The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-10-12
LOUIS NAPOLEON.
An Incident in His Career While in Camp
at Boulogne, in 1854.

at BouioSne, IN 1884.
Lucy H. Hooper, in Philadelphia Bulletin.
Here is a pleasing incident in the career of
Napoleon III, which took place while he was
with the camp at Boulogne. in 1854:
ION arriving at Boulogne, the Emperor com
missioned NJ. Ducos, the Minister of the Marine.
to find out if there still existed in that town any
of the men who had been concerned in his ar
rest, ON the occasion of his Inflated expedition
in 1910. Ducos discovered q sailor who had
thrown himself into the sea to seize the Prince,
who was trying to swim back to the vessel III
which he had come the aforesaid sailor having
clutched the pretender by the hair; then Ddcos
also discovered the gendarme, then a
custom house officer. who, on the
beach, had received the vanquished
Prince from the hands of the sailor and had
taken him by the collar These two men We're
brought to Ducos, who asked them if they were
really the persons who had been designated to
him. The two poor devils replied, with much
hesitation, that it was they who had arrested the
Prince, and Ducos ordered them to return the
next morning at $3.50. After an anxious night
they presented themselves before the Minister
exactly at the appointed hour. Dueos conducted
them to the Emperor, and the sailor was the one
first admitted to the imperial presence. The
Emperor, twisting his long mustache walked
quickly up to him and sand So it was you
that, in 1S40 sprang into the sea and captured
me by Selling me by the hairF
THE Sailor-Your Majesty, IL
THE Emperor-Look here, was it you! Yes
or nol
1.-THE sailor recovering his self-possessionl-
Well, yes, yorr Majesty; all the others were fir
ing at you, and you might have been wounded
and got drowned SO l jumped into the sea to
save your life-it was l who saved your life.
1.-The Emperor and the minister had hard work
to keep their faces straight while listening to
this embellshed history of an arrest changed to a
rescue.
'''Well done, my good fellow replied the EN-
perer; here is the cross that you won in doing
your duty, and here is 800 francs as a souvener
from me-
Next came the gendarme custom house
officer, but his Imagination was less inventive
than that of the sailor, and suggested to him no
such marvellous transactions. He stammered
and hesitated sometime, then bravely making up
his mind he replied:
Ives, sire, it was l. You were breaking the
laws. L was on duty and I arrested you
1.-THE Emperor-And that cross that you
wear-who gave it to you2
1.-The gendarme-Sire, it was King Louis
Philippe
THE Emperor-For having arrested me2
THE gendarme-I am an old soldier-I had
done good service-I but tell the truth, sire,
it was on the occasion of your arrest l received
it.
'The Emperor am sorry for il, because
shall not have the pleasure of giving it to you
myself, since you have already got it; but here
is the military medal taking OFF the one that he
wore himself and fastening it to the breast OF
the gendarme's uniform. You are brave sol
der. And the gendarme received, as the sailor
had already DONE gift of 500 francs"