Paulin Gains

Paulin Gains , born with Montoison the June 9th 1808 and died with Paris the August 22nd 1876, is a lawyer, journalist and poet French. Author inter alia Unitéide , poem in 60 acts and: 25000 worms where one “meets the oddest agglomeration of fantastic names and absurd worms that can invent the human brain” and “candidate universal, perpetual, supernatural and irremovable” in all the elections, it appears among the insane arts persons listed by Pierre Gustave Brunet, Raymond Queneau and André Blavier.

Lawyer and poet

It makes traditional studies with the colleges of Montélimar and Valence where, thanks to its exceptional memory, it gains multiple prices. It makes then three years of right, at Grenoble and Paris, then is fixed at Montélimar, where it gives its first pleadings.

With its superb imposing presence, its blue dress with gold buttons, its white waistcoat, its gray pants beads and with under-straps, its cover-chief with the Bolivar, his long buckled black hair, it produced great effect, Sunday evening after Vêpres, on the esplanade or the road of the Teil, planted elms. “T-piece! by seeing it the grisettes montélimardaises exclaimed, here is the beautiful Paulin who passes! ”

Grayed by its success, it is registered with the bar of the the Seine, to plead there only once. Its young customer, shown of thirty-two flights and attempted murders, bails out maximum sentence. Being then “in one moment of disease and despair”, it composes a poem of: 3000 worms entitled the Suicide , then Gains-monopanglotte It , poem with the glory of a universal language formed starting from the root-words of a score of “mother languages”. It publishes then the Ocean of the catastrophes , poem on all the disasters which took place in the world on February 8th 1843. In 1847, discouraged by the indifference which accommodates its literary efforts, it is turned over from there to Montélimar.

Acclaimed by its fellow-citizens when bursts the revolution of 1848, it is named member of the municipal council, first assistant of the mayor and Bâtonnier about lawyers. It writes the Hope , catholic republican newspaper, and is presented without success to the legislative elections of the Drome. Of return to Paris, it binds with Abd-el-Kader, to which it addresses a Abd-el-Kadéride , and with the poetess Élise Moreau de Rus, which it marries on April 28th 1853. It founds with it its second newspaper, the Theater of the world , and opens a free course of literature. The couple settles some time later with Montélimar, where Paulin Gagne harnesses himself during three years with his monumental work, Unitéide . This poem of 724 pages and: 25000 worms announces the advent of the Woman-Messiah and the regeneration of the diverted humanity of his ways by Satan. Among the hundreds of characters who appear in it, one finds in particular Pataticulture, “girl of nature and the century in crackling”, and Carotticulture, which entonne with the thirty-ninth act a parody of the Marseillaise entitled the universal Carrot .

Insane?

A few months after its return to Paris in 1858, Paulin Gagne sub-leases his living room at a company of “evocative” practitioner the Spiritisme according to the doctrines of Allan Kardec. Provided with a crucifix, it goes one evening to the one their meetings:

… I went only in the room where were done the infernal evocations; O miracle astonishing and terrible! at the moment, an irresistible rotation movement seized me; I turned like a spinning top around the satanic table, which I covered with spittles and dribble, and from where the spirits démoniaques by the presence escaped from the crucifix that I always held with the hand: Satan and God disputed my body and my heart!!

Gain is taken along to the private hospital of Picpus and is slackened at the end of a few days. He tells his experiment in the History of the miracles , which he signs “the lawyer of insane”, and continuous to compose and publish poetries. He founds Journalophage, or the Eater of newspapers, satire anti-newspaper, appearing when he can, by Mr. Gagne all alone in 1858, Uniteur of the visible and invisible world in 1860 and the Archi-sun in 1865. He sends to all the newspapers a political program preaching the “Republic-Empire-Royalty” and he placards the walls of signed circulars “, candidate universal, perpetual, supernatural and irremovable with the Senate or Députat of all the departments. ”

To save the world while laughing

At the time of the famine which devastates the Algérie in 1868, Gagne publishes in the Unit, universal newspaper and pantoglotte of the future a “constitution philanthropophagic” founding of the “sacrifices savers” which will make it possible to people to eat the ones the others. Those which do not want to die will be able to be made cut a leg or an arm. Their members will be adapted in various ways and soups with meditation by the famished ones. During the head office of Paris, in 1870, it thus proposes to “philanthropophager” all the journalists and all the old men. He says ready with immoler itself the first. The Place of the Harmony will be transformed into a vast universal temple “radiating with all splendors of the skies”. At the sides of the pope Black and white IX, become archi-pontiff, it will be, him, Gagne Ier, the archi-monarch of France and the world.

Emerging in the public meetings with “its inordinately long beard and its grey hair, its hoffmannesques paces , its émaciée figure, its tight thin large body in a black frock coat buttoned to the neck”, Paulin Gagne never moved back in front of any verbal excess to make speak about him. One made fun cruelly of his worms and his proclamations. One gaussa to see it trotter in the merchants and in the galleries to place its works. And the shoulders were raised when, after an ultimate petition where he asked for his literary work “a reward or a national alms” able “to charm it with the hooks of the hunger”, he died of misery and deprivations.

Relegated in margin of a company which he had courted all his life with a perseverance out of the commun run, Paulin Gagne triumphed over it nevertheless over a certain manner while making laugh at him and while becoming thus, if not a great man, a known man. And perhaps the key of its more insane extravagances is it in the currency of Gains Ier, Salvat ridendo mundum : “It saves the world while laughing. ”

The universal Carrot

Principal publications

the Suicide, or Cries of despair, hatred, defeat, and songs of hope, love, triumph, etc, dramatic poem (1841)
Catastrophe of the railroad. With the profit of the victims. Is delirious, monolog in worms (1842) (1842)
the Ocean of the catastrophes, poem on the disasters of February 8th, with notes in prose on the earthquake of Antigoa and Liverpool, follow-up of the Fire of Hamburg, poem, and on new comet of 1843 (1843)
Gains-monopanglotte It, or single and universal, formed Language of the radical and substantial meeting of all the mother languages, and the universal Empire, poem in 10 songs and of which it is only given here some fragments (1843)
Voyage of S. AD INTERIM Napoleon, its speeches in Lyon and Bordeaux, route and entry in Paris. Live the empire and sharp the emperor! lyric and final song; and Unitéide of the people, or the Woman Messiah and unitrice saving the world, which takes its name, by the Napoleonean Unit. Collection of poems and popular songs (1852)
Unitéide, or the Woman-Messiah, universal poem in 12 songs and 60 acts, with choruses, preceded by a prolog and follow-up of an epilog per Mrs. Gagne (Elects Moreau de Rus) (1857)
History by the miracles, containing a dedication with Mrs. Gagne, a historical preamble, the history of my death, the memories of my miraculous life and the happiness of crucifixion (1860). Text in line
the Martyrdom of the kings: Louis XVI, Marie-Antoinette, Elisabeth and Louis XVII, martyrs and Christs of the royalty, epic, historical govern-tragedy and main road in 5 acts and worms (1863)
the Congress saver of the people and the kings, salutéide or poem-opera of hello of the future, history, national and universal, of 24 dialogued song-acts intended for the theater and in worms (1864)
Two Luxuries of the men and the women, luxéide, drama prostitutionicide and luxicide in 3 glares, played on all the theaters of the world, preceded by a foreword and follow-up of an epilog, accompanied by Abd-el-Kadéride (1865)
Anarchiade of decentralization, archi-drama flagellator in 5 glares, played on all the theaters of the world (1865)
Sataniade of the spiri-satanism, archi-drama spiriticide in 5 infernal glares, played on all the theaters of the world, preceded by a miraculous foreword (1865)
Républiquéïde, worsens, royalty, only final government of hello, directed by the trium-vir-salvat of Thiers, or Hugo, or the duke of Aumale, or Gambetta, and Napoleon III and Henri V, vélocitête-poem-opera dramatic in 5 records with alarm clocks (1872)
Guerriade, goddess epic war, poëme of the foreign, civil, political war and morals in 12 songs (1873)
Archi-monarquéide, or Gains first, archi-monarch of France and the world, by the grace of God and the national will, poem-tragedy-comedy-drama-opera epic in 5 acts and 12 songs, with choruses, played on all the theaters of the world, preceded by a foreword and a prolog, and followed by an epilog (1876)

Notes, sources and references

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