Marie Joseph Eugene Sue (1804–1857) was a French writer. Born into the family of a famous surgeon who served at Napoleon's court. In 1825–1827 Xiu, as a military doctor, participated in naval expeditions of the French fleet, including the bloody Battle of Navarino. His father left him a million-dollar fortune, which allowed Xiu to lead the lifestyle of a Parisian dandy, devoting himself exclusively to literature. As a writer, Xiu began in 1832 with adventurous maritime novels, and later moved on to historical novels; followed by household (sometimes called "salon"). But his literary fame is based not on them, but on the famous socially adventurous novels “Parisian Mysteries” and “The Eternal Jew” created later. In 1850, Xiu was elected to the Legislative Assembly, but after the coup d'etat of 1851, he ended up in exile in Savoy, where he ended his days. The novel “Secrets of the People” is published in this volume. This is the story of the enmity of two families - German and Gallic, the clash of which begins under Caesar and ends during the French Revolution of 1848; in other words, it is a chain of historical events connected by the unity of an idea and the family relationships of the characters.