The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1852-08-19

Iifs, u sid 10 have commenced about 1872, ct Va
lesce, where his regiment was then quartered. She
W.: ths n,,s sxoeedinsy handsome. and he wa: led
thraii 10 never appears to have made so much as
ono determined effort to break free The first
great sacrifice imposed upon him--and to q nam Of
his unidentified courage and sense Of military homer
1t must have been terrible one--was the abandon
mont Of his profession when his regiment was or
dered into active service, on the occasion of the
French invasion of Spain, under the Duo dan
gouleme, in 1925. Even Q call Of this perenp-
tory kind could net tear him from the side of
the enchantress, and, from gratitude as we'll as
from Affection he remained constant to her death.
To compensate him in some sort, marriage was
made up. under Lady Blessingtons auspices, between
him and the daughter Of her lord. It was an I'M
happy and most unfortunate union and no partial
or indugent feelings towards the dead should induce
us to be unjust towards the living. Lady Harriet
was in the first blush of youth hardly sixteen, and
she was pre-eminently endowed with beauty, grace,
talent, and accomplishment. 1t is impossible to
imagine moro truly feminine gentle and winning
creature, or one better qualified to appreciate her
husband. She did appreciate him, and the misfor-
tune was that he never appreciated her indeed, he
never lived enough with her to know the value Of what
be was throwing away Her fortune was very large,
and the greatert part Of it left at his disposal
IL is supposed that he received-or that his credi-
tors or assgnees received-in one shape another,
moro than $780, 900 from her Irish estates This is
the part of his story which we should be glad to
gloss over but it is too notorious to be ignored in
any biographical notice making the smallest pre-
tension to authenticity.
which his friends and admirers will be most eager
to dwell 1t was not merely that he possessed
varied and extended information, profound know
ledge of the springs of human action, tact fancy,
of qualities, which go to make up that composite
and indefnable thing called wit. He was the best
bred man We ever knew; and good breeding Of the
highest order is not to be acquired by study, like
an art. It's perfection consists In giving pain,
either from ignorance designedly. It, therefore,
requires the most exquisite nenes Of perception to
discover what is pleasing or dspleasiHg to Others
and the most imperturbabe good nature to turn the
discovery to good account SO as to duse agreeable
emotions and promote friendly feelings. 1t was
dOrsay's unceasing aim, particularly at Gore House,
to make every ut home and ut their ease and he
was always sure to address his conversation, natu-
rally and unafectedly, to any shy and embarrassed
member of the company, till he saw that any
passing awkwardness or embarrassment was at an
end. His influence over his own circle of intimates
was unbounded, and it was fairly earned by the
soundness and dsinterestedness of his eounses when
any difficulty or misunderstanding caused him to be
appealed to rs mediator or adviser. We incline to
think that it was his practice Of giving advice, and
of directing the conduct of persons Of undoubted
weight and position, that brought about the cool
ness which long subssted between him and Louis Ma
poleon, who. more than any public man living, is
IN the habit of taking counsel exclusively with his
own mind. D'Orsay was thorough Bonapartist,
ana hrm believer In the spell like power OF the bare
name of Napoleon over Frenchmen His most earnest
wishes were uniformly with the Prince President
but he regarded the coup defat as having been eff
fected en- pure Tere, to his own expression and
he contended to the last that Louis Napoleon might
have attained to higher, nober, more useful, and
more truly enviable position, without the breach Of
q single obligation, and without an approximation
TO what the most rigid moralist would denounce Us
a crime.
When the Earl of Norwich, who had been the wit
Of Charles the First's court re-appeared at White
hall after the restoration he voted dead bore.
No extent of prejudice could ever have voted
d 'Orsay less than a most cultivated and pleasing
member of society but, on his final return to
France three years before his DEATH few Frenchmen
could be brought to acknowledge what most Eng
shmen deemed his incontestable social superiority.
He was always regretting England and it was only
he artistic and literary life Of Paris, and the never
failing attachment Of his sister and her family, that
at all reconciled him to what he persisted in calling
his repatriation from our shores To co ncllde,
it may induce many stern British moralist to be
indugent towards the memory Of this erring and
misled, but kind, generous and accomplished gen.
tleman, to be assured that if his first record of im
pressions in England bore testimony to our preju-
dces tiIeso meness, his last filed to over
lowing with cherished recollections of our go9d
sense, our honesty, and our truth.