In reply to his sister Laure's criticism that there were too many millions in /Eugenie Grandet/, he insisted that the story was true, and that he could create nothing better than the truth. In investigating the truth of this story, it has been found that Jean Niveleau, a very rich man having many of the traits of Grandet, lived at Saumur, and that he had a beautiful daughter whom he is said to have refused to give in marriage to Balzac. Whether this be true or not, the novelist has screened some things of a personal nature in this work. Although the book is dated September, 1833, he did not finish it until later. It was just at this time that he met Madame Hanska, and visited her on two different occasions during the period that he was working on /Eugenie Grandet/. As he was pressed for money, as usual, his /Predilecta/ offered to help him financially; this he refused, but immortalized the offer by having Eugenie give her gold to her lover. In declining Madame Hanska's offer, he writes her: "Beloved angel, be a thousand times blessed for your drop of water, for your offer; it is everything to me and yet it is nothing. You see what a thousand francs would be when ten thousand a month are needed. If I could find nine, I could find twelve. But I should have liked, in reading that delightful letter of yours, to have plunged my hand into the sea and drawn out all its pearls to strew them on your beautiful black hair. . . . There is a sublime scene (to my mind, and I am rewarded for having it) in /Eugenie Grandet/, who offers her fortune to her cousin. The cousin makes an answer; what I said to you on that subject was more graceful. But to mingle a single word that I have said to my Eve in what others will read!--Ah! I would rather have flung /Eugenie Grandet/ into the fire! . . . Do not think there was the least pride, the least false delicacy in my refusal of what you know of, the drop of gold you have put angelically aside. . . ." The novelist not only gave Madame Hanska the manuscript of /Eugenie Grandet/, but had her in mind while writing it: "One must love, my Eve, my dear one, to write the love of /Eugenie Grandet/, a pure, immense, proud love!" The dedication of /Eugenie Grandet/ to "Marie" did not appear until in 1839. Balzac knew several persons named "Marie." The present writer was at one time inclined to think that this Marie might have been the Countess Marie Potocka, whom he met while writing /Eugenie/, but her cousin, the Princess Radziwill, says that she is sure she is not the one he had in mind, and that she was not the type of woman to whom Balzac would ever have dedicated a book. The novelist had dealings with Madame Marie Dorval, and in 1839, at the time the dedication was written, doubtless knew of her love for Jules Sandeau. Balzac knew also the Countess Marie d'Agoult, but she never would have inspired such a dedication.