Cousin Pons Author:Honoré de Balzac Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: IV. ONE OF THE MANY JOYS OP A COLLECTOR. The president de Marville lived in the rue de Hanovre, in a house bought by his wife within the last ten years, si... more »nce the death of her father and mother the sieur and dame Thirion, who had left her about a hundred and fifty thousand francs of their savings. This house, whose aspect on the street where it faces north is rather gloomy, enjoys a southern exposure at the back on the courtyard, beyond which it overlooks a rather fine garden. The magistrate occupied the whole first floor, which had been under Louis XV. the residence of one of the greatest financiers of that day. The second floor being let to a rich old lady, the whole house had a quiet and dignified appearance quite in keeping with its official character. The remains of the formerly magnificent estate of Marville, on the purchase of which the president had spent the savings of twenty years and the fortune derived from his mother, comprised the chateau, a splendid erection such as may still be met with in Normandy, and a good farm, which brought in twelve thousand francs a year. A park of two hundred and fifty acres surrounded the mansion. The latter luxury, princely in these days, cost the president the value of over a thousand crowns ; so that his land did not bring him more than nine thousand francs,in hand, as they say. These nine thousand francs and his salary gave the president an income of some twenty thousand francs all told, — apparently sufficient for his needs, especially as he expected the ultimate half of his father's property, being, as he was, the only child of the first marriage; but the life of Paris and the demands of their official position compelled Monsieur and Madame de Marville to spend their whole income. Up to 1834, therefore, they were pressed for m...« less