The misfortune that implacably dogged his family gave Victorin the last touch that perfects or demoralizes a man. He was perfected. In the great storms of life we imitate the sea-captains who, in a hurricane, lighten the ship by throwing heavy cargo overboard.
The lawyer lost his personal arrogance, his obvious self-assurance, and his oratorical pomposity. In short, he became as a man what his mother was as a woman. He resolved to make the best of his Célestine, who, to be sure, was not the realization of his dreams, and he adopted a sound view of life, appreciating that its universal law obliges us to put up with the less than perfect in everything.
He vowed then to fulfil all his duties, so appalled was he by his father’s behaviour. These feelings were reinforced at his mother’s bedside on the day that her life ceased to be in danger.
This first stroke of good fortune did not come alone.
Claude Vignon, who came every day on behalf of the Prince de Wissembourg to enquire after Madame Hulot’s health, asked the re-elected deputy to go with him to see the Minister.
‘His Excellency wants to discuss your family affairs with you,’ he said.
The Minister had known Victorin Hulot for a long time, and so received him with characteristic cordiality that augured well.
‘My dear boy,’ said the old warrior, ‘I vowed to your uncle, the Marshal, in this very room, to take care of your mother. That saintly woman, I’m told is on the road to recovery. The time has come to dress your wounds. I have two hundred thousand francs here for you which I’m going to give you.’
The lawyer made a gesture worthy of his uncle the Marshal.
‘Set your mind at rest,’ said the Prince with a smile. ‘It’s money left in trust. My days are numbered; I shan’t be here for ever, so take the money and stand in for me in the bosom of your family. You can use the money to pay off the mortgages on your house. These two hundred thousand francs belong to your mother and sister. If I were to give that money to Madame Hulot, I fear that her devotion to her husband would lead her to waste it, and the intention of those who return it is that it should provide for the maintenance of Madame Hulot and her daughter, the Comtesse de Steinbock. You are a virtuous man, the worthy son of your noble mother, the true nephew of my friend the Marshal. You are warmly appreciated here, my dear boy, as well as elsewhere. So be your family’s guardian angel; accept this legacy from your uncle and from me.’
‘Monseigneur,’ said Hulot, taking the Minister’s hand and pressing it, ‘men like you know that words of thanks are meaningless; gratitude is proved by deeds.’
‘Prove yours,’ said the old soldier.
‘What must I do?’
‘Accept my proposals,’ said the Minister. ‘We want to give you a legal appointment in the War Ministry, which, in the engineering section, is overburdened with litigation arising from the Paris fortifications. We’d also like to appoint you as consultant lawyer to the Prefecture of Police and adviser to the Civil List Board. These three appointments will give you a salary of eighteen thousand francs and will not deprive you of your independence. You will still be able to vote in the Chamber according to your political views and your conscience. Act quite freely as far as that’s concerned. We’d be very put out if we didn’t have a national opposition! And lastly, a note from your uncle, written a few hours before he breathed his last, indicated to me what I should do to help your mother, whom the Marshal was very fond of. Mesdames Popinot, de Rastignac, de Navarreins, d’Espard, de Grandlieu, de Carigliano, de Lenoncourt, and de la Bâtie have created a post of Superintendent of Charities for your dear mother. These ladies, presidents of charitable societies, cannot do everything themselves. They need a reliable lady who can actively supplement their work, visit the unfortunate, find out if the charity has been misapplied, make sure that help has been properly given to those who have asked for it, seek out poor people who are too proud to ask for help, etc. Your mother will fulfil the mission of a good angel. She will have contact only with the parish priests and the charitable ladies. Her salary will be six thousand francs a year and her carriages will be paid for. You see, young man, that, from beyond the grave, a pure, honourable, and upright man can still look after his family. Names such as your uncle’s are and ought to be a shield against misfortune in a well-organized society. Follow in your uncle’s footsteps; continue steadfastly on that road, for you have started on it already, I know.’
‘Such consideration, Prince, does not surprise me in my uncle’s friend,’ said Victorin. ‘I shall try to live up to all your expectations.’
‘Go right away and bring comfort to your family. Oh, by the way,’ the Prince added, as he shook hands with Victorin, ‘is it true that your father has disappeared?’
‘Alas, yes.’
‘So much the better. The unhappy man showed intelligence in that, a quality, incidentally, he never lacked.’
‘He’s afraid of bills of exchange he can’t pay.’
‘Oh, you’ll get six months’ salary in advance from your new appointments. This payment in advance will no doubt help you to redeem these bills from the money-lender’s hands. In any case, I’ll see Nucingen and I may be able to free your father’s pension without its costing you or my Ministry a farthing. The peer of France hasn’t killed the banker; Nucingen is insatiable and he’ll ask for some concession or other.’
When he returned to the Rue Plumet, Victorin could then carry out his plan of taking his mother and sister to live in his house.