The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1865-02-10
THE BLIND PRINCESS.

The blind Princess Of, was presented
10 the Empress Eugenie at Sehwahlbach few
days ago, and the utmost interest and sympa-
thy ~ere excited by heg story. TIE lady Is
we'll known all over Germany her princely
dcnicil is visited every year by crowds Of stran-
gers. The beautiful portrait 'by Cornelius in
one OF the snlo7s Is examined with much inter-
est. and every one departs little dreaming that
the large and soft blue eyes seeming to look
from the picture SO full of sweetness and be-
nevolence have in life no power to return The
glances Of sympathy and kindness directed to-
wards them.
The story of the Princess is perhaps the most
touching romance of the nineteenth century.
As child she had been stolen from The garden
Of the very chateau she inIIabits. A careless
nurse, bent on her own enjoyment, had suffered
her masters child to stray towards the river,
and, when in answer to the frantic appeals and
the search made in every direction, no sign Of
the infants presence could be discovered, it was
concluded that she had fallen into tho river and
got drowned. The description, but the idea
of the child's death, accepted by all besides,
was rejected by her. The river had been drag
ged no trace Vf ;he corpse had been found, and
SO, after few years time, when the death Of
the prince, her husband, had released her from
the obligation to remain in the chateau, she
gave up the domain into the hands of her
broher-in-law, and set out upon strange pill
grimage all over the continent fully convinced
that she would find, one day OF other, the OBJ
iect of her search. The sums of money spent
in the pursuit, The toll, the anxiety absorbed
npon every high road, need not be described
~ u.
came to London and was received by Queen
Adelried with the utmost kindness and sympa-
thy
Soon afterwards she went once more TO the
South, still bent on finding her child. One day,
the carriage climbing slowly up one of the steep
hills in the reighbOrhood of Lusaune, she was
accosted by beggar woman, holding by the
hand a poor blind girl for whom she was i'm
ploring aims. The girl looked gentle and sweet
tempered, resembling in no way the harsh VIC
tim whom she called mother. The inmate of
the carriage had fallen into doze, and the wo-
man tade the girl sing TO arouse the lady.
The song was vulgar ditty belonging to the
district with no romance TO insure attention,
and yet it awoke the lady from her sumber;
something in her voice reminded her of sister
lost many years before, and she stopped the
postilIion while she questioned the girl as to
her origin. The day and hour were come at
last; every word uttered by the maiden con-
irmed the suspicion of identity. Memory was
confased--it had vanished with her Si9ht--but
by dint of threats and promises, the woman
was made to confess that she had purchased
the girl when like herself, who owned 10 having
deprived her OF sight in order to excite COM
passion. The locality whence the child had
been taken was proof sufficient of the truth.
The princess returned home with her poor,
blind companion, and devoted her whole life to
tie prospect of cure, as she had done before,
to that of discovery But all attempts failed,
and then the mother gave herself up entirely to
the education OF her helpless charge. In this
she succeeded perfectly, and the princess is con-
sdered one of the most accomplished reciters
of Uhlan and Schiller in all Germany. Before
diving. her Snd mother reaped her reward in
the marriage of her daughter with the young
prince, her nephew. and this consolation is the
greatest which could be felt by her friends.
The young princess recited, with the most
exquisite clearness and pathos, two scenes from
Count Egmont" and '''The Diver" lon the en-
press while the imperial lady listened entran-
ced, and the large tears rolling down her cheeks
as she gazed on the wreck which the wicked
ness and cupidity of man had made one of the
most beautiful works Of Gods own creation.