Fantômas
By Marcel Allain
A more occasional friend was also there, the Baronne de Vibray, a young and wealthy widow, a typical woman of the world who spent the more significant part of her life either in motoring or in the most exclusive drawing rooms of Paris or at the most fashionable watering-places. But when the Baronne de Vibray put herself out to grass, as she racily phrased it, and spent a few weeks at Querelles, her estate close to the château of Beaulieu, nothing pleased her better than to retake her place in the delightful company of the Marquise de Langrune and her friends.
Finally, youth was represented by Charles Rambert, who had arrived at the château a couple of days before, a charming lad of about eighteen who was treated with warm affection by the Marquise and by Thérèse Auvernois, the granddaughter of the Marquise, with whom since her parent’s death she had lived as a daughter.
The odd and even mysterious words spoken by President Bonnet as they were leaving the table and the personality of this Fantômas about which he had said nothing definite despite all the questions put to him, had excited the curiosity of the company, and while Thérèse Auvernois was gracefully dispensing the coffee to her grandmother’s guests the questions were renewed with greater insistence. Crowding round the fire, for the evening was very cold, Mme. de Langrune’s friends showered fresh questions upon the old magistrate, who secretly enjoyed the interest he had inspired. He cast a solemn eye upon the circle of his audience and prolonged his silence to capture their attention. At length, he began to speak.
“Statistics tell us, ladies, that of all the deaths registered every day, quite a third are due to crime. You are no doubt aware that the police discover about half of the crimes committed and that barely half meet the penalty of justice. This explains why so many mysteries are never cleared up and why there are so many mistakes and inconsistencies in judicial investigations.”
“What is the conclusion you wish to draw?” the Marquise de Langrune enquired with interest.
“This,” the magistrate proceeded: “Although many crimes pass unsuspected, it is nonetheless obvious that they have been committed; now, while some of them are due to ordinary criminals, others are the work of enigmatical beings who are difficult to trace and too clever or intelligent to let themselves be caught. History is full of stories of such mysterious characters, the Iron Mask, for instance, and Cagliostro.
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Marcel Allain
Marcel Allain (15 September 1885 – 25 August 1969) was a French writer mostly remembered today for his co-creation with Pierre Souvestre of the fictional arch-villain and master criminal Fantômas.
Biography.
Allain, the son of a bourgeois family, studied law before becoming a journalist. He then became the assistant of Souvestre, who was already a well-known figure in literary circles. In 1909, the two men published their first novel, Le Rour. Investigating Magistrate Germain Fuselier, later to become a recurring character in the Fantômas series, appears in the book.
Then, in February 1911, Allain and Souvestre embarked upon the Fantômas book series at the request of publisher Arthème Fayard, who wanted to create a new monthly pulp magazine. The success was immediate and lasting.
After Souvestre’s death in February 1914, Allain continued the Fantômas saga alone, then launched several other series, such as Tigris, Fatala, Miss Téria, and Férocias. Still, none garnered the same popularity as Fantômas. In total, Allain wrote more than 400 novels in his prolific career.
On 27 September 1926, Allain married Souvestre’s girlfriend, Henriette Kistler. She died in 1956.
Marcel Allain
