Mathieu

“ He was resolved that Maurice should be the sole master of the fortune which he himself had derived from his father, and which he would transmit to his heir increased tenfold. For his son he dreamt of supreme wealth, a colossal fortune, such as nowadays alone ensures power.
Mathieu, refraining from any intervention, listened and remained grave; for this question of the birth-rate seemed to him a frightful one, the foremost of all questions, deciding the destiny of mankind and the world. ”

“ A disaster must surely be at the end of it all, particularly as he foolishly behaved to her in a rough, jeering way, which greatly hurt her feelings, and led her to dream of being loved with gentleness.
When Mathieu entered the house, which displayed eight lofty windows on each of the stories of its ornate Renaissance façade, he laughed lightly as he thought: "These folks don't have to wait for a monthly pittance of three hundred francs, with just thirty sous in hand." ”

“ Mathieu always took a deep interest in the advancement of his native town, and occupied its civic chair during seven years, from 1875 to 1881. He was also one of the founders of the College of Sorel. As a private citizen he is esteemed for his affability and kindness of manners to all who require his advice, or have business to transact with him, and his courteousness has made him hosts of friends everywhere. ”

“ I would as soon serve the devil in person!"
III.
Mr. Mathieu is my intimate friend, and his porter the most stylish Cerebus that I know. The latter opened to me at the first sound of the bell that I rang at the door of the Golden Eagle. I related to him in a few words the little miseries of my evening; and as the key of my room remained in my cloak at the house of the counsellor, he opened another room for me, placed a light in it, and discreetly retired, after having wished me good night. There was in this chamber a large mirror covered with a curtain. ”

“ But his muse was both prolific and patriotic, giving birth to some abortion at almost every public event, and though all good citizens of Abbeville were properly interested in such occurrences as, say, the repeal of the Law of the Maximum, they preferred a plain newspaper account of it to Mathieu's rhythmical rendering. Yet if they showed undue restiveness under the poet's outpourings it was just conceivable that, seeing the subject of his verse, they might be suspected of 'incivisme.' And thus there was little help for them. ”

“ This rigorous temperature, coupled with the circumstance that Marianne was again expecting to become a mother, had finally induced Mathieu to accept Beauchêne's amiable offer to place at his disposal the little pavilion in the Rue de la Fédération, where the founder of the works had lived before building the superb house on the quay. An old foreman who had occupied this pavilion, which still contained the simple furniture of former days, had lately died. And the young folks, desiring to be near their friend, worthy Dr. ”

“ Now the illustrious philosopher had slept for three hours when Coucou Peter cried—“Maître Frantz, wake up!—Here are the pilgrims of Haslach coming down the mountain; they outnumber the grains of sand on the seashore; get up, master, and see them!”
Having raised himself, Mathéus perceived, first his disciple perched in a wild cherry-tree, gathering the fruit in the manner of the thrushes, and giving himself up heartily to the pleasure; the eyes of the good man were next directed to the neighbouring mountain. ”

“ Now that you are no longer a prophet you’ll want money. But remember that your road is through Brumath, Wasselonne, and Saverne; you must stop at the Corne d’Abondance; and you must not let yourself be cheated by the landlords, Doctor—you are too good.”
During this discourse Mathéus observed his disciple with an air of inexpressible tenderness.
“Oh, Coucou Peter—Coucou Peter!” he cried, “what a man you would be if the unhappy instincts of the flesh had not such an empire over you! What goodness of heart! What natural simplicity! What a spirit of justice! You would be perfect!” ”

“ The illustrious philosopher rose and said to them—
“My children, we have passed many years together; most of you I have seen grow up under my eyes; others have been my friends. You know that I have done for you all it was in my power to do; I have never spared trouble to be of service to you, nor care, nor my small fortune, the fruit of my father’s hard toil! Henceforth the universe claims me; I owe myself to humanity; let us part good friends, and think sometimes of Frantz Mathéus, who has loved you so well!” ”

“ This worthy man was named Frantz Mathéus. He inherited from his ancestors the oldest house in the place, an orchard, some arable land on the mountain, a few acres of meadow in the valley; and if you add to this modest patrimony eggs, milk, cheese, and, from time to time, a lean fowl, sent to the Doctor by the honest peasants out of the fulness of their gratitude, you will have the whole of Maître Frantz’s income: it sufficed for his maintenance and that of his old servant Martha, as well as his horse Bruno. ”

“ Coucou Peter came out of the barn, laughing with all his might.
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“Ha! ha! ha! what a joke! what a joke, Doctor Frantz! When I saw you talking to the bull, it came into my head to have a bit of fun.”
Mathéus himself could not help laughing, for he had, at first, been taken in.
“I knew well,” he said, “that souls cannot retrograde in the order of Nature; it is impossible—contrary to the system; therefore my surprise was great, and it was that which made me discover your trick. The human soul cannot exist in the body of an animal; it could not find sufficient room for the brain.” ”

“ In the midst of this joyous animation, Maître Frantz thought he heard these prophetic words:—“Honour! glory! Honour to the great Mathéus! Eternal glory to the inventor of the peregrination of souls! Glory! glory! honour! glory! Honour to the great Mathéus! Eternal glory to the inventor of the peregrination of souls!” And in mute ecstasy he leaned back in his chair, dropped his fork, and listened to these far-off [113] voices; but, in truth, this was but the effect of the Eckersthal wine and the noisy hum of the room. ”

“ Coucou Peter looked at little Thérèse with an air of distress, and then at the crowded street.
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“If it were only for myself, Maître Jacob, I’d accept it at once; a poor devil of a fiddler is used to sleeping on straw. But just look at this good little mother, at this poor child, and at this good Doctor Mathéus, the cream of philosophers!” cried he, in a heartrending tone of voice. “Come, Daddy Jacob—put yourself in the place of these people!” ”

“ Conversing in this manner, the illustrious philosopher [78] and his disciple tranquilly went their way along the valleys of the Zorn. Mathéus, who loved nothing so well as the interior of the woods, forgot the ingratitude of the human species; the scarce perceptible sound of an insect nibbling the bark of an old tree, the flight of a bird through the rustling foliage, the vague murmur of a stream in the ravine, the whirl of the gnats dancing above the still pools—these thousand details of solitude ceaselessly furnished new texts for his anthropo-zoological meditations. ”

“ Mathéus said to himself; “each day civilisation makes fresh progress! What would you say, my good Martha, if you saw such a sight as this? You would not be able to believe your eyes; you could never have foreseen the triumph of your master on so vast a stage! But truth shines everywhere with eternal brilliancy, and overcomes envy, sophism, and vain prejudices!”
The little caravan, jostled and driven from street to street, at last came in front of Jacob Fischer’s good old public-house, and Coucou Peter uttered an exclamation of joyous surprise. ”

“ Oh, Mathéus! Mathéus! man of virtue!” he cried, “weep—weep for the errors of your species; but murmur not against eternal justice! That alone makes your greatness and strength. In turn, onion, tulip, snail, and hare—finally man. You have not always been a philosopher; it has needed many ages to overcome your animal instincts. Be indulgent, therefore, and think that, if inferior beings do you harm, it is because they are not worthy to comprehend you.”
“That’s all very fine! We are knocked about, and you take pity on those fellows!” cried Coucou Peter. ”

“ Everybody felt that he referred to Frantz Mathéus.
The illustrious philosopher turned pale, for he heard a murmur rise about him. Coucou Peter became as red as a burning coal.
But quickly recovering all his strength, Maître Frantz responded—
“Oh! impostors and unbelievers, dare you really deny that Justice should be the law of the world? Were not all beings equal before some had advanced by merit? If they had not existed before being born, why all the differences among them? Why should one be born as a plant, another as a man, or an animal? ”

“ No; the body is but the outer case—the soul is eternal! Ah! Coucou Peter, place your hand upon your heart, see before you that immense vault, the image of grandeur and harmony, and then dare to deny the Being of beings, the First Cause of this magnificent creation!”
When Mathéus had improvised this discourse, Coucou Peter looked at him with one eye cunningly closed, and said—
“Very good—very good; you’ve only to talk to peasants in that fashion, and all will be right.”
“You believe, then, in the peregrination of souls?” ”

“ The illustrious philosopher, however, instead of giving himself up to his habitual reflections on the affinities of races, looked on all with a dull eye. It might have been said, to see him with outstretched neck and dangling legs, that he despaired of the doctrine, and of the future of the generations to come.
“Come, Maître Frantz,” said Coucou Peter to him, “courage! Go into your friend Georges Müller’s house; he can’t fail to recognise you—then, hurrah! If we can only find a lodging for to-night, to-morrow we’ll convert the world!”
Mathéus obeyed mechanically ”

“ Coucou Peter paused on the threshold, and Mathéus, looking over his disciple’s shoulder, saw one of those [152] lofty rooms of old times, ornamented with oak furniture, oak panelling, vast cupboards, massive tables, the sight of which rejoiced the heart. He instantly said: “Here they eat well, drink well, and sleep well!—the blessing of the Lord rest upon all good-natured people!”
A little fat man was seated on a leathern arm-chair, his stomach filling the whole space between his chin and his legs, and good-humour showing in his rosy face. ”

“ Mattie did not reply; that was a matter for future consideration.
"I never allow anything to be kept from me," he said sharply; "I shall be a hard father, rely upon it. I allow nothing for prevarication, and I spare no sin or weakness, however plausible may be the excuse which the sinner offers. I—how dreadfully askew everything is on this mantel-piece!" he added suddenly, putting the few ornaments thereon at regular distances from each other; "I shall not be a kind father—I know I shan't! The mountains are not harder to move than I am—you're not frightened at me, Mattie?" ”

“ That’s my notion.”
“How can you bring yourself to think such things?” cried the illustrious philosopher. “Oh, Coucou Peter! Coucou Peter! it’s very wrong to conceive such ideas against an entire race of men because those men have a skin a little yellower than our own, thicker lips, and brighter eyes!”
“No, Maître Frantz; it’s because they all without exception belong to the family of foxes,” said Coucou Peter, gravely.
“But will—cannot will change their evil instincts?” cried Mathéus, surprised to find himself embarrassed by his own system. “Are not all men perfectible? ”

“ While deploring the sensual tendencies of his disciple, Mathéus inwardly laughed at his gay humour. “One cannot be perfect,” he said to himself. “This poor [177] Coucou Peter thinks only of satisfying his physical appetites; but he is so good a fellow that the Great Demiourgos will not be offended with him; he will even laugh, I think, at the idea of the monk and his proof of the cellar of Geroldsek!” And the illustrious philosopher shook his head, as much as to say, “He’ll never change! He’ll never change!” ”

“ It is impossible to describe the dejection of Frantz Mathéus and his disciple after they had left Haslach.
Coucou Peter could no longer control his anger; at every step he flourished his stick and exclaimed—
“Rascally Anabaptist! rascally mayor! rascally Jacob Fischer! Ah, you scamps! if I only had you here, I’d make you dance! I would not leave a hair on your heads! To drive out so worthy a man!—a man who performs miracles!—a man worth more than all of you to the twentieth generation! Scamps! vagabonds! it’ll be a lucky day for you if I meet you sooner or later!” ”

“ Mathéus slowly approached and looked closely at the gipsies.
“Like the most virtuous Aristides,” he said, in a grave tone, “an object of party hatred and victim to the ingratitude of my fellow-citizens, I come to seat myself by the fireside of a foreign nation, and to demand of you the sacred rights of hospitality. Happy is he who lives in solitude, in face of the immense heavens and of the boundless forests; he there sees not vice triumphant and virtue humiliated; his heart is not corrupted by selfishness nor withered by envy. ”