Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-08-24
Some Odd Yarns.

! Some Odd Yarns.
New York Sun
| A few years ago. when in Europe,
took dinner with relative of the famous
diplomat and politician, Prince Talley-
rand, who lived stylishly in one of the az
istocratic quarters of Paris. After the re-
past the party began telling yarns highly
favored with the supernatural. The fol-
lowing are some of the best of them:
My host, who was by the way Mar
quis, told a very curious story of his
kinsman, Prince Talleyrand. The Prince,
IN his youth, was enamored of certain
very beautiful Countess, who was behead-
cd during the Reign of Terror. One day
as the Prince was out driving in the
Bots de Vincennes, many years afterward.
the coachman suddenly stopped, and
Prince Talleyrand, looking out of the
window to see what was the matter, saw
two ladies standing by the side OF the
carriage. One of them, holding up face
between her two hands, presented the
head Of the dead Countess at the carriage
window, and then withdrew. The Prince
In the greatest CONSERVATION called out
to the coachman to know the cause of
this stopping, whcreupon the latter, with
a gesture, pointed to the figures which
were still visible. The Prince drove has
tily home. and calling his sister apart re-
lated what he had just seen in the most
terrible agitation. "My grandmother,
who was this sister, told me this herself
quietly remarked the Marquis, on finish
Ing the narration.
''But I have more weird story than
this, resumed the Marquis, after the con
versation that his strange recital gave
rise to had died away, zone in which
was principal actor myself It hap
pened during the French expedition to
Mexico, while the American civil war was
raging. The French army was encamped
before Rueblo. One day the hostler of
the Marquis horses Marquis was an
officer OF cavalrY-came to his tent and
informed him that. a civilian was desire
GUS OF beng presented. The Marquis
left the tent and followed the hostler to
one OF the outposts, where was found the
unknoAn visitor. He was dressed in
black and had white hair. He informed
the Marquis that there was to be battle
that afternoon. The Marquis not a little
surprised at his strange appearance, and
the confidence with which he predicted
battle, invited him into a tent where the
fellow-officers Of the Marquis regiment
were dining. The Marquis placed him
by his side at the table. Pointing to a
certain officer who sat opposite, the strang-
er visitor said that he would be killed IN
the approaching battle, and told three
others they would be wounded,
designating in each case the particular
spot where the wound would be received.
He also Informed the Marquis that he
would be wounded and was careful to
say just where. While the conversation
was going on the bugles blew to
horse, the officers hastily mounted
and rushed into the battle which
had already begun. The old
man IN black was not thought of until
after the fight, when the Marquis found
that every thing he had predicted had
come true. The battle had occurred, he
himself was wounded in the very spot
foretold, and three other officers were also
wounded and IN the, places designated,
and the officer who was to die was killed
among the first in the onset. But the
most curious feature of the episode is that
while the hostler remembered the strange
visitor, how he demanded the MARQUIS,
and ho* he himself had brought the Mar
quis to him. and while the sentinels from
camp all recall the circumstances of a
civilian dressed in black and with white
hair having asked for the Marquis of such
regiment and squadron, none of the
wounded officers had any recollection of
! the visitor or Of the scene in the tent at
dinner. "My fellow officers laughed a
good deal at my credulity," SAID the Mar.
| quis ~ he finished, shut the features of
this apparition are still indelibly fixed in
my mind; they were those OF Prince Tai
| leyrand.
1t vas now tie turn of the MARQUIS
wife, and she gave this odd concatena-
ton Of mysteries, all Of which happened
during single journey from Florida to
Paris.
The Marquis and his wife were living
in Florida. The Marchioness was to
take the steamer on certain day for
New York. An old negress of super
stitutious nature urged her not to 90, as
she feared there was danger. Little at
tention, however, was given to the words
Of the negress. But on the afternoon of
the day before the Marchioness was to
sail, cat came up to her bedroom, car
rying dead owl, and put it in the mid
die Of the bed. A servant threw the owl
out of the window; but in few minutes
back came the cat with the same owl and
again placed it in the middle of the bed.
This time the owl was ordered to be
thrown at the back of the barn, a long
way from the house, but in half hour
the cat again appeared with the dead bird
and placed it IN the old place. In the
evening, while the family were at dinner,
a crash was heard in the next room, the
parlor, and on entering it a strong, good
sized table-which the Marchioness still
has, and which she PORTED to In one
corner of the room while telling the sto-
ry-was found upside down in the mid
die Of the parlor. Who or what had
tipped over the table was the question.
The room was completely shut up at the
time, windows and doors closed for the
night. The Marchioness, now somewhat
nervous, declared that if the mirror,
which covered the inside of thu TOP Of
the table, was broken, she would not sail.
On opening the cover the mirror was
found to be intact. She therefore, sailed
and arrived safely at New York. But
a the Atlantic was still to be crossed. For