LANGLUME, miller, a jolly impulsive little man, in 1823 deputy-mayor
of Blangy in Bourgogne, at the time of the political, territorial and
financial contests of which the country was the theatre, with Rigou
and Montcornet as actors. He was of great service to Genevieve
Niseron's paternal grandfather. [The Peasantry.]
LANGUET, vicar, built Saint-Sulpice, and was an acquaintance of
Toupillier, who asked alms in 1840 at the doors of this church in
Paris, which since 1860 has been one of the sixth ward parish
churches. [The Middle Classes.]
LANSAC (Duchesse de), of the younger branch of the Parisian house of
Navarreins, 1809, the proud woman who shone under Louis XV. The
Duchesse de Lansac, in November of the same year, consented, one
evening, to meet Isemberg, Montcornet, and Martial de la Roche-Hugon
in Malin de Gondreville's house, for the purpose of conciliating her
nephew and niece in their domestic quarrel. [Domestic Peace.]
LANTIMECHE, born in 1770. In 1840, at Paris, a penniless journeyman
locksmith and inventor, he went to the money-lender, Cerizet, on rue
des Poules, to borrow a hundred francs. [The Middle Classes.]
LANTY (Comte de), owner of an expensive mansion near the
Elysee-Bourbon, which he had bought from the Marechal de Carigliano.
He gave there under the Restoration some magnificent entertainments,
at which were present the upper classes of Parisian society, ignorant,
though they were, of the count's lineage. Lanty, who was a mysterious
man, passed for a clever chemist. He had married the rich niece of the
peculiar eunuch, Zambinella, by whom he had two children, Marianina
and Filippo. [Sarrasine. The Member for Arcis.]
LANTY (Comtesse de), wife of the preceding, born in 1795, niece and
likewise adopted daughter of the wealthy eunuch, Zambinella, was the
mistress of M. de Maucombe, by whom she had a daughter, Marianina de
Lanty. [Sarrasine. The Member for Arcis.]
LANTY (Marianina de), daughter of the preceding and according to law
of the Comte de Lanty, although she was in reality the daughter of M.
de Maucombe; born in 1809. She bore a striking resemblance to her
sister, Renee de l'Estorade, born Maucombe. In 1825 she concealed, and
lavished care on her great-uncle, Zambinella. During her parents'
sojourn in Rome she took lessons in sculpture of Charles Dorlange, who
afterwards, in 1839, became a member for Arcis, under the name of
Comte de Sallenauve. [Sarrasine. The Member for Arcis.]
LANTY (Filippo de), younger brother of the preceding, second child of
the Comte and the Comtesse de Lanty. Being young and handsome he was
an attendant at the fetes given by his parents during the Restoration.
By his marriage, which took place under Louis Philippe, he became
allied with the family of a German grand duke. [Sarrasine. The Member
for Arcis.]
LA PALFERINE
(Gabriel-Jean-Anne-Victor-Benjamin-Georges-Ferdinand-Charles-Edouard-Rusticoli,
Comte de), born in 1802; of an ancient Italian family which had become
impoverished; grandson on the paternal side of one of the protectors
of Josephine-Sophie Laguerre; descended indirectly from the Comtesse
Albany--whence his given name of Charles-Edouard. He had in his veins
the mixed blood of the condottiere and the gentleman. Under Louis
Philippe, idle and fast going to ruin, with his Louis XIII. cast of
countenance, his evil-minded wit, his lofty independent manners,
insolent yet winning, he was a type of the brilliant Bohemian of the
Boulevard de Gand; so much so, that Madame de la Baudraye, basing her
information on points furnished her by Nathan, one day drew a picture
of him, writing a description in which artificiality and artlessness
were combined. In this were many interesting touches: La Palferine's
contempt shown at all times for the bourgeois class and forms of
government; the request for the return of his toothbrush, then in the
possession of a deserted mistress, Antonia Chocardelle; his relations
with Madame du Bruel, whom he laid siege to, won, and neglected--a
yielding puppet, of whom, strange to say, he broke the heart and made
the fortune. He lived at that time in the Roule addition, in a plain
garret, where he was in the habit of receiving Zephirin Marcas. The
wretchedness of his quarters did not keep La Palferine out of the
best society, and he was the guest of Josepha Mirah at the first
entertainment given in her house on rue de la Ville-l'Eveque. By a
strange order of events, Comte Rusticoli became Beatrix de Rochefide's
lover, a few years after the events just narrated, at a time when
the Debats published a novel by him which was spoken of far and wide.
Nathan laid the foundation for this affair. Trailles,
Charles-Edouard's master, carried on the negotiations and brought the
intrigue to a consummation, being urged on by the Abbe Brossette's
assent and the Duchesse de Grandlieu's request. La Palferine's
liaison with Madame de Rochefide effected a reconciliation between
Calyste du Guenic and his wife. In the course of time, however,
Comte Rusticoli deserted Beatrix and sent her back to her husband,
Arthur de Rochefide. During the winter of 1842 La Palferine was
attracted to Madame de Laginska, had some meetings with her, but
failed in this affair through the intervention of Thaddee Paz. [A
Prince of Bohemia. A Man of Business. Cousin Betty. Beatrix. The
Imaginary Mistress.]
LA PEYRADE (Charles-Marie-Theodose de), born near Avignon in 1813, one
of eleven children of the police-agent Peyrade's youngest brother, who
lived in poverty on a small estate called Canquoelle; a bold
Southerner of fair skin; given to reflection; ambitious, tactful and
astute. In 1829 he left the department of Vaucluse and went to Paris
on foot in search of Peyrade who, he had reason to believe, was
wealthy, but of whose business he was ignorant. Theodose departed
through the Barriere d'Enfer, which has been destroyed since 1860, at
the moment when Jacques Collin murdered his uncle. At that time he
entered a house of ill-fame, where he had unwittingly for mistress
Lydie Peyrade, his full-blooded cousin. Theodose then lived for three
years on a hundred louis which Corentin had secretly given to him. On
giving him the money, the national chief of police quietly advised him
to become an attorney. Journalism, however, at first, seemed a
tempting career to M. de la Peyrade, and he went into politics,
finally becoming editor of a paper managed by Cerizet. The failure of
this journal left Theodose once more very poor. Nevertheless, through
Corentin, who secretly paid the expenses of his studies, he was able
to begin and continue a course in law. Once licensed, M. de la Peyrade
became a barrister and professing to be entirely converted to
Socialism, he freely pleaded the cause of the poor before the
magistrate of the eleventh or twelfth district. He occupied the third
story of the Thuillier house on rue Saint-Dominique-d'Enfer. He fell
into the hands of Dutocq and Cerizet and suffered under the pressure
of these grasping creditors. Theodose now decided that he would marry
M. Thuillier's natural daughter, Mademoiselle Celeste Colleville, but,
with Felix Phellion's love to contend with, despite the combined
support, gained with difficulty, of Madame Colleville and of M. and
Mademoiselle Thuillier, he failed through Corentin's circumvention.
His marriage with Lydie Peyrade repaired the wrong which he had
formerly done unwittingly. As successor to Corentin he became national
chief-of-police in 1840. [Scenes from a Courtesan's Life. The Middle
Classes.]
LA PEYRADE (Madame de), first cousin and wife of the preceding, born
Lydie Peyrade in 1810, natural daughter of the police officer Peyrade
and of Mademoiselle Beaumesnil; passed her childhood successively in
Holland and in Paris, on rue des Moineaux, whence, Jacques Collin,
thirsting for revenge, abducted her during the Restoration. Being
somewhat in love, at that time, with Lucien de Rubempre she was taken
to a house of ill-fame, Peyrade being at the time very ill. Upon her
departure she was insane. Her own cousin, Theodose de la Peyrade, had
been her lover there, fortuitously and without dreaming that they were
blood relatives. Corentin adopted this insane girl, who was a talented
musician and singer, and at his home on rue Honore-Chevalier, in 1840,
he arranged for both the cure and the marriage of his ward. [Scenes
from a Courtesan's Life. The Middle Classes.]
LA POURAILLE, usual surname of Dannepont.
LARAVINIERE, tavern-keeper in Western France, lodged "brigands" who
had armed themselves as Royalists under the first Empire. He was
condemned, either by Bourlac or Mergi, to five years in prison. [The
Seamy Side of History.]
LARDOT (Madame), born in 1771, lived in Alencon in 1816 on rue du
Cours--a street still bearing the same name. She was a laundress, and
took as boarders a relative named Grevin and the Chevalier de Valois.
She had among her employes Cesarine and Suzanne, afterwards Madame
Theodore Gaillard. [Jealousies of a Country Town.]
LAROCHE, born in 1763 at Blangy in Bourgogne, was, in 1823, an aged
vine-dresser, who felt a calm, relentless hatred for the rich,
especially the Montcornets, occupants of Aigues. [The Peasantry.]
LA ROCHE (Sebastien de), born early in the nineteenth century, was
probably the son of an unpretentious, retired Treasury clerk. In
December, 1824, he found himself in Paris, poor, but capable and
zealous, as a supernumerary in the office of Xavier Rabourdin of the
Department of Finance. He lived with his widowed mother in the busiest
part of Marais on rue du Roi-Dore. M. and Madame Rabourdin received
and gave him assistance by preparing a copy of a rare and mysterious
government work. The discovery of this book by Dutocq unfortunately
resulted in the discharge of both chief and clerk. [The Government
Clerks.]
LA ROCHE-GUYON (De), the eldest of one of the oldest families in the
section of Orne, at one time connected with the Esgrignons, who
visited them frequently. In 1805 he sued vainly, through Maitre
Chesnel, for the hand of Armande d'Esgrignon. [Jealousies of a Country
Town.]
LA ROCHE-HUGON (Martial de), shrewd, turbulent and daring Southerner,
had a long and brilliant administrative career in politics. Even in
1809 the Council of State employed him as one of the masters of
petitions. Napoleon Bonaparte was patron of this young Provencal.
Also, in November of the same year, Martial was invited to the fete
given by Malin de Gondreville--a celebration which the Emperor was
vainly expected to attend. Montcornet was present, also the Duchesse
de Lansac, who succeeded in bringing about a reconciliation between
her nephew and niece, M. and Madame de Soulanges. M. de la
Roche-Hugon's mistress, Madame de Vaudremont, was also in attendance
at this ball. For five years he had enjoyed a close friendship with
Montcornet, and this bond was lasting. In 1815 the securing of Aigues
for Montcornet was undertaken by Martial, who had served as prefect
under the Empire, and retained his office under the Bourbons. Thus
from 1821 to 1823 M. de la Roche-Hugon was at the head of the
department in Bourgogne, which contained Aigues and Ville-aux-Fayes,
M. des Lupeaulx's sub-prefecture. A dismissal from this office, to
which the Comte de Casteran succeeded, threw Martial into the
opposition among the Liberalists, but this was for a short time, as he
soon accepted an embassy. Louis Philippe's government honored M. de la
Roche-Hugon by making him minister, ambassador, and counselor of
state. Eugene de Rastignac, who had favored him before, now gave him
one of his sisters in marriage. Several children resulted from this
union. Martial continued to remain influential and associated with the
popular idols of the time, M. and Madame de l'Estorade. His relations
with the national chief of police, Corentin, in 1840, were also
indicative of his standing. As a deputy the next year M. de la
Roche-Hugon probably filled the directorship in the War Department,
left vacant by Hector Hulot. [Domestic Peace. The Peasantry. A
Daughter of Eve. The Member for Arcis. The Middle Classes. Cousin
Betty.]
LA ROCHE-HUGON (Madame Martial de). (See Rastignac, Mesdemoiselles
de.)