claim must be allowed--to have rested their fashion of
novel-writing upon two bases. The substance was to be provided by an
elaborate observation and reproduction of the facts of actual life, not
in the least transcendentalised, inspirited, or in any other way brought
near Romance, but considered largely from the points of view which their
friend Taine, writing earlier, used for his philosophical and historical
work--that of the _milieu_ or "environment," that of heredity, though
they did not lay so much stress on this as Zola did--and the like. The
treatment, on the other hand, was to be effected by the use of an
intensely "personal" style, a new Marivaudage, compared to which, as we
remarked above, Flaubert's doctrine of the single word was merely
rudimentary. After Jules's death Edmond wrote, alone, _La Fille Elisa_,
which was very popular, _La Faustin_, and _Cherie_, the last of which,
with _Germinie Lacerteux_, may form the basis of a short critical
examination. Those who merely wish to see if they can like or tolerate
the Goncourtian novel had perhaps better begin with _Renee Mauperin_ or
_Madame Gervaisais_. Both have been very highly praised,[461] and the
first named of them has the proud distinction of putting "le mot de
Cambronne" in the mouth of a colonel who has been mortally wounded in a
duel.

[Sidenote: _Germinie Lacerteux_ and _Cherie_ taken as specimens.]

To return to our selected examples, _Germinie Lacerteux_ is the story of
an actual _bonne_ of the brothers, whose story, without "trimmings," is
told in the _Journal_ itself.[462] The poor creature is as different as
possible, not merely from the usual heroine, but from the _grisette_ of
the first half of the century and from the _demi-mondaine_ of Dumas
_fils_, and Daudet, and even Zola. She is not pretty; she is not
fascinating in any way; she is neither good- nor ill-natured in any
special fashion; she is not even ambitious of "bettering" herself or of
having much pleasure, wealth, etc. If she goes to the bad it is in the
most commonplace way and with the most unseductive seducer possible. Her
progress and her end are, to borrow a later phrase and title
metaphorically, merely a tale of the meanest streets; untouched and
unconfirmed by the very slightest art; as destitute of any aesthetic
attraction, or any evidence of artistic power, as the log-books of a
common lodging-house and a hospital ward could be. In _Cherie_ there is
nothing exactly impr