The Sentinel. [volume] (Trenton, N.J.) 1880-1882, 1882-04-15
Is He a Lafayette ?

Remarkable Story of a Man Confined in
Bellevue Hospital Fondled by the Mar
CUES De Lafayette, yet Suffering form
Poverty and Sickness in New York.
A remarkable story was told last
evening by an old man claiming to be
a nephew of Lafayette, which, if true.
would seem to open to those revering
the name of the French Marques an
opportunity for rescuing from poverty
and want direct descendant of the
illustrious Frenchman. Francois
Charles Lafayette, as he gives his
name, is confined in the cells of Belle
vue Hospital, where he was seen by
the Rev. Father Brown, of ST.
Stephens Church, whose interest was
aroused by his name and his story,
and who reported the case to the
Herald. Lafayette is venerable
looking man, with long, white beard.
He gives no outward indication of
having been addicted to drink or
other evil habits, and has the speech
and manner of an intelligent, superior
workman. He speaks French with
decided German accent, but explains
this by having received his education
from his fourth to his twelfth year in
Germany. He also speaks German,
but with such strong dialect as to be
hardly ineligible. He says that
although he is son of Alexandra
Joseph Lafayette, a brother of General
Lafayette, he has been passing under
The name of Louis Elizabeth Biilen
(his mother having been a Countess
Won BilleA) rather than expose Lafay-
cites name to shame. He was born
in 1911, in New Orleans, while ais
father, he says, was in command of
one of the ships of the French fleet.
After the war, during which his
father was killed, he was taken back
to Paris, where he and his mother
lived at General Lafayette's house,
and where General Lafayette often
took him on his knees. He called the
General "uncle." These scenes, he
said, he remembered wildly, although
he was then only four or four and
half years old. He has no recollec-
tions Ct General Lafayette after that
time. His mother having died, and
he having been placed in Charge of
lady in Germany, the latter, he says,
robbed him of all his money, SO that
he was apprenticed at the age of
twelve to sculptor in ivory, meer-
schaum, ETC., in Paris, whittier he
was sent at that age. At eighteen he
entered the French army, Fifth regi-
ment Infantry, as common soldier,
remained in it till 1849, and then came
to this country, where he has ST ce
worked at his occupation in New
Orleans, st. Louis and other cities,
and been tr PIPER and an Indian
trader on the Plains. He has been in
New York for the last fifteen months,
living mostly in cheap lodging houses
and finding no work to do, so that he
suffered greatly and was compelled to
sleep in Railways. For week he
hardly touched food and was ia such
a starving condition that he asked q
policeman to arrest him, which was
done. Being committed to the Fifty
seventh street police station as va
grant, he became very i'll and was sent
to Bellevue Hospital, and feelingly
complained that while only sent to
! the hospital on account of illness, he
had been committed to the drunkards'
cells. His wife died five years ago,
| his two sons have gone to Chill, since
which time he has heard nothing
from them, and his two daughters are
married, one to a drunkard and the
other to gambler, so that he can
hope for no aid from them. When
asked If he had any thing to show
proving his relationship to Lafayette,
he replied, Nothing at ALL" He
was also asked how it was that the
Lafayette family did not take an inter
est in his education and prevent his
entering the army as soldier, but ex-
planned that his removal to Germany
at such an early age had severed his
relations with the other Lafayettes.
If little subscription was gotten up
for him, he declared, it would enable
him to obtain again foothold for sup
porting himself, be it in ever so hum
BILE a fashion.-N. Y. Herald.
We have received some verses emit