Mississippi Democrat. (Carrollton, Miss.) 1844-18??, 1845-01-01

tue disappearance OF the SdCGnt, and be.
fore the departure of Bestucheff, the tar
inc threw off all ceremony, and pinching
the cheeks and imprinting a kiss on the
forehead of the beautiful stranger, ap-
pointed her, by one of these sudden whims
or preference against which her minister
had so much trouble to guard, letricc an
time ct particuliere,-in short, confiden.
tlal personal attendant. The bushes of
the confused marquis, who was unprepared
for so atfectlonate reception, served ra-
Their to heighten the disguise, and old Bes-
tuchef bowed himself out with a compli-
ment to the beauty of Mademoiselle de
Beaumont, yelled in diplomatic con-
graduation to her imperial mistress.
Elizabeth was forty and a little pdSSee,
but she still had pretensions, and was par
ticularly fond of beauty in her attendants,
female as well as male. Her faVorite, of
her personal suite. at the time of the arri-
val of the marquis, was an exquisite little
creature who had been sent to her, as
compliment to this particular taste, by the
Duchess of Mecklenberg Sterlitz-a kind
of German "Fenella" or "Mignon," by the
name of Nadege Stein. Not much below
the middle size, Nadege was model of
symmetrical proportion, and of very extra
ordinary beauty. She had been carefully
educated for her present situation, and
was highly accomplished; a fine reader,
and singularly sweet musician and dan
Ger. The tzarine's passion for this love-
ly attendant was excessive, and the arri-
val of new favorite Of the same sex, was
looked upon with some pleasure by the
eclipsed remainder of the palace idlers.
Elizabeth summoned Nadege, and com.
mitted Mademoiselle de Beaumont tempo
rarily to her charge; but the same mystic.
rious magnetism which had reached the
heart of the tZarine, seemed to kindle,
quite as promptly, the affections OF her at.
tendant. Nadege was no sooner alone
with her new friend than she jumped TO
her neck, smothered her with kisses,
called her by every endearing epithet,
and overwhelmed her with questions, min
gled with the most child-like EXPLANATIONS
of wonder at her own inexplicable love
for stranger. In an hour she had shown
to the new demoiselle all the contents of
the little boudoir in which she lived; talked
to her of her loves and hates at the Rus
sian court; of her home in Mecklenberg,
and her present situation: in short, poured
out her heart with the naif abandon of a
child. The young marquis had never
seen so lovely a creature; and, response
bly, as he felt his difficult and delicate stu
alton, he returned the affection so inno-
Gently lavished upon him, and by the end
Of this first fatal hour, was irrecoverably
in love. And gay as his life had been at
the French court, it was the first, and sub
sequently proved to be the deepest passion
of his life.
On the tzarine's return to her private
apartment, she summoned her new favo.
rite, and superintendent, with condescend-
ing solicitude, the arrangements for hel
palace lodging. Nadege inhabited small
tower adjoining the bedroom of her mis-.
tress, and above this was an unoccupied
room, which, at the present suggestion o.
the fairy little attendant, was allotted tc
the newcomer. The Staircase opened
by one door into the private gardens, anC
by the opposite, into the corridor leading
Immediately to the imperial chamber
The marquis's delicacy would fam have
had some objection to this very intimate
location; but he could hazard nothing a,
gainst the interests of his sovereign, anC
he trusted to speedy termination of hi:
disguise with the attainment of his object
Meantime, the close neighborhood of tht
fair Nadedge was not the most intolerablt
of necessities.
The marquis's task was very Difficult
one. He was instructed, before abandon
ing his disguise and delivering his secre
dispatches, to awaken the interests of the
tzarine on the two subjects to which The
f documents had reference-viz: a former
partially of her majesty for Louis, and Z
formerly discussed project of seating The
Prince de Cont on the throne of Poland
Bestuchef had so long succeeded in cut
ting off all approach of these topics to tht
ear of the tzarine, that her majesty haC
probably forgotten them altogether.
j Weeks passed, and the opportunitie
to breach these delicate subjects hat
been inauspiciously rare. Mademoisellt
de Beaumont, it is true, had completely
ecIipsed the favorite Nadege; and Eliza
beth, in her hours of relaxation from state
affairs, exacted the constant attendance o
the new favorite in her private apartments
But the almost constant presence of som'
other of the maids of honor, opposed con
tinual obstacles and Interruptions, and tn
tzarine herself was not always disposed Il
talk of matters more serious than the cur
rent trif1es of the hour. She was extreme
ly INDECENT in her personal habits; and OF
ten reclining at length upon cushions Oh
the floor of her boudoir, she laid her i'm
nerial head in thu Ian Of the embarrasse