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| author | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 04:40:40 -0700 |
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| committer | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 04:40:40 -0700 |
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line-height: 0.8 } + pre { font-style: italic; font-size: 90%; margin-left: 10%;} +</style> + </head> + <body> +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 12748 ***</div> + + <div style="height: 8em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h1> + RECOLLECTIONS OF MY YOUTH + </h1> + <h2> + BY + </h2> + + <h2> + ERNEST RENAN + </h2> + <h3> + 1897 + </h3> + <hr /> + <p> + <b>CONTENTS</b> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_PREF"> PREFACE. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0002"> THE FLAX-CRUSHER. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0003"> PART I. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0004"> PART II. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0005"> PART III. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0006"> PART IV. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0007"> PRAYER ON THE ACROPOLIS. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0008"> ST. RENAN. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0009"> MY UNCLE PIERRE. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0010"> GOOD MASTER SYSTÈME. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0011"> PART I. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0012"> PART II. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0013"> LITTLE NOÉMI. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0014"> PART I. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0015"> PART II. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0016"> THE PETTY SEMINARY OF SAINT NICHOLAS DU + CHARDONNET. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0017"> PART I. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0018"> PART II. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0019"> PART III. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0020"> THE ISSY SEMINARY. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0021"> PART I. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0022"> PART II. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0023"> THE ST. SULPICE SEMINARY. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0024"> PART I. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0025"> PART II. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0026"> PART III. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0027"> PART IV. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0028"> PART V. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0029"> FIRST STEPS OUTSIDE ST. SULPICE. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0030"> PART I. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0031"> PART II. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0032"> PART III. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0033"> PART IV. </a> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_4_0034"> PART V. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_APPE"> APPENDIX. </a><br /><br /><br /> + </p> + + <p class="toc"> + <a href="#link2H_FOOT"> FOOTNOTES </a> + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_PREF" id="link2H_PREF"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PREFACE. + </h2> + <p> + One of the most popular legends in Brittany is that relating to an + imaginary town called Is, which is supposed to have been swallowed up by + the sea at some unknown time. There are several places along the coast + which are pointed out as the site of this imaginary city, and the + fishermen have many strange tales to tell of it. According to them, the + tips of the spires of the churches may be seen in the hollow of the waves + when the sea is rough, while during a calm the music of their bells, + ringing out the hymn appropriate to the day, rises above the waters. I + often fancy that I have at the bottom of my heart a city of Is with its + bells calling to prayer a recalcitrant congregation. At times I halt to + listen to these gentle vibrations which seem as if they came from + immeasurable depths, like voices from another world. Since old age began + to steal over me, I have loved more especially during the repose which + summer brings with it, to gather up these distant echoes of a vanished + Atlantis. + </p> + <p> + This it is which has given birth to the six chapters which make up the + present volume. The recollections of my childhood do not pretend to form a + complete and continuous narrative. They are merely the images which arose + before me and the reflections which suggested themselves to me while I was + calling up a past fifty years old, written down in the order in which they + came. Goethe selected as the title for his memoirs “Truth and + Poetry,” thereby signifying that a man cannot write his own + biography in the same way that he would that of any one else. What one + says of oneself is always poetical. To fancy that the small details of one’s + own life are worth recording is to be guilty of very petty vanity. A man + writes such things in order to transmit to others the theory of the + universe which he carries within himself. The form of the present work + seemed to me a convenient one for expressing certain shades of thought + which my previous writings did not convey. I had no desire to furnish + information about myself for the future use of those who might wish to + write essays or articles about me. + </p> + <p> + What in history is a recommendation would here have been a drawback; the + whole of this small volume is true, but not true in the sense required-for + a “Biographical Dictionary.” I have said several things with + the intent to raise a smile, and, if such a thing had been compatible with + custom, I might have used the expression <i>cum grano salis</i> as a + marginal note in many cases. I have been obliged to be very careful in + what I wrote. Many of the persons to whom I refer may be still alive; and + those who are not accustomed to find themselves in print have a sort of + horror of publicity. I have, therefore, altered several proper names. In + other cases, by means of a slight transposition of date and place, I have + rendered identification impossible. The story of “the Flax-crusher” + is absolutely true, with the exception that the name of the manor-house is + a fictitious one. With regard to “Good Master Système,” I have + been furnished by M. Duportal du Godasmeur with further details which do + not confirm certain ideas entertained by my mother as to the mystery in + which this aged recluse enveloped his existence. I have, however, made no + change in the body of the work, thinking that it would be better to leave + M. Duportal to publish the true story, known only to himself, of this + enigmatic character. + </p> + <p> + The chief defect for which I should feel some apology necessary if this + book had any pretension to be considered a regular memoir of my life, is + that there are many gaps in it. The person who had the greatest influence + on my life, my sister Henriette, is scarcely mentioned in it.<a + href="#linknote-1" name="linknoteref-1" id="linknoteref-1"><small>1</small></a> + In September 1862, a year after the death of this invaluable friend, I + wrote for the few persons who had known her well, a short notice of her + life. Only a hundred copies were printed. My sister was so unassuming, and + she was so averse from the stress and stir of the world that I should have + fancied I could hear her reproaching me from her grave, if I had made this + sketch public property. I have more than once been tempted to include it + in this volume, but on second thoughts I have felt that to do so would be + an act of profanation. The pamphlet in question was read and appreciated + by a few persons who were kindly disposed towards her and towards myself. + It would be wrong of me to expose a memory so sacred in my eyes to the + supercilious criticisms which are part and parcel of the right acquired by + the purchaser of a book. It seemed to me that in placing the lines + referring to her in a book for the trade I should be acting with as much + impropriety as if I sent a portrait of her for sale to an auction room. + The pamphlet in question will not, therefore, be reprinted until after my + death, appended to it, very possibly being several of her letters selected + by me beforehand. The natural sequence of this book, which is neither more + nor less than the sequence in the various periods of my life, brings about + a sort of contrast between the anecdotes of Brittany and those of the + Seminary, the latter being the details of a darksome struggle, full of + reasonings and hard scholasticism, while the recollections of my earlier + years are instinct with the impressions of childlike sensitiveness, of + candour, of innocence, and of affection. There is nothing surprising about + this contrast. Nearly all of us are double. The more a man develops + intellectually, the stronger is his attraction to the opposite pole: that + is to say, to the irrational, to the repose of mind in absolute ignorance, + to the woman who is merely a woman, the instinctive being who acts solely + from the impulse of an obscure conscience. The fierce school of + controversy, in which the mind of Europe has been involved since the time + of Abélard, induces periods of mental drought and aridity. The brain, + parched by reasoning, thirsts for simplicity, like the desert for spring + water. When reflection has brought us up to the last limit of doubt, the + spontaneous affirmation of the good and of the beautiful which is to be + found in the female conscience delights us and settles the question for + us. This is why religion is preserved to the world by woman alone. A + beautiful and a virtuous woman is the mirage which peoples with lakes and + green avenues our great moral desert. The superiority of modern science + consists in the fact that each step forward it takes is a step further in + the order of abstractions. We make chemistry from chemistry, algebra from + algebra; the very indefatigability with which we fathom nature removes us + further from her. This is as it should be, and let no one fear to + prosecute his researches, for out of this merciless dissection comes life. + But we need not be surprised at the feverish heat which, after these + orgies of dialectics, can only be calmed by the kisses of the artless + creature in whom nature lives and smiles. Woman restores us to + communication with the eternal spring in which God reflects Himself. The + candour of a child, unconscious of its own beauty and seeing God clear as + the daylight, is the great revelation of the ideal, just as the + unconscious coquetry of the flower is a proof that Nature adorns herself + for a husband. + </p> + <p> + One should never write except upon that which one loves. Oblivion and + silence are the proper punishments to be inflicted upon all that we meet + with in the way of what is ungainly or vulgar in the course of our journey + through life. Referring to a past which is dear to me, I have spoken of it + with kindly sympathy; but I should be sorry to create any misapprehension, + and to be taken for an uncompromising reactionist. I love the past, but I + envy the future. It would have been very pleasant to have lived upon this + planet at as late a period as possible. Descartes would be delighted if he + could read some trivial work on natural philosophy and cosmography written + in the present day. The fourth form school boy of our age is acquainted + with truths to know which Archimedes would have laid down his life. What + would we not give to be able to get a glimpse of some book which will be + used as a school-primer a hundred years hence? + </p> + <p> + We must not, because of our personal tastes, our prejudices perhaps, set + ourselves to oppose the action of our time. This action goes on without + regard to us, and probably it is right. The world is moving in the + direction of what I may call a kind of Americanism, which shocks our + refined ideas, but which, when once the crisis of the present hour is + over, may very possibly not be more inimical than the ancient <i>régime</i> + to the only thing which is of any real importance; viz. the emancipation + and progress of the human mind. A society in which personal distinction is + of little account, in which talent and wit are not marketable commodities, + in which exalted functions do not ennoble, in which politics are left to + men devoid of standing or ability, in which the recompenses of life are + accorded by preference to intrigue, to vulgarity, to the charlatans who + cultivate the art of puffing, and to the smart people who just keep + without the clutches of the law, would never suit us. We have been + accustomed to a more protective system, and to the government patronizing + what is noble and worthy. But we have not secured this patronage for + nothing. Richelieu and Louis XIV. looked upon it as their duty to provide + pensions for men of merit all the world over; how much better it would + have been, if the spirit of the time had admitted of it, that they should + have left the men of merit to themselves! The period of the Restoration + has the credit of being a liberal one; yet we should certainly not like to + live now under a <i>régime</i> which warped such a genius as Cuvier, + stifled with paltry compromises the keen mind of M. Cousin, and retarded + the growth of criticism by half a century. The concessions which had to be + made to the court, to society, and to the clergy, were far worse than the + petty annoyances which a democracy can inflict upon us. + </p> + <p> + The eighteen years of the monarchy of July were in reality a period of + liberty, but the official direction given to things of the mind was often + superficial and no better than would be expected of the average + shopkeeper. With regard to the second empire, if the ten last years of its + duration in some measure repaired the mischief done in the first eight, it + must never be forgotten how strong this government was when it was a + question of crushing the intelligence, and how feeble when it came to + raising it up. The present hour is a gloomy one, and the immediate outlook + is not cheerful. Our unfortunate country is ever threatened with heart + disease, and all Europe is a prey to some deep-rooted malady. But by way + of consolation, let us reflect upon what we have suffered. The evil to + come must be grevious indeed if we cannot say: + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + “O passi graviora, dabit deus his quoque finem.” + </pre> + <p> + The one object in life is the development of the mind, and the first + condition for the development of the mind is that it should have liberty. + The worst social state, from this point of view, is the theocratic state, + like Islamism or the ancient Pontifical state, in which dogma reigns + supreme. Nations with an exclusive state religion, like Spain, are not + much better off. Nations in which a religion of the majority is recognized + are also exposed to serious drawbacks. In behalf of the real or assumed + beliefs of the greatest number, the state considers itself bound to impose + upon thought terms which it cannot accept. The belief or the opinion of + the one side should not be a fetter upon the other side. As long as the + masses were believers, that is to say, as long as the same sentiments were + almost universally professed by a people, freedom of research and + discussion was impossible. A colossal weight of stupidity pressed down + upon the human mind. The terrible catastrophe of the middle ages, that + break of a thousand years in the history of civilization, is due less to + the barbarians than to the triumph of the dogmatic spirit among the + masses. + </p> + <p> + This is a state of things which is coming to an end in our time, and we + cannot be surprised if some disturbance ensues. There are no longer masses + which believe; a great number of the people decline to recognise the + supernatural, and the day is not far distant, when beliefs of this kind + will die out altogether in the masses, just as the belief in familiar + spirits and ghosts have disappeared. Even if, as is probable, we are to + have a temporary Catholic reaction, the people will not revert to the + Church. Religion has become for once and all a matter of personal taste. + Now beliefs are only dangerous when they represent something like + unanimity, or an unquestionable majority. When they are merely individual, + there is not a word to be said against them, and it is our duty to treat + them with the respect which they do not always exhibit for their + adversaries, when they feel that they have force at their back. + </p> + <p> + There can be no denying that it will take time for the liberty, which is + the aim and object of human society, to take root in France as it has in + America. French democracy has several essential principles to acquire, + before it can become a liberal <i>régime</i>. It will be above all things + necessary that we should have laws as to associations, charitable + foundations, and the right of legacy, analogous to those which are in + force in England and America. Supposing this progress to be effected (if + it is Utopian to count upon it in France, it is not so for the rest of + Europe, in which the aspirations for English liberty become every day more + intense), we should really not have much cause to look regretfully upon + the favours conferred by the ancient <i>régime</i> upon things of the + mind. I quite think that if democratic ideas were to secure a definitive + triumph, science and scientific teaching would soon find the modest + subsidies now accorded them cut off. This is an eventuality which would + have to be accepted as philosophically as may be. The free foundations + would take the place of the state institutes, the slight drawbacks being + more than compensated for by the advantage of having no longer to make to + the supposed prejudices of the majority concessions which the state + exacted in return for its pittance. The waste of power in state institutes + is enormous. It may safely be said that not 50 per cent of a credit voted + in favour of science, art, or literature, is expended to any effect. + Private foundations would not be exposed to nearly so much waste. It is + true that spurious science would, in these conditions, flourish side by + side with real science, enjoying the same privileges, and that there would + be no official criterion, as there still is to a certain extent now, to + distinguish the one from the other. But this criterion becomes every day + less reliable. Reason has to submit to the indignity of taking second + place behind those who have a loud voice, and who speak with a tone of + command. The plaudits and favour of the public will, for a long time to + come, be at the service of what is false. But the true has great power, + when it is free; the true endures; the false is ever changing and decays. + Thus it is that the true, though only understood by a select few, always + rises to the surface, and in the end prevails. + </p> + <p> + In short, it is very possible that the American-like social condition + towards which we are advancing, independently of any particular form of + government, will not be more intolerable for persons of intelligence than + the better guaranteed social conditions which we have already been subject + to. In such a world as this will be, it will be no difficult matter to + create very quiet and snug retreats for oneself. “The era of + mediocrity in all things is about to begin,” remarked a short time + ago that distinguished thinker, M. Arniel of Geneva. “Equality + begets uniformity, and it is by the sacrifice of the excellent, the + remarkable, the extraordinary that we extirpate what is bad. The whole + becomes less coarse; but the whole becomes more vulgar.” We may at + least hope that vulgarity will not yet a while persecute freedom of mind. + Descartes, living in the brilliant seventeenth century, was nowhere so + well off as at Amsterdam, because, as “every one was engaged in + trade there,” no one paid any heed to him. It may be that general + vulgarity will one day be the condition of happiness, for the worst + American vulgarity would not send Giordano Bruno to the stake or persecute + Galileo. We have no right to be very fastidious. In the past we were never + more than tolerated. This tolerance, if nothing more, we are assured of in + the future. A narrow-minded, democratic <i>régime</i> is often, as we + know, very troublesome. But for all that men of intelligence find that + they can live in America, as long as they are not too exacting. <i>Noli me + tangere is</i> the most one can ask for from democracy. We shall pass + through several alternatives of anarchy and despotism before we find + repose in this happy medium. But liberty is like truth; scarcely any one + loves it on its own account, and yet, owing to the impossibility of + extremes, one always comes back to it. + </p> + <p> + We may as well, therefore, allow the destinies of this planet to work + themselves out without undue concern. We should gain nothing by exclaiming + against them, and a display of temper would be very much out of place. It + is by no means certain that the earth is not falling short of its destiny, + as has probably happened to countless worlds; it is even possible that our + age may one day be regarded as the culminating point since which humanity + has been steadily deteriorating; but the universe does not know the + meaning of the word discouragement; it will commence anew the work which + has come to naught; each fresh check leaves it young, alert, and full of + illusions. Be of good cheer, Nature! Pursue, like the deaf and blind + star-fish which vegetates in the bed of the ocean, thy obscure task of + life; persevere; mend for the millionth time the broken meshes of the net; + repair the boring-machine which sinks to the last limits of the attainable + the well from which living water will spring up. Sight and sight again the + aim which thou hast failed to hit throughout the ages; try to struggle + through the scarcely perceptible opening which leads to another firmament. + Thou hast the infinity of time and space to try the experiment. He who can + commit blunders with impunity is always certain to succeed. + </p> + <p> + Happy they who shall have had a part in this great final triumph which + will be the complete advent of God! A Paradise lost is always, for him who + wills it so, a Paradise regained. Often as Adam must have mourned the loss + of Eden, I fancy that if he lived, as we are told, 930 years after his + fall, he must often have exclaimed: <i>Felix culpa!</i> Truth is, whatever + may be said to the contrary, superior to all fictions. One ought never to + regret seeing clearer into the depths. By endeavouring to increase the + treasure of the truths which form the paid-up capital of humanity, we + shall be carrying on the work of our pious ancestors, who loved the good + and the true as it was understood in their time. The most fatal error is + to believe that one serves one’s country by calumniating those who + founded it. All ages of a nation are leaves of the self-same book. The + true men of progress are those who profess as their starting-point a + profound respect for the past. All that we do, all that we are, is the + outcome of ages of labour. For my own part, I never feel my liberal faith + more firmly rooted in me than when I ponder over the miracles of the + ancient creed, nor more ardent for the work of the future than when I have + been listening for hours to the bells of the city of Is. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0002" id="link2H_4_0002"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + THE FLAX-CRUSHER. + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0003" id="link2H_4_0003"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART I. + </h2> + <p> + Tréguier, my native place, has grown into a town out of an ancient + monastery founded at the close of the fifth century by St. Tudwal (or + Tual), one of the religious leaders of those great migratory movements + which introduced into the Armorican peninsula the name, the race, and the + religious institutions of the island of Britain. The predominating + characteristic of early British Christianity was its monastic tendency, + and there were no bishops, at all events among the immigrants, whose first + step, after landing in Brittany, the north coast of which must at that + time have been very sparsely inhabited, was to build large monasteries, + the abbots of which had the cure of souls. A circle of from three to five + miles in circumference, called the <i>minihi</i>, was drawn around each + monastery, and the territory within it was invested with special + privileges. + </p> + <p> + The monasteries were called in the Breton dialect <i>pabu</i> after the + monks (<i>papae</i>), and in this way the monastery of Tréguier was known + as <i>Pabu Tual</i>. + </p> + <p> + It was the religious centre of all that part of the peninsula which + stretches northward. Monasteries of a similar kind at St. Pol de Léon, St. + Brieuc, St. Malo, and St. Samson, near Dol, held a like position upon the + coast. They possessed, if one may so speak, their diocese, for in these + regions separated from the rest of Christianity nothing was known of the + power of Rome and of the religious institutions which prevailed in the + Latin world, or even in the Gallo-Roman towns of Rennes and Nantes, hard + by. + </p> + <p> + When Noménoé, in the ninth century, reduced to something like a regular + organisation this half savage society of emigrants and created the Duchy + of Brittany by annexing to the territory in which the Breton tongue was + spoken, the Marches of Brittany, established by the Carlovingians to hold + in respect the forayers of the west, he found it advisable to assimilate + its religious organisation to that of the rest of the world. He + determined, therefore, that there should be bishops on the northern coast, + as there were at Rennes, Nantes, and Vannes, and he accordingly converted + into bishoprics the monasteries of St. Pol de Léon, Tréguier, St. Brieuc, + St. Malo, and Dol. He would have liked to have had an archbishop as well + and so form a separate ecclesiastical province, but, despite the + well-intentioned devices employed to prove that St. Samson had been a + metropolitan prelate, the grades of the Church universal were already + apportioned, and the new bishoprics were perforce compelled to attach + themselves to the nearest Gallo-Roman province at Tours. + </p> + <p> + The meaning of these obscure beginnings gradually faded away, and from the + name of <i>Pabu Tual, Papa Tual</i>, found, as was reported, upon some old + stained-glass windows, it was inferred that St. Tudwal had been Pope. The + explanation seemed a very simple one, for St. Tudwal, it was well known, + had been to Rome, and he was so holy a man that what could be more natural + than that the cardinals, when they became acquainted with him, should have + selected him for the vacant See. Such things were always happening, and + the godly persons of Tréguier were very proud of the pontifical reign of + their patron saint. The more reasonable ecclesiastics, however, admitted + that it was no easy matter to discover among the list, of popes the + pontiff who previous to his election was known as Tudwal. + </p> + <p> + In course of time a small town grew up around the bishop’s palace, + but the lay town, dependent entirely upon the Church, increased very + slowly. The port failed to acquire any importance, and no wealthy trading + class came into existence. A very fine cathedral was built towards the + close of the thirteenth century, and from the beginning of the seventeenth + the monasteries became so numerous that they formed whole streets to + themselves. The bishop’s palace, a handsome building of the + seventeenth century, and a few canons’ residences were the only + houses inhabited by people of civilized habits. In the lower part of the + town, at the end of the High Street, which was flanked by several turreted + buildings, were a few inns for the accommodation of the sailors. + </p> + <p> + It was only just before the Revolution that a petty nobility, recruited + for the most part from the country around, sprang up under the shadow of + the bishop’s palace. Brittany contained two distinct orders of + nobility. The first derived its titles from the King of France and + displayed in a very marked degree the defects and the qualities which + characterised the French nobility. The other was of Celtic origin and + thoroughly Breton. This latter nobility comprised, from the period of the + invasion, the chief men of the parish, the leaders of the people, of the + same race as them, possessing by inheritance the right of marching at + their head and representing them. No one was more deserving of respect + than this country nobleman when he remained a peasant, innocent of all + intrigues or of any effort to grow rich: but when he came to reside in + town he lost nearly all his good qualities and contributed but little to + the moral and intellectual progress of the country. + </p> + <p> + The Revolution seemed for this agglomeration of priests and monks neither + more nor less than a death warrant. The last of the bishops of Tréguier + left one evening by a back door leading into the wood behind his palace + and fled to England. The concordat abolished the bishopric, and the + unfortunate town was not even given a sub-prefect, Lannion and Guingamp, + which are larger and busier, being selected in preference. But large + buildings, fitted up so as to fulfil only one object, nearly always lead + to the reconstitution of the object to which they were destined. We may + say morally what is not true physically: when the hollows of a shell are + very deep, these hollows have the power of re-forming the animal moulded + in them. The vast monastic edifices of Tréguier were once more peopled, + and the former seminary served for the establishment of an ecclesiastical + college, very highly esteemed throughout the province. Tréguier again + became in a few years’ time what St. Tudwal had made it thirteen + centuries before, a town of priests, cut off from all trade and industry, + a vast monastery within whose walls no sounds from the outer world ever + penetrated, where ordinary human pursuits were looked upon as vanity and + vexation of spirit, while those things which laymen treated as chimerical + were regarded as the only realities. + </p> + <p> + It was amid associations like these that I passed my childhood, and it + gave a bent to my character which has never been removed. The cathedral, a + masterpiece of airy lightness, a hopeless effort to realise in granite an + impossible ideal, first of all warped my judgment. The long hours which I + spent there are responsible for my utter lack of practical knowledge. That + architectural paradox made me a man of chimeras, a disciple of St. Tudwal, + St. Iltud, and St. Cadoc, in an age when their teaching is no longer of + any practical use. When I went to the more secular town of Guingamp, where + I had some relatives of the middle class, I felt very ill at ease, and the + only pleasant companion I had there was an aged servant to whom I used to + read fairy tales. I longed to be back in the sombre old place, + overshadowed by its cathedral, but a living protest, so to speak, against + all that is mean and commonplace. I felt myself again when I got back to + the lofty steeple, the pointed nave, and the cloisters with their + fifteenth century tombs, being always at my ease when in the company of + the dead, by the side of the cavaliers and proud dames, sleeping + peacefully with their hound at their feet, and a massive stone torch in + their grasp. The outskirts of the town had the same religious and + idealistic aspect, and were enveloped in an atmosphere of mythology as + dense as Benares or Juggernaut. The church of St. Michael, from which the + open sea could be discerned, had been destroyed by lightning and was the + scene of many prodigies. Upon Maunday Thursday the children of Tréguier + were taken there to see the bells go off to Rome. We were blindfolded, and + much we then enjoyed seeing all the bells in the peal, beginning with the + largest and ending with the smallest, arrayed in the embroidered lace + robes which they had been dressed in upon their baptismal day, cleaving + the air on their way to Rome for the Pope’s benediction. + </p> + <p> + Upon the opposite side of the river there was the beautiful valley of the + Tromeur, watered by a sacred fountain which Christianity had hallowed by + connecting it with the worship of the Virgin. The chapel was burnt down in + 1828, but it was at once rebuilt, and the statue of the Virgin was + replaced by a much more handsome one. That fidelity to the traditions of + the past which is the chief trait in the Breton character was very + strikingly illustrated in this connection, for the new statue, which was + radiant with white and gold over the high altar, received but few + devotions, the prayers of the faithful being said to the black and + calcined trunk of the old statue which was relegated to a corner of the + chapel. The Bretons would have thought that to pay their devotions to the + new Virgin was tantamount to turning their backs upon their predecessor. + </p> + <p> + St. Yves was the object of even deeper popular devotion, the patron saint + of the lawyers having been born in the <i>minihi</i> of Tréguier, where + the church dedicated to him is held in great veneration. This champion of + the poor, the widows and the orphans, is looked upon as the grand + justiciary and avenger of wrong. Those who have been badly used have only + to repair to the solemn little chapel of <i>Saint Yves de la Vérité</i>, + and to repeat the words: “Thou wert just in thy lifetime, prove that + thou art so still,” to ensure that their oppressor will die within + the year. He becomes the protector of all those who are left friendless, + and at my father’s death my mother took me to his chapel and placed + me under his tutelary care. I cannot say that the good St. Yves managed + our affairs very successfully, or gave me a very clear understanding of my + worldly interests, but I nevertheless have much to thank him for, as he + endowed me with a spirit of content which passeth riches, and a native + good humour which has never left me. + </p> + <p> + The month of May, during which the festival of St. Yves fell, was one long + round of processions to the <i>minihi</i>, and as the different parishes, + preceded by their processional crucifixes, met in the roads, the + crucifixes were pressed one against the other in token of friendship. Upon + the eve of the festival the people assembled in the church, and on the + stroke of midnight the saint stretched out his arms to bless the kneeling + congregation. But if among them all there was one doubting soul who raised + his eyes to see if the miracle really did take place, the saint, taking + just offence at such a suspicion did not move, and by the misconduct of + this incredulous person, no benediction was given. + </p> + <p> + The clergy of the place, disinterested and honest to the core, contrived + to steer a middle course between not doing anything to weaken these ideas + and not compromising themselves. These worthy men were my first spiritual + guides, and I have them to thank for whatever may be good in me. Their + every word was my law, and I had so much respect for them that I never + thought to doubt anything they told me until I was sixteen years of age, + when I came to Paris. Since that time I have studied under many teachers + far more brilliant and learned, but none have inspired such feelings of + veneration, and this has often led to differences of opinion between some + of my friends and myself. It has been my good fortune to know what + absolute virtue is. I know what faith is, and though I have since + discovered how deep a fund of irony there is in the most sacred of our + illusions, yet the experience derived from the days of old is very + precious to me. I feel that in reality my existence is still governed by a + faith which I no longer possess, for one of the peculiarities of faith is + that its action does not cease with its disappearance. Grace survives by + mere force of habit the living sensation of it which we have felt. In a + mechanical kind of way we go on doing what we had before been doing in + spirit and in truth. After Orpheus, when he had lost his ideal, was torn + to pieces by the Thracian women, his lyre still repeated Eurydice’s + name. + </p> + <p> + The point to which the priests attached the highest importance was moral + conduct, and their own spotless lives entitled them to be severe in this + respect, while their sermons made such an impression upon me that during + the whole of my youth I never once forgot their injunctions. These sermons + were so awe-inspiring, and many of the remarks which they contained are so + engraved upon my memory, that I cannot even now recall them without a sort + of tremor. For instance, the preacher once referred to the case of + Jonathan, who died for having eaten a little honey. “<i>Gustans + gustavi paululum mellis, et ecce morior</i>.” I lost myself in + wonderment as to what this small quantity of honey could have been which + was so fatal in its effects. The preacher said nothing to explain this, + but heightened the effect of his mysterious allusion with the words—pronounced + in a very hollow and lugubrious tone—<i>tetigisse periisse</i>. At + other times the text would be the passage from Jeremiah, “<i>Mors + ascendit per fenestras</i>” This puzzled me still more, for what + could be this death which came up through the windows, these butterfly + wings which the lightest touch polluted? The preacher pronounced the words + with knitted brow and uplifted eyes. But what perplexed me most of all was + a passage in the life of some saintly person of the seventeenth century + who compared women to firearms which wound from afar. This was quite + beyond me, and I made all manner of guesses as to how a woman could + resemble a pistol. It seemed so inconsistent to be told in one breath that + a woman wounds from afar, and in another that to touch her is perdition. + All this was so incomprehensible that I immersed myself in study, and so + contrived to clear my brain of it. + </p> + <p> + Coming from persons in whom I felt unbounded confidence, these absurdities + carried conviction to my very soul, and even now, after fifty years’ + hard experience of the world<a href="#linknote-2" name="linknoteref-2" + id="linknoteref-2"><small>2</small></a> the impression has not quite worn + off. The comparison between women and firearms made me very cautious, and + not until age began to creep over me did I see that this also was vanity, + and that the Preacher was right when he said: “Go thy way, eat thy + bread joyfully ... with the woman whom thou lovest.” My ideas upon + this head outlived my ideas upon religion, and this is why I have enjoyed + immunity from the opprobrium which I should not unreasonably have been + subjected to if it could have been said that I left the seminary for other + reasons than those derived from philology. The commonplace interrogation, + “Where is the woman?” in which laymen invariably look for an + explanation of all such cases cannot but seem a paltry attempt at humour + to those who see things as they really are. My early days were passed in + this high school of faith and of respect. The liberty in which so many + giddy youths find themselves suddenly landed was in my case acquired very + gradually; and I did not attain the degree of emancipation which so many + Parisians reach without any effort of their own, until I had gone through + the German exegesis. It took me six years of meditation and hard study to + discover that my teachers were not infallible. What caused me more grief + than anything else when I entered upon this new path was the thought of + distressing my revered masters; but I am absolutely certain that I was + right, and that the sorrow which they felt was the consequence of their + narrow views as to the economy of the universe. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0004" id="link2H_4_0004"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART II. + </h2> + <p> + The education which these worthy priests gave me was not a very literary + one. We turned out a good deal of Latin verse, but they would not + recognize any French poetry later than the <i>Religion</i> of Racine the + younger. The name of Lamartine was pronounced only with a sneer, and the + existence of M. Hugo was not so much as known. To compose French verse was + regarded as a very dangerous habit, and would have been sufficient to get + a pupil expelled. I attribute partly to this my inability to express + thoughts in rhyme, and this inability has often caused me great regret, + for I have frequently felt a sort of inspiration to do so, but have + invariably been checked by the association of ideas which has led me to + regard versification as a defect. Our studies of history and of the + natural sciences were not carried far, but, on the other hand, we went + deep into mathematics, to which I applied myself with the utmost zest, + these abstract combinations exercising a wonderful fascination over me. + Our professor, the good Abbé Duchesne, was particularly attentive in his + lessons to me and to my close friend and fellow-student Guyomar, who + displayed a great aptitude for this branch of study. We always returned + together from the college. Our shortest cut was by the square, and we were + too conscientious to deviate from the most direct route; but when we had + had to work out some problem more intricate than usual our discussion of + it lasted far beyond class-time, and on those occasions we made our way + home by the hospital. This road took us past several large doors which + were always shut, and upon which we worked out our calculations and drew + our figures in chalk. Traces of them are perhaps visible there still, for + these were the doors of large monasteries, where nothing ever changes. + </p> + <p> + The hospital-general, so called because it was the trysting-place alike of + disease, old age, and poverty, was a very large structure, standing, like + all old buildings, upon a good deal of ground, and having very little + accommodation. Just in front of the entrance there was a small screen, + where the inmates who were either well or recovering from illness used to + meet when the weather was fine, for the hospital contained not only the + sick, but the paupers, and even persons who paid a small sum for board and + lodging. At the first glimpse of sunshine they all came to sit out beneath + the shade of the screen upon old cane chairs, and it was the most animated + place in the town. Guyomar and myself always exchanged the time of day + with these good people as we passed, and we were greeted with no little + respect, for though young we were regarded as already clerks of the + Church. This seemed quite natural, but there was one thing which excited + our astonishment, though we were too inexperienced to know much of the + world. + </p> + <p> + Among the paupers in the hospital was a person whom we never passed + without surprise. This was an old maid of about five-and-forty, who always + wore over her head a hood of the most singular shape; as a rule she was + almost motionless, with a sombre and lost expression of countenance, and + with her eyes glazed and hard-set. When we went by her countenance became + animated, and she cast strange looks at us, sometimes tender and + melancholy, sometimes hard and almost ferocious. If we looked back at her + she seemed to be very much put out. We could not understand all this, but + it had the effect of checking our conversation and any inclination to + merriment. We were not exactly afraid of her, for though she was supposed + to be out of her mind, the insane were not treated with the cruelty which + has since been imported into the conduct of asylums. So far from being + sequestered they were allowed to wander about all day long. There is as a + rule a good deal of insanity at Tréguier, for, like all dreamy races, + which exhaust their mental energies in pursuit of the ideal, the Bretons + of this district only too readily allow themselves to sink, when they are + not supported by a powerful will, into a condition half way between + intoxication and folly, and in many cases brought about by the unsatisfied + aspirations of the heart. These harmless lunatics, whose insanity differed + very much in degree, were looked upon as part and parcel of the town, and + people spoke about “our lunatics” just as at Venice people say + “<i>nostre carampane</i>.” One was constantly meeting them, + and they passed the time of day with us and made some joke, at which, + sickly as it was, we could not help smiling. They were treated with + kindness, and they often did a service in their turn. I shall never forget + a poor fellow called Brian, who believed that he was a priest, and who + passed part of the day in church, going through the ceremonies of mass. + There was a nasal drone to be heard in the cathedral every afternoon, and + this was Brian reciting prayers which were doubtless not less acceptable + than those of other people. The cathedral officials had the good sense not + to interfere with him, and not to draw frivolous distinctions between the + simple and the humble who came to kneel before their God. + </p> + <p> + The insane woman at the hospital was much less popular, on account of her + taciturn ways. She never spoke to any one, and no one knew anything of her + history. She never said a word to us boys, but her haggard and wild look + made a deep and painful impression upon us. I have often thought since of + this enigma, though without being able to decipher it; but I obtained a + clue to it eight years ago, when my mother, who had attained the age of + eighty-five without loss of health, was overtaken by an illness which + slowly undermined her strength. + </p> + <p> + My mother was in every respect, whether as regarded her ideas or her + associations, one of the old school. She spoke Breton perfectly, and had + at her fingers’ ends all the sailors’ proverbs and a host of + things which no one now remembers. She was a true woman of the people, and + her natural wit imparted a wonderful amount of life to the long stories + which she told and which few but herself knew. Her sufferings did not in + any way affect her spirits, and she was quite cheerful the afternoon of + her death. Of an evening I used to sit with her for an hour in her room, + with no other light—for she was very fond of this semi-obscurity—than + that of the gas-lamp in the street. Her lively imagination would then + assume free scope, and, as so often happens with old people, the + recollections of her early days came back with special force and + clearness. She could remember what Tréguier and Lannion were before the + Revolution, and she would describe what the different houses were like, + and who lived in them. I encouraged her by questions to wander on, as it + amused her and kept her thoughts away from her illness. + </p> + <p> + Upon one occasion we began to talk of the hospital, and she gave me the + complete history of it. “Many changes,” to use her own words, + “have occurred there since I first knew it. No one need ever feel + any shame at having been an inmate of it, for the most highly respected + persons have resided there. During the First Empire, and before the + indemnities were paid, it served as an asylum for the poor daughters of + the nobles, who might be seen sitting out at the entrance upon cane + chairs. Not a complaint ever escaped their lips, but when they saw the + persons who had acquired possession of their family property rolling by in + carriages, they would enter the chapel and engage in devotions so as not + to meet them. This was done not so much to avoid regretting the loss of + goods, of which they had made a willing sacrifice to God, as from a + feeling of delicacy lest their presence might embarrass these <i>parvenus</i>. + A few years later the parts were completely reversed, but the hospital + still continued to receive all sorts of wreckage. It was there that your + uncle, Pierre Renan, who led a vagabond life, and passed all his time in + taverns reading to the tipplers the books he borrowed from us, died; and + old Système, whom the priests disliked though he was a very good man; and + Gode, the old sorceress, who, the day after you were born, went to tell + your fortune in the Lake of the Minihi; and Marguerite Calvez, who + perjured herself and was struck down with consumption the very day she + heard that St. Yves had been implored to bring about her death within the + year."<a href="#linknote-3" name="linknoteref-3" id="linknoteref-3"><small>3</small></a> + </p> + <p> + “And who,” I asked her, “was that mad woman who used to + sit under the screen, and of whom Guyomar and myself were so afraid?” + </p> + <p> + Reflecting a moment to remember whom I meant, she replied, “Why, she + was the daughter of the flax-crusher.” + </p> + <p> + “Who was he?” + </p> + <p> + “I have never told you that story. It is too old-fashioned to be + understood at the present day. Since I have come to Paris there are many + things to which I have never alluded.... These country nobles were so much + respected. I always considered them to be the genuine noblemen. It would + be no use telling this to the Parisians, they would only laugh at me. They + think that their city is everything, and in my view they are very + narrow-minded. People have no idea in the present day how these old + country noblemen were respected, poor as they were.” + </p> + <p> + Here my mother paused for a little, and then went on with the story, which + I will tell in her own words. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0005" id="link2H_4_0005"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART III. + </h2> + <p> + “Do you remember the little village of Trédarzec, the steeple of + which was visible from the turret of our house? About half a mile from the + village, which consisted of little more than the church, the priest’s + house, and the mayor’s office, stood the manor of Kermelle, which + was, like so many others, a well-kept farmhouse, of very antiquated + appearance, surrounded by a lofty wall, and grey with age. There was a + large arched doorway, surmounted by a V-shaped shelter roofed with tiles, + and at the side of this a smaller door for everyday use. At the further + end of the courtyard stood the house with its pointed roof and its gables + covered with ivy. The dovecote, a turret, and two or three + well-constructed windows not unlike those of a church, proved that this + was the residence of a noble, one of those old houses which were + inhabited, previous to the Revolution, by a class of men whose habits and + mode of life have now passed beyond the reach of imagination. + </p> + <p> + “These country nobles were mere peasants,<a href="#linknote-4" + name="linknoteref-4" id="linknoteref-4"><small>4</small></a> but the first + of their class. At one time there was only one in each parish, and they + were regarded as the representatives and mouthpieces of the inhabitants, + who scrupulously respected their right and treated them with great + consideration. But towards the close of the last century they were + beginning to disappear very fast. The peasants looked upon them as being + the lay heads of the parish just as the priest was the ecclesiastical + head. He who held this position at Trédarzec of whom I am speaking, was an + elderly man of fine presence, with all the force and vigour of youth, and + a frank and open face; he wore his hair long, but rolled up under a comb, + only letting it fall on Sunday, when he partook of the Sacrament. I can + still see him—he often came to visit us at Tréguier—with his + serious air and a tinge of melancholy, for he was almost the sole survivor + of his order, the majority having disappeared altogether, while the others + had come to live in towns. He was a universal favourite. He had a seat all + to himself in church, and every Sunday he might be seen in it, just in + front of the rest of the congregation, with his old-fashioned dress and + his long gloves reaching almost to the elbow. When the Sacrament was about + to be administered he withdrew to the end of the choir, unfastened his + hair, laid his gloves upon a small stool placed expressly for him near the + rood screen, and walked up the aisle unassisted and erect. No one + approached the table until he had returned to his seat and put on his + gauntlets. + </p> + <p> + “He was very poor, but he made a point of concealing it from the + public. These country nobles used to enjoy certain privileges which + enabled them to live rather better than the general mass of peasants, but + these gradually faded away, and Kermelle was in a very embarrassed + condition. He could not well work in the fields, and he kept in doors all + day, having an occupation which could be followed under cover. When flax + has ripened, it is put through a process of decortication, which leaves + only the textile fibre, and this was the work which poor old Kermelle + thought that he could do without loss of dignity. No one saw him at it, + and thus appearances were saved; but the fact was generally known, and as + it was the custom to give every one a nickname he was soon known all the + country over as ‘the flax-crusher.’ This sobriquet, as so + often happens, gradually took the place of his proper name, and as ‘the + flax-crusher’ he was soon generally known. + </p> + <p> + “He was like a patriarch of old, and you would laugh if I told you + how the flax-crusher eked out his subsistence, and added to the scanty + wage which he received for this work. It was supposed that as head of the + village he had special gifts of healing, and that by the laying on of his + hands, and in other ways, he could cure many complaints. The popular + belief was that this power was only possessed by those who had ever so + many quartering, of nobility, and that he alone had the requisite number. + On certain days his house was besieged by people who had come a distance + of fifty miles. If a child was backward in learning to walk or was weak on + its legs, the parents brought it to him. He moistened his fingers in his + mouth and traced figures on the child’s loins, the result being that + it soon was able to walk. He was thoroughly in earnest, for these were the + days of simple faith. Upon no account would he have taken any money, and + for the matter of that the people who came to consult him were too poor to + give him any, but one brought a dozen eggs, another a flitch of bacon, a + third a jar of butter, or some fruit. He made no scruple about accepting + these, and though the nobles in the towns ridiculed him, they were very + wrong in doing so. He knew the country very well, and was the very + incarnation and embodiment of it. + </p> + <p> + “At the outbreak of the Revolution he emigrated to Jersey, though + why it is difficult to understand, for no one assuredly would have + molested him, but the nobles of Tréguier told him that such was the king’s + order, and he went off with the rest. He was not long away, and when he + came back he found his old house, which had not been occupied, just as he + had left it. When the indemnities were distributed some of his friends + tried to persuade him to put in a claim; and there was much, no doubt, + which could have been said in support of it. But though the other nobles + were anxious to improve his position, he would not hear of any such thing, + his sole reply to all arguments being, ‘I had nothing, and I could + lose nothing.’ He remained, therefore, as poor as ever. + </p> + <p> + “His wife died, I believe, while he was at Jersey, and he had a + daughter who was born about the same time. She was a tall and handsome + girl (you have only known her since she has lost her freshness), with much + natural vigour, a beautiful complexion, and no lack of generous blood + running through her veins. She ought to have been married young, but that + was out of the question, for those wretched little starvelings of nobles + in the small towns, who are good for nothing, and not to be compared with + him, would not have heard of her for their sons. As a matter of etiquette + she could not marry a peasant, and so the poor girl remained, as it were, + in mid-air, like a wandering spirit. There was no place for her on earth. + Her father was the last of his race, and it seemed as if she had been + brought into the world with the destiny of not finding a place for herself + in it. Endowed with great physical beauty, she scarcely had any soul, and + with her instinct was everything. She would have made an excellent mother, + but failing marriage a religious vocation would have suited her best, as + the regular and austere mode of life would have calmed her temperament. + But her father, doubtless, could not afford to provide her with a dowry, + and his social condition forbade the idea of making her a lay-sister. Poor + girl, driven into the wrong path, she was fated to meet her doom there. + She was naturally upright and good, with a full knowledge of her duties, + and her only fault was that she had blood in her veins. None of the young + men in the village would have dreamt of taking a liberty with her, so much + was her father respected. The feeling of her superiority prevented her + from forming any acquaintance with the young peasants, and they never + thought of paying their addresses to her. The poor girl lived, therefore, + in a state of absolute solitude, for the only other inhabitant of the + house was a lad of twelve or thirteen, a nephew, whom Kermelle had taken + under his care and to whom the priest, a good man if ever there was one, + taught what little Latin he knew himself. + </p> + <p> + “The Church was the only source of pleasure left for her. She was of + a pious disposition, though not endowed with sufficient intelligence to + understand anything of the mysteries of our religion. The priest, very + zealous in the performance of his duties, felt no little respect for the + flax-crusher, and spent whatever leisure time he had at his house. He + acted as tutor to the nephew, treating the daughter with the reserve which + the clergy of Brittany make a point of showing in their intercourse with + the opposite sex. He wished her good day and inquired after her health, + but he never talked to her except on commonplace subjects. The unfortunate + girl fell violently in love with him. He was the only person of her own + station, so to speak, whom she ever saw, and moreover, he was a young man + of very taking appearance; combining with an attitude of great outward + modesty an air of subdued melancholy and resignation. One could see that + he had a heart and strong feeling, but that a more lofty principle held + them in subjection, or rather that they were transformed into something + higher. You know how fascinating some of our Breton clergy are, and this + is a fact very keenly appreciated by women. The unshaken attachment to a + vow, which is in itself a sort of homage to their power, emboldens, + attracts, and flatters them. The priest becomes for them a trusty brother + who has for their sake renounced his sex and carnal delights. Hence is + begotten a feeling which is a mixture of confidence, pity, regret, and + gratitude. Allow priests to marry and you destroy one of the most + necessary elements of Catholic society. Women will protest against such a + change, for there is something which they esteem even more than being + loved, and that is for love to be made a serious business. Nothing + flatters a woman more than to let her see that she is feared, and the + Church by placing chastity in the first place among the duties of its + ministers, touches the most sensitive chord of female vanity. + </p> + <p> + “The poor girl thus gradually became immersed in a deep love for the + priest. The virtuous and mystic race to which she belonged knew nothing of + the frenzy which overcomes all obstacles and which accounts nothing + accomplished so long as anything remains to be accomplished. Her + aspirations were very modest, and if he would only have admitted the fact + of her existence she would have been content. She did not want so much as + a look; a place in his thoughts would have been enough. The priest was, of + course, her confessor, for there was no other in the parish. The mode of + Catholic confession, so admirable in some respects, but so dangerous, had + a great effect upon her imagination. It was inexpressibly pleasing to her + to find herself every Saturday alone with him for half an hour, as if she + were face to face with God, to see him discharging the functions of God, + to feel his breath, to undergo the welcome humiliation of his reprimands, + to confide to him her inmost thoughts, scruples, and fears. You must not + imagine, however, that she told him everything, for a pious woman has + rarely the courage to make use of the confessional for a love confidence. + She may perhaps give herself up to the enjoyment of sentiments which are + not devoid of peril, but there is always a certain degree of mysticism + about them which is not to be conciliated with anything so horrible as + sacrilege. At all events, in this particular case, the girl was so shy + that the words would have died upon her lips, and her passion was a + silent, inward, and devouring fire. And with all this, she was compelled + to see him every day and many times a day; young and handsome, always + following a dignified calling, officiating with the people on their knees + before him, the judge and keeper of her own conscience. It was too much + for her, and her head began to go. Her vigorous organization, deflected + from its proper course, gave way, and her old father attributed to + weakness of mind what was the result of the ravages wrought by the + fantastic workings of a love-stricken heart. + </p> + <p> + “Just as a mountain stream is turned from its course by some + insuperable barrier, the poor girl, with no means of making her affection + known to the object of it, found consolation in very insignificant ways: + to secure his notice for a moment, to be able to render him any slight + service, and to fancy that she was of use to him was enough, and she may + have said to herself, who can tell? he is a man after all, and he may + perhaps be touched in reality and only restrained from showing that he is + through discipline. All these efforts broke against a bar of iron, a wall + of ice. The priest maintained the same cool reserve. She was the daughter + of the man for whom he felt the greatest respect; but she was a woman. Oh! + if he had avoided her, if he had treated her harshly, that would have been + a triumph and a proof that she had made his heart beat for her, but there + was something terrible about his unvarying politeness and his utter + disregard of the most potent signs of affection. He made no attempt to + keep her at a distance, but merely continued steadfastly to treat her as a + mere abstraction. + </p> + <p> + “After the lapse of a certain time things got very bad. Rejected and + heartbroken, she began to waste away, and her eye grew haggard, but she + put a restraint upon herself, no one knew her secret! ‘What,’ + she would say to herself,’ I cannot attract his notice for a moment; + he will not even acknowledge my existence; do what I will, I can only be + for him a <i>shadow</i>, a phantom, one soul among a hundred others. It + would be too much to hope for his love, but his notice, a look from + him.... To be the equal of one so learned, so near to God, is more than I + could hope, and to bear him children would be sacrilege; but to be his, to + be a Martha to him, to be his servant, discharging the modest duties of + which I am capable, so as to have all in common with him, the household + goods and all that concerns a humble woman who is not initiated in any + higher ideas, that would be heavenly!’ She would remain motionless + for whole afternoons upon her chair, nursing this idea. She could see him + and picture herself with him, loading him with attentions, keeping his + house, and pressing the hem of his garment. She thrust away these idle + dreams from her but after having been plunged in them for hours she was + deadly pale and oblivious of all those who were about her. Her father + might have noticed it, but what could the poor old man do to cure an evil + which it would be impossible for a simple soul like his so much as to + conceive. + </p> + <p> + “So things went on for about a year. The probability is that the + priest saw nothing, so firmly do our clergy adhere to the resolution of + living in an atmosphere of their own. This only added fuel to the fire. + Her love became a worship, a pure adoration, and so she gained comparative + peace of mind. Her imagination took quite a childish turn, and she wanted + to be able to fancy that she was employed in doing things for him. She had + got to dream while awake, and, like a somnambulist, to perform acts in a + semi-unconscious state. Day and night, one thought haunted her: she + fancied herself tending him, counting his linen, and looking after all the + details of his household, which were too petty to occupy his thoughts. All + these fancies gradually took shape, and led up to an act only to be + explained by the mental state to which she had for some time been reduced.” + </p> + <p> + What follows would indeed be incomprehensible without a knowledge of + certain peculiarities in the Breton character. The most marked feature in + the people of Brittany is their affection. Love is with them a tender, + deep, and affectionate sentiment, rather than a passion. It is an inward + delight which wears and consumes, differing <i>toto caelo</i> from the + fiery passion of southern races. + </p> + <p> + The paradise of their dreams is cool and green, with no fierce heat. There + is no race which yields so many victims to love; for, though suicide is + rare, the gradual wasting away which is called consumption is very + Prevalent. It is often so with the young Breton conscripts. Incapable of + finding any satisfaction in mercenary intrigues, they succumb to an + indefinable sort of languor, which is called home-sickness, though, in + reality, love with them is indissolubly associated with their native + village, with its steeple and vesper bells, and with the familiar scenes + of home. The hot-blooded southerner kills his rival, as he may the object + of his passion. The sentiment of which I am speaking is fatal only to him + who is possessed by it, and this is why the people of Brittany are so + chaste a race. Their lively imagination creates an aerial world which + satisfies their aspirations. The true poetry of such a love as this is the + sonnet on spring in the Song of Solomon, which is far more voluptuous than + it is passionate. “Hiems transiit; imber abiit et recessit.... Vox + turturis audita est in terra nostra.... Surge, amica mea, et veni.” + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0006" id="link2H_4_0006"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART IV. + </h2> + <p> + My mother, resuming her story, went on to say:— + </p> + <p> + “We are all, as a matter of fact, at the mercy of our illusions, and + the proof of this is that in many cases nothing is easier than to take in + Nature by devices which she is unable to distinguish from the reality. I + shall never forget the daughter of Marzin, the carpenter in the High + Street, who, losing her senses owing to a suppression of the maternal + sentiment, took a log of wood, dressed it up in rags, placed on the top of + it a sort of baby’s cap, and passed the day in fondling, rocking, + hugging, and kissing this artificial infant. When it was placed in the + cradle beside her of an evening, she was quiet all night. There are some + instincts for which appearances suffice, and which can be kept quiet by + fictions. Thus it was that Kermelle’s daughter succeeded in giving + reality to her dreams. Her ideal was a life in common with the man she + loved, and the one which she shared in fancy was not, of course, that of a + priest, but the ordinary domestic life. She was meant for the conjugal + existence, and her insanity was the result of an instinct for housekeeping + being checkmated. She fancied that her aspiration was realized and that + she was keeping house for the man whom she loved; and as she was scarcely + capable of distinguishing between her dreams and the reality she was the + victim of the most incredible aberrations, which prove in the most + effectual way the sacred laws of nature and their inevitable fatality. + </p> + <p> + “She passed her time in hemming and marking linen, which, in her + idea, was for the house where she was to pass her life at the feet of her + adored one. The hallucination went so far that she marked the linen with + the priest’s initials; often with his and her own interlaced. She + plied her needle with a very deft hand, and would work for hours at a + stretch, absorbed in a delicious reverie. So she satisfied her cravings, + and passed through moments of delight which kept her happy for days. + </p> + <p> + “Thus the weeks passed, while she traced the name so dear to her, + and associated it with her own—this alone being a pastime which + consoled her. Her hands were always busy in his service, and the linen + which she had sewn for him seemed to be herself. It would be used and + touched by him, and there was deep joy in the thought. She would be always + deprived of him, it was true, but the impossible must remain the + impossible, and she would have drawn herself as near to him as could be. + For a whole year she fed in fancy upon her pitiful little happiness. + Alone, and with her eyes intent upon her work, she lived in another world, + and believed herself to be his wife in a humble measure. The hours flowed + on slowly like the motion of her needle; her hapless imagination was + relieved. And then she at times indulged in a little hope. Perhaps he + would be touched, even to tears, when he made the discovery, testifying to + her great love. ‘He will see how I love him, and he will understand + how sweet it is to be brought together.’ She would be wrapped for + days at a time in these dreams, which were nearly always followed by a + period of extreme prostration. + </p> + <p> + “In course of time the work was completed, and then came the + question, ‘What should she do with it?’ The idea of compelling + him to accept a service, to be under some sort of obligation to her, took + complete possession of her mind. She determined to steal his gratitude, if + I may so express myself; to compel him by force to feel obliged to her; + and this was the plan she resolved upon. It was devoid of all sense or + reason, but her mind was gone, and she had long since been led away by the + vagaries of her disordered imagination. The festivals of Christmas were + about to be celebrated. After the midnight mass the priest was in the + habit of entertaining the mayor and the notabilities of the village at + supper. His house adjoined the church, and besides the principal door + opening on to the village square, there were two others, one leading into + the vestry and so into the church, and another into the garden and the + fields beyond. Kermelle Manor was about five hundred yards distant, and to + save the nephew—who took lessons from the priest—making a long + round, he had been given a key of this back door. The daughter got + possession of this key while the mass was being celebrated, and entered + the house. The priest’s servant had laid the cloth in advance, so as + to be free to attend mass, and the poor daft girl hurriedly removed the + tablecloth and napkins and hid them in the manor-house. When mass was over + the theft was detected at once, and caused very great surprise, the first + thing noticed being that the linen alone had been taken. The priest was + unwilling to let his guests go away supperless, and while they were + consulting as to what to do, the girl herself arrived, saying, ‘You + will not decline our good offices this time, Monsieur le Curé. You shall + have our linen here in a few minutes.’ Her father expressed himself + in the same sense, and the priest could not but assent, little dreaming of + what a trick had been played upon him by a person who was generally + supposed to be so wanting in intelligence. + </p> + <p> + “This singular robbery was further investigated the next day. There + was no sign of any force having been used to get into the house. The main + door and the one leading into the garden were untouched and locked as + usual. It never occurred to any one that the key intrusted to young + Kermelle could have been used to commit the robbery. It followed, + therefore, that the theft must have been committed by way of the vestry + door. The clerk had been in the church all the time, but his wife had been + in and out. She had been to the fire to get some coals for the censers, + and had attended to two or three other little details; and so suspicion + fell on her. She was a very respectable woman, and it seemed most + improbable that she would be guilty of such an offence, but the + appearances were dead against her. There was no getting away from the + argument that the thief had entered by the vestry door, that she alone + could have gone through this door, and that, as she herself admits, she + did go through it. The far too prevalent idea of those days was that every + offence must be followed by an arrest. This gave a very high idea of the + extraordinary sagacity of justice, of its prompt perspicacity, and of the + rapidity with which it tracked out crime. The unfortunate woman was walked + off between two gendarmes. The effect produced by the gendarmes, with + their burnished arms and imposing cross-belts, when they made their + appearance in a village, was very great. All the spectators were in tears; + the prisoner alone retained her composure, and told them all that she was + convinced her innocence would be made clear. + </p> + <p> + “As a matter of fact, within forty-eight hours it was seen that a + blunder had been committed. Upon the third day, the villagers hardly + ventured to speak to one another on the subject, for they all of them had + the same idea in their heads, though they did not like to give utterance + to it. The idea seemed to them not less absurd than it was self-evident, + viz., that the flax-crusher’s key must have been used for the + robbery. The priest remained within doors so as to avoid having to give + utterance to the suspicion which obtruded itself upon him. He had not as + yet examined very closely the linen which had been sent from the manor in + place of his own. His eyes happened to fall upon the initials, and he was + too surprised to understand the mysterious allusion of the two letters, + being unable to follow the strange hallucinations of an unhappy lunatic. + </p> + <p> + “While he was immersed in melancholy reflection, the flax-crusher + entered the room, with his figure as upright as ever but pale as death. + The old man stood up in front of the priest and burst into tears, + exclaiming: ‘It is my miserable girl. I ought to have kept a closer + watch over her and have found out what her thoughts were about, but with + her constant melancholy she gave me the slip.’ He then revealed the + secret, and within an hour the stolen linen was brought back to the priest’s + house. The delinquent had hoped that the scandal would soon be forgotten, + and that she would revel in peace over the success of her little plot, but + the arrest of the clerk’s wife and the sensation which it caused + spoilt the whole thing. If her moral sense had not been entirely + obliterated, her first thought would have been to get the clerk’s + wife set at liberty, but she paid little or no heed to that. She was + plunged in a kind of stupor which had nothing in common with remorse, and + what so prostrated her was the evident failure of her attempt to move the + feelings of the priest. Most men would have been touched by the revelation + of so ardent a passion, but the priest was unmoved. He banished all + thought of this remarkable event from his mind, and when he was fully + convinced of the imprisoned woman’s innocence he went to sleep, + celebrated mass the next morning, and recited his breviary just as if + nothing had happened. + </p> + <p> + “That a blunder had been committed in arresting this woman then + became painfully evident, as but for this the matter might have been + hushed up. There had been no actual robbery, but after an innocent woman + had been several days in prison on the charge of theft, it was very + difficult to let the real culprit go unpunished. Her insanity was not + self-evident, and it may even be said that there were no outward signs of + it. Up to that time it had never occurred to anyone that she was insane, + for there was nothing singular in her conduct except her extreme + taciturnity. It was easy, therefore, to question her insanity, while the + true explanation of the act was so incredible and so strange that her + friends could not well bring it forward. The fact of having allowed the + clerk’s wife to be arrested was inexcusable. If the taking of the + linen had only been a joke, the perpetrator ought to have brought it to an + end when a third person was made a victim of it. She was arrested and + taken to St. Brieuc for the assizes. Her prostration was so complete that + she seemed to be out of the world. Her dream was over, and the fancy upon + which she had fed and which had sustained her for a time had fled. She was + not in the least violent but so dejected that when the medical men + examined her they at once saw what was the true state of the case. + </p> + <p> + “The case was soon disposed of in court. She would not reply a word + to the examining judge. The flax-crusher came into court erect and + self-possessed as usual, with a look of resignation on his face. He came + up to the bar of the witness-box and deposited upon the ledge his gloves, + his cross of St. Louis, and his scarf. ‘Gentlemen of the jury,’ + he said. ‘I can only put these on again if you tell me to do so; my + honour is in your hands. She is the culprit, but she is not a thief. She + is ill.’ The poor fellow burst into tears, and his utterance was + choked with them. There was a general murmur of ‘Don’t carry + it any further.’ The counsel for the Crown had the tact not to enter + upon a dissertation as to a singular case of amorous physiology and + abandoned the prosecution. + </p> + <p> + “The jury, all of whom were in tears, did not take long to + deliberate. When the verdict of acquittal was recorded the flax-crusher + put on his decorations again and left the court as quickly as possible, + taking his daughter back with him to the village at nightfall. + </p> + <p> + “The scandal was such a public one that the priest could not fail to + learn the truth in respect to many matters which he had endeavoured to + ignore. This, however, did not affect him, and he did not ask the bishop + to remove him to another parish, nor did the bishop suggest any change. It + might be thought that he must have felt some embarrassment the first time + that he met Kermelle and his daughter. But such was not the case. He went + to the manor at an hour when he knew that he would find Kermelle and his + daughter at home, and addressing himself to the latter he said: ‘You + have been guilty of a great sin, not so much by your folly, for which God + will forgive you, but in allowing one of the best of women to be sent to + gaol. An innocent woman has, by your misconduct, been treated for several + days as a thief, and carried off to prison by gendarmes in the sight of + the whole parish. You owe her some sort of reparation. On Sunday, the + clerk’s wife will be seated as usual in the last row, near the + church-door; at the Belief, you will go and fetch her and lead her by the + hand to your seat of honour, which she is better worthy to occupy than you + are.” + </p> + <p> + The poor creature did mechanically what she was bid, and she had ceased to + be a sentient being. From this time forth, little was ever seen of the + flax-crusher and his family. The manor had become, as it were, a tomb, + from which issued no sign of life. + </p> + <p> + The clerk’s wife was the first to die. The emotion had been too much + for this simple soul. She had never doubted the goodness of Providence, + but the whole business had upset her, and she gradually grew weaker. She + was a saintly woman, with the most exquisite sentiment of devotion for the + Church. This would scarcely be understood now in Paris, where the church, + as a building, goes for so little. One Saturday evening, she felt her end + approaching, and her joy was great. She sent for the priest, her mind full + of a long-cherished project, which was that during high mass on Sunday her + body should be laid upon the trestles which are used for the coffins. It + would be joy indeed to hear mass once again, even in death, to listen to + those words of consolation and those hymns of salvation; to be present + there beneath the funeral pall, amid the assembled congregation, the + family which she had so dearly loved, to hear them all, herself unseen, + while all their thoughts and prayers were for her, to hold communion once + again with these pious souls before being laid in the earth. Her prayer + was granted, and the priest pronounced a very edifying discourse over her + grave. + </p> + <p> + “The old man lived on for several years, dying inch by inch, + secluded in his house, and never conversing with the priest. He attended + church, but did not occupy his front seat. He was so strong that his agony + lasted eight or ten years. + </p> + <p> + “His walks were confined to the avenue of tall lime-trees which + skirted the manor. While pacing up and down there one day, he saw + something strange upon the horizon. It was the tricolour flag floating + from the steeple of Tréguier; the Revolution of 1830 had just been + effected. When he learnt that the king was an exile, he saw only too well + that he had been bearing his part in the closing scenes of a world. The + professional duty to which he had sacrificed everything ceased to have any + object. He did not regret having formed too high an idea of duty, and it + never occurred to him that he might have grown rich as others had done; + but he lost faith in all save God. The Carlists of Tréguier went about + declaring that the new order of things would not last, and that the + rightful king would soon return. He only smiled at these foolish + predictions, and died soon afterwards, assisted in his last moments by the + priest, who expounded to him that beautiful passage in the burial service: + ‘Be not like the heathen, who are without hope.’ + </p> + <p> + “After his death his daughter was totally unprovided for, and + arrangements were made for placing her in the hospital where you saw her. + No doubt she, too, is dead ere this, and another sleeps in her bed at the + hospital.” + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0007" id="link2H_4_0007"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PRAYER ON THE ACROPOLIS. + </h2> + <p> + It was not until I was well advanced in life that I began to have any + souvenirs. The imperious necessity which compelled me during my early + years to solve for myself, not with the leisurely deliberation of the + thinker, but with the feverish ardour of one who has to struggle for life, + the loftiest problems of philosophy and religion never left me a quarter + of an hour’s leisure to look behind me. Afterwards dragged into the + current of the century in which I lived, and concerning which I was in + complete ignorance, there was suddenly disclosed to my gaze a spectacle as + novel to me as the society of Saturn or Venus would be to any one landed + in those planets. It struck me as being paltry and morally inferior to + what I had seen at Issy and St. Sulpice; though the great scientific and + critical attainments of men like Eugéne Burnouf, the brilliant + conversation of M. Cousin, and the revival brought about by Germany in + nearly all the historical sciences, coupled with my travels and the fever + of production, carried me away and prevented me from meditating on the + years which were already relegated to what seemed like a distant past. My + residence in Syria tended still further to obliterate my early + recollections. The new sensations which I experienced there, the glimpses + which I caught of a divine world, so different from our frigid and sombre + countries, absorbed my whole being. My dreams were haunted for a time by + the burnt-up mountain-chain of Galaad and the peak of Safed, where the + Messiah was to appear, by Carmel and its beds of anemone sown by God, by + the Gulf of Aphaca whence issues the river Adonis. Strangely enough, it + was at Athens, in 1865, that I first felt a strong backward impulse, the + effect being that of a fresh and bracing breeze coming from afar. + </p> + <p> + The impression which Athens made upon me was the strongest which I have + ever felt. There is one and only one place in which perfection exists, and + that is Athens, which outdid anything I had ever imagined. I had before my + eyes the ideal of beauty crystallised in the marble of Pentelicus. I had + hitherto thought that perfection was not to be found in this world; one + thing alone seemed to come anywhere near to perfection. For some time past + I had ceased to believe in miracles strictly so called, though the + singular destiny of the Jewish people, leading up to Jesus and + Christianity, appeared to me to stand alone. And now suddenly there arose + by the side of the Jewish miracle the Greek miracle, a thing which has + only existed once, which had never been seen before, which will never be + seen again, but the effect of which will last for ever, an eternal type of + beauty, without a single blemish, local or national. I of course knew + before I went there that Greece had created science, art, and philosophy, + but the means of measurement were wanting. The sight of the Acropolis was + like a revelation of the Divine, such as that which I experienced when, + gazing down upon the valley of the Jordan from the heights of Casyoun, I + first felt the living reality of the Gospel. The whole world then appeared + to me barbarian. The East repelled me by its pomp, its ostentation, and + its impostures. The Romans were merely rough soldiers; the majesty of the + noblest Roman of them all, of an Augustus and a Trajan, was but + attitudinising compared to the ease and simple nobility of these proud and + peaceful citizens. Celts, Germans, and Slavs appeared as conscientious but + scarcely civilised Scythians. Our own Middle Ages seemed to me devoid of + elegance and style, disfigured by misplaced pride and pedantry, + Charlemagne was nothing more than an awkward German stableman; our + chevaliers louts at whom Themistocles and Alcibiades would have laughed. + But here you had a whole people of aristocrats, a general public composed + entirely of connoisseurs, a democracy which was capable of distinguishing + shades of art so delicate that even our most refined judges can scarcely + appreciate them. Here you had a public capable of understanding in what + consisted the beauty of the Propylon and the superiority of the sculptures + of the Parthenon. This revelation of true and simple grandeur went to my + very soul. All that I had hitherto seen seemed to me the awkward effort of + a Jesuitical art, a rococo mixture of silly pomp, charlatanism, and + caricature. + </p> + <p> + These sentiments were stronger as I stood on the Acropolis than anywhere + else. An excellent architect with whom I had travelled would often remark + that to his mind the truth of the gods was in proportion to the solid + beauty of the temples reared in their honour. Judged by this standard, + Athens would have no rival. What adds so much to the beauty of the + buildings is their absolute honesty and the respect shown to the Divinity. + The parts of the building not seen by the public are as well constructed + as those which meet the eye; and there are none of those deceptions which, + in French churches more particularly, give the idea of being intended to + mislead the Divinity as to the value of the offering. The aspect of + rectitude and seriousness which I had before me caused me to blush at the + thought of having often done sacrifice to a less pure ideal. The hours + which I passed on the sacred eminence were hours of prayer. My whole life + unfolded itself, as in a general confession, before my eyes. But the most + singular thing was that in confessing my sins I got to like them, and my + resolve to become classical eventually drove me into just the opposite + direction. An old document which I have lighted upon among my memoranda of + travel contains the following:— + </p> + <p> + <i>Prayer which I said on the Acropolis when I had succeeded in + understanding the perfect beauty of it</i>. + </p> + <p> + “Oh! nobility! Oh! true and simple beauty! Goddess, the worship of + whom signifies reason and wisdom, thou whose temple is an eternal lesson + of conscience and truth, I come late to the threshold of thy mysteries; I + bring to the foot of thy altar much remorse. Ere finding thee, I have had + to make infinite search. The initiation which thou didst confer by a smile + upon the Athenian at his birth I have acquired by force of reflection and + long labour. + </p> + <p> + “I am born, O goddess of the blue eyes, of barbarian parents, among + the good and virtuous Cimmerians who dwell by the shore of a melancholy + sea, bristling with rocks ever lashed by the storm. The sun is scarcely + known in this country, its flowers are seaweed, marine plants, and the + coloured shells which are gathered in the recesses of lonely bays. The + clouds seem colourless, and even joy is rather sorrowful there; but + fountains of fresh water spring out of the rocks, and the eyes of the + young girls are like the green fountains in which, with their beds of + waving herbs, the sky is mirrored. + </p> + <p> + “My forefathers, as far as we can trace them, have passed their + lives in navigating the distant seas, which thy Argonauts knew not, I used + to hear as a child the songs which told of voyages to the Pole; I was + cradled amid the souvenir of floating ice, of misty seas like milk, of + islands peopled with birds which now and again would warble, and which, + when they rose in flight, darkened the air. + </p> + <p> + “Priests of a strange creed, handed down from the Syrians of + Palestine, brought me up. These priests were wise and good. They taught me + long lessons of Cronos, who created the world, and of his son, who, as + they told me, made a journey upon earth. Their temples are thrice as lofty + as thine, O Eurhythmia, and dense like forests. But they are not enduring, + and crumble to pieces at the end of five or six hundred years. They are + the fantastic creation of barbarians, who vainly imagine that they can + succeed without observing the rules which thou hast laid down, O Reason! + Yet these temples pleased me, for I had not then studied thy divine art + and God was present to me in them. Hymns were sung there, and among those + which I can remember were: ‘Hail, star of the sea.... Queen of those + who mourn in this valley of tears ...’ or again, ‘Mystical + rose, tower of ivory, house of gold, star of the morning....’ Yes, + Goddess, when I recall these hymns of praise my heart melts, and I become + almost an apostate. Forgive me this absurdity; thou canst not imagine the + charm which these barbarians have imparted to verse, and how hard it is to + follow the path of pure reason. + </p> + <p> + “And if thou knewest how difficult it has become to serve thee. All + nobility has disappeared. The Scythians have conquered the world. There is + no longer a Republic of free citizens; the world is governed by kings + whose blood scarcely courses in their veins, and at whose majesty thou + wouldst smile. Heavy hyperboreans denounce thy servants as frivolous.... A + formidable <i>Panbaeotia</i>, a league of fools, weighs down upon the + world with a pall of lead. Thou must fain despise even those who pay thee + worship. Dost thou remember the Caledonian who half a century ago broke up + thy temple with a hammer to carry it away with him to Thulé? He is no + worse than the rest.... I wrote in accordance with some of the rules which + thou lovest, O Théonoé, the life of the young god whom I served in my + childhood, and for this they beat me like a Euhemerus and wonder what my + motives can be, believing only in those things which enrich their + trapezite tables. And why do we write the lives of the gods if it is not + to make the reader love what is divine in them, and to show that this + divine past yet lives and will ever live in the heart of humanity? + </p> + <p> + “Dost thou remember the day when, Dionysodorus being archon, an ugly + little Jew, speaking the Greek of the Syrians, came hither, passed beneath + thy porch without understanding thee, misread thy inscriptions, and + imagined that he had discovered within thy walls an altar dedicated to + what he called the Unknown God? Well, this little Jew was believed; for a + thousand years thou hast been treated as an idol, O Truth! for a thousand + years the world has been a desert in which no flower bloomed. And all this + time thou wert silent, O Salpinx, clarion of thought. Goddess of order, + image of celestial stability, those who loved thee were regarded, as + culprits, and now, when by force of conscientious labour we have succeeded + in drawing near to thee, we are accused of committing a crime against + human intelligence because we have burst the chains which Plato knew not. + </p> + <p> + “Thou alone art young, O Cora; thou alone art pure, O Virgin; thou + alone art healthy, O Hygeia; thou alone art strong, O Victory! Thou + keepest the cities, O Promachos; thou hast the blood of Mars in thee, O + Area; peace is thy aim, O Pacifica! O Legislatress, source of just + constitutions; O Democracy<a href="#linknote-5" name="linknoteref-5" + id="linknoteref-5"><small>5</small></a> thou whose fundamental dogma it is + that all good things come from the people, and that where there is no + people to fertilise and inspire genius there can be none, teach us to + extricate the diamond from among the impure multitudes! Providence of + Jupiter, divine worker, mother of all industry, protectress of labour, O + Ergane, thou who ennoblest the labour of the civilised worker and placest + him so far above the slothful Scythian; Wisdom, thou whom Jupiter begot + with a breath; thou who dwellest within thy father, a part of his very + essence; thou who art his companion and his conscience; Energy of Zeus, + spark which kindles and keeps aflame the fire in heroes and men of genius, + make us perfect spiritualists! On the day when the Athenians and the men + of Rhodes fought for the sacrifice, thou didst choose to dwell among the + Athenians as being the wisest. But thy father caused Plutus to descend in + a shower of gold upon the city of the Rhodians because they had done + homage to his daughter. The men of Rhodes were rich, but the Athenians had + wit, that is to say, the true joy, the ever-enduring good humour, the + divine youth of the heart. + </p> + <p> + “The only way of salvation for the world is by returning to thy + allegiance, by repudiating its barbarian ties. Let us hasten into thy + courts. Glorious will be the day when all the cities which have stolen the + fragments of thy temple, Venice, Paris, London, and Copenhagen, shall make + good their larceny, form holy alliances to bring these fragments back, + saying: ‘Pardon us, O Goddess, it was done to save them from the + evil genii of the night,’ and rebuild thy walls to the sound of the + flute, thus expiating the crime of Lysander the infamous! Thence they + shall go to Sparta and curse the site where stood that city, mistress of + sombre errors, and insult her because she is no more. Firm in my faith, I + shall have force to withstand my evil counsellors, my scepticism, which + leads me to doubt of the people, my restless spirit which, after truth has + been brought to light, impels me to go on searching for it, and my fancy + which cannot be still even when Reason has pronounced her judgment. O + Archegetes, ideal which the man of genius embodies in his masterpieces, I + would rather be last in thy house than first in any other. Yes, I will + cling to the stylobate of thy temple, I will be a stylites on thy columns, + my cell shall be upon thy architrave and, what is more difficult still, + for thy sake I will endeavour to be intolerant and prejudiced. I will love + thee alone. I will learn thy tongue, and unlearn all others. I will be + unjust for all that concerns not thee; I will be the servant of the least + of thy children. I will exalt and natter the present inhabitants of the + earth which thou gavest to Erechthea. I will endeavour to like their very + defects; I will endeavour to persuade myself, O Hippia, that they are + descendants of the horsemen who, aloft upon the marble of thy frieze + celebrate without ceasing their glad festival. I will pluck out of my + heart every fibre which is not reason and pure art. I will try to love my + bodily ills, to find delight in the flush of fever. Help me! Further my + resolutions, O Salutaris! Help, thou who savest! + </p> + <p> + “Great are the difficulties which I foresee. Inveterate the habits + of mind which I shall have to change. Many the delightful recollections + which I shall have to pluck out of my heart. I will try, but I am not very + confident of my power. Late in life have I known thee, O perfect Beauty. I + shall be beset with hesitations and temptation to fall away. A philosophy, + perverse no doubt in its teachings, has led me to believe that good and + evil, pleasure and pain, the beautiful and the ungainly, reason and folly, + fade into one another by shades as impalpable as those in a dove’s + neck. To feel neither absolute love nor absolute hate becomes therefore + wisdom. If any one society, philosophy, or religion, had possessed + absolute truth, this society, philosophy, or religion, would have + vanquished all the others and would be the only one now extant. All those + who have hitherto believed themselves to be right were in error, as we see + very clearly. Can we without utter presumption believe that the future + will not judge us as we have judged the past? Such are the blasphemous + ideas suggested to me by my corrupt mind. A literature wholesome in all + respects like thine would now be looked upon as wearisome. + </p> + <p> + “Thou smilest at my simplicity. Yes, weariness. We are corrupt; what + is to be done? I will go further, O orthodox Goddess, and confide to you + the inmost depravation of my heart. Reason and common sense are not + all-satisfying. There is poetry in the frozen Strymon and in the + intoxication of the Thracian. The time will come when thy disciples will + be regarded as the disciples of <i>ennui</i>. The world is greater than + thou dost suppose. If thou hadst seen the Polar snows and the mysteries of + the austral firmament thy forehead, O Goddess, ever so calm, would be less + serene; thy head would be larger and would embrace more varied kinds of + beauty. + </p> + <p> + “Thou art true, pure, perfect; thy marble is spotless; but the + temple of Hagia-Sophia, which is at Byzantium, also produces a divine + effect with its bricks and its plaster-work. It is the image of the vault + of heaven. It will crumble, but if thy chapel had to be large enough to + hold a large number of worshippers it would crumble also. + </p> + <p> + “A vast stream called Oblivion hurries us downward towards a + nameless abyss. Thou art the only true God, O Abyss! the tears of all + nations are true tears; the dreams of all wise men comprise a parcel of + truth; all things here below are mere symbols and dreams. The Gods pass + away like men; and it would not be well for them to be eternal. The faith + which we have felt should never be a chain, and our obligations to it are + fully discharged when we have carefully enveloped it in the purple shroud + within the folds of which slumber the Gods that are dead.” + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0008" id="link2H_4_0008"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + ST. RENAN. + </h2> + <p> + When I come to look at things very closely, I see that I have changed very + little; my destiny had practically welded me, from my earliest youth, to + the place which I was to hold in the world. My vocation was thoroughly + matured when I came to Paris; before leaving Brittany my life had been + mapped out. By the mere force of things, and despite my conscientious + efforts to the contrary, I was predestined to become what I am, a member + of the romantic school, protesting against romanticism, a Utopian + inculcating the doctrine of half-measures, an idealist unsuccessfully + attempting to pass muster for a Philistine, a tissue of contradictions, + resembling the double-natured <i>hircocerf</i> of scholasticism. One of my + two halves must have been busy demolishing the other half, like the fabled + beast of Ctesias which unwittingly devoured its own paws. As was well said + by that keen observer, Challemel-Lacour: “He thinks like a man, + feels like a woman, and acts like a child.” I have no reason to + complain of such being the case, as this moral constitution has procured + for me the keenest intellectual joys which man can taste. + </p> + <p> + My race, my family, my native place, and the peculiar circle in which I + was brought up, by diverting me from all material pursuits, and by + rendering me unfit for anything except the treatment of things of the + mind, had made of me an idealist, shut out from everything else. The + application of my intellect might have been a different one, but the + principle would have remained the same. The true sign of a vocation is the + impossibility of getting away from it: that is to say, of succeeding in + anything except that for which one was created. The man who has a vocation + mechanically sacrifices everything to his dominant task. External + circumstances might, as so often happens, have checked the cause of my + life and prevented me from following my natural bent, but my utter + incapability of succeeding in anything else would have been the protest of + baffled duty, and Predestination would in one way have been triumphant by + proving the subject of the experiment to be powerless outside the kind of + labour for which she had selected him. I should have succeeded in any + variety of intellectual application; I should have failed miserably in any + calling which involved the pursuit of material interests. + </p> + <p> + The characteristic feature of all degrees of the Breton race is its + idealism—the endeavour to attain a moral and intellectual aim, which + is often erroneous but always disinterested. There never was a race of men + less suited for industry and trade. They can be got to do anything by + putting them upon their honour; but material gain is deemed unworthy of a + man of spirit, the noblest occupations being those which bring no profit, + as of the soldier, the sailor, the priest, the true gentleman who derives + from his land no more than the amount sanctioned by long tradition, the + magistrate and the thinker. These ideas are based upon the theory, an + incorrect one perhaps, that wealth is only to be acquired by taking + advantage of others, and grinding down the poor. The outcome of these + views is that the man of wealth is not thought nearly so much of as he who + devotes himself to the public welfare, or who represents the views of the + district. The people have no patience with the idea, very prevalent among + self-made men, that their accumulation of wealth confers a benefit upon + the community. When in former times they were told that “the king + sets great value upon the Bretons,” they were content, and in his + abundance they felt themselves rich. Being convinced that money gained + must be taken from some one else, they despised greed. A like idea of + political economy is very old-fashioned, but human opinion will perhaps + come back to it some day. In the meanwhile, let me claim immunity for + these few survivors of another world, in which this harmless error has + kept alive the tradition of self-sacrifice. Do not improve their worldly + lot, for they would be none the happier; do not add to their wealth, for + they would be less unselfish; do not drive them into the primary schools, + for they would perhaps lose some of their good qualities without acquiring + those which culture bestows; but do not despise them. Contempt is the one + thing which tells upon those of simple nature; it either shakes their + faith in what is right or makes them doubt whether the better classes are + good judges upon this point. + </p> + <p> + This disposition, for which I can find no better name than moral + romanticism, was inherent in me from my birth, and in some measure by + descent. I had, so Code, the old sorceress, often told me, been touched by + some fairy’s wand before my birth. I came into the world before my + time, and was so weak for two months that they did not think I should + live. Code informed my mother that she had an infallible way of + ascertaining my fate. She went one morning with one of the little shifts + which I wore to the sacred lake, and returned in high glee, exclaiming: + “He means to live! No sooner had I thrown the little shift on to the + surface than it lifted itself up.” In later years she used often to + say to me with much animation of feature: “Ah! if you had seen how + the two arms stretched themselves out.” The fairies were attached to + me from my childhood, and I was very fond of them. You must not laugh at + us Celts. We shall never build a Parthenon, for we have not the marble; + but we are skilled in reading the heart and soul; we have a secret of our + own for inserting the probe; we bury our hands in the entrails of a man, + and, like the witches in <i>Macbeth</i>, withdraw them full of the secrets + of infinity. The great secret of our art is that we can make our very + failing appear attractive. The Breton race has in its heart an everlasting + source of folly. The “fairy kingdom,” which is the most + beautiful on earth, is its true domain. The Breton race alone can comply + with the strange conditions exacted by the fairy Gloriande from all who + seek to enter her realm; the horn which will give no sound except when + touched by lips that are pure, the magic cup which is filled only for the + faithful lover, are our special appurtenances. + </p> + <p> + Religion is the form behind which the Celtic races disguise their love of + the ideal, but it would be a mistake to imagine that religion is to them a + tie or a servitude. No race has a greater independence of sentiment in + religion. It was not until the twelfth century, and owing to the support + which the Normans of France gave to the See of Rome, that Breton + Christianity was unmistakably brought into the current of Catholicism. It + would have taken very little for the Bretons of France to have become + Protestant like their brethren the Welsh in England. In the seventeenth + century French Brittany was completely permeated by Jesuitical customs and + by the modes of piety common to the rest of the world. Up to that time the + religion of the country had had features of its own, its special + characteristic being the worship of saints. Among the many peculiarities + for which Brittany is noteworthy, its local hagiography is assuredly the + most remarkable. Going through the country on foot there is one thing + which immediately strikes the observer. The parish churches, in which the + Sunday services are held, do not differ in the main from those of other + countries. But in country districts it is no uncommon thing to find as + many as ten or fifteen chapels in a single parish, most of them little + huts with a single door and window, and dedicated to some saint unknown to + the rest of Christendom. These local saints, who are to be counted by the + hundred, all date from the fifth or the sixth century; that is to say from + the period of the emigration. Most of them are persons who have really + existed, but who have been wrapped by tradition in a very brilliant + network of fable. These fables, which are of the most primitive + simplicity, and form a complete treasure of Celtic mythology and popular + fancies, have never been reduced to writing in their entirety. The + instructive compilations made by the Benedictines and the Jesuits, even + the candid and curious work of Albert Legrand, a Dominican of Morlaix, + reproduce but a very small fraction of them. So far from encouraging these + antique forms of popular worship, the clergy only just tolerate them, and + would suppress them altogether if they could, feeling that they are the + survivals of another and a much less orthodox age. They consent to say + mass once a year in these chapels, as the saints to whom they are + dedicated have too great a hold in the country to be dislodged, but they + say nothing about them in the parish church. The clergy let the people + visit these little sanctuaries of the antique rite, to seek in them the + cure for certain complaints, and to worship there after their own way; + they pretend to be blind to all this. Where, then, it may be asked, lies + concealed the treasure of all these old stories? Why, in the memory of the + people? Go from chapel to chapel, get the good people who attend them into + conversation, and if they think they can trust you they will tell you with + a mixture of seriousness and pleasantry wonderful stories, from which + comparative mythology and history will one day reap a rich harvest.<a + href="#linknote-6" name="linknoteref-6" id="linknoteref-6"><small>6</small></a> + </p> + <p> + These stories had from the first a very great influence upon my + imagination. The chapels which I have spoken of are always solitary, and + stand by themselves amid the desolate moors or barren rocks. The wind + whistling amid the heather and the stunted vegetation thrilled me with + terror, and I often used to take to my heels, thinking that the spirits of + the past were pursuing me. At other times I would look through the half + ruined door of the chapel at the stained glass or the statuettes of + painted wood which stood on the altar. These plunged me in endless + reveries. The strange and terrible physiognomy of these saints, more Druid + than Christian, savage and vindictive, pursued me like a nightmare. Saints + though they were, they were none the less subject to very strange + weaknesses. Gregory, of Tours, has told us the story of a certain Winnoch, + who passed through Tours on his way to Jerusalem, his only covering being + some sheep skins with their wool taken off. He seemed so pious that they + kept him there and made a priest of him. He made wild herbs his sole food, + and raised the wine flagon to his lips in such a way that it seemed as if + he scarcely moistened his lips. But as the liberality of the devout + provided him with large quantities of it he got into the habit of + drinking, and was several times observed to be overcome by his potations. + The devil gained such a hold over him that, armed with knives, sticks, + stones, and whatever else he could get hold of, he ran after the people in + the streets. It was found necessary to chain him up in his cell. None the + less was he a saint. St. Cadoc, St. Iltud, St. Conery, St. Renan (or + Ronan), appeared to me as giants. In after years, when I had come to know + India, I saw that my saints were true <i>Richis</i>, and that through them + I had became familiarised with the most primitive features of our Aryan + world, with the idea of solitary masters of nature, asserting their power + over it by asceticism and the force of the will. + </p> + <p> + The last of the saints whom I have mentioned naturally attracted my + attention more than any of the others, as his name was the same as that by + which I was known.<a href="#linknote-7" name="linknoteref-7" + id="linknoteref-7"><small>7</small></a> There is not a more original + figure among all the saints of Brittany. The story of his life has been + told to me two or three times, and each time with more extraordinary + details. He lived in Cornwall, near the little town which bears his name + (St. Renan). He was more a spirit of the earth than a saint, and his power + over the elements was illimitable. He was of a violent and rather erratic + temperament, and there was no telling beforehand as to what he would do. + He was much respected, but his stubborn resolve to take in all things his + own course caused him to be regarded with no little fear, and when he was + found one day lying dead on the floor of his hut there was a feeling of + consternation in the country. The first person who, when looking in at the + window as he went by, saw him in this position, took to his heels. He had + been so self-willed and peculiar in his lifetime that no one ventured to + guess as to how he might wish to have his body disposed of. It was feared + that if his wishes were incorrectly interpreted, he would punish them by + sending the plague, or having the town swallowed up by an earthquake, or + by converting the country around into a marsh. Nor would it be wise to + take his body to the parish church, as he had sometimes shown an aversion + to it. + </p> + <p> + He might, perhaps, create a scandal. All the principal inhabitants were + assembled in the cell, with his stark black corpse in their midst, when + one of them made the following sensible suggestion: “We never could + understand him when he was alive; it was easier to trace the flight of the + swallow than to guess at his thoughts. Now that he is dead, let him still + follow his own fancy. We will cut down a few trees, make a waggon of them + and harness four oxen to it. Then he can let them take him to the place + where he wishes to be buried.” This was done, and the body of the + saint deposited on the vehicle. The oxen, guided by the invisible hand of + Ronan, went in a straight line into the thick of the forest, the trees + bent or broke beneath their steps with an awful crackling sound. The + waggon stopped in the centre of the forest, just where the largest of the + oaks reared their head. The hint was taken and the saint was buried there + and a church erected to his memory. + </p> + <p> + Tales of this kind inspired me early in life with a love of mythology. The + simplicity of spirit with which they were accepted carried one back to the + early ages of the world. Take for instance the way in which, as I was + taught to believe, my father was cured of fever when a child. Before + daybreak he was taken to the chapel of the saint who exercised the healing + power. A blacksmith arrived at the same time with his forge, nails, and + tongs. He lighted his fire, made his tongs red hot, and held them before + the face of the saint, threatening to shoe him as he would a horse unless + he cured the child of his fever. The threat took immediate effect, and my + father was cured. Wood-carving has long been in great favour in Brittany. + The statues of these saints are extraordinarily life-like, and in the eyes + of people of vivid imagination they may well seem to be actually alive. I + remember in particular one good man, who was not more daft than the rest, + who always made off to the churches in the evening when he got the chance. + The next morning, he was invariably found in the building, half dead with + fatigue. He had spent the whole night in detaching the figures of Christ + from the crosses and drawing the arrows out of the bodies of St. + Sebastian. + </p> + <p> + My mother, who was a Gascon on one side (her father was a native of + Bordeaux), told these anecdotes with much wit and tact, passing deftly + between what was real and what was fanciful, so as to leave the impression + that these things were only true from an ideal point of view. She clung to + these fables as a Breton; as a Gascon she was inclined to laugh at them, + and this was the secret of the sprightliness and gaiety of her life. This + state of things has been the means of giving me what little talent I may + have for historical studies. I have derived from it a kind of habit of + looking below the surface and hearing sounds which other ears do not + catch. The essence of criticism is to be able to realise conditions + different from those under which we are now living. I have been in actual + contact with the primitive ages. The most remote past was still in + existence in Brittany up to 1830. The world of the fourteenth and + fifteenth centuries passed daily before the eyes of those who lived in the + towns. The epoch of the Welsh emigration (the fifth and the sixth + centuries) was plainly visible in the country to the practised eye. + Paganism was still to be detected beneath a layer, often so thin as to be + transparent, of Christianity, and with the former were mixed up traces of + a still more ancient world which I afterwards came upon again among the + Laplanders. When visiting in 1870, with Prince Napoleon, the huts of a + Laplander encampment near Tromsoe, I felt some of my earliest + recollections live again in the features of several women and children and + in certain customs and traits of character. It occurred to me that in + ancient times there might have been admixtures between the lost branches + of the Celtic race and races like the Laplanders which covered the soil + upon their arrival. My ethnical position would in this case be: “A + Celt crossed with Gascon with a slight infusion of Laplander blood.” + Such a condition of things ought, if I am not mistaken, according to the + theories of the anthropologists, to represent the maximum of idiocy and + imbecility; but the decrees of anthropology are only relative: what it + treats as stupidity among the ancient races of men is often neither more + nor less than an extraordinary force of enthusiasm and intuition. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0009" id="link2H_4_0009"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + MY UNCLE PIERRE. + </h2> + <p> + Everything, therefore, predisposed me towards romanticism, not in form, + for I was not long in understanding that this is a mistake, that though + there may be two modes of feeling and thinking there can be but one form + of expressing these feelings and thoughts—but towards romanticism of + the mind and imagination, towards the pure ideal. I was an offshoot from + the old idealist race of the most genuine growth. There is in the district + of Goëlo or of Avangour, on the Trieux, a place called the Lédano, because + it is there that the Trieux opens out and forms a lagoon before running + into the sea. Upon the shore of the Lédano there is a large farm called + Keranbélec or Meskanbélec. This was the head quarters of the Renans, who + came there from Cardigan about the year 480, under the leadership of + Fragan. They led there for thirteen hundred years an obscure existence, + storing up sensations and thoughts the capital of which has devolved upon + me I can feel that I think for them and that they live again in me. Not + one of them attempted to hoard, and the consequence was that they all + remained poor. My absolute inability to be resentful or to appear so is + inherited from them. The only two kinds of occupation which they knew + anything of were to till the land or to steer a boat on the estuaries and + archipelagos of rocks which the Trieux forms at its mouth. A short time + previous to the Revolution, three of them rigged out a bark, and settled + at Lézardrieux. They lived together on the bark, which was for the best + part of her time laid up in a creek of the Lédano, and they sailed her + when the fit took them. They could not be classed as bourgeois, for they + were not jealous of the nobles: they were well-to-do sailors, independent + of every one. My grandfather, one of the three, took another step towards + town life; he came to live at Tréguier. When the Revolution broke out, he + showed himself to be a sincere but honourable patriot. He had some little + money, but, unlike all others in the same position as himself, he would + not buy any of the national property, holding that this property had been + ill-gotten. He did not think it honourable to make large profits without + labour. The events of 1814-15 drove him half mad. + </p> + <p> + Hegel had not as yet discovered that might implies right, and in any event + he would have found it difficult to believe that France had been + victorious at Waterloo. The privilege of these charming theories, of which + by the way I have had rather too much, were reserved for me. On the + evening of March 19th, 1815, he came to see my mother and told her to get + up early the next morning and look at the tower. And surely enough he and + several other patriots had during the night, upon the refusal of the clerk + to give them the keys, clambered up the outside of the steeple at the risk + of breaking their necks a dozen times over and hoisted the national flag. + A few months later, when the opposite cause was triumphant, he literally + lost his senses. He would go about in the street with an enormous + tricolour cockade, exclaiming: “I should like to see any one come + and take this away from me,” and as he was a general favourite + people used to answer: “Why, no one, Captain.” My father + shared the same sentiments. Taken by the English while serving under + Admiral Villaret-Joyeuse, he passed several years on the pontoons. His + great delight was to go each year, when the conscription was drawn, and + humiliate the recruits by relating his experiences as a volunteer. + Regarding with contempt those who were drawing lots, he would add: “We + used not to act in this way,” and he would shrug his shoulders over + the degeneracy of the age. + </p> + <p> + It is from what I have seen of these excellent sailors, and from what I + have read and heard about the peasants of Lithuania, and even of Poland, + that I have derived my ideas as to the innate goodness of our races when + they are organised after the type of the primitive clan. It is impossible + to give an idea of how much goodness and even politeness and gentle + manners there is in these ancient Celts. I saw the last traces of it some + thirty years ago in the beautiful little island of Bréhat, with its + patriarchal ways which carried one back to the time of the Pheacians. The + unselfishness and the practical incapacity of these good people were + beyond conception. One proof of their nobility was that whenever they + attempted to engage in any commercial business they were defrauded. Never + in the world’s history did people ruin themselves with a lighter or + more careless heart, keeping up a running fire of paradox and quips. Never + in the world were the laws of common sense and sound economy more joyously + trodden under foot. I asked my mother, towards the close of her life, + whether it was really the case that all the members of our family whom she + had known were upon as bad terms with fortune as those whom I could + remember. + </p> + <p> + “All as poor as Job,” she answered me. “How could it be + different? None of them were born rich, and none of them pillaged their + neighbours. In those days the only rich people were the clergy and the + nobles. There is, however, one exception, I mean A——, who + became a millionaire. Oh! he is a very respectable person, very nearly a + member of parliament, and quite likely to become one.” + </p> + <p> + “How did A—— contrive to make such a large fortune while + all his neighbours remained poor?” + </p> + <p> + “I cannot tell you that.... There are some people who are born to be + rich, while there are others who never would be so. The former have claws, + and do not scruple to help themselves first. That is just what we have + never been able to do. When it comes to taking the best piece out of the + dish which is handed round our natural politeness stands in our way. None + of your ancestors could make money. They took nothing from the general + mass, and would not impoverish their neighbours. Your grandfather would + not buy any of the national property, as others did. Your father was like + all other sailors, and the proof that he was born to be a sailor and to + fight was that he had no head for business. When you were born we were in + such a bad way that I took you on my knees and cried bitterly. You see + that sailors are not like the rest of the world. I have known many who + entered upon a term of service with a good round sum of money in their + possession. They would heat the silver pieces in a frying-pan and throw + them into the street, splitting their sides with laughter at the crowd + which scrambled for them. This was meant to show that it was not for + mercenary motives that they were ready to risk their lives, and that + honour and duty cannot be posted in a ledger. And then there was your poor + uncle Peter. I cannot tell you what trouble he used to give me.” + </p> + <p> + “Tell me about him,” I said, “for somehow or other I + like him very much.” + </p> + <p> + “You saw him once; he met us near the bridge, and he lifted his hat + to you, but you were too much respected in the neighbourhood for him to + venture to speak to you, though I did not like to tell you so. He was one + of the best-natured creatures in existence, but he could never be got to + apply himself to work. He was always lounging about, passing the best part + of the day and night in taverns. He was honest and good-hearted withal, + but there was no getting him to follow any trade. You have no idea how + agreeable he was until the life he led had exhausted him. He was a + universal favourite, and with his inexhaustible stock of tales, proverbs, + and funny stories, he was welcome everywhere. He was very well read, too, + and by no means devoid of learning. He was the oracle of the taverns, and + was the life and soul of any party at which he might be present. He + effected a regular literary revolution. Heretofore the only books which + people cared for were the <i>Quatre Fils d’Aymon</i> and <i>Renaud + de Montauban</i>. All these ancient characters were familiar to us, and + each of us had his or her favourite hero, but Peter taught us more modern + tales which he took from books, but which he remodelled to suit the local + taste. + </p> + <p> + “We had at that time a pretty good library. When the mission fathers + came to Tréguier, during the reign of Charles X., the preacher delivered + such an eloquent sermon against dangerous books that we all of us burnt + any such volumes as we had. The missionary had told us that it was better + to burn too many than too few, and that, for the matter of that, all books + might under certain conditions be dangerous. I did like the rest of the + people, but your father put several upon the top of the large wardrobe, + saying that they were too handsome to be burnt; they were <i>Don Quixotte, + Gil Bias</i>, and the <i>Diable Boiteux</i>. Peter found them there, and + would read them to the common people and to the men employed in the port. + And so the whole of our library disappeared. In this way he spent the + modest little fortune which he possessed, and became a regular vagabond, + though in spite of this he remained kind and generous, incapable of + harming a worm.” + </p> + <p> + “But,” I rejoined, “why did not his friends send him to + sea? that would have made him more regular in his ways.” + </p> + <p> + “That could never have been, for he was so popular that all his + friends would have run after him and fetched him back. You have no idea + how full of fun he was. Poor Peter! with all his faults I could not help + liking him, for he was charming at times. He could set you off into a fit + of laughter with a word. He had a knack of his own for springing a joke + upon you in the most unexpected way. I shall never forget the evening when + they came to tell me that he had been found dead on the road to Langoat. I + went and had him properly laid out. He was buried, and the priest spoke in + consoling terms about the death of these poor waifs whose heart is not + always so far from God as some people may imagine.” + </p> + <p> + Poor Uncle Pierre! I have often thought of him. This tardy esteem will be + his sole recompense. The metaphysical paradise would be no place for him. + His lively imagination, his high spirits, and his keen sense of enjoyment + constituted him for a distinct individualism in his own sphere. My father’s + character was just the opposite, for he was inclined to be sentimental and + melancholy. It was when he was advanced in years and upon his return from + a long voyage that he gave me birth. In the early dawn of my existence I + felt, the cold sea mist, shivered under the cutting morning blast and + passed my bitter and gloomy watch on the quarter-deck. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0010" id="link2H_4_0010"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + GOOD MASTER SYSTÈME. + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0011" id="link2H_4_0011"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART I. + </h2> + <p> + I was related on my maternal grandmother’s side to a much more prim + class of people. My grandmother was a very good specimen of the + middle-classes of former days. She had been excessively pretty. I can + remember her towards the close of her life, and she was always dressed in + the fashion which prevailed at the time of her being left a widow. She was + very particular about her class, never altered her head-dress, and would + not allow herself to be addressed except as “Mademoiselle.” + The ladies of noble birth had a great respect for her. When they met my + sister Henrietta they used to kiss her and say, “My dear, your + grandmother was a very respectable person, we were very fond of her. Try + to be like her.” And as it happened my sister did like her very much + and took her as a pattern, but my mother, always laughing and full of wit, + differed from her very much. Mother and daughter were in all respects a + marked contrast. + </p> + <p> + The worthy burghers of Lannion and their families were models of + simplicity, honour, and respectability. Several of my aunts never married, + but they were very light-spirited and cheerful, thanks to the innocence of + their hearts. Families dwelt together in unity, animated by the same + simple faith. My aunts’ sole amusement on Sundays after mass was to + send a feather up into the air, each blowing at it in turn to prevent it + from falling to the ground. This afforded them amusement enough to last + until the following Sunday. The piety of my grandmother, her urbanity, her + regard for the established order of things are graven in my heart as the + best pictures of that old-fashioned society based upon God and the king—two + props for which it may not be easy to find substitutes. + </p> + <p> + When the Revolution broke out my grandmother was horror-struck, and she + took the lead with so many other pious persons in hiding the priests who + had refused to take the oath of fidelity to the Constitution. Mass was + celebrated in her drawing-room, and as the ladies of the nobility had + emigrated she thought it her duty to take their place. Most of my uncles, + on the other hand were ardent patriots. When any public misfortune + occurred, such, for instance, as the treason of Dumouriez, my uncles + allowed their beards to grow and went about with long faces, flowing + cravats, and untidy garments. My grandmother would at these times indulge + in delicate but rather risky satire. “My dear Tanneguy, what is the + matter with you? Has any trouble befallen us? Has anything happened to + Cousin Amélie? Is my Aunt Augustine’s asthma worse?”—“No, + cousin, the Republic is in danger.”—“Oh, is that all, my + dear Tanneguy? I am so glad to hear you say so. You quite relieve me.” + Thus she sported for two years with the guillotine, and it is a wonder + that she escaped it. A lady named Taupin, pious like herself, was + associated with her in these good works. The priests were sheltered by + turns in her house and in that of Madame Taupin. My uncle Y——, + a very sturdy Revolutionist, but a good-hearted man at bottom, often said + to her: “My cousin, if it came to my knowledge that there were + priests or aristocrats concealed in your house, I should be obliged to + denounce you.” She always used to reply that her only acquaintances + were true friends of the Republic and no mistake about it. + </p> + <p> + So it was that Madame Taupin was the one to be guillotined. My mother + never related this incident to me without being very deeply moved. She + showed me when I was a child the spot where the tragedy was enacted. Upon + the day of the execution, my grandmother went, with all her family, out of + Lannion, so as not to participate in the crime which was about to be + committed. She went before daybreak to a chapel, situated rather more than + a mile from the town in a retired spot and dedicated to St. Roch. Several + pious persons had arranged to meet there, and a signal was to let them + know just when the knife was about to drop so that they might all be in + prayer when the soul of the martyr was, brought by the angels before the + throne of the Most High. + </p> + <p> + All this bound people together more closely than we can form any idea of. + My grandmother loved the priests and believed in their courage and + devotion to duty. She was destined to meet with a very cool reception from + one of them. When during the Consulate religious worship was + re-established, the priest whom she had sheltered at the risk of her life + was appointed incumbent of a parish near Lannion. She took my mother, then + quite a child, with her, and they walked the five miles under a scorching + sun. The thought of meeting again one whom she had seen keeping the night + watch at her house under such tragical circumstances made her heart beat + fast. The priest, whether from sacerdotal pride or from a feeling of duty, + behaved in a very strange manner. He scarcely seemed to recognise her, + never asked her to be seated, and dismissed her with a few short remarks. + Not a word of thanks or an allusion to the past. He did not even offer her + a glass of water. My grandmother could scarcely keep from fainting; and + she returned to Lannion in tears, whether because she reproached herself + for some feminine error of the heart or because she was hurt by so much + pride. My mother never knew whether in after years she looked back to this + incident with the more of injured pride or of admiration. Perhaps, she + came at last to recognise the infinite wisdom of the priest, who seemed to + say to her, “Woman, what have I to do with thee?” and who + would not admit that he had any reason to be grateful to her. It is + difficult for women to comprehend this abstract feeling. Their work, + whatever it may be, has always a personal object in view, and it would be + hard to make them believe it natural that people should fight shoulder to + shoulder without knowing and liking one another. + </p> + <p> + My mother, with her frank, cheerful, and inquisitive ways, was rather + partial to the Revolution than the reverse. Unknown to my grandmother she + used to go and hear the patriotic songs. The <i>Chant du Départ</i> made a + great impression upon her, and when she repeated the stirring line put in + the mouth of the mothers, + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + “De nos yeux maternels ne craignez point de larmes,” + </pre> + <p> + her voice was always broken. These stirring and terrible scenes had + imprinted themselves for ever upon her mind. When she began to go back + over these recollections, indissolubly bound up with the days of her + girlhood, when she remembered how enthusiasm and wild delight alternated + with scenes of terror, her whole life seemed to rise up before her I + learnt from her to be so proud of the Revolution that I have liked it + since, in spite of my reason and of all that I have said against it. I do + not withdraw anything that I have already said; but when I see the + inveterate persistency of foreign writers to try and prove that the French + Revolution was one long story of folly and shame, and that it is but an + unimportant factor in the world’s history, I begin to think that it + is perhaps the greatest of all our achievements, inasmuch as other people + are so jealous of it. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0012" id="link2H_4_0012"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART II. + </h2> + <p> + Among those whom I have to thank for being more a son of the Revolution + than of the Crusaders was a singular character who was long a puzzle to + us. He was an elderly man, whose mode of life, ideas, and habits were in + striking contrast with those of the country at large. I used to see him + every day, with his threadbare cloak, going to buy a pennyworth of milk + which the girl who sold it poured into the tin he brought with him. He was + poor without being literally in want. He never spoke to any one, but he + had a very gentle look about the eyes, and those who had happened to be + brought into contact with him spoke in very eulogistic terms of his + amiability and good sense. I never knew his name, and I do not believe + that any one else did. He did not belong to our part of the country, and + he had no relations. He was allowed to go his own way, and his singular + mode of life excited no other feeling than one of surprise; but it had not + always been so. He had passed through many vicissitudes. At one time he + had been in communication with the people of the place and had imparted + some of his ideas to them; but no one understood what he meant. The word + <i>system</i> which he used several times tickled their fancy, and this + nickname was at once applied to him. If he had gone on imparting his ideas + he would have got himself into trouble, and the children would have pelted + him. Like a wise man he kept his tongue between his teeth, and no one + attempted to molest him. He came out every day to make his modest + purchases, and of an evening he would take a walk in some unfrequented + spot. He was of a serious but not melancholy cast of countenance, and with + more of an amiable than morose expression. Later in life when I read + Colerus’s <i>Life of Spinoza</i>, I at once saw that as a child I + had had before my eyes the very image of the holy man of Amsterdam. He was + left to follow his own courses, and was even treated with respect. His + resigned and affable airs seemed like a glimpse from another world. People + did not understand him, but they felt that he possessed higher qualities + to which they paid implicit homage. + </p> + <p> + He never went to church, and avoided any occasion of having to make + external display of religious belief. The clergy were very unfavourable to + him and though they did not denounce him from the pulpit, as he had never + given any cause for scandal, his name was always mentioned with + repugnance. A peculiar incident occurred to fan this animosity into a + flame, and to involve the aged recluse in an atmosphere of ghostly terror. + He possessed a very large library, consisting of works belonging to the + eighteenth century. All those philosophical treatises which have exercised + a wider influence than Luther and Calvin were to be found in it, and the + old bookworm knew them by heart, and eked out a living by lending them to + some of his neighbours. The clergy looked upon this as the abomination of + desolation, and strictly forbade their flocks to borrow these books. + System’s lodging was looked upon as a receptacle for every kind of + impiety. + </p> + <p> + I, as a matter of course, looked upon him and his books in the same light, + and it was only when my ideas upon philosophy were well consolidated that + I came to understand that I had been fortunate enough during my youth to + contemplate a truly wise man. I had no difficulty in reconstructing his + ideas by piecing together a few words which at the time had appeared to me + unintelligible, but which I had remembered. God, in his eyes, was the + order of nature, from which all things proceed, and he would not brook + contradiction upon this point. He loved humanity as representing reason, + and he hated superstition as the negation of reason. Although he had not + the poetic afflatus which the nineteenth century has given to these great + truths, System, I feel sure, had very high and far-reaching views. He was + quite in the right. So far from failing to appreciate the greatness of + God, he looked with contempt upon those who believed that they could move + Him. Lost in profound tranquillity and unaffected humility, he saw that + human error was more to be pitied than hated. It was evident that he + despised his age. The revival of superstition, which, he thought, had been + buried by Voltaire and Rousseau, seemed to him a sign of utter imbecility + in the rising generation. + </p> + <p> + He was found dead one morning in his humble room, with his books and + papers littered all about him. This was soon after the Revolution of 1830, + and the mayor had him decently interred at night. The clergy purchased the + whole of his library at a nominal price and made away with it. No papers + were found which served to elucidate the mystery which had always + surrounded him, but in the corner of one drawer was found a packet + containing some faded flowers tied up with a tricoloured ribbon. At first + this was supposed to be some love-token, and several people built upon + this foundation a romantic biography of the deceased recluse, but the + tricolour ribbon tended to discredit this version. My mother never + believed that it was the correct one. Although she had an instinctive + feeling of respect for System, she always said to me: “I am sure + that he was one of the Terrorists. I sometimes fancy that I remember + seeing him in 1793. Besides, he has all the ways and ideas of M——, + who terrorised Lannion and kept the guillotine in constant play there + during the time that Robespierre had the upper hand.” Fifteen or + twenty years ago, I read the following paragraph in a newspaper: + </p> + <p> + “There died yesterday, almost suddenly, in an unfrequented street of + the Faubourg St. Jacques, an old man whose way of living was a constant + source of gossip in the neighbourhood. He was respected in the parish as a + model of charity and kindness, but he was careful to avoid any allusion to + his past. A few works, such as Volney’s <i>Catechism</i>, and odd + volumes of Rousseau, were scattered about the table. All his property + consisted of a trunk, which, when opened by the Commissary of Police, was + found to contain only a few clothes and a faded bouquet carefully wrapped + up in a piece of paper on which was written: ‘Bouquet which I wore + at the festival of the Supreme Being, 20 Prairial, year II.’” + </p> + <p> + This explained the whole thing to me. I remembered how the few disciples + of the Jacobite School whom I had known were ardently attached to the + recollections of 1793-94 and incapable of dwelling upon anything else. The + twelvemonths’ dream was so vivid that those who had experienced it + could not come back to real life. They were ever haunted by the same + sinister fancy; they had a <i>delirium tremens</i> of blood. They were + uncompromising in their belief, and the world at large, which no longer + pitched its note to their cry, seemed idle and empty in their eyes. Left + standing alone like the survivors of a world of giants, loaded with the + opprobrium of the human race, they could hold no sort of communion with + the living. I could quite understand the effect which Lakanal must have + produced when he returned from America in 1833 and appeared among his + colleagues of the <i>Academic des Sciences Morales et Politiques</i> like + a phantom. I could understand Daunou looking upon M. Cousin and M. Guizot + as dangerous Jesuits. By a not uncommon contrast these survivors of the + fierce struggles and combats of the Revolution had become as gentle as + lambs. Man, to be kind, need not necessarily have a logical basis for his + kindness. The most cruel of the Inquisitors of the middle ages, Conrad of + Marburg for instance, were the kindest of men. This we see in <i>Torquemada</i>, + where the genius of Victor Hugo shows us how a man may send his fellows to + the stake out of charity and sentimentalism. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0013" id="link2H_4_0013"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + LITTLE NOÉMI. + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0014" id="link2H_4_0014"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART I. + </h2> + <p> + Although the religious and too premature sacerdotal education which I had + received prevented me from being on any intimate terms with young people + of the other sex, I had several little girl-friends one of whom more + particularly has left a profound impression upon me. From an early age I + preferred the society of girls to boys, and the latter did not like me, as + I was too effeminate for them. We could not play together, as they called + me “Mademoiselle,” and teased me in a variety of ways. On the + other hand, I got on very well with girls of my own age, and they found me + very sensible and steady. I was about twelve or thirteen, and I could not + account for the preference. The vague idea which attracted me to them was, + I think, that men are at liberty to do many things which women cannot, and + the latter consequently had, in my eyes, the charm of being weak and + beautiful creatures, subject in their daily life to rules of conduct which + they did not attempt to override. All those whom I had known were the + pattern of modesty. The first feeling which stirred in me was one of pity, + so to speak, coupled with the idea of assisting them in their becoming + resignation, of liking them for their reserve, and making it easier for + them. I quite felt my own intellectual superiority; but even at that early + age, I felt that the woman who is very beautiful or very good, solves + completely the problem of which we, with all our hard-headedness, make + such a hash. We are mere children or pedants compared to her. I as yet + understood this only vaguely, though I saw clearly enough that beauty is + so great a gift that talent, genius, and even virtue are nothing when + weighed in the balance with it; so that the woman who is really beautiful + has the right to hold herself superior to everybody and everything, + inasmuch as she combines not in a creation outside of herself, but in her + very person, as in a Myrrhine vase, all the qualities which genius + painfully endeavours to reproduce. + </p> + <p> + Among these, my companions, there was, as I have said, one to whom I was + particularly attached Her name was Noémi, and she was quite a model of + good conduct and grace. Her eyes had a languid look which denoted at once + good-nature and quickness; her hair was beautifully fair. She was about + two years my senior, and she treated me partly as an elder sister, partly + with the confidential affection of one child for another. We got on very + well together, and while our friends were constantly falling out, we were + always of one mind. I tried to make these quarrels up, but she never + thought that I should be successful, and would tell me that it was + hopeless to try and make everybody agree. These attempts at mediation, + which gave us an imperceptible superiority over the other children, formed + a very pleasing tie between us. Even now I cannot hear “<i>Nous n’irons + plus an bois</i>,” or “<i>Il pleut, il pleut, bergère</i>” + without my heart beating rather more quickly than is its wont. There can + be no doubt that but for the fatal vice which held me fast, I should have + been in love with Noémi two or three years later; but I was a slave to + reasoning, and my whole time was devoted to religious dialectics. The flow + of abstractions which rushed to the head made me giddy, and caused me to + be absent-minded and oblivious of all else. + </p> + <p> + This budding affection was, moreover, turned from its course by a peculiar + defect which, has more than once been injurious to my prospects in life. + This is my indecision of character, which often leads me into positions + from which I have great difficulty in extricating myself. This defect was + further complicated in this particular case by a good quality which has + led me into as many difficulties as the most serious of defects. There was + among these children a little girl though much less pretty than Noémi, + who, gentle and amiable as she was, did not get nearly so much notice + taken of her. She was even fonder of making me her companion than Noémi, + of whom she was rather jealous. I have never been able to do a thing which + would give pain to any one. I had a vague sort of idea that a woman who + was not very pretty must be unhappy and feel the inward pang of having + missed her fate. I was oftener, therefore, with her than with Noémi, + because I saw that she was melancholy. So I allowed my first love to go + off at a tangent, just as, later in life, I did in politics, and in a very + bungling sort of way. Once or twice I noticed Noémi laughing to herself at + my simple folly. She was always nice with me, but at times her manner was + slightly sarcastic, and this tinge of irony, which she made no attempt to + conceal, only rendered her more charming in my eyes. + </p> + <p> + The struggles amid which I grew to manhood nearly effaced her from my + memory. In after years I often fancied that I could see her again, and one + day I asked my mother what had become of her. “She is dead,” + my mother replied, “and of a broken heart. She had no fortune of her + own. When she lost her father and mother, her aunt—a very + respectable woman who kept the equally respectable Hotel ——, + took her to live there. She did the best she could. Even as a child, when + you knew her, she was charming, but at two-and-twenty she was marvellously + beautiful. Her hair—which she tried in vain to keep out of sight + under a heavy cap—came down over her neck in wavy tresses like + handfuls of ripe wheat. She did all that she could to conceal her beauty. + Her beautiful figure was disguised by a cape, and her long white hands + were always covered with mittens. But it was all of no use. Groups of + young men would assemble in church to see her at her devotions. She was + too beautiful for our country, and she was as good as she was beautiful.” + My mother’s story touched me very much. I have thought of her much + more frequently since, and when it pleased God to give me a daughter I + named her Noémi. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0015" id="link2H_4_0015"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART II. + </h2> + <p> + The world in its progress cares little more how many it crushes than the + car of the idol of Juggernaut. The whole of the ancient society which I + have endeavoured to portray has disappeared. Bréhat has passed out of + existence. I revisited it six years ago and should not have known it + again. Some genius in the capital of the department has discovered that + certain ancient usages of the island are not in keeping with some article + of the code, and a peaceable and well-to-do population has been reduced to + revolt and beggary. These islands and coasts which were formerly such a + good nursery for the navy are so no longer. The railways and the steamers + have been the ruin of them. And like old Breton bards, to what a case they + have been brought! I found several of them a few years ago among the + Bas-Bretons who came to eke out a miserable existence at St. Malo. One of + them, who was employed in sweeping the streets, came to see me. He + explained to me in Breton—for he could not speak a word of French—his + ideas as to the decadence of all poetry and the inferiority of the new + schools. He was attached to the old style—the narrative ballad—and + he began to sing to me the one which he deemed the prettiest of them. The + subject of it was the death of Louis XVI. He burst into tears, and when he + got to Santerre’s beating of the drums he could not continue. Rising + proudly to his feet, he said: “If the king could have spoken, the + spectators would have rallied to him.” Poor dear man! + </p> + <p> + With all these instances before me the case of the wealthy M.A., seemed to + me all the more singular. When I asked my mother to explain it to me, she + always evaded an answer and spoke vaguely of adventures on the coast of + Madagascar. Upon one occasion, I pressed her more closely and asked her + how it was that the coasting trade, at which no one had ever made money, + could have made a millionaire of him. “How obstinate you are, + Ernest,” she replied. “I have often told you not to ask me + that! Z—— is the only person in our circle who has any + pretensions to polish; he is in a good position; he is rich and respected; + there is no need to ask him how he made his money.” “Tell me + all the same.” “Well if you must know, and as people cannot + get rich without soiling their fingers more or less, he was in the slave + trade.” + </p> + <p> + A noble people, fit only to serve nobles, and in harmony of ideas with + them, is in our day at the very antipodes of sound political economy, and + is bound to die of starvation. Persons of delicate ideas, who are hampered + by honourable scruples of one kind and another, stand no chance with the + matter-of-fact competitors who are the men not to let slip any advantage + in the battle of life. I soon found this out when I began to know + something of the planet in which we live, and hence there arose within me + a struggle or rather a dualism which has been the secret of all my + opinions. I did not in any way lose my fondness for the ideal; it still is + and always will be implanted in me as strongly as ever. The most trifling + act of goodness, the least spark of talent, are in my eyes infinitely + superior to all riches and worldly achievements. But as I had a + well-balanced mind I saw that the ideal and reality have nothing in + common; that the world is, at all events for the time, given over to what + is commonplace and paltry; that the cause which generous souls will + embrace is sure to be the losing one; and that what men of refined + intellect hold to be true in literature and poetry is always wrong in the + dull world of accomplished facts. The events which followed the Revolution + of 1848 confirmed all their ideas. It turned out that the most alluring + dreams, when carried into the domain of facts, were mischievous to the + last degree, and that the affairs of the world were never so well managed + as when the idealists had no part or lot in them. From that time I + accustomed myself to follow a very singular course: that is to shape my + practical judgments in direct opposition to my theoretical judgments, and + to regard as possible that which was in contradiction with my desires. A + somewhat lengthy experience had shown me that the cause I sympathised with + always failed and that the one which I decried was certain to be + triumphant. The lamer a political solution was, the brighter appeared to + me its prospect of being accepted In the world of realities. + </p> + <p> + In fine, I only care for characters of an absolute idealism: martyrs, + heroes, utopists, friends of the impossible. They are the only persons in + whom I interest myself; they are, if I may be permitted to say so, my + specialty. But I see what those whose imagination runs away with them fail + to see, viz., that these flights of fancy are no longer of any use and + that for a long time to come the heroic follies which were deified in the + past will fall flat. The enthusiasm of 1792 was a great and noble + outburst, but it was one of those things which will not recur. Jacobinism, + as M. Thiers has clearly shown, was the salvation of France; now it would + be her ruin. The events of 1870 have by no means cured me of my pessimism. + They taught me the high value of evil, and that the cynical disavowal of + all sentiment, generosity and chivalry gives pleasure to the world at + large and is invariably successful. Egotism is the exact opposite of what + I had been accustomed to regard as noble and good. We see that in this + world egotism alone commands success. England has until within the last + few years been the first nation in the world because she was the most + selfish. Germany has acquired the hegemony of the world by repudiating + without scruple the principles of political morality which she once so + eloquently preached. + </p> + <p> + This is the explanation of the anomaly that having on several occasions + been called upon to give practical advice in regard to the affairs of my + country, this advice has always been in direct contradiction with my + artistic views. In so doing, I have been actuated by conscientious + motives. I have endeavoured to evade the ordinary cause of my errors; I + have taken the counterpart of my instincts and been on guard against my + idealism. I am always afraid that my mode of thought will lead me wrong + and blind me to one side of the question. This is how it is that, much as + I love what is good, I am perhaps over indulgent for those who have taken + another view of life, and that, while always being full of work, I ask + myself very often whether the idlers are not right after all. + </p> + <p> + So far as regards enthusiasm, I have got as much of it as any one; but I + believe that the reality will have none of it, and that with the reign of + men of business, manufacturers, the working class (which is the most + selfish of all), Jews, English of the old school and Germans of the new + school, has been ushered in a materialist age in which it will be as + difficult to bring about the triumph of a generous idea as to produce the + silvery note of the great bell of Notre Dame with one cast in lead or tin. + It is strange, moreover, that while not pleasing one side I have not + deceived the other. The bourgeois have not been the least grateful to me + for my concessions; they have read me better than I can read-myself, and + they have seen that I was but a poor sort of Conservative, and that + without the most remote intention of acting in bad faith, I should have + played them false twenty times over out of affection for the ideal, my + ancient mistress. They felt that the hard things which I said to her were + only superficial, and that I should be unable to resist the first smile + which she might bestow upon me. + </p> + <p> + We must create the heavenly kingdom, that is the ideal one, within + ourselves. The time is past for the creation of miniature worlds, refined + Thélèmes, based upon mutual affection and esteem; but life, well + understood and well lived, in a small circle of persons who can appreciate + one another, brings its own reward. Communion of spirit is the greatest + and the only reality. This is why my thoughts revert so willingly to those + worthy priests who were my first masters, to the honest sailors who lived + only to do their duty, to little Noémi who died because she was too + beautiful, to my grandfather who would not buy the national property, and + to good Master Système, who was happy inasmuch as he had his hour of + illusion. Happiness consists in devotion to a dream or to a duty; + self-sacrifice is the surest means of securing repose. One of the early + Buddhas who preceded Sakya-Mouni obtained the <i>nirvana</i> in a singular + way. He saw one day a falcon chasing a little bird. “I beseech thee,” + he said to the bird of prey, “leave this little creature in peace; I + will give thee its weight from my own flesh.” A small pair of scales + descended from the heavens, and the transaction was carried out. The + little bird settled itself upon one side of the scales, and the saint + placed in the other platter a good slice of his flesh, but the beam did + not move. Bit by bit the whole of his body went into the scales, but still + the scales were motionless. Just as the last shred of the holy man’s + body touched the scale the beam fell, the little bird flew away and the + saint entered into <i>nirvana</i>. The falcon, who had not, all said and + done, made a bad bargain, gorged itself on his flesh. + </p> + <p> + The little bird represents the unconsidered trifles of beauty and + innocence which our poor planet, worn out as it may be, will ever contain. + The falcon represents the far larger proportion of egotism and gross + appetites which make up the sum of humanity. The wise man purchases the + free enjoyment of what is good and noble by making over his flesh to the + greedy, who, while engrossed by this material feast, leave him and the + free objects of his fancy in peace. The scales coming down from above + represent fatality, which is not to be moved, and which will not accept a + partial sacrifice; but from which, by a total abnegation of self, by + casting it a prey, we can escape, as it then has no further hold upon us. + The falcon, for its part is content when virtue, by the sacrifices which + she makes, secures for it greater advantages than it could obtain by the + force of its own claws. Desiring a profit from virtue, its interest is + that virtue should exist; and so the wise man, by the surrender of his + material privileges, attains his one aim, which is to secure free + enjoyment of the ideal. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0016" id="link2H_4_0016"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + THE PETTY SEMINARY OF SAINT NICHOLAS DU CHARDONNET. + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0017" id="link2H_4_0017"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART I. + </h2> + <p> + Many persons who allow that I have a perspicuous mind wonder how I came + during my boyhood and youth to put faith in creeds, the impossibility of + which has since been so clearly revealed to me. Nothing, however, can be + more simple, and it is very probable that if an extraneous incident had + not suddenly taken me from the honest but narrow-minded associations amid + which my youth was passed, I should have preserved all my life long the + faith which in the beginning appeared to me as the absolute expression of + the truth. I have said how I was educated in a small school kept by some + honest priests, who taught me Latin after the old fashion (which was the + right one), that is to say to read out of trumpery primers, without method + and almost without grammar, as Erasmus and the humanists of the fifteenth + and sixteenth century, who are the best Latin scholars since the days of + old, used to learn it. These worthy priests were patterns of all that is + good. Devoid of anything like <i>pedagogy</i>, to use the modern phrase, + they followed the first rule of education, which is not to make too easy + the tasks which have for their aim the mastering of a difficulty. Their + main object was to make their pupils into honourable men. Their lessons of + goodness and morality, which impressed me as being the literal embodiments + of virtue and high feeling, were part and parcel of the dogma which they + taught. The historical education they had given me consisted solely in + reading Rollin. Of criticism, the natural sciences, and philosophy I as + yet knew nothing of course. Of all that concerned the nineteenth century, + and the new ideas as to history and literature expounded by so many gifted + thinkers, my teachers knew nothing. It was impossible to imagine a more + complete isolation from the ambient air. A thorough-paced Legitimist would + not even admit the possibility of the Revolution or of Napoleon being + mentioned except with a shudder. My only knowledge of the Empire was + derived from the lodge-keeper of the school. He had in his room several + popular prints. “Look at Bonaparte,” he said to me one day, + pointing to one of these, “he was a patriot, he was!” No + allusion was ever made to contemporary literature, and the literature of + France terminated with Abbé Delille. They had heard of Chateaubriand, but, + with a truer instinct than that of the would-be Neo-Catholics, whose heads + are crammed with all sorts of delusions, they mistrusted him. A Tertullian + enlivening his Apologeticum with <i>Atala</i> and <i>René</i> was not + calculated to command their confidence. Lamartine perplexed them more + sorely still; they guessed that his religious faith was not built on very + strong foundations, and they foresaw his subsequent falling away. This + gift of observation did credit to their orthodox sagacity, but the result + was that the horizon of their pupils was a very narrow one. Rollin’s + <i>Traité des Études</i> is a work full of large-minded views compared to + the circle of pious mediocrity within which they felt it their duty to + confine themselves. + </p> + <p> + Thus the education which I received in the years following the Revolution + of 1830 was the same as that which was imparted by the strictest of + religious sects two centuries ago. It was none the worse for that, being + the same forcible mode of teaching, distinctively religious, but not in + the least Jesuitical, under which the youth of ancient France had studied, + and which gave so serious and so Christian a turn to the mind. Educated by + teachers who had inherited the qualities of Port Royal, minus their + heresy, but minus also their power over the pen, I may claim forgiveness + for having, at the age of twelve or fifteen, admitted the truth of + Christianity like any pupil of Nicole or M. Hermant. My state of mind was + very much that of so many clever men of the seventeenth century, who put + religion beyond the reach of doubt, though this did not prevent them + having very clear ideas upon all other topics. I afterwards learnt facts + which caused me to abandon my Christian beliefs, but they must be + profoundly ignorant of history and of human intelligence who do not + understand how strong a hold the simple and honest discipline of the + priests took upon the more gifted of their students. The basis of this + primitive form of education was the strictest morality, which they + inculcated as inseparable from religious practice, and they made us regard + the possession of life as implying duties towards truth. The very effort + to shake off opinions, in some respects unreasonable, had its advantages. + Because a Paris flibbertigibbet disposes with a joke of creeds, from which + Pascal, with all his reasoning powers, could not shake himself free, it + must not be concluded that the Gavroche is superior to Pascal. I confess + that I at times feel humiliated to think that it cost me five or six years + of arduous research, and the study of Hebrew, the Semitic languages, + Gesenius, and Ewald to arrive at the result which this urchin achieves in + a twinkling. These pilings of Pelion upon Ossa seem to me, when looked at + in this light, a mere waste of time. But Père Hardouin observed that he + had not got up at four o’clock every morning for forty years to + think as all the world thought. So I am loth to admit that I have been at + so much pains to fight a mere <i>chimaera bombinans</i>. No, I cannot + think that my labours have been all in vain, nor that victory is to be won + in theology as cheaply as the scoffers would have us believe. There are, + in reality, but few people who have a right not to believe in + Christianity. If the great mass of people only knew how strong is the net + woven by the theologians, how difficult it is to break the threads of it, + how much erudition has been spent upon it, and what a power of criticism + is required to unravel it all.... I have noticed that some men of talent + who have set themselves too late in life the task have been taken in the + toils and have not been able to extricate themselves. + </p> + <p> + My tutors taught me something which was infinitely more valuable than + criticism or philosophic wisdom; they taught me to love truth, to respect + reason, and to see the serious side of life. This is the only part in me + which has never changed. I left their care with my moral sense so well + prepared to stand any test, that this precious jewel passed uninjured + through the crucible of Parisian frivolity. I was so well prepared for the + good and for the true that I could not possibly have followed a career + which was not devoted to the things of the mind. My teachers rendered me + so unfit for any secular work that I was perforce embarked upon a + spiritual career. The intellectual life was the only noble one in my eyes; + and mercenary cares seemed to me servile and unworthy. + </p> + <p> + I have never departed from the sound and wholesome programme which my + masters sketched out for me. I no longer believe Christianity to be the + supernatural summary of all that man can know; but I still believe that + life is the most frivolous of things, unless it is regarded as one great + and constant duty. Oh! my beloved old teachers, now nearly all with the + departed, whose image often rises before me in my dreams, not as a + reproach but as a grateful memory, I have not been so unfaithful to you as + you believe! Yes, I have said that your history was very short measure, + that your critique had no existence, and that your natural philosophy fell + far short of that which leads us to accept as a fundamental dogma: “There + is no special supernatural;” but in the main I am still your + disciple. Life is only of value by devotion to what is true and good. Your + conception of what is good was too narrow; your view of truth too material + and too concrete, but you were, upon the whole, in the right, and I thank + you for having inculcated in me like a second nature the principle, fatal + to worldly success but prolific of happiness, that the aim of a life worth + living should be ideal and unselfish. + </p> + <p> + Most of my fellow-students were brawny and high-spirited young peasants + from the neighbourhood of Tréguier, and, like most individuals occupying + an inferior place in the scale of civilization, they were inclined to air + an exaggerated regard for bodily strength, and to show a certain amount of + contempt for women and for anything which they considered effeminate. Most + of them were preparing for the priesthood. My experiences of that time put + me in a very good position for understanding the historical phenomena, + which occur when a vigorous barbarism first comes into contact with + civilization. I can quite easily understand the intellectual condition of + the Germans at the Carlovingian epoch, the psychological and literary + condition of a Saxo Grammaticus and a Hrabanus Maurus. Latin had a very + singular effect upon their rugged natures, and they were like mastodons + going in for a degree. They took everything as serious as the Laplanders + do when you give them the Bible to read. We exchanged with regard to + Sallust and Livy, impressions which must have resembled those of the + disciples of St. Gall or St. Colomb when they were learning Latin. We + decided that Caesar was not a great man because he was not virtuous, our + philosophy of history was as artless and childlike as might have been that + of the Heruli. + </p> + <p> + The morals of all these young people, left entirely to themselves and with + no one to look after them, were irreproachable. There were very few + boarders at the Tréguier College just then. Most of the students who did + not belong to the town boarded in private houses, and their parents used + to bring them in on market day their provisions for the week. I remember + one of these houses, close to our own, in which several of my + fellow-students lodged. The mistress of it, who was an indefatigable + housewife, died, and her husband, who at the best of times was no genius, + drowned what little he had in the cider-cup every evening. A little + servant-maid, who was wonderfully intelligent, took the whole burden upon + her shoulders. The young students determined to help her, and so the house + went on despite the old tippler. I always heard my comrades speak very + highly of this little servant, who was a model of virtue and who was + gifted, moreover, with a very pleasing face. + </p> + <p> + The fact is that, according to my experience, all the allegations against + the morality of the clergy are devoid of foundation. I passed thirteen + years of my life under the charge of priests, and I never saw anything + approaching to a scandal; all the priests I have known have been good men. + Confession may possibly be productive of evil in some countries, but I + never saw anything of the sort during my ecclesiastical experience. The + old-fashioned book which I used for making my examinations of conscience + was innocence itself. There was only one sin which excited my curiosity + and made me feel uneasy. I was afraid that I might have been guilty of it + unawares. I mustered up courage enough, one day, to ask my confessor what + was meant by the phrase: “To be guilty of simony in the collation of + benefices.” The good priest reassured me and told me that I could + not have committed that sin. + </p> + <p> + Persuaded by my teachers of two absolute truths, the first, that no one + who has any respect for himself can engage in any work that is not ideal—and + that all the rest is secondary, of no importance, not to say shameful, <i>ignominia + seculi</i>—and the second, that Christianity embodies everything + which is ideal, I could not do otherwise than regard myself as destined + for the priesthood. This thought was not the result of reflection, + impulse, or reasoning. It came so to speak, of itself. The possibility of + a lay career never so much as occurred to me. Having adopted with the + utmost seriousness and docility the principles of my teachers, and having + brought myself to consider all commercial and mercenary pursuits as + inferior and degrading, and only fit for those who had failed in their + studies, it was only natural that I should wish to be what they were. They + were my patterns in life, and my sole ambition was to be like them, + professor at the College of Tréguier, poor, exempt from all material + cares, esteemed and respected like them. + </p> + <p> + Not but what the instincts which in after years led me away from these + paths of peace already existed within me; but they were dormant. From the + accident of my birth I was torn by conflicting forces. There was some + Basque and Bordeaux blood in my mother’s family, and unknown to me + the Gascon half of myself played all sorts of tricks with the Breton half. + Even my family was divided, my father, my grandfather, and my uncles + being, as I have already said, the reverse of clerical, while my maternal + grandmother was the centre of a society which knew no distinction between + royalism and religion. I recently found among some old papers a letter + from my grandmother addressed to an estimable maiden lady named Guyon, who + used to spoil me very much when I was a child, and who was then suffering + from a dreadful cancer. + </p> + <p> + TRÉGUIER, <i>March</i> 19, 1831. + </p> + <p> + “Though two months have elapsed since Natalie informed me of your + departure for Tréglamus, this is the first time I have had a few moments + to myself to write and tell you, my dear friend, how deeply I sympathise + with you in your sad position. Your sufferings go to my heart, and nothing + but the most urgent necessity has prevented me from writing to you before. + The death of a nephew, the eldest son of my defunct sister, plunged us + into great sorrow. A few days later, poor little Ernest, son of my eldest + daughter, and a brother of Henriette, the boy whom, you were so fond of + and who has not forgotten you, fell ill. For forty days he was hanging + between life and death, and we have now reached the fifty-fifth day of his + illness and still he does not make much progress towards his recovery. He + is pretty well in the day time, but his nights are very bad. From ten in + the evening to five or six in the morning, he is feverish and + half-delirious. I have said enough to excuse myself in the eyes of one who + is so kind-hearted and who will forgive me. How I wish I was by your side + to repay you the attention you bestowed on me with so much zeal and + benevolence. My great grief is to be unable to help you. + </p> + <p> + “<i>March 20th</i>. + </p> + <p> + “I was sent for to the bedside of my dear little grandson, and I was + obliged to break off my conversation with you, which I now resume, my dear + friend, to exhort you to put all your trust in God. It is He who afflicts + us, but He consoles us with the hope of a reward far beyond what we + suffer. Let us be of good cheer; our pains and our sorrows do not last + long, and the reward is eternal. + </p> + <p> + “Dear Natalie tells me how patient and resigned you are amid the + most cruel sufferings. That is quite in keeping with your high feelings. + She says that never a complaint comes from you however keen your pain. How + pleasing you are in God’s sight by your patience and resignation to + His heavenly will. He afflicts you, but those whom He loveth He + chasteneth. What joy can be compared to that which God’s love gives? + I send you <i>L’Ame sur le Calvaire</i>, which will furnish you with + much consolation in the example of a God who suffered and died for us. + Madame D—— will be so kind, I am sure, as to read you a + chapter of it every day, if you cannot read yourself. Give her my kindest + regards, and beg her to write and tell me how you are going on, and how + she is herself. If you will not think me troublesome I will write to you + more frequently. Good-bye, my dear friend. May God pour upon you His grace + and blessing. Be patient and of good cheer. + </p> + <p> + “Your ever devoted friend, + </p> + <h3> + “WIDOW....” + </h3> + <p> + “In taking the Communion to-day my prayers were specially for you. + My daughter, Henriette, and Ernest, who has passed a much better night, + beg to be remembered, as also does Clara. We often talk of you. Let me + know how you are, I beg of you. When you have read <i>L’Ame sur le + Calvaire</i> you can send it back to me, and I will let you have <i>L’Esprit + Consolateur</i>.” + </p> + <p> + The letter and the books were never sent, for my mother, who was to have + forwarded them, learnt that Mademoiselle Guyon had died. Some of the + consolatory remarks which the letter contains may seem very trite, but are + there any better ones to offer a person afflicted with cancer? They are, + at all events, as good as laudanum. As a matter of fact the Revolution had + left no impress upon the people among whom I lived. The religious ideas of + the people were not touched; the congregations came together again, and + the nuns of the old orders, converted into schoolmistresses, imparted to + women the same education as before. Thus my sister’s first mistress + was an old Ursuline nun, who was very fond of her, and who made her learn + by heart the psalms which are chanted in church. After a year or two the + worthy old lady had reached the end of her tether, and was conscientious + enough to come and tell my mother so. She said, “I have nothing more + to teach her; she knows all that I know better than I do myself.” + The Catholic faith revived in these remote districts, with all its + respectable gravity and, fortunately for it, disencumbered of the worldly + and temporal bonds which the ancient <i>régime</i> had forged for it. + </p> + <p> + This complexity of origin is, I believe, to a great extent the cause of my + seeming inconsistency. I am double, as it were, and one half of me laughs + while the other weeps. This is the explanation of my cheerfulness. As I am + two spirits in one body, one of them has always cause to be content. While + upon the one hand I was only anxious to be a village priest or tutor in a + seminary. I was all the time dreaming the strangest dreams. During divine + service I used to fall into long reveries; my eyes wandered to the ceiling + of the chapel, upon which I read all sorts of strange things. My thoughts + wandered to the great men whom we read of in history. I was playing one + day, when six years old, with one of my cousins and other friends, and we + amused ourselves by selecting our future professions. “And what will + you be?” my cousin asked me. “I shall make books.” + “You mean that you will be a bookseller.” “Oh, no,” + I replied, “I mean to make books—to compose them.” These + dawning dispositions needed time and favourable circumstances to be + developed, and what was so completely lacking in all my surroundings was + ability. My worthy tutors were not endowed with any seductive qualities. + With their unswerving moral solidity, they were the very contrary of the + southerners—of the Neapolitan, for instance, who is all glitter and + clatter. Ideas did not ring within their minds with the sonorous clash of + crossing swords. Their head was like what a Chinese cap without bells + would be; you might shake it, but it would not jingle. That which + constitutes the essence of talent, the desire to show off one’s + thoughts to the best advantage, would have seemed to them sheer frivolity, + like women’s love of dress, which they denounced as a positive sin. + This excessive abnegation of self, this too ready disposition to repulse + what the world at large likes by an <i>Abrenuntio tibi, Satana</i>, is + fatal to literature. It will be said, perhaps, that literature necessarily + implies more or less of sin. If the Gascon tendency to elude many + difficulties with a joke, which I derived from my mother, had always been + dormant in me, my spiritual welfare would perhaps have been assured. In + any event, if I had remained in Brittany I should never have known + anything of the vanity which the public has liked and encouraged—that + of attaining a certain amount of art in the arrangement of words and + ideas. Had I lived in Brittany I should have written like Rollin. When I + came to Paris I had no sooner given people a taste of what few qualities I + possessed than they took a liking for them, and so—to my + disadvantage it may be—I was tempted to go on. + </p> + <p> + I will at some future time describe how it came to pass that special + circumstances brought about this change, which I underwent without being + at heart in the least inconsistent with my past. I had formed such a + serious idea of religious belief and duty that it was impossible for me, + when once my faith faded, to wear the mask which sits so lightly upon many + others. But the impress remained, and though I was not a priest by + profession I was so in disposition. All my failings sprung from that. My + first masters taught me to despise laymen, and inculcated the idea that + the man who has not a mission in life is the scum of the earth. Thus it is + that I have had a strong and unfair bias against the commercial classes. + Upon the other hand, I am very fond of the people, and especially of the + poor. I am the only man of my time who has understood the characters of + Jesus and of Francis of Assisi. There was a danger of my thus becoming a + democrat like Lamennais. But Lamennais merely exchanged one creed for + another, and it was not until the close of his life that he acquired the + cool temper necessary to the critic, whereas the same process which weaned + me from Christianity made me impervious to any other practical enthusiasm. + It was the very philosophy of knowledge which, in my revolt against + scholasticism, underwent such a profound modification. + </p> + <p> + A more serious drawback is that, having never indulged in gaiety while + young, and yet having a good deal of irony and cheerfulness in my + temperament, I have been compelled, at an age when we see how vain and + empty it all is, to be very lenient as regards foibles which I had never + indulged in myself, so much so that many persons who have not perhaps been + as steady as I was have been shocked at my easy-going indifference. This + holds especially true of politics. This is a matter upon which I feel + easier in my mind than upon any other, and yet a great many people look + upon me as being very lax. I cannot get out of my head the idea that + perhaps the libertine is right after all and practises the true philosophy + of life. This has led me to express too much admiration for such men as + Sainte-Beuve and Théophile Gautier. Their affectation of immorality + prevented me from seeing how incoherent their philosophy was. The fear of + appearing pharisaical, the idea, evangelical in itself, that he who is + immaculate has the right to be indulgent, and the dread of misleading, if + by chance all the doctrines emitted by the professors of philosophy were + wrong, made my system of morality appear rather shaky. It is, in reality, + as solid as the rock. These little liberties which I allow myself are by + way of a recompense for my strict adherence to the general code. So in + politics I indulge in reactionary remarks so that I may not have the + appearance of a Liberal understrapper. I don’t want people to take + me for being more of a dupe than I am in reality; I would not upon any + account trade upon my opinions, and what I especially dread is to appear + in my own eyes to be passing bad money. Jesus has influenced me more in + this respect than people may think, for He loved to show up and deride + hypocrisy, and in His parable of the Prodigal Son He places morality upon + its true footing—kindness of heart—while seeming to upset it + altogether. + </p> + <p> + To the same cause may be attributed another of my defects, a tendency to + waver which has almost neutralized my power of giving verbal expression to + my thoughts in many matters. The priest carries his sacred character into + every relation of life, and there is a good deal of what is conventional + about what he says. In this respect, I have remained a priest, and this is + all the more absurd because I do not derive any benefit either for myself + or for my opinions. In my writings, I have been outspoken to a degree. Not + only have I never said anything which I do not think, but, what is much + less frequent and far more difficult, I have said all I think. But in + talking and in letter-writing, I am at times singularly weak. I do not + attach any importance to this, and, with the exception of the select few + between whom and myself there is a bond of intellectual brotherhood, I say + to people just what I think is likely to please them. In the society of + fashionable people I am utterly lost. I get into a muddle and flounder + about, losing the thread of my ideas in some tissue of absurdity. With an + inveterate habit of being over polite, as priests generally are, I am too + anxious to detect what the person I am talking with would like said to + him. My attention, when I am conversing with any one, is engrossed in + trying to guess at his ideas, and, from excess of deference, to anticipate + him in the expression of them. This is based upon the supposition that + very few men are so far unconcerned as to their own ideas as not to be + annoyed when one differs from them. I only express myself freely with + people whose opinions I know to sit lightly upon them, and who look down + upon everything with good-natured contempt. My correspondence will be a + disgrace to me if it should be published after my death. It is a perfect + torture for me to write a letter. I can understand a person airing his + talents before ten as before ten thousand persons, but before one! Before + beginning to write, I hesitate and reflect, and make out a rough copy of + what I shall say; very often I go to sleep over it. A person need only + look at these letters with their heavy wording and abrupt sentences to see + that they were composed in a state of torpor which borders on sleep. + Reading over what I have written, I see that it is poor stuff, and that I + have said many things which I cannot vouch for. In despair, I fasten down + the envelope, with the feeling that I have posted a letter which is + beneath criticism. + </p> + <p> + In short, all my defects are those of the young ecclesiastical student of + Tréguier. I was born to be a priest, as others are born to be soldiers and + lawyers. The very fact of my being successful in my studies was a proof of + it. What was the good of learning Latin so thoroughly if it was not for + the Church? A peasant, noticing all my dictionaries upon one occasion, + observed: “These, I suppose, are the books which people study when + they are preparing for the priesthood.” As a matter of fact, all + those who studied at school at all were in training for the ecclesiastical + profession. The priestly order stood on a par with the nobility: “When + you meet a noble,” I have heard it observed, “you salute him, + because he represents the king; when you meet a priest, you salute him + because he represents God.” To make a priest was regarded as the + greatest of good works; and the elderly spinsters who had a little money + thought that they could not find a better use for it than in paying the + college fees of a poor but hard-working young peasant. When he came to be + a priest, he became their own child, their glory, and their honour. They + followed him in his career, and watched over his conduct with jealous + care. As a natural consequence of my assiduity in study I was destined for + the priesthood. Moreover, I was of sedentary habits and too weak of muscle + to distinguish myself in athletic sports. I had an uncle of a Voltairian + turn of mind, who did not at all approve of this. He was a watchmaker, and + had reckoned upon me to take on his business. My successes were as gall + and wormwood to him, for he quite saw that all this store of Latin was + dead against him, and that it would convert me into a pillar of the Church + which he disliked. He never lost an opportunity of airing before me his + favourite phrase, “a donkey loaded with Latin.” Afterwards, + when my writings were published, he had his triumph. I sometimes reproach + myself for having contributed to the triumph of M. Homais over his priest. + But it cannot be helped, for M. Homais is right. But for M. Homais we + should all be burnt at the stake. But as I have said, when one has been at + great pains to learn the truth, it is irritating to have to allow that the + frivolous, who could never be induced to read a line of St. Augustine or + St. Thomas Aquinas, are the true sages. It is hard to think that Gavroche + and M. Homais attain without an effort the alpine heights of philosophy. + </p> + <p> + My young compatriot and friend, M. Quellien, a Breton poet full of + raciness and originality, the only man of the present day whom I have + known to possess the faculty of creating myths, has described this phase + of my destiny in a very ingenious style. He says that my soul will dwell, + in the shape of a white sea-bird, around the ruined church of St. Michel, + an old building struck by lightning which stands above Tréguier. The bird + will fly all night with plaintive cries around the barricaded door and + windows, seeking to enter the sanctuary, but not knowing that there is a + secret door. And so through all eternity my unhappy spirit will moan, + ceaselessly upon this hill. “It is the spirit of a priest who wants + to say mass,” one peasant will observe.—“He will never + find a boy to serve it for him,” will rejoin another. And that is + what I really am—an incomplete priest. Quellien has very clearly + discerned what will always be lacking in my church—the chorister + boy. My life is like a mass which has some fatality hanging over it, a + never-ending <i>Introibo ad altare Dei</i> with no one to respond: <i>Ad + Deum qui loetificat juventutem meam</i>. There is no one to serve my mass + for me. In default of any one else I respond for myself, but it is not the + same thing. + </p> + <p> + Thus everything seemed to make for my having a modest ecclesiastical + career in Brittany. I should have made a very good priest, indulgent, + fatherly, charitable, and of blameless morals. I should have been as a + priest what I am as a father, very much loved by my flock, and as + easy-going as possible in the exercise of my authority. What are now + defects would have been good qualities. Some of the errors which I profess + would have been just the thing for a man who identifies himself with the + spirit of his calling. I should have got rid of some excrescences which, + being only a layman, I have not taken the trouble to remove, easy as it + would have been for me to do so. My career would have been as follows: at + two-and-twenty professor at the College of Tréguier, and at about fifty + canon, or perhaps grand vicar at St. Brieuc, very conscientious, very + generally respected, a kind-hearted and gentle confessor. Little inclined + to new dogmas, I should have been bold enough to say with many good + ecclesiastics after the Vatican Council: <i>Posui custodiam ori meo.</i> + My antipathy for the Jesuits would have shown itself by never alluding to + them, and a fund of mild Gallicanism would have been veiled beneath the + semblance of a profound knowledge of canon law. + </p> + <p> + An extraneous incident altered the whole current of my life. From the most + obscure of little towns in the most remote of provinces I was thrust + without preparation into the vortex of all that is most sprightly and + alert in Parisian society. The world stood revealed to me, and my self + became a double one. The Gascon got the better of the Breton; there was no + more <i>custodia oris mei</i>, and I put aside the padlock which I should + otherwise have set upon my mouth. In so far as regards my inner self I + remained the same. But what a change in the outward show! Hitherto I had + lived in a hypogeum, lighted by smoky lamps; now I was going to see the + sun and the light of day. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0018" id="link2H_4_0018"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART II. + </h2> + <p> + About the month of April, 1838, M. de Talleyrand, feeling his end draw + near, thought it necessary to act a last lie in accordance with human + prejudices, and he resolved to be reconciled, in appearance, to a Church + whose truth, once acknowledged by him, convicted him of sacrilege and of + dishonour. This ticklish job could best be performed, not by a staid + priest of the old Gallican school, who might have insisted upon a + categorical retractation of errors, upon his making amends and upon his + doing penance; not by a young Ultramontane of the new school, against whom + M. de Talleyrand would at once have been very prejudiced, but by a priest + who was a man of the world, well-read, very little of a philosopher, and + nothing of a theologian, and upon those terms with the ancient classes + which alone give the Gospel occasional access to circles for which it is + not suited. Abbé Dupanloup, already well known for his success at the + Catechism of the Assumption among a public which set more store by elegant + phrases than doctrine, was just the man to play an innocent part in the + comedy which simple souls would regard as an edifying act of grace. His + intimacy with the Duchesse de Dino, and especially with her daughter, + whose religious education he had conducted, the favour in which he was + held by M. de Quélen (Archbishop of Paris), and the patronage which from + the outset of his career had been accorded him by the Faubourg St. + Germain, all concurred to fit him for a work which required more worldly + tact than theology, and in which both earth and heaven were to be fooled. + </p> + <p> + It is said that M. de Talleyrand, remarking a certain hesitation on the + part of the priest who was about to convert him, ejaculated: “This + young man does not know his business.” If he really did make this + remark, he was very much mistaken. Never was a priest better up in his + calling than this young man. The aged statesman, resolved not to erase his + past until the very last hour, met all the entreaties made to him with a + sullen “not yet.” The <i>Sto ad ostium etpulso</i> had to be + brought into play with great tact. A fainting-fit, or a sudden + acceleration in the progress of the death-agony would be fatal, and too + much importunity might bring out a “No” which would upset the + plans so skilfully laid. Upon the morning of May 17th, which was the day + of his death, nothing was yet signed. Catholics, as is well known, attach + very great importance to the moment of death. If future rewards and + punishments have any real existence, it is evident that they must be + proportioned to a whole life of virtue or of vice. But the Catholic does + not look at it in this light, and an edifying death-bed makes up for all + other things. Salvation is left to the chances of the eleventh hour. Time + pressed, and it was resolved to play a bold game. M. Dupanloup was waiting + in the next room, and he sent the winsome daughter of the Duchesse de + Dino, of whom Talleyrand was always so fond, to ask if he might come in. + The answer, for a wonder, was in the affirmative, and the priest spent + several minutes with him, bringing out from the sick-room a paper signed + “Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, Prince de Bénévent.” + </p> + <p> + There was joy—if not in heaven, at all events in the Catholic world + of the Faubourgs St. Germain and St. Honoré. The credit of this victory + was ascribed, in the main, to the female grace which had succeeded in + getting round the aged prince, and inducing him to retract the whole of + his revolutionary past, but some of it went to the youthful ecclesiastic + who had displayed so much tact in bringing to a satisfactory conclusion a + project in which it was so easy to fail. M. Dupanloup was from that day + one of the first of French priests. Position, honours, and money were + pressed upon him by the wealthy and influential classes in Paris. The + money he accepted, but do not for a moment suppose that it was for + himself, as there never was any one so unselfish as M. Dupanloup. The + quotation from the Bible which was oftenest upon his lips, and which was + doubly a favourite one with him because it was truly Scriptural and + happened to terminate like a Latin verse was: <i>Da mihi animas; cetera + tolle tibi</i>. He had at that time in his mind the general outlines of a + grand propaganda by means of classical and religious education, and he + threw himself into it with all the passionate ardour which he displayed in + the undertakings upon which he embarked. + </p> + <p> + The seminary Saint Nicholas du Chardonnet, situated by the side of the + church of that name, between the Rue Saint Victor and the Rue de Pontoise, + had since the Revolution been the petty seminary for the diocese of Paris. + This was not its primitive destination. In the great movement of religious + reform which occurred during the first half of the seventeenth century, + and to which the names of Vincent de Paul, Olier, Bérulle, and Father + Eudes are attached, the church of Saint Nicholas du Chardonnet filled, + though in a humbler measure, the same part as Saint Sulpice. The parish of + Saint Nicholas, which derived its name from a field of thistles well known + to students at the University of Paris in the middle ages, was then the + centre of a very wealthy neighbourhood, the principal residents belonging + to the magistracy. As Olier founded the St. Sulpice Seminary, so Adrien de + Bourdoise, founded the company of Saint Nicholas du Chardonnet, and made + this establishment a nursery for young priests which lasted until the + Revolution. It had not, however, like the Saint Sulpice establishment, a + number of branch houses in other parts of France. Moreover, the + association was not revived after the Revolution like that of Saint + Sulpice, and their building in the Rue Saint Victor was untenanted. At the + time of the Concordat it was given to the diocese of Paris, to be used as + a petty seminary. Up to 1837, this establishment did not make any sort of + a name for itself. The brilliant Renaissance of learned and worldly + clericalism dates from the decade of 1830-40. During the first third of + the century, Saint Nicholas was an obscure religious establishment, the + number of students being below the requirements of the diocese, and the + level of study a very low one. Abbé Frère, the head of the seminary, + though a profound theologian and well versed in the mysticism of the + Christian faith, was not in the least suited to rouse and stimulate lads + who were engaged in literary study. Saint Nicholas, under his headship, + was a thoroughly ecclesiastical establishment, its comparatively few + students having a clerical career in view, and the secular side of + education was passed over entirely. + </p> + <p> + M. de Quélen was very well inspired when he entrusted the management of + this college to M. Dupanloup. The archbishop was not the man to approve of + the strict clericalism of Abbé Frère. He liked <i>piety</i>, but worldly + and well-bred piety, without any scholastic barbarisms or mystic jargon, + piety as a complement of the well-bred ideal which, to tell the truth, was + his main faith. If Hugues or Richard de Saint Victor had risen up before + him in the shape of pedants or boors he would have set little store by + them. He was very much attached to M. Dupanloup, who was at that time + Legitimist and Ultramontane. It was only the exaggerations of a later day + which so changed the parts that he came to be looked upon as a Gallican + and an Orleanist. M. de Quélen treated him as a spiritual son, sharing his + dislikes and his prejudices. He doubtless knew the secret of his birth. + The families which had looked after the young priest, had made him a man + of breeding, and admitted him into their exclusive coterie, were those + with which the archbishop was intimate, and which formed in his eyes the + limits of the universe. I remember seeing M. de Quélen, and he was quite + the type of the ideal bishop under the old <i>régime</i>. I remember his + feminine beauty, his perfect figure, and the easy grace of all his + movements. His mind had received no other cultivation than that of a + well-educated man of the world. Religion in his eyes was inseparable from + good breeding and the modicum of common sense which a classical education + is apt to give. + </p> + <p> + This was about the level of M. Dupanloup’s intellect. He had neither + the brilliant imagination which will give a lasting value to certain of + Lacordaire’s and Montalembert’s works, nor the profound + passion of Lamennais. In the case of the archbishop and M. Dupanloup, good + breeding and polish were the main thing, and the approval of those who + stood high in the world was the touchstone of merit. They knew nothing of + theology, which they had studied but little, and for which they thought it + enough to express platonic reverence. Their faith was very keen and + sincere, but it was a faith which took everything for granted, and which + did not busy itself with the dogmas which must be accepted. They knew that + scholasticism would not go down with the only public for which they cared—the + worldly and somewhat frivolous congregations which sit beneath the + preachers at St. Roch or St. Thomas Aquinas. + </p> + <p> + Such were the views entertained by M. de Quélen when he made over to M. + Dupanloup the austere and little known establishment of Abbé Frère and + Adrien de Bourdoise. The petty seminary of Paris had hitherto, by virtue + of the Concordat, been merely a training school for the clergy of Paris, + quite sufficient for its purpose, but strictly confined to the object + prescribed by the law. The new superior chosen by the archbishop had far + higher aims. He set to work to re-construct the whole fabric, from the + buildings themselves, of which only the old walls were left standing, to + the course of teaching, which he re-cast entirely. There were two + essential points which he kept before him. In the first place he saw that + a petty seminary which was altogether ecclesiastical could not answer in + Paris, and would never suffice to recruit a sufficient number of priests + for the diocese. He accordingly utilised the information which reached + him, especially from the west of France and from his native Savoy, to + bring to the college any youths of promise whom he might hear of. + Secondly, he determined that the college should become a model place of + education instead of being a strict seminary with all the asceticism of a + place in which the clerical element was unalloyed. He hoped to let the + same course of education serve for the young men studying for the + priesthood, and for the sons of the highest families in France. His + success in the Rue Saint Florentin (this was where Talleyrand died) had + made him a favourite with the Legitimists, and he had several useful + friends among the Orleanists. Well posted in all the fashionable changes, + and neglecting no opportunity for pushing himself, he was always quick to + adapt himself to the spirit of the time. His theory of what the world + should be was a very aristocratic one, but he maintained that there were + three orders of aristocracy: the nobility, the clergy, and literature. + What he wished to insure was a liberal education, which would be equally + suitable for the clergy and for the youths of the Faubourg Saint Germain, + based upon Christian piety and classical literature. The study of science + was almost entirely excluded, and he himself had not even a smattering of + it. + </p> + <p> + Thus the old house in the Rue Saint Victor was for many years the + rendezvous of youths bearing the most famous of French names, and it was + considered a very great favour for a young man to obtain admission. The + large sums which many rich people paid to secure admission for their sons + served to provide a free education for young men without fortune who had + shown signs of talent. This testified to the unbounded faith of M. + Dupanloup in classical learning. He looked upon these classical studies as + part and parcel of religion. He held that youths destined for holy orders + and those who were in afterlife to occupy the highest social positions + should both receive the same education. Virgil, he thought should be as + much a part of a priest’s intellectual training as the Bible. He + hoped that the <i>élite</i> of his theological students would, by their + association upon equal terms with young men of good family, acquire more + polish and a higher social tone than can be obtained in seminaries peopled + by peasants’ sons. He was wonderfully successful in this respect. + The college, though consisting of two elements, apparently incongruous, + was remarkable for its unity. The knowledge that talent overrode all other + considerations prevented anything like jealousy, and by the end of a week + the poorest youth from the provinces, awkward and simple as he might be, + was envied by the young millionaire—who, little as he might know it, + was paying for his schooling—if he had turned out some good Latin + verses, or written a clever exercise. + </p> + <p> + In the year 1838, I was fortunate enough to win all the prizes in my class + at the Tréguier College. The <i>palmares</i> happened to be seen by one of + the enlightened men whom M. Dupanloup employed to recruit his youthful + army. My fate was settled in a twinkling, and “Have him sent for” + was the order of the impulsive Superior. I was fifteen and a half years + old, and we had no time to reflect. I was spending the holidays with a + friend in a village near Tréguier, and in the afternoon of the 4th of + September I was sent for in haste. I remember my returning home as well as + if it was only yesterday. We had a league to travel through the country. + The vesper bell with its soft cadence echoing from steeple to steeple + awoke a sensation of gentle melancholy, the image of the life which I was + about to abandon for ever. The next day I started for Paris; upon the 7th + I beheld sights which were as novel for me as if I had been suddenly + landed in France from Tahiti or Timbuctoo. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0019" id="link2H_4_0019"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART III. + </h2> + <p> + No Buddhist Lama or Mussulman Fakir, suddenly translated from Asia to the + Boulevards of Paris, could have been more taken aback than I was upon + being suddenly landed in a place so different from that in which moved my + old Breton priests, who, with their venerable heads all wood or granite, + remind one of the Osirian colossi which in after life so struck my fancy + when I saw them in Egypt, grandiose in their long lines of immemorial + calm. My coming to Paris marked the passage from one religion to another. + There was as much difference between Christianity as I left it in Brittany + and that which I found current in Paris, as there is between a piece of + old cloth, as stiff as a board, and a bit of fine cambric. It was not the + same religion. My old priests, with their heavy old-fashioned copes, had + always seemed to me like the magi, from whose lips came the eternal + truths, whereas the new religion to which I was introduced was all print + and calico, a piety decked out with ribbons and scented with musk, a + devotion which found expression in tapers and small flower-pots, a young + lady’s theology without stay or style, as composite as the + polychrome frontispiece of one of Lebel’s prayer-books. + </p> + <p> + This was the gravest crisis in my life. The young Breton does not bear + transplanting. The keen moral repulsion which I felt, superadded to a + complete change in my habits and mode of life, brought on a very severe + attack of home-sickness. The confinement to the college was intolerable. + The remembrance of the free and happy life which I had hitherto led with + my mother went to my very heart. I was not the only sufferer. M. Dupanloup + had not calculated all the consequences of his policy. Imperious as a + military commander, he did not take into account the deaths and casualties + which occurred among his young recruits. We confided our sorrows to one + another. My most intimate friend, a young man from Coutances, if I + remember right, who had been, transported like myself from a happy home, + brooded in solitary grief over the change and died. The natives of Savoy + were even less easily acclimatised. One of them, who was rather my senior, + confessed to me that every evening he calculated the distance from his + dormitory on the third floor to the pavement in the street below. I fell + ill, and to all appearances was not likely to recover. The melancholy to + which Bretons are so subject took hold of me. The memories of the last + notes of the vesper bell which I had heard pealing over our dear hills, + and of the last sunset upon our peaceful plains, pricked me like pointed + darts. + </p> + <p> + According to every rule of medicine I ought to have died; and it is + perhaps a pity that I did not. Two friends whom I brought with me from + Brittany, in the following year gave this clear proof of fidelity. They + could not accustom themselves to this new world, and they left it. I + sometimes think that the Breton part of me did die; the Gascon, + unfortunately, found sufficient reason for living! The latter discovered, + too, that this new world was a very curious one, and was well worth + clinging to. It was to him who had put me to this severe test that I owed + my escape from death. I am indebted to M. Dupanloup for two things: for + having brought me to Paris, and for having saved me from dying when I got + there. He naturally did not concern himself much about me at first. The + most eagerly sought after priest in Paris, with an establishment of two + hundred students to superintend or rather to found, could not be expected + to take any deep personal interest in an obscure youth. A peculiar + incident formed a bond between us. The real cause of my suffering was the + ever-present souvenir of my mother. Having always lived alone with her, I + could not tear myself away from the recollection of the peaceful, happy + life which I had led year after year. I had been happy, and I had been + poor with her. A thousand details of this very poverty, which absence made + all the more touching, searched out my very heart. At night I was always + thinking of her, and I could get no sleep. My only consolation was to + write her letters full of tender feeling and moist with tears. Our + letters, as is the usage in religious establishments, were read by one of + the masters. He was so struck by the tone of deep affection which pervaded + my boyish utterances that he showed one of them to M. Dupanloup, who was + very much surprised when he read it. + </p> + <p> + The noblest trait in M. Dupanloup’s character was his affection for + his mother. Though his birth was, in one way, the greatest trouble of his + life, he worshipped his mother. She lived with him, and though we never + saw her, we knew that he always spent so much time with her every day. He + often said that a man’s worth is to be measured by the respect he + pays to his mother. He gave us excellent advice upon this head which I + never failed to follow, as, for instance, never to address her in the + second person singular, or to end a letter without using the word <i>respect</i>. + This created a connecting link between us. My letter was shown to him on a + Friday, upon which evening the reports for the week were always read out + before him. I had not, upon that occasion, done very well with my + composition, being only fifth or sixth. “Ah!” he said, “if + the subject had been that of a letter which I read this morning, Ernest + Renan would have been first.” From that time forth he noticed me. He + recognised the fact of my existence, and I regarded him, as we all did, as + a principle of life, a sort of god. One worship took the place of another, + and the sentiment inspired by my early teachers gradually died out. + </p> + <p> + Only those who knew Saint Nicholas du Chardonnet during the brilliant + period from 1838 to 1844 can form an adequate idea of the intense life + which prevailed there.<a href="#linknote-8" name="linknoteref-8" + id="linknoteref-8"><small>8</small></a> And this life had only one source, + one principle: M. Dupanloup himself. The whole work fell on his shoulders. + Regulations, usage administration, the spiritual and temporal government + of the college, were all centred in him. The college was full of defects, + but he made up for them all. As a writer and an orator he was only + second-rate, but as an educator of youth he had no equal. The old rules of + Saint Nicholas du Chardonnet provided, as in all other seminaries, that + half an hour should be devoted every evening to what was known as + spiritual reading. Before M. Dupanloup’s time, the readings were + from some ascetic book such as the <i>Lives of the Fathers in the Desert</i>, + but he took this half hour for himself, and every evening he put himself + into direct communication with all his pupils by the medium of a familiar + conversation, which was so natural and unrestrained that it might often + have borne comparison with the homilies of John Chrysostom in the Palaea + of Antioch. Any incident in the inner life of the college, any occurrence + directly concerning himself or one of the pupils furnished the theme for a + brief and lively soliloquy. The reading of the reports on Friday was still + more dramatic and personal, and we all anticipated that day with a mixture + of hope and apprehension. The observations with which he interlarded the + reading of the notes were charged with life and death. There was no mode + of punishment in force; the reading of the notes and the reflections which + he made upon them being the sole means which he employed to keep us all on + the <i>qui vive</i>. This system, doubtless, had its drawbacks. Worshipped + by his pupils, M. Dupanloup was not always liked by his fellow-workers. I + have been told that it was the same in his diocese, and that he was always + a greater favourite with his laymen than with his priests. There can be no + doubt that he put every one about him into the background. But his very + violence made us like him, for we felt that all his thoughts were + concentrated on us. He was without an equal in the art of rousing his + pupils to exertion, and of getting the maximum amount of work out of each. + Each pupil had a distinct existence in his mind, and for each one of them + he was an ever-present stimulus to work. He set great store by talent, and + treated it as the groundwork of faith. He often said that a man’s + worth must be measured by his faculty for admiration. His own admiration + was not always very enlightened or scientific, but it was prompted by a + generous spirit, and a heart really glowing with the love of the + beautiful. He was the Villemain of the Catholic school, and M. Villemain + was the friend whom he loved and appreciated the most among laymen. Every + time he had seen him, he related the conversation which they had together + in terms of the warmest sympathy. + </p> + <p> + The defects of his own mind were reflected in the education which he + imparted. He was not sufficiently rational or scientific. It might have + been thought that his two hundred pupils were all destined to be poets, + writers, and orators. He set little value on learning without talent. This + was made very clear at the entrance of the Nicolaites to St. Sulpice, + where talent was held of no account, and where scholasticism and erudition + alone were prized. When it came to a question of doing an exercise of + logic or philosophy in barbarous Latin, the students of St. Nicholas, who + had been fed upon more delicate literature, could not stomach such coarse + food. They were not, therefore, much liked at St. Sulpice, to which M. + Dupanloup, was never appointed, as he was considered to be too little of a + theologian. When an ex-student of St. Nicholas ventured to speak of his + former school, the old tutors would remark: “Oh, yes! in the time of + M. Bourdoise,” as much as to say that the seventeenth century was + the period during which this establishment achieved its celebrity. + </p> + <p> + Whatever its shortcomings in some respects, the education given at St. + Nicholas was of a very high literary standard. Clerical education has this + superiority over a university education, that it is absolutely independent + in everything which does not relate to religion. Literature is discussed + under all its aspects, and the yoke of classical dogma sits much more + lightly. This is how it was that Lamartine, whose education and training + were altogether clerical, was far more intelligent than any university + man; and when this is followed by philosophical emancipation, the result + is a very frank and unbiased mind. I completed my classical education + without having read Voltaire, but I knew the <i>Soirées de St. Pétersbourg</i> + by heart, and its style, the defects of which I did not discover until + much later, had a very stimulating effect upon me. + </p> + <p> + The discussions on romanticism, then so fierce in the world outside, found + their way into the college and all our talk was of Lamartine and Victor + Hugo. The superior joined in with them, and for nearly a year they were + the sole topic of our spiritual readings. M. Dupanloup did not go all the + way with the champions of romanticism, but he was much more with them than + against them. Thus it was that I came to know of the struggles of the day. + Later still, the <i>solvuntur objecta</i> of the theologians enabled me to + attain liberty of thought. The thorough good faith of the ancient + ecclesiastical teaching consisted in not dissimulating the force of any + objection, and as the answers were generally very weak, a clever person + could work out the truth for himself. + </p> + <p> + I learnt much, too, from the course of lectures on history. Abbé Richard<a + href="#linknote-9" name="linknoteref-9" id="linknoteref-9"><small>9</small></a> + gave these lectures in the spirit of the modern school and with marked + ability. For some reason or other his lectures were interrupted, and his + place was taken by a tutor, who with many other engagements on hand, + merely read to us some old notes, interspersed with extracts from modern + books. Among these modern volumes, which often formed a striking contrast + with the jog-trot old notes, there was one which produced a very singular + effect upon me. Whenever he began to read from it I was incapable of + taking a single note, my whole being seeming to thrill with intoxicating + harmony. The book was Michelet’s <i>Histoire de France</i>, the + passages which so affected me being in the fifth and sixth volumes. Thus + the modern age penetrated into me as through all the fissures of a cracked + cement. I had come to Paris with a complete moral training, but ignorant + to the last degree. I had everything to learn. It was a great surprise for + me when I found that there was such a person as a serious and learned + layman. I discovered that antiquity and the Church are not everything in + this world, and especially that contemporary literature was well worthy of + attention. I ceased to look upon the death of Louis XIV. as marking the + end of the world. I became imbued with ideas and sentiments which had no + expression in antiquity or in the seventeenth century. + </p> + <p> + So the germ which was in me began to sprout. Distasteful as it was in many + respects to my nature, this education had the effect of a chemical + reagent, and stirred all the life and activity that was in me. For the + essential thing in education is not the doctrine taught, but the arousing + of the faculties. In proportion as the foundations of my religious faith + had been shaken by finding the same names applied to things so different, + so did my mind greedily swallow the new beverage prepared for it. The + world broke in upon me. Despite its claim to be a refuge to which the stir + of the outside world never penetrated, St. Nicholas was at this period the + most brilliant and worldly house in Paris. The atmosphere of Paris—minus, + let me add, its corruptions—penetrated by door and window; Paris + with its pettiness and its grandeur, its revolutionary force and its + lapses into flabby indifference. My old Brittany priests knew much more + Latin and mathematics than my new masters; but they lived in the + catacombs, bereft of light and air. Here, the atmosphere of the age had + free course. In our walks to Gentilly of an evening we engaged in endless + discussions. I could never sleep of a night after that; my head was full + of Hugo and Lamartine. I understood what glory was after having vaguely + expected to find it in the roof of the chapel at Tréguier. In the course + of a short time a very great revelation was borne in upon me. The words + talent, brilliancy, and reputation, conveyed a meaning to me. The modest, + ideal which my earliest teachers had inculcated faded away; I had embarked + upon a sea agitated by all the storms and currents of the age. These + currents and gales were bound to drive my vessel towards a coast whither + my former friends would tremble to see me land. + </p> + <p> + My performances in class were very irregular. Upon one occasion I wrote an + <i>Alexander</i>, which must be in the prize exercise book, and which I + would reprint if I had it by me. But purely rhetorical compositions were + very distasteful to me; I could never make a decent speech. Upon one + prize-day we got up a representation of the Council of Clermont, and the + various speeches suitable to the occasion were allotted by competition. I + was a miserable failure as Peter the Hermit and Urban II.; my Godefroy de + Bouillon was pronounced to be utterly devoid of military ardour. A warlike + song in Sapphic and Adonic stanzas created a more favourable impression. + My refrain <i>Sternite Turcas</i>, a short and sharp solution of the + Eastern Question, was selected for recital in public. I was too staid for + these childish proceedings. We were often set to write a Middle Age tale, + terminating with some striking miracle, and I was far too fond of + selecting the cure of lepers. I often thought of my early studies in + mathematics, in which I was pretty well advanced, and I spoke of it to my + fellow students, who were much amused at the idea, for mathematics stood + very low in their estimation, compared to the literary studies which they + looked upon as the highest expression of human intelligence. My reasoning + powers only revealed themselves later, while studying philosophy at Issy. + The first time that my fellow pupils heard me argue in Latin they were + surprised. They saw at once that I was of a different race from + themselves, and that I should still be marching forward when they had + reached the bounds set for them. But in rhetoric I did not stand so well. + I looked upon it as a pure waste of time and ingenuity to write when one + has no thoughts of one’s own to express. + </p> + <p> + The groundwork of ideas upon which education at St. Nicholas was based was + shallow, but it was brilliant upon the surface, and the elevation of + feeling which pervaded the whole system was another notable feature. I + have said that no kind of punishment was administered; or, to speak more + accurately, there was only one, expulsion. Except in cases where some + grave offence had been committed, there was nothing degrading in being + dismissed. No particular reason was alleged, the superior saying to the + student who was sent away: “You are a very worthy young man, but + your intelligence is not of the turn we require. Let us part friends. Is + there any service I can do you?” The favour of being allowed to + share in an education considered to be so exceptionally good was thought + so much of that we dreaded an announcement of this kind like a sentence of + death. This is one of the secrets of the superiority of ecclesiastical + over state colleges; their <i>régime</i> is much more liberal, for none of + the students are there by right, and coercion must inevitably lead to + separation. There is something cold and hard about the schools and + colleges of the state, while the fact of a student having secured by a + competitive examination an inalienable right to his place in them, is an + infallible source of weakness. For my own part I have never been able to + understand how the master of a normal school, for instance, manages, + inasmuch as he is unable to say, without further explanation, to the + pupils who are unsuited for their vocation: “You have not the bent + of intelligence for our calling, but I have no doubt that you are a very + good lad, and that you will get on better elsewhere. Good-bye.” Even + the most trifling punishment implies a servile principle of obedience from + fear. So far as I am myself concerned, I do not think that at any period + of my life I have been obedient. I have, I know, been docile and + submissive, but it has been to a spiritual principle, not to a material + force wielding the dread of punishment. My mother never ordered me to do a + thing. The relations between my ecclesiastical teachers and myself were + entirely free and spontaneous. Whoever has had experience of this <i>rationabile + obsequium</i> cannot put up with any other. An order is a humiliation + whosoever has to obey is a <i>capitis minor</i> sullied on the very + threshold of the higher life. Ecclesiastical obedience has nothing + lowering about it; for it is voluntary, and those who do not get on + together can separate. In one of my Utopian dreams of an aristocratic + society, I have provided that there should only be one penalty, death; or + rather, that all serious offences should be visited by a reprimand from + the recognised authorities which no man of honour would survive. I should + never have done to be a soldier, for I should either have deserted or + committed suicide. I am afraid that the new military institutions which do + not leave a place for any exceptions or equivalents will have a very + lowering moral effect. To compel every one to obey is fatal to genius and + talent. The man who has passed years in the carriage of arms after the + German fashion is dead to all delicate work whether of the hand or brain. + Thus it is that Germany would be devoid of all talent since she has been + engrossed in military pursuits, but for the Jews, to whom she is so + ungrateful. + </p> + <p> + The generation which was from fifteen to twenty years of age, at the + brilliant but fleeting epoch of which I am speaking, is now between + fifty-five and sixty. It will be asked whether this generation has + realised the unbounded hopes which the ardent spirit of our great + preceptor had conceived. The answer must unquestionably be in the + negative, for if these hopes had been fulfilled the face of the world + would have been completely changed. M. Dupanloup was too little in love + with his age, and too uncompromising to its spirit, to mould men in + accordance with the temper of the time. When I recall one of these + spiritual readings during which the master poured out the treasures of his + intelligence, the class-room with its serried benches upon which clustered + two hundred lads hushed in attentive respect, and when I set myself to + inquire whither have fled the two hundred souls, so closely bound together + by the ascendency of one man, I count more than one case of waste and + eccentricity; as might be expected, I can count archbishops, bishops, and + other dignitaries of the Church, all to a certain extent enlightened and + moderate in their views. I come upon diplomatists, councillors of state, + and others, whose honourable careers would in some instances have been + more brilliant if Marshal MacMahon’s dismissal of his ministry on + the 16th of May, 1877, had been a success. But, strange to say, I see + among those who sat beside a future prelate a young man destined to + sharpen his knife so well that he will drive it home to his archbishop’s + heart.... I think I can remember Verger, and I may say of him as Sachetti + said of the beatified Florentine: <i>Fu mia vicina, andava come le altre.</i> + The education given us had its dangers; it had a tendency to produce over + excitement, and to turn the balance of the mind, as it did in Verger’s + case. + </p> + <p> + A still more striking instance of the saying that “the spirit + bloweth where it listeth,” was that of H. de ——. When I + first entered at Saint-Nicholas he was the object of my special + admiration. He was a youth of exceptional talent, and he was a long way + ahead of all his comrades in rhetoric. His staid and elevated piety sprung + from a nature endowed with the loftiest aspirations. He quite came up to + our idea of perfection, and according to the custom of ecclesiastical + colleges, in which the senior pupils share the duties of the masters, the + most important of these functions were confided to him. His piety was + equally great for several years at the seminary of St. Sulpice. He would + remain for hours in the chapel, especially on holy days, bathed in tears. + I well remember one summer evening at Gentilly—which was the + country-house of the Petty Seminary of Saint-Nicholas—how we + clustered round some of the senior students and one of the masters noted + for his Christian piety, listening intently to what they told us. The + conversation had taken a very serious turn, the question under discussion + being the ever-enduring problem upon which all Christianity rests—the + question of divine election—the doubt in which each individual soul + must stand until the last hour, whether he will be saved. The good priest + dwelt specially upon this, telling us that no one can be sure, however + great may be the favours which Heaven has showered upon him, that he will + not fall away at the last. “I think,” he said, “that I + have known one case of predestination.” There was a hush, and after + a pause he added, “I mean H. de ——; if any one is sure + of being saved it is he. And yet who can tell that H. de —— is + not a reprobate?” I saw H. de —— again many years + afterwards. He had in the interval studied the Bible very deeply. I could + not tell whether he was entirely estranged from Christianity, but he no + longer wore the priestly garb, and was very bitter against clericalism. + When I met him later still I found that he had become a convert to extreme + democratic ideas, and with the passionate exaltation which was the + principal trait in his character, he was bent upon inaugurating the reign + of justice. His head was full of America, and I think that he must be + there now. A few years ago one of our old comrades told me that he had + read a name not unlike his among the list of men shot for participation in + the Communist insurrection of 1871. I think that he was mistaken, but + there can be no doubt that the career of poor H. de —— was + shipwrecked by some great storm. His many high qualities were neutralised + by his passionate temper. He was by far the most gifted of my fellow + pupils at Saint-Nicholas. But he had not the good sense to keep cool in + politics. A man who behaved as he did might get shot twenty times. + Idealists like us must be very careful how we play with those tools. We + are very likely to leave our heads or our wing-feathers behind us. The + temptation for a priest who has thrown up the Church to become a democrat + is very strong, beyond doubt, for by so doing he regains colleagues and + friends, and in reality merely exchanges one sect for another. Such was + the fate of Lamennais. One of the wisest acts of Abbé Loyson has been the + resistance of this temptation and his refusal to accept the advances which + the extreme party always makes to those who have broken away from official + ties. + </p> + <p> + For three years I was subjected to this profound influence, which brought + about a complete transformation in my being. M. Dupanloup had literally + transfigured me. The poor little country lad struggling vainly to emerge + from his shell, had been developed into a young man of ready and quick + intelligence. There was, I know, one thing wanting in my education, and + until that void was filled up I was very cramped in my powers. The one + thing lacking was positive science, the idea of a critical search after + truth. This superficial humanism kept my reasoning powers fallow for three + years, while at the same time it wore away the early candour of my faith. + My Christianity was being worn away, though there was nothing as yet in my + mind which could be styled doubt. I went every year, during the holidays, + into Brittany. Notwithstanding more than one painful struggle, I soon + became my old self again just as my early masters had fashioned me. + </p> + <p> + In accordance with the general rule I went, after completing my rhetoric + at Saint-Nicholas du Chardonnet, to Issy, the country branch of the St. + Sulpice seminary. Thus I left M. Dupanloup for an establishment in which + the discipline was diametrically opposed to that of Saint-Nicholas. The + first thing which I was taught at St. Sulpice was to regard as childish + nonsense the very things which M. Dupanloup had told me to prize the most. + What, I was taught, could be simpler? If Christianity is a revealed truth, + should not the chief occupation of the Christian be the study of that + revelation, in other words of theology? Theology and the study of the + Bible absorbed my whole time, and furnished me with the true reasons for + believing in Christianity and for not adhering to it. For four years a + terrible struggle went on within me, until at last the phrase, which I had + long put away from me as a temptation of the devil, “It is not true,” + would not be denied. In describing this inward combat and the Seminary of + St. Sulpice itself, which is further removed from the present age than if + encircled by thousands of leagues of solitude, I will endeavour also to + show how I arose from the direct study of Christianity, undertaken in the + most serious spirit, without sufficient faith to be a sincere priest, and + yet with too much respect for it to permit of my trifling with faiths so + worthy of that respect. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0020" id="link2H_4_0020"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + THE ISSY SEMINARY. + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0021" id="link2H_4_0021"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART I. + </h2> + <p> + The Petty Seminary of Saint-Nicholas du Chardonnet had no philosophical + course, philosophy being, in accordance with the division of + ecclesiastical studies, reserved for the great seminary. After having + finished my classical education in the establishment so ably directed by + M. Dupanloup, I was, with the students in my class, passed into the great + seminary, which is set apart for an exclusively ecclesiastical course of + teaching. The grand seminary for the diocese of Paris is St. Sulpice, + which consists of two houses, one in Paris and the other at Issy, where + the students devote two years to philosophy. These two seminaries form, in + reality, one. The one is the outcome of the other, and they are both + conjoined at certain times; the congregation from which the masters are + selected is the same. St. Sulpice exercised so great an influence over me, + and so definitely decided the whole course of my life, that I must + perforce sketch its history, and explain its principles and tendencies, so + as to show how they have continued to be the mainspring of all my + intellectual and moral development. + </p> + <p> + St. Sulpice owes its origin to one whose name has not attained any great + celebrity, for celebrity rarely seeks out those who make a point of + avoiding notoriety, and whose predominant characteristic is modesty. + Jean-Jacques Olier, member of a family which supplied the state with many + trusty servitors, was the contemporary of, and a fellow-worker with, + Vincent de Paul, Bérulle, Adrien de Bourdoise, Père Eudes, and Charles de + Gondren, founders of congregations for the reform of ecclesiastical + education, who played a prominent part in the preparatory reforms of the + seventeenth century. During the reign of Henri IV. and in the early years + of the reign of Louis XIII., the morality of the clergy was at the lowest + possible point. The fanaticism of the League, far from serving to make + their morality more rigorous, had just the contrary effect. Priests + thought that because they shouldered musket and carbine in the good cause + they were at liberty to do as they liked. The racy humour which prevailed + during the reign of Henri IV. was anything but favourable to mysticism. + There was a good side to the outspoken Rabelaisian gaiety which was not + deemed, in that day, incompatible with the priestly calling. In many ways + we prefer the bright and witty piety of Pierre Camus, a friend of François + de Sales, to the rigid and affected attitude which the French clergy has + since assumed, and which has converted them into a sort of black army, + holding aloof from the rest of the world and at war with it. But there can + be no doubt that about the year 1640 the education of the clergy was not + in keeping with the spirit of regularity and moderation which was becoming + more and more the law of the age. From the most opposite directions came a + cry for reform. François de Sales admitted that he had not been successful + in this attempt, and he told Bourdoise that “after having laboured + during seventeen years to train only three such priests as I wanted to + assist me in re-forming the clergy of my diocese, I have only succeeded in + forming one and-a-half.” Following upon him came the men of grave + and reasonable piety whom I named above. By means of congregations of a + fresh type, distinct from the old monkish rules and in some points copied + from the Jesuits, they created the seminary, that is to say the + well-walled nursery in which young clerks could be trained and formed. The + transformation was far extending. The schools of these powerful teachers + of the spiritual life turned out a body of men representing the best + disciplined, the most orderly, the most national, and it maybe added, the + most highly educated clergy ever seen—a clergy which illustrated the + second half of the seventeenth century and the whole of the eighteenth, + and the last of whose representatives have only disappeared within the + last forty years. Concurrently with these exertions of orthodox piety + arose Port-Royal, which was far superior to St. Sulpice, to St. Lazare, to + the Christian doctrine, and even to the Oratoire, as regarded consistency + in reasoning and talent in writing, but which lacked the most essential of + Catholic virtues, docility. Port-Royal, like Protestantism, passed through + every phase of misfortune. It was distasteful to the majority, and was + always in opposition. When you have excited the antipathy of your country + you are too often led to take a dislike to your country. The persecuted + one is doubly to be pitied, for, in addition to the suffering which he + endures, persecution affects him morally; it rarely fails to warp the mind + and to shrink the heart. + </p> + <p> + Olier occupies a place apart in this group of Catholic reformers. His + mysticism is of a kind peculiar to himself. His <i>Cathéchisme chrétien + pour la Vie intérieure</i>, which is scarcely ever read outside St. + Sulpice, is a most remarkable book, full of poesy and sombre philosophy, + wavering from first to last between Louis de Léon and Spinoza. Olier’s + ideal of the Christian life is what he calls “the state of death.” + </p> + <p> + “What is the state of death?—It is a state during which the + heart cannot be moved to its depths, and though the world displays to it + its beauties, its honours, and its riches, the effect is the same as if it + offered them to a corpse, which remains motionless, and devoid of all + desire, insensible to all that goes on.... The corpse may be agitated + outwardly, and have some movement of the body; but this agitation is all + on the surface; it does not come from the inner man, which is without + life, vigour, or strength. Thus a soul which is dead within may easily be + attached by external things and be disturbed outwardly; but in its inner + self it remains dead and motionless to whatever may happen.” + </p> + <p> + Nor is this all. Olier imagines as far superior to the state of death the + state of burial. + </p> + <p> + “Death retains the appearance of the world and of the flesh; the + dead man seems to be still a part of Adam. He is now and again moved; he + continues to afford the world some pleasure. But the buried body is + forgotten, and no longer ranks with men. He is noisome and horrible; he is + bereft of all that pleases the eye; he is trodden under foot in a cemetery + without compunction, so convinced is every one that he is nothing, and + that he is rooted from among the number of men.” + </p> + <p> + The sombre fancies of Calvin are as Pelagian optimism compared to the + horrible nightmares which original sin evokes in the brain of the pious + recluse. + </p> + <p> + “Could you add anything to drive more closely home the conception as + to how the flesh is only sin? It is so completely sin that it is all + intent and motion towards sin, and even to every kind of sin; so much so, + that if the Holy Ghost did not restrain our souls and succour us with His + grace, it would be carried away by all the inclinations of the flesh, all + of which tend to sin. + </p> + <p> + “What is then the flesh?—It is the effect of sin; it is the + principle of sin. + </p> + <p> + “If that is so, how comes it that you did not fall away every hour + into sin?—It is the mercy of God which keeps us from it.... I am, + therefore, indebted to God if I do not commit every kind of sin?—Yes + ... this is the general feeling of the saints, because the flesh is drawn + down towards sin by such a heavy weight that God alone can prevent it from + falling. + </p> + <p> + “But will you kindly tell me something more about this?—All I + can tell you is that there is no conceivable kind of sin, no imperfection, + disorder, error, or unruliness of which the flesh is not full, just as + there is no levity, folly, or stupidity of which the flesh is not capable + at any moment. + </p> + <p> + “What, I should be mad, and comport myself like a madman in the + highways and byways, but for the help of God?—That is a small + matter, and a question of common decency; but you must know that without + the grace of God and the virtue of His Spirit, there is no impurity, + meanness, infamy, drunkenness, blasphemy, or other kind of sin to which + man would not give himself over. + </p> + <p> + “The flesh is very corrupt then?—You see that it is. + </p> + <p> + “I cannot wonder therefore that you tell us we must hate our flesh + and hold our own bodies in horror; and that man, in his present condition, + is fated to be accursed, vilified and persecuted.—No, I can no + longer feel surprise at this. In truth, there is no form of misfortune and + suffering but which he may expect his flesh to bring down upon him. You + are right; all the hatred, malediction, and persecution which beset the + demon must also beset the flesh and all its motions. + </p> + <p> + “There is, then, no extremity of insult too great to be put up with + and to be looked upon as deserved?—No. + </p> + <p> + “Contempt, insult, and calumny should not then disturb our peace of + mind?—No. We should behave like the saint of former days, who was + led to the scaffold for a crime which he had not committed, and from which + he would not attempt to exculpate himself, as he said to himself that he + should have been guilty of this crime and of many far worse but for the + preventing grace of God. + </p> + <p> + “Men, angels, and God Himself ought, therefore to persecute us + without ceasing? Yes, so it ought to be. + </p> + <p> + “What! do you mean to say that sinners ought to be poor and bereft + of everything, like the demons?—Yes, and more than that. Sinners + ought to be placed under an interdict in regard to all their corporal and + spiritual faculties, and bereft of all the gifts of God.” + </p> + <p> + A hero of Christian humility, Olier was acting as he thought for the best + in making a mock of human nature and dragging it through the mire. He had + visions, and was favoured with inner revelations of which the autographic + account, written for his director, is still at St. Sulpice. He stops short + in his writing to make such reflections as these: “My courage is at + times utterly cast down when I see what impertinences I have been writing. + They must, I think, be a great waste of time for my good director, whom I + am afraid of amusing. I pity him for having to spend his time in reading + them, and it seems to me that he ought to stop my writing this intolerable + frivolity and impertinence.” + </p> + <p> + But Olier, like nearly all the mystics, was not merely a strange dreamer, + but a powerful organizer. Entering very young into holy orders, he was + appointed, through the influence of his family, priest of the parish of + St. Sulpice, which was then attached to the Abbey of Saint-Germain des + Près. His tender and susceptible piety took umbrage at many things which + had hitherto been looked upon as harmless—for instance, at a tavern + situated in the charnel-house of the church and frequented by the + choristers. His ideal was a clergy after his own image—pious, + zealous, and attached to their duties. Many other saintly personages were + labouring towards the same end, but Olier set to work in very original + fashion. Adrien de Bourdoise alone took the same view as he did of + ecclesiastical reform. What was truly novel in the idea of these two + founders was to try and effect the improvement of the secular clergy by + means of institutions for priests mixing with the world and combining the + cure of souls with the training of students for the Church. + </p> + <p> + Olier and Bourdoise accordingly, while carrying on the work of reform, and + becoming heads of religious congregations, remained parish priests of St. + Sulpice and Saint-Nicholas du Chardonnet. The seminary had its origin in + the assembling together of the priests into communities, and these + communities became schools of clericalism, homes in which young men + destined for the Church were piously trained for it. What facilitated the + creation of these establishments and made them innocuous to the state was + that they had no resident tutors. All the theological tutors were at the + Sorbonne, and the young men from St. Sulpice and St. Nicholas, who were + studying theology, went there for their lectures. Thus the system of + teaching remained national and common to all. The seclusion of the + seminary only applied to the moral discipline and religious duties. This + was the equivalent of the practice now prevalent among the + boarding-schools which send their pupils to the Lycée. There was only one + course of theology in Paris, and that was the official one at the Faculty. + The work in the interior of the seminary was confined to repetitions and + lectures. It is true that this rule soon became obsolete. I have heard it + said by old students of St. Sulpice that towards the end of last century + they went very little to the Sorbonne, that the general opinion was that + there was little to be learnt there, and that the private lessons in the + seminary quite took the place of the official lecture. This organisation + was very similar, as may be seen, to that which now obtains in the Normal + School and regulates its relations with the Sorbonne. Subsequent to the + Concordat the whole of the education of the seminaries was given within + the walls. Napoleon did not think it worth while to revive the monopoly of + the Theological Faculty. This could only have been effected by obtaining + from the Court of Rome a canonical institution, and this the Imperial + Government did not care to have. M. Emery, moreover, took good care never + to suggest such a step. He had anything but a favourable recollection of + the old system, and very much preferred keeping his young men under his + own control. The lectures <i>intra muros</i> thus became the regular + course of teaching. Nevertheless, as change is a thing unknown at St. + Sulpice, the old names remain what they were. The seminary has no + professors; all the members of the congregation have the uniform title of + director. + </p> + <p> + The company founded by Olier retained until the Revolution its repute for + modesty and practical virtue. Its achievements in theology were somewhat + insignificant, as it had not the lofty independence of Port-Royal. It went + too far into Molinism, and did not avoid the paltry meanness which is, so + to speak, the outcome of the rigid ideas of the orthodox and a set-off + against his good qualities. The ill-humour of Saint Simon against these + pious priests is, however, carried too far. They were, in the great + ecclesiastical army, the noncommissioned officers and drill-sergeants, and + it would have been absurd to expect from them the high breeding of general + officers. The company exercised through its numerous provincial houses a + decisive influence upon the education of the French clergy, while in + Canada it acquired a sort of religious suzerainty which harmonised very + well with the English rule—so well-disposed towards ancient rights + and custom, and which has lasted down to our own day. + </p> + <p> + The Revolution did not have any effect upon St. Sulpice. A man of cool and + resolute character, such as the company always numbered among its members, + reconstructed it upon the very same basis. M. Emery, a very learned and + moderately Gallican priest, so completely gained Napoleon’s + confidence that be obtained from him the necessary authorisations. He + would have been very much surprised if he had been told that the fact of + making such a demand was a base concession to the civil power, and a sort + of impiety. Thus things recurred to their old groove as they were before + the Revolution, the door moved on its old hinges, and as from Olier to the + Revolution there had not been any change, the seventeenth century had + still a resting-place in one corner of Paris. + </p> + <p> + St. Sulpice continued amid surroundings so different, to be what it had + always been before—moderate and respectful towards the civil power, + and to hold aloof from politics.<a href="#linknote-10" + name="linknoteref-10" id="linknoteref-10"><small>10</small></a> With its + legal status thoroughly assured, thanks to the judicious measures taken by + M. Emery, St. Sulpice was blind to all that went on in the world outside. + After the Revolution of 1830, there was some little stir in the college. + The echo of the heated discussions of the day sometimes pierced its walls, + and the speeches of M. Mauguin—I am sure I don’t know why—were + special favourites with the junior students. One of them took an + opportunity of reading to the superior, M. Duclaux, an extract from a + debate which had struck him as being more violent than usual. The old + priest, wrapped up in his own reflections, had scarcely listened. When the + student had finished, he awoke from his lethargy, and shaking him by the + hand, observed: “It is very clear, my lad, that these men do not say + their orisons.” The remark has often recalled itself to me of late + in connection with certain speeches. What a light is let in upon many + points by the fact that M. Clémenceau does not probably say his orisons! + </p> + <p> + These imperturbable old men were very indifferent to what went on in the + world, which to their mind was a barrel-organ continually repeating the + same tune. Upon one occasion there was a good deal of commotion upon the + Place St. Sulpice, and one of the professors, whose feelings were not so + well under control as those of his colleagues, wanted them all “to + go to the chapel and die in a body.” “I don’t see the + use of that,” was the reply of one of his colleagues, and the + professors continued their constitutional walk under the colonnade of the + courtyard. + </p> + <p> + Amid the religious difficulties of the time, the priests of St. Sulpice + preserved an equally neutral and sagacious attitude, the only occasions + upon which they betrayed anything like warmth of feeling being when the + episcopal authority was threatened. They soon found out the spitefulness + of M. de Lamennais, and would have nothing to do with him. The theological + romanticism of Lacordaire and of Montalembert was not much more + appreciated by them, the dogmatic ignorance and the very weak reasoning + powers of this school indisposing them against it. They were fully alive + to the danger of Catholic journalism. Ultramontanism they at first looked + upon as merely a convenient method of appealing to a distant and often + ill-informed authority from one nearer at hand, and less easy to inveigle. + The older members, who had gone through their studies at the Sorbonne + before the Revolution, were uncompromising partisans of the four + propositions of 1682. Bossuet was their oracle on every point. One of the + most respected of the directors, M. Boyer, had, while at Rome, a long + argument with Pope Gregory XVI. upon the Gallican propositions. He + asserted that the Pope could not answer his arguments. He detracted, it is + true, from the significance of his success by admitting that no one in + Rome took him <i>au sérieux</i>, and the residents in the Vatican made + sport of him as being “an antediluvian.” It is a pity-that + they did not pay more heed to what he said. A complete change took place + about 1840. The older members whose training dated from before the + Revolution were dead, and the younger ones nearly all rallied to the + doctrine of papal infallibility; but there was, despite of that, a great + gulf between these Ultramontanes of the eleventh hour and the impetuous + deriders of Scholasticism and the Gallican Church who were enrolled under + the banner of Lamennais. St. Sulpice never went so far as they did in + trampling recognised rules under foot. + </p> + <p> + It cannot be denied that mingled with all this there was a certain amount + of antipathy against talent, and of resentment at interference with the + routine of the schoolmen disturbed in their old-fashioned doctrines by + troublesome innovators. But there was at the same time a good deal of + practical tact in the rules followed by these prudent directors. They saw + the danger of being more royalist than the king, and they knew how easy + was the transition from one extreme to the other. Men less exempt than + they were, from anything like vanity, would have exulted when Lamennais, + the master of these brilliant paradoxes, who had represented them as being + guilty of heresy and lukewarmness for the Holy See, himself became a + heretic, and accused the Church of Rome of being the tomb of human souls + and the mother of error. Age must not attempt to ape the ways of youth + under penalty of being treated with disrespect. + </p> + <p> + It is on account of this frankness that St. Sulpice represents all that is + most upright in religion. No attenuation of the dogmas of Scripture was + allowed at St. Sulpice; the fathers, the councils, and the doctors were + looked upon as the sources of Christianity. Proof of the divinity of + Christ was not sought in Mohammed or the battle of Marengo. These + theological buffooneries, which by force of impudence and eloquence + extorted admiration in Notre-Dame, had no such effect upon these + serious-minded Christians. They never thought that the dogma had any need + to be toned down, veiled, or dressed up to suit the taste of modern + France. They showed themselves deficient in the critical faculty in + supposing that the Catholicism of the theologians was the self-same + religion of Jesus and the prophets; but they did not invent for the use of + the worldly, a Christianity revised and adapted to their ideas. This is + why the serious study—may I even add, the reform—of + Christianity is more likely to proceed from St. Sulpice than from the + teachings of M. Lacordaire or M. Gratry, and <i>a fortiori</i>, from that + of M. Dupanloup, in which all its doctrines are toned down, contorted, and + blunted; in which Christianity is never represented as it was conceived by + the Council of Trent or the Vatican Council, but as a thing without frame + or bone, and with all its essence taken from it. The conversions which are + made by preaching of this kind do no good either to religion or to the + mind. Conversions of this kind do not make Christians, but they warp the + mind and unfit men for public business. There is nothing so mischievous as + the vague; it is even worse than what is false. “Truth,” as + Bacon has well observed, “is derived from error rather than from + confusion.” + </p> + <p> + Thus, amid the pretentious pathos which in our day has found its way into + the Christian Apologia, has been preserved a school of solid doctrine, + averse to all show and repugnant to success. Modesty has ever been the + special attribute of the Company of St. Sulpice; this is why it has never + attached any importance to literature, excluding it almost entirely. The + rule of the St. Sulpice Company is to publish everything anonymously, and + to write in the most unpretending and retiring style possible. They see + clearly the vanity, and the drawbacks of talent, and they will have none + of it. The word which best characterises them is mediocrity, but then + their mediocrity is systematic and self-planned. Michelet has described + the alliance between the Jesuits and the Sulpicians as “a marriage + between death and vacuum.” This is no doubt true, but Michelet + failed to see that in this case the vacuum is loved for its own sake. + There is something touching about a vacuum created by men who will not + think for fear of thinking ill. Literary error is in their eyes the most + dangerous of errors, and it is just on this account that they excel in the + true style of writing. St. Sulpice is now the only place where, as + formerly at Port-Royal, the style of writing possesses that absolute + forgetfulness of form which is the proof of sincerity. It never occurred + to the masters that among their pupils must be a writer or an orator. The + principle which they insisted upon the most earnestly was never to make + any reference to self, and if one had anything to say, to say it plainly + and in undertones. It was all very well for you, my worthy masters, with + that total ignorance of the world which does you so much honour, to take + this view; but if you knew how little encouragement the world gives to + modesty, you would see how difficult it is for literature to act up to + your principles. What would modesty have done for M. de Chateaubriand? You + were right to be severe upon the stagey ways of a theology reduced so low + as to bid for applause by resorting to worldly tactics. But what does one + ever hear of your theology? It has only one defect, but that is a serious + one; it is dead. Your literary principles were like the rhetoric of + Chrysippus, of which Cicero said that it was excellent for teaching the + way of silence. Whoever speaks or writes for the public ear or eye must + inevitably be bent upon succeeding. The great thing is not to make any + sacrifice in order to attain that success, and this is what your serious, + upright and honest teaching inculcated to perfection. + </p> + <p> + In this way St. Sulpice with its contempt for literature is perforce a + capital school for style, the fundamental rule of which is to have solely + in view the thought which it is wished to inculcate, and therefore to have + a thought in the mind. This was far more valuable than the rhetoric of M. + Dupanloup, and the teaching of the new Catholic school. At St. Sulpice, + the main substance of a matter excluded all other considerations. Theology + was of prime importance there, and if the way in which the studies were + shaped was somewhat deficient in vigour, this was because the general + tendency of Catholicism, especially in France, is not in the direction of + very high and sustained efforts. St. Sulpice has, however, in our time + turned out a theologian like M. Carrière, whose vast labours are in many + respects remarkable for their depth; men of erudition like M. Gosselin and + M. Faillon, whose conscientious researches are of great value, and + philologists like M. Garnier, and especially M. Le Hir, the only eminent + masters in the field of ecclesiastical critique whom the Catholic school + in France has turned out. + </p> + <p> + But it is not to results such as these that the teachers of St. Sulpice + attach the highest value. St. Sulpice is, above all, a school of virtue. + It is chiefly in respect to virtue that St. Sulpice is a remnant of the + past, a fossil two hundred years old. Many of my opinions surprise the + outside world, because they have not seen what I have. At Sulpice I have + seen, allied as I admit, with very narrow views, the perfection of + goodness, politeness, modesty, and sacrifice of self. There is enough + virtue in St. Sulpice to govern the whole world, and this fact has made me + very discriminating in my appreciation of what I have seen elsewhere. I + have never met but one man in the present age who can bear comparison with + the Sulpicians, that is M. Damiron, and those who knew him, know what the + Sulpicians were. A future generation will never be able to realise what + treasures to be expended in improving the welfare of mankind, are stored + up in these ancient schools of silence, gravity and respect. + </p> + <p> + Such was the establishment in which I spent four years at the most + critical period of my life. I was quite in my element there. While the + majority of my fellow-students, weakened by the somewhat insipid classical + teaching of M. Dupanloup, could not fairly settle down to the divinity of + the schools, I at once took a liking for its bitter flavour; I became as + fond of it as a monkey is of nuts. The grave and kindly priests, with + their strong convictions and good desires reminded me of my early teachers + in Lower Brittany. Saint-Nicholas du Chardonnet and its superficial + rhetoric I came to look upon as a mere digression of very doubtful + utility. I came to realities from words, and I set seriously to study and + analyse in its smallest details the Christian Faith which I more than ever + regarded as the centre of all truth. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0022" id="link2H_4_0022"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART II. + </h2> + <p> + As I have already explained, the two years of philosophy which serve as an + introduction to the study of theology are spent, not in Paris, but at the + country house of Issy, situated in the village of that name outside Paris, + just beyond the last houses of Vaugirard. The seminary is a very long + building at one end of a large park, and the only remarkable feature about + it is the central pavilion, which is so delicate and elegant in style that + it will at once take the eye of a connoisseur. This pavilion was the + suburban residence of Marguerite de Valois, the first wife of Henri IV., + between the year 1606 and her death in 1615. This clever but not very + strait-laced princess (upon whom, however, we need not be harder than was + he who had the best right to be so) gathered around her the clever men of + the day, and the <i>Petit Olympe d’Issy,</i> by Michel Bouteroue,<a + href="#linknote-11" name="linknoteref-11" id="linknoteref-11"><small>11</small></a> + gives a good description of this bright and witty court. The verses are as + follows: + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Je veux d’un excellent ouvrage, + Dedans un portrait racourcy, + Représenter le païsage + Du petit Olympe d’Issy, + Pourven que la grande princesse, + La perle et fleur de l’univers, + A qui cest ouvrage s’addresse, + Veuille favoriser mes vers. + + Que l’ancienne poésie + Ne vante plus en ses écrits + Les lauriers du Daphné d’Asie + Et les beaux jardins de Cypris, + Les promenoirs et le bocage + Du Tempé frais et ombragé, + Qui parut lors qu’un marescage + En la mer se fut deschargé. + + Qa’on ne vante plus la Touraine + Pour son air doux et gracieux, + Ny Chenonceaus, qui d’une reyne + Fut le jardin délicieux, + Ny le Tivoly magnifique + Où, d’un artifice nouveau, + Se faict une douce musique + Des accords du vent et de l’eau. + + Issy, de beauté les surpasse + En beaux jardins et prés herbus, + Dignes d’estre au lieu de Parnasse + Le séjour des soeurs de Phébus. + Mainte belle source ondoyante, + Découlant de cent lieux divers, + Maintient sa terre verdoyante + Et ses arbrisseaux toujours verds. + +</pre> + <hr /> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Un vivier est à l’advenüe + Près la porte de ce verger, + Qui, par une sente cognüe, + En l’estang se va descharger; + Comme on voit les grandes rivières + Se perdre au giron de la mer, + Ainsi ces sources fontenières + En l’estang se vont renfermer. + +</pre> + <hr /> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Une autre mare plus petite, + Si l’on retourne vers le mont, + Par l’ombre de son boys invite + De passer sur un petit pont, + Pour aller au lieu de delices, + Au plus doux séjour du plaisir, + Des mignardises, des blandices, + Du doux repos et du loysir. +</pre> + <p> + After the death of Queen Marguerite, the house was sold and it belonged in + turn to several Parisian families which occupied it until 1655. Olier + turned it to more pious uses than it had known before, by inhabiting it + during the last few years of his life. M. de Bretonvilliers, his + successor, gave it to the Company of St. Sulpice as a branch for the Paris + house. The little pavilion of Queen Marguerite was not in any way changed, + except that the paintings on the walls were slightly modified. The Venuses + were changed into Virgins, and the Cupids into angels, while the + emblematic paintings with Spanish mottoes in the interstices were left + untouched, as they did not shock the proprieties. A very fine room, the + walls of which were covered with paintings of a secular character, was + whitewashed about half a century ago, but they would perhaps be found + uninjured if this was washed off. The park to which Bouteroue refers in + his poem is unchanged; except that several statues of holy persons have + been placed in it. An arbour with an inscription and two busts marks the + spot where Bossuet and Fénelon, M. Tronson and M. de Noailles had long + conferences upon the subject of Quietism, and agreed upon the thirty-four + articles of the spiritual life, styled the Issy Articles. + </p> + <p> + Further on, at the end of an avenue of high trees, near the little + cemetery of the Company, is a reproduction of the inside of the Santa Casa + of Loretta, which is a favourite spot with the residents in the seminary, + and which is decorated with the emblematic paintings of which they are so + fond. I can still see the mystical rose, the tower of ivory, and the gate + of gold, before which I have passed many a long morning in a state betwixt + sleep and waking. <i>Hortus conclusus, fons signatus</i>, very plainly + represented by means of what may be described as mural miniatures, excited + my curiosity very much, but my imagination was too chaste to carry my + thoughts beyond the limits of pious wonder. I am afraid that this + beautiful park has been sadly injured by the war and the Communist + insurrection of 1870—71. It was for me, after the cathedral of + Tréguier, the first cradle of thought. I used to pass whole hours under + the shade of its trees, seated on a stone bench with a book in my hand. It + was there that I acquired not only a good deal of rheumatism, but a great + liking for our damp autumnal nature in the north of France. If, later in + life, I have been charmed by Mount Hermon, and the sunheated slopes of the + Anti-Lebanon, it is due to the polarisation which is the law of love and + which leads us to seek out our opposites. My first ideal is a cool + Jansenist bower of the seventeenth century, in October, with the keen + impression of the air and the searching odour of the dying leaves. I can + never see an old-fashioned French house in the Seine-et-Oise or the + Seine-et-Marne, with its trim fenced gardens, without calling up to my + mind the austere books which were in bygone days read beneath the shade of + their walks. Deep should be our pity for those who have never been moved + to these melancholy thoughts, and who have not realised how many sighs + have been heaved ere joy came into our heart. + </p> + <p> + The mutual footing upon which masters and students at St. Sulpice stand is + a very tolerant one. There is not beyond doubt a single establishment in + the world where the student has more liberty. At St. Sulpice in Paris, a + student might pass his three years without having any close communication + with a single one of the superiors. It is assumed that the <i>régime</i> + of the establishment will be self-acting. The superiors lead just the same + life as the students, and intervene as little as possible. A student who + is anxious to work has the greatest of facilities for doing so. On the + other hand, those who are inclined to be idle have no compulsion to work + put upon them; and there are very many in this case. The examinations are + very insignificant in scope; there is not the least attempt at + competition, and if there was it would be discouraged, though when we + remember that the age of the students averages between eighteen and + twenty, this is carrying the doctrine of non-intervention too far. It is + beyond doubt very prejudicial to learning. But after all said and done, + this unqualified respect for liberty and the treating as grown-up men of + the lads who are already in spirit set apart for the priesthood, are the + only proper rules to follow in the delicate task of training youths for + what is in the eye of the Christian the most exalted of callings. I am + myself of opinion that the same rule might be applied with advantage to + the department of Public Instruction, and that the Normal School more + especially might in some particulars take example by it. + </p> + <p> + The superior at Issy, during my stay there, was M. Gosselin, one of the + most amiable and polite men I have ever known. He was a member of one of + those old bourgeois families which, without being affiliated to the + Jansenists, were not less deeply attached than the latter to religion. His + mother, to whom he bore a great likeness, was still alive, and he was most + devoted in his respectful regard for her. He was very fond of recalling + the first lessons in politeness which she gave him somewhere about 1796. + He had accustomed himself in his childhood to adopt a usage which it was + at that time dangerous to repudiate, and to use the word citizen instead + of monsieur. As soon as mass began to be celebrated after the Revolution, + his mother took him with her to church. They were nearly the only persons + in the church, and his mother bade him go and offer to act as acolyte to + the priest. The boy went up timidly to the priest, and with a blush said, + “Citizen, will you allow me to serve mass for you?” “What + are you saying!” exclaimed his mother; “you should never use + the word citizen to a priest.” His affability and kindness were + beyond all praise. He was very delicate, and only attained an advanced age + by exercising the strictest care over himself. His engaging features, wan + and delicate, his slender body, which did not half fill the folds of his + cassock, his exquisite cleanliness, the result of habits contracted in + childhood, his hollow temples, the outlines of which were so clearly + marked behind the loose silk skull-cap which he always wore, made up a + very taking picture. + </p> + <p> + M. Gosselin was more remarkable for his erudition than his theology. He + was a safe critic within the limits of an orthodoxy which he never thought + of questioning, and he was placid to a degree. His <i>Histoire Littéraire + de Fénelon</i> is a much esteemed work, and his treatise on the power of + the Pope over the sovereign in the Middle Ages<a href="#linknote-12" + name="linknoteref-12" id="linknoteref-12"><small>12</small></a> is full of + research. It was written at a time when the works of Voigt and Hurter + revealed to the Catholics the greatness of the Roman pontiffs in the + eleventh and twelfth centuries. This greatness was rather an awkward + obstacle for the Gallicans, as there could be no doubt that the conduct of + Gregory VII. and Innocent III. was not at all in conformity with the + maxims of 1682. M. Gosselin thought that by means of a principle of public + law, accepted in the Middle Ages, he had solved all the difficulties which + these imposing narratives place in the way of theologians. M. Carrière was + rather inclined to laugh at his sanguine ideas, and compared his efforts + to those of an old woman who tries to thread her needle by holding it + tight between the lamp and her spectacles. At last the cotton passes so + close to the eye of the needle that she says “I have done it now!”—‘Not + so, though she was scarcely a hairsbreadth off; but still she must begin + again. + </p> + <p> + At my own inclination, and the advice of Abbé Tresvaux, a pious and + learned Breton priest who was vicar-general to M. de Quélen, I chose M. + Gosselin for my tutor, and I have retained a most affectionate + recollection of him. No one could have shown more benevolence, cordiality + and respect for a young man’s conscience. He left me in possession + of unrestricted liberty. Recognising the honesty of my character, the + purity of my morals and the uprightness of my mind, it never occurred to + him for a moment that I could be led to feel doubt upon subjects about + which he himself had none. The great number of young ecclesiastics who had + passed through his hands had somewhat weakened his powers of diagnosis. He + classed his students wholesale, and I will, as I proceed, explain how one + who was not my tutor read far more clearly into my conscience than he did, + or than I did myself. Two of the other tutors, M. Gottofrey, one of the + professors of philosophy, and M. Pinault, professor of mathematics and + natural philosophy, were in every respect a contrast to M. Gosselin. The + first named, a young priest of about seven and twenty, was, I believe, + only half a Frenchman by descent. He had the bright rosy complexion of a + young Englishwoman, with large eyes which had a melancholy candid look. He + was the most extraordinary instance which can be conceived of suicide + through mystical orthodoxy. He would certainly have made, if he had cared + to do so, an accomplished man of the world, and I have never known any one + who would have been a greater favourite with women. He had within him an + infinite capacity for loving. He felt that he had been highly gifted in + this way; and then he set to work, in a sort of blind fury, to annihilate + himself. It seemed as if he discerned Satan in those graces which God had + so liberally bestowed upon him. He boiled with inward anger at the sight + of his own comeliness; he was like a shell within which a puny evil genius + was ever busy in crushing the inner pearl. In the heroic ages of + Christianity, he would have sought out the keen agony of martyrdom, but + failing that he paid such constant court to death that she, whom alone he + loved, embraced him at last. He went out to Canada, and the cholera which + raged at Montreal gave him an excellent opportunity for attaining his end. + He nursed the sick with eager joy and died. + </p> + <p> + I have always thought that there must have been a hidden romance in the + life of M. Gottofrey, and that he had undergone some disappointment in + love. He had perhaps expected too much from it, and finding that it was + not boundless, had broken it as he would an idol. At all events he was not + one of those who, knowing how to love have not known how to die. At times + I fancy that I can see him in heaven amid the hosts of rosy-hued angels + which Correggio loved to paint: at others, I imagine that the woman whom + he might have taught to love him to distraction is scourging him through + all eternity. Where he was unjust was in making his reason, which was in + nowise to blame, suffer for the perturbation of his uneasy nature (or + spirit). He practised the studied absurdity of Tertullian and emulated the + exaltation of St. Paul. His lectures on philosophy were an absolute + travesty, as his contempt for philosophy was made apparent in every + sentence; and M. Gosselin, who set great value upon the divinity of the + schools, quietly endeavoured to counteract his teaching. But fanaticism + does not always prevent people from being clear-sighted. M. Gottofrey + noticed something peculiar about me, and he detected that which had + escaped the paternal optimism of M. Gosselin. He stirred my conscience to + its very depths, as I shall presently explain, and with an unrelenting + hand tore asunder all the bandages with which I had disguised even from + myself the wounds of a faith already severely stricken. + </p> + <p> + M. Pinault was very much like M. Littré in respect to his concentrated + passion and the originality of his ways. If M. Littré had received a + Catholic education, he would have gone to the extreme of mysticism; if M. + Pinault had not received a Catholic education he would have been a + revolutionist and positivist. Men of their stamp always go to one extreme + or another. The very physiognomy of M. Pinault arrested attention. Eaten + up by rheumatism, he seemed to embody in his person all the ways in which + a body may be contorted from its proper shape. Ugly as he was, there was a + marked expression of vigour about his face; but in direct contrast to M. + Gosselin, he was deplorably lacking in cleanliness. While he was lecturing + he would use his old cloak and the sleeves of his cassock as if it were a + duster to wipe up anything; and his skull-cap, lined with cotton wool to + protect him from neuralgia, formed a very ugly border round his head. With + all that he was full of passion and eloquence, somewhat sarcastic at + times, but witty and incisive. He had little literary culture, but he + often came out with some unexpected sally. You could feel that his was a + powerful individuality which faith kept under due control, but which + ecclesiastical discipline had not crushed. He was a saint, but had very + little of the priest and nothing of the Sulpician about him. He did + violence to the prime rule of the Company, which is to renounce anything + approaching talent and originality, and to be pliant to the discipline + which enjoys a general mediocrity. + </p> + <p> + M. Pinault had at first been professor of mathematics in the university. + In associating himself with studies which, in our view, are incompatible + with faith in the supernatural and fervent catholicism, he did no more + than M. Cauchy, who was at once a mathematician of the first order and a + more fervent believer than many members of the Academy of Sciences who are + noted for their piety. Christianity is alleged to be a supernatural + historical fact. The historical sciences can be made to show—and to + my mind, beyond the possibility of contradiction—that it is not a + supernatural fact, and that there never has been such a thing as a + supernatural fact. We do not reject miracles upon the ground of <i>a + priori</i> reasoning, but upon the ground of critical and historical + reasoning, we have no difficulty in proving that miracles do not happen in + the nineteenth century, and that the stones of miraculous events said to + have taken place in our day are based upon imposture and credulity. But + the evidence in favour of the so-called miracles of the last three + centuries, or even of those in the Middle Ages, is weaker still; and the + same may be said of those dating from a still earlier period, for the + further back one goes, the more difficult does it become to prove a + supernatural fact. In order thoroughly to understand this, you must have + been accustomed to textual criticism and the historical method, and this + is just what mathematics do not give. Even in our own day, we have seen an + eminent mathematician fall into blunders which the slightest knowledge of + historical science would have enabled him to avoid. M. Pinault’s + religious belief was so keen that he was anxious to become a priest. He + was allowed to do very little in the way of theology, and he was at first + attached to the science courses which in the programme of ecclesiastical + studies are the necessary accompaniment of the two years of philosophy. He + would have been out of place at St. Sulpice with his lack of theological + knowledge and the ardent mysticism of his imagination. But at Issy, where + he associated with very young men who had not studied the texts, he soon + acquired considerable influence. He was the leader of those who were full + of ardent piety—the “mystics,” as they are now called. + All of them treated him as their director, and they formed, as it were, a + school apart, from which the profane were excluded, and which had its own + important secrets. A very powerful auxiliary of this party was the lay + doorkeeper of the college, Père Hanique, as we called him. I always excite + the wonder of the realists when I tell them that I have seen with my own + eyes, a type which, owing to their scanty knowledge of human society, has + never come beneath their notice, viz., the sublime conception of a + hall-porter who has reached the most transcendent limits of speculation. + Hanique in his humble lodge was almost as great a man as M. Pinault. Those + who aimed at saintliness of life consulted him and looked up to him. His + simplicity of mind was contrasted with the savant’s coldness of + soul, and he was adduced as an instance that the gifts of God are + absolutely free. All this created a deep division of feeling in the + college. The mystics worked themselves up to such a pitch of mental + tension that several of them died, but this only increased the frenzy of + the others. M. Gosselin had too much tact to offer them a direct + opposition, but for all that, there were two distinct parties in the + college, the mystics acting under the immediate guidance of M. Pinault and + Père Hanique, while the “good fellows” (as we modestly + entitled ourselves) were guided by the simple, upright, and good Christian + counsels of M. Gosselin. This division of opinion was scarcely noticeable + among the masters. Nevertheless, M. Gosselin, disliking anything in the + way of singularities or novelties, often looked askance at certain + eccentricities. During recreation time he made a point of conversing in a + gay and almost worldly tone, in contrast to the fine frenzy which M. + Pinault always imported into his observations. He did not like Père + Hanique and would not listen to any praise of him, perhaps because he felt + the impropriety of a hall-porter being taken out of his place and set up + as an authority on theology. He condemned and prohibited the reading of + several books which were favourites with the mystical set, such as those + of Marie d’Agreda. There was something very singular about M. + Pinault’s lectures, as he did not make any effort to conceal his + contempt for the sciences which he taught and for the human intelligence + at large. At times he would nearly go to sleep over his class, and + altogether gave his pupils anything but a stimulus to work; and yet with + all that he still had in him remnants of the scientific spirit which he + had failed to destroy. At times he had extraordinary flashes of genius, + and some of his lectures on natural history have been one of the bases of + my philosophical strain of thought. I am much indebted to him, but the + instinct for learning which is in me, and which will, I trust, remain + alive until the day of my death, would not admit of my remaining long in + his set. He liked me well enough, but made no effort to attract me to him. + His fiery spirit of apostleship could not brook my easy-going ways, and my + disinclination for research. Upon one occasion he found me sitting in one + of the walks, reading Clarke’s treatise upon the <i>Existence of God</i>. + As usual, I was wrapped up in a heavy coat. “Oh! the nice little + fellow,” he said, “how beautifully he is wrapped up. Do not + interfere with him. He will always be the same. Fie will ever be studying, + and when he should be attending to the charge of souls he will be at it + still. Well wrapped up in his cloak, he will answer those who come to call + him away: ‘Leave me alone, can’t you?’” He saw + that his remark had gone home. I was confused but not converted, and as I + made no reply, he pressed my hand and added, with a slight touch of irony, + “He will be a little Gosselin.” + </p> + <p> + M. Pinault, there can be no question, was far above M. Gosselin in respect + to his natural force and the hardihood with which he took up certain + views. Like another Diogenes, he saw how hollow and conventional were a + host of things which my worthy director regarded as articles of faith. But + he did not shake me for a moment. I have never ceased to put faith in the + intelligence of man. M. Gosselin, by his confidence in scholasticism, + confirmed me in my rationalism, though not to so great an extent as M. + Manier, one of the professors of philosophy. He was a man of unswerving + honesty, whose opinions were in harmony with those of the moderate + universitarian school, at that time so decried by the clergy. He had a + great liking for the Scottish philosophers, and gave me Thomas Reid to + study. He steadied my thoughts very much, and by the aid of his authority + and that of M. Gosselin, I was enabled to put away the exaggerations of M. + Pinault; my conscience was at rest, and I even got to think that the + contempt for scholasticism and reason, so stoutly professed by the + mystics, was not devoid of heresy, and of the worst of all heresies in the + eyes of the Company of St. Sulpice, viz., the <i>Fideism</i> of M. de + Lamennais. + </p> + <p> + Thus I gave myself over without scruple to my love for study, living in + complete solitude during’ two whole years. I did not once come to + Paris, readily as leaves were granted. I never joined in any games, + passing the recreation hours on a seat in the grounds, and trying to keep + myself warm by wearing two or three overcoats. The heads of the college, + better advised than I was, told me how bad it was for a lad of my age to + take no exercise. I had scarcely done growing before I began to stoop. But + my passion for study was too strong for me, and I gave way to it all the + more readily because I believed it to be a wholesome one. I was blind to + all else, but how could I suppose that the ardour for thought which I + heard praised in Malebranche and so many other saintly and illustrious men + was blameworthy in me, and was fated to bring about a result which I + should have repudiated with indignation if it had been foreshadowed to me. + </p> + <p> + The character of the philosophy taught in the seminary was the Latin + divinity of the schools—not in the outlandish and childish form + which it assumed in the thirteenth century, but in the mitigated Cartesian + form which was generally adopted for ecclesiastical education in the + eighteenth century, and set out in the three volumes known by the name of + <i>Philosophic de Lyon</i>. This name was given to it because the book + formed part of a complete course of ecclesiastical study, drawn up a + hundred years ago by order of M. de Montazet, the Jansenist Archbishop of + Lyons. The theological part of the work, tainted with heresy, is now + forgotten; but the philosophical part, imbued with a very commendable + spirit of rationalism, remained, as recently as 1840, the basis of + philosophical teaching in the seminaries, much to the disgust of the + neo-Catholic school, which regarded the book as dangerous and absurd. It + cannot be denied, however, that the problems were cleverly put, and the + whole of these syllogistical dialectics formed an excellent course of + training. I owe my lucidity of mind, more especially what skill I possess + in dividing my subject (which is an art of capital importance, one of the + conditions of the art of writing), to my divinity training, and in + particular to geometry, which is the truest application of the + syllogistical method. M. Manier mixed up with these ancient propositions + the psychological analysis of the Scotch school. He had imbibed through + his intimacy with Thomas Reid a great aversion to metaphysics, and an + unlimited faith in common sense. <i>Posuit in visceribus hominis + sapientiam</i> was his favourite motto, and it did not occur to him that + if man, in his quest after the true and the good, has only to explore the + recesses of his own heart, the <i>Catéchisme</i> of M. Olier was a + building without a foundation. German philosophy was just beginning to be + known, and what little I had been able to pick up had a strangely + fascinating effect upon me. M. Manier impressed upon me that this + philosophy shifted its ground too much, and that it was necessary to wait + until it had completed its development before passing judgment upon it. + “Scottish philosophy,” he said, “has a reassuring + influence and makes for Christianity;” and he depicted to me the + worthy Thomas Reid in his double character of philosopher and minister of + the Gospel. Thus Reid was for some time my ideal, and my aspiration was to + lead the peaceful life of a laborious priest, attached to his sacred + office and dispensed from the ordinary duties of his calling in order to + follow out his studies. The antagonism between philosophical pursuits of + this kind and the Christian faith had not as yet come in upon me with the + irresistible force and clearness which was soon to leave me no alternative + between the renunciation of Christianity and inconsistency of the most + unwarrantable kind. + </p> + <p> + The modern philosophical works, especially those of MM. Cousin and + Jouffroy, were rarely seen in the seminary, though they were the constant + subject of conversation on account of the discussion which they had + excited among the clergy. This was the year of M. Jouffroy’s death, + and the pathetic despairing pages of his philosophy captivated us. I + myself knew them by heart. We followed with deep interest the discussion + raised by the publication of his posthumous works. In reality, we only + knew Cousin, Jouffroy, and Pierre Leroux by those who had opposed them. + The old-fashioned divinity of the schools is so upright that no + demonstration of a proposition is complete unless followed by the formula, + <i>Solvuntur objecta</i>. Herein are ingenuously set forth the objections + against the proposition which it is sought to establish; and these + objections are then solved, often in a way which does not in the least + diminish the force of the heterodox ideas which are supposed to have been + controverted. In this way the whole body of modern ideas reached us + beneath the cover of feeble refutations. We gained, moreover, a great deal + of information from each other. One of our number, who had studied + philosophy in the university, would recite passages from M. Cousin to us; + a second, who had studied history, would familiarise us with Augustin + Thierry; while a third came to us from the school of Montalembert and + Lacordaire. His lively imagination made him a great favourite with us, but + the <i>Philosophie de Lyon</i> was more than he could endure, and he left + us. + </p> + <p> + M. Cousin fascinated us, but Pierre Leroux, with his tone of profound + conviction and his thorough appreciation of the great problems awaiting + solution, exercised a still more potent influence, and we did not see the + shortcomings of his studies and the sophistry of his mind. My customary + course of reading was Pascal, Malebranche, Euler, Locke, Leibnitz, + Descartes, Reid, and Dugald Stewart. In the way of religious books, my + preferences were for Bossuet’s Sermons and the <i>Elevations sur les + Mysttres</i>. I was very familiar, too, with François de Sales, both by + continually hearing extracts from his works read in the seminary, and + especially through the charming work which Pierre le Camus has written + about him. With regard to the more mystical works, such as St. Theresa, + Marie d’Agreda, Ignatius de Loyola, and M. Olier, I never read them. + M. Gosselin, as I have said, dissuaded me from doing so. The <i>Lives of + the Saints</i>, written in an overwrought strain, were also very + distasteful to him, and Fénelon was his rule and his limit. Many of the + early saints excited his strongest prejudices because of their disregard + of cleanliness, their scant education, and their lack of common sense. + </p> + <p> + My keen predilection for philosophy did not blind me as to the inevitable + nature of its results. I soon lost all confidence in the abstract + metaphysics which are put forward as being a science apart from all + others, and as being capable of solving alone the highest problems of + humanity. Positive science then appeared to me to be the only source of + truth. In after years I felt quite irritated at the idea of Auguste Comte + being dignified with the title of a great man for having expressed in bad + French what all scientific minds had seen for the last two hundred years + as clearly as he had done. The scientific spirit was the fundamental + principle in my disposition. M. Pinault would have been the master for me + if he had not in some strange way striven to disguise and distort the best + traits in his talent. I understood him better than he would have wished, + and, in spite of himself. I had received a rather advanced education in + mathematics from my first teachers in Brittany. Mathematics and physical + induction have always been my strong point, the only stones in the edifice + which have never shifted their ground and which are always serviceable. M. + Pinault taught me enough of general natural history and physiology to give + me an insight into the laws of existence. I realised the insufficiency of + what is called spiritualism; the Cartesian proofs of the existence of a + soul distinct from the body always struck me as being very inadequate, and + thus I became an idealist and not a spiritualist in the ordinary + acceptation of the term. An endless <i>fieri</i>, a ceaseless + metamorphosis seemed to me to be the law of the world. Nature presented + herself to me as a whole in which creation of itself has no place, and in + which therefore, everything undergoes transformation.<a href="#linknote-13" + name="linknoteref-13" id="linknoteref-13"><small>13</small></a> It will be + asked how it was that this fairly clear conception of a positive + philosophy did not eradicate my belief in scholasticism and Christianity. + It was because I was young and inconsistent, and because I had not + acquired the critical faculty. I was held back by the example of so many + mighty minds which had read so deeply in the book of nature, and yet had + remained Christians. I was more specially influenced by Malebranche, who + continued to recite his prayers throughout the whole of his life, while + holding, with regard to the general dispensation of the universe, ideas + differing but very little from those which I had arrived at. The <i>Entretiens + sur la Métaphysique</i> and the <i>Méditations chrétiennes</i> were ever + in my thoughts. + </p> + <p> + The fondness for erudition is innate in me, and M. Gosselin did much to + develop it. He had the kindness to choose me as his reader. At seven o’clock + every morning I went to read to him in his bedroom, and he was in the + habit of pacing up and down, sometimes stopping, sometimes quickening his + pace and interrupting me with some sensible or caustic remark. In this way + I read to him the long stories of Father Maimbourg, a writer who is now + forgotten, but who in his time was appreciated by Voltaire, various + publications by M. Benjamin Guérard, whose learning was much appreciated + by him, and a few works by M. de Maistre, notably his <i>Lettre sur l’Inquisition + espagnole</i>. He did not much like this last-named treatise, and he would + constantly rub his hands and say, “How plain it is that M. de + Maistre is no theologian.” All he cared for was theology, and he had + a profound contempt for literature. He rarely failed to stigmatise as + futile nonsense the highly-esteemed studies of the Nicolaites. For M. + Dupanloup, whose principal dogma was that there is no salvation without a + good literary education, he had little sympathy, and he generally avoided + mention of his name. + </p> + <p> + For myself, believing as I do that the best way to mould young men of + talent is never to speak to them about talent or style, but to educate + them and to stimulate their mental curiosity upon questions of philosophy, + religion, politics, science, and history—or, in other words, to go + to the substance of things instead of adopting a hollow rhetorical + teaching, I was quite satisfied at this new direction given to my studies. + I forgot the very existence of such a thing as modern literature. The + rumour that contemporary writers existed occasionally reached us, but we + were so accustomed to suppose that there had not been any of talent since + the death of Louis XIV., that we had an <i>a priori</i> contempt for all + contemporary productions. <i>Le Téléinaque</i> was the only specimen of + light literature which ever came into my hands, and that was in an edition + which did not contain the Eucharis episode, so that it was not until later + that I became acquainted with the few delightful pages which record it. My + only glimpse of antiquity was through <i>Téléinaque</i> and <i>Aristonoüs</i>, + and I am very glad that such is the case. It was thus that I learnt the + art of depicting nature by moral touches. Up to the year 1865 I had never + formed any other idea of the island of Chios except that embodied in the + phrase of Fénelon: “The island of Chios, happy as the country of + Homer.” + </p> + <p> + These words, so full of harmony and rhythm,<a href="#linknote-14" + name="linknoteref-14" id="linknoteref-14"><small>14</small></a> seemed to + present a perfect picture of the place, and though Homer was not born + there—nor, perhaps, anywhere—they gave me a better idea of the + beautiful (and now so hapless) isle of Greece than I could have derived + from a whole mass of material description. + </p> + <p> + I must not omit to mention another book, which together with <i>Télémaque</i>, + I for a long time regarded as the highest expression of literature. M. + Gosselin one day called me aside, and after much beating about the bush, + told me that he had thought of letting me read a book which some people + might regard as dangerous, and which, as a matter of fact, might be in + certain cases on account of the vivacity with which the author expresses + passion. He had, however, decided that I might be trusted with this book, + which was called the <i>Comte de Valmont</i>. Many people will no doubt + wonder what could have been the book which my worthy director thought + could only be read after a special preparation as regards judgment and + maturity. <i>Le Comte de Valmont; ou, Les Egarements de la Raison,</i> is + a novel by Abbé Gérard, in which, under the cover of a very innocent plot, + the author refutes the doctrines of the eighteenth century, and inculcates + the principles of an enlightened religion. Sainte-Beuve, who knew the <i>Comte + de Valmont</i>, as he knew everything, was consumed with laughter when I + told him this story. But for all that the <i>Comtede Valmont</i> was a + rather dangerous book. The Christianity set forth in it is no more than + Deism, the religion of <i>Télémaque</i>, a sort of sentiment in the + abstract, without being any particular kind of religion.<a + href="#linknote-15" name="linknoteref-15" id="linknoteref-15"><small>15</small></a> + Thus everything tended to lull me into a state of fancied security. I + thought that by copying the politeness of M. Gosselin and the moderation + of M. Manier I was a Christian. + </p> + <p> + I cannot honestly say, moreover, that my faith in Christianity was in + reality diminished. My faith has been destroyed by historical criticism, + not by scholasticism nor by philosophy. The history of philosophy and the + sort of scepticism by which I had been caught rather maintained me within + the limits of Christianity than drove me beyond them. I often repeated to + myself the lines which I had read in Brucker:— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + “Percurri, fateor, sectas attentius omnes, + Plurima qusesivi, per singula quaque cucurri, + Nee quidquam invent melius quam credere Christo.” + </pre> + <p> + A certain amount of modesty kept me back. The capital question as to the + truth of the Christian dogmas and of the Bible never forced itself upon + me. I admitted the revelation in a general sense, like Leibnitz and + Malebranche. There can be no doubt that my <i>fieri</i> philosophy was the + height of heterodoxy, but I did not stop to reason out the consequences. + However, all said and done, my masters were satisfied with me. M. Pinault + rarely interfered with me. More of a mystic than a fanatic, he concerned + himself but little with those who did not come immediately in his way. The + finishing stroke was given by M. Gottofrey with a degree of boldness and + precision which I did not thoroughly appreciate until afterwards. In the + twinkling of an eye, this truly gifted man tore away the veils which the + prudent M. Gosselin and the honest M. Manier had adjusted around my + conscience in order to tranquillise it, and to lull it to sleep. + </p> + <p> + M. Gottofrey rarely spoke to me, but he followed me with the utmost + curiosity. My arguments in Latin, delivered with much firmness and + emphasis, caused him surprise and uneasiness. Sometimes, I was too much in + the right; at others I pointed out the weak points in the reasons given me + as valid. Upon one occasion, when my objections had been urged with force, + and when some of the listeners could not repress a smile at the weakness + of the replies, he broke off the discussion. In the evening he called me + on one side, and described to me with much warmth how unchristian it was + to place all faith in reasoning, and how injurious an effect rationalism + had upon faith. He displayed a remarkable amount of animation, and + reproached me with my fondness for study. What was to be gained, he said, + by further research. Everything that was essential to be known had already + been discovered. It was not by knowledge that men’s souls were + saved. And gradually working himself up, he exclaimed in passionate + accents—” You are not a Christian!” + </p> + <p> + I never felt such terror as that which this phrase, pronounced in a very + resonant tone, evoked within me. In leaving M. Gottofrey’s presence + the words “You are not a Christian” sounded all night in my + ear like a clap of thunder. The next day I confided my troubles to M. + Gosselin, who kindly reassured me, and who could not or would not see + anything wrong. He made no effort, even, to conceal from me how surprised + and annoyed he was at this ill-timed attempt upon a conscience for which + he, more than any one else, was responsible. I am sure that he looked upon + the hasty action of M. Gottofrey as a piece of impudence, the only result + of which would be to disturb a dawning vocation. M. Gosselin, like many + directors, was of opinion that religious doubts are of no gravity among + young men when they are disregarded, and that they disappear when the + future career has been finally entered upon. He enjoined me not to think + of what had occurred, and I even found him more kindly than ever before. + He did not in the least understand the nature of my mind, or in any degree + foresee its future logical evolutions. M. Gottofrey alone had a clear + perception of things. He was right a dozen times over, as I can now very + plainly see. It needed the transcendent lucidity of this martyr and + ascetic to discover that which had quite escaped those who directed my + conscience with so much uprightness and goodness. + </p> + <p> + I talked too with M. Manier, who strongly advised me not to let my faith + in Christianity be affected by objections of detail. With regard to the + question of entering holy orders, he was always very reserved. He never + said anything which was calculated either to induce me or dissuade me. + This was in his eyes more or less of a secondary consideration. The + essential point, as he thought, was the possession of the true Christian + spirit, inseparable from real philosophy. In his eyes there was no + difference between a priest, or professor of Scotch philosophy, in the + university. He often dwelt upon the honourable nature of such a career, + and more than once he spoke to me of the École Normale. I did not speak of + this overture to M. Gosselin, for assuredly the very idea of leaving the + seminary for the École Normale, would have seemed to him perdition. + </p> + <p> + It was decided, therefore, that after my two years of philosophy I should + pass into the seminary of St. Sulpice to get through my theological + course. The flash which shot through the mind of M. Gottofrey had no + immediate consequence. But now at an interval of eight and thirty years, I + can see how clear a perception of the reality he had. He alone possessed + foresight, and I much regret now that I did not follow his impulse. I + should have quitted the seminary without having studied Hebrew or + theology. Physiology and the natural sciences would have absorbed me, and + I do not hesitate to express my belief—so great was the ardour which + these vital sciences excited in me—that if I had cultivated them + continuously I should have arrived at several of the results achieved by + Darwin, and partially foreseen by myself. Instead of that I went to St. + Sulpice and learnt German and Hebrew, the consequence being that the whole + course of my life was different. I was led to the study of the historical + sciences—conjectural in their nature—which are no sooner made + than they are unmade, and which will be put on one side in a hundred years + time. For the day is not we may be sure, very far distant when man will + cease to attach much interest to his past. I am very much afraid that our + minute contributions to the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres, + which are intended to assist to an accurate comprehension of history, will + crumble to dust before they have been read. It is by chemistry at one end + and by astronomy at the other, and especially by general physiology, that + we really grasp the secret of existence of the world or of God, whichever + it may be called. The one thing which I regret is having selected for my + study researches of a nature which will never force themselves upon the + world, or be more than interesting dissertations upon a reality which has + vanished for ever. But as regards the exercise—and pleasure of + thought is concerned—I certainly chose the better part, for at St. + Sulpice I was brought face to face with the Bible, and the sources of + Christianity, and in the following chapter I will endeavour to describe + how eagerly I immersed myself in this study, and how, through a series of + critical deductions, which forced themselves upon my mind, the bases of my + existence, as I had hitherto understood it, were completely overturned. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0023" id="link2H_4_0023"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + THE ST. SULPICE SEMINARY. + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0024" id="link2H_4_0024"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART I. + </h2> + <p> + The house built by M. Olier in 1645 was not the large quadrangular + barrack-like building which now occupies one side of the square of St. + Sulpice. The old seminary of the seventeenth and eighteenth century + covered the whole area of what is now the square, and quite concealed + Servandoni’s façade. The site of the present seminary was formerly + occupied by the gardens and by the college of bursars nicknamed the + Robertins. The original building disappeared at the time of the + Revolution. The chapel, the ceiling of which was regarded as Lebrun’s + masterpiece, has been destroyed, and all that remains of the old house is + a picture by Lebrun representing the Pentecost in a style which would + excite the wonder of the author of the Acts of the Apostles. The Virgin is + the centre figure, and is receiving the whole of the pouring out of the + Holy Ghost, which from her spreads to the apostles. Saved at the + Revolution, and afterwards in the gallery of Cardinal Fesch, this picture + was bought back by the corporation of St. Sulpice, and is now in the + seminary chapel. + </p> + <p> + With the exception of the walls and the furniture, all is old at St. + Sulpice, and it is easy to believe that one is living in the seventeenth + century. Time and its ravages have effaced many differences. St. Sulpice + now embodies in itself many things which were once far removed from one + another, and those who wish to get the best idea attainable in the present + day, of what Port-Royal, the original Sorbonne, and the institutions of + the ancient French clergy generally were like, must enter its portals. + When I joined the St. Sulpice seminary in 1843, there were still a few + directors who had seen M. Emery, but there were only two, if I remember + right, whose memories carried them back to a date earlier than the + Revolution. M. Hugon had acted as acolyte at the consecration of M. de + Talleyrand in the chapel of Issy in 1788. It seems that the attitude of + the Abbé de Périgord during the ceremony was very indecorous. M. Hugon + related that he accused himself, when at confession the following + Saturday, “of having formed hasty judgments as to the piety of a + holy bishop.” The superior-general, M. Garnier, was more than + eighty, and he was in every respect an ecclesiastic of the old school. He + had gone through his studies at the Robertins College and afterwards at + the Sorbonne, from which he gave one the idea of just emerging, and when + one heard him talk of “Monsieur Bossuet” and “Monsieur + Fénelon”,<a href="#linknote-16" name="linknoteref-16" + id="linknoteref-16"><small>16</small></a> it seemed as if one was face to + face with an actual pupil of those great men. There is nothing in common + except the name and the dress between these ecclesiastics that of the old + <i>régime</i> and those of the present day. Compared to the young and + exuberant members of the Issy school, M. Garnier had the appearance almost + of a layman, with a complete absence of all external demonstrations and + his staid and reasonable piety. In the evening, some of the younger + students went to keep him company in his room for an hour. The + conversation never took a mystical turn. M. Garnier narrated his + recollections, spoke of M. Emery, and foreshadowed with melancholy, his + approaching end. The contrast between his quietude and the ardour of + Penault and M. Gottofrey was very striking. These aged priests were so + honest, sensible and upright, observing their rules, and defending their + dogmas, just as a faithful soldier holds the post which has been committed + to his keeping. The higher questions were altogether beyond them. The love + of order and devotion to duty were the guiding principles of their lives. + M. Garnier was a learned Orientalist, and better versed than any living + Frenchman in the Biblical exegesis as taught by the Catholics a century + ago. The modesty which characterised St. Sulpice deterred him from + publishing any of his works, and the outcome of his studies was an immense + manuscript representing a complete course of Holy Writ, in accordance with + the relatively moderate views which prevailed among the Catholics and + Protestants at the close of the eighteenth century. It was very analogous + in spirit to that of Rosenmüller, Hug and Jahn. When I joined St. Sulpice, + M. Garnier was too old to teach, and our professors used, to read us + extracts from his copy-books. They were full of erudition, and testified + to a very thorough knowledge of language. Now and then we came upon some + artless observation which made us smile, such, for instance, as the way in + which he got over the difficulties relating to Sarah’s adventure in + Egypt. Sarah, as we know, was close upon seventy when Pharaoh conceived so + great a passion for her, and M. Garnier got over this by observing that + this was not the only instance of the kind, and that “Mademoiselle + de Lenclos” was the cause of duels being fought, when over seventy. + M. Garnier had not made himself acquainted with the latest labours of the + new German school, and he remained in happy ignorance of the inroads which + the criticism of the nineteenth century had made upon the ancient system. + His best title to fame is that he moulded in M. Le Hir, a pupil who, + inheriting his own vast knowledge, added to it familiarity with modern + discoveries, and who, with a sincerity which proved the depth of his + faith, did not in the least conceal the depth to which the knife had gone. + </p> + <p> + Overborne by the weight of years, and absorbed by the cares which the + general direction of the Company entailed, M. Garnier left the entire + superintendence of the Paris house to M. Carbon, the director. M. Carbon + was the embodiment of kindness, joviality and straightforwardness. He was + no theologian, and was so far from being a man of superior mind, that at + first one would be tempted to look upon him as a very simple, not to say + common, person. But as one came to know him better, one was surprised to + discover beneath this humble exterior, one of the rarest things in the + world, viz., unalloyed cordiality, motherly condescension, and a charming + openness of manner. I have never met with any one so entirely free from + personal vanity. He was the first to laugh at himself, at his half + intentional blunders, and at the laughable situations into which his + artlessness would often land him. Like all the older directors, he had to + say the orison in his turn. He never gave it five minutes previous + consideration, and he sometimes got into such a comical state of confusion + with his improvised address, that we had to bite our tongues to keep from + laughing. He saw how amused we were, and it struck him as being perfectly + natural. It was he who, during the course of Holy Writ, had to read M. + Garnier’s manuscript. He used to flounder about purposely, in order + to make us laugh, in the parts which had fallen out of date. The most + singular thing was that he was not very mystic. I asked one of my fellow + students what he thought was M. Carbon’s motive-idea in life, and + his reply was, “the abstract of duty.” M. Carbon took a fancy + to me from the first, and he saw that the fundamental feature in my + disposition was cheerfulness, and a ready acquiescence in my lot. “I + see that we shall get on very well together,” he said to me with a + pleasant smile; and as a matter of fact M. Carbon is one of those for whom + I have felt the deepest affection. Seeing that I was studious, full of + application, and conscientious in my work, he said to me after a very + short time—“You should be thinking of your society, that is + your proper place.” He treated me almost as a colleague, so complete + was his confidence in me. + </p> + <p> + The other directors, who had to teach the various branches of theology, + were without exception the worthy continuators of a respectable tradition. + But as regards doctrine itself, the breach was made. Ultramontanism and + the love of the irrational had forced their way into the citadel of + moderate theology. The old school knew how to rave soberly, and followed + the rules of common sense even in the absurd. This school only admitted + the irrational and the miraculous up to the limit strictly required by + Holy Writ and the authority of the Church. The new school revels in the + miraculous, and seems to take its pleasure in narrowing the ground upon + which apologetics can be defended. Upon the other hand, it would be unfair + not to say that the new school is in some respects more open and + consistent, and that it has derived, especially through its relations with + Germany, elements for discussion which have no place in the ancient + treatises <i>De Loci’s Theologicis</i>. St. Sulpice has had but one + representative in this path so thickly sown with unexpected incidents and—it + may perhaps be added—with dangers; but he is unquestionably the most + remarkable member of the French clergy in the present day. I am speaking + of M. Le Hir, whom I knew very intimately, as will presently be seen. In + order to understand what follows, the reader must be very deeply versed in + the workings of the human mind, and above all in matters of faith. + </p> + <p> + M. Le Hir was in an equally eminent degree a savant and a saint. This + co-habitation in the same person, of two entities which are rarely found + together, took place in him without any kind of fraction, for the saintly + side of his character had the absolute mastery. There was not one of the + objections of rationalism which escaped his attention. He did not make the + slightest concession to any of them, for he never felt the shadow of a + doubt as to the truth of orthodoxy. This was due rather to an act of the + supreme will than to a result imposed upon him. Holding entirely aloof + from natural philosophy and the scientific spirit, the first condition of + which is to have no prior faith and to reject that which does not come + spontaneously, he remained in a state of equilibrium which would have been + fatal to convictions less urgent than his. The supernatural did not excite + any natural repugnance in him. His scales were very nicely adjusted, but + in one of them was a weight of unknown quantity—an unshaken faith. + Whatever might have been placed in the other, would have seemed light; all + the objections in the world would not have moved it a hairsbreadth. + </p> + <p> + M. Le Hir’s superiority was in a great measure due to his profound + knowledge of the German exegeses. Whatever he found in them compatible + with Catholic orthodoxy, he appropriated. In matters of critique, + incompatibilities were continually occurring, but in grammar, upon the + other hand, there was no difficulty in finding common ground. There was no + one like M. Le Hir in this respect. He had thoroughly mastered the + doctrine of Gesenius and Ewald, and criticised many points in it with + great learning. He interested himself in the Phoenician inscriptions, and + propounded a very ingenious theory which has since been confirmed. His + theology was borrowed almost entirely from the German Catholic School, + which was at once more advanced, and less reasonable, than our ancient + French scholasticism. M. Le Hir reminds one in many respects of Dollinger, + especially in regard to his learning and his general scope of view; but + his docility would have preserved him from the dangers in which the + Vatican Council involved most of the learned members of the clergy. He + died prematurely in 1870 upon the eve of the Council which he was just + about to attend as a theologian. I was intending to ask my colleagues in + the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres to make him an unattached + member of our body. I have no doubt that he would have rendered + considerable service to the Committee of Semitic Inscriptions. + </p> + <p> + M. Le Hir possessed, in addition to his immense learning, the talent of + writing with much force and accuracy. He might have been very witty if he + had been so minded. His undeviating mysticism resembled that of M. + Gottofrey; but he had much more rectitude of judgment. His aspect was very + singular, for he was like a child in figure, and very weakly in + appearance, but with that, eyes and a forehead indicating the highest + intelligence. In short, the only faculty lacking, was one which would have + caused him to abjure Catholicism, viz. the critical one. Or I should + rather say that he had the critical faculty very highly developed in every + point not touching religious belief; but that possessed in his view such a + co-efficient of certainty, that nothing could counterbalance it. His piety + was in truth, like the mother o’pearl shells of François de Sales, + “which live in the sea without tasting a drop of salt water.” + The knowledge of error which he possessed was entirely speculative: a + water-tight compartment prevented the least infiltration of modern ideas + into the secret sanctuary of his heart, within which burnt, by the side of + the petroleum, the small unquenchable light of a tender and sovereign + piety. As my mind was not provided with these water-tight compartments, + the encounter of these conflicting elements, which in M. Le Hir produced + profound inward peace, led in my case to strange explosions. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0025" id="link2H_4_0025"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART II. + </h2> + <p> + St. Sulpice, in short, when I went through it forty years ago, provided, + despite its shortcomings, a fairly high education. My ardour for study had + plenty to feed upon. Two unknown worlds unfolded themselves before me: + theology, the rational exposition of the Christian dogma, and the Bible, + supposed to be the depository and the source of this dogma. I plunged + deeply into work. I was even more solitary than at Issy, for I did not + know a soul in Paris. For two years I never went into any street except + the Rue de Vaugirard, through which once a week we walked to Issy. I very + rarely indulged in any conversation. The professors were always very kind + to me. My gentle disposition and studious habits, my silence and modesty, + gained me their favour, and I believe that several of them remarked to one + another, as M. Carbon had to me, “He will make an excellent + colleague for us.” + </p> + <p> + Upon the 29th of March, 1844, I wrote to one of my friends in Brittany, + who was then at the St. Brieuc seminary: + </p> + <p> + “I very much like being here. The tone of the place is excellent, + being equally free from rusticity, coarse egotism and affectation. There + is little intimacy or geniality, but the conversation is dignified and + elevated, with scarcely a trace of commonplace or gossip. It would be idle + to look for anything like cordiality between the directors and the + students, for this is a plant which grows only in Brittany. But the + directors have a certain fund of tolerance and kindness in their + composition which harmonises very well with the moral condition of the + young men upon their joining the seminary. Their control is exercised + almost imperceptibly, for the seminary seems to conduct itself, instead of + being conducted by them. The regulations, the usages, and the spirit of + the place are the sole agents; the directors are mere passive overseers. + St. Sulpice is a machine which has been well constructed for the last two + hundred years: it goes of itself, and all that the driver has to do is to + watch the movements, and from time to time to screw up a nut and oil the + joints. It is not like Saint-Nicholas, for instance, where the machine was + never allowed to go by itself. The driver was always tinkering at it, + running first to the right and then to the left, peering in here and + altering a wheel there, not knowing or remembering that the best mounted + machine is the one which requires the least attention from the man who + sets it in motion. The great advantage which I enjoy here is the + remarkable facility afforded me for work which has become a prime + necessity to me, and which, considering my internal condition, is also a + duty. The lectures on morals are excellent, but I cannot say as much of + those on dogma, as the professor is a novice. This, coupled with the great + importance of the <i>Traités de la Religion et de l'Église,</i> especially + in my case, would be a very serious drawback, but for my having found + substitutes for him among the other professors.” As a matter of + fact, I had a special liking for the ecclesiastical sciences. A text once + implanted in my memory was never forgotten; my head was in the state of a + <i>Sic et Non</i> of Abélard. Theology is like a Gothic cathedral, having + in common with its grandeur its vast empty spaces and its lack of + solidity. Neither to the Fathers of the Church nor to the Christian + writers during the first half of the Middle Ages did it occur to draw up a + systematic exposition of the Christian dogmas which would dispense with + reading the Bible all through. The <i>Summa</i> of St. Thomas Aquinas, a + summary of the earlier scholasticism, is like a vast bookcase with + compartments, which, if Catholicism is to endure, will be of service to + all time, the decisions of councils and of Popes in the future having, so + to speak, their place marked out for them beforehand. There can be no + question of progress in such an order of exposition. In the sixteenth + century, the Council of Trent settled a number of points which had + hitherto been the subject of controversy; but each of these anathemas had + already its place allotted to it in the wide purview of St. Thomas, + Melchior Canus, and Suarès remodelled the <i>Summa</i> without adding + anything essential to it. In the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the + Sorbonne composed for use in the schools handy treatises which are for the + most part revised and reduced copies of the <i>Summa</i>. At each page one + can detect the same texts cut out and separated from the comments which + explain them; the same syllogisms, triumphant, but devoid of any solid + foundation; the same defects of historical criticism, arising from the + confusion of dates and places. + </p> + <p> + Theology may be divided into dogmatics and ethics. Dogmatic theology, in + addition to the Prolegomena comprising the discussions relating to the + sources of divine authority, is divided into fifteen treatises upon all + the dogmas of Christianity. At the basis is the treatise <i>De la vraie + Religion</i>, which seeks to demonstrate the supernatural character of the + Christian religion, that is to say of Revealed Writ and of the Church. + Then all the dogmas are proved by Holy Writ, by the Councils, by the + Fathers, and by the theologians. It cannot be denied that there is a very + frank rationalism at the root of all this. If scholasticism is the + descendant in the first generation of St. Thomas Aquinas, it is descended + in the second from Abélard. In such a system reason holds the first place, + reason proves the revelation, the divinity of Scripture and the authority + of the Church. This done, the door is open to every kind of deduction. The + only instance in which St. Sulpice has been moved to anger since the + extinction of Jansenism was when M. de Lamennais declared that the + starting-point should be faith, and not reason. And what is to be the test + in the last resort of the claims of faith if not reason! + </p> + <p> + Moral theology consists of a dozen treatises comprising the whole body of + philosophical ethics and of law, completed by the revelation and decisions + of the Church. All this forms a sort of encyclopaedia very closely + connected. It is an edifice, the stones of which are attached to one + another by iron clamps, but the base is extremely weak. This base is the + treatise <i>De la vraie Religion</i>, which treatise does not hold + together. For not only does it fail to show that the Christian religion is + more especially divine and revealed than the others, but it does not even + prove that in the field of reality which comes within the reach of our + observation there has occurred a single supernatural fact or miracle. M. + Littre’s inexorable phrase, “Despite all the researches which + have been made, no miracle has ever taken place where it could be observed + and put upon record” is a stumbling-block which cannot be moved out + of the path. It is impossible to prove that a miracle occurred in the + past, and we shall doubtless have a long time to wait before one takes + place under such conditions as could alone give a right-minded person the + assurance that he was not mistaken. + </p> + <p> + Admitting the fundamental thesis of the treatise <i>De la vraie Religion</i>, + the field of argument is narrowed, but the argument is a long way from + being at an end. The question has to be discussed with the Protestants and + dissenters, who, while admitting the revealed texts to be true, decline to + see in them the dogmas which the Catholic Church has in the course of time + taken upon herself. The controversy here branches off into endless points, + and the advocates of Catholicism are continually being worsted. The + Catholic Church has taken upon herself to prove that her dogmas have + always existed just as she teaches them, that Jesus instituted confession, + extreme unction and marriage, and that he taught what was afterwards + decided upon by the Nicene and Trent Councils. Nothing can be more + erroneous. The Christian dogma has been formed, like everything else, + slowly and piecemeal, by a sort of inward vegetation. Theology, by + asserting the contrary, raises up a mass of objections, and places itself + in the predicament of having to reject all criticism. I would advise any + one who wishes to realise this to read in a theological work the treatise + on Sacraments, and he will see by what a series of unsupported + suppositions, worthy of the Apocrypha, of Marie d’Agreda or + Catherine Emmerich, the conclusion is reached that all the sacraments were + established by Jesus Christ during his life. The discussion as to the + matter and form of the sacraments is open to the same objections. The + obstinacy with which matter and form are detected everywhere dates from + the introduction of the Aristotelian tenets into theology in the + thirteenth century. Those who rejected this retrospective application of + the philosophy of Aristotle to the liturgical creations of Jesus incurred + ecclesiastical censure. + </p> + <p> + The intention of the “about to be” in history as in nature + became henceforth the essence of my philosophy. My doubts did not arise + from one train of reasoning but from ten thousand. Orthodoxy has an answer + to everything and will never avow itself worsted. No doubt, it is admitted + in criticism itself that a subtle answer may, in certain cases, be a valid + one. The real truth does not always look like the truth. One subtle answer + may be true, or even at a stretch, two. But for three to be true is more + difficult, and as to four bearing examination that is almost impossible. + But if a thesis can only be upheld by admitting that ten, a hundred, or + even a thousand subtle answers are true at one and the same time, a clear + proof is afforded that this thesis is false. The calculation of + probabilities applied to all these shortcomings of detail is overwhelming + in its effect upon unprejudiced minds, and Descartes had taught me that + the prime condition for discovering the truth is to be free from all + prejudice. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0026" id="link2H_4_0026"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART III. + </h2> + <p> + The theological struggle defined itself more particularly in my case upon + the ground of the so-called revealed texts. Catholic teaching, with full + confidence as to the issue, accepted battle upon this ground as upon + others with the most complete good faith. The Hebrew tongue was in this + case the main instrument, for one of the two Christian Bibles is in + Hebrew, while even as regards the New Testament there can be no proper + exegesis without Hebrew. + </p> + <p> + The study of Hebrew was not compulsory in the seminary, and it was not + followed by many of the students. In 1843-44, M. Garnier still lectured in + his room upon the more difficult texts to two or three students. M. Le Hir + had for several years taken the lectures on grammar. I joined the course + at once, and the well-defined philology of M. Le Hir was full of charm for + me. He was very kind to me, and being a Breton like myself, there was much + similarity of disposition between us. At the expiration of a few weeks I + was almost his only pupil. His way of expounding the Hebrew grammar, with + comparison of other Semitic idioms, was most excellent. I possessed at + this period a marvellous power of assimilation. I absorbed everything + which he told me. His books were at my disposal and he had a very + extensive library. Upon the days when we walked to Issy he went with me to + the heights of La Solitude, and there he taught me Syriac. We talked + together over the Syriac New Testament of Guthier. M. Le Hir determined my + career. I was by instinct a philologist, and I found in him the man best + fitted to develop this aptitude. Whatever claim to the title of savant I + may possess I owe to M. Le Hir. I often think, even, that whatever I have + not learnt from him has been imperfectly acquired. Thus he did not know + much of Arabic, and this is why I have always been a poor Arabic scholar. + </p> + <p> + A circumstance due to the kindness of my teachers confirmed me in my + calling of a philologist and, unknown to them, unclosed for me a door + which I had not dared open for myself. In 1844, M. Gamier was compelled by + old age to give up his lectures on Hebrew. M. Le Hir succeeded him, and + knowing how thoroughly I had assimilated his doctrine he determined to let + me take the grammar course. This pleasant information was conveyed to me + by M. Carbon with his usual good nature, and he added that the Company + would give me three hundred francs by way of salary. The sum seemed to me + such an enormous one that I told M. Carbon I could not accept it. He + insisted, however, on my taking a hundred and fifty francs for the + purchase of books. + </p> + <p> + A much higher favour was that by which I was allowed to attend M. Etienne + Quatremère’s lectures at the Collège de France twice a week. M. + Quatremère did not bestow much preparatory labour upon his lectures; in + the matter of Biblical exegesis he had voluntarily kept apart from the + scientific movement. He much more nearly resembled M. Garnier than M. Le + Hir. Just another such a Jansenist as Silvestre de Sacy, he shared the + demi-rationalism of Hug and Jahn—minimising the proportion of the + supernatural as far as possible, especially in the cases of what he called + “miracles difficult to carry out,” such as the miracle of + Joshua, but still retaining the principle, at all events in respect to the + miracles of the New Testament. This superficial eclecticism did not much + take my fancy. M. Le Hir was much nearer the truth in not attempting to + attenuate the matter recounted, and in closely studying, after the manner + of Ewald, the recital itself. As a comparative grammarian, M. Quatremère + was also very inferior to M. Le Hir. But his erudition in regard to + orientalism was enormous. A new world opened before me, and I saw that + what apparently could only be of interest to priests might be of interest + to laymen as well. The idea often occurred to me from that time that I + should one day teach from the same table, in the small classroom to which + I have as a matter of fact succeeded in forcing my way. + </p> + <p> + This obligation to classify and systematize my ideas in view of lessons to + be given to fellow-pupils of the same age as myself decided my vocation. + My scheme of teaching was from that moment determined upon; and whatever I + have since accomplished in the way of philology has its origin in the + humble lecture which through the kindness of my masters was intrusted to + me. The necessity for extending as far as possible my studies in exegesis + and Semitic philology compelled me to learn German. I had no elementary + knowledge of it, for at St. Nicholas my education had been wholly Latin + and French. I do not complain of this. A man need only have a literary + knowledge of two languages, Latin and his own; but he should understand + all those which may be useful to him for business or instruction. An + obliging fellow pupil from Alsace, M. Kl——, whose name I often + see mentioned as rendering services to his compatriots in Paris, kindly + helped me at the outset. Literature was to my mind such a secondary + matter, amidst the ardent investigation which absorbed me, that I did not + at first pay much attention to it. Nevertheless, I felt a new genius, very + different from that of the seventeenth century. I admired it all the more + because I did not see any limit to it. The spirit peculiar to Germany at + the close of the last century, and in the first half of the present one, + had a very striking effect upon me; I felt as if entering a place of + worship. This was just what I was in search of, the conciliation of a + truly religious spirit with the spirit of criticism. There were times when + I was sorry that I was not a Protestant, so that I might be a philosopher + without ceasing to be a Christian. Then, again, I recognised the fact that + the Catholics alone are consistent. A single error proves that a Church is + not infallible; one weak part proves that a book is not a revealed one. + Outside rigid orthodoxy, there was nothing, so far as I could see, except + free thought after the manner of the French school of the eighteenth + century. My familiarity with the German studies placed me in a very false + position; for upon the one hand it proved to me the impossibility of an + exegesis which did not make any concessions, while upon the other hand I + quite saw that the masters of St. Sulpice were quite right in refusing to + make these concessions, inasmuch as a single confession of error ruins the + whole edifice of absolute truth, and reduces it to the level of human + authorities in which each person makes his selections according to his + individual fancy. + </p> + <p> + For in a divine book everything must be true, and as two contradictories + cannot both be true, it must not contain any contradiction. But the + careful study of the Bible which I had undertaken, while revealing to me + many historical and esthetic treasures, proved to me also that it was not + more exempt than any other ancient book from contradictions, + inadvertencies, and errors. It contains fables, legends, and other traces + of purely human composition. It is no longer possible for any one to + assert that the second part of the book of Isaiah was written by Isaiah. + The book of Daniel, which, according to all orthodox tenets, relates to + the period of the captivity, is an apocryphal work composed in the year + 169 or 170 B.C. The book of Judith is an historical impossibility. The + attribution of the Pentateuch to Moses does not bear investigation, and to + deny that several parts of Genesis are mystical in their meaning is + equivalent to admitting as actual realities descriptions such as that of + the Garden of Eden, the apple, and Noah’s Ark. He is not a true + Catholic who departs in the smallest iota from the traditional theses. + What becomes of the miracle which Bossuet so admired: “Cyrus + referred to two hundred years before his birth”? What becomes of the + seventy weeks of years, the basis of the calculations of universal + history, if that part of Isaiah in which Cyrus is referred to was composed + during the lifetime of that warrior, and if the pseudo-Daniel is a + contemporary of Antiochus Epiphanes? + </p> + <p> + Orthodoxy calls upon us to believe that the biblical books are the work of + those to whom their titles assign them. The mildest Catholic doctrine as + to inspiration will not allow one to admit that there is any marked error + in the sacred text, or any contradiction in matters which do not relate + either to faith or morality. Well, let us allow that out of the thousand + disputes between critique and orthodox apologetics as to the details of + the so-called sacred text there are some in which by accident and contrary + to appearances the latter are in the right. It is impossible that it can + be right in all the thousand cases and it has only to be wrong once for + all the theory as to its inspiration to be reduced to nothing. This theory + of inspiration, implying a supernatural fact, becomes impossible to uphold + in the presence of the decided ideas of our modern common sense. An + inspired book is a miracle. It should present itself to us under + conditions totally different from any other book. It may be said: “You + are not so exacting in respect to Herodotus and the poems of Homer.” + This is quite true, but then Herodotus and the Homeric poems do not + profess to be inspired books. + </p> + <p> + With regard to contradictions, for instance, no one whose mind is free + from theological preoccupations can do other than admit the irreconcilable + divergences between the synoptists and the author of the Fourth Gospel, + and between the synoptists Compared with one another. For us rationalists + this is not of much importance; but the orthodox reasoner, compelled to be + of opinion that his book is right in every particular, finds himself + involved in endless subtleties. Silvestre de Sacy was very much perplexed + by the quotations from the Old Testament which are met with in the New. He + found it so difficult, with his predilection for accuracy in quotations, + to reconcile them that he eventually admitted as a principle that the two + Testaments are both infallible of themselves, but that the New Testament + is not so when it quotes the Old. Only those who have no sort of + experience in the ways of religion will feel any surprise that men of such + great powers of application should have clung to such untenable positions. + In these shipwrecks of a faith upon which you have centred your life, you + cling to the most unlikely means of salvage rather than allow all you + cherish to go to the bottom. + </p> + <p> + Men of the world who believe that people are brought to a decision in the + choice of their opinions by reasons of sympathy or antipathy will no doubt + be surprised at the train of reasoning which alienated me from the + Christian faith, to which I had so many motives, both of interest and + inclination, for remaining attached. Those who have not the scientific + spirit can scarcely understand that one’s opinions are formed + outside of one by a sort of impersonal concretion of which one is, so to + speak, the spectator. In thus letting my course be shaped by the force of + events, I believed myself to be conforming to the rules of the seventeenth + century school, especially to those of Malebranche, whose first principle + is that reason should be contemplated, that man has no part in its + procreation, and that his sole duty is to stand before the truth, free + from all personal bias, ready to let himself be led whither the balance of + demonstration wills it. So far from having at the outset certain results + in view, these illustrious thinkers urged in the interests of the truth + the obliteration of anything like a wish, a tendency, or a personal + attachment. The great reproach of the preachers of the seventeenth century + against the libertines was that they had embraced their desires and had + adopted irreligious opinions because they wished them to be true. + </p> + <p> + In this great struggle between my reason and my beliefs I was careful to + avoid a single reasoning from abstract philosophy. The method of natural + and physical sciences which at Issy had imposed itself upon me as an + absolute law led me to distrust all system. I was never stopped by any + objection with regard to the dogmas of the Trinity and the Incarnation + regarded in themselves. These dogmas, occurring in the metaphysical ether + did not shock any opposite opinion in me. Nothing that was open to + criticism in the policy and tendency of the Church, either in the past or + the present, made the slightest impression upon me. If I could have + believed that theology and the Bible were true, none of the doctrines + which were afterwards embodied in the <i>Syllabus</i> and which were + thereupon more or less promulgated, would have given me any trouble. My + reasons were entirely of a philological and critical order; not in the + least of a metaphysical, political, or moral kind. These orders of ideas + seemed scarcely tangible or capable of being applied in any sense. But the + question as to whether there are contradictions between the Fourth Gospel + and the synoptics is one which there can be no difficulty in grasping. I + can see these contradictions with such absolute clearness that I would + stake my life, and, consequently, my eternal salvation, upon their reality + without a moment’s hesitation. In a question of this kind there can + be none of those subterfuges which involve all moral and political + opinions in so much doubt. I do not admire either Philip II. or Pius V., + but if I had no material reasons for disbelieving the Catholic creed, the + atrocities of the former and the faggots of the latter would not be + obstacles to my faith. + </p> + <p> + Many eminent minds have on various occasions hinted to me that I should + never have broken away from Catholicism if I had not formed so narrow a + view of it; or if, to put it in another way, my teachers had not given me + this narrow view of it. Some people hold St. Sulpice partially responsible + for my incredulity, and reproach that establishment upon the one hand with + having inspired me with too complete a trust in a scholasticism which + implied an exaggerated rationalism, and, upon the other, with having + required me to admit as necessary to salvation the <i>suimmum</i> of + orthodoxy, thus inordinately increasing the amount of sustenance to be + swallowed, while they narrowed in undue proportions the orifice through + which it was to pass. This is very unfair. The directors of St. Sulpice, + in representing Christianity in this light, and by being so open as to the + measure of belief required, were simply acting like honest men. They were + not the persons who would have added the gratifying <i>est de fide</i> + after a number of untenable propositions. One of the worst kinds of + intellectual dishonesty is to play upon words, to represent Christianity + as imposing scarcely any sacrifice upon reason, and in this way to + inveigle people into it without letting them know to what they have + committed themselves. This is where Catholic laymen, who dub themselves + liberals, are under such a delusion. Ignorant of theology and exegesis, + they treat accession to Christianity as if it were a mere adhesion to a + coterie. They pick and choose, admitting one dogma and rejecting another, + and then they are very indignant if any one tells them that they are not + true Catholics. No one who has studied theology can be guilty of such + inconsistency, as in his eyes everything rests upon the infallible + authority of the Scripture and the Church; he has no choice to make. To + abandon a single dogma or reject a single tenet in the teaching of the + Church, is equivalent to the negation of the Church and of Revelation. In + a church founded upon divine authority, it is as much an act of heresy to + deny a single point as to deny the whole. If a single stone is pulled out + of the building, the whole edifice must come to the ground. + </p> + <p> + Nor is there any good to be gained by saying that the Church will perhaps + some day make concessions which will avert the necessity of ruptures, such + as that which I felt forced upon me, and that it will then be seen that I + have renounced the kingdom of God for a trumpery cause. I am perfectly + well aware how far the Church can go in the way of concession, and I know + what are the points upon which it is useless to ask her for any. The + Catholic Church will never abandon a jot or tittle of her scholastic and + orthodox system; she can no more do so than the Comte de Chambord can + cease to be legitimist. I have no doubt that there will be schisms, more, + perhaps, than ever before, but the true Catholic will be inflexible in the + declaration: “If I must abandon my past, I shall abandon the whole; + for I believe in everything upon the principle of infallibility, and this + principle is as much affected by one small concession as by ten thousand + large ones.” For the Catholic Church to admit that Daniel was an + apocryphal person of the time of the Maccabaei, would be to admit that she + had made a mistake; if she was mistaken in that, she may have been + mistaken in others, and she is no longer divinely inspired. + </p> + <p> + I do not, therefore, in any way regret having been brought into contact, + for my religious education, with sincere teachers, who would have + scrupulously avoided letting me labour under any illusion as to what a + Catholic is required to admit. The Catholicism which was taught me is not + the insipid compromise, suitable only for laymen, which has led to so many + misunderstandings in the present day. My Catholicism was that of + Scripture, of the councils, and of the theologians. This Catholicism I + loved, and I still respect it; having found it inadmissible, I separated + myself from it. This is a straightforward course, but what is not + straightforward is to pretend ignorance of the engagement contracted, and + to become the apologist of things concerning which one is ignorant. I have + never lent myself to a falsehood of this description, and I have looked + upon it as disrespectful to the faith to practise deceit with it. It is no + fault of mine if my masters taught me logic, and by their uncompromising + arguments made my mind as trenchant as a blade of steel. I took what was + taught me—scholasticism, syllogistic rules, theology, and Hebrew—in + earnest; I was an apt student; I am not to be numbered with the lost for + that. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0027" id="link2H_4_0027"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART IV. + </h2> + <p> + Such were these two years of inward labour, which I cannot compare to + anything better than a violent attack of encephalitis, during which all my + other functions of life were suspended. With a certain amount of Hebraic + pedantry, I called this crisis in my life Naphtali,<a href="#linknote-17" + name="linknoteref-17" id="linknoteref-17"><small>17</small></a> and I + often repeated to myself the Hebrew saying: “<i>Napktoulé élohim + niphtali</i> (I have fought the fight of God).” My inward feelings + were not changed, but each day a stitch in the tissue of my faith was + broken; the immense amount of work which I had in hand prevented me from + drawing the conclusion. My Hebrew lecture absorbed my whole thoughts; I + was like a man holding his breath. My director, to whom I confided my + difficulties, replied in just the same terms as M. Gosselin at Issy: + “Inroads upon your faith! Pay no heed to that; keep straight on your + way.” One day he got me to read the letter which St. François de + Sales wrote to Madame de Chantal: “These temptations are but + afflictions like unto others. I may tell you that I have known but few + persons who have achieved any progress without going through this ordeal; + patience is the only remedy. You must not make any reply, nor appear to + hear what the enemy says. Let him make as much noise at the door as he + likes without so much as exclaiming, ‘Who is there?’” + </p> + <p> + The general practice of ecclesiastical directors is, in fact, to advise + those who confess to feeling doubts concerning the faith not to dwell upon + them. Instead of postponing the engagements on this account, they rather + hurry them forward, thinking that these difficulties will disappear when + it is too late to give practical effect to them, and that the cares of an + active clerical career will ultimately dispel these speculative-doubts. In + this regard, I must confess that I found my godly directors rather + deficient in wisdom. My director in Paris, a very enlightened man withal, + was anxious that I should be at once ordained a sub-deacon, the first of + the holy orders which constitutes an irrevocable tie. I refused + point-blank. So far as regarded the first steps of the ecclesiastical + state, I had obeyed him. It was he himself who pointed out to me that, the + exact form of the engagement which they imply is contained in the words of + the Psalm which are repeated: “The Lord is the portion of mine + inheritance and of my cup; thou maintainest my lot.” Well, I can + honestly declare that I have never been untrue to that engagement. I have + never had any other interest than that of the truth, and I have made many + sacrifices for it. An elevated idea has always sustained me in the conduct + of my life, so much so that I am ready to forego the inheritance which, + according to our reciprocal arrangement, God ought to restore to me: + “<i>The lines are fallen to me in pleasant places; yea, I have a + goodly inheritance</i>” + </p> + <p> + My friend in the seminary of St. Brieuc<a href="#linknote-18" + name="linknoteref-18" id="linknoteref-18"><small>18</small></a> had + decided, after much hesitation, to take holy orders. I have found the + letter which I wrote to him on the 26th of March, 1844, at a time when my + doubts with regard to religion were not disturbing my peace of mind so + much as they had done. + </p> + <p> + “I was pleased but not surprised to hear that you had taken the + final step. The uneasiness by which you were beset must always make itself + felt in the mind of one who realizes the serious import of assuming the + order of priesthood. The trial is a painful but an honourable one, and I + should not think much of one who reached the priestly calling without + having experienced it.... I have told you how a power independent of my + will shook within me the beliefs which have hitherto been the main + foundations of my life and of my happiness. These temptations are cruel + indeed, and I should be full of pity for any one who was ever tortured by + them. How wanting in tact towards those who have suffered these + temptations are the persons who have never been assailed by them. It is no + wonder that such should be the case, for one must have had experience of a + thing thoroughly to understand it, and the subject is such a delicate one, + that I question whether there are any two human beings more incapable of + understanding one another than a believer and a doubter, however complete + may be their good faith and even their intelligence. They speak two + unintelligible languages, unless the grace of God intervenes as an + interpreter. I have felt how completely maladies of this kind are beyond + all human remedy, and that God has reserved the treatment of them to + himself, <i>inanu mitissimâ et suavissimâ pertractans vulnera mea</i>, to + quote St. Augustin, who evidently speaks from experience. At times the <i>Angelus + Satanae qui me colaphizet</i> wakes up. Such, my dear friend, is our fate, + and we must abide by it. <i>Converte te sufra, converte te infra</i>, + life, especially for the clergy, is a battle, and perhaps in the long run, + these storms are better for man than a dead calm, which would send him to + sleep.... I can hardly bring myself to fancy that within a twelvemonth you + will be a priest, you who were my schoolfellow and friend as a boy. And + now we are halfway through life, according to the ordinary mode of + reckoning, and the second half will probably not be the pleasanter of the + two. This surely should make us look upon passing ills as of no account, + and endure with patience the troubles of a few days, at which we shall + smile in a few years’ time, and not think of in eternity. Vanity of + vanities!” + </p> + <p> + A year later the malady, which I thought was only a fleeting one, had + spread to my whole conscience. Upon the 22nd of March, 1845, I wrote a + letter to my friend which he could not read, as he was on his deathbed + when it reached him. + </p> + <p> + “My position in the seminary has not varied much since our last + conversation. I am allowed to attend all the lectures on Syriac of M. + Quatremère, at the Collège de France, and I find them extremely + interesting. They are useful to me in many ways; in the first place by + enabling me to learn much that is useful and attractive, and by + distracting my mind from certain subjects.... I should be quite happy if + it were not that the painful thoughts of which you are aware were ever + afflicting my mind at an increasingly rapid rate. I have quite made up my + mind not to accept the grade of sub-deacon at the next ordination. This + will not excite any notice, as owing to my age, I should be compelled to + allow a certain interval to elapse between my different orders. Nor, for + the matter of that, is there any reason why I should care for what people + think. I must accustom myself to brave public opinion, so as to be ready + for any sacrifice. I suffer much at times. This Holy Week, for instance, + has been particularly painful for me, for every incident which bears me + away from my ordinary life, revives all my anxious doubts. I console + myself by thinking of Jesus, so beautiful, so pure, so ideal in His + suffering—Jesus whom I hope to love always. Even if I should ever + abandon Him, that would give Him pleasure, for it would be a sacrifice + made to my conscience, and God knows that it would be a costly one! I + think that you, at all events, would understand how costly it would be. + How little freedom of choice man has in the ordering of his destiny. When + no more than a child who acts from impulse and the sense of imitation, one + is called upon to stake one’s whole existence; a higher power + entangles you in indissoluble toils; this power pursues its work in + silence, and before you have begun to know your own self, you are tied and + bound, you know not how. When you reach a certain age, you wake up and + would like to move. But it is impossible; your hands and arms are caught + in inextricable folds. It is God Himself who holds you fast, and + remorseless opinion is looking on, ready to laugh if you signify that you + are tired of the toys which amused you as a child. It would be nothing if + there was only public opinion to brave. But the pity is that all the + softest ties of your life are woven into the web that entangles you, and + you must pluck out one-half of your heart if you would escape from it. + Many a time I have wished that man was born either completely free, or + deprived of all freedom. He would not be so much to be pitied if he was + born like the plant family, fixed to the soil which is to give it + nourishment. With the dole of liberty allowed to him, he is strong enough + to resist, but not strong enough to act; he has just what is required to + make him unhappy. ‘My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?’ + How is all this to be reconciled with the sway of a father? There are + mysteries in all this, and happy is he who fathoms them only in + speculation. + </p> + <p> + “It is only because you are so true a friend that I tell you all + this. I have no need to ask you to keep it to yourself. You will + understand that I must be very circumspect with regard to my mother. I + would rather die than cause her a moment’s pain. O God! shall I have + the strength of mind to give my duty the preference over her? I commend + her to you; she is very pleased with your attentiveness to her. This is + the most real kindness you can do me.” + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0028" id="link2H_4_0028"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART V. + </h2> + <p> + I thus reached the vacation of 1845, which I spent, as I had the preceding + ones, in Brittany. There I had much more time for reflection. The grains + of sand of my doubts accumulated into a solid mass. My director, who, with + the best intentions in the world, gave me bad advice, was no longer within + my reach. I ceased to take part in the sacraments of the Church, though I + still retained my former fondness for its prayers. Christianity appeared + to me greater than ever before, but I could only cling to the supernatural + by an effort of habit—by a sort of fiction with myself. The task of + logic was done; that of honesty was about to begin. For nearly two months + I was Protestant; I could not make up my mind to abandon altogether the + great religious tradition which had hitherto been part of my life; I mused + upon future reforms, when the philosophy of Christianity, disencumbered of + all superstitious dross and yet preserving its moral efficacity (that was + my great dream), would be left the great school of humanity and its guide + to the future. My readings in German gave nurture to these ideas. Herder + was the German writer with whom I was most familiar. His vast views + delighted me, and I said to myself, with keen regret, if I could but think + all that like a Herder and remain a priest, a Christian preacher. But with + my notions at once precise and respectful of Catholicism, I could not + succeed in conceiving any honourable way of remaining a Catholic priest + while retaining my opinions. I was Christian after the fashion of a + professor of theology at Halle or Tübingen. An inward voice told me: + “Thou art no longer Catholic; thy robe is a lie; cast it off.” + </p> + <p> + I was a Christian, however; for all the papers of that date which I have + preserved give clear expression to the feeling which I have since + endeavoured to portray in the <i>Vie de Jésus</i>, I mean a keen regard + for the evangelic ideal and for the character of the Founder of + Christianity. The idea that in abandoning the Church I should remain + faithful to Jesus got hold upon me, and if I could have brought myself to + believe in apparitions I should certainly have seen Jesus saying to me: + “Abandon Me to become My disciple.” This thought sustained and + emboldened me. I may say that from that moment my <i>Vie de Jésus</i> was + mentally written. Belief in the eminent personality of Jesus—which + is the spirit of that book—had been my mainstay in my struggle + against theology. Jesus has in reality ever been my master. In following + out the truth at the cost of any sacrifice I was convinced that I was + following Him and obeying the most imperative of His precepts. + </p> + <p> + I was at this time so far removed from my old Brittany masters in respect + to disposition, intellectual culture and study that conversation between + us had become almost impossible. One of them suspected something, and said + to me: “I have always thought that you were being overdone in the + way of study.” A habit which I had acquired of reciting the psalms + in Hebrew from a small manuscript of my own which I used as a breviary, + surprised them very much. They were half inclined to ask me if I was a + Jew. My mother guessed all that was taking place without quite + understanding it. I continued, as in my childhood, to take long walks into + the country with her. One day, we sat down in the valley of Guindy, near + the Chapelle des Cinq Plaies, by the side of the spring. For hours I read + by her side, without raising my eyes from the book, which was a very + harmless one—M. de Bonald’s <i>Recherches Philosophiques.</i> + Nevertheless the book displeased her, and she snatched it away from me, + feeling that books of the same description, if not this particular one, + were what she had to dread. + </p> + <p> + Upon the 6th of September, 1845, I wrote to M. ——, my + director, the following letter, a copy of which I have found among my + papers, and which I reproduce without in any way attenuating its somewhat + inconsistent and feverish tone:— + </p> + <p> + “SIR,—Having had to make two or three journeys at the + beginning of the vacation, I have been unable to correspond with you as + early as I could have wished. I was none the less urgently in need of + unbosoming myself to you with regard to pangs which increase in intensity + each day, and which I feel all the keener because there is no one here to + whom I can confide them. What ought to make for my happiness causes me the + deepest sorrow. An imperious sense of duty compels me to concentrate my + thoughts upon myself, in order to spare pain to those who surround me with + their affection, and who would moreover be quite incapable of + understanding my perplexity. Their kindness and soothing words cut me to + the quick. Oh, if they only knew what was going on in the recesses of my + heart! Since my stay here I have acquired some important data towards the + solution of the great problem which is preoccupying my mind. Several + circumstances have, to begin with, made me realise the greatness of the + sacrifice which God required of me, and into what an abyss the course + which my conscience prescribes must plunge me. It is useless to describe + them to you in detail, as, after all, considerations of this kind can be + of no weight in the resolution which has to be taken. To have abandoned a + path which I had selected from my childhood, and which led without danger + to the pure and noble aims which I had set before myself, in order to + tread another along which I could discern nothing but uncertainty and + disappointment; to have disregarded the opinion which will have only blame + in store for what is really an honest act on my part, would have been a + small thing, if I had not at the same time been compelled to tear out part + of my heart, or, to speak more accurately, to pierce another to which my + own was so deeply attached. Filial love had grown in proportion as so many + other affections were crushed out. Well, it is in this part of my being + that duty exacts from me the most painful sacrifice. My leaving the + seminary will be an inexplicable enigma to my mother; she will believe + that I have killed her out of sheer caprice. + </p> + <p> + “Truly may I say that when I envisage the inextricable mesh in which + God has ensnared me while my reason and freedom were asleep, while I was + following with docile steps the path He had Himself traced out for me, + distracting thoughts crowd themselves upon me. God knows that I was + simple-minded and pure; I took nothing upon myself; I walked with free and + unflagging steps in the path which He disclosed before me, and behold this + path has led me to the brink of a precipice! God has betrayed me! I never + doubted but that a wise and merciful Providence governed the universe and + governed me in the course which I was to take. It is not, however, without + considerable effort that I have been able to apply so formal a + contradiction to apparent facts. I often say to myself that vulgar common + sense is little capable of appreciating the providential government + whether of humanity, of the universe, or of the individual. The isolated + consideration of facts would scarcely tend to optimism. It requires a + strong dose of optimism to credit God with this generosity in spite of + experience. I hope that I shall never feel any hesitation upon this point, + and that whatever may be the ills which Providence yet has in store for me + I shall ever believe that it is guiding me to the highest possible good + through the least possible evil. + </p> + <p> + “According to what I hear from Germany, the situation which was + offered me there is still open;<a href="#linknote-19" name="linknoteref-19" + id="linknoteref-19"><small>19</small></a> only I cannot enter upon it + before the spring. This makes my journey thither very doubtful, and throws + me back into fresh perplexities. I am also advised to go through a year of + free study in Paris, during which time I should be able to reflect upon my + future career, and also take my university degrees. I am very much + inclined to adopt this last-named course, for though I have made up my + mind to come back to the seminary and confer with you and the superiors, I + should nevertheless be very reluctant to make a long stay there in my + present condition of mind. It is with the utmost apprehension that I mark + the near approach of the time when my inward irresolution must find + expression in a most decided course of action. Hard it is to have thus to + reascend the stream down which one has for so long been gently floated! If + only I could be sure of the future, and of being one day able to secure + for my ideas their due place, and follow up at my ease and free from all + external preoccupations the work of my intellectual and moral improvement! + But even could I be sure of myself, how could I be of the circumstances + which force themselves so pitilessly upon us? In truth, I am driven to + regret the paltry store of liberty which God has given us; we have enough + to make us struggle; not enough to master destiny, just enough to insure + suffering. + </p> + <p> + “Happy are the children who only sleep and dream, and who never have + a thought of entering upon this struggle with God Himself! I see around me + men of pure and simple mind, whom Christianity suffices to render virtuous + and happy. God grant that they may never develop the miserable faculty of + criticism which so imperiously demands satisfaction, and which, when once + satisfied, leaves such little happiness in the soul! Would to God that it + were in my power to suppress it. I would not hesitate at amputation if it + were lawful and possible. Christianity satisfies all my faculties except + one, which is the most exacting of them all, because it is by right judge + over all the others. Would it not be a contradiction in terms to impose + conviction upon the faculty which creates conviction? I am well aware that + the orthodox will tell me that it is my own fault if I have fallen into + this condition. I will not argue the point; no man knows whether he is + worthy of love or hatred. I am quite willing, therefore, to say that it is + my fault, provided those who love me promise to pity me and continue me + their friendship. + </p> + <p> + “A result which now seems beyond all doubt is that I shall not + revert to orthodoxy by continuing to follow the same line,—I mean + that of rational and critical self-examination. Up till now, I hoped that + after having travelled over the circle of doubt I should come back to the + starting-point. I have quite lost this hope, and a return to Catholicism + no longer seems possible to me, except by a receding movement, by stopping + short in the path which I have entered, by stigmatising reason, by + declaring it for once and all null and void, and by condemning it to + respectful silence. Each step in my career of criticism takes me further + away from the starting-point. Have I, then, lost all hope of coming back + to Catholicism? That would be too bitter a thought. No, sir, I have no + hopes of reverting to it by rational progress; but I have often been on + the point of repudiating for once and all the guide whom at times I + mistrust. What would then be the motive of my life? I cannot tell; but + activity will ever find scope. You may be sure that I must have been + sorely forced to have dwelt for one instant upon a thought which seems + more cruel to me than death. And yet, if my conscience represented it to + me as lawful, I should eagerly avail myself of it, if only out of common + decency. + </p> + <p> + “I hope at all events that those who know me will admit that + interested motives have not estranged me from Christianity. Have not all + my material interests tempted me to find it true? The temporal + considerations against which I have had to struggle would have sufficed to + persuade many others; my heart has need of Christianity; the Gospel will + ever be my moral law; the church has given me my education, and I love + her. Could I but continue to style myself her son! I pass from her in + spite of myself; I abhor the dishonest attacks levelled at her; I frankly + confess that I have no complete substitute for her teaching; but I cannot + disguise from myself the weak points which I believe that I have found in + it and with regard to which it is impossible to effect a compromise, + because we have to do with a doctrine in which all the component parts + hold together and cannot be detached. + </p> + <p> + “I sometimes regret that I was not born in a land where the bonds of + orthodoxy are less tightly drawn than in Catholic countries. For, at + whatever cost, I am resolved to be a Christian; but I cannot be an + orthodox Catholic. When I find such independent and bold thinkers as + Herder, Kant, and Fichte, calling themselves Christians, I should like to + be so too. But can I be so in the Catholic faith, which is like a bar of + iron? and you cannot reason with a bar of iron. Will not some one found + amongst us a rational and critical Christianity? I will confess to you + that I believe that I have discovered in some German writers the true kind + of Christianity which is adapted to us. May I live to see this + Christianity assuming a form capable of fully satisfying all the + requirements of our age! May I myself cooperate in the great work! What so + grieves me is the thought that perhaps it will be needful to be a priest + in order to accomplish that; and I could not become a priest without being + guilty of hypocrisy. + </p> + <p> + “Forgive me, sir, these thoughts, which must seem very reprehensible + to you. You are aware that all this has not as yet any dogmatic + consistence in me; I still cling to the Church, my venerable mother; I + recite the Psalms with heartfelt accents; I should, if I followed the bent + of my inclination, pass hours at a time in church; gentle, plain, and pure + piety touches me to the very heart; and I even have sharp relapses of + devotional feeling. All this cannot coexist without contradiction with my + general condition. But I have once for all made up my mind on the subject; + I have cast off the inconvenient yoke of consistency, at all events for + the time. Will God condemn me for having simultaneously admitted that + which my different faculties simultaneously exact, although I am unable to + reconcile their contradictory demands? Are there not periods in the + history of the human mind when contradiction is necessary? When the moral + verities are under examination, doubt is unavoidable; and yet during this + period of transition the pure and noble mind must still be moral, thanks + to a contradiction. Thus it is that I am at times both Catholic and + Rationalist; but holy orders I can never take, for ‘once a priest, + always a priest.’ + </p> + <p> + “In order to keep my letter within due limits, I must bring the long + story of my inward struggles to a close. I thank God, who has seen fit to + put me through so severe a trial, for having brought me into contact with + a mind such as yours, which is so well able to understand this trial, and + to whom I can confide it without reserve.” + </p> + <p> + M—— wrote me a very kind-hearted reply, offering a merely + formal opposition to my project of following my own course of study. My + sister, whose high intelligence had for years been like the pillar of fire + which lighted my path, wrote from Poland to encourage me in my resolution, + which was finally taken at the end of September. It was a very honest and + straightforward act; and it is one which I now look back upon with the + greatest satisfaction. But what a cruel severance. It was upon my mother’s + account that I suffered the most. I was compelled to inflict a deep wound + upon her without being able to give the slightest explanation. Although + gifted with much native intelligence, she was not sufficiently educated to + understand that a person’s religious faith can be affected because + he has discovered that the Messianic explanations of the Psalms are + erroneous, and that Gesenius, in his commentary upon Isaiah, is in nearly + every point right when combating the arguments of the orthodox. It grieved + me much, also, to give pain to my old Brittany masters, who retained such + kindly feelings towards me. The critical question, as it represented + itself to my mind, would have seemed absolutely unintelligible to them, so + plain and unquestioning was their faith. I went back to Paris therefore + without letting them know anything more than that I was likely to travel, + and that my ecclesiastical studies might possibly be suspended. + </p> + <p> + The masters of St. Sulpice, accustomed to take a broader view of things, + were not very much surprised. M. Le Hir, who placed an unlimited + confidence in study, and who also knew how steady my conduct was, did not + dissuade me from devoting a few years to free study in Paris, and sketched + out the course which I was to follow at the Collège de France and at the + School of Eastern Languages. M. Carbon was grieved; he saw how different + my position must become, and he promised to try and find me a quiet and + honourable position. M. Dupanloup<a href="#linknote-20" + name="linknoteref-20" id="linknoteref-20"><small>20</small></a> displayed + in this matter the high and hearty appreciation of spiritual things which + constituted his superiority. I spoke very frankly to him. The critical + side of the question did not in any way impress him, and my allusion to + German criticism took him by surprise. The labours of M. Le Hir were + almost unknown to him. Scripture in his eyes was only useful in supplying + preachers with eloquent passages, and Hebrew was of no use for that + purpose. But how kind and generous-hearted he was! I have now before me a + short note from him, in which he says: “Do you want any money? This + would be natural enough in your position. My humble purse is at your + service. I should like to be able to offer you more precious gifts. I hope + that my plain and simple offer will not offend you.” I declined his + kind offer with thanks, but there was no merit in my refusal, for my + sister Henriette had sent me twelve hundred francs to tide over this + crisis. I scarcely touched this sum, but nevertheless, by relieving me of + any immediate apprehension for the morrow, it was the foundation of the + independence and of the dignity of my whole life. + </p> + <p> + Thus, on the 6th of October, 1845, I went down, never again to remount + them in priestly dress, the steps of the St. Sulpice seminary. I crossed + the courtyard as quickly as I could, and went to the hotel which then + stood at the north-west corner of the esplanade, not at that time thrown + open, as it is now. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0029" id="link2H_4_0029"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + FIRST STEPS OUTSIDE ST. SULPICE. + </h2> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0030" id="link2H_4_0030"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART I. + </h2> + <p> + The name of this hotel I do not remember; it was always spoken of as + “Mademoiselle Céleste’s,” this being the name of the + worthy person who managed or owned it. + </p> + <p> + There was certainly no other hotel like it in Paris, for it was a kind of + annex to the seminary, the rules of which were to a great extent in force + there. Lodgers were not admitted without a letter of introduction from one + of the directors of the seminary or some other notability in the religious + world. It was here that students who wished for a few days to themselves + before entering or leaving the seminary used to stay, while priests and + superiors of convents whom business brought to Paris found it comfortable + and inexpensive. The transition from the priestly to the ordinary dress is + like the change which occurs in a chrysalis; it needs a little shade. + Assuredly, if any one could narrate all the silent and unobtrusive + romances associated with this ancient hotel, now pulled down, we should + hear some very interesting stories. I must not, however, let my meaning be + mistaken, for, like many ecclesiastics still alive, I can testify to the + blameless course of life in Mlle. Céleste’s hotel. + </p> + <p> + While I was awaiting here the completion of my metamorphosis, M. Carbon’s + good offices were being busily employed upon my behalf. He had written to + Abbé Gratry, at that time director of the Collège Stanislas, and the + latter offered me a place as usher in the upper division. M. Dupanloup + advised me to accept it, remarking: “You may rest assured that M. + Gratry is a priest of the highest distinction.” I accepted, and was + very kindly treated by every one, but I did not retain the place more than + a fortnight. I found that my new situation involved my making the outward + profession of clericalism, the avoidance of which was my reason for + leaving the seminary. Thus my relations with M. Gratry were but fleeting. + He was a kindhearted man, and a rather clever writer, but there was + nothing in him. His indecision of mind did not suit me at all, M. Carbon + and M. Dupanloup had told him why I had left St. Sulpice. We had two or + three conversations, in the course of which I explained to him my doubts, + based upon an examination of the texts. He did not in the least understand + me, and with his transcendentalism he must have looked upon my rigid + attention to details as very commonplace. He knew nothing of + ecclesiastical science, whether exegesis or theology; his capabilities not + extending beyond hollow phrases, trifling applications of mathematics, and + the region of “matter of fact.” I was not slow to perceive how + immensely superior the theology of St. Sulpice was to these hollow + combinations which would fain pass muster as scientific. St. Sulpice has a + knowledge at first hand of what Christianity is; the Polytechnic School + has not. But I repeat, there could be no two opinions as to the + uprightness of M. Gratry, who was a very taking and highminded man. + </p> + <p> + I was sorry to part company with him; but there was no help for it. I had + left the first seminary in the world for one in every respect inferior to + it. The leg had been badly set; I had the courage to break it a second + time. On the 2nd or 3rd of November, I passed from out the last threshold + appertaining to the Church, and I obtained a place as “assistant + master <i>au pair</i>”—to employ the phrase used in the + Quartier Latin of those days—without salary, in a school of the St. + Jacques district attached to the Lycée Henri IV. I had a small bedroom, + and took my meals with the scholars, and as my time was not occupied for + more than two hours a day, I was able to do a good deal of work upon my + own account. This was just what I wanted. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0031" id="link2H_4_0031"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART II. + </h2> + <p> + Constituted as I am to find my own company quite sufficient, the humble + dwelling in the Rue des Deux Eglises (now the Rue de l’Abbé de + l'Épée) would have been a paradise for me had it not been for the terrible + crisis which my conscience was passing through, and the altered direction + which I was compelled to give to my existence. The fish in Lake Baïkal + have, it is said, taken thousands of years in their transformation from + salt to fresh water fish. I had to effect my transition in a few weeks. + Catholicism, like a fairy circle, casts such a powerful spell upon one’s + whole life, that when one is deprived of it everything seems aimless and + gloomy. I felt terribly out of my element. The whole universe seemed to me + like an arid and chilly desert. With Christianity untrue, everything else + appeared to me indifferent, frivolous, and undeserving of interest. The + shattering of my career left me with a sense of aching void, like what may + be felt by one who has had an attack of fever or a blighted affection. The + struggle which had engrossed my whole soul had been so ardent that all the + rest appeared to me petty and frivolous. The world discovered itself to me + as mean and deficient in virtue. I seemed to have lost caste, and to have + fallen upon a nest of pigmies. + </p> + <p> + My sorrow was much increased by the grief which I had been compelled to + inflict upon my mother. I resorted, perhaps wrongly, to certain artifices + with the view, as I hoped, of sparing her pain. Her letters went to my + heart. She supposed my position to be even more painful than it was in + reality, and as she had, despite our poverty, rather spoilt me, she + thought that I should never be able to withstand any hardship. “When + I remember how a poor little mouse kept you from sleeping, I am at a loss + to know how you will get on,” she wrote to me. She passed her time + singing the Marseilles hymns,<a href="#linknote-21" name="linknoteref-21" + id="linknoteref-21"><small>21</small></a> of which she was so fond, + especially the hymn of Joseph, beginning— + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + “O Joseph, ô mon aimable + Fils affable.” + </pre> + <p> + When she wrote to me in this strain, my heart was fit to break. As a + child, I was in the habit of asking her ten times over in the course of + the day—“Mother, have I been good?” The idea of a + rupture between us was most cruel. I accordingly resorted to various + devices in order to prove to her that I was still the same tender son that + I had been in the past. In time the wound healed, and when she saw that I + was as tender and loving towards her as ever, she readily agreed that + there might be more than one way of being a priest, and that nothing was + changed in me except the dress, which was the literal truth. + </p> + <p> + My ignorance of the world was thorough-paced. I knew nothing except of + literary matters, and as my only real knowledge was that which I gained at + St. Sulpice, I have always been like a child in all worldly matters. I did + not therefore make any effort to render my material position as good as the + circumstances admitted. The one object of life seemed to me to be thought. + The educational profession being the one which comes nearest to the + clerical one, I selected it almost without reflection. It was hard, no + doubt, after having reached the maximum of intellectual culture, and + having held a post of some honour, to descend to the lowest rank. I was + better versed than any living Frenchman, with the exception of M. Le Hir, + in the comparative theory of the Semitic languages, and my position was no + better than that of an under-master; I was a savant, and I had not taken a + degree. But the inward contentment of my own conscience was enough for me. + I never felt a shadow of regret at the decision which I had come to in + October, 1845. + </p> + <p> + I had my reward, moreover, the day after I entered the humble school in + which I was to occupy for three years and a-half such a lowly position. + Among the pupils was one who, owing to his successes and rapid progress, + held a place of his own in the school. He was eighteen years old, and even + at that early age the philosophical spirit, the concentrated ardour, the + passionate love of truth, and the inventive sagacity which have since made + his name celebrated were apparent to those who knew him. I refer to M. + Berthelot, whose room was next to mine. From the day that we knew each + other, we became fast friends. Our eagerness to learn was equally great, + and we had both had very different kinds of culture. We accordingly threw + all that we knew into the same seething cauldron which served to boil + joints of very different kinds. Berthelot taught me what was not to be + learnt in the seminary, while I taught him theology and Hebrew. Berthelot + purchased a Hebrew Bible, which, I believe, is still in his library with + its leaves uncut. He did not get much beyond the <i>Shevas</i>, the + counter attractions of the laboratory being too great. Our mutual honesty + and straightforwardness brought us closer together. Berthelot introduced + me to his father, one of those gifted doctors such as may be found in + Paris. The father was a Galilean of the old school, and very advanced in + his political views. He was the first Republican I had ever seen, and it + took me some time to familiarize myself with the idea. But he was + something more than that: he was a model of charity and self-devotion. He + assured the scientific career of his son by enabling him to devote himself + up to the age of thirty to his speculative researches without having to + obtain any remunerative post which would have interfered with his studies. + In politics, Berthelot remained true to the principles of his father. This + is the only point upon which we have not always been agreed. For my part I + should willingly resign myself, if the opportunity arose (I must say that + it seems to grow more distant every day), to serve, for the greater good + of humanity now so sadly out of gear, a tyrant who was philanthropic, + well-instructed, intelligent, and liberal. + </p> + <p> + Our discussions were interminable, and we were always resuming the same + subject. We passed part of the night in searching out together the topics + upon which we were engaged. After some little time, M. Berthelot, having + completed his special mathematical studies at the Lycée Henri IV., went + back to his father, who lived at the foot of the Tour Saint Jacques de la + Boucherie. When he came to see me in the evening at the Rue de l’Abbé + de l'Épée, we used to converse for hours, and then I used to walk back + with him to the Tour Saint Jacques. But as our conversation was rarely + concluded when we got back to his door, he returned with me, and then I + went back with him, this game of battledore and shuttlecock being renewed + several times. Social and philosophical questions must be very hard to + solve, seeing that we could not with all our energy settle them. The + crisis of 1848 had a very great effect upon us. This fateful year was not + more successful than we had been in solving the problems which it had set + itself, but it demonstrated the fragility of many things which were + supposed to be solid, and to young and active minds it seemed like the + lowering of a curtain of clouds upon the horizon. + </p> + <p> + The profound affection which thus bound M. Berthelot and myself together + was unquestionably of a very rare and singular kind. It so happened that + we were both of an essentially objective nature; a nature, that is to say, + perfectly free from the narrow whirlwind which converts most consciences + into an egotistical gulf like the conical cavity of the formica-leo. + Accustomed each to pay very little attention to himself, we paid very + little attention to one another. Our friendship consisted in what we + mutually learnt, in a sort of common fermentation which a remarkable + conformity of intellectual organization produced in us in regard to the + same objects. Anything which we had both seen in the same light seemed to + us a certainty. When we first became acquainted, I still retained a tender + attachment for Christianity. Berthelot also inherited from his father a + remnant of Christian belief. A few months sufficed to relegate these + vestiges of faith to that part of our souls reserved for memory. The + statement that everything in the world is of the same colour, that there + is no special supernatural or momentary revelation, impressed itself upon + our minds as unanswerable. The scientific purview of a universe in which + there is no appreciable trace of any free will superior to that of man + became, from the first months of 1846, the immovable anchor from which we + never shifted. We shall never move from this position until we shall have + encountered in nature some one specially intentional fact having its cause + outside the free will of man or the spontaneous action of the animal. + </p> + <p> + Thus our friendship was somewhat analogous to that of two eyes when they + look steadily at the same object, and when from two images the brain + receives one and the same perception. Our intellectual growth was like the + phenomenon which occurs through a sort of action due to close contact and + to passive complicity. M. Berthelot looked as favourably upon what I did + as myself; I liked his ways as much as he could have done himself. There + was never so much as a trivial vulgarity—I will not say a moral + slackening of affection—between us. We were invariably upon the same + terms with each other that people are with a woman for whom they feel + respect. When I want to typify what an unexampled pair of friends we were, + I always represent two priests in their surplices walking arm in arm. This + dress does not debar them from discussing elevated subjects; but it would + never occur to them in such a dress to smoke a cigar, to talk about + trifles, or to satisfy the most legitimate requirements of the body. + Flaubert, the novelist, could never understand that, as Sainte-Beuve + relates, the recluses of Port Royal lived for years in the same house and + addressed each other as Monsieur to the day of their death. The fact of + the matter is that Flaubert had no sort of idea as to what abstract + natures are. Not only did nothing approaching to a familiarity ever pass + between us, but we should have hesitated to ask each other for help, or + almost for advice. To ask a service would, in our view, be an act of + corruption, an injustice towards the rest of the human race; it would, at + all events, be tantamount to acknowledging that there was something to + which we attached a value. But we are so well aware that the temporal + order of things is vain, empty, hollow, and frivolous, that we hesitate at + giving a tangible shape even to friendship. We have too much regard for + each other to be guilty of a weakness towards each other. Both alike + convinced of the insignificance of human affairs, and possessed of the + same aspirations for what is eternal, we could not bring ourselves to + admit having of a set purpose concentrated our thoughts upon what is + casual and accidental. For there can be no doubt that ordinary friendship + presupposes the conviction that all things are not vain and empty. + </p> + <p> + Later in life an intimacy of this kind may at times cease to be felt as a + necessity. It recovers all its force whenever the globe of this world, + which is ever changing, brings round some new aspect with regard to which + we want to consult each other. Whichever of us dies first will leave a + great void in the existence of the other. Our friendship reminds me of + that of François de Sales and President Favre: “They pass away these + years of time, my brother, their months are reduced to weeks, their weeks + to days, their days to hours, and their hours to moments, which latter + alone we possess, and these only as they fleet.” The conviction of + the existence of an eternal object embraced in youth, gives a peculiar + stability to life. All this is anything but human or natural, you may say! + No doubt, but strength is only manifested by running counter to nature. + The natural tree does not bear good fruit. The fruit is not good until the + tree is trained; that is to say, until it has ceased to be a tree. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0032" id="link2H_4_0032"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART III. + </h2> + <p> + The friendship of M. Berthelot, and the approbation of my sister, were my + two chief consolations during this painful period, when the sentiment of + an abstract duty towards truth compelled me at the age of three and twenty + to alter the course of a career already fairly entered upon. The change + was, in reality, only one of domicile, and of outward surroundings. At + bottom I remained the same; the moral course of my life was scarcely + affected by this trial; the craving for truth, which was the mainspring of + my existence, knew no diminution. My habits and ways were but very little + modified. + </p> + <p> + St. Sulpice, in truth, had left its impress so deeply upon me, that for + years I remained a St. Sulpice man, not in regard to faith but in habit. + The excellent education imparted there, which had exhibited to me the + perfection of politeness in M. Gosselin, the perfection of kindness in M. + Carbon, the perfection of virtue in M. Pinault, M. Le Hir and M. + Gottofrey, made an indelible impression upon my docile nature. My studies, + prosecuted without interruption after I had left the seminary, so + completely confirmed me in my presumptions against orthodox theology, that + at the end of a twelvemonth, I could scarcely understand how I had + formerly been able to believe. But when faith has disappeared, morality + remains; for a long time, my programme was to abandon as little as + possible of Christianity, and to hold on to all that could be maintained + without belief in the supernatural. I sorted, so to speak, the virtues of + the St. Sulpice student, discarding those which appertain to a positive + belief, and retaining those of which a philosopher can approve. Such is + the force of habit. The void sometimes has the same effect as its + opposite. <i>Est pro corde locus</i>. The fowl whose brain has been + removed, will nevertheless, under the influence of certain stimulants, + continue to scratch its beak. + </p> + <p> + I endeavoured, therefore, on leaving St. Sulpice to remain as much of a + St. Sulpice man as possible. The studies which I had begun at the seminary + had so engrossed me, that my one desire was to resume them. One only + occupation seemed worthy to absorb my life, and that was the pursuit of my + critical researches upon Christianity by the much larger means which lay + science offered me. I also imagined myself to be in the company of my + teachers, discussing objections with them, and proving to them that whole + pages of ecclesiastical teaching require alteration. + </p> + <p> + For some little time, I kept up my relations with them, notably with M. Le + Hir, but I gradually came to feel that relations of this kind, between the + believer and the unbeliever, grow strained, and I broke off an intimacy + which could be profitable and pleasant to myself alone. + </p> + <p> + In respect to matters of critique, I also held my ground as closely as I + possibly could, and thus it comes that, while being unrestrictedly + rationalist, I have none the less seemed a thorough conservative in the + discussions relating to the age and authenticity of Holy Writ. The first + edition of my <i>Histoire Générale des Langues Sémitiques</i>, for + instance, contains so far as regards the book of Ecclesiastes and the Song + of Solomon, several concessions to traditional opinions which I have since + eliminated one after the other. In my <i>Origines du Christianisme</i>, + upon the other hand, this reserved attitude has stood me in good stead, + for in writing this essay, I had to face a very exaggerated school—that + of the Tübingen Protestants—composed of men devoid of literary tact + and moderation, by whom, through the fault of the Catholics, researches as + to Jesus and the apostolic age have been almost entirely monopolised. When + a reaction sets in against this school, it will be recognised perhaps that + my critique, Catholic in its origin, and by degrees freed from the + shackles of tradition, has enabled me to see many things in their true + light, and has preserved me from more than one mistake. + </p> + <p> + But it is in regard to my temperament, more especially, that I have + remained in reality the pupil of my old masters. My life, when I pass it + in review, has been one long application of their good qualities and their + defects; with this difference, that these qualities and defects, having + been transferred to the world’s stage, have brought out + inconsistencies more strongly marked. All’s well that ends well, and + as my existence has, upon the whole, been a pleasant one, I often amuse + myself, like Marcus Aurelius, by calculating how much I owe to the various + influences which have traversed my life, and woven the tissue of it. In + these calculations, St. Sulpice always comes out as the principal factor. + I can venture to speak very freely on this point, for little of the credit + is due to me. I was well trained, and that is the secret of the whole + matter. My amiability, which is in many cases the result of indifference; + my indulgency, which is sincere enough, and is due to the fact that I see + clearly how unjust men are to one another; my conscientious habits, which + afford me real pleasure, and my infinite capacity for enduring ennui, + attributable perhaps to my having been so well inoculated by ennui during + my youth that it has never taken since, are all to be explained by the + circle in which I lived, and the profound impressions which I received. + Since I left St. Sulpice, I have been constantly losing ground, and yet, + with only a quarter the virtues of a St. Sulpice man, I have, I think, + been far above the average. + </p> + <p> + I should like to explain in detail and show how the paradoxical resolve to + hold fast to the clerical virtues, without the faith upon which they are + based, and in a world for which they are not designed, produced so far as + I was concerned, the most amusing encounters. I should like to relate all + the adventures which my Sulpician habits brought about, and the singular + tricks which they played me. After leading a serious life for sixty years, + mirth is no offence, and what source of merriment can be more abundant, + more harmless, and more ready to hand than oneself? If a comedy writer + should ever be inclined to amuse the public by depicting my foibles I + would readily give my assent if he agreed to let me join him in the work, + as I could relate things far more amusing than any which he could invent. + But I find that I am transgressing the first rule which my excellent + masters laid down, viz., never to speak of oneself. I will therefore treat + this latter part of my subject very briefly. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0033" id="link2H_4_0033"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART IV. + </h2> + <p> + The moral teaching inculcated by the pious masters who watched over me so + tenderly up to the age of three-and-twenty may be summed up in the four + virtues of disinterestedness or poverty, modesty, politeness, and strict + morality. I propose to analyse my conduct under these four heads, not in + any way with the intention of advertising my own merits, but in order to + give those who profess the philosophy of good-natured scepticism an + opportunity of exercising their powers of observation at my expense. + </p> + <p> + I. Poverty is of all the clerical virtues the one which I have practised + the most faithfully. M. Olier had painted for his church a picture in + which St. Sulpice was represented as laying down the fundamental rule of + life for his clerks: <i>Habentes alimenta et quibus tegamur, his contenti + sumus</i>. This was just my idea, and I could desire nothing better than + to be provided with lodging, board, lights, and firing, without any + intervention of my own, by some one who would charge me a fixed sum and + leave me entirely my own master. The arrangement which dated from my + settlement in the little <i>pension</i> of the Faubourg St. Jacques was + destined to become the economic basis of my whole life. One or two private + lessons which I gave saved me from the necessity of breaking into the + twelve hundred francs sent me by my sister. This was just the rule laid + down and observed by my masters at Tréguier and St. Sulpice: <i>Victum + vestitum</i>, board and lodging and just enough money to buy a new cassock + once a year. I had never wished for anything more myself. The modest + competence which I now possess only fell to my share later in life, and + quite independently of my own volition. I look upon the world at large as + belonging to me, but I only spend the interest of my capital. I shall + depart this life without having possessed anything save “that which + it is usual to consume,” according to the Franciscan code. Whenever + I have been tempted to buy some small plot of ground, an inward voice has + prevented me. To have done so would have seemed to me gross, material, and + opposed to the principle: <i>Non habemus hic manentem civitatem</i>. + Securities are lighter, more ethereal, and more fragile; they do not + exercise the same amount of attachment, and there is more risk of losing + them. + </p> + <p> + At the present rate this is a bitter contradiction, and though the rule + which I have followed has given me happiness, I would not advise any one + to adopt it. I am too old to change now, and besides I have nothing to + complain of; but I should be afraid of misleading young people if I told + them to do the same. To get the most one can out of oneself is becoming + the rule of the world at large. The idea that the nobleman is the man who + does not make money, and that any commercial or industrial pursuit, no + matter how honest, debases the person engaged in it, and prevents him from + belonging to the highest circle of humanity is fast fading away. So great + is the difference which an interval of forty years brings about in human + affairs. All that I once did now appears sheer folly, and sometimes in + looking around me I fail to recognise that it is the same world. + </p> + <p> + The man whose life is devoted to immaterial pursuits is a child in worldly + affairs; he is helpless without a guardian. The world in which we live is + wide enough for every place which is worth taking to be occupied; every + post to be held creates, so to speak, the person to fill it. I had never + imagined that the product of my thought could have any market value. I had + always had an idea of writing, but it had never occurred to me that it + would bring me in any money. I was greatly astonished, therefore, when a + man of pleasant and intelligent appearance called upon me in my garret one + day, and, after complimenting me upon several articles which I had + written, offered to publish them in a collected form. A stamped agreement + which he had with him specified terms which seemed to me so wonderfully + liberal that when he asked me if all my future writings should be included + in the agreement, I gave my assent. I was tempted to make one or two + observations, but the sight of the stamp stopped me, and I was unwilling + that so fine a piece of paper should be wasted. I did well to forego them, + for M. Michel Lévy must have been created by a special decree of + Providence to be my editor. A man of letters who has any self-respect + should write in only one journal and in one review, and should have only + one publisher. M. Michel Lévy and myself always got on very well together. + At a subsequent date, he pointed out to me that the agreement which he had + prepared was not sufficiently remunerative for me, and he substituted for + it one much more to my advantage. I am told that he has not made a bad + speculation out of me. I am delighted to hear it. In any event, I may + safely say that if I possessed a fund of literary wealth it was only fair + that he should have a large share of it, as but for him I should never + have suspected its existence. + </p> + <p> + II. It is very difficult to prove that one is modest, for the very + assertion of one’s modesty destroys one’s claim to it. As I + have said, our old Christian teachers had an excellent rule upon this + score, which was never to speak of oneself either in praise or + depreciation. This is the true principle, but the general reader will not + have it so, and is the cause of all the mischief. He leads the writer to + commit faults upon which he is afterwards very hard, just as the staid + middle classes of another age applauded the actor, and yet excluded him + from the Church. “Incur your own damnation, as long as you amuse us” + is often the sentiment which lurks beneath the encouragement, often + flattering in appearance, of the public. Success is more often than not + acquired by our defects. When I am very well pleased with what I have + written, I have perhaps nine or ten persons who approve of what I have + said. When I cease to keep a strict watch upon myself, when my literary + conscience hesitates, and my hand shakes, thousands are anxious for me to + go on. + </p> + <p> + But notwithstanding all this, and making due allowance for venial faults, + I may safely claim that I have been modest, and in this respect, at all + events, I have not come short of the St. Sulpice standard. I am not + afflicted with literary vanity. I do not fall into the error which + distinguishes the literary views of our day. I am well assured that no + really great man has ever imagined himself to be one, and that those who + during their lifetime browse upon their glory while it is green, do not + garner it ripe after their death. I only feigned to set store by + literature for a time to please M. Sainte-Beuve who had great influence + over me. Since his death, I have ceased to attach any value to it. I see + plainly enough that talent is only prized because people are so childish. + If the public were wise, they would be content with getting the truth. + What they like is in most cases imperfections. My adversaries, in order to + deny me the possession of other qualities which interfere with their + apologeticum, are so profuse in their allowance of talent to me that I + need not scruple to accept an encomium which, coming from them, is a + criticism. In any event, I have never sought to gain anything by the + display of this inferior quality, which has been more prejudicial to me as + a <i>savant</i> than it has been useful of itself. I have not based any + calculations upon it. I have never counted upon my supposed talent for a + livelihood, and I have not in any way tried to turn it to account. The + late M. Beulé, who looked upon me with a kind of good-natured curiosity + mingled with astonishment, could not understand why I made so little use + of it. I have never been at all a literary man. In the most decisive + moments of my life I had not the least idea that my prose would secure any + success. + </p> + <p> + I have never done anything to foster my success, which, if I may be + permitted to say so, might have been much greater if I had so willed. I + have in no wise followed up my good fortune; upon the contrary, I have + rather tried to check it. The public likes a writer who sticks closely to + his line, and who has his own specialty; placing but little confidence in + those who try to shine in contradictory subjects. I could have secured an + immense amount of popularity if I had gone in for a <i>crescendo</i> of + anti-clericalism after the <i>Vie de Jésus</i>. The general reader likes a + strong style. I could easily have left in the flourishes and tinsel + phrases which excite the enthusiasm of those whose taste is not of a very + elevated kind, that is to say, of the majority. I spent a year in toning + down the style of the <i>Vie de Jésus</i>, as I thought that such a + subject could not be treated too soberly or too simply. And we know how + fond the masses are of declamation. I have never accentuated my opinions + in order to gain the ear of my readers. It is no fault of mine if, owing + to the bad taste of the day, a slender voice has made itself heard athwart + the darkness in which we dwell, as if reverberated by a thousand echoes. + </p> + <p> + III. With regard to my politeness, I shall find fewer cavillers than with + regard to my modesty, for, so far as mere externals go, I have been + endowed with much more of the former than of the latter. The extreme + urbanity of my old masters made so great an impression upon me that I have + never broken away from it. Theirs was the true French politeness; that + which is shown not only towards acquaintances but towards all persons + without exception.<a href="#linknote-22" name="linknoteref-22" + id="linknoteref-22"><small>22</small></a> Politeness of this kind implies + a general standard of conduct, without which life cannot, as I hold, go on + smoothly; viz. that every human creature should, be given credit for + goodness failing proof to the contrary, and treated kindly. Many people, + especially in certain countries, follow the opposite rule, and this leads + to great injustice. For my own part, I cannot possibly be severe upon any + one <i>à priori</i>. I take for granted that every person I see for the + first time is a man of merit and of good repute, reserving to myself the + right to alter my opinions (as I often have to do) if facts compel me to + do so. This is the St. Sulpice rule, which, in my contact with the outside + world, has placed me in very singular positions, and has often made me + appear very old-fashioned, a relic of the past, and unfamiliar with the + age in which we live. The right way to behave at table is to help oneself + to the worst piece in the dish, so as to avoid the semblance of leaving + for others what one does not think good enough—or, better still, to + take the piece nearest to one without looking at what is in the dish. Any + one who was to act in this delicate way in the struggle of modern life, + would sacrifice himself to no purpose. His delicacy would not even be + noticed. “First come, first served,” is the objectionable rule + of modern egotism. To obey, in a world which has ceased to have any heed + of civility, the excellent rules of the politeness of other days, would be + tantamount to playing the part of a dupe, and no one would thank you for + your pains. When one feels oneself being pushed by people who want to get + in front of one, the proper thing to do is to draw back with a gesture + tantamount to saying: “Do not let me prevent you passing.” But + it is very certain that any one who adhered to this rule in an omnibus + would be the victim of his own deference; in fact, I believe that he would + be infringing the bye-laws. In travelling by rail, how few people seem to + see that in trying to force their way before others on the platform in + order to secure the best seats, they are guilty of gross discourtesy. + </p> + <p> + In other words, our democratic machines have no place for the man of + polite manners. I have long since given up taking the omnibus; the + conductor came to look upon me as a passenger who did not know what he was + about. In travelling by rail, I invariably have the worst seat, unless I + happen to get a helping hand from the station-master. I was fashioned for + a society based upon respect, in which people could be treated, + classified, and placed according to their costume, and in which they would + not have to fight for their own hand. I am only at home at the Institute + or the Collège de France, and that because our officials are all + well-conducted men and hold us in great respect. The Eastern habit of + always having a <i>cavass</i> to walk in front of one in the public + thoroughfares suited me very well; for modesty is seasoned by a display of + force. It is agreeable to have under one’s orders a man armed with a + kourbash which one does not allow him to use. I should not at all mind + having the power of life and death without ever exercising it, and I + should much like to own some slaves in order to be extremely kind to them + and to make them adore me. + </p> + <p> + IV. My clerical ideas have exercised a still greater influence over me in + all that relates to the rules of morality. I should have looked upon it as + a lack of decorum if I had made any change in my austere habits upon this + score. The world at large, in its ignorance of spiritual things, believes + that men only abandon the ecclesiastical calling because they find its + duties too severe. I should never have forgiven myself if I had done + anything to lend even a semblance of reason to views so superficial. With + my extreme conscientiousness I was anxious to be at rest with myself, and + I continued to live in Paris the life which I had led in the seminary. As + time went on, I recognised that this virtue was as vain as all the others; + and more especially I noted that nature does not in the least encourage + man to be chaste. I none the less persevered in the mode of life I had + selected, and I deliberately imposed upon myself the morals of a + Protestant clergyman. A man should never take two liberties with popular + prejudice at the same time. The freethinker should be very particular as + to his morals. I know some Protestant ministers, very broad in their + ideas, whose stiff white ties preserve them from all reproach. In the same + way I have, thanks to a moderate style and blameless morals, secured a + hearing for ideas which, in the eyes of human mediocrity, are advanced. + </p> + <p> + The worldly views in regard to the relations between the sexes are as + peculiar as the biddings of nature itself. The world, whose; judgments are + rarely altogether wrong, regards it as more or less ridiculous to be + virtuous, when one is not obliged to be so as a matter of professional + duty. The priest, whose place it is to be chaste as it is that of the + soldier to be brave, is, according to this view, almost the only person + who can, without incurring ridicule, stand by principles over which + morality and fashion are so often at variance. There can be no doubt that, + upon this point, as on many others, adherence to my clerical principles + has been injurious to me in the eyes of the world. These principles have + not affected my happiness. Women have, as a rule, understood how much + respect and sympathy for them my affectionate reserve implied. In fine, I + have been beloved by the four women whose love was of the most comfort to + me: My mother, my sister, my wife and my daughter. I have had the better + part, and it will not be taken from me, for I often fancy that the + judgments which will be passed upon us in the valley of Jehosophat, will + be neither more nor less than those of women, countersigned by the + Almighty. + </p> + <p> + Thus it may, upon the whole, be said that I have come short in little of + my clerical promises. I have exchanged spirituality for ideality. I have + been truer to my engagements than many priests apparently more regular in + their conduct. In resolutely clinging to the virtues of disinterestedness, + politeness, and modesty in a world to which they are not applicable I have + shown how very simple I am. I have never courted success; I may almost say + that it is distasteful to me. The pleasure of living and of working is + quite enough for me. Whatever may be egotistical in this way of engaging + the pleasure of existence is neutralized by the sacrifices which I believe + that I have made for the public good. I have always been at the orders of + my country; at the first sign from it, in 1869, I placed myself at its + disposal. I might perhaps have rendered it some service; the country did + not think so, but I have done my part. I have never flattered the errors + of public opinion; and I have been so careful not to lose a single + opportunity of pointing out these errors, that superficial persons have + regarded me as wanting in patriotism. One is not called upon to descend to + charlatanism or falsehood to obtain a mandate, the main condition of which + is independence and sincerity. Amidst the public misfortunes which may be + in store for us, my conscience will, therefore, be quite at rest. + </p> + <p> + All things considered, I should not, if I had to begin my life over again, + with the right of making what erasures I liked, change anything. The + defects of my nature and education have, by a sort of benevolent + Providence, been so attenuated and reduced as to be of very little moment. + A certain apparent lack of frankness in my relations with them is forgiven + me by my friends, who attribute it to my clerical education. I must admit + that in the early part of my life I often told untruths, not in my own + interest, but out of good-nature and indifference, upon the mistaken idea + which always induces me to take the view of the person with whom I may be + conversing. My sister depicted to me in very vivid colours the drawbacks + involved in acting like this, and I have given up doing so. I am not aware + of having told a single untruth since 1851, with the exception, of course, + of the harmless stories and polite fibs which all casuists permit, as also + the literary evasions which, in the interests of a higher truth, must be + used to make up a well-poised phrase, or to avoid a still greater + misfortune—that of stabbing an author. Thus, for instance, a poet + brings you some verses. You must say that they are admirable, for if you + said less it would be tantamount to describing them as worthless, and to + inflicting a grievous insult upon a man who intended to show you a polite + attention. + </p> + <p> + My friends may have well found it much more difficult to forgive me + another defect, which consists in being rather slow not to show them + affection but to render them assistance. One of the injunctions most + impressed upon us at the seminary was to avoid “special friendships.” + Friendships of this kind were described as being a fraud upon the rest of + the community. This rule has always remained indelibly impressed upon my + mind. I have never given much encouragement to friendship; I have done + little for my friends, and they have done little for me. One of the ideas + which I have so often to cope with is that friendship, as it is generally + understood, is an injustice and a blunder, which only allows you to + distinguish the good qualities of a single person, and blinds you to those + of others who are perhaps more deserving of your sympathy. I fancy to + myself at times, like my ancient masters, that friendship is a larceny + committed at the expense of society at large, and that, in a more elevated + world, friendship would disappear. In some cases, it has seemed to me that + the special attachment which unites two individuals is a slight upon + good-fellowship generally; and I am always tempted to hold aloof from them + as being warped in their judgment and devoid of impartiality and liberty. + A close association of this kind between two persons must, in my view, + narrow the mind, detract from anything like breadth of view, and fetter + the independence. Beulé often used to banter me upon this score. He was + somewhat attached to me, and was anxious to render me a service, though I + had not done the equivalent for him. Upon a certain occasion I voted + against him in favour of some one who had been very ill-natured towards + me, and he said to me afterwards: “Renan, I shall play some mean + trick upon you; out of impartiality you will vote for me.” + </p> + <p> + While I have been very fond of my friends, I have done very little for + them. I have been as much at the disposal of the public as of them. This + is why I receive so many letters from unknown and anonymous + correspondents; and this is also why I am such a bad correspondent. It has + often happened to me while writing a letter to break off suddenly and + convert into general terms the ideas which have occurred to me. The best + of my life has been lived for the public, which has had all I have to + give. There is no surprise in store for it after my death, as I have kept + nothing back for anybody. + </p> + <p> + Having thus given my preference instinctively to the many rather than to + the few, I have enjoyed the sympathy even of my adversaries, but I have + had few friends. No sooner has there been any sign of warmth in my + feelings, than the St. Sulpice dictum, “No special friendships,” + has acted as a refrigerator, and stood in the way of any close affinity. + My craving to be just has prevented me from being obliging. I am too much + impressed by the idea that in doing one person a service you as a rule + disoblige another person; that to further the chances of one competitor is + very often equivalent to an injury upon another. Thus the image of the + unknown person whom I am about to injure brings my zeal to a sudden check. + I have obliged hardly any one; I have never learnt how people succeed in + obtaining the management of a tobacco shop for those in whom they are + interested. This has caused me to be devoid of influence in the world, but + from a literary point of view it has been a good thing for me. Merimee + would have been a man of the very highest mark if he had not had so many + friends. But his friends took complete possession of him. How can a man + write private letters when it is in his power to address himself to all + the world. The person to whom you write reduces your talent; you are + obliged to write down to his level. The public has a broader intelligence + than any one person. There are a great many fools, it is true, among the + “all,” but the “all” comprises as well the few + thousand clever men and women for whom alone the world may be said to + exist. It is in view of them that one should write. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0034" id="link2H_4_0034"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PART V. + </h2> + <p> + I now bring to a conclusion these <i>Recollections</i> by asking the + reader to forgive the irritating fault into which writing of this kind + leads one in every sentence. Vanity is so deep in its secret calculations + that even when frankly criticising himself the writer is liable to the + suspicion of not being quite open and above board. The danger in such a + case is that he will, with unconscious artfulness, humbly confess, as he + can do without much merit, to trifling and external defects so as + indirectly to ascribe to himself very high qualities. The demon of vanity + is, assuredly, a very subtle one, and I ask myself whether perchance I + have fallen a victim to it. If men of taste reproach me with having shown + myself to be a true representative of the age while pretending not to be + so, I beg them to rest well assured that this will not happen to me again. + </p> +<pre xml:space="preserve"> + Claudite jam rivos, pueri; sat prata biberunt +</pre> + <p> + I have too much work before me to amuse myself in a way which many people + will stigmatise as frivolous. My mother’s family at Lannion, from + which I have inherited my disposition, has supplied several cases of + longevity; but certain recurrent symptoms lead me to believe that so far + as I am concerned I shall not furnish another. I shall thank God that it + is so, if I am thus spared years of decadence and loss of power, which are + the only things I dread. At all events, the remainder of my life will be + devoted to a research of the pure objective truth. Should these be the + last lines in which I am given an opportunity of addressing myself to the + public, I may be allowed to thank them for the intelligent and sympathetic + way in which they have supported me. In former times the most that a man + who went out of the beaten track could expect was that he would be + tolerated. My age and country have been much more indulgent for me. + Despite his many defects and his humble origin, the son of peasants and of + lowly sailors, trebly ridiculous as a deserter from the seminary, an + unfrocked clerk and a case-hardened pedant, was from the first + well-received, listened to, and ever made much of, simply because he spoke + with sincerity. I have had some ardent opponents, but I have never had a + personal enemy. The only two objects of my ambition, admission to the + Institute and to the Collège de France, have been gratified. France has + allowed me to share the favours which she reserves for all that is + liberal: her admirable language, her glorious literary tradition, her + rules of tact, and the audience which she can command. Foreigners, too, + have aided me in my task as much as my own country, and I shall carry to + my grave a feeling of affection for Europe as well as for France, to whom + I would at times go on my knees and entreat not to divide her own + household by fratricidal jealousy, nor to forget her duty and her common + task, which is civilization. + </p> + <p> + Nearly all the men with whom I have had anything to do have been extremely + kind to me. When I first left the seminary, I traversed, as I have said, a + period of solitude, during which my sole support consisted of my sister’s + letters and my conversations with M. Berthelot; but I soon met with + encouragement in every direction. M. Egger became, from the beginning of + 1846, my friend and my guide in the difficult task of proving, rather late + in the day, what I could do in the way of classics. Eugéne Burnouf, after + perusing a very defective essay which I wrote for the Volney Prize in + 1847, chose me as a pupil. M. and Mme. Adolphe Garnier were extremely kind + to me. They were a charming couple, and Madame Garnier, radiant with grace + and devoid of affectation, first inspired me with admiration for a kind of + beauty from which theology had sequestered me. With M. Victor Le Clerc I + had brought before my eyes all those qualities of study and methodical + application which distinguished my former teachers. I had learnt to like + him from the time of my residence at St. Sulpice: he was the only layman + whom the directors of the seminary valued, and they envied him his + remarkable ecclesiastical erudition. M. Cousin, though he more than once + displayed friendliness for me, was too closely surrounded by disciples for + me to try and force my way through such a crowd, which was somewhat + subservient to their master’s utterances. M. Augustin Thierry, upon + the other hand, was, in the true sense of the word, a spiritual father for + me. His advice is ever in my thoughts, and I have him to thank for having + kept clear in my style of writing from certain very ungainly defects which + I should not have discovered for myself. It was through him that I made + the acquaintance of the Scheffer family, whom I have to thank for a + companion who has always assorted herself so harmoniously to my somewhat + contracted conditions of life that I am at times tempted, when I reflect + upon so many fortunate coincidences, to believe in predestination. + </p> + <p> + According to my philosophy, which regards the world in its entirety as + full of a divine afflation, there is no place for individual will in the + government of the universe. Individual Providence, in the sense formerly + attached to it, has never been proved by any unmistakable fact. But for + this, I should assuredly be thankful to yield to a combination of + circumstances in which a mind, less subjugated than my own by general + reasoning, would detect the traces of the special protection of benevolent + deities. The play of chances which brings up a ternion or a quaternion is + nothing compared to what has been required to prevent the combination of + which I am reaping the fruits from being disturbed. If my origin had been + less lowly in the eyes of the world, I should not have entered or + persevered upon that royal road of the intellectual life to which my early + training for the priesthood attached me. The displacement of a single atom + would have broken the chain of fortuitous facts which, in the remote + district of Brittany, was preparing me for a privileged life; which + brought me from Brittany to Paris; which, when I was in Paris, took me to + the establishment of all others where the best and most solid education + was to be had; which, when I left the seminary, saved me from two or three + mistakes which would have been the ruin of me; which, when I was on my + travels, extricated me from certain dangers that, according to the + doctrine of chances, would have been fatal to me; which, to cite one + special instance, brought Dr. Suquet over from America to rescue me from + the jaws of death which were yawning to swallow me up. The only conclusion + I would fain draw from all this is that the unconscious effort towards + what is good and true in the universe has its throw of the dice through + the intermediary of each one of us. There is no combination but what comes + up, quaternions like any other. We may disarrange the designs of + Providence in respect to ourselves; but we have next to no influence upon + their accomplishment. <i>Quid habes quod non accepisti</i>? The dogma of + grace is the truest of all the Christian dogmas. + </p> + <p> + My experience of life has, therefore, been very pleasant; and I do not + think that there are many human beings happier than I am. I have a keen + liking for the universe. There may have been moments when subjective + scepticism has gained a hold upon me, but it never made me seriously doubt + of the reality, and the objections which it has evoked are sequestered by + me as it were within an inclosure of forgetfulness; I never give them any + thought, my peace of mind is undisturbed. Then, again, I have found a fund + of goodness in nature and in society. Thanks to the remarkable good luck + which has attended me all my life, and always thrown me into communication + with very worthy men, I have never had to make sudden changes in my + attitudes. Thanks, also, to an almost unchangeable good temper, the result + of moral healthiness, which is itself the result of a well-balanced mind, + and of tolerably good bodily health, I have been able to indulge in a + quiet philosophy, which finds expression either in grateful optimism or + playful irony. I have never gone through much suffering. I might even be + tempted to think that nature has more than once thrown down cushions to + break the fall for me. Upon one occasion, when my sister died, nature + literally put me under chloroform, to save me a sight which would perhaps + have created a severe lesion in my feelings, and have permanently affected + the serenity of my thought. + </p> + <p> + Thus, I have to thank some one; I do not exactly know whom. I have had so + much pleasure out of life that I am really not justified in claiming a + compensation beyond the grave. I have other reasons for being irritated at + death: he is levelling to a degree which annoys me; he is a democrat, who + attacks us with dynamite; he ought, at all events, to await our + convenience and be at our call. I receive many times in the course of the + year an anonymous letter, containing the following words, always in the + same handwriting: “If there should be such a place as hell after + all?” No doubt the pious person who writes to me is anxious for the + salvation of my soul, and I am deeply thankful for the same. But hell is a + hypothesis very far from being in conformity with what we know from other + sources of the divine mercy. Moreover, I can lay my hand on my heart and + say that if there is such a place I do not think that I have done anything + which would consign me to it. A short stay in purgatory would, perhaps, be + just; I would take the chance of this, as there would be Paradise + afterwards, and there would be plenty of charitable persons to secure + indulgences, by which my sojourn would be shortened. The infinite goodness + which I have experienced in this world inspires me with the conviction + that eternity is pervaded by a goodness not less infinite, in which I + repose unlimited trust. + </p> + <p> + All that I have now to ask of the good genius which has so often guided, + advised, and consoled me is a calm and sudden death at my appointed hour, + be it near or distant. The Stoics maintained that one might have led a + happy life in the belly of the bull of Phalaris. This is going too far. + Suffering degrades, humiliates, and leads to blasphemy. The only + acceptable death is the noble death, which is not a pathological accident, + but a premeditated and precious end before the Everlasting. Death upon the + battle-field is the grandest of all; but there are others which are + illustrious. If at times I may have conceived the wish to be a senator, it + is because I fancy that this function will, within some not distant + interval, afford fine opportunities of being knocked on the head or shot—forms + of death which are very preferable to a long illness, which kills you by + inches and demolishes you bit by bit. God’s will be done! I have + little chance of adding much to my store of knowledge; I have a pretty + accurate idea of the amount of truth which the human mind can, in the + present stage of its development, discern. I should be very grieved to + have to go through one of those periods of enfeeblement during which the + man once endowed with strength and virtue is but the shadow and ruin of + his former self; and often, to the delight of the ignorant, sets himself + to demolish the life which he had so laboriously constructed. Such an old + age is the worst gift which the gods can give to man. If such a fate be in + store for me, I hasten to protest beforehand against the weaknesses which + a softened brain might lead me to say or sign. It is the Renan, sane in + body and in mind, as I am now—not the Renan half destroyed by death + and no longer himself, as I shall be if my decomposition is gradual—whom + I wish to be believed and listened to. I disavow the blasphemies to which + in my last hour I might give way against the Almighty. The existence which + was given me without my having asked for it has been a beneficent one for + me. Were it offered to me, I would gladly accept it over again. The age in + which I have lived will not probably count as the greatest, but it will + doubtless be regarded as the most amusing. Unless my closing years have + some very cruel trials in store, I shall have, in bidding farewell to + life, to thank the cause of all good for the delightful excursion through + reality which I have been enabled to make. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_APPE" id="link2H_APPE"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + APPENDIX. + </h2> + <p> + This volume was already in the press, when Abbé Cognat published in the <i>Correspondant</i> + (January 25th, 1883) the letters which I wrote to him in 1845 and 1846.<a + href="#linknote-23" name="linknoteref-23" id="linknoteref-23"><small>23</small></a> + As several of my friends told me that they had found them very + interesting, I reproduce them here just as they were published. + </p> + <p> + Tréguier, <i>August 14th, 1845.</i> + </p> + <p> + My dear friend, + </p> + <p> + Few events of importance have occurred, but many thoughts and feelings + have crowded in upon me since the day we parted. I am all the more glad to + impart them to you because there is no one else to whom I can confide + them. I am not alone, it is true, when I am with my mother; but there are + many things that my tender regard for her compels me to keep back, and + which, for the matter of that, she would not understand. + </p> + <p> + Nothing has occurred to advance the solution of the important problem of + which, as is only natural, my mind is full. I have learnt nothing more, + unless it be the immensity of the sacrifice which God required of me. A + thousand painful details which I had never thought of have cropped up, + with the effect of complicating the situation, and of showing me that the + course dictated me by my conscience opened up a future of endless trouble. + I should have to enter into long and painful details to make you + understand exactly what I mean; and it must suffice if I tell you that the + obstacles of which we have on various occasions spoken are as nothing by + comparison with those which have suddenly started up before me. It was no + small thing to brave an opinion which would, one knew, be very hard upon + one, and to live on for long years an arduous life leading to one knew not + what; but the sacrifice was not then consummated. God enjoins me to pierce + with my own hand a heart upon which all the affection there is in my own + has been poured out. Filial love had absorbed in me all the other + affections of which I was capable, and which God did not bring into play + within me. Moreover, there existed between my mother and myself many ties + arising from a thousand impalpable details which can be better felt than + described. This was the most painful part of the sacrifice which God + required of me. I have hitherto only spoken to her about Germany, and that + is enough to make her very unhappy. I tremble to think of what will happen + when she knows all. Her tender caresses go to my very heart, as do her + plans for my future, of which she is ever talking to me, and in which I + have not the courage to disappoint her. She is standing close to me as I + write this to you. Did she but know! I would sacrifice everything to her + except my duty and my conscience. Yes, if God exacted of me, in order to + spare her this pain, that I should extinguish my thought and condemn + myself to a plodding, vulgar existence, I would submit. Many a time I have + endeavoured to deceive myself, but it is not in human power to believe or + not to believe at will. I wish that I could stifle within me the faculty + of self-examination, for it is this which has caused all my unhappiness. + Fortunate are the children who all their life long do but sleep and dream! + I see around me men of pure and simple lives whom Christianity has had the + power to make virtuous and happy. But I have noticed that none of them + have the critical faculty; for which let them bless God! + </p> + <p> + I cannot tell you to what an extent I am spoilt and made much of here, and + it is this which grieves me so. Did they but know what is passing in my + heart! I am fearful at times lest my conduct may be hypocritical, but I + have satisfied my conscience in this respect. God forbid that I should be + a cause of scandal to these simple souls! + </p> + <p> + When I see in what an inextricable net God has involved me while I was + asleep, I am unable to resist fatalistic thoughts, and I may often have + sinned in that respect; yet I never have doubted my Father which is in + Heaven or His goodness. Upon the contrary, I have always given Him thanks, + and have never felt myself nearer to Him than at moments like those. The + heart learns only by suffering, and I believe with Kant that God is only + to be known through the heart. Then too I was a Christian, and resolved + ever to remain one. But can orthodoxy be critical? Had I but been born a + German Protestant, for then I should have been in my proper place! Herder + ended his days a bishop, and he was only just a Christian; but in the + Catholic religion you must be orthodox. Catholicism is a bar of iron, and + will not admit anything like reasoning. + </p> + <p> + Forgive me, my dear friend, the wish which I have just expressed and which + does not even come from that part in me which still believes without + knowing. You must, in order to be orthodox, believe that I am reduced to + my present condition by my own fault; and that is very hard. Nevertheless, + I am quite disposed to think that it is to a great extent my own fault. He + who knows his own heart will always answer, “Yes,” when he is + told, “It is your own fault.” Nothing of all that has happened + to me is easier for me to admit than that. I will not be as obstinate as + Job with regard to my own innocence. However pure of offence I might + believe myself to be, I would only pray God to have pity on me. The + perusal of the Book of Job delights me; for in this Book is to be found + poetry in its most divine form. The Book of Job renders palpable the + mysteries which one feels within one’s own heart, and to which one + has been painfully endeavouring to give tangible shape. + </p> + <p> + None the less do I resolutely continue to follow out my thoughts. Nothing + will induce me to abandon this, even if I should be compelled to appear to + sacrifice it to the earning of my daily bread. God had, in order to + sustain me in my resolve, reserved for this critical moment an event of + real significance from the intellectual and moral standpoint. I have + studied Germany, and it has seemed to me that I have been entering some + holy place. All that I have lighted upon in the course of the study is + pure, elevating, moral, beautiful, and touching. Oh! My Soul! Yes, it is a + real treasure, and the continuation of Jesus Christ. Their moral qualities + excite my liveliest admiration. How strong and gentle they are! I believe + that it is in this direction that we must look for the advent of Christ I + regard this apparition of a new spirit as analogous to the birth of + Christianity, except as to the difference of form. But this is of little + importance, for it is certain that when the event which is to renovate the + world shall recur, it will not in the mode of its accomplishment resemble + that which has already occurred. I am attentively following the wave of + enthusiasm which is at this moment spreading over the north. M. Cousin has + just started to study its progress for himself, I am referring to Ronge + and Czerski, whose names you must have heard mentioned. May God pardon me + for liking them, even if they should not be pure: for what I like in them, + as in all others who have evoked my enthusiasm, is a certain standard of + attractiveness and morality which I have assigned them; in short, I admire + in them my ideal. It may be asked whether or not they come up to this + standard. That to my mind is quite a secondary matter. + </p> + <p> + Yes, Germany delights me, not so much in her scientific as in her moral + aspect. The <i>morale</i> of Kant is far superior to all his logic and + intellectual philosophy, and our French writers have never alluded to it. + This is only natural, for the men of our day have no moral sense. France + seems to me every day more devoid of any part in the great work of + renovating the life of humanity. A dry, anti-critical, barren, and petty + orthodoxy, of the St. Sulpice type; a hollow and superficial imitation + full of affectation and exaggeration, like Neo-Catholicism; and an arid + and heartless philosophy, crabbed and disdainful, like the University, + make up the sum of French culture. Jesus Christ is nowhere to be found. I + have been inclined to think that He would come to us from Germany; not + that I suppose He would be an individual, but a spirit. And when we use + the word Jesus Christ we mean, no doubt, a certain spirit rather than an + individual, and that is the Gospel. Not that I believe that this + apparition is likely to bring about either an upset or a discovery; Jesus + Christ neither overturned nor discovered anything. One must be Christian, + but it is impossible to be orthodox. What is needed is a pure + Christianity. The archbishop will be inclined to believe this; he is + capable of founding pure Christianity in France. I apprehend that one + result of the tendency among the French clergy to study and gain + instruction will be to rationalise us a little. In the first place they + will get tired of scholasticism, and when that has been got rid of there + will be a change in the form of ideas, and it will be seen that the + orthodox interpretation of the Bible does not hold water. But this will + not be effected without a struggle, for your orthodox people are very + tenacious in their dogmatism, and they will apply to themselves a certain + quantity of Athanasian varnish which will close their eyes and ears. Yes, + I should much like to be there! And I am about, it may be, to cut off my + arms, for the priests will be all powerful yet a while, and it may well be + that there will be nothing to be done without being a priest, as Ronge and + Czerski were. I have read a letter to Czerski from his mother, in which + she reminds him of the sacrifices she had made for his clerical education + and entreats him to remain staunch to Catholicism. But how can he serve it + more sincerely than by devoting himself to what he believes to be the + truth? + </p> + <p> + Forgive me, my dear friend, for what I have just said to you. If you only + knew the state of my head and my heart! Do not imagine that all this has + assumed a dogmatic consistency within me; so far from that, I am the + reverse of exclusive. I am willing to admit counter-evidence, at all + events for the time. Is it not possible to conceive a state of things + during which the individual and humanity are perforce exposed to + instability? You may answer that this is an untenable position for them. + Yes, but how can it be helped? It was necessary at one period that people + should be sceptical from a scientific point of view as to morality, and + yet, at this same period, men of pure minds could be and were moral, at + the risk of being inconsistent. The disciples of scholasticism would mock + at this, and triumphantly point to it as a blunder in logic. It is easy to + prove what is patent to every one. Their idea is a moral state in which + every detail has its set formula, and they care little about the substance + as long as the outward form is perfect. They know neither man nor humanity + as they really exist. + </p> + <p> + Yes, my dear friend, I still believe; I pray and recite the Lord’s + Prayer with ecstasy. I am very fond of being in church, where the pure and + simple piety moves me deeply in the lucid moments when I inhale the odour + of God. I even have devotional fits, and I believe that they will last, + for piety is of value even when it is merely psychological. It has a + moralising effect upon us, and raises us above wretched utilitarian + preoccupations; for where ends utilitarianism there begins the beautiful, + the infinite, and Almighty God; and the pure air wafted thence is life + itself. + </p> + <p> + I am taken here for a good little seminarist, very pious and tractable. + This is not my fault, but it grieves me now and again, for I am so afraid + of appearing not to be straightforward. Yet I do not feign anything, God + knows; I merely do not say all I feel. Should I do better to enter upon + these wretched controversies, in which they would have the advantage of + being the champions of the beautiful and the pure, and in which I should + have the appearance of assimilating myself to all that is most vile? for + anti-Christianity has in this country so low, detestable, and revolting an + aspect that I am repelled from it if only by natural modesty. And then + they know nothing whatever about the matter. I cannot be blamed for not + speaking to them in German. Moreover, as I have already explained to you, + I am so situated intellectually that I can appear one thing to this person + and another to that one without any feigning on my part, and without + either of them being deceived, thanks to having for a time shaken off the + yoke of contradiction. + </p> + <p> + And then I must tell you that at times I have been within an ace of a + complete reaction, and have wondered whether it would not be more + agreeable to God if I were to cut short the thread of my self-examination + and trace my steps back two or three years. The fact is that I do not see + as I advance further any chance of reaching Catholicism; each step leads + me further away from it. However this may be, the alternative is a very + clear one. I can only return to Catholicism by the amputation of one of my + faculties, by definitely stigmatising my reason and condemning it to + perpetual silence. Yes, if I returned, I should cease my life of study and + self-examination, persuaded that it could only bring me to evil, and I + should lead a purely mystic life in the Catholic sense. For I trust that + so far as regards a mere commonplace life God will always deliver me from + that. Catholicism meets the requirements of all my faculties excepting my + critical one, and as I have no reason to hope that matters will mend in + this respect I must either abandon Catholicism or amputate this faculty. + This operation is a difficult and a painful one, but you may be sure that + if my moral conscience did not stand in the way, that if God came to me + this evening and told me that it would be pleasing to Him, I should do it. + You would not recognise me in my new character, for I should cease to + study or to indulge in critical thought, and should become a thorough + mystic. You may also be sure that I must have been violently shaken to so + much as consider the possibility of such a hypothesis, which forces itself + upon me with greater terrors than death itself. But yet I should not + despair of striking, even in this career, a vein of activity which would + suffice to keep me going. + </p> + <p> + And what, all said and done, will be my decision? It is with indescribable + dread that I see the close of the vacation drawing near, for I shall then + have to express, by very decisive action, a very undecided inward state. + It is this complication which makes my position peculiarly painful. So + much anxiety unnerves me, and then I feel so plainly that I do not + understand matters of this kind, that I shall be certain to make some + foolish blunder, and that I shall become a laughing-stock. I was not born + a cunning knave. They will laugh at my simple-mindedness, and will look + upon me as a fool. If, with all this, I was only sure of what I was doing! + But then, again, supposing that by contact with them I were to lose my + purity of heart and my conception of life! Supposing they were to + inoculate me with their positivism! And even if I were sure of myself, + could I be sure of the external circumstances which have so fatal an + action upon us? And who, knowing himself, can be sure that he will be + proof against his own weakness? Is it not indeed the case that God has + done me but a poor service? It seems as if He had employed all His + strategy for surrounding me in every direction, and a simple young fellow + like myself might have been ensnared with much less trouble. But for all + this I love Him, and am persuaded that He has done all for my good, much + as facts may seem to contradict it. We must take an optimist view for + individuals as well as for humanity, despite the perpetual evidence of + facts telling the other way. This is what constitutes true courage; I am + the only person who can injure myself. + </p> + <p> + I often think of you, my dear friend; you should be very happy. A bright + and assured future is opening before you; you have the goal in view, and + all you have to do is to march steadily onward to it. You enjoy the marked + advantage of having a strictly defined dogma to go by. You will retain + your breadth of view; and I trust that you may never discover that there + is a grievous incompatibility between the wants of your heart and of your + mind. In that case you would have to make a very painful choice. Whatever + conclusion you may perforce arrive at as to my present condition and the + innocence of my mind, let me at all events retain your friendship. Do not + allow my errors, or even my faults, to destroy it. Besides, as I have + said, I count upon your breadth of view, and I will not do anything to + demonstrate that it is not orthodox, for I am anxious that you should + adhere to it; and at the same time I wish you to be orthodox. You are + almost the only person to whom I have confided my inmost thoughts; in + Heaven’s name be indulgent and continue to call me your brother! My + affection, dear friend, will never fail you. + </p> + <p> + PARIS, <i>November 12th</i>, 1845. + </p> + <p> + I was somewhat surprised, my dear friend, not to get a reply from you + before the close of the vacation. The first inquiry, therefore, which I + made at St. Sulpice was for you, first in order to learn the cause of your + silence, and especially in order that I might have some talk with you. I + need not tell you how grieved I was when I learnt that it was owing to a + serious illness that I had not heard from you. It is true that the further + details which were given me sufficed to allay my anxiety, but they did not + diminish the regret which I felt at finding the chance of a conversation + with you indefinitely postponed. This unexpected piece of news, coinciding + with so strange a phase in my own life, inspired me with many reflections. + You will hardly believe, perhaps, that I envied your lot, and that I + longed for something to happen which would defer my embarking upon the + stormy sea of busy life and prolong the repose which accompanies home + life, so quiet and so free of care. You will understand this when I have + explained to you all the trials which I have had to undergo and which are + still in store for me. I will not attempt to explain them to you in + detail, but will keep them over until we meet. I will merely relate the + principal facts, and those which have led to a lasting result. + </p> + <p> + My firm resolution upon coming to St. Sulpice was to break with a past + which had ceased to be in harmony with my present dispositions, and to be + quit of appearances which could only mislead. But I was anxious to proceed + very deliberately, especially as I felt that a reaction within a more or + less considerable interval was by no means improbable. An accidental + circumstance had the effect of bringing the crisis to a head quicker than + I had intended. Upon my arrival at St. Sulpice, I was informed that I was + no longer to be attached to the Seminary, but to the Carmelite + establishment, which the Archbishop of Paris had just founded, and I was + ordered to go and report myself to him the same day. You can fancy how + embarrassed I felt. My embarrassment was still further increased upon + learning that the Archbishop had just arrived at the Seminary, and wished + to speak to me. To accept would be immoral; it was impossible for me to + give the real reason for my refusal, and I could not bring myself to give + a false one. I had recourse to the services of worthy M. Carbon, who + undertook to tell my story, and so spared me this painful interview. I + thought it best to go right through with the matter when once it had been + begun, and I completed in one day what I had intended to spread over + several weeks, so that on the evening of my return I belonged neither to + the Seminary nor to the Carmelite house. + </p> + <p> + I was terrified at seeing so many ties destroyed in a few hours, and I + should have been glad to arrest this fatal progress, all too rapid as I + thought; but I was perforce driven forward, and there were no means of + holding back. The days which followed were the darkest of my life. I was + isolated from the whole world, without a friend, an adviser or an + acquaintance, without any one to appeal to about me, and this after having + just left my mother, my native Brittany, and a life gilded with so many + pure and simple affections. Here I am alone in the world, and a stranger + to it. Good-bye for ever to my mother, my little room, my books, my + peaceful studies, and my walks by my mother’s side. Good-bye to the + pure and tranquil joys which seemed to bring me so near to God; good-bye + to my pleasant past, good-bye to those faiths which so gently cradled me. + Farewell for me to pure happiness. The past all blotted out, and as yet no + future. And then, I ask myself, will the new world for which I have + embarked receive me? I have left one in which I was loved and made much + of. And my mother, to think of whom was formerly sufficient to solace me + in my troubles, was now the cause of my most poignant grief. I was, as it + were, stabbing her with a knife. O God! was it then necessary that the + path of duty should be so stony? I shall be derided by public opinion, and + with all that the future unfolded itself before me pale and colourless. + Ambition was powerless to remove the veil of sadness and regrets which + infolded my heart. I cursed the fate which had enveloped me in such fatal + contradictions. Moreover, the gross and pressing requirements of material + existence had to be faced. I envied the fate of the simple souls who are + born, who live and who die without stir or thought, merely following the + current as it takes them, worshipping a God whom they call their Father. + How I detested my reason for having bereft me of my dreams. I passed some + time each evening in the church of St. Sulpice, and there I did my best to + believe, but it was of no use. Yes, these days will indeed count in my + lifetime, for if they were not the most decisive, they were assuredly the + most painful. It was a hard thing to re-commence life from the beginning, + at the age of three and twenty. I could scarcely realise the possibility + of my having to fight my way through the motley crowd of turbulent and + ambitious persons. Timid as I am, I was ever tempted to select a plain and + common-place career, which I might have ennobled inwardly. I had lost the + desire to know, to scrutinise and to criticise; it seemed to me as if it + was enough to love and to feel; but yet I quite feel that as soon as ever + the heart throbbed more slowly, the head would once more cry out for food. + </p> + <p> + I was compelled, however, to create a fresh existence for myself in this + world so little adapted for me. I need not trouble you with an account of + these complications, which would be as uninteresting to you as they were + painful to myself. You may picture me spending whole days in going from + one person to another. I was ashamed of myself, but necessity knows no + law. Man does not live by bread alone; but he cannot live without bread. + But through it all I never ceased to keep my eyes fixed heavenwards. + </p> + <p> + I will merely tell you that in compliance with the advice of M. Carbon, + and for another peremptory reason of which I will speak to you later on, I + thought it best to refuse several rather tempting proposals, and to accept + in the preparatory school annexed to the Stanislas College, a humble post + which in several respects harmonised very well with my present position. + This situation did not take up more than an hour and a half of my time + each day, and I had the advantage of making use of special courses of + mathematics, physics, etc., to say nothing of preparatory lectures for the + M.A. degree, one of which was delivered twice a week, by M. Lenormant I + was agreeably surprised at finding so much frank and cordial geniality + among these young people; and I can safely say that I never had anything + approaching to a misunderstanding while there, and that I left the school + with sincere regret. But the most remarkable incident in this period of my + life were beyond all doubt my relations with M. Gratry, the director of + the college. I shall have much to tell you about him, and I am delighted + at having made his acquaintance. He is the very miniature of M. Bautain, + of whom he is the pupil and friend. We became very friendly from the + first, and from that time forward we stood upon a footing towards one + another which has never had its like before, so far as I am concerned. In + many matters our ideas harmonised wonderfully; he, like myself, is + governed wholly by philosophy. He is, upon the whole, a man of remarkably + speculative mind; but upon certain points there is a hollow ring about + him. How came it then, you will ask, that I was obliged to throw up a post + which, taking it altogether, suited me fairly well, and in which I could + so easily pursue my present plans? This, I must tell you, is one of the + most curious incidents in my life; I should find it almost impossible to + make any one understand it, and I do not believe that any one ever has + thoroughly understood it. It was once more a question of duty. Yes, the + same reason which compelled me to leave St. Sulpice and to refuse the + Carmelite establishment obliged me to leave the Stanislas College. M. + Dupanloup and M. Manier impelled me onward; onward I went, and I had to + start afresh. It seems as if I were fated ever to encounter strange + adventures, and I should be very glad that I had met with this particular + one, if for no other reason for the peculiar positions in which it placed + me, and which were the means of my making a considerable addition to my + store of knowledge. + </p> + <p> + I had no difficulty, upon leaving the Stanislas College, in taking up one + of the negotiations which I had broken off when I joined it, and in + carrying out my original plan of hiring a student’s lodging in + Paris. This is my present position. I have hired a room in a sort of + school near the Luxemburg, and in exchange for a few lessons in + mathematics and literature I am, as the saying goes, “about quits.” + I did not expect to do so well. I have, moreover, nearly the whole of the + day to myself, and I can spend as much time as I please at the Sorbonne, + and in the libraries. These are my real homes, and it is in them that I + spend my happiest hours. This mode of life would be very pleasant if I was + not haunted by painful recollections, apprehensions only too well founded, + and above all by a terrible feeling of isolation. Come and join me, + therefore, my dear friend, and we shall pass some very pleasant hours + together. + </p> + <p> + I have spoken to you thus far of the facts which have contributed to + detain me for the present in Paris, and I have said nothing to you about + the ulterior plans which I have in my head; for you take for granted, I + suppose, that I merely look upon this as a transitory situation, pending + the completion of my studies. It is upon the more remote future, in fact, + that my thoughts are concentrated, now that my present position is + assured. From this arises a fresh source of intellectual worry, by which I + am at present beset, for it is quite painful to me to have to specialize + myself, and besides there is no specialty which fits exactly into the + divisions of my mind. But nevertheless it must be done. It is very hard to + be fettered in one’s intellectual development by external + circumstances. You can imagine what I suffer, after having left my mind so + absolutely free to follow its line of development. My first step was to + see what could be done with regard to Oriental languages, and I was + promised some lectures with M. Quatremère and M. Julien, professor of + Chinese at the Collège de France. The result went to prove that this was + not my outward specialty. (I say outward because internally I shall never + have one, unless philosophy be classed as one, which to my mind would be + inaccurate.) Then I thought of the university, and here, as you will + understand, fresh difficulties arose. A professorship in the strict sense + of the term is almost intolerable in my eyes, and even if one does not + retain it all one’s life long it must be held for a considerable + period. I could get on very well with philosophy if I were allowed to + teach it in my own way, but I should not be able to do that, and before + reaching that stage one would have to spend years at what I call school + literature, Latin verses, themes, etc. The perspective seemed so dreadful + that I had at one time resolved to attach myself to the science classes, + but in that case I should have been compelled to specialize myself more + than in any other branch, for in scientific literature the principle of a + species of universality is admitted. And besides, that would divert me + from my cherished ideas. No; I will draw as close as possible to the + centre which is philosophy, theology, science, literature, etc., which is, + as I believe, God. I think it probable, therefore, that I shall fix my + attention upon literature, in order that I may graduate in philosophy. All + this, as you may fancy, is very colourless in my view, and the bent of the + university spirit is the reverse of sympathetic to me. But one must be + something, and I have had to try and be that which differs the least from + my ideal type. And besides, who can tell if I may not some day succeed + thereby in bringing my ideas to light? So many unexpected things happen + which upset all calculations. One must be prepared therefore, for every + eventuality, and be ready to unfurl one’s sail at the first capful + of wind. + </p> + <p> + I must tell you also of an intellectual matter which has helped to sustain + and comfort me in these trying moments: I refer to my relations with M. + Dupanloup. I began by writing him a letter describing my inward state and + the steps which I deemed it necessary to take in consequence. He quite + appreciated my course, and we afterwards had a conversation of an hour and + a half in the course of which I laid bare, for the first time to one of my + fellow-men my inmost ideas and my doubts with regard to the Catholic + faith. I confess that I never met one more gifted; for he was possessed of + true philosophy and of a really superior intelligence. It was only then + that I learnt thoroughly to know him. We did not go thoroughly into the + question. I merely explained the nature of my doubts, and he informed me + of the judgment which from the orthodox point of view he would feel it his + duty to pass upon them. He was very severe and plainly told me,<a + href="#linknote-24" name="linknoteref-24" id="linknoteref-24"><small>24</small></a> + “that it was not a question of <i>temptations</i> against the faith—a + term which I had employed in my letter by force of the habit I had + acquired of following the terminology adopted at St. Sulpice, but of a + complete loss of faith: secondly, that I was beyond the pale of the + Church; thirdly, that in consequence I could not partake of any sacrament, + and that he advised me not to take part in any outward religious ceremony; + fourthly, that I could not without being guilty of deception, continue + another day to pass as an ecclesiastic, and so forth.” In all that + did not relate to the appreciation of my condition, he was as kind as any + one possibly could be. The priests of St. Sulpice and M. Gratry were not + nearly so emphatic in their views and held that I must still regard myself + as tempted.... I obeyed M. Dupanloup, and I shall always do so henceforth. + Still, I continue to confess, and as I have no longer M. B—— I + confess to M. Le Hir, to whom I am devotedly attached. I find that this + improves and consoles me very much. I shall confess to you when you are + ordained a priest. However, out of condescension, as he said, for the + opinion of others, M. Dupanloup was anxious that I should, before leaving + the Stanislas College, go through a course of private prayer. At first, I + was tempted to smile at this proposal, coming from him. But when he + suggested that I should do this under the care of M. de Ravignan I took a + different view of the proposal. I should have accepted, for this would + have enabled me to bring my connection with Catholicism to a dignified + close. Unfortunately, M. de Ravignan was not expected in Paris before the + 10th of November, and in the meanwhile M. Dupanloup had ceased to be + superior of the petty seminary and I had left the Stanislas College; the + realization of this proposal seems to me adjourned for a long time to say + the least of it. + </p> + <p> + Good-bye, my dear friend, and forgive me for having spoken only of myself. + For your own as for your friend’s sake, let me beg of you to take + care of yourself during the period of convalescence and not to compromise + your health again by getting to work too soon. I will not ask you to + answer this unless you feel that you can do so without fatigue. The true + answer will be when we can grasp hands. Till then, believe in my sincere + friendship. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_4_0036" id="link2H_4_0036"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + PARIS, <i>September 5th</i>, 1846. + </h2> + <p> + I thank you, my dear friend, for your kind letter. It afforded me great + pleasure and comfort during this dreary vacation, which I am spending in + the most painful isolation you can possibly conceive. There is not a human + being to whom I can open my heart, nor, what is still worse, with whom I + can indulge in conversations which, however commonplace, repose the mind + and satisfy one’s craving for company. One can be much more secluded + in Paris than in the midst of the desert, as I am now realizing for + myself. Society does not consist in seeing one’s fellow-men, but in + holding with them some of those communications which remind one that one + is not alone in the world. At times, when I happen to be mixed up in the + crowds which fill our streets, I fancy that I am surrounded by trees + walking. The effect is precisely the same. When I think of the perfect + happiness which used to be my lot at this season of the year, a great + sadness comes over me, especially when I remember that I have said an + everlasting farewell to these blissful days. I don’t know whether + you are like me, but there is nothing more painful to me than to have to + say, even in respect to the most trifling matter, “It is all over, + for once and all.” What must I suffer, then, when I have to say this + of the only pleasures which in my heart I cared for? But what can be done? + I do not repent anything, and the suffering induced in the cause of duty + brings with it a joy far greater than those which may have been sacrificed + to it. I thank God for having given me in you one who understands me so + well that I have no need even to lay bare the state of my heart to him. + Yes, it is one of my chief sorrows to think that the persons whose + approbation would be the most precious to me must blame me and condemn me. + Fortunately that will not prevent them from pitying and loving me. + </p> + <p> + I am not one of those who are constantly preaching tolerance to the + orthodox; this is the cause of numberless sophisms for the superficial + minds in both camps. It is unfair upon Catholicism to dress it up + according to our modern ideas, in addition to which this can only be done + by verbal concessions which denote bad faith or frivolity. All or nothing, + the Neo-Catholics are the most foolish of any. + </p> + <p> + No, my dear friend, do not scruple to tell me that I am in this state + through my own fault; I feel sure that you must think so. It is of course + painful for me to think that perhaps as much as half of the enlightened + portion of humanity would tell me that I am hateful in the sight of God, + and to use the old Christian phraseology, which is the true one, that if + death overtook me, I should be immediately damned. This is terrible, and + it used to make me tremble, for somehow or other the thought of death + always seems to me very close at hand. But I have got hardened to it, and + I can only wish to the orthodox a peace of mind equal to that which I + enjoy. I may safely say that since I accomplished my sacrifice, amid + outward sorrows greater than would be believed, and which, from perhaps a + false feeling of delicacy, I have concealed from every one, I have tasted + a peace which was unknown to me during periods of my life to all + appearance more serene. You must not accept, my dear friend, certain + generalities in regard to happiness which are very erroneous, and all of + which assume that one cannot be happy except by consistency, and with a + perfectly harmonized intellectual system. At this rate, no one would be + happy, or only those whose limited intelligence could not rise to the + conception of problems or of doubt. It is fortunately not so; and we owe + our happiness to a piece of inconsistency, and to a certain turn of the + wheel which causes us to take patiently what with another turn of the + wheel would be absolute torture. I imagine that you must have felt this. + There is a sort of inward debate going on within us with regard to + happiness, and by it we are inevitably influenced in the way we take a + certain thing; for there is no one who will deny that he contains within + himself a thousand germs which might render him absolutely wretched. The + question is whether he will allow them free course, or whether he will + abstract himself from them. We are only happy on the sly, my dear friend, + but what is to be done? Happiness is not so sacred a thing that it should + only be accepted when derived from perfect reason. + </p> + <p> + You will perhaps think it strange that, not believing in Christianity, I + can feel so much at ease. This would be singular if I still had doubts, + but if I must tell you the whole truth, I will confess that I have almost + got beyond the doubting stage. Explain to me how you manage to believe. My + dear friend, it is too late for me to exclaim to you. “Take care.” + If you were not what you are, I should throw myself at your feet, and + implore of you to declare whether you felt that you could swear that you + would not alter your views at any period of your existence.... Think what + is involved in swearing as to one’s future thoughts!... I am very + sorry that our friend A—— is definitely bound to the Church, + for I feel sure that if he has not already doubted he will do so. We shall + see in another twenty years. I hardly know what I am saying to you, but I + cannot help wishing with St. Paul, that “all were such as I am,” + thankful that I have no need to add “except these bonds.” With + respect to the bonds which held me before, I do not regret them. + Philosophy bids us say, <i>Dominus pars</i>. + </p> + <p> + When I was going up to the altar to receive the tonsure, I was already + terribly exercised by doubt, but I was forced onward, and I was told that + it was always well to obey. I went forward therefore, but God is my + witness, that my inmost thought and the vow which I made to myself, was + that I would take for my part the truth which is the hidden God, that I + would devote myself to its research, renouncing all that is profane, or + that is calculated to make us deviate from the holy and divine goal to + which nature calls us. This was my resolve, and an inward voice told me + that I should never repent me of my promise. And I do not repent of it, my + dear friend, and I am ever repeating the soothing words <i>Dominus pars</i>, + and I believe that I am not less agreeable to God or faithful to my + promise, than he who does not scruple to pronounce them with a vain heart, + and a frivolous mind. They will never be a reproach to me until, + prostituting my thought to vulgar objects, I devote my life to one of + those gross and commonplace aims which suffice for the profane, and until + I prefer gross and material pleasures to the sacred pursuit of the + beautiful and the true. Until that time arrives, I shall recall with + anything but regret the day on which I pronounced these words. + </p> + <p> + Man can never be sure enough of his thoughts to swear fidelity to such and + such a system which for the time he regards as true. All that he can do is + to devote himself to the service of the truth, whatever it may be, and + dispose his heart to follow it wherever he believes that he can see it, at + no matter how great a sacrifice. + </p> + <p> + I write you these lines in haste, and with my head full of the by no means + agreeable work which I am doing for my examination, so you must excuse the + want of order in my ideas. I shall expect a long letter from you which + will have on me the effect of water on a thirsty land. + </p> + <p> + PARIS, <i>September 11th</i>, 1846. + </p> + <p> + I wish that I could comment on each line of your letter which I received + an hour ago, and communicate the many different reflections which it + awakens in me. But I am so hard at work that this is impossible. I cannot + refrain, however, from committing to paper the principal points upon which + it is important that we should come to an immediate understanding. + </p> + <p> + It grieved me very much to read that there was henceforward a gulf fixed + between your beliefs and mine. It is not so—we believe the same + things; you in one form, I in another. The orthodox are too concrete, they + set so much store by facts and by mere trifles. Remember the definition + given of Christianity by the Proconsul (<i>ni fallor</i>) spoken of in the + Acts of the Apostles, “Touching one Jesus, which was dead, and whom + Paul declared to be alive.” Be upon your guard against reducing the + question to such paltry terms. Now I ask of you can the belief in any + special fact, or rather the manner of appreciating and criticising this + fact, affect a man’s moral worth? Jesus was much more of a + philosopher in this respect than the Church. + </p> + <p> + You will say that it is God’s will we should believe these trifles, + inasmuch as He had revealed them. My answer is, prove that this is so. I + am not very partial to the method of proving one’s case by + objections. But you have not a proof which can stand the test of + psychological or historical criticism. Jesus alone can stand it. But He is + as much with me as with you. To be a Platonist is it necessary that one + should adore Plato and believe in all he says? + </p> + <p> + I know of no writers more foolish than all your modern apologists; they + have no elevation of mind, and there is not an atom of criticism in their + heads. There are a few who have more perspicacity, but they do not face + the question. + </p> + <p> + You will say to me, as I have heard it said in the seminary (it is + characteristic of the seminary that this should be the invariable answer), + “You must not judge the intrinsic value of evidence by the defective + way in which it is offered. To say, ‘We have not got vigorous men + but we might have them,’ does not touch intrinsic truth.” My + answer to this is: 1st, good evidence, especially in historical critique, + is always good, no matter in what form it may be adduced; 2nd, if the + cause was really a good one, we should have better advocates to class + among the orthodox: + </p> + <p> + 1. The men of quick intelligence, not without a certain amount of finesse, + but superficial. These can hold their own better; but orthodoxy repudiates + their system of defence, so that we need not take them into account. + </p> + <p> + 2. Men whose minds are debased, aged drivellers. They are strictly + orthodox. + </p> + <p> + 3. Those who believe only through the heart, like children, without going + into all this network of apologetics. I am very fond of them, and from an + ideal point of view I admire them; but as we are dealing with a question + of critique they do not count. From the moral point of view, I should be + one with them. + </p> + <p> + There are others who cannot be defined, who are unbelievers unknown to + themselves. Incredulity enters into their principles, but they do not push + these principles to their logical consequences. Others believe in a + rhetorical way, because their favourite authors have held this opinion, + which is a sort of classical and literary religion. They believe in + Christianity as the Sophists of the decadence believed in paganism. I am + sorry that I have not the time to complete this classification. + </p> + <p> + You mistrust individual reason when it endeavours to draw up a system of + life. Very good, give me a better system, and I will believe in it. I + follow up mine because I have not got a better one, and I often mutiny + against it. + </p> + <p> + I am very indifferent with regard to the outward position in which all + this will land me; I shall not attempt to give myself any fixed place. If + I happen to get placed, well and good. If I meet with any who share my + views we shall make common cause; if not, I must go alone. I am very + egotistical; left wholly to myself, I am quite indifferent to the views of + other people. I hope to earn bread and cheese. The people who do not get + to know me well class me as one of those with whom I have nothing in + common; so much the worse, they will be all in the wrong. + </p> + <p> + In order to gain influence one must rally to a flag and be dogmatic. So + much the better for those who have the heart for it. I prefer to keep my + thoughts to myself and to avoid saying the thing which is not. + </p> + <p> + If by one of those revulsions which have already occurred this way of + putting things comes into favour, so much the better. People will rally to + me, but I must decline to mix myself up with all this riffraff, I might + have added another category to the classification I made just now: that of + the people who look upon action as the most important thing of all, and + treat Christianity as a means of action. They are men of commonplace + intelligence compared to the thinker. The latter is the Jupiter Olympius, + the spiritual man who is the judge of all things and who is judged of + none. That the simple possess much that is true I can readily believe, but + the shape in which they possess it cannot satisfy him whose reason is in + proper proportion with his other faculties. This faculty eliminates, + discusses, and refines, and it is impossible to quench it. I would only + too gladly have done so if I could. With regard to the <i>cupio omnes + fieri</i>, my ideas are as follows. I do not apply it to my liberty. One + should, as far as possible, so place oneself as to be ready to ‘bout + ship when the wind of faith shifts. And it will shift in a lifetime! How + often must depend upon the length of that lifetime. Any kind of tie + renders this more difficult. One shows more respect to truth by + maintaining a position which enables one to say to her, “Take me + whither thou wilt; I am ready to go.” A priest cannot very well say + this. He must be endowed with something more than courage to draw back. + If, having gone so far, he does not become celestial, he is repulsive; and + this is so true that I cannot instance a single good pattern of the kind, + not even M. de Lamennais. He must therefore march ever onward, and bluntly + declare, “I shall always see things in the same light as I have seen + them, and I shall never see them in a different light.” Would life + be endurable for an hour if one had to say that? + </p> + <p> + With regard to the matter of M. A——, and putting all personal + consideration upon one side, my syllogism is as follows. One must never + swear to anything of which one is not absolutely sure. Now one is never + sure of not modifying one’s beliefs at some future time, however + certain one may be of the present and of the past. Therefore ... I, too, + would have sworn at one time, and yet.... + </p> + <p> + What you say of the antagonists of Christianity is very true. I have, as + it happens, incidentally made some rather curious researches upon this + point which, when completed, might form a somewhat interesting narrative + entitled <i>History of Incredulity in Christianity</i>. The consequences + would appear triumphant to the orthodox, and especially the first, viz., + that Christianity has rarely been attacked hitherto except in the name of + immorality and of the abject doctrines of materialism—by blackguards + in so many words. This is a fact, and I am prepared to prove it. But it + admits, I think, of an explanation. In those days, people were bound to + believe in religions. It was the law at that time, and those who did not + believe placed themselves outside the general order. It is time that + another order began. I believe too that it has begun, and the last + generation in Germany furnished several admirable specimens of it: Kant, + Herder, Jacobi, and even Goethe. + </p> + <p> + Forgive me for writing to you in this strain. But I do for you what I am + not doing for those who are dearest to me in the world, to my sister, for + instance, to whom I yesterday wrote less than half a page, so overburdened + am I with work. I solace myself with the anticipation of the conversation + which we shall have after my examination, for I mean to take a holiday + then. There is, however, much that I should like to write to you about + what you tell me of yourself. There, too, I should attempt to refute you, + and with more show of being entitled to do so. Let me tell you that there + are certain things the mere conception of which entails one’s being + called upon to realise them. + </p> + <p> + Good-bye, my very dear friend.... Believe in the sincerity of my + affection. + </p> + <p> + <br /><br /> + </p> + <hr /> + <p> + <a name="link2H_FOOT" id="link2H_FOOT"> </a> + </p> + <div style="height: 4em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + <h2> + FOOTNOTES + </h2> + <p> + <a name="linknote-1" id="linknote-1"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 1 (<a href="#linknoteref-1">return</a>)<br /> [ Upon the very day that this + volume was going to press, news reached me of the death of my brother, + snapping the last thread of the recollections of my childhood’s + home. My brother Alain was a warm and true friend to me; he never failed + to understand me, to approve my course of action and to love me. His clear + and sound intellect and his great capacity for work adapted him for a + profession in which mathematical knowledge is of value or for magisterial + functions. The misfortunes of our family caused him to follow a different + career, and he underwent many hardships with unshaken courage. He never + complained of his lot, though life had scant enjoyment save that which is + derived from love of home. These joys are, however, unquestionably the + most unalloyed.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-2" id="linknote-2"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 2 (<a href="#linknoteref-2">return</a>)<br /> [ This passage was written at + Ischia in 1875.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-3" id="linknote-3"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 3 (<a href="#linknoteref-3">return</a>)<br /> [ I may perhaps relate all + these anecdotes at a future time.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-4" id="linknote-4"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 4 (<a href="#linknoteref-4">return</a>)<br /> [ What grand <i>landwehr</i> + leaders they would have made! There are no such men in the present day.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-5" id="linknote-5"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 5 (<a href="#linknoteref-5">return</a>)<br /> [ [Greek: ATHAENAS + DAEMOKRATIAS], Le Bas. I. 32nd Inscrip.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-6" id="linknote-6"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 6 (<a href="#linknoteref-6">return</a>)<br /> [ A conscientious and + painstaking student, M. Luzel, will, I hope, be the Pausanias of these + little local chapels, and will commit to writing the whole of this + magnificent legend, which is upon the point of being lost.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-7" id="linknote-7"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 7 (<a href="#linknoteref-7">return</a>)<br /> [ The ancient form of the + word is Ronan, which is still to be found in the names of places, <i>Loc + Ronan</i>, the well of St. Ronan (Wales).] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-8" id="linknote-8"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 8 (<a href="#linknoteref-8">return</a>)<br /> [ A very graphic description + of it has been given by M. Adolphe Morillon in his <i>Souvenirs de + Saint-Nicolas</i>. Paris. Licoffre.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-9" id="linknote-9"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 9 (<a href="#linknoteref-9">return</a>)<br /> [ See the excellent memoir by + M. Fonlon (now Archbishop of Besançon) upon Abbé Richard.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-10" id="linknote-10"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 10 (<a href="#linknoteref-10">return</a>)<br /> [ I am speaking of the + years from 1842 to 1845. I believe that it is the same still.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-11" id="linknote-11"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 11 (<a href="#linknoteref-11">return</a>)<br /> [ Paris, 1609-1612.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-12" id="linknote-12"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 12 (<a href="#linknoteref-12">return</a>)<br /> [ First Edition, 1839; + second and much enlarged edition, 1845.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-13" id="linknote-13"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 13 (<a href="#linknoteref-13">return</a>)<br /> [ An essay which describes + my philosophical ideas at this epoch, entitled the “Origine du + Langage,” first published in the <i>Liberté de penser</i> (September + and December, 1848), faithfully portrays, as I then conceived it, the + spectacle of living nature as the result and evidence of a very ancient + historical development.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-14" id="linknote-14"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 14 (<a href="#linknoteref-14">return</a>)<br /> [ In the French the phrase + is, “L'île de Chio, fortunée patrie d’Homère.”] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-15" id="linknote-15"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 15 (<a href="#linknoteref-15">return</a>)<br /> [ I went a short time ago + to the National Library to refresh my memory about the <i>Comte de Valmont</i>. + Having my attention called away, I asked M. Soury to look through the book + for me, as I was anxious to have his impression of it. He replied to me in + the following terms: + </p> + <p class="foot"> + “I have been a long time in telling you what I think of the <i>Comte + de Valmont.</i> The fact is that it was only by an heroic effort that I + managed to finish it. Not but what this work is honestly conceived and + fairly well written. But the effect of reading through these thousands of + pages is so profoundly wearisome that one is scarcely in a position to do + justice to the work of Abbé Gérard. One cannot help being vexed with him + for being so unnecessarily tedious. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + “As so often happens, the best part of this book are the notes, that + is to say, a mass of extracts and selections taken from the famous writers + of the last two centuries, notably from Rousseau. All the ‘proofs’ + and apologetic arguments ruin the work unfortunately, the eloquence and + dialectics of Rousseau, Diderot, Helvetius, Holbach, and even Voltaire, + differing very much from those of Abbé Gérard. It is the same with the + libertines’ reasons refuted by the father of the Comte de Valmont. + It must be a very dangerous thing to bring forward mischievous doctrines + with so much force. They have a savour which renders the best things + insipid, and it is with these good doctrines that the six or seven volumes + of the <i>Comte de Valmont</i> are filled. Abbé Gérard did not wish his + work to be called a novel, and as a matter of fact there is neither drama + nor action in the interminable letters of the Marquis, the Count and + Emilie. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + “Count de Valmont is one of those sceptics who are often met with in + the world. A man of weak mind, pretentious and foppish, incapable of + thinking and reflecting for himself, ignorant into the bargain, and + without any kind of knowledge upon any subject, he meets his hapless + father with all sorts of difficulties against morality, religion and + Christianity in particular, just as if he had a right to an opinion on + matters the study of which requires so much enlightenment and takes up so + much timed. The best thing the poor fellow can do is to reform his ways, + and he does not fail to neglect doing this at nearly every volume. + </p> + <p class="foot"> + “The seventh volume of the edition which I have before me is + entitled, <i>La Théorie du Bonheur; ou, L’ Art de se rendre Heureux + mis a la Portée de tous les Hommes, faisant Suite ait ‘Comte de + Valmont</i>,’ Paris Bossange, 1801, eleventh edition. This is a + different book, whatever the publisher may say, and I confess that this + secret of happiness, brought within the reach of everybody, did not create + a very favourable impression upon me.”] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-16" id="linknote-16"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 16 (<a href="#linknoteref-16">return</a>)<br /> [ I should like to make one + observation in this connection. People of the present day have got into + the habit of putting <i>Monseigneur</i> before a proper name, and of + saying <i>Monseigneur Dupanloup</i> or Monseigneur Affre. This is bad + French; the word “Monseigneur” should only be used in the + vocative case or before an official title. In speaking to M. Dupanloup or + M. Affre, it would be correct to say <i>Monseigneur</i>. In speaking of + them, <i>Monsieur Dupanloup, Monsieur Affre; Monsieur, or Monseigneur + l'Évqêue d’Orleans,</i> Monsieur or Monseigneur l’Archévêque + de Paris.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-17" id="linknote-17"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 17 (<a href="#linknoteref-17">return</a>)<br /> [ <i>Lucta mea</i>, Genesis + xxx. 8.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-18" id="linknote-18"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 18 (<a href="#linknoteref-18">return</a>)<br /> [ His name was François + Liart. He was a very upright and high minded young man. He died at + Tréguier at the end of March, 1845. His family sent me after his death all + my letters to him, and I have them still.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-19" id="linknote-19"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 19 (<a href="#linknoteref-19">return</a>)<br /> [ This has reference to a + post of private tutor which was at my disposal for a time.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-20" id="linknote-20"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 20 (<a href="#linknoteref-20">return</a>)<br /> [ M. Dupanloup was no + longer superior of the Petty Seminary of Saint Nicholas du Chardonnet.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-21" id="linknote-21"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 21 (<a href="#linknoteref-21">return</a>)<br /> [ A collection of hymns of + the sixteenth century, touching in their simplicity. I have my mother’s + old copy; I may perhaps write something about them hereafter.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-22" id="linknote-22"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 22 (<a href="#linknoteref-22">return</a>)<br /> [ I will add towards + animals as well. I could not possibly behave unkindly to a dog, or treat + him roughly, and with an air of authority.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-23" id="linknote-23"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 23 (<a href="#linknoteref-23">return</a>)<br /> [ See above, page 262.] + </p> + <p> + <a name="linknote-24" id="linknote-24"> </a> + </p> + <p class="foot"> + 24 (<a href="#linknoteref-24">return</a>)<br /> [ M. Cognat merely analyses + the rest as follows:—“M. Renan then enters into some details + with regard to preparing for his examination for admission into the Normal + School, and for a literary degree. With regard to his bachelor’s + degree, the examination for which he has not yet passed, it does not cause + him much concern. He had, however, great difficulty in passing, and only + did so by producing a certificate of home study, much as he disliked + having resort to this evasive course. He did not feel compelled to deprive + himself of the benefit of a course which was made use of by every one + else, and which seemed to be tolerated by the law of monopoly of + university teaching in order to temper the odious nature of its + privileges. ‘But,’ he goes on to say, ‘I bear the + university a grudge for having compelled me to tell a lie, and yet the + director of the Normal School was extolling its liberal-mindedness.’”] + </p> + <div style="height: 6em;"> + <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> + </div> + + <div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 12748 ***</div> +</body> +</html> |