THE FRENCH CONVULSIVES. 443 



protectors, his acquirements. Does a merchant risk a million? for twenty 

 years he neither sleeps, nor drinks, nor amuses himself; he broods over his 

 million, he sends it to travel over Europe ; he grows weary, and gives him- 

 self over to all the demons invented by the imagination of men, and then, a 

 failure often leaves him pennyless, nameless, friendless. The dissipated man, 

 is he who really enjoys life, and if perchance he loses his capital, he has the 

 chance of marrying- of being attached to a ministry or an embassy he still 

 has friends, a reputation, and money at all times. Knowing the springs of 

 the world, he skilfully manoeuvres them for his own advantage. Is this logic 

 or am T only a fool ?' Is not this the morality of the comedy which is every 

 day played in the world ?' ' Your work is finished,' resumed he after a 

 pause ; ' You have talents of the highest order. Well : this is nothing it 

 is only the point to start from. You must now achieve your own success 

 that is the most certain course. You will go and form alliances with coteries 

 and engage the criers up. I am anxious to have a share in your glory, to 

 become the jeweller who shall have set your diamond. To begin, then, be 

 here to-morrow evening ; I shall introduce you in a house which is the 

 resort of all Paris that is our Paris. You shall see Foedora the beautiful 

 Countess Foedora the woman a-la-mode.' ' I have never heard of her,' 

 said I. ' You are an ass/ said Rastignac, laughing, ' not know Fcedora ! 

 A woman whose hand is free, with a fortune of twenty thousand pounds, 

 and will accept of nobody, or of whom nobody will accept ! A species of 

 female problem, a Parisian half Russian and a Russian half Parisian ! A 

 woman at whose house are edited all the romantic productions ! The hand- 

 somest woman in Paris ! The most graceful ! Bah ! you are an ass/ He 

 turned upon his heel and disappeared without listening to a reply, not 

 deeming it possible that a man in his senses could refuse being presented to 

 Foedora." 



Raphael accepts the proposition of Rastignac, is introduced to 

 Foedora, and has the happiness of winning her favour and esteem. 

 His whole existence is now delivered over to passionate lovej but to 

 his ardent professions, the cold and imperturbable Foedora replies, 

 tf that it were better to be dead than unhappy, and that a man so 

 impassioned would eventually abandon his wife and leave her to 

 perish on a matrass after having squandered her fortune." 



At last he is scornfully rejected by his mistress, and ordered to 

 quit her presence never to return. Her all-engrossing selfishness 

 shrunk from the idea of surrendering her liberty to any admirer. 

 Instead of committing suicide, by the advice of Rastignac, he plunges 

 deeper into dissipation. The following is a lively, but in some 

 parts exaggerated sketch of the wild excitement consequent on the 

 violent transitions from beggary to wealth, so frequent in the life of 

 a gamester. Raphael has been awaiting the return of Rastignac at 

 his apartments : 



" I had lapsed into a state of insensibility when Rastignac bursting open 

 the door of the apartment with a kick, cried aloud, ' victory ! victory ! we 

 may now die at our ease !' He showed me his hat full of gold ; he placed it 

 on the table, and we commenced dancing like two cannibals, yelling, and. 

 screaming, jumping, giving each other blows that might have killed a 

 rhinoceros, and singing at the sight of all the pleasures in the world con- 

 tained in a hat. ' Two millions of francs !' repeated Rastignac, as he added 

 some bank checques to the heap of gold. ' For others, this money would be 

 sufficient to live upon, but will it suffice to kill us?' 'Oh yes, we will 



