tiara; and as the Church has its Clement XIV.,
Gregory XII., Julius II., or Alexander VI., so the workmen have their
Trempe-la-Soupe IX., Ferragus XXII., Tutanus XIII., or Masche-Fer IV.
Who are the _Devorants_, do you ask?

The _Devorants_ are one among many tribes of _compagnons_ whose origin
can be traced to a great mystical association formed among the
workmen of Christendom for the rebuilding of the Temple at Jerusalem.
_Compagnonnage_ is still a popular institution in France. Its traditions
still exert a power over little enlightened minds, over men so
uneducated that they have not learned to break their oaths; and the
various organizations might be turned to formidable account even yet
if any rough-hewn man of genius arose to make use of them, for his
instruments would be, for the most part, almost blind.

Wherever journeymen travel, they find a hostel for _compagnons_ which
has been in existence in the town from time immemorial. The _obade_,
as they call it, is a kind of lodge with a "Mother" in charge, an old,
half-gypsy wife who has nothing to lose. She hears all that goes on in
the countryside; and, either from fear or from long habit, is devoted to
the interests of the tribe boarded and lodged by her. And as a result,
this shifting population, subject as it is to an unalterable law of
custom, has eyes in every place, and will carry out an order anywhere
without asking questions; for the oldest journeyman is still at an age
when a man has some beliefs left. What is more, the whole fraternity
professes doctrines which, if unfolded never so little, are both
true enough and mysterious enough to electrify all the adepts with
patriotism; and the _compagnons_ are so attached to their rules, that
there have been bloody battles between different fraternities on a
question of principle. Fortunately, however, for peace and public order;
if a _Devorant_ is ambitious, he takes to building houses, makes a
fortune, and leaves the guild.

A great many curious things might be told of their rivals, the
_Compagnons du Devior_, of all the different sects of workmen, their
manners and customs and brotherhoods, and of the resemblances between
them and the Freemasons; but there, these particulars would be out
of place. The author will merely add, that before the Revolution a
Trempe-la-Soupe had been known in the King's service, which is to say,
that he had the tenure of a place in His Majesty's galleys for one
hundred and one y