Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-09-30
A PARTISAN CHARACTER.
How He Died, and How His Ghost
ReNlsIIed His Former Haunts.

Revisited His Former Haunts.
There are so many rich idlers in Paris
whose time hangs heavily OH their
hands, and who are delighted to have
a companion, that anybody who chOOs-
es the life OF a parasite can always be
sure of choice of dinners and suppers,
writes Paris correspondent. In Amer
lean circles alone anybody who cares
for invitations may every day reckon
fifteen or twenty OF them, q seat in
some theatre, and if he plays his cards
well chamber and cover at the seaside
during tine dog days, and at Nice dur
ing winter. Henri Delaage was one of
these people who have no occupation
and yet who manage to get through
life. He dressed shabbily. His break
fast was cup of coffee and q cigar.
Meager at this fare was, it was all he
got until half-past p. NJ, when he had
his seat at Henri de Pene's table. His
lodgings were as wretehed as his dress
one room, chamber in a furnished
clearinghouse with no furniture but q
bed, a chest of drawers, two chairs, and
waShstand, which had not been
said: "What is the use of better lodg-
nc tue IuS
morning, and never returned To it until
after midnight. He made it point of
vanity to know every body who had
name. He had some post of influence,
for he was an active applauder and
stimulatOr of applause among his ac-
quaintaGces whenever new play was
brought out ..by friend, an has he beg
ged acquaintance connected with
newspapers To puff books by his friends,
whenever one of his friends wished a
paragraph published by a newspaper
or q confidential or delicate commu-
nication.made to an editor, or to thea
tTe manager, or to an actress he was
asked TO undertake it. He was the
rIgnt-hand man of Alexander Dumas,
who felt his loss so keenly that he came
up from his fine villa near Dieppe eX-
pressly to attend Delaage's funeral.
He always had seat at Dumas table
to welcome lat half-past IL o'clock he
went to De Pene's office De Pene is an
editor of the united newspapers, LIE
GauliOs and Paris Journal, and gave
HIM all the news collected
during the day. AS De-
laage knew everybody he was of great
assistance to De Pene, for he could give
the latter information about everybody
in Paris. Henri Delaage was a grand
son of Chaptal, the eminent chemist.
He was left fair patrimOny but he
wasted the greater part of 1t helping
to keep alive q radical newspaper. rom
1876 to 1851 he was intimate with ES-
quirOs and Sobrier. He Outgrew these
wild opinions. After 1851 he still had
left s. 900; instead of investing it, and
securing himself an income OF $500
year, he converted it into gold coins.
Or all his acquaintance, a few of them
attended his funeral. What was the
use? He could no longer be of service
to them. De Pene, VINO was i'll in the
country, sent a garland of white roses,
which was laid ON the coffin. Henri
Delaage was believer in spirits and all
that nonsense, and wrote several books
on the subject, but as they were written
on a cafe table by a man who had new
or studied, they were worthless. be
was intimate with Duglas Home.
Delaage died in Paris at 4 A. NJ. on July
l5. At this very hour Home set out from
LOeche to spend some weeks in Mornex
q pretty hamlet of Upper Savoy, which
has post. Ju!y Is, he wrote a letter
to friend, saying that he had seen
Henri Delaage in the garden Of a Nor
mex farm, aud the night after had had
a message by alphabet? II keep my
word. II. D." This he feared might
be in fultillment of mutual promise
that whichever of the two should die
first be Should appear TO the other. There
were four or five other houses where
he was welcomed to dinner whenever
he chose to come; but four or five
DAYS of the week he dined with Henri
de Pene. Home was part
cular TO say that FIgoar
didn't reach him for several days after
il was published, but most people will
believe that he got his intelligence OF
DeIaage's death by a regular channel
before the apparition.