492 Who wrote Gil Bias ? [Nov. 



the analogy between them — Gil Bias is maintained, when a boy, by a 

 rich and avaricious uncle, a canon of Oviedo : the " Bachelor," in like 

 manner, is supported by a rich and parsimonious relation, a doctor of the 

 university of Salamanca. At precisely the same periods in the lives of 

 their protegees, both these worthies become fatigued with the trouble and 

 expence of educating them, send them out into the world to seek their 

 fortunes, addressing them on the occasion in language substantially and 

 almost literally the same ; and if the reader would take the trouble of 

 perusing the parallel established by Llorente between the books, they 

 will afford something like a decisive proof in favour of his theory. 



We have at length brought to a close the arguments in favour of the 

 Spanish original of this celebrated novel. We shall now group within 

 as narrow a space as the limits of this paper permit, a few of the leading 

 arguments adduced by the learned academician, the Count de Neufcha- 

 teau, in support of the claims of his countryman, Le Sage, to the author- 

 ship of the work. 



He maintains that, 1st, the novel of Gil Bias is a satire on the court of 

 France, and on the personages who flourished from I7OI until the death 

 of Louis the Fourteenth, and in the first years of the reign of Louis the 

 Fifteenth. So apparent is this, that although Le Sage endeavoured to 

 veil it by laying the scene of the novel in Spain, almost every body in 

 Paris was able to point out, without the assistance of a key, the French 

 originals designated under Spanish names. The Compte de Tressau 

 told M. de Neufchateau that Le Sage, in 1746, at Boulogne-sur-lNIer, 

 had named to him the originals of several of the chai'acters, and thus 

 confirmed the opinions of the public. 



2d. The description of Doctor Sangrado is a faithful picture of a 

 Dr. Hecquet, a physician of Paris, of great celebrity in the time of Le 

 Sage. Hecquet prescribed a moderate diet, abstinence from wine, and 

 copious draughts of water : he jjublished two volumes in support of his 

 doctrine. 



The story of Valerio de Luna is said to be founded on the adventures 



of the unfortunate Chevalier de Villiers, who committed suicide in Paris 



in I67I for the love of his grandmother, the celebrated Ninon de I'Enclos. 



The anecdote of the two physicians, Andros and Oquetos, evidently 



alludes to a dispute which occurred between two French doctors, Andry 



and Hecquet, whose names are thus slightly disguised. Again, Lucinda 



the actress relates that her lover, the Duke de IMedina Celi, publicly 



insulted her, in order to avenge the honour of his duchess, whom her 



insolence had outraged. This scene actually took place in Paris, where 



a nobleman of high rank once said to an actress celebrated for her 



beauty, under similar circumstances, " Aimablc vice, respectez la verlu." 



In the History of Don Roger de Rada, it is related that his son, the 



Chevalier d'Antiguera, killed Don Huberto de Hordales, at the instance 



of his mother. This adventure, which is eminently dramatic, also 



occurred in France in an illustrious family. A lady of quality, whose 



husband had been killed by a brutal prince, brought up her two male 



children with the design of avenging him. For this purpose, they were 



taught the use of arms by the most skilful masters ; and when they had 



■^' attained the age of maturity, she presented to them the bloody shirt of 



'- their murdered father. The next morning the prince fell beneath their 



avenging daggers, and the king pardoned them. " This fact," adds 



' 1 Neufchateau, " is well known ; and Le Sage could not have derived it 



5>'-froni a Spanish source." 



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