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第26章

the two brothers-第26章

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  can。 Remember that your imbecile of a brother at fifty…seven is an

  older and weaker man than Monsieur Hochon。 So it is a pressing

  matter。 People are talking already of a will that cuts off your

  inheritance; but Monsieur Hochon says there is still time to get

  it revoked。



  Adieu; my little Agathe; may God help you! Believe in the love of

  your godmother;





  Maximilienne Hochon; nee Lousteau。



  P。S。 Has my nephew; Etienne; who writes in the newspapers and is

  intimate; they tell me; with your son Philippe; been to pay his

  respects to you? But come at once to Issoudun; and we will talk

  over things。





This letter made a great impression on Agathe; who showed it; of

course; to Joseph; to whom she had been forced to mention Giroudeau's

proposal。 The artist; who grew wary when it concerned his brother;

pointed out to her that she ought to tell everything to Desroches。



Conscious of the wisdom of that advice; Agathe went with her son the

next morning; at six o'clock; to find Desroches at his house in the

rue de Bussy。 The lawyer; as cold and stern as his late father; with a

sharp voice; a rough skin; implacable eyes; and the visage of a fox as

he licks his lips of the blood of chickens; bounded like a tiger when

he heard of Giroudeau's visit and proposal。



〃And pray; mere Bridau;〃 he cried; in his little cracked voice; 〃how

long are you going to be duped by your cursed brigand of a son? Don't

give him a farthing。 Make yourself easy; I'll answer for Philippe。 I

should like to see him brought before the Court of Peers; it might

save his future。 You are afraid he will be condemned; but I say; may

it please God his lawyer lets him be convicted。 Go to Issoudun; secure

the property for your children。 If you don't succeed; if your brother

has made a will in favor of that woman; and you can't make him revoke

it;well then; at least get all the evidence you can of undue

influence; and I'll institute proceedings for you。 But you are too

honest a woman to know how to get at the bottom facts of such a

matter。 I'll go myself to Issoudun in the holidays;if I can。〃



That 〃go myself〃 made Joseph tremble in his skin。 Desroches winked at

him to let his mother go downstairs first; and then the lawyer

detained the young man for a single moment。



〃Your brother is a great scoundrel; he is the cause of the discovery

of this conspiracy;intentionally or not; I can't say; for the rascal

is so sly no one can find out the exact truth as to that。 Fool or

traitor;take your choice。 He will be put under the surveillance of

the police; nothing more。 You needn't be uneasy; no one knows this

secret but myself。 Go to Issoudun with your mother。 You have good

sense; try to save the property。〃



〃Come; my poor mother; Desroches is right;〃 said Joseph; rejoining

Agathe on the staircase。 〃I have sold my two pictures; let us start

for Berry; you have two weeks' leave of absence。〃



After writing to her godmother to announce their arrival; Agathe and

Joseph started the next evening for their trip to Issoudun; leaving

Philippe to his fate。 The diligence rolled through the rue d'Enfer

toward the Orleans highroad。 When Agathe saw the Luxembourg; to which

Philippe had been transferred; she could not refrain from saying;



〃If it were not for the Allies he would never be there!〃



Many sons would have made an impatient gesture and smiled with pity;

but the artist; who was alone with his mother in the coupe; caught her

in his arms and pressed her to his heart; exclaiming:



〃Oh; mother! you are a mother just as Raphael was a painter。 And you

will always be a fool of a mother!〃



Madame Bridau's mind; diverted before long from her griefs by the

distractions of the journey; began to dwell on the purpose of it。 She

re…read the letter of Madame Hochon; which had so stirred up the

lawyer Desroches。 Struck with the words 〃concubine〃 and 〃slut;〃 which

the pen of a septuagenarian as pious as she was respectable had used

to designate the woman now in process of getting hold of Jean…Jacques

Rouget's property; struck also with the word 〃imbecile〃 applied to

Rouget himself; she began to ask herself how; by her presence at

Issoudun; she was to save the inheritance。 Joseph; poor disinterested

artist that he was; knew little enough about the Code; and his

mother's last remark absorbed his mind。



〃Before our friend Desroches sent us off to protect our rights; he

ought to have explained to us the means of doing so;〃 he exclaimed。



〃So far as my poor head; which whirls at the thought of Philippe in

prison;without tobacco; perhaps; and about to appear before the

Court of Peers!leaves me any distinct memory;〃 returned Agathe; 〃I

think young Desroches said we were to get evidence of undue influence;

in case my brother has made a will in favor of thatthatwoman。〃



〃He is good at that; Desroches is;〃 cried the painter。 〃Bah! if we can

make nothing of it I'll get him to come himself。〃



〃Well; don't let us trouble our heads uselessly;〃 said Agathe。 〃When

we get to Issoudun my godmother will tell us what to do。〃



This conversation; which took place just after Madame Bridau and

Joseph changed coaches at Orleans and entered the Sologne; is

sufficient proof of the incapacity of the painter and his mother to

play the part the inexorable Desroches had assigned to them。



In returning to Issoudun after thirty years' absence; Agathe was about

to find such changes in its manners and customs that it is necessary

to sketch; in a few words; a picture of that town。 Without it; the

reader would scarcely understand the heroism displayed by Madame

Hochon in assisting her goddaughter; or the strange situation of Jean…

Jacques Rouget。 Though Doctor Rouget had taught his son to regard

Agathe in the light of a stranger; it was certainly a somewhat

extraordinary thing that for thirty years a brother should have given

no signs of life to a sister。 Such a silence was evidently caused by

peculiar circumstances; and any other sister and nephew than Agathe

and Joseph would long ago have inquired into them。 There is; moreover;

a certain connection between the condition of the city of Issoudun and

the interests of the Bridau family; which can only be seen as the

story goes on。







CHAPTER VII



Issoudun; be it said without offence to Paris; is one of the oldest

cities in France。 In spite of the historical assumption which makes

the emperor Probus the Noah of the Gauls; Caesar speaks of the

excellent wine of Champ…Fort (〃de Campo Forti〃) still one of the best

vintages of Issoudun。 Rigord writes of this city in language which

leaves no doubt as to its great population and its immense commerce。

But these testimonies both assign a much lesser age to the city than

its ancient antiquity demands。 In fact; the excavations lately

undertaken by a learned archaeologist of the place; Monsieur Armand

Peremet; have brought to light; under the celebrated tower of

Issoudun; a basilica of the fifth century; probably the only one in

France。 This church preserves; in its very materials; the sign…manual

of an anterior civilization; for its stones came from a Roman temple

which stood on the same site。



Issoudun; therefore; according to the researches of this antiquary;

like other cities of France whose ancient or modern autonym ends in

〃Dun〃 (〃dunum〃) bears in its very name the certificate of an

autochthonous existence。 The word 〃Dun;〃 the appanage of all dignity

consecrated by Druidical worship; proves a religious and military

settlement of the Celts。 Beneath the Dun of the Gauls must have lain

the Roman temple to Isis。 From that comes; according to Chaumon; the

name of the city; Issous…Dun;〃Is〃 being the abbreviation of 〃Isis。〃

Richard Coeur…de…lion undoubtedly built the famous tower (in which he

coined money) above the basilica of the fifth century;the third

monument of the third religion of this ancient town

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