La Mère Bauche by Anthony Trollope

Name: La Mère Bauche
Author: Anthony Trollope

La Mère Bauche keeps the Hôtel Bauche at the thermal baths of Vernet in the Eastern Pyrenees, under the shadow of the Canigou. A stern, autocratic widow of about sixty, always seen in green spectacles, she runs her establishment with rigid honesty but little softness, tolerating no complaints from guests. She has one remaining child at home, her favorite son Adolphe, currently away in Languedoc learning agriculture after a stint in Paris. Years earlier she took in Marie Clavert, the orphaned daughter of a rival, dead innkeeper, raising her as a household drudge whom she loves but never regards as anything but a charity child. Marie and Adolphe grew up together and fell in love, which Marie hid from Madame Bauche out of fear. When Madame Bauche discovers the attachment, she is initially furious and plans to send Marie away, but softens somewhat and instead sends Adolphe away for two years on the advice of her old friend Capitaine Theodore Campan, a wooden-legged former soldier who has lodged in her house for fifteen years and shares a nightly cup of coffee and cognac with her. During Adolphe's absence, Madame Bauche and the capitaine devise a plan: the capitaine himself, despite his age, will marry Marie, who will then become mistress of the establishment after Madame Bauche's death. Marie, though fond of the capitaine, will not fully consent while bound by her vows to Adolphe, and agrees only to accept her fate from Adolphe's own mouth upon his return. A letter arrives in which Adolphe appears to renounce her, but Marie trusts only what she will hear in person. Adolphe returns, and after a long private conference with his mother and the capitaine, agrees to give Marie up in exchange for his mother's financial support. He meets Marie at the grotto above the baths, their old courting spot, and haltingly tells her their marriage cannot happen; under pressure he admits he still loves her, but will not defy his mother. Marie pleads to wait and remain faithful, and Adolphe promises only to ask his mother to delay. That night, before Madame Bauche and Adolphe together, Marie is confronted and berated as an ingrate for aspiring to marry above her station; when appealed to, Adolphe explicitly declines her, and Marie submits to marrying the capitaine. She returns his love token and takes back the cross she'd given him. The betrothal and wedding proceed within the week, with Madame Bauche newly gracious and rewarding Marie with a gold watch, while Marie remains silent and compliant throughout, and Adolphe alone withholds any congratulations. On the wedding night, Marie does not appear for dinner or the evening party, and a search is raised. Adolphe, ascending the grotto steps with a lantern, hears a fall and a moan nearby; he faints. The capitaine presses on and, by lantern light, finds what is left of Marie on the rock below — she has thrown herself from the grotto. Madame Bauche never again presides over her establishment, living on bedridden for some seven years before dying; the narrator notes only briefly, and dismissively, what became of the capitaine and of Adolphe.

By Anthony Trollope · First published 1872 · Genre: Short Stories, Classic Literature, Literary Fiction · 14,931 words

First lines

The Pyreneean valley in which the baths of Vernet are situated is not much known to English, or indeed to any travellers. Tourists in search of good hotels and picturesque beauty combined, do not generally extend their journeys to the Eastern Pyrenees. They rarely get beyond Luchon; and in this they are right, as they thus end their peregrinations at the most lovely spot among these mountains, and are as a rule so deceived, imposed on, and bewildered by guides, innkeepers, and horse-owners, at this otherwise delightful place, as to become undesirous of further travel. Nor do invalids from distant parts frequent Vernet. People of fashion go to the Eaux Bonnes and to Luchon, and people who are really ill to Baréges and Cauterets. It is at these places that one meets crowds of Parisians, and the daughters and wives of rich merchants from Bordeaux, with an admixture, now by no means inconsiderable, of Englishmen and Englishwomen. But the Eastern Pyrenees are still unfrequented.

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La Mère Bauche is listed on Textopian as a novella by Anthony Trollope, dated 1872 CE.

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Work type: Novella
Author: Anthony Trollope
Date: 1872 CE
Language: English
Genres: Short Stories, Classic Literature, Literary Fiction, Travel Fiction
Length: 14,931 words
Structure: 1 section, 205 paragraphs
Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

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Genres

Short Stories — The book entitled 'La Mère Bauche' is a collection of eight short stories, including the titular tale, making this the most pertinent genre.
Classic Literature — The author, Anthony Trollope, is recognized as a significant figure in literary history, known for his classic Victorian novels and this work hails from that era which makes it a suitable genre.
Literary Fiction — Trollope’s intricate narratives, character development, and examination of societal themes categorize this book under the Literary Fiction genre.
Travel Fiction — Many of the stories, including the titular one, are set in different parts of Europe, implying a travel element, thus it can also be categorized as Travel Fiction.