New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-08-18
TOPICS IN PARIS.
DUCHESS HELENE WAS VERY ILL.,
,,,,, u, ,cur ON AosrA-cAREER OF THE BARON
HARDIN HICKEY-DEcrINE OF THE
PARIS ARCADEs


HARDIN HIcKEY-DEcrINE OF THE
PARIS ARcADEs.
Paris August IS.
r,rcbesa Helene of Aosta's illness now turns
an, N have been far more serious than was u,
erst admitted for her condition at one moment
was so grave that in response TO an urgent s""-
mons from the Duke the Comtesse de Paris
started for Turin, accompanied by Dr. Recamer
the family physician. who has KNOW" '"e
Princess from earliest childhood. lhoeeu' "o'"
the reports which rent here IN a''"
ical circles It would seem that 'he D""e "
Aostas honeymoon came pretty near oe'"e go
nalized by a tragedy analogous 20 tha' VIII"
NAV no said to have begun the married Ire OF
his father whose favorite ade-de-cahp anu '''
intimate friend, the Comte Nerasis DE Cas"s,
onne fell dead from aneursm OF the hear' VIM
helping the royal bride )ut or the carriase :"
which sbe and her husband had ridden out from
Turin TO the Chateau OF Moncaiiere' "here t"e'
were 70 spend the first weeks after their wedding
II appears that while out riding In the neign-
borhood OF the Chateau de la Mandria. where
che 10 etov,ry Duchess Helene struck her head
ogairat Tho branch of a tree with such force that
II not only knocked her off her horse, but caused
ber IN lose consciousness. With the help OF
smelling salts and the attentions Of her Ameri-
can-born Iady-ln-waitng the Marquse Tori
GAM she soon recovered and, with the pluck Ior
which she Is noted insisted on Immediately re-
mounting Reaching home and feeling sui dizzs
from the effects Of her fall, as well as exceed
ingly warm she took an ice-cold batn ana the
resu,t WAS that when the Duke got back from
Turin in the evening he found his wife In arrag-
ing fever which developed into delirium IN the
night It Is said here that her condition was
further complicated by conclusion OF the prah'
resulting from the blow which she received on
the head. and in spite OF the bulletins or the
Italian doctors to the effect that she was merely
suffering from AUTOMATICALLY physicians
never admit that their patients are seriously III
until the case becomes hopeless-t Is known
that for time II was feared that the matr:-
mona bliss of the Duke OF AOsta would be
brought to a premature close. The Comtesse de
Paris Is still at Turin, or rather at La Mandria
once the home OF Victor Emmanuers morganatic
and plebeian-born wife, Rosina. Comtesse Mira
fort. nursing her daughter back to health, and
from this It would appear that the young
Duchess's convalescence is by means so far
advanced as is said in the published report
The illness and its causes have naturally
served to revive all those rumors which were
current at the time of the engagement about
the species Of blight that seems to extend over
The mere name itself is ill-omened, since in the
valley OF Aosta were formerly confined the per-
sons affected by leprosy-a sort Of Alpine Molo-
kai-and the very mention Of the word Aosta
was sufficient to call to mind the most appalling
OF incurable diseases with which the human race
IL afflicted The late Duke Of Aosta was dis
tinctly an unhappy man. OF the same morbid
minded type as King Philip Of Spain is de-
scribed as having been And when II Is rerneIn-
bered that in the case OF the present Duke the
woman to whom he was first engaged celber-
ately Tilted him to marry his own rather ana
that Church and conventonality alone prevented
him from subsequently wedding his fathers
widow II must be confessed that there were
some grounds in the eyes. at any rate, OF super
stitious people. for looking upon the match as
predestined TO misfortune. That II should have
passed by so closely without. /: is hoped leaving
any permanent bad results must be a subject or
congratulation TO all those who are in any way
interested in the future welfare Of this particu-
larly charming and popular princess, the daugh-
ter Of a gallant soldier OF the Army or the
Potomac.
In view OF the transatlantic associations OF the
Comte de- Paris it seems appropriate that his
daughter should have America n-born lades-in-
waiting. Thus the Marquise Torrigiani. ex
blonde who Is distinguished for her equestrian
accomplishments was Miss Fry. Of New-York.
before she was married to the Florentine noble
man who is the equerry Of the Duke OF Aosta.
The other ady-in- waiting OF the Duchess Is the
daughter OF Jones Fischer. OF New-York. and is
married to the Count Gherandeschi. who is the
chief OF the household OF the Duke. The Gheran-
deschis descended from the family OF that
Count Ugon who was starved to death with
several OF his children and whose unhappy fate
Is recorded in the most sombre pages Of Dantes
Inferno" Inasmuch the Duke and Duchess
usually speak English TO one another. 1t may
readily be imagined that with two young men
ages" half American. half Italian. forming part
Of the royal household. there should be consid
erably more Of English heard at la Mandria than
any other language.
The Comte de Castiglionne. Of whose sudden
death mention Is made above. was the husband
OF that niece Of Cavour who played 80 great Il
part during the Second Empire and who still con-
tlnues to reside here in the Quarter des Champs
Elysees only stirring out Of doors after darkness
has set in, in order that may observe the
ravages which age and infrmty have produced In
that marvellous beauty Of face and figure for
which she was so celebrated thirty years ago.
She was the daughter Of the old Marche.se Oldu-
ini for many years Piedmontese charge DAT
flares at ST. Petersburg. where indeed, she was
born.
Baron Harden-H Hickey. whose claims 10 the
ownership OF the late island OF Trndade COO
miles distant from the coast Of Brazil, ap-
pear to be attracting SO much attention in
the United States press to Judge from the
American newspapers received here, is not a
Frenchman. as seems to be believed on the
other side of the Atlantic. but full blooded Irish
American. His father made a fortune I'm the
early days OF San Francisco as one OF the gold
coast pioneers and on his death the widow. with