FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153  
154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   >>   >|  
A trade is fatal. In France, in old times, there was no exception to this rule, except in the case of glass manufacturers. Emptying bottles being then one of the glories of gentlemen, making them was probably, for that reason, not considered dishonourable. In the Channel archipelago, as in Great Britain, he who would remain noble must contrive to be rich. A working man cannot possibly be a gentleman. If he has ever been one, he is so no longer. Yonder sailor, perhaps, descends from the Knights Bannerets, but is nothing but a sailor. Thirty years ago, a real Gorges, who would have had rights over the Seigniory of Gorges, confiscated by Philip Augustus, gathered seaweed, naked-footed, in the sea. A Carteret is a waggoner in Sark. There are at Jersey a draper, and at Guernsey a shoemaker, named Gruchy, who claim to be Grouchys, and cousins of the Marshal of Waterloo. The old registers of the Bishopric of Coutances make mention of a Seigniory of Tangroville, evidently from Tancarville on the lower Seine, which is identical with Montmorency. In the fifteenth century, Johan de Heroudeville, archer and _etoffe_ of the Sire de Tangroville, bore behind him "_son corset et ses autres harnois_." In May, 1371, at Pontorson, at the review of Bertrand du Guesclin, Monsieur de Tangroville rendered his homage as Knight Bachelor. In the Norman islands, if a noble falls into poverty, he is soon eliminated from the order. A mere change of pronunciation is enough. Tangroville becomes Tangrouille: and the thing is done. This had been the fate of the helmsman of the Durande. At the Bordage of St. Peter's Port, there is a dealer in old iron named Ingrouille, who is probably an Ingroville. Under Lewis le Gros the Ingrovilles possessed three parishes in the district of Valognes. A certain Abbe Trigan has written an Ecclesiastical History of Normandy. This chronicler Trigan was the cure of the Seigniory of Digoville. The Sire of Digoville, if he had sunk to a lower grade, would have been called Digouille. Tangrouille, this probable Tancarville, and possible Montmorency, had an ancient noble quality, but a grave failing for a steersman; he got drunk occasionally. Sieur Clubin had obstinately determined to retain him. He answered for his conduct to Mess Lethierry. Tangrouille the helmsman never left the vessel; he slept aboard. On the eve of their departure, when Sieur Clubin came at a late hour to inspect the vessel, the steersman wa
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   139   140   141   142   143   144   145   146   147   148   149   150   151   152   153  
154   155   156   157   158   159   160   161   162   163   164   165   166   167   168   169   170   171   172   173   174   175   176   177   178   >>   >|  



Top keywords:
Tangroville
 

Seigniory

 

Tangrouille

 

Tancarville

 

steersman

 
Gorges
 
Trigan
 

Digoville

 
sailor
 

helmsman


vessel

 

Montmorency

 
Clubin
 

Ingrouille

 
dealer
 

Durande

 
Bordage
 
Guesclin
 

review

 

poverty


eliminated

 

Ingroville

 

Bachelor

 

Norman

 

Knight

 

islands

 

homage

 

rendered

 

Monsieur

 

pronunciation


Bertrand

 
Pontorson
 

change

 

Ecclesiastical

 

conduct

 
answered
 

Lethierry

 
retain
 

occasionally

 
obstinately

determined
 

inspect

 
departure
 
aboard
 

failing

 

Valognes

 
district
 

written

 
parishes
 

Ingrovilles