The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1877-02-01
The Painted Empress.

A correspondent of the New York
World gives the following graphic &C
count of 4 visit to the ex empress oil
| France to the Vatican: ''The other day
l received information that the eX-em.
press OF France. who is now in Rome
with her son, was to go to the Vatican on
certain day to visit the mosaic factory
The empress did not come until l sc
O'Clock. Not only her manner, but her
appearance was q terrible shock to me
| have not seen the empress Of France for
over twenty years She was then in the
full hrilliancy OF her. beauty, a young
wife, 4 young mother, young empress
Through all these intervening years of
her gr r'ndeur and vicissitudes | have
never lost the memory of her rare beau
ty. Whenever have thought of her dur
ing these last years, have pictured her
as . quiet, handsome, melancholy wild
ow, dignilied and elegant. But no such
agreeable parsonage appeared the other
day. She was dressed quietly enough, in
very simple. ugly English black-cloth
costume. The skirt was extremely short.
without tlounce or any other trimming,
except broad black braid This costume
has long loose Jacket, and She wore a
simple English nat of felt. Her feet were
trim, and she minced about on her toes
and high heels. But she was painted red
and white and black Her eyes were
darkened, and also the eyebrows and eye
lashes. and you could see the paint on her
lips. Then, upon her head was a reddish
blonde wig. why. she wears Il peruke!"
was the whisper among the hidden obser-
vers. There was no mistake about it.
1ou could see the peruke form in the
front hair. This false hair was waved
over the forehead and arranged in long
tresses ut the back. Her head looked like
q we'll made-up BARRIERS block. In her
hand she carried a large yellow cane of
the style Of the coquettish marquise canes
ried it as Il price, not as a support; for
she played and toyed with it, pointed at
the pictures and twirled it about in her
hand did net 60 into the mosaic fac
tory when she did; but | was told she
went through the mosaics in A few min
utes, evidently feeling no interest in the
curious work, and paid little attention to
Baron Nisconti's explanations.
She seemed preoccupied, if any one can
say 50, with nothing; not bored, but GER
tainly not interested. Baron Visconti ex-
planned carefully all the curious maps, al
though he looked ready to faint with ex-
haustion. The empress hardly listened;
she was as coquettish as Il young Parish
enne of seventeen.
Poor woman! Her imperial journey in
the East in 1869, when the isthmus was
"inaugurated. lis she said, was the very
eliminating point of her splendor The
descent was frightfuliy rapid. Then fol-
lowed the Prussian-French war; the defeat
of Sedan. the seige of Paris, her flight the
downfall of the empire and her husbands
death! fnough of sorrow, it seems, to
have sobered her for life, to have but SOL
emn, dlgnitied reserve into the lightest of
French women.
The eXemprcss minced along on her
high heels, twirling her cane, bowiug her
wiggeu head, with an unmeaning smile
on her painted face. went into st Pc
ter's, and as wandered aimles-ly through
the grand obi church laughed at myself
for feeling veyed with disillusions. After
all, what poor stuff are this worlds heroes
and hcroines madei 1t never does to see
them too close at hand
When the eX-empress entered the pope =
presence she fell on her knees and burst
into a violent fit of sobbing. 1t was some
time before they could calm her; then her
son and Cardinal Bonaparte left her alone
for 4 half hour with his holiness