The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1886-09-22
NAPoLEoN's OLD HOME
the Mansion Where Josephine Spent
Her Last Days.
Correspondence of Boston Journal.l

Correspondence of Boston JournaL]
| went the other day to Malmaison, the old
home of Napoleon and Josephine. and the
quiet old-fashioned mansion in which
Josephine died. / had not been there since
1867, at which time the Imperial Government
had organized a complete Napoleonic muse
UNI in the old place. the library, where
Napoleon had worked out his campaigns, the
boudOirS, the salons, were all fitted with the
furniture which had done duty in the early
days of the First Empire, and one could al
most imagine, while strolling from room to
room, that the Little Corporal would sudden
ly appear and in curt tones inquire to what
the intrusion was due. The small bedroom
in which Napoleon slept on an ordinary camp
bedstead was filled with his old clothes and
cooked hats; and his favorite books were
thrown down as if they had just quilted the
impatient imperial hand, which they some
times did in great hurry, as Napoleon
would pitch book even out of travelling
carriage if he happened to find anything
which was not in harmony with his own
notions. During his Austrian and Russian
campaigns he had light carriage fitted up
with compact library, and it is said that
one of the duties of the aide-de-camp who
followed this camp was the rescuing from
the mud of the war woln roads OF the time
the books which Napoleon SHE'D into the air
when he disliked them. Malmalson was
dreadfully cut up during the Franco German
war, and today there is but little left of the
old-fashioned country house. Some OF the
rooms are so unsafe that visitors are re-
quested not to venture on their shaky floors
or under their ancient ceilings. The library
is especially dilapidated. Not book re-
mains in it and the concierge who shows
visitors over the house dwells with a kind of
ferocious emphasis upon the mischief which
the Prussian headquarters officers did dur.
ing their long s0journ there. The beautiful
park into which Napoleon used to pass from
a little draw-bridge. rugged over moat dl-
rectly from his private bedroom is being
parcelled out and sold to the rich landlords
of sycamOres which leads to the chateau is
now unkempt and somewhat desolate, and
there is none of the old time life or galty at
Malmaison save when joyous party OF lit
teratuers or painters penetrate the old do
main on theirs capricl0uS way to Benglyal
for rowing or driving parties. | went into
the little room in which Josephine breathed
her last. 1t was as deSolate and forlorn as
that of some old colonial mansion on the
eastern coast of America. Life and thought
had gone away 1t seemed impossible to be-
lIeye that in the suite of rooms adjoining
were once assembled the most brilliant col
lection of French poets that has been known
in the last two centuries. Josephine had
fine frenzy for calling about the court OF the
future Dictator the literary men of France;
and so went to her little country seat men
like Bernardin de st. Pierre, Ducts, who tor
tured Shakespeare on his procauSteau ped,
the elder LegOuvey, Joseph Chenler, rama
Picard, Dunal and GirOdet In the wake OF
these poets, all of whom were men of fine
manners and certain distinction in literature
always followed number of pretty women
There were Hortense de Beauharuals, who
was then dazzling creature of eighteen, the
Countess Fanny, her sister and host OF
ladies of rank and fortune, who in the inter-
lc Nf ba n a1acbinO of swords and the noise
of politics helped to honor the. muses.: In
these now desolate rooms Arnault declalmed
his fables, Bouilly reud his dramas, and
IIegouyey recited his poems, when Bona
parte was pounded up and down Egypt and
haranging his soldiers as to the spectral host
which contemplated them from the tops OF
the pyramid. Josephine was working with
feminine zeal and acts to rally about 1t those
spirits whichs still hesitated Had it not
been for her work at Malmaison he would
never have been able to undertake the 18th.
of Brtmaire or to become First Consul. He
was sincerely grateful in those days to Jose
phine for all that she had undertaken in his
behalf, and nothing pleased bin so much
as to visit Malmaison and rest there from ms
ambitious projects. Josephine tiled to make
a new Trianon at Malmaison; and in the
park, which will now soon be lost to view,
She had built all sorts of kiosques, temples
of love, shepherds rendezvous la Watteau
cottages, labyrinths, where no doubt, the
same intrigues practiced long before at YER
sailles were carried on. There, too, was
created a remarkable library and theatre
To-day the little theatre has disappeared and
its site is occupied by a Catholic chapel,
which has no beauty or space to reccomend.
it. | asked the somewhat frosty guardian OF
this once imperial domain why the alton
did not keep it in repair? Her answer was
somewhat vague but the response is easily
found, The nation has sovereign dislike
for perpetuating souve irS of the Nap0le0ns
MalmaiSon, which got its omln0uS name as
far back as the invasion of the Norsemen in
the ninth century, when the pirates did so
much damage in the neighborhood that the
monks called it mdld mdrlSi0, was in the
fourteenth centuary a dependency of the
Abbey of st. Denis. In the sixteenth century
it belonged to one of the old Councillors of the
Parliament of Paris. and was then handed
down through long succession of wealthy
families until Josephine Beauharnais, just
as she was to become the wife of Napoleon,
bought it for 160,0 600 frances. 1t is curious
historical fact that the sum asked fOrit today
nearly 100 years after, is identical with tn al
Maid by Josephine. Much larger sums have
been paid for it at different times. 1t was
bought in 1926 by Swedish banker, who
was attracted to it by the fact that Napoleor
STAYED there during his tremendous discom.
future after Waterloo, for several hundred
thousand frances: and in 1912 the property
much reduced in size,. was purchased by
| Maria Christina for half million frances.
Napoleon III was so anxious to get it, and III
| it to perpetuate the memory of the man
| whom he was pleased to call his immediate
relative that he paid in 1861 10000 frances
| for it. 1t is believed thrt the Second Empire
spent quite as much as this large sum in fit
| ting up Malmgison, transporting thither al
| the "reminiscences of the First Empire
| There were no historical museums superior
| to this in Frrnce. Now the collections are
all dispersed. and it is probable that Malmai
| SON will shortly become the home of some
English or American or other forei gn family
and the house will be completely remodelet
Out Of the enormous park at least dozeI
gardens and rustic retreats are to be created
hamlet to perpetuate the memory of Napo
leon. Oddly enough Josephine is mos
spoken Of 6y all e the Local cShrgR gRdes s Rnd snd tn
SSyhich i1ic the dlvoaced Emyress lies buried. Il
the wi visitor did not inquire for Napoleon
| not one of these guardians would intimate
| that he had ever existed.