Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1873-08-21
The Old Guard Love for the Emperor.

49, N.A ~ AA4 u o AVfC Ava jlc L. IL UGIO.,
Ny neignbor, the old Grenadicr, is
seated AZ his threshold to-day, lost IN
meditation. At times lie begins one
OF his Old Bonapartist songs, but emo
ton choAes his Voice his eyes are in
, iiamcd, and 70 all appearances, the ola
fellow, Aad been weeping. He Was nt
tranconi $ last night. and, while there,
witnessed the battle OF Au-terIitL.
lie explained Tile faults of the pla, To
me, iog hc hai fought ii Austcrlitz,
wAclc ~ va, 80 cold that his fingers
irozc fast 10 his musAet-wAlIc al
fraAconi' : on tAc other hand, tuc heat
was ln.uPportanle. iic MAS we'll
pleased with the pOwdrr-smOkc, and
also villa the smell of the horses, al
though he Insisted that the cayalr, at
AIstcrttz hat not hal such well
grooncd grays. The powder ut
Francoul Was, IS the Old man SAID,
excellent, and affected his chest 50
beneiiciaIIy a. 10 relieve hlm Of lis
cough. And the Lmpclor.' asked
him. "lAe Emperor" answered the
old man, was quite unchanged, the
very picture Of life, with his gray
capote and his little three cornercd nat
and my heart throb5ed In my breast.
Al, thc Enperor,' tho Old fellow
added, God knows how much love
hun. During life have often gone
through lire for him, and even after
death L snail have To 20 through tire
Tor him again. Rcou. thus vas tile
on man named, rcpeat:d the last
words IN a gloomy, mysterious tone
| had frequently heard him say that he
expected U - to hell for the Emperor.
and when | ASKED nun u explain n.s
strange words, he told me the follow
in5 story: Al the time that Napoleon
caused Pope Pius III. tJ bc removed
from Rome AMI carried 10 Sayona.
Rcou belonged - 4 company OF IrcA-
alters VINO were placed ~ guIrI over
hlm. lhe Pope was al first, ace h.l
many privileges; without Alnd ..4ce
he could leave his apartments 1T any
hour and repair to the castle, where lie
read the mass daily. When, on such
occasions, he passed through the great
hail IA which the grenadlers were on
guard, he would bless them. But one
morning the grenadier5 received posi-
tive orders to watch the Pope's exits
more strictly than before, and to pre-
vent hlm from going through the great
hall. AS i'll luck would have it, the
execution of this order fell to the lot
OF Rlcou, who, being Breton, was, Of
course, an arch Catholic and regarded
the captive Pope as the victory Of
Christ. Poor Ricou was standing
guard before the apartment Of tile
rope when the latter according To his
wont desired 70 pass through the great
hall 10 order TO read the mass in the
castle chapel. Ricou, however adyanc-
Ell and declared that he had received
orders not to allow the Holy Father 10
pass. Several priests who were in the
Popes train endeayored to speak to
his soul, to explain the sacrilege and
SIN he was committing, and the deep
.amnatlon he would draw upon his
head by preventing the Pope from
reading mass. All was in vain. Rlcou
remained firm, always fell back upon
the impossibllity of disobeyiug orders,
and when, despite this, the Pope at
tempted TO advance, he cried out bold
ly:
'Iu nom deP Empereur" and,
with bayonet presented, forced tue
Pope to retreat. After few DAYS the
harsh order was revoked, and the Pope
was again permitted TO pass through
the great hall on way to mass. lie
would then bless all except poor Ricou
whom he regarded with glance OF re-
Duke, and upon whom he always turned
his back, when he extended his hand
70 bless the rest. And yet could not
have acted otherwise" the Old tauditde
added, wnen he had told me the story.
Il could not have acted otherwise; |
had my orders, and it was my duty to
obey the Emperor" assured the
poor fellow that the Emperor was an
swera5le for the sins of the Graade
Arnsee, but that this would injure him
but little, as there was not devil In
hell who would dare lay hands upon
Napoleon. The old man gladly ap-
proved OF my words, and, with voluble
enthusiasm, began to tell me of the
splendor Of the empire and of the i'm.
perlal times when all was fourishing