Show 1 o i a 4 CONDENSED 1 1 CLASSICS i iI I S e tt f 4 t. t GIL GIE GI G I BLAS e x s X f s s. s s t By ALAIN RENE ALAIN RENE LE SAGE i by dole hole V s Nathan Haskell i Main Alain Rene lc Ie n Sn Sage c author of t t t one Due of ot the thc II h moat most remarkable books book was waa born bornS S on Dee Dec 13 1665 t r lu in a town of western France d lie died nearly nearl S eighty eor later Inter 4 7 years t in 1717 i i Unlike e 01 no men Inca of ot genius Le Lc LeSage i Sage did not go goI 4 I H j through life dolog do- do log IOK spectacular C things lUll Ills father fa Cn ther who held beld tt some Nome 1 leg legal C S a 0 I 1 positions left a 0 considerable fortune when heD L Lc Snare Sage became nn on orphan an os a 0 child Ills J guardians either cither stole tole or Invested with criminal co carelessness tIle the Ind DIone money but be he iron ras given a D good education and was wait Oll admitted to the bar cell ces came cume In ID slowly nod and Le Li Sage faced extreme pov pov- crt erty Yet he dared to marry and turned to the Mace tage ole for tor means meno of lIu nuM ort Jort For Tor years he be wrote never really successful sue Rue hut but never actually In want lie nearly tort forty years of use when n o comedy Joe gave him titus n a Parisian reputation Iron tion nod and n a novel Dovel made mode hint him known to France The first two parts part of Gil GilDine Dins Dine were published In 1715 but they thc were not liked MO so MOrrell swell rrell as os his hili earlier story Atory Le Sage however knew ho how good It was Tras and aDd he lie labored over ocr It ft as nil devotedly an as ll a n great sculptor over n D block of marble The third part was until 1 1724 oDd and not until not published 1735 1135 was ns the last InKt part port put PDt forth DurIng Dur- Dur Ing these twenty years ean he hc had hod also ubo turned out play pIny after neter pIn play ODd and numerous numerous numerous numer numer- ous books He Uc did not e to write Trite until his hili seventieth Ae had hod passed Outside of France Iff Ie tinge will 11 al always ni- ni ways live because of hH his me lao book that ranks among the thc worlds world masterpieces Gil Bins Bias Is III life Ute itself an au animated picture of Spain In Its most colorful period It at Is III n a work says Sir Walter Scott which renders the render reader pleased with himself oDd and mankind BLAS the only son of anold on an nn Gm old soldier had reached the theace age ace of seventeen when his uncle ancle th the village priest who had taught him a little Latin LaUn Greek and logic sent him off with 40 ducats and anda a bad had mule to study divinity at nt Sala Sala- manca His adventures es began Immediate Immediately At his lils first stop he lie was out ont of his mule as he was eating his dinner din ner a wily wHy flatterer Invited himself to tobe tobe tobe be his guest and showed his by the good advice never to be bi taken takeo In by praise He lie had to pay an bitant reckoning and went on his way wa giving g to as many devils as there are saints In the calendar the parasite the landlord and the Inn He lie soon fell feU Into the hands of bandits ban ball tilts who made him him Join them on their raids In one of them they captured Dona w wife fe of the Marques de deIa dela dela la Ia Guardia ard brou brought ht her to their cavern Gil GU Bias las pretended to be Ili III and escaped escape with the grateful lady ladr He lie was arrested as one of the bandits ban ball and as he w was s W wearing clothes recognized by one of their victims and his p pockets cl ets were vere full fun of none money he was thrown Into Jail After weel weeks weeks' Imprisonment his h's Innocence was was established b but t the jailer jaBer hart had him of everything At Burgos he sou sought ht out Dona Mencia Men Men- cia cla who presented him with a hundred hundred hundred hun hun- hun hun- dred ducats and a costly ring He bought a pretentious outfit for twice Its value alue and decided that In Instead Instead In In- stead of ot becoming a licentiate he would make his way a In this world rather than think of the next A second gift of a thousand ducats from Dona Dunn Men Mencia cia confirmed him to his re re- solve lIe He bought two mules and hiring a servant set forth for Madrid HI H His servant conspired with several rogues roes to make a n fool of if him One of them Camilla amilla pretended to b be related jo 0 Dona Donn Mencia 1 Invited him to hir hired rl lodgings as as' If to her own home and there he was feasted and flattered As Asa a mark of special favor favor she exchanged exchange her ruby ring which she declared was worth for his his- and procured pro pro- cured him an Invitation Jo to a great country seat for tor hunting g and fishing But when he arose In the m morning his isis servant his two mules his p portmanteau port port- rt- rt manteau and Dona Dana Mencia's l pretended pre pee ten tended led d relatives had vanished The The- r rub ruby ring was a cheat chert Fortunately he f fell Mi J In with a b boy boyhood hood friend Fa 9 at and b by hs hIs advice became a servant to a clergyman the canon cation at whose house he le le led an easy life The cnn canon n soon died leaving hm him hl his hili I worthless library and und the good oo fOrtune fortune fortune for fOr- tune of becoming assistant to his physician t- t clan cian the famous Doctor San rado Under Un- Un der hl him Gil Bias Bas became particularly profi proficient lent In In his method of cf It practice wh which ch consisted of at nothing but bloodletting bloodletting blood blood- letting and drenching of water v He declared that he made as many widows widows widows wid wid- and un orphans us s the siege of Troy one of his victims was the betrothed of a n giant who ho threatened ed him with dire vengeance ce and he fled tt to Madrid where he became valet t ta to toa toa a mysterious mid iud wealthy Don Don BerI BernardO Bernardo Ber- Ber Ber Ber- nardo nard his only duty being to keep I the wardrobe brushed and to tend d door or But he to fall In with Rolando captain of the tho brigands and I P POD D n I rdo seeing him in tn such asia BUB company compan discharged him with six ducats lucats For one reason or another he kept changing emp employers o he served now nowa a n dissipated hidalgo then an In In- Intriguing actress th then n an aged libertine libertine liber liber- tine whose dau daughter In gratitude for tor aiding her to win back her recreant lover Don Luis Pacheco gave him hima a a. hundred and on her fathers father's fathers father's fathers father's fa fa- fa- fa ther's death got him n a place with still another aged roue Don Gonzales whose hose dressing operations wIzen he lie arose at noon reminded him of the resurrection of Lazarus Here again he acted as ns' l- l nry ary in a n love lo affair bu when he told toN his infatuated employer that he was being duped he was turned off though given a recommendation atlon to the Marquesa Marquesa Mar Mar- quesa de Chaves reputed the cleverest clever cleyer- cleverest est woman In l Madrid because she was wasas wasas as solemn as ns an owl nn and rarely spoke e. e Her salon alon called the Fashionable Institution In lri- for Literature Taste nn and Science Sd- Sd ence was the resort for the wits nn and notables of Madrid Here again he had easy casy work wore but hut getting Into Inlo trouble about a n girl was compelled to leave the city On his way to Toledo he rescued a n young youn nobleman nobleman no no- bleman named Don Alfonso from ar or rest They became friends frIends' and after Don Alfonso reached home he and his father be became ime me Gil Bias Bias' patrons placing him as secretary to their relative rela reIn tive the archbishop of Granada w who o owns was Inordinately vain and as broad ashe ns as he was long Gil Bias Blas praised his sermons and was regarded as ns a young young man of excellent ex ex- ex- ex c Judgment after the prelates prelates prelate's prelates prelate's prel prel- ates ate's mind was affected by apoplexy and his bis homilies b became came discordant ravings Gil GU Bias Blas obeyed the archbishops archbishops archbishop's archbishops archbishop's arch arch- bishops bishop's command to tell him If he fell tell short In his preaching and was vas as ignominiously packed ed off orr Reduced to extremities once more he pa passed sed fl as the thc brother of a n disreputable actress and ancl thus secured the thc position as as' as secretary secretary sec see to a Portuguese grandee the Ule Marquis de Marialva n The rho trick was discovered He returned to Madrid and after many amusing and not al always always al al- ways creditable adventures was appointed appointed ap ap- ap pointed under secretary to the duke of Lerma prime minister to the king Ills His duties may be gauged by his comment com corn ment One makes es a merit merll of at any dirty work In the service of the great His experiences with the upper and the lower world with act actors rs poets libertines ph physicians bandits adventurers and hidalgos and their servants servants servo ants had sharpened his Ills wits and his native ability and and smattering of education education edu edu- cation gave gae him growing Influence He Ht was courted courte flattered and bribed his hit conceit and avarice became colossal He declared that a ua court had 1 all nIl the soporific virtues of Leth In the case of poor relations and confessed that every trace of his former gay and generous temper had Pride came before a n fall Having been employed to procure a a. questionable question question- able mistress lor the heir-apparent heir he was arrested by the kings king's orders anti thrown Into the dungeon of SeI Se Se- I govia ovla The prince Intervened but he hei i was exiled from the two Castiles All An AnI his property was seized and his mercenary mercenary mercenary mer mer- I cenary cenary engagement to a n wealthy Jewelers Jeweler's jewelers Jew r elers eler's llau laughter daughter was broken I II I Then his friend frend Don A Alfonso fonso whom he had got appointed as governor of Valencia presented him with a n small estate near that city On his way thither he stopped at ht athis athis his birthplace and found his uncle a n mental wreck and his mother worn out outI I In caring for his dying father He gave his father a pompous funeral and settled an annuity on his mother hut but the towns town's people were so Indignant indignant indignant Indig indig- nant with him for his neglect of his family that t they threatened to mob I him Glad to escape with his hs life he reached Valencia where he wa-s wa was received received re re- re- re at nt his new home bome by seven or eight servants provided by Don Al- Al Al Al- fonso He lIe got rJ rid of most of them I and lived frugally frug marrying Antonia daughter of his farmer Don Basillo Basilio But Ills his Id Idyllic mc happiness ended with the tho death of his wife In childbirth Soon afterward the crown prince I came to the throne and offered him a place of high responsibility Gil Bias BIns who lad had ad learned wisdom replied that all he ho wanted was a good situation where there was no Inducement t to violate violate vio yb- late his conscience and where the fa favors favors vors ors of his prince were not like likely y to tobe tobe tobe be bartered for filthy lucre He lIe was made mude confidant to the prime minister r who entrusted him with the education of his his' m Illegitimate g son and heir This brought him a a. a title After some yrs years when w. w the dul duke c lost the kings king's favor Gil GU Bias followed him Into retirement and on on m his death was remembered with a n. bequest of He lIe returned t to his lila b beautiful ful tul ul estate n made a fl second marriage and lived happy and respected trainIng trainIng trainIng train- train Ing his 1118 children wisely and confiding g to his memoirs all hl hii his errors crimes jo Joys s and sorrows together with hl Isis his opinions of literature society and anti the thc stage His n narrative Is Interspersed with long and fascinating stories related re re- re kited by hy various characters whom he had met these and his own adventures adventures tures furnish n a a vivid picture of the romantic Spain of the seventeenth cen ecu tury r Cit Git ls Bios Js one of the wisest st and most amusing of romances and though thou b bit it Is not free from the coarseness permitted per per at nt that time vice Is not depicted depict depict- t. t ed attractively ely and Its teaching is ii 1 generally mora moral S 4 Copyright 1919 by the Post Publishing Co The Boston Post Copyright Inthe la In i ithe I the United Kingdom dom the Dominions Dominion Its j Colonies and loud dependencies under the I copyright act by the Post Publishing J I ICo Co Boston Mass U. U S. S A. A All AlJ rights right I reserved t i I iI |