The Douglas independent. [volume] (Roseburg, Or.) 187?-1885, 1880-10-16
Binding Her Rival.

The Countess de lilly was sickly,
discontented female who quarreled with
everybody add especially with her hus-
band. Marie Marechal was very at
tractiye young woman oftwo and twenty,
of good character, until, in an evil hour
for her, she met the count. The out
ragged wife discovered the intrigue and
out of revenge blinded her rival with
yitrioI as she was going to her work.
Such is the skeleton Of this disgraceful
business, and, knowing only the skele-
ton, all sympathy must be given to the
offended spouse. But when the facts of
the case are developed, the sympathy be-
comes lessened. At first we could pardon
the sudden explosion of anger on the
part of the deserted wife, the alteration
of mother fearing to see compromised
the future of her children by the extrava-
gance of an adventures. There was
nothing of the kind; the fortune of the
family had been so little dilapldated by
the counts outlay on his mistress that
the countess was able to make present
of &c, 900 francs to the milliner, as the
Judge said, Fby way of compensation for
her injuries" !" and she took eighteen
months for reflection before her jealousy
prompted her to act. When she appealed
in court, instead of theswollen eyelids of
one who was suffering from some great
sorrow, she showed q fearless face, the
absence of all emotion and that pursed-
| up mouth which is the characteristic of
|, virtuous but disagreeable Xantippes.
For nearly two years husband and wife
had quarreled like cat and dog about
Marie Marechal, but never had there
been between the two any question of a
rupture. They talked about her at
every meal in the presence of the chill
dren; she taunted him with the liason.
told him that doubtless he only waited
her death to '.marry that thing" The
count was one of those who, like
Mrs. Skewton, are sall heart;;' the
countess was sort of coniugal
dog in the manger. / don't excuse
the count, who certainly was O very
wicked man, but it must be acknowl-
edged that the countess was termagant,
| whose constant allusions to her ap-
preaching death put me in mind of a
| horse-breeder whom I once knew near
Caen. This worthy farmer made up his
mind that he was to die in 1910, and or
dered coffin accordingly. I saw him
last year and found that he had used the
coffin as an oats bin. The truth was that
Nine. de Tilly was jealous of Mile.
| Marechal, but not SO much on account
of her husbands love as because that
young woman, called by the townsfolk
| la petite COmtesse, took it into her head
| to copy the gra,lde Con,tesse's toilets;
one gown particularly exasperated her.
1t is described to have been of the form
| of violin box, and it can readily be un-
derstood that for sewing girl to venture
on wearing a violin-box shaped gown,
when that arbitress of fashion, the
Countess of lilly, thought herself to
stand alone in ulis costume in the midst
of population still addicted to crino-
lines, was an objectionable Outrage only
| to be washed out with strong waters. s'I
merely meant to dab her on the face
with SPONGE" said the great lady, "but
my Indignation got the better of me
| when I heard her laugh behind nv
back" It was pretty vengeance, most
| horrible in its consequences, but of the
same order as that of peasant girls who
cut piece out of some rival bellies
dress because it is finer than theirs, and
all through the trial was apparent that
pettiness which is characteristic of
French provincial tribunals. The court
room was transformed into q sort of
parlor, with chairs, for the family and
intimate friends, in the rear of the lady
who was up for judgment. The Judge,
in the absence of NJ. de Tilley, did the
honors with grace and afibility, and lis
tened with emotion to the recital of the
unhappy life of Nine. la Comtesse."
The vitrioleuse was gratifed with a title
to which, it seems, she has no claim
whatever. For the poor girl whom she
has ruined for life, the courteous magis-
trate could find no terms too strong to
express his horror and disgust.
It is all over now; Nine. de Tilley has
gone back to her family, and will proba-
bly, bring her brutal husb band once more
into the fold, as the next dose may be for
him, and it does not make much differ
ence what eventually becomes of the
ssfille Marcheal" who will not utterly
arve to death on the interest of her
0,000 francs, but the incident has had
the effect to open the eyes of French
jurors to the peril toward which they
were drifting through maudlin sympa-
| thy