The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-08-30
FIRST lady OF FRANCE IS
SIMPLE AND GOOD HEARTED
Really back 10
Children and
Charities Making Admirable Hostess
Special Foreign Service.

Special Foreign Service.
PARIS Aug. 29.-Just because some
of the naughty old aristocratic fanli-
lies of France undertake to look down
on President Loubet and his wife, as
being simple country folk, it is usually
forgotten that, officially, Nine. Loubet
is ''the first lady in France" But the
fact that she is almost never written
about makes her all the more inter-
esting; and, besides, the mistress OF
the Elysee is no ordinary sort OF
woman.
She is a famous housewife, econom-
zeal, simple and fond of her children;
she really cares little for society and
looks forward to the time when she
and her beloved Emile may retire from
the Elysee, the French White House,
to a quiet farm back in the country
whence she came; yet she has enter
tanned a long succession of kings I'M
der her roof with simple dignity
that pleased them well, and has done
her duty by Paris society as easily
and effectively as if all her life had
been devoted to that sort of thing.
Mime. Loubet belongs to one of
the best bourgeois families of the
Drome. Her maiden name was Picard
and until her marriage in 1859 she
lived with her parents at Montelinar
barrister there.
Montelimar is quite q commercial
town in these days, noted for it's hats,
coal and nougat But 1T has good
bit of historic transcribed in the pages
of it's past, and was the scene of
much warfare at the time of the HUI
guenot troubles. In some parts of the
old town are quaint buildings and YES
tiges of the ancient walls and towers.
In all the boxes of neugat on sale I'M
til quite recently, a few lines of poetry
We're always Enclosed affirming that
Montelimar est Ia patrie
Des bon occurs ct DIES bon nougats.
and judging by the interest Nine.
Loubet takes in all charitable works
It seems as though she has the pro-
verbal kind heart of which her ma
tive town boasts.
A Simple Pair.
NJ Loubet's father owned a farm
near Marsanne, some ten miles from
Montelimar, and was mayor of Mar
Same for thirty-seven years.
Emile would have taken UP farm
ing willingly, but his father was ambi-
tious for his two sons and wished one
of them to study law and the other
medicine.
When the president of today was a
anainations he had a room on the sixth
floor of a house in Paris just near the
Luxembourg palace, where, forty years
later he was destined to live for a
time.
NJ. Loubet, like his wife, is extremely
simple in his habits and his dream is
to end his days in the country in the
midst of his family, with his gun and
pipe for recreations. 1t is generally
known that he has bought a chateau,
to which he intends to retire when his
term of presidency comes to an end,
and that madame looks forward to
this chateau as much as her husband
does. This simplicity runs in the Lou
bet blood. Parisians have not yet for
gotten the way in which M. Loubet's
aged mother took the news of the
honors which had fallen to the lot Of
her son When he was elected presi-
dent.
Poor fellow" she exclaimed when
she read the telegram announcing the
event, what worries he will now
have!"
Too Busy for Politics.
Nine. Emile Loubet does not take
any active part-in political matters, all
her spare time and energies being de-
voted to charitable works. AS soon as
she was installed at the Elysee palace
she was elected president of the Society
of the Red Cross, and only few days
later she was presiding at the meeting
of that admirable Union of French
Women" the object of which is to
train women as sick nurses. Many
ladies of the highest rank belong to
this union and ambulance work is
especially taught so that in case of
war French women of every station in
life will be ready to devote themselves
to hospital service.
Mime T,OIIhpt c ahOxya oil fIiporS
an exemplary wife and mother, and
she has made a special point of visit
the most of the creches and dispensa-
ries in all the various departments of
Paris. She has also been indefatiga-
BILE in her rounds of the hospitals.
making generous gifts wherever she
goes and invariably carrying with her
to the children's asylums supply Of
toys and sweets for distribution.
On New Years day she makes a
present in money to a certain number
of widows who are left with children
to bring up and who. during the wins
ter season, find it difficult to make two
ends meet. 1t was due to Nine.
Loubet's petition to the project of pe-
lice that the vendors of Christmas
toys were able to keep their stalls upon
the boulevardS a week longer than for
nerly. 1t is generally acknowledged
that no one who is worthy appeals to
the presidents wife in vain, and her
help is all the more valuable from the
fact that she takes the trouble to
learn something about the charities to
which she subscribes SO generously
An Excellent Hostess.
Nine. Loubet is an excellent hostess
despite the gibes of the old aristoc-
racy, and has proved herself quite
equal to the entertainment of royalties
from other countries. AT the time of
the exhibition, the kings of Sweden
Greece and Belgium, the hey of Tunis
the khediye of Egypt and the shah OF
Perisa, were all received by the presi-
dent and his wife, and during the
Franco-Russian fetes the car and
czarina were delighted with their re-
ception at the Elysee.
Just before M. Loubets recent visit
to England the last garden party OF
the season was given at the Elysee
The weather was perfect and the
whole affair a great success. One of
the stewards who had charge of the
buffet gave me the following list OF
the provisions for the occasion, from
which it will be seen that nothing is
provided grudgingly to the guests at
these garden parties, although the
Loubets are not rich folk:
1000 bottles Of champagne at 10
200 bottles of punch at francs / 200
200 bottles of Bordeaux at francs 1 200
50 bottles of liouellr at 10 francs 50n