Democratic banner., 1847-10-25

Ties and attractions IN all natural respects
he was highly educated; and, as the posses,
sor of the highest rank and a proportion.
ate fortune, he was almost the first choosel
among the manageable ladies of his time,
The daughter Of that eminent diplomatist
and marshal of France, Count Sebastian
who was a countryman of Napoleon's and
had given to lis Child the Corsican heat OF
blood and temper, along with the southern
passionatcness and genial int"llect,) was
among the first of her own sex of that pc
Iriod, as IA desirable match; and the mutual
attachment Of these two was a matter Of
general approval and reciprocal family re-
Ijoicing. Mademoiselle Sebastian was beau
tiful, distinguished looking and accomplish
ed. Inferior to herself in all the gifts of
nature, as was her husband, she still loved
him devotedly, and for eight or ten years
their domestic peace seems to have been I'M
troubled. She became the mother of nine
children, to whom she devoted herself with
most exemplary tenderness and affection,
holding at the same time, a very high posi-
ton in the social world, and numbering a.
Inohg her intimate friends some of the first
intellects Of the age.
1t is about eight years since the rumors
of serious misunderstanding between the
Duke and Duchess de Praslin became first
At this time, though living under
the same roof, they occupied distinct suites
of apartment, and communicated only by
corresrondenre-the dressing maid of the
duchess being the only bearer of her letters,
and the valet of the duke the only bearer
Of his. The superiority Of his wife's let
tiers % Ills own in this correspondence, is
said to have been one Of the circumstances
aggravated the bitterness of the
feelings towards her. From the
of her first child, the duchess had been.
imbued with religious sentiments,
and her whole life seemed to be shaped tot
exercise on those around her, the i~nlluen-
ces Of christian charity and Instruction.
The poor, in the neighborhood of their i'm
Incnse manor of De Vaux, considered her
as an angel of mercy. The duke, on the
contrary, from lis gloomy temper and illib-
eral management, was as much disliked as
size was beloved; and his life elsewhere
to- be under no moral restraint and
kept within no bounds except such as were
absolutely necessary TO maintain his rank
and lis place in society as a gentleman.
In l843, a Mademoiselle de Lucy was en-
as governess in the family. She was
1 Young woman of 81 years of age, had
,een some time the governess of tie only
laughter Of Lady Hislop at Charlton in
and (by the descriptions given in
reports of the visits to her by the judi
,ial authorities since her imprisonment,
me is a person of uncommon intellect, the
education, and vary unusual supe-
'iority of manner and personal graces.-
Her conduct and her replies we may anti
the narration so far as to say here)
rave surprised and interested the legal cx-
of her evidence, and the French
in their reports, use a forbearance
nd respect towards her which show sym
,athy for her situation rather than q belief
n her criminality. OF this member Of herl
to whom every one of her children
lad become devctedly attached, the duch-
IS began, a year or two since, to entertain
uspicions. These soon grew into a belief
hat she was beyond a doubt the object OF
he dukes unlawful passion, apd upon this
,oint concentrated all the discordant foel-
~ of wife and husband. De Praslin's ip-
was, somehow, sufficient to retain
,cr a while longer under his roof, aftershe
lad become the ayowed object of c%onten-
and to procure her removal from the
amiIy eren Loais Philippe interfered, and
Queen Adelaide and the Duchess OF Or
cans used their influence. She was at last,
dismissed, and took a place as
eacLcr in a female boarding-schOoi oil
Paris.
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