The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1903-02-25
The Romantic Story Of Madame
Patterson BOnaparte.

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No American, Of either sex. has had
so strangely romatic u career as the Bal
tim0re beauty Of three quarters OF q
century ago who welded the brother
of the great Napoleon. In Lipptncott's
Magazine for September we find an
interesting fragment Of the life-story Of
that remarkable woman. She Ii still
living at the uge Of n~inety-two years,
In full possession Of her Intellectual
faculties, though her fast increasing
blindness deprives her. in 0 measure,
Of tho means OF gratifying them. Near
" two generations and q half have
passed away since her name and story
were famous In both continents. Her
birth was coeval with that Of the Re
public. She wept AZ the tidings OF
Marie Antoinette's tragedy reached
our shores. She was q woman when
Washington died. Jefferson was her
friend. Lafayette held her hand /; and
her name Is imperishably associated
with one "who kept the world at bay.
"whose game was empire, and whose
''stakes were thrones"
Her marriage to Jerome Bonaparte
was In December, 1903. She was then
eighteen years Of age, q woman OF
wonderful maturity Of character, and
endowed with wit, beauty. fortune and
every personal attraction. She was
separated from her husband by the Or
der of his great elder brother, before
the birth Of her son In July, 1905. 1t
Is said they never met afterwards, ex-
- ~lsv sn khn rfokV,Pn 0o l.
lery OF the Pitt Palace In Florence.
The gossip OF the time was, that when
they met Jerome started aside, ex-
claiming to the Princess Catharine,
whom he had married by cOmpulsion
of his mighty brother, THAT lady Ia
INV former wife p after which he left
the gallery and departed as soon as
possible from Florence. The writer In
|Lippincott gives q different version to
this meeting
mime. Bopaparte's last meeting
with Jerome was Mt the Pitt Palace,
in Florence, In 1922, and, singular to
say. these once welded lovers did not
know each other! She CHANGED to be
attired In her most recherche costume
"a rich silk, half way to the knee,
then the mode, displaying dainty
prunella shoes; o gauze hat, about
three feet In circumference, with high
wired bows ; q crimson cashmere
shawl, and o large green velvet reticule.
In passing through the gallery she
was attracted by the eager, persistent
stare of q very handsome man, whom
she did not recognize, but whose
strange Likeness TO her son enchained
her. Suddenly the truth flashed t.
her heart /; 1t Is Jerome" He, mean
while gazing at her, said to one OF the
ladies with him a: Isl belle 81 belle
| aui est.se:' 'Vous devriez La connaitre
e'est loire premiere femme replied
Nine. Joseph Bonaparts. Jerome
started, and, with an agitated whisper
to tue other lady, the Princess Catha'
rine, they left the gallery. For one
moment only the two '~discrowned
Queens were face to face. The mex
| day Nine. Bonaparte vas driving In
! the Gasoline. when, from q passing
| carriage, Jerome nearly precipitatet
himself In q last, lingering look at the
wife of his youth"
The hearty spirit Of the young Amer
lean was not broken by the desertioi
Of her husband, nor by the hostility o
the great Napoleon. Indeed. her re
spect for the latter grew with the dh
tculties he threw In the way Of her am
bition t; and he ut last relented. Blu
Jerome never recovered her admira
ton, though she bore him no malice
When, after his marriage with tn
] Princess Of Nuremberg, he offered hi
repudiated wife the Principalit!
iof Smalcand with forty thousand dol
bars per annum, her witty reply, tina
.sW estphalia. no doubt, was a cOnsid
"erable kingdom, but not large enough
"to hold two queens" so pleased tn
I Emperor that he directed the French
minister at Washington. NJ. Serrurier
to intimate his wish TO serve hei
"Tell the Emperor that / am ambit
"ious I wish to be made u Duchess q
France" This the Emperor promised
to do at a later moment, and offere'
her twenty thousand dollars down an,
IN life annuity of twelve thousand dol
lars, which she accepted ''proud to b
"indebted to the greatest man Of mod
fern times" but with the proviso tina
the receipt for payment should be sign
cd by her as Elizabeth Bonaparte
which, would he u virtual ackn0wledg
ment of the legality Of her marriag
aud her claims on the head OF The fam
ily. TO this stipulation the Empero
acceded, and until his abdication tn
annuity was regularly paid. Jerom
was stung 10 n protest against her nc
lceptauce OF aid from his brother Will
rejecting his own, TO which she rotor
ed that she 'preferred shelter beneat
"the wing Of the eagle to s%uspensio
"from the piniOn Of the goose"
For many years after this Madam
BOnaparte was o power In French 81
ciety. The return Of the Bourbous r.
moved every obstacle from her patti
except. possibly, the jealous eyes
other beauties who feared An eclips'
The memoirs and society chronicles
the time are full OF her. Miss Berr,
+ "the black Berry," Madame Recami'
y Madame de Stael, Madame de Genli
land many Others whose beauty al
wit have become a tradition, were h,
= contemporaries and rivals. Bare
9 Bonstetten of Geneva, savant al
o philanthrOpist. al old man ut hat tim
~ rn,k frtnnA rf NTadon,n Don