New-York tribune., 1886-08-15
SUNDAY EDITION.
AUGUST Is, 1886
NAPOLEON THE SECOND.
PERSONAL MEMOIRS OF AN UNHAPPY

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PRINCE.
VRoM THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF rrrr rRIBrsE]
PARIS. July 80.
| CONTROVERSY Is now going on ia the scientific
world on tue conditions under which genius is pro-
duccd. Senator NaQnet and Doctors Marecbal,
JacOpy and Bull say that it is neurose and that
most great men have had mad or epiieptic ances-
tors or descendants or been themselves attacked
with epilepsy or been in respects on the very
brink of lunacy. Cesar and Peter the Great had
falling sickness. Napoleon subject TO long fits
Of faintiug shat rcsembled catalepsy. Newton had
also a dsordered nervous system. Byron's mother
was raging. irresponsible termagant and his
father no better. Isabella the Catholic. who was
certainly woman of genius had mad uncle. q
mad brother. and a mad daughter. the ancestor Of
all the Spanish and Austrian Hapsburgs. Hef
tlsabellas) grandson. Charles ", also man OF
prodgous political genius, was epileptic and the
progenitor of line which ended in idiocy. Pascal
bad tits and hallucinations. Luther also had the
latter and thought he saw the devil in person
coming to tempt him. William the Conqueror was
the son of Robert the Devil, who must have
had, to judge from the legend which
has been handed down. nervous system
that ran riot According to the new theory, genius
like the orchard pear apple tree. the double
rose. or dahlia. is abnormal and except in intel,
lectual sense sterile. Thus Dante Ia hypOchon-
driac Michael Angelo, Raphael. Shakespeare,
COwper. Wordsworth Byron. Scott and DE Quincy
either left no pOsterity OF families that died
out. That of Victor Hugo is not apparently dies
tined to live long. Victor Hugo had Oh the mater.
nal sile. q mad uncle and mad cousins His
brother Eugene died in madhonse and his ODly
surviving daughter Adele has been for years in
confinement. Maria Theresa was uuquestionaoly
like Isabella the Catholic, woman of political
genius. but she had not chh with a well balanced
brain aud most of her grandchildren epilcptc.
In short what scientists now hold about genius
being a neurOse comes into the Greek idea that the
gods let celestial light into the human bIaip
through chinks in the skull.
While on this subject shall call attention to the
interesting recoections of the Duke dc Reicbstadt,
by M Hermann ROett whose father. doctor
practising at the pretty watering place of Baden,
near Vienna, had occasion there to treat the En-.
press Marie Louisc in 1880. She lived then in the
@Pavillon de Fore." and her by her first hus-
band in " the Greek Temple" " opposite He was
pale and slender. OF more than delicate complex.
ion. and rode out daily followed by groom. His
attire was sinple--a brown coat bnttoned across
his chest and felt hat. In going down the Guten.
Drummer he went at slow pace but the moment
he got into Helensdae he put spurs to his horse
and rode as if pursued by furies. One day the
Empress Marie Louise came to cOnsut Doctor
Rollett aud seeing his Hermann. the author
of the Rec0llectons." vino then boy of ten,
arranging collection Of butterflies. she looked at
what he was doing praised his taste rs shown in
the rrangeinent of the insects which he had bred
himself from caterpilars. and with adeep drawn
sigh exclaimed what would not give Tor my
son to be bitten with such passion why not
try to put him in the way OF contagl0nf y rcpiieu
the doctor " How cOud | do soT asked the
Empress Bring him here TO see the collection"
" Impossible, alas lie would not let himself be
persuaded. lie nurses moodlne:s ANA cant ieN
ANYTHING which drags him out of it. We'll, then.
the youngstcr viii. take the caterpilars to him."
Marie Louise said she would be grateful to him fof
the trouble and il was arranged that he was 70 90
two days subsequently TO the Pavilion de flore
when the Duke de keichstadt would he there.
Little kol!ett brought his boxes containing TIL.
caterplars, over which there were coverings ol
thin game. some were deyouring leaves, other.
were making cocOOEs, Others were III the shrunken,
sickly state preceding metam0rph0sls All thit thc
Young cntomolOgist had To saw went in at one Ot
Napoleon the Seconds ears and out at the other.
He amably Affected interest but was dlstraughG
aud melancholy in short, a pale young Hamlet on
whom his mother had no moral nor sentimentat
hold. She had a lot of small Itaiian-reared chdreh
by the second husband. Neipperg But as they
irritatcd the of the Duke dc Rechstadt they
were not Just tpen with her. Tue Duke was ab-
sorbsd IN anibilois plans or rather dreams
France had few weeks previously Svertnr9wa ;
table lis grandfather the Emperor frahcis y
ceased to throw cold water on his aspirations which
all turned oil Napoicouc rrstoritioii.,, no"o'ol.
a. ths Duke who was singulary wsll.brei, saw
his mother desired with all her heart that lie should
study entomology, he told Young ko!iett TO come
often with his caterpars. and pretended 10 he IN
terested 10 than. The effort OF this innocent piece
of deception was always Too much tor nm ani no
after few moments appeared to sink down from
sheer fatigue. =. =.
NJ. Hermann Rollett has q distinct remembtance
of the ply sogIony, manners and a' 0i Tue uplort-
innate prince and Of what he said and the voice IN
winch he spoke. 1t was sweet though hollow
voice the air was gentle aud sad ana hc resemoleu
IN striking way his father ana mother; luo
chin and the curve of the maxillaries were Napol-
comic But the forehead had the pcculiar curve or
the Hapsburgs. He had also tho pale sky-Diue eyes
the fair hair and the long nose with dlp ahu wido
nostrs OF his motner bht & hea nose @ Was ad "s th.s
sharpened look which presages an early ueath.
1be complexion was wan ana TRANSPARENT auu an
inner light seemed to beam through H. lhe atteil.
nation of face and figure enhanced The poetry or
thn counrenance. Tha cast of his face IN the
Museum of Baden near Vienna 81 YES an exact idea
OF his features. a
ST. Helena tO he srnt to his son: NJ koilctt teiis
how il got there and his recital is curiosity OK
history His story shows what a common place
German frau Marie Louise must nave been ono
day after the Duke de Relchstadts death Doctor
re lett was called III to attcul SOME OF her Neip-
nery otfsprng. In passing out OF their rooms no
saw in the nursery Il child drawing as cart
niaster cast to which is had fastened bit OF
twinc. The hollow part was npperimost. nc , doc
NapoleOn's cast and was tou IT was gwen 10 tno
care of the Empresss butler with orders that no
was Icvcr TO let the Duke dc Reichstadt see X.
The nurse finding it i'll press gave II to cross
child 10 amuse it and t me to be used as toy
cart Doctor Rollett obtained 1t Tor the asking ana
presented it with the cast of Mozart AMI the coz
lection of skulls left him tho doctor by CAL the
phrenoogist TO the Museum OF Baden.