The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1883-09-23

Louis KILL. ushered In a stormy peiiou,
! which the King foresaw but TOO clearly
when be law on his death-bed, lament
ing that Cardinal Ricbelieu snouid nave
died before him. Richelieu died I'D IDe-
cember, 1642. and Louis XIII. In February,
1GI3-about eight weeks after him. LOUIS
XIII. was a weak king, but be al 'east hau
the sense TO understand his Weakness ne
had put himself In Richelieus hands. ana
IL was the grief of his last days that TINS
great minister had left no successor 10
| whom Che guardianship OF the next KING,
then a boy, could be int listed. No saauer
deatll-bed than Louis Kills can be I'M
agined. He was disliked by his own wiie,
he had no friends among his courtiers, ana
even the little Dauphin had not been taught
to love him. They brought in the boy 10
receive his fathers blessing, and Louis
XIII. asked him his name, Louis
QuatOrze," answered the child. moi
yet" said the King, gently, ana smiled
but there must have been sigh win the
smile. Louis XIII. was buried with de-
cent pOmp, and there was no Kissing OF MS
bearse: but the people showed absolute In
difference, and, as il was known that noble
men who attended the funeral were not
likely TO ingratiate themselves thereby
with the Queen Regent, there were very
few mourners. An allusion in Lorets
rhyming Gazette seems to show that the
sbops i'm Paris were not even closed on the
day Of the funeral, and that the court shut
fed of its mourning long before the GUS
tomary term Of three times forty days.
The public apathy evinced at the death
| OF Louis XIII. was witnessed again IN the
present century when Louis XVIII. died.
This Philosopber-King remarked on his
deatb-bed that he was luckier than Henri
| ". i'm that he was dying "ddnS mon III
mon aiSe-Ou mon m0idiSe," instead OF
having been murdered; but, philosopher
as he was, he appears to have felt the
misery OF dying without any plying face
near him except the Duchesse d AngOu-
leme's. The Duchess really loved him, but
nobody else did. The utra-Royaists were
| glad to see him go; and his brother, the
| Comte d'Artois, cared for him so little that
while the King was drawing his last breath
| the helr-apparent and the Due POrleans
| sat in the next room holding an animated
discussion as to whether king could gov
ern without political police. When all
was over, the Marquis de Dreux-Brcze,
master OF the ceremonies, approached the
new king with "A low bow, upon which
Charles Y. composed his face and walked
| into the bathroom; but he came ont the
next moment, drawing on a pair OF black
gloves, and signed, without any emotion,
to the Marquis to open the foldng-dOors
which led into the reception-r00m, where
| the ministers aud many other persons were
assembled. NJ. de Dreuz-Breze, as he did
this, cried "Messieurs, le ROi !" and the
/ I.orno1 ha OLD Einnfs death Inv
seeing the serene face OF the new one. As
for Louis XVIII.'s funeral, it was splen-
did-the finest that French king ever had
but since there was no national grief at his
deceasc his obsequies were simply a show
which Paris turned out 10 stare at with
dry eyes. The Bourbons had been de-
throned before their next chief died. and
Charles Y. ended bis days at Goritz.
He died OF a gastric arrangement much
like the Comte de Chambord's, but he was
not thought TO be in serious danger till the
very day OF his death. one OF his for
mer ministers, the C0mte de ClermOnt'
Tonnerre, who had come from France
two days previously, found him hopeful
about his prospects OF being soon restored.
Louis Phihppe's life had lately been at
tempted by Alibaud, and almost the last
piece Of news brought to Charles y. was
that of Louis Napoleon's escapade at Stras-
burg. This occurred on the 30th OF Octo-
Der, 1886, and Charles Y. died just week
later, on the 9th OF November. The re-
Election that his successors throne was
unstable may have soothed his diving mo-
ments; but it is just rs likely to have had
the contrary effect, and, indeed, the ac-
counts of eyewitness describe him as fret
ting grievously that he should die in II
foreign land. and praying to be cured II
only that he might return and see his last
Of life in France. His. then, was woeful
death like that Of all the other Bourbons
whom we have named.