Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1873-03-13

.,rr;are and Death Notices, when not exceed
;ny eight lines fifty cents
The Bonaparte-Patters Marriage.
Sixty-niue years have gone by since Bishop
Carroll read the marriage service and pro-
,onn.ed Jerome Bouaparte and Elizabeth Pat
,.r,,p husband and wife As all the world
snows. the tie which on that December morn
;ns was declared by ecclesiastical authority to
he iudisSoluble was year later violently sun
1ercl. The foolish young man who had taken
n himself wife without the consent OF his
r,wcrfuI brother, was held to be incompetent
70 enter luto such an engagement on account
i his not having arrived at the age Of twenty
five, and the First Consul affected TO regard
the whole affair as little Intrigue in which
Jerome had become involved. The rejected
wife returned to her fathers house, bringing
with her an iofant son, who grew to manhood,
lived 10 good old age and died but the
mother still survives to dream over dlsappolnt-
ci hopes.
There is pathos in the story of this W.
,uan life which will perpetuate it tor genera
,;us TO come and centuries must elapse before
,h. b,uaparte- Patterson marriage Will cease to
h, thcme for romantic speculation. The
!,t,.>t book laid upon our table is a history OF
mi, remarkable union, and i compendium OF
the secret correspondence between members
,f,hr PATTERSON family and their agents III
lranrc in relation thereto. The author, Mr..
" T, r. Saffel had rich mine OF materials
from which to compile his book, aud we DO
not thuk that it is yet exhausted: Ihe pre-
seryatiou of these documents IS almost as
singular as the affair OF which they treat.
Mcssrs. Honine 4 Murdoch, dealers 10 paper
makers material. bought lot OF old rubbish
which had lain neglected Tor halt century
IN i warehouse once occupied by MIR. Patterson
tllada,uc Bouaparte father. lu looking
over the muSty papers package OF letters was
found which proved to be the long-mlsSlng cor
rcspoudcncc. These letters came into the
possession of Mr. Satfcll, and for the first time
are made public in the volume now before us
Madame Bouaparte was consulted as to the
propricty Of publishing them, and she express
ed herself as being entirely indifferent on the
subject. Her grandsous Coonel Jerome y.
Bonapartc and Mr.. Charles j. Bonaparte,
from considerations OF deicacy, very naturally
opposed the publication, and desired the COM
pier 50 to state in the preface to his work.
There is certainly nothing in these letters
which does not reflect honor upon the Patter-
sou family, and their publication will correct
happy marriage Mr. William Patterson had
no ambition to marry his daughter to a French
naval officer, even though his brother was a
prospective Emperor He opposed the match
unti! he found that nothing but force and VIC
lcncc would prevent it. After it was consum
mated the whole family we're anxious that
Jerome should give up all his hopes OF prefer
nent IN France and become a citizen ofthe Y.
5. They preferred that the young people
should live happily in this country. rather than
cucountcr the storms of revolution, with the re-
mote hope of attaining to royal rank In fact
this possibility was regarded by them with
dread.
Mr.. Robert Patterson (brother to Madame
Bonaparte) went to Europe three months after
his sisters marriage for the purpose Of procur-
ing for her honorable recognition, and much OF
this correspondence relates to this unsuccessful
mission He writes hopefully at first, for all the
members of the Bonaparte family, Napoleon ex-
ccptcd, expressed themselves as well pleased
with Jeromc's marriage He had friend with
him, Captain Paul Bentalou, who seems to have
been man of great address, who" o"intervlewed'
Lucien Bonaparte and brought back most Hat
terng report. Tell Mr.. Paterson, said Lu-
cieu, that our mother, myself, and the whole
family with one voice and as heartily as 40,
highly approve of the match The Consul, 1t
Strue, does not for the present CONCUR With Us
hat be is to be considered as isolated from his
family Placed on the lofty ground on which
he stands as the FIRST magistrate of great and
powerful nation, all his actions and ideas are
directed by policy with which we have moth
ing to do We still remain plain citizens; and
as such, from all we have learned Of the young
lady character, and the responsibility Of her
friends, we are, and feel highly gratihed with
the connection that they need not 10 the least
tc hurt by the displeasure of the Consul; that
myself, although of an age to be my own mas
Ter, and occupying distinguished places under
the government, | have also, by my late mar
rage, Incurred his displeasure, so that Jerome
not alone. But, as when we do marry, we
are arc TO consult our own Happiness, and not that
u another, 1t matters not who else Is or IS not
10 be di<pleased." !.
-N"er reading this correspondence no one VIII
fno''f'an very exalted opinion of Jerome
nouaparte. More resentment will be telt at his
want OF true manhood than at the relentless
,Fauty OF his brother He ight have. taken
Tue advice Of his mother, accepted handsome
"u1ui'y, become citizen OF the United States,
Inu llScd and died an honored and happy man.
Tic chose rather to accept the barren honor OF
crown which was not his by hereditary right;
10 desert his young and beautiful wife, and to
earn ear the contempt of all mankind. Before
:l'ss pattersons marriage her father received
an =, Anonymous letter, which he endorsed:with
'M 1He date November S, 1909 and filed away.
! MS writer was evidently some Freuchman
VINO VI was intimately acquainted with erome
honaparte, aud the facts in his history thus
communicated to his future tather-in-law, were
not calculated to enhance the old gentleman 5
peace OF mind. Other letters of warning came,
'at the marriage went on. and his subsequent
e'illuct justified the darkest prophecies OF the
unknown writer's Bali. Ame,ican.