Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-08-04
Truth in Charles Rosaire's Life In
deed Stranger Than Fiction.
WORK TO BEGIN AT PANAMA
The Worlds Fair Bill is All Rich,
and Will Pass.
MISCELLANEOUS NEWS BY WIRE.
A ROMANTIC STORY.
A Chicago Man the Victim Of q Lovers
Revenge.

CHICAGO, August Am ANONYMOUS lette
written in French was delivered on Thursday
last to Mr.. Claude Rosaire, young ma,
tvsnty-seven years old, residing in handsome
apartments on the west side in this city, ant
Its contents revealed to him his parsntsge and
mysterious circumstances connected with hi
life, matters which had been previously hid
den secret to him. Mr.. Rosaire has for severa
years been a resident of Chicago and recently
graduated from the school of elocution in con-
nection with the Chicago Atheneum. He ha:
Board Of Trade. The story of Mr.. Rosaire is a
curious one. In which sorrow and villainy are
strangely mingled.
From the earliest time in his life Of which he
has recollection he lived with a well-to-d DO
Canadian family in a small town in southeastern
Michigan and was brought up to believe tina,
he was an own child of the family. He was
treated in every way as such until his supposed
father in at Of anger declared that he was a
natural son, an announcement which so keenly
affected his sensitive disposition that he left
his home never to return. That was in his
twenty third year. His life from that moment
until the receipt Of the letter last week was full
of miserable uncertainty, which he succeeded
in covering from the notice of his acquaint-
ances by persistent attention to the work and
study which he had undertaken.
''No satisfactory explanation, indeed no expla-
nation whatever, of the vague charge made
against him by his foster father came to clear
the mystery in which it enveloped him until
the letter made the history Of his life less of
an enigma than it had been.
This is q literal translation of the letter:
write this under the inspiration of the mo-
ment although it is but the question of few
months, for my physicians say / cannot live
more than two months. Two years ago you re-
cited at the hospital OF 81. Luke. was in the
audience. j recognized you at once but
although had been looking for you for three
years was not satisfied to find you again Be
sides had been cured of my sickness; people
like myself do not suffer with remorse. only in
the valley OF the darkness of death. First, you
are legitimate and the child of marriage 1
cannot keep the secret because ! cannot retain
life much longer and because all human ven
Geance seems useless. l can reveal to
you almost all your life. You
think that no one in your present life knows
anything about you but yourself and you have
shut them IN the bottom of your heart. To
make sure that the things / am about to tell
you are true. listen: Until the 9th of October,
1854, you believed yourself the son of George
Latham of IL Mich. In a moment of
great anger he told you that you we're natural
son. That night you left and you have never
spoken one to the other since. They believe
you dead George Latham, 1 am sure, believes
You to be what he has said. but he regrets
bitterly that he has betrayed the confidence of
his sister. am going to tell you about your
".
your mother, was the Duchess dc Saint Allaise
of Normandie. Her marriage was very miser-
able, the Duke de Saint Allaise being well
known After having spent the fortune of your
grandmother he commenced against her a suit
for divorce. Having lost love and courage the
duchess fed TO America, taking with her her
only child, baby-your mother, Victoria de
Saint Allaise. But little while after her ar
rival in America the duchess entered the con-
vent OF the Ursulines at New Orleans. where
she died i've years later. Her child Victoria
remained in the care of the sisters until the
age Of eighteen. when her great talent for
music caused the mother superior to have her
choose between the world and the convent
Daring her probation she met and loved con-
federate soldier by the name of Claude Hector
Rosaire. This man, yonr father. was only of
French extraction, tracing his French blood
from bis great grandfather, who was a Creole.
The 9Th OF October, 1868, they were married
as you will see by the inclosed certificate I'm
mediately they fled to Canada. Now this man
Rosaire was not the only man who loved Vic
toria de Saint Allaise, but he was the only man
she loved. / never pardoned them, and fol-
lowed them a. hunting dog would. In Nav
OF the next year you were born in Quebec.
Three weeks after your birth stole you from
your nurse and carried you to the south OF On
tarlo among colony Of Canadian Quakers
Marguerite became your foster mother No
matter how, some women love strangely Then
i returned to Quebec to seek my revenge. /
arrived, but with little satisfaction. Your
father, crazed with grief on account of your
loss, threw himself from the head of the fort.
i was waiting for Victoria to follow me- but
she was OF iron. She came and went with a
face OF iron, and then suddenly and myster-
iousiy disappeared never found trace OF her
She must have entered q convent for only
those walls could elude my vengeance | can
not write more because will not. hate Won
As hated her. have greatly enjoyed to see
you struggle, knowing that it was useless, for
my maiedicnons rest on the fruit of their mar
risge. l am foolish to talk of the stain that is
on you, but q man has two natures and cannot
resist my better nature, which compels me to
try to repair the wrong have done you if it is
possible. Besides there are moments when I
am really and profoundly penitent, and it is
In such moments that i write this You will
never be able TO discover me. You have no
possible means of identifying me. However.
your mother guesses this-yes, she must know
Perhaps her child can find her in spite of ali
but then II will be too late for your vengeance.
The letter ID unsigned. With it was sent the
original document certifying to the marriage
OF Rosaires mother and father. Mr.. Rosaire
viii make every effort to find his mother and
will search all Catholic converts through the
country. His interest in the authorship of
this letter is overshadowed by his desire To
learn The whereabouts of his mother and of the
resting place OF his dead father.