The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-02-11
\ ".

Nv.
Not only in his personal habits but in his
| tastes, and to some extent, In his ideas. Napo-
leon exhibited from first to last the stamp OF
| the French middle class. Thus, in religion, he
was faithful representative OF the views OF the
| middle class such as It was at the beginning OF
this century. saturated with the teachings Of
| Noltaire and Rousseau 1t was then the fash
| ion to be bold enough to neglect God, but the
courage to deny Him was wanting. This atti-
| tude OF the bourpeoisie was reflected In that OF
| Napoleon. Though him self Indifferent to the
| practices Of religion. he thought It quite nat
| ural that others should follow them and pro-
| fessed the most liberal ideas on the subject
He would not admit" says Metternich.
| that q bona fde atheist ever existed
Personally needless OF religious rites. he re-
spected them too much ever to level Q Joke at
any who attended them" His respect for
the beliefs Of others attained extreme limits
when. In 1912. at Moscow. he charged the Rus
Sian popes to alter nothing In their orthodox
liturgy and to read the prayers for the Gar.
In default OF religious convictions. his good
sense served him as a guide. Atheism. from
his point OF view, was principle destructive
Of every social organization. because Il de-
prives man OF all his hopes and all his conso-
lation. Society" no said. cannot exist
without inequality Of fortune and ineausl-
ity OF fortune cannot exist without religion"
Again he says to the Council at State: "A man
does not get himself killed for few hslfpence
Q day or for q paltry distinction; you must
speak to tho soul In order to electrify the man"
The middle-class narrowness OF mind ex-
hibited In the minor actions OF life was not the
only narrowness to be met with In this man.
whose thoughts on most subjects were so bold
and deep. whether through indifference or
through inaptitude. tho science OF good man
ners always remained o sealed book to him in
his private life Following his natural i'm
pulses without troubling himself about
deoorum. or about what people would say. to
feel and to express were with him one and the
same thing. the nom emit he was free from the
slavery OF public duties One OF those who
knew him Intimately tells us that. In private
Lie. he was incapable OF keeping q
secret This 10 q trait not easily reconciled
with the theory that he was By nature q
monster OF Discrimination The Duchesse
d'Ahrantes complains OF the indiscretion OF
the Emperor who used always to tell wives OF
their husbands infdelity." AS to the other
jokes upon the pretty women Of Client"
writes Davout to his wife. Il am sorry that tn.
Emperor made them to you. as fear It may
have rendered you uneasy" Another Bignih-
cant trait was that the man who could watch
unmoved the chances OF o battle could not
endure the smallest bad fortune when he was
playing cards or chess. II luck were against
him he invariably cheated. although he never
PLAYED for money. Another bourgeois charac-
teristic was his passion for matchmaking.
Gaudin. Minister OF Finance. had to suffer
from his mania for marrying people whether
they would or no. 1t has been said that Ma
poleon's attitude toward WON en- was ha btu ely
brutal. but there is absolutely no proof OF this
with the exception OF his well-known speech to
Nine. de Stael. for which there was ample
provocation. and the rebuff given at Tilsit
to Queen Louise OF Prussia. that Venus OF
diplomacy. who offered the Emperor q flower
for which she asked too high . price. 1t
would. In tho judgment Of our author be
nearer the truth to say that tho Emperor be-
ing continually absorbed in tho most serious
matters. gave but little attention to the fair
sex. and had no time to make pretty speeches. |
II Is certain that he cared ing for WON ems
conversation. and had no hesitation In avow-
ing that he detested women who were sup
posed to be clever. As for permitting them. as
the Bourbons had done. to interfere in polti-
cal matters. he refused It enerRetically. de- |
clarinR that women had far better work with
their needles than with their tongues espe-
cially II theY are going to mix in politics. A |
State is lost whom woman manages its pub |
lie Affairs"
What trust indeed. could Napoleon be ex-
pscted to put In women. when experience had |
taught him to have no belief IN their primary |
virtuel Married twice over. he was each time |
tried like Moleres husbands. in spite OF all his
precautions. which extended even to the length |
Of forbidding any man to enter the Empress's |
apartments He was bourgeois also in this. |
that he would permit no overt irregularity in |
his own surroundings. He refused to allow |
Nine. Visconu to appear at court because OF |
her intimacy with Berthier. He ostracized- in |
the same manner. Nine. Grandt. TAlleyrand's |
mistress Opposed As he was to anything |
that could shock public morality. he |
heard with INDIGNATION Of the proposal |
TO erect . statue to Agnes sorsl: Ask
the Project Of Tours" he wrote. what
il the meaning OF this proposed statue to
Agnes sorel1 1t seems TO me- quite improper.
II my memory serves me che was . Kings |
mistress. Tell the Project that will have no
stAtueto her."