The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-08-26

Napoleon's own family. The marriage Of Louis
BonapArte with Hortcnse do Beauharnais,
which took place On July %. 1902, was
expected 10 heal the schism, but the do
nestle pence proved as little durable as
tho repeated attempts at international tran
q%ulllity. For a little while, however,
this union and several other marriages among
the young people II Napoleon's circle gave a
merry and joyous tone tn tho mode OF life At tho
modest court. The wcil-known physical and
mental charms Of the First COnsuls sisters. the
grace and fascination characteristic of Nine.
Bonaparte and OF her daughter. the remarkable
beauty OF the young women who completed the
nssemblage, and, above all. the presence of n
hero, gave un indeinable attraction to n society
which was trammelled by no etiquette except
the traditions OF good company. AS TO the
pleasures Of the new court. these would he. we
are told. o. morninGs at Malmaison. house games.
in which Napoleon took part in the evening,
games again and conversatH Sparkling with
wit aud originality. The revolution. philosophy.
and. above all the East were the favorlte subjects
Of the First Consul's talk. How many times.
says stgur. would even the youngest women
forget the ~lateness Of the hour, and sit rs II en-
chained to his admirable narratives, and as II
they could see the things which he described.
One evening al st. Cloud. whilc he depicted the
desert, Egypt, and the defeat Of the Mamelukes.
~ NNa'N h"S ''f INNS
ing upon his words, stopped short, and taking
from A table a medal representing tho Battle
Of the Pyramids. said, II" You were not there,
young man ~ Alas. no. answered SeRur.
We'll. Keep this said the First Consul, and
remembc oil that 10 recalls Such was Napo-
Icons habitual amenity. and Segur recollects
how, when the loud laughter in the Salon
interrupted the work that the First Consul was
doing in a neiehborlng room. no would partly
opnn tha dnnr and nm al aininu on,i -rotnrpdly
of such interruption. beg his friends to make "A
little less noise. Another Of the household
pleasures was the playing OF drawing-roOm
comedy, In which his adopted children rs well
as the officers Of his STAFF took part. He
himself would sometimes watch the rchearsals
that were directed by celebrated actors like
Michaud, Mole, and Fleury. The final per-
formances took place at Malmaison. and were
followed by concerts. and often by little balls.
Napoleon himself would dance as gayly MS the
youngest, now and then asking the musiciano
to play the airs by that time out of fashion,
which recalled TO him his youth. It was
these soir6cs which always ended about mid
night, that gave rise to absurd reports about
lessons in dancing and in attitudes that the
First Consul was taking, It was said. from vari-
Gus actors. IA n matter of fact his participa-
tion in the final pleasures Of the evening never
lasted, according TO Segur, more than q few
moments. bIlcr WHICH ne UeNOteu Dllnsel1 10
serious affairs. The house games at Malmaison
were the first 10 stop; the want Of decorum
evinced by n distinguished artist put an end to
them. The other pleasures, which were always
decorous, continued during the autumn OF 1902
and the ensuing winter. Scarcely were they
interrupted by the First Consul's journey to
Rouen and afterward to Havrc. Subsequent
ly and gradually, however. the multiplicity of
affairs, and the more serious aspect they ac-
CURED through England's resumption of a hos
tile attitude made these merry recreations out
of place. Then came the elevation OF the First
Consul to tho imperial dignity, which imposed
more etiquette. emphasized social distances, and
diminished the charm OF his domestic life. An
incident which happened In 1909 changed to re-
serve the abandon with which the young people
OF the court had entered into their amuse-
ments. During the First Consul's absence In
Belgium they plunged with too little cir
cumspection into the pleasures OF the capital.
There were dinners, picnics, and theatre par
ties. and ever some giddy expeditions to tho
public balls, where young and high-placed women
might easily have beer recognized and compro-
missed. According to S6gur there was nothing
In all this but the imprudenco of schoolgirls
just escaped from the hands of their preceptress,
but their husbands were absent and malicious
reports alarmed them. However exaggerated
and false these were. they had an evil effect on
the suspicious nature OF Louis Bonapartc. and
thus began tho jealousy which, as Se9ur con-
tends. had no foundation. The author cannot
say whether tho First Consul was importuned
with complaints about tho matter. but the
fact is that, soon after his return, most
OF the young officers of his household
were despatched on various missions
and transformed from men OF pleasure into men
OF usefulness. Segur, for his part. was sent
with Gen. Duroc to Berlin, and he recalls the