The Nevada journal., 1857-06-19
MADAME DE cHEvREusE.
HER PERSECUTION BY NAPOLEON

Mile Ermesinde de Narbonne became
Madame de Chevreuse in 1898, upon
her marriage with the son of the Duke
de Luynes and de Chevreuse Her ia
therin-law was the representative of a
family of immense wealth and of high
ancestral pride. In 1904, she was re-
markable as having obtained the repu-
tation OF being the most thoroughly el-
egant and accomplished woman in Paris
without possessing any of the elements
of beauty. Her hair was reddish, if not
red, her features were irregular, and, in
form she was thin and angular But
her manners were so charming, and yet
| so digniied, her movements were so
graceful, and her assertion Of her proud
birthright was so amiable, that during
her short and brilliant career at the
court, she was one of the most lofty and
dazzling ornaments.
During the formation of the imperial
household by Napoleon, a parchment
signed by the Emperor was placed in
her hands it was her appointment as
lady of honor to the Empress Josephine.
81 refuse" she said, after she had read
it. "But think of what may be the re-
suit" interposed her husband and her
father-in-law. at is useless" she re-
turned, "to repeat what | have already
said thousand times. hate and de-
spise the imperial court! After that
you can hardly desire me to form part
of it." But Napoleon had given this
naughty family to understand q refu-
sal on the part of Madame de Chevreuse
might provoke reprisals which would
endanger their fortune to save the es-
tate, therefore, she assumed the distaste-
ful service. Her conduct at court was
that of frondeuse, malcontent; her
epigrams on the new regime circulated
through Paris and the Departments
She would not deign to appropriate to
her own purposes her salary as lady Of
honor. She made a point of giving the
whole sum, twelve thousand francs a
year, conspicuously and contemptuously
to the poor.
Napoleon was wounded by the smart
sallies and the disaffection of Madame
de Chevreuse; and one night, in the
midst of brilliant throng at the Tuile-
ries, he said aloud to her: Dear me
how red your hair is p HPerhaps it is,
sire ~ she retorted, !'but this is the first
man that ever told me sol' The Count
de Survilliers, one of the authors of
Lies Erreurs de Bourrienne," says upon
this subject: "This was an indirect com
pliment to Madame de Chevreuse, but
she did not so understand it. She would
have thought that the Emperor had eyes
as well as other people, and that her
beautiful blonde hair was no redder to
him than to any one else. With more
wit, she would have modestly blushod,
and this blush would have told her ap-
probation of the indirect compliment,
and her qualification at the intention, in
which woman is rarely deceived; but
Madame de Cheyreuse was prejudiced
aud hostile"
1t is certainly worth remembering
that the apologists Of Napolion reached
delis hit at hearing an emperor call her
blonde locks red. The intimation, too,
that a person may blush to order, is, to
say the least, singular. 1t was said at
the time, in reference to this incident,
that it would be quite as easy to sneeze
at the word of command, to dream
dreams at will, to sleep voluntarily, to
wake appropriately and to expire oPpor-
tunely.
BY thus prosecuting the sprightly Ia
DIV of honor, Napoleon only succeeded
in rendering her interesting, and in
drawing upon himself the blame of the
palace. He next sought his revenge by
attempting to fasten stain upon pure
and guiltless life. He sent her superb
anonymous presents, flowers, rare
plants; but she soon put an end to these
gallant prosecutions by ordering her
servants to repulse the imperial offerings
from her door The Emperor now a.
bandoned his system of mysterious de-
votion for one of open and undisguised
attention. One day, at the close of
hunt, he ordered one of the whippers in
to present, in his name, the stag's sever
ed foot to Madame de Chevreuse. The
courtiers exchanged significant glances;
the lady of honor saw the impending
danger. She crossed the circular space
enclosed by the huntsmen, and present
ing the foot to Josephine, said, ''The
man has made mistake, madame; he
probably does not know you. 1 thus re-
pair his error" Her pale cheek was
flushed with Indignation as she repelled
the insult of his Majesty.
Napoleon soon came to fear Madame
de Chevreuse, and necessarily to dislike
her. She speedily drew upon herself
the rigors of his wrath by two speeches,
one of which was mere extravagant
bravado, the othor noble and dignifed
reproof. She came one night to the
Tuilleries, literally blazing with dia-
monds. Some one asked her if they
were all genuine, or, as is sometimes the
case, if they were mingled with paste.
aDear me | hardly know" she replied,
"but even if they were false they would
be quite good enough to come here
with i" ANY other sovereign but Ma