstrous

electoral servitude, against which the pride of the newly enriched bourgeoisie revolved, for they felt

themselves to be fully worth either Monsieur Malin, otherwise called Comte de Gondreville, the Keller Bros.,

The numerous partisans of old Gondreville, the king of the department of the Aube, were therefore awaiting

some fresh proof of his ability, already so thoroughly tested, to circumvent this rising revolt. In order not to

compromise the influence of his family in the arrondissement of Arcis, that old statesman would doubtless

propose for candidate some young man who could be induced to accept an official function and then yield his

place to Charles Keller,a parliamentary arrangement which renders the elect of the people subject to

When Simon Giguet sounded the old notary Grevin, the faithful friend of the Comte de Gondreville, on the

subject of the elections, the old man replied that, while he did not know the intentions of the Comte de

Gondreville, he should himself vote for Charles Keller and employ his influence for that election.

As soon as this answer of old Grevin had circulated through Arcis, a reaction against him set in. Although for

thirty years this provincial Aristides possessed the confidence of the whole town,having been mayor of

Arcis from 1804 to 1814 and again during the Hundred Days, and although the Opposition had accepted

him as their leader until the triumph of 1830, at which period he refused the honors of the mayoralty on the

ground of his great age, and finally, although the town, in order to manifest its affection for him, elected his

sonin law, Monsieur Beauvisage, mayor in his stead, it now revolted against him and some young

striplings went so far as to talk of his dotage. The partisans of Simon Giguet then turned to Phileas

Beauvisage, the mayor, and won him over the more easily to their side because, without having quarrelled

with his fatherinlaw, he assumed an independence of him which had ended in coldness,an independence

that the sly old notary allowed him to maintain, seeing in it an excellent means of action on the town of Arcis.

The mayor, questioned the evening before in the open street, declared positively that he should cast his vote

for the firstcomer on the list of eligibles rather than give it to Charles Keller, for whom, however, he had a

"Arcis shall be no longer a rotten borough!" he said, "or I'll emigrate to Paris."

Flatter the passions of the moment and you will always be a hero, even at ArcissurAube.

"Monsieur le maire," said everybody, "gives noble proof of his firmness of character."

Nothing progresses so rapidly as a legal revolt. That evening Madame Marion and her friends organized for

the morrow a meeting of "independent electors" in the interests of Simon Giguet, the colonel's son. The

morrow had now come and had turned the house topsyturvy to receive the friends on whose independence

the leaders of the movement counted. Simon Giguet, the nativeborn candidate of a little town jealously

desirous to elect a son of its own, had, as we have seen, put to profit this desire; and yet, the whole prosperity

and fortune of the Giguet family were the work of the Comte de Gondreville. But when it comes to an

This Scene is written for the information of countries so unfortunate as not to know the blessings of national

representation, and which are, therefore, ignorant by what intestinal convulsions, what Brutus like

sacrifices, a little town gives birth to a deputy. Majestic but natural spectacle, which may, indeed, be

compared with that of childbirth,the same throes, the same impurities, the same lacerations, the same final

It may be asked why an only son, whose fortune was sufficient, should be, like Simon Giguet, an ordinary

barrister in a little country town where barristers are pretty nearly useless. A word about the candidate is

Colonel Giguet had had, between 1806 and 1813, by his wife who died in 1814, three children, the eldest of

whom, Simon, alone survived. Until he became an only child, Simon was brought up as a youth to whom the

exercise of a profession would be necessary. And about the time he became by the death of his brothers the

family heir, the young man met with a serious disappointment. Madame Marion had counted much, for her

nephew, on the inheritance of his grandfather the banker of Hamburg. But when that old German died in

1826, he left his grandson Giguet a paltry two thousand francs a year. The worthy banker, endowed with

great procreative powers, having soothed the worries of business by the pleasures of paternity, favored the

families of eleven other children who surrounded him, and who made him believe, with some appearance of

Besides all this, the colonel was bent on giving his son an independent position, and for this reason: the

Giguets could not expect any government favors under the Restoration. Even if Simon had not been the son

of an ardent Bonapartist, he belonged to a family whose members had justly incurred the animosity of the

CinqCygne family, owing to the part which Giguet, the colonel of gendarmerie, and the Marions, including

Madame Marion, had taken as witnesses on the famous trial of the Messieurs de Simeuse, unjustly

condemned in 1805 for the abduction of the Comte de Gondreville, then senator, and formerly representative

of the people, who had despoiled the Cinq Cygne family of their property. [See "An Historical Mystery."]

Grevin was not only one of the most important witnesses at that trial, but he was one of the chief promoters

of the prosecution. That affair divides to this day the arrondissement of Arcis into two parties; one of which

declares the innocence of the condemned; the other standing by the Comte de Gondreville and his adherents.

Though, under the Restoration, the Comtesse de CinqCygne used all the influence the return of the

Bourbons gave her to arrange things as she wished in the department of the Aube, the Comte de Gondreville

contrived to counterbalance this CinqCygne royalty by the secret authority he wielded over the liberals of

the town through the notary Grevin, Colonel Giguet, his soninlaw Keller (always elected deputy in spite of

the CinqCygnes), and also by the credit he maintained, as long as Louis XVIII. lived, in the counsels of the

crown. It was not until after the death of that king that the Comtesse de CinqCygne was able to get Michu

appointed judge of the court of assizes in Arcis. She desired of all things to obtain this place for the son of the

steward who had perished on the scaffold at Troyes, the victim of his devotion to the Simeuse family, whose

fulllength portrait always hung in her salon, whether in Paris or at CinqCygne. Until 1823 the Comte de

Gondreville had possessed sufficient power over Louis XVIII. to prevent this appointment of Michu.

It was by the advice of the Comte de Gondreville that Colonel Giguet made his son a lawyer. Simon had all

the more opportunity of shining at the bar in the arrondissement of Arcis because he was the only barrister,

solicitors pleading their own cases in these petty localities. The young man had really secured certain

triumphs in the court of assizes of the Aube, but he was none the less an object of derision to Frederic Marest,

procureurduroi, Olivier Vinet, the substitute procureur, and the judge, Michu,the three best minds in

Simon Giguet, like other men, paid goodly tribute to the mighty power of ridicule that pursued him. He liked

to hear himself talk, and he talked on all occasions; he solemnly delivered himself of dry and longwinded

sentences which passed for eloquence among the upper bourgeoisie of Arcis. The poor fellow belonged to

that species of bore which desires to explain everything, even the simplest thing. He explained rain; he

explained the revolution of July; he explained things impenetrable; he explained LouisPhilippe, Odilon

Barrot, Monsieur Thiers, the Eastern Question; he explained Champagne; he explained 1788; he explained

the tariff of custom houses and humanitarians, magnetism and the economy of the civil list.

This lean young man, with a bilious skin, tall enough to justify his sonorous nullity (for it is rare that a tall

man does not have eminent faculties of some kind) outdid the puritanism of the votaries of the extreme Left,

all of them so sensitive, after the manner of prudes who have their intrigues to hide. Dressed invariably in

black, he wore a white cravat which came down low on his chest, so that his face seemed to issue from a horn

of white paper, for the collar of his shirt was high and stiff after a fashion now, fortunately, exploded. His

trousers and his coats were always too large for him. He had what is called in the provinces dignity; that is to

say, he was stiffly erect and pompously dull in manner. His friend, Antonin Goulard, accused him of

imitating Monsieur Dupin. And in truth, the young barrister was apt to wear shoes and stout socks of black

Protected by the respect that every one bore to his father, and by the influence exercised by his aunt over a

little town whose principal inhabitants had frequented her salon for many years, Simon Giguet, possessing

already ten thousand francs a year, not counting the fees of his profession and the fortune his aunt would not

fail to leave him, felt no doubt of his election. Nevertheless, the first sound of the bell announcing the arrival

of the most influential electors echoed in the heart of the ambitious aspirant and filled it with vague fears.

Simon did not conceal from himself the cleverness and the immense resources of old Grevin, nor the prestige

attending the means that would surely be employed by the ministry to promote the candidacy of a young and

"I think," he said to his father, "that I have the colic; I feel a warmth at the pit of my stomach that makes me

"Old soldiers," replied the colonel, "have the same feeling when they hear the cannon beginning to growl at

"The Comte de Gondreville told me," said the old colonel, "that he has known more than one orator affected

with the qualms which precede, even with us old fireeaters, the opening of a battle. But all this is idle talk.

You want to be a deputy," added the old man, shrugging his shoulders, "then be one!"

"Father, the real triumph will be Cecile! Cecile has an immense fortune. Nowadays an immense fortune

"Each epoch is summed up in a phrase," said Simon, recalling an observation of the Comte de Gondreville,

which paints that personage well. He remarked: "Under the Empire, when it was desirable to destroy a man,

"Poor France! where are they leading you?" cried the colonel; "I shall go back to my roses."

The mayor, Monsieur Phileas Beauvisage, was the first to present himself, accompanied by the successor of

his fatherinlaw, the busiest notary in town, Achille Pigoult, grandson of an old man who had continued

justice of the peace in Arcis during the Revolution, the Empire, and the Restoration. Achille Pigoult,

thirtytwo years of age, had been eighteen years a clerk in Grevin's office with no means of becoming

himself a notary. His father, son of the justice of peace, had died of a socalled apoplexy, having gone wrong

The Comte de Gondreville, however, with whom old Pigoult had relations dating back to 1793, lent money

for the necessary security, and thus enabled the grandson of the judge who made the first examination in the

Simeuse case to buy the practice of his master, Grevin. Achille had set up his office in the Place de l'Eglise,

in a house belonging to the Comte de Gondreville, which the latter had leased to him at so low a price that

any one could see how desirous that crafty politician was to hold the leading notary of Arcis in the hollow of

Young Pigoult, a short, skinny man, whose eyes seemed to pierce the green spectacles which could not

modify the spitefulness of his glance, wellinformed as to all the interests of the neighborhood, owing his

aptitude in managing affairs to a certain facility of speech, passed for what is called a quizzer, saying things

plainly and with more cleverness than the aborigines could put into their conversations. Still a bachelor, he

was awaiting a rich marriage through the offices of his two protectors, Grevin and the Comte de Gondreville.

Consequently, barrister Giguet was not a little surprised on seeing Achille appear at the meeting in company

The notary, whose face was so seamed by the smallpox that it seemed to be covered with a white net, formed

a perfect contrast to the rotund person of the mayor, whose face resembled a full moon, but a warm and lively

moon; its tones of lily and of rose being still further brightened by a gracious smile, the result not so much of

a disposition of the soul as of that formation of the lips for which the word "simpering" seems to have been

created. Phileas Beauvisage was endowed with so great a contentment with himself that he smiled on all the

world and under all circumstances. Those simpering lips smiled at a funeral. The liveliness that abounded in

his infantine blue eyes did not contradict that perpetual and wellnigh intolerable smile.

This internal satisfaction passed all the more readily for benevolence and affability, because Phileas had

made himself a language of his own, remarkable for its immoderate use of the formulas of politeness. He

always "had the honor"; to all his inquiries as to the health of absent persons he added the adjectives "dear,"

"good," "excellent." He lavished condoling or congratulatory phrases apropos of all the petty miseries and all

the little felicities of life. He concealed under a deluge of commonplaces his native incapacity, his total want

of education, and a weakness of character which can only be expressed by the old word "weathercock." Be

not uneasy: the weathercock had for its axis the beautiful Madame Beauvisage, Severine Grevin, the most

When Severine heard of what she called her husband's "freak" as to the election, she said to him on the

"It was well enough to give yourself an air of independence; but you mustn't go to that Giguet meeting unless

Giving Achille Pigoult as mentor to Beauvisage meant sending a spy from the Gondreville party to the

Giguet assemblage. We may therefore imagine the grimace which contracted the puritan visage of Simon,

who was forced to welcome graciously an habitue of his aunt's salon and an influential elector, in whom,

"Ah!" he thought to himself, "what a mistake I made in refusing him that security when he asked for it! Old

Gondreville had more sense than IGoodday to you, Achille," he said, assuming a jaunty manner; "I

"Your meeting isn't a conspiracy against the independence of our votes," replied the notary, smiling. "We are

And the mayor began to laugh with that expressionless laugh by which some persons end all their sentences;

which may, perhaps, be called the ritornello of their conversation. After which he placed himself in what we

must describe as his third position, standing fullfront, his chest expanded, and his hands behind his back. He

was dressed in black coat and trousers, with an effulgent white waistcoat, opened in such a way as to show

"We shall fight, but we shall not be the less good friends," he said. "That is the essence of constitutional

morals; he! he! he! That is how I understand the alliance of monarchy with liberty; ha! ha! ha!"

"How are you, my good friend? Your dear aunt and our worthy colonel are no doubt as well today as they

were yesterday,that is, I presume so,he! he! he!" adding, with an air of perfect beatitude, "perhaps a

little agitated by the ceremony now about to take place. Ha! ha! young man; so we intend to enter a political

career? Ha! ha! ha! This is our first stepmustn't step backit is a great career. I'd rather it were you than I

to rush into the storms and tempests of the legislative body, hi! hi!however agreeable it may be to see that

body in our own person, hi! hi! hi!the sovereign power of France in one four hundred and fiftythird! Hi!

The vocal organ of Phileas Beauvisage had an agreeable sonority altogether in harmony with the leguminous

curves of his face (of the color of a light yellow pumpkin), his solid back, and his broadly expanded chest.

That voice, bass in volume, could soften to a baritone and utter, in the giggle with which Phileas ended his

phrases, a silvery note. When God desired, in order to place all species of mankind in this his terrestrial

paradise, to create within it a provincial bourgeois, his hands never made a more perfect and complete type

"I admire," said that great work, "the devotion of those who fling themselves into the tumult of political life;

he! he! he! It takes more nerve than I possess. Who could have told us in 1812 or 1813 that we should come

to this? As for me, nothing can surprise me in these days, when asphalt, Indiarubber, railroads, and steam

These last words were seasoned with a prolonged laugh, and accompanied by a gesture which he had made

more especially his own: he closed his right fist, struck it into the rounded palm of his left hand, and rubbed it

there with joyous satisfaction. This performance coincided with his laughs on the frequent occasions when he

thought he had said a witty thing. Perhaps it is superfluous to add that Phileas Beauvisage was regarded in

The candidate swallowed that shaft without reply, for he was forced at that moment to go forward and receive

One was the landlord of the Mulet, the best inn in Arcis, standing on the GrandePlace at the corner of the

rue de Brienne. This worthy landlord, named Poupart, had married the sister of a manservant attached to the

Comtesse de CinqCygne, the wellknown Gothard, one of the actors and witnesses in the Simeuse affair.

Poupart, though a most devoted adherent of the CinqCygne family, had been sounded during the last day or

two, by Colonel Giguet's valet, with so much cleverness and perseverance that he thought he was doing an

illturn to the Comte de Gondreville, the enemy of the CinqCygnes, by giving his influence to the election

of Simon Giguet; and he was now conversing on that point with the man who accompanied him, an

apothecary named Fromaget, who, as he did not furnish his wares to the chateau de Gondreville, desired

These two individuals of the lesser bourgeoisie could, in consequence of their connections, determine a

certain number of floating votes, for they influenced and advised a number of persons to whom the political

opinions of the candidate were a matter of indifference. Consequently, Simon took possession of Poupart, and

delivered the apothecary Fromaget to his father, who had just come in to make his bow to the electors.

The subengineer of the arrondissement, the secretary of the mayor's office, four sheriffs, three solicitors, the

clerk of the court, and the clerk of the justice of the peace, the registryclerk, and the taxcollector, all

officials under government, two doctors, rivals of Varlet, Grevin's brotherinlaw, a miller named Laurent

Goussard, the head of the republicans of Arcis, the two assistant mayors, the printer and publisher of Arcis,

and about a dozen other bourgeois arrived in succession, and walked about the garden until the gathering

At length, about midday, fifty men, all in their best clothes,most of them having come out of curiosity to

see the handsome salons which were much talked of throughout the arrondissement,were seated on the

chairs Madame Marion had provided for them. The windows were left open, and presently so deep a silence

reigned that the rustle of Madame Marion's gown was heard,that good woman not being able to resist the

pleasure of descending to the garden and placing herself in a corner whence she could listen to what went on

in the salon. The cook, the chambermaid, and the manservant stood in the diningroom and shared the

"Messieurs," said Simon Giguet, "some among you desire to honor my father by asking him to preside at this

meeting; but Colonel Giguet requests me to present his thanks, and express due gratitude for a desire in which

he sees a reward for his services to the country. We are in his house; he thinks he ought, therefore, to decline

those functions, and he desires to propose in his stead an honorable merchant on whom your suffrages have

already bestowed the chief magistracy of this town, Monsieur Phileas Beauvisage."

"We are, I think, all of one mind in adopting for this meeting essentially friendly, but entirely free, which

will prejudice in no way whatever the great preparatory and primary meeting in which you will produce your

candidates and weigh their meritsin adopting, as I said, the parliamentary and constitutionalformsof

"Consequently," continued Simon, "I have the honor to request, according to the wish of all present, that his

Phileas rose and crossed the salon, conscious that he was becoming as red as a cherry. Then, when he stood

behind the table, he saw, not a hundred eyes, but a hundred thousand candles. The sun seemed to him to be

setting fire to the salon, and he had, to use his own expression, a lump of salt in his throat.

"Messieurs," said Simon, goaded by the sarcastic interjection of the little notary, "the honor which you have

"That's it," said Beauvisage; "I am too sensible of this attention on the part of my fellowcitizens not to be

"The devil take me!" thought Beauvisage, "if I am ever caught haranguing again."

"Will Messieurs Fromaget and Marcelin accept the functions of inspectors of the ballot?"

"It would be more regular," said Achille Pigoult, rising, "if the meeting itself nominated those

"That is best," said the huge Monsieur Mollot, clerk of the court; "otherwise what is here taking place would

be a mere farce; we should not be free in our action, in which case we might as well continue to do the will of

Simon said a few words to Beauvisage, who rose and delivered himself of a "Messieurs!" in palpitating tones.

"Pardon me, Monsieur le president," said Achille Pigoult, "the chairman presides, he does not speak."

"Messieurs," continued Beauvisage, prompted by Simon, "if we areto conformto parliamentary

usageI shall begthe honorable gentleman Monsieur Pigoultto address the meetingfrom this

Pigoult sprang to the table, stood beside it with his fingers resting lightly on its edge, and gave proof of his

boldness by delivering the following speech without the slightest embarrassment, and somewhat after the

"Messieurs, it was not I who made that proposal for parliamentary usage; nevertheless I can conceive that an

assemblage of some sixty notabilities of Champagne needs a chairman to guide it; for no flock can get on

without a shepherd. If we had voted for secret balloting, I am certain that the name of our excellent mayor

would have been returned unanimously. His opposition to the candidate put forward by his relations proves to

us that he possesses civic courage in the highest degree, inasmuch as he has dared to free himself from the

closest tiesthose of family. Patriotism before family! that is indeed so great an effort that, to make it, we

are forced to believe that Brutus from his realm of justice still contemplates us after the lapse of two

thousand, five hundred and some years. It seemed natural to Maitre Giguet, who had the merit of divining our

wishes in the choice of a chairman, to guide us still further in electing inspectors; but, if I am not mistaken,

you think with me that once is enoughand you are right. Our mutual friend, Simon Giguet, who intends to

offer himself as candidate, would have the air of assuming mastery, and he might, consequently, lose in our

minds the goodwill we should otherwise bestow upon a modest attitude like that of his venerable father.

Now what is our worthy chairman doing at this moment by accepting the method of presiding suggested to

him by the candidate? He is depriving us of our liberty! I ask you: is it proper that the chairman of our choice

should tell us to nominate, by rising or sitting, inspectors of the ballot thus forced upon us? Have we any

liberty of choice? If I were proposed, I believe all present would rise out of politeness; indeed, we should all

feel bound to rise for one another, and I say there can be no choice where there is no freedom of action."

"Therefore, let us each write two names on a ballot, and the two gentlemen who are elected will then feel

themselves the real choice of this assembly; they will have the right, conjointly with our honorable chairman,

to pronounce upon the majority when we come to a vote on the resolutions to be offered. We are here, I think,

to promise to a candidate the fullest support that each can give at the coming primary meeting of all the

electors of the arrondissement. This act is therefore, and I so declare it, a grave one. Does it not concern one

fourhundredth part of the governing power,as our excellent mayor has lately said with the ready wit that

During these remarks Colonel Giguet was cutting a sheet of paper into strips, and Simon had sent for pens

This preliminary discussion on forms had already made Simon extremely uneasy, and had also aroused the

attention of the sixty assembled bourgeois. Presently they began to write their ballots, and the wily Pigoult

contrived to obtain a majority for Monsieur Mollot, the clerk of the court, and Monsieur Godivet, the

registrar. These nominations were naturally very displeasing to Fromaget, the apothecary, and Marcelin the

"You enable us," said Achille Pigoult, "to manifest our independence. Therefore you may feel more pride in

Simon Giguet then produced silence by demanding speech of the chairman, whose shirt was already wet and

"Messieurs," said Simon Giguet, "I ask permission to thank Monsieur Achille Pigoult, who, although our

"It is a meeting preparatory to the great primary meeting," said the solicitor Marcelin.

"That is what I was about to explain," resumed Simon, "I thank Monsieur Achille Pigoult for having insisted

on the strictness of parliamentary forms. This is the first time that the arrondissement of Arcis has been at

"At liberty," continued Simon Giguet, "to use its rights in the great battle of a general election to the Chamber

of Deputies; and as, in a few days, we shall have a meeting, at which all electors will be present, to judge of

the merits of the candidates, we ought to feel ourselves most fortunate in becoming accustomed here, in this

limited meeting, to the usages of great assemblies. We shall be all the more able to decide the political future

of the town of Arcis; for the question now is to substitute a town's interests for family interests, a whole

Simon then reviewed the history of the Arcis elections for the last twenty years. While approving the constant

election of Francois Keller, he said the moment had now come to shake off the yoke of the house of

Gondreville. Arcis ought to be no more a fief of the liberals than a fief of the CinqCygnes. Advanced

opinions were arising in France of which the Kellers were not the exponents. Charles Keller, having become

a viscount, belonged to the court; he could have no independence, because, in presenting him as candidate,

his family thought much more of making him succeed to his father's peerage than of benefiting his

constituency as deputy, etc., etc. And, finally, Simon presented himself to the choice of his fellowcitizens,

pledging his word to sit on the same bench with the illustrious Odilon Barrot, and never to desert the glorious

Progress! one of those words behind which more flimsy ambitions than ideas were trying to group

themselves; for, after 1830, it represented only the pretensions of a few hungry democrats. Nevertheless, this

word had still a great effect upon Arcis, and gave stability to whosoever might inscribe it on his banner. To

call himself a man of progress was to declare himself a philosopher in all things and a puritan in politics; it

declared him in favor of railroads, mackintoshes, penitentiaries, wooden pavements, Negro freedom,

savingsbanks, seamless shoes, lighting by gas, asphalt pavements, universal suffrage, and reduction of the

civil list. In short, it meant pronouncing himself against the treaties of 1815, against the Eldest Branch,

against the colossus of the North, perfidious Albion, against all enterprises, good or bad, of the government.

Thus we see that the word progress might signify "No," as well as "Yes." It was gilding put upon the word

"If I have rightly understood what this meeting is for," said Jean Violette, a stockingmaker, who had

recently bought the Beauvisage house, "it is to pledge ourselves to support, by employing every means in our

power, Monsieur Simon Giguet at the elections as deputy in place of Comte Francois Keller. If each of us

intends to coalesce in this manner we have only to say plainly Yes or No on that point."

"That is going too quickly to the point! Political affairs do not advance in that way, or there would be no

politics at all!" cried Pigoult, whose old grandfather, eightysix years old, had just entered the room. "The

last speaker undertakes to decide what seems to me, according to my feeble lights, the very object we are met

"Monsieur Achille Pigoult has the floor," said Beauvisage, at last able to pronounce that phrase with all his

"Messieurs," said the notary, "if there is a house in Arcis in which no voice should be raised against the

influence of the Comte de Gondreville, it is surely the one we are now in. The worthy Colonel Giguet is the

only person in it who has not sought the benefits of the senatorial power; he, at least, has never asked

anything of the Comte de Gondreville, who took his name off the list of exiles in 1815 and caused him to

receive the pension which the colonel now enjoys without lifting a finger to obtain it."

"But," continued the orator, "the Marions are covered with the count's benefits. Without that influence, the

late Colonel Giguet would not have commanded the gendarmerie of the Aube. The late Monsieur Marion

would not have been chiefjustice of the Imperial court without the protection of the count, to whom I myself

have every reason to be thankful. You will therefore think it natural that I should be his advocate within these

walls. There are, indeed, few persons in this arrondissement who have not received benefits from that

"A candidate puts himself in the stocks," continued Achille Pigoult, warming up. "I have the right to

scrutinize his life before I invest him with my powers. I do not desire ingratitude in the delegate I may help to

send to the Chamber, for ingratitude is like misfortuneone ingratitude leads to others. We have been, he

tells us, the stepping stone of the Kellers; well, from what I have heard here, I am afraid we may become the

steppingstone of the Giguets. We live in a practical age, do we not? Well, then, let us examine into what

will be the results to the arrondissement of Arcis if Simon Giguet is elected. They talk to you of

independence! Simon, whom I thus maltreat as candidate, is my personal friend, as he is that of all who hear

me, and I should myself be charmed to see him the orator of the Left, seated between GarnierPages and

Lafitte; but how would that benefit the arrondissement? The arrondissement would lose the support of the

Comte de Gondreville and the Kellers. We all, in the course of five years, have had and shall have need of the

one and of the others. Some have gone to the Marechale de Carigliano to obtain the release of a young fellow

who had drawn a bad number. Others have had recourse to the influence of the Kellers in many matters

which are decided according to their recommendation. We have always found the old Comte de Gondreville

ready to do us service. It is enough to belong to Arcis to obtain admission to him without being forced to kick

our heels in his antechamber. Those two families know every one in Arcis. Where is the financial influence

of the Giguets, and what power have they with the ministry? Have they any standing at the Bourse? When we

want to replace our wretched wooden bridge with one of stone can they obtain from the department and the

State the necessary funds? By electing Charles Keller we shall cement a bond of friendship which has never,

to this day, failed to do us service. By electing my good, my excellent schoolmate, my worthy friend Simon

Giguet, we shall realize nothing but losses until the fardistant time when he becomes a minister. I know his

modesty well enough to be certain he will not contradict me when I say that I doubt his election to the post of

deputy." [Laughter.] "I have come to this meeting to oppose a course which I regard as fatal to our

arrondissement. Charles Keller belongs to the court, they say to me. Well, so much the better! we shall not

have to pay the costs of his political apprenticeship; he knows the affairs of the country; he knows

parliamentary necessities; he is much nearer being a statesman than my friend Simon, who will not pretend to

"Danton went from it!" cried Colonel Giguet, furious at Achille's speech and the justice of it.

"I do not understand why, apropos of an election," continued the old colonel, rising suddenly, with the blood

boiling in his face, "we should be hauled up for the ties which connect us with the Comte de Gondreville. My

son's fortune comes from his mother; he has asked nothing of the Comte de Gondreville. The comte might

never have existed and Simon would have been what he now is,the son of a colonel of artillery who owes

his rank to his services; a man whose opinions have never varied. I should say openly to the Comte de

Gondreville if he were present: 'We have elected your soninlaw for twenty years; today we wish to prove

that in so doing we acted of our own freewill, and we now elect a man of Arcis, in order to show that the old

spirit of 1789, to which you owe your fortune, still lives in the land of Danton, Malin, Grevin, Pigoult,

And the old man sat down. Whereupon a great hubbub arose. Achille opened his mouth to reply. Beauvisage,

who would not have thought himself chairman unless he had rung his bell, increased the racket, and called for

"I shall take the liberty to observe to the honorable Colonel Giguet, whose feelings are easily understood, that

he took upon himself to speak, which is against parliamentary usage," said Achille Pigoult.

"I think it is not necessary to call the colonel to order," said the chairman. "He is a father"

"We did not come here," cried Fromaget, "to say Amen to everything the Messieurs Giguet, father and son,

"Messieurs," resumed Achille, "I confine myself to asking my friend Simon Giguet, categorically, what he

"Since when," demanded Simon Giguet, "have good citizens like those of Arcis made trade and barter of the

It is impossible to represent the effect produced by noble sentiments on a body of men. They will applaud

fine maxims, while they none the less vote for the degradation of their country, like the galleyslave who

shouted for the punishment of Robert Macaire when he saw the thing played, and then went off and killed his

"You will send me to the Chamber," went on Simon, "if you do send me, to represent principles, the

principles of 1789; to be one of the ciphers, if you choose, of the Opposition, but a cipher that votes with it to

enlighten the government, make war against abuses, and promote progress in all things"

"What do you call progress?" asked Fromaget. "For us, progress means getting the waste lands of la

"Progress! I will explain to you what I mean by that," cried Giguet, exasperated by the interruption.

"It is the frontier of the Rhine for France," put in the colonel, "and the destruction of the treaties of 1815."

"It is selling wheat dear and keeping bread cheap," cried Achille Pigoult sarcastically, thinking that he made a

"It is the happiness of all, obtained by the triumph of humanitarian doctrines," continued Simon.

"Messieurs," said the stout Mollot, smiling, "the debate is beginning; give your attention to the orator; and let

"In all transitional epochs, Messieurs," continued Simon, gravely, "and we are now in such an epoch"

"Baaa! baaa!" bleated a friend of Achille Pigoult, who possessed the faculty (precious at elections) of

A roar of laughter came from the whole assembly, who were Champagnards before all else. Simon Giguet

"If it was intended to give me a lesson," he resumed, "and to tell me that I belong to the flock of the glorious

defenders of the rights of humanity, the flock of the immortal priest who pleads for dying Poland, the daring

pamphleteers, the scrutinizers of the civil test, the philosophers who demand sincerity in the working of our

institutions, if that was the intention of my nameless interrupter, I thank him. To me, progress is the

realization of all that was promised to us by the revolution of July; it is electoral reform, it is"

"No," replied the candidate. "To desire the legitimate and regular development of our institutions, is that

being a democrat? To me, progress is fraternity reestablished between the members of the great French

At three o'clock Simon Giguet was still explaining Progress, accompanied by the rhythmic snores of various

electors which denoted a sound sleep. The malicious Achille Pigoult had urged all present to listen religiously

to the young orator, who was now floundering in his phrases and paraphrases hopelessly at random.

At this moment several groups of bourgeois, electors and nonelectors, were standing before the Chateau

d'Arcis, the iron gates of which open on the square near to the door of Madame Marion's house. This square

is a piece of open ground from which issue several roads and several streets. In it is a covered market.

Opposite to the chateau, on the other side of the square, which is neither paved nor macadamized, and where

the rain has made various little gutters, is a fine esplanade, called the Avenue of Sighs. Is that to the honor or

to the blame of the leaders of the town? This singular ambibology is no doubt a stroke of native wit.

Two handsome side avenues, planted with lindens, lead from the square to a circular boulevard which forms

another promenade, though usually deserted, where more dirt and rubbish than promenaders may commonly

At the height of the discussion which Achille Pigoult was dramatizing with a coolness and courage worthy of

a member of a real parliament, four personages were walking down one of the linden avenues which led from

the Avenue of Sighs. When they reached the square, they stopped as if by common consent, and looked at the

inhabitants of Arcis, who were humming before the chateau like so many bees before returning to their hives

at night. The four promenaders were the whole ministerial conclave of Arcis, namely: the subprefect, the

procureurduroi, his substitute, and the examiningjudge, Monsieur Martener. The judge of the court,

Monsieur Michu, was, as we know already, a partisan of the Elder Branch and a devoted adherent of the

"No, I don't understand the action of the government," repeated the subprefect, Antonin Goulard, pointing to

the groups which seemed to be thickening. "At such an important crisis to leave me without instructions!"

"In that you are like the rest of us," said Olivier Vinet, the substitute, smiling.

"The ministry is much embarrassed," remarked young Martener. "It knows that this arrondissement belongs,

in a certain way, to the Kellers, and it is very desirous not to thwart them. It is forced to keep on good terms

with the only man who is comparable to Monsieur de Talleyrand. It is not to the prefect, but to the Comte de

"Meanwhile," said Frederic Marest, "the Opposition is bestirring itself; you see yourselves the influence of

Monsieur Giguet. Our mayor, Monsieur Beauvisage, is presiding over that preparatory meeting."

"After all," said Olivier Vinet slyly to the subprefect, "Simon Giguet is your friend and schoolmate; he will

"The present ministry could dismiss me before its fall," replied the subprefect, "and who knows when I

"Collinet, the grocer!that makes the sixtysixth elector who has entered the Giguet house," said Monsieur

Martener, who was practising his trade as examiningjudge by counting the electors.

"If Charles Keller is the ministerial candidate," resumed the sub prefect, "I ought to have been told of it; the

government makes a mistake in giving time for Simon Giguet to get hold of the electors."

These four individuals had now reached, walking slowly, the spot where the avenue ceases and becomes an

"There's Monsieur Groslier," said the judge, catching sight of a man on horseback.

This was the commissary of police; he saw the government of Arcis collected on the public square, and he

"Well, Monsieur Groslier?" said the subprefect, taking the commissary a little apart from his three

"Monsieur," said the commissary of police in a low voice, "Monsieur la prefet has sent me to tell you some

sad news; Monsieur le Vicomte Charles Keller is dead. The news reached Paris by telegram night before last,

and the two Messieurs Keller, the Comte de Gondreville, the Marechale Carigliano, in fact the whole family

are now at Gondreville. AbdelKader has resumed the offensive in Africa; the war is being vigorously

carried on. This poor young man was among the first victims of the renewal of hostilities. You will receive

confidential instructions, so Monsieur le prefet told me, in relation to the coming election."

"If I knew that, the matter would not be confidential," replied the commissary. "In fact, I think the prefect

himself does not know. He told me that the matter would be a secret one between you and the ministry."

Then he rode on, after seeing the subprefect lay his fingers on his lips as a warning to keep silence.

"Well, what news from the prefecture?" said the procureurduroi, when Goulard returned to the group of

"Nothing satisfactory," replied Goulard, stepping quickly, as if he wanted to get away from the others, who

now walked silently toward the middle of the square, somewhat piqued by the manner of the sub prefect.

There Monsieur Martener noticed old Madame Beauvisage, the mother of Phileas, surrounded by nearly all

the bourgeois on the square, to whom she was apparently relating something. A solicitor, named Sinot, who

numbered all the royalists of Arcis among his clients, and who had not gone to the Giguet meeting, now

detached himself from the group, and running to the door of the Marion house rang the bell violently.

"What can be the matter?" said Frederic Marest, dropping his eyeglass, and calling the attention of his

"The matter is, messieurs," said the subprefect, thinking it useless to keep a secret which was evidently

known to the other party, "that Charles Keller has been killed in Africa, and that this event doubles the

chances of Simon Giguet. You know Arcis; there can be no other ministerial candidate than Charles Keller.

Any other man would find the whole local patriotism of the place arrayed against him.

"Will they really elect such an idiot as Simon Giguet?" said Olivier Vinet, laughing.

This young substitute, then only twentythree years of age, was the son of one of our most famous

attorneygenerals, who had come into power with the Revolution of July; he therefore owed his early

entrance into public life to the influence of his father. The latter, always elected deputy by the town of

Provins, is one of the buttresses of the Centre in the Chamber. Therefore the son, whose mother was a

Demoiselle de Chargeboeuf [see "Pierrette"], had a certain air of assurance, both in his functions and in his

personal behavior, that plainly showed the backing of his father. He expressed his opinion on men and things

without reserve; for he confidently expected not to stay very long at Arcis, but to receive his appointment as

The confident air of this little Vinet, and the sort of assumption which the certainty of making his way gave

to him, was all the more irritating to Frederic Marest, his superior, because a biting wit accompanied the

rather undisciplined habits and manners of his young subordinate. Frederic Marest, procureurduroi, a man

about forty years of age, who had spent six years of his life under the Restoration in becoming a substitute

only to be neglected and left in Arcis by the government of July, in spite of the fact that he had some eighteen

thousand francs a year of his own, was perpetually kept on the rack between the necessity of winning the

good graces of young Vinet's fathera touchy attorneygeneral who might become Keeper of the

Olivier Vinet, slender in figure, with a pallid face, lighted by a pair of malicious green eyes, was one of those

sarcastic young gentlemen, inclined to dissipation, who nevertheless know how to assume the pompous,

haughty, and pedantic air with which magistrates arm themselves when they once reach the bench. The tall,

stout, heavy, and grave procureurduroi had lately invented a system by which he hoped to keep out of

trouble with the exasperating Olivier; he treated him as a father would treat a spoilt child.

"Olivier," he replied to his substitute, slapping him on the shoulder, "a man of your capacity ought to reflect

that Maitre Giguet is very likely to become deputy. You'd have made that remark just as readily before the

This good young man, rather heavy but full of capacity, the son of a physician in Provins, owed his place to

Vinet's father, who was long a lawyer in Provins and still continued to be the patron of his people as the

"Local patriotism is always bitterly against a man who is imposed upon the electors," replied the

examiningjudge, "but when it happens that the good people of Arcis have to elevate one of their own equals

"That is very simple," said the procureurduroi, "and very true. If you can manage to collect fifty

ministerial votes you will find yourself master of the coming election," he added, addressing the sub prefect.

"It will do if you produce a candidate of the same calibre as Simon Giguet," said Olivier Vinet.

The subprefect allowed an expression of satisfaction to appear upon his features, which did not escape the

notice of his three companions, with whom, moreover, he had a full understanding. All four being bachelors,

and tolerably rich, they had formed, without premeditation, an alliance against the dulness of the provinces.

The three functionaries had already remarked the sort of jealousy that Goulard felt for Giguet, which a few

Antonin Goulard, the son of a former huntsman to the house of Simeuse, enriched by the purchase of the

confiscated property of emigres was, like Simon Giguet, a son of Arcis. Old Goulard, his father, left the

abbey of Valpreux (corruption of ValdesPreux) to live in Arcis after the death of his wife, and he sent his

son to the imperial lyceum, where Colonel Giguet had already placed his son Simon. The two schoolmates

subsequently went through their legal studies in Paris together, and their intimacy was continued in the

amusements of youth. They promised to help each other to success in life whenever they entered upon their

In spite of Goulard's manifest advantages, in spite of the cross of the Legion of honor which the Comte de

Gondreville had obtained for him in default of promotion, the offer of his heart and position had been frankly

declined when, about six months before this history begins, he had privately presented himself to Madame

Beauvisage as a suitor for her daughter's hand. No step of that nature is ever taken secretly in the provinces.

The procureurduroi, Frederic Marest, whose fortune, buttonhole, and position were about on a par with

those of Antonin Goulard, had received a like refusal, three years earlier, based on the difference of ages.

Consequently, the two officials were on terms of strict politeness with the Beauvisage family, and laughed at

them severally in private. Both had divined and communicated to each other the real motive of the candidacy

of Simon Giguet, for they fully understood the hopes of Madame Marion; and they were bent on preventing

"God grant that I may be master of this election," said Goulard, "and that the Comte de Gondreville may get

me made a prefect, for I have no more desire than you to spend the rest of my days here, though I was born in

"You have a fine opportunity to be elected deputy yourself, my chief," said Olivier Vinet to Marest. "Come

and see my father, who will, I think, arrive here from Provins in a few hours. Let us propose to him to have

"Halt!" said Antonin; "the ministry has its own views about the deputy of Arcis."

"Ah, bah!" exclaimed Vinet, "there are two ministries: the one that thinks it makes elections, and another that

"Don't let us complicate Antonin's difficulties," said Frederic Marest, winking at his substitute.

The four officials, who had crossed the open square and were close to the Mulet inn, now saw Poupart

leaving the house of Madame Marion and coming towards them. A moment later, and the porte cochere of

"I shall never go again, monsieur le sousprefet," said the innkeeper. "The son of Monsieur Keller is dead,

and I have now no object in going there. God has taken upon himself to clear the ground."

"Well, Pigoult, what happened?" cried Olivier Vinet, catching sight of the young notary.

"Oh!" said Pigoult, on whose forehead the perspiration, which had not dried, bore testimony to his efforts,

"Simon has just told some news that made them all unanimous. Except five persons,Poupart, my

grandfather, Mollot, Sinot, and I,all present swore, as at the Jeu de Paume, to employ every means to

promote the triumph of Simon Giguet, of whom I have made a mortal enemy. Oh! we got warm, I can tell

you! However, I led the Giguets to fulminate against the Gondrevilles. That puts the old count on my side.

No later than tomorrow he will hear what the soidisant patriots of Arcis have said about him and his

corruptions and his infamies, to free their necks, as they called it, of his yoke."

"Oh!" exclaimed Pigoult, "the general sentiment of the electors is for one of their own townsmen. Whom can

you oppose to Simon Giguet,a man who has just spent two hours in explaining the word progress."

"He has no such ambition," replied Pigoult. "But we must first of all consult the Comte de Gondreville. Look,

look!" he added; "see the attentions with which Simon is taking him that gilded booby, Beauvisage."

And he pointed to the candidate, who was holding the mayor by the arm and whispering in his ear.

Beauvisage meantime was bowing right and left to the inhabitants, who gazed at him with the deference

"But there's no use cajoling him," continued Pigoult. "Cecile's hand does not depend on either her father or

"On my old patron, Monsieur Grevin. Even if Simon is elected deputy, the town is not won."

Though the subprefect and Frederic Marest tried to get an explanation of these words, Pigoult refused to

give the reason of an exclamation which seemed to them big with meaning and implying a certain knowledge

All Arcis was now in a commotion, not only on account of the fatal event which had just overtaken the

Gondreville family, but because of the great resolution come to at the Giguet house, where Madame Marion

and her three servants were hurriedly engaged in putting everything in its usual order, ready to receive her

customary guests, whose curiosity would probably bring them that evening in large numbers.

Champagne has all the appearance of a poor region, and it is a poor region. Its general aspect is sad; the land

is flat. Passing through the villages, and even the towns, you will see nothing but miserable buildings of

wood or halfbaked clay; the best are built of brick. Stone is scarcely used at all except on public buildings.

At Arcis the chateau, the law courts, and the church are the only stone buildings. Nevertheless, Champagne,

or, if you prefer to say so, the departments of the Aube, Marne, and HautMarne, richly endowed with

vineyards, the fame of which is worldwide, are otherwise full of flourishing industries.

Without speaking of the manufactures of Reims, nearly all the hosiery of Francea very considerable

tradeis manufactured about Troyes. The surrounding country, over a circuit of thirty miles, is covered with

workmen, whose looms can be seen through the open doors as we pass through the villages. These workmen

are employed by agents, who themselves are in the service of speculators called manufacturers. The agents

negotiate with the large Parisian houses, often with the retail hosiers, all of whom put out the sign,

"Manufacturers of Hosiery." None of them have ever made a pair of stockings, nor a cap, nor a sock; all their

hosiery comes chiefly from Champagne, though there are a few skilled workmen in Paris who can rival the

This intermediate agency between the producer and the consumer is an evil not confined to hosiery. It exists

in almost all trades, and increases the cost of merchandise by the amount of the profit exacted by the

middlemen. To break down these costly partitions, that injure the sale of products, would be a magnificent

enterprise, which, in its results, would attain to the height of statesmanship. In fact, industry of all kinds

would gain by establishing within our borders the cheapness so essential to enable us to carry on victoriously

the industrial warfare with foreign countries,a struggle as deadly as that of arms.

But the destruction of an abuse of this kind would not return to modern philanthropists the glory and the

advantages of a crusade against the empty nutshells of the penitentiary and negrophobia; consequently, the

interloping profits of these bankers of merchandise will continue to weigh heavily both on producers and

consumers. In Francekeenwitted land!it is thought that to simplify is to destroy. The Revolution of

We see, by the industrial energy displayed in a land where Nature is a godmother, what progress agriculture

might make if capital would go into partnership with the soil, which is not so thankless in Champagne as it is

in Scotland, where capital has done wonders. The day when agriculture will have conquered the unfertile

portion of those departments, and industry has seconded capital on the Champagne chalk, the prosperity of

that region will triple itself. Into that land, now without luxury, where homes are barren, English comfort will

penetrate, money will obtain that rapid circulation which is the half of wealth, and is already beginning in

several of the inert portions of our country. Writers, administrators, the Church from its pulpit, the Press in its

columns, all to whom chance has given power to influence the masses, should say and resay this truth,to

hoard is a social crime. The deliberate hoarding of a province arrests industrial life, and injures the health of a

Thus the little town of Arcis, without much means of transition, doomed apparently to the most complete

immobility, is, relatively, a rich town abounding in capital slowly amassed by its trade in hosiery.

Monsieur Phileas Beauvisage was the Alexander, or, if you will, the Attila of this business. And here follow

the means by which this honorable merchant had acquired his supremacy over cotton.

The last remaining child of farmers named Beauvisage, tenants of the splendid farm of Bellache, a

dependency of the Gondreville estate, his parents made, in 1811, a great sacrifice in order to buy a substitute

and save their only child from conscription. After that, in 1813, the mother Beauvisage, having become a

widow, saved her son once more from enrolment in the Gardes, thanks to the influence of the Comte de

Gondreville. Phileas, who was then twentyone years of age, had been devoted for the last three years to the

Coming to the end of the lease of Bellache, old Madame Beauvisage declined to renew it. She saw she had

enough to do in her old age in taking care of her property. That nothing might give her uneasiness of mind,

she proceeded, by the help of Monsieur Grevin, the notary of Arcis, to liquidate her husband's estate,

although her son made no request whatever for a settlement. The result proved that she owed him the sum of

one hundred and fifty thousand francs. The good woman did not sell her landed property, most of which

came from the unfortunate Michu, the former bailiff of the Simeuse family; she paid the sum to Phileas in

ready money,advising him to buy out the business of his employer, Monsieur Pigoult, the son of the old

justice of the peace, whose affairs were in so bad a way that his death, as we have said, was thought to be

Phileas Beauvisage, a virtuous youth, having a deep respect for his mother, concluded the purchase from his

patron, and as he had the bump of what phrenologists term "acquisitiveness," his youthful ardor spent itself

upon this business, which he thought magnificent and desired to increase by speculation.

The name of Phileas, which may seem peculiar, is only one of the many oddities which we owe to the

Revolution. Attached to the Simeuse family, and consequently, good Catholics, the Beauvisage father and

mother desired to have their son baptized. The rector of CinqCygne, the Abbe Goujet, whom they consulted,

advised them to give their son for patron a saint whose Greek name might signify the municipality, for the

child was born at a period when children were inscribed on the civil registers under the fantastic names of the

In 1814, hosiery, a stable business with few risks in ordinary times, was subject to all the variations in the

price of cotton. This price depended at that time on the triumph or the defeat of the Emperor Napoleon,

whose adversaries, the English generals, used to say in Spain: "The town is taken; now get out your bales."

Pigoult, former patron of young Phileas, furnished the raw material to his workmen, who were scattered all

over the country. At the time when he sold the business to Beauvisage junior, he possessed a large amount of

raw cotton bought at a high price, whereas Lisbon was sending enormous quantities into the Empire at six

sous the kilogramme, in virtue of the Emperor's celebrated decree. The reaction produced in France by the

introduction of the Portuguese cotton caused the death of Pigoult, Achille's father, and began the fortune of

Phileas, who, far from losing his head like his master, made his prices moderate by buying cotton cheaply and

in doubling the quantity ventured upon by his predecessor. This simple system enabled Phileas to triple the

manufacture and to pose as the benefactor of the workingmen; so that he was able to disperse his hosiery in

Paris and all over France at a profit, when the luckiest of his competitors were only able to sell their goods at

At the beginning of 1814, Phileas had emptied his warerooms. The prospect of a war on French soil, the

hardships of which were likely to press chiefly on Champagne, made him cautious. He manufactured nothing,

and held himself ready to meet all events with his capital turned into gold. At this period the customhouse

lines were no longer maintained. Napoleon could not do without his thirty thousand custom house officers

for service in the field. Cotton, then introduced through a thousand loopholes, slipped into the markets of

France. No one can imagine how sly and how alert cotton had become at this epoch, nor with what eagerness

the English laid hold of a country where cotton stockings sold for six francs a pair, and cambric shirts were

Manufacturers from the second class, the principal workmen, reckoning on the genius of Napoleon, had

bought up the cottons that came from Spain. They worked it up in hopes of being able later to give the law to

the merchants of Paris. Phileas observed these facts. When the war ravaged Champagne, he kept himself

between the French army and Paris. After each lost battle he went among the workmen who had buried their

products in casks,a sort of silo of hosiery,then, gold in hand, this Cossack of weaving bought up, from

village to village, below the cost of fabrication, tons of merchandise which might otherwise become at any

time a prey to an enemy whose feet were as much in need of being socked as its throat of being moistened.

Phileas displayed under these unfortunate circumstances an activity nearly equal to that of the Emperor. This

general of hosiery made a commercial campaign of 1814 with splendid but ignored courage. A league or two

behind where the army advanced he bought up caps and socks as the Emperor gathered immortal palms by

his very reverses. The genius was equal on both sides, though exercised in different spheres; one aimed at

covering heads, the other at mowing them down. Obliged to create some means of transportation in order to

save his tons of hosiery, which he stored in a suburb of Paris, Phileas often put in requisition horses and

armywaggons, as if the safety of the empire were concerned. But the majesty of commerce was surely as

precious as that of Napoleon. The English merchants, in buying out the European markets, certainly got the

By the time the Emperor abdicated at Fontainebleau, Phileas, triumphant, was master of the situation. He

maintained, by clever manoeuvring, the depreciation in cottons, and doubled his fortune at the moment when

his luckiest competitors were getting rid of their merchandise at a loss of fifty per cent. He returned to Arcis

with a fortune of three hundred thousand francs, half of which, invested on the GrandLivre at sixty, returned

him an income of fifteen thousand francs a year. He employed the remainder in building, furnishing, and

On the return of the successful hosier, Monsieur Grevin was naturally his confidant. The notary had an only

daughter to marry, then twenty years of age. Grevin, a widower, knew the fortune of Madame Beauvisage,

the mother, and he believed in the energy and capacity of a young man bold enough to have turned the

campaign of 1814 to his profit. Severine Grevin had her mother's fortune of sixty thousand francs for her

dower. Grevin was then over fifty; he feared to die, and saw no chance of marrying his daughter as he wished

under the Restorationfor her, he had had ambition. Under these circumstances he was shrewd enough to

Severine Grevin, a welltrained young lady and handsome, was considered at that time the best match in

Arcis. In fact, an alliance with the intimate friend of the senator Comte de Gondreville, peer of France, was

certainly a great honor for the son of a Gondreville tenantfarmer. The widow Beauvisage, his mother, would

have made any sacrifice to obtain it; but on learning the success of her son, she dispensed with the duty of

Thus was consummated the union of the son of a farmer formerly so faithful to the Simeuse family with the

daughter of its most cruel enemy. It was, perhaps, the only application made of the famous saying of Louis

On the second return of the Bourbons, Grevin's fatherinlaw, old Doctor Varlet, died at the age of

seventysix, leaving two hundred thousand francs in gold in his cellar, besides other property valued at an

equal sum. Thus Phileas and his wife had, outside of their business, an assured income of thirty thousand

The first two years of this marriage sufficed to show Madame Severine and her father, Monsieur Grevin the

absolute silliness of Phileas Beauvisage. His one gleam of commercial rapacity had seemed to the notary the

result of superior powers; the shrewd old man had mistaken youth for strength, and luck for genius in

business. Phileas certainly knew how to read and write and cipher well, but he had read nothing. Of crass

ignorance, it was quite impossible to keep up even a slight conversation with him; he replied to all remarks

with a deluge of commonplaces pleasantly uttered. As the son of a farmer, however, Phileas was not without

a certain commercial good sense, and he was also kind and tender, and would often weep at a moving tale. It

was this native goodness of heart which made him respect his wife, whose superiority had always caused him

Severine, a woman of ideas, knew all things, so Phileas believed. And she knew them the more correctly

because she consulted her father on all subjects. She was gifted with great firmness, which made her the

absolute mistress in her own home. As soon as the latter result was attained, the old notary felt less regret in

seeing that his daughter's only domestic happiness lay in the autocracy which usually satisfies all women of

her nature. But what of the woman herself? Here follows what she was said to have found in life.

During the reaction of 1815, a Vicomte de Chargeboeuf (of the poorer branch of the family) was sent to Arcis

as subprefect through the influence of the Marquise de CinqCygne, to whose family he was allied. This

young man remained subprefect for five years. The beautiful Madame Beauvisage was not, it was said, a

stranger to the reasons that kept him in this office for a period far too prolonged for his own advancement.

We ought to say, however, that these remarks were not justified by any of the scandals which in the provinces

betray those passions that are difficult to conceal from the Argus eyes of a little town. If Severine loved the

Vicomte de Chargeboeuf and was beloved by him, it was in all honor and propriety, said the friends of the

Grevins and the Marions; and that double coterie imposed its opinion on the whole arrondissement; but the

Marions and the Grevins had no influence on the royalists, and the royalists regarded the subprefect as

As soon as the Marquise de CinqCygne heard what was said in the chateaux about her relation, she sent for

him; and such was her horror for all who were connected, near or far, with the actors in the judicial drama so

fatal to her family, that she strictly enjoined him to change his residence. Not only that, but she obtained his

appointment as subprefect of Sancerre with the promise of advancement to the prefecture.

Some shrewd observers declared that the viscount pretended this passion for the purpose of being made

prefect; for he well knew the hatred felt by the marquise for the name of Grevin. Others remarked on the

coincidence of the viscount's apparitions in Paris with the visits made by Madame Beauvisage to the capital

on frivolous pretexts. An impartial historian would be puzzled to form a just opinion on the facts of this

matter, which are buried in the mysteries of private life. One circumstance alone seems to give color to the

CecileRenee Beauvisage was born in 1820, just as Monsieur de Chargeboeuf left Arcis, and among his

various names was that of Rene. This name was given by the Comte de Gondreville as godfather of the child.

Had the mother objected to the name, she would in some degree have given color to the rumor. As gossip

always endeavors to justify itself, the giving of this name was said to be a bit of maliciousness on the part of

the old count. Madame Keller, the count's daughter, who was named Cecile, was the godmother. As for the

resemblance shown in the person of CecileRenee Beauvisage, it was striking. This young girl was like

neither father nor mother; in course of time she had become the living image of the Vicomte de Chargeboeuf,

whose aristocratic manners she had also acquired. This double resemblance, both moral and physical, was not

observed by the inhabitants of Arcis, for the viscount never returned to that town.

Severine made her husband happy in his own way. He liked good living and everything easy about him; she

supplied him with the choicest wines, a table worthy of a bishop, served by the best cook in the department

but without the pretensions of luxury; for she kept her household strictly to the conditions of the burgher life

of Arcis. It was a proverb in Arcis that you must dine with Madame Beauvisage and spend your evening with

The renewed influence in the arrondissement of Arcis which the Restoration gave to the house of

CinqCygne had naturally drawn closer the ties that bound together the various families affected by the

criminal trial relating to the abduction of Gondreville. [See "An Historical Mystery."] The Marions, Grevins,

and Giguets were all the more united because the triumph of their political opinions, called "constitutional,"

As a matter of policy Severine encouraged her husband to continue his trade in hosiery, which any other man

but himself would have long renounced; and she sent him to Paris, and about the country, on business

connected with it. Up to the year 1830 Phileas, who was thus enabled to exercise his bump of

"acquisitiveness," earned every year a sum equivalent to his expenses. The interest on the property of

Monsieur and Madame Beauvisage, being capitalized for the last fifteen years by Grevin's intelligent care,

became, by 1830, a round sum of half a million francs. That sum was, in fact, Cecile's dot, which the old

notary then invested in the Threepercents at fifty, producing a safe income of thirty thousand a year.

After 1830 Beauvisage sold his business in hosiery to Jean Violette, one of his agents (grandson of one of the

chief witnesses for the prosecution in the Simeuse trial), the proceeds of which amounted to three hundred

thousand francs. Monsieur and Madame Beauvisage had also in prospect their double inheritance from old

Grevin on one side, and the old farmer's wife Beauvisage on the other. Great provincial fortunes are usually

the product of time multiplied by economy. Thirty years of old age make capital.

In giving to CecileRenee a dot of fifty thousand francs a year, her parents still reserved for themselves the

two inheritances, thirty thousand a year on the Grand Livre, and their house in Arcis.

If the Marquise de CinqCygne were only dead, Cecile might assuredly marry the young marquis; but the

health of that great lady, who was still vigorous and almost beautiful at sixty years of age, precluded all hope

of such a marriage if it even entered the minds of Grevin and his daughter, as some persons, surprised at their

rejection of eligible suitors like the subprefect and the procureurduroi, declared that it did.

The Beauvisage residence, one of the best in Arcis, stands on the Place du Pont on a line with the rue

VideBourse, at the corner of the rue du Pont, which leads to the Place de l'Eglise. Though, like many

provincial houses, without either court or garden, it produces a certain effect, in spite of its ornamentation in

bad taste. The front door opens on the Place; the windows of the groundfloor look out on the streetside

towards the posthouse and inn, and command beyond the Place a rather picturesque view of the Aube, the

navigation of which begins at the bridge. Beyond the bridge is another little Place or square, on which lives

On the street and on the square, the Beauvisage house, painted a spotless white, looks as though built of

stone. The height of the windows and their external mouldings contribute to give a certain style to the house

which contrasts strongly with the generally forlorn appearance of the houses of Arcis, constructed, as we

have already said, of wood, and covered with plaster, imitating the solidity of stone. Still, these houses are

not without a certain originality, through the fact that each architect, or each burgher, has endeavored to solve

The bridge at Arcis is of wood. About four hundred feet above the bridge the river is crossed by another

bridge, on which rise the tall wooden sides of a mill with several sluices. The space between the public bridge

and this private bridge forms a basin, on the banks of which are several large houses. By an opening between

the roofs can be seen the height on which stands the chateau of Arcis with its park and gardens, its outer walls

and trees which overhand the river above the bridges, and the rather scanty pastures of the left bank.

The sound of the water as it runs through the courses above the dam, the music of the wheels, from which the

churned water falls back into the basin in sparkling cascades, animate the rue du Pont, contrasting in this

respect with the tranquillity of the river flowing downward between the garden of Monsieur Grevin, whose

house is at one angle of the bridge on the left bank, and the port where the boats and barges discharge their

Nothing can better express provincial life than the deep silence that envelops the little town and reigns in its

busiest region. It is easy to imagine, therefore, how disquieting the presence of a stranger, if he only spends

half a day there, may be to the inhabitants; with what attention faces protrude from the windows to observe

him, and also the condition of espial in which all the residents of the little place stand to each other. Life has

there become so conventional that, except on Sundays and fetedays, a stranger meets no one either on the

It will now be readily understood why the groundfloor of the Beauvisage house is on a level with the street

and square. The square serves as its courtyard. Sitting at his window the eyes of the late hosier could take in

the whole of the Place de l'Eglise, the two squares of the bridge, and the road to Sezanne. He could see the

coaches arriving and the travellers descending at the postinn; and on court days he could watch the

proceedings around the offices of the mayor and the justice of peace. For these reasons, Beauvisage would

not have exchanged his house for the chateau, in spite of its lordly air, its stone walls, and its splendid

Entering the Beauvisage house we find a versatile, at the farther end of which rises the staircase. To right we

enter a large salon with two windows opening on the square; to left is a handsome diningroom, looking on

Notwithstanding the large fortune of the Beauvisage husband and wife, their establishment consisted of only

a cook and a chambermaid, the latter a peasant, who washed and ironed and frotted the floors rather than

waited on her two mistresses, who were accustomed to spend their time in dressing and waiting upon each

other. Since the sale of the business to Jean Violette, the horse and cabriolet used by Phileas, and kept at the

At the moment when Phileas reached his house after the Giguet meeting, his wife, already informed of the

resolutions passed, had put on her boots and shawl and was preparing to go to her father; for she felt very

sure that Madame Marion would, on that same evening, make her certain overtures relating to Simon and

Cecile. After telling his wife of Charles Keller's death, Phileas asked her opinion with an artless "What do

you think of that, wife?" which fully pictured his habit of deferring to Severine's opinion in all things. Then

In 1839, Madame Beauvisage, then fortyfour years old, was so well preserved that she might, in that

respect, rival Mademoiselle Mars. By calling to mind the most charming Celimene that the TheatreFrancais

ever had, an excellent idea of Severine Grevin's appearance will be obtained. The same richness of coloring,

the same beauty of features, the same clearly defined outlines; but the hosier's wife was short,a

circumstance which deprived her of that noble grace, that charming coquetry a la Sevigne, through which the

great actress commends herself to the memory of men who saw both the Empire and the Restoration.

Provincial life and the rather careless style of dress into which, for the last ten years, Severine had allowed

herself to fall, gave a somewhat common air to that noble profile and those beautiful features; increasing

plumpness was destroying the outlines of a figure magnificently fine during the first twelve years of her

married life. But Severine redeemed these growing imperfections with a sovereign, superb, imperious glance,

and a certain haughty carriage of her head. Her hair, still black and thick and long, was raised high upon her

head, giving her a youthful look. Her shoulders and bosom were snowy, but they now rose puffily in a

manner to obstruct the free movement of the neck, which had grown too short. Her plump and dimpled arms

ended in pretty little hands that were, alas, too fat. She was, in fact, so overdone with fulness of life and

health that her flesh formed a little pad, as one might call it, above her shoes. Two eardrops, worth about

threethousand francs each, adorned her ears. She wore a lace cap with pink ribbons, a mousselinedelaine

gown in pink and gray stripes with an edging of green, opened at the bottom to show a petticoat trimmed with

valencienne lace; and a green cashmere shawl with palmleaves, the point of which reached the ground as

"You are not so hungry," she said, casting her eyes on Beauvisage, "that you can't wait half an hour? My

father has finished dinner and I couldn't eat mine in peace without knowing what he thinks and whether we

"Good heavens!" cried Severine with a significant gesture of her shoulders. "Shall I never break you of that

"Above all, don't say a word to Cecile about this resolution of the electors," added Madame Beauvisage, who

"No, stay with Cecile. Besides, Jean Violette was to pay the rest of the purchasemoney today. He has

twenty thousand francs to bring you. This is the third time he has put us off three months; don't grant him any

more delays; if he can't pay now, give his note to Courtet, the sheriff, and take the law of him. Achille Pigoult

will tell you how to proceed. That Violette is the worthy son of his grandfather; I think he is capable of

enriching himself by going into bankruptcy,there's neither law nor gospel in him."

"You have given him the goodwill of a fine business for thirty thousand francs, which is certainly worth

"I never sued anybody yet," replied Beauvisage, "and I'd rather lose my money than torment a poor man"

Beauvisage was silent; feeling unable to reply to that cruel remark, he looked at the boards which formed the

Perhaps the progressive abolition of mind and will in Beauvisage will be explained by the abuse of sleep.

Going to bed every night at eight o'clock and getting up the next morning at eight, he had slept his twelve

hours nightly for the last twenty years, never waking; or if that extraordinary event did occur, it was so

serious a matter to his mind that he talked of it all day. He spent an hour at his toilet, for his wife had trained

him not to appear in her presence at breakfast unless properly shaved, cleaned, and dressed for the day. When

he was in business, he departed to his office after breakfast and returned only in time for dinner. Since 1832,

he had substituted for his business occupations a daily visit to his fatherinlaw, a promenade about the

In all weather he wore boots, blue coat and trousers, and a white waistcoat,the style of dress exacted by his

wife. His linen was remarkable for its fineness and purity, owing to the fact that Severine obliged him to

change it daily. Such care for his person, seldom taken in the provinces, contributed to make him considered

in Arcis very much as a man of elegance is considered in Paris. Externally this worthy seller of cotton hose

seemed to be a personage; for his wife had sense enough never to utter a word which could put the public of

Arcis on the scent of her disappointment and the utter nullity of her husband, who, thanks to his smiles, his

handsome dress, and his manners, passed for a man of importance. People said that Severine was so jealous

of him that she prevented him from going out in the evening, while in point of fact Phileas was bathing the

Beauvisage, who lived according to his tastes, pampered by his wife, well served by his two servants, cajoled

by his daughter, called himself the happiest man in Arcis, and really was so. The feeling of Severine for this

nullity of a man never went beyond the protecting pity of a mother for her child. She disguised the harshness

of the words she was frequently obliged to say to him by a joking manner. No household was ever more

tranquil; and the aversion Phileas felt for society, where he went to sleep, and where he could not play cards

(being incapable of learning a game), had made Severine sole mistress of her evenings.

Cecile's entrance now put an end to her father's embarrassment, and he cried out heartily:

Madame Beauvisage turned round abruptly and cast a look upon her daughter which made the girl blush.

"Are we not going tonight to Madame Marion's? I dressed myself now to see if my new gown fitted me."

"Cecile! Cecile!" exclaimed Severine, "why do you try to deceive your mother? It is not right; and I am not

"What has she done?" asked Beauvisage, delighted to see his daughter so prettily dressed.

"What has she done? I shall tell her," said Madame Beauvisage, shaking her finger at her only child.

Cecile flung herself on her mother's neck, kissing and coaxing her, which is a means by which only daughters

Cecile Beauvisage, a girl of nineteen, had put on a gown of gray silk trimmed with gimp and tassels of a

deeper shade of gray, making the front of the gown look like a pelisse. The corsage, ornamented with buttons

and caps to the sleeves, ended in a point in front, and was laced up behind like a corset. This species of corset

defined the back, the hips, and the bust perfectly. The skirt, trimmed with three rows of fringe, fell in

charming folds, showing by its cut and its make the hand of a Parisian dressmaker. A pretty fichu edged with

lace covered her shoulders; around her throat was a pink silk neckerchief, charmingly tied, and on her head

was a straw hat ornamented with one moss rose. Her hands were covered with black silk mittens, and her feet

were in bronze kid boots. This gala air, which gave her somewhat the appearance of the pictures in a

Cecile was well made, of medium height, and perfectly well proportioned. She had braided her chestnut

hair, according to the fashion of 1839, in two thick plaits which followed the line of the face and were

fastened by their ends to the back of her head. Her face, a fine oval, and beaming with health, was remarkable

for an aristocratic air which she certainly did not derive from either her father or her mother. Her eyes, of a

light brown, were totally devoid of that gentle, calm, and almost timid expression natural to the eyes of young

girls. Lively, animated, and always well in health, Cecile spoiled, by a sort of bourgeois matteroffactness,

and the manners of a petted child, all that her person presented of romantic charm. Still, a husband capable of

reforming her education and effacing the traces of provincial life, might still evolve from that living block a

Madame Beauvisage had had the courage to bring up her daughter to good principles; she had made herself

employ a false severity which enabled her to compel obedience and repress the little evil that existed in the

girl's soul. Mother and daughter had never been parted; thus Cecile had, what is more rare in young girls than

is generally supposed, a purity of thought, a freshness of heart, and a naivete of nature, real, complete, and

"Your dress is enough to make me reflect," said Madame Beauvisage. "Did Simon Giguet say anything to

"Dear mamma," said Cecile in her mother's ear, "he bores me; but there is no one else for me in Arcis."

"You judge him rightly; but wait till your grandfather has given an opinion," said Madame Beauvisage,

kissing her daughter, whose reply proved her goodsense, though it also revealed the breach made in her

Severine was devoted to her father; she and her daughter allowed no one but themselves to take charge of his

linen; they knitted his socks for him, and gave the most minute care to his comfort. Grevin knew that no

thought of selfinterest had entered their affection; the million they would probably inherit could not dry

their tears at his death; old men are very sensible to disinterested tenderness. Every morning before going to

see him, Madame Beauvisage and Cecile attended to his dinner for the next day, sending him the best that the

Madame Beauvisage had always desired that her father would present her at the Chateau de Gondreville and

connect her with the count's daughters; but the wise old man explained, again and again, how difficult it

would be to have permanent relations with the Duchesse de Carigliano, who lived in Paris and seldom came

to Gondreville, or with the brilliant Madame Keller, after doing a business in hosiery.

"Your life is lived," he said to his daughter; "find all your enjoyments henceforth in Cecile, who will certainly

be rich enough to give you an existence as broad and high as you deserve. Choose a son inlaw with

ambition and means, and you can follow her to Paris and leave that jackass Beauvisage behind you. If I live

long enough to see Cecile's husband I'll pilot you all on the sea of political interests, as I once piloted others,

These few words were said before the revolution of July, 1830. Grevin desired to live that he might get under

way the future grandeur of his daughter, his granddaughter, and his greatgrandchildren. His ambition

When he talked thus, the old man's idea was to marry Cecile to Charles Keller; he was now grieving over that

lost hope, uncertain where to look in the future. Having no relations with Parisian society, and seeing in the

department of the Aube no other husband for Cecile than the youthful Marquis de CinqCygne, he was

asking himself whether by the power of gold he could surmount the animosities which the revolution of July

had roused between the royalists who were faithful to their principles, and their conquerors. The happiness of

his grand daughter seemed to him so doubtful if he delivered her into the hands of the proud and haughty

Marquise de CinqCygne that he decided in his own mind to trust to the friend of old age, Time. He hoped

that his bitter enemy the marquise might die, and, in that case, he thought he could win the son through his

grandfather, old d'Hauteserre, who was then living at CinqCygne and whom he knew to be accessible to the

If this plan failed, and Cecile Beauvisage remained unmarried, he resolved as a last resort to consult his

friend Gondreville, who would, he believed, find his Cecile a husband, after his heart and his ambition,

Severine found her father seated on a wooden bench at the end of his terrace, under a bower of lilacs then in

bloom, and taking his coffee; for it was halfpast five in the afternoon. She saw, by the pain on her father's

face, that he had already heard the news. In fact, the old count had sent a valet to his friend, begging him to

Up to the present time, old Grevin had endeavored not to encourage his daughter's ambition too far; but now,

in the midst of the contradictory reflections which the melancholy death of Charles Keller caused him, his

"My dear child," he said to her, "I had formed the finest plans for your future. Cecile was to have been

Vicomtesse Keller, for Charles, by my influence, would now have been selected deputy. Neither Gondreville

nor his daughter Madame Keller would have refused Cecile's dot of sixty thousand francs a year, especially

with the prospect of a hundred thousand more which she will some day have from you. You would have lived

in Paris with your daughter, and played your part of motherinlaw in the upper regions of power."

"But we are knocked down by the death of this charming young man, to whom the prince royal had already

given his friendship. Now this Simon Giguet, who has thrust himself upon the scene, is a fool, and the worst

of all fools, for he thinks himself an eagle. You are, however, too intimate with the Giguets and the Marion

household not to put the utmost politeness into your refusalbut you must refuse him."

"You can say that I have otherwise disposed of Cecile's hand, and that will cut short all preposterous

pretensions like that of Antonin Goulard. Little Vinet may offer himself, and he is preferable to the others

who are smelling after the dot; he has talent, and shrewdness, and he belongs to the Chargeboeufs by his

mother; but he has too much character not to rule his wife, and he is young enough to make himself loved.

"I shall be much embarrassed this evening at the Marions' to know what to say," remarked Severine.

"Well, then, my dear," said her father, "send Madame Marion to me; I'll talk to her."

"I knew, father, that you were thinking of our future, but I had no idea you expected it to be so brilliant," said

"I have pondered the matter so deeply," said Grevin, "that in 1831 I bought the Beauseant mansion in Paris,

Madame de Beauvisage made a movement of surprise on hearing this secret, until then so carefully kept, but

"It will be my wedding present," he went on. "In 1832 I let it for seven years to an Englishman for

twentyfour thousand francs a year, a pretty stroke of business; for it only cost me three hundred and

twentyfive thousand francs, of which I thus recover nearly two hundred thousand. The lease ends in July of

Severine kissed her father on the forehead and on both cheeks. This last revelation so magnified her future

"I shall advise my father," she said to herself, as she recrossed the bridge, "to give only the reversion of that

property to his grandchildren, and let me have the lifeinterest in it. I have no idea of letting my daughter and

At dessert, when the two womenservants were safely at their own dinner in the kitchen, and Madame

Beauvisage was certain of not being overheard, she thought it advisable to give Cecile a little lecture.

"My daughter," she said, "behave this evening with propriety, like a wellbred girl; and from this day forth

be more sedate. Do not chatter heedlessly, and never walk alone with Monsieur Giguet, or Monsieur Olivier

Vinet, or the subprefect, or Monsieur Martener,in fact, with any one, not even Achille Pigoult. You will

not marry any of the young men of Arcis, or of the department. Your fate is to shine in Paris. Therefore I

shall now give you charming dresses, to accustom you to elegance. We can easily find out where the

Princesse de Cadignan and the Marquise de CinqCygne get their things. I mean that you shall cease to look

provincial. You must practise the piano for three hours every day. I shall send for Monsieur Moise from

Troyes until I know what master I ought to get from Paris. Your talents must all be developed, for you have

only one year more of girlhood before you. Now I have warned you, and I shall see how you behave this

evening. You must manage to keep Simon at a distance, but without coquetting with him."

"Ha! I haven't seen him yet," said Phileas, "but everybody is talking about him. When I want to know who he

is, I shall send the corporal or Monsieur Groslier to ask him for his passport."

There is no little town in France where, at a given time, the drama or the comedy of the stranger is not

played. Often the stranger is an adventurer who makes dupes and departs, carrying with him the reputation of

a woman, or the money of a family. Oftener the stranger is a real stranger, whose life remains mysterious

Now the probable accession to power of Simon Giguet was not the only serious event that was happening in

Arcis. For the last two days the attention of the little town had been focussed on a personage just arrived, who

proved to be the first Unknown of the present generation. The stranger was at this moment the subject of

conversation in every household in the place. He was the beam fallen from heaven into the city of the frogs.

The situation of ArcissurAube explains the effect which the arrival of a stranger was certain to produce.

About eighteen miles from Troyes, on the highroad to Paris, opposite to a farm called "La Belle Etoile," a

county road branches off from the main road, and leads to Arcis, crossing the vast plains where the Seine cuts

a narrow green valley bordered with poplars, which stand out upon the whiteness of the chalk soil of

Champagne. The main road from Arcis to Troyes is eighteen miles in length, and makes the arch of a bow,

the extremities of which are Troyes and Arcis, so that the shortest route from Paris to Arcis is by the county

road which turns off, as we have said, near the Belle Etoile. The Aube is navigable only from Arcis to its

mouth. Therefore this town, standing eighteen miles from a highroad, and separated from Troyes by

monotonous plains, is isolated more or less, and has but little commerce or transportation either by land or

water. Arcis is, in fact, a town completely isolated, where no travellers pass, and is attached to Troyes and La

Belle Etoile by stagecoaches only. All the inhabitants know each other; they even know the commercial

travellers who come, now and then, on business from the large Parisian houses. Thus, as in all provincial

towns in a like position, a stranger, if he stayed two days, would wag the tongues and excite the imaginations

Now, Arcis being still in a state of tranquillity three days before the morning when, by the will of the creator

of so many histories, the present tale begins, there was seen to arrive by the county road a stranger, driving a

handsome tilbury drawn by a valuable horse, and accompanied by a tiny groom, no bigger than my fist,

mounted on a saddlehorse. The coach, connecting with the diligences to Troyes, had brought from La Belle

Etoile three trunks coming from Paris, marked with no name, but belonging to this stranger, who took up his

quarters at the Mulet inn. Every one in Arcis supposed, on the first evening, that this personage had come

with the intention of buying the estate of Arcis; and much was said in all households about the future owner

of the chateau. The tilbury, the traveller, his horses, his servant, one and all appeared to belong to a man who

The stranger, no doubt fatigued, did not show himself for a time; perhaps he spent part of the day in arranging

himself in the rooms he had chosen, announcing his intention of staying a certain time. He requested to see

the stable where his horses were to be kept, showed himself very exacting, and insisted that they should be

placed in stalls apart from those of the innkeeper's horses, and from those of guests who might come later. In

consequence of such singular demands, the landlord of the hotel du Mulet considered his guest to be an

On the evening of the first day several attempts were made at the Mulet by inquisitive persons to satisfy their

curiosity; but no light whatever could be obtained from the little groom, who evaded all inquiries, not by

refusals or by silence, but by sarcasms which seemed to be beyond his years and to prove him a corrupt little

After making a careful toilet and dining at six o'clock, the stranger mounted a horse, and, followed by his

groom, rode off along the road to Brienne, not returning till a very late hour to the Mulet. The landlord, his

wife, and her maids had meantime gained no information from a careful examination of his trunks, and the

articles about his rooms, as to the projects or the condition of their mysterious inmate.

On the stranger's return the mistress of the house carried up to him the book in which, according to police

regulations, he was required to inscribe his name, rank, the object of his journey, and the place from which he

"I shall write nothing," he said to the mistress of the inn. "If any one questions you, you can say I refused;

and you may send the sub prefect to see me, for I have no passport. I dare say that many persons will make

inquiries about me, madame, and you can tell them just what you like. I wish you to know nothing about me.

If you worry me on this point, I shall go to the Hotel de la Poste on the Place du Pont and remain there for the

fortnight I propose to spend here. I should be sorry for that, because I know that you are the sister of Gothard,

After such a beginning, the stranger kept the mistress of the house a whole hour and made her tell him all she

knew of Arcis, of its fortunes, its interests, and its functionaries. The next day he disappeared on horseback,

We can now understand Mademoiselle Cecile's little joke, which Madame Beauvisage thought to be without

foundation. Beauvisage and Cecile, surprised by the order of the day promulgated by Severine, were

enchanted. While his wife went to dress for Madame Marion's reception, the father listened to the many

conjectures it was natural a girl should make in such a case. Then, fatigued with his day, he went to bed as

As may readily be supposed by those who know anything of country towns, a crowd of persons flocked to

Madame Marion's that evening. The triumph of Giguet junior was thought to be a victory won against the

Comte de Gondreville, and to insure forever the independence of Arcis in the matter of elections. The news

of the death of poor Charles Keller was regarded as a judgment from heaven, intended to silence all rivalries.

Antonin Goulard, Frederic Marest, Olivier Vinet, and Monsieur Martener, the authorities who, until then, had

frequented this salon (the prevailing opinions of which did not seem to them contrary to the government

created by the popular will in July, 1830), came as usual, possessed by curiosity to see what attitude the

The salon, restored to its usual condition, showed no signs of the meeting which appeared to have settled the

destiny of Simon Giguet. By eight o'clock four cardtables, each with four players, were under way. The

smaller salon and the diningroom were full of people. Never, except on grand occasions, such as balls and

fetedays, had Madame Marion seen such an influx at the door of her salon, forming as it were the tail of a

"It is the dawn of power," said Olivier Vinet to the mistress of the house, showing her this spectacle, so

"No one knows what there is in Simon," replied the mother. "We live in times when young men who

This answer was made, not so much to Vinet as to Madame Beauvisage, who had entered the room with her

daughter and was now beginning to offer her congratulations on the event. In order to escape indirect appeals

and pointed interpretations of careless words, Madame Beauvisage took a vacant place at a whisttable and

devoted her mind to the winning of one hundred fishes. One hundred fishes, or counters, made fifty sous!

Cecile went to talk with Mademoiselle Mollot, one of her good friends, appearing to be seized with redoubled

affection for her. Mademoiselle Mollot was the beauty of Arcis, just as Cecile was the heiress. Monsieur

Mollot, clerk of the court, lived on the GrandePlace in a house constructed in the same manner as that of

Beauvisage on the Place du Pont. Madame Mollot, forever seated at the window of her salon on the

groundfloor, was attacked (as the result of that situation) by intense, acute, insatiable curiosity, now become

a chronic and inveterate disease. The moment a peasant entered the square from the road to Brienne she saw

him, and watched to see what business could have brought him to Arcis; she had no peace of mind until that

peasant was explained. She spent her life in judging the events, men, things, and households of Arcis.

The ambition of the house of Mollot, father, mother, and daughter, was to marry Ernestine (an only daughter)

to Antonin Goulard. Consequently the refusal of the Beauvisage parents to entertain the proposals of the

"There's an impatient man!" said Ernestine to Cecile, indicating Simon Giguet. "He wants to come and talk

with us; but every one who comes in feels bound to congratulate him. I've heard him say fifty times already:

'It is, I think, less to me than to my father that this compliment of my fellowcitizens has been paid; but, in

any case, pray believe that I shall be devoted not only to our general interests but to yours individually.' I can

guess those words by the motion of his lips, and all the while he is looking at you with an air of martyrdom."

"Ernestine," replied Cecile, "don't leave me the whole evening; I don't want to listen to his proposals made

"But I assure you," persisted Ernestine, "that just before you came in Monsieur Godivet, the registrar, was

declaring with enthusiasm that Simon would be Keeper of the Seals in three years."

"Do they count on the influence of the Comte de Gondreville?" asked the subprefect, coming up to the two

"Ah! Monsieur Antonin," said the handsome Ernestine, "you who promised my mother to find out all about

"The events of today, Mademoiselle, are so much more important," said Antonin, taking a seat beside

Cecile, like a diplomat delighted to escape general attention by conversing with two girls. "All my career as

"Simon is my friend, but the government is my master, and I expect to do my best to prevent Simon from

being elected. And here comes Madame Mollot, who owes me her concurrence as the wife of a man whose

"I am sure we ask nothing better than to be on your side," replied the sheriff's wife. "Mollot has told me," she

continued in a low voice, "what took place here todayit is pitiable! Only one man showed talent, and that

was Achille Pigoult. Everybody agrees that he would make a fine orator in the Chamber; and therefore,

though he has nothing, and my daughter has a dot of sixty thousand francs, not to speak of what, as an only

child, she will inherit from us and also from her uncle at Mollot and from my aunt Lambert at Troyes,well,

I declare to you that if Monsieur Achille Pigoult did us the honor to ask her to wife, I should give her to him;

yes, I shouldprovided always she liked him. But the silly little goose wants to marry as she pleases; it is

The subprefect received this double broadside like a man who knows he has thirty thousand francs a year,

"Mademoiselle is right," he said, looking at Cecile; "she is rich enough to make a marriage of love."

"Don't let us talk about marriage," said Ernestine; "it saddens my poor dear Cecile, who was owning to me

just now that in order not to be married for her money, but for herself, she should like an affair with some

stranger who knew nothing of Arcis and her future expectations as Lady Croesus, and would spin her a

"That's a very pretty idea!" cried Olivier Vinet, joining the group of young ladies in order to get away from

the partisans of Simon, the idol of the day. "I always knew that Mademoiselle had as much sense as money."

"How?" replied Madame Mollot. "Why, this morning I was so puzzled that I got out my operaglass"

"Bravo!" cried the superintendent of ponts et chaussees, who was paying court to the mother to obtain the

"And so," continued Madame Mollot, "I was able to see him shaving; with such elegant razors!mounted in

"Gold! gold, of course!" said Vinet. "When things are unknown they should always be imagined of the finest

quality. Consequently I, not having seen this gentleman, am perfectly sure that he is at least a count."

This speech created a laugh; and the laughing group excited the jealousy of a group of dowagers and the

attention of a troop of men in black who surrounded Simon Giguet. As for the latter, he was chafing in

despair at not being able to lay his fortune and his future at the feet of the rich Cecile.

"Yes," continued Vinet, "a man distinguished for his birth, for his manners, his fortune, his equipages,a

"Monsieur Olivier," said Ernestine, "he drives the prettiest tilbury you ever saw."

"What? Antonin, you never told me he had a tilbury when we were talking about that conspirator this

morning. A tilbury! Why, that's an extenuating circumstance; he can't be a republican."

"Mesdemoiselles, there is nothing that I will not do in the interests of your amusement," said Antonin

Goulard. "I will instantly proceed to ascertain if this individual is a count, and if he is, what kind of count."

"Oh!" replied the subprefect, "ask Mademoiselle Beauvisage whom she would accept as her husband among

all of us here present; she will not answer. Allow me the same discretion. Mesdemoiselles, restrain your

anxiety; in ten minutes you shall know whether the Unknown is a count or a commercial traveller."

Antonin Goulard left the little group of young ladies, in which, besides Cecile and Ernestine, were

Mademoiselle Berton, daughter of the taxcollector,an insignificant young person who played the part of

satellite to Cecile,and Mademoiselle Herbelot, sister of the second notary of Arcis, an old maid of thirty,

soured, affected, and dressed like all old maids; for she wore, over a bombazine gown, an embroidered fichu,

the corners of which, gathered to the front of the bodice, were knotted together after the wellknown fashion

"Julien," said the subprefect to his valet, who was waiting in the antechamber, "you who served six years at

"Very good. Go to the Mulet, and try to clap your eye on the tilbury of the gentleman who is stopping there,

and then come and tell me what is painted on it. Do your business thoroughly, and bring me all the gossip of

the inn. If you see the little groom, ask him at what hour tomorrow his master can receive the

subprefectin case you find the nine pearls. Don't drink, don't gossip yourself, and come back quickly; and

The Mulet inn, as we have already said, stands on the square, at the opposite corner to the garden wall of the

Marion estate on the other side of the road leading to Brienne. Therefore the solution of the problem could be

"We talked so much about the stranger yesterday that I dreamed of him all night," said Madame Mollot.

"You are very impertinent; if I chose I could make you dream of me," she retorted. "So this morning when I

It may not be useless to say that Madame Mollot was considered a clever woman in Arcis; that is, she

expressed herself fluently and abused that advantage. A Parisian, wandering by chance into these regions,

"Certainly; my dressingroom opens on the street. Now you know, of course, that Poupart has put the

"One room, mamma!" interrupted Ernestine. "The count occupies three rooms! The little groom, dressed all

in black, is in the first. They have made a salon of the next, and the Unknown sleeps in the third."

"Well, young ladies, and what has that to do with his person?" said Madame Mollot, sharply, not pleased at

"Madame was of course as she naturally would be,making her toilet and looking at the Mulet," said Vinet.

In the provinces such jokes are prized, for people have so long said everything to each other that they have

recourse at last to the sort of nonsense our fathers indulged in before the introduction of English

"Don't interrupt the orator," repeated Cecile Beauvisage to Vinet, with whom she exchanged a smile.

"My eyes involuntarily fell on the window of the room in which the stranger had slept the night before. I

don't know what time he went to bed, although I was awake till past midnight; but I have the misfortune to be

married to a man who snores fit to crack the planks and the rafters. If I fall asleep first, oh! I sleep so sound

"Don't you ever go off together?" said Achille Pigoult, joining the group. "I see you are talking of sleep."

"At any rate, he was not in at one o'clock in the morning," continued Madame Mollot.

"Then he defrauded you!came home without your knowing it!" said Achille Pigoult. "Ha! that man is sly

"Oh! to a project! to an idea! to a system!" replied the notary, to whom Olivier smiled with a knowing air.

"Imagine my surprise," continued Madame Mollot, "when I saw a stuff, a material, of splendid magnificence,

most beautiful! dazzling! I said to myself, 'That must be a dressinggown of the spunglass material I have

sometimes seen in exhibitions of industrial products.' So I fetched my operaglass to examine it. But, good

gracious! what do you think I saw? Above the dressinggown, where the head ought to have been, I saw an

enormous mass, something like a kneeI can't tell you how my curiosity was excited."

"Ah! I understand," cried Olivier Vinet, laughing; "the Unknown was also making his toilet, and you saw his

"No, no!" cried Madame Mollot; "you are putting incongruities into my mouth. The stranger was standing up;

he held a sponge in his hand above an immense basin, andnone of your jokes, Monsieur Olivier!it

wasn't his knee, it was his head! He was washing his bald head; he hasn't a spear of hair upon it."

"Impudent man!" said Antonin. "He certainly can't have come with ideas of marriage in that head. Here we

"I am therefore right in saying that our Unknown visitor must be fifty years old. Nobody ever takes to a wig

before that time of life. After a time, when his toilet was finished, he opened his window and looked out; and

then he wore a splendid head of black hair. He turned his eyeglass full on me,for by that time, I was in my

balcony. Therefore, my dear Cecile, you see for yourself that you can't take that man for the hero of your

"Why not? Men of fifty are not to be despised, if they are counts," said Ernestine.

"Provided one gets a husband," added Vinet, whose cold maliciousness made him feared.

"Yes," replied the old maid, feeling the cut, "I should prefer a man of fifty, indulgent, kind, and considerate,

"This is all very well for conversation," retorted Vinet, "but in order to love the man of fifty and reject the

"Oh!" said Madame Mollot, in order to stop this passage at arms between the old maid and Vinet, who always

went to far, "when a woman has had experience of life she knows that a husband of fifty or one of

twentyfive is absolutely the same thing if she merely respects him. The important things in marriage are the

benefits to be derived from it. If Mademoiselle Beauvisage wants to go to Paris and shine there and in her

place I should certainly feel soshe ought not to take a husband in Arcis. If I had the fortune she will have, I

should give my hand to a count, to a man who would put me in a high social position, and I shouldn't ask to

"But the king makes counts," said Madame Marion, who had now joined the group and was surveying the

"Ah! madame," remarked Vinet, "but some young girls prefer their counts already made."

"Well, Monsieur Antonin," said Cecile, laughing at Vinet's sarcasm. "Your ten minutes have expired, and you

"I shall keep my promise," replied the subprefect, perceiving at that moment the head of his valet in the

"You are talking of the stranger," said Madame Marion. "Is anything really known about him?"

"No, madame," replied Achille Pigoult; "but he is, without knowing it, like the clown of a circus, the centre

of the eyes of the two thousand inhabitants of this town. I know one thing about him," added the little notary.

"Can a man be called Paradise?" asked Madame Herbelot, who had joined her sisterinlaw.

"It tends to prove," continued the notary, "that the master is an angel; for when his tiger follows himyou

"It is the road of Paradise! very good, that," said Madame Marion, anxious to flatter Achille Pigoult in the

"Monsieur," said Antonin's valet in the diningroom, "the tilbury has a coat of arms"

"And a monster with wings, flying like a postilion who has dropped something. And here is what is written

on the belt," added the man, taking a paper from his pocket. "Mademoiselle Anicette, the Princesse de

Cadignan's lady's maid, who came in a carriage" (the CinqCygne carriage before the door of the Mulet!) "to

Though he was not strong enough in French blazon to know the house that bore that device, Antonin felt sure

that the CinqCygnes would not send their chariot, nor the Princess de Cadignan a missive by her maid,

"Ha! so you know the maid of the Princess de Cadignan! happy man!" said Antonin.

Julien, a young countryman, after serving six months in the household of the Comte de Gondreville, had

entered the service of the sub prefect, who wanted a servant of the right style.

"But, monsieur, Anicette is my father's goddaughter. Papa, who wanted to do well by the girl, whose father

was dead, sent her to a dressmaker in Paris because my mother could not endure her."

"Rather; the proof is that she got into trouble in Paris; but finally, as she has talent and can make gowns and

"A great deal, monsieur. There's the princess and Monsieur d'Arthez, the Duc de Maufrigneuse and the

duchess and the young marquis. In fact the chateau is full. They expect Monseigneur the Bishop of Troyes

"Anicette thinks for some time; and she believes he is coming to meet the gentleman who is now at the

Mulet. They expect more company. The coachman told me they were talking a great deal about the election.

"Try to bring that lady's maid into town on pretence of shopping. Have you any designs upon her?"

"If she has any savings I don't know but what I might. She is a sly one, though."

"You don't know why they sent that message from CinqCygne at this hour, do you? It is halfpast nine

"It must have been something pressing. The gentleman had only just returned from Gondreville."

"He dined there, monsieur. If you went to the Mulet you'd laugh! The little tiger is, saving your presence, as

drunk as a fiddler. He drank such a lot of champagne in the servants' hall that he can't stand on his legs; they

"The count had gone to bed; but as soon as he received the letter he got up. He is now dressing himself; and

they are putting the horse in the tilbury. The count is to spend the night at CinqCygne."

"Oh, yes, monsieur; for Gothard, the steward of CinqCygne, came this morning to see his brotherinlaw

Poupart, and warned him to be very discreet about the gentleman and to serve him like a king."

"Vinet must be right," thought the subprefect. "Can there be some cabal on foot?"

"It was Duc Georges de Maufrigneuse who sent Gothard to the Mulet. Poupart came to the meeting here this

morning only because the gentleman wished him to do so; if he had sent him to Paris, he'd go. Gothard told

Poupart to keep silent about the gentleman, and to fool all inquisitive people."

"But I could see her at CinqCygne if monsieur would send me to his house at ValPreux."

"That's an idea. You might profit by the chariot to get there. But what reason could you give to the little

"He's a madcap, that boy, monsieur. Would you believe it, drunk as he is, he has just mounted his master's

thoroughbred, a horse that can do twenty miles an hour, and started for Troyes with a letter in order that it

may reach Paris tomorrow! And only nine years and a half old! What will he be at twenty?"

The subprefect listened mechanically to these remarks. Julien gossiped on, his master listening, absorbed in

"Wait here," he said to the man as he turned with slow steps to reenter the salon. "What a mess!" he thought

to himself,"a man who dines at Gondreville and spends the night at CinqCygnes! Mysteries indeed!"

"Well?" cried the circle around Mademoiselle Beauvisage as soon as he reappeared.

"Mademoiselle," said Antonin, smiling and looking maliciously at Madame Mollot, "he is tall and wellmade

and does not wear a wig. His little groom was as drunk as the twentyfour cantons; they filled him with

champagne at Gondreville and that little scamp, only nine years old, answered my man Julien, who asked him

about his master's wig, with all the assumption of an old valet: 'My master! wear a wig!if he did I'd leave

"Your operaglass magnifies," said Achille Pigoult to Madame Mollot, who laughed.

"Well, the tiger of the handsome count, drunk as he is, is now riding to Troyes to post a letter, and he'll get

"If the count dined at Gondreville we shall soon know all about him," remarked Cecile; "for my grandpapa is

"What will strike you as very strange," said Antonin Goulard, "is that the party at CinqCygne have just sent

Mademoiselle Anicette, the maid of the Princesse de Cadignan, in the CinqCygne carriage, with a note to

"Ah ca!" said Olivier Vinet, "then he is not a man; he's a devil, a phoenix, he will poculate"

"'Poculate' is a word of the highest latinity, madame," replied Vinet, gravely. "So, as I said, he will poculate

with Louis Philippe in the morning, and banquet at the HolyRood with Charles the Tenth at night. There is

but one reason that allows a decent man to go to both camps from Montague to Capulet! Ha, ha! I know

"The president of a railway from Paris to Lyons, or Paris to Dijon, or from Montereau to Troyes."

"That's true," said Antonin. "You have it. There's nothing but speculation that is welcomed everywhere."

"Yes, just see how great names, great families, the old and the new peerage are rushing hotfoot into

"But is it not demoralizing to see such names as Verneuil, Maufrigneuse, and Herouville side by side with

"Well, tomorrow all Arcis will be upsidedown about it," said Achille Pigoult. "I shall call upon the

Unknown and ask him to make me notary of the affair. There'll be two thousand deeds to draw, at the least."

"A count with a railway is all the more marriageable," remarked Achille Pigoult. "But who knows whether he

"Oh! I shall know that tomorrow from grandpapa," cried Cecile, with pretended enthusiasm.

"What a jest!" said Madame Mollot. "You can't really mean, my little Cecile, that you are thinking of that

"But the husband is always the stranger," interposed Olivier Vinet, making a sign to Mademoiselle

"Why shouldn't I think of him?" asked Cecile; "that isn't compromising. Besides, he is, so these gentlemen

say, either some great speculator, or some great seigneur, and either would suit me. I love Paris; and I want a

"That's right," said Vinet. "When people dream, they needn't refuse themselves anything. If I had the pleasure

of being your brother I should marry you to the young Marquis de CinqCygne, who seems to me a lively

young scamp who will make the money dance, and will laugh at his mother's prejudices against the actors in

"It would be easier for you to make yourself primeminister," said Madame Marion. "There will never be any

"Romeo came within an ace of marrying Juliet," remarked Achille Pigoult, "and Mademoiselle is more

"Oh! if you are going to quote operas and opera beauties!" said Herbelot the notary, naively, having finished

"My legal brother," said Achille Pigoult, "is not very strong on the history of the middle ages."

"Come, Malvina!" said the stout notary to his wife, making no reply to his young associate.

"Tell me, Monsieur Antonin," said Cecile to the subprefect, "you spoke of Anicette, the maid of the

"No, but Julien does; she is the goddaughter of his father, and they are good friends together."

"Then try, through Julien, to get her to live with us. Mamma wouldn't consider wages."

"Mademoiselle, to hear is to obey, as they say to despots in Asia," replied the subprefect. "Just see to what

And he left the room to give Julien orders to go with Anicette in the chariot and coax her away from the

At this moment Simon Giguet, who had got through his bowing and scraping to all the influential men of

Arcis, and who regarded himself as sure of his election, joined the circle around Cecile and Mademoiselle

Mollot. The evening was far advanced. Ten o'clock had struck. After an enormous consumption of cakes,

orgeat, punch, lemonade, and various syrups, those who had come that evening solely for political reasons

and who were not accustomed to Madame Marion's floors, to them aristocratic, departed,all the more

willingly, because they were unaccustomed to sitting up so late. The evening then began to take on its usual

air of intimacy. Simon Giguet hoped that he could now exchange a few words with Cecile, and he looked at

"My dear fellow," said Antonin to Simon, observing on his friend's face the glory of success, "you come at a

"Very much so," said Ernestine, whom Cecile had nudged with her elbow. "We are distracted, Cecile and I,

"Will you say that, Monsieur Simon," answered Cecile, feeling piqued, "of a man to whom the Princesse de

Cadignan has just sent her servants, who dined at Gondreville today, and is to spend this evening with the

"Ah, mademoiselle," said Olivier Vinet, "if we said to each other's faces what we all say behind our backs,

social life wouldn't be possible. The pleasures of society, especially in the provinces, are to slander and

"Monsieur Simon is jealous of your enthusiasm for the mysterious count," said Ernestine.

"It seems to me," said Cecile, "that Monsieur Simon has no right to be jealous of my affections."

After which remark, uttered in a way to dumfound Simon, Cecile rose; the others made way for her and she

"My dearest!" cried Madame Marion, hurrying after the heiress, "I think you are rather hard on my poor

Simon had followed his aunt and was now beside the cardtable. The four persons whose interests were

concerned were thus in the middle of the salon,Cecile and her mother on one side of the table, Madame

"Really, madame," said Simon Giguet, "there must be a strong desire to find fault and to quarrel with me

simply because I happened to say that a gentleman whom all Arcis is talking about and who stops at the

"Do you think he has come here to put himself in competition with you?" said Madame Beauvisage jestingly.

"I should be very indignant with him certainly if he were to cause the slightest misunderstanding between

Mademoiselle Cecile and myself," said the candidate, with a supplicating look at the young girl.

"You gave your opinion, monsieur, in a decisive manner which proves that you are very despotic," she

replied; "but you are right; if you wish to be minister you ought to be decisive."

Here Madame Marion took Madame Beauvisage by the arm and led her to a sofa. Cecile, finding herself

alone, returned to her former seat to avoid hearing Simon's answer to her speech, and the candidate was left

standing rather foolishly before the table, where he mechanically played with the counters.

"My dear friend," said Madame Marion in a low voice to Madame Beauvisage, "you see that nothing can now

"I am delighted both for your sake and for the Chamber of Deputies," said Severine.

"My nephew is certain to go far, my dear; and I'll tell you why: his own fortune, that which his father will

leave him and mine, will amount altogether to some thirty thousand francs a year. When a man is a deputy

"Madame, he has our utmost admiration and our most earnest wishes for the success of his political career;

"I am not asking for an answer," said Madame Marion, hastily interrupting her friend. "I only beg you to

reflect on the following suggestions: Do our children suit each other? Can we marry them? We should then

live in Paris during the sessions; and who knows if the deputy of Arcis may not be settled there permanently

in some fine place in the magistracy? Look at Monsieur Vinet of Provins, how he has made his way. People

blamed Mademoiselle de Chargeboeuf for marrying him; yet she will soon be wife of the Keeper of the Seals;

"Madame, I have not the power to marry my daughter according to my own tastes. In the first place, her

father and I leave her absolutely free to choose for herself. If she wanted to marry the 'great Unknown' and

we found that the match was suitable, we should give our consent. Besides this, Cecile is wholly dependent

on her grandfather, who intends to give her on her marriage the Hotel de Beauseant in Paris, which he

purchased for us six years ago; the value of which is now rated at eight hundred thousand francs. It is one of

the finest houses in the faubourg SaintGermain. Moreover, he intends to add two hundred thousand francs

for the cost of fitting it up. A grandfather who behaves in this way, and who can influence my motherinlaw

to make a few sacrifices for her granddaughter in expectation of a suitable marriage, has a right to advise"

"Certainly," said Madame Marion, stupefied by this confidence, which made the marriage of her nephew and

"Even if Cecile had nothing to expect from her grandfather Grevin," continued Madame Beauvisage, "she

would not marry without first consulting him. If you have any proposals to make, go and see my father."

The next day Antonin and Frederic Marest found themselves, according to their usual custom, with Monsieur

Martener and Olivier, beneath the lindens of the Avenue of Sighs, smoking their cigars and walking up and

down. This daily promenade is one of the petty pleasures of government officials in the provinces when they

After they had made a few turns, Simon Giguet came up and joined them saying to the subprefect with a

"You ought to be faithful to an old comrade who wishes to get you the rosette of an officer and a prefecture."

"You are beginning your political career betimes," said Antonin, laughing. "You are trying to corrupt me,

"My dear fellow, you know very well that BarsurAube votes here. Who can guarantee a majority under

such circumstances? My colleague of BarsurAube would complain of me if I did not unite my efforts with

his in support of the government. Your promise is conditional; whereas my dismissal would be certain."

"You think so," said Antonin, "but some one is sure to turn up; you may rely on that."

"Why doesn't my aunt come, when she knows I am on a gridiron!" exclaimed Giguet, suddenly. "These three

His secret had escaped him and he now admitted to his friend that Madame Marion had gone on his behalf to

The pair had now reached the Brienne road opposite to the Mulet hostelry. While the lawyer looked down the

street towards the bridge his aunt would have to cross, the subprefect examined the gullies made by the rain

in the open square. Arcis is not paved. The plains of Champagne furnish no material fit for building, nor even

pebbles large enough for cobblestone pavements. One or two streets and a few detached places are

imperfectly macadamized and that is saying enough to describe their condition after a rain. The subprefect

gave himself an appearance of occupation by apparently exercising his thoughts on this important object; but

he lost not a single expression of suffering on the anxious face of his companion.

At this moment, the stranger was returning from the Chateau de Cinq Cygne, where he had apparently

passed the night. Goulard resolved to clear up, himself, the mystery wrapped about the Unknown, who was

physically enveloped in an overcoat of thick cloth called a paletot, then the fashion. A mantle, thrown across

his knees for a covering, hid the lower half of his body, while an enormous muffler of red cashmere covered

his neck and head to the eyes. His hat, jauntily tipped to one side, was, nevertheless, not ridiculous. Never

"Look out!" cried the tiger, who preceded the tilbury on horseback. "Open, papa Poupart, open!" he screamed

The three servants of the inn ran out, and the tilbury drove in without any one being able to see a single

feature of the stranger's face. The subprefect followed the tilbury into the courtyard, and went to the door of

"You do wrong! The rules of the police are strict, and Monsieur Groslier doesn't trifle, like some

"Innkeepers are never to blame about electiontime," remarked the little tiger, getting off his horse.

"I'll repeat that to Vinet," thought the subprefect. "Go and ask your master if he can receive the subprefect

"Monsieur begs Monsieur the subprefect to come up; he will be delighted to see him."

"My lad," said Olivier Vinet, who with the two other functionaries had joined the subprefect before the inn,

"Give, monsieur! What do you take me for? Monsieur le comte lets himself be milked, and I'm content."

"The highest school, monsieur," said the urchin, amazing the four friends with his perfect selfpossession.

"Mustn't lower one's price," said the infant. "My master calls me a little RobertMacaire, and since we have

"Oh! some races I make two or three thousand francsand without selling my master, monsieur."

"Yes, and all gentlemen riders," said the child, sticking out his tongue at Vinet.

Antonin Goulard, ushered by the landlord into a room which had been turned into a salon, felt himself

instantly under the focus of an eyeglass held in the most impertinent manner by the stranger.

"Monsieur," said the subprefect with a certain official hauteur, "I have just learned from the wife of the

innkeeper that you refuse to conform to the ordinances of the police, and as I do not doubt that you are a

"You have a servant named Julien, who has tried to entice the Princesse de Cadignan's maid away from her?"

"Monsieur, I do not allow any one to speak to me in this manner," said Goulard; "you misunderstand my

"And you want to know about mine!" returned the Unknown. "Well, I will now make myself known. You can

write in the landlord's book: 'Impertinent fellow. Direct from Paris. Age doubtful. Travelling for pleasure.' It

would be rather a novelty in France to imitate England and let people come and go as they please, without

tormenting them at every turn for 'papers.' I have no passport; now, what will you do to me?"

"The procureurduroi is walking up and down there under the lindens," said the subprefect.

"Whatever you wish me to be, my dear Monsieur Goulard," said the stranger. "You alone shall decide what I

am to be in this department. Give me some advice on that head. Here, read that."

Monsieur the Subprefect,You will consult with the bearer of this letter as to the election at Arcis, and you

will conform to all the suggestions and requests he may make to you. I request you to conduct this matter

with the utmost discretion, and to treat the bearer with all the respect that is due to his station.

"You have been talking prose without knowing it," said the Unknown, taking back the letter.

Antonin Goulard, already struck with the aristocratic tone and manners of this personage, became respectful.

"By endeavoring to entice Anicette. She told us of the attempts of your man Julien to corrupt her. But my

little tiger, Paradise, got the better of him, and he ended by admitting that you wanted to put Anicette into the

service of one of the richest families in Arcis. Now, as the richest family in Arcis is the Beauvisage family I

He whistled. Paradise presented himself so rapidly that his master said: "You were listening!"

"In spite of myself, Monsieur le comte; these partitions are nothing but paper. But if Monsieur le comte

"No, you can listen; it is your perquisite. It is for me to speak low when I don't want you to know my affairs.

Go back to CinqCygne, and give this gold piece to that little Anicette from me. Julien shall have the credit

of enticing her away," he continued, addressing Goulard. "That bit of gold will inform her that she is to

"Monsieur, it is now thirtytwo years since lady'smaids have served my purposes. I had my first adventure

at the age of thirteen, like the regent, the greatgreatgrandfather of our present King. Do you know the

"I can't help knowing it, monsieur, for yesterday at Madame Marion's, Madame Beauvisage said openly that

Monsieur Grevin, Cecile's grandfather, would give his granddaughter the hotel de Beauseant in Paris and two

The stranger's eyes expressed no surprise. He seemed to consider the fortune rather paltry.

"By satisfying it. For instance, Monsieur le Comte has a baptismal name; let him register that with the title of

"And if monsieur will assume the position of a railway official, Arcis will be content; it will amuse itself by

"No, I prefer to be concerned in irrigation; it is less common. I have come down to survey the wastelands of

Champagne in order to reclaim them. That will be, my good Monsieur Goulard, a reason for inviting me to

dine with you tomorrow to meet the mayor and his family; I wish to see them, and study them."

"I shall be only to happy to receive you," said the subprefect; "but I must ask your indulgence for the

"If I succeed in managing the election of Arcis according to the wishes of those who have sent me here, you,

my dear friend, will be made a prefect. Here, read these"; and he held out two letters to his visitor.

"Make a list of all the votes on which the ministry may count. Above all, let no one suspect that you and I

understand each other. I am a speculator in land, and I don't care a fig for elections."

"I will send the commissary of police to force you to inscribe your name on Poupart's register."

"So do. Adieu, monsieur. Heavens! what a region this is," said the count, in a loud voice; "one can't take a

"You will have to answer to the commissary of police, monsieur," said Antonin, in an equally loud tone.

And for the next twenty minutes Madame Mollot talked of the altercation that took place between the

"Well, what wood is the beam that has plumped into our bog made of?" said Olivier Vinet when Antonin

"He is a Comte Maxime who is here to study the geological system of Champagne, with a view to finding

"Does he expect to get the natives to lay out capital?" asked Monsieur Martener.

"I doubt if our royalists will go into that kind of mining," remarked Vinet, laughing.

"What should you think from the air and gestures of Madame Marion?" said the subprefect turning off the

Simon had gone toward the bridge to meet his aunt, and was now walking with her up the square.

"My aunt thinks the matter very hopeful," replied Simon. "Madame Beauvisage and old Grevin, who has just

gone to Gondreville, were not at all surprised at my proposals; they talked of our respective fortunes, and said

they wished to leave Cecile perfectly free to make her choice. Besides which, Madame Beauvisage said that,

as for herself, she saw no objection to an alliance by which she should feel herself honored; although she

postponed all answer until after my election, and possibly my first appearance in the Chamber. Old Grevin

said he should consult the Comte de Gondreville, without whose advice he never took any important step."

"All of which means," said Goulard, pointblank, "that you will never marry Cecile, my old fellow."

"My dear friend, Madame Beauvisage and her daughter spend four evenings every week in the salon of your

aunt; your aunt is the most distinguished woman in Arcis; and she is, though twenty years the elder, an object

of envy to Madame Beauvisage; don't you see, therefore, that they wished to wrap up their refusal in certain

"Not to say entire yes or no in such cases," said Vinet, "is to say no, with due regard to the intimacy of the

two families. Though Madame Beauvisage has the largest fortune in Arcis, Madame Marion is the most

esteemed woman in the place; for, with the exception of our chiefjustice's wife, who sees no one now, she is

the only woman who knows how to hold a salon; she is the queen of Arcis. Madame Beauvisage has tried to

"Yesterday you attacked the Comte de Gondreville, you insulted and grievously affronted him, and he is to be

"Madame Beauvisage is very ambitious," pursued Antonin Goulard. "She knows very well her daughter is to

have two millions; she means to be motherinlaw of a minister, or an ambassador, in order to play the great

"I wish you may get it!" replied the subprefect looking at Vinet, with whom he went off into a hearty laugh

as soon as they were out of hearing. "He won't even be deputy," added Antonin, addressing Vinet; "the

ministry have other views. You will find a letter from your father when you get home, enjoining you to make

sure of the votes of all the persons in your department, and see that they go for the ministerial candidate.

"But who is the candidate for whom our ushers and sheriffs and clerks, and solicitors and notaries are to

"My dear Vinet, you and I are not to know; we must treat him as a stranger. He saw your father at Provins as

he came through. Just now this same man gave me a note from the prefect instructing me to follow in every

particular the instructions of Comte Maxime about this election. I knew very well I should have a battle to

fight! Come and dine somewhere and we will get out our batteries. You are to be procureurduroi at

Mantes, and I am to be prefect; but we must seem to have nothing to do with the election, for don't you see,

we are between the hammer and the anvil. Simon is the candidate of a party which wants to overturn the

present ministry and may succeed; but for men as intelligent as you and I there is but one course to take."

"To serve those who make and unmake ministers. A letter was shown to me from one of those personages

Before going farther, it is necessary to explain who this Unknown person was, and what his purpose was in

About two months before the nomination of Simon Giguet, at eleven o'clock one evening, in a mansion of the

faubourg SaintHonore belonging to the Marquise d'Espard, while tea was being served the Chevalier

d'Espard, brotherinlaw to the marquise, put down his tea cup, and, looking round the circle, remarked:

"Yes," replied Rastignac, "but his sadness is easily accounted for. He is fortyeight years old; at that age a

man makes no new friends, and now that we have buried de Marsay, Maxime has lost the only man capable

"He probably has pressing debts. Couldn't you put him in the way of paying them?" said the marquise to

At this period Rastignac was, for the second time, in the ministry; he had just been made count almost against

his will. His fatherinlaw, the Baron de Nucingen, was peer of France, his younger brother a bishop, the

Comte de RocheHugon, his brotherinlaw, was an ambassador, and he himself was thought to be

"You always forget, my dear marquise," replied Rastignac, "that our government exchanges its silver for gold

"Ha! you wish I were; we should be quits then," said Comte Maxime de Trailles, whom everybody supposed

The count rose suddenly, like an apparition, from the depths of an armchair placed exactly behind that of the

"Will you have a cup of tea?" said the young Comtesse de Rastignac, whom the marquise had asked to do the

This man, the prince of fashionable scoundrels, had managed to maintain himself until now in the high and

mighty position of a dandy in Paris, then called Gants Jaunes (lemonkidglovers), and since, "lions." It is

useless to relate the history of his youth, full of questionable adventures, with now and then some horrible

drama, in which he had always known how to save appearances. To this man women were never anything

else than a means; he believed no more in their griefs than he did in their joys; he regarded them, like the late

de Marsay, as naughty children. After squandering his own fortune, he had spent that of a famous courtesan,

La Belle Hollandaise, the mother of Esther Gobseck. He had caused the misery of Madame Restaud, sister of

The world of Paris offers many unimaginable situations. The Baronne de Nucingen was at this moment in

Madame d'Espard's salon in presence of the author of all her sister's misery, in presence of a murderer who

killed only the happiness of women. That, perhaps, was the reason why he was there. Madame de Nucingen

had dined at Madame d'Espard's with her daughter, married a few months earlier to the Comte de Rastignac,

who had begun his political career by occupying the post of under secretary of state in the famous ministry

of the late de Marsay, the only real statesman produced by the Revolution of July.

Comte Maxime de Trailles alone knew how many disasters he had caused; but he had always taken care to

shelter himself from blame by scrupulously obeying the laws of the ManCode. Though he had squandered

in the course of his life more money than the four galleys of France could have stolen in the same time, he

had kept clear of justice. Never had he lacked in honor; his gambling debts were paid scrupulously. An

admirable player, his partners were chiefly the great seigneurs, ministers, and ambassadors. He dined

habitually with all the members of the diplomatic body. He fought duels, and had killed two or three men in

his life; in fact, he had half murdered them, for his coolness and selfpossession were unparalleled. No young

man could compare with him in dress, in the distinction of his manners, the elegance of his witty speech, the

grace of his easy carriage,in short, what was called in those days "the grand air." In his capacity of page to

the Emperor, trained from the age of twelve in the art of riding, he was held to be the skilfulest of horsemen.

Having always fine horses in his stable, he raised some, and ruled the fashion in equestrianism. No man could

stand a supper of young bloods better than he; he drank more than the besttrained toper, but he came out

fresh and cool, and ready to begin again as if orgy were his element. Maxime, one of those despised men who

know how to repress the contempt they inspire by the insolence of their attitude and the fear they cause, never

deceived himself as to his actual position. Hence his real strength. Strong men are always their own critics.

Under the Restoration he had made the most of his former condition of page to the Emperor. He attributed to

his pretended Bonapartist opinions the rebuffs he met with from the different ministers when he asked for an

office under the Bourbons; for, in spite of his connections, his birth, and his dangerous aptitudes, he never

obtained anything. After the failure of these attempts he entered the secret cabal which led in time to the fall

When the Younger branch, preceded by the Parisian populace, had trodden down the Elder branch and was

seated on the throne, Maxime reproduced his attachment to Napoleon, for whom he cared as much as for his

first love. He then did great services to the newcomers, who soon found the payment for them onerous; for

Maxime too often demanded payment of men who knew how to reckon those services. At the first refusal,

Maxime assumed at once an attitude of hostility, threatening to reveal unpleasant details; for budding

dynasties, like infants, have much soiled linen. De Marsay, during his ministry, repaired the mistake of his

predecessors, who had ignored the utility of this man. He gave him those secret missions which require a

conscience made malleable by the hammer of necessity, an adroitness which recoils before no methods,

impudence, and, above all, the selfpossession, the coolness, the embracing glance which constitute the hired

bravi of thought and statesmanship. Such instruments are both rare and necessary.

As a matter of calculation, de Marsay maintained Comte Maxime de Trailles in the highest society; he

described him as a man ripened by passions, taught by experience, who knew men and things, to whom travel

and a certain faculty for observation had imparted an understanding of European interests, of foreign

cabinets, and of all the ramifications of the great continental families. De Marsay convinced Maxime of the

necessity of doing himself credit; he taught him discretion, less as a virtue than a speculation; he proved to

him that the governing powers would never abandon a solid, safe, elegant, and polished instrument.

"In politics," he said, blaming Maxime for having uttered a threat, "we should never blackmail but once."

De Marsay dead, Comte Maxime de Trailles had fallen back into his former state of existence. He went to the

baths every year and gambled; he returned to Paris for the winter; but, though he received some large sums

from the depths of certain niggardly coffers, that sort of halfpay to a daring man kept for use at any moment

and possessing many secrets of the art of diplomacy, was insufficient for the dissipations of a life as splendid

as that of the king of dandies, the tyrant of several Parisian clubs. Consequently Comte Maxime was often

uneasy about matters financial. Possessing no property, he had never been able to consolidate his position by

being made a deputy; also, having no ostensible functions, it was impossible for him to hold a knife at the

throat of any minister to compel his nomination as peer of France. At the present moment he saw that Time

was getting the better of him; for his lavish dissipations were beginning to wear upon his person, as they had

already worn out his divers fortunes. In spite of his splendid exterior, he knew himself, and could not be

A man of acute mind, he was under no illusion as to the apparent consideration in which he was held; he well

knew it was false. No women were truly on his side, either in the great world of Paris or among the

bourgeoisie. Much secret malignity, much apparent good humor, and many services rendered were

necessary to maintain him in his present position; for every one desired his fall, and a run of illluck might at

any time ruin him. Once sent to Clichy or forced to leave the country by notes no longer renewable, he would

sink into the gulf where so many political carcasses may be seen,carcasses of men who find no consolation

in one another's company. Even this very evening he was in dread of a collapse of that threatening arch which

debt erects over the head of many a Parisian. He had allowed his anxieties to appear upon his face; he had

refused to play cards at Madame d'Espard's; he had talked with the women in an absentminded manner, and

finally he had sunk down silent and absorbed in the arm chair from which he had just risen like Banquo's

Comte Maxime de Trailles now found himself the object of all glances, direct and indirect, standing as he did

before the fireplace and illumined by the crosslights of two candelabra. The few words said about him

compelled him, in a way, to bear himself proudly; and he did so, like a man of sense, without arrogance, and

yet with the intention of showing himself to be above suspicion. A painter could scarcely have found a better

moment in which to seize the portrait of a man who, in his way, was truly extraordinary. Does it not require

rare faculties to play such a part,to enable one through thirty years to seduce women; to constrain one to

employ great gifts in an underhand sphere only,inciting a people to rebel, tracking the secrets of austere

politicians, and triumphing nowhere but in boudoirs and on the backstairs of cabinets?

Is there not something, difficult to say what, of greatness in being able to rise to the highest calculations of

statesmen and then to fall coldly back into the void of a frivolous life? Where is the man of iron who can

withstand the alternating luck of gambling, the rapid missions of diplomacy, the warfare of fashion and

society, the dissipations of gallantry,the man who makes his memory a library of lies and craft, who

envelops such diverse thoughts, such conflicting manoeuvres, in one impenetrable cloak of perfect manners?

If the wind of favor had blown steadily upon those sails forever set, if the luck of circumstances had attended

Maxime, he could have been Mazarin, the Marechal de Richelieu, Potemkin, orperhaps more

The count, though rather tall and constitutionally slender, had of late acquired some protuberance of stomach,

but he "restrained it to the majestic," as BrillatSavarin once said. His clothes were always so well made, that

he kept about his whole person an air of youth, something active and agile, due no doubt to his habits of

exercise, fencing, riding, and hunting. Maxime possessed all the physical graces and elegances of

aristocracy, still further increased by his personally superior bearing. His long, Bourbonine face was framed

by whiskers and a beard, carefully kept, elegantly cut, and black as jet. This color, the same as that of his

abundant hair, he now obtained by an Indian cosmetic, very costly and used in Persia, the secret of which he

kept to himself. He deceived the most practised eye as to the white threads which for some time past had

invaded his hair. The remarkable property of this dye, used by Persians for their beards only, is that it does

not render the features hard; it can be shaded by indigo to harmonize well with the individual character of the

skin. It was this operation that Madame Mollot may have seen,though people in Arcis, by way of a jest,

Maxime had a very handsome forehead, blue eyes, a Greek nose, a pleasant mouth, and a wellcut chin; but

the circle of his eyes was now marked with numberless lines, so fine that they might have been traced by a

razor and not visible at a little distance. His temples had similar lines. The face was also slightly wrinkled.

His eyes, like those of gamblers who have sat up innumerable nights, were covered with a glaze, but the

glance, though it was thus weakened, was none the less terrible,in fact, it terrified; a hidden heat was felt

beneath it, a lava of passions not yet extinct. The mouth, once so fresh and rosy, now had colder tints; it was

straight no longer, but inclined to the right,a sinuosity that seemed to indicate falsehood. Vice had twisted

These blemishes disappeared on a general view of his face and person. His figure was so attractive that no

young man could compete with Maxime when on horseback in the Bois, where he seemed younger and more

graceful than the youngest and most graceful among them. The privilege of eternal youth has been possessed

The count was all the more dangerous because he seemed to be easy and indolent, never showing the iron

determination which he had about all things. This apparent indifference, which enabled him to abet a popular

sedition for the purpose of strengthening the authority of a prince with as much ability as he would have

bestowed upon a court intrigue, had a certain grace. People never distrust calmness and uniformity of manner,

especially in France, where we are accustomed to a great deal of movement and stir about the smallest things.

The count, who was dressed in the fashion of 1839, wore a black coat, a cashmere waistcoat of dark blue

embroidered with tiny flowers of a lighter blue, black trousers, gray silk stockings, and varnished leather

shoes. His watch, placed in one of his waistcoat pockets, was fastened by an elegant chain to a buttonhole.

"Rastignac," he said, accepting the cup of tea which the pretty Madame de Rastignac offered him, "will you

"That means that later" said the young countess, turning round and looking at her husband.

"Later is the end of the world," replied Maxime. "But I shall certainly win my cause if I take Madame for a

With a charming gesture, the count invited the pretty countess to come nearer to him. After listening a few

"If you want to go to the embassy with Monsieur de Trailles, mamma will take me home."

A few moments later the Baronne de Nucingen and the Comtesse de Rastignac went away together. Maxime

and Rastignac followed a little later, and when they were both seated in the count's carriage, the latter said:

"What do you want of me, Maxime? Why do you take me by the throat in this way? What did you say to my

"I told her I had something to say to you. You are a lucky fellow, you are! You have ended by marrying the

"But I! here am I, exposed to the doubts of everybody. A miserable coward like du Tillet dares to ask if I

have the courage to kill myself! It is high time for me to settle down. Does the ministry want to get rid of me,

or does it not? You ought to know. At any rate, you must find out," continued Maxime, making a gesture with

his hand to silence Rastignac. "Here is my plan: listen to it. You ought to serve me, for I have served you, and

can serve you again. The life I live now is intolerable; I want an escape from it. Help me to a marriage which

shall bring me half a million. Once married, appoint me minister to some wretched little republic in America.

I'll stay there long enough to make my promotion to the same post in Germany legitimate. If I am worth

anything, they will soon take me out of it; if I am not worth anything, they can dismiss me. Perhaps I may

have a child. If so, I shall be stern with him; his mother will be rich; I'll make him a minister, perhaps an

"Here is my answer," said Rastignac. "An incessant battle is going on greater than common people who

are not in it have any idea of between power in its swaddlingclothes and power in its childhood. Power in

swaddlingclothes is the Chamber of Deputies which, not being restrained by an hereditary chamber"

"I should say the same if I were not," said the new peer. "But don't interrupt me; you are concerned in all this.

The Chamber of Deputies is fated to become the whole government, as de Marsay used to tell us (the only

man by whom France could have been saved), for peoples don't die; they are slaves or free men, and that's all.

Childpower is the royalty that was crowned in August, 1830. The present ministry is beaten; it dissolves the

Chamber and brings on a general election in order to prevent the coming ministry from calling one; but it

does not expect a victory. If it were victorious in these elections, the dynasty would be in danger; whereas, if

the ministry is beaten, the dynastic party can fight to advantage for a long time. The mistakes of the Chamber

will turn to the profit of a will which wants, unfortunately, to be the whole political power. When a ruler is

that whole, as Napoleon was, there comes a moment when he must supplement himself; and having by that

time alienated superior men, he, the great single will, can find no assistant. That assistant ought to be what is

called a cabinet; but there is no cabinet in France, there is only a Will with a life lease. In France it is the

government that is blamed, the opposition never; it may lose as many battles as it fights, but, like the allies in

1814, one victory suffices. With "three glorious days" it overturned and destroyed everything. Therefore, if

we are heirs of power, we must cease to govern, and wait. I belong by my personal opinions to the

aristocracy, and by my public opinions to the royalty of July. The house of Orleans served me to raise the

"At this moment I can't do anything for you," continued Rastignac. "We shall not be in power more than six

months longer. Yes, those six months will be our last dying agony, I know that; but we know what we were

when we formed ourselves, a stopgap ministry and that was all. But you can distinguish yourself in the

electoral battle that is soon to be fought. If you can bring one vote to the Chamber, a deputy faithful to the

dynastic cause, you will find your wishes gratified. I will speak of your good services, and I will keep my eye

on the reports of our confidential agents; I may find you some difficult task in which you can distinguish

yourself. If you succeed, I can insist upon your talents, your devotion, and claim your reward. Your marriage,

my dear fellow, can be made only in some ambitious provincial family of tradespeople or manufacturers. In

Paris you are too well known. We must therefore look out for a millionaire parvenu, endowed with a

daughter, and possessed with a desire to parade himself and his family at the Chateau des Tuileries."

"Make your fatherinlaw lend me twentyfive thousand francs to enable me to wait as long as that; he will

then have an interest in seeing that I am not paid in holywater if I succeed; he will further a rich marriage

"You are wily, Maxime, and you distrust me. But I like able men, and I will attend to your affair."

They reached the Austrian embassy. The Comte de Rastignac saw the minister of the interior in one of the

salons and went to talk with him in a corner. Comte Maxime de Trailles, meantime, was apparently engrossed

by the old Comtesse de Listomere, but he was, in reality, following the course of the conversation between

the two peers of France; he watched their gestures, interpreted their looks, and ended by catching a favorable

Maxime and Rastignac left the embassy together about one in the morning, and before getting into their

respective carriages, Rastignac said to Maxime on the steps of the portico: "Come and see me just before the

elections. Between now and then I shall know in what locality the chances of the ministry are worst, and what

Fifty days later, one morning before dawn, the Comte de Trailles went to the rue de Varennes, mysteriously

in a hired cab. At the gate of the ministry of Public Works, he sent the cab away, looked about him to see that

he was not watched, and then waited in a little salon on the first floor until Rastignac should awake. A few

moments later the valet who had taken in his card ushered Maxime into the minister's bedchamber, where

"My dear Maxime," said the latter, "I can tell you a secret which will be in the newspapers two days hence,

and which, meantime, you can turn to your own profit. That poor Charles Keller, who danced the mazurka so

well, as been killed in Africa. His death leaves a vacancy; he was our candidate in the arrondissement of

Arcis. Here is a copy of two reports, one from the subprefect, the other from the commissary of police,

informing the ministry that the election of the poor fellow would meet with opposition. In that of the

commissary of police you will find some information about the state of the town which ought to be useful to

a man of your shrewdness; it seems that the ambition of the rival candidate comes chiefly from his desire to

marry a certain heiress. To one of your calibre that word is enough. The CinqCygnes, the Princesse de

Cadignan, and Georges de Maufrigneuse are living at CinqCygne, close to Arcis; you can certainly obtain

"My dear fellow," replied Rastignac, giving Maxime quite a bundle of papers, "you will find there two letters

written to Gondreville for you. You have been a page and he has been a senator; you can't fail therefore to

understand each other. Madame Francois Keller is pious; here is a letter introducing you to her from the

Marechale de Carigliano. The marechale has become dynastic; she recommends you warmly, and may go

down herself. I will only add one word: Distrust the subprefect, whom I think capable of working this

candidate, this Simon Giguet, into a support for himself with the president of the council. If you want letters,

"I shall succeed," said the count, "and you may tell the king that the deputy of Arcis shall belong to him body

Once in possession of the information furnished by the landlady of the Mulet and by the subprefect Antonin

Goulard, Monsieur de Trailles had soon arranged his plan of electoral operations, and this plan evinces itself

To the candidacy of Simon Giguet, the wily agent of the government policy suddenly and abruptly opposed

that of Phileas Beauvisage; and in spite of the nullity and unfitness of that individual this new combination,

we must admit, had several incontestable chances of success. In the light of his municipal halo Beauvisage

had one enormous advantage with the mass of indifferent voters; as mayor of the town his name was known

to them. Logic has much more to do with the conducting of matters and things here below than it seems to

have; it is like a woman to whom, after many infidelities, we still return. What commonsense prescribes is

that voters called upon to choose their representative in public matters should be thoroughly informed as to

his capacity, his honesty, and his general character. Too often, in practice, unfortunate twists are given to this

principle; but whenever the electoral sheep, left to their own instincts, can persuade themselves that they are

voting from their own intelligence and their own lights, we may be certain to see them following that line

eagerly and with a sentiment of selflove. Now to know a man's name, electorally speaking, is a good

Passing from indifferent to interested electors, we may be sure that Phileas was certain of rallying to himself

the Gondreville party, now deprived by death of their own candidate. The question for them was to punish the

presumption of Simon Giguet, and any candidate would be acceptable to the viceroy of Arcis. The mere

nomination of a man against his grandson was a flagrant act of hostility and ingratitude, and a check to the

Still, when the first news of his electoral ambition reached his fatherinlaw, Beauvisage was met by an

astonishment little flattering to his feelings and not encouraging. The old notary had gauged his soninlaw

once for all, and to his just and upright mind the idea of Phileas as a public man produced in its way the

disagreeable effect that discordant instruments produce upon the ear. If it be true that no man is a prophet in

his own country, he is often even less so in his own family. Still, the first impression once passed, Grevin

would doubtless acclimatize himself to the idea of an expedient which would chime in with the plans he had

already made for Severine's future. Besides, for the safety of Gondreville's interests, so seriously threatened,

With the legitimist and the republican parties who could have no weight in the election, except that of

increasing a majority, the candidacy of Beauvisage had a singular recommendation,namely, his utter

incapacity. Conscious of not possessing sufficient strength to elect a deputy of their own, the two extremes of

the antidynastic opposition seized, almost with ardor, the opportunity to stick a thorn in the side in what they

called "the present order of things," and it might confidently be expected that in this frame of mind they

would joyfully and with all their hearts support a candidate so supremely ridiculous that a large slice of the

Moreover, in the opinions of the LeftCentre which had provisionally adopted Simon Giguet as its candidate,

this move of Beauvisage was likely to produce a serious split; for he too had declared himself a man of the

dynastic opposition, and, until further orders, Monsieur de Trailles (though all the while assuring him of the

support of the ministry) encouraged his retaining that political tint, which was clearly the most popular in that

region. But whatever baggage of political convictions the incorruptible deputy of Arcis might bring with him

to Paris, his horoscope was drawn: it was very certain that after his first appearance in the salons of the

Tuileries an august seduction would make a henchman of him, if ministerial blandishments had not already

The public side of this matter being thus wellplanned and provided for, the ministerial agent could turn his

attention to the personal aspect of the question, namely, that of turning the stuff he was making into a deputy

First point, the dot; second point, the daughter; and both appeared to suit him. The first did not dazzle him;

but as to the second, he did not conceal from himself the imperfections of a provincial education which he

should have to unmake, but this was no serious objection to his sapient conjugal pedagogy.

Madame Beauvisage, when the matter was laid before her, swept her husband into it at a single bound.

Maxime recognized her for an ambitious woman who, in spite of her fortyfour years, still had the air of

being conscious of a heart. Hence he saw that the game had better begin with a false attack on her to fall back

later on the daughter. How far these advanced works could be pushed, circumstances would show. In either

case, Maxime was well aware that his title, his reputation as a man of the world, and his masterly power of

initiating them into the difficult and elegant mysteries of Parisian society were powerful reasons to bind the

two women to him, not to speak of their gratitude for the political success of Monsieur Beauvisage of which

But however all this might be, his matrimonial campaign offered one very serious difficulty. The consent of

old Grevin would have to be obtained, and he was not a man to allow Cecile to be married without

investigating to its depths the whole past of a suitor. This inquiry made, was it not to be feared that the thirty

years' stormy biography of a roue would seem to the cautious old man a poor security for the future?

However, the species of governmental mission with which Monsieur de Trailles appeared in Arcis might

seem to be an offset and even a condonation that would neutralize the effect of such disclosures. By getting

the Comte de Gondreville to confide the news of that mission to old Grevin before it was publicly made

known, he had flattered the old man's vanity and obtained a certain foothold in his mind. Moreover, he

determined, when the time came, to forestall the old notary's distrust by seeming to distrust himself, and to

propose, as a precaution against his old habits of extravagance, to introduce a clause into the

marriagecontract providing for the separation of property and settling the wife's fortune upon herself. In this

way he gave security against any return to his old habits of prodigality. As for himself, it was his affair to

obtain such empire over his wife by the power of sentiment that he could recover practically the marital

At first nothing occurred to contradict the wisdom and clearsightedness of all these intentions. The

Beauvisage candidacy being made public took fire like a train of gunpowder, and Monsieur de Trailles was

able to feel such assurance of the success of his efforts that he wrote to Rastignac informing him of the

But, all of a sudden, in face of the triumphant Beauvisage rose another candidate; and, be it said in passing

for the sake of our history, this rivalry presented itself under such exceptional and unforeseen circumstances

that it changed what might have been a trivial electoral struggle into a drama possessing wider and more

The man who now appears in this narrative will play so considerable a part in it that it seems necessary to

install him, as it were, by means of retrospective and somewhat lengthy explanations. But to suspend the

course of the narrative for this purpose would be to fly in the face of every rule of art and expose the present

pious guardian of literary orthodoxy to the wrath of critics. In presence of this difficulty, the author would

find himself greatly embarrassed, if his lucky star had not placed in his hands a correspondence in which,

with a vim and animation that he himself could never have imparted to them, all the details that are essential

These letters must be read with attention. They bring upon the scene many persons already wellknown in

the Comedy of Human Life, and they reveal a vast number of facts necessary to the understanding and

development of the present drama. Their statements made, and brought to the point where we now seem to

abandon our narrative, the course of that narrative will, without concussion and quite naturally, resume its

course; and we like to persuade ourselves that, by thus introducing this series of letters, the unity of our tale,

Dear Monsieur,In accordance with your desire I have seen the prefect of police, in order to ascertain if the

pious intention of which you wrote me in your letter, dated from Carrara, would meet with opposition from

The prefect informed me that the imperial decree of the 23rd Prairial, year XII., by which the whole system

of burials is still regulated, establishes, in the most unequivocal manner, the right of all persons to be interred

on their own property. You have only to obtain a permit from the prefecture of the SeineetOise, and then,

without further formality, you can remove the remains of Madame MarieGaston to the mausoleum you

But I shall venture myself to offer an objection. Are you quite sure that you will not expose yourself to

certain difficulties made by the Chaulieus, with whom you are not on the best of terms?

Will they not, to a certain extent, be justified in complaining that the removal from a public cemetery to

private grounds of the body of one who is dear to them as well as to you, would make their visits to her grave

entirely dependent on your good will and pleasure? For of course, and this is evident, you will always have

I know that, legally, the body of the wife, living or dead, belongs to the husband, to the exclusion of her

relations, even the nearest; but, under the influence of the illwill of which they have already given you

proof, the relations of Madame MarieGaston might have the distressing idea of carrying the matter into

court, and if so, how painful to you! You would gain the suit, no doubt, for the Duc de Chaulieu's influence is

not what it was under the Restoration; but have you reflected on the venom which the speech of a lawyer

might shed upon such a question? and remember that he will speak as the echo of honorable

affectionsthose of a father, mother, and two brothers asking not to be deprived of the sad happiness of

If you will let me express my thought, it is not without keen regret that I see you engaged in creating fresh

nourishment for your grief, already so long inconsolable. We had hoped that, after passing two years in Italy,

you would return to us more resigned, and able to take up an active life which might distract your mind.

Evidently, this species of temple which you propose, in the fervor of your recollections, to erect in a spot

where they are, alas! already too numerous, can only serve to perpetuate their bitterness; and I cannot approve

Nevertheless, as we should always serve a friend according to his wishes, not our own, I have done your

commission relating to Monsieur Dorlange, the sculptor, but I must tell you frankly that he showed no

eagerness to enter into your wishes. His first remark, when I announced myself as coming from you, was that

he did not know you; and this reply, singular as it may seem to you, was made so naturally that at first I

thought there must be some mistake, the result, possibly, of confusion of name. However, before long your

oblivious friend was willing to agree that he studied with you at the college of Tours and also that hew as the

same Monsieur Dorlange who, in 1831 and under quite exceptional circumstances, carried off the grand prize

for sculpture. No doubt remained in my mind as to his identity. I attributed his want of memory to the long

interruption (of which you yourself told me) in your intercourse. I think that that interruption wounded him

more than you are aware, and when he seemed to have forgotten your very name, it was simply a revenge he

But that was not the real obstacle. Remembering the fraternal intimacy that once existed between Monsieur

Dorlange and yourself, I could not suppose his wounded feelings inexorable. So, after explaining to him the

nature of the work you wanted him to do, I was about to say a few words as to the grievance he might have

against you, when I suddenly found myself face to face with an obstacle of a most unexpected nature.

"Monsieur," he said to me, "the importance of the order you wish to give me, the assurance that no expense

should be spared for the grandeur and perfection of the work, the invitation you convey to me to go to Carrara

and choose the marble and see it excavated, all that is truly a great piece of good fortune for an artist, and at

any other time I should gladly have accepted it. But at the present moment, without having actually decided

to abandon the career of Art, I am on the point of entering that of politics. My friends urge me to present

myself at the coming elections, and you will easily see that, if elected, my parliamentary duties and my

initiation into an absolutely new life would, for a long time at least, preclude my entering with sufficient

absorption of mind into the work you propose to me." And then, after a pause, he added; "I should have to

satisfy a great grief which seeks consolation from this projected mausoleum. Such grief would, naturally, be

impatient; whereas I should be slow, preoccupied in mind, and probably hindered. It is therefore better that

the proposal should be made elsewhere; but this will not prevent me from feeling, as I ought, both gratified

I thought for a moment of asking him whether, in case his election failed, I could then renew the proposal, but

on the whole I contented myself with expressing regret and saying that I would inform you of the result of my

mission. It is useless to add that I shall know in a few days the upshot of this sudden parliamentary ambition

I think myself that this candidacy may be only a blind. Had you not better write yourself to Monsieur

Dorlange? for his whole manner, though perfectly polite and proper, seemed to show a keen remembrance of

the wrong you did him in renouncing his friendship, with that of your other friends, at the time of your

marriage. I know it may cost you some pain to explain the really exceptional circumstances of your marriage;

but after what I have seen in the mind of your old friend, I think, if you really wish for the assistance of his

But if you feel that any such action is more than you have strength for, I suggest another means. In all matters

in which my wife has taken part I have found her a most able negotiator; and in this particular case I should

feel the utmost confidence in her intervention. She herself suffered from the exclusiveness of Madame

MarieGaston's love for you. No one can explain to him better than she the absorbing conjugal life which

drew its folds so closely around you. And it seems to me that the magnanimity and comprehension which she

always showed to her "dear lost treasure," as she calls her, might be conveyed by her to your friend.

You have plenty of time to think over this suggestion, for Madame de l'Estorade is, just now, still suffering

from a serious illness, brought on by maternal terror. A week ago our little Nais came near being crushed to

death before her eyes; and without the courageous assistance of a stranger who sprang to the horses' heads

and stopped them short, God knows what dreadful misfortune would have overtaken us. This cruel emotion

produced in Madame de l'Estorade a nervous condition which seriously alarmed us for a time. Though she is

now much better, it will be several days before she could see Monsieur Dorlange in case her feminine

But once more, in closing, my dear Monsieur Gaston, would it not be better to abandon your idea? A vast

expense, a painful quarrel with the Chaulieus, and, for you, a renewal of your bitter sorrowthis is what I

fear. Nevertheless, I am, at all times and for all things, entirely at your orders, as indeed my sentiments of

Dear Madame de Camps,Of all the proofs of sympathy which the accident to my dear child has brought

In reply to your affectionate solicitude I must tell you that in that terrible moment Nais was marvellously

calm and selfpossessed. It could not, I think, be possible to see death nearer; yet neither before nor after the

accident did my valiant little daughter even blench; her whole behavior showed the utmost resolution, and,

As for me, in consequence of such terror, I was seized with convulsive spasms, and for several days, as I now

hear, the doctors were very uneasy, and even feared for my reason. But thanks to the strength of my

constitution, I am now almost myself again, and nothing would remain of this cruel agitation if, by a singular

fatality, it were not connected with another unpleasant circumstance which has lately seen fit to fasten upon

Before receiving from your letter these fresh assurances of your regard, I had thought of invoking the help of

your friendship and advice; and today, when you tell me that it would make you happy and proud to take the

place of my poor Louise de Chaulieu, the precious friend of whom death has deprived me, can I hesitate for a

I take you at your word, and that delightful cleverness with which you foiled the fools who commented on

your marriage to Monsieur de Camps [see "Madame Firmiani"], that singular tact with which we saw you

steer your way through circumstances that were full of embarrassment and danger, in short the wonderful art

which enabled you to keep both your secret and your dignity, I now ask you to put to the service of assisting

Unfortunately in consulting a physician we naturally want to see him and tell him our symptoms viva voce,

and it is here that Monsieur de Camps with his industrial genius seems to me most aggravating. Thanks to

those villanous ironworks which he has taken it into his head to purchase, you are almost lost to Paris and to

society! Formerly when we had you here, at hand, in ten minutes talk, without embarrassment, without

preparation, I could have told you everything; but now I am obliged to think over what I have to say, to

But after all, perhaps it is better to plunge boldly in, and since, in spite of circumlocutions and preambles, I

shall have sooner or later to come to the point, why not say at once that my trouble concerns the stranger who

Stranger! yes, a stranger to Monsieur de l'Estorade and to all who have told you about the accident, but not a

stranger to me, whom, for the last three months, this man has condescended to honor with the most obstinate

attention. That the mother of three children, one of them a big boy of fifteen, should at thirtythree years of

age become the object of an ardent passion will seem to you, as it does to me, an impossible fact; and that is

When I say that this stranger is known to me, I must correct myself; for I know neither his name, nor his

abode, nor anything about him. I have never met him in society, and I may add that, although he wears the

ribbon of the Legion of honor, there is nothing in his air and mannerwhich are totally devoid of

It was at SaintThomas d'Aquin, where, as you know, I go to hear mass, that this annoying obsession began. I

used almost daily to take my children to walk in the Tuileries, as the house we have hired here has no garden.

This habit being noticed by my persecutor, I found him repeatedly there and wherever else I might be met

outside of my own home. Perfectly discreet, although so audacious, this singular follower never accompanied

me to my own door; he kept at a sufficient distance to give me the comfort of feeling that his foolish assiduity

Heaven only knows the sacrifices and annoyances I have borne to be rid of him. I never go to church now

except on Sundays; I often keep my dear children at home to the injury of their health; or else I make excuses

not to accompany them, and against all the principles of my education and prudence, I leave them to the care

of the servants. Visits, shopping I do only in a carriage, which did not prevent my shadow from being at hand

when the accident happened to Nais, and saving her life, an act that was brave and providential.

But it is precisely this great obligation I am now under which makes does it not, I appeal to you?a most

In the first place, about thanking him. If I do that, I encourage him, and he would certainly take advantage of

it to change the character of our present intercourse. But if I pass him without noticethink of it! a

mothera mother who owes him the life of her daughter, to pretend not to see him! to pass him without a

That, however, is the intolerable alternative in which I find myself placed, and you can now see how much I

need the counsels of your experience. What can I do to break the unpleasant habit this man has taken of being

my shadow? How shall I thank him without encouraging him? or not thank him without incurring

Those are the problems submitted to your wisdom. If you will do me the kindness to solve themand I know

no one so capableI shall add gratitude to all the other affectionate sentiments which, as you know, I have

Perhaps, my dear Monsieur Gaston, the public journals will have told you before this letter can arrive of the

duel fought yesterday between your friend Monsieur Dorlange and the Duc de Rhetore. But the papers, while

announcing the fact as a piece of news, are debarred by custom and propriety from inferring the motives of a

quarrel, and therefore they will only excite your curiosity without satisfying it.

I have, fortunately, heard from a very good source, all the details of the affair, and I hasten to transmit them

Three days ago, that is to say on the very evening of the day when I paid my visit to Monsieur Dorlange, the

Duc de Rhetore occupied a stall at the Operahouse. Next to him sat Monsieur de Ronquerolles, who has

recently returned from a diplomatic mission which kept him out of France for several years. During the

entr'acte these gentlemen did not leave their seats to walk about the foyer; but, as is often done, they stood up,

with their backs to the stage, facing the audience and consequently Monsieur Dorlange, who was seated

directly behind them, seeming to be absorbed in an evening newspaper. There had been that day a very

scandalous, or what is called a very interesting, session of the Chamber of deputies.

The conversation between the duke and the marquis having naturally turned on the events of Parisian society

which had taken place during Monsieur de Ronquerolles' absence, the latter made the following remark

"Your poor sister Madame de Macumer! what a sad end, after her singular marriage!"

"Ah! you know," replied Monsieur de Rhetore, in that highpitched tone of his, "my sister had too much

imagination not to be romantic and visionary. She loved her first husband, Monsieur de Macumer,

passionately, but after a time one gets tired of everything, even widowhood. This MarieGaston crossed her

path. He is agreeable in person; my sister was rich; he was deeply in debt and behaved with corresponding

eagerness and devotion. The result was that the scoundrel not only succeeded Monsieur de Macumer and

killed his wife with jealousy, but he got out of her every penny the law allowed the poor foolish woman to

dispose of. My sister's property amounted to at least twelve hundred thousand francs, not counting a

delightful villa splendidly furnished which she built at Ville d'Avray. Half of this that man obtained, the other

half went to the Duc and Duchesse de Chaulieu, my father and mother, who were entitled to it by law as heirs

ascendant. As for my brother Lenoncourt and myself, we were simply disinherited."

As soon as your name, my dear Monsieur Gaston, was uttered, Monsieur Dorlange laid aside his newspaper,

"Pardon me, Monsieur le duc, if I venture to correct your statement; but, as a matter of conscience, I ought to

"What is that you say?" returned the duke, blinking his eyes and speaking in that contemptuous tone we can

"I say, Monsieur le duc, that MarieGaston is my friend from childhood; he has never been thought a

scoundrel; on the contrary, the world knows him as a man of honor and talent. So far from killing his wife

with jealousy, he made her perfectly happy during the three years their marriage lasted. As for the

"Have you considered, monsieur," said the Duc de Rhetore, interrupting him, "the result of such language?"

"Thoroughly, monsieur; and I repeat that the property left to Marie Gaston by the will of his wife is so little

desired by him that, to my knowledge, he is about to spend a sum of two or three hundred thousand francs in

"After all, monsieur, who are you?" said the Duc de Rhetore, again interrupting him with illrestrained

"Presently," replied Monsieur Dorlange, "I shall have the honor to tell you; you must now permit me to add

that the property of which you say you have been disinherited Madame MarieGaston had the right to

dispose of without any remorse of conscience. It came from her first husband, the Baron de Macumer; and

she had, previously to that marriage, given up her own property in order to constitute a fortune for your

brother, the Duc de LenoncourtGivry, who, as younger son, had not, like you, Monsieur le Duc, the

"I have no cards with me," he said at last, "but my name is Dorlange, a theatrical name, easy to remember,

"Not a very central quarter," remarked Monsieur de Rhetore, ironically. Then turning to Monsieur de

Ronquerolles, whom he thus constituted one of his seconds, "I beg your pardon, my dear fellow," he said,

"for the voyage of discovery you will have to undertake for me tomorrow morning." And then almost

immediately he added: "Come to the foyer; we can talk there with greater safety."

By his manner of accenting the last word it was impossible to mistake the insulting meaning he intended to

The two gentlemen having left their seats, without this scene attracting any notice, in consequence of the

stalls being empty for the most part during the entr'acte, Monsieur Dorlange saw at some distance the

"Will you lend it to me and let me tear out a page? I have an idea in my mind which I don't want to lose. If I

do not see you again after the play to make restitution, I will send it to you tomorrow morning without fail."

Returning to his place, Monsieur Dorlange sketched something rapidly, and when the curtain rose and the

two gentlemen returned to their seats, he touched the Duc de Rhetore lightly on the shoulder and said, giving

This "card" was a charming sketch of an architectural design placed in a landscape. Beneath it was written

"Plan for a mausoleum to be erected to the memory of Madame MarieGaston, nee Chaulieu, by her

It was impossible to let Monsieur de Rhetore know more delicately that he had to do with a suitable

adversary; and you will remark, my dear Monsieur Gaston, that Monsieur Dorlange made this drawing the

means of enforcing his denial and giving proof of your disinterestedness and the sincerity of your grief.

After the play was over, Monsieur de Rhetore parted from Monsieur de Ronquerolles, and the latter went up

to Monsieur Dorlange and endeavored, very courteously, to bring about a reconciliation, remarking to him

that, while he was right in the subjectmatter, his method of proceeding was unusual and offensive; Monsieur

de Rhetore, on the other hand, had shown great moderation, and would now be satisfied with a mere

expression of regret; in short, Monsieur de Ronquerolles said all that can be said on such an occasion.

Monsieur Dorlange would not listen to anything which seemed a submission on his part, and the next day he

received a visit from Monsieur de Ronquerolles and General Montriveau on behalf of the Duc de Rhetore.

Again an effort was made to induce Monsieur Dorlange to give another turn to his words. But your friend

"Will Monsieur de Rhetore withdraw the words I felt bound to notice; if so, I will withdraw mine."

"But that is impossible," they said to him. "Monsieur de Rhetore has been personally insulted; you, on the

contrary, have not been. Right or wrong, he has the conviction that Monsieur MarieGaston has done him an

injury. We must always make certain allowances for wounded selfinterests; you can never get absolute

"It comes to this, then," replied Monsieur Dorlange, "that Monsieur de Rhetore may continue to calumniate

my friend at his ease; in the first place, because he is in Italy; and secondly, because MarieGaston would

always feel extreme repugnance to come to certain extremities with the brother of his wife. It is precisely that

powerlessness, relatively speaking, to defend himself, which constitutes my rightI will say moremy

duty to interfere. It was not without a special permission of Providence that I was enabled to catch a few of

the malicious words that were said of him, and, as Monsieur de Rhetore declines to modify any of them, we

The duel then became inevitable; the terms were arranged in the course of the day, and the meeting, with

pistols, was appointed for the day after. On the ground Monsieur Dorlange was perfectly cool. When the first

fire was exchanged without result, the seconds proposed to put an end to the affair.

This time he was shot in the fleshy part of the thigh, not a dangerous wound, but one which caused him to

lose a great deal of blood. As they carried him to the carriage which brought him, Monsieur de Rhetore, who

"This does not prevent MarieGaston from being a man of honor and a heart of gold."

This duel, as you can well believe, has made a great commotion; Monsieur Dorlange has been the hero of the

hour for the last two days; it is impossible to enter a single salon without finding him the one topic of

conversation. I heard more, perhaps, in the salon of Madame de Montcornet than elsewhere. She receives, as

you know, many artists and men of letters, and to give you an idea of the manner in which your friend is

considered, I need only stenograph a conversation at which I was present in the countess's salon last evening.

The chief talkers were Emile Blondet of the "Debats," and Monsieur Bixiou, the caricaturist, one of the

bestinformed ferrets of Paris. They are both, I think, acquaintances of yours, but, at any rate, I am certain of

your intimacy with Joseph Bridau, our great painter, who shared in the talk, for I well remember that he and

"The first appearance of Dorlange in art," Joseph Bridau was saying, when I joined them, "was fine; the

makings of a master were already so apparent in the work he did for his examinations that the Academy,

under pressure of opinion, decided to crown himthough he laughed a good deal at its programme."

"True," said Bixiou, "and that 'Pandora' he exhibited in 1837, after his return from Rome, is also a very

remarkable figure. But as she won him, at once, the cross and any number of commissions from the

government and the municipality, together with scores of flourishing articles in the newspapers, I don't see

"Exactly; he is a bear, but a premeditated bear; a reflecting and determined bear."

"I don't see," said Joseph Bridau, "why this savage inclination for solitude should be so bad for an artist.

What does a sculptor gain by frequenting salons where gentlemen and ladies have taken to a habit of wearing

"Well, in the first place, a sculptor can amuse himself in a salon; and that will keep him from taking up a

mania, or becoming a visionary; besides, he sees the world as it is, and learns that 1839 is not the fifteenth

"He? he will talk to you by the hour of returning to the life of the great artists of the middle ages with the

universality of their studies and their knowledge, and that frightfully laborious life of theirs; which may help

us to understand the habits and ways of a semi barbarous society, but can never exist in ours. He does not

see, the innocent dreamer, that civilization, by strangely complicating all social conditions, absorbs for

business, for interests, for pleasures, thrice as much time as a less advanced society required for the same

purposes. Look at the savage in his hut; he hasn't anything to do. Whereas we, with the Bourse, the opera, the

newspapers, parliamentary discussions, salons, elections, railways, the Cafe de Paris and the National

"No, my dear fellow, I am talking truth. The curfew no longer rings at nine o'clock. Only last night my

concierge Ravenouillet gave a party; and I think I made a great mistake in not accepting the indirect

"Nevertheless," said Joseph Bridau, "it is certain that if a man doesn't mingle in the business, the interests,

and the pleasures of our epoch, he can make out of the time he thus saves a pretty capital. Independently of

his orders, Dorlange has, I think, a little competence; so that nothing hinders him from arranging his life to

"But you see he goes to the opera; for it was there he found his duel. Besides, you are all wrong in

representing him as isolated from this contemporaneous life, for I happen to know that he is just about to

harness himself to it by the most rattling and compelling chains of the social systemI mean political

"Yes, no doubt that's in his famous programme of universality; and you ought to see the consistency and

perseverance he puts into that idea! Only last year two hundred and fifty thousand francs dropped into his

mouth as if from the skies, and he instantly bought a hovel in the rue SaintMartin to make himself eligible

for the Chamber. Thenanother pretty speculationwith the rest of the money he bought stock in the

'National,' where I meet him every time I want to have a laugh over the republican Utopia. He has his

flatterers on the staff of that estimable newspaper; they have persuaded him that he's a born orator and can cut

the finest figure in the Chamber. They even talk of getting up a candidacy for him; and on some of their

enthusiastic days they go so far as to assert that he bears a distant likeness to Danton."

I don't know if you have ever remarked, my dear Monsieur Gaston, that in men of real talent there is always

"I think with you," he said, "that if Dorlange takes this step, and enters politics, he will be lost to art. But,

after all, why should he not succeed in the Chamber? He expresses himself with great facility, and seems to

me to have ideas at his command. Look at Canalis when he was made deputy! 'What! a poet!' everybody

cried out,which didn't prevent him from making himself a fine reputation as orator, and becoming a

"But the first question is how to get into the Chamber," said Emile Blondet. "Where does Dorlange propose

"Why, naturally, for one of the rotten boroughs of the 'National.' I don't know if it has yet been chosen."

"General rule," said the writer for the "Debats." "To obtain your election, even though you may have the

support of an active and ardent party, you must also have a somewhat extended political notoriety, or, at any

rate, some provincial backing of family or fortune. Has Dorlange any of those elements of success?"

"As for the backing of a family, that element is particularly lacking," replied Bixiou; "in fact, in his case, it is

"Nothing could be more natural,father and mother unknown. But I believe, myself, that he can be elected.

"He is a republican, I suppose, if he is a friend of those 'National' gentlemen, and resembles Danton?"

"Yes, of course; but he despises his coreligionists, declaring they are only good for carrying a point, and for

violence and bullying. Provisionally, he is satisfied with a monarchy hedged in by republican institutions; but

he insists that our civic royalty will infallibly be lost through the abuse of influence, which he roughly calls

corruption. This will lead him towards the little Church of the Left centre; but there againfor there's

always a buthe finds only a collection of ambitious minds and eunuchs unconsciously smoothing the way

to a revolution, which he, for his part, sees looming on the horizon with great regret, because, he says, the

masses are too little prepared, and too little intelligent, not to let it slip through their fingers. Legitimacy he

simply laughs at; he doesn't admit it to be a principle in any way. To him it is simply the most fixed and

consistent form of monarchical heredity; he sees no other superiority in it than that of old wine over new. But

while he is neither legitimist, nor conservative, nor Leftcentre, and is republican without wanting a republic,

he proclaims himself a Catholic, and sits astride the hobby of that party, namely,liberty of education. But

this man, who wants free education for every one, is afraid of the Jesuits; and he is still, as in 1829, uneasy

about the encroachments of the clergy and the Congregation. Can any of you guess the great party which he

proposes to create in the Chamber, and of which he intends to be the leader? That of the righteous man, the

impartial man, the honest man! as if any such thing could live and breathe in the parliamentary cookshops;

and as if, moreover, all opinions, to hide their ugly nothingness, had not, from time immemorial, wrapped

"Not yet; he is just finishing the statue of some saint, I don't know which; but he lets no one see it, and says

he does not intend to send it to the Exhibition this yearhe has ideas about it."

"Oh! that religious works ought not to be delivered over to the judgment of critics, or to the gaze of a public

rotten with scepticism; they ought, he thinks, to go, without passing through the uproar of the world, piously

"Ah ca!" exclaimed Emile Blondet, "and it is this fervent Catholic who fights a duel!"

"Better or worse than that. This Catholic lives with a woman whom he brought back from Italy,a species

"What a tongue that Bixiou has; he keeps a regular intelligence office," said some of the little group as it

You see from this, my dear Monsieur Gaston, that the political aspirations of Monsieur Dorlange are not

regarded seriously by his friends. I do not doubt that you will write to him soon to thank him for the warmth

with which he defended you from calumny. That courageous devotion has given me a true sympathy for him,

and I shall hope that you will use the influence of early friendship to turn his mind from the deplorable path

he seems about to enter. I make no judgment on the other peculiarities attributed to him by Monsieur Bixiou,

who has a cutting and a flippant tongue; I am more inclined to think, with Joseph Bridau, that such mistakes

are venial. But a fault to be forever regretted, according to my ideas, will be that of abandoning his present

career to fling himself into the maelstrom of politics. You are yourself interested in turning him from this

idea, if you strongly desire to entrust that work to his hands. Preach to him as strongly as you can the wisdom

On the subject of the explanation I advised you to have with him, I must tell you that your task is greatly

simplified. You need not enter into any of the details which would be to you so painful. Madame de

l'Estorade, to whom I spoke of the role of mediator which I wanted her to play, accepted the part very

willingly. She feels confident of being able, after half an hour's conversation, to remove the painful feeling

While writing this long letter, I have sent for news of his condition. He is going on favorably, and the

physicians say that, barring all unforeseen accidents, his friends need have no anxiety as to his state. It seems

he is an object of general interest, for, to use the expression of my valet, people are "making cue" to leave

their names at his door. It must be added that the Duke de Rhetore is not liked, which may partly account for

this sympathy. The duke is stiff and haughty, but there is little in him. What a contrast the brother is to her

who lives in our tenderest memory. She was simple and kind, yet she never derogated from her dignity;

Nothing could be more judicious than what you have written me, my dear friend. It was certainly to have

been expected that my "bore" would have approached me on the occasion of our next meeting. His heroism

gave him the right to do so, and politeness made it a duty. Under pain of being thought unmannerly he was

bound to make inquiries as to the results of the accident on my health and that of Nais. But if, contrary to all

these expectations, he did not descend from his cloud, my resolution, under your judicious advice, was taken.

If the mountain did not come to me, I should go to the mountain; like Hippolyte in the tale of Theramene, I

would rush upon the monster and discharge my gratitude upon him at short range. I have come to think with

you that the really dangerous side of this foolish obsession on his part is its duration and the inevitable gossip

Therefore, I not only accepted the necessity of speaking to my shadow first, but under pretence that my

husband wished to call upon him and thank him in person, I determined to ask him his name and address, and

if I found him a suitable person I intended to ask him to dinner on the following day; believing that if he had

but a shadow of common sense, he would, when he saw the manner in which I live with my husband, my

frantic passion, as you call it, for my children, in short, the whole atmosphere of my wellordered home, he

would, as I say, certainly see the folly of persisting in his present course. At any rate half the danger of his

pursuit was over if it were carried on openly. If I was still to be persecuted, it would be in my own home,

where we are all, more or less, exposed to such annoyances, which an honest woman possessing some

Well, all these fine schemes and all your excellent advice have come to nothing. Since the accident, or rather

since the day when my physician first allowed me to go out, nothing, absolutely nothing have I seen of my

unknown lover. But, strange to say, although his presence was intolerably annoying, I am conscious that he

still exercises a sort of magnetism over me. Without seeing him, I feel him near me; his eyes weigh upon me,

though I do not meet them. He is ugly, but his ugliness has something energetic and powerfully marked,

which makes one remember him as a man of strong and energetic faculties. In fact, it is impossible not to

think about him; and now that he appears to have relieved me of his presence, I an conscious of a voidthat

sort of void the ear feels when a sharp and piercing noise which has long annoyed it ceases. What I am going

to add may seem to you great foolishness; but are we always mistress of such mirages of the imagination?

I have often told you of my arguments with Louise de Chaulieu in relation to the manner in which women

ought to look at life. I used to tell her that the passion with which she never ceased to pursue the ideal was

illregulated and fatal to happiness. To this she answered: "You have never loved, my dearest; love has this

rare phenomenon about it: we may live all our lives without ever meeting the being to whom nature has

assigned the power of making us happy. But if the day of splendor comes when that being unexpectedly

awakes your heart from sleep, what will you do then?" [See "Memoirs of Two Young Married Women."]

The words of those about to die are often prophetic. What if this man were to be the tardy serpent with whom

Louise threatened me? That he could ever be really dangerous to me; that he could make me fail in my duty,

that is certainly not what I fear; I am strong against all such extremes. But I did not, like you, my dear

Madame de Camps, marry a man whom my heart had chosen. It was only by dint of patience, determination,

and reason that I was able to build up the solid and serious attachment which binds me to Monsieur de

l'Estorade. Ought I not, therefore, to be doubly cautious lest anything distract me from that sentiment, be it

I shall say to you, as, MONSIEUR, Louis XIV.'s brother, said to his wife, to whom he was in the habit of

showing what he had written and asking her to decipher it: See into my heart and mind, dear friend, disperse

the mists, quiet the worries, and the flux and reflux of will which this affair stirs up in me. My poor Louise

was mistaken, was she not? I am not a woman, am I, on whom the passion of love could gain a foothold? The

man who, on some glorious day, will render me happy is my Armand, my Rene, my Nais, three angels for

whom I have hitherto livedthere can never be for me, I feel it deeply, another passion!

About the year 1820 in the course of the same week two news (to use the schoolboy phrase of my son

Armand) entered the college of Tours. One had a charming face, the other would have been thought ugly if

health, frankness, and intelligence beaming on his features had not compensated for their irregularity and

Here you will stop me, and ask whether I have come to the end of my own adventure, that I should now be

writing this feuilletonstory. No, this tale is really a continuation of that adventure, though it seems little like

One of these lads, the handsome one, was dreamy, contemplative, and a trifle elegaic; the other, ardent,

impetuous, and always in action. They were two natures which completed each other; a priceless blessing to

every friendship that is destined to last. Both had the same bar sinister on them at their birth. The dreamer

was the natural son of the unfortunate Lady Brandon. His name was MarieGaston; which, indeed, seems

hardly an actual name. The other, born of wholly unknown parents, was named Dorlange, which is certainly

no name at all. Dorlange, Valmon, Volmar, Melcourt, are heard upon the stage and nowhere else; already

they belong to a past style, and will soon rejoin Alceste, Arnolphe, Clitandre, Damis, Eraste, Philinte, and

Another reason why the poor illborn lads should cling together was the cruel abandonment to which they

were consigned. For the seven years their studies lasted there was not a day, even during the holidays, when

the door of their prison opened. Now and then Marie Gaston received a visit from an old woman who had

served his mother; through her the quarterly payment for his schooling was regularly made. That of Dorlange

was also made with great punctuality through a banker in Tours. A point to be remarked is that the price paid

for the schooling of the latter was the highest which the rules of the establishment allowed; hence the

conclusion that his unknown parents were persons in easy circumstances. Among his comrades, Dorlange

attained to a certain respect which, had it been withheld, he would very well have known how to enforce with

his fists. But under their breaths, his comrades remarked that he was never sent for to see friends in the parlor,

The two lads, who were both destined to become distinguished men, were poor scholars; though each had his

own way of studying. By the time he was fifteen MarieGaston had written a volume of verses, satires,

elegies, meditations, not to speak of two tragedies. The favorite studies of Dorlange led him to steal logs of

wood, out of which, with his knife, he carved madonnas, grotesque figures, fencingmasters, saints,

In 1827, their schooldays ended, the two friends left college together and were sent to Paris. A place had

been chosen for Dorlange in the atelier of the sculptor Bosio, and from that moment a rather fantastic course

was pursued by an unseen protection that hovered over him. When he reached the house in Paris to which the

headmaster of the school had sent him, he found a dainty little apartment prepared for his reception. Under

the glass shade of the clock was a large envelope addressed to him, so placed as to strike his eye the moment

that he entered the room. In that envelope was a note, written in pencil, containing these words:

Punctual to the minute, Dorlange was not long at the place of rendezvous before he was met by a very small

man, whose enormous head, bearing an immense shock of hair, together with a pointed nose, chin, and

crooked legs made him seem like a being escaped from one of Hoffman's tales. Without saying a word, for to

his other physical advantages this weird messenger added that of being deaf and dumb, he placed in the

young man's hand a letter and a purse. The letter said that the family of Dorlange were glad to see that he

wished to devote himself to art. They urged him to work bravely and to profit by the instructions of the great

master under whose direction he was placed. They hoped he would live virtuously; and, in any case, an eye

would be kept upon his conduct. There was no desire, the letter went on to say, that he should be deprived of

the respectable amusements of his age. For his needs and for his pleasures, he might count upon the sum of

six hundred and fifty francs every three months, which would be given to him in the same place by the same

man; but he was expressly forbidden to follow the messenger after he had fulfilled his commission; if this

injunction were directly or indirectly disobeyed, the punishment would be severe; it would be nothing less

Do you remember, my dear Madame de Camps, that in 1831 you and I went together to the BeauxArts to

see the exhibition of works which were competing for the Grand Prix in sculpture? The subject given out for

competition was Niobe weeping for her children. Do you also remember my indignation at one of the

competing works around which the crowd was so compact that we could scarcely approach it? The insolent

youth had dared to turn that sacred subject into jest! His Niobe was infinitely touching in her beauty and

grief, but to represent her children, as he did, by monkeys squirming on the ground in the most varied and

You tried in vain to make me see that the monkeys were enchantingly graceful and clever, and that a mother's

blind idolatry could not be more ingeniously ridiculed; I held to the opinion that the conception was

monstrous, and the indignation of the old academicians who demanded the expulsion of this intolerable work,

seemed to me most justifiable. But the Academy, instigated by the public and by the newspapers, which

talked of opening a subscription to send the young sculptor to Rome, were not of my opinion and that of their

older members. The extreme beauty of the Niobe atoned for all the rest and the defamer of mothers saw his

work crowned, in spite of an admonition given to him by the venerable secretary on the day of the

distribution of the prizes. But, poor fellow! I excuse him, for I now learn that he never knew his mother. It

From 1827 to 1831 the two friends were inseparable. Dorlange, regularly supplied with means, was a sort of

Marquis d'Aligre; Gaston, on the contrary, was reduced to his own resources for a living, and would have

lived a life of extreme poverty had it not been for his friend. But where friends love each otherand the

situation is more rare than people imagineall on one side and nothing on the other is a determining cause

for association. So, without any reckoning between them, our two pigeons held in common their purse, their

earnings, their pains, pleasures, hopes, in fact, they held all things in common, and lived but one life between

the two. This state of things lasted till Dorlange had won the Grand Prix, and started for Rome. Henceforth

community of interests was no longer possible. But Dorlange, still receiving an ample income through his

mysterious dwarf, bethought himself of making over to Gaston the fifteen hundred francs paid to him by the

government for the "prix de Rome." But a good heart in receiving is more rare than the good heart that gives.

His mind being ulcerated by constant misfortune MarieGaston refused, peremptorily, what pride insisted on

calling alms. Work, he said, had been provided for him by Daniel d'Arthez, one of our greatest writers, and

the payment for that, added to his own small means, sufficed him. This proud rejection, not properly

understood by Dorlange, produced a slight coolness between the two friends; nevertheless, until the year

1833, their intimacy was maintained by a constant exchange of letters. But here, on MarieGaston's side,

perfect confidence ceased, after a time, to exist. He was hiding something; his proud determination to depend

wholly on himself was a sad mistake. Each day brought him nearer to penury. At last, staking all upon one

throw, he imprudently involved himself in journalism. Assuming all the risks of an enterprise which

amounted to thirty thousand francs, a stroke of illfortune left him nothing to look forward to but a debtor's

It was at this moment that his meeting with Louise de Chaulieu took place. During the nine months that

preceded their marriage, Marie Gaston's letters to his friend became fewer and farbetween. Dorlange ought

surely to have been the first to know of this change in the life of his friend, but not one word of it was

confided to him. This was exacted by the high and mighty lady of Gaston's love, Louise de Chaulieu,

When the time for the marriage came, Madame de Macumer pushed this mania for secrecy to extremes. I, her

nearest and dearest friend, was scarcely informed of the event, and no one was admitted to the ceremony

except the witnesses required by law. Dorlange was still absent. The correspondence between them ceased,

and if MarieGaston had entered the convent of La Trappe, he could not have been more completely lost to

When Dorlange returned from Rome in 1836, the sequestration of Marie Gaston's person and affection was

more than ever close and inexorable. Dorlange had too much selfrespect to endeavor to pass the barriers

thus opposed to him, and the old friends not only never saw each other, but no communication passed

But when the news of Madame MarieGaston's death reached him Dorlange forgot all and hastened to Ville

d'Avray to comfort his friend. Useless eagerness! Two hours after that sad funeral was over, Marie Gaston,

without a thought for his friends or for a sisterinlaw and two nephews who were dependent on him, flung

himself into a post chaise and started for Italy. Dorlange felt that this egotism of sorrow filled the measure

of the wrong already done to him; and he endeavored to efface from his heart even the recollection of a

My husband and I loved Louise de Chaulieu too tenderly not to continue our affection for the man who had

been so much to her. Before leaving France, MarieGaston had requested Monsieur de l'Estorade to take

charge of his affairs, and later he sent him a powerofattorney to enable him to do so properly.

Some weeks ago his grief, still living and active, suggested to him a singular idea. In the midst of the

beautiful park at Ville d'Avray is a little lake, with an island upon it which Louise dearly loved. To that

island, a shady calm retreat, MarieGaston wished to remove the body of his wife, after building a

mausoleum of Carrara marble to receive it. He wrote to us to communicate this idea, and, remembering

Dorlange in this connection, he requested my husband to see him and ask him to undertake the work. At first

Dorlange feigned not to remember even the name of MarieGaston, and he made some civil pretext to

decline the commission. But see and admire the consistency of such determinations when people love each

other! That very evening, being at the opera, he heard the Duc de Rhetore speak insultingly of his former

friend, and he vehemently resented the duke's words. A duel followed in which he was wounded; the news of

this affair has probably already reached you. So here is a man facing death at night for a friend whose very

You will ask, my dear Madame de Camps, what this long tale has to do with my own ridiculous adventure.

That is what I would tell you now if my letter were not so immoderately long. I told you my tale would prove

to be a feuilletonstory, and I think the moment has come to make the customary break in it. I hope I have

not sufficiently exalted your curiosity to have the right not to satisfy it. To be concluded, therefore, whether

The elements of the long biographical dissertation I lately sent you, my dear friend, were taken chiefly from a

recent letter from Monsieur MarieGaston. On leaning of the brave devotion shown in his defence his first

impulse was to rush to Paris and press the hand of the friend who avenged himself thus nobly for neglect and

forgetfulness. Unfortunately the evening before his departure he met with a dangerous fall at Savarezza, one

of the outlying quarries of Carrara, and dislocated his ankle. Being obliged to postpone his journey, he wrote

to Monsieur Dorlange to express his gratitude; and, by the same courier, he sent me a voluminous letter,

relating the whole past of their lifelong friendship and asking me to see Monsieur Dorlange and be the

mediator between them. He was not satisfied with the expression of his warm gratitude, he wanted also to

show him that in spite of contrary appearances, he had never ceased to deserve the affection of his early

On receiving Monsieur Gaston's letter, my first idea was to write to the sculptor and ask him to come and see

me, but finding that he was not entirely recovered from his wound, I went, accompanied by my husband and

Nais, to the artist's studio, which we found in a pleasant little house in the rue de l'Ouest, behind the garden of

the Luxembourg, one of the most retired quarters of Paris. We were received in the vestibule by a woman

about whom Monsieur de l'Estorade had already said a word to me. It appears that the laureat of Rome did

not leave Italy without bringing away with him an agreeable souvenir in the form of a bourgeoise Galatea,

half housekeeper, half model; about whom certain indiscreet rumors are current. But let me hasten to say that

there was absolutely nothing in her appearance or manner to lead me to credit them. In fact, there was

something cold and proud and almost savage about her, which is, they tell me, a strong characteristic of the

Transteverine peasantwomen. When she announced our names Monsieur Dorlange was standing in a rather

picturesque working costume with his back to us, and I noticed that he hastily drew an ample curtain before

At the moment when he turned round, and before I had time to look at him, imagine my astonishment when

Nais ran forward and, with the artlessness of a child, flung her arms about his neck crying out:

What! the monsieur who saved her? Then Monsieur Dorlange must be the famous Unknown?Yes, my dear

friend, I now recognized him. Chance, that cleverest of romancemakers, willed that Monsieur Dorlange and

my bore were one. Happily, my husband had launched into the expression of his feelings as a grateful father;

I thus had time to recover myself, and before it became my turn to say a word, I had installed upon my face

what you are pleased to call my grand l'Estorade air; under which, as you know, I mark twentyfive degrees

As for Monsieur Dorlange, he seemed to me less troubled than surprised by the meeting. Then, as if he

thought we kept him too long on the topic of our gratitude, he abruptly changed the subject.

"Madame," he said to me, "since we are, as it seems, more acquainted than we thought, may I dare to gratify

I fancied I saw the claw of a cat preparing to play with its mouse, so I answered, coldly:

I put a wellmarked stiffness into my manner which completed the meaning of the words. I could not see that

"I hope," he replied, "that my question is not of that kind. I only desire to ask if you have a sister."

"No, monsieur," I replied, "I have no sisternone, at least, that I know of," I added, jestingly.

"I thought it not unlikely, however," continued Monsieur Dorlange, in the most natural manner possible; "for

the family in which I have met a lady bearing the strongest resemblance to you is surrounded by a certain

"Not the least; they are people whom you must have known in Paris in 18291830. They lived in great state

And, in fact, my dear Madame de Camps, a family of that name did live in Paris about that time, and you

probably remember, as I do, that many strange stories were told about them. As Monsieur Dorlange answered

"The sister whom you have not, madame," he said to me abruptly, "I shall permit myself to give you, and I

So saying, he removed the cloth that concealed his work, and there I stood, under the form of a saint, with a

My husband and Nais gave a cry of admiration at the wonderful likeness they had before their eyes. As for

"This statue," he said, "is a SaintUrsula, ordered by a convent in the provinces. Under circumstances which

it would take too long to relate, the type of this saint, the person whom I mentioned just now, was firmly

fixed in my memory. I should vainly have attempted to create by my imagination another type for that saint,

it could not have been so completely the expression of my thought. I therefore began to model this figure

which you see from memory, then one day, madame, at SaintThomas d'Aquin, I saw you, and I had the

superstition to believe that you were sent to me by Providence. After that, I worked from you only, and as I

did not feel at liberty to ask you to come to my studio, the best I could do was to study you when we met, and

I multiplied my chances of doing so. I carefully avoided knowing your name and social position, for I feared

"Oh! I have often seen you following us," said Nais, with her clever little air.

How little we know children, and their turn for observation! As for my husband, it seemed to me that he

ought to have pricked up his ears at this tale of the daring manner in which his wife had been used as a

model. Monsieur de l'Estorade is certainly no fool; in all social matters he has the highest sense of

conventional propriety, and as for jealousy, I think if I gave him the slightest occasion he would show himself

ridiculously jealous. But now, the sight of his "beautiful Renee," as he calls me, done into white marble in the

form of a saint, had evidently cast him into a state of admiring ecstasy. He, with Nais, were taking an

inventory to prove the fidelity of the likeness yes, it was really my attitude, really my eyes, really my

I felt it my duty to take up the role that Monsieur de l'Estorade laid aside, so I said, very gravely, to the

"Do you not think, monsieur, that to appropriate without permission, ornot to mince my wordssteal a

"For that reason, madame," he replied, in a respectful tone, "I was fully determined to abide by your wishes in

the matter. Although my statue is fated to be buried in the oratory of a distant convent, I should not have sent

it to its destination without obtaining your permission to do so. I could have known your name whenever I

wished; I already knew your address; and I intended, when the time came, to confess the liberty I had taken,

and ask you to visit my studio. I should then have said what I say now: if the likeness displeases you I can,

My husband, who apparently thought the likeness not sufficiently close, turned, at this moment, to Monsieur

"Do you not think, monsieur, that Madame de l'Estorade's nose is rather more delicate than you have made

All this unexpectedness so upset me that I felt unfitted to intervene on behalf of Monsieur MarieGaston, and

I should, I believe, have pleaded his cause very ill if Monsieur Dorlange had not stopped me at the first words

"I know, madame," he said, "all that you can possibly tell me about my unfaithful friend. I do not forgive, but

I forget my wrong. Things having so come about that I have nearly lost my life for his sake, it would certainly

be very illogical to keep a grudge against him. Still, as regards that mausoleum at Ville d'Avray, nothing

would induce me to undertake it. I have already mentioned to Monsieur de l'Estorade one hindrance that is

daily growing more imperative; but besides that, I think it a great pity that MarieGaston should thus

ruminate on his grief; and I have written to tell him so. He ought to be more of a man, and find in study and

The object of our visit being thus disposed of, I saw no hope of getting to the bottom of the other mystery it

had opened, so I rose to take leave, and as I did so Monsieur Dorlange said to me:

"It is for my husband and not for me to reply to that question," I said; "however, we can talk of it later, for

Monsieur bowed in respectful acquiescence, and we came away,I, in great illhumor; I was angry with

Nais, and also with my husband, and felt much inclined to make him a scene, which he would certainly not

Now what do you think of all this? Is the man a clever swindler, who invented that fable for some purpose, or

is he really an artist, who took me in all simplicity of soul for the living realization of his idea? That is what I

intend to find out in the course of a few days, for now I am committed to your programme, and tomorrow

Monsieur and Madame de l'Estorade will have the honor of inviting Monsieur Dorlange to dinner.

My dear friend,Monsieur Dorlange dined with us yesterday. My intention was to invite him alone to a

formal family dinner, so as to have him more completely under my eye, and put him to the question at my

ease. But Monsieur de l'Estorade, to whom I had not explained my charitable motives, showed me that such

an invitation might wound the sensibilities of our guest; it might seem to him that the Comte de l'Estorade

"We can't," said my husband gaily, "treat him like the sons of our farmers who come here with the epaulet of

a lieutenant on their shoulder, and whom we invite with closed doors because we can't send them to the

We therefore invited to meet him Monsieur Joseph Bridau, the painter, the Chevalier d'Espard, Monsieur and

Madame de la Bastie (formerly, you remember, Mademoiselle Modeste Mignon) and the Marquis de

Ronquerolles. When my husband invited the latter, he asked him if he had any objection to meeting the

"So far from objecting," replied Monsieur de Ronquerolles, "I am glad of the opportunity to meet a man of

talent, who in the affair you speak of behaved admirably." And he added, after my husband had told him of

our great obligation to Monsieur Dorlange, "Then he is a true hero, your sculptor! if he goes on this way, we

In his studio, with a bare throat leaving his head, which is rather too large for his body, free, and dressed in a

sort of Oriental costume, Monsieur Dorlange looked to me a great deal better than he does in regular evening

dress. Though I must say that when he grows animated in speaking his face lights up, a sort of a magnetic

essence flows from his eyes which I had already noticed in our preceding encounters. Madame de la Bastie

I don't know if I told you that the ambition of Monsieur Dorlange is to be returned to the Chamber at the

coming elections. This was the reason he gave for declining Monsieur Gaston's commission. What Monsieur

de l'Estorade and I thought, at first, to be a mere excuse was an actual reason. At table when Monsieur Joseph

Bridau asked him pointblank what belief was to be given to the report of his parliamentary intentions,

Monsieur Dorlange formally announced them; from that moment, throughout the dinner, the talk was

When it comes to topics foreign to his studies, I expected to find our artist, if not a novice, at least very

slightly informed. Not at all. On men, on things, on the past as on the future of parties, he had very clear and

really novel views, which were evidently not borrowed from the newspapers; and he put them forth in lively,

easy, and elegant language; so that after his departure Monsieur de Ronquerolles and Monsieur de l'Estorade

declared themselves positively surprised at the strong and powerful political attitude he had taken. This

admission was all the more remarkable because, as you know, the two gentlemen are zealous conservatives,

This unexpected superiority in my problematical follower reassured me not a little; still, I was resolved to get

to the bottom of the situation, and therefore, after dinner I drew him into one of those teteatetes which the

After talking awhile about Monsieur MarieGaston, our mutual friend, the enthusiasms of my dear Louise

and my efforts to moderate them, I asked him how soon he intended to send his SaintUrsula to her

"Everything is ready for her departure," he replied, "but I want your exeat, madame; will you kindly tell me if

"One question in the first place," I replied: "Will your work suffer by such a change, supposing that I desire

"Another question: Is it I, or the other person whom the statue best represents?"

"But, to desert the past for the present is a bad thing and goes by a bad name, monsieur; and yet you proclaim

"True," said Monsieur Dorlange, laughing, "but art is ferocious; wherever it sees material for its creations, it

"Art," I replied, "is a great word under which a multitude of things shelter themselves. The other day you told

me that circumstances, too long to relate at that moment, had contributed to fix the image of which I was the

reflection in your mind, where it has left a vivid memory; was not that enough to excite my curiosity?"

"It was true, madame, that time did not allow of my making an explanation of those circumstances; but, in

any case, having the honor of speaking to you for the first time, it would have been strange, would it not, had

"Now, unless I receive more express encouragement, I am still unable to suppose that anything in my past can

"Why not? Some acquaintances ripen fast. Your devotion to my Nais has advanced our friendship rapidly.

Monsieur Dorlange appeared to take counsel with himself; then, after a short pause he said:

"It is true that women are admirably fitted to seize the lighter shades of meaning in acts and sentiments which

we men are unable to decipher. But this confidence does not concern myself alone; I should have to request

that it remain absolutely between ourselves, not even excepting Monsieur de l'Estorade from this restriction.

A secret is never safe beyond the person who confides it, and the person who hears it."

I was much puzzled, as you can well suppose, about what might follow; still, continuing my explorations, I

"Monsieur de l'Estorade is so little in the habit of hearing everything from me, that he never even read a line

Until then, Monsieur Dorlange had stood before the fireplace, at one corner of which I was seated; but he

At that instantprovoking as rain in the midst of a picnicMadame de la Bastie came up to ask me if I had

been to see Nathan's last drama. Monsieur Dorlange was forced to give up his seat beside me, and no further

I have really, as you see now, no light upon the matter, and yet when I recall the whole manner and behavior

of Monsieur Dorlange, whom I studied carefully, my opinion inclines to his perfect innocence. Nothing

proves that the love I suspected plays any part in this curious affair; and I will allow you to think that I and

my terrors, with which I tormented you, were terribly absurd,in short, that I have played the part of Belise

in the Femmes Savantes, who fancies that every man she sees is fatally in love with her.

I therefore cheerfully abandon that stupid conclusion. Lover or not, Monsieur Dorlange is a man of high

character, with rare distinction of mind; and if, as I believe now, he has no misplaced pretensions, it is an

honor and pleasure to count him among our friends. Nais is enchanted with her preserver. After he left us that

"When he stopped the horses, mamma, and you did not seem to notice him, I thought he was only a man."

"Well, yes! one of those persons to whom one pays no attention. But, oh! I was so glad when I found out he

was a monsieur. Didn't you hear me cry out, 'Ah! you are the monsieur who saved me'?"

Though her innocence is perfect, there was such pride and vanity in this little speech that I gave her, as you

may well suppose, a lecture upon it. This distinction of man and monsieur is dreadful; but, after all, the child

told the truth. She only said, with her blunt simplicity, what our democratic customs still allow us to put in

practice, though they forbid us to put it into words. The Revolution of '89 has at least introduced that virtuous

For the last two weeks we have heard nothing more of Monsieur Dorlange. Not only has he not seen fit to

renew the conversation so provokingly interrupted by Madame de la Bastie, but he has not even remembered

While we were breakfasting yesterday morning, I happened to make this remark (though without any

sharpness), and just then our Lucas, who, as an old servant, sometimes allows himself a little familiarity, had

the door swung triumphantly open to admit him, bearing something, I knew not what, wrapped in tissue

paper, which he deposited with great care on the table, giving a note to Monsieur de l'Estorade at the same

"What is that?" I said to Lucas, on whose face I detected the signs of a "surprise," at the same time putting out

During this time my husband had read the note, which he now passed to me, saying:

While I was reading the note, my husband, Lucas, Rene, and Nais had eagerly extracted me from my

swathings, and then, in truth, I appeared no longer a saint, but a woman of the world. I really thought my

husband and children would go out of their minds with admiration and pleasure. The news of this masterpiece

spread about the house, and all our servants, whom we rather spoil, came flocking, one after another, as if

sent for, crying out, "Oh, it is madame's own self!" I alone did not share in the general enthusiasm. As for

Monsieur de l'Estorade, after working for an hour to find a place in his study where the bust could be seen in

"On my way to the Treasury today I shall go and see Monsieur Dorlange, and if he is at liberty this evening

I shall ask him to dine with us. Today is Armand's halfholiday, and I would like him to see the boy. The

Monsieur Dorlange accepted the invitation. At dinner Monsieur de l'Estorade inquired further about his

candidacy, giving it however, no approval. This led straight to politics. Armand, whose mind is naturally

grave and reflective and who reads the newspapers, mingled in the conversation. Against the practice of

youths of the present day, he thinks like his father; that is, he is very conservative; though perhaps less just

and wise, as might well be expected in a lad of fifteen. He was consequently led to contradict Monsieur

Dorlange, whose inclination as I told you, is somewhat jacobin. And I must say I thought the arguments of

my little man neither bad nor illexpressed. Without ceasing to be polite, Monsieur Dorlange had an air of

disdaining a discussion with the poor boy, so much so that I saw Armand on the point of losing patience and

replying sharply. However, as he has been well brought up, I had only to make him a sign and he controlled

himself; but seeing him turn scarlet and shut himself up in gloomy silence, I felt that his pride had received a

blow, and I thought it little generous in Monsieur Dorlange to crush a young lad in that way.

I know very well that children in these days make the mistake of wishing to be personages before their time,

and that it often does them good to suppress such conceit. But really, Armand has an intellectual development

and a power of reasoning beyond his age. Do you want a proof of it? Until last year, I had never consented to

part with him, and it was only as a day scholar that he followed his course of study at the College Henri IV.

Well, he himself, for the sake of his studies, which were hindered by going and coming to and fro, asked to

be placed in the regular manner in the school; and he employed more entreaties and arguments with me to put

him under that discipline than an ordinary boy would have used to escape it. Therefore this manly air and

manner, which in most schoolboys would, of course, be intolerably ridiculous, seems in him the result of his

natural precocity; and this precocity ought to be forgiven him, inasmuch as it comes to him from God.

In consequence of his unfortunate birth Monsieur Dorlange is less fitted than most men to judge of children

in their homes, and he therefore, necessarily, shows a want of indulgence. But he had better take care; if he

wishes to pay court to me merely as a friend he has chosen a very bad method of doing so.

Of course an evening in the midst of the family did not allow of his returning to the subject of his private

history; but I thought he did not show any particular desire to do so. In fact, he occupied himself much more

with Nais than with me, cutting out silhouettes in black paper for her during nearly the whole evening. I must

also mention that Madame de Rastignac came in and I, on my side, was obliged to give my company to her.

While we were conversing near the fire, Monsieur Dorlange at the other end of the room was posing the two

children Nais and Rene, who presently brought me their likenesses snipped out with scissors, Nais

Since this family dinner, civil war has been declared among my children. Nais extols to the skies her "dear

preserver," as she calls him, and is supported in her opinion by Rene, who is delivered over to the sculptor

body and soul in return for a superb lancer on horseback which Monsieur Dorlange cut out for him. Armand,

on the contrary, thinks him ugly, which is undeniable; he says he resembles the portraits of Danton which he

has seen in the illustrated histories of the Revolution, in which remark there is some truth. He says also that

Monsieur Dorlange has given me in my bust the air of a grisette, which is not true at all. Hence, disputes

Why do I desert my art, and what do I intend to do in this cursed galley of politics? This shows what it is, my

dear romantic friend, to shut one's self up for years in a conjugal convent. During that time the world has

progressed. To friends forgotten at the gate life brings new combinations; and the more they are ignored, the

more disposed the forgetter is to cast the blame upon those forgotten; it is so easy to preach to others!

Learn, then, my dear inquisitor, that I do not enter politics of my own volition. In pushing myself in this

unexpected manner into the electoral breach, I merely follow an inspiration that has been made to me. A ray

of light has come into my darkness; a father has partly revealed himself, and, if I may believe appearances, he

holds a place in the world which ought to satisfy the most exacting ambition. This revelation, considering the

very ordinary course of my life, has come to me surrounded by fantastic and romantic circumstances which

As you have lived in Italy, I think it useless to explain to you the Cafe Greco, the usual rendezvous of the

pupils of the Academy and the artists of all countries who flock to Rome. In Paris, rue de Coq

SaintHonore, we have a distant counterpart of that institution in a cafe long known as that of the Cafe des

Arts. Two or three times a week I spend an evening there, where I meet several of my contemporaries in the

French Academy in Rome. They have introduced me to a number of journalists and men of letters, all of them

amiable and distinguished men, with whom there is both profit and pleasure in exchanging ideas.

In a certain corner, where we gather, many questions of a nature to interest serious minds are debated; but the

most eager interest, namely politics, takes the lead in our discussions. In this little club the prevailing opinion

is democratic; it is represented under all its aspects, the phalansterian Utopia not excepted. That's enough to

tell you that before this tribunal the ways of the government are often judged with severity, and that the

utmost liberty of language reigns in our discussions. The consequence is that about a year ago the waiter who

serves us habitually took me aside one day to give me, as he said, a timely warning.

"Monsieur," he said, "you are watched by the police; and you would do well not to talk like Saint Paul,

"The police! my good friend," I replied, "why the devil should the police watch me? What I say, and a good

"No matter for that, they are watching you. I have seen it. There is a little old man, who takes a great deal of

snuff, who is always within hearing distance of you; when you speak he seems to pay more attention to your

words than to those of the others; and once I saw him write something down in a notebook in marks that

The next time proved to be the next day. The person shown to me was a short man with gray hair, a rather

neglected person and a face deeply pitted with the smallpox, which seemed to make him about fifty years of

age. He frequently dipped in a large snuffbox; and seemed to be giving to my remarks an attention I might

consider either flattering or inquisitive, as I pleased; but a certain air of gentleness and integrity in this

supposed policespy inclined me to the kinder interpretation. I said so to the waiter, who had plumed himself

"Parbleu!" he replied, "they always put on that honeyed manner to hide their game."

Two days later, on a Sunday, at the hour of vespers, in one of my rambles about old Parisfor which, as you

know, I always had a taste I happened to enter the church of SaintLouisenl'Ile, the parish church of the

remote quarter of the city which bears that name. This church is a building of very little interest, no matter

what historians and certain "Guides to Paris" may say. I should therefore have passed rapidly through it if the

remarkable talent of the organist who was performing part of the service had not induced me to remain.

To say that the playing of that man realized my ideal is giving it high praise, for I dare say you will remember

that I always distinguished between organplayers and organists, a superior order of nobility the title of

The service over, I had a curiosity to see the face of so eminent an artist buried in that outoftheway place.

Accordingly I posted myself near the door of the organ loft, to see him as he left the churcha thing I

certainly would not have done for a crowned head; but great artists, after all, are they not kings by divine

Imagine my amazement when, after waiting a few minutes, instead of seeing a totally unknown face I saw

that of a man in whom I recognized my listener at the Cafe des Arts. But that is not all: behind him came the

semblance of a human being in whose crooked legs and bushy tangled hair I recognized by old trimonthly

providence, my banker, my money bringer,in a word my worthy friend, the mysterious dwarf.

I did not escape, myself, his vigilant eye, and I saw him point me out to the organist with an eager gesture.

The latter turned hastily to look at me and then, without further demonstration, continued his way.

Meanwhile the bandylegged creature went up familiarly to the giver of holywater and offered him a pinch

of snuff; then without paying any further attention to me, he limped to a low door at the side of the church

and disappeared. The evident pains this deformed being had taken to fix the organist's attention upon me

seemed to me a revelation. Evidently, the maestro knew of the singular manner by which my quarterly

stipend had reached me; which stipend, I should tell you, had been regularly continued until my orders for

work so increased as to put me beyond all necessity. It was not improbable therefore that this man, who

listened to me at the Cafe des Arts, was the repository of other secrets relating to my early life; and I became

most eager to obtain an explanation from him; all the more because, as I was now living on my own

resources, my curiosity could not be punished, as formerly threatened, by the withdrawal of my subsidy.

Making my decision quickly, I followed the organist at once; but by the time I reached the door of the church

he was out of sight. However, my luck prompted me to follow the direction he had taken, and as I reached the

quai de Bethune I saw him to my great joy rapping at the door of a house. Entering resolutely after him, I

"Fourth floor above the entresol, door to the left. He has just come in, and you can overtake him on the

Rapidly as I ran up, my man had the key of his door already in the lock when I reached him.

"Perhaps I pronounce the name incorrectly; I mean the organist of SaintLouisdel'Ile."

"Pardon me, monsieur, there is one, for the concierge has just told me so. Besides I saw you leave the organ

Before I could finish my sentence this singular individual cut short our interview by entering his apartment

and locking the door behind him. For a moment I thought that I must have been mistaken; but on reflection I

saw that a mistake was impossible. I had to do with a man who, for years, had proved his unremitting

discretion. No, he was obstinately bent on avoiding me; I was not mistaken in recognizing him.

I then began to pull the bell vigorously, being quite resolved to get some answer at least to my demand. For

some little time the besieged took the racket I made patiently; then, all of a sudden, I noticed that the bell had

ceased to ring. Evidently, the wire was disconnected; the besieged was secure, unless I kicked in the door; but

I returned to the porter and, without giving the reasons for my discomfiture, I told him about it. In that way I

won his confidence and so obtained some little information about the impenetrable Monsieur Jacques

Bricheteau. Though readily given, this information did not enlighten me at all as to the actual situation.

Bricheteau was said to be a quiet lodger, civil, but not communicative; though punctual in paying his rent, his

means seemed small; he kept no servant and took his meals out of the house. Going out every morning before

ten o'clock, he seldom came in before night; the inference was that he was either a clerk in some office, or

One detail alone in the midst of this vague and useless information was of interest. For the last few months

Monsieur Jacques Bricheteau had received a voluminous number of letters the postage on which indicated

that they came from foreign parts; but, in spite of his desires, the worthy concierge had never, he said, been

able to decipher the postmark. Thus this detail, which might have been very useful to me became for the

I returned home, persuading myself that a pathetic letter addressed to the refractory Bricheteau would induce

him to receive me. Mingling with my entreaties the touch of a threat, I let him know that I was firmly

resolved at all costs to get to the bottom of the mystery which weighed upon my life; the secret of which he

evidently knew. The next morning, before nine o'clock, I went to his house, only to learn that after paying the

rent to the end of his term, he had packed up his furniture and left the house in the early morning, without the

porter being able to discover from the men who removed his property (well paid to keep silence, no doubt)

where they were ordered to carry it. These men being strangers in the quarter, it was quite impossible to

I felt, however, that I still had a clue to him, through the organ at SaintLouis, and the following Sunday after

high mass I posted myself as before at the door of the organ loft, determined not to let go of the sphinx until I

had made him speak. But here again, disappointment! Monsieur Jacques Bricheteau's place was taken by a

pupil. The same thing happened on the three following Sundays. On the fourth, I accosted the pupil and asked

"No, monsieur," he replied. "Monsieur Bricheteau has asked for leave of absence. He will be absent for some

"I don't rightly know; but I think you had better address your letter to his house; not far from here, quai de

This was poor luck; to ask information of a man who asked it of me when I questioned him. As if to put be

quite beside myself while I was making these inquiries, I saw that damned dwarf in the distance evidently

Happily for my patience and my curiosity, which, under the pressure of all this opposition was growing

terrible, a certain amount of light was given me. A few days after my last discomfiture, a letter reached me

bearing the postmark Stockholm, Sweden; which address did not surprise me because, while in Rome, I had

been honored by the friendship of Thorwaldsen, the great Swedish sculptor, and I had often met in his studio

many of his compatriots. Probably, therefore, this letter conveyed an order from one of them, sent through

Thorwaldsen. But, on opening the letter what was my amazement, and my emotion, in presence of its opening

The letter was long. I had no patience to read it until I knew the name I bore. I turned to the signature; again

I do not regret that by your passionate insistence on knowing the secret of your birth, you have forced the

person who has watched over you from childhood to come here to confer with me as to the course your

For some time past, I have entertained a thought which I bring to maturity today; the execution of which

could have been more satisfactorily settled by word of mouth than it can now be by correspondence.

Immediately after your birth, which cost your mother's life, being forced to expatriate myself, I made in a

foreign country a noble fortune, and I occupy in the ministry of that country an eminent position. I foresee the

moment when, free to restore to you my name, I shall also be able to secure to you the inheritance of my titles

But, to reach that height, the reputation you have, I am told, acquired in art is not a sufficient

recommendation. It is my wish that you should enter political life; and in that career, under the present

institutions of France, there are not two ways of becoming a man of distinction: you must begin by being

made a deputy. I know that you are not yet of the legal age, and also that you do not possess the property

qualification. But, in another year you will be thirty years old, and that is just the necessary time required by

Tomorrow, therefore, you can present yourself to Mongenod Bros., bankers, rue de la Victoire. A sum of

two hundred and fifty thousand francs will be paid to you; this you must immediately employ in the purchase

of real estate, applying part of the surplus to obtain an interest in some newspaper which, when the right time

comes, will support your candidacy, and the rest in another expense I shall presently explain to you.

Your political aptitude is guaranteed to me by the person who, with a disinterested zeal for which I shall ever

be grateful, has watched over you since you were abandoned. For some time past he has secretly followed

you and listened to you, and he is certain that you will make yourself a dignified position in the Chamber.

Your opinions of ardent yet moderate liberalism please me; without being aware of it, you have very cleverly

played into my game. I cannot as yet tell you the place of your probable election. The secret power which is

preparing for that event is all the more certain to succeed because its plans are pursued quietly and for the

present in the shade. But success will be greatly assisted by the execution of a work which I shall now

propose to you, requesting you to accept its apparent strangeness without surprise or comment.

For the time being you must continue to be a sculptor, and with the talents of which you have already given

proofs, I wish you to make a statue of SaintUrsula. That is a subject which does not lack either interest or

poesy. SaintUrsula, virgin and martyr, was, as is generally believed, a daughter of prince of Great Britain.

Becoming the abbess of a convent of unmarried women, who were called with popular naivete the Eleven

Thousand Virgins, she was martyred by the Huns in the fifth century; later, she was patroness of the order of

the Ursulines, to which she gave its name, and she was also patroness of the famous house of Sorbonne. An

Without knowing the locality of which you will be made the representative, it is expedient that you should

from the present moment, make known your political opinions and your intention of becoming a candidate

for election. But I cannot too strongly insist on your keeping secret the communication now made to you; at

any rate as much as your patience will allow. Leave my agent in peace, and await the slow and quiet

development of the brilliant future to which you are destined, without yielding to a curiosity which might, I

If you refuse to enter my plans, you will take from yourself all chance of ever penetrating a mystery which

you have shown yourself so eager to understand. But I do not admit even the supposition of your resistance,

and I prefer to believe in your deference to the wishes of a father who will regard it as the finest day of his

P.S. Your statue, which is intended for a convent of Ursuline nuns, must be in white marble. Height: one

metre seven hundred and six millimetres; in other words, five feet three inches. As it will not be placed in a

niche, you must carefully finish all sides of it. The costs of the work are to be taken out of the two hundred

This letter chilled and pained me. In the first place, it took from me a hope long cherished,that of

recovering a mother as loving as yours, of whose adorable tenderness, dear friend, you have so often told me.

After all, it was a halflight thrown upon the fogs of my life without even allowing me to know whether I

was or was not the child of a legitimate marriage. It also seemed to me that such paternal intimations

addressed to a man of my age were much too despotic and imperious. Was it not a strange proceeding to

change my whole life as if I were a boy just leaving school! At first I employed to myself all the arguments

against this political vocation which you and my other friends have since addressed to me. Nevertheless

curiosity impelled me to go the Mongenods'; and finding there, sure enough, in actual, living money, the two

hundred and fifty thousand francs announced to me, I was led to reason in another way.

I reflected that a will which began by making such an outlay must have something serious in it. And

inasmuch as this mysterious father knew all and I nothing, it seemed to me that to enter on a struggle with

him was neither reasonable nor opportune. In fact, had I any real repugnance to the career suggested to me?

No. Political interests have always roused me to a certain degree; and if my electoral attempt should come to

nothing, I could always return to my art without being more ridiculous than the other stillborn ambitions

Accordingly, I have bought the necessary piece of property, and made myself a shareholder in the "National."

I have also made the Saint Ursula, and am now awaiting instructions, which seem to me rather long in

coming, as to her actual destination. Moreover, I have made known my parliamentary ambition, and the fact

I need not ask you to preserve the utmost secrecy about my present confidence. Discretion is a virtue which

you practise, to my knowledge, in too signal a manner to need any exhorting thereto from me. But I am

wrong, dear friend, in making these unkind allusions to the past, for at this moment I am, more perhaps than

you know, the obliged party. Partly out of interest in me, but more because of the general aversion your

brotherinlaw's extreme haughtiness inspires, the democratic party has flocked to my door to make inquiries

about my wound, and the talk and excitement about this duel have served me well; there is no doubt that my

candidacy has gained much ground. Therefore, I say, a truce to your gratitude; do you not see how much I

Dear Friend,For better or for worse, I continue my candidacy without a constituency to elect me. This

surprises my friends and worries me, for it is only a few weeks now to the general election; and if it happens

that all this mysterious "preparation" comes to nought, a pretty figure I shall cut in the caricatures of

One thing reassures me: it does not seem likely that any one would have sown two hundred and fifty

thousand francs in my electoral furrow without feeling pretty sure of gathering a harvest. Perhaps, to take a

cheerful view of the matter, this very slowness may be considered as showing great confidence of success.

However that may be, I am kept by this long delay in a state of inaction which weighs upon me. Astride as it

were of two existences, one in which I have not set foot, the other in which my foot still lingers,I have

no heart to undertake real work; I am like a traveller who, having arrived before the hour when the diligence

starts, does not know what to do with his person nor how to spend his time. You will not complain, I think,

that I turn this enforced far niente to the profit of our correspondence; and now that I am thus at leisure, I

shall take up two points in your last letter which did not seem to me of sufficient importance to pay much

attention to at the time: I refer to your warning that my parliamentary pretensions did not meet the approval

of Monsieur Bixiou; and to your suggestion that I might expose myself to falling in love with Madame de

l'Estoradeif I were not in love with her already. Let us discuss, in the first instance, Monsieur Bixiou's

grand disapprobationjust as we used to talk in the olden time of the grand treachery of Monsieur de

I'll describe that man to you in a single word. Envy. In Monsieur Bixiou there is, unquestionably, the makings

of a great artist; but in the economy of his existence the belly has annihilated the heart and the head, and he is

now and forever under the dominion of sensual appetites; he is riveted to the condition of a

caricaturist,that is to say, to the condition of a man who from day to day discounts himself in petty

products, regular galleyslave potboilers, which, to be sure, give him a lively living, but in themselves are

worthless and have no future. With talents misused and now impotent, he has in his mind, as he has on his

face, that everlasting and despairing grin which human thought instinctively attributes to fallen angels. Just as

the Spirit of darkness attacks, in preference, great saints because they recall to him most bitterly the angelic

nature from which he has fallen, so Monsieur Bixiou delights to slaver the talents and characters of those who

he sees have courageously refused to squander their strength, sap, and aims as he has done.

But the thing which ought to reassure you somewhat as to the danger of his calumny and his slander (for he

employs both forms of backbiting) is that at the very time when he believes he is making a burlesque autopsy

of me he is actually an obedient puppet whose wire I hold in my hands, and whom I am making talk as I

please. Being convinced that a certain amount of noisy discussion would advance my political career, I

looked about me for what I may call a public crier. Among these circus trumpets, if I could have found one

with a sharper tone, a more deafening blare than Bixiou's, I would have chosen it. As it was, I have profited

by the malevolent curiosity which induces that amiable lepidopter to insinuate himself into all studios. I

confided the whole affair to him; even to the two hundred and fifty thousand francs (which I attributed to a

lucky stroke at the Bourse), I told him all my plans of parliamentary conduct, down to the number of the

house I have bought to conform to the requirements of the electoral law. It is all jotted down in his notebook.

That statement, I think, would somewhat reduce the admiration of his hearers in the salon Montcornet did

they know of it. As for the political horoscope which he has been so kind as to draw for me, I cannot honestly

say that his astrology is at fault. It is very certain that with my intention of following no set of fixed opinions,

I must reach the situation so admirably summed up by the lawyer of Monsieur de la Palisse, when he

exclaimed with burlesque emphasis: "What do you do, gentlemen, when you place a man in solitude? You

Isolation will certainly be my lot, and the artistlife, in which a man lives alone and draws from himself like

the Great Creator whose work he toils to imitate, has predisposed me to welcome the situation. But although,

in the beginning especially, it will deprive me of all influence in the lobbies, it may serve me well in the

tribune, where I shall be able to speak with strength and freedom. Being bound by no promises and by no

party trammels, nothing will prevent me from being the man I am, and expressing, in all their sacred crudity,

the ideas which I think sound and just. I know very well that before an audience plain, honest truth may fail

to be contagious or even welcome. But have you never remarked that, by using our opportunities wisely, we

finally meet with days which may be called the festivals of morality and intelligence, days on which,

I do not, however, conceal from myself that, although I may reach to some reputation as an orator, such a

course will never lead to a ministry, and that it does not bestow that reputation of being a practical man to

which it is now the fashion to sacrifice so much. But if at arm's length in the tribune I have but little

influence, I shall make my mark at a greater distance. I shall speak as it were from a window, beyond the

close and narrow sphere of parliamentary discussion, and above the level of its petty passions and its petty

interests. This species of success appears to meet the views of the mysterious paternal intentions toward me.

What they seem to require is that I shall sound and resound. From that point of view, i' faith, politics have a

Now, to take up your other warning: that of my passion born or to be born for Madame de l'Estorade. I quote

In 1837, when you left for Italy, Madame de l'Estorade was, you say, in the flower of her beauty; and the

queer, audacious persistence which I have shown in deriving inspiration from her shows that it has not faded.

Hence, if the evil be not already done, you warn me to be on my guard; from the admiration of an artist to the

adoration of the man there is but a step, and the history of the late Pygmalion is commended to my study.

In the first place, learned doctor and mythologian, allow me this remark. Being on the spot and therefore

much better placed than you to judge of the dangers of the situation, I can assure you that the principal person

concerned does not appear to feel the least anxiety. Monsieur de l'Estorade quarrels with me for one thing

Parbleu! I hear you say, a husband is always the last to know that his wife is being courted. So be it. But the

high renown of Madame de l'Estorade's virtue, her cold and rather calculating good sense, which often served

to balance the ardent and passionate impetuosity of one you knew well,what of that? And will you not

grant that motherhood as it appears in that ladypushed to a degree of fervor which I might almost call

So much for her. But it is not, I see, for her tranquillity, it is mine for which your friendship is concerned; if

Pygmalion had not succeeded in giving life to his statue, a pretty life his love would have made him!

To your charitable solicitude I must answer, (1) by asserting my principles (though the word and the thing are

utterly out of date); (2) by a certain stupid respect that I feel for conjugal loyalty; (3) by the natural

preoccupation which the serious public enterprise I am about to undertake must necessarily give to my mind

and imagination. I must also tell you that I belong, if not by spiritual height, at least by all the tendencies of

my mind and character, to that strong and serious school of artists of another age who, finding that art is long

and life is shortars longa et vita brevisdid not commit the mistake of wasting their time and lessening

But I have a better reason still to offer you. As Monsieur de l'Estorade has told you of the really romantic

incidents of my first meeting with his wife, you know already that a memory was the cause of my studying

her as a model. Well, that memory, while it attracted me to the beautiful countess, is the strongest of all

reasons to keep me from her. This appears to you, I am sure, sufficiently enigmatical and farfetched; but

If you had not thought proper to break the thread of our intercourse, I should not today be obliged to take up

the arrears of our confidence; as it is, my dear boy, you must now take your part in my past history and listen

In 1835, the last year of my stay in Rome, I became quite intimate with a comrade in the Academy named

Desroziers. He was a musician and a man of distinguished and very observing mind, who would probably

have gone far in his art if malarial fever had not put an end to him the following year. Suddenly the idea took

possession of us to go to Sicily, one of the excursions permitted by the rules of the school; but as we were

radically "dry," as they say, we walked about Rome for some time endeavoring to find some means of

recruiting our finances. On one of these occasions we happened to pass before the Palazzo Braschi. Its

wideopen doors gave access to the passing and repassing of a crowd of persons of all sorts.

And without explaining his words or where he was taking me, he made me follow the crowd and enter the

After mounting a magnificent marble staircase and crossing a very long suite of apartments rather poorly

furnished,which is customary in Italian palaces, all their luxury being put into ceilings, statues, paintings,

and other objects of art,we reached a room that was wholly hung with black and lighted by quantities of

tapers. It was, of course, a chambreardente. In the middle of it on a raised platform surmounted by a

baldaquin, lay a thing, the most hideous and grotesque thing you can possibly conceive. Imagine a little old

man whose hands and face had reached such a stage of emaciation that a mummy would have seemed to you

Clothed in black satin breeches, a violet velvet coat cut a la Francaise, a white waistcoat embroidered in

gold, from which issued an enormous shirtfrill of point d'Angleterre, this skeleton had cheeks covered with

a thick layer of rouge which heightened still further the parchment tones of the rest of his skin. Upon his head

was a blond wig frizzed into innumerable little curls, surmounted by an immense plumed hat jauntily perched

to one side in a manner which irresistibly provoked the laughter of even the most respectful visitors.

After one glance given to this ridiculous and lamentable exhibition, an obligatory part of all funerals,

according to the etiquette of the Roman aristocracy,Desroziers exclaimed: "There's the end; now come and

Not replying to any of my questions, because he was arranging a dramatic effect, he took me to the Albani

gallery and placed me before a statue representing Adonis stretched on a lion's skin.

"Antique as much as I am!" replied Desroziers. "It is a portrait in youth of that wizened old being we have

"Antique or not, it is a masterpiece," I said. "But how is all this beauty, or its hideous caricature, to get us to

"I'll tell you," replied Desroziers. "I know the family of that old scarecrow. His niece married the Comte de

Lanty, and they have long wanted to buy this statue which the Albani museum won't give up at any price.

They have tried to have it copied, but they never got anything satisfactory. Now, you know the director of the

museum well. Get him to let you make a copy of it. I give musiclessons to the Comte de Lanty's daughter,

Mademoiselle Marianina, and I'll talk of your copy. If you succeed, as of course you will, the count will buy

Two days later I began the work, and, as it suited my taste, I worked so hotly at it that by the end of three

weeks the Lanty family, escorted by Desroziers, came to see my copy. The count, who seemed to me a good

connoisseur, declared himself satisfied with the work and bought it. Mademoiselle Marianina, who was the

heiress and favorite of her granduncle, was particularly delighted with it. Marianina was then about

twentyone years old, and I shall not make you her portrait because you know Madame de l'Estorade, to

whom her likeness is extraordinary. Already an accomplished musician, this charming girl had a remarkable

inclination for all the arts. Coming from time to time to my studio to watch the completion of the statue, a

taste for sculpture seized her, as it did the Princesse Marie d'Orleans, and until the departure of the family,

which took place a few months before I myself left Rome, Mademoiselle de Lanty took lessons from me in

I never dreamed of being another SaintPreux or Abelard, but I must own that I found rare happiness in

imparting my knowledge. Marianina was so gay and happy, her judgment of art so sound, her voice, when

she sang, so stirred my heart, that had it not been for her vast fortune, which kept me at a distance, I should

have run great danger to my peace of mind. Admitted into the household on the footing of a certain

familiarity, I could see that my beautiful pupil took pleasure in our intercourse, and when the family returned

to Paris she expressed the utmost regret at leaving Rome; I even fancied, God forgive me, that I saw

On my return to Paris, some months later, my first visit was to the hotel de Lanty. Marianina was too well

bred and too kind at heart to be discourteous to any one, but I felt at once that a cold restrained manner was

substituted for the gracious friendliness of the past. It seemed to me probable that her evident liking, I will

not say for me personally, but for my conversation and acquirements, had been noticed by her parents, who

had doubtless taught her a lesson; in fact, the stiff and forbidding manner of Monsieur and Madame de Lanty

Naturally, I did not call again; but a few months later, when I exhibited my Pandora in the salon of 1837, I

one day saw the whole Lanty family approach it. The mother was on the arm of Comte Maxime de Trailles, a

wellknown lion. Nil admirari is the natural instinct of all men of the world; so, after a very cursory glance at

my work, Monsieur de Trailles began to find shocking faults in it, and in so high and clear a voice that not a

word was lost within a certain range. Marianina shrugged her shoulders as she listened to this profound

"How fortunate you came with us! Without your enlightened knowledge I might, with the rest of the good

public, have thought this statue admirable. It is a pity the sculptor is not here to learn his business from you."

"He is here, behind you," said a stout woman, who had once been my landlady, and was standing near,

laughing heartily. Involuntarily Marianina turned; when she saw me a vivid color came into her cheeks, and I

slipped away into the crowd. A girl who took my part so warmly, and then showed such emotion on being

detected in doing so, could not be absolutely indifferent to me; and as on my first visit I had only, after all,

been coldly received, I decided, after my great success at the Exhibition, in consequence of which I was made

a chevalier of the Legion of honor, to call again upon the Lantys; perhaps my new distinctions would procure

Monsieur de Lanty received me without rising, and with the following astounding apostrophe:

"I have never been received in a manner that seemed to require courage on my part."

"You have come, no doubt," continued Monsieur de Lanty, "in search of your property which you were

careless enough to leave in our hands. I shall return you that article of gallantry."

So saying, he rose and took from a drawer in his secretary an elegant little portfolio, which he gave to me.

"Yes; I know the letters are not there; I presume you will allow me to keep them."

"I knew monsieur was here, and as I feared some painful explanation, I came to do my duty as a woman, and

"You need fear nothing, madame," I said; "evidently what is taking place is the result of some

"Ah! this is too much!" cried Monsieur de Lanty, reopening the drawer from which he had taken the

portfolio, and taking out a packet of letters tied with a rosecolored ribbon. "I think these will put an end to

I looked at the letters; they were not postmarked, and simply bore my name, Monsieur Dorlange, in a

"Monsieur," I said, "you know more than I do; you have in your possession letters that seem to belong to me,

"Upon my word," cried Monsieur de Lanty, "you are an admirable comedian; I never saw innocence better

"But, monsieur," I said, "who wrote those letters, and why are they addressed to me?"

"It is useless to deny them, monsieur," said Madame de Lanty; "Marianina has confessed all."

"Mademoiselle Marianina!" I exclaimed. "Then the matter is very simple; have the goodness to bring us

"The evasion is clever," replied Monsieur de Lanty; "but my daughter is no longer here: she is in a convent,

forever sheltered from your intrigues and the dangers of her own ridiculous passion. If that is what you came

to know, all is said. Let us part, for my patience and moderation have a limit, if your insolence has none."

"Monsieur!" I began, angrily; but Madame de Lanty, who was standing behind her husband, made me a

gesture as if she would fall upon her knees; and reflecting that perhaps Marianina's future depended on the

attitude I now took, I controlled myself and left the room without further words.

The next morning, before I was out of bed, the Abbe Fontanon was announced to me. When he entered he

proved to be a tall old man with a bilious skin and a sombre, stern expression, which he tried to soften by a

"Monsieur," he said, "Madame la Comtesse de Lanty, whose confessor I have the honor to be, requests me to

give you a few explanations, to which you have an incontestable right, as to the scene that took place last

"Monsieur de Lanty," continued the abbe, "is a bad sleeper; and one night last summer he was awakened by

the sound of cautious steps. He opened his door, and called out to know who was there. He was not mistaken;

some one was there, but did not answer, and disappeared before Monsieur de Lanty could obtain a light. At

first it was thought to be an attempt at robbery; but on further inquiry it appeared that a gentleman had taken a

room in the neighborhood, and had frequently been seen in company with Mademoiselle Marianina,in

short, the matter concerned a love affair and not a robbery. Monsieur de Lanty has long watched his daughter,

whose ardent inclinations have given him much anxiety; you yourself, monsieur, caused him some uneasiness

"Yes. I know that your relations to Mademoiselle de Lanty have always been perfectly proper and becoming.

But since their return to Paris another individual has occupied her mind,a bold and enterprising man,

capable of risking everything to compromise and thus win an heiress. Being taxed with having encouraged

this man and allowed these nocturnal interviews, Mademoiselle de Lanty at first denied everything. Then,

evidently fearing that her father, a violent man, would take some steps against her lover, she threw herself at

his feet and admitted the visits, but denied that the visitor was the man her father named to her. At first she

refused obstinately to substitute another name for the one she disavowed. After some days passed in this

struggle, she finally confessed to her mother, under a pledge of secrecy, that her father was right in his

suspicions, but she dreaded the results to the family if she acknowledged the truth to him. The man in

question was a noted duellist, and her father and brother would surely bring him to account for his conduct. It

was then, monsieur, that the idea occurred to this imprudent girl to substitute another name for that of her real

"Ah! I understand," I said; "the name of a nobody, an artist, a sculptor, or some insignificant individual of

"You do Mademoiselle de Lanty injustice by that remark," replied the abbe. "What decided her to make your

name a refuge against the dangers she foresaw was the fact that Monsieur de Lanty had formerly had

suspicions about you, and she thought that circumstance gave color to her statement."

"But, Monsieur l'abbe," I said, "how do you explain those letters, that portfolio, which her father produced

"That again was an invention of Marianina; and I may add that this duplicity assures me that had she

"Confided to me, monsieur, yes. You yourself saw Madame de Lanty's desire to stop your explanations

yesterday, lest the truth might appear to her husband. I am requested by her to thank you for your

connivancepassive, of coursein this pious falsehood. She felt that she could only show her profound

"As Monsieur de Lanty told you, in a convent in Italy. To avoid scandal, it was thought best to send her to

Now what do you think of that history? Does it not seem to you very improbable? Here are two explanations

which have each come into my mind with the force of a conviction. First, Marianina's brother has just

married into a grandducal family of Germany. Immense sacrifices must have been required of the de Lanty

family to make such an alliance. Was Marianina's dot, and the fortune she inherited from that old

granduncle, required to pay the costs of that princely union? Secondly, did Marianina really feel an

attachment for me? And did she, in a girlish way, express it on those letters which she never sent? To punish

her, had her parents sent her to a convent? And to disgust me, and throw me off the track, had the mother

invented this history of another love in which she seemed to make me play so mortifying a part?

I may add that the intervention of the Abbe Fontanon authorizes such an interpretation. I have made inquiries

about him, and I find he is one of those mischievous priests who worm themselves into the confidence of

families for their own ends; he has already destroyed the harmony of one home,that of Monsieur de

As to the truth or falsehood of these suppositions I know nothing, and, in all probability, shall continue to

know nothing. But, as you can easily understand, the thought of Marianina is a luminous point to which my

eye is forever attached. Shall I love her? Shall I hate her and despise her? That is the question perpetually in

my mind. Uncertainty of that kind is far more certain to fix a woman in a man's soul than to dislodge her.

Well, to sum up in two brief sentences my reply to your warnings: As for the opinion of Monsieur Bixiou, I

care as little for it as for last year's roses; and as for that other danger which you fear, I cannot tell you

whether I love Marianina or not, but this I know, I do not love Madame de l'Estorade. That, I think, is giving

you a plain and honest answer. And now, let us leave our master the Future to do what he likes.

Monsieur Dorlange came last evening to take leave of us. He starts today for ArcissurAube, where the

ceremony of inaugurating his statue takes place. That is also the place selected by the Opposition journals for

his candidacy. Monsieur de l'Estorade declares that the locality could not have been worse chosen, and that it

Monsieur Dorlange paid his visit early. I was alone. Monsieur de l'Estorade was dining with the Minister of

the Interior, and the children were in bed. The conversation interrupted by Madame de la Bastie could now be

renewed, as I was about to ask him to continue the history, of which he had only told me the last words, when

our old Lucas brought me a letter. It was from my Armand, to let me know that he had been ill since morning,

"Order the carriage," I said to Lucas, in a state of agitation you can easily conceive.

"But, madame," replied Lucas, "monsieur has ordered the carriage to fetch him at halfpast nine o'clock, and

"I don't know that I can find one," said our old servant, who is a man of difficulties; "it is beginning to rain."

Without noticing that remark and without thinking of Monsieur Dorlange, I went hastily to my room to put

on my bonnet and shawl. That done, I returned to the salon, where my visitor still remained.

"You must excuse me, monsieur," I said to him, "for leaving you so abruptly. I must hasten to the Henri IV.

College. I could not possibly pass a night in the dreadful anxiety my son's letter has caused me; he tells me he

"But," replied Monsieur Dorlange, "surely you are not going alone in a hired carriage to that lonely quarter?"

At that moment Lucas returned; his prediction was realized; there was not a coach on the stand; it was raining

in torrents. Time was passing; already it was almost too late to enter the school, where masters and pupils go

Instantly I saw his face lengthen. He is no longer young and loves his ease; moreover, he complains every

winter of rheumatism. He made various objections,that it was very late; that we should "revolutionize" the

school; I should take cold; Monsieur Armand could not be very ill if he wrote himself; in short, it was clear

Monsieur Dorlange very obligingly offered to go himself in my place and bring me word about Armand; but

that did not suit me at all; I felt that I must see for myself. Having thanked him, I said to Lucas in a tone of

"It is not possible that madame should go out in such weather; and I don't want monsieur to scold me for

"Madame knows very well that for anything reasonable I would do what she told me if I had to go through

"Heat is good for rheumatism, but rain is not," I said; then, turning to Monsieur Dorlange, I added: "As you

were so kind as to offer to do this errand alone, may I ask you to give me your arm and come with me?"

"I am like Lucas," he said, "I do not think this excursion absolutely necessary; but as I am not afraid of being

We started. The weather was frightful; we had hardly gone fifty steps before we were soaked in spite of

Lucas's huge umbrella, with which Monsieur Dorlange sheltered me at his own expense. Luckily a coach

happened to pass; Monsieur Dorlange hailed the driver; it was empty. Of course I could not tell my

companion that he was not to get in; such distrust was extremely unbecoming and not for me to show. But

you know, my dear friend, that showers of rain have helped lovers from the days of Dido down. However,

Monsieur Dorlange said nothing: he saw my anxiety and he had the good taste not to attempt conversation,

breaking the silence only from time to time with casual remarks. When we reached the school, after getting

out of the carriage to give me his hand he saw for himself that he must not enter the house and he therefore

Well, I found Monsieur Armand had hoaxed me. His illness reduced itself to a headache, which departed

soon after he had written me. The doctor, for the sake of ordering something, had told him to take an infusion

of lindenleaves, telling him that the next day he could go back to his studies. I had taken a club to kill a flea,

and committed all sorts of enormities to get there at an hour when the entire establishment were going to bed,

only to find my young gentleman perfectly well and playing chess with one of the nurses.

On leaving the school I found the rain had ceased and the moon was shining brightly. My heart was full; the

reaction from my great anxiety had set in and I felt a need of breathing the fresh air. I therefore proposed to

Here was an opportunity for him to make me that longdelayed explanation; but Monsieur Dorlange seemed

so little inclined to take advantage of it that, using Monsieur Armand's freak as a text, he read me a lecture on

the danger of spoiling children: a subject which was not at all agreeable to me, as he must have perceived

from the rather stiff manner with which I listened to him. Come, thought I, I must and will get to the bottom

of this history; it is like the tale of Sancho's herdsman, which had the faculty of never getting told. So, cutting

"This is a very good time, I think, to continue the confidence you were about to make to me. Here we are sure

"I am afraid I shall prove a poor storyteller," replied Monsieur Dorlange. "I have spent all my fire this very

"That," I answered laughing, "is against your own theory of secrecy, in which a third party is one too many."

"Oh, MarieGaston and I count for one only. Besides, I had to reply to his odd ideas about you and me."

"That, in view of the singularities which accompanied my first knowledge of you and led me to the honor of

your acquaintance, I might expose myself to the danger, madame, of not retaining my reason and

And then, without further preamble, he told me a long tale which I need not repeat here; the gist of it is,

however, that Monsieur Dorlange is in love with a woman who posed in his imagination for SaintUrsula;

but as this woman appears to be forever lost to him it did not seem to me impossible that in the long run he

might transfer his sentiments for her memory to me. When he had finished his tale he asked if I did not think

"Modesty," I replied, "obliges me to share your security; but they say that in the army shots frequently

"Then you think me capable of the impertinence MarieGaston is good enough to suspect in me?"

"I don't know about its being an impertinence," I said stiffly, "but if such a fancy came into your mind, I

"Madame," he said, "you will not have to pity me. In my opinion, first love is a vaccination which protects us

The conversation stopped there. We had now reached my own door, and I invited Monsieur Dorlange to

come in. He accepted my politeness, remarking that Monsieur de l'Estorade had probably returned and he

My husband was at home. I don't know whether Lucas, forestalling the rebuke I intended to give him, had

made out a story to excuse himself, or whether Monsieur de l'Estorade for the first time in his life, felt, in

view of my maternal escapade, a movement of jealousy. It is certain, however, that his manner of receiving

me was curt; he called it an unheardof thing to go out at such an hour, in such weather, to see a boy who

proved, by announcing his own illness, that it was nothing serious. After letting him talk in this discourteous

way for some little time, I thought it was time to put an end to the scene, so I said in a rather peremptory

"As I wanted to sleep at night, I went to the school in a pelting rain; I came back by moonlight; and I beg you

to remark that monsieur, who was so good as to escort me, has come upstairs to bid you good bye, because

I have habitually enough power over Monsieur de l'Estorade to make this call to order effective; but I saw

that my husband was displeased, and that instead of having made Monsieur Dorlange an easy diversion, I had

called down upon his head the illhumor of my ogre, who instantly turned upon him.

After telling him that much had been said about his candidacy during dinner at the ministry, Monsieur de

l'Estorade began to show him all the reasons why he might expect an overwhelming defeat; namely, that

ArcissurAube was one of the boroughs where the administration felt itself most secure; that a man of

extraordinary political ability had already been sent there to manipulate the election, and had made a first

report giving triumphant news of his success. These were only generalities, to which Monsieur Dorlange

replied with modesty, but also with the air of a man who had resolved who take his chances against all risks

to which his election might be exposed. Monsieur de l'Estorade then produced a final shaft which, under the

circumstances, was calculated to have a marvellous effect, because it attacked both the candidate and his

"Listen to me, my dear monsieur," said my husband, "when a man starts on an electoral career he must

remember that he stakes everything; his public life and also his private life. Your adversaries will ransack

your present and your past with a pitiless hand, and sorrow to him who has any dark spots to hide. Now I

ought not to conceal from you that tonight, at the ministers', much was said about a little scandal which,

while it may be venial in the life of an artist, takes proportions altogether more serious in that of the people's

representative. You understand me, of course. I refer to that handsome Italian woman whom you have in your

house. Take care; some puritanical elector whose own morality may be more or less problematical, is likely

"To those," he said, "who may arraign me on that detail of my private life I wish but one thingthat they

may have nothing worse upon their consciences. If I had not already wearied madame on our way from the

school with an interminable story, I would tell you the facts relating to my handsome Italian, and you would

see, Monsieur le comte, that her presence in my house reflects in no way upon me.

"But," returned Monsieur de l'Estorade, softening his tone, "you take my observation rather too seriously. As

I said just now, an artist may have a handsome model in his housethat may be natural enoughbut she is

"No, what seems more to their liking," replied Monsieur Dorlange, with some heat, "is the good they can get

for themselves out of a calumny accepted eagerly and without examination. However, far from dreading

inquiry on the subject you mention, I desire it, and the ministry will do me a great service if it will employ the

extremely able political personage you say they have put upon my path to bring that delicate question before

"Do you really start tomorrow?" asked Monsieur de l'Estorade, finding that he had started a subject which

not only did not confound Monsieur Dorlange, but, on the contrary, gave him the opportunity to reply with a

"Yes, and very early too; so that I must now take leave of you, having certain preparations still to make."

So saying, Monsieur Dorlange rose, and after making me a rather ceremonious bow and not bestowing his

hand on Monsieur de l'Estorade, who, in turn, did not hold out his own, he left the room.

"What was the matter with Armand?" asked my husband, as if to avoid any other explanation.

"Never mind Armand," I said, "it is far more interesting to know what is the matter with you; for never did I

"What! because I told a ridiculous candidate that he would have to go into mourning for his reputation?"

"In the first place, that was not complimentary; and in any case the moment was illchosen with a man on

"I don't like meddlers," retorted Monsieur de l'Estorade, raising his voice more than I had ever known him do

to me. "And after all, if he had not been here to give you his arm you would not have gone."

"You are mistaken; I should have gone alone; for your servant, being master here, refused to accompany me."

"But you must certainly admit that if any acquaintance had met you at halfpast nine o'clock walking

arminarm with Monsieur Dorlange the thing would have seemed to them, to say the least, singular."

"Is it possible that after sixteen years of married life you do me the honor to be jealous. Now I see why, in

spite of your respect for proprieties, you spoke to Monsieur Dorlange in my presence of that Italian woman

whom people think his mistress; that was a nice little perfidy by which you meant to ruin him in my

Thus exposed to the light, my poor husband talked at random for a time, and finally had no resource but to

What do you think of this conjugal proceeding, by which my husband, wishing to do a man some harm in my

estimation, gave him the opportunity to appear to the utmost advantage? Forthere was no mistaking

itthe sort of emotion with which Monsieur Dorlange repelled the charge was the cry of a conscience at

On my return this evening from the Estorades, on whom I had paid my parting call, I found your letter, my

dear friend, in which you announce your coming arrival. I shall await you tomorrow during the day, but in

the evening I must, without further delay, start for ArcissurAube, where, in the course of the next week my

political matters will come to a head. What particular hold I may have on that town, which, as it appears, I

have the ambition to represent, and on what cooperation and assistance I may rely,in a word, who is

making my electoral bed,all that I know as little about as I did last year when I was told for the first time

A few days ago I received a second letter from my father, postmarked Paris this time, and not Stockholm.

Judging by the style of the document, it would not surprise me if the "eminent services" rendered in a

Northern court by the mysterious author of my days turned out to be those of a Prussian corporal. It would be

impossible to issue orders in a more imperative tone, or to dwell more minutely on trifling particulars.

On receipt of these instructions I am to send to its destination the SaintUrsula; to superintend the packing

and boxing of it myself, and to despatch it by the fastest carrier, to Mother MariedesAnges, superior of the

The order went on to say that I was to follow the statue in a few days, so as to arrive at the said

ArcissurAube not later than the 3rd of May. Even the inn at which I was to put up was dictated. I would

find myself expected at the Hotel de la Poste; so that if I happen to prefer any of the others I must resign that

fancy. I am also enjoined to publish in the newspapers on the day of my departure the fact that I present

myself as candidate in the electoral arrondissement of ArcissurAube; avoiding, however, to make any

profession of political faith, which would be both useless and premature. The document ended with an

injunction which, while it humiliated me somewhat, gave me a certain faith in what was happening. The

Mongenod Brothers, and draw for another sum of two hundred and fifty thousand francs, which is to

be deposited in my name, "taking the utmost care," continued my instructions, "when transporting this money

What do you think of that last clause, dear friend? That sum is to be deposited; then it is not already there;

and suppose it is not there?Besides, what am I to do with it in Arcis? Am I to stand my election on English

principles? if so, a profession of political faith would certainly be useless and premature. As to the advice not

to lose or allow to be stolen the money in my possession, do you not think that that is making me rather

juvenile? I feel an inclination to suck my thumb and cry for a rattle. However, I shall let myself go with the

current that is bearing me along, and, notwithstanding the news of your coming arrival, after paying a visit to

the Brothers Mongenod, I shall valiantly start, imagining the stupefaction of the good people of Arcis on

In Paris I have already fired my gun. The "National" has announced my candidacy in the warmest terms; and

it seems that this evening, in the house of the Minister of the Interior, where Monsieur de l'Estorade was

dining, I was discussed at some length. I ought to add that, according to Monsieur de l'Estorade, the general

impression is that I shall certainly fail of election. The ministry might possibly fear a candidate from the Left

centre; but as for the democratic party to which I am supposed to belong, they do not even allow that it exists.

The Left centre candidate has, however, been disposed of by a ministerial envoy of the ablest and most active

description, and at this moment, when I set off my small balloon, the election of the Conservative candidate

Among the elements of my inevitable defeat, Monsieur de l'Estorade condescended to mention a matter about

which, dear friend, I am rather surprised that you have not already lectured me. It is one of those agreeable

calumnies put in circulation in the salon Montcornet by the honored and honorable Monsieur Bixiou. The

scandal concerns a handsome Italian woman whom I brought back from Italy and with whom I am said to be

living in a manner not canonical. Come, tell me, what hindered you from asking me to explain this important

matter? Did you think the charge so shameful that you feared to offend me by alluding to it? Or have you

such confidence in my morality that you felt no need of being strengthened therein? I did not have time to

enter upon the necessary explanations to Monsieur de l'Estorade, neither have I the leisure to write them to

you now. If I speak of the incident it is for the purpose of telling you of an observation I think I have made,

I have an idea that it would not be agreeable to Monsieur de l'Estorade to see me successful in my electoral

campaign. He never gave much approbation to the plan; in fact he tried to dissuade me, but always from the

point of view of my own interests. But today, when he finds that the plan has taken shape, and is actually

discussed in the ministerial salon, my gentleman turns bitter, and he seems to feel a malignant pleasure in

prophesying my defeat and in producing this charming little infamy under which he expects to bury our

Why so! I will tell you: while feeling some gratitude for the service I did him, the worthy man also felt from

the height of his social position a superiority over me of which my entrance to the Chamber will now

dispossess him; and it is not agreeable to him to renounce that sense of superiority. After all, what is an artist,

even though he may be a man of genius, compared to a peer of France, a personage who puts his hand to the

tiller and steers the great political and social system; a man who has access to kings and ministers, and who

would have the right if, by impossibility, such audacity should seize upon his mind, of depositing a black ball

against the budget. Well, this privileged being does not like that I, and others like me, should assume the

But that is not all. Hereditary statesmen have a foolish pretension: that of being initiated by long study into a

certain science represented as arduous, which they call the science of public affairs and which they (like

physicians with medical science) alone have the right to practise. They are not willing that an underling, a

journalist for instance, or lower than that, an artist, a cutter of images, should presume to slip into their

domain and speak out beside them. A poet, an artist, a writer may be endowed with eminent faculties, they

will agree to that; the profession of such men presupposes it; but statesmen they cannot be. Chateaubriand

himself, though better placed than the rest of us to make himself a niche in the Governmental Olympus, was

turned out of doors one morning by a concise little note, signed Joseph de Villele, dismissing him, as was

I know that time and that tall posthumous daughter of ours whom we call Posterity will some day do good

justice and plead the right thing in the right place. Towards the end of 2039, the world, if it deigns to last till

then, will know what Canalis, Joseph Bridau, Daniel d'Arthez, Stidmann, and Leon de Lora were in 1839;

whereas an infinitely small number of persons will know that during the same period Monsieur le Comte de

l'Estorade was peer of France, and president of the Cour des comptes; Monsieur le Comte de Rastignac

minister of Public Works; and his brotherinlaw, Monsieur le Baron Martial de la RocheHugon was a

diplomat and Councillor of State employed on more or less extraordinary services.

But while awaiting this tardy classification and distant reform, I think it well to let our great governing class

know from time to time that unless their names are Richelieu or Colbert they are liable to competition and are

forced to accept it. So, with this aggravating intention I begin to take pleasure in my enterprise; and if I am

elected, I shall, unless you assure me that I have mistaken de l'Estorade's meaning, find occasion to let him

and others of his kind know that one can, if so disposed, climb over the walls of their little parks and strut as

But how is it, my dear friend, that I rattle on about myself and say no word about the sad emotions which

must attend your return to France? How can you bear them? And instead of endeavoring to lay them aside, I

fear you are willingly nursing them and taking a melancholy pleasure in their revival. Dear friend, I say to

you of these great sorrows what I said just now of our governing classwe should consider them from the

point of view of time and space, by the action of which they become after a while imperceptible.

Do me a favor! On arriving in Paris without having a house prepared to receive you, it would be very

friendlyyou would seem like the man of old timesif you would take up your quarters with me, instead of

going to Ville d'Avray, which, indeed, I think dangerous and even bad for you. Stay with me, and you can

thus judge of my handsome housekeeper, and you will see how much she has been calumniated and

misunderstood. You will also be near to the l'Estorades in whom I expect you to find consolations; and

besides, this act would be a charming expiation for all the involuntary wrongs you have done me. At any rate,

P.S. You have not yet arrived, dear friend, and I must close this letter, which will be given to you by my

housekeeper when you come by my house, for I am certain that your first visit will be to me.

I went this morning to the Mongenods'; the two hundred and fifty thousand francs were there, but with the

accompaniment of a most extraordinary circumstance; the money was in the name of the Comte de

Sallenauve, otherwise Dorlange, sculptor, 42 rue de l'Ouest. In spite of an appellation which has never been

mine, the money was mine, and was paid to me without the slightest hesitation. I had enough presence of

mind not to seem stupefied by my new name and title before the cashier; but I saw Monsieur Mongenod the

elder in private, a man who enjoys the highest reputation at the Bank, and to him I expressed my

astonishment, asking for whatever explanations he was able to give me. He could give none; the money came

to him through a Dutch banker, his correspondent at Rotterdam, and he knew nothing beyond that. Ah ca!

what does it all mean? Am I to be a noble? Has the moment come for my father to acknowledge me? I start in

a state of agitation and of anxiety which you can well understand. Until I hear from you, I shall address my

letters to you here. If you decide not to stay in my house, let me know your address at once. Say nothing of

Dear friend,Last evening, before Maitre Achille Pigoult, notary of this place, the burial of Charles

Dorlange took place,that individual issuing to the world, like a butterfly from a grub, under the name and

estate of Charles de Sallenauve, son of FrancoisHenri Pantaleon Dumirail, Marquis de Sallenauve. Here

Leaving Paris on the evening of May 1st, I arrived at Arcis, according to my father's directions, on the

following day. You can believe my surprise when I saw in the street where the diligence stopped the elusive

Jacques Bricheteau, whom I had not seen since our singular meeting on the Ile SaintLouis. This time I

beheld him, instead of behaving like the dog of Jean de Nivelle, come towards me with a smile upon his lips,

"At last, my dear monsieur, we are almost at the end of all our mysteries, and soon, I hope, you will see that

"Yes," I replied, "neither lost nor stolen." And I drew from my pocket a wallet containing the two hundred

"Very good!" said Jacques Bricheteau. "Now let us go to the Hotel de la Poste; no doubt you know who

"You must have remarked the name and title under which that money was paid to you?"

"Certainly; that strange circumstance struck me forcibly, and has, I must own, stirred my imagination."

"Well, we shall now completely lift the veil, one corner of which we were careful to raise at first, so that you

might not come too abruptly to the great and fortunate event that is now before you."

"Yes," replied Jacques Bricheteau; "your father is awaiting you; but I must warn you against a probable cloud

on his manner of receiving you. The marquis has suffered much; the court life which he has always led has

trained him to show no outward emotions; besides, he has a horror of everything bourgeois. You must not be

surprised, therefore, at the cold and dignified reception he will probably give you; at heart, he is good and

"Here," thought I, "are very comforting assurances, and as I myself am not very ardently disposed, I foresee

On going into the room where the Marquis awaited me, I saw a very tall, very thin, very bald man, seated at a

table on which he was arranging papers. On hearing the door open, he pushed his spectacles up on his

forehead, rested his hands on the arms of his chair, and looking round at us he waited.

"Monsieur le Comte de Sallenauve," said Jacques Bricheteau, announcing me with the solemnity of an usher

But in the presence of the man to whom I owed my life the ice in me was instantly melted; I stepped forward

with an eager impulse, feeling the tears rise to my eyes. He did not move. There was not the faintest trace of

agitation in his face, which had that peculiar look of high dignity that used to be called "the grand air"; he

"Then you have no objection," said this strange kind of father, "to assuming the political position we are

"None at all," said I. "The notion startled me at first, but I soon grew accustomed to it; and to ensure success,

"Excellent," said the Marquis, taking up from the table a gold snuff box which he twirled in his fingers.

"Now I owe you certain explanations. Our good friend Jacques Bricheteau, if he will have the kindness, will

This was equivalent to the royal formula of the old regime: "My chamberlain will tell you the rest."

"To go back to the origin of everything," said Jacques Bricheteau, accepting the duty thus put upon him, "I

must first tell you that you are not a legitimate Sallenauve. When Monsieur le marquis, here present, returned

after the emigration, in the year 1808, he made the acquaintance of your mother, and in 1809 you were born

as the fruit of their intercourse. Your birth, as you already know, cost your mother her life, and as misfortunes

never come singly, Monsieur de Sallenauve was compromised in a conspiracy against the imperial power and

compelled to fly the country. Brought up in Arcis with me, the marquis, wishing to give me a proof of his

friendship, confided to me, on his departure to this new expatriation, the care of your childhood. I accepted

At these words the marquis held out his hand to Jacques Bricheteau, who was seated near him, and after a

silent pressure, which did not seem to me remarkably warm, Jacques Bricheteau continued:

"The mysterious precautions I was forced to take in carrying out my trust are explained by Monsieur le

marquis's position towards the various governments which have succeeded each other in France since the

period of your birth. Under the Empire, I feared that a government little indulgent to attacks upon itself might

send you to share your father's exile; it was then that the idea of giving you a sort of anonymous existence

first occurred to me. Under the Restoration I feared for you another class of enemies; the Sallenauve family,

which has no other representatives at the present day than Monsieur le marquis, was then powerful. In some

way it got wind of your existence, and also of the fact that the marquis had taken the precaution not to

recognize you, in order to retain the right to leave you his whole fortune, which, as a natural child, the law

would in part have deprived you. The obscurity in which I kept you seemed to me the best security, against

the schemes of greedy relations, and certain mysterious steps taken by them from time to time proved the

wisdom of these precautions. Under the government of July, on the other hand, it was I myself who I feared

might endanger you. I had seen the establishment of the new order of things with the deepest regret, and not

believing in its duration, I took part in certain active hostilities against it, which brought me under the ban of

Here the recollection that Jacques Bricheteau had been pointed out by the waiter of the Cafe des Arts as a

member of the police made me smile, whereupon the speaker stopped and said with a very serious air:

"That waiter," said Jacques Bricheteau, "was not altogether mistaken; for I have long been employed at the

prefecture of police in the health department; but I have nothing to do with police espial; on the contrary, I

Here a rather ridiculous noise struck our ears, nothing less than a loud snore from my father, who thus gave

us to know that he did not take a very keen interest in the explanations furnished in his name with a certain

prolixity. I don't know whether Jacques Bricheteau's vanity being touched put him slightly out of temper, but

"Hey! marquis, if you sleep like this at the Council of state, upon my soul, your country must be well

Monsieur de Sallenauve opened his eyes, shook himself, and then said, turning to me:

"Pardon me, Monsieur le comte, but for the last ten nights I have travelled, without stopping, to meet you

So saying he rose, took a large pinch of snuff, and began to walk up and down the room, while Jacques

"It is a little more than a year since I received a letter from your father explaining his long silence, the plans

he had made for you, and the necessity he was under of keeping his incognito for a few years longer. It was at

that very time that you made your attempt to penetrate a secret the existence of which had become apparent to

"You made haste to escape me," I said laughing. "It was then you went to Stockholm."

"No, I went to your father's residence; I put the letter that he gave me for you into the post at Stockholm."

"Nothing is easier to understand," interrupted the marquis. "I do not reside in Sweden, and we wished to

"Will you continue the explanation yourself?" asked Jacques Bricheteau, who spoke, as you may have

"Feeling certain that your equivocal position as to family would injure the political career your father desired

you to enter, I made that remark to him in one of my letters. He agreed with me, and resolved to hasten the

period of your legal recognition, which, indeed, the extinction of the family in its other branch rendered

desirable. But the recognition of a natural son is a serious act which the law surrounds with many

precautions. Deeds must be signed before a notary, and to do this by power of attorney would involve both in

a publicity which he is anxious for the present to avoid, he being married, and, as it were, naturalized in the

country of his adoption. Hence, he decided to come here himself, obtaining leave of absence for a few weeks,

in order to sign in person all papers necessary to secure to you his name and property in this country. Now let

me put to you a final question. Do you consent to take the name of de Sallenauve and be recognized as his

"I am not a lawyer," I answered; "but it seems to me that, supposing I do not feel honored by this recognition,

"Pardon me," replied Jacques Bricheteau; "under the circumstances you could, if you chose, legally contest

the paternity. I will also add, and in doing so I am sure that I express the intentions of your father,if you

think that a man who has already spent half a million on furthering your career is not a desirable father, we

"Precisely, precisely," said Monsieur de Sallenauve, uttering that affirmation with the curt intonation and

Politeness, to say the least, forced me to accept the paternity thus offered to me. To the few words I uttered to

"We certainly do not intend to make you buy a father in a poke. Monsieur le marquis is desirous of laying

before you all titledeeds and documents of every kind of which he is the present holder. Moreover, as he has

been so long absent from this country, he intends to prove his identity by several of his contemporaries who

are still living. For instance, among the honorable personages who have already recognized him I may

mention the worthy superior of the Ursuline convent, Mother MariedesAnges, for whom, by the bye, you

"Faith, yes," said the marquis, "a pretty thing, and if you turn out as well in politics"

"Well, marquis," interrupted Jacques Bricheteau, who seemed to me inclined to manage the affair, "are you

"That is unnecessary," I remarked, and did not think that by this refusal I pledged my faith too much; for,

after all, what signify papers in the hands of a man who might have forged them or stolen them? But my

father would not consent; and for more than two hours they spread before me parchments, genealogical trees,

contracts, patents, documents of all kinds, from which it appeared that the family of Sallenauve is, after that

of CinqCygne, the most ancient family in the department of the Aube. I ought to add that the exhibition of

these archives was accompanied by an infinite number of spoken details which seemed to make the identity

of the Marquis de Sallenauve indisputable. On all other subjects my father is laconic; his mental capacity

does not seem to me remarkable, and he willingly allowed his mouthpiece to talk for him. But here, in the

matter of his parchments, he was loquaciously full of anecdotes, recollections, heraldic knowledge; in short,

he was exactly the old noble, ignorant and superficial in all things, but possessed of Benedictine erudition

The session would, I believe, be still going on, if Jacques Bricheteau had not intervened. As the marquis was

preparing to read a voluminous memorandum refuting a chapter in Tallemant des Reaux' "Historiettes" which

did not redound to the credit of the great house of Sallenauve, the wise organist remarked that it was time we

dined, if we intended to keep an appointment already made for seven o'clock at the office of Maitre Achille

We dined, not at the tabled'hote, but in private, and the dinner seemed very long on account of the silent

preoccupation of the marquis, and the slowness with which, owing to his loss of teeth, he swallowed his food.

At seven o'clock we went to the notary's office; but as it is now two o'clock in the morning, and I am heavy

I reckoned on peaceful slumbers, embellished by dreams. On the contrary, I did not sleep an hour, and I have

waked up stung to the heart by an odious thought. But before I transmit that thought to you, I must tell you

Maitre Achille Pigoult, a puny little man, horribly pitted with the smallpox, and afflicted with green

spectacles, above which he darts glances of vivacious intelligence, asked us if we felt warm enough, the room

having no fire. Politeness required us to say yes, although he had already given signs of incendiarism by

striking a match, when, from a distant and dark corner of the room, a broken, feeble voice, the owner of

"No, Achille, no, don't make a fire," said an old man. "There are five in the room, and the lamp gives out a

Thus recognized, the old man rose and went up to my father, into whose face he peered.

"Parbleu!" he cried, "I recognize you for a Champagnard of the vieille roche. Achille did not deceive me in

declaring that I should see two of my former acquaintances. You," he said, addressing the organist, "you are

little Bricheteau, the nephew of our good abbess, Mother MariedesAnges; but as for that tall skeleton,

looking like a duke and peer, I can't recall his name. However, I don't blame my memory; after eightysix

"Come, grandfather," said Achille Pigoult, "brush up your memory; and you, gentlemen, not a word, not a

gesture. I want to be clear in my own mind. I have not the honor to know the client for whom I am asked to

draw certain deeds, and I must, as a matter of legal regularity, have him identified."

While his son spoke, the old man was evidently straining his memory. My father, fortunately, has a nervous

twitching of the face, which increased under the fixed gaze his certifier fastened upon him.

"Hey! parbleu! I have it!" he cried. "Monsieur is the Marquise de Sallenauve, whom we used to call the

'Grimacer,' and who would now be the owner of the Chateau d'Arcis if, instead of wandering off, like the

other fools, into emigration, he had stayed at home and married his pretty cousin."

"Messieurs," said the notary, gravely, "the proof I had arranged for myself is conclusive. This proof, together

with the titledeeds and documents Monsieur le marquis has shown to me, and which he deposits in my

hands, together with the certificate of identity sent to me by Mother MariedesAnges, who cannot, under

the rules of her Order, come to my office, are sufficient for the execution of the deeds which I have

herealready prepared. The presence of two witnesses is required for one of them. Monsieur Bricheteau

will, of course, be the witness on your side and on the other my father, if agreeable to you; it is an honor that,

as I think, belongs to him of right, for, as one may say, this matter has revived his memory."

The notary sat down at his desk; the rest of us sat in a circle around him, and the reading of the first document

began. Its purport was to establish, authentically, the recognition made by FrancoisHenri Pantaleon

Dumirail, Marquis de Sallenauve, of me, his son. But in the course of the reading a difficulty came up.

Notarial deeds must, under pain of being null and void, state the domicile of all contracting parties. Now,

where was my father's domicile? This part had been left in blank by the notary, who now insisted on filling it

"As for this domicile," said Achille Pigoult, "Monsieur le marquis appears to have none in France, as he does

"It is true," said the marquis, seeming to put more meaning into his words than they naturally carried, "I am a

"Ah!" said Jacques Bricheteau, "vagabonds like you, who can present their sons with the necessary sums to

buy estates, are not to be pitied. Still, the remark is a just one, not only as to France, but as to your residence

in foreign countries. With your eternal mania for roving, it is really very difficult to assign you a domicile."

"Well," said Achille Pigoult, "it does not seem worth while to let so small a matter stop us. Monsieur," he

continued, motioning to me, "is now the owner of the Chateau d'Arcis, for an engagement to sell is as good as

the sale itself. What more natural, therefore, than that the father's domicile should be stated as being on his

son's estate, especially as this is really the family property now returned into the hands of the family, being

purchased by the father for the son, particularly as that father is known and recognized by some of the oldest

"Yes, that is true," said old Pigoult, adopting his son's opinion without hesitation.

"You see that my father, a man of great experience, did not hesitate to agree with me. We say, therefore,"

continued the notary, taking up his pen, "FrancoisHenriPantaleon Dumirail, Marquis de Sallenauve,

domiciled with Monsieur Charles de Sallenauve, his natural son, by him legally recognized, in the house

known as the Chateau d'Arcis, arrondissement of ArcissurAube, department of the Aube."

The marquis opened his arms rather indifferently, and I coldly fell into them, vexed with myself for not being

deeply moved and for not hearing in my heart the voice of kindred. Was this barrenness of emotion the result

of my sudden accession to wealth? A moment later a second deed made me possessor, on payment of one

hundred and eighty thousand francs in ready money, of the Chateau d'Arcis,a grand edifice which had

"You may congratulate yourselves," said Achille Pigoult, "that you have got that estate for a song."

"Come, come!" said Jacques Bricheteau, "how long have you had it on your hands to sell? Your client would

have let it go for one hundred and fifty thousand to others, but, as family property, you thought you could get

more from us. We shall have to spend twenty thousand to make the house habitable; the land doesn't return a

rental of more than four thousand; so that our money, all expenses deducted, won't return us more than two

"What are you complaining about?" returned Achille Pigoult. "You have employment to give and money to

"Ah! that electoral business," said Jacques Bricheteau; "we will talk about that tomorrow when we bring

Thereupon we took leave, and returned to the Hotel de la Poste, where I bade goodnight to my father and

Now I must tell you the terrible idea that drove sleep from my brain and put the pen once more in my

hand,although I am somewhat distracted from it by writing the foregoing two pages, and I do not see quite

One thing is certain: during the last year many romantic incidents have happened to me. You may say that

adventure seems to be the logical way of life for one in my position; that my birth, the chances that brought

you (whose fate is so like mine) and me together, my relations with Marianina and my handsome

housekeeper, and perhaps I might say with Madame de l'Estorade, all point to the possession of a fickle star,

True; but what if, at the present moment under the influence of that star, I were implicated without my

To put some order into my ideas, I begin by this halfmillion spent for an interest which you must agree is

very nebulous,that of fitting me to succeed my father in the ministry of some imaginary country, the name

Next: who is spending these fabulous sums on me? Is it a father tenderly attached to a child of love? No, it is

a father who shows me the utmost coldness, who goes to sleep when deeds which concern our mutual

existence are being drawn, and for whom I, on my side, am conscious of no feeling; in fact, not to mince my

words, I should think him a great booby of an emigre if it were not for the filial respect and duty I force

Butsuppose this man were not my father, not even the Marquis de Sallenauve, as he asserts himself to be;

suppose, like that unfortunate Lucien de Rubempre, whose history has made so much noise, I were caught in

the toils of a serpent like that false abbe Don Carlos Herrera, and had made myself liable to the same awful

awakening. You may say to me that you see no such likelihood; that Carlos Herrera had an object in

fascinating Lucien and making him his double; but that I, an older man with solid principles and no love of

luxury, who have lived a life of thought and toil, should fear such influence, is nonsense.

So be it. But why should the man who recognizes me as his son conceal the very country in which he lives,

and the name by which he is known in that equally nameless Northern land which it is intimated that he

governs? Why make such sacrifices for my benefit and show so little confidence? And see the mystery with

which Jacques Bricheteau has surrounded my life! Do you think that that longwinded explanation of his

All this, my dear friend, rolling in my head and clashing with that halfmillion already paid to me, has given

substance to a strange idea, at which you may perhaps laugh, but which, nevertheless, is not without

I told you just now that this thought invaded me as it were suddenly; it came like an instinct upon me.

Assuredly, if I had had the faintest inkling of it last evening, I would have cut off my right hand sooner than

sign that deed by which I have henceforth bound my fate to that of an unknown man whose past and future

may be as gloomy as a canto of Dante's Hell, and who may drag me down with him into utter darkness.

In short, this idearound which I am making you circle because I cannot bring myself to let you enter

ithere it is, in all its crudity; I am afraid of being, without my knowledge, the agent, the tool of those

associations of false coiners who are known in criminal records to concoct schemes as complicated and

mysterious as the one I am now involved in, in order to put into circulation the money they coin. In all such

cases you will find great coming and going of accomplices; cheques drawn from a distance on the bankers in

great commercial centres like Paris, Stockholm, Rotterdam. Often one hears of poor dupes compromised. In

short, do you not see in the mysterious ways of this Bricheteau something like an imitation, a reflection of the

manoeuvres to which these criminal workers are forced to have recourse, arranging them with a talent and a

One thing is certain: there is about me a thick unwholesome atmosphere, in which I feel that air is lacking and

I cannot breathe. However, assure me, if you can, persuade me, I ask no better, that this is all an empty

dream. But in any case I am determined to have a full explanation with these two men tomorrow, and to

Another and yet stranger fact! As I wrote those last words, a noise of horses' hoofs came from the street.

Distrustful now of everything, I opened my window, and in the dawning light I saw a travelling carriage

before the door of the inn, the postilion in the saddle, and Jacques Bricheteau talking to some one who was

seated in the vehicle. Deciding quickly on my action, I ran rapidly downstairs; but before I reached the

bottom I heard the roll of wheels and the cracking of the postilion's whip. At the foot of the staircase I came

face to face with Jacques Bricheteau. Without seeming embarrassed, in fact with the most natural air in the

"He did not wish it," replied that damned musician, with an imperturbability and phlegm that deserved a

"Is he so dreadfully hurried that he could not even give a day to his new and ardent paternity?"

"The truth is, he is an original; what he came to do, he has done; after that, to his mind, there is nothing to

"Ah! I understand; he hastens to those high functions he performs at that Northern court!"

Jacques Bricheteau could no longer mistake the ironical tone in which these words were said.

"Yes; but I confess that faith begins to stagger under the weight of the mysteries with which it is loaded down

"Seeing you at this decisive moment in your career giving way to doubts which our whole conduct pursued to

you through many years ought to refute, I should be almost in despair," replied Jacques Bricheteau, "if I had

none but personal denials and asseverations to offer you. But, as you will remember, old Pigoult spoke of an

aunt of mine, living in this neighborhood, where you will soon, I hope, find her position a most honorable

one. I had arranged that you should see her in the course of the day; but now, if you will grant me the time to

shave, I will take you at once, early as it is, to the convent of the Ursulines. There you shall question Mother

MariedesAnges, who has the reputation of a saint throughout this whole department, and I think that at the

While that devil of a man was speaking, his countenance had so perfect a look of integrity and benevolence,

his speech, always calm, elegant, and selfpossessed, so impressed the mind of his hearer, that I felt the tide

In fact, his answer is irresistible. The convent of the Ursuline sistersheavens and earth! that can't be the

rendezvous of makers of false coin; and if the Mother MariedesAnges guarantees my father to me, as it

appears she has already done to the notary, I should be foolish indeed to persist in my doubts.

"Very good," I said to Jacques Bricheteau, "I will go up and get my hat and walk up and down the bank of the

"That's right; and be sure you watch the door of the hotel to see that I do not give you the slip as I did once

Impossible to be more intelligent than that man; he seems to divine one's thoughts. I was ashamed of this last

doubt of mine, and told him that, on the whole, I would go and finish a letter while awaiting him. It was this

letter, dear friend, which I must now close if I wish it to go by today's post. I will write you soon of my visit

Madame,In any case I should gladly have profited by the request you were so good as to make that I

should write to you during my stay in this town; but in granting me this favor you could not really know the

full extent of your charity. Without you, madame, and the consolation of writing to you sometimes, what

would become of me under the habitual weight of my sad thoughts in a town which has neither society, nor

commerce, nor curiosities, nor environs; and where all intellectual activity spends itself on the making of

pickled pork, soapgrease, stockings, and cotton nightcaps. Dorlange, whom I shall not long call by that

name (you shall presently know why) is so absorbed in steering his electoral frigate that I scarcely see him.

I told you, madame, that I resolved to come down here and join our mutual friend in consequence of a certain

trouble of mind apparent in one of his letters, which informed me of a great revolution taking place in his life.

I am able today to be more explicit. Dorlange at last knows his father. He is the natural son of the Marquis

de Sallenauve, the last living scion of one of the best families in Champagne. Without explaining the reasons

which have hitherto induced him to keep his son's birth secret, the marquis has now recognized him legally.

He has also bought and presented to him an estate formerly belonging to the Sallenauve family. This estate is

situated in Arcis itself, and its possession will assist the project of our friend's election. That project dates

much farther back than we thought; and it did not take its rise in the fancy of Dorlange.

A year ago, the marquis began to prepare for it by sending his son a sum of money for the purchase of real

estate in conformity with electoral laws; and it is also for the furtherance of this purpose that he has now

made him doubly a landowner. The real object of all these sacrifices not seeming plain to Charles de

Sallenauve, doubts have arisen in his mind, and it was to assist in dispelling them that my friendship for the

The marquis appears to be as odd and whimsical as he is opulent; for, instead of remaining in Arcis, where

his presence and his name would contribute to the success of the election he desires, the very day after legal

formalities attending the recognition of his son had been complied with, he departed furtively for foreign

countries, where he says he has important interests, without so much as taking leave of his son. This coldness

has poisoned the happiness Charles would otherwise feel in these events; but one must take fathers as they

are, for Dorlange and I are living proofs that all cannot have them as they want them.

Another eccentricity of the marquis is the choice he has made, as chief assistant in his son's election, of an old

Ursuline nun, with whom he seems to have made a bargain, in which, strange to say, you have unconsciously

played a part. Yes, madame, the SaintUrsula for which, unknown to yourself, you were posing, will have, to

all appearances, a considerable influence on the election of our friend. The case is this:

For many years Mother MariedesAnges, superior of the Ursuline convent at ArcissurAube, has desired

to install in the chapel of her convent an image of its patron saint. But this abbess, who is a woman of taste

and intelligence, would not listen to the idea of one of those stock figures which can be bought readymade

from the venders of church decorations. On the other hand, she thought it was robbing her poor to spend on

this purpose the large sum necessary to procure a work of art. The nephew of this excellent woman is an

organist in Paris to whom the Marquis de Sallenauve, then in emigration, had confided the care of his son.

When it became a question of making Charles a deputy, the marquis naturally thought of Arcis, a place where

his family had left so many memories. The organist also recollected his aunt's desire; he knew how influential

she was in that region because of her saintliness, and having in his nature a touch of that intrigue which likes

to undertake things difficult and arduous, he went to see her, with the approval of the Marquis de Sallenauve,

and let her know that one of the most skilful sculptors in Paris was ready to make her the statue of

SaintUrsula if she, on her side, would promise to secure the artist's election as deputy from the

The old nun did not think the undertaking beyond her powers. She now possesses the object of her pious

longings; the statue arrived some days ago, and is already in the chapel of the convent, where she proposes to

give it, before long, a solemn inauguration. It now remains to be seen whether the good nun will perform her

Well, madame, strange to say, after hearing and inquiring into the whole matter I shall not be surprised if this

remarkable woman should carry the day. From the description our friend gives of her, Mother

MariedesAnges is a small woman, short and thickset, whose face is prepossessing and agreeable beneath

its wrinkles and the mask of saffrontinted pallor which time and the austerities of a cloister have placed

upon it. Carrying very lightly the weight of her corpulence and also that of her seventysix years, she is

lively, alert, and frisky to a degree that shames the youngest of us. For fifty years she has governed in a

masterly manner her community, which has always been the most regular, the best organized, and also the

richest society in the diocese of Troyes. Admirably fitted for the training of youth, she has long conducted a

school for girls, which is famous throughout the department of the Aube and adjacent regions. Having thus

superintended the education of nearly all the daughters of the best houses in the province, it is easy to

imagine the influence she has acquired among the aristocracy,an influence she probably intends to use in

On the other hand, it appears that this really extraordinary woman is the sovereign disposer of the votes of the

democratic party in the arrondissement of Arcis. Until now, the existence of that party in Arcis has been

considered problematical; but it is actually, by its nature, active and stirring, and our candidate proposes to

present himself under its banner. Evidently, therefore, the support the good mother has promised will be

I am sure you will admire with me theas one might saybicephalous ability of this old nun, who has

managed to keep well with the nobility and the secular clergy on the one hand, and on the other to lead with

her wand the radical party, their sworn enemy. Admirable for her charity and her lucid intellect, respected

throughout the region as a saint, exposed during the Revolution to a dreadful persecution, which she bore

with rare courage, one can easily understand her close relations with the upper and conservative classes; but

why she should be equally welcome to democrats and to the subverters of order would seem, at first, to pass

The power which she undoubtedly wields over the revolutionary party took its rise, madame, in a struggle

which they formerly had together. In 1793 that amiable party were bent on cutting her throat. Driven from her

convent, and convicted of harboring a "refractory" priest, she was incarcerated, arraigned before the

Revolutionary tribunal, and condemned to death. The matter was reported to Danton, a native of Arcis, and

then a member of the National Convention. Danton had known Mother MariedesAnges; he thought her the

most virtuous and enlightened woman he had ever met. Hearing of her condemnation, he was furiously angry,

and wrote, as they said in those days, a highhorse letter to the Revolutionary tribunal, and, with an authority

The same day he mounted the tribune, and after speaking in general terms of the "bloody boobies" who by

their foolish fury compromised the future of the Revolution, he told who and what Mother Mariedes

Anges really was; he dwelt on her marvellous aptitude for the training of youth, and he presented a scheme in

which she was placed at the head of a "grand national gynaecium," the organization of which was to be made

the subject of another decree. Robespierre, who would have thought the intellect of an Ursuline nun only a

more imperative reason for bringing her under the revolutionary axe, was absent that day from the session,

and the motion was voted with enthusiasm. The head of Mother MariedesAnges being indispensably

necessary to the carrying out of this decree of the sovereign people, she kept it on her shoulders, and the

Though the other decree, organising the Grand National Gynaecium, was lost sight of in the many other

duties that devolved upon the Convention, the excellent nun carried it out after her fashion. Instead of

something grand and Greek and national, she started in Arcis a secular girl'sschool, and as soon as a little

quiet was restored to the minds of the community, pupils flocked in from all quarters. Under the Empire

Mother MariedesAnges was able to reconstitute her Ursuline sisterhood, and the first act of her restored

authority was a recognition of gratitude. She decreed that on every year on the 5th of April, the anniversary of

Danton's death, a service should be held in the chapel of the convent for the repose of his soul. To those who

objected to this edict she answered: "Do you know many for whom it is more necessary to implore God's

Under the Restoration, the celebration of this service became a sort of scandal; but Mother MariedesAnges

would never hear of suppressing it, and the great veneration which has always surrounded her obliged these

cavillers to hold their tongues. This courageous obstinacy had its reward, under the government of July.

Today Mother Mariedes Anges is high in court favor, and there is nothing she cannot obtain in the most

august regions of power; but it is only just to add that she asks nothing,not even for her charities, for she

provides the means to do them nobly by the wise manner in which she administers the property of her

Her gratitude, thus openly shown to the memory of the great revolutionist, has been of course to the

In Arcis the leader of the advanced Left is a rich miller named Laurent Goussard, who possesses two or three

mills on the river Aube. This man, formerly a member of the revolutionary municipality of Arcis and the

intimate friend of Danton, was the one who wrote to the latter telling him that the axe was suspended over the

throat of the ex superior of the Ursulines. This, however, did not prevent the worthy sansculotte from

buying up the greater part of the convent property when it was sold under the name of national domain.

At the period when Mother MariedesAnges was authorized to reconstitute her community, Laurent

Goussard, who had not made much by his purchase, went to see the good abbess, and proposed to her to buy

back the former property of her convent. Very shrewd in business, Laurent Goussard, whose niece Mother

MariedesAnges had educated gratuitously, seemed to pique himself on the great liberality of his offer, the

terms of which were that the sisterhood should reimburse him the amount of his purchasemoney. The dear

man was not however making a bad bargain, for the difference in the value of assignats with which he had

paid and the good sound money he would receive made a pretty profit. But Mother MariedesAnges,

remembering that without his warning Danton could not have saved her, did better still for her first helper. At

the time when Laurent Goussard made his offer the community of the Ursulines was, financially speaking, in

an excellent position. Having since its restoration received many liberal gifts, it was also enriched by the

savings of its superior, made from the proceeds of her secular school, which she generously made over to the

common fund. Laurent Goussard must therefore have been thunderstruck when he read the following

Your proposal does not suit me. My conscience will not allow me to buy property below its proper value.

Before the Revolution the property of our abbey was estimated at[so much]. That is the price I choose to

give, and not that to which it has fallen since the great depreciation of all property called national. In a word,

Laurent Goussard thought at first that either she had misunderstood him or he her. But when it became clear

to him that owing to these pretended scruples of Mother MariedesAnges, he was the gainer of fifty

thousand francs, he would not do violence to so tender a conscience, and he pocketed this profit (which came

to him literally from heaven), but he went about relating everywhere the marvellous proceeding, which, as

you can well imagine, put Mother MariedesAnges on a pinnacle of respect (especially from the holders of

other national property) which leaves her nothing to fear from any future revolution. Personally Laurent

Goussard has become her slave, her henchman. He does no business, he takes no step, he never moves a sack

of flour without going to her for advice; and, as she said in joke the other day, if she took a fancy to make a

John the Baptist of the sub prefect, Laurent Goussard would bring her his head on a charger. That is proof

enough that he will also bring his vote and that of his friends to any candidate she may favor.

Among the clergy Mother MariedesAnges has, naturally, many affiliations,as much on account of her

high reputation for goodness as for the habit of her order, but she particularly counts among the number of

her most zealous servitors Monseigneur Troubert, bishop of the diocese, who, though formerly a familiar of

the Congregation [see "The Vicar of Tours"], has nevertheless managed to secure from the dynasty of July an

When you have the clergy you have, or you are very near having, the legitimist party with you,a party

which, while passionately desirous of free education and filled with hatred for the July throne, is not averse,

when occasion offers, to yielding to a monstrous union with the radical party. Now the head of the legitimists

in Arcis and its neighborhood is, of course, the family of CinqCygne. Never does the old marquise, whose

haughty nature and powerful will you, madame, know well [see "An Historical Mystery"],never does she

drive into Arcis from her chateau of CinqCygne, without paying a visit to Mother MariedesAnges, who

in former days educated her daughter Berthe, now the Duchesse Georges de Maufrigneuse.

But now we come to the most opposing and resisting side,that of the conservatives, which must not be

confounded with the party of the administration. Here we find as its leader the Comte de Gondreville, your

husband's colleague in the Chamber of peers. Closely allied to the count is a very influential man, his old

friend Grevin, formerly mayor and notary of Arcis, who, in turn, draws after him another elector of

considerable influence, Maitre Achille Pigoult, to whom, on retiring from active life, he sold his practice as

But Mother MariedesAnges has a powerful means of access to the Comte de Gondreville through his

daughter, the Marechale de Carigliano. That great lady, who, as you know, has taken to devotion, goes into

retreat every year at the Ursuline convent. More than that, the good Mother, without giving any explanation,

intimates that she has a lever of some kind on the Comte de Gondreville known to herself only; in fact, the

life of that old regicideturned senator, then count of the Empire, then peer of France under two

dynastieshas wormed itself through too many tortuous underground ways not to allow us to suppose the

Now Gondreville is Grevin,his confidant, and, as they say, his tool, his catspaw for the last fifty years. But

even supposing that by an utter impossibility their close union should, under present circumstances, be

sundered, we are certainly sure of Achille Pigoult, Grevin's successor, on whom, when the purchase of the

chateau d'Arcis was made in his office by the Marquis de Sallenauve, a fee was bestowed of such an unusual

As for the ruck of the electors, our friend cannot fail to make recruits there, by the work he is about to give in

repairing the chateau, which, fortunately for him, is falling into ruin in several places. We must also count on

the manifesto which Charles de Sallenauve has just issued, in which he openly declares that he will accept

neither favors nor employment from the government. So that, really, taking into consideration his own

oratorical talent, the support of the Opposition journals both here and in Paris, the insults and calumnies

which the ministerial journals are already beginning to fire upon him, I feel great hopes of his success.

Forgive me for presenting to you in glowing colors the parliamentary future of a man of whom, you said to

me the other day, you felt you could not safely make a friend, because of the lofty and rather impertinent

assumption of his personality. To tell the truth, madame, whatever political success may be in store for

Charles de Sallenauve, I fear he may one day regret the calmer fame of which he was already assured in the

world of art. But neither he nor I was born under an easy and accommodating star. Birth has been a costly

thing to us; it is therefore doubly cruel not to like us. You have been kind to me because you fancy that a

lingering fragrance of our dear Louise still clings to me; give something, I beseech you, of the same kindness

Madame,I see that the electoral fever is upon you, as you are good enough to send me from Monsieur de

We knew already of the mission given to Comte Maxime de Trailles,a mission he endeavored at first to

conceal under some irrigating project. We even know what you, madame, seem not to know,that this able

ministerial agent has found means to combine with the cares of electoral politics those of his own private

policy. Monsieur Maxime de Trailles, if we are rightly informed, was on the point of succumbing to the

chronic malady with which he has been so long afflicted; I mean debt. Not debts, for we say "the debt of

Monsieur de Trailles," as we say "the debt of England." In this extremity the patient, resolved on heroic

remedies, adopted that of marriage, which might perhaps be called marriage in extremis.

To cut a long story short, Monsieur de Trailles was sent to Arcis to put an end to the candidacy of an upstart

of the Left centre, a certain Simon Giguet; and having brought forward the mayor of the town as the

ministerial candidate, he finds the said mayor, named Beauvisage, possessed of an only daughter, rather

pretty, and able to bring her husband five hundred thousand francs amassed in the honorable manufacture of

As for our own claims, we certainly do not make cotton nightcaps, but we make statues,statues for which

we are decorated with the Legion of honor; religious statues, inaugurated with great pomp by Monseigneur

the bishop of the diocese and all the constituted authorities; statues, or rather a statue, which the whole

population of the town has flocked to the Ursuline convent to behold, where Mesdames the nuns, not a little

puffed up with this magnificent addition to their bijou of a chapel, have kept their house and their oratory

open to all comers for this whole day. Is not that likely to popularize our candidacy?

This evening, to crown the ceremony of inaugurating our SaintUrsula, we give in our chateau of Arcis a

banquet to fifty guests, among whom we have had the malice to invite (with the chief inhabitants of the

place) all the ministerial functionaries and, above all, the ministerial candidate. But, in view of our own

declared candidacy, we feel pretty well assured that the latter will not respond to the invitation. So much the

better! more room for others; and the missing guests, whose names will be made known on the morrow, will

be convicted of a servilism which will, we think, injure their influence with the population.

Yesterday we paid a visit at the chateau de CinqCygne, where d'Arthez presented us, in the first place, to the

Princesse de Cadignan, who is wonderfully well preserved. Both she and the old Marquise de Cinq Cygne

received DorlangeI should say, Sallenauvein the warmest manner. It was from them that we learned the

history of Monsieur Maxime de Trailles' mission and its present results. It seems that on his arrival the

ministerial agent received some attentions at Cinq Cygne,mere floating sticks, to discover the set of his

current. He evidently flattered himself that he should find support at CinqCygne for his electioneering

intrigue; which is so far from being the case that Duc Georges de Maufrigneuse, to whom, as a Jockey Club

comrade, he told all his projects, gave us the information about them which I have now given to you, and

which, if you will be so kind, I should like you to make over to Monsieur de l'Estorade.

The dinner has taken place, madame; it was magnificently served, and Arcis will talk about it for some time

to come. Sallenauve has in that great organist (who, by the bye, showed his talent on the organ admirably

during the ceremony of inauguration) a sort of steward and factotum who leaves all the Vatels of the world

far behind him; he would never have fallen on his sword for lack of a fish! Colored lamps, garlands,

draperies, decorated the diningroom; even fireworks were provided; nothing was wanting to the fete, which

lasted to a late hour in the gardens of the chateau, where the populace danced and drank to its heart's content.

Nearly all the invited guests came except those we desired to compromise. The invitations having been sent

at short notice, it was amusing to read the notes and letters of excuse, which Sallenauve ordered to be brought

to him in the salon as they arrived. As he opened each he took care to say: "This is from Monsieur the sub

prefect; this from the procureurduroi; this from Monsieur Vinet the substitute, expressing regret that they

cannot accept the invitation." All these concerted refusals were received with smiles and whispers by the

company; but when a letter arrived from Beauvisage, and Sallenauve read aloud the "impossibility in which

he found himself to correspond to his politeness," the hilarity grew noisy and general, and was only stopped

by the entrance of Monsieur Martener, examining judge, who performed an act of courage in coming to the

dinner which his colleagues declined. We must remark, however, than an examiningjudge has two sides to

him. On that of the judge he is irremovable; he can only be deprived of the slight increase of salary he

receives as an examiner and of the privilege of signing warrants and questioning thieves,splendid rights of

which the chancellor can mulct him by a stroke of his pen. But allowing that Monsieur Martener was only

The Duc de Maufrigneuse, d'Arthez, and Monseigneur the bishop, who was staying at CinqCygne for a few

days, were all present, and this made more noticeable the absence of one man, namely, Grevin, whose excuse,

sent earlier in the day, was not read to the company. The non appearance of the Comte de Gondreville was

explained by the recent death of his grandson, Charles Keller; and in sending the invitation Sallenauve had

been careful to let him know he should understand a refusal. But that Grevin, the count's right arm, should

absent himself, seemed to show that he and his patron were convinced of the probable election of Beauvisage,

The dinner being given in honor of SaintUrsula's installation, which could not be celebrated by a banquet in

"To the Mother of the poor; the noble and saintly spirit which, for fifty years, has shone on Champagne, and

to which we owe the vast number of distinguished and accomplished women who adorn this beautiful region

If you know, as I do, madame, what a forlorn, beggarly region Champagne is, you would say, or something

like it, that Sallenauve is a rascally fellow, and that the passion to enter the legislature makes a man capable

of shocking deceit. Was it worth while, in fact, for a man who usually respects himself to boldly tell a lie of

criminal dimensions, when a moment later a little unforeseen circumstance occurred which did more than all

You told me, madame, that your son Armand found a strong likeness to the portraits of Danton in our friend

Sallenauve; and it seems that the boy's remark was true, for several persons present who had known the great

revolutionist during his lifetime made the same observation. Laurent Goussard, who, as I told you in a former

letter, was Danton's friend, was also, in a way, his brotherinlaw; for Danton, who was something of a

gallant, had been on close terms for several years with the miller's sister. Well, the likeness must be striking,

for after dinner, while we were taking our coffee, the worthy Goussard, whose head was a little warmed by

the fumes of wine, came up to Sallenauve and asked him whether he was certain he had made no mistake

about his father, and could honestly declare that Danton had nothing to do with his making.

"Danton died April 5, 1794. To be his son, I must have been born no later than January, 1795, which would

make me fortyfour years old today. But the register of my birth, and I somewhat hope my face, make me

"Yes, you are right," said Laurent Goussard; "figures demolish my idea; but no matter,we'll vote for you

I think the man is right; this chance resemblance is likely to have great weight in the election. You must

remember, madame, that, in spite of the fatal facts which cling about his memory, Danton is not an object of

horror and execration in Arcis, where he was born and brought up. In the first place time has purged him; his

grand character and powerful intellect remain, and the people are proud of their compatriot. In Arcis they talk

of Danton as in Marseilles they talk of Cannebiere. Fortunate, therefore, is our candidate's likeness to this

demigod, the worship of whom is not confined to the town, but extends to the surrounding country.

These voters extra muros are sometimes curiously simpleminded, and obvious contradictions trouble them

not at all. Some agents sent into the adjacent districts have used this fancied resemblance; and as in a rural

propaganda the object is less to strike fair than to strike hard, Laurent Goussard's version, apocryphal as it is,

is hawked about the country villages with a coolness that admits of no contradiction.

While this pretended revolutionary origin is advancing our friend's prospects in one direction, in another the

tale put forth to the worthy voters whom it is desirable to entice is different, but truer and not less striking to

the minds of the countrypeople. This is the gentlemen, they are told, who has bought the chateau of Arcis;

and as the chateau of Arcis stands high above the town and is known to all the country round, it is to these

simple folk a species of symbol. They are always ready to return to memories of the past, which is much less

dead and buried than people suppose; "Ah! he's the seigneur of the chateau," they say.

This, madame, is how the electoral kitchen is carried on and the way in which a deputy is cooked.

Madame,You do me the honor to say that my letters amuse you, and you tell me not to fear that I send too

We are no longer at the Hotel de la Poste, having left it for the chateau; but thanks to the rivalry existing

between the two inns, the Poste and the Mulet, in the latter of which Monsieur de Trailles has established his

headquarters, we are kept informed of what is going on in the town and among our enemies. Since our

departure, as our late landlord informs us, a Parisian journalist has arrived at his hotel. This individual, whose

name I do not know, at once announced himself as Jackthegiantkiller, sent down to reinforce with his

Parisian vim and vigor the polemic which the local press, subsidized by the "bureau of public spirit," has

In that there is nothing very grave or very gay; since the world was a world, governments have always found

pens for sale, and never have they failed to buy them; but the comedy of this affair begins with the coarrival

and the copresence in the hotel of a young lady of very problematical virtue. The name of this young lady as

it appears on her passport is Mademoiselle Chocardelle; but the journalist in speaking of her calls her

Antonia, or, when he wants to treat her with more respect, Mademoiselle Antonia.

Now, what can bring Mademoiselle Chocardelle to Arcis? A pleasure trip, you will say, offered to her by the

journalist, who combines with that object our daily defamation and his consequent earnings from the

secretservice fund of the government. Not at all; Mademoiselle Chocardelle has come to Arcis on business

It seems that Charles Keller before his departure for Africa, where he met a glorious death, drew a note of

hand, payable to Mademoiselle Antonia on order, for ten thousand francs, "value received in furniture," a

charming ambiguity, the furniture having been received by, and not from, Mademoiselle Chocardelle, who

A few days after Charles Keller's death, the note being almost due, Mademoiselle Antonia went to the

countingroom of the Keller Brothers to inquire about its payment. The cashier, who is crabbed, like all

cashiers, replied that he did not see how Mademoiselle Antonia had the face to present such a note; at any

rate, the heads of the house were at Gondreville, where the whole family had met after receiving the fatal

"Very good, then I'll refer it to them myself," replied Mademoiselle Antonia. Thereupon she was meditating a

departure alone to Arcis, when the government felt the need of insulting us with more wit and point than

provincial journalism can muster, and so confided that employment to a middleaged journalist to whom

Mademoiselle Antonia had, during the absence of Charles Keller, shown some kindness. "I am going to

Arcis," seems to have been said at the same instant by writer and lady. The most commonplace lives

Now, madame, admire the manner in which things link together. Setting forth on a purely selfish financial

enterprise, behold Mademoiselle Chocardelle suddenly brought to the point of wielding an immense electoral

influence! And observe also that her influence is of a nature to compensate for all the witty pinpricks of her

Mademoiselle's affair, it appears, hung fire. Twice she went to Gondreville, and was not admitted. The

journalist was busy,partly with his articles, and partly with certain commissions given to him by Monsieur

de Trailles, under whose orders he was told to place himself. Mademoiselle Antonia was therefore much

alone; and in the ennui of such solitude, she was led to create for herself a really desperate amusement.

A few steps from the Hotel de la Poste is a bridge across the Aube; a path leads down beside it, by a steep

incline, to the water's edge, which, being hidden from the roadway above and little frequented, offers peace

and solitude to whoever may like to dream there to the sound of the rippling current. Mademoiselle Antonia

at first took a book with her; but books not being, as she says, in her line, she looked about for other ways of

killing her time, and bethought herself of fishing, for which amusement the landlord of the inn supplied her

with a rod. Much pleased with her first successes, the pretty exile devoted herself to an occupation which

must be attractive,witness the fanatics that it makes; and the few persons who crossed the bridge could

admire at all hours a charming naiad in a flounced gown and a broadbrimmed straw hat, engaged in fishing

Up to this time Mademoiselle Antonia and her fishing have had nothing to do with our election; but if you

will recall, madame, in the history of Don Quixote (which I have heard you admire for its common sense

and jovial reasoning) the rather disagreeable adventures of Rosinante and the muleteers, you will have a

foretaste of the good luck which the development of Mademoiselle Antonia's new passion brought to us.

Our rival, Beauvisage, is not only a successful stockingmaker and an exemplary mayor, but he is also a

model husband, having never tripped in loyalty to his wife, whom he respects and admires. Every evening, by

her orders, he goes to bed before ten o'clock, while Madame Beauvisage and her daughter go into what Arcis

is pleased to call society. But there is no more treacherous water, they say, than still water, just as there was

nothing less proper and wellbehaved than the calm and peaceable Rosinante on the occasion referred to.

At any rate, while making the tour of his town according to his laudable official habit, Beauvisage from the

top of the bridge chanced to catch sight of the fair Parisian who with outstretched arms and gracefully bent

body was pursuing her favorite pastime. A slight movement, the charming impatience with which the pretty

fisher twitched her line from the water when the fish had not bitten, was perhaps the electric shock which

struck upon the heart of the magistrate, hitherto irreproachable. No one can say, perhaps, how the thing really

came about. But I ought to remark that during the interregnum that occurred between the making of socks and

nightcaps and the assumption of municipal duties, Beauvisage himself had practised the art of fishing with a

line with distinguished success. Probably it occurred to him that the poor young lady, having more ardor than

science, was not going the right way to work, and the thought of improving her method may have been the

real cause of his apparent degeneracy. However that may be, it is certain that, crossing the bridge in company

with her mother, Mademoiselle Beauvisage suddenly cried out, like a true enfant terrible,

To assure herself at a glance of the monstrous fact, to rush down the bank and reach her husband (whom she

found with laughing lips and the happy air of a browsing sheep), to blast him with a stern "What are you

doing here?" to order his retreat to Arcis with the air of a queen, while Mademoiselle Chocardelle, first

astonished and then enlightened as to what it all meant, went off into fits of laughter, took scarcely the time I

have taken to tell it. Such, madame, was the proceeding by which Madame Beauvisage, nee Grevin, rescued

her husband; and though that proceeding may be called justifiable, it was certainly injudicious, for before

night the whole town had heard of the catastrophe, and Beauvisage, arraigned and convicted by common

consent of deplorable immorality, saw fresh desertions taking place in the already winnowed phalanx of his

However, the Gondreville and Grevin side still held firm, andwould you believe it, madame?it was

Here is the tale of that phenomenon: Mother MariedesAnges wanted an interview with the Comte de

Gondreville; but how to get it she did not know, because to ask for it was not, as she thought, proper. Having,

it appears, unpleasant things to say to him, she did not wish to bring the old man to the convent expressly to

hear them; such a proceeding seemed to her uncharitable. Besides, things comminatory delivered pointblank

will often provoke their recipient instead of alarming him; whereas the same things slipped in sweetly never

fail of their effect. Still, time was passing; the election, as you know, takes place tomorrow, Sunday, and the

preparatory meeting of all the candidates and the electors, tonight. The poor dear saintly woman did not

know what course to take, when a little matter occurred, most flattering to her vanity, which solved her

doubts. A pretty sinner, she was told, who had come to Arcis to "do" Monsieur Keller the financier, then at

Gondreville, out of some money, had heard of the virtues and the inexhaustible kindness of Mother

MariedesAngesin short, she regarded her, after Danton, as the most interesting object of the place, and

Mademoiselle,I am told that you desire to see me, but that you do not know how to accomplish it. Nothing

is easier. Ring the doorbell of my quiet house, ask to see me, and do not be alarmed at my black robe and

aged face. I am not one of those who force their advice upon pretty young women who do not ask for it, and

who may become in time greater saints than I. That is the whole mystery of obtaining an interview with

Mother MariedesAnges, who salutes you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. [Picture of small cross.]

An invitation so graciously given was not to be resisted; and Mademoiselle Antonia, after putting on the

I wish I could give you the details of that interview, which must have been curious; but no one was present,

and nothing was known except what the lost sheep, who returned in tears, told of it. When the journalist tried

"Hold your tongue," she said; "you never in your life wrote a sentence like what she said to me."

"'Go, my child,' said that old woman, 'the ways of God are beautiful, and little known; there is often more of a

"When are you going again to Gondreville to see that Keller? If he doesn't pay the money soon, I'll hit him a

"Not now," replied the admirer and probably the echo of Mother Marie desAnges, but using her own

language; "I don't blackmail a family in affliction. I should remember it on my deathbed, and doubt God's

"Ha, if I only had the courage! I might be happier if I did. But, in any case, I am not going to Gondreville;

"I wanted to tear it up, but she prevented me, and told me to give it to her and she would arrange it honestly

"No, for I have given the money in alms. I told madame to keep it for her poor."

"Oh! if you add the vice of patronizing convents to your other vice of fishing in rivers, you will be a pleasant

"You won't frequent me much longer, for I go tonight, and leave you to your dirty work."

"The Carmelites!" replied Antonia, wittily; "no, my old fellow, we don't retire to the Carmelites unless we

Such women, even the most ignorant, all know the story of La Valliere, whom they would assuredly have

I don't know how Mother MariedesAnges managed it, but early this morning the carriage of the old Comte

de Gondreville stopped before the gate of the convent; and when the count again entered it he was driven to

the office of his friend Grevin; and later in the day the latter said to several friends that certainly his

soninlaw was too much of a fool, he had compromised himself with that Parisian woman, and would

I am told that the rectors of the two parishes in Arcis have each received a thousand crowns for their poor

from Mother MariedesAnges, who informed them that it came from a benefactor who did not wish his

name known. Sallenauve is furious because our partisans are going about saying that the money came from

him. But when you are running before the wind you can't mathematically measure each sail, and you

Monsieur Maxime de Trailles makes no sign, but there is every reason to suppose that this failure of his

candidate, which he must see is now inevitable, will bury both him and his marriage. But, at any rate, he is a

What a curious man, madame, this organist is! His name is that of one of our greatest physicians,though

they are not related to each other,Bricheteau. No one ever showed more activity, more presence of mind,

more devotion, more intelligence; and there are not two men in all Europe who can play the organ as he does.

You say you do not want Nais to be a mere piano strummer; then I advise you to let this Bricheteau teach her.

He is a man who would show her what music really is; he will not give himself airs, for I assure you he is as

modest as he is gifted. To Sallenauve he is like a little terrier; as watchful, as faithful, and I may add as

ugly,if so good and frank a countenance as his can ever be thought anything but handsome!

Madame,Last evening the preparatory meeting took place,a ridiculous ceremony, very annoying to the

Perhaps it is natural that before pledging themselves to a man who is to represent them for four or five years,

voters should want to question him, and discover, if possible, what he really is. Is he a man of intelligence?

Does he really sustain the ideas put forth about him? Will he be cordial and affable to the various interests

which may claim his support? Is he firm in character? Can he defend his ideas if he has any? In a word,

will the constituency be worthily, faithfully, and honestly represented? That is the serious and respectable

aspect of this institution, which, not being a part of the law, must, in order to be so firmly fixed in our

But every medal has its reverse; as may be seen in these meetings of candidates with electors puffed up by

their own selfimportance, eager to exercise for a moment the sovereignty they are about to delegate to their

deputy, and selling it as dearly as they can to him. Considering the impertinence of certain questions

addressed to a candidate, it would really seem as if the latter were a serf over whom each elector had rights of

life and death. Not a corner of his private life where the unhappy man is safe from prying curiosity. All things

are possible in the line of preposterous questioning; for instance: Why does the candidate prefer the wine of

Champagne to the wine of Bordeaux? At Bordeaux, where wine is a religion, this preference implies an idea

of nonpatriotism and may seriously affect the election. Many voters go to these meetings solely to enjoy the

embarrassment of the candidates. Holding them as it were in the pillory, they play with them like a child with

a beetle, an old judge with the criminal he examines, or a young surgeon at an autopsy.

Others have not such elevated tastes; they come merely to enjoy the racket, the confusion of tongues which is

certain to take place on such occasions. Some see their opportunity to exhibit a choice talent; for (as they say

in the reports of the Chamber) when "the tumult is at its height," a cock is heard to crow or a dog to howl as if

his paw were trodden upon,noises that are imitated with marvellous accuracy. But truly, are not fools and

stupid beings a majority in the world, and ought they not to have their representative?

The meeting took place in a large dancehall, the loft for the orchestra forming a sort of private box to which

nonvoters were admitted, I among the number. Some ladies had already taken the front seats; Madame

Marion, aunt of Simon Giguet, the Left centre candidate; Madame and Mademoiselle Mollot, wife and

daughter of the clerk of the court, and some others whose names and position I did not catch. Madame and

Mademoiselle Beauvisage shone conspicuously, like Brutus and Cassius, by their absence.

Before the candidacy of Monsieur Beauvisage was brought forward on the ministerial side after the death of

Charles Keller, that of Monsieur Simon Giguet was thought to be certain of success. Now, in consequence of

that of our friend Sallenauve, who has in turn distanced Beauvisage, Giguet has fallen a step lower still. His

father, a former colonel of the Empire, is greatly respected throughout this region. As an expression of regret

for not electing his son (according to all probabilities), the electors made him, by acclamation, chairman of

The first candidate who was called upon to speak was Simon Giguet; he made a longwinded address, full of

commonplaces. Few questions were asked him which deserve a place in the present report. The audience felt

Monsieur Beauvisage was then summoned; whereupon Maitre Achille Pigoult the notary rose, and asked

Colonel Giguet rang his bell repeatedly, without being able to enforce silence. At the first lull Maitre Pigoult

"I have the honor to inform you, gentlemen, that, attacked by an indisposition which, not serious in itself"

Like all military men, Colonel Giguet is not patient nor parliamentary; he therefore rose and called out

"Messieurs, we are not at a circus. I request you to behave in a more seemly manner; if not, I leave the chair."

It is to be supposed that men in masses like to be handled roughly; for this lesson was greeted with merry

"I regret to inform you," began Maitre Achille Pigoult, varying his formula for the third time, "that, attacked

"our venerable and excellent mayor," continued Achille Pigoult, taking no notice of the interruption, "is

unable to be present at this meeting. Madame Beauvisage, with whom I have just had the honor of an

interview, requests me to inform you that, for the present, Monsieur Beauvisage renounces the honor of

receiving your suffrages, and requests those of you who have given him your intelligent sympathy to transfer

This Achille Pigoult is a malicious fellow, who intentionally brought in the name of Madame Beauvisage to

exhibit her conjugal sovereignty. But the assembly was really too provincial to catch the meaning of that little

bit of treachery. Besides, in the provinces, women take part in the most virile affairs of the men. The

wellknown saying of the vicar's old housekeeper, "We don't say masses at that price," would pass without

At last came Sallenauve. I was struck with the ease and quiet dignity of his manner. That is a very reassuring

pledge, madame, of his conduct under more trying circumstances; for when a man rises to speak it makes but

little difference who and what his audience are. To an orator goaded by fear, great lords and porters are

precisely the same thing. They are eyes that look at you, ears that hear you. Individuals are not there, only

After enumerating briefly the ties which connected him with this region, slipping in as he did so an adroit and

dignified allusion to his birth which "was not like that of others," Sallenauve stated clearly his political ideas.

A Republic he thought the finest of all governments; but he did not believe it possible to establish one in

France; consequently, he did not desire it. He thought that a truly parliamentary government, in which court

influence should be so vigorously muzzled that nothing need be feared from its tendency to interference and

caballing would best conduce to the dignity and the welfare of the nation. Liberty and equality, the two great

principles that triumphed in '89, would obtain from such a government the strongest guarantees. As to the

manoeuvring of the royal power against those principles, it was not for institutions to check it, but for

men,customs, public opinion, rather than laws; and for himself, Sallenauve, he should ever stand in the

breach as a living obstacle. He declared himself a warm partisan of free education; believed that greater

economy might be exercised in the budget; that too many functionaries were attached to the government; and,

above all, that the court was too largely represented in the Chamber. To maintain his independence he was

firmly resolved to accept no post and no favors from the government. Neither ought those who might elect

him to expect that he would ever take steps on their behalf which were not warranted by reason and by

justice. It was said that the word impossible was not French. Yet there was an impossibility by which he took

pride in being stoppedthat of injustice, and that of disloyalty, even the faintest, to the Right. [Loud

"Monsieur," said one of the electors, after obtaining the floor from the chairman, "you say that you will

accept no post under government. Does not that imply reproach to public functionaries? My name is Godivet;

I am registrar of the archives, but I do not consider that a reason why I should incur the contempt of my

"I am happy, monsieur, to learn that the government has invested a man like you with functions which you

fulfil, I am sure, with perfect uprightness and great ability; but I venture to ask if you rose to your present

"Certainly not, monsieur; I began by being a supernumerary for three years; after that I passed through all the

"Then, monsieur, what would you say if with my rank as deputy (supposing that I obtain the suffrages of this

arrondissement) I, who have never been a supernumerary and never passed through any grades, and whose

only claim upon the administration is that of having voted for it,what would you say if I were suddenly

"I should sayI should say, monsieur, that the choice was a good one, because the king himself would have

"No, monsieur, you would not say it, or if you said it aloud, which I scarcely think possible, you would think

in your heart that the choice was ridiculous and unjust. 'How the devil,' you would say to yourself, 'could this

man, this sculptor, know anything about the intricate business of registering archives?' And you would be

right in condemning such royal caprice; for what becomes of long and honorable services, justly acquired

rights, and steady promotion under such a system of arbitrary choice? It is that I may not be the accomplice of

this crying abuse, because I think it neither just nor honest nor useful to obtain in this way important public

functions, that I denounce the system and bind myself to accept no office. Is this, monsieur, pouring contempt

"Ah ca! monsieur," cried another elector, after demanding the floor in the rather tipsy voice, "you say you

"My friend, I did not say I would ask nothing for my constituents. I said I would ask nothing but what was

just; but that, I may add, I shall ask with energy and perseverance, for that is how justice should be followed

"But," persisted the voter, "there are various ways of doing justice; witness the suit I was made to lose against

"Come, come, you are not going, I hope to talk about your private affairs, and speak disrespectfully of

"Magistrates, colonel, I respect, for I was one myself for six months in '93, and I know the law. But, returning

to my point, I ask monsieur, who is here to answer questions, to me as well as to others, what he thinks about

"My opinion on tobacco licenses! That is rather difficult to formulate; I can, however, say that, if my

"Hey! hey! you're a man, you!" cried the inebriate elector, "and I'll vote for you, for they can't fool you,no!

But they do give those licenses all wrong! Look at that daughter of Jean Remy. Bad neighbor. Never owned

"But, my good fellow," said the chairman, interposing, "you are abusing the patience of this assembly."

The voter was amusing, and Sallenauve himself seemed to let the chairman know he would like to see what

"I was going to say, with due respect to you, colonel, about that daughter of Jean Remy's,a man I'll pursue

to hell, for my bounds were in their right place, and them experts was all wrong. Well! what did that slut do?

Left her father and mother and went to Paris! What did she do there? I didn't go to see, but I'm told she made

acquaintance with a deputy, and has got the tobacco license for the rue Mouffetard, the longest street in Paris.

But I'd like to see my wife, widow of an honest man, doubled up with rheumatism for having slept in the

"But you are not dead yet," they shouted to him from all parts of the room. The colonel, meantime, to put an

end to the burlesque scene, nodded to a little confectioner who was waiting for the floor, a well known

Republican. The new questioner, in a falsetto voice, put the following insidious question to the candidate,a

"Monsieur Dauphin," said the chairman, "I have the honor to remind you that Danton belongs to history."

"Well, history, or the Pantheon of history, as you please; but Danton is irrelevant here."

"Permit me, Mr. Chairman," said Sallenauve, "though the question does not seem to have much purpose on

the bearing of this meeting, I cannot forego the opportunity thus given me to give proof of the impartiality

and independence with which I can judge that great memory, the fame of which still echoes in this town."

"I am firmly convinced," resumed Sallenauve, "that if Danton had been born in a calm and peaceful epoch

like our own, he would have shown himself, what in fact he was, a good father, a good husband, a warm and

faithful friend, a man of kindly temper, who, by the force of his great talents, would have risen to some

"Born, on the contrary, in troublesome times, and amid the storm of unchained passions, Danton was better

constituted than others to kindle the flame of that atmosphere of fire. Danton was the torch that fired; his

scarlet glare lent itself only too readily to scenes of blood and horror which I must not recall. But, they said,

the national independence was at stake, traitors and dissemblers must be awed,in a word, a cruel and awful

sacrifice was necessary for the public weal. Messieurs, I do not accept that theory. To kill, without the

necessity demonstrated a score of times of legitimate defence, to kill women, children, prisoners, unarmed

men, was a crime,a crime, look at it how you will, that was execrable; those who ordered it, those who

consented to it, those who executed it are, to my mind, deserving of the same reprobation."

I wish I could give you an idea, madame, of the tone and expression of Sallenauve as he uttered this

anathema. You know how his face is transfigured when an ardent thought comes into his mind. The

assemblage was mute and gloomy. Evidently he had wounded their sensibilities; but, under the curb of his

"But," he continued, "to all consummated and irreparable crimes there are two issues,repentance and

expiation. His repentance Danton did not utter,he was too proud a man,but he acted it. He was the first,

to the sound of that axe falling without pity and without respite,the first, at the risk of his own head being

the next victim,to call for a 'committee of mercy.' It was the sure, the infallible means of bringing him to

expiation; and you all know whether, when that day of expiation came, he quailed before it. Passing through

death,won by his courageous effort to stop the effusion of blood,it may be truly said that the face and

the memory of Danton have washed off the bloody stain which September put upon them. Committed, at the

age of thirtyfive, to the judgment of posterity, Danton has left us the memory of a great intellect, a strong

and powerful character, noble private qualities, more than one generous action,all derived from his own

being; whereas the bloody errors he committed were the contagion of his epoch. In a word, with men of his

quality, unjust would be the justice which does not temper itself with mercy. And here, messieurs, you have

in your midstbetter than you, better than I, better than all orators and historiansa woman who has

weighed and understood Danton, and who says to the pitiless, with the impulse of her charity, 'He has gone to

The trap thus avoided by this happy allusion to Mother Mariedes Anges, and the assembly evidently

satisfied, it might be supposed that the candidate had come to the end of his baiting. The colonel was even

preparing to pass to the vote, when several electors sprang up, declaring that two important explanations were

still required from the candidate. He had said that he should ever be found an obstacle to all attempts of the

royal power to subvert our institutions. What did he mean by such resistance? Was it armed resistance, the

"Barricades," replied Sallenauve, "have nearly always seemed to me machines which turned of themselves

and crushed the men who raised them. We must believe that in the nature of riots there is something which

serves the interests of the government, for I have invariably heard the police accused of inciting them. My

resistance, that which I spoke of, will ever be a legal resistance, pursued by legal means, by the press, by the

tribune, and with patience,that great force granted to the oppressed and to the vanquished."

If you knew Latin, madame, I should say to you, In cauda venenum; which means, "In the tail of the serpent

is its venom,"a remark of antiquity which modern science does not admit. Monsieur de l'Estorade was not

mistaken; Sallenauve's private life was destined to be ransacked, and, no doubt under the inspiration of the

virtuous Maxime de Trailles, the second question put to our friend was about the handsome Italian woman

Sallenauve showed no embarrassment at being thus interpellated. He merely asked whether the assembly

would think proper to spend its time in listening to a romantic story in which there was no scandal.

But here comes Sallenauve himself; he tells me that the electoral college is formed in a manner that leaves

little doubt of his election. I leave my pen to him, to tell you the romantic tale, already, I believe, interrupted

Madame,The rather abrupt manner in which I parted from you and Monsieur de l'Estorade the evening of

our visit to Armand's school, has been explained to you by the preoccupations of all sorts to which at that

moment I was a victim. MarieGaston tells me that he has kept you informed of the subsequent events.

I acknowledge that in the restless and agitated state of mind in which I then was, the sort of belief which

Monsieur de l'Estorade appeared to give to the scandal which he mentioned caused me great displeasure and

some surprise. How, thought I, is it possible that a man of Monsieur de l'Estorade's morality and intellect can

a priori suppose me capable of such disorder, when he sees me anxious to give to my life all the weight and

consideration which the respect of others alone can bestow? Only a few moments before this painful

conversation I had been on the point of making you a confidence which would, I presume, have protected me

against the unfortunate impression which Monsieur de l'Estorade conveyed to your mind. As for Monsieur de

l'Estorade himself, I was, I confess, so annoyed at seeing the careless manner in which he made himself the

echo of a calumny against which I felt he ought rather to have defended me that I did not deign to make any

explanation to him. I now withdraw that word, but it was then the true expression of a displeasure keenly felt.

In the course of my electoral contest, I have been obliged to make public the justification I did not make to

you; and I have had the satisfaction of finding that men in masses are more capable than individuals of

understanding generous impulses and of distinguishing the honest language of truth. Here are the facts which

A few months before my departure from Rome, I was in a cafe frequented by the pupils of the Academy,

when an Italian musician, named Benedetto, came in, as he usually did every evening. Nominally he was a

musician and a tolerable one; but we had been warned that he was also a spy of the Roman police. However

that might be, he was very amusing; and as we cared nothing for the police, we not only endured but we

encouraged his visits,which was not hard to do in view of his passion for poncio spongato and spuma di

On his entrance one evening, a member of our party asked him who was the woman with whom he had met

"Nonsense! you are ugly and drunken, and people say you are police spy; but she, on the contrary, is as

"Well, if she is your wife, make her pose to our friend here, Dorlange, who wants a model for his Pandora.

The next day I was in my studio in company with several young painters and sculptors when Benedetto came

in accompanied by a woman of rare beauty, whom I need not describe, for you have seen her, madame, at my

"Pooh!" exclaimed Benedetto, with an air which seemed to say: "I'd like to see her refuse."

Nobody minded me. Judging the wife by the husband, the eager young fellows pressed round her; while she,

wounded and angered by the audacity of their eyes, looked like a caged panther irritated by peasants at a fair.

Going up to her and pulling her aside, Benedetto told her in Italian that I wanted to copy her from head to

foot, and she must then and there take off her clothes. The woman gave him one withering look, and made for

the door. Benedetto rushed forward to prevent her; while my comrades, for the honor of the studio,

Then began an argument between the wife and the husband; but, as I saw that Benedetto sustained his part of

it with great brutality, I was angry, and, having a pretty vigorous arm, I pushed him aside, and took the wife,

who was trembling all over, to the door. She said, in Italian, a few words of thanks, and disappeared instantly.

Returning to Benedetto, who was gesticulating furiously, I told him to leave the studio, that his conduct was

"Debole!" (idiot!) he replied, shrugging his shoulders, and departing amid derisive cheers.

Several days passed, and no signs of Benedetto. By the end of a week he was forgotten. Three days before my

"After he offered me that affront," she replied, "he came home and beat me, as he often did; then he went out

and was gone all day. At night he returned with a pistol and threatened to shoot me; but I got the pistol away

from him, for he was drunk. I threw himthe briccone!on his bed, and he fell asleep. Then I stuffed up

the doors and windows, and lighted the charcoal brazier. My head ached horribly, and I knew nothing more

till the next day, when I woke up in the hands of my neighbors. They had smelt the charcoal, and burst in the

"I told the judge everything. Besides, he had tried to sell me to an Englishman,that's why he wanted to

disgrace me here with you; he thought I would resist less. The judge told me I might go, I had done right;

"But, cara mia, what can you do in France? Better stay in Italy; besides, I am not rich."

"I can be the model for your statues if I choose. Besides which, I am a capital housekeeper. If Benedetto had

behaved properly, we should have had a good home,per che, I know how to make one; and I've another

She ran to a guitar, which was hanging on the wall, and began to sing a bravura air, accompanying herself

"In France," she said, when she had finished, "I could take lessons and go upon the stage, where I know I

"I am hiding from that Englishman," she replied; "he wants to carry me off. I am determined to go to France;

I have learned to speak French. If I stay here, I shall throw myself into the Tiber."

By abandoning such a nature, more terrible than seductive, to itself, Monsieur de l'Estorade will, I think,

agree that I was likely to cause some misfortune. I consented, therefore, that Signora Luigia should

accompany me to Paris. Since then she has managed my household with discretion and economy. She even

offered to pose for my Pandora; but the memory of that scene with her husband has, as you may well believe,

kept me from accepting her offer. I have given her a singing master, and she is now almost prepared to

make her appearance on the stage. But in spite of her theatrical projects, she, pious like all Italians, has joined

the sisterhood of the Virgin in SaintSulpice, my parish church, and during the month of May, which began a

few days ago, the letter of chairs counts on her beautiful voice for part of her receipts. She is assiduous at the

services, confesses, and takes the sacrament regularly. Her confessor, a most respectable old man, came to

see me lately to request that she might not be required to pose for any more of my statues, saying that she

My own intention, if I am elected, which now seems probable, is to separate from this woman. In a position

which will place me more before the public, she would become an object of remark as injurious to her

reputation and future prospects as to mine. I have talked with MarieGaston about the difficulty I foresee in

making this separation. Until now, my house has been the whole of Paris to this poor woman; and the thought

MarieGaston thinks that the help and advice of a person of her own sex, with a high reputation for virtue

and good judgment, would be in such a case most efficacious; and he declares that he and I both know a lady

who, at our earnest entreaty, might take this duty upon herself. The person to whom MarieGaston makes

allusion is but a recent acquaintance of mine, and I could hardly ask even an old friend to take such a care

upon her shoulders. I know, however, that you once did me the honor to say that "certain relations ripen

rapidly." Marie Gaston insists that this lady, being kind and pious and most charitable, will be attracted by

the idea of helping and advising a poor lonely woman. On our return to Paris, madame, we shall venture to

consult you, and you will tell us whether we may ask for this precious assistance.

In any case, I will ask you to be my intermediary with Monsieur de l'Estorade; tell him the facts I have now

told you, and say that I hope the little cloud between us may be effectually removed. If I am elected, we shall

be, I know, in opposite camps; but as my intention is not to take a tone of systematic opposition in all the

questions which may arise between our parties, I do not think there need be any break between us.

By this time tomorrow, madame, I may have received a checkmate which will send me back forever to my

studio, or I shall have a foot in a new career. Shall I tell you that the thought of the latter result distresses

I was almost forgetting to give you another piece of news. I have consulted Mother MariedesAnges

(whose history MarieGaston tells me he has related to you) on the subject of my doubts and fears as to the

violence done to Mademoiselle de Lanty, and she has promised that in course of time she will discover the

convent in which Marianina is a prisoner. The worthy Mother, if she takes this into her head, is almost certain

I am not feeling at all easy in mind about MarieGaston. He seems to me in a state of feverish agitation,

partly created by the immense interest he takes in my success. But I greatly fear that his efforts will result in a

serious reaction. His own grief, which at this moment he is repressing, has not in reality lost its sting. Have

you not been struck by the rather flighty and mocking tone of his letters, some of which he has shown to me?

That is not in his nature, for in his happiest days he was never turbulently gay; and I am sadly afraid that

when this fictitious excitement about my election is over he may fall into utter prostration. He has, however,

consented to come and live with me, and not to go to Ville d'Avray unless I am with him. Even this act of

prudence, which I asked without hoping to obtain it, makes me uneasy. Evidently he is afraid of the memories

that await him there. Have I the power to lessen the shock? Old Philippe, who was left in charge of the place

when he went to Italy, had orders not to move or change anything whatever in the house. Our friend is

therefore likely to find himself, in presence of those speaking objects, on the morrow as it were of his wife's

death. Another alarming thing! he has only spoken of her once, and will not suffer me to approach the

subject. I hope, however, that this may be a crisis; once passed, I trust we may, by all uniting, succeed in

Victor or vanquished, I trust to meet you soon, madame, and always as your most respectful and devoted

That stupid riot in Paris, the incredible particulars of which we heard this morning by telegraph, came near

The subprefect instantly placarded all over the town the news of this attempt at insurrectionno doubt

instigated by the government to affect the elections. "What! elect a democrat!" was repeated everywhere in

Arcis, and doubtless elsewhere, "so that his speeches in the Chamber may be made the ammunition of

That argument threw our phalanx into disorder and hesitation. But the idea occurred to Jacques Bricheteau to

turn the danger itself to good account, and he hastily printed on a sheet of paper and distributed all over the

A bloody riot took place yesterday in Paris. Questioned as to the employment of such guilty and desperate

means of opposition, one of our candidates, Monsieur de Sallenauve, answered thus: "Riots will always be

found to serve the interests of the government; for this reason the police are invariably accused of inciting

them. True resistance, that which I stand for, will always be legal resistance, pursued by legal means, by the

press, by the tribune, and with Patiencethat great force granted to the oppressed and to the vanquished."

These words, you will remember, madame, were those in which Sallenauve answered his questioners at the

That sheet of paper did marvels; it completely foiled the efforts of Monsieur de Trailles, who, throwing off

the mask, had spent his day in perorating, in white gloves, on the marketplace and from the steps of the

This evening the result is known; namely, two hundred and one votes cast: two for Beauvisage; twentynine

During the evening which followed the election in which he had played a part so humiliating to his vanity,

Maxime de Trailles returned to Paris. It might be supposed that in making, on his arrival, a rapid toilet and

ordering his carriage to be instantly brought round, he was hastening to pay a visit to the Comte de Rastignac,

minister of Public Works, to whom he must have desired to render an account of his mission, and explain as

Arriving at the gate of one of the prettiest hotels in the quartier Breda, and nodding to the concierge, he

received an affirmative sign, which meant, "Monsieur is at home"; and at the same time a valet appeared on

Then, like one familiar with the house, and without waiting for the servant to usher him, he entered a large

room on the groundfloor, which looked into a garden, and was filled with a miscellaneous collection of

articles testifying to the colonel's habits and tastes. Books, charts, and maps certainly justified the word

"study"; but, as a frantic sportsman and member of the Jockey Club, the colonel had allowed this sanctum of

mental labor and knowledge to become, by degrees, his smoking, fencing, and harness room. Pipes and

weapons of all shapes and all lands, saddles, huntingwhips, spurs, bits of many patterns, foils and

boxinggloves formed a queer and heterogenous collection. However, by thus surrounding his daily life with

the objects of his favorite studies, the colonel proved himself a man who possessed the courage of his

opinions. In fact, he openly said that, beyond a passing notice, there was no reading worth a man's attention

It is to be supposed, however, that politics had managed in some way to slip into this existence devoted to

muscular exercise and the hippic science, for, from a heap of the morning journals disdainfully flung upon the

floor by the worthy colonel, Monsieur de Trailles picked up a copy of the legitimist organ, in which he read,

The staff of the National Guard and the Jockey Club, which had various representatives in the last Chamber,

have just sent one of their shining notabilities to the one about to open. Colonel Franchessini, so well known

for his ardor in punishing the refractories of the National Guard, has been elected almost unanimously in one

of the rotten boroughs of the civil list. It is supposed that he will take his seat beside the phalanx of other

henchmen, and show himself in the Chamber, as he has elsewhere, one of the firmest supporters of the policy

After serving the Empire for a very short time, Colonel Franchessini had become one of the most brilliant

colonels of the Restoration; but in consequence of certain mists which had risen about the perfect

honorableness of his character he had found himself obliged to send in his resignation, so that in 1830 he was

fully prepared to devote himself in the most ardent manner to the dynasty of July. He did not reenter

military service, because, shortly after his misadventure he had met with an Englishwoman, enormously rich,

who being taken with his beauty, worthy at that time of the Antinous, had made him her husband, and the

colonel henceforth contented himself with the epaulets of the staff of the National Guard. He became, in that

position, one of the most exacting and turbulent of blusterers, and through the influence of that quality

combined with the fortune his wife had given him, he had just been elected, as the paper stated, to the

Chamber of deputies. Approaching the fifties, like his friend de Trailles, Colonel Franchessini had still some

pretensions to the afterglow of youth, which his slim figure and agile military bearing seemed likely to

preserve to him for some time longer. Although he had conquered the difficulty of his gray hair, reducing its

silvery reflections by keeping it cut very close, he was less resigned to the scantiness of his moustache, which

he wore in youthful style, twirled to a sharp point by means of a Hungarian cosmetic, which also preserved to

a certain degree its primitive color. But whoso wants to prove too much proves nothing, and in the black

which the colonel used there was noticeably a raw tone, and an equality of shade too perfect for truth of

nature. Hence his countenance, swarthy and strongly marked with the Italian origin indicated by his name,

had an expression of singular rigidity, to which his features, now become angular, his piercing glance, and his

"Hey, Maxime!" he cried, shaking hands with his visitor, "where the devil do you come from? It is more than

"Where do I come from?" replied Monsieur de Trailles. "I'll tell you presently; but first let me congratulate

"Yes," said the colonel, with apparent indifference, "they would put me up; but I assure you, upon my honor,

"But, my dear fellow, you are a blessed choice for that arrondissement; I only wish that the electors I have

"What! have you been standing for election? I didn't suppose, taking into consideration therather troubled

"True, and I was not electioneering on my own account. Rastignac was uneasy about the arrondissement of

"ArcissurAube? Seems to me I read an article about that this morning in one of those cabbageleaves.

"Precisely; and it is about that very thing I have come to see you before I see the others. I have just arrived,

"How is he getting on, that little minister?" said the colonel, taking no notice of the clever steps by which

Maxime was gravitating toward the object of his visit. "They seem to be satisfied with him at the palace. Do

"She is pretty, that little thing," continued the colonel, "very pretty; and I think, the first year of marriage well

"Come, come," said Maxime, "you are a serious man now, a legislator! As for me, the mere meddling in

"Did you say you went to ArcissurAube to hinder the election of that stonecutter?"

"Not at all; I went there to throw myself in the way of the election of a Leftcentre candidate."

"Pah! the Left, pure and simple, is hardly worse. But take a cigar; these are excellent. The princes smoke

The colonel rose and rang the bell, saying to the servant when he came, "A light!"

The cigars lighted, Monsieur de Trailles endeavored to prevent another interruption by declaring before he

was questioned that he had never smoked anything more exquisite. Comfortably ensconced in his arm chair,

the colonel seemed to offer the hope of a less fugacious attention, and Monsieur de Trailles resumed:

"All went well at first. To crush the candidate the ministry wanted to be rid of,a lawyer, and the worst sort

of cad,I unearthed a stockingmaker, a fearful fool, whom I persuaded to offer himself as candidate. The

worthy man was convinced that he belonged to the dynastic opposition. That is the opinion which, for the

time being, prevails in that region. The election, thanks to me, was as good as made; and, our man once in

Paris, the great Seducer in the Tuileries had only to say five words to him, and this dynastic opposer could

have been turned inside out like one of this own stockings, and made to do whatever was wanted of him."

"You will recognize him still farther when he tells you that he was able, without recourse to perquisites, to

make his own little profit out of the affair. In order to graft a little parliamentary ambition upon my vegetable,

I addressed myself to his wife,a rather appetizing provincial, though past her prime."

"Yes, yes, I see; very good!" said Franchessini; "husband made deputy satisfiedshut his mouth."

"You are all wrong, my dear fellow; the pair have an only daughter, a spoilt child, nineteen years old, very

"But, my dear Maxime, I passed your tailor's house last night, and it was not illuminated."

"No; that would have been premature. However, here was the situation: two women frantic to get to Paris;

gratitude to the skies for the man who would get them an introduction to the PalaisBourbon; the little one

crazy for the title of countess; the mother transported at the idea, carefully insinuated by me, of holding a

political salon,you must see all that such a situation offers, and you know me too well, I fancy, to suppose

"Quite easy in mind as to that," said the colonel, getting up to open a window and let out the smoke of their

"I was on the point," continued Maxime, "of pocketing both daughter and dot, when there fell from the skies,

or rather there rose from the nether regions, a Left candidate, the stonecutter, as you call him, a man with

"Ha!" said the colonel, "those fellows do have lucky stars, to be sure. I am not surprised if one of them

"My dear friend," said Maxime, "if we were in the middle ages, I should explain by magic and sorcery the

utter discomfiture of my candidate, and the election of the stoneman, whom you are fated to have for your

colleague. How is it possible to believe, what is however the fact, that an old tricoteuse, a former friend of

Danton, and now the abbess of a convent of Ursulines, should actually, by the help of her nephew, an obscure

organist in Paris, have so bewitched the whole electoral college that this upstart has been elected by a large

"Not the ghost of one,unless it might be that nun. Fortune, relations, father, even a name, he never had

until the day of his arrival at Arcis two weeks ago; and now, if you please, the Comte Charles de Sallenauve,

seigneur of the chateau of Arcis, is elected to the Chamber of deputies! God only knows how it was done!

The pretended head of a former great family, representing himself as absent in foreign lands for many years,

suddenly appears with this schemer before a notary in Arcis, recognizes him at a gallop as his son, buys the

chateau of Arcis and presents it to him, and is off during the night before any one could even know what road

he took. The trick thus played, the abbess and her aidedecamp, the organist, launched the candidate, and at

once republicans, legitimists, conservatives, clergy, nobility, bourgeoisie, in fact everybody, as if by some

spell cast upon that region, all did the bidding of that old witch of a nun, and without the stalwart battalion of

the functionaries (who under my eye stood firm and did not flinch), his election would have been, like yours,

"Not precisely; though it must certainly be adjourned. The father grumbles because the blessed tranquillity of

his life was disturbed and he himself covered with ridicule, though the poor dear man had already enough of

that! The daughter still wants to be a countess, but the mother takes it hard that her political salon should be

floating away from her, and God knows how far I shall be led in order to comfort her. Besides all this, I

myself am goaded by the necessity of having to find the solution of my own problem pretty soon. I had found

it there: I intended to marry, and take a year to settle my affairs; at the next session I should have made my

fatherinlaw resign and stepped into his seat in the Chamber; then, you understand, what an horizon before

"But, my dear fellow, political horizon apart, don't let that million slip through your fingers."

"Oh, heavens! as for that, except for the delay, I feel safe enough. My future family is about to remove to

Paris. After this mortifying defeat, life in Arcis will not be endurable. Beauvisage (forgive the name, it is that

of my adopted family)Beauvisage is like Coriolanus, ready if he can to bring fire and slaughter on his

ungrateful birthplace. Besides, in transplanting themselves hither, these unfortunate exiles know where to lay

"Yes; BeauseantBeauvisage; only a termination to change. Ah! my dear fellow, you don't know what these

provincial fortunes are, accumulated penny by penny, especially when to the passion for saving is added the

incessant aspiration of that leech called commerce. We must make up our minds to some course; the

bourgeoisie are rising round us like a flood; it is almost affable in them to buy our chateaus and estates when

"Happily for you, my dear Maxime, you have reduced the number of your chateaus and estates."

"You see yourself that is not so," replied Maxime, "inasmuch as I am now engaged in providing myself with

one. The Beauseant house is to be repaired and refurnished immediately, and I am charged with the ordering

of the work. But I have made my future motherinlaw another promise, and I want your help, my dear

"No, something less difficult. These damned women, when hatred or a desire for vengeance takes possession

of them, are marvels of instinct; and Madame Beauvisage, who roars like a lioness at the very name of

Sallenauve, has taken it into her head that beneath his incomprehensible success there is some foul intrigue or

mystery. It is certain that the appearance and disappearance of this mysterious father have given rise to very

singular conjectures; and probably if the thumbscrews were put upon the organist, who was, they say,

entrusted with the education of the interesting bastard, we might get the secret of his birth and possibly other

unexpected revelations. Now I have thought of a man on whom you have, I believe, great influence, who

might in this hunt for facts assist us immensely. Don't you remember the robbery of those jewels from Jenny

Cardine, about which she was so unhappy one night at Very's? You asked the waiter for pens and paper, and

on a simple note which you sent at three o'clock in the morning to a Monsieur SaintEsteve the police went

to work, and before the evening of the next day the thieves were captured and the jewels restored."

"Yes," said the colonel, "I remember all that; my interference was lucky. But I must tell you that had I paused

to reflect I should not have treated Monsieur de SaintEsteve so cavalierly. He is a man to be approached

"Ah ca! but isn't he a former galleyslave, whose pardon you helped to obtain, and who feels for you the

"Yes, that is true. Monsieur de SaintEsteve, like his predecessor, BibiLupin, has had misfortunes; but he is

today the head of the detective police, the important functions of which office he fulfils with rare capacity.

If the matter concerned anything that comes within his department, I should not hesitate to give you a letter to

him; but the affair you speak of is delicate; and in any case I must first sound him and see if he is willing to

"I thought you managed him despotically. Let us say no more about it, if you think it so very difficult."

"The greatest difficulty is that I never see him; and I naturally cannot write to him for such an object. I should

have to watch for an occasion, a chance meeting. But why don't you speak of this to Rastignac? He could

"Don't you understand that Rastignac will receive me very ill indeed? I had assured him, by letter, of success,

and now I am forced to report in person our defeat. Besides, on every account, I would rather owe this service

"Well, it sha'n't fail you," said the colonel, rising. "I'll do my best to satisfy you; only, there must be a delay."

The visit had lasted long, and Maxime felt that a hint was given him to abridge it. He therefore took leave,

putting into his manner a certain coldness which the colonel appeared not to notice.

No sooner had Monsieur de Trailles departed than Franchessini opened a pack of cards and took out the

knave of spades. This he cut up in a curious manner, leaving the figure untouched. Placing this species of

hieroglyphic between two sheets of paper, he consigned it to an envelope. On this envelope and disguising his

That done, he rang the bell and gave orders to put up his carriage, which he had ordered before Maxime's

arrival; after which he went out alone on foot, and threw his singular missive into the first street letterbox

that he passed. He had taken care, before he left the house, to see if it were properly sealed.

As a result of the elections which had just taken place, the ministry, contrary to expectation, maintained a

majority in the Chamber,a doubtful and provisional majority which would give it an uncertain and

struggling existence. But, at any rate, it had obtained that merely numerical success which parties seek at any

price to prolong their power. The Te Deum was sung in all its camps,a paean which serves as well to

On the evening of the day when Colonel Franchessini received the visit from Maxime de Trailles, the general

result of the elections was made known. The ministers of the left bank, whose wives received on that day,

found their salons crowded, particularly the Comte de Rastignac, the minister of Public Works.

Madame de l'Estorade, too much absorbed in her children to be very exact in the fulfilment of her social

duties, had owed a visit to Madame de Rastignac ever since the evening when the minister's wife had

interrupted her conversation with the sculptor apropos of the famous statue. Monsieur de l'Estorade, zealous

conservative as we know already, had insisted that politics and politeness now combined to oblige them both

to pay this social debt. Arriving early, in order to be rid the sooner of such a bore, Madame de l'Estorade

found herself seated at the upper end of a circle of women, while the men stood about them conversing. Her

In hoping to make her visit short, Madame de l'Estorade had not counted on the allurements of conversation

which, under the circumstances of this socalled political victory, laid hold of her husband. A man of more

influence by his judgment than by his oratory in the Chamber of Peers, Monsieur de l'Estorade, as he

circulated through the salons, was stopped at every turn by the various notabilities of politics, finance, and

diplomacy, and requested to give his opinion on the future of the session now about to begin. To all such

questions he replied with more or less extended observations, and sometimes he had the pleasure of finding

himself the centre of a group respectfully receptive of his opinions. This success rendered him very

inattentive to the telegraphy of his wife, who, watching his various evolutions, made him signs whenever she

The years that had elapsed since Monsieur de l'Estorade had obtained the hand of the beautiful Renee de

Maucombe, while they had scarcely dimmed the splendor of her beauty, had considerably aged her husband.

The twenty years' difference in their ageshe being now fiftytwo, she thirtytwowas growing all the

more apparent because even at the time of the marriage he was turning gray and his health was failing. An

affection of the liver, latent for several years, was now developing, and at the same time the wilful disposition

which is noticeable in statesmen and men of ambition made his mouth less sensitive to the conjugal bit.

Monsieur de l'Estorade talked so long and so well that after a time the salons thinned, leaving a group of the

intimates of the house around his wife and their hostess. At this moment the minister himself slipped an arm

through his, and, leading him up to the group surrounding their two wives, Rastignac said to Madame de

"I bring you back your husband; I have just found him in criminal conversation with a member of the

Zollverin, who would probably have clung to him all night if it had not been for me."

"I was myself on the point of asking Madame de Rastignac for a bed, that I might release her from the burden

of my company, which Monsieur de l'Estorade's interminable conversations have put upon her."

Madame de Rastignac protested that, on the contrary, she desired to enjoy as long as possible Madame de

l'Estorade's company, only regretting that she had been so often obliged to interrupt their conversation to

receive those strange objects, the newly fledged deputies, who had come in relays to make their bow to her.

"Oh! my dear," cried Rastignac, "here's the session about to open, and we really must not take these

disdainful airs toward the elect of the nation. Besides which, you will get into difficulties with madame, who,

"I?" said Madame de l'Estorade, rather surprised, and blushing a little. She had one of those complexions, still

"Ah! true," said Madame de Rastignac; "I had forgotten that artist who cut out the pretty figures for your

children the last time I had the pleasure of paying you a visit. I own I was far from thinking then that he

"And yet, ever since then," replied Madame de l'Estorade, "his election has been talked about; though it must

"I did," said Monsieur de l'Estorade, rather eagerly, seizing the occasion to put another star to his reputation

for prophecy; "from the first political conversation that I had with him I saidand Monsieur de Ronquerolles

is here to bear me outthat I was surprised at the ability and the breadth of aim he manifested."

"Certainly," said the personage thus interpellated, "he is not an ordinary fellow; but I do not believe in his

future. He is a man who goes by the first impulsion, and, as Monsieur de Talleyrand has wisely remarked, the

"Well, madame," replied Monsieur de Ronquerolles, who was vain of his scepticism, "heroism is not of our

day; it is heavy baggage, horribly embarrassing, which gets us into mudholes continually."

"Nevertheless, I believe that great qualities of heart and mind have some share in the composition of a

"Qualities of mind? Yes, you are right there, provided always they work in a certain direction. But as for

qualities of the heart in political life, what good are they?to hoist you on stilts with which you can't walk as

well as you can on the ground, and from which you are liable to fall and break your neck at the first push."

"At that rate," said Madame de Rastignac, laughing, while Madame de l'Estorade was silent, disdaining to

"That is so, madame,ask Lazarille"; and as he made this allusion to a famous stage joke, he laid his hand

"My dear fellow," said Rastignac, "I think your generalities are a little too particular."

"No, no; but come," returned Monsieur de Ronquerolles, "let us talk seriously. To my knowledge, this

Monsieur de Sallenauvethat is the name I think he has taken in exchange for Dorlange, which he himself

called theatricalhas done, within a short time, two fine actions. I, being present and assisting, saw him

stand up to be killed by the Duc de Rhetore, on account of certain illsounding words said about a friend.

Those words, in the first place, he could not help hearing; and having heard them it was, I will not say his

"Ah!" said Madame de Rastignac, "then it was he who fought that duel people said so much about?"

"Yes, madame, and I ought to sayfor I understand such mattersthat at the meeting he behaved with

To avoid the recital of the second fine action, Madame de l'Estorade, at the risk of impolitely cutting short a

topic thus begun, rose, and made an almost imperceptible sign to her husband that she wished to go. But

"His other fine action was to throw himself in front of some runaway horses to save madame's daughter from

All eyes turned on Madame de l'Estorade, who, this time, blushed deeply; but recovering speech, if only in

"According to your theory of heroism you must think Monsieur de Sallenauve very foolish to have thus

risked his life and his future; but I assure you that there is one woman who will never agree with you, and that

As she said the words, tears were in Madame de l'Estorade's voice; she pressed Madame de Rastignac's hand

affectionately, and made so decided a movement to leave the room that she finally put in motion her

"Thank you," said Madame de Rastignac, as she accompanied her to the door, "for having broken a lance

with that cynic; Monsieur de Rastignac's past life has left him with odious acquaintances."

"Ha! saved her child's life indeed! The fact is that poor l'Estorade is turning as yellow as a lemon."

"Ah, monsieur, but that is shocking," cried Madame de Rastignac. "A woman whom no breath of slander has

ever touched; who lives only for her husband and children; whose eyes were full of tears at the mere thought

"Heavens! madame," retorted Monsieur de Ronquerolles, paying no heed to the rebuke, "all I can say is that

newfoundlands are always dangerous. If Madame de l'Estorade becomes too much compromised, she has one

Monsieur de Ronquerolles had no sooner said the words than he perceived the horrible blunder he had

committed in making such a speech before Mademoiselle de Nucingen. He colored high,a most unusual

"This clock must be slow," said the minister, catching at any words that would make a sound and break up an

"True," said de Ronquerolles, looking at his watch; "it is a quarter to twelve."

He bowed to Madame de Rastignac ceremoniously, and went away, followed by the rest of the company.

"You saw his embarrassment," said Rastignac to his wife; "he had no malicious intention in what he said."

"It is of no consequence. I was saying just now to Madame de l'Estorade's that your past life had given you a

"But, my dear, the King himself is compelled to smile graciously on men he would fain put in the

Madame de Rastignac made no reply, and without bidding her husband goodnight, she went up to her room.

A few moments later the minister went to the private door which led into it, and not finding the key in the

lock, he said, "Augusta!" in the tone of voice a simple bourgeois might have used in such a case.

"Ah!" he thought to himself with a gesture of vexation, "there are some pasts very different from that

Then, after a moment's silence, he added, to cover his retreat, "Augusta, I wanted to ask you what hour

Madame de l'Estorade receives. I ought to call upon her tomorrow, after what happened here tonight."

"At four o'clock," said the young wife through the door,"on her return from the Tuileries, where she takes

One of the questions that were frequently put by Parisian society after the marriage of Madame de Rastignac

The doubt was permissible. The marriage of Mademoiselle de Nucingen was the unpleasant and scarcely

moral product of one of those immoral unions which find their issue in the life of a daughter, after years and

satiety have brought them to a condition of dryrot and paralysis. In such marriages of convenience the

husband is satisfied, for he escapes a happiness which has turned rancid to him, and he profits by a

speculation like that of the magician in the "Arabian Nights" who exchanges old lamps for new. But the wife,

on the contrary, must ever feel a living memory between herself and her husband; a memory which may

revive, and while wholly outside of the empire of the senses, has the force of an old authority antagonistic to

During the short time we have taken to give this brief analysis of a situation too frequently existing,

As he said the words, rather piteously, the door opened suddenly, and his wife, throwing herself into his arms,

The question was answered: Madame de Rastignac loved her husband; but for all that, the distant muttering

The next day, when Rastignac entered his office, the adjoining waitingroom was already occupied by eleven

persons waiting with letters of introduction to solicit favors, also two peers of France and several deputies.

Presently a bell rang. The usher, with an eagerness which communicated itself to all present, entered the

"The minister is obliged to attend a Council. He will, however, have the honor to receive the gentlemen of the

"What other time?" asked one of the postponed; "this is the third time in three days that I have come here

The usher made a gesture which meant, "It is not my affair; I follow my orders." But hearing certain murmurs

as to the privilege granted to honorable members, he said, with a certain solemnity,

"The honorable gentlemen came to discuss affairs of public interest with his Excellency."

The officeseekers, being compelled to accept this fib, departed. After which the bell rang again. The usher

then assumed his most gracious expression of face. By natural affinity, the lucky ones had gathered in a

group at one end of the room. Though they had never seen one another before, most of them being the

offspring of the late national lyingin, they seemed to recognize a certain representative air which is very

difficult to define, though it can never be mistaken. The usher, not venturing to choose among so many

And he walked to the closed door, which the usher threw open, announcing in a loud, clear voice,

"Ha! so you are the first this morning," said the minister, making a few steps towards the colonel, and giving

him his hand. "What have you come for, my dear fellow?a railroad, a canal, a suspension bridge?"

"I have come, my goodnatured minister, on private business in which you are more interested than I."

"That is not a judicious way of urging it, for I warn you I pay little or no attention to my own business."

"I had a visit from Maxime this morning, on his return from Arcissur Aube," said the colonel, coming to

the point. "He gave me all the particulars of that election. He thinks a spoke might be put in the wheel of it.

The minister, who was sitting before his desk with his back to the fireplace, turned round to look at the clock.

"Look here, my dear fellow," he said, "I'm afraid you will be long, and I have a hungry pack outside there

waiting for me. I shouldn't listen to you comfortably. Do me the favor to go and take a walk and come back at

twelve o'clock to breakfast. I'll present you to Madame de Rastignac, whom you don't know, I think, and after

breakfast we will take a few turns in the garden; then I can listen to you in peace."

Three hours later, when the colonel entered the salon where he was presented to Madame de Rastignac, he

found there the Baron de Nucingen, who came nearly every day to breakfast with his soninlaw before the

Bourse hour, Emile Blondet of the "Debats," Messieurs Moreau (de l'Oise), Dionis, and Camusot, three

deputies madly loquacious, and two newly elected deputies whose names it is doubtful if Rastignac knew

himself. Franchessini also recognized Martial de la RocheHugon, the minister's brotherinlaw, and the

inevitable des Lupeaulx, peer of France. As for another figure, who stood talking with the minister for some

time in the recess of a window, the colonel learned, after inquiring of Emile Blondet, that it was that of a

former functionary of the upper police, who continued, as an amateur, to do part of his former business, going

daily to each minister under all administrations with as much zeal and regularity as if he were still charged

Madame de Rastignac seen at close quarters seemed to the colonel a handsome blonde, not at all languishing.

She was strikingly like her mother, but with that shade of greater distinction which in the descendants of

parvenus increases from generation to generation as they advance from their source. The last drop of the

primitive Goriot blood had evaporated in this charming young woman, who was particularly remarkable for

the highbred delicacy of all her extremities, the absence of which in Madame de Nucingen had shown the

As the colonel wished to retain a footing in the house he now entered for the first time, he talked about his

"She lived," he said, "in the old English fashion, in her home; but he should be most glad to bring her out of

her retreat in order to present her to Madame de Rastignac if the latter would graciously consent."

"Now," said the minister, dropping the arm of Emile Blondet, with whom he had been conversing, "let us go

into the garden,"adding, as soon as they were alone, "We want no ears about us in this matter."

"Maxime came to see me, as I told you," said the colonel, "on his return from ArcissurAube, and he is full

of an idea of discovering something about the pretended parentage of this sculptor by which to oust him"

"I know," interrupted Rastignac; "he spoke to me about that idea, and there's neither rhyme nor reason in it.

Either this Sallenauve has some value, or he is a mere cipher. If the latter, it is useless to employ such a

dangerous instrument as the man Maxime proposes to neutralize a power that does not exist. If, on the other

hand, this new deputy proves really an orator, we can deal with him in the tribune and in the newspapers

without the help of such underground measures. General rule: in a land of unbridled publicity like ours,

wherever the hand of the police appears, if even to lay bare the most shameful villany, there's always a hue

and cry against the government. Public opinion behaves like the man to whom another man sang an air of

Mozart to prove that Mozart was a great musician. Was he vanquished by evidence? 'Mozart,' he replied to

the singer, 'may have been a great musician, but you, my dear fellow, have a cold in your head.'"

"There's a great deal of truth in what you say," replied Franchessini; "but the man whom Maxime wants to

unmask may be one of those honest mediocrities who make themselves a thorn in the side of all

administrations; your most dangerous adversaries are not the giants of oratory."

"I expect to find out the real weight of the man before long," replied Rastignac, "from a source I have more

confidence in than I have in Monsieur de Trailles. On this very occasion he has allowed himself to be tripped

up, and now wants to compensate by heroic measures for his own lack of ability. As for your other man, I

shall not employ him for the purpose Maxime suggests, but you may tell him from me"

"that if he meddles in politics, as he shows an inclination to do, there are certain deplorable memories in

"I know all about him," replied Rastignac; "do you suppose there are no other detectives in Paris? I know that

since 1830, when he took BibiLupin's place as chief of the detective police, he has given his life a most

"He is rich," continued Rastignac, not heeding the interruption. "His salary is twelve thousand francs, and he

has the three hundred thousand Lucien de Rubempre left him,also the proceeds of a manufactory of

varnished leather which he started at Gentilly; it pays him a large profit. His aunt, Jacqueline Collin, who

lives with him, still does a shady business secretly, which of course brings in large fees, and I have the best of

reasons for believing that they both gamble at the Bourse. He is so anxious to keep out of the mud that he has

gone to the other extreme. Every evening he plays dominoes, like any bourgeois, in a cafe near the

Prefecture, and Sundays he goes out to a little box of a place he has bought near the forest of Romainville, in

the SaintGervais meadows; there he cultivates blue dahlias, and talked, last year, of crowning a Rosiere. All

that, my dear colonel, is too bucolic to allow of my employing him on any political policework."

"I think myself," said Franchessini, "that in order not to attract attention, he rolls himself too much into a

"Make him unwind, and then, if he wants to return to active life and take a hand in politics, he may find some

honest way of doing so. He'll never make a Saint Vincent de Paul,though the saint was at the galleys once

upon a time; but there are plenty of ways in which he could get a third or fourth class reputation. If Monsieur

de Saint Esteve, as he now calls himself, takes that course, and I am still in power, tell him to come and see

"That is something, certainly," said Franchessini, aloud; but he thought to himself that since the days of the

pension Vauquer the minister had taken long strides and that roles had changed between himself and Vautrin.

"You can tell him what I say," continued Rastignac, going up the steps of the portico, "but be cautious how

"Don't be uneasy," replied the colonel. "I will speak to him judiciously, for he's a man who must not be

The minister, by making no reply to this remark, seemed to admit the truth of it.

"You must be in the Chamber when the king opens it; we shall want all the enthusiasm we can muster," said

The latter, when he took leave of Madame de Rastignac, asked on what day he might have the honor of

Rastignac called on Madame de l'Estorade the next day at the hour named to him by his wife. Like all those

present at the scene produced by Monsieur de Ronquerolles, the minister had been struck by the emotion

shown by the countess, and, without stopping to analyze the nature of the sentiment she might feel for the

By the suddenness and the masterly stroke of his election, Sallenauve had become an object of strong interest

to the minister,all the more because up to the last moment his candidacy was not seriously considered. It

was now known that in the preparatory meeting he had given proofs of talent. To his active and dangerous

party, which had but few representatives in the Chamber, he might become an organ that would echo far. By

his peculiar position of birth and fortune, whatever might be the truth of it, he was one who could do without

the favors of government; and all information obtained about him went to show that he was a man of grave

On the other hand, the cloud upon his life might at a given moment serve to neutralize his honor; and

Rastignac, while rejecting the proposal of de Trailles and Franchessini to put the mystery into the hands of

the police, did not himself renounce a means which, dangerous as it seemed to him, he might use if occasion

In this situation Madame de l'Estorade could be useful to him in two ways. Through her he could meet the

new deputy accidentally, without appearing to seek him, and thus study him at his ease, in order to know if he

had a vulnerable point accessible to persuasion. And, secondly, if he found him unpersuadable, he could let

Madame de l'Estorade know in confidence of the secret inquiry about to be carried on into Sallenauve's

antecedents, which, conveyed by her to the deputy, would have the effect of making him cautious and,

However, his immediate plan suffered some modification; for Madame de l'Estorade was not at home, and he

"My wife will be here soon," he said; "she has gone to Ville d'Avray with her daughter, and Monsieur and

Madame Octave de Camps. Monsieur MarieGaston, one of our good friends,you know, the charming

poet who married Louise de Chaulieu,has a countryhouse in that neighborhood, where his wife died. He

returned there today for the first time since his misfortune; and these ladies have had the charity to meet him

"I can therefore hardly hope to see her today; and it was to her, and not to you, my dear count, that I came to

offer my excuses for the scene of last night which seemed to annoy her much. Say to her, if you please, that I

will take another opportunity of doing so,By the bye," he added, "the election of your friend Sallenauve is

making a devilish talk; the king spoke to me about it this morning, and I did not please him by repeating the

"Well, but you know the tribune is a reef on which reputations are often wrecked. I am sorry you represented

Sallenauve to the king as being on intimate terms with us. I have nothing to do with elections; but I may say

that I did all I could to dissuade this objectionable candidate from presenting himself."

"No; but last night, in your salon, you seemed to imply that my wife was much interested in him. I did not

wish to contradict you before witnesses; besides, really, one can't repudiate a man to whom we are under a

great obligation. But my wife, ever since the day he was nominated, feels that our gratitude has become a

burden. She was saying to me the other day that we had better let the acquaintance die out."

"I want to meet this man and judge him for myself. To send him an invitation to dinner would be useless;

under the eye of his party, he would not dare accept it, or if he did, he would be on his guard, and I should not

see him as he is. But if I met him accidentally, I should find him without armor, and I could feel for his

"To invite you both to dine with me might be open to the same objection; but I could, one of these evenings,

make sure of a visit from him, and let you knowStop!" cried Monsieur de l'Estorade; "a bright idea has

"If it is really bright," thought Rastignac, "it is fortunate I did not meet the wife."

"We are just about to give a children's ball,a fancy of my little girl, to which Madame de l'Estorade, weary

of refusing, has at last consented; the child wishes it to be given in celebration of her rescue. Of course,

therefore, the rescuer is a necessary and integral part of the affair. Come to the ball, and I promise you noise

enough to cover all investigations of your man; and certainly premeditation will never be suspected at such a

"You are too good," replied Rastignac, pressing the peer's hand affectionately. "Perhaps we had better say

nothing about it to Madame de l'Estorade; a mere hint given to our man would put him on his guard, and I

"Adieu, then," said Rastignac; "I shall make the king laugh tomorrow at the notion of children plotting

"Ah!" replied Monsieur de l'Estorade, philosophically, "but isn't that how life itself is carried on?great

Rastignac had scarcely departed before Madame de l'Estorade returned with Nais and Monsieur and Madame

"The minister of Public Works, who came to make you his excuses. He noticed with regret the disagreeable

"He has taken a good deal of trouble for a very small matter," said Madame de l'Estorade, not sharing her

"But all the same," he replied, "it was very gracious of him to think of your feelings." Then, in order to

"Oh!" she replied, "the place is enchanting; you have no idea of its elegance and comfort."

"He was, I won't say very calm," replied Madame de l'Estorade, "but at any rate master of himself. His

condition satisfied me all the more because the day had begun by a serious annoyance to him."

"Monsieur de Sallenauve could not come with him," replied Nais, taking upon herself to reply.

She was one of those children brought up in a hothouse, who put themselves forward much oftener than

"Nais," said Madame de l'Estorade, "go to Mary and tell her to do up your hair."

The child understood perfectly well that she was sent away for speaking improperly, and she made a face as

"This morning," said Madame de l'Estorade as soon as Nais had shut the door, "Monsieur Gaston and

Monsieur de Sallenauve were to start together for Ville d'Avray, and meet us there, as agreed upon. But last

night they had a visit from that organist who took such an active part in the election. He came to hear the

"Yes, yes," said Monsieur de l'Estorade; "of course Sallenauve wants to get rid of her now that he has ceased

"Just so," replied Madame de l'Estorade, with a slight tone of asperity. "In order to put a stop to all calumny

Monsieur de Sallenauve wishes her to carry out her idea of going on the stage; but he wanted, in the first

place, an opinion he could trust. Monsieur Gaston and Monsieur de Sallenauve accompanied the organist to

Saint Sulpice, where, during the services of the Month of Mary, the Italian woman sings every evening.

After hearing her, the organist said she had a fine contralto that was worth, at the lowest, sixty thousand

"That evening," continued Madame de l'Estorade, "Monsieur de Sallenauve told his housekeeper the opinion

given of her talent, and with great kindness and delicacy let her know that she must now carry out her

intention of supporting herself in that way. 'Yes,' she replied, 'I think the time has come. We will talk of it

later'; and she stopped the conversation. This morning when the breakfast hour came, there was no sign of

her. Thinking she must be ill, Monsieur de Sallenauve sent an old charwoman who does the rough work of

the house to her room. No answer. Much disturbed, Monsieur Gaston and Monsieur de Sallenauve went

themselves to see what it meant. After knocking and calling in vain, they determined to open the door, the

key of which was outside. In the room no housekeeper! but in place of her a letter addressed to Monsieur de

Sallenauve, in which she said that finding herself an embarrassment to him, she had retired to the house of

"The bird has found its wings," said Monsieur de l'Estorade, "and takes flight."

"That is not Monsieur de Sallenauve's idea," replied the countess; "he does not believe in such ingratitude. He

is confident that, feeling herself a burden to him and yielding to the desperation which is natural to her, she

felt obliged to leave his house without giving him a chance in any manner to provide for her future."

"Neither Monsieur de Sallenauve nor Monsieur Gaston takes that stoical view of it. In view of the headstrong

nature of the woman, they fear some violence to herself, which, as we know, she once attempted. Or else they

dread some evil adviser. The charwoman states that two or three visits have been lately made at the house by

a lady of middle age, richly dressed, in a carriage, whose manner was singular, and who seemed to desire

"Some charitable woman, of course," said Monsieur de l'Estorade; "the runaway is given to piety."

"At any rate the truth must be discovered, and it was that which kept Monsieur de Sallenauve from

"Well," remarked Monsieur de l'Estorade, "in spite of their respective virtue, it is my opinion he holds by

"In any case," returned Madame de l'Estorade, emphasizing the word, "she does not hold by him."

"I don't agree with you," said Madame de Camps; "to avoid a man is often the greatest proof of love."

Madame de l'Estorade looked at her friend with a vexed air, and a slight tinge of color came into her cheeks.

But no one took notice of it, for at this moment the servant threw open the door and announced dinner.

After dinner, the theatre was proposed; that is one of the amusements that Parisians miss the most in the

provinces. Monsieur Octave de Camps, coming from his "villanous ironworks," as Madame de l'Estorade

called them, had arrived in Paris eager for this pleasure, which his wife, more serious and sober, did not enjoy

to the same extent. Therefore, when Monsieur de Camps proposed going to the PorteSaint Martin to see a

"Neither Madame de l'Estorade nor I have the least desire to go out this evening; we are very tired with our

The two children awaited in deep anxiety the permission which Madame de l'Estorade finally granted; and a

few moments later the two friends, left to themselves, prepared for an evening of comfortable talk.

"I am not at home to any one," said Madame de l'Estorade to Lucas, as soon as her family had departed.

"Now that we are alone," said Madame de Camps, "I shall proceed to blows; I have not travelled two hundred

"Yes. Why keep him at a distance? If Monsieur de Camps or Monsieur Gaston or Monsieur de Rastignac

were to make a practice of coming here habitually, would you trouble yourself about them?"

"We'll talk about that presently; now I want to ask if you desire Monsieur de Sallenauve to love you?"

"Well, then, the best possible way to make him do so is to wound his selflove, and show yourself unjust and

"Did you never observe that men are more taken by our snubs than by our caresses? Severity fixes their

"Oh! my dear, don't make me talk such nonsense. To take fire, a man must have some degree of

combustibility; and if that other person is lost to him forever, why shouldn't he, as you said yourself, ricochet

"That other person is not lost to him; he expects, more than ever, to find her by the help of a very clever

"Very good; then why employ the delay in holding him at arm's length,a proceeding which will only

"My dear moralist, I don't admit your theory in the least. As for Monsieur de Sallenauve, he will be much too

busy with his duties in the Chamber to think of me. Besides, he is a man who is full of self respect; he will

be mortified by my manner, which will seem to him both ungrateful and unjust. If I try to put two feet of

"You who are not busy, who have no Chamber to occupy your mind; you who have, I will agree, a great deal

of selfrespect, but who know as little about the things of the heart as the veriest schoolgirl,what will

"If I don't love him when near, I shall certainly love him still less at a distance."

"So that when you see him take his ostracism coolly, your selflove as a woman will not be piqued."

"And if you find, on the contrary, that he complains of you, or if he does not complain, that he suffers from

"And if success attends him and fame with its hundred voices talks of him, how will you think of him?"

"And Nais, who adores him and will probably say, the first time he dines with you, 'Ah! mamma, how well

"And Monsieur de l'Estorade, who already irritates you? He is beginning today to sacrifice him to the spirit

of party; shall you silence him every time he makes some malevolent insinuation about Monsieur de

Sallenauve, and denies his honor and his talent?you know the judgment people make on those who do not

"In short," said Madame de l'Estorade, "you are trying to make me admit that the surest way to think of a

"Listen to me, my dear," said Madame de Camps, with a slight touch of gravity. "I have read and reread

your letters. You were there your own self, more natural and less quibbling than you are now, and an

impression has remained upon my mind: it is that Monsieur de Sallenauve has touched your heart, though he

"I know that idea provokes you; you can't very well admit to me what you have studiously denied to yourself.

But what is, is. We don't say of a man, 'A sort of magnetism issues from him, one feels his eye without

meeting it'; we don't cry out, 'I am invulnerable on the side of love,' without having had some prickings of it."

"True, he was only a sculptor then, and before long he may be a minister,not like Monsieur de Rastignac,

"I like sermons with definite deductions," said Madame de l'Estorade, with a touch of impatience.

"That is what Vergniaud said to Robespierre on the 31st of May, and I reply, with Robespierre, Yes, I'll draw

my conclusion; and it is against your selfconfidence as a woman, who, having reached the age of thirtytwo

without a suspicion of what love is, cannot admit that at this late date she may be subjected to the common

"But what I want is a practical conclusion," said Madame de l'Estorade, tapping her foot.

"My practical conclusion,here it is," replied Madame Octave. "If you will not persist in the folly of

swimming against the current, I see no danger whatever in your being submerged. You are strong; you have

principles and religion; you adore your children; you love Monsieur de l'Estorade, their father, in them. With

"Well, there is no need to have recourse to violent measures, the success of which is very problematical.

Remain as you are; build no barricades when no one attacks you. Don't excite tempests of heart and

conscience merely to pacify your conscience and quiet your heart, now ruffled only by a tiny breeze. No

doubt between a man and a woman the sentiment of friendship does take something of the character

ordinarily given to love; but such friendship is neither an impossible illusion nor is it a yawning gulf."

"Then," said Madame de l'Estorade, with a thoughtful air, "do you wish me to make a friend of Monsieur de

"Yes, dear, in order not to make him a fixed idea, a regret, a struggle,three things which poison life."

"As for your husband, I find him somewhat changed, and not for the better. I miss that deference he always

showed to you personally, to your ideas and impressions,a deference which honored him more than he

thought, because there is true greatness in the power to admire. I may be mistaken, but it seems to me that

public life is spoiling him a little. As you cannot be with him in the Chamber of peers, he is beginning to

suspect that he can have a life without you. If I were you, I should watch these symptoms of independence,

"Do you know, my dear," said Madame de l'Estorade, laughing, "that you are giving me advice that may end

"Not at all. I am a woman fortyfive years of age, who has always seen things on their practical side. I did

not marry my husband, whom I loved, until I had convinced myself, by putting him to the test, that he was

worthy of my esteem. I don't make life; I take it as it comes, trying to put order and possibility into all the

occurrences it brings to me. I an neither the frenzied passion of Louise de Chaulieu, nor the insensible reason

of Renee de Maucombe. I am a Jesuit in petticoats, persuaded that rather wide sleeves are better than sleeves

that are tight to the wrist; and I have never gone in search of the philosopher's stone"

His mistress gave him a look inquiring why he had disobeyed her orders, to which Lucas replied by a sign

Madame de Camps, who had never yet seen the new deputy, now gave her closest attention to a study of him.

Sallenauve explained his visit by his great desire to know how matters had gone at Ville d'Avray, and

whether MarieGaston had been deeply affected by his return there. As for the business which detained him

in Paris, he said he had so far met with no success. He had seen the prefect of police, who had given him a

letter to Monsieur de Saint Esteve, the chief of the detective police. Aware of the antecedents of that man,

Monsieur de Sallenauve expressed himself as much surprised to find a functionary with extremely good

manners and bearing; but he held out faint hope of success. "A woman hiding in Paris," he said, "is an eel in

its safest hole." He (Sallenauve) should continue the search the next day with the help of Jacques Bricheteau;

but if nothing came of it, he should go in the evening to Ville d'Avray, for he did not, he said, share Madame

"Do not forget Nais' ball which takes place the day after tomorrow. You will affront her mortally if you fail

to be present. Try to bring Monsieur Gaston with you. It might divert his mind a little."

On his return from the theatre Monsieur Octave de Camps declared that it would be long before they caught

him at a fairy piece again. But Nais, on the contrary, still under the spell of its marvels gave a lively recital of

"That child is really very disquieting. Madame de l'Estorade develops her too much; I should not be surprised

It would be difficult to mark the precise moment in our contemporary habits and customs when a new species

of religion, which might be called childidolatry, appeared. Nor shall we find it easier to discover by what

species of influence this worship has reached its present enormous development among us. But, although

unexplained, the fact exists and ought to be recorded by every faithful historian of the great and the little

movements of society. In the family of today children have taken the place of the household gods of the

ancients, and whoever does not share this worship is not a morose and sour spirit, nor a captious and

Try to amuse one of these beloved adored ones, all puffed up, as they naturally are, by a sense of their

importance, with dolls and toys and PunchandJudys, as in the days of our unsophisticated innocence!

Nonsense! Boys must have ponies and cigarettes, and the reading of novelettes; and girls, the delight of

playing hostess, giving afternoon dances, and evening parties at which the real Guignol of the Champs

Elysees and Robert Houdin appear,the entertainment being announced on the invitation cards. Sometimes,

as now in the case of Nais de l'Estorade, these little sovereigns obtain permission to give a ball in

grownup style,so much so, that policemen are stationed about the doors, and Delisle, Nattier, and Prevost

With the character we have already seen in Nais, it may be said that no one was better fitted than she for the

duties that devolved upon her by the abdication of her mother. This abdication took place before the evening

of the ball itself, for it was Mademoiselle Nais de l'Estorade who, in her own name, invited her guests to do

her the honor to pass the evening chez elle; and as Madame de l'Estorade would not allow the parody to go as

far as printed cards, Nais spent several days writing her notes of invitation, taking care to put in the corner, in

Nothing could be more curious, or, as Madame de Camps might have said, more alarming, than the

selfpossession of this little girl of fourteen, behaving precisely as she had seen her mother do on like

occasions; stationed, to receive her company, at the door of the salon, and marking by her manner the proper

grades of welcome, from eager cordiality to a coldness that verged on disdain. To her best friends she gave

her hand in truly English style; for the rest she had smiles, apportioned to the degrees of intimacy,simple

inclination of the head for unknown guests or those of less account; with little speeches now and then, and

delicious mammalike airs for the tiny children whom it is necessary to ask to these juvenile routs, however

With the fathers and mothers of her guests, as the ball was not given for them, Nais as a general thing

reversed the nature of the Gospel invocation, Sinite parvulos venire ad me, and was careful not to pass the

limit of cold though respectful politeness. But when Lucas, following the instructions he had received,

reversed the natural order of things and announced, "Mesdemoiselles de la RocheHugon, Madame la

Baronne de la RocheHugon, and Madame la Comtesse de Rastignac, the little strategist laid aside her

reserve, and, running up to the wife of the minister, she took her hand and pressed it to her lips with charming

After the dancing began, Nais was unable to accept all the invitations which the elegant young lions vied with

one another in pressing upon her; in fact, she grew sadly confused as to the number and order of her

engagements,a circumstance which very nearly led, in spite of the entente cordiale, to an open rupture

between France and perfidious Albion. A quadrille doubly promised, to a young English peer aged ten and a

pupil in the Naval School of about the same years, came very near producing unpleasant complications,

inasmuch as the young British scion of nobility had assumed a boxing attitude. That fray pacified, another

annoying episode occurred. A small boy, seeing a servant with a tray of refreshments and being unable to

reach up to the objects of his greed, had the deplorable idea of putting his hand on the edge of the tray and

bending it down to him. Result: a cascade of mingled orgeat, negus, and syrups; and happy would it have

been had the young author of this mischief been the only sufferer from the sugary torrent; but, alas! nearly a

dozen innocent victims were splashed and spattered by the disastrous accident,among them four or five

bacchantes, who were furious at seeing their toilets injured, and would fain have made an Orpheus of the

clumsy infant. While he was being rescued with great difficulty from their clutches by the German governess,

a voice was heard amid the hubbub,that of a pretty little blonde, saying to a small Scottish youth with

"That's easily explained," said the Scottish youth; "he's a boy of the Treasury department. Nais had to ask him

"Hey, Ernest," he said, "I'd like a cigar; suppose we find a quiet corner, out of the way of all this racket?"

"I can't, my dear fellow," replied Ernest, in a whisper; "you know Leontine always makes me a scene when

she smells I've been smoking, and she is charming to me tonight. See, look at what she has given me!"

"A horsehair ring!" exclaimed the Scot, disdainfully, "with two locked hearts; all the boys at school have

And drawing from the pouch which formed an integral part of his costume a note on violet paper highly

Indelicate friend that he was, Ernest pounced upon the note and took possession of it. The Scottish youth,

furious, flung himself upon the treacherous French boy; on which Monsieur de l'Estorade, a thousand leagues

from imagining the subject of the quarrel, intervened and parted the combatants, which enabled the ravisher

to escape into a corner of the salon to enjoy his booty. The note contained no writing. The young scamp had

probably taken the paper out of his mother's blottingbook. A moment after, returning to his adversary and

"Keep it, monsieur," replied the Scot. "I shall ask for it tomorrow in the Tuileries, under the

horsechestnuts; meantime, you will please understand that all intercourse is at an end between us."

Ernest was less knightly; he contented himself with putting the thumb of his right hand to his nose and

spreading the fingers,an ironical gesture he had acquired from his mother's coachman; after which he ran

But what details are these on which we are wasting time, when we know that interests of the highest order are

Arriving from Ville d'Avray late in the afternoon, Sallenauve had brought Madame de l'Estorade ill news of

MarieGaston. Under an appearance of resignation, he was gloomy, and, singular to say, he had not visited

the grave of his wife,as if he feared an emotion he might not have the power to master. It seemed to

Sallenauve that his friend had come to the end of his strength, and that a mental prostration of the worst

character was succeeding the overexcitement he had shown at his election. One thing reassured the new

deputy, and enabled him to come to Paris for, at any rate, a few hours. A friend of MarieGaston, an English

nobleman with whom he had been intimate in Florence, came out to see him, and the sad man greeted the

In order to distract Sallenauve's thoughts from this anxiety, Madame de l'Estorade introduced him to

Monsieur Octave de Camps, the latter having expressed a great desire to know him. The deputy had not

talked ten minutes with the ironmaster before he reached his heart by the magnitude of the metallurgical

During the year in which he had been preparing for a parliamentary life, Sallenauve had busied himself by

acquiring the practical knowledge which enables an orator of the Chamber to take part in all discussions and

have reasons to give for his general views. He had turned his attention more especially to matters connected

with the great question of the revenue and taxation; such, for instance, as the customhouse, laws of

exchange, stamp duties, and taxation, direct and indirect. Approaching in this manner that problematical

sciencewhich is, nevertheless, so sure of itself!called political economy, Sallenauve had also studied the

sources which contribute to form the great current of national prosperity; and in this connection the subject of

mines, the topic at this moment most interesting to Monsieur de Camps, had not been neglected by him. We

can imagine the admiration of the ironmaster, who had studied too exclusively the subject of iron ore to

know much about the other branches of metallurgy, when the young deputy told him, apropos of the wealth

of our soil, a sort of Arabian Nights tale, which, if science would only take hold of it, might become a reality.

"But, monsieur, do you really believe," cried Monsieur de Camps, "that, besides our coal and iron mines, we

"If you will take the trouble to consult certain specialists," replied Sallenauve, "you will find that neither the

boasted strata of Bohemia and Saxony nor even those of Russia and Hungary can be compared to those

hidden in the Pyrenees, in the Alps from Briancon to the Isere, in the Cevennes on the Lozere side, in the

PuydeDome, Bretagne, and the Vosges. In the Vosges, more especially about the town of Saint Die, I can

point out to you a single vein of the mineral of silver which lies to the depth of fifty to eighty metres with a

"It has been, in former days," replied Sallenauve, "especially during the Roman occupation of Gaul. After the

fall of the Roman Empire, the work was abandoned; but the lords of the soil and the clergy renewed it in the

middle ages; after that, during the struggle of feudality against the royal power and the long civil wars which

devastated France, the work was again suspended, and has never since been taken up."

"Ancient authors, Strabo and others, all mention these mines, and the tradition of their existence still lingers

in the regions where they are situated; decrees of emperors and the ordinances of certain of our kings bear

testimony to the value of their products; in certain places more material proof may be found in excavations of

considerable depth and length, in galleries and halls cut in the solid rock,in short, in the many traces still

existing of those vast works which have immortalized Roman industry. To this must be added that the

modern study of geological science has confirmed and developed these irrefutable indications."

The imagination of Monsieur Octave de Camps, hitherto limited to the development of a single ironmine,

took fire, and he was about to ask his instructor to give him his ideas on the manner of awakening a practical

interest in the matter, when Lucas, throwing wide open the double doors of the salon, announced in his

"I want to see what sort of figure that little Rastignac cuts as a statesman," said Monsieur de Camps, rising

from his seat; but in his heart he was thinking of the government subsidy he wanted for his ironmine. The

new deputy, on his side, foresaw an inevitable meeting with the minister, and wondered what his friends in

the Opposition would say when they read in the "National" that a representative of the Left was seen to have

an interview with a minister celebrated for his art in converting political opponents. Anxious also to return to

MarieGaston, he resolved to profit by the general stir created by the minister's arrival to slip away; and by a

masterly manoeuvre he made his way slyly to the door of the salon, expecting to escape without being seen.

But he reckoned without Nais, to whom he was engaged for a quadrille. That small girl sounded the alarm at

the moment when he laid his hand on the handle of the door; and Monsieur de l'Estorade, mindful of his

promise to Rastignac, hastened to put a stop to the desertion. Finding his quiet retreat impossible, Sallenauve

was afraid that an open departure after the arrival of the minister might be construed as an act of puritanical

opposition in the worst taste; he therefore accepted the situation promptly, and decided to remain.

Monsieur de l'Estorade knew that Sallenauve was far too wise to be the dupe of any artifices he might have

used to bring about his introduction to the minister. He therefore went straight to the point, and soon after

Rastignac's arrival he slipped his arm through that of the statesman, and, approaching the deputy, said to

"Monsieur the minister of Public Works, who, on the eve of the battle, wishes me to introduce him to a

"Monsieur le ministre does me too much honor," replied Sallenauve, ceremoniously. "Far from being a

"Hum!" said the minister; "it seems to me that the battle at Arcis surAube was not an insignificant victory;

"There was nothing wonderful in that; you must have heard that a saint fought for us."

"Well, at any rate," said Rastignac, "I prefer this result to the one arranged for us by a man I thought cleverer

than he proved to be, whom I sent down there. It seems that Beauvisage is a perfect nonentity; he'd have

rubbed off upon us; and after all, he was really as much Left centre as the other man, Giguet. Now the Left

"Oh!" said Monsieur de l'Estorade, "after what we heard of the man, I think he would have done exactly what

"My dear friend, don't believe that," said the minister. "Fools are often more tenacious of the flag under

which they enlisted than we think for. Besides, to go over to the enemy is to make a choice, and that supposes

"I agree with the minister," said Sallenauve; "extreme innocence and extreme rascality are equally able to

Here Monsieur de l'Estorade, seeing, or pretending to see, a signal made to him, looked over his shoulder and

And the two adversaries being thus buckled together, he hastened away as if summoned to some duty as

Sallenauve was anxious not to seem disturbed at finding himself alone with the minister. The meeting having

come about, he decided to endure it with a good grace, and, taking the first word, he asked if the ministry had

"No, very few," replied Rastignac. "To tell the truth, we do not expect to be in power very long; we brought

about an election because in the general confusion into which the press has thrown public opinion, our

constitutional duty was to force that opinion to reconstitute itself; but the fact is, we did not expect the result

"You are like the peasant," said Sallenauve, laughing, "who, expecting the end of the world, did not sow his

"Well, we don't look upon our retirement as the end of the world," said Rastignac, modestly; "there are men

to come after us, and many of them well able to govern; only, as we expected to give but few more

representations in that transitory abode called 'power,' we have not unpacked either our costumes or our

scenery. Besides, the coming session, in any case, can only be a business session. The question now is, of

course, between the palace, that is, personal influence, and the doctrine of parliamentary supremacy. This

question will naturally come up when the vote is taken on the secretservice fund. Whenever, in one way or

the other, that is settled, and the budget is voted, together with a few bills of secondary interest, Parliament

has really completed its task; it will have put an end to a distressing struggle, and the country will know to

"And you think," said Sallenauve, "that in a wellbalanced system of government that question is a useful

"Well," replied Rastignac, "we have not raised it. It is born perhaps of circumstances; a great deal, as I think,

from the restlessness of certain ambitions, and also from the tactics of parties."

"So that, in your opinion, one of the combatants is not guilty and has absolutely nothing to reproach himself

"You are a republican," said Rastignac, "and therefore, a priori, an enemy to the dynasty. I think I should lose

"You are mistaken," said the theoretical republican deputy; "I have no preconceived hatred to the reigning

dynasty. I even think that in its past, striped, if I may say so, with royal affinities and revolutionary

memories, it has all that is needed to respond to the liberal and monarchical instincts of the nation. But you

will find it difficult to persuade me that in the present head of the dynasty we shall not find extreme ideas of

personal influence, which in the long run will undermine and subvert the finest as well as the strongest

"Yes," said Rastignac, ironically, "and they are saved by the famous axiom of the deputy of Sancerre: 'The

Whether he was tired of standing to converse, or whether he wished to prove his ease in releasing himself

from the trap which had evidently been laid for him, Sallenauve, before replying, drew up a chair for his

"Will you permit me to cite the example of another royal behavior? that of a prince who was not

considered indifferent to his royal prerogative, and who was not ignorant of constitutional mechanism"

"Louis XVIII.," said Rastignac, "or, as the newspapers used to call him, 'the illustrious author of the

"My conclusion is certainly not difficult to guess. But have you fully remarked the deduction to be drawn

from that royal career?for which I myself feel the greatest respect. Louis XVIII. was not a citizen king. He

granted this Charter, but he never consented to it. Born nearer to the throne than the prince whose regrettable

tendencies I mentioned just now, he might naturally share more deeply still the ideas, the prejudices, and the

infatuations of the court; in person he was ridiculous (a serious princely defect in France); he bore the brunt

of a new and untried regime; he succeeded a government which had intoxicated the people with that splendid

gilded smoke called glory; and if he was not actually brought back to France by foreigners, at any rate he

came as the result of the armed invasion of Europe. Now, shall I tell you why, in spite of all these defects and

disadvantages, in spite, too, of the ceaseless conspiracy kept up against his government, it was given to him

"Because he had made himself a constitutional king," said Rastignac, with a slight shrug of his shoulders.

"In the letter, yes; in the spirit, no. When Louis XVIII. gave his confidence to a minister, he gave it sincerely

and wholly. He did not cheat him; he played honestly into his hand,witness the famous ordinance of

September 5, and the dissolution of the Chamber, which was more Royalist than himself,a thing he had the

wisdom not to desire. Later, a movement of public opinion shook the minister who had led him along that

path; that minister was his favorite, his son, as he called him. No matter; yielding to the constitutional

necessity, he bravely sent him to foreign parts, after loading him with crosses and titles,in short, with

everything that could soften the pain of his fall; and he did not watch and manoeuvre surreptitiously to bring

"For a man who declares he does not hate us," said Rastignac, "you treat us rather roughly. According to you

we are almost faithless to the constitutional compact, and our policy, to your thinking ambiguous and

tortuous, gives us a certain distant likeness to Monsieur Doublemain in the 'Mariage de Figaro.'"

"I do not say that the evil is as deep as that," replied Sallenauve; "perhaps, after all, we are simply a

faiseur,using the word, be it understood, in the sense of a meddler, one who wants to have his finger in

"If we are, it does not follow that our kingdom ought not to have the chance of becoming as able as

"Parbleu!" cried Rastignac, in the tone of a man who comes to the climax of a conversation, "I wish I had

"Well, you know, Monsieur le ministre, that we all spend three fourths of life in wishing for the impossible."

"Why impossible? Would you be the first man of the Opposition to be seen at the Tuileries? An invitation to

dinner given publicly, openly, which would, by bringing you into contact with one whom you misjudge at a

And he emphasized the words have the honor in a way to show the meaning he attached to them.

"You are all alike, you men of the Opposition!" cried the minister; "you won't let yourselves be enlightened

"Do you call the rays of those gigantic red bottles in a chemist's shop light, when they flash into your eyes as

"It is not our rays that frighten you," said Rastignac; "it is the dark lantern of your party watchmen on their

"There may be some truth in what you say; a party and the man who undertakes to represent it are in some

degree a married couple, who in order to live peaceably together must be mutually courteous, frank, and

"Well, try to be moderate. Your dream is far more impossible to realize than mine; the day will come when

"Do you think so? With the lofty and generous sentiments so apparent in your nature, shall you remain

"You yourself, Monsieur le ministre, have not escaped its venom; but it did not, I think, deter you from your

"But," said Rastignac, lowering his voice, "suppose I were to tell you that I have already sternly refused to

listen to a proposal to search into your private life on a certain side which, being more in the shade than the

"I do not thank you for the honor you have done yourself in rejecting with contempt the proposals of men

who can be neither of my party nor of yours; they belong to the party of base appetites and selfish passions.

But, supposing the impossible, had they found some acceptance from you, pray believe that my course, which

"But your party,consider for a moment its elements: a jumble of foiled ambitions, brutal greed, plagiarists

"My party has nothing, and seeks to gain something. Yours calls itself conservative, and it is right; its chief

concern is how to preserve its power, offices, and wealth,in short, all it now monopolizes."

"But, monsieur, we are not a closed way; we open our way, on the contrary, to all ambitions. But the higher

you are in character and intellect, the less we can allow you to pass, dragging after you your train of

democrats; for the day when that crew gains the upper hand it will not be a change of policy, but a

"What! follow a course without an aim?a course that leads nowhere? A certain development of a man's

faculties not only gives him the right but makes it his duty to seek to govern."

"To watch the governing power is a useful career, and, I may add, a very busy one."

"You can fancy, monsieur," said Rastignac, goodhumoredly, "that if Beauvisage were in your place I should

not have taken the trouble to argue with him; I may say, however, that he would have made my effort less

"This meeting, which chance has brought about between us," said Sallenauve, "will have one beneficial

result; we understand each other henceforth, and our future meetings will always therefore be courteous

Rastignac did not end the sentence in which he was, so to speak, firing his last gun, for the orchestra began to

"Monsieur le ministre, I am very sorry, but you have taken my partner, and you must give him up. He is

down for my eleventh quadrille, and if I miss it my list gets into terrible confusion."

"You permit me, monsieur?" said Sallenauve, laughing. "As you see, I am not a very savage republican." So

Madame de l'Estorade, comprehending that this fancy of Nais was rather compromising to the dignity of the

new deputy, had arranged that several papas and mammas should figure in the same quadrille; and she herself

with the Scottish lad danced visavis to her daughter, who beamed with pride and joy. In the evolutions of

the last figure, where Nais had to take her mother's hand, she said, pressing it passionately,

This sudden reminder so agitated Madame de l'Estorade, coming as it did unexpectedly, that she was seized

with a return of the nervous trembling her daughter's danger had originally caused, and was forced to sit

down. Seeing her change color, Sallenauve, Nais, and Madame Octave de Camps ran to her to know if she

"It is nothing," she answered, addressing Sallenauve; "only that my little girl reminded me suddenly of the

utmost obligation we are under to you, monsieur. 'Without him,' she said, 'you would not have me.' Ah!

"Come, come, don't excite yourself," interposed Madame Octave de Camps, observing the convulsive and

almost gasping tone of her friend's voice. "It is not reasonable to put yourself in such a state for a child's

"She is better than the rest of us," replied Madame de l'Estorade, taking Nais in her arms.

"She puts nothing in the world," continued Madame de l'Estorade, "before her gratitude to her preserver,

"Courteously!" interrupted Nais, shaking her pretty head with an air of disapproval; "if any one had saved my

"Nais," said Madame de Camps, sternly, "children should be silent when their opinion is not asked."

"Then come and say goodnight to Madame de Rastignac, who is preparing to take leave."

In his eagerness to get to the minister's wife, he forgot to give his own wife his arm. Sallenauve was more

thoughtful. As they walked together in the wake of her husband, Madame de l'Estorade said,

"I saw you talking for a long time with Monsieur de Rastignac; did he practise his wellknown seductions

"No; but such attempts to capture are always disagreeable, and I beg you to believe that I was not a party to

"I trust that these annoying politics, which have already produced a jar between you and Monsieur de

l'Estorade, may not disgust you with the idea of being counted among our friends."

"It is not an honor but a pleasure that I hoped you would find in it," said Madame de l'Estorade, quickly. "I

say, with Nais, if I had saved the life of a friend's child, I should cease to be ceremonious with her."

So saying, and without listening to his answer, she disengaged her arm quickly from that of Sallenauve, and

In seeing Madame de l'Estorade so completely docile to the advice, more clever than prudent, perhaps, of

Madame de Camps, the reader, we think, can scarcely be surprised. A certain attraction has been evident for

some time on the part of the frigid countess not only to the preserver of her daughter, but to the man who

under such romantic and singular circumstances had come before her mind. Carefully considered, Madame

de l'Estorade is seen to be far from one of those impassible natures which resist all affectionate emotions

except those of the family. With a beauty that was partly Spanish, she had eyes which her friend Louise de

Chaulieu declared could ripen peaches. Her coldness was not what physicians call congenital; her

temperament was an acquired one. Marrying from reason a man whose mental insufficiency is very apparent,

she made herself love him out of pity and a sense of protection. Up to the present time, by means of a certain

atrophy of heart, she had succeeded, without one failure, in making Monsieur de l'Estorade perfectly happy.

With the same instinct, she had exaggerated the maternal sentiment to an almost inconceivable degree, until

in that way she had fairly stifled all the other cravings of her nature. It must be said, however, that the success

she had had in accomplishing this hard task was due in a great measure to the circumstance of Louise de

Chaulieu. To her that dear mistaken one was like the drunken slave whom the Spartans made a living lesson

to their children; and between the two friends a sort of tacit wager was established. Louise having taken the

side of romantic passion, Renee held firmly to that of superior reason; and in order to win the game, she had

maintained a courage of good sense and wisdom which might have cost her far more to practise without this

incentive. At the age she had now reached, and with her long habit of selfcontrol, we can understand how,

seeing, as she believed, the approach of a love against which she had preached so vehemently, she should

instantly set to work to rebuff it; but a man who did not feel that love, while thinking her ideally beautiful,

and who possibly loved elsewhere,a man who had saved her child from death and asked no recompense,

who was grave, serious, and preoccupied in an absorbing enterprise,why should she still continue to think

such a man dangerous? Why not grant to him, without further hesitation, the lukewarm sentiment of

On returning to Ville d'Avray, Sallenauve was confronted by a singular event. Who does not know how

sudden events upset the whole course of our lives, and place us, without our will, in compromising positions?

Sallenauve was not mistaken in feeling serious anxiety as to the mental state of his friend MarieGaston.

When that unfortunate man had left the scene of his cruel loss immediately after the death of his wife, he

would have done a wiser thing had he then resolved never to revisit it. Nature, providentially ordered,

provides that if those whose nearest and dearest are struck by the hand of death accept the decree with the

resignation which ought to follow the execution of all necessary law, they will not remain too long under the

influence of their grief. Rousseau has said, in his famous letter against suicide: "Sadness, weariness of spirit,

regret, despair are not lasting sorrows, rooted forever in the soul; experience will always cast out that feeling

But this truth ceases to be true for imprudent and wilful persons, who seek to escape the first anguish of

sorrow by flight or some violent distraction. All mental and moral suffering is a species of illness which,

taking time for its specific, will gradually wear out, in the long run, of itself. If, on the contrary, it is not

allowed to consume itself slowly on the scene of its trouble, if it is fanned into flame by motion or violent

remedies, we hinder the action of nature; we deprive ourselves of the blessed relief of comparative

forgetfulness, promised to those who will accept their suffering, and so transform it into a chronic affection,

If we violently oppose this salutary process, we produce an acute evil, in which the imagination acts upon the

heart; and as the latter from its nature is limited, while the former is infinite, it is impossible to calculate the

When MarieGaston returned to the house at Ville d'Avray, after two years' absence, he fancied that only a

tender if melancholy memory awaited him; but not a step could he make without recalling his lost joys and

the agony of losing them. The flowers that his wife had loved, the lawns, the trees just budding into greenness

under the warm breath of May,they were here before his eyes; but she who had created this beauteous

nature was lying cold in the earth. Amid all the charms and elegances gathered to adorn this nest of their love,

there was nothing for the man who rashly returned to that dangerous atmosphere but sounds of lamentation,

the moans of a renewed and now everliving grief. Alarmed himself at the vertigo of sorrow which seized

him, MarieGaston shrank, as Sallenauve had said, from taking the last step in his ordeal; he had calmly

discussed with his friend the details of the mausoleum he wished to raise above the mortal remains of his

beloved Louise, but he had not yet brought himself to visit her grave in the village cemetery where he had

laid them. There was everything, therefore, to fear from a grief which time had not only not assuaged, but, on

the contrary, had increased by duration, until it was sharper and more intolerable than before.

The gates were opened by Philippe, the old servant, who had been constituted by Madame Gaston

"After dinner, which went off very well, monsieur suddenly gave orders to pack his travellingtrunk; he did

part of it himself. During that time the Englishman, who said he would go into the park and smoke, asked me

privately where he could go to write a letter without monsieur seeing him. I took him to my room; but I did

not dare question him about this journey, for I never saw any one with such forbidding and uncommunicative

manners. By the time the letter was written monsieur was ready, and without giving me any explanation they

both got into the Englishman's carriage, and I heard one of them say to the coachman, 'Paris.'"

"It is there in my room, where the Englishman gave it me secretly. It is addressed to monsieur."

"Tell them not to unharness," he said; and he read the letter through a second time.

When the old servant returned after executing the order, Sallenauve asked him at what hour they had started.

"Three hours in advance!" muttered the deputy, looking at his watch, and returning to the carriage which had

brought him. As he was getting into it, the old majordomo forced himself to say,

"No; but your master may be absent for some time; keep the house in good order." Then he said to the

The next day, quite early in the morning, Monsieur de l'Estorade was in his study, employed in a rather

singular manner. It will be remembered that on the day when Sallenauve, then Dorlange the sculptor, had sent

him the bust of Madame de l'Estorade, he had not found a place where, as he thought, the little masterpiece

had a proper light. From the moment that Rastignac hinted to him that his intercourse with the sculptor, now

deputy, might injure him at court, he had agreed with his son Armand that the artist had given to Madame de

l'Estorade the air of a grisette; but now that Sallenauve, by his resistance to ministerial blandishments, had

taken an openly hostile attitude to the government, that bust seemed to the peer of France no longer worthy of

exhibition, and the worthy man was now engaged in finding some dark corner where, without recourse to the

absurdity of actually hiding it, it would be out of range to the eyes of visitors, whose questions as to its maker

he should no longer be forced to answer. He was therefore perched on the highest step of his library ladder,

holding in his hands the gift of the sculptor, and preparing to relegate it to the top of a bookcase, where it was

destined to keep company with an owl and a cormorant shot by Armand during the recent holidays and

stuffed by paternal pride, when the door of the study opened and Lucas announced,

The age of the old majordomo and the confidential post he occupied in MarieGaston's establishment seemed

to the factotum of the house of l'Estorade to authorize the designation of "monsieur,"a civility expectant of

Descending from his eminence, the peer of France asked Philippe what brought him, and whether anything

had happened at Ville d'Avray. The old servant related the singular departure of his master, and the no less

"This morning, while putting monsieur's room in order, a letter addressed to Madame le comtesse fell out of a

book. As the letter was sealed and all ready to be sent, I supposed that monsieur, in the hurry of departure,

had forgotten to tell me to put it in the post. I thought therefore I had better bring it here myself. Perhaps

Madame la comtesse will find in it some explanation of this sudden journey, about which I have dreamed all

"The color doesn't surprise me," replied Philippe; "for since Madame's death monsieur has not laid off his

"If there should be anything in it to ease my mind about monsieur, would Monsieur le comte be so kind as to

"I beg Monsieur le comte's pardon for offering an opinion," said the majordomo, not accepting the leave just

given him to depart; "but in case the letter contained some bad news, doesn't Monsieur le comte think that it

would be best for him to know of it, in order to prepare Madame la comtesse for the shock?"

"To break the seal of a letter not addressed to us is always a serious thing to do," remarked the peer of France.

"This bears my wife's address, butin point of factit was never sent to her; in short, it is most

Here Madame de l'Estorade cut the matter short by entering the room. Lucas had told her of the unexpected

The apprehensions Sallenauve had expressed the night before as to MarieGaston's condition returned to her

mind. As soon as Philippe had repeated the explanations he had already given to her husband, she broke the

Whatever may have been the contents of that disquieting epistle, nothing was reflected on Madame de

"You say that your master left Ville d'Avray in company with an English gentleman," she said to Philippe.

"Well, there is nothing that need make us uneasy. This letter was written some days ago, and, in spite of its

Philippe bowed and went away. As soon as husband and wife were alone together, Monsieur de l'Estorade

"It would pain you. It is enough for me to have had the shock; I could scarcely control myself before that old

"The letter is dated yesterday morning; and apparently, if it had not been for the providential arrival of that

Englishman, the poor fellow would have taken advantage of Monsieur de Sallenauve's absence last night to

"The Englishman must have suspected his intention, and carried him off to divert him from it. If that is so, he

"And we may also count on Monsieur Sallenauve, who has probably joined them by this time."

"Then I don't see that there is anything so terrible in the letter"; and again he offered to take it.

"No," said Madame de l'Estorade, drawing back, "if I ask you not to read it. Why give yourself painful

emotions? The letter not only expresses the intention of suicide, but it shows that our poor friend is

At this instant piercing screams from Rene, her youngest child, put Madame de l'Estorade into one of those

Less ready to be alarmed, Monsieur de l'Estorade contented himself by going to the door and asking a servant

"Oh, nothing, Monsieur le comte," replied the man. "Monsieur Rene in shutting a drawer pinched his finger;

The peer of France thought it unnecessary to convey himself to the scene of action; he knew, by experience in

like cases, that he must let his wife's exaggerated maternal solicitude have free course, on pain of being

sharply snubbed himself. As he returned to his desk, he noticed lying on the ground the famous letter, which

Madame de l'Estorade had evidently dropped in her hasty flight. Opportunity and a certain fatality which

appears to preside over the conduct of all human affairs, impelled Monsieur de l'Estorade, who thought little

of the shock his wife had dreaded for him, to satisfy his curiosity by reading the letter.

Madame,This letter will seem to you less amusing than those I addressed to you from ArcissurAube.

But I trust you will not be alarmed by the decision which I now announce. I am going to rejoin my wife, from

whom I have been too long separated; and this evening, shortly after midnight, I shall be with her, never to

You have, no doubt, said to yourselvesyou and Sallenauvethat I was acting strangely in not visiting her

grave; that is a remark that two of my servants made the other day, not being aware that I overheard them. I

should certainly be a great fool to go and look at a stone in the cemetery which can make me no response,

when every night, at twelve o'clock, I hear a little rap on the door of my room, and our dear Louise comes in,

not changed at all, except, as I think, more plump and beautiful. She has had great trouble in obtaining

permission from Marie, queen of angels, to withdraw me from earth. But last night she brought me formal

leave, sealed with green wax; and she also gave me a tiny vial of hydrocyanic acid. A single drop of that acid

Louise desired me to give you a message from her. I am to tell you that Monsieur de l'Estorade has a disease

of the liver and will not live long, and that after his death you are to marry Sallenauve, because, on the other

side, husbands and wives who really love each other are reunited; and she thinks we shall all fourshe and I

and you and Sallenauvebe much happier together than if we had your present husband, who is very dull,

My message given, nothing remains for me, madame, but to wish you all the patience you need to continue

for your allotted time in this low world, and to subscribe myself Your very affectionately devoted

If, after reading this letter, it had occurred to Monsieur de l'Estorade to look at himself in the glass, he would

have seen, in the sudden convulsion and discoloration of his face, the outward and visible signs of the terrible

blow which his unfortunate curiosity had brought down upon him. His heart, his mind, his selfrespect

staggered under one and the same shock; the madness evident in the sort of prediction made about him only

added to his sense of its horror. Presently convincing himself, like a mussulman, that madmen have the gift of

second sight, he believed he was a lost man, and instantly a stabbing pain began on his liver side, while in the

direction of Sallenauve, his predicted successor, an awful hatred succeeded to his mild goodwill. But at the

same time, conscious of the total want of reason and even of the absurdity of the impression which had

suddenly surged into his mind, he was afraid lest its existence should be suspected, and he looked about him

to see in what way he could conceal from his wife his fatal indiscretion, the consequences of which must

forever weigh upon his life. It was certain, he thought, that if she found the paper in his study she would

deduce therefrom the fact that he had read it. Rising from his desk, he softly opened the door leading from the

study to the salon, crossed the latter room on tiptoe, and dropped the letter at the farther end of it, as Madame

de l'Estorade might suppose she had herself done in her hasty departure. Then returning to his study, he

scattered his papers over his desk, like a schoolboy up to mischief, who wants to mislead his master by a

show of application, intending to appear absorbed in his accounts when his wife returned. Useless to add that

he listened with keen anxiety lest some other person than she should come into the salon; in which case he

determined to rush out and prevent other eyes from reading the dreadful secrets contained in that paper.

Presently, however, the voice of Madame de l'Estorade, speaking to some one at the door of the salon,

reassured him as to the success of his trick, and a moment later she entered the study accompanied by

Monsieur Octave de Camps. Going forward to receive his visitor, he was able to see through the halfopened

door the place where he had thrown the letter. Not only had it disappeared, but he detected a movement

which assured him that Madame de l'Estorade had tucked it away in that part of her gown where Louis XIV.

"I have come, my dear friend," said Monsieur de Camps, "to get you to go with me to Rastignac's, as agreed

"Very good," said the peer, putting away his papers with a feverish haste that plainly indicated he was not in

"Don't you feel well?" asked Madame de l'Estorade, who knew her husband by heart too well not to be struck

by the singular stupefaction of his manner, while at the same time, looking in his face, she saw the signs of

"True," said Monsieur de Camps, "you certainly do not look so well as usual. If you prefer it, we will put off

"No, not at all," replied Monsieur de l'Estorade. "I have tired myself with this work, and I need the air. But

what was the matter with Rene?" he inquired of his wife, whose attention he felt was unpleasantly fixed upon

"Well, my dear fellow," said the peer, trying to take an easy tone, "just let me change my coat and I'll be with

"Yes; as I said just now, he does not look like himself. But the explanation he gave seems sufficient. This

office life is bad for the health. I have never been as well as since I am actively engaged about my

"Yes, certainly," said Madame de l'Estorade, with a heavy sigh; "he ought to have a more active life. It seems

"Oh, monsieur, I can't be mistaken! There is something seriously the matter with him; and if you would

"When Monsieur de l'Estorade returns, speak of the injury to Rene's finger, and tell me that little wounds like

that sometimes have serious consequences if not attended to at once, and that will give me an excuse to send

"Certainly," replied Monsieur de Camps; "but I really don't think a physician is necessary. Still, if it reassures

At this moment Monsieur de l'Estorade reappeared. He had almost recovered his usual expression of face, but

he exhaled a strong odor of melisse des Carmes, which indicated that he had felt the need of that tonic.

Monsieur de Camps played his part admirably, and as for Madame de l'Estorade it did not cost her much

"My dear," she said to her husband, when Monsieur de Camps had delivered himself of his medical opinion,

"as you return from Monsieur de Rastignac's, please call on Doctor Bianchon and ask him to come here."

"Pooh!" said Monsieur de l'Estorade, shrugging his shoulders, "the idea of disturbing a busy man like him for

"If you won't go, I shall send Lucas; Monsieur de Camps' opinion has completely upset me."

"If it pleases you to be ridiculous," said the peer of France, crossly, "I have no means of preventing it; but I

beg you to remark one thing: if people disturb physicians for mere nonsense, they often can't get them when

"Not I," replied Monsieur de l'Estorade; "and if I had the honor of being anything in my own house, I should

"My dear, you are the master here, and since you put so much feeling into your refusal, let us say no more; I

"Come, de Camps," said Monsieur de l'Estorade; "for if this goes on, I shall be sent to order that child's

"But, my dear husband," said the countess, taking his hand, "you must be ill, to say such dreadful things in

that cool way. Where is your usual patience with my little maternal worries, or your exquisite politeness for

"But," said Monsieur de l'Estorade, getting more excited instead of calmer, under this form of studied though

friendly reproach, "your maternal feelings are turning into monomania, and you make life intolerable to every

one but your children. The devil! suppose they are your children; I am their father, and, though I am not

adored as they are, I have the right to request that my house be not made uninhabitable!"

While Monsieur de l'Estorade, striding about the room, delivered himself of this philippic, the countess made

a despairing sign to Monsieur de Camps, as if to ask him whether he did not see most alarming symptoms in

such a scene. In order to cut short the quarrel of which he had been the involuntary cause, the latter said, as if

"Yes," replied Monsieur de l'Estorade, passing out first and neglecting to say goodbye to his wife.

"Ah! stay; I have forgotten a message my wife gave me," said Monsieur de Camps, turning back to Madame

de l'Estorade. "She told me to say she would come for you at two o'clock to go and see the spring things at

the 'Jean de Paris,' and she has arranged that after that we shall all four go to the flowershow. When we

leave Rastignac, l'Estorade and I will come back here, and wait for you if you have not returned before us."

Madame de l'Estorade paid little attention to this programme, for a flash of light had illumined her mind. As

soon as she was alone, she took MarieGaston's letter from her gown, and, finding it folded in the proper

"Not a doubt of it! I remember perfectly that I folded it with the writing outside, as I put it back into the

An hour later, Madame de l'Estorade and Madame de Camps met in the same salon where they had talked of

"Good heavens! what is the matter with you?" cried Madame de Camps, seeing tears on the face of her friend,

Madame de l'Estorade told her all that had happened, and showed her MarieGaston's letter.

"Are you very sure," asked Madame de Camps, "that your husband has read the luckless scrawl?"

"How can I doubt it?" returned Madame de l'Estorade. "The paper can't have turned of itself; besides, in

recalling the circumstances, I have a dim recollection that at the moment when I started to run to Rene I felt

"Often, when people strain their memories in that way they fasten on some false indication."

"But, my dear friend, the extraordinary change in the face and behavior of Monsieur de l'Estorade, coming so

suddenly as it did, must have been the result of some sudden shock. He looked like a man struck by

"But if you account for the change in his appearance in that way, why look for symptoms of something wrong

"Ah! this is not the first time I have seen symptoms of that," replied Madame de l'Estorade. "But you know

when sick people don't complain, we forget about their illness. See," and she pointed to a volume lying open

beside her; "just before you came in, I found in this medical dictionary that persons who suffer from diseases

of the liver are apt to be morose, irritable, impatient. Well, for some time past, I have noticed a great change

in my husband's disposition. You yourself mentioned it to me the other day. Besides, the scene Monsieur de

Camps has just witnessedwhich is, I may truly say, unprecedented in our householdis enough to prove

"My dear love, you are like those unpleasant persons who are resolved to torture themselves. In the first

place, you have looked into medical books, which is the very height of imprudence. I defy you to read a

description of any sort of disease without fancying that either you or some friends of yours have the

symptoms of it. In the next place, you are mixing up things; the effects of fear and of a chronic malady are

"No, I am not mixing them up; I know what I am talking about. You don't need to be told that if in our poor

human machine some one part gets out of order, it is on that that any strong emotion will strike."

"Well," said Madame de Camps, not pursuing the medical discussion, "if the letter of that unhappy madman

has really fallen into the hands of your husband, the peace of your home is seriously endangered; that is the

"There are not two ways to be followed as to that," said Madame de l'Estorade. "Monsieur de Sallenauve

"That is precisely what I came to speak about today. Do you know that last night I did not think you showed

"Why, when you expressed so effusively your gratitude to Monsieur de Sallenauve. When I advised you not

to avoid him, for fear it would induce him to keep at your heels, I never intended that you should shower your

regard upon his head in a way to turn it. The wife of so zealous a dynastic partisan as Monsieur de l'Estorade

"I am not talking of your husband, I am talking of you. Last night you so surprised me that I have come here

to take back my words. I like people to follow my advice, but I don't like them to go beyond it."

"At any other time I should make you explain what horrible impropriety I have committed under your

counsel; but fate has interposed and settled everything. Monsieur de Sallenauve will, at any cost, disappear

from our path, and therefore why discuss the degree of kindness one might have shown him?"

"But," said Madame de Camps, "since I must tell you all, I have come to think him a dangerous

"Nais. That child, with her passion for her 'preserver,' makes me really uneasy."

"Oh!" said the countess, smiling rather sadly, "are you not giving too much importance to childish nonsense?"

"Nais is, of course, a child, but a child who will ripen quickly into a woman. Did you not tell me yourself that

you were sometimes frightened at the intuition she showed in matters beyond her years?"

"That is true. But what you call her passion for Monsieur de Sallenauve, besides being perfectly natural, is

expressed by the dear little thing with such freedom and publicity that the sentiment is, it seems to me,

"Well, don't trust to that; especially not after this troublesome being ceases to come to your house. Suppose

that when the time comes to marry your daughter, this fancy should have smouldered in her heart and

"Oh! between now and then, thank Heaven! there's time enough," replied Madame de l'Estorade, in a tone of

"Between now and then," said Madame de Camps, "Monsieur de Sallenauve may have reached a distinction

which will put his name on every lip; and Nais, with her lively imagination, is more likely than other girls to

"Monsieur de Sallenauve is thirty, and Nais will soon be fourteen; that is precisely the difference between

"Well, you may be right," said Madame de l'Estorade, "and the sort of marriage I made from reason Nais may

want to make from folly. But you needn't be afraid; I will ruin that idol in her estimation."

"But there again, as in the comedy of hatred you mean to play for Monsieur de l'Estorade's benefit, you need

moderation. If you do not manage it by careful transitions, you may miss your end. Never allow the influence

of circumstances to appear when it is desirable than an impulse or an action should seem spontaneous."

"But," said Madame de l'Estorade, excitedly, "do you think that my hatred, as you call it, will be acted? I do

"Come, come, my dear, be calm! I don't know youyou, you have always been Reason incarnate."

At this moment Lucas entered the room and asked his mistress if she would receive a Monsieur Jacques

"He is that organist who was so useful to Monsieur de Sallenauve during the election. I don't know what he

"Never mind," said Madame de Camps, "receive him. Before beginning hostilities it is always well to know

Jacques Bricheteau entered. Expecting to be received in a friendly country, he had not taken any particular

pains with his dress. An old maroon frockcoat to the cut of which it would have been difficult to assign a

date, a plaid waistcoat buttoned to the throat, surmounted by a black cravat worn without a collar and twisted

round the neck, yellowish trousers, gray stockings, and laced shoes,such was the more than negligent

"Madame, I hope I am not indiscreet in thus presenting myself without having the honor of being known to

you, but Monsieur MarieGaston told me of your desire that I should give musiclessons to your daughter.

At first I replied that it was impossible, for all my time was occupied; but the prefect of police has just

afforded me some leisure by dismissing me from a place I filled in his department; therefore I am now happy

"Your dismissal, monsieur, was caused by your activity in Monsieur de Sallenauve's election, was it not?"

"As no reason was assigned for it, I think your conjecture is probably correct; especially as in twenty years I

"It can't be denied," said Madame de l'Estorade, sharply, "that you have opposed the views of the government

"Consequently, madame, I have accepted this dismissal as an expected evil. What interest, after all, had I in

retaining my paltry post, compared to that of Monsieur de Sallenauve's election?"

"I am very sorry," resumed Madame de l'Estorade, "to be unable to accept the offer you are good enough to

make me. But I have not yet considered the question of a musicmaster for my daughter; and, in any case, I

fear that, in view of your great and recognized talent, your instruction would be too advanced for a little girl

"Well," said Jacques Bricheteau, smiling, "no one has recognized my talent, madame. Monsieur de

Sallenauve and Monsieur MarieGaston have only heard me once or twice. Apart from that I am the most

obscure of professors, and perhaps the dullest. But setting aside the question of your daughter's master, I wish

to speak of a far more important interest, which has, in fact, brought me here. I mean Monsieur de

"Has Monsieur de Sallenauve," said Madame de l'Estorade, with marked coldness of manner, "sent you here

"No, madame," replied Jacques Bricheteau, "he has unfortunately given me no message. I cannot find him. I

went to Ville d'Avray this morning, and was told that he had started on a journey with Monsieur

MarieGaston. The servant having told me that the object and direction of this journey were probably known

Not as yet perceiving that his visit was unacceptable and that no explanation was desired, Jacques Bricheteau

"This morning, I received a letter from the notary at ArcissurAube, who informs me that my aunt, Mother

MariedesAnges, desires me to be told of a scandalous intrigue now being organized for the purpose of

ousting Monsieur de Sallenauve from his post as deputy. The absence of our friend will seriously complicate

the matter. We can take no steps without him; and I cannot understand why he should disappear without

"That he has not informed you is certainly singular," replied Madame de l'Estorade, in the same freezing tone;

The meaning of this discourteous answer was too plain for Jacques Bricheteau not to perceive it. He looked

straight at the countess, who lowered her eyes; but the whole expression of her countenance, due north,

"Pardon me, madame," he said, rising. "I was not aware that the future and the reputation of Monsieur de

Sallenauve had become indifferent to you. Only a moment ago, in your antechamber, when your servant

hesitated to take in my name, Mademoiselle, your daughter, as soon as she heard I was the friend of Monsieur

de Sallenauve, took my part warmly; and I had the stupidity to suppose that such friendliness was the tone of

After this remark, which gave Madame de l'Estorade the full change for her coin, Jacques Bricheteau bowed

ceremoniously and was about to leave the room, when a sudden contradiction of the countess's comedy of

indifference appeared in the person of Nais, who rushed in exclaiming triumphantly,

"What do you mean by running in here like a crazy girl?" she said sternly; "and how do you know that this

"Oh!" replied Nais, twisting the knife in the wound, "when he wrote you those letters from ArcissurAube, I

"You are a silly, inquisitive little girl," said her mother, driven by these aggravating circumstances quite

outside of her usual habits of indulgence. "Go to your room." Then she added to Jacques Bricheteau, who

"It is for me, madame, to ask permission to remain until you have read that letter. If by chance Monsieur de

Sallenauve gives you any particulars about his journey, you will, perhaps, allow me to profit by them."

"Monsieur de Sallenauve," said the countess, after reading the letter, "requests me to inform my husband that

he has gone to Hanwell, county of Middlesex, England. You can address him there, monsieur, to the care of

"Nais has just given you a taste of her quality," said Madame de Camps; "but you deserved it,you really

"I could not help it," replied Madame de l'Estorade; "the day began wrong, and all the rest follows suit."

Madame,I was able to overtake Lord Lewin, the Englishman of whom I spoke to you, a few miles out of

Paris. Providence sent him to Ville d'Avray to save us from an awful misfortune. Possessing an immense

fortune, he is, like so many of his countrymen, a victim to spleen, and it is only his natural force of character

which has saved him from the worst results of that malady. His indifference to life and the perfect coolness

with which he spoke of suicide won him MarieGaston's friendship in Florence. Lord Lewin, having studied

the subject of violent emotions, is very intimate with Doctor Ellis, a noted alienist, and it not infrequently

happens that he spends two or three weeks with him at Hanwell, Middlesex Co., one of the bestmanaged

When he arrived at Ville d'Avray, Lord Lewin saw at once that MarieGaston had all the symptoms of

incipient mania. Invisible to other eyes, they were apparent to those of Lord Lewin. In speaking to me of our

poor friend, he used the word chiffonait,meaning that he picked up rubbish as he walked, bits of straw,

scraps of paper, rusty nails, and put them carefully into his pocket. That, he informed me, is a marked

symptom well known to those who study the first stages of insanity. Enticing him to the subject of their

conversations in Florence, he obtained the fact that the poor fellow meditated suicide, and the reason for it.

Every night, Gaston told him, his wife appeared to him, and he had now resolved to rejoin her, to use his own

expression. Instead of opposing this idea, Lord Lewin took a tone of approval. "But," he said, "men such as

we ought not to die in a common way. I myself have always had the idea of going to South America, where,

not far from Paraguay, there is one of the greatest cataracts in the world, the Saut de Gayra. The mists

rising from it can be seen at a distance of many miles. An enormous volume of water is suddenly forced

through a narrow channel, and rushes with terrific force and the noise of a hundred thunderclaps into the

"Yes," said Lord Lewin, "I am ready to go at once; we must sail from England; it will take a few weeks to get

In this way, madame, he enticed our poor friend to England, where, as you will already have supposed, he has

placed him in charge of Doctor Ellis, who, they say, has not his equal in Europe for the treatment of this

I joined them at Beauvais, and have followed them to Hanwell, taking care not to be seen by MarieGaston.

Here I shall be detained until the doctor is able to give a decided opinion as to the probable results of our

friend's condition. I greatly fear, however, that I cannot possibly return to Paris in time for the opening of the

session. But I shall write to the president of the Chamber, and in case any questions regarding my absence

should arise, may I ask Monsieur de l'Estorade to do me the favor of stating that, to his knowledge, I have

been absolutely forced by sufficient reasons to absent myself? He will, of course, understand that I ought not

to explain under any circumstances the nature of the affair which has taken me out of the country at this

unlucky time; but I am certain it will be allsufficient if a man of Monsieur de l'Estorade's position and

As Madame de Camps finished reading the letter, the sound of a carriage entering the courtyard was heard.

"There are the gentlemen," said the countess. "Now, had I better show this letter to my husband or not?"

"You can't avoid doing so," replied Madame de Camps. "In the first place, Nais will chatter about it. Besides,

Monsieur de Sallenauve addresses you in a most respectful manner, and there is nothing in the letter to feed

"Who is that commonlooking man I met on the stairs talking with Nais?" said Monsieur de l'Estorade to his

"Oh!" said Madame de Camps, addressing her friend; "it must be the man who was here just now. Nais has

"I think his name is Bricheteau; he is a friend of Monsieur de Sallenauve," replied Madame de Camps.

Seeing the cloud on her husband's brow, Madame de l'Estorade hastened to explain the double object of the

organist's visit, and she gave him the letter of the new deputy. While he was reading it, Madame de l'Estorade

"Yes; there's scarcely a trace left of what we saw this morning. He was too wrought up about his work. Going

out did him good; and yet he met with a rather unpleasant surprise at Rastignac's."

"Thanks for the commission!" said Monsieur de l'Estorade, returning the letter to his wife. "I shall take very

"Have you heard anything disagreeable about him?" asked Madame de l'Estorade, endeavoring to give a tone

"Yes; Rastignac has just told me of letters received from Arcis, where they have made the most

"I told you some time ago that the acquaintance was one that had better be allowed to die out. I remember

"Well, you can't say that I did; and just now, before I knew of these discoveries you speak of, I was telling

Madame de Camps of another reason why it was desirable to put an end to the acquaintance."

"Yes," said Madame de Camps, "your wife and I were just discussing, as you came in, the sort of frenzy Nais

has taken for what she calls her 'preserver.' We agreed in thinking there might be future danger in that

"From all points of view," said Monsieur de l'Estorade, "it is an unwholesome acquaintance."

"It seems to me," said Monsieur de Camps, who was not in the secret of these opinions, "that you go too fast.

They may have made what they call compromising discoveries about Monsieur de Sallenauve; but what is the

"My husband can do as he likes," said Madame de l'Estorade; "but as for me, I shall drop the acquaintance at

"Unfortunately," said Monsieur de l'Estorade, "there's that unfortunate obligation"

"But, my dear," cried Madame de l'Estorade, "if a galleyslave saved my life, must I admit him to my salon?"

"At any rate," said the peer of France, "there is no need to make an open rupture; let things end quietly

between us. The dear man is now in foreign parts, and who knows if he means to return?"

"What!" exclaimed Monsieur de Camps, "has he left the country for a mere rumor?"

"Not precisely for that reason," said Monsieur de l'Estorade; "he found a pretext. But once out of France, you

"I don't believe in that conclusion," said Madame de l'Estorade; "I think he will return, and if so, my dear,

you really must take your courage in both hands and cut short his acquaintance."

"Is that," said Monsieur de l'Estorade, looking attentively at his wife, "your actual desire?"

"Mine?" she replied; "if I had my way, I should write to him and say that he would do us a favor by not

reappearing in our house. As that would be rather a difficult letter to write, let us write it together, if you are

"We will see about it," said Monsieur de l'Estorade, brightening up under this suggestion; "there's no danger

in going slow. The most pressing thing at this moment is the flowershow; I think it closes at four o'clock; if

Madame de l'Estorade, who had dressed before the arrival of Madame de Camps, rang for her maid to bring

her a bonnet and shawl. While she was putting them on before a mirror, her husband came up behind her and

"Are you crazy, to ask me such a question as that?" she answered, looking at him affectionately.

"Well, then, I must make a confession: that letter, which Philippe broughtI read it."

"Then I am not surprised at the change in your looks and manner," said his wife. "I, too, will make you a

confession: that letter to Monsieur de Sallenauve, giving him his dismissal,I have written it; you will find

Quite beside himself with delight at finding his proposed successor so readily sacrificed, Monsieur de

l'Estorade did not control his joy; taking his wife in his arms, he kissed her effusively.

"Well done!" cried Monsieur de Camps, laughing; "you have improved since morning."

"This morning I was a fool," said the peer of France, hunting in the blottingbook for the letter, which he

"Hush!" said Madame de Camps, in a low voice to her husband, to prevent further remarks. "I'll explain this

Rejuvenated by ten years at least, the peer of France offered his arm to Madame de Camps, while the amateur

"But Nais!" said Monsieur de l'Estorade, noticing the melancholy face of his daughter, who was looking over

"Ah, bah!" said the father, "I proclaim an amnesty. Get your hat," he added, addressing his daughter.

Nais looked at her mother to obtain a ratification, which her knowledge of the hierarchy of power in that

While they waited in the antechamber for the child, Monsieur de l'Estorade noticed that Lucas was standing

"To my son," replied Lucas, "who is very impatient to get his sergeant's stripes. I am telling him that

"True, true," said the peer of France; "it slipped my memory. Remind me of it tomorrow morning, and I'll

"And here," continued his master, feeling in his waistcoat pocket, and producing three gold pieces, "send that

When Nais returned, Madame de l'Estorade, who had been admiring herself for her courage in showing

displeasure to her daughter for half an hour, embraced her as if they were meeting after an absence of two

years; after which they started for the Luxembourg, where in those days the Horticultural Society held its

Toward the close of the audience given by the minister of Public Works to Monsieur Octave de Camps, who

was presented by the Comte de l'Estorade, an usher entered the room, and gave the minister the card of the

"Very good," said Rastignac; "say to those gentlemen that I will receive them in a few moments."

Shortly after, Monsieur de l'Estorade and Monsieur de Camps rose to take leave; and it was then that

Rastignac very succinctly let the peer know of the danger looming on the horizon of his friend Sallenauve.

"I don't know, my dear minister," he said, "why you insist on giving that title to a man who is, really and

truly, a mere acquaintance, and, I may add, a passing acquaintance, if the rumors you have just mentioned to

"I am glad to hear you say that," said the minister, "because the friendly relations which I supposed you to

hold towards him would have embarrassed me a good deal in the hostilities which I foresee must break out

"Most grateful, I am sure, for that sentiment," replied the peer of France; "but be kind enough to remember

that I give you carte blanche. You are free to handle Monsieur de Sallenauve as your political enemy,

The attorneygeneral, Vinet, was the most devoted and the most consulted champion of the government

among its various officials. In a possible reconstitution of the ministry he was obviously the candidate for the

portfolio of justice. Being thoroughly initiated into all the business of that position, and versed in its secret

dealings, nothing was hatched in that department on which he was not consulted, if not actually engaged. The

electoral matters of ArcissurAube had a double claim to his interest, partly on account of his wife, a

Chargeboeuf of Brie, and a relative of the CinqCygnes, but chiefly because of the office held by his son in

the local administration. So that when, earlier in the morning, Monsieur de Trailles carried to Rastignac a

letter from Madame Beauvisage, wife of the defeated governmental candidate, full of statements injurious to

the new deputy, the minister had replied, without listening to any explanations,

Notified by de Trailles, who offered to fetch him in his carriage, Vinet was ready enough to go to the

minister; and now that we find the three together in Rastignac's study, we shall be likely to obtain some better

knowledge of the sort of danger hanging over Sallenauve's head than we gained from Jacques Bricheteau's or

"You say, my dear friends," said the minister, "that we can win a game against that puritan, who seemed to

me, when I met him at l'Estorade's last evening, to be an outandout enemy to the government?"

Admitted to this interview without official character, Maxime de Trailles knew life too well to take upon

himself to answer this query. The attorneygeneral, on the contrary, having a most exalted sense of his own

"When Monsieur de Trailles communicated to me this morning a letter from Madame Beauvisage," he

hastened to say, "I had just received one from my son, conveying to me very much the same information. I

am of Monsieur de Trailles' opinion, that the affair may become very serious for our adversary, provided,

"I know, as yet, very little about the affair," remarked the minister. "As I wished for your opinion in the first

place, my dear Vinet, I requested Monsieur de Trailles to postpone his explanation of its details until you

This time Maxime was plainly authorized and even required to speak, but again Vinet stole the opportunity.

"Here is what my son Olivier writes me, and it is confirmed by the letter of Madame Beauvisage, in whom,

be it said in passing, my dear minister, you have lost a most excellent deputy. It appears that on the last

marketday Maitre Achille Pigoult, who is left in charge of the affairs of the new deputy, received a visit

from a peasantwoman of Romilly, a large village in the neighborhood of Arcis. The mysterious father of the

deputy, the socalled Marquis de Sallenauve, declared himself to be the last remaining scion of the family;

but it seems that this woman produced papers in due form, which show her to be a Sallenauve in the direct

"Was she as ignorant of the existence of the Marquis de Sallenauve as the marquis seems to have been of

"That does not clearly appear from what she says," replied the attorneygeneral; "but it might so happen

"Go on, if you please," said Rastignac; "before we draw conclusions we must know the facts, which, as you

"Monsieur is right," said Vinet; "hail to the man who can muddle questions. But to return to our

peasantwoman. Not being satisfied, naturally, with Maitre Pigoult's reception of her news, she went into the

marketsquare, and there by the help of a legal practitioner from her village, who seems to have accompanied

her, she spread about reports which are very damaging to my worthy colleague in the Chamber. She said, for

instance, that it was not true that the Marquis de Sallenauve was his father; that it was not even true that the

Marquis de Sallenauve was still living; and moreover that the spurious Sallenauve was a man of no heart,

who had repudiated his real parents, adding that she could, by the help of the able man who accompanied

her, compel him to disgorge the Sallenauve property and 'clear out' of the place."

"I have no objection to that," said Rastignac; "but this woman must, of course, have papers to prove her

"That is the weak point of the matter," replied Vinet. "But let me go on with my story. The government has at

Arcis a most intelligent and devoted functionary in the commissary of police. Circulating among the groups,

as he usually does on market days, he heard these statements of the peasantwoman, and reported them at

once, not to the mayor, who might not have heeded them, but to Madame Beauvisage."

"Ah ca!" said Rastignac, addressing Maxime; "was the candidate you gave us such a dolt as that?"

"Just the man you needed," replied Maxime,"silly to the last degree, and capable of being wound round

"Madame Beauvisage," continued Vinet, "wished to speak with the woman herself, and she ordered

Groslierthat's the commissary of policeto fetch her with a threatening air to the mayor's office, so as to

"Questioned closely by the mayoress," continued Vinet, "who took care to have the mayor present, the

peasantwoman was far from categorical. Her grounds for asserting that the new deputy could not be the son

of the marquis, and the assurance with which she stated that the latter had long been dead were not, as it

appears, very clearly established; vague rumors and the deductions drawn by the village practitioner seem to

"Absolutely nothing from a legal point of view," replied the attorney general; "for supposing the woman

were able to establish the fact that this recognition of the said Dorlange was a mere pretence, she has no

status on which to proceed farther. By Article 339 of the Civil Code direct heirship alone has the right to

"So that the woman," continued Vinet, "has no object in proceeding, for she can't inherit; it belongs to the

government to pursue the case of supposition of person; she can do no more than denounce the fact."

"From which you conclude?" said Rastignac, with that curtness of speech which to a prolix speaker is a

"From which I conclude, judicially speaking, that the Romilly peasant woman, so far as she is concerned,

will have her trouble for her pains; but, speaking politically, the thing takes quite another aspect."

"Let us see the political side," said the minister; "up to this point, I see nothing."

"In the first place," replied the attorneygeneral, "you will admit that it is always possible to bring a bad

"And I don't suppose it would signify much to you if the woman did embark in a matter in which she can lose

"In any case, I should have advised you to let things take their course. The Beauvisage husband and wife

have engaged to pay the costs and also the expense of keeping the peasantwoman and her counsel in Paris

"Then," said Rastignac, still pressing for a conclusion, "the case is really begun. What will be the result?"

"What will be the result?" cried the attorneygeneral, getting excited; "why, anything you please if, before

the case comes for trial, your newspapers comment upon it, and your friends spread reports and insinuations.

What will result? why, an immense fall in public estimation for our adversary suspected of stealing a name

which does not belong to him! What will result? why, the opportunity for a fierce challenge in the Chamber."

"Ah! I don't know about that. The matter would have to be rather more studied, and the turn the case might

"So, for the present," remarked the minister, "the whole thing amounts to an application of Basile's famous

theory about calumny: 'good to set agoing, because some of it will always stick.'"

"Calumny!" exclaimed Vinet, "that remains to be seen. Perhaps a good round of gossip is all that can be made

of it. Monsieur de Trailles, here, knows better than I do the state of things down there. He can tell you that the

disappearance of the father immediately after the recognition had a bad effect upon people's minds; and every

one in Arcis has a vague impression of secret plotting in this affair of the election. You don't know, my dear

minister, all that can be made in the provinces of a judicial affair when adroitly manipulated,cooked, as I

may say. In my long and laborious career at the bar I saw plenty of that kind of miracle. But a parliamentary

debate is another thing. In that there's no need of proof; one can kill one's man with probabilities and

"But, to come to the point," said Rastignac, "how do you think the affair ought to be managed?"

"In the first place," replied Vinet, "I should leave the Beauvisage people to pay all costs of whatever kind,

"Do I oppose that?" said the minister. "Have I the right or the means to do so?"

"The affair," continued Vinet, "should be placed in the hands of some capable and wily solicitor, like

Desroches, for example, Monsieur de Trailles' lawyer. He'll know how to put flesh on the bones of a case you

"Well, it is certainly not my place to say to Monsieur de Trailles or any other man, 'I forbid you to employ

"Then we need some pleader who can talk in a moving way about that sacred thing the Family, and put

himself into a state of indignation about these surreptitious and furtive ways of entering its honored

"Desroches can point out some such person to you. The government cannot prevent a man from saying what

"But," interposed Maxime, who was forced out of his passive role by the minister's coldness, "is not

"No, of course not; but we have certainly supposed that you would take some interest in the matter."

"Well, as Monsieur le procureur said just now, by giving a hint to the subsidized newspapers, by stirring up

your friends to spread the news, by using a certain influence which power always exerts on the minds of

"Thank you, no!" replied Rastignac. "When you want the government for an accomplice, my dear Maxime,

you must provide a betterlaid plot than that. From your manner this morning I supposed there was really

something in all this, and so I ventured to disturb our excellent attorneygeneral, who knows how I value his

advice. But really, your scheme seems to me too transparent and also too narrow not to be doomed to

inevitable defeat. If I were not married, and could pretend to the hand of Mademoiselle Beauvisage, perhaps I

should feel differently; of course you will do as you think best. I do not say that the government will not wish

"But see," said Vinet, interposing to cut off Maxime's reply, which would doubtless have been bitter;

"suppose we send the affair to the criminal courts, and the peasantwoman, instigated by the Beauvisage

couple, should denounce the man who had sworn before a notary, and offered himself for election falsely, as

"But proofs? I return to that, you must have proof," said Rastignac. "Have you even a shadow of it?"

"You said yourself, just now," remarked Maxime, "that it was always possible to bring a bad case."

"A civil case, yes; but to fail in a criminal case is a far more serious matter. It would be a pretty thing if you

were shown not to have a leg to stand on, and the case ended in a decision of non lieu. You couldn't find a

"For us, no. For you, my dear Maxime, who have no official character, and who, if need be, can support the

attack on Monsieur de Sallenauve pistol in hand, as it were, nothing hinders you from proceeding in the

"Not at all; you are a man intuitively convinced of facts impossible to prove legally, and you do not give way

Monsieur de Trailles rose angrily. Vinet rose also, and, shaking hands with Rastignac as he took leave of him,

"I don't deny that your course is a prudent one, and I don't say that in your place I should not do the same

"Adieu, Maxime; without bitterness, I hope," said Rastignac to Monsieur de Trailles, who bowed coldly and

When the two conspirators were alone in the antechamber, Maxime turned to his companion.

"Perfectly," replied Vinet, "and I wonder to see a clever man like you so duped."

"Yes, duped to make you lose your time and I mine by coming here to listen to a lecture on virtue!"

"That's not it; but I do think you guileless to be taken in by that refusal to cooperate."

"I think that this affair is risky; if it succeeds, the government, arms folded, will reap the benefit. But if on the

contrary we fail, it will not take a share in the defeat. But you may be sure of this, for I know Rastignac well:

without seeming to know anything, and without compromising himself in any way, he will help us, and

perhaps more usefully than by open connivance. Think! did he say a single word on the morality of the

affair? Didn't he say, again and again, 'I don't opposeI have no right to prevent'? And as to the venom of

the case, the only fault he found was that it wasn't sure to kill. But in truth, my dear monsieur, this is going to

be a hard pull, and we shall want all the cleverness of that fellow Desroches to get us through."

"Oh! no, no!" exclaimed Vinet. "I may be the man to put the question in the Chamber; and if Desroches were

So saying, he took leave of Maxime with some haste, on the ground that he ought then to be at the Chamber.

"But I," said Maxime, running after him,"suppose I want to consult you in the matter?"

"I leave tonight for my district, to get things into order before the opening of the new session."

"I or another. I will hasten back as soon as I can; but you understand, I must put my department in order for a

"A good journey to you, then, Monsieur le procureurgeneral," replied Maxime, sarcastically.

Left to himself, Monsieur de Trailles had a period of discouragement, resulting from the discovery that these

two political Bertrands meant that his paw should pull the chestnuts from the fire. Rastignac's behavior

particularly galled him. His mind went back to their first interview at Madame Restaud's, twenty years

earlier, when he himself held the sceptre of fashion, and Rastignac, a poor student, neither knew how to come

into a room nor how to leave it. [See "Pere Goriot.] And now Rastignac was peer of France and minister,

while he, Maxime, become his agent, was obliged with folded arms to hear himself told that his plot was

"Yes!" he cried to himself, "I will carry it out; my instinct tells me there is something in it. What

nonsense!a Dorlange, a nobody, to attempt to checkmate Maxime de Trailles and make a steppingstone

of my defeat! To my solicitor's," he said to the coachman, opening the door of the carriage himself.

Desroches was at home; and Monsieur de Trailles was immediately admitted into his study.

Desroches was a lawyer who had had, like Raffaelle, several manners. First, possessor of a practice without

clients, he had made fish of every case that came into his net; and he felt himself, in consequence, little

respected by the court. But he was a hard worker, well versed in all the ins and outs of chicanery, a keen

observer, and an intelligent reader of the movements of the human heart. Consequently he had made for

himself, in course of time, a very good practice; he had married a rich woman, and the moment that he

thought himself able to do without crooked ways he had seriously renounced them. In 1839 Desroches had

become an honest and skilful solicitor: that is to say, he assumed the interests of his clients with warmth and

ability; he never counselled an openly dishonorable proceeding, still less would he have lent a hand to it. As

to that fine flower of delicacy to be met with in Derville and some others like him, besides the sad fact that it

is difficult to keep its fragrance from evaporating in this business world of which Monsieur de Talleyrand

says, "Business means getting the property of others," it is certain that it can never be added to any second

state of existence. The loss of that bloom of the soul, like that of other virginities, is irreparable. Desroches

had not aspired to restore it to himself. He no longer risked anything ignoble or dishonest, but the good tricks

admitted the code of procedure, the good traps, the good treacheries which could be legitimately played off

Desroches was moreover a man of parts and witty; loving the pleasures of the table, and like all men

perpetually the slaves of imperious toil, he felt the need of vigorous amusement, taken on the wing and highly

spiced. While purifying after a fashion his judicial life, he still continued the legal adviser of artists, men of

letters, actresses, courtesans, and elegant bohemians like Maxime de Trailles, because he liked to live their

life; they were sympathetic to him as he to them. Their witty argot, their easy morals, their rather loose

adventures, their expedients, their brave and honorable toil, in a word, their greatness and their

weakness,he understood it all marvellously well; and, like an everindulgent providence, he lent them his

aid whenever they asked for it. But in order to conceal from his dignified and more valuable clients whatever

might be compromising in the clientele he really preferred, Desroches had his days of domesticity when he

was husband and father, especially on Sundays. He appeared in the Bois de Boulogne in a modest caleche

beside his wife (whose ugliness revealed the size of her dot), with three children on the front seat, who were

luckless enough to resemble their mother. This family picture, these virtuous Dominical habits, recalled so

little the weekday Desroches, dining in cafes with all the male and female viveurs of renown, that one of

them, Malaga, a circusrider, famous for her wit and vim, remarked that lawyers ought not to be allowed to

It was to this relative integrity that de Trailles now went for counsel, as he never failed to do in all the many

difficulties he encountered in life. Following a good habit, Desroches listened, without interrupting, to the

long explanation of the case submitted to him. As Maxime hid nothing from this species of confessor, he

gave his reasons for wishing to injure Sallenauve, representing him, in all good faith, as having usurped the

name under which he was elected to the Chamber,his hatred making him take the possibility for positive

In his heart, Desroches did not want to take charge of an affair in which he saw not the slightest chance of

success; but he showed his lax integrity by talking over the affair with his client as if it were an ordinary case

of legal practice, instead of telling him frankly his opinion that this pretended "case" was a mere intrigue. The

number of things done in the domain of evil by connivance in speech, without proceeding to the actual

"In the first place," said Desroches, when the matter was all explained, "a civil suit is not to be thought of.

Your Romilly peasantwoman might have her hands full of proofs, but she has no ground herself to stand

upon; she has no legal interest in contesting the rights of this recognized natural son."

"As for the criminal case, you could, no doubt, compel it by giving information to the police authorities of

"Yes, but there are a great many objections to it. In the first place, in order that the complaint be received at

all, you must produce a certain amount of proof; then, supposing it is received, and the authorities are

determined to pursue the case, you must have more evidence of criminality than you have now; and,

moreover, supposing that you can show that the socalled Marquis de Sallenauve committed a fraud, how

will you prove that the socalled son was privy to it? He might have been the dupe of some political

"But what interest could such a schemer have in giving Dorlange the many advantages he has derived from

"Ah! my dear fellow, in political manners all queer proceedings are possible; there is no such fertile source

for compilers of causes celebres and novelists. In the eyes of the law, you must remember, the counterfeiting

"Here," said Desroches, taking up the Five Codes; "do me the favor to read Article 5 of the Penal Code, the

"'Any functionary or public officer who, in the exercise of his function, shall commit forgeryeither by false

signatures, by alterations of deeds, writings, or signatures, or by counterfeiting persons' There, you see,"

"'by counterfeiting persons,'" resumed de Trailles, "'either by writings made or intercalated in the public

records or other documents, shall be punished by imprisonment at hard labor for life.'"

Maxime lingered lovingly over the last words, which gave his revenge a foretaste of the fate that awaited

"My dear count," said Desroches, "you do as the barristers do; they read to the jury only so much of a legal

document as suits their point of view. You pay no attention to the fact that the only persons affected by this

"But," he objected, "there must be something elsewhere about such a crime when committed by private

"No, there is not; you can trust my knowledge of jurisprudence,the Code is absolutely silent in that

"Its repression is always doubtful," replied Desroches. "Judges do sometimes make up for the deficiency of

the Code in this respect. Here," he added, turning over the leaves of a book of reference, "here are two

decisions of the court of assizes, reported in Carnot's Commentary on the Penal Code: one of July 7, 1814,

the other April 24, 1818,both confirmed by the court of appeals, which condemn for forgery, by

'counterfeiting persons,' individuals who were neither functionaries nor public officers: but these decisions,

unique in law, rest on the authority of an article in which the crime they punish is not even mentioned; and it

is only by elaborate reasoning that they contrived to make this irregular application of it. You can understand,

therefore, how very doubtful the issue of such a case would be, because in the absence of a positive rule you

"Consequently, your opinion, like Rastignac's, is that we had better send our peasantwoman back to Romilly

"There is always something to be done if one knows how to set about it," replied Desroches. "There is a point

that neither you nor Rastignac nor Vinet seems to have thought of; and that is, to proceed in a criminal case

against a member of the national representation, except for flagrant crime, requires the consent and authority

"True," said Maxime, "but I don't see how a new difficulty is going to help us."

"You wouldn't be sorry to send your adversary with the galleys," said Desroches, laughing.

"A villain," added Maxime, "who may make me lose a rich marriage; a fellow who poses for stern virtue, and

"Well, you must resign yourself to a less glorious result; but you can make a pretty scandal, and destroy the

"Well, then, here's what I advise. Don't let your peasantwoman lodge her complaint before the criminal

court, but make her place in the hands of the president of the Chamber of deputies a simple request for

permission to proceed. Probably the permission will not be granted, and the affair will have to stop at that

stage; but the matter being once made known will circulate through the Chambers, the newspapers will get

hold of it and make a stir, and the ministry, sub rosa, can envenom the vague accusation through its friends."

"Parbleu! my dear fellow," cried Maxime, delighted to find a way open to his hatred, "you've a strong

head,stronger than that of these socalled statesmen. But this request for permission addressed to the

"Oh! not I," said Desroches, who did not wish to mix himself up any farther in this low intrigue. "It isn't legal

assistance that you want; this is simply firing your first gun, and I don't undertake that business. But you can

find plenty of briefless barristers always ready to put their finger in the political pie. Massol, for instance, can

"Oh! as for that," said Maxime, "I'll take it all on my own shoulders. Perhaps in this form Rastignac may

"Yes, but take care you don't make an enemy of Vinet, who will think you very impertinent to have an idea

which ought, naturally, to have come into the head of so great a parliamentary tactician as himself."

"Well, before long," said Maxime, rising, "I hope to bring the Vinets and Rastignacs, and others like them, to

"I suppose, in the course of your erotic existence, you have had recourse to the good offices of a certain

"True," said Desroches, "you conquer in the upper ranks, where, as a general thing, they don't use

"Of course; her establishment is in the rue NeuveSaintMarc, and it was she who got that pot of money out

of Nucingen for La Torpille. Isn't she some relation to the chief of detective police, who bears the same name,

"I don't know about that," said Desroches, "but what I can tell you is that in her business as procuressas it

was called in days less decorous than our ownthe worthy woman has made a fortune, and now, without

any serious change of occupation, she lives magnificently in the rue de Provence, where she carries on the

"Yes, with the director of the London operahouse, Emile Blondet, Finot, Lousteau, Felicien Vernon,

Theodore Gaillard, Hector Merlin, and Bixiou, who was commissioned to invite me, as it seems they are in

"No; it merely concerns a theatrical venture,the engagement of a prima donna; and they want to submit the

terms of the contract to my judgment. You understand that the rest of the guests are invited to trumpet the

"Oh! a star,destined, they say, to European success; an Italian, discovered by a Swedish nobleman, Comte

Halphertius, through the medium of Madame de SaintEsteve. The illustrious manager of the London

operahouse is negotiating this treaty in order that she shall make her first appearance at his theatre."

"Well, adieu, my dear fellow; a pleasant dinner," said Maxime, preparing to depart. "If your star shines in

London, it will probably appear in our firmament next winter. As for me, I must go and attend to the sunrise

"Faith! I couldn't tell you that. I never myself trust him with a case, for I will not employ barristers who

dabble in politics. But you can get his address from the 'Gazette des Tribuneaux'; he is one of their reporters."

Maxime went to the office of that newspaper; but, probably on account of creditors, the office servant had

express orders not to give the barrister's address, so that, in spite of his arrogant, imperious manner, Monsieur

de Trailles obtained no information. Happily, he bethought him that he frequently saw Massol at the Opera,

and he resolved to seek him there that evening. Before going to dinner, he went to the lodgings in the rue

Montmartre, where he had installed the Romilly peasantwoman and her counsel, whom Madame

Beauvisage had already sent to Paris. He found them at dinner, making the most of the Beauvisage funds, and

he gave them an order to come to his apartment the next day at halfpast eleven without breakfasting.

In the evening he found Massol, as he expected, at the operahouse. Going up to the lawyer with the slightly

"Monsieur, I have an affair, half legal, half political, which I desire to talk over with you. If it did not demand

a certain amount of secrecy, I would go to your office, but I think we could talk with more safety in my own

apartment; where, moreover, I shall be able to put you in communication with other persons concerned in the

affair. May I hope that tomorrow morning, at eleven o'clock, you will do me the favor to take a cup of tea

If Massol had had an office, he might possibly not have consented, for the sake of his legal dignity, to reverse

the usual order of things; but as he perched rather than lodged in any particular place, he was glad of an

"I shall have the honor to be with you at the hour named," he replied ceremoniously.

"Yes, I know," returned Massol,"a few steps from the corner of the rue de la Rochefoucauld."

A few evenings after the one on which Sallenauve and MarieGaston had taken Jacques Bricheteau to

SaintSulpice to hear the Signora Luigia's voice, the church was the scene of a curious little incident that

passed by almost wholly unperceived. A young man entered hastily by a sidedoor; he seemed agitated, and

so absorbed in some anxiety that he forgot to remove his hat. The beadle caught him by the arm, and his face

A few seconds after the irruption of this youth the same door gave access to a man around whose powerful,

seamed face was the collar of a white beard, which, combined with a thick shock of hair, also white but

slightly reddish in tone and falling almost to his shoulders, gave him very much the air of an old

Conventional, or a Bernardin de Saint Pierre who had had the smallpox. His face and his hair placed him

in the sixties, but his robust figure, the energetic decision of his movements, and, above all, the piercing

keenness of the glance which he cast about him on entering the church, showed a powerful organization on

which the passage of years had made little or no impression. No doubt, he was in search of the young fellow

who had preceded him; but he did not commit the mistake of entering the crowd, where he knew of course

that the youth had lost himself. Like a practised hunter, he saw that pursuit was useless, and he was just about

to leave the church when, after a short organ prelude, the contralto of the signora delivering its solemn notes

gave forth that glorious harmony to which is sung the Litany of the Virgin. The beauty of the voice, the

beauty of the chant, the beauty of the words of the sacred hymn, which the fine method of the singer brought

out distinctly, made a singular impression on the stalwart stranger. Instead of leaving the church, he put

himself in the shadow of a column, against which he leaned as he stood; but as the last notes of the divine

canticle died away among the arches of the church, he knelt on the pavement, and whoever had chanced to

look that way would have seen two heavy tears rolling slowly down his cheeks. The benediction given, and

the crowd dispersing, he rose, wiped his eyes, and, muttering, "What a fool I am!" left the church. Then he

went to the Place SaintSulpice, and, beckoning to a coach on the stand, he said to the driver,

Reaching the house, he went rapidly up the stairway, and rang at the door of an apartment on the first floor.

"Is my aunt at home?" he inquired of the Negro who opened it. Then he followed the man, and was presently

The salon which the famous chief of the detective police now entered was remarkable for the luxury, but still

more for the horribly bad taste, of its appointments. Three women of advanced age were seated round a

cardtable earnestly employed in a game of dominoes. Three glasses and an empty silver bowl which gave

forth a vinous odor showed that the worship of doublesixes was not without its due libations.

"Good evening, mesdames," said the chief of police, sitting down; "for I have something to say to each of

"We'll listen presently," said his aunt; "you can't interrupt the game. It won't be long; I play for four."

"Domino!" cried the SaintEsteve. "I win; you have four points between you two, and the whites are all out.

Well, my dear, what is it?" she said, turning to her nephew, after a rather stormy reckoning among the

"You, Madame Fontaine," said the chief of police, addressing one of the venerable beings, whose head was

covered with disorderly gray hair and a battered green bonnet,"you neglect your duty; you have sent me no

report, and, on the contrary, I get many complaints of you. The prefect has a great mind to close your

establishment. I protect you on account of the services you are supposed to render us; but if you don't render

them, I warn you, without claiming any gifts of prediction, that your fateshop will be shut up."

"There now!" replied the pythoness, "you prevented me from hiring Mademoiselle Lenormand's apartment in

the rue de Tournon, and how can you expect me to make reports about the cooks and clerks and workmen and

grisettes who are all I get where I am? If you had let me work among the great folks, I'd make you reports and

"I don't see how you can say that, Madame Fontaine," said Madame de SaintEsteve. "I am sure I send you

all my clients. It was only the other day," continued the matrimonial agent, "I sent you that Italian singer,

living with a deputy who is against the government; why didn't you report about that?"

"There's another thing," said the chief of police, "which appears in several of the complaints that I received

"Yes, that batrachian, that toad, to come down to his right name. It seems he nearly killed a woman who was

"Well, well," interrupted the sorceress, "if I am to tell fortunes alone, you might as well guillotine me at once.

Because a fool of a woman layin with a dead child, must toads be suppressed in nature? Why did God make

"My dear woman," said the chief, "did you never hear that in 1617 a learned man was put to death for having

"Yes, I know that; but we are not in those light ages," replied Madame Fontaine, facetiously.

"As for you, Madame Nourrisson, the complaint is that you gather your fruit unripe. You ought to know by

this time the laws and regulations, and I warn you that everything under twentyone years of age is

forbidden. I wonder I have to remind you of it. Now, aunt, what I have to say to you is confidential."

Since the days when Jacques Collin had abdicated his former kingship and had made himself, as they say, a

new skin in the police force, Jacqueline Collin, though she had never put herself within reach of the law, had

certainly never donned the robe of innocence. But having attained, like her nephew, to what might fairly be

called opulence, she kept at a safe and respectful distance from the Penal Code, and under cover of an agency

that was fairly avowable, she sheltered practices more or less shady, on which she continued to bestow an

"Aunt," said Vautrin, "I have so many things to say to you that I don't know where to begin."

"In the first place, I must tell you that I have just missed a splendid chance."

"In the line of my odious calling. But this time the capture was worth making. Do you remember that little

"Yes. I just missed arresting him near SaintSulpice. But I followed him into the church, where I heard your

"Ah!" said Jacqueline, "she has made up her mind at last, and has left that imbecile of a sculptor."

"It is about her that I have come to talk to you," said Vautrin. "Here are the facts. The Italian opera season in

London has begun badly, their prima donna is taken ill. Sir Francis Drake, the impresario, arrived in Paris

yesterday, at the Hotel des Princes, rue de Richelieu, in search of a prima donna, at any rate pro tem. I have

been to see him in the interests of the signora. Sir Francis Drake is an Englishman, very bald, with a red nose,

and long yellow teeth. He received me with cold politeness, and asked in very good French what my business

"That was what I went for,in the character, be it understood, of a Swedish nobleman. He asked if her talent

was known. 'Absolutely unknown,' I replied. 'It is risky,' said Sir Francis; 'nevertheless arrange to let me hear

her.' I told him that she was staying with her friend Madame de SaintEsteve, at whose house I could take the

"Today is the 19th; I said the 21st. Order the dinner from Chevet for fifteen persons, and send for your client

Bixiou to make you out the list. Tell him you want the chief men of the press, a lawyer to settle the terms of

the contract, and a pianist to accompany the signora. Let her know what hangs upon it. Sir Francis Drake and

I will make up the number. Useless to tell you that I am your friend Comte Halphertius, who, having no

house in Paris, gives this dinner at yours. Mind that everything is done in the best taste."

In designating Bixiou to his aunt as the recruitingofficer of the dinner, Vautrin knew that through the

universality of his relations with writing, singing, designing, eating, living, and squirming Paris, no one was

At seven o'clock precisely all the guests named by Desroches to Maxime, plus Desroches himself, were

assembled in the salon of the rue de Provence, when the Negro footman opened the door and announced Sir

Francis Drake and his Excellency the Comte Halphertius. The dress of the Swedish nobleman was correct to

the last degree,black coat, white cravat, and white waistcoat, on which glowed the ribbon of an order

hanging from his neck; the rest of his decorations were fastened to his coat by chainlets. At the first glance

which he cast upon the company, Vautrin had the annoyance of beholding that Jacqueline's habits and

instincts had been more potent than his express order,for a species of green and yellow turban surmounted

her head in a manner which he felt to be ridiculous; but thanks to the admirable manner in which the rest of

As for Signora Luigia, dressed in black, which was customary with her, and having had the good sense to

reject the services of a coiffeur, she was royally beautiful. An air of melancholy gravity, expressed by her

whole person, inspired a sentiment of respect which surprised the men who on Bixiou's invitation were there

to judge of her. The only special presentation that was made among the guests was that of Desroches to

"Maitre Desroches, the most intelligent solicitor of modern times Comte Halphertius of Sweden."

As for Sir Francis Drake, he seemed at first inclined to disdain the influence of the dramatic newspapers,

whose representatives were there assembled; but presently recognizing Felicien Vernou and Lousteau, two

noted men of that secondary press, he greeted them heartily and shook them by the hand.

Before dinner was announced, Comte Halphertius judged it advisable to make a little speech.

"Dear madame," he said to his aunt, "you are really a fairy godmother. This is the first time I have ever been

in a Parisian salon, and here you have assembled to meet me all that literature, the arts, and the legal

profession can offer of their best. I, who am only a northern barbarian,though our country, too, can boast

of its celebrities, Linnaeus, Berzelius, Thorwaldsen, Tegner, Franzen, Geier, and the charming novelist

"But in Bernadotte France and Sweden clasped hands," replied Madame de SaintEsteve, whose historical

The announcement of dinner by a majordomo, who threw open the double doors of the salon, put an end to

this remark. Jacqueline took Vautrin's arm, saying in a whisper as they walked along,

"Yes," replied Vautrin, "it is all in good style, except that devil of a turban of yours, which makes you look

"Why, no," said Jacqueline, "not at all; with my Javanese face" (she was born on the island of Java), "oriental

Madame de SaintEsteve placed Sir Francis Drake upon her right, and Desroches on her left; Vautrin sat

opposite, flanked on either side by Emile Blondet, of the "Debats," and the Signoria Luigia; the rest of the

company placed themselves as they pleased. The dinner, on the whole, was dull; Bixiou, at Madame de

SaintEsteve's request, had warned the party to risk nothing that might offend the chaste ears of the pious

Italian. Forced to mind their morals, as a celebrated critic once observed, these men of wit and audacity lost

their spirit; and, taking refuge in the menu, which was excellent, they either talked together in a low voice, or

let the conversation drag itself along in bourgeois commonplaces. They ate and they drank, but they did not

dine. Bixiou, incapable of bearing this state of things during a whole dinner, determined to create a reaction.

The appearance of this Swedish magnate, evidently on intimate terms with the SaintEsteve, puzzled him. He

noticed a certain insufficiency in Vautrin, and thought to himself that if he were really a great nobleman, he

would be more equal to the occasion, and give a tone to the feast. He determined, therefore, to test him, and

thus provide amusement, at any rate, for himself. So, at the end of the second course, he suddenly said from

"Monsieur le comte, you are too young, of course, to have known Gustavus III., whom Scribe and Auber

"I beg your pardon," replied Vautrin, jumping at the chance thus given him, "I am nearly sixty years of age,

which makes me thirteen in 1792, when our beloved sovereign was killed by the assassin Ankarstroem, so

Thus, by means of a little volume entitled "Characters and Anecdotes of the Court of Sweden," printed in

1808, and bought on the quays in the interests of his Swedish incarnation, the chief of the detective police

evaded the trap. He did better. The faucet being open, he poured forth such an abundance of erudition and

detailed circumstances, he related so many curious and secret anecdotes, especially relating to the coup

d'etat by which, in 1772, Gustavus III. had freed his crown,in short, he was so precise and so interesting

"I thought, as you did, that a foreign count in the hands of a marriage agent was a very suspicious character;

but he knows the court of Sweden in a way that it was quite impossible to get out of books. He is evidently a

man well born; one might make some interesting articles out of the stories he has just told."

"Yes," said Bixiou, "and I mean to cultivate his acquaintance; I could make a good deal out of him in the

"You have better find out first," said Desroches, "whether he has enough French humor to like being

Presently the first notes of the piano gave notice that the Signora Luigia was about to mount the breach. She

first sang the romance in "Saul" with a depth of expression which moved the whole company, even though

that areopagus of judges were digesting a good dinner, as to which they had not restrained themselves. Emile

Blondet, who was more of a political thinker than a man of imagination, was completely carried away by his

enthusiasm. As the song ended, Felicien Vernou and Lousteau went up to Sir Francis Drake and reproached

him for wishing to take such a treasure from France, at the same time flattering him for his cleverness as an

La Luigia then sang an air from the "Nina" of Paesiello; and in that the part being very dramaticshe

showed a talent for comedy second only to her vocal gift. It was received with truly genuine applause; but

what assured and completed her success with these trained judges was her modesty and the sort of ignorance

in which she still remained of her amazing talent,in the midst, too, of praises which might have turned her

head. Accustomed to frenzied selflove and the insolent pretensions of the veriest sparrow of the opera, these

journalists were amazed and touched by the humility, the simplicity of this empress, who seemed quite

The success of the trial passed all expectation. There was but one voice as to the desirability of immediately

engaging her; and Sir Francis Drake, Vautrin, and Desroches presently passed into an adjoining room to draw

up the terms of the contract. As soon as that was done, Vautrin returned to the salon for la diva, requesting

her to hear the contract read and to affix her signature. Her departure for London without further delay was

A few days later the packetboat from Boulogne conveyed to England another personage of this history.

Jacques Bricheteau, having obtained Sallenauve's present address from Madame de l'Estorade, and

considering the danger which threatened the new deputy extremely urgent, decided not to write, but to go

himself to England and confer with him in person. When he reached London, he was surprised to learn that

Hanwell was the most celebrated insane asylum in Great Britain. Had he reflected on the mental condition of

MarieGaston, he might have guessed the truth. As it was, he felt completely bewildered; but not committing

the blunder of losing his time in useless conjectures, he went on without a moment's delay to Hanwell, which

establishment is only about nine miles from London, pleasantly situated at the foot of a hill on the borders of

After a long detention in the waitingroom, he was at last enabled to see his friend at a moment when

MarieGaston's insanity, which for several days had been in the stages of mania, was yielding to the care of

the doctor, and showed some symptoms of a probable recovery. As soon as Sallenauve was alone with the

organist, he inquired the reason that led him to follow him; and he heard, with some emotion, the news of the

intrigues which Maxime de Trailles had apparently organized against him. Returning to his original

"Are you really sure that that person who declared himself my father was the Marquis de Sallenauve, and that

"Mother MariedesAnges and Achille Pigoult, by whom I was warned of this plot, have no more doubt than

I have of the existence of the Marquis de Sallenauve; this gossip with which they threaten you has, in my

judgment, but one dangerous aspect. I mean that by your absence you are giving a free field to your

"But," replied the deputy, "the Chamber will not condemn me without a hearing. I wrote to the president and

asked for leave of absence, and I took the precaution to request de l'Estorade, who knows the reason of my

absence, to be kind enough to guarantee me, should my absence be called in question."

"I wrote only to her," replied Sallenauve. "I wanted to tell her about the great misfortune of our mutual friend,

and, at the same time, I asked her to explain to her husband the kind service I requested him to do for me."

"If that is so," said Bricheteau, "you need not count for one moment on the l'Estorades. A knowledge of this

trick which is being organized against you has reached their ears and affected their minds, I am very sure."

He then related the reception he had met with from Madame de l'Estorade, and the uncivil remarks she had

made about Sallenauve, from which he concluded that in the struggle about to take place no assistance could

"I have every reason to be surprised," said Sallenauve, "after the warm assurances Madame de l'Estorade has

given me of an unfailing goodwill. However," he added, philosophically, "everything is possible in this

"You understand, therefore," said Bricheteau, "that it is all important to start for Paris, without a moment's

"On the contrary," said Sallenauve, "the doctor considers that my presence here may be of the utmost utility.

He has not yet let me see the patient, because he expects to produce some great result when I do see him."

"That is problematical," returned Jacques Bricheteau; "whereas by staying here you are compromising your

political future and your reputation in the most positive manner. Such a sacrifice no friendship has the right to

"Let us talk of it with the doctor," said Sallenauve, unable to deny the truth of what Bricheteau said.

On being questioned, the doctor replied that he had just seen symptoms in the patient which threatened

"But," cried Sallenauve, eagerly, "you are not losing hope of a cure, are you, doctor?"

"Far from that. I have perfect faith in the ultimate termination of the case; but I see more delay in reaching it

"I have recently been elected to our Chamber of deputies," said Sallenauve, "and I ought to be in my seat at

the opening of the session; in fact, my interests are seriously concerned, and my friend Monsieur Bricheteau

has come over to fetch me. If therefore I can be sure that my presence here is not essential"

"By all means go," said the doctor. "It may be a long time before I could allow you to see the patient;

therefore you can leave without the slightest selfreproach. In fact, you can really do nothing here at present.

Trust him to Lord Lewin and me; I assure you that I shall make his recovery, of which I have no doubt, a

Sallenauve pressed the doctor's hand gratefully, and started for London without delay. Arriving there at five

o'clock, the travellers were unable to leave before midnight; meantime their eyes were struck at every turn by

those enormous posters which English puffism alone is able to produce, announcing the second appearance in

Her Majesty's theatre of the Signora Luigia. The name alone was enough to attract the attention of both

travellers; but the newspapers to which they had recourse for further information furnished, as is customary in

England, so many circumstantial details about the prima donna that Sallenauve could no longer doubt the

transformation of his late housekeeper into an operatic star of the first magnitude.

Going to the boxoffice, which he found closed, every seat having been sold before midday, Sallenauve

considered himself lucky to obtain two seats from a speculator, at the enormous cost of five pounds apiece.

The opera was "La Pazza d'Amore" of Paesiello. When the curtain rose, Sallenauve, who had spent the last

two weeks at Hanwell, among the insane, could all the more appreciate the remarkable dramatic talent his late

housekeeper displayed in the part of Nina. Even Bricheteau, though annoyed at Sallenauve's determination to

be present, was so carried away by the power of the singer that he said to his companion rather

Never, perhaps, had the Italian operahouse in London presented a more brilliant sight; the whole audience

As they left the theatre, Bricheteau looked at his watch; it was a quarter to eleven; they had thus ample time

to take the steamer leaving, as the tide served, at midnight. But when the organist turned to make this remark

to Sallenauve, who was behind him, he saw nothing of his man; the deputy had vanished!

Ten minutes later the maid of the Signora Luigia entered her mistress's dressingroom, which was filled with

distinguished Englishmen presented by Sir Francis Drake to the new star, and gave her a card. On reading the

name the prima donna turned pale and whispered a few words to the waitingwoman; then she seemed so

anxious to be rid of the crowd who were pressing round her that her budding adorers were inclined to be

angry. But a great singer has rare privileges, and the fatigue of the part into which the diva had just put so

much soul seemed so good an excuse for her sulkiness that her court dispersed without much murmuring.

Left alone, the signora rapidly resumed her usual dress, and the directors' carriage took her back to the hotel

where she had stayed since arriving in London. On entering her salon she found Sallenauve, who had

"Especially to me," replied Sallenauve, "who find you here, after searching hopelessly for you in Paris"

"You left me in so strange a manner, and your nature is so rash, you knew so little of Paris, and so many

"Suppose harm did happen to me; I was neither your wife, nor your sister, nor your mistress; I was only

"I wasunder obligation to you," she replied. "I saw that I was becoming an embarrassment in your new

"Who told you that you were an embarrassment to me? Have I ever said or intimated anything of the kind?

Could I not speak to you, as I did, about your professional life without wounding so deeply your sensibility?"

"People feel things as they feel them," replied Luigia. "I had the inward consciousness that you would rather I

were out of your house than in it. My future you had already given me the means to secure; you see for

"It seems to me so brilliant that I hope you will not think me indiscreet if I ask whose hand, more fortunate

"That of a great Swedish nobleman," replied Luigia, without hesitation. "Or rather, I should say, as the friend

of a lady who took an interest in me, he procured me an engagement at Her Majesty's Theatre; the kind

"Your musical powers did not surprise me, for those I knew already; but those transports of dramatic passion,

"It comes from having suffered much," replied Luigia; "suffering is a great teacher."

"Suffered? Yes, I know you did, in Italy. But I have liked to feel that after your arrival in France"

"Always; I have always suffered," she said in a voice of emotion. "I was not born under a happy star."

"That 'always' seems like a reproach to me," said Sallenauve, "and yet I do not know what wrong I can have

"You have done me no wrong; the harm was there!" she cried, striking her breast,"within me!"

"Probably some foolish fancy, such as that of leaving my house suddenly, because your mistaken sense of

"Not mistaken," she replied. "I know what was in your thoughts. If only on account of what you had done for

"But, my dear Luigia, I call such ideas absurd. Have I ever shown you any want of consideration? How could

"Yes, I tried to do everything that would give you a good opinion of me; but I was none the less the widow of

"Ah! no, it is not the death of that man that lowered me in your eyes; on the contrary. But I had been the wife

of a buffoon, of a police spy, of a base man, ready to sell me to any one who would give him money."

"As long as that situation lasted, I thought you deeply to be pitied; but despised, never!"

"And," continued the Italian, more excitedly, "we had lived two years under the same roof, you and I alone."

Sallenauve seemed wholly surprised by this deduction; he thought himself very clever in replying,

"It seems to me that if I had behaved to you in any other manner you would have the right to say that I

But he had to do with a woman who in everything, in her friendships, her hatreds, her actions, as in her

words, went straight to her point. As if she feared not to be fully understood, she went on:

"Today, monsieur, I can tell you all, for I speak of the past; the future has opened before me, as you see.

From the day you were good to me and by your generous protection I escaped an infamous outrage, my heart

Sallenauve, who had never suspected that feeling, and, above all, was unable to understand how so artlessly

"I am not ignorant," continued the strange woman, "that I should have difficulty in rising from the

degradation in which I appeared to you at our first meeting. If, at the time you consented to take me with you

to Paris, I had seen you incline to treat me with gallantry, had you shown any sign of turning to your profit

the dangerous situation in which I had placed myself, my heart would instantly have retired; you would have

"So," remarked Sallenauve, "to love you would have been insulting; not to love you was cruel! What sort of

"You ought not to have loved me," she replied, "while the mud was still on my skirts and you scarcely knew

me; because then your love would have been the love of the eyes and not of the soul. But when, after two

years passed beside you, you had seen by my conduct that I was an honorable woman; when, without ever

accepting a pleasure, I devoted myself to the care of the house and your comfort without other relaxation than

the study of my art; and when, above all, I sacrificed to you that modesty you had seen me defend with such

energy,then you were cruel not to comprehend, and never, never will your imagination tell you what I have

"But, my dear Luigia, I was your host, and even had I suspected what you now reveal to me, my duty as an

honorable man would have commanded me to see nothing of it, and to take no advantage of you."

"Ah! that is not the reason; it is simpler than that. You saw nothing because your fancy turned elsewhere."

"It ought not to be so," replied Luigia, vehemently. "That woman is not free; she has a husband and children,

and though you did make a saint of her, I presume to say, ridiculous as it may seem, that she is not worth

"You are totally mistaken as to your rival. Madame de l'Estorade was never anything to me but a model,

without other value than the fact that she resembled another woman. That one I knew in Rome before I knew

you. She had beauty, youth, and a glorious inclination for art. Today she is confined in a convent; like you,

"What, three hearts devoted to you," cried Luigia, "and not one accepted? A strange star is yours! No doubt I

"You are good to be merciful; will you now let me ask you a question? Just now you spoke of your future,

and I see it with my own eyes. Who are the friends who have suddenly advanced you so far and so splendidly

"Don't laugh," said Sallenauve; "you chose to rush alone and unprotected into that hell called Paris, and I

dread lest you have made some fatal acquaintance. I know the immense difficulties and the immense dangers

that a woman placed as you are now must meet. Who is this lady that you spoke of? and how did you ever

"She is a pious and charitable woman, who came to see me during your absence at Arcis. She had noticed my

voice at SaintSulpice, during the services of the Month of Mary, and she tried to entice me away to her own

Though far from penetrating the many mysteries that surrounded Jacqueline Collin, Sallenauve knew

Madame de SaintEsteve to be a woman of doubtful character and a matrimonial agent, having at times heard

"But that woman," he said, "has a shocking notoriety in Paris. She is an adventuress of the worst kind."

"Yes, people may have designs upon me," replied Luigia, with dignity, "but they cannot execute them:

"That was lost before I left your house. I was said to be your mistress; you had yourself to contradict that

charge before the electoral college; you contradicted it, but you could not stop it."

"I no longer want it. You did not love me when I wished for it; you shall not love me now that I no longer

"There are two reasons why it cannot be," said the singer. "In the first place, it is too late; and in the second,

"Do you call it falling to rise, perhaps, to the highest dignities of the State?"

"To whatever height you rise," said Luigia, passionately, "you will ever be below your past and the noble

future that was once before you Ah! stay; I think that I have lied to you; had you remained a sculptor, I

believe I should have borne still longer your coldness and your disdain; I should have waited until I entered

my vocation, until the halo round a singer's head might have shown you, at last, that I was there beside you.

But on the day that you apostatized I would no longer continue my humiliating sacrifice. There is no future

"Do you mean," said Sallenauve, holding out his hand, which she did not take, "that we cannot even be

"No," she replied; "all is overpast and gone. We shall hear of each other; and from afar, as we pass in life,

"Listen," she said in a resolute and sincere tone: "this is possible. I have loved you, and after you, no one can

enter the heart you have despised. You will hear that I have lovers; believe it not; you will not believe it,

remembering the woman that I am. But who knows? Later your life may be swept clean of the other

sentiments that have stood in my way; the freedom, the strangeness of the avowal I have just made to you

will remain in your memory, and then it is not impossible that after this long rejection you may end by

desiring me. If that should happen,if at the end of many sad deceptions you should return, in sheer

remorse, to the religion of art,then, then, supposing that long years have not made love ridiculous between

us, remember this evening. Now, let us part; it is already too late for a tetea tete."

So saying, she took a light and passed into an inner room, leaving Sallenauve in a state of mind we can

"Where the devil have you been?" cried the organist, impatiently. "It is too late now to take the steamboat."

"Well," said Sallenauve, carelessly, "then I shall have a few hours longer to play truant."

"I don't care. In that cave called political life one has to be ready for anything."

"I thought as much!" exclaimed Bricheteau. "You have been to see Luigia; her success has turned your head,

"But an orator," replied Bricheteau, "is also an artist, and the greatest of all. Others speak to the heart and the

mind, but he to the conscience and the will of others. At any rate, this is no time to look back; you are

engaged in a duel with your adversaries. Are you an honest man, or a scoundrel who has stolen a name?

There is the question which may, in consequence of your absence, be answered against you in the Chamber."

"I begin to feel that you have led me into a mistaken path; I had in my hands a treasure, and I have flung it

"Happily," said the organist, "that's only an evening mist which the night will dissipate. Tomorrow you will

remember the engagement you are under to your father, and the great future which is before you."

The king had opened the Chamber, but Sallenauve was not present, and his absence was causing a certain

sensation in the democratic ranks. The "National" was particularly disturbed. As a stockholder of the paper,

coming frequently to its office before the election, and even consenting to write articles for it, how strange

that on the eve of the opening of the session the newly elected deputy should not come near it!

"Now that he is elected," said some of the editorial staff, remarking on the total disappearance of the man

whom they considered they had done their part to elect, "does monsieur think he can treat us scurvily? It is

getting too much the habit of these lordly deputies to be very obsequious as long as they are candidates, and

Less excitable, the editorinchief calmed this first ebullition, but Sallenauve's absence from the royal

The next day, when the bureaus are constituted, presidents and secretaries appointed, and committees named,

Sallenauve's absence was still more marked. In the bureau for which his name was drawn, it happened that

the election of its president depended on one vote; through the absence of the deputy of Arcis, the ministry

gained that advantage and the Opposition lost it. Much discontent was expressed by the newspapers of the

latter party; they did not, as yet, openly attack the conduct of the defaulter, but they declared that they could

Maxime de Trailles, on the other hand, fully prepared and on the watch, was waiting only until the routine

business of the bureaus and the appointment of the committees was disposed of to send in the petition of the

Romilly peasantwoman, which had been carefully drawn up by Massol, under whose clever pen the facts he

was employed to make the most of assumed that degree of probability which barristers contrive to

communicate to their sayings and affirmations. But when Maxime had the joy of seeing that Sallenauve's

absence in itself was creating a prejudice against him, he went again to Rastignac and asked him if he did not

think it better to hasten the moment of attack, since everything seemed so favorable.

This time Rastignac was much more explicit: Sallenauve's absence abroad seemed to him the conduct of a

man who feared exposure and had lost his head. He therefore advised de Trailles to have the petition sent in

at once, and he made no difficulty about promising his assistance to a conspiracy which appeared to be taking

color, the result of which must be, in any case, a very pretty scandal. The next day the first trace of his

subterranean influence was visible. The order of the day in the Chamber was the verification of

powers,that is, the admission of newly elected members. The deputy appointed to report on the elections in

the department of the Aube was a strong partisan of the ministry, and, in consequence of a confidential

communication made to him that morning, the following paragraph appeared in his report:

The action of the electoral college of Arcis was regular. Monsieur de Sallenauve produced in proper time all

the necessary papers proving his eligibility; his admission therefore would seem to present no difficulty. But

rumors of a singular nature have been current since the election as to the name and identity of the new

deputy; and, in support of these rumors, a petition to authorize a criminal prosecution has been laid before the

president of the Chamber. This petition states an extremely serious fact, namely: that Monsieur de Sallenauve

has usurped the name he bears; and this usurpation, being made by means of an official document, assumes

the character of forgery committed by substitution of person. A most regrettable circumstance,

is the absence of Monsieur de Sallenauve, who instead of instantly contradicting the accusation made against

him, has not appeared since the opening of the Chamber at any of its sessions, and it is not even known where

he is. Under these circumstances, his admission, the committee think, cannot be granted; and they feel it

Daniel d'Arthez, a deputy of the legitimist opposition, who had been favorable to the election of Sallenauve,

hastened, after the reading of this report, to ask for the floor, and entreated the Chamber to remark that its

"The point for the committee to decide," he said, "was the regularity of the election. The report distinctly

states that this is not called in question. The Chamber can, therefore, do only one thing; namely, admit by an

immediate vote the validity of an election about which no irregularity is alleged. To bring in the question of

authorizing a criminal investigation would be an abuse of power; because by not allowing discussion or

defence, and by dispensing with the usual forms of procedure which guarantee certain rights to a party

implicated, the Chamber would be virtually rejecting the action of the electors in the exercise of their

sovereign functions. Every one can see, moreover," added the orator, "that to grant the right of criminal

investigation in this connection is to prejudge the merits of the case; the presumption of innocence, which is

the right of every man, is ignored whereas in this case the person concerned is a man whose integrity has

never been doubted, and who has just been openly honored by the suffrages of his fellow citizens."

The discussion was prolonged for some time, the ministerial orators, of course, taking the other side, until an

unfortunate event occurred. The senior deputy, acting as president (for the Chamber was not yet constituted),

was a wornout old man, very absentminded, and wholly unaccustomed to the functions which his age

devolved upon him. He had duly received Monsieur de Sallenauve's letter requesting leave of absence; and

had he recollected to communicate it, as in duty bound, to the Chamber at the proper time, the discussion

would probably have been nipped in the bud. But parliamentary matters are apt to go haphazard; when,

reminded of the letter by the discussion, he produced it, and when the Chamber learned that the request for

leave of absence was made for an indefinite period and for the vague purpose of "urgent affairs," the effect

"It is plain," said all the ministerial party, "that he has gone to England to escape an investigation; he feared

This view, setting aside political prejudices, was shared by the sterner minds of all parties, who refused to

conceive of a man not hastening to defend himself from such a blasting accusation. In short, after a very keen

and able argument from the attorneygeneral, Vinet, who had taken heart on finding that the accused was

likely to be condemned by default, the question of adjournment was put to the vote and passed, but by a very

small majority; eight days being granted to the said deputy to appear and defend himself.

The day after the vote was passed Maxime de Trailles wrote to Madame Beauvisage as follows:

Madame,The enemy received a severe check yesterday. In the opinion of my friend Rastignac, a very

intelligent and experienced judge in parliamentary matters, Dorlange can never recover from the blow, no

matter what may happen later. If we cannot succeed in producing positive proof to support the statement of

our good peasantwoman, it is possible that this rascal, supposing always that he ventures to return to France,

may be admitted to the Chamber. But if he is, he can only drag on a despised and miserable existence; he will

be driven to resign, and then the election of Monsieur Beauvisage is beyond all doubt; for the electors,

ashamed to have forsaken him for such a rascal, will be only too glad to reinstate themselves in public

It is to your rare sagacity, madame, that this result is due; for without that species of second sight which

showed you the chances hidden in the revelation of that woman, we should have missed our best weapon. I

must tell you though you may think this vanity, that neither Rastignac nor the attorneygeneral, in spite of

their great political acumen, perceived the true value of your discovery; and I myself, if I had not had the

good fortune of your acquaintance, and thus been enabled to judge of the great value of all ideas emanating

from you, even I might have shared the indifference of the two statesmen to the admirable weapon which you

have placed in our hands. I have now succeeded in proving to Rastignac the shrewdness and perspicacity you

have shown in this matter, and he sincerely admires you for them. Therefore, madame, when I have the

happiness of belonging to you by the tie we proposed, I shall not have to initiate you into politics, for you

Nothing further can take place for a week, which is the period of delay granted by the Chamber. If the

defaulter does not then appear, I am confident his election will be annulled. You can easily believe that

between now and then all my efforts will be given to increase the feeling in the Chamber against him, both by

arguments in the press and by private conversations. Rastignac has also given orders among the ministerial

adherents to that effect. We may feel confident, therefore, that by the end of another week our enemy will

Will you permit me, madame, to recall myself to the memory of Mademoiselle Cecile, and accept yourself,

together with Monsieur Beauvisage, the assurance of my most respectful sentiments.

A hint from certain quarters given to the ministerial journals now began to surround Sallenauve's name with

an atmosphere of disrespect and ridicule; insulting insinuations colored his absence with an appearance of

escaping the charges. The effect of these attacks was all the greater because Sallenauve was very weakly

defended by his political coreligionists, which was scarcely surprising. Not knowing how to explain his

conduct, the Opposition papers were afraid to commit themselves in favor of a man whose future was daily

On the evening before the day on which the time granted for an explanation would expire, Sallenauve being

still absent, a ministerial paper published, under the heading of "A Lost Deputy," a very witty and insolent

article, which was read by every one and created a great sensation. During that evening Madame de

l'Estorade went to see Madame de Camps, whom she found alone with her husband. She was greatly agitated,

"No," replied Madame Octave, "but Monsieur de Camps was just telling me about it. It is really shameful that

"No," said her husband, "I agree with madame; all the venom of this affair could have been destroyed by one

action of de l'Estorade's, and in refusing to make it he is, if not the author, at least the accomplice of this

"Yes," said Madame de Camps; "it was necessary to explain to my husband the sort of madness that seemed

to have taken possession of M. de l'Estorade; but what I said to him was not unfaithful to any secret that

"Ah! you are such a united pair," said Madame de l'Estorade, with a heavy sigh. "I don't regret that you have

told all that to your husband; in fact, two heads are better than one to advise me in the cruel position in which

"My husband is losing his head," replied the countess. "I don't see a trace of his old moral sense left in him.

Far from understanding that he is, as Monsieur de Camps said just now, the accomplice of the shameful

attack which is going on, and that he has not, like those who started it, the excuse of ignorance, he actually

seems to take delight in this wickedness. Just now he brought me that vile paper triumphantly, and I could

scarcely prevent his being very angry with me for not agreeing with his opinion that it was infinitely witty

"That letter of Monsieur Gaston's was a terrible shock to him," said Madame de Camps,"a shock not only

"I admit that," said her husband; "but, hang it! a man is a man, and he ought to take the words of a maniac for

"It is certainly very singular that Monsieur de Sallenauve does not return," said Madame Octave; "for that

"Oh!" cried the countess, "there's fatality in the whole thing. Tomorrow the question of confirming the

election or not comes up in the Chamber; and if Monsieur de Sallenauve is not here by that time, the ministry

"It is infamous," said Monsieur de Camps, "and I have a great mind to go to the president of the Chamber,

"I would have asked you to do so at the risk of my husband suspecting my interference, but one thing

restrained me. Monsieur de Sallenauve particularly desires that Monsieur Gaston's mental condition be not

"It is evident," said Madame de Camps, "that do defend him in any way would go against his wishes. After

all, the decision against him in the Chamber is very doubtful, whereas Monsieur Gaston's madness, if

"But I have not told you the worst so far as I am concerned," said Madame de l'Estorade. "Just before dinner

my husband imparted to me an absolutely Satanic desire of hisorder, I might call it."

"He wishes me to go with him to the Chamber tomorrow,to the gallery reserved for the peers of

"He is actually, as you say, losing his head," cried Monsieur de Camps; "he is like Thomas Diafoirus,

Madame de Camps made her husband a sign which meant, "Don't pour oil on the fire." Then she asked the

countess whether she had tried to show M. de l'Estorade the impropriety of that step.

"The moment I began to object," replied the countess, "he was angry, and said I must be very anxious to keep

up our intimacy with 'that man' when I rejected such a natural opportunity to show publicly that the

"Well, my dear, you will have to go," said Madame de Camps. "The peace of your home before everything

else! Besides, considering all things, your presence at the discussion may be taken as a proof of kindly

"For sixteen years," remarked Monsieur de Camps, "you have ruled and governed in your home; and here, at

"Ah, monsieur, I beg you to believe that that sovereigntywhich I always sought to concealI never used

"As if I did not know that!" replied Monsieur de Camps, taking Madame de l'Estorade's hand and pressing it

affectionately. "I am, nevertheless, of my wife's opinion: you will have to drink this cup."

"But I shall die of shame in listening to the ministerial infamies; I shall feel that they are cutting the throat of

"True," said Monsieur de Camps, "and a man, too, who has done you a vast service. But you must choose: do

you prefer to bring hell into your home, and exasperate the unhealthy condition of your husband's mind?"

"Listen to me, dearest," said Madame de Camps. "Tell Monsieur de l'Estorade that I want to go to this

session, and ask him for a permit; don't yield the point to any objections. I shall then be there to take care of

"I did not dare ask it of you," replied Madame de l'Estorade. "We don't usually invite friends to see us

commit bad actions; but since you are so kind as to offer, I can truly say I shall be less wretched if you are

with me. Now goodbye; I don't want my husband to find me out when he comes home. He is dining with

"Yes, go; and I will write you a note in the course of an hour, as if I had not seen you, asking you to get me a

"My dear love," said Madame de Camps, "they say the life of a Christian is a struggle, but that of a woman

The next day, about two o'clock, Madame de l'Estorade, accompanied by her husband and Madame Octave

de Camps, took their places in the gallery reserved for the members of the peerage. She seemed ill, and

answered languidly the bows and salutations that were addressed to her from all parts of the Chamber.

Madame de Camps, who was present for the first time in the parliamentary precincts, made two observations:

first, she objected strongly to the slovenly costume of a great many of the "honorable gentlemen"; and she

was also amazed at the number of bald heads she looked down upon from the gallery. Monsieur de l'Estorade

took pains to point out to her all the notabilities present: first, the great men whom we need not mention,

because their names are in everybody's memory; next, the poet Canalis, whose air she thought Olympian;

d'Arthez, who pleased her by his modesty and absence of assumption; Vinet, of whom she remarked that he

was like a viper in spectacles; Victorin Hulot, a noted orator of the Left Centre. It was some time before she

could accustom herself to the hum of the various conversations, which seemed to her like the buzzing of bees

around their hive; but the thing that most amazed her was the general aspect of this assemblage of legislators,

where a singular laisseraller and a total absence of dignity would never have led her to suppose she was in

It was written that on this day no pain or unpleasantness should be spared to Madame de l'Estorade. Just

before the sitting began, the Marquise d'Espard, accompanied by Monsieur de Ronquerolles, entered the

peers' gallery and took her seat beside the countess. Though meeting constantly in society, the two women

could not endure each other. Madame de l'Estorade despised the spirit of intrigue, the total lack of principle,

and the sour, malevolent nature which the marquise covered with an elegant exterior; and the marquise

despised, to a still greater degree, what she called the potaufeu virtues of Madame de l'Estorade. It must

also be mentioned that Madame de l'Estorade was thirtytwo years old and her beauty was still undimmed,

whereas Madame d'Espard was fortyfour, and, in spite of the careful dissimulations of the toilet, her beauty

"You do not often come here, I think," said Madame d'Espard, after the usual conventional phrases about the

"Ah! I forgot; you have a special interest, I think, on this occasion. A friend of yours is to be judged, is he

"How sad it is," said the marquise, "to see a man who, Monsieur de Ronquerolles tells me, had the making of

"His crime so far," said Madame de l'Estorade, dryly, "consists solely in his absence."

"At any rate," continued the marquise, "he seems to be a man eaten up by ambition. Before his parliamentary

attempt, he made, as you doubtless know, a matrimonial attempt upon the Lantys, which ended in the

beautiful heiress of that family, into whose good graces he had insinuated himself, being sent to a convent."

Madame de l'Estorade was not much surprised at finding that this history, which Sallenauve had told her as

very secret, had reached the knowledge of Madame d'Espard. The marquise was one of the best informed

women in Paris; her salon, as an old academician had said mythologically, was the Temple of Fame.

"I think the sitting is about to begin," said Madame de l'Estorade; fearing some blow from the claws of the

The president had rung his bell, the deputies were taking their seats, the curtain was about to rise. As a

faithful narrator of the session we desire our readers to attend, we think it safer and better in every way to

copy verbatim the report of the debate as given in one of the morning papers of the following day.

M. the Keeper of the Seals, M. the minister of the Interior, M. the minister of Public Works, are on the

The order of the day is the verification of the powers and the admission of the deputy elected by the

The President.M. the reporter, from the Committee on the elections of the department of the Aube, has the

The Reporter.Gentlemen, the singular and regrettable situation in which Monsieur de Sallenauve has

placed himself has not terminated in the manner that was hoped and expected last week. The period of delay

expired yesterday; Monsieur de Sallenauve continues to absent himself from your sittings, and no letter has

reached M. le president asking for further leave of absence. This indifference to the functions which

Monsieur de Sallenauve appeared to have solicited with so much eagerness [slight agitation on the Left]

would be, in any case, a grave mistake; but when connected with an accusation that seriously compromises

the deputy elect, it must be regarded as altogether unfortunate for his reputation. [Murmurs on the Left.

Approbation from the Centre.] Compelled to search for the solution of a difficulty which may be said to be

without precedent in parliamentary annals, your committee, in the adoption of suitable measures, finds itself

divided into two very distinct opinions. The minority whom I representthe committee consisting of but

three membersthinks that it ought to submit to you a resolution which I shall call radical, and which has for

its object the cutting short of the difficulty by returning the question to its natural judges. Annul hic et

nunc the election of Monsieur de Sallenauve, and send him back to the voters by whom he was elected and of

whom he is so unfaithful a representative. Such is one of the solutions I have the honor to present to you.

[Agitation on the Left.] The majority, on the contrary, are of opinion that the will of the electors cannot be too

highly respected, and that the faults of a man honored by their confidence ought not to be discussed until the

utmost limits of forbearance and indulgence have been passed. Consequently your committee instruct me to

suggest that you grant to Monsieur de Sallenauve a further delay of fifteen days [murmurs from the Centre;

"Very good! very good!" from the Left]; being satisfied that if after that delay Monsieur de Sallenauve does

not present himself or give any other sign of existence, it will be sufficient proof that he has thrown up his

election, and the Chamber need not be dragged on his account into irritating and useless debates. [Murmurs

M. le Colonel Franchessini, who during the foregoing speech was sitting on the ministers' bench in earnest

M. de Canalis.Gentlemen, M. de Sallenauve is one of those bold men who, like myself, are convinced that

politics are not forbidden fruit to any form of intellect, and that in the poet, in the artist, as well as in the

magistrate, the administrator, the lawyer, the physician, and the propertyholder, may be found the stuff that

makes a statesman. In virtue of this community of opinion, M. de Sallenauve has my entire sympathy, and no

one can be surprised to see me mount this tribune to support the proposal of the majority of your committee. I

cannot, however, agree to their final conclusion; and the idea of our colleague being declared, without

discussion, dismissed from this Chamber through the single fact of his absence, prolonged without leave, is

repugnant to my reason and also to my conscience. You are told: "The absence of M. de Sallenauve is all the

more reprehensible because he is under the odium of a serious accusation." But suppose this accusation is the

very cause of his absence["Ha! ha!" from the Centre, and laughter.] Allow me to say, gentlemen, that I am

not, perhaps, quite so artless as Messieurs the laughers imagine. I have one blessing, at any rate: ignoble

interpretations do not come into my mind; and that M. de Sallenauve, with the eminent position he has filled

in the world of art, should seek to enter the world of politics by means of a crime, is a supposition which I

cannot admit a priori. Around a birth like his two hideous spiders called slander and intrigue have every

facility to spread their toils; and far from admitting that he has fled before the accusation that now attacks

him, I ask myself whether his absence does not mean that he is now engaged in collecting the elements of his

defence. [Left: "Very good!" "That's right." Ironical laughter in the Centre.] Under that suppositionin my

opinion most probableso far from arraigning him in consequence of this absence, ought we not rather to

consider it as an act of deference to the Chamber whose deliberations he did not feel worthy to share until he

A Voice.He wants leave of absence for ten years, like Telemachus, to search for his father. [General

M. de Canalis.I did not expect so poetical an interruption; but since the memory of the Odyssey has been

thus evoked, I shall ask the Chamber to kindly remember that Ulysses, though disguised as a beggar and

loaded with insults, was yet able to string his bow and easily get the better of his enemies. [Violet murmurs

from the Centre.] I vote for leave of absence for fifteen days, and that the Chamber be again consulted at the

M. le Colonel Franchessini.I do not know if the last speaker intended to intimidate the Chamber, but, for

my part, such arguments have very little power upon me, and I am always ready to send them back whence

M. le Colonel Franchessini.I am, however, of the opinion of the speaker who preceded me; I do not think

that the delinquent has fled to escape the accusation against him. Neither that accusation, nor the effect it will

produce upon your minds, nor even the quashing of his election would be able at this moment to occupy his

mind. Do you wish to know what M. de Sallenauve is doing in England? Then read the English papers. For

the last week they have rung with the praises of a new prima donna who has just made her first appearance at

M. le Colonel Franchessini.Gentlemen, being more accustomed to the frankness of camps than to the

reticence of these precincts, I may perhaps have committed the impropriety of thinking aloud. The preceding

speaker said to you that he believed M. de Sallenauve was employed in collecting his means of defence; well,

I do not say to you "I believe," I tell you I know that a rich stranger succeed in substituting his protection for

what which Phidias, our colleague, was bestowing on his handsome model, an Italian woman [Fresh

M. le Colonel Franchessini.The question! I have not left it. But, inasmuch as the Chamber refuses to hear

me, I declare that I side with the minority of the committee. It seems to me very proper to send M. de

Sallenauve back to his electors in order to know whether they intended to send a deputy or a lover to this

The President.M. le ministre of Public Works has asked for the floor; as minister of the king he has the

M. de Rastignac.It has not been without remonstrance on my part, gentlemen, that this scandal has been

brought to your notice. I endeavored, in the name of the long friendship which unites me to Colonel

Franchessini, to persuade him not to speak on this delicate subject, lest his parliamentary inexperience,

aggravated in a measure by his witty facility of speech, should lead him to some very regrettable indiscretion.

Such, gentleman, was the subject of the little conversation you may have seen that he held with me on my

bench before he asked for the floor; and I myself have asked for the same privilege only in order to remove

from your minds all idea of my complicity in the great mistake he has just, as I think, committed by

condescending to the private details he has thought fit to relate to this assembly. But as, against my intention,

and I may add against my will, I have entered the tribune, the Chamber will permit me, perhaps, although

no ministerial interest is here concerned,to say a few words. [Cries from the Centre: "Go on!" "Speak!"]

M. le ministre then went on to say that the conduct of the absent deputy showed contempt for the Chamber;

he was treating it lightly and cavalierly. M. de Sallenauve had asked for leave of absence; but how or where

had he asked for it? From a foreign country! That is to say, he began by taking it, and then asked for it! Did

he trouble himself, as is usual in such cases, to give a reason for the request? No; he merely says, in his letter

to your president, that he is forced to absent himself on "urgent business,"a very convenient excuse, on

which the Chamber might be depopulated of half its members. But, supposing that M. de Sallenauve's

business was really urgent, and that he thought it of a nature not to be explained in a letter that would

necessarily be made public, why had he not written confidentially to the president, or even requested a friend

in some responsible position, whose simple word would have sufficed, to assure the Chamber of the necessity

At this point M. de Rastignac's remarks were interrupted by a commotion in the corridor to the right. Several

deputies left their seats; others jumped upon the benches, apparently endeavoring to see something. The

minister, after turning to the president, from whom he seemed to be asking an explanation, went back to the

ministerial bench, where he was immediately surrounded by a number of the deputies of the Centre, among

whom, noticeable for the vehemence of his gestures, was M. le procureurgeneral Vinet. Groups formed in

M. de Sallenauve, who, during the few moments that the sitting was interrupted by his entrance, has been

talking with M. de Canalis and M. d'Arthez, goes to the tribune. His manner is modest, but he shows no sign

of embarrassment. Every one is struck by his resemblance to the portraits of one of the most fiery of the

M. de Sallenauve.[Profound silence.] Gentlemen, I do not misjudge my parliamentary value; I know that

the persecution directed apparently against me personally is, in point of fact, aimed at the political opinions I

have the honor to represent. But, however that may be, my election seems to have been viewed by the

ministry as a matter of some importance. In order to oppose it, a special agent and special journalists were

sent to Arcis; and a humble employe under government, with a salary of fifteen hundred francs, was

dismissed, after twenty years of faithful and honorable service, for having aided in my success. [Loud

murmurs from the Centre.] I thank my honorable interrupters, feeling sure that their loud disapprobation is

given to this strange dismissal, which is not open to the slightest doubt. [Laughter on the Left.] As for me,

gentlemen, who could not be dismissed, I have been attacked with another weapon,sagacious calumny,

The Minister of Public Works.Of course the government sent you out of the country.

M. de Sallenauve.No, Monsieur le ministre. I do not attribute my absence to either your influence or your

suggestions; it was necessitated by imperious duty, and it had no other instigation or motive. But, as to the

part you have really taken in the denunciation set on foot against me, I am about to tell the facts, and the

Chamber will consider them. [Close attention.] The law, in order to protect the independence of the deputy,

directs that no criminal prosecution can be begun against a member of the national representation without the

preliminary consent of the Chamber; this fact has been turned with great adroitness against me. If the

complaint had been laid before the magistrates, it could not have been admitted even for an instant; it is

simply a bare charge, not supported by evidence of any kind; and I have never heard that the public

authorities are in the habit of prosecuting citizens on the mere allegation of the firstcomer. We must

therefore admire the subtlety of mind which instantly perceived that, by petitioning you for leave to

prosecute, all the benefits of the accusation, politically speaking, would be obtained without encountering the

difficulty I have mentioned in the courts. [Excitement.] Now, to what able parliamentary tactician must we

ascribe the honor of this invention? You know already, gentleman, that it is due ostensibly to a woman, a

peasantwoman, one who labors for her living; hence the conclusion is that the peasantwomen of

Champagne have an intellectual superiority of which, up to this time, neither you nor I were at all aware.

[Laughter.] It must be said, however, that before coming to Paris to lodge her complaint, this woman had an

interview with the mayor of Arcis, my opponent on the ministerial side in the late election. From this

conference she obtained certain lights. To which we must add that the mayor, taking apparently much interest

in the charge to be brought against me, agreed to pay the costs, not only of the peasant woman's trip to Paris,

but also those of the village practitioner by whom she was accompanied. [Left: "Ha! ha!"] This superior

woman having arrived in Paris, with whom did she immediately communicate? With the special agent sent

down to Arcis by the government to ensure the success of the ministerial candidate. And who drew up the

petition to this honorable Chamber for the necessary authority to proceed to a criminal prosecution? Not

precisely the special ministerial agent himself, but a barrister under his dictation, and after a breakfast to

which the peasant woman and her adviser were invited in order to furnish the necessary information. [Much

The Minister of Public Works from his seat.Without discussing the truth of these statements, as to which I

have personally no knowledge, I affirm upon my honor that the government is completely ignorant of the

proceedings now related, which it blames and disavows in the most conclusive manner.

M. de Sallenauve.After the formal declaration which I have had the good fortune to evoke it would ill

become me, gentlemen, to insist on tracing the responsibility for this intrigue back to the government. But

what I have already said will seem to you natural when you remember that, as I entered this hall, the minister

of Public Works was in the tribune, taking part, in a most unusual manner, in a discussion on discipline

wholly outside of his department, and endeavoring to persuade you that I had conducted myself towards this

The minister of Public Works said a few words which did not reach us. Great disturbance.

M. Victorin Hulot.M. le president, have the goodness to request the minister of Public Works not to

M. de Sallenauve.According to M. le comte de Rastignac, I showed essential disrespect to the Chamber by

asking, in a foreign country, for leave of absence, which it was obvious I had already taken before making my

request. But, in his extreme desire to find me to blame, the minister lost sight of the fact that at the time I left

France the Chamber had not met, no president existed, and therefore in making my request at that time to the

president of this assembly I should simply have addressed a pure abstraction. [Left: "True!"] As for the

insufficiency of the motives with which I supported my request, I regret to have to say to the Chamber that I

cannot be more explicit even now; because in revealing the true cause of my absence I should betray the

secret of an honorable man, and not my own. I did not conceal from myself that by this reticence I exposed

my proceedings to mistaken interpretations,though I certainly did not expect it to give rise to accusations

as burlesque as they are odious. [Much excitement.] In point of fact, I was so anxious not to neglect any of

the duties of my new position that I did precisely what the minister of Public Works reproaches me for not

doing. I selected a man in a most honorable position, who was, like myself, a repository of the secret I am

unable to divulge, and I requested him to make all necessary explanations to the president of this Chamber.

But, calumny having no doubt worked upon his mind, that honorable person must have thought it

compromising to his name and dignity to do me this service. The danger to me being now over, I shall not

betray his prudent incognito. Though I was far indeed from expecting this calculating selfishness, which has

painfully surprised and wounded me, I shall be careful to keep this betrayal of friendship between myself and

his own conscience, which alone shall reproach him for the wrong he has done me.

At this moment a disturbance occurred in the peers' gallery; a lady had fainted; and several deputies, among

The President.Ushers, open the ventilators. It is want of air that has caused this unfortunate accident. M. de

M. de Sallenauve.Two words, gentleman, and I have finished. I think the petition to authorize a criminal

prosecution has already lost something of its weight in the minds of my least cordial colleagues. But I have

here a letter from the Romilly peasant woman, my relation, duly signed and authenticated, withdrawing her

charge and confirming all the explanations I have just had the honor to give you. I might read this letter aloud

to you, but I think it more becoming to place it in the hands of M. le president. ["Very good! very good!"] As

for my illegal absence, I returned to Paris early this morning, and I could have been in my seat at the opening

of the Chamber; but, as M. de Canalis has told you, I had it much at heart not to appear in this hall until I

could disperse the cloud which has so strangely appeared around my reputation. It has taken me the whole

morning to obtain these papers. And now, gentlemen, you have to decide whether a few hours' delay in taking

his seat in this Chamber justifies you in sending a colleague back to his electors. But after all, whatever is

done, whether some persist in thinking me a forger, or a libertine, or merely a negligent deputy, I feel no

anxiety about the verdict of my electors. I can confidently assert that after a delay of a few weeks I shall

The President.I put to vote the admission of M. de Sallenauve as the deputy elected by the arrondissement

Nearly the whole Chamber rises and votes the admission; a few deputies of the Centre alone abstain from

The President.The order of the day calls for the reading of the Address to the Throne, but the chairman of

the committee appointed to prepare it informs me that the document in question cannot be communicated to

the Chamber before tomorrow. Nothing else being named in the order of the day, I declare this sitting

Note."The Deputy of Arcis," of which Balzac wrote and published the first part in 1847, was left

unfinished at his death. He designated M. Charles Rabou, editor of the "Revue de Paris," as the person to take

his notes and prepare the rest of the volume for the press. It is instructive to a student of Balzac to see how

disconnected and out of proportion the story becomes in these later parts,showing plainly that the master's

hand was in the habit of pruning away half, if not more, of what it had written, orto change the metaphor

and give the process in his own languagethat he put les grands pots dans les petits pots, the quarts into the

pint pots. "If a thing can be done in one line instead of two," he says, "I try to do it."

Some parts of this conclusion are evidently added by M. Rabou, and are not derived from Balzac at

all,especially the unnecessary reincarnation of Vautrin. There is no trace of the master's hand here. The

character is made so silly and puerile, and is so out of keeping with Balzac's strong portrait, which never

weakens, that the translator has thought best, in justice to Vautrin, to omit all that is not absolutely necessary

Arthez, Daniel d' A Distinguished Provincial at Paris Letters of Two Brides The Secrets of a Princess

Bixiou, JeanJacques The Purse A Bachelor's Establishment The Government Clerks Modeste Mignon

Scenes from a Courtesan's Life The Firm of Nucingen The Muse of the Department Cousin Betty Beatrix A

Blondet, Virginie Jealousies of a Country Town The Secrets of a Princess The Peasantry A Distinguished

Bridau, Joseph The Purse A Bachelor's Establishment A Distinguished Provincial at Paris A Start in Life

Modeste Mignon Another Study of Woman Pierre Grassou Letters of Two Brides Cousin Betty

Camps, Madame Octave de Madame Firmiani The Government Clerks A Woman of Thirty A Daughter of

Canalis, ConstantCyrMelchior, Baron de Letters of Two Brides A Distinguished Provincial at Paris

Modeste Mignon The Magic Skin Another Study of Woman A Start in Life Beatrix The Unconscious

Carigliano, Duchesse de At the Sign of the Cat and Racket A Distinguished Provincial at Paris The Peasantry

Chocardelle, Mademoiselle Beatrix A Prince of Bohemia A Man of Business Cousin Betty

CinqCygne, Laurence, Comtesse (afterwards Marquise de) The Gondreville Mystery The Secrets of a

Collin, Jacques Father Goriot Lost Illusions A Distinguished Provincial at Paris Scenes from a Courtesan's

Gobseck, Sarah Van Gobseck Cesar Birotteau The Maranas Scenes from a Courtesan's Life

Gondreville, Malin, Comte de The Gondreville Mystery A Start in Life Domestic Peace

Keller, Francois Domestic Peace Cesar Birotteau Eugenie Grandet The Government Clerks

La RocheHugon, Martial de Domestic Peace The Peasantry A Daughter of Eve The Middle Classes Cousin

Maufrigneuse, Duchesse de The Secrets of a Princess Modeste Mignon Jealousies of a Country Town The

Muse of the Department Scenes from a Courtesan's Life Letters of Two Brides Another Study of Woman The

Maufrigneuse, Georges de The Secrets of a Princess The Gondreville Mystery Beatrix

Montriveau, General Marquis Armand de The Thirteen Father Goriot Lost Illusions A Distinguished

Nucingen, Baronne Delphine de Father Goriot The Thirteen Eugenie Grandet Cesar Birotteau Melmoth

Reconciled Lost Illusions A Distinguished Provincial at Paris The Commission in Lunacy Scenes from a

Courtesan's Life Modeste Mignon The Firm of Nucingen Another Study of Woman A Daughter of Eve

Rastignac, Eugene de Father Goriot A Distinguished Provincial at Paris Scenes from a Courtesan's Life The

Ball at Sceaux The Commission in Lunacy A Study of Woman Another Study of Woman The Magic Skin

The Secrets of a Princess A Daughter of Eve The Gondreville Mystery The Firm of Nucingen Cousin Betty

Rhetore, Duc Alphonse de A Bachelor's Establishment A Distinguished Provincial at Paris Scenes from a

Ronquerolles, Marquis de The Imaginary Mistress The Peasantry Ursule Mirouet A Woman of Thirty

Stidmann Modeste Mignon Beatrix Cousin Betty Cousin Pons The Unconscious Humorists

Tillet, Ferdinand du Cesar Birotteau The Firm of Nucingen The Middle Classes A Bachelor's Establishment

Pierrette Melmoth Reconciled A Distinguished Provincial at Paris The Secrets of a Princess A Daughter of

Trailles, Comte Maxime de Cesar Birotteau Father Goriot Gobseck Ursule Mirouet A Man of Business The

12. VIII. IN WHICH THE DOT, ONE OF THE HEROINES OF THIS HISTORY, APPEARS , page = 31