Part 1 (1/2)

Victor Hugo: His Life and Works

by G Barnett San this study of Victor Hugo in Deceereat poet has now passed away, and this raphical portion of the present voluinally anticipated Notwithstanding the multitude of criticiso's works, this is the only book which relates the full story of his life, and now traces to its close his literary career

More than twenty years have elapsed since the publication of Madao's memorials of the earlier portion of the poet's history, and since that time M Barbou's work (excellently translated by Miss Frewer) is the only narrative of a biographical character which has appeared The writings of various French and English critics, the torks I have named, and those valuable chroniclers, the journals of London and Paris, have been of considerable service to raphy now offered to the public

The writings of Victor Hugo are so varied and lish readers, that I have not deemed it necessary to subject them to a detailed analysis At the same time, the reader unfaather soes As they have iinality, I thought that it would not be without its value if, while venturing to record ave at the same time a representation of critical contemporary opinion upon them Finally, it has been my object to present to the reader, within reasonable compass, a complete survey of the life and work of the most celebrated Frenchman of the nineteenth century

G BARNETT SMITH

HIGHGATE, LONDON, N, _June 3rd, 1885_

CHAPTER I

EARLY YEARS

The glory of France touched its zenith at the period when our narrative opens Europe virtually lay at the feet of Napoleon, who had risen to a height of authority and pohichaes of antiquity treirt isle of Britain, declined to bend the knee to the all-conquering First Consul Yet the philosophicthat the stability of a nation or a throne rowth, randeur and a greatness thus rapidly achieved And speedily would such prevision have been justified, for in little more than one brief decade the sun of Napoleon set as suddenly as it arose

But while as yet the fame and the splendour of the conqueror were in their noonday, there was born at Besancon another child of genius, whose triumphs were to be won in a different and a nobler sphere He was destined to touch, as with Ithuriel's spear, the sleeping spirit of French poesy, and to aniour, and enthusiasion of classicisinative literature, he was hiain the triple crown of poet, romancist, and drao to grow into reat apostle of liberty, and as his life opened with the triumphs of the first Napoleon, so before its close he was destined to behold the last of that name pass away in the ind, and France recover is of the Republic, of which the poet sang and for which he laboured

The ancestry of Victor Hugo were not undistinguished Docu thee of Nancy, but since that tio, a soldier, who obtained in 1535 letters patent of nobility for himself and his descendants from Cardinal Jean de Lorraine, Archbishop of Rheims, which letters were subsequently confirmed by the Cardinal's brother, Antoine, Duke of Lorraine The fifth descendant froo, obtained new letters patent; and his grandson, Joseph Leopold Sigisbert, was the father of the poet In the seventeenth century, a o family was known both in the Church and in literature, and became Abbe of Estival and Bishop of Ptolehteenth century, Louis Antoine Hugo, was a member of the Convention, and was executed for moderatism

Thus in career, as in character, there was o, who entered the army as a cadet in 1788, ultimately attained the rank of General under the First Eh the hereditary title of Count was the appanage of this rank, he never took it up While brave and fearless in war, he is represented as being devotion and goodness personified, and humane to a fault 'He set his children a fine exa ever their instructor in the paths of honour' During a period of military service at Nantes, he becahter of a wealthy shi+powner An attach up between the been summoned thither as reporter to the first council of war on the Seine

Though the grandfather of Victor Hugo on the ed to an old family, and one famous in La Vendee for its devotion to the Royalist cause A cousin of Madao was the Count de Chasseboeuf, better known as Volney, the author of _Les Ruines_; and another cousin was Count Cornet, as very pro the First Eo and his wife, and then they looked forith hope to the birth of a daughter, whom it was decided to name Victorine

Another son, however, came instead, and one so weakly and diainst his chances of life The babe was taken to thebeen born on the 26th of February, 1802 He received the nao's intimate friend, General Lahorie, chief of the staff to General Moreau It has been pointed out that the word Hugo in old German was the equivalent of the Latin word _spiritus_, and this fact, combined with the Christian name of Victor, caused Duo stands forth as the conquering spirit, the triumphant soul, the breath of victory'

But for soe of triuuid and ailing in body, he became unusually sad for a child of such tender years, and 'was so silently without any reason' He afterwards described his untoward childhood in the opening lines of the _Feuilles d'Autoo fas; but when Major Hugo was ultimately ordered to join the ar children in Paris, in the Rue de Clichy That the youngest scion of the house could not really have been as feeble and frail as he looked, and that he ood, sound constitution, is proved by his long life; but we reat care and assiduous attention lavished upon him by his mother His career furnishes another illustration of the truth that while the looenius also not infrequently advances fro spark to a noble flath

Major (afterwards General) Hugo rendered conspicuous service in Italy by the capture of the notorious bandit chief, Fra Diavolo, and the pacification of Naples For these acts he was made Colonel of Royal Corsica and Governor of Avellino When not quite five years old Victor was taken by his ene, to Avellino, and the journey to Italy is associated with his first observations of natural scenery Though so young, his iination was fired by all he saw, and the impressions he formed were very distinct--so much so that in after life he would discuss with Alexandre Duh which he had travelled in his childhood

In 1808 Colonel Hugo was sent to Madrid in the train of Joseph Bonaparte; but, as Spain was disturbed by war, he would not hazard the presence of his wife and children in that country Madaly went to Paris, and established herself at the house No 12, in the Impasse des Feuillantines, where she now devoted herself to the education of her children Late in life, Victor Hugo described the household in the Feuillantines Near by there was an aged priest, who acted as tutor to the boys, teaching the of Greek, and the barest outlines of history In the gardens, and ao boys passed ether in their work and in their play, rough-hewing their lives regardless of destiny, they passed their ti, mindful only of their books, of the trees, and of the clouds, listening to the tumultuous chorus of the birds, but watched over incessantly by one sweet and loving ss on thee, O my mother!' was the invocation of the poet in his later years

Once the family received an accession in the person of General Lahorie, who had been connected with Moreau's conspiracy, and was condeo, in her secluded dwelling, and in a little chapel buried ahteen er in whoat an equal interest, was his Godfather Lahorie took kindly to the boy, and frequently conversed with hireat i must yield to liberty!' The precautions of Lahorie and his friends were in the end of no avail In 1811 he was arrested at the Feuillantines, tried and condemned by court-martial, and shot on the plain of Grenelle Napoleon was iht sleep, but it was never allowed to die

Another visitor to the Feuillantines was General Louis Hugo, uncle to the youths With that strong poetic iery which characterized him, little Victor said that the entrance of his uncle into the salon 'had on us the effect of the Archangel Michael appearing on a beaht'

The visitor came at the request of his brother to hasten the departure of the fao were informed by their mother that they must learn Spanish, and just as they would have performed much more iuage in the course of a feeeks

In the spring of 1811, Madaan their journey into Spain At Bayonne they had to await a convoy for Madrid Here the travellers paid several visits to the theatre, which made a deep i perhaps, was not so deep as that hter of a ho seems to have quite captivated the boy He afterwards referred to this attachht of dawn bears to the full blaze of day But he never saw again the youthful _ina heart'

The dilatory progress of the convoy to Madrid, though irksohted in observing the features of the scenery and the towns through which they passed With Ernani he was especially pleased, and subsequently gave to one of his dramas the name of this town After a nu character, the convoy entered Madrid, and Madao and her family were accommodated at the palace of Prince Masserano Their rooms and all the appointreat display of Bohenificent China vases Concerning the latter, Victor Hugo said that he had 'never since met with any so ree to King Joseph, and it was intended that Victor hiene and Victor were placed in the Se which affected them deeply, and made them inexpressibly miserable after the happiness they had found in the Masserano Palace