Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-08-28
TOUCHING LOVE OF NINE. LABORI.

TOUCHING LOVE OF NINE. LABORI.
The Dreyfus case has been more prolific
of romance than anything the elder Du-
mas could have imagined, and of all the
interesting characters brought into prom
lnence by the endless climaxes none is
more worthy of notice than the wife of
the whole-souled man who was conduct
ing Dreyfus' defense. Maitre Laborie
can leave no doubt of his sincerity, for
he has practically ruined himself in a
cause which can never be Of direct pecu-
mary benefit to him. His defense of
Dreyfus in the former trial, and after
ward of lola, when the latter stood alone
against the French cabal. has brought
down upon his head the hatred of the
most powerful factions in France; and.
IN addition, he refused the handsome fee
o1fered him by lola. and has no chance
OF remuneration from Dreyfus. A truly
stout heart has Labori-a figure for men
to admire in the after centuries. 1t is a
matter of much comfort to reflect that his
wife is in every way fitted for him.
Nine. Labori did not come into promin-
ence during the former trials at which
her husband stood for justice. 1t is to
her credit that she has heretofore lain in
obscurlty. for in her case, as in that of
Nine. Dreyfus, the opposition would not
have hesitated to drag in a candal. Her
life reads like a romance. She was born
in an obscure Australian town some 50
years ago. Her maiden anne was Mar
garet Oakley, and when Gn 1870 her
father moved to England. it is probable
that he had no other ideas for his daugh-
ter than that she should become the reg
ulation British matron of the middle
class. Llke many girls of her style OF
beauty she was homely when young, and
gave little promise of either the charm
CT the beauty of later years. Her fate
was sealed when, at 10, on beginning to
take piano lessons from a mediocre Lon
don professor, She developed what all de-
clared a marvellous genius. She spent tn
next seven years under the best teachers
in both Paris and London. At IS she re-
turned to London to enter into the con-
cert field, which entrance she soon made,
but not in the manner she had antici-
pated.
Vladimir de Pachmann was at that
time the foremost pianist of Europe. He
was a peculiar product. as near. to Sven
gall as nature has come. No one doubts
his genius, nor can the unprecedented
blame him much for the tragedy that fol-
lowed. His was a sore temptation, n
if he fell there are many excuses to be
made for him.
Margaret Oakley was fascinated with
Pachlnann from the night she first heard
him. 1t could have been no love for the
man that influenced her. He was notori-
ously ugly and deformed. 1t was one Of
those abnormal attachments to which
girls of her age are often subject and
about which, under rhapsody rawlings
over first love, the erudit novelist has
woven so many entertaining fairy tales.
Had Miss Oakley's father known his bust
ness he would have packed her off to
A ,~1 ,i ~ l,,n y, n In wi ,,,,t; %l~ c-~
c~ination wore off. But he neglected to
take such highly necessary, if s~hockingly
radical, steps, until the matter was too
far gone for remedy and Margaret be-
came welded to 10 magic fingers and an
enormous knowledge of technique.
The outcome could not be doubted. AL
though it is not likely that Nine. de
Pachmann could ever have edualed her
husband. she speedily became an even
greater favorite than he, and in the con-
certs given under and in conjunction
with him, carried off the applause. Con-
cert goers who saw her at the time say
they saw a fine head, splendidly poised
and covered with soft brown hair, loosely
coiled. Her features We're classic, her
figure 1.-the and graceful. She did not
have at 20 to "a the marvellous grace and
finesse she is said to possess today. but
she was still a very handsome woman,
with whom even de Pachmann might
easily have been in love.
What dePachmann really felt will never
be known. Two children came, but the
dissension which had sprung up in less
than a year after their marriage was not
healed. RumOr said the Russian Sven
gall beat this Australian Trilby; the facts
of the case are easily guessable, and they
do not point to entire blame on his part.
Nine. de Pachmann probably grew weary
of her genius" the more So, as five years
of plaudits, in reality intended for her
beauty, might ave imbued her with the
idea that she was his musical equal, if
not superior. She was FESTIVE at % in
the company of the misshapen little Rus
sian she had adored at 1S, and when in
the course of a concert tour in France she
saw Labori's face in the crowd the die
was cast.
Our Anglo-Saxon code is prone to turn
up it's nose at the course which followed.
Maitre Labori helped Nine. de Pachmann
to get her divorce, under what circum-
stances, or with what arguments, it il
not fitting at this time to inquire; and
when what Partisan estimates considered
a decent interval had elapsed, he married
her. Their married life is said to have
been most exemplary and none deny that
| that the lawyer has been a model step
father to the two little daughters of tine
pianist.
Since Labori was shot his wife has mol
once left his side. Her devotion has been
the theme of the civilized world, and the
sympathy all unprecedented people must !
feel for the unfortunate nan Is only
equaled by the admiration they feel for
his wife. She sits at his bedside from
morning until night, cheering him on as
only she can. She has lived in dread OF