horsemouth multiplies his personality (‘hail to the king of ... activity, to whom time and space gives way’)

howard.... busy (also) ...etc.

‘... yes, hail to that being, composed of saltpetre and gas, who makes children for france during his laborious nights, and in the day multiplies his personality for the service, glory, and pleasure of his fellow-citizens...’ 

while the rest of the novel (the girl with the golden eyes) is a minor thing, balzac’s sustained coffee fueled rant about the hardworking, multitasking parisian citizen is a thing of beauty. balzac's parisian citizen works multiple jobs. after a full working day balzac makes him a spear carrier at the opera.

you can see why marx and engels love him (and what they’ve borrowed from him).