the ‘Tribune’ and others, Cerizet, who is a worthy fellow after all, though he is too fond of women, pleasure, and good living, was very useful to Theodose, who edited the political department of the paper; and if it hadn’t been for the death of Casimir Perier that young man would certainly have received an appointment as substitute judge in Paris.  As it was, he dropped back in 1834-35, in spite of his talent; for his connection with a ministerial journal of course did him harm.  ’If it had not been for my religious principles,’ he said to me, ’I should have thrown myself into the Seine.’  However, it seems that the friend of his uncle must have heard of his distress, for again he sent him a sum of money; enough to complete his terms for the bar; but, strange to say, he has never known the name or the address of this mysterious benefactor.  After all, perhaps, under such circumstances, his economy is excusable, and he must have great strength of mind to refuse what the poor devils whose cases he wins by his devotion offer him.  He is indignant at the way other lawyers speculate on the possibility or impossibility of poor creatures, unjustly sued, paying for the costs of their defence.  Oh! he’ll succeed in the end.  I shouldn’t be surprised to see that fellow in some very brilliant position; he has tenacity, honesty, and courage.  He studies, he delves.”

Notwithstanding the favor with which he was greeted, la Peyrade went discreetly to the Thuilliers’.  When reproached for this reserve he went oftener, and ended by appearing every Sunday; he was invited to all dinner-parties, and became at last so familiar in the house that whenever he came to see Thuillier about four o’clock he was always requested to take “pot-luck” without ceremony.  Mademoiselle Thuillier used to say:—­

“Then we know that he will get a good dinner, poor fellow!”

A social phenomenon which has certainly been observed, but never, as yet, formulated, or, if you like it better, published, though it fully deserves to be recorded, is the return of habits, mind, and manners to primitive conditions in certain persons who, between youth and old age, have raised themselves above their first estate.  Thus Thuillier had become, once more, morally speaking, the son of a concierge.  He now made use of many of his father’s jokes, and a little of the slime of early days was beginning to appear on the surface of his declining life.  About five or six times a month, when the soup was rich and good he would deposit his spoon in his empty plate and say, as if the proposition were entirely novel:—­

“That’s better than a kick on the shin-bone!”

On hearing that witticism for the first time Theodose, to whom it was really new, laughed so heartily that the handsome Thuillier was tickled in his vanity as he had never been before.  After that, Theodose greeted the same speech with a knowing little smile.  This slight detail will explain how it was that on the morning of the day when Theodose had his passage at arms with Vinet he had said to Thuillier, as they were walking in the garden to see the effect of a frost:—­