Huntsville gazette., 1888-10-06
THE MAREcHAL-NIEL ROSE.
One of the Hitherto Unwritten RomanceS
of the Second Empire.

of the Second Empire.
The Marechal Mel is one of the
loyeliest roses of its kind, the n0isette,
and in its name and origin there is one
cf the hitherto unwritten romances OF
the court of France in the Second en-
pire. In 1859, when the French army
was sent to help King Victor Emman-
uel drive the Austrians out of Italy,
the Third Army Corps was commanded
l,y General Mel. This officer, as his
name implies, came of one of those
Irish noble families who emigrated to
France after the battle of the Boyne
III 1890, as did the MacMahons, the
Iit2-James and others, who are now
Irish in nothing but their names.
General Mel had commanded and
fought his corps with such eminent
ability and distinguished courage, that
when peace was made, with his coun-
tryman and friend, MacMahon, he was
created a Marshal OF France. 1t was
well nigh autumn before General Mel
was able to return to France. He had
been terribly wounded, and had suf-
fered besides from the dreadful fever
OF the Italian marshes. For months
he was between life and death, with
only his surgeon, who was his con-
slant companion, and a soldier servant,
who proved to be an admirable nurse
in his illness and convalescence.
One day peasant woman brought
him whole basket of wild roses from
the Campagna region. General Mel
had always been extremely fond of
roses, and most of these were new to
him, and thus served to amuse him un-
til they were withered. He observed,
however, that one particular shoot had
not faded and died like the others,
but had grown into a beautiful green
plant of perhaps ten inches in length.
When he looked to see why this one
had grown and the others faded, he
found that a bit of the root had been
cut away with the flower, which was
of d palish-yellow hue. Scarcely know
ing why, Mel determined to keep the
shoot 50 curiously preserved. When
he returned to Paris he placed the
young shoot with an expert fOricult-
urist, and next spring it bore four of
the loveliest buds in the world, of a
pale-lemon tinge, At that time Gen.
cral Mel was sent for to receive the
highest military rank then known in
France the Grand Cross of the Legion,
and his commission as Marshal of
France, in presence of three Emperors
and all the Kings in Europe worth NAM
ing. After the solemn ceremony was
ended, and he wore for the first
time in that day the Grand Cross OF
the Legion of Honor, he went to the
reception of the Empress-who WIS
splendid in her perfection Of beauty
and presented to her a curious yellow
ish rose of perfect form and perfume,
but different from any she had ever
seen, and told her its story.
And so you have proved the truth
Of what the old able used to say III
his dreadfully tedious sermons at Pau
about casting the bread on the waters, !"
said the Empress (who, like Queen
Elizabeth of blessed memory, ''loved
a fine man,") to the handsomest and
most daring, as well as one of the
ablest of the Marshals of the Second
empire. Dear me, but he was tedious,
that good abbe," continued her Maies-
ty, with the softest look of retrospec-
tion in her lovely dark eyes. Now,
Monsieur le Marechal," said she, viva
ciously, Il shall christen this rose for
YOU"
do So" said the Franco-Irish SOL
dier, bowling very low, but flashing
at her a glance of profound admira-
ton SO warm that it deepened her
color a little as they stood alone,
for, though the great salon of
the place was crowded, no one dared
interrupt tete-a-tete, which she her.
self had allowed, between the Empress
and the handsomest General of his
day.
Lightly putting the rose to her lips,
she said: 1T is named the Marechal
Mel, for the soldier sans peur ct Sasn
seproche, as gallant in the salon as he
is on the battlefield
This gracious speech went straight
to the great soldiers Irish heart.
You will wear it tonight, Your
Majesty, will you not, and afterward
give it to me to keep, this happy
rosep'
Monsieur le Marechalr' said the
Empress, with great dignity.
Il pray your forgiveness, he an
swered.
mo, no, ] am not as angry as |
ought to be- she replied; "but-but
people might hear" and with Par
THAN glance she departed.
Four days thereafter Colonel Lewal,
then Niel's chief of staff, but not long
since Minister of War for the French
Republic, observed his chief take a
surreptitious rosebud out of an en-
velope he had just received, and lock
it up in private drawer. .-Lestie's
Popular Monthly.