The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1883-12-09
HONORE DE BALSAC.
A Glimpse Into the Life of
the Novelist.
L Fe" Remarks In Reference tc
France and China.
With a General Review of French
Facts and Fancies.
PARIS. November IA, 1883.

Ahlo, 4NOFOtup6E LIE 1000.
After honoring Dumas pere with a
bronze statue, the hat is now being
sent round to affect the same end for
another great novelist, but OF another
school-Honore de Balsac--a native
OF Tours, where be was born 10 1899,
dying in Paris, August 1850. Bslzao
received ss popular funeral as Lay
fayette, General de Foy, or B granger.
There is one side of Balzsc's chafac
ter generally left in the sha5e, bis
workings to success Smiles could
not produce more brilliant example
of "Selt Help Balzao vas an idle
boy at school and viewed as dunes.
Like so many other celebrities he vas
sent into notary's office-t2 DO got
rid of. There if he did 20. engross,
be learned good deal OF the cum
ming tricks of human nature
He had robust health and q fine
physical constitution, with massive
hesd not unlike Nero's. Franklin
observes, that TIE best Of working
tools is good health. Balzao bad just
completed his teens when be arrived
in Paris, and till 1880, soma nice
years. he lived, not in q garret, bat
the apartment over that, called 9
grenicr; his daily expenses amounting
to about half franc, three sous for
bread, three for mick. and the rest
for frewood and candles. He passed
his day in the public library OF the
Arsenal devouring BOOKS; IN the
evening be transcribed his notes, and
during the night, he took his walk
abroad, and so gained an insight 100
the depths of human depravity. He
tried to be publisher, printer and
type founder; he failed in ell. and
setdied himself with deb:s necesitat-
ing industrious applications 20 Jews
and gentiles, t. f. bis kites.
After Eis first novel ia 1880. he
commenced to earn money. He
worked eighteen hours q day: ne
never drank wine and be abstaiGed
from meat He adored fruit, fresh
bread and good water. Like Voitsne
be had passion for coffee, more to
keep him awake than as stimu
liant. That leverage shortened his
life. which ended by hypertrophy OF
the heart. Balzao shut himseli up
in his study for six to eight weeks Al
spell during the CESSATION OF novel;;
he closed the shutters and drew the
curtains, working wholly by the light
of four candles. He received no psr-
son, save the printers devil and the
bill broker. He was the terror OF the
printers; none would work longer al
bis copy than one hour, by rotation;
he corrected up to as many az twelve
proofs, all publishers informed him
that the printers bills were eating pp
I'll profits. Many OF his corrections
consisted in rewriting whole pages;
what copy he must have prodr ced
during the twenty years that be
brought out ninety seven volumes!
Balzac was rather silent man 10
company; he observed and noied,
rather than talked. After completing
story, he disappeared for time.
generally travelling in Russia, Italy
and Austria. In dress ne was eecen-
trio; ordinarily he appeared as pess-
ant. on recalling school hoy who
had outgrown his clothes. Next be
would shine as the most fashionable
man in town; kind OF walking col
lection of fashion plates and shop
window jewelry. In the house be
wore q white flannel dressing gown,
aud black velvet skull cap made by
his mother. Balzac had faith in hard
work, In his star; he counted on be-
coming suddenly rich. His day
Dream was realized. A wealthy
Polish lady at Geneva fell in love with
Balzsc after reading mis- Medecin de
Champagne. When she became
widow, in 1S4S, shs wed the author.
They travelled over the battle fields OF
Europe, TO collect notes for a work,
then settled down in a luxurious man.
sion in the Champs Elysees. Nothing
was,wanting in that ps latial residence;
every fancy of Balzac had been gratis
fed. Three months after the house
warming, Balzao was dead. It is in
the vicinity of that home the statue is
to be erected.
Balzao's school has now for repre-
sentative. Zola, and in q measured
degree, Dande.. The masters aim,
not ideal-tor he had none-was to
treat every vice as well as virtue, as
subject for art. He set himself to
paint the manners of the nineteenth
century, as Dante did those of the
thirteenth. A wit has described Ball
zao's writings. "a medical museum,
moral nature" Others dub him the
Secretary OF society" making an
inventory of its virtues and vices.
That inventory commences with Ser
ephita and ends with those dregs OF
dregs-the Marnets. He tears from
some an illusion, from others hope;
he rummages vice, dissects passion;
sounding and probing man in his
soul, heart, brain and entrdillss. This
microscopic and Photographic indus
try is called realism. It is the ma
terialistic muse, for such portraits are
mt bv a painter but an anatOmist;