Evening star., 1897-03-16
S THE SULTAN NAFRENCHMAN
a Romantic Story That French Woman Was
His Ancestor.
Her Own and Empress JOsephine's
Fortune FOretOld by Mu-
latto SOOthsHyer.

From the New York Herald.
Is the present Sultan of Turkey of
French descent? This question is agitat-
ing many persons in France at this mo-
ment, and the utmost efforts are being
made to obtain a satisfactory answer to
it, Foremost among those interested is
DR. Cabanes. He is satisfied that there is
French blood in the sultan's veins, and he
is spending all his time in endeavor TO
prove his case.
The historical data on the subject, though
few. are precise enough. The trouble is
that 1t Is almost impossible to say where
history ends and legend begins The only
satisfaction is that there is every reason
to believe that documents may yet he un-
earthed which will clear up the entire
mystery.
The heroine of the story is a Mile. BAIL
las. In her girlhood she was a bosom
friend of Mile. de Taso her de la Pagerie.
one day old mulatto woman told the
fortunes of these Two girls. She told Mile.
de la Pagere that she would marry twice,
and that her second husband would raise
her to a position loftier than that of any
queen, and she told Mile. BaZillais that she,
tco. would become the consort OF famous
ruler.
The girls We're surprised at the old wo-
mans words, but time showed that she had
no. prophesied vaguely. Nile. de Ia
position loftier than that of any queen.
BY her first marriage she became the wife
of Beauharnais; by her second she became
the wife Of the great Napoleon, and all
the world heard of her as the Empress
Josephine.
Captured by Pirates.
Mile. Bazillais also rose to great distinc-
ton. While she was taking a sea voyage
she was captured by Turkish pirates and.
beip Ey thena Of
the imperial seraglio. Her great beauty
soon attracted the sultans attention, and
she became his favorite and in due time
bore him son, who succeeded his father
a sultan.
In this way is explained the introduction
Of many French customs at the court of
Constantinop!e. These. 1t is said were due
10 the influence of Mile. Bazillais, who.
furthermore. took care to train her son as
far possible after the French style The
latter after becoming sultan sent envoy
to France with instructions to find out all
he could about the BaZillais family. The
envoy, however. was unsuccessful in his
search, for the reason that the BaZiliais
were strictly religious people, and would
have nothing to do with the representative
of such hereto the sultan.
With these facts In his possession DR.. Ca
banes went to the Turkish embassy in Pa
is and applied there for further Informal
ton. He was cid very courteously that
the embassy haG no inside information on
the subject. but he assured that
search would be made in the archives for
official documents. The officials at the en-
bassy also admitted that they had heard
The story before. DR.. Cabanes went home
expecting that an immediate search would
be made in the archives, but as yet he has
heard nothing further from the embassy
He rext applied for information to NJ.
Paul de Regla. writer who is well ac-
quainted with Constantnople and political
life in Turkey, and received in reply the
following letter:
My Dear Colleague: There is tradition
in the imperial harem at Constantinople
that Sultan Mahmoud. father of Abdul
MedJid and grandfather of Sultan Mourad
", who was the brother Of the reigning
Sultan. Abdul-Hamid II. was the son of a
French woman who had been captured by
pirates. 1t is even said that this beautiful
and intelligent French woman exercised
so much influence over her soH Mahmoud
that the reforms which he accomplished
while sultan were mainly due to her.
Some Conflicting Statements.
bers OF the Bazillais family. He heard that
there We're two persons at Nantes who
could give him the desired informa ton, and
he wrote to them.
One Of them, NJ. Clericau, an architect and
g relative of the Bazitlais by marriage, sent
him In reply the family tree of the BAIL
lafs. aid told him that the last member OF
the family. girl was born in 1749 and had
died, married, In 1884. He added:
There Is unquestionably some truth in
the story which you tell me. have heard
1t all before, and, even when / was a child
l remember very clearly that ! heard nv
parents talk about the girl who On account
of her great beauty, was prese nted to The
emperor at Nantes lin 1905 ! belieye). and
who subsequently went to Turkey and be-
came the favorite sultana. ] remember
this story very distinctly
But was this girl Bazillais? I hardly
think SO. for the last member of the family
"a girD was. as We see, born In 1749, and
consequently her age and beauty could