The Immortals: Masterpieces of Fiction, Crowned by the French Academy — Complete

THE ABBE CONSTANTIN THE ABBE CONSTANTIN By Ludovic Halevy BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. THE SALE OF LONGUEVAL CHAPTER II. THE NEW CHATELAINE CHAPTER III. DELIGHTFUL SURPRISES BOOK 2. CHAPTER IV. A RIOT OF CHARITY CHAPTER V. THE FAIR AMERICANS CHAPTER VI. A LITTLE DINNER FOR FOUR BOOK 3. CHAPTER VII. CONFIDENCES CHAPTER VIII. ANOTHER MARTYR TO MILLIONS CHAPTER IX. THE REWARD OF TENDER COURAGE A ROMANCE OF YOUTH By Francois Coppee BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. ON THE BALCONY CHAPTER II. SAD CHANGES CHAPTER III. PAPA AND MAMMA GERARD CHAPTER IV. THE DEMON ABSINTHE BOOK 2. CHAPTER V. AMEDEE MAKES FRIENDS CHAPTER VI. DREAMS OF LOVE CHAPTER VII. A GENTLE COUNSELLOR CHAPTER VIII. BUTTERFLIES AND GRASSHOPPERS CHAPTER IX. THORNS OF JEALOUSY CHAPTER X. A BUDDING POET BOOK 3. CHAPTER XI. SUCCESS CHAPTER XII. SOCIAL TRIUMPHS CHAPTER XIII. A SERPENT AT THE FIRESIDE BOOK 4. CHAPTER XIV. TOO LATE! CHAPTER XV. REPARATION CHAPTER XVI. IN TIME OF WAR CHAPTER XVII. "WHEN YOUTH, THE DREAM, DEPARTS" COSMOPOLIS By Paul Bourget BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. A DILETTANTE AND A BELIEVER CHAPTER II. THE BEGINNING OF A DRAMA CHAPTER III. BOLESLAS GORKA BOOK 2. CHAPTER IV. APPROACHING DANGER CHAPTER V. COUNTESS STENO CHAPTER VI. THE INCONSISTENCY OF AN OLD CHOUAN BOOK 3. CHAPTER VII. A LITTLE RELATIVE OF IAGO CHAPTER VIII. ON THE GROUND BOOK 4. CHAPTER IX. LUCID ALBA CHAPTER X. COMMON MISERY CHAPTER XI. THE LAKE DI PORTO CHAPTER XII. EPILOGUE JACQUELINE By (Mme. Blanc) Therese Bentzon BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. A PARISIENNE'S "AT HOME" CHAPTER II. A CLEVER STEPMOTHER CHAPTER III. THE FRIEND OF THE FAY CHAPTER IV. A DANGEROUS MODEL CHAPTER V. SURPRISES CHAPTER VI. A CONVENT FLOWER BOOK 2. CHAPTER VII. THE BLUE BAND CHAPTER VIII. A PUZZLING CORRESPONDENCE CHAPTER IX. BEAUTY AT THE FAIR CHAPTER X. GISELLE'S CONSOLATION CHAPTER XI. FRED ASKS A QUESTION CHAPTER XII. A COMEDY AND A TRAGEDY CHAPTER XIII. THE STORM BREAKS BOOK 3. CHAPTER XIV. BITTER DISILLUSION CHAPTER XV. TREACHEROUS KINDNESS CHAPTER XVI. THE SAILOR'S RETURN CHAPTER XVII. TWIN DEVILS CHAPTER XVIII. "AN AFFAIR OF HONOR" CHAPTER XIX. GENTLE CONSPIRATORS CHAPTER XX. A CHIVALROUS SOUL THE INK STAIN (Tache d'Encre) By Rene Bazin BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. THE ACCIDENT CHAPTER II. THE JUNIAN LATINS CHAPTER III. AN APOLOGY CHAPTER IV. THE STORY OF SYLVESTRE CHAPTER V. A FRUITLESS SEARCH CHAPTER VI. THE FLOWER-SHOW CHAPTER VII. A WOODLAND SKETCH BOOK 2. CHAPTER VIII. JOY AND MADNESS CHAPTER IX. A VISIT FROM MY UNCLE CHAPTER X. A FAMILY BREACH CHAPTER XI. IN THE BEATEN PATH CHAPTER XII. I GO TO ITALY CHAPTER XIII. STARTLING NEWS FROM SYLVESTRE CHAPTER XIV. A SURPRISING ENCOUNTER BOOK 3. CHAPTER XV. BACK TO PARIS CHAPTER XVI. A FISHING-TRIP AND AN OLD FRIEND CHAPTER XVII. PLEASURES OF EAVESDROPPING CHAPTER XVIII. A COOL RECEPTION CHAPTER XIX. JEANNE THE ENCHANTRESS CHAPTER XX. A HAPPY FAMILY FROMONT AND RISLER By Alphonse Daudet BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. A WEDDING-PARTY AT THE CAFE VEFOUR CHAPTER II. LITTLE CHEBE'S STORY CHAPTER III. THE FALSE PEARLS CHAPTER IV. THE GLOW-WORMS OF SAVIGNY CHAPTER V. HOW LITTLE CHEBE'S STORY ENDED CHAPTER VI. NOON—THE MARAIS IS BREAKFASTING BOOK 2. CHAPTER VII. THE TRUE PEARL AND THE FALSE CHAPTER VIII. THE BREWERY ON THE RUE BLONDEL CHAPTER IX. AT SAVIGNY CHAPTER X. SIGISMOND PLANUS TREMBLES FOR HIS CASH-BOX CHAPTER XI. THE INVENTORY CHAPTER XII. A LETTER CHAPTER XIII. THE JUDGE BOOK 3. CHAPTER XIV. EXPLANATION CHAPTER XV. POOR LITTLE MAM'ZELLE ZIZI CHAPTER XVI. THE WAITING-ROOM CHAPTER XVII. AN ITEM OF NEWS CHAPTER XVIII. SHE PROMISED NOT TO TRY AGAIN CHAPTER XIX. APPROACHING CLOUDS CHAPTER XX. REVELATIONS BOOK 4. CHAPTER XXI. THE DAY OF RECKONING CHAPTER XXII. THE NEW EMPLOYEE OF THE HOUSE OF FROMONT CHAPTER XXIII. CAFE CHANTANT CHAPTER XXIV. SIDONIE'S VENGEANCE GERFAUT By Charles de Bernard BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. THE TRAVELLER CHAPTER II. THE CASTLE OF BERGENHEIM CHAPTER III. A DIVIDED HOUSEHOLD CHAPTER IV. THE GALLANT IN THE GARDEN CHAPTER V. ART AND MUSIC BOOK 2. CHAPTER VI. GERFAUT'S STORY CHAPTER VII. GERFAUT ASKS A FAVOR CHAPTER VIII. A LOVER'S RUSE CHAPTER IX. GERFAUT, THE WIZARD CHAPTER X. PLOTS CHAPTER XI. A QUARREL CHAPTER XII. AN INHARMONIOUS MUSICALE BOOK 3. CHAPTER XIII. MONSIEUR DE BERGENHEIM CHAPTER XIV. GERFAUT'S ALLEGORY CHAPTER XV. DECLARATION OF WAR CHAPTER XVI. GERFAUT WINS A POINT CHAPTER XVII. A RUDE INTERRUPTION CHAPTER XVIII. ESPIONAGE CHAPTER XIX. THE REVELATION BOOK 4. CHAPTER XX. MARILLAC TELLS A STORY CHAPTER XXI. A STRATAGEM CHAPTER XXII. THE CRISIS CHAPTER XXIII. THE AGREEMENT CHAPTER XXIV. A FRIEND'S ADVICE CHAPTER XXV. THE WILD BOAR CHAPTER XXVI. BERGENHEIM'S REVENGE CONSCIENCE By Hector Malot BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. THE REUNION CHAPTER II. THE RICH MAN'S REFUSAL CHAPTER III. A LAST RESORT CHAPTER IV. 'TWIXT THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP SEA CHAPTER V. A CHARMING VISITOR CHAPTER VI. A SWEET CONSOLER CHAPTER VII. A LITTLE DINNER FOR TWO CHAPTER VIII. EXPLANATIONS CHAPTER IX. CAFFIE'S ANSWER CHAPTER X. SANIEL MAKES A RESOLUTION BOOK 2. CHAPTER XI. THE INSTRUMENT OF DEATH CHAPTER XII. THE CRUCIAL MOMENT CHAPTER XIII. DISTRACTION CHAPTER XIV. THE EXAMINATION CHAPTER XV. A NEW PLAN CHAPTER XVI. THE SMILES OF FORTUNE CHAPTER XVII. PHILLIS'S FEARS CHAPTER XVIII. A GRAVE DISCUSSION CHAPTER XIX. THE KNOCK AT THE DOOR CHAPTER XX. A TIGHTENING CHAIN CHAPTER XXI. "REGARDING THE CAFFIE AFFAIR" CHAPTER XXII. NOUGAREDE'S BRIDE CHAPTER XXIII. STUNNING NEWS BOOK 3. CHAPTER XXIV. HEDGING CHAPTER XXV. DANGEROUS DETAILS CHAPTER XXVI. A GOOD MEMORY CHAPTER XXVII. A NEW PERIL CHAPTER XXVIII. SANIEL VISITS A BARBER CHAPTER XXIX. A BROKEN NEGATIVE CHAPTER XXX. PHILLIS PRECIPITATES MATTERS CHAPTER XXXI. THE APPOINTMENT CHAPTER XXXII. THE FATAL LIGHT CHAPTER XXXIII. SUSPENSE CHAPTER XXXIV. ON THE RACK CHAPTER XXXV. A SECOND VICTIM BOOK 4. CHAPTER XXXVI. CONSCIENCE ASSERTS ITSELF CHAPTER XXXVII. ATTEMPTED REPARATION CHAPTER XXXVIII. THE IMPORTANT QUESTION CHAPTER XXXIX. CONCESSION TO CONSCIENCE CHAPTER XL. PHILLIS IS SURPRISED CHAPTER XLI. A TROUBLED SOUL CHAPTER XLII. THE POWER OF HYPNOTISM CHAPTER XLIII. THE TERRIBLE REVELATION CHAPTER XLIV. AFTER LONG YEARS MADAME CHRYSANTHEME By Pierre Loti BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. THE MYSTERIOUS LAND CHAPTER II. STRANGE SCENES CHAPTER III. THE GARDEN OF FLOWERS CHAPTER IV. CHOOSING A BRIDE CHAPTER V. A FANTASTIC MARRIAGE CHAPTER VI. MY NEW MENAGE CHAPTER VII. THE LADIES OF THE FANS CHAPTER VIII. THE NECESSARY VEIL CHAPTER IX. MY PLAYTHING CHAPTER X. NOCTURNAL TERRORS CHAPTER XI. A GAME OF ARCHERY BOOK 2. CHAPTER XII. HAPPY FAMILIES! CHAPTER XIII. OUR "VERY TALL FRIEND" CHAPTER XIV. OUR PIOUS HOSTS CHAPTER XV. CHAPTER XVI. SLEEPING JAPAN CHAPTER XVII. THE SONG OF THE CICALA CHAPTER XVIII. MY FRIEND AND MY DOLL CHAPTER XIX. MY JAPANESE RELATIVES CHAPTER XX. A DEAD FAIRY CHAPTER XXI. ANCIENT TOMBS CHAPTER XXII. DAINTY DISHES FOR A DOLL CHAPTER XXIII. A FANTASTIC FUNERAL CHAPTER XXIV. SOCIABILITY CHAPTER XXV. UNWELCOME GUESTS CHAPTER XXVI. A QUIET SMOKE CHAPTER XXVII. THE PRAYERFUL MADAME PRUNE CHAPTER XXVIII. A DOLL'S CORRESPONDENCE CHAPTER XXIX. SUDDEN SHOWERS CHAPTER XXX. A LITTLE DOMESTIC DIFFICULTY CHAPTER XXXI. BUTTERFLIES AND BEETLES CHAPTER XXXII. STRANGE YEARNINGS CHAPTER XXXIII. A GENEROUS HUSBAND BOOK 3. CHAPTER XXXIV. THE FEAST OF THE TEMPLE CHAPTER XXXV. THROUGH A MICROSCOPE CHAPTER XXXVI. MY NAUGHTY DOLL CHAPTER XXXVII. COMPLICATIONS CHAPTER XXXVIII. THE HEIGHT OF SOCIABILITY! CHAPTER XXXIX. A LADY OF JAPAN CHAPTER XL. OUR FRIENDS THE BONZES CHAPTER XLI. AN UNEXPECTED CALL CHAPTER XLII. AN ORIENTAL VISION CHAPTER XLIII. THE CATS AND THE DOLLS CHAPTER XLIV. TENDER MINISTRATIONS CHAPTER XLV. TWO FAIR ARISTOCRATS CHAPTER XLVI. GRAVE SUSPICIONS BOOK 4. CHAPTER XLVII. A MIDNIGHT ALARM CHAPTER XLVIII. UNUSUAL HOSPITALITY CHAPTER XLIX. RUMORS OF DEPARTURE CHAPTER L. A DOLLS' DUET CHAPTER LI. THE LAST DAY CHAPTER LII. "FAREWELL!" CHAPTER LIII. OFF FOR CHINA CHAPTER LIV. A FADING PICTURE CHAPTER LV. A WITHERED LOTUS-FLOWER AN "ATTIC" PHILOSOPHER (Un Philosophe sous les Toits) By Emile Souvestre BOOK 1. CHAPTER I. NEW-YEAR'S GIFTS CHAPTER II. THE CARNIVAL CHAPTER III. WHAT WE MAY LEARN BY LOOKING OUT OF WINDOW CHAPTER IV. LET US LOVE ONE ANOTHER CHAPTER V. COMPENSATION BOOK 2. CHAPTER VI. UNCLE MAURICE CHAPTER VII. THE PRICE OF POWER AND THE WORTH OF FAME CHAPTER VIII. MISANTHROPY AND REPENTANCE CHAPTER IX. THE FAMILY OF MICHAEL AROUT BOOK 3. CHAPTER X. OUR COUNTRY CHAPTER XI. MORAL USE OF INVENTORIES CHAPTER XII. THE END OF THE YEAR GENERAL INTRODUCTION 1905 BY ROBERT ARNOT The editor-in-chief of the Maison Mazarin—a man of letters who cherishes an enthusiastic yet discriminating love for the literary and artistic glories of France—formed within the last two years the great project of collecting and presenting to the vast numbers of intelligent readers of whom New World boasts a series of those great and undying romances which, since 1784, have received the crown of merit awarded by the French Academy—that coveted assurance of immortality in letters and in art. In the presentation of this serious enterprise for the criticism and official sanction of The Academy, 'en seance', was included a request that, if possible, the task of writing a preface to the series should be undertaken by me. Official sanction having been bestowed upon the plan, I, as the accredited officer of the French Academy, convey to you its hearty appreciation, endorsement, and sympathy with a project so nobly artistic. It is also my duty, privilege, and pleasure to point out, at the request of my brethren, the peculiar importance and lasting value of this series to all who would know the inner life of a people whose greatness no turns of fortune have been able to diminish. In the last hundred years France has experienced the most terrible vicissitudes, but, vanquished or victorious, triumphant or abased, never has she lost her peculiar gift of attracting the curiosity of the world. She interests every living being, and even those who do not love her desire to know her. To this peculiar attraction which radiates from her, artists and men of letters can well bear witness, since it is to literature and to the arts, before all, that France owes such living and lasting power. In every quarter of the civilized world there are distinguished writers, painters, and eminent musicians, but in France they exist in greater numbers than elsewhere. Moreover, it is universally conceded that French writers and artists have this particular and praiseworthy quality: they are most accessible to people of other countries. Without losing their national characteristics, they possess the happy gift of universality. To speak of letters alone: the books that Frenchmen write are read, translated, dramatized, and imitated everywhere; so it is not strange that these books give to foreigners a desire for a nearer and more intimate acquaintance with France. Men preserve an almost innate habit of resorting to Paris from almost every quarter of the globe. For many years American visitors have been more numerous than others, although the journey from the United States is long and costly. But I am sure that when for the first time they see Paris—its palaces, its churches, its museums—and visit Versailles, Fontainebleau, and Chantilly, they do not regret the travail they have undergone. Meanwhile, however, I ask myself whether such sightseeing is all that, in coming hither, they wish to accomplish. Intelligent travellers—and, as a rule, it is the intelligent class that feels the need of the educative influence of travel—look at our beautiful monuments, wander through the streets and squares among the crowds that fill them, and, observing them, I ask myself again: Do not such people desire to study at closer range these persons who elbow them as they pass; do they not wish to enter the houses of which they see but the facades; do they not wish to know how Parisians live and speak and act by their firesides? But time, alas! is lacking for the formation of those intimate friendships which would bring this knowledge within their grasp. French homes are rarely open to birds of passage, and visitors leave us with regret that they have not been able to see more than the surface of our civilization or to recognize by experience the note of our inner home life. How, then, shall this void be filled? Speaking in the first person, the simplest means appears to be to study those whose profession it is to describe the society of the time, and primarily, therefore, the works of dramatic writers, who are supposed to draw a faithful picture of it. So we go to the theatre, and usually derive keen pleasure therefrom. But is pleasure all that we expect to find? What we should look for above everything in a comedy or a drama is a representation, exact as possible, of the manners and characters of the dramatis persona of the play; and perhaps the conditions under which the play was written do not allow such representation. The exact and studied portrayal of a character demands from the author long preparation, and cannot be accomplished in a few hours. From, the first scene to the last, each tale must be posed in the author's mind exactly as it will be proved to be at the end. It is the author's aim and mission to place completely before his audience the souls of the "agonists" laying bare the complications of motive, and throwing into relief the delicate shades of motive that sway them. Often, too, the play is produced before a numerous audience—an audience often distrait, always pressed for time, and impatient of the least delay. Again, the public in general require that they shall be able to understand without difficulty, and at first thought, the characters the author seeks to present, making it necessary that these characters be depicted from their most salient sides—which are too often vulgar and unattractive. In our comedies and dramas it is not the individual that is drawn, but the type. Where the individual alone is real, the type is a myth of the imagination—a pure invention. And invention is the mainspring of the theatre, which rests purely upon illusion, and does not please us unless it begins by deceiving us. I believe, then, that if one seeks to know the world exactly as it is, the theatre does not furnish the means whereby one can pursue the study. A far better opportunity for knowing the private life of a people is available through the medium of its great novels. The novelist deals with each person as an individual. He speaks to his reader at an hour when the mind is disengaged from worldly affairs, and he can add without restraint every detail that seems needful to him to complete the rounding of his story. He can return at will, should he choose, to the source of the plot he is unfolding, in order that his reader may better understand him; he can emphasize and dwell upon those details which an audience in a theatre will not allow. The reader, being at leisure, feels no impatience, for he knows that he can at any time lay down or take up the book. It is the consciousness of this privilege that gives him patience, should he encounter a dull page here or there. He may hasten or delay his reading, according to the interest he takes in his romance-nay, more, he can return to the earlier pages, should he need to do so, for a better comprehension of some obscure point. In proportion as he is attracted and interested by the romance, and also in the degree of concentration with which he reads it, does he grasp better the subtleties of the narrative. No shade of character drawing escapes him. He realizes, with keener appreciation, the most delicate of human moods, and the novelist is not compelled to introduce the characters to him, one by one, distinguishing them only by the most general characteristics, but can describe each of those little individual idiosyncrasies that contribute to the sum total of a living personality. When I add that the dramatic author is always to a certain extent a slave to the public, and must ever seek to please the passing taste of his time, it will be recognized that he is often, alas! compelled to sacrifice his artistic leanings to popular caprice-that is, if he has the natural desire that his generation should applaud him. As a rule, with the theatre-going masses, one person follows the fads or fancies of others, and individual judgments are too apt to be irresistibly swayed by current opinion. But the novelist, entirely independent of his reader, is not compelled to conform himself to the opinion of any person, or to submit to his caprices. He is absolutely free to picture society as he sees it, and we therefore can have more confidence in his descriptions of the customs and characters of the day. It is precisely this view of the case that the editor of the series has taken, and herein is the raison d'etre of this collection of great French romances. The choice was not easy to make. That form of literature called the romance abounds with us. France has always loved it, for French writers exhibit a curiosity—and I may say an indiscretion—that is almost charming in the study of customs and morals at large; a quality that induces them to talk freely of themselves and of their neighbors, and to set forth fearlessly both the good and the bad in human nature. In this fascinating phase of literature, France never has produced greater examples than of late years. In the collection here presented to American readers will be found those works especially which reveal the intimate side of French social life-works in which are discussed the moral problems that affect most potently the life of the world at large. If inquiring spirits seek to learn the customs and manners of the France of any age, they must look for it among her crowned romances. They need go back no farther than Ludovic Halevy, who may be said to open the modern epoch. In the romantic school, on its historic side, Alfred de Vigny must be looked upon as supreme. De Musset and Anatole France may be taken as revealing authoritatively the moral philosophy of nineteenth-century thought. I must not omit to mention the Jacqueline of Th. Bentzon, and the "Attic" Philosopher of Emile Souvestre, nor the great names of Loti, Claretie, Coppe, Bazin, Bourget, Malot, Droz, De Massa, and last, but not least, our French Dickens, Alphonse Daudet. I need not add more; the very names of these "Immortals" suffice to commend the series to readers in all countries. One word in conclusion: America may rest assured that her students of international literature will find in this series of 'ouvrages couronnes' all that they may wish to know of France at her own fireside—a knowledge that too often escapes them, knowledge that embraces not only a faithful picture of contemporary life in the French provinces, but a living and exact description of French society in modern times. They may feel certain that when they have read these romances, they will have sounded the depths and penetrated into the hidden intimacies of France, not only as she is, but as she would be known. GASTON BOISSIER SECRETAIRE PERPETUEL DE L'ACADEMIE FRANCAISE

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