PREFACE. IX

Provence that he'first appreciated the fruitful value of this method, and that he definitely set himself the rule which he has ever since rigidly observed."

While only a small proportion of his work appears in poetical form, the poetic feeling and expression are* prominent in ail his writings, and are so finely mingled with his realism that Emile Zola is led to say of him : " La nature bienveillante Ta mis à ce point exquis où la poésie finit et oli la réalité commence."