By the aid of time and rain a humble gastronomic notice had become a
profound counsel. In this way it happened that Hucheloup, not knowing
French, had known Latin, had brought philosophy out of the kitchen,
and while simply wishing to eclipse Carême, equalled Horace. And the
striking thing was that this also meant "enter my inn." Nothing of all
this exists at the present day; the Mondétour labyrinth was gutted and
widened in 1847, and probably is no longer to be found. The Rue de
la Chanvrerie and Corinth have disappeared under the pavement of the
Rue Rambuteau. As we have said, Corinth was a meeting-place, if not a
gathering-place, of Courfeyrac and his friends, and it was Grantaire
who discovered it. He went in for the sake of the _carpe ho ras_, and
returned for the sake of the carp _au gras_. People drank there, ate
there, and made a row there: they paid little, paid badly, or paid
not at all, but were always welcome. Father Hucheloup was a worthy
fellow. Hucheloup, whom we have just called a worthy fellow, was an
eating-house keeper with a moustache,--an amusing variety. He always
looked ill-tempered, appeared wishful to intimidate his customers,
growled at persons who came in, and seemed more disposed to quarrel
with them than serve them. And yet we maintain people were always
welcome. This peculiarity filled his bar, and brought to him young men
who said, "Let us go and have a look at Father Hucheloup." He had been
a fencing-master, and would suddenly break out into a laugh; he had a
rough voice, but was a merry fellow. He had a comical background with a
tragical appearance; he asked for nothing better than to frighten you,
something like the snuff-boxes which had the shape of a pistol,--the
detonation produces a sneeze. He had for wife a Mother Hucheloup, a
bearded and very ugly being. About 1830 Father Hucheloup died, and
with him disappeared the secret of the carp _au gras_. His widow, who
was almost inconsolable, carried on the business, but the cooking
degenerated and became execrable, and the wine, which had always been
bad, was frightful. Courfeyrac and his friends, however, continued to
go to Corinth,--through pity, said Bossuet.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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