His mother, the widow of a Provencal captain, living at Avignon on a slender income, had had to content herself with bread and water to enable him to reach the École Polytechnique.
Sa mere, veuve d'un capitaine provençal, vivant a Avignon d'une maigre rente, avait du se contenter de pain et d'eau pour le pousser jusqu'a l'École polytechnique.