Repertory of The Comedie Humaine Part 7

BRIGAUT (Major), of Pen-Hoel, Vendee; retired major of the Catholic Army which contested with the French Republic. A man of iron, but devout and entirely unselfish. He had served under Charette, Mercier, the Baron du Guenic and the Marquis de Montauran. He died in 1819, six months after Mme. Lorrain, the widow of a major in the Imperial Army, whom he was said to have consoled on the loss of her husband. Major Brigaut had received twenty-seven wounds. [Pierrette. The Chouans.]

BRIGAUT (Jacques), son of Major Brigaut; born about 1811. Childhood companion of Pierrette Lorrain, whom he loved in innocent fashion similar to that of Paul and Virginia, and whose love was reciprocated in the same way. When Pierrette was sent to Provins, to the home of the Rogrons, her relatives, Jacques also went to this town and worked at the carpenter's trade. He was present at the death-bed of the young girl and immediately thereafter enlisted as a soldier; he became head of a battalion, after having several times sought death vainly.

[Pierrette.]

BRIGITTE. (See Cottin, Madame.)

BRIGITTE, servant of Chesnel from 1795 on. In 1824 she was still with him in rue du Bercail, Alencon, at the time of the pranks of the young D'Esgrignon. Brigette humored the gormandizing of her master, the only weakness of the goodman. [Jealousies of a Country Town.]

BRIGNOLET, clerk with lawyer Bordin in 1806. [A Start in Life.]

BRISETOUT (Heloise), mistress of Celestin Crevel in 1838, at the time when he was elected mayor. She succeeded Josepha Mirah, in a little house on rue Chauchat, after having lived on rue Notre-Dame-de Lorette. [Cousin Betty.] In 1844-1845 she was _premiere danseuse_ in the Theatre du Boulevard, when she was claimed by both Bixiou and Gaudissart, her manager. She was a very literary young woman, much spoken of in Bohemian circles for elegance and graciousness. She knew all the great artists, and favored her kinsman, the musician Garangeot. [Cousin Pons.] Towards the end of the reign of Louis Philippe, she had Isidore Baudoyer for a "protector"; he was then mayor of the arrondiss.e.m.e.nt of Paris, which included the Palais Royale. [The Middle Cla.s.ses.]

BRISSET, a celebrated physician of Paris, time of Louis Philippe. a materialist and successor to Bichat, and Cabanis. At the head of the "Organists," opposed to Cameristus head of the "Vitalists." He was called in consultation regarding Raphael de Valentin, whose condition was serious. [The Magic Skin.]

BROCHON, a half-pay soldier who, in 1822, tended the horses and did ch.o.r.es for Moreau, manager of Presles, the estate of the Comte de Serizy. [A Start in Life.]

BROSSARD (Madame), widow received at Mme. de Bargeton's at Angouleme in 1821. Poor but well-born, she sought to marry her daughter, and in the end, despite her precise dignity and "sour-sweetness," she got along fairly well with the other s.e.x. [Lost Illusions.]

BROSSARD (Camille du), daughter of the preceding. born in 1794. Fleshy and imposing. Posed as a good pianist. Not yet married at twenty-seven.

[Lost Illusions.]

BROSSETTE (Abbe), born about 1790; cure of Blangy, Burgundy, in 1823, at the time when General de Montcornet was struggling with the peasantry. The abbe himself was an object of their defiance and hatred. He was the fourth son of a good bourgeoisie family of Autun, a faithful prelate, an obstinate Royalist and a man of intelligence.

[The Peasantry.] In 1840 he became a cure at Paris, in the faubourg Saint-Germain, and at the request of Mme. de Grandlieu, he interested himself in removing Calyste du Guenic from the clutches of Mme. de Rochefide and restoring him to his wife. [Beatrix.]

BROUET (Joseph), a Chouan who died of wounds received in the fight of La Pelerine or at the siege of Fougeres, in 1799. [The Chouans.]

BROUSSON (Doctor), attended the banker Jean-Frederic Taillefer, a short time before the financier's death. [The Red Inn.]

BRUCE (Gabriel), alias Gros-Jean, one of the fiercest Chouans of the Fontaine division. Implicated in the affair of the "Chauffeurs of Mortagne" in 1809. Condemned to death for contumacy. [The Seamy Side of History.]

BRUEL (Du), chief of division to the Ministers of the Interior, under the Empire. A friend of Bridau senior, retired on the advent of Restoration. He was on very friendly terms with the widow Bridau, coming each evening for a game of cards at her house, on rue Mazarine, with his old-time colleagues, Claparon and Desroches. These three old employes were called the "Three Sages of Greece" by Mmes. Bridau and Descoings. M. du Bruel was descended of a contractor enn.o.bled at the end of the reign of Louis XIV. He died about 1821. [A Bachelor's Establishment.]

BRUEL (Madame du), wife of the preceding. She survived him. She was the mother of the dramatic author Jean-Francois du Bruel, christened Cursy on the Parisian bill-boards. Although a bourgeoisie of strict ideas, Mme. du Bruel welcomed the dancer Tullia, who became her daughter-in-law. [A Prince of Bohemia.]

BRUEL (Jean-Francois du), son of the preceding; born about 1797. In 1816 he obtained a place under the Minister of Finance, thanks to the favor of the Duc de Navarreins. [A Bachelor's Establishment.] He was sub-chief of Rabourdin's office when the latter, in 1824, contested with M. Baudoyer for a place of division chief. [The Government Clerks.] In November, 1825, Jean-Francois du Bruel a.s.sisted at a breakfast given at the "Rocher de Cancale" to the clerks of Desroches'

office by Frederic Marest who was treating to celebrate his incoming.

He was present also at the orgy which followed at Florentine's home.

[A Start in Life.] M. du Bruel successively rose to be chief of bureau, director, councillor of state, deputy, peer of France and commander of the Legion of Honor; he received the t.i.tle of count and entered one of the cla.s.ses in the Inst.i.tute. All this was accomplished through his wife, Claudine Chaffaroux, formerly the dancer, Tullia, whom he married in 1829. [A Prince of Bohemia. The Middle Cla.s.ses.]

For a long time he wrote vaudeville sketches over the name of Cursy.

Nathan, the poet, found it necessary to unite with him. Du Bruel would make use of the author's ideas, condensing them into small, sprightly skits which always scored successes for the actors. Du Bruel and Nathan discovered the actress Florine. They were the authors of "L'Alcade dans l'embarras," an imbroglio in three acts, played at the Theatre du Panorama-Dramatique about 1822, when Florine made her debut, playing with Coralie and Bouffe, the latter under the name of Vignol. [A Distinguished Provincial at Paris. A Daughter of Eve.]

BRUEL (Claudine Chaffaroux, Madame du), born at Nanterre in 1799. One of the _premiere danseuses_ of the Opera from 1817 to 1827. For several years she was the mistress of the Duc de Rhetore [A Bachelor's Establishment.], and afterwards of Jean-Francois du Bruel, who was much in love with her in 1823, and married her in 1829. She had then left the stage. About 1834 she met Charles Edouard de la Palferine and formed a violent attachment for him. In order to please him and pose in his eyes as a great lady, she urged her husband to the constant pursuit of honors, and finally achieved the t.i.tle of countess.

Nevertheless she continued to play the lady of propriety and found entrance into bourgeoisie society. [A Prince of Bhoemia. A Distinguished Provincial at Paris. Letters of Two Brides.] In 1840, to please Mme. Colleville, her friend, she tried to obtain a decoration for Thuillier. [The Middle Cla.s.ses.] Mme. du Bruel bore the name of Tullia on the stage and in the "gallant" circle. She lived then in rue Chauchat, in a house afterwards occupied by Mmes. Mirah and Brisetout, when Claudine moved after her marriage to rue de la Victoire.

BRUNET, bailiff at Blagny, Burgundy, in 1823. He was also councillor of the Canton during the Terror, having for pract.i.tioners Michel Vert alias Vermichel and Fourchon the elder. [The Peasantry.]

BRUNNER (Gedeon), father of Frederic Brunner. At the time of the French Restoration and of Louis Philippe he owned the great Holland House at Frankford-on-the-Main. One of the early railway projectors.

He died about 1844, leaving four millions. Calvinist. Twice married.

[Cousin Pons.]

BRUNNER (Madame), first wife of Gedeon Brunner, and mother of Frederic Brunner. A relative of the Virlaz family, well-to-do Jewish furriers of Leipsic. A converted Jew. Her dowry was the basis of her husband's fortune. She died young, leaving a son aged but twelve. [Cousin Pons.]

BRUNNER (Madame), second wife of Gedeon Brunner. The only daughter of a German inn-keeper. She had been very badly spoiled by her parents.

Sterile, dissipated and prodigal, she made her husband very unhappy, thus avenging the first Mme. Brunner. She was a step-mother of the most abominable sort, launching her stepson into an unbridled life, hoping that debauchery would devour both the child and the Jewish fortune. After ten years of wedded life she died before her parents, having made great inroads upon Gedeon Brunner's property. [Cousin Pons.]

BRUNNER (Frederic), only son of Gedeon Brunner, born within the first four years of the century. He ran through his maternal inheritance by silly dissipations, and then helped his friend Wilhelm Schwab to make away with the hundred thousand francs his parents had left him.

Without resources and cast adrift by his father he went to Paris in 1835, where, upon the recommendation of Graff, the inn-keeper, he obtained a position with Keller at six hundred francs per annum. In 1843 he was only two thousand francs ahead; but Gedeon Brunner having died, he became a multi-millionaire. Then for friendship's sake he founded, with his chum Wilhelm, the banking house of "Brunner, Schwab & Co.," on rue Richelieu, between rue Neuve-des-Pet.i.ts-Champs and rue Villedo, in a magnificent building belonging to the tailor, Wolfgang Graff. Frederic Brunner had been presented by Sylvain Pons to the Camusots de Marville; he would have married their daughter had she not been the only child. The breaking off of this match involved also, the relations of Pons with the De Marville family and resulted in the death of the musician. [Cousin Pons.]

BRUNO, _valet de chambre_ of Corentin at Pa.s.sy, on rue des Vignes, in 1830. [Scenes from a Courtesan's Life.] About 1840 he was again in the service of Corentin, who was now known as M. du Portail and lived on rue Honore-Chevalier, at Paris. [The Middle Cla.s.ses.] This name is sometimes spelled Bruneau.

BRUTUS, proprietor of the Hotel des Trois-Maures in the Grand-Rue, Alencon, in 1799, where Alphonse de Montauran met Mlle. de Verneuil for the first time. [The Chouans.]

BUNEAUD (Madame), ran a bourgeoisie boarding-house in opposition to Mme. Vauquer on the heights of Sainte-Genevieve, Paris, in 1819.

[Father Goriot.]

BUTIFER, noted hunter, poacher and smuggler, living in the village hard by Gren.o.ble, where Dr. Bena.s.sis located, during the Restoration.

When the doctor arrived in the country, Butifer drew a bead on him, in a corner of the forest. Later, however, he became entirely devoted to him. He was charged by Genestas with the physical education of this officer's adopted son. It may be that Butifer enlisted in Genestas'

regiment, after the death of Dr. Bena.s.sis. [The Country Doctor.]

BUTSCHA (Jean), head-clerk of Maitre Latournelle, a notary at Havre in 1829. Born about 1804. The natural son of a Swedish sailor and a Demoiselle Jacmin of Honfleur. A hunchback. A type of intelligence and devotion. Entirely subservient to Modeste Mignon, whom he loved without hope; he aided, by many adroit methods, to bring about her marriage with Ernest de la Briere. Butscha decided that this union would make the young lady happy. [Modeste Mignon.]

C

CABIROLLE, in charge of the stages of Minoret-Levrault, postmaster of Nemours. Probably a widower, with one son. About 1837, a s.e.xagenarian, he married Antoinette Patris, called La Bougival, who was over fifty, but whose income amounted to twelve hundred francs. [Ursule Mirouet.]

CABIROLLE, son of the preceding. In 1830 he was Dr. Minoret's coachman at Nemours. Later he was coachman for Savinien de Portenduere, after the vicomte's marriage with Ursule Mirouet. [Ursule Mirouet.]

CABIROLLE (Madame), wife of Cabirolle senior. Born Antoinette Patris in 1786, of a poor family of La Bresse. Widow of a workman named Pierre alias Bougival; she was usually designated by the latter name.

After having been Ursule Mirouet's nurse, she became Dr. Minoret's servant, marrying Cabirolle about 1837. [Ursule Mirouet.]

CABIROLLE (Madame), mother of Florentine, the _danseuse_. Formerly janitress on rue Pastourelle, but living in 1820 with her daughter on rue de Crussol in a modest affluence a.s.sured by Cardot the old silk-dealer, since 1817. According to Girondeau, she was a woman of sense. [A Start in Life. A Bachelor's Establishment.]

CABIROLLE (Agathe-Florentine), known as Florentine; born in 1804. In 1817, upon leaving Coulon's cla.s.s, she was discovered by Cardot, the old silk-merchant, and established by him with her mother in a relatively comfortable flat on rue de Crussol. After having been featured at the Gaite theatre, in 1820, she danced for the first time in a spectacular drama ent.i.tled "The Ruins of Babylon."* Immediately afterwards she succeeded Mariette as _premiere danseuse_ at the theatre of the Porte-Saint-Martin. Then in 1823 she made her debut at the Opera in a trio skit with Mariette and Tullia. At the time when Cardot "protected" her, she had for a lover the retired Captain Girondeau, and was intimate with Philippe Bridau, to whom she gave money when in need. In 1825 Florentine occupied Coralie's old flat, now for some three years, and it was at this place that Oscar Husson lost at play the money entrusted to him by his employer, Desroches the attorney, and was surprised by his uncle, Cardot. [A Start in Life.

Lost Illusions. A Distinguished Provincial at Paris. A Bachelor's Establishment.]

* By Renee-Charles Guilbert de Pixerecourt; played for the first time at Paris in 1810.

CABOT (Armand-Hippolyte), a native of Toulouse who, in 1800, established a hair-dressing salon on the Place de la Bourse, Paris. On the advice of his customer, the poet Parny, he had taken the name of Marius, a sobriquet which stuck to the establishment. In 1845 Cabot had earned an income of twenty-four thousand francs and lived at Libourne, while a fifth Marius, called Mougin, managed the business founded by him. [The Unconscious Humorists.]

CABOT (Marie-Anne), known as Lajeunesse, an old servant of Marquis Carol d'Esgrignon. Implicated in the affair of the "Chauffeurs of Mortagne" and executed in 1809. [The Seamy Side of History.]

CACHAN, attorney at Angouleme under the Restoration. He and Pet.i.t-Claud had similar business interests and the same clients. In 1830 Cachan, now mayor of Marsac, had dealings with the Sechards.

[Lost Illusions. Scenes from a Courtesan's Life.]

CADENET, Parisian wine-merchant, in 1840, on the ground-floor of a furnished lodging-house, corner of rue des Postes and rue des Poules.

Cerizet also dwelt there at that time. Cadenet, who was proprietor of the house, had something to do with the transactions of Cerizet, the "banker of the poor." [The Middle Cla.s.ses.]