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The Duchesse de Langeais-Part5_Honore de Balzac(1799-1850)_Translated Works(翻译文学)-第2页

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listen to his intellect. The national instinct which brings the

Frenchman to the front, the vanity that wastes his substance, is



as much a dominantpassion as thrift in the Dutch. For three

centuries it swayed the noblesse, who, in this respect, were



certainly pre-eminently French. The scion of the Faubourg

Saint-Germain, beholding his material superiority, was fully



persuaded of his intellectual" target="_blank" title="n.知识分子">intellectualsuperiority. And everything

contributed to confirm him in his belief; for ever since the



Faubourg Saint-Germain existed at all--which is to say, ever

since Versailles ceased to be the royal residence--the Faubourg,



with some few gaps in continuity, was always backed up by the

central power, which in France seldom fails to support that side.



Thence its downfall in 1830.

At that time the party of the Faubourg Saint-Germain was rather



like an army without a base of operation. It had utterly failed

to take advantage of the peace to plant itself in the heart of



the nation. It sinned for want of learning its lesson, and

through an utter incapability of regarding its interests as a



whole. A future certainty was sacrificed to a doubtful present

gain. This blunder in policy may perhaps be attributed to the



following cause.

The class-isolation so strenuously kept up by the noblesse



brought about fatal results during the last forty years; even

caste-patriotism was extinguished by it, and rivalry fostered



among themselves. When the French noblesse of other times were

rich and powerful, the nobles (gentilhommes) could choose their



chiefs and obey them in the hour of danger. As their power

diminished, they grew less amenable to discipline; and as in the



last days of the Byzantine Empire, everyone wished to be emperor.

They mistook their uniform weakness for uniform strength.



Each family ruined by the Revolution and the abolition of the law

of primogeniture thought only of itself, and not at all of the



great family of the noblesse. It seemed to them that as each

individual grew rich, the party as a whole would gain in



strength. And herein lay their mistake. Money, likewise, is

only the outward and visible sign of power. All these families



were made up of persons who preserved a high tradition of

courtesy, of true graciousness of life, of refined speech, with a



family pride, and a squeamish sense of noblesse oblige which

suited well with the kind of life they led; a life wholly filled



with occupations which become contemptible so soon as they cease

to be accessories and take the chief place in existence. There



was a certain intrinsic merit in all these people, but the merit

was on the surface, and none of them were worth their face-value.



Not a single one among those families had courage to ask itself

the question, "Are we strong enough for the responsibility of



power?" They were cast on the top, like the lawyers of 1830;

and instead of taking the patron's place, like a great man, the



Faubourg Saint-Germain showed itself greedy as an upstart. The

most intelligent nation in the world perceived clearly that the



restored nobles were organising everything for their own

particular benefit. From that day the noblesse was doomed. The



Faubourg Saint-Germain tried to be an aristocracy when it could

only be an oligarchy--two very different systems, as any man may



see for himself if he gives an intelligent perusal to the list of

the patronymics of the House of Peers.



The King's Government certainly meant well; but the maxim that

the people must be made to WILL everything, even their own



welfare, was pretty constantly forgotten, nor did they bear in

mind that La France is a woman and capricious, and must be happy



or chastised at her own good pleasure. If there had been many

dukes like the Duc de Laval, whose modesty made him worthy of the






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