Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1894-06-30
MADE THEM MARRY.
EMPEROR NAPOLEON WAS A MATR,-
MONlAL DESPoT.
He Compelled Women to Marry to Suit His
Interests or Whims-Some Of the Disa-
greeable Alliances Brought About by
This Tyrannical Matchmaker.

u
greeable Alliances Brought About by
This Tyrannical Matchmaker.
Among the numerous works to which
the revival of the Napoleonic legend has
given birth is one called Napoleon and
the Ladies'" Tho writer exerts himself
to the utmost to transform the rough
soldier and .despot into q hero Of TO
nance, but without success. His rela-
ton with his two wives were not re-
markable for either consideration or
delicacy, and he adopted a coarse pleas
antry in his conversation with the ladies
of his court which was not far removed
from downright vulgarity.
Bnt what tended to make the very
name of Napoleon hateful to all young
Frenchwomen was his famous conscrip-
ton of girls, whom he married offhand
to his generals without the slightest
ceremony. The Marquise dc Corgny, on
her return TO Paris, was ordered to
marry her daughter to General Sebas
| tiana. Both mother and daughter pro-
tested in vain. Three days after the
order tho marriage took place at the
Tuileries, Napoleon himself giving away
the bride. Mile. Adele de la Rochefou-
cauld was renowned throughout the
whole department for her grace, beauty
and expectations, when she was private
y informed by the project that Napoleon
had decided to marry her to Count Al
dobrandini. The lady objected to the
count for the best of feminine reasons
namely, that he was neither young nor
handsome.
Tho count, however, was the brother
of Prince Borehese, the husband Of
Pauline, the sister of Bonaparte, and
the resistance Of father and daughter
was of no moment, and they were
Obliged to yield to the will of Napoleon.
Count d'Arbcrg, the descendant of
sovereign family, project of the Boachcs
du WCscr, and ono of Napoleon cham
bcrlains, had two daughters of mar
riageablc age. Napoleon ordered that
one should marry General Klein, and
the other General Mouton, count de
Lobau. The mother of the two young
ladies was Countess Stolbcrg, sister of
Countess Albany, widow OF the last of
the Stuarts Fanny Dillon, the daughter
of Count Dillon, was ordered to I:sarry
General Bertrand. The young lady re-
fused even to see the general, Directing
that he was hideous, which unfortu-
natcly happened TO be the truth. Ma
poleon was irritated at this conduct and
ordered the young lady to be arrested
and confined i'll prison until she consent
cd to marry Bertrand, the monster, as
she called him.
The Due de Laureguais, father of the
Due d Arcnberg, colonel of a regiment
of cavalry and an unfortunate bachelor,
was ordered by Napoleon, under penalty
OF dismissal from the army, to marry
forthwith Mile. Stcphanie Tascher de
Ia Pageric, cousin germain of the EN-
press Josephine. The young lady rs
well as the duke objected to the mar
rage, and the former had the audacity
to declare that she not only hated the
duke, hut was over head and ears in
love with a certain NJ. de Gentry. The
marriage between the cousin of jose
phine and the duke nevertheless took
place, and at the marriage ceremony,
when the young lady. in reply to the
priests question, refused to say yes
Napoleon himself deigned to push her
head downward in token of assent.
After the marriage ceremony this
strangely married couple went to reside
mt the Hotel de Chimay. But the duch-
ess refused to receive her husband, who.
like reasonable being, posted after his
regiment, then serving in Spain In
1871 he was made prisoner and sent to
England, where he remained until the
fall Of Napoleon i'll 1914. On his return
to Paris the duchess obtained dissolu-
ton of the marriage on the ground of
restraint, and she finished by marrying
the happy M. dc Gentry.
The Prince of Hohenzollern, cousin of
the king of Prussia, was ordered to
marry Antoinette Murat, cousin of
the Beau Sabreur'' and king Of Ma
pies. and although both the prince and
Antoinctte declared that they mutually
hated one another the marriage never
theless took place, Napoleon being of the
opinion, like Mrs. Malaprop, that mar
ricd life had better commence with a
little hatred. One morning the Due de
Croy was informed by his friend, the
project Of Mans, that Napoleon had re-
solved that his daughter should be mar
ried mt once to q general, and that an
order to that effect would be delivered
to the Due de Croy on the following
day. But the dixie was a man of re-
source, and there being in the house an
amiable cousin, one Fernand de Croy,
q marriage between the two cousins was
celebrated at midnight by the parish
priest When the formal order of Ma
poleon arrived the next morning, the
duke replied that he was "dcsolated, /"
but that his daughter had already mar
ried her Cousin Fcrnand But it was not
safe to try to Outwit the powerful en-
peror, and q few days afterward Cousin
Fernand, the married man, was drafted
into regiment Of cavalry and sent to
Russia, from which country he even
tually returned, minus an arm.
As late as 1912 the Minister of Police
Savcry issued q circular to all the pre-
fects Of departments, ordering them to
send to Paris q list of all the heiresses
in their respective departments, with
full particulars as to age, personal