New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-04-26
FRANCOIS MIGNET.
PERSONAL, TRAITS AND INCIDENTS.

long life regular in his attendance at tho Acad-
envy, Of which during fOrty-scven years he WAS
n member and at the Academy of Moral Sciences
of which he perpetual secretary. Every morn
ing he read the Debdts every evening glanced Ht Inc
Tennis and took in the Rccue DIS Ueir U0Rdc', to
which he was very old contributor, but generally
skipped the works of fiction which It gave. Novels
appeared to hun the fruits of disordercd MINDS anu
in most cases improbable dreams. Not that he was
devoid of sensibility or hostile to the romantic SHE
of human nature His History of Mary Stuart ~ Is
an historical cause c6fbrc i'm which the historian III
| summing up against her on every possible count
obhgcs the reader TO temper tia verdict against hct
with "eXtenuatng circumstance Nature mllc
her sort hearted, sympathetic impul~i'' Uranium
aud intelligent. She thought hcIS'E I thlI-liaH'
but she was essentially Pagan. ''' 'Hu'''oh
and the practice of every Court III Lui"l" I'uI"'
her to be unscrupulos and To place Ia r'''oh f'"'
above every moral law. She followed th' '9No"'
she had received from the Guiscs and her Forchtne
mothcr-in-law. and yet was led by Impulse. De
! tween her evil principles and her warm heart she
fell from throne to the scaiold. Elizabeth mad Il
hard head. hard heart, and narrow mnd'
Mignct estimate of her is borne ont 10y the phYSI-
| ognomv Of the statue on her tomb at Westminster
| Mary was guilty hut the day on which she was exc
cutrd there must have been JOY in Heaven at Inc
knowledge that she had not only rrpent'd ana eE-
mated her sins but was no lcnccr subject 10 esptd-
! ton
Micnct hated the kind of journalism of which the
Figaro is type. 1t placed things III false peispec-
| tive giving importance to what Is iatile, ana III
| spring distnste for what is grave and serious.
Theirs. the contrary, liked tin pictorial chat'y.
anecdotc and scandal.mongcr side of the Boulevard
press Editors had to live by the crowd. and im-
ages were the books of the vulgar. Mgnet, lac said
entered journalism at the nlck of time The news
| paper was then got up for Il small number OF well
| educated and thoughtful persons, who had leisure
to reflect on what they read. Communications were
slow news scarce, actually was not IN great
demand An old subject placed in a fresh point OF
view and arranged with talent was all that was
asked for Miguet knew how to do thus. Inc sub
| ject of the English Constitution was stale put not
worn thrcadbaTe He gave it II pocmic interest by
making it a cover for attacks the restored Bour-
| bons. 4 spshOd style was hateful To hln ana lie
thought lie was not long enough for readers to put
ND with prolix authors. A good book ought to b"
dIstation of Impressions or eruditon. If it was
not il spoIlcd with age The best article was that in
' which the feelings of whole people on gwen
| question were summed up briefly and i'll lucid and
| striking phraseOlogv. Mgnct intultycly hit upon
| his method before ho had wide experience. laliey-
rand was surprised To find tho articles IN the courier
| Francois on the English Constitution were by 4
Young man fresh from dull provincial town.
With age the faculty for concentration diminished.
" The trees prevented him from seeing the forest
or in other words, he had gathered such heap OF
materials Oh which to work 4, to find them unlnan-
ageabe.
| Before the Revolution of 1880 Mlgnct wrote for
the Courier francois, GloJe and National. lie was
bold polrmist though moderate in form. After that
| event he dropped newspaper work ana ceased 10
lecture. Louis Philippe, who liked to be compared
70 William ILL., encouraged him to enter public life,
made hun a Councillor Of State, q Treasury Com
| missioner in which capacity he defended two bud
gets and sent him on a delicate mission to Spain.
| MIgnet was a young and handsome man, and Queen
Christina TO whom he was accredited, Young and
| amorous widow. Tho CHizcn King Was cognllant
| Of her weakness for Sergeant MunOz, the son OF q
| vashcrvoman and il would seem, hoped Christina,
being Intelligent end accomplished might let her
self be- drawn from him by the French historian.
Louis Philippe even thea aimed at obtaining the
hand of the infant Queen Isabella for one OF his sons
when she c,ew up but he did not dare commit him
self TO formal negotiations on the subject Nor did
he conidc his design to his special envoy. Mignet
disiLed the .sIccut monarchy and all bic friends
| hated Tie Bon, bona of the elder branch However
if the q idov ed Queen made a CO1qucs: of him, and
| he OF her Louis Philippe thought he would guido hcr
In Frcnch direction and lend himself to Il scheme
for placing an Orleans Prince on the Spanish
| throne beside Isabella Unfortunately, he arrived
too late Christina WAS in great haste To rc-marry
as Hamcts mother, and was already the undeclarcd
spouse Of Munol. The cX-screcant was jealous
| and stood on LIS dignity with the c0urtcr'.
| Nignct did not provoke his Jealousy, and Only
awaited himself OF his position TO obtain free access
TO the Simanca records. There be found materials
Tor his sketch of Charles v. his history of his sue
al Ia. patuo - al
Antonio Perez and Philip II. His book has life
and yiyacity of color which due 10 the impros-
slons the author received at Madrid.
At that city he became acquainted with the
Countess Montj0. Her subsequent intimacy with
McrmGc and the astounding fortune Of her daughter
Eugcnic were indirect results of that apparently
trivial event. Thus. the marriage Of Napoleon I'LL.
was an outgrowth Of the policy of "the Spanish
marriages" The Crimean War as the late Count
Kissecii showed in his mcmOrsl and the French
attack on Germany n so were due 10 the ihrne-
datc agency of the Empress Eugene. In the chain
Of fatalities which bound down Franco that year.
SpaniaTds and Spanish events formed the weight
est links. Mpuct struck with these FACTS. lie
had often admired the infantine beauty of Eugene
dc Mouto when lao was in Spain and landed her
on his kace. She was between three and four years
old. The silver lining in tho cloud of misfortune
which she was destined to bring down upon France
was her relationship with Ferdinand Lcs>"ps.
Being his cousin she warmly patronizcd his Sncz
Canal scheme when she was the wife of Napoleon
Ill.
Mignet was remarkable for his social tact. and The
amiable dignity of his life. lie tho lover OF the
patriotic Italian Princess dc BelSoso, me IrcN,lso,
until ehe deserted him for Mario the tenor. Shc
was a woman of singular aspect pale as a corpse.
looking like a sphinx and having large eyes dan rs
| ,,if, md own i've a
drove her from Lomhar1y. She camo 10 Paris and
became the centre OF brilliant circle to which
Litz Borrycr Slignet, IIeine Rossini, Pachini and
Count a Alton Shoe belonged. Tho historian took
Lar intdnllly wifi nhilnsonhY. but remembered the