Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1871-08-23
AN IMPERIAL SCANDAL.

AN IMPERIAL SCANDAL.
The Real Cause of the Ex-Empress Eu-
Senie's Journey to ScotIand-The Ex-
Empcror's Intrigue with Marguerite
BeIlanger.
The following editorial from the Lon
don Times, on an incident in the pri-
vate life of the Ex-Emperor Napoleon,
elicted a denial from the Ex-Empress
Eugene that she ever contemplated d.
vorce, as alleged therein.
Toward the latter part of November,
1860, the Empress Eugene startled the
friends and enimies of the Bonaparte
dynasty by private visit to this coun-
try. Although the Emperor, made
aware of her resolution at the eleventh
hour, so far saved appearances as to be
"Just IN time to see her off at the
Northern Railway Terminus, and al
though it was given out that the En-
press's journey had no other object than
to spend few days with her former
governess in Scotland, still there was
something SO sudden and clandestine in
her departure and in her style
of travelling that it could not
fail at the time to give rise to
every variety and conjecture The
members of the French Embassy in
London, whom the telegraph acquaint-
ed with the Enpress's movements, at
tended at an early hour to receive their
Sovereign's Consort at any of the sta
lions at which she might be expected
to arrive. Somehow, the august trav-
eler contrived to escape their atten-
tions, and drove unrecognized and
accompanied only by one gentleman
and two ladies Of her suite, to Clar-
idge's Hotel, whence, after quiet
saunter In Regent street, she proceeded
by rail to Scotland, and was next heard
OF at Edinburgh, at Glossgow and on
the track of Summer tourists in the
Highlands. After three weeks stay,
and a private visit to the Queen at
Windsor, she reappeared at the Tuiler-
les. One explanation ascribed the I'M
perial ladys visit to grief for the death
of her sister, the Duchess of Alva; au-
other to a passing fit OF harmless &C.
centricity; another to a longing, ma
ural in one not born in the purple to
withdraw, for however short
period, from the weary monot-
ony of her lofty station, But mono of
these seemed sufficient, and the sup
position which obtained most favor was
that the fight of the Empress wss the
result of some storm in the Imperial
household and, as Eugene was ex-
tremely devout, and at that moment
the Emperor had just openly counter
anced the italian invasion of the Mar
ches and Umbria, and was endeayoring
prevail on the Pope to consent to
the loss Of those provinces, it was sur
missed that husband and wife had quar-
led about the Roman question. But
there were. besides, shrewder news
mongers, who asserted that jealousy
was at the bottom of the Imperial dis
agreement that the Empress had talk
Ell umbrage at some indiscretion of her
lord, the Emperor, and had vowed not
to go back to him, unless the cause of
OHenSe was removed
Whatever mystery might yet have
hung upon that now almost forgotten
episode in a welded life, which has
been otherwise singularly free from do
nestle clouds, has been unvaulted by
the sentence pronounced by the French
Courts Of Cessation in favor of NJ
Devienne, the late first President of
the Court of Paris. It seems now GER
tain that the Emperor had really, some
time before that short breach Of his
domestic peace, succombed to the faci-
nations OF a young lady whose beauty
was the theme Of much conversation in
the Paris world, and that the displeas-
ure OF the Empress was caused by the
reports which reached her of the de-
gree Of Intimacy existing between this
lady and the Emperor, and of the con-
sequences the connection had entailed.
which could hardly fail to lead to some
Scandal0us exposure. The happiness
OF the wife and the safety Of the hus-
band required something more than the
removal of the rival. It was necessary
to obtain from her a retraction Of the
assertions upon which she founded her
claims, and upon the strength of which
she threatened to bring the Emperor
before a court of law The Empress.
generously giving up all idea of di-
Yorce, and cOnsentlng to a reconcilia-
ton with her erring husband. exerted
herself TO extort from her rival a de-
claration to the effect that she had de-
ceived the Emperor, and that their in
tercourse had no such results as she
had led him to believe.
We do not think that, out of France
at least, people will concern themselves
about the part. played by the Chief
President of the Imperial Court in this
delicate transaction. All the interest
concentrates itself on one point, and
that is the wholesome fear the Emperor
Napoleon entertained as to the conse-
quences of his indiscretion. He was at
that time at the hight of his popularity,
or his Lombard campaign had won him
The applause even of his enemies, while
The annexation of Savoy and Nice had
reconciled to him the advocates of a
more strictly national policy. But a
lawsuit such as his culpable attachment
so nearly involved him in, was more
than even in all his might, he would
have Yentured to face
His wife, though placahle to the fault.
would have been memorable to it's ex-
posure, and peace could hardly have
been made unless a means had been
found to hush up the scandal. The
EmperOrs prospects for himself and
his d ynasty would have lost much of
their brightness, and the nation which
had condoned the coup d'etat and ac-
cepted personal rule would have MUIR
INJURED at domestic irregularities to
which generally society shows only too
much indulgence but which the high
rank of the offender would not have
allowed tito Ignore. In our age, when
we place kings and princes above us,
we expect them to be the best among
US and if they actually are not what
we would have them, we insist, at
least, on their seeming to be SO.