M. Myriel made no change in this arrangement during the entire period that he occupied the see of D—— As has been seen, he called it regulating his household expenses.
This arrangement was accepted with absolute submission by Mademoiselle Baptistine.
This holy woman regarded Monseigneur of D—— as at one and the same time her brother and her bishop, her friend according to the flesh and her superior according to the Church.
She simply loved and venerated him.
When he spoke, she bowed; when he acted, she yielded her adherence.
Their only servant, Madame Magloire, grumbled a little.
It will be observed that Monsieur the Bishop had reserved for himself only one thousand livres, which, added to the pension of Mademoiselle Baptistine, made fifteen hundred francs a year.
On these fifteen hundred francs these two old women and the old man subsisted.
And when a village curate came to D——, the Bishop still found means to entertain him, thanks to the severe economy of Madame Magloire, and to the intelligent administration of Mademoiselle Baptistine.
One day, after he had been in D—— about three months, the Bishop said:—
“And still I am quite cramped with it all!”
“I should think so!” exclaimed Madame Magloire.
“Monseigneur has not even claimed the allowance which the department owes him for the expense of his carriage in town, and for his journeys about the diocese.
It was customary for bishops in former days.”
“Hold!” cried the Bishop, “you are quite right, Madame Magloire.”
And he made his demand.
Some time afterwards the General Council took this demand under consideration, and voted him an annual sum of three thousand francs, under this heading: Allowance to M. the Bishop for expenses of carriage, expenses of posting, and expenses of pastoral visits.
This provoked a great outcry among the local burgesses; and a senator of the Empire, a former member of the Council of the Five Hundred which favored the 18 Brumaire, and who was provided with a magnificent senatorial office in the vicinity of the town of D——, wrote to M. Bigot de Preameneu, the minister of public worship, a very angry and confidential note on the subject, from which we extract these authentic lines:—
“Expenses of carriage?
What can be done with it in a town of less than four thousand inhabitants?
Expenses of journeys?
What is the use of these trips, in the first place?
Next, how can the posting be accomplished in these mountainous parts?
There are no roads.
No one travels otherwise than on horseback.
Even the bridge between Durance and Chateau-Arnoux can barely support ox-teams.
These priests are all thus, greedy and avaricious.
This man played the good priest when he first came.
Now he does like the rest; he must have a carriage and a posting-chaise, he must have luxuries, like the bishops of the olden days.
Oh, all this priesthood!
Things will not go well, M. le Comte, until the Emperor has freed us from these black-capped rascals.
Down with the Pope! [Matters were getting embroiled with Rome.] For my part, I am for C?sar alone.”
Etc., etc.
On the other hand, this affair afforded great delight to Madame Magloire.
“Good,” said she to Mademoiselle Baptistine; “Monseigneur began with other people, but he has had to wind up with himself, after all.
He has regulated all his charities.
Now here are three thousand francs for us!
At last!”
That same evening the Bishop wrote out and handed to his sister a memorandum conceived in the following terms:—
EXPENSES OF CARRIAGE AND CIRCUIT.
For furnishing meat soup to the patients in the hospital. 1,500 livres
For the maternity charitable society of Aix . . . . . . . 250 ”
For the maternity charitable society of Draguignan . . . 250 ”
For foundlings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 ”
For orphans . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 ” ——-
Total . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,000 ”
Such was M. Myriel’s budget.
As for the chance episcopal perquisites, the fees for marriage bans, dispensations, private baptisms, sermons, benedictions, of churches or chapels, marriages, etc., the Bishop levied them on the wealthy with all the more asperity, since he bestowed them on the needy.
After a time, offerings of money flowed in.
Those who had and those who lacked knocked at M. Myriel’s door,—the latter in search of the alms which the former came to deposit.