CHAPTER VI. MOTHER SAINTE-PERPETUE.
St. Mary's Convent, whither the daughters of Marshal Simon had beenconveyed, was a large old building, the vast garden of which was onthe Boulevard de l'Hopital, one of the most retired places in Paris,particularly at this period. The following scenes took place on the 12thFebruary, the eve of the fatal day, on which the members of the familyof Rennepont, the last descendants of the sister of the Wandering Jew,were to meet together in the Rue St. Francois. St. Mary's Convent was amodel of perfect regularity. A superior council, composed of influentialecclesiastics, with Father d'Aigrigny for president, and of women ofgreat reputed piety, at the head of whom was the Princess de SaintDizier, frequently assembled in deliberation, to consult on the meansof extending and strengthening the secret and powerful influence of thisestablishment, which had already made remarkable progress.
Skillful combinations and deep foresight had presided at the foundationof St. Mary's Convent, which, in consequence of numerous donations,possessed already real estate to a great extent, and was dailyaugmenting its acquisitions. The religious community was only a pretext;but, thanks to an extensive connection, kept up by means of the mostdecided members of the ultramontane (i. e. high-church) party, a greatnumber of rich orphans were placed in the convent, there to receive asolid, austere, religious education, very preferable, it was said, tothe frivolous instruction which might be had in the fashionable boardingschools, infected by the corruption of the age. To widows also, andlone women who happened moreover to be rich, the convent offered a sureasylum from the dangers and temptations of the world; in this peacefulretreat, they enjoyed a delightful calm, and secured their salvation,whilst surrounded by the most tender and affectionate attentions. Norwas this all. Mother Sainte-Perpetue, the superior of the convent,undertook in the name of the institution to procure for the faithful,who wished to preserve the interior of their houses from the depravityof the age, companions for aged ladies, domestic servants, orneedlewomen working by the day, all selected persons whose moralitycould be warranted. Nothing would seem more worthy of sympathy andencouragement than such an institution; but we shall presently unveilthe vast and dangerous network of intrigue concealed underthese charitable and holy appearances. The lady Superior, MotherSainte-Perpetue, was a tall woman of about forty years of age, clad in astuff dress of the Carmelite tan color, and wearing a long rosary at herwaist; a white cap tied under the chin, and a long black veil, closelyencircled her thin, sallow face. A number of deep wrinkles had impressedtheir transverse furrows in her forehead of yellow ivory; her marked andprominent nose was bent like the beak of a bird of prey; her black eyewas knowing and piercing; the expression of her countenance was at onceintelligent, cold and firm.
In the general management of the pecuniary affairs of the community,Mother Sainte-Perpetue would have been a match for the most cunningattorney. When women are possessed of what is called a talent forbusiness, and apply to it their keen penetration, their indefatigableperseverance, their prudent dissimulation, and, above all, that quickand exact insight, which is natural to them, the results are oftenprodigious. To Mother Sainte-Perpetue, a woman of the coolest andstrongest intellect, the management of the vast transactions of thecommunity was mere child's play. No one knew better how to purchase adepreciated property, to restore it to its former value, and then sellit with advantage; the price of stock, the rate of exchange, the currentvalue of the shares in the different companies, were all familiar toher; she had yet never been known to make bad speculation, when thequestion was to invest any of the funds which were given by pious soulsfor the purposes of the convent. She had established in the house theutmost order and discipline, and, above all, an extreme economy. Theconstant aim of all her efforts was to enrich, not herself, but thecommunity she directed; for the spirit of association, when become acollective egotism, gives to corporations the faults and vices of anindividual. Thus a congregation may dote upon power and money, just asa miser loves them for their own sake. But it is chiefly with regard toestates that congregations act like a single man. They dream of landedproperty; it is their fixed idea, their fruitful monomania. They pursueit with their most sincere, and warm, and tender wishes.
The first estate is to a rising little community what the weddingtrousseau is to a young bride, his first horse to a youth, his firstsuccess to a poet, to a gay girl her first fifty-guinea shawl; because,after all, in this material age, an estate gives a certain rank to asociety on the Religious Exchange, and has so much the more effect uponthe simple-minded, that all these partnerships in the work of salvation,which end by becoming immensely rich, begin with modest poverty associal stock-in-trade, and charity towards their neighbors as securityreserve fund. We may therefore imagine what bitter and ardent rivalrymust exist between the different congregations with regard to thevarious estates that each can lay claim to; with what ineffablesatisfaction the richer society crushes the poorer beneath its inventoryof houses, and farms and paper securities! Envy and hateful jealousy,rendered still more irritable by the leisure of a cloistered life, arethe necessary consequences of such a comparison; and yet nothing is lessChristian--in the adorable acceptation of that divine word--nothing hasless in common with the true, essential, and religiously social spiritof the gospel, than this insatiable ardor to acquire wealth by everypossible means--this dangerous avidity, which is far from being atonedfor, in the eyes of public opinion, by a few paltry alms, bestowed inthe narrow spirit of exclusion and intolerance.
Mother Sainte-Perpetue was seated before a large cylindrical-fronteddesk in the centre of an apartment simply but comfortably furnished.An excellent fire burned within the marble chimney, and a soft carpetcovered the floor. The superior, to whom all letters addressed to thesisters or the boarders were every day delivered, had just been openingshe first, according to her acknowledged right, and carefully unsealingthe second, without their knowing it, according to a right that sheascribed to herself, of course, with a view to the salvation of thosedear creatures; and partly, perhaps, a little to make herself acquaintedwith their correspondence, for she also had imposed on herself the dutyof reading all letters that were sent from the convent, before they wereput into the post. The traces of this pious and innocent inquisitionwere easily effaced, for the good mother possessed a whole arsenal ofsteel tools, some very sharp, to cut the pager imperceptibly round theseal--others, pretty little rods, to be slightly heated and rolled roundthe edge of the seal, when the letter had been read and replaced in itsenvelope, so that the wax, spreading as it melted, might cover the firstincision. Moreover, from a praiseworthy feeling of justice and equality,there was in the arsenal of the good mother a little fumigator of themost ingenious construction, the damp and dissolving vapor of which wasreserved for the letters humbly and modestly secured with wafers, thussoftened, they yielded to the least efforts, without any tearing of thepaper. According to the importance of the revelations, which she thusgleaned from the writers of the letters, the superior took notes more orless extensive. She was interrupted in this investigation by two gentletaps at the bolted door. Mother Sainte-Perpetue immediately let down thesliding cylinder of her cabinet, so as to cover the secret arsenal, andwent to open the door with a grave and solemn air. A lay sister came toannounce to her that the Princess de Saint-Dizier was waiting for herin the parlor, and that Mdlle. Florine, accompanied by a young girl,deformed and badly dressed, was waiting at the door of the littlecorridor.
"Introduce the princess first," said Mother Sainte Perpetue. And, withcharming forethought, she drew an armchair to the fire. Mme. de SaintDizier entered.
Without pretensions to juvenile coquetry, still the princess wastastefully and elegantly dressed. She wore a black velvet bonnet of themost fashionable make, a large blue cashmere shawl, and a black satindress, trimmed with sable, to match the fur of her muff.
"To what good fortune am I again to-day indebted for the honor of yourvisit, my dear daughter?" said the superior, graciously.
"A very important
recommendation, my dear mother, though I am in agreat hurry. I am expected at the house of his Eminence, and have,unfortunately, only a few minutes to spare. I have again to speak of thetwo orphans who occupied our attention so long yesterday."
"They continue to be kept separate, according to your wish; and thisseparation has had such an effect upon them that I have been obligedto send this morning for Dr. Baleinier, from his asylum. He found muchfever joined to great depression, and, singular enough, absolutely thesame symptoms in both cases. I have again questioned these unfortunatecreatures, and have been quite confounded and terrified to find themperfect heathens."
"It was, you see, very urgent to place them in your care. But to thesubject of my visit, my dear mother: we have just learned the unexpectedreturn of the soldier who brought these girls to France, and was thoughtto be absent for some days; but he is in Paris, and, notwithstanding hisage, a man of extraordinary boldness, enterprise and energy. Should hediscover that the girls are here (which, however, is fortunatelyalmost impossible), in his rage at seeing them removed from his impiousinfluence, he would be capable of anything. Therefore let me entreatyou, my dear mother, to redouble your precautions, that no one mayeffect an entrance by night. This quarter of the town is so deserted!"
"Be satisfied, my dear daughter; we are sufficiently guarded. Our porterand gardeners, all well armed, make a round every night on the sideof the Boulevard de l'Hopital. The walls are high, and furnished withspikes at the more accessible places. But I thank you, my dear daughter,for having warned me. We will redouble our precautions."
"Particularly this night, my dear mother."
"Why so?"
"Because if this infernal soldier has the audacity to attempt such athing, it will be this very night."
"How do you know, my dear daughter?"
"We have information which makes us certain of it," replied theprincess, with a slight embarrassment, which did not escape the noticeof the Superior, though she was too crafty and reserved to appear to seeit; only she suspected that many things were concealed from her.
"This night, then," resumed Mother Sainte-Perpetue, "we will be morethan ever on our guard. But as I have the pleasure of seeing you, mydear daughter, I will take the opportunity to say a word or two on thesubject of that marriage we mentioned."
"Yes, my dear mother," said the princess, hastily, "for it is veryimportant. The young Baron de Brisville is a man full of ardent devotionin these times of revolutionary impiety; he practises openly, and isable to render us great services. He is listened to in the Chamber, anddoes not want for a sort of aggressive and provoking eloquence; I knownot any one whose tone is more insolent with regard to his faith, andthe plan is a good one, for this cavalier and open manner of speakingof sacred things raises and excites the curiosity of the indifferent.Circumstances are happily such that he may show the most audaciousviolence towards our enemies, without the least danger to himself,which, of course, redoubles his ardor as a would-be martyr. In aword, he is altogether ours, and we, in return, must bring about thismarriage. You know, besides, my dear mother, that he proposes to offera donation of a hundred thousand francs to St. Mary's the day he gainspossession of the fortune of Mdlle. Baudricourt."
"I have never doubted the excellent intentions of M. de Brisvillewith regard to an institution which merits the sympathy of all piouspersons," answered the superior, discreetly; "but I did not expect tomeet with so many obstacles on the part of the young lady."
"How is that?"
"This girl, whom I always believed a most simple, submissive, timid,almost idiotic person--instead of being delighted with this proposal ofmarriage, asks time to consider!"
"It is really pitiable!"
"She opposes to me an inert resistance. It is in vain for me to speakseverely, and tell her that, having no parents or friends, and beingabsolutely confided to my care, she ought to see with my eyes, hear withmy ears, and when I affirm that this union is suitable in all respects,give her adhesion to it without delay or reflection."
"No doubt. It would be impossible to speak more sensibly."
"She answers that she wishes to see M. de Brisville, and know hischaracter before being engaged."
"It is absurd--since you undertake to answer for his morality, andesteem this a proper marriage."
"Therefore, I remarked to Mdlle. Baudricourt, this morning, that tillnow I had only employed gentle persuasion, but that, if she forced meto it, I should be obliged, in her own interest, to act with rigor, toconquer so much obstinacy that I should have to separate her from hercompanions, and to confine her closely in a cell, until she made up hermind, after all, to consult her own happiness, and--marry an honorableman."
"And these menaces, my dear mother?"
"Will, I hope, have a good effect. She kept up a correspondence withan old school-friend in the country. I have put a stop to this, for itappeared to me dangerous. She is now under my sole influence, and I hopewe shall attain our ends; but you see, my dear daughter, it is neverwithout crosses and difficulties that we succeed in doing good!"
"And I feel certain that M. de Brisville will even go beyond his firstpromise, and I will pledge myself for him, that, should he marry Mdlle.Baudricourt--"
"You know, my dear daughter," said the superior, interrupting theprincess, "that if I were myself concerned, I would refuse everything;but to give to this institution is to give to Heaven, and I cannotprevent M. de Brisville from augmenting the amount of his good works.Then, you see, we are exposed to a sad disappointment."
"What is that, my dear mother?"
"The Sacred Heart Convent disputes an estate with us that would havesuited us exactly. Really, some people are quite insatiable! I gave thelady superior my opinion upon it pretty freely."
"She told me as much," answered Madame de Saint-Dizier, "and laid theblame on the steward."
"Oh! so you see her, my dear daughter?" exclaimed the superior, with anair of great surprise.
"I met her at the bishop's," answered Madame de Saint-Dizier, with aslight degree of hesitation, that Mother Sainte-Perpetue did not appearto notice.
"I really do not know," resumed the latter, "why our establishmentshould excite so violently the jealousy of the Sacred Heart. There isnot an evil report that they have not spread with regard to St. Mary'sConvent. Certain persons are always offended by the success of theirneighbors!"
"Come, my dear mother," said the princess, in a conciliating tone, "wemust hope that the donation of M. de Brisville will enable you to outbidthe Sacred Heart. This marriage will have a double advantage, you see,my dear mother; it will place a large fortune at the disposal of a manwho is devoted to us, and who will employ it as we wish; and it willalso greatly increase the importance of his position as our defender,by the addition to his income of 100,000 francs a year. We shall have atlength an organ worthy of our cause, and shall no longer be obliged tolook for defenders amongst such people as that Dumoulin."
"There is great power and much learning in the writings of the man youname. It is the style of a Saint Bernard, in wrath at the impiety of theage."
"Alas, my dear mother! if you only knew what a strange Saint Bernardthis Dumoulin is! But I will not offend your ears; all I can tell youis, that such defenders would compromise the most sacred cause. Adieu,my dear mother! pray redouble your precautions to-night--the return ofthis soldier is alarming."
"Be quite satisfied, my dear daughter! Oh! I forgot. Mdlle. Florinebegged me to ask you a favor. It is to let her enter your service. Youknow the fidelity she displayed in watching your unfortunate niece; Ithink that, by rewarding her in this way, you will attach her to youcompletely, and I shall feel grateful on her account."
"If you interest yourself the least in the world in Florine, my dearmother, the thing is done. I will take her into my service. And now itstrikes me, she may be more useful to me than I thought."
"A thousand thanks, my dear daughter, for such obliging attention to myrequest. I hope we shall soon meet again. The da
y after to-morrow, attwo o'clock, we have a long conference with his Eminence and the Bishop;do not forget!"
"No, my dear mother; I shall take care to be exact. Only, pray, redoubleyour precautions to-night for fear of a great scandal!"
After respectfully kissing the hand of the superior, the princesswent out by the great door, which led to an apartment opening on theprincipal staircase. Some minutes after, Florine entered the room byanother way. The superior was seated and Florine approached her withtimid humility.
"Did you meet the Princess de Saint-Dizier?" asked Mother SaintePerpetue.
"No, mother; I was waiting in the passage, where the windows look out onthe garden."
"The princess takes you into her service from to-day," said thesuperior.
Florine made a movement of sorrowful surprise, and exclaimed: "Me,mother! but--"
"I asked her in your name, and you have only to accept," answered theother imperiously.
"But, mother, I had entreated you--"
"I tell you, that you accept the offer," said the superior, in so firmand positive a tone that Florine cast down her eyes, and replied in alow voice: "I accept."
"It is in M. Rodin's name that I give you this order."
"I thought so, mother," replied Florine, sadly; "on what conditions am Ito serve the princess?"
"On the same conditions as those on which you served her niece."
Florine shuddered and said: "I am, then, to make frequent secret reportswith regard to the princess?"
"You will observe, you will remember, and you will give an account."
"Yes, my mother."
"You will above all direct your attention to the visits that theprincess may receive from the lady superior of the Sacred Heart. Youmust try and listen--for we have to preserve the princess from evilinfluences."
"I will obey, my mother."
"You will also try and discover why two young orphans have been broughthither, and recommended to be severely treated, by Madame Grivois, theconfidential waiting-woman of the princess."
"Yes, mother."
"Which must not prevent you from remembering anything else that may beworthy of remark. To-morrow I will give you particular instructions uponanother subject."
"It is well, mother."
"If you conduct yourself in a satisfactory manner, and executefaithfully the instructions of which I speak, you will soon leave theprincess to enter the service of a young bride; it will be an excellentand lasting situation always on the same conditions. It is, therefore,perfectly understood that you have asked me to recommend you to Madamede Saint Dizier."
"Yes, mother; I shall remember."
"Who is this deformed young girl that accompanies you?"
"A poor creature without any resources, very intelligent, and with aneducation above her class; she works at her needle, but is at presentwithout employment, and reduced to the last extremity. I have madeinquiries about her this morning; she has an excellent character."
"She is ugly and deformed, you say?"
"She has an interesting countenance, but she is deformed."
The superior appeared pleased at this information, and added, after amoment's reflection: "She appears intelligent?"
"Very intelligent."
"And is absolutely without resources?"
"Yes, without any."
"Is she pious?"
"She does not practice."
"No matter," said the superior to herself; "if she be intelligent, thatwill suffice." Then she resumed aloud. "Do you know if she is a goodworkwoman?"
"I believe so, mother."
The superior rose, took a register from a shelf, appeared to be lookinginto it attentively for some time, and then said, as she replaced it:"Fetch in this young girl, and go and wait for me in the press-room."
"Deformed--intelligent--clever at her needle," said the superior,reflecting; "she will excite no suspicion. We must see."
In about a minute, Florine returned with Mother Bunch, whom sheintroduced to the superior, and then discreetly withdrew. The youngsempstress was agitated, trembling, and much troubled, for she could, asit were, hardly believe a discovery which she had chanced to make duringFlorine's absence. It was not without a vague sense of terror that thehunchback remained alone with the lady superior.