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The Trial of Mr. and Mrs. Muratore
Muratore, the great artist, and Lina Cavalieri, his wife, acquired a magnificent residence in a delightful setting in Neuilly, near Boulevard Victor-Hugo, in 1922.
This is where they have their home; this is where Mrs. Muratore likes to relax in the peace of the countryside: Cavalieri rusticana. But they have a tenant, Mr. Martin, who practices the profession of machine and tool dealer in the premises he inhabits, very close to the owners' villa. For Mr. and Mrs. Muratore, people of high taste, this proximity, made obligatory by a lease that was still in force, was a cause of serious discontent. If Mr. Martin were to disappear, they would quickly tear down the buildings erected for his business, in order to extend the park and create new trees. One day, however, they thought they had found a way, and they sued Mr. Martin for eviction and 50,000 francs in damages for breaching two clauses of his lease.
And first of all, they said, it is forbidden to practice an unhealthy, inconvenient, or dangerous profession on the rented premises... That of tool dealer, if neither dangerous nor unhealthy, is at least inconvenient! Moreover, it is forbidden to erect buildings within 20 meters of our boundary wall. However, Mr. Martin has erected here and there, very close to the wall, machine and tool depots, which are considered buildings. After pleadings by Mr. Izouard for Mr. and Mrs. Muratore and Mr. Sauvard for Mr. Martin, the fifth chamber of the court, presided over by Mr. Veydenmeyer, dismissed the plaintiffs' claim. Mr. Martin's business is not inconvenient, his machine depots are not constructions; he will remain in the premises he occupies under a lease he has honored.
What a pity! This vile collection of tools desecrates the setting. Yet the work must be endured until the end of the lease! It is a mistake to imagine that Martin, grouping his machines in a pile at the foot of the wall, is wrong!
Louis Fourès.
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