Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1902-03-27

NJ. Stryienski edited, few years
ago, the very interesting memoirs OF
the Countess Potocka. He now pub
ishes a book which contains not so
much original matter, but which,
nevertheless, is valuable, since, ac-
cording TO the rules of the new his
torical school, there are to be found in
it some unedited documents. The
title OF it is The Mother of the Last
Three Bourbons, Marie Josephe de
SAKE, and the Court of Louis XIV;
brt it should have been" The Mother
of the Three Last Bourbon Kings
The son of Louis XIV. had two wives.
1t is well known that he was passion
ately fond of the first, the Infanta OF
Spain, Maria Teresa Raphaelli,
daughter of Philip V. and of Elizabeth
Farnese, arrived from Spain in las,
and died eighteen months afterward
in giving birth to princess who like
wise died Maria Teresa had pleased
nobody at the Frellh court except her
husband who was only IL years old.
He became Immediately very fond of
her and twenty years afterward in his
will written in articulo moftis, he
asked that his heart should be placed
at St Denis near the heart oil the in
fanta.
Successor to the Infanta.
The court at Madrid and a great
party at Versailles desired that the
dauphin should marry at once Antonio,
the sister of Maria Teresa. But at
that time there was still great re-
pugnance to unions between brother
in-law and sister-in-law (these mar
riages continued forbidden in France
in the code Napoleon and became legal
only after the Restoration). AS
France was at the time at war with
Austria, the princess chosen was
daughter of the elector of SaXony, who
was on the throne of Poland. Marie
Josephe de SAKE was only fifteen
years old NJ. Stryienski gives us,
with the most minute details, the story
of the negotiations which preceded
The marriage. of all the ceremonies, of
the court functions. and of the popu-
lar rejoicings which accompanied this
event The marriage was celebrated
on the 9th of February. six months af-
ter the death of the first dauphiness.
The principal negotiator in the af-
fair of the Saxon marriage was the
conqueror of Fontenoy, the famous
Marshal Maurice de SAKE, who, by his
victories had obtained great credit at
the court of Versailles. His letters
are more amusing than are mere dip
| lomatic documents For instance, he
is describing the French court to the
mother of the young princess:
ITO succeed here" says he, there
must be no superciliousness nor fami-
iarity The women of the
court. have all esprit like devils and
are correspondingly wicked. They
will never be wanting in respect to
her (the future dauphiness) but they
which they have perpetualy among
will try to involve her in the quarrels
| themselves, and [, h is far from laugh
: able or amusing. The king does the
same If anything displeases her. let
her address herself to the king = He
is the only person in the court with
whom she must have no reserve She
must look upon him as her asylum,
her father, and tell him everything,
good or bad as it comes, without any
disguise. With all the rest, | recon-
mend reserve. If she practices that
he will adore her"
How His Heart Was Won.
| The queen, he continues, SIS a good
princess, who often has her little
waims. but who has never known what
to do to get them humored" AS for
| the dauphin, ''he has much spirit,
more than he seems to have. The
king likes him much more for his 10
| cility, | believe, than for any other
reason. l noticed that last year peo-
| pie made an estrangement between
father and son (this was on account
! of Madame de Pompadour, the FRIEND
| of Maurice de SAKE; he does not
name her in his letter. but the queen
OF Poland probably understood the al
/ lusion). The king did not cease 20
make advances to the dauphin till he
won him back to him. They now get
| on well together and it is necessary.
| fer the good of the state and the gooc
of everything. that the princess
should always keep this point in
view. and that she should work inces-
sanity to preserve the union between
father and son. She will thus obtain
the confidence of both and the re
spect of ALL
The dauphin was attached to the
memory of his first wife He had
made a sacrifice to reasons of state in
remarrying. NJ. Stryiensh pretends
that he was not always faithful to his
second wife and that she had on var
ious occasions right to complain of
him. On this point we find him op-
| posed to the tradition which repre-
sents the son of Louis XIV. as prince
of almost austere virtue. The init
macy became. however, complete ar
ter great malady of the dauphin's
during which his wife took the great
est care of him. The dauphiness had
/ her first son in 1851 and Their four