The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1890-06-28

erS on the TOMB OF General de la ray
cite made a very pleasant impression in
Francs, and the old refrain of undying
friendship between the sister republics is
again the theme of every tongue.
Not long before his death Count de Beau
mont, grandson of General dc la Fayette,
told me many interesting facts concerning
the great hero. Among others he said that
Piepus Cemetery. where rests his illustri0us
grandfather, is one of the curious corners
of historic Paris. The dead who there re-
pose lived in time of agitation, and were
all beheaded in 1893. There are 1900, and
all came from the Place du Trone, where
the guillotine never wearied Of its bloody
work.
There are poets, Andre. Chenier and
Roucher; lawyers. like Linguet; statesmen
and warriors, like Gramont, Rohan. Roche
fort, Roquelaure, etc, and in the midst of
these lies the Marquis de la Fayette, Liberia
tor of America. Count de Beaumont told
me also what Americans do not know, and
what perhaps the French have never heard:
General de la Fayette counted every cent
that he spent in the American war for indie
pendence. His business manager calculated
that liberty cost the General !, 033 900 francs,
or S2o6,600. But" adds the General, in
his expense book, ''as during this war l
returned to Europe twice it would not be
Just TO attribute all this sum to objects of
public utility. In reality the same service
might have been rendered for 100000 francs
(S20.000)."
In all General de la Fayette spent more
than $500, 600 for liberty; this same eX-
pense book shows that in 1883 lie was
obliged to sell his lands and diminish his
income. His Journeys to America, Ger
many, Batavian affairs, and the preliminary
events of the French revolution caused ex-
pense. The General bought house at
Cayenne and tried to free slaves; this at
tempt
COST ABOUT $4,000
But he was not ruined, for during the
French Revolution his income was nearly
$4,000. The business manager explains
how liberty cost so much; the General
bought a ship. La Victoire, at Bordeaux,
and on his second voyage to America he
carried swords, saddles, epaulettes, gold
lace, tents, etc, valued at $4,000 The
same amount of money was sent from
America to Beaumarcnals and his other
friends.
The heirs of La Fayette seemed to think
$500. 900 too much to spend for liberty, but
they are now content, because OF the graft
tude and affection OF Americans. Ger
tainly Lafayette was recompensed; he be-
came the idol of America, the idol of
France; he satisfied his chivalrous tastes
mothers held their children for his mbrace;
the palace at Versailles was decorated in
his honor; the Queen smiled on this amla-
bic Marquis, who did much toward cutting
off her head: his cOlors became those OF his
country. AT last he betrayed liberty. and
although another would have lost his popu-
Iarity. La Fayette was spared. He died, and
all Paris followed him to his grave.
The heirs of La Fayette are wealthy and
hold high positions; but there are some
mobiles of the old regime who are poor, so
poor that they are driven to fraud in order
to furnish food aud shelter TO their starving
families.
Among these is the Marquis de Boyer
d'Eguille, who married Miss Fuller of
Philadelphia, heiress OF the Chase millions.
The Marquis tried to win his wlfe's suit,
and, as has been many times related,
sacrificed all his possessions but gained
nothing Desperate he placed his wife
and two children in an apartment
that rented at $50 year, but even that
small rental he was not able to pay. Paris
banking houses we're visited in order to lind
money with which to advance his wlfe's
claims, tradesmen in his neighborhood
were petitioned for small loans, and to all
his creditors he gave glowing descriptions
of the wealth that would one day pour Into
his Golfers.
VAIN ILLUSIONS.
The money did not appear, and the anx-
ious tradeSpeope combined to bring to
Justice the too hopeful Marquis. But. at
the trial, his sad story, his evident sincerity
made so favorable an impression on Judge
and jury that the Marquis Boyer d Eguille
left the courtroom a free man. Let us
hope that in the future he will be more
successful in his pursuit of fortune.
Another case, not so interesting because
the parties are guilty. is that of Count and
Countess de Maulmont, accused of appro-
priating sums given them for charitable
purposes This venerable couple had for
number of years collected sums of money
fol- the Asylum of Abandoned Children
and for other institutions, but about one
year ago, as complaints had been made to
the administration that the money received
had not been accounted for, Count and
Countess de Maulmont were watched, and
it was discovered that their sole means OF
existence during the past five or six years
had been the money received for the chart
table associations.
To-day, in spite of their age and historical
name, they are in prison, and condemned
there to remain for months to come.
These Democratic times arc hard on the
old arstocracy there are still grand titles
in France, but very few great inheritances.
Fortunes have been divided and redivided,
and the sous of great families do not find it
so easy to redorer leurs blasons by marry
ing rich American girls. But the mobiles
PLY. The motto "Noblesse obiige'' still
has meaning in France, and the majority
of French noblemen would prefer starva-
ton to dishonor. When you read that an
American woman of advanced age, one,
ACCORDING TO THE JOURNALS,
weighed down with years. rice powder
and damouds"-one who can scarcely count
her millons-sees laid at her feet tile coro-
nets of dukes, marquises, princes. barons
and counts, be assured that these mobiles
are the 'black sheep" of their families
men who would not be admitted
in houses where there are manageable
daughters. Because few men bearing
historical names rush madly after dollars
be these dollars possessed even by vulgar
ignorance. that is no proof that the entire
French nobility has fallen to this level of
degradation But idleness and want of
union is rapidly Fastening the financial
ruin Of French MOBILES; once mobiles were
supported from the royal treasury; to-day,
fortune belongs only to the laborious Once,
the King allowed certain sums to each
necessary for his rank" 1t was Louis XIV,
I think, who, weary of the demands upon
his treasury. tried to give taste for COM
merce and even trade, to his mobiles. He
put in circulation Able Coyer's books,
books that showed how gentleman can
work, without in any way lowering his
rank. The King paid this Able about $500
year for writing these little works, but the
grand seigneurs who followed his counsels
were soon in financial trouble. and the
poor King found his plan a failure He
then organized society for the relief of
"poor nobility" This was supported by
a royal lottery, and the gentlemen accepted
aid from this society with the pride of a
Spanish beggar. But with the Revolution
disappeared this source Of assistance for
poor mobiles. and unions of this kind are
what is needed to-day. The Baroness de
Cambourg, aided by q number of noble
Frenchwomen. has founded society for
the assistance of "decayed gentlewomen,"
those who cannot work and are too proud
to beg. The amount of good accomplished
by this society is marvellous, but Paris
needs others of the kind to prevent the re-
currence of sad cases, such as l have above
cited. BARONESS ALTHEA SALVADOR