The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1872-12-14
Marriage of Henri ROchefort.

HYlaeU lOT tHclf cuma4 an lncluenC 81
pathetic as the marriage of Henr
Rochfort, with all the circumstance,
which, in fact, surrounded it yesterday
Several years ago, when the man nov
condemned to detention for life wa.
the young Comte de Rochefort Lucay
he wooed and won Marie Renauld, the
daughter of an employee in the Minis
try OF Finance. They were at the time
almost> boy and girl-he, | think,
twenty, and she sixteen-and did moi
find it necessary to consecrate their
affection by any other ceremony than
those vows Of constancy, which usually
prove Of very transient force. It was
not so, however; the Compte de
Rochefort let himself he carried away
by his virulent wit and his eager desire
for notoriety until he became famous
for satires which were certainly out of
all keeping with an ancient title, and
wisely dropped his rank. It is poor
work attacking a fallen man, and
will not inquire now whether some of
his extravagant articles, which how
ever meant, could but fall like oil
upon the fire of fiercer mems passions,
were notequally unworthy of the plain
citizen Henri Rochefort claimed to be.
The natural result of such career has
been at one time exile, at another i'm
p)ication in the horrors committed by
those who were or had been his fol-
lowers, and finally the condition Of a
prisoner for the rest of his life. During
all his changes of fortune, except the
last, Md'lle Renauld has remained with
him. At Brussels, when he was in
exile, at Paris during the siege, they
were together, and they have only
been parted lately, owing to her ill
ness. This is at:presents so dangerous
that in all probability death must
come soon. She could not meet this
calmly without remedying for her
children, as French law enables her
to do, the mistake made years ago.
There were difficulties in the way.
She could not be moved from her bed,
and her lover had ceased to have the
right, or at least the power, to control
his own actions. However, these OBJ
stacles have been overcome, and the
prisoner was permitted, yesterday, to
come, strongly guarded at every step.
to make the dying woman in the Con-
vent of the Augustines, at Versailles,
at last, his wife. By this the children.
a daughter and two sons, become leg
itimate. No wonder that people have
talked of little else the last two days.
Curiosity was naturally excited to
know each detail of this strange con-
clusion to singular story; but the
matter so well and quietly managed
that very few inqrisitive spectators
could get in, where their presence
would have been most unacceptable.
Rochefort had been brought to the
Maison fArret of Versailles on Mon
day night, and thence his marriage
procession started yesterday morning.
1t consisted of one large hired carriage
conveying the bridegroom and three
policemen dressed in plain clothes)
it left the prison at very early hour,
and had for escort a very strong guard
of gardens de la pair, who also sur
rounded in force the Maison de Sante
attached to the Convent of the Angus
tines. Here, on the second story, was
No. "a little room opening, rs all
such do in places of confinement, from
a great public corridor, and in this lay
the bride. AS the poor paralyzed
woman could not, Of course, be moved
to the marie or to the church for either
the civil or religious ceremony, NJ.
Remeau, the Marie, had come to her
bedside. The marriage instrument was
read by him, while NJ. Rochefort stood
by the bride, holding her hand. It
was then signed by both, though the
effort drew from her a cry of pain, and
by Francois Victor Hugo,
Ernest Blum, Jean Destrian and the
eloquent barrister, Albert Jolly. This
was sufficient to give legal validity to
the marriage and status to the chill
dren, but Mile Renauld las the Rap
pei states, half apologetically) had
begged for q religious ceremony, also,
and Rochefort could not refuse re-
quest which will be probably her last.
The blessing of the Church was, there
fore, bestowed on the pair by Able
Follet, chaplain of prisons. After this
NJ. and Madame Rochefo1t were re-
leased from surveillance for a short
halfhour and left absolutely alone.
At>the expiration of this time they
parted, and at ii o'clock Of their bridal
their welded life ended for
ever. The bridegroom, with the same
was conducted back to his
prison, his conductors by
the rapid pace at which they took the
appearing to grudge the favor
shown; and last night he was carried
in n prisoners van to his place of per-
manent confinement in the lie de Re.
Paris Cor. London Globe.
A Pair of Lavender Brides,
Eli poa:lcina Of tLa Nar Xorlc Gona-