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+ The next day Rastignac dressed himself very elegantly , and about three
o'clock in the afternoon went to call on Mme . de Restaud . On the way thither
he indulged in the wild intoxicating dreams which fill a young head so full of
delicious excitement . Young men at his age take no account of obstacles nor of
dangers ; they see success in every direction ; imagination has free play , and
turns their lives into a romance ; they are saddened or discouraged by the
collapse of one of the visionary schemes that have no existence save in their
heated fancy . If youth were not ignorant and timid , civilization would be
impossible . Eugene took unheard-of pains to keep himself in a spotless
condition , but on his way through the streets he began to think about Mme . de
Restaud and what he should say to her . He equipped himself with wit ,
rehearsed repartees in the course of an imaginary conversation , and prepared
certain neat speeches a la Talleyrand , conjuring up a series of small ev
ents which should prepare the way for the declaration on which he had based
his future ; and during these musings the law student was bespattered with mud
, and by the time he reached the Palais Royal he was obliged to have his boots
blacked and his trousers brushed . " If I were rich , " he said , as he changed
the five-franc piece he had brought with him in case anything might happen , "
I would take a cab , then I could think at my ease . " At last he reached the
Rue du Helder , and asked for the Comtesse de Restaud . He bore the
contemptuous glances of the servants , who had seen him cross the court on foot
, with the cold fury of a man who knows that he will succeed some day . He
understood the meaning of their glances at once , for he had felt his
inferiority as soon as he entered the court , where a smart cab was waiting .
All the delights of life in Paris seemed to be implied by this visible and
manifest sign of luxury and extravagance . A fine horse , in magnificent harness
, was pawing the ground , and all at once the law student felt out of humor
with himself . Every compartment in his brain which he had thought to find so
full of wit was bolted fast ; he grew positively stupid . He sent up his name
to the Countess , and waited in the ante-chamber , standing on one foot before
a window that looked out upon the court ; mechanically he leaned his elbow
against the sash , and stared before him . The time seemed long ; he would have
left the house but for the southern tenacity of purpose which works miracles
when it is single-minded . " Madame is in her boudoir , and cannot see any one
at present , sir , " said the servant . " She gave me no answer ; but if you
will go into the dining-room , there is some one already there . " Rastignac
was impressed with a sense of the formidable power of the lackey who can accuse
or condemn his masters by a word ; he coolly opened the door by which the man
had just entered the ante-chamber , meaning , no doubt , to sh
ow these insolent flunkeys that he was familiar with the house ; but he found
that he had thoughtlessly precipitated himself into a small room full of
dressers , where lamps were standing , and hot-water pipes , on which towels
were being dried ; a dark passage and a back staircase lay beyond it . Stifled
laughter from the ante-chamber added to his confusion . " This way to the
drawing-room , sir , " said the servant , with the exaggerated respect which
seemed to be one more jest at his expense . Eugene turned so quickly that he
stumbled against a bath . By good luck , he managed to keep his hat on his head
, and saved it from immersion in the water ; but just as he turned , a door
opened at the further end of the dark passage , dimly lighted by a small lamp .
Rastignac heard voices and the sound of a kiss ; one of the speakers was Mme .
de Restaud , the other was Father Goriot . Eugene followed the servant through
the dining-room into the drawing-room ; he went to a window that loo
ked out into the courtyard , and stood there for a while . He meant to know
whether this Goriot was really the Goriot that he knew . His heart beat
unwontedly fast ; he remembered Vautrin 's hideous insinuations . A
well-dressed young man suddenly emerged from the room almost as Eugene entered
it , saying impatiently to the servant who stood at the door : " I am going ,
Maurice . Tell Madame la Comtesse that I waited more than half an hour for her
. " Whereupon this insolent being , who , doubtless , had a right to be
insolent , sang an Italian trill , and went towards the window where Eugene was
standing , moved thereto quite as much by a desire to see the student 's face
as by a wish to look out into the courtyard . " But M. le Comte had better wait
a moment longer ; madame is disengaged , " said Maurice , as he returned to the
ante-chamber . Just at that moment Father Goriot appeared close to the gate ;
he had emerged from a door at the foot of the back staircase . The worthy sou
l was preparing to open his umbrella regardless of the fact that the great
gate had opened to admit a tilbury , in which a young man with a ribbon at his
button-hole was seated . Father Goriot had scarcely time to start back and save
himself . The horse took fright at the umbrella , swerved , and dashed forward
towards the flight of steps . The young man looked round in annoyance , saw
Father Goriot , and greeted him as he went out with constrained courtesy , such
as people usually show to a money-lender so long as they require his services ,
or the sort of respect they feel it necessary to show for some one whose
reputation has been blown upon , so that they blush to acknowledge his
acquaintance . Father Goriot gave him a little friendly nod and a good-natured
smile . All this happened with lightning speed . Eugene was so deeply
interested that he forgot that he was not alone till he suddenly heard the
Countess ' voice . " Oh ! Maxime , were you going away ? " she said reproachfull
y , with a shade of pique in her manner . The Countess had not seen the
incident nor the entrance of the tilbury . Rastignac turned abruptly and saw
her standing before him , coquettishly dressed in a loose white cashmere gown
with knots of rose-colored ribbon here and there ; her hair was carelessly
coiled about her head , as is the wont of Parisian women in the morning ; there
was a soft fragrance about her--doubtless she was fresh from a bath ; --her
graceful form seemed more flexible , her beauty more luxuriant . Her eyes
glistened . A young man can see everything at a glance ; he feels the radiant
influence of woman as a plant discerns and absorbs its nutriment from the air ;
he did not need to touch her hands to feel their cool freshness . He saw faint
rose tints through the cashmere of the dressing gown ; it had fallen slightly
open , giving glimpses of a bare throat , on which the student 's eyes rested .
The Countess had no need of the adventitious aid of corsets ; her gird
le defined the outlines of her slender waist ; her throat was a challenge to
love ; her feet , thrust into slippers , were daintily small . As Maxime took
her hand and kissed it , Eugene became aware of Maxime 's existence , and the
Countess saw Eugene . " Oh ! is that you M. de Rastignac ? I am very glad to
see you , " she said , but there was something in her manner that a shrewd
observer would have taken as a hint to depart . Maxime , as the Countess
Anastasie had called the young man with the haughty insolence of bearing ,
looked from Eugene to the lady , and from the lady to Eugene ; it was
sufficiently evident that he wished to be rid of the latter . An exact and
faithful rendering of the glance might be given in the words : " Look here , my
dear ; I hope you intend to send this little whipper-snapper about his business
. " The Countess consulted the young man 's face with an intent submissiveness
that betrays all the secrets of a woman 's heart , and Rastignac all at once beg
an to hate him violently . To begin with , the sight of the fair carefully
arranged curls on the other 's comely head had convinced him that his own crop
was hideous ; Maxime 's boots , moreover , were elegant and spotless , while
his own , in spite of all his care , bore some traces of his recent walk ; and
, finally , Maxime 's overcoat fitted the outline of his figure gracefully , he
looked like a pretty woman , while Eugene was wearing a black coat at half-past
two . The quick-witted child of the Charente felt the disadvantage at which he
was placed beside this tall , slender dandy , with the clear gaze and the pale
face , one of those men who would ruin orphan children without scruple . Mme .
de Restaud fled into the next room without waiting for Eugene to speak ;
shaking out the skirts of her dressing-gown in her flight , so that she looked
like a white butterfly , and Maxime hurried after her . Eugene , in a fury ,
followed Maxime and the Countess , and the three stood once m
ore face to face by the hearth in the large drawing-room . The law student
felt quite sure that the odious Maxime found him in the way , and even at the
risk of displeasing Mme . de Restaud , he meant to annoy the dandy . It had
struck him all at once that he had seen the young man before at Mme . de
Beauseant 's ball ; he guessed the relation between Maxime and Mme . de Restaud
; and with the youthful audacity that commits prodigious blunders or achieves
signal success , he said to himself , " This is my rival ; I mean to cut him
out . " Rash resolve ! He did not know that M. le Comte Maxime de Trailles
would wait till he was insulted , so as to fire first and kill his man . Eugene
was a sportsman and a good shot , but he had not yet hit the bulls 's eye
twenty times out of twenty-two . The young Count dropped into a low chair by
the hearth , took up the tongs , and made up the fire so violently and so
sulkily , that Anastasie 's fair face suddenly clouded over . She turned to Euge
ne , with a cool , questioning glance that asked plainly , " Why do you not go
? " a glance which well-bred people regard as a cue to make their exit . Eugene
assumed an amiable expression . " Madame , " he began , " I hastened to call
upon you---- " He stopped short . The door opened , and the owner of the
tilbury suddenly appeared . He had left his hat outside , and did not greet the
Countess ; he looked meditatively at Rastignac , and held out his hand to
Maxime with a cordial " Good morning , " that astonished Eugene not a little .
The young provincial did not understand the amenities of a triple alliance . "
M. de Restaud , " said the Countess , introducing her husband to the law
student . Eugene bowed profoundly . " This gentleman , " she continued ,
presenting Eugene to her husband , " is M. de Rastignac ; he is related to Mme
. la Vicomtesse de Beauseant through the Marcillacs ; I had the pleasure of
meeting him at her last ball . " _Related to Mme . la Vicomtesse de Beausea
nt through the Marcillacs ! _ These words , on which the countess threw ever
so slight an emphasis , by reason of the pride that the mistress of a house
takes in showing that she only receives people of distinction as visitors in
her house , produced a magical effect . The Count 's stiff manner relaxed at
once as he returned the student 's bow . " Delighted to have an opportunity of
making your acquaintance , " he said . Maxime de Trailles himself gave Eugene
an uneasy glance , and suddenly dropped his insolent manner . The mighty name
had all the power of a fairy 's wand ; those closed compartments in the
southern brain flew open again ; Rastignac 's carefully drilled faculties
returned . It was as if a sudden light had pierced the obscurity of this upper
world of Paris , and he began to see , though everything was indistinct as yet
. Mme . Vauquer 's lodging-house and Father Goriot were very far remote from
his thoughts . " I thought that the Marcillacs were extinct , " the Comte
de Restaud said , addressing Eugene . " Yes , they are extinct , " answered
the law student . " My great-uncle , the Chevalier de Rastignac , married the
heiress of the Marcillac family . They had only one daughter , who married the
Marechal de Clarimbault , Mme . de Beauseant 's grandfather on the mother 's
side . We are the younger branch of the family , and the younger branch is all
the poorer because my great-uncle , the Vice-Admiral , lost all that he had in
the King 's service . The Government during the Revolution refused to admit our
claims when the Compagnie des Indes was liquidated . " " Was not your
great-uncle in command of the _Vengeur_ before 1789 ? " " Yes . " " Then he
would be acquainted with my grandfather , who commanded the _Warwick_ . "
Maxime looked at Mme . de Restaud and shrugged his shoulders , as who should
say , " If he is going to discuss nautical matters with that fellow , it is all
over with us . " Anastasie understood the glance that M. de Trailles gav
e her . With a woman 's admirable tact , she began to smile and said : " Come
with me , Maxime ; I have something to say to you . We will leave you two
gentlemen to sail in company on board the _Warwick_ and the _Vengeur_ . " She
rose to her feet and signed to Maxime to follow her , mirth and mischief in her
whole attitude , and the two went in the direction of the boudoir . The
_morganatic_ couple ( to use a convenient German expression which has no exact
equivalent ) had reached the door , when the Count interrupted himself in his
talk with Eugene . " Anastasie ! " he cried pettishly , " just stay a moment ,
dear ; you know very well that---- " " I am coming back in a minute , " she
interrupted ; " I have a commission for Maxime to execute , and I want to tell
him about it . " She came back almost immediately . She had noticed the
inflection in her husband 's voice , and knew that it would not be safe to
retire to the boudoir ; like all women who are compelled to study their husba
nds ' characters in order to have their own way , and whose business it is to
know exactly how far they can go without endangering a good understanding , she
was very careful to avoid petty collisions in domestic life . It was Eugene who
had brought about this untoward incident ; so the Countess looked at Maxime and
indicated the law student with an air of exasperation . M. de Trailles
addressed the Count , the Countess , and Eugene with the pointed remark , " You
are busy , I do not want to interrupt you ; good-day , " and he went . " Just
wait a moment , Maxime ! " the Count called after him . " Come and dine with us
, " said the Countess , leaving Eugene and her husband together once more . She
followed Maxime into the little drawing-room , where they sat together
sufficiently long to feel sure that Rastignac had taken his leave . The law
student heard their laughter , and their voices , and the pauses in their talk
; he grew malicious , exerted his conversational powers for M. d
e Restaud , flattered him , and drew him into discussions , to the end that he
might see the Countess again and discover the nature of her relations with
Father Goriot . This Countess with a husband and a lover , for Maxime clearly
was her lover , was a mystery . What was the secret tie that bound her to the
old tradesman ? This mystery he meant to penetrate , hoping by its means to
gain a sovereign ascendency over this fair typical Parisian . " Anastasie ! "
the Count called again to his wife . " Poor Maxime ! " she said , addressing
the young man . " Come , we must resign ourselves . This evening---- " " I hope
, Nasie , " he said in her ear , " that you will give orders not to admit that
youngster , whose eyes light up like live coals when he looks at you . He will
make you a declaration , and compromise you , and then you will compel me to
kill him . " " Are you mad , Maxime ? " she said . " A young lad of a student
is , on the contrary , a capital lightning-conductor ; is not t
hat so ? Of course , I mean to make Restaud furiously jealous of him . "
Maxime burst out laughing , and went out , followed by the Countess , who stood
at the window to watch him into his carriage ; he shook his whip , and made his
horse prance . She only returned when the great gate had been closed after him
. " What do you think , dear ? " cried the Count , her husband , " this
gentleman 's family estate is not far from Verteuil , on the Charente ; his
great-uncle and my grandfather were acquainted . " " Delighted to find that we
have acquaintances in common , " said the Countess , with a preoccupied manner
. " More than you think , " said Eugene , in a low voice . " What do you mean ?
" she asked quickly . " Why , only just now , " said the student , " I saw a
gentleman go out at the gate , Father Goriot , my next door neighbor in the
house where I am lodging . " At the sound of this name , and the prefix that
embellished it , the Count , who was stirring the fire , let the tong
s fall as though they had burned his fingers , and rose to his feet . " Sir ,
" he cried , " you might have called him 'Monsieur Goriot ' ! " The Countess
turned pale at first at the sight of her husband 's vexation , then she
reddened ; clearly she was embarrassed , her answer was made in a tone that she
tried to make natural , and with an air of assumed carelessness : " You could
not know any one who is dearer to us both ... " She broke off , glanced at the
piano as if some fancy had crossed her mind , and asked , " Are you fond of
music , M. de Rastignac ? " " Exceedingly , " answered Eugene , flushing , and
disconcerted by a dim suspicion that he had somehow been guilty of a clumsy
piece of folly . " Do you sing ? " she cried , going to the piano , and ,
sitting down before it , she swept her fingers over the keyboard from end to
end . R-r-r-rah ! " No , madame . " The Comte de Restaud walked to and fro . "
That is a pity ; you are without one great means of success . --_Ca-ro ,
ca-a-ro , ca-a-a-ro , non du-bi-ta-re_ , " sang the Countess . Eugene had a
second time waved a magic wand when he uttered Goriot 's name , but the effect
seemed to be entirely opposite to that produced by the formula " related to Mme
. de Beauseant . " His position was not unlike that of some visitor permitted
as a favor to inspect a private collection of curiosities , when by
inadvertence he comes into collision with a glass case full of sculptured
figures , and three or four heads , imperfectly secured , fall at the shock .
He wished the earth would open and swallow him . Mme . de Restaud 's expression
was reserved and chilly , her eyes had grown indifferent , and sedulously
avoided meeting those of the unlucky student of law . " Madame , " he said , "
you wish to talk with M. de Restaud ; permit me to wish you good-day---- " The
Countess interrupted him by a gesture , saying hastily , " Whenever you come to
see us , both M. de Restaud and I shall be delighted to see you . " Eug
ene made a profound bow and took his leave , followed by M. de Restaud , who
insisted , in spite of his remonstrances , on accompanying him into the hall .
" Neither your mistress nor I are at home to that gentleman when he calls , "
the Count said to Maurice . As Eugene set foot on the steps , he saw that it
was raining . " Come , " said he to himself , " somehow I have just made a mess
of it , I do not know how . And now I am going to spoil my hat and coat into
the bargain . I ought to stop in my corner , grind away at law , and never look
to be anything but a boorish country magistrate . How can I go into society ,
when to manage properly you want a lot of cabs , varnished boots , gold watch
chains , and all sorts of things ; you have to wear white doeskin gloves that
cost six francs in the morning , and primrose kid gloves every evening ? A fig
for that old humbug of a Goriot ! " When he reached the street door , the
driver of a hackney coach , who had probably just deposited a
wedding party at their door , and asked nothing better than a chance of making
a little money for himself without his employer 's knowledge , saw that Eugene
had no umbrella , remarked his black coat , white waistcoat , yellow gloves ,
and varnished boots , and stopped and looked at him inquiringly . Eugene , in
the blind desperation that drives a young man to plunge deeper and deeper into
an abyss , as if he might hope to find a fortunate issue in its lowest depths ,
nodded in reply to the driver 's signal , and stepped into the cab ; a few
stray petals of orange blossom and scraps of wire bore witness to its recent
occupation by a wedding party . " Where am I to drive , sir ? " demanded the
man , who , by this time , had taken off his white gloves . " Confound it ! "
Eugene said to himself , " I am in for it now , and at least I will not spend
cab-hire for nothing ! --Drive to the Hotel Beauseant , " he said aloud . "
Which ? " asked the man , a portentous word that reduced Eugene
to confusion . This young man of fashion , species incerta , did not know
that there were two Hotels Beauseant ; he was not aware how rich he was in
relations who did not care about him . " The Vicomte de Beauseant , Rue---- " "
De Grenelle , " interrupted the driver , with a jerk of his head . " You see ,
there are the hotels of the Marquis and Comte de Beauseant in the Rue
Saint-Dominique , " he added , drawing up the step . " I know all about that ,
" said Eugene , severely . --"Everybody is laughing at me to-day , it seems ! "
he said to himself , as he deposited his hat on the opposite seat . " This
escapade will cost me a king 's ransom , but , at any rate , I shall call on my
so-called cousin in a thoroughly aristocratic fashion . Goriot has cost me ten
francs already , the old scoundrel . My word ! I will tell Mme . de Beauseant
about my adventure ; perhaps it may amuse her . Doubtless she will know the
secret of the criminal relation between that handsome woman and the old
rat without a tail . It would be better to find favor in my cousin 's eyes
than to come in contact with that shameless woman , who seems to me to have
very expensive tastes . Surely the beautiful Vicomtesse 's personal interest
would turn the scale for me , when the mere mention of her name produces such
an effect . Let us look higher . If you set yourself to carry the heights of
heaven , you must face God . " The innumerable thoughts that surged through his
brain might be summed up in these phrases . He grew calmer , and recovered
something of his assurance as he watched the falling rain . He told himself
that though he was about to squander two of the precious five-franc pieces that
remained to him , the money was well laid out in preserving his coat , boots ,
and hat ; and his cabman 's cry of " Gate , if you please , " almost put him in
spirits . A Swiss , in scarlet and gold , appeared , the great door groaned on
its hinges , and Rastignac , with sweet satisfaction , beheld hi
s equipage pass under the archway and stop before the flight of steps beneath
the awning . The driver , in a blue-and-red greatcoat , dismounted and let down
the step . As Eugene stepped out of the cab , he heard smothered laughter from
the peristyle . Three or four lackeys were making merry over the festal
appearance of the vehicle . In another moment the law student was enlightened
as to the cause of their hilarity ; he felt the full force of the contrast
between his equipage and one of the smartest broughams in Paris ; a coachman ,
with powdered hair , seemed to find it difficult to hold a pair of spirited
horses , who stood chafing the bit . In Mme . de Restaud 's courtyard , in the
Chaussee d'Antin , he had seen the neat turnout of a young man of
six-and-twenty ; in the Faubourg Saint-Germain he found the luxurious equipage
of a man of rank ; thirty thousand francs would not have purchased it . " Who
can be here ? " said Eugene to himself . He began to understand , though somew
hat tardily , that he must not expect to find many women in Paris who were not
already appropriated , and that the capture of one of these queens would be
likely to cost something more than bloodshed . " Confound it all ! I expect my
cousin also has her Maxime . " He went up the steps , feeling that he was a
blighted being . The glass door was opened for him ; the servants were as
solemn as jackasses under the curry comb . So far , Eugene had only been in the
ballroom on the ground floor of the Hotel Beauseant ; the fete had followed so
closely on the invitation , that he had not had time to call on his cousin ,
and had therefore never seen Mme . de Beauseant 's apartments ; he was about to
behold for the first time a great lady among the wonderful and elegant
surroundings that reveal her character and reflect her daily life . He was the
more curious , because Mme . de Restaud 's drawing-room had provided him with a
standard of comparison . At half-past four the Vicomtesse de Beause
ant was visible . Five minutes earlier she would not have received her cousin
, but Eugene knew nothing of the recognized routine of various houses in Paris
. He was conducted up the wide , white-painted , crimson-carpeted staircase ,
between the gilded balusters and masses of flowering plants , to Mme . de
Beauseant 's apartments . He did not know the rumor current about Mme . de
Beauseant , one of the biographies told , with variations , in whispers , every
evening in the salons of Paris . For three years past her name had been spoken
of in connection with that of one of the most wealthy and distinguished
Portuguese nobles , the Marquis d'Ajuda-Pinto . It was one of those innocent
_liaisons_ which possess so much charm for the two thus attached to each other
that they find the presence of a third person intolerable . The Vicomte de
Beauseant , therefore , had himself set an example to the rest of the world by
respecting , with as good a grace as might be , this morganatic union .
Any one who came to call on the Vicomtesse in the early days of this
friendship was sure to find the Marquis d'Ajuda-Pinto there . As , under the
circumstances , Mme . de Beauseant could not very well shut her door against
these visitors , she gave them such a cold reception , and showed so much
interest in the study of the ceiling , that no one could fail to understand how
much he bored her ; and when it became known in Paris that Mme . de Beauseant
was bored by callers between two and four o'clock , she was left in perfect
solitude during that interval . She went to the Bouffons or to the Opera with
M. de Beauseant and M. d'Ajuda-Pinto ; and M. de Beauseant , like a well-bred
man of the world , always left his wife and the Portuguese as soon as he had
installed them . But M. d'Ajuda-Pinto must marry , and a Mlle . de Rochefide
was the young lady . In the whole fashionable world there was but one person
who as yet knew nothing of the arrangement , and that was Mme . de Beauseant .
Some of her friends had hinted at the possibility , and she had laughed at
them , believing that envy had prompted those ladies to try to make mischief .
And now , though the bans were about to be published , and although the
handsome Portuguese had come that day to break the news to the Vicomtesse , he
had not found courage as yet to say one word about his treachery . How was it ?
Nothing is doubtless more difficult than the notification of an ultimatum of
this kind . There are men who feel more at their ease when they stand up before
another man who threatens their lives with sword or pistol than in the presence
of a woman who , after two hours of lamentations and reproaches , falls into a
dead swoon and requires salts . At this moment , therefore , M. d'Ajuda-Pinto
was on thorns , and anxious to take his leave . He told himself that in some
way or other the news would reach Mme . de Beauseant ; he would write , it
would be much better to do it by letter , and not to utter the wor
ds that should stab her to the heart . So when the servant announced M. Eugene
de Rastignac , the Marquis d'Ajuda-Pinto trembled with joy . To be sure , a
loving woman shows even more ingenuity in inventing doubts of her lover than in
varying the monotony of his happiness ; and when she is about to be forsaken ,
she instinctively interprets every gesture as rapidly as Virgil 's courser
detected the presence of his companion by snuffing the breeze . It was
impossible , therefore , that Mme . de Beauseant should not detect that
involuntary thrill of satisfaction ; slight though it was , it was appalling in
its artlessness . Eugene had yet to learn that no one in Paris should present
himself in any house without first making himself acquainted with the whole
history of its owner , and of its owner 's wife and family , so that he may
avoid making any of the terrible blunders which in Poland draw forth the
picturesque exclamation , " Harness five bullocks to your cart ! " probably
becaus
e you will need them all to pull you out of the quagmire into which a false
step has plunged you . If , down to the present day , our language has no name
for these conversational disasters , it is probably because they are believed
to be impossible , the publicity given in Paris to every scandal is so
prodigious . After the awkward incident at Mme . de Restaud 's , no one but
Eugene could have reappeared in his character of bullock-driver in Mme . de
Beauseant 's drawing-room . But if Mme . de Restaud and M. de Trailles had
found him horribly in the way , M. d'Ajuda hailed his coming with relief . "
Good-bye , " said the Portuguese , hurrying to the door , as Eugene made his
entrance into a dainty little pink-and-gray drawing-room , where luxury seemed
nothing more than good taste . " Until this evening , " said Mme . de Beauseant
, turning her head to give the Marquis a glance . " We are going to the
Bouffons , are we not ? " " I cannot go , " he said , with his fingers on the
doo
r handle . Mme . de Beauseant rose and beckoned to him to return . She did not
pay the slightest attention to Eugene , who stood there dazzled by the
sparkling marvels around him ; he began to think that this was some story out
of the Arabian Nights made real , and did not know where to hide himself , when
the woman before him seemed to be unconscious of his existence . The Vicomtesse
had raised the forefinger of her right hand , and gracefully signed to the
Marquis to seat himself beside her . The Marquis felt the imperious sway of
passion in her gesture ; he came back towards her . Eugene watched him , not
without a feeling of envy . " That is the owner of the brougham ! " he said to
himself . " But is it necessary to have a pair of spirited horses , servants in
livery , and torrents of gold to draw a glance from a woman here in Paris ? "
The demon of luxury gnawed at his heart , greed burned in his veins , his
throat was parched with the thirst of gold . He had a hundred and thir
ty francs every quarter . His father , mother , brothers , sisters , and aunt
did not spend two hundred francs a month among them . This swift comparison
between his present condition and the aims he had in view helped to benumb his
faculties . " Why not ? " the Vicomtesse was saying , as she smiled at the
Portuguese . " Why cannot you come to the Italiens ? " " Affairs ! I am to dine
with the English Ambassador . " " Throw him over . " When a man once enters on
a course of deception , he is compelled to add lie to lie . M. d'Ajuda
therefore said , smiling , " Do you lay your commands on me ? " " Yes ,
certainly . " " That was what I wanted to have you say to me , " he answered ,
dissembling his feelings in a glance which would have reassured any other woman
. He took the Vicomtesse 's hand , kissed it , and went . Eugene ran his
fingers through his hair , and constrained himself to bow . He thought that now
Mme . de Beauseant would give him her attention ; but suddenly she sprang f
orward , rushed to a window in the gallery , and watched M. d'Ajuda step into
his carriage ; she listened to the order that he gave , and heard the Swiss
repeat it to the coachman : " To M. de Rochefide 's house . " Those words , and
the way in which M. d'Ajuda flung himself back in the carriage , were like a
lightning flash and a thunderbolt for her ; she walked back again with a deadly
fear gnawing at her heart . The most terrible catastrophes only happen among
the heights . The Vicomtesse went to her own room , sat down at a table , and
took up a sheet of dainty notepaper . " When , instead of dining with the
English Ambassador , " she wrote , " you go to the Rochefides , you owe me an
explanation , which I am waiting to hear . " She retraced several of the
letters , for her hand was trembling so that they were indistinct ; then she
signed the note with an initial C for " Claire de Bourgogne , " and rang the
bell . " Jacques , " she said to the servant , who appeared immediately
, " take this note to M. de Rochefide 's house at half-past seven and ask for
the Marquis d'Ajuda . If M. d'Ajuda is there , leave the note without waiting
for an answer ; if he is not there , bring the note back to me . " " Madame la
Vicomtess , there is a visitor in the drawing-room . " " Ah ! yes , of course ,
" she said , opening the door . Eugene was beginning to feel very uncomfortable
, but at last the Vicomtesse appeared ; she spoke to him , and the tremulous
tones of her voice vibrated through his heart . " Pardon me , monsieur , " she
said ; " I had a letter to write . Now I am quite at liberty . " She scarcely
knew what she was saying , for even as she spoke she thought , " Ah ! he means
to marry Mlle . de Rochefide ? But is he still free ? This evening the marriage
shall be broken off , or else ... But before to-morrow I shall know . " "
Cousin ... " the student replied . " Eh ? " said the Countess , with an
insolent glance that sent a cold shudder through Eugene ; he un
derstood what that " Eh ? " meant ; he had learned a great deal in three hours
, and his wits were on the alert . He reddened : " Madame ... " he began ; he
hesitated a moment , and then went on . " Pardon me ; I am in such need of
protection that the nearest scrap of relationship could do me no harm . " Mme .
de Beauseant smiled but there was sadness in her smile ; even now she felt
forebodings of the coming pain , the air she breathed was heavy with the storm
that was about to burst . " If you knew how my family are situated , " he went
on , " you would love to play the part of a beneficent fairy godmother who
graciously clears the obstacles from the path of her protege . " " Well ,
cousin , " she said , laughing , " and how can I be of service to you ? " " But
do I know even that ? I am distantly related to you , and this obscure and
remote relationship is even now a perfect godsend to me . You have confused my
ideas ; I cannot remember the things that I meant to say to you . I k
now no one else here in Paris ... . Ah ! if I could only ask you to counsel me
, ask you to look upon me as a poor child who would fain cling to the hem of
your dress , who would lay down his life for you . " " Would you kill a man for
me ? " " Two , " said Eugene . " You , child . Yes , you are a child , " she
said , keeping back the tears that came to her eyes ; " you would love
sincerely . " " Oh ! " he cried , flinging up his head . The audacity of the
student 's answer interested the Vicomtesse in him . The southern brain was
beginning to scheme for the first time . Between Mme . de Restaud 's blue
boudoir and Mme . de Beauseant 's rose-colored drawing-room he had made a three
years ' advance in a kind of law which is not a recognized study in Paris ,
although it is a sort of higher jurisprudence , and , when well understood , is
a highroad to success of every kind . " Ah ! that is what I meant to say ! "
said Eugene . " I met Mme . de Restaud at your ball , and this morning I
went to see her . " You must have been very much in the way , " said Mme . de
Beauseant , smiling as she spoke . " Yes , indeed . I am a novice , and my
blunders will set every one against me , if you do not give me your counsel . I
believe that in Paris it is very difficult to meet with a young , beautiful ,
and wealthy woman of fashion who would be willing to teach me , what you women
can explain so well--life . I shall find a M. de Trailles everywhere . So I
have come to you to ask you to give me a key to a puzzle , to entreat you to
tell me what sort of blunder I made this morning . I mentioned an old man---- "
" Madame la Duchess de Langeais , " Jacques cut the student short ; Eugene gave
expression to his intense annoyance by a gesture . " If you mean to succeed , "
said the Vicomtesse in a low voice , " in the first place you must not be so
demonstrative . " " Ah ! good morning , dear , " she continued , and rising and
crossing the room , she grasped the Duchess ' hands as af
fectionately as if they had been sisters ; the Duchess responded in the
prettiest and most gracious way . " Two intimate friends ! " said Rastignac to
himself . " Henceforward I shall have two protectresses ; those two women are
great friends , no doubt , and this newcomer will doubtless interest herself in
her friend 's cousin . " " To what happy inspiration do I owe this piece of
good fortune , dear Antoinette ? " asked Mme . de Beauseant . " Well , I saw M.
d'Ajuda-Pinto at M. de Rochefide 's door , so I thought that if I came I should
find you alone . " Mme . de Beauseant 's mouth did not tighten , her color did
not rise , her expression did not alter , or rather , her brow seemed to clear
as the Duchess uttered those deadly words . " If I had known that you were
engaged---- " the speaker added , glancing at Eugene . " This gentleman is M.
Eugene de Rastignac , one of my cousins , " said the Vicomtesse . " Have you
any news of General de Montriveau ? " she continued . " Serizy t
old me yesterday that he never goes anywhere now ; has he been to see you
to-day ? " It was believed that the Duchess was desperately in love with M. de
Montriveau , and that he was a faithless lover ; she felt the question in her
very heart , and her face flushed as she answered : " He was at the Elysee
yesterday . " " In attendance ? " " Claire , " returned the Duchess , and
hatred overflowed in the glances she threw at Mme . de Beauseant ; " of course
you know that M. d'Ajuda-Pinto is going to marry Mlle . de Rochefide ; the bans
will be published to-morrow . " This thrust was too cruel ; the Vicomtesse 's
face grew white , but she answered , laughing , " One of those rumors that
fools amuse themselves with . What should induce M. d'Ajuda to take one of the
noblest names in Portugal to the Rochefides ? The Rochefides were only ennobled
yesterday . " " But Bertha will have two hundred thousand livres a year , they
say . " " M. d'Ajuda is too wealthy to marry for money . " " But ,
my dear , Mlle . de Rochefide is a charming girl . " " Indeed ? " " And , as a
matter of fact , he is dining with them to-day ; the thing is settled . It is
very surprising to me that you should know so little about it . " Mme . de
Beauseant turned to Rastignac . " What was the blunder that you made , monsieur
? " she asked . " The poor boy is only just launched into the world ,
Antoinette , so that he understands nothing of all this that we are speaking of
. Be merciful to him , and let us finish our talk to-morrow . Everything will
be announced to-morrow , you know , and your kind informal communication can be
accompanied by official confirmation . " The Duchess gave Eugene one of those
insolent glances that measure a man from head to foot , and leave him crushed
and annihilated . " Madame , I have unwittingly plunged a dagger into Mme . de
Restaud 's heart ; unwittingly--therein lies my offence , " said the student of
law , whose keen brain had served him sufficiently well , for
he had detected the biting epigrams that lurked beneath this friendly talk . "
You continue to receive , possibly you fear , those who know the amount of pain
that they deliberately inflict ; but a clumsy blunderer who has no idea how
deeply he wounds is looked upon as a fool who does not know how to make use of
his opportunities , and every one despises him . " Mme . de Beauseant gave the
student a glance , one of those glances in which a great soul can mingle
dignity and gratitude . It was like balm to the law student , who was still
smarting under the Duchess ' insolent scrutiny ; she had looked at him as an
auctioneer might look at some article to appraise its value . " Imagine , too ,
that I had just made some progress with the Comte de Restaud ; for I should
tell you , madame , " he went on , turning to the Duchess with a mixture of
humility and malice in his manner , " that as yet I am only a poor devil of a
student , very much alone in the world , and very poor---- " " You s
hould not tell us that , M. de Rastignac . We women never care about anything
that no one else will take . " " Bah ! " said Eugene . " I am only
two-and-twenty , and I must make up my mind to the drawbacks of my time of life
. Besides , I am confessing my sins , and it would be impossible to kneel in a
more charming confessional ; you commit your sins in one drawing-room , and
receive absolution for them in another . " The Duchess ' expression grew colder
, she did not like the flippant tone of these remarks , and showed that she
considered them to be in bad taste by turning to the Vicomtesse with--"This
gentleman has only just come---- " Mme . de Beauseant began to laugh outright
at her cousin and at the Duchess both . " He has only just come to Paris , dear
, and is in search of some one who will give him lessons in good taste . " "
Mme . la Duchesse , " said Eugene , " is it not natural to wish to be initiated
into the mysteries which charm us ? " ( " Come , now , " he said to hi
mself , " my language is superfinely elegant , I 'm sure . " ) " But Mme . de
Restaud is herself , I believe , M. de Trailles ' pupil , " said the Duchess .
" Of that I had no idea , madame , " answered the law student , " so I rashly
came between them . In fact , I got on very well with the lady 's husband , and
his wife tolerated me for a time until I took it into my head to tell them that
I knew some one of whom I had just caught a glimpse as he went out by a back
staircase , a man who had given the Countess a kiss at the end of a passage . "
" Who was it ? " both women asked together . " An old man who lives at the rate
of two louis a month in the Faubourg Saint-Marceau , where I , a poor student ,
lodge likewise . He is a truly unfortunate creature , everybody laughs at
him--we all call him 'Father Goriot . ' " " Why , child that you are , " cried
the Vicomtesse , " Mme . de Restaud was a Mlle . Goriot ! " " The daughter of a
vermicelli manufacturer , " the Duchess added ; " an
d when the little creature went to Court , the daughter of a pastry-cook was
presented on the same day . Do you remember , Claire ? The King began to laugh
, and made some joke in Latin about flour . People--what was it ? --people----
" " _Ejusdem farinoe_ , " said Eugene . " Yes , that was it , " said the
Duchess . " Oh ! is that her father ? " the law student continued , aghast . "
Yes , certainly ; the old man had two daughters ; he dotes on them , so to
speak , though they will scarcely acknowledge him . " " Did n't the second
daughter marry a banker with a German name ? " the Vicomtesse asked , turning
to Mme . de Langeais , " a Baron de Nucingen ? And her name is Delphine , is it
not ? Is n't she a fair-haired woman who has a side-box at the Opera ? She
comes sometimes to the Bouffons , and laughs loudly to attract attention . "
The Duchess smiled and said : " I wonder at you , dear . Why do you take so
much interest in people of that kind ? One must have been as madly in love
as Restaud was , to be infatuated with Mlle . Anastasie and her flour sacks .
Oh ! he will not find her a good bargain ! She is in M. de Trailles ' hands ,
and he will ruin her . " " And they do not acknowledge their father ! " Eugene
repeated . " Oh ! well , yes , their father , the father , a father , " replied
the Vicomtesse , " a kind father who gave them each five or six hundred
thousand francs , it is said , to secure their happiness by marrying them well
; while he only kept eight or ten thousand livres a year for himself , thinking
that his daughters would always be his daughters , thinking that in them he
would live his life twice over again , that in their houses he should find two
homes , where he would be loved and looked up to , and made much of . And in
two years ' time both his sons-in-law had turned him out of their houses as if
he were one of the lowest outcasts . " Tears came into Eugene 's eyes . He was
still under the spell of youthful beliefs , he had just left
home , pure and sacred feelings had been stirred within him , and this was
his first day on the battlefield of civilization in Paris . Genuine feeling is
so infectious that for a moment the three looked at each other in silence . "
_Eh , mon Dieu ! _ " said Mme . de Langeais ; " yes , it seems very horrible ,
and yet we see such things every day . Is there not a reason for it ? Tell me ,
dear , have you ever really thought what a son-in-law is ? A son-in-law is the
man for whom we bring up , you and I , a dear little one , bound to us very
closely in innumerable ways ; for seventeen years she will be the joy of her
family , its 'white soul , ' as Lamartine says , and suddenly she will become
its scourge . When HE comes and takes her from us , his love from the very
beginning is like an axe laid to the root of all the old affection in our
darling 's heart , and all the ties that bound her to her family are severed .
But yesterday our little daughter thought of no one but her mother
and father , as we had no thought that was not for her ; by to-morrow she will
have become a hostile stranger . The tragedy is always going on under our eyes
. On the one hand you see a father who has sacrificed himself to his son , and
his daughter-in-law shows him the last degree of insolence . On the other hand
, it is the son-in-law who turns his wife 's mother out of the house . I
sometimes hear it said that there is nothing dramatic about society in these
days ; but the Drama of the Son-in-law is appalling , to say nothing of our
marriages , which have come to be very poor farces . I can explain how it all
came about in the old vermicelli maker 's case . I think I recollect that
Foriot---- " " Goriot , madame . " " Yes , that Moriot was once President of
his Section during the Revolution . He was in the secret of the famous scarcity
of grain , and laid the foundation of his fortune in those days by selling
flour for ten times its cost . He had as much flour as he wanted . My g
randmother 's steward sold him immense quantities . No doubt Noriot shared the
plunder with the Committee of Public Salvation , as that sort of person always
did . I recollect the steward telling my grandmother that she might live at
Grandvilliers in complete security , because her corn was as good as a
certificate of civism . Well , then , this Loriot , who sold corn to those
butchers , has never had but one passion , they say--he idolizes his daughters
. He settled one of them under Restaud 's roof , and grafted the other into the
Nucingen family tree , the Baron de Nucingen being a rich banker who had turned
Royalist . You can quite understand that so long as Bonaparte was Emperor , the
two sons-in-law could manage to put up with the old Ninety-three ; but after
the restoration of the Bourbons , M. de Restaud felt bored by the old man 's
society , and the banker was still more tired of it . His daughters were still
fond of him ; they wanted 'to keep the goat and the cabbage , ' s
o they used to see Joriot whenever there was no one there , under pretence of
affection . 'Come to-day , papa , we shall have you all to ourselves , and that
will be much nicer ! ' and all that sort of thing . As for me , dear , I
believe that love has second-sight : poor Ninety-three ; his heart must have
bled . He saw that his daughters were ashamed of him , that if they loved their
husbands his visits must make mischief . So he immolated himself . He made the
sacrifice because he was a father ; he went into voluntary exile . His
daughters were satisfied , so he thought that he had done the best thing he
could ; but it was a family crime , and father and daughters were accomplices .
You see this sort of thing everywhere . What could this old Doriot have been
but a splash of mud in his daughters ' drawing-rooms ? He would only have been
in the way , and bored other people , besides being bored himself . And this
that happened between father and daughters may happen to the prettiest
woman in Paris and the man she loves the best ; if her love grows tiresome ,
he will go ; he will descend to the basest trickery to leave her . It is the
same with all love and friendship . Our heart is a treasury ; if you pour out
all its wealth at once , you are bankrupt . We show no more mercy to the
affection that reveals its utmost extent than we do to another kind of prodigal
who has not a penny left . Their father had given them all he had . For twenty
years he had given his whole heart to them ; then , one day , he gave them all
his fortune too . The lemon was squeezed ; the girls left the rest in the
gutter . " " The world is very base , " said the Vicomtesse , plucking at the
threads of her shawl . She did not raise her head as she spoke ; the words that
Mme . de Langeais had meant for her in the course of her story had cut her to
the quick . " Base ? Oh , no , " answered the Duchess ; " the world goes its
own way , that is all . If I speak in this way , it is only to sho
w that I am not duped by it . I think as you do , " she said , pressing the
Vicomtesse 's hand . " The world is a slough ; let us try to live on the
heights above it . " She rose to her feet and kissed Mme . de Beauseant on the
forehead as she said : " You look very charming to-day , dear . I have never
seen such a lovely color in your cheeks before . " Then she went out with a
slight inclination of the head to the cousin . " Father Goriot is sublime ! "
said Eugene to himself , as he remembered how he had watched his neighbor work
the silver vessel into a shapeless mass that night . Mme . de Beauseant did not
hear him ; she was absorbed in her own thoughts . For several minutes the
silence remained unbroken till the law student became almost paralyzed with
embarrassment , and was equally afraid to go or stay or speak a word . " The
world is basely ungrateful and ill-natured , " said the Vicomtesse at last . "
No sooner does a trouble befall you than a friend is ready to bring the t
idings and to probe your heart with the point of a dagger while calling on you
to admire the handle . Epigrams and sarcasms already ! Ah ! I will defend
myself ! " She raised her head like the great lady that she was , and
lightnings flashed from her proud eyes . " Ah ! " she said , as she saw Eugene
, " are you there ? " " Still , " he said piteously . " Well , then , M. de
Rastignac , deal with the world as it deserves . You are determined to succeed
? I will help you . You shall sound the depths of corruption in woman ; you
shall measure the extent of man 's pitiful vanity . Deeply as I am versed in
such learning , there were pages in the book of life that I had not read . Now
I know all . The more cold-blooded your calculations , the further you will go
. Strike ruthlessly ; you will be feared . Men and women for you must be
nothing more than post-horses ; take a fresh relay , and leave the last to drop
by the roadside ; in this way you will reach the goal of your ambition . You
will be nothing here , you see , unless a woman interests herself in you ;
and she must be young and wealthy , and a woman of the world . Yet , if you
have a heart , lock it carefully away like a treasure ; do not let any one
suspect it , or you will be lost ; you would cease to be the executioner , you
would take the victim 's place . And if ever you should love , never let your
secret escape you ! Trust no one until you are very sure of the heart to which
you open your heart . Learn to mistrust every one ; take every precaution for
the sake of the love which does not exist as yet . Listen , Miguel"--the name
slipped from her so naturally that she did not notice her mistake--"there is
something still more appalling than the ingratitude of daughters who have cast
off their old father and wish that he were dead , and that is a rivalry between
two sisters . Restaud comes of a good family , his wife has been received into
their circle ; she has been presented at court ; and her sister
, her wealthy sister , Mme . Delphine de Nucingen , the wife of a great
capitalist , is consumed with envy , and ready to die of spleen . There is gulf
set between the sisters--indeed , they are sisters no longer--the two women who
refuse to acknowledge their father do not acknowledge each other . So Mme . de
Nucingen would lap up all the mud that lies between the Rue Saint-Lazare and
the Rue de Grenelle to gain admittance to my salon . She fancied that she
should gain her end through de Marsay ; she has made herself de Marsay 's slave
, and she bores him . De Marsay cares very little about her . If you will
introduce her to me , you will be her darling , her Benjamin ; she will idolize
you . If , after that , you can love her , do so ; if not , make her useful . I
will ask her to come once or twice to one of my great crushes , but I will
never receive her here in the morning . I will bow to her when I see her , and
that will be quite sufficient . You have shut the Comtesse de Rest
aud 's door against you by mentioning Father Goriot 's name . Yes , my good
friend , you may call at her house twenty times , and every time out of the
twenty you will find that she is not at home . The servants have their orders ,
and will not admit you . Very well , then , now let Father Goriot gain the
right of entry into her sister 's house for you . The beautiful Mme . de
Nucingen will give the signal for a battle . As soon as she singles you out ,
other women will begin to lose their heads about you , and her enemies and
rivals and intimate friends will all try to take you from her . There are women
who will fall in love with a man because another woman has chosen him ; like
the city madams , poor things , who copy our millinery , and hope thereby to
acquire our manners . You will have a success , and in Paris success is
everything ; it is the key of power . If the women credit you with wit and
talent , the men will follow suit so long as you do not undeceive them yourself
. T
here will be nothing you may not aspire to ; you will go everywhere , and you
will find out what the world is--an assemblage of fools and knaves . But you
must be neither the one nor the other . I am giving you my name like Ariadne 's
clue of thread to take with you into the labyrinth ; make no unworthy use of it
, " she said , with a queenly glance and curve of her throat ; " give it back
to me unsullied . And now , go ; leave me . We women also have our battles to
fight . " " And if you should ever need some one who would gladly set a match
to a train for you---- " " Well ? " she asked . He tapped his heart , smiled in
answer to his cousin 's smile , and went . It was five o'clock , and Eugene was
hungry ; he was afraid lest he should not be in time for dinner , a misgiving
which made him feel that it was pleasant to be borne so quickly across Paris .
This sensation of physical comfort left his mind free to grapple with the
thoughts that assailed him . A mortification usually send
s a young man of his age into a furious rage ; he shakes his fist at society ,
and vows vengeance when his belief in himself is shaken . Just then Rastignac
was overwhelmed by the words , " You have shut the Countess ' door against you
. " " I shall call ! " he said to himself , " and if Mme . de Beauseant is
right , if I never find her at home--I ... well , Mme . de Restaud shall meet
me in every salon in Paris . I will learn to fence and have some pistol
practice , and kill that Maxime of hers ! " " And money ? " cried an inward
monitor . " How about money , where is that to come from ? " And all at once
the wealth displayed in the Countess de Restaud 's drawing-room rose before his
eyes . That was the luxury which Goriot 's daughter had loved too well , the
gilding , the ostentatious splendor , the unintelligent luxury of the parvenu ,
the riotous extravagance of a courtesan . Then the attractive vision suddenly
went under an eclipse as he remembered the stately grandeur of the H
otel de Beauseant . As his fancy wandered among these lofty regions in the
great world of Paris , innumerable dark thoughts gathered in his heart ; his
ideas widened , and his conscience grew more elastic . He saw the world as it
is ; saw how the rich lived beyond the jurisdiction of law and public opinion ,
and found in success the _ultima ratio mundi_ . " Vautrin is right , success is
virtue ! " he said to himself . Arrived in the Rue Neuve-Sainte-Genevieve , he
rushed up to his room for ten francs wherewith to satisfy the demands of the
cabman , and went in to dinner . He glanced round the squalid room , saw the
eighteen poverty-stricken creatures about to feed like cattle in their stalls ,
and the sight filled him with loathing . The transition was too sudden , and
the contrast was so violent that it could not but act as a powerful stimulant ;
his ambition developed and grew beyond all social bounds . On the one hand , he
beheld a vision of social life in its most charming and r
efined forms , of quick-pulsed youth , of fair , impassioned faces invested
with all the charm of poetry , framed in a marvelous setting of luxury or art ;
and , on the other hand , he saw a sombre picture , the miry verge beyond these
faces , in which passion was extinct and nothing was left of the drama but the
cords and pulleys and bare mechanism . Mme . de Beauseant 's counsels , the
words uttered in anger by the forsaken lady , her petulant offer , came to his
mind , and poverty was a ready expositor . Rastignac determined to open two
parallel trenches so as to insure success ; he would be a learned doctor of law
and a man of fashion . Clearly he was still a child ! Those two lines are
asymptotes , and will never meet . " You are very dull , my lord Marquis , "
said Vautrin , with one of the shrewd glances that seem to read the innermost
secrets of another mind . " I am not in the humor to stand jokes from people
who call me 'my lord Marquis , ' " answered Eugene . " A marquis
here in Paris , if he is not the veriest sham , ought to have a hundred
thousand livres a year at least ; and a lodger in the Maison Vauquer is not
exactly Fortune 's favorite . " Vautrin 's glance at Rastignac was
half-paternal , half-contemptuous . " Puppy ! " it seemed to say ; " I should
make one mouthful of him ! " Then he answered : " You are in a bad humor ;
perhaps your visit to the beautiful Comtesse de Restaud was not a success . " "
She has shut her door against me because I told her that her father dined at
our table , " cried Rastignac . Glances were exchanged all round the room ;
Father Goriot looked down . " You have sent some snuff into my eye , " he said
to his neighbor , turning a little aside to rub his hand over his face . " Any
one who molests Father Goriot will have henceforward to reckon with me , " said
Eugene , looking at the old man 's neighbor ; " he is worth all the rest of us
put together . --I am not speaking of the ladies , " he added , turning in the
direction of Mlle . Taillefer . Eugene 's remarks produced a sensation , and
his tone silenced the dinner-table . Vautrin alone spoke . " If you are going
to champion Father Goriot , and set up for his responsible editor into the
bargain , you had need be a crack shot and know how to handle the foils , " he
said , banteringly . " So I intend , " said Eugene . " Then you are taking the
field to-day ? " " Perhaps , " Rastignac answered . " But I owe no account of
myself to any one , especially as I do not try to find out what other people do
of a night . " Vautrin looked askance at Rastignac . " If you do not mean to be
deceived by the puppets , my boy , you must go behind and see the whole show ,
and not peep through holes in the curtain . That is enough , " he added ,
seeing that Eugene was about to fly into a passion . " We can have a little
talk whenever you like . " There was a general feeling of gloom and constraint
. Father Goriot was so deeply dejected by the student 's remark
that he did not notice the change in the disposition of his fellow-lodgers ,
nor know that he had met with a champion capable of putting an end to the
persecution . " Then , M. Goriot sitting there is the father of a countess , "
said Mme . Vauquer in a low voice . " And of a baroness , " answered Rastignac
. " That is about all he is capable of , " said Bianchon to Rastignac ; " I
have taken a look at his head ; there is only one bump--the bump of Paternity ;
he must be an _eternal father_ . " Eugene was too intent on his thoughts to
laugh at Bianchon 's joke . He determined to profit by Mme . de Beauseant 's
counsels , and was asking himself how he could obtain the necessary money . He
grew grave . The wide savannas of the world stretched before his eyes ; all
things lay before him , nothing was his . Dinner came to an end , the others
went , and he was left in the dining-room . " So you have seen my daughter ? "
Goriot spoke tremulously , and the sound of his voice broke in upon
Eugene 's dreams . The young man took the elder 's hand , and looked at him
with something like kindness in his eyes . " You are a good and noble man , "
he said . " We will have some talk about your daughters by and by . " He rose
without waiting for Goriot 's answer , and went to his room . There he wrote
the following letter to his mother : -- " My Dear Mother , --Can you nourish
your child from your breast again ? I am in a position to make a rapid fortune
, but I want twelve hundred francs--I must have them at all costs . Say nothing
about this to my father ; perhaps he might make objections , and unless I have
the money , I may be led to put an end to myself , and so escape the clutches
of despair . I will tell you everything when I see you . I will not begin to
try to describe my present situation ; it would take volumes to put the whole
story clearly and fully . I have not been gambling , my kind mother , I owe no
one a penny ; but if you would preserve the life that you ga
ve me , you must send me the sum I mention . As a matter of fact , I go to see
the Vicomtesse de Beauseant ; she is using her influence for me ; I am obliged
to go into society , and I have not a penny to lay out on clean gloves . I can
manage to exist on bread and water , or go without food , if need be , but I
cannot do without the tools with which they cultivate the vineyards in this
country . I must resolutely make up my mind at once to make my way , or stick
in the mire for the rest of my days. I know that all your hopes are set on me ,
and I want to realize them quickly . Sell some of your old jewelry , my kind
mother ; I will give you other jewels very soon . I know enough of our affairs
at home to know all that such a sacrifice means , and you must not think that I
would lightly ask you to make it ; I should be a monster if I could . You must
think of my entreaty as a cry forced from me by imperative necessity . Our
whole future lies in the subsidy with which I must begin my
first campaign , for life in Paris is one continual battle . If you cannot
otherwise procure the whole of the money , and are forced to sell our aunt 's
lace , tell her that I will send her some still handsomer , " and so forth . He
wrote to ask each of his sisters for their savings--would they despoil
themselves for him , and keep the sacrifice a secret from the family ? To his
request he knew that they would not fail to respond gladly , and he added to it
an appeal to their delicacy by touching the chord of honor that vibrates so
loudly in young and high-strung natures . Yet when he had written the letters ,
he could not help feeling misgivings in spite of his youthful ambition ; his
heart beat fast , and he trembled . He knew the spotless nobleness of the lives
buried away in the lonely manor house ; he knew what trouble and what joy his
request would cause his sisters , and how happy they would be as they talked at
the bottom of the orchard of that dear brother of theirs in Par
is . Visions rose before his eyes ; a sudden strong light revealed his sisters
secretly counting over their little store , devising some girlish stratagem by
which the money could be sent to him _incognito_ , essaying , for the first
time in their lives , a piece of deceit that reached the sublime in its
unselfishness . " A sister 's heart is a diamond for purity , a deep sea of
tenderness ! " he said to himself . He felt ashamed of those letters . What
power there must be in the petitions put up by such hearts ; how pure the
fervor that bears their souls to Heaven in prayer ! What exquisite joy they
would find in self-sacrifice ! What a pang for his mother 's heart if she could
not send him all that he asked for ! And this noble affection , these
sacrifices made at such terrible cost , were to serve as the ladder by which he
meant to climb to Delphine de Nucingen . A few tears , like the last grains of
incense flung upon the sacred alter fire of the hearth , fell from his eyes . He
walked up and down , and despair mingled with his emotion . Father Goriot saw
him through the half-open door . " What is the matter , sir ? " he asked from
the threshold . " Ah ! my good neighbor , I am as much a son and brother as you
are a father . You do well to fear for the Comtesse Anastasie ; there is one M.
Maxime de Trailles , who will be her ruin . " Father Goriot withdrew ,
stammering some words , but Eugene failed to catch their meaning . The next
morning Rastignac went out to post his letters . Up to the last moment he
wavered and doubted , but he ended by flinging them into the box . " I shall
succeed ! " he said to himself . So says the gambler ; so says the great
captain ; but the three words that have been the salvation of some few , have
been the ruin of many more . A few days after this Eugene called at Mme . de
Restaud 's house ; she was not at home . Three times he tried the experiment ,
and three times he found her doors closed against him , though he was caref
ul to choose an hour when M. de Trailles was not there . The Vicomtesse was
right . The student studied no longer . He put in an appearance at lectures
simply to answer to his name , and after thus attesting his presence , departed
forthwith . He had been through a reasoning process familiar to most students .
He had seen the advisability of deferring his studies to the last moment before
going up for his examinations ; he made up his mind to cram his second and
third years ' work into the third year , when he meant to begin to work in
earnest , and to complete his studies in law with one great effort . In the
meantime he had fifteen months in which to navigate the ocean of Paris , to
spread the nets and set the lines that would bring him a protectress and a
fortune . Twice during that week he saw Mme . de Beauseant ; he did not go to
her house until he had seen the Marquis d'Ajuda drive away . Victory for yet a
few more days was with the great lady , the most poetic figure in the F
aubourg Saint-Germain ; and the marriage of the Marquis d'Ajuda-Pinto with
Mlle . de Rochefide was postponed . The dread of losing her happiness filled
those days with a fever of joy unknown before , but the end was only so much
the nearer . The Marquis d'Ajuda and the Rochefides agreed that this quarrel
and reconciliation was a very fortunate thing ; Mme . de Beauseant ( so they
hoped ) would gradually become reconciled to the idea of the marriage , and in
the end would be brought to sacrifice d'Ajuda 's morning visits to the
exigencies of a man 's career , exigencies which she must have foreseen . In
spite of the most solemn promises , daily renewed , M. d'Ajuda was playing a
part , and the Vicomtesse was eager to be deceived . " Instead of taking a leap
heroically from the window , she is falling headlong down the staircase , "
said her most intimate friend , the Duchesse de Langeais . Yet this after-glow
of happiness lasted long enough for the Vicomtesse to be of service to her
young cousin . She had a half-superstitious affection for him . Eugene had
shown her sympathy and devotion at a crisis when a woman sees no pity , no real
comfort in any eyes ; when if a man is ready with soothing flatteries , it is
because he has an interested motive . Rastignac made up his mind that he must
learn the whole of Goriot 's previous history ; he would come to his bearings
before attempting to board the Maison de Nucingen . The results of his
inquiries may be given briefly as follows : -- In the days before the
Revolution , Jean-Joachim Goriot was simply a workman in the employ of a
vermicelli maker . He was a skilful , thrifty workman , sufficiently
enterprising to buy his master 's business when the latter fell a chance victim
to the disturbances of 1789. Goriot established himself in the Rue de la
Jussienne , close to the Corn Exchange . His plain good sense led him to accept
the position of President of the Section , so as to secure for his business the
protection o
f those in power at that dangerous epoch . This prudent step had led to
success ; the foundations of his fortune were laid in the time of the Scarcity
( real or artificial ) , when the price of grain of all kinds rose enormously
in Paris . People used to fight for bread at the bakers ' doors ; while other
persons went to the grocers ' shops and bought Italian paste foods without
brawling over it . It was during this year that Goriot made the money , which ,
at a later time , was to give him all the advantage of the great capitalist
over the small buyer ; he had , moreover , the usual luck of average ability ;
his mediocrity was the salvation of him . He excited no one 's envy , it was
not even suspected that he was rich till the peril of being rich was over , and
all his intelligence was concentrated , not on political , but on commercial
speculations . Goriot was an authority second to none on all questions relating
to corn , flour , and " middlings " ; and the production , storage
, and quality of grain . He could estimate the yield of the harvest , and
foresee market prices ; he bought his cereals in Sicily , and imported Russian
wheat . Any one who had heard him hold forth on the regulations that control
the importation and exportation of grain , who had seen his grasp of the
subject , his clear insight into the principles involved , his appreciation of
weak points in the way that the system worked , would have thought that here
was the stuff of which a minister is made . Patient , active , and persevering
, energetic and prompt in action , he surveyed his business horizon with an
eagle eye . Nothing there took him by surprise ; he foresaw all things , knew
all that was happening , and kept his own counsel ; he was a diplomatist in his
quick comprehension of a situation ; and in the routine of business he was as
patient and plodding as a soldier on the march . But beyond this business
horizon he could not see . He used to spend his hours of leisure on the
threshold of his shop , leaning against the framework of the door . Take him
from his dark little counting-house , and he became once more the rough ,
slow-witted workman , a man who cannot understand a piece of reasoning , who is
indifferent to all intellectual pleasures , and falls asleep at the play , a
Parisian Dolibom in short , against whose stupidity other minds are powerless .
Natures of this kind are nearly all alike ; in almost all of them you will find
some hidden depth of sublime affection . Two all-absorbing affections filled
the vermicelli maker 's heart to the exclusion of every other feeling ; into
them he seemed to put all the forces of his nature , as he put the whole power
of his brain into the corn trade . He had regarded his wife , the only daughter
of a rich farmer of La Brie , with a devout admiration ; his love for her had
been boundless . Goriot had felt the charm of a lovely and sensitive nature ,
which , in its delicate strength , was the very opposite of
his own . Is there any instinct more deeply implanted in the heart of man than
the pride of protection , a protection which is constantly exerted for a
fragile and defenceless creature ? Join love thereto , the warmth of gratitude
that all generous souls feel for the source of their pleasures , and you have
the explanation of many strange incongruities in human nature . After seven
years of unclouded happiness , Goriot lost his wife . It was very unfortunate
for him . She was beginning to gain an ascendency over him in other ways ;
possibly she might have brought that barren soil under cultivation , she might
have widened his ideas and given other directions to his thoughts . But when
she was dead , the instinct of fatherhood developed in him till it almost
became a mania . All the affection balked by death seemed to turn to his
daughters , and he found full satisfaction for his heart in loving them . More
or less brilliant proposals were made to him from time to time ; wealthy merc
hants or farmers with daughters vied with each other in offering inducements
to him to marry again ; but he determined to remain a widower . His
father-in-law , the only man for whom he felt a decided friendship , gave out
that Goriot had made a vow to be faithful to his wife 's memory . The
frequenters of the Corn Exchange , who could not comprehend this sublime piece
of folly , joked about it among themselves , and found a ridiculous nickname
for him . One of them ventured ( after a glass over a bargain ) to call him by
it , and a blow from the vermicelli maker 's fist sent him headlong into a
gutter in the Rue Oblin . He could think of nothing else when his children were
concerned ; his love for them made him fidgety and anxious ; and this was so
well known , that one day a competitor , who wished to get rid of him to secure
the field to himself , told Goriot that Delphine had just been knocked down by
a cab . The vermicelli maker turned ghastly pale , left the Exchange at once ,
and did not return for several days afterwards ; he was ill in consequence of
the shock and the subsequent relief on discovering that it was a false alarm .
This time , however , the offender did not escape with a bruised shoulder ; at
a critical moment in the man 's affairs , Goriot drove him into bankruptcy ,
and forced him to disappear from the Corn Exchange . As might have been
expected , the two girls were spoiled . With an income of sixty thousand francs
, Goriot scarcely spent twelve hundred on himself , and found all his happiness
in satisfying the whims of the two girls . The best masters were engaged , that
Anastasie and Delphine might be endowed with all the accomplishments which
distinguish a good education . They had a chaperon--luckily for them , she was
a woman who had good sense and good taste ; --they learned to ride ; they had a
carriage for their use ; they lived as the mistress of a rich old lord might
live ; they had only to express a wish , their father would
hasten to give them their most extravagant desires , and asked nothing of them
in return but a kiss . Goriot had raised the two girls to the level of the
angels ; and , quite naturally , he himself was left beneath them . Poor man !
he loved them even for the pain that they gave him . When the girls were old
enough to be married , they were left free to choose for themselves . Each had
half her father 's fortune as her dowry ; and when the Comte de Restaud came to
woo Anastasie for her beauty , her social aspirations led her to leave her
father 's house for a more exalted sphere . Delphine wished for money ; she
married Nucingen , a banker of German extraction , who became a Baron of the
Holy Roman Empire . Goriot remained a vermicelli maker as before . His
daughters and his sons-in-law began to demur ; they did not like to see him
still engaged in trade , though his whole life was bound up with his business .
For five years he stood out against their entreaties , then he yielded ,
and consented to retire on the amount realized by the sale of his business and
the savings of the last few years . It was this capital that Mme . Vauquer , in
the early days of his residence with her , had calculated would bring in eight
or ten thousand livres in a year . He had taken refuge in her lodging-house ,
driven there by despair when he knew that his daughters were compelled by their
husbands not only to refuse to receive him as an inmate in their houses , but
even to see him no more except in private . This was all the information which
Rastignac gained from a M. Muret who had purchased Goriot 's business ,
information which confirmed the Duchesse de Langeais ' suppositions , and
herewith the preliminary explanation of this obscure but terrible Parisian
tragedy comes to an end .
\ No newline at end of file
