spondence now practised in divers
newspapers, and at the same time, this correspondence with her who
was seventeen years later, in 1850, to become his wife."[*]

[*] Miss M. F. Sandars states that a copy of the _Quotidienne_
containing this acknowledgment was in the possession of the
Vicomte de Spoelberch de Lovenjoul, and that she saw it. At the
time of writing this preface, Miss Wormeley did not believe the
correspondence began until February, 1833. In undertaking to prove
this, she cited a letter from Balzac written to Madame Hanska,
dated January 4, 1846, in which he says that the thirteen years
will soon be completed since he received her first letter. She
corrects this statement, however, in writing her _Memoir of
Balzac_ three years later. The mistake in this letter here
mentioned is only an example of the inaccuracy of Balzac, found
not only in his letters, but throughout the _Comedie humaine_. But
Miss Wormeley's argument might have been refuted by quoting
another letter from Balzac to Madame Hanska dated February, 1840:
"After eight years you do not know me!"

Regarding the two letters published in _Un Roman d'Amour_, pp. 33-49,
dated November 7, 1832, and January 8, 1833, and signed _l'Etrangere_,
Miss Wormeley says it is not necessary to notice them, since the
author himself states that they are not in Madame Hanska's
handwriting.

She is quite correct in this, for Spoelberch de Lovenjoul writes: "How
many letters did Balzac receive thus? No one knows. But we possess
two, neither of which is in Madame Hanska's handwriting." In speaking
of the first letter that arrived, he says:

"This first record of interest which was soon to change its nature,
has unfortunately not been found yet. Perhaps this page perished
in the _autodafe_ which, as the result of a dramatic adventure,
Balzac made of all the letters he had received from Madame Hanska;
perhaps also, by dint of rereading it, he had worn it out and
involuntarily destroyed it himself. We do not know. In any case,
we have not found it in the part of his papers which have fallen
into our hands. We regret it very much, for this letter must be
remarkable to have produced so great an impression on the future
author of the _Comedie humaine_."

The question arises: If Balzac burned in 1847 "all the letters he had
received from Madame Hanska," how could de Lovenjoul publish in 1896