Source note

NEPOMUCENE, a foundling; servant-boy of Madame Vauthier, manager and door-keeper of the house on the Boulevard Montparnasse, which was occupied by the families of Bourlac and Mergi. Nepomucene usually wore a ragged blouse and, instead of shoes, gaiters or wooden clogs. To his work with Madame Vauthier was added daily work in the wood-yards of the vicinity, and, on Sundays and Mondays, during the summer, he worked also with the wine-merchants at the barrier. [The Seamy Side of History.]