The south-western. [volume] (Shreveport, La.) 1852-1870, 1855-05-09
SHREVEPORT, LOUISIANA, WEDNESDAY,, MAY

were Just bringing out two collins to be placed
on hearse, which stood in the street. The
doctor and his portcge ascended the stairs, en-
tered the parlor and proceeded to another room
without seeing any body or hearing any noise.
A deathly silence pervaded the whole house.
But Esther in the greatest alarm pushed open
door and led the way to the room where she
and her twelve sisters had slept together. The
door was open, but four beds alone occupied
the room, and two of those were empty. On
the other, lay two of the fair haired twins, and
bv their side stood madame Domergue looking
at them as ifstupifed Esther with an unde-
fined dread of something frightfu, rushed up
to her mother and threw her arms around her.
But as soon as madame Domergue saw her,
she threw her from her, then seized her again
and would have torn her to pieces if the doctor
had not snatched her from her grasp. AS 1t
was, the poor childs face was all scratched
and bloody, and she tainted almost immedi-
ately.
"Why do you bring her here?" cried mad
anne Domergue..o ''She is the cause of all my
misfortune. There lie the only two have left.
Take the little demon away, or will kill her
in spite of you!' ..5 ....
Almost frozen with horror the doctor an
swered not word but bore the insensible and
bleeding child from the room, out of the house
| and placed her in a carriage which he saw
passing and stopped. He ordered the coach
man to drive to an obscure little street where
| lived in the most humble manner, the doctor
venerable mother She received the unhappy
child, gave her all unnecessary relief, and In
stalled her in small room near her own.
It was as madame Donergue had said, in
three weeks ten Of her idolized daughters had
fallen victims to the terrible disease, and the
| day after the doctors second VISIT the Other
two died, and were buried like their sisters. A
| few DAYS more, and the mother herseffollowed
and when the doctor, hearing of it, returned,
he found that house. once so noisy with young
voices, and so full of the JOY and pride of a
large family, silent as the tomb, occupied only
by prematurcv old man, left alone in the
world and PROSTATE with his grief. A few
months afterwards, Mr.. Domergue died in
hopeless insanity.
Ether, brought up under the motherly care
of madame Soue, budded into won,anhood as
lovely young creature as could possibly be
seen When in her eighteenth year, she be-
came the wife of the doctor, who was now be-
ginning to be known in the world and she made
her appearance in the saloons of Paris and was
She became the mother of five chidTen-fou
sons and one daughter-whom she brought uE
and educated to be an honorto hersefand orna
ment to the society in which they lived. DR.
Sou!ie became in time one Of the physicians o
the court of Louis XVI, and when the poll!lca
troubles began to break out, he, unfortunate J
wrote pamphlet in favor of the court, and thu:
became a marked man. In the fall Of 1892, a
three O'Clock one morning, the people torcIbIy
entered DIR. Soulies house, dragged him and hi
two eldest sons from their beds, and in spite o
the prayers and entreaties of the poor wife ant
mother, carried them off. Itwas nearly weel
before madame Soulie could hear any news O
=; her loved ones, and then-they had 'alread
been dead four davs-tne gulotlne bad done it
work for them. Madame Soulie clasped he
three remaining children in her arms, two boy
! of seventeen and eighteen, and girl OF tlttee
years of age. But as she strained them to he
= in the agony OF her grief, fresh trouble wa
preparing for her. Her sons vowed with
themselves to revenge the murder of thei
father and brothers. 1t would take too long t
narratc all the circumstances which followed
; but these two young men placed themselves a
l the head of a conspiracy against the govern
ment, and one year precisely from the day Of
which she had learned the death of her hus
band and two eldest boys, madame Soulie re
ceived short note, as follows:
"Cosc1ERGERIE. Thursday, noon.-Mothe
Dear mother: We have conspired against tn
government-we have been betrayed, and ar
to die tomorrow. Bear it bravely mother. W
die for our father and our brothers.
HENRY EFT VICTOR"
What words can describe the despair of tina
poor mother? At first she prayed to God t
take her life or her reason. But a ray of hop
dawned upon her. She mi ght, perhaps, say
her BOYS, the tribunal which had condemne,
them could not be dcafto mothers prayer
mothers despair. But alas! madame Souli
little knew the men upon whose compassion
she counted. In vain she supplicated, in val
, she prayed, they ended by refusing to listen t.
: her any longer She did all that could possibl
be done to save her boys from death, she even
after the example of madame Chalais, tried t
bribe the executioners. But they accepted he
money and then betrayed her. Finding all he
efforts, useless, she tried to resign herself, AM
determined, as she could not obtain her son
lives, at least to get permission to aid them t.
die. This was with great difficulty granted he
but at last she received it, and a couple c
hours before the execution was 10 taEe place
she presented herself before her unhappy boys
+ Then all the grandeur of her soul, the devotio
the resignation which was so remarkable in he
after life, showed itself. No useless tears, n
reproaches, no lamcnting. One short burst c
!, agony, which the sight of the manacled limb
of her children forced from her in spite Of her
self, and she was done with the world. Ever
moment was precious. God, and the eternit
into which these two boys were SO soon to ente
formed the sole subject Of the conversation be
tween the mother and her children, until th
TAILOR came to announce that the moment ha
arrived to say their last prayers.
Madame Soulie stood by while the chains
, were knocked off, she knelt and prayed wit
the priest, who had been sent to accompany tn
prisoners. to the scatfold, and then she took al
arm of each of her beloved boys and left tn
prison with them. The public place wa
crowded with people. They could not he
plying those two handsome youths about to b
executed but tears ran down the hardest chee
, at the sight of that noble mother, still in mourn
ing for her husband and two eldest children