The Grant County herald. (Big Stone City, Grant County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1883, 1880-01-24
NaMoleOn : Marriages.

Nat9leOn : Marriage.
The marriages Of the B)nopartes rlay
nm important part in the story OF thcir
fortunes, and none OF them were 50 sig-
mticaul and important as those OF the
Emperor. To one who, ike him, looked
upon tbs Worid as made for Linn, and
upon laws as merely something which
Were good tof him to impose upon 9th
crs, II must have appeared that his two
wives were admirably planned for his
use. Josephine de Beauharnais was an
ideal wife for young and rising man OF
genius. She had everything which would
appeal to a fancy like his, at once selfish
and passionate. She had ibeautv, rank.
the power of pleasing, and certain in
dolcnt grace that promised an obedience
reasonably free from jealousy. Up to
the time that he mounted the lmptri4l
throne and seated her by his SIDE. she
was all that his narrow heart and bound
less ambition could desire. But after
the marvellous victory of Wagram had
opened up to hls tevered imagination
still wider prospectives of dominion. be
looked for another stvle of wife, and
found ler IN Maria Louiseo of austria
Her blonde beauty, formed Of piGt and
white color and roundlv curling lines
and the golden floss OF Cbiiel ) hair,
appealed strongly to his iaded taste. He
WAS not old, but, as he said to the Direc-
tory, lone ages fast upoF II. iald of bat
Tie" ant! he wanted some such solaee as
this soft, tn1ntelleetual beauty tsomu
body h4,t called il the Attorney stple.of.
prettnessl IN ms heme such u Nor0
may be used at the iuileres Besides.
he doubtless lett that an emperor saould
have an empetorss daughter - WIFE AMI
tins ~as i young giti " ho had hundred
monarchs Tor her ancestors, aud vet she
would er gentle and ohedieat, and not
argue With inm 81 ans ser him. an,I
would glge Inn heirs. tie was genuine
ly attached L her, anoit he knew nothing
about her, and had no premoniton Of
Count Neippefg, Il Was All tie better
fur him. Size also was quite taken by
storm with INN, and tor 4 while the nov
city Of beng loved by an ogre--tor such
she had always considered him--Nas
agreeable to her But his tumuItuous
CORY was too much for the daily food
OF such q human small being rs the En-
press, and she was doubtless relieved
when tue indignant soul let. his body
at Longwooa, and she was free to follow
her ignoble little heart and marry
Nelpperg.
Josephine would have had her revenge
If she could have torseen the course Of
history for even a few years It is she,
and not the pretty Austrian who will be
known forever as the wife Of Napoleon.
It is her statue that rises IN marble in
the public places OF Paris. 1t is her
name and those OF her children that
mark the great avenues of the mctropo-
lis Avenue Josephine, La Reine Ior-
tense. Boulevard du Prince Eugene.
Though she was ousled remorsclessly
from throne to make room for Maria
Louise, il was her ehildren-the children
ot the creole proscnpt Who should be
come the tenants OF palaces, and not
those Of her rival. The Duke of Rhieh
stadt vas 70 pass youth ot Ing,ofious
pleasure, and was 70 die before his prime,
and leave n son 70 inherit his claims T.
empire. while the BcauhaInas line was
10 stretch out like the Swarm Of kings
seen ~ the Thanc OF CaWdor in his ELS
ION. Eugene, her heroic son. after the
lai CT the NapoleGns, returned to the
=cuutt oi his tathcr-in-law. the King III
Bavaria, and became Prince OF Eichstadt.
Duke ct Ieachtenberg, and first noble
man Of the kingdom lis daughter.
united to the son et 5ernadotte, became
Queen 81, Sweden another became priits
cess az BrahenzolcrI, 4 tlir.i Empress
II Brazil. Ills Oldest son Won the hand
of the Queen 81 Portugal, and 4 younger
married ! daughter Of the Car Nicholas
os Russia And whatever doubt might
be thrown on tie purity ofthe Napoleon
* descent by which the Emperor Napo-
leon II. claimed the throne, he was M
qaestionably the son Of Hortense ana
"as Beauharnais, and Taschcr-la-P Pa4erie
boyQnd challenge. Tie grand son ot
Josephine, Louis Napoleon, ruled France
in peace with q sort OF splcndor tor tive
space Of twenty-five years, while tile