Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-09-24
POLEON, A, Seen
by His Associates
---- Ea1i,
JOSEPHINE DE BEAUHARNAIS

tismal names used By her familiars
ana for which Napoleon substituted
hid Fatal Drink
the less worn JOsephine1. she must
cease troubling me henceforth. re-.
llnquish all claims TO her I'm favor OF
Nanakre. my hostler.
II is due to my having been In prls.
on with her previous Co the 9th Their
mldor overthrow Of Robesperre) that
! Knew her so intimately. Such an
intimacy would be objectionable In a
man restored to liberty"
Barras himself admits having main
tanned llalson with Josephine after
she left prison and says that she plead
cd with him to resume Il while she Was
Nine Bonapartc
II was after her release from prison
that the widow Beauharnals was first
Wooed by Napoleon Announcing the
engagement OF a friend, she wrote
You have seen Cen Bonaparte at my
house. Well, II is he who is good
enough TO act as stepfathcr to the or.
phans Of Alexander de Beauharnals, as
husband to his widow! DO you love
him2 you ask me. No. do
not, Then you dislike him? No; but
my state Is one Of tepldity toward him
which n dlspeasing to me. and which.
from a religious point OF view, would
shock the goody people"
ON another occasion, after reading
most considerate as well rs ardent let
ter from Napoleon. she exclaimed.
What an odd creature Bonaparte lsi"
Thus much Of the widow OF NJ Beau
harnals. Baron de Meneval. private
secretary OF Napoleon, whose memoirs
give an inside view OF the palace,
writes as follows Of Josephine as em-
press:
Josephine had an irresistible atlrac.
ton, She was not a woman OF regular
beauty. She had that grace which Ia
more beautiful than beauty's self she
had the soft abandon, the supple and
elegant movements. the graceful negll-
gence OF Creole women.
"The emperor had loved her much.
She was the wife OF his glory as much
as the wife OF his person, for she had
welded his glory as much as she had
welded his person. She was fond OF
luxury and extrayagant perhaps more
than her spirit Of charity should have
warranted for her extravaganza often
made It Impossible for her to satisfy
her charitable tastes"
OF this period Nine. de Remusat also
witness In the palace, says:
Notwithstanding the wishes ~ her
husband, she could never submit to
either order or etiquette In her private
life, She had a perfect mania for being
Whosoever wanted them-relations
friends, femmes de chambre and even
to her tradespeople.
"She rose at o'clock. Her toilet
consumed much time. A part OF It was
entirely private, when she lavished UNI
wearied efforts on the preservation Of
her person and on its establishment,
with the aid Of paint and powder She
never opened a book. she never took
up pen and never touched needle,
and yet she never seemed to be in the
least bored"
Napoleon said at st. Helena:
Josephine was grace personihed.
Everything she did was with a pc
cullar grace and delcacy. / never saw
her act indignantly during the whole
time We lived together. Her toilet was
perfect arsenal, aud she effectually
defended herself against the assaults
Of time"
The "indlscretlons" OF the widow
Beauharnals did not end. Il seems
when she became Mrs. Bonaparts. One
historian declares that within a year
after his marriage Napoleon dismissed
from his headquarters several OF Jose
nj Ia.
these dIsmlssals Is related by the Du-
cheese d. Abrantes Napoleon, mean
while made consul had sailed away to
lead the army In Egypt. and certain
former aide-de-camp, one NJ. Charles,
quickly reappeared on the scene.
Josephine bought the estate OF NAL
maison, In the enyirons Of Paris, "aud
established herself there" says the
Duchesso d'Abrantes. "as a lady OF the
castle might have done IN the days OF
yorc while her lord and master set
forward to deliver the tomb OF Christ.
Then, as now, there we're always "a
page, an eQuerry. nephew and some.
times even good able.
NJ Charles inhabited Malmaison In
the quality OF a master Friends, we
know. have privileges. Gohler. a rival
10 Napoleon In the directory crisis to
whom Josephine chung for advice,
strongly persuaded her to decided
step Divorce said he when, all In |
tears, she refused the advice to break
M Connection which would COM
promise her IN the eyes of the world, |
divorce You tell me II is only friend. |
ship that exists between NJ. Charles
and yourself, but II that friendship is
80 influential that Il impels you to vlo- |
late the obServances OF the world
shall say TO you. as If It were love
divorce
when. after his return from Egypt. |
Bonaparte was ON the point Of himself
affecting what Gohier advised. Jose.
Dhlne screamed. wept and was In des.
pair. She would not hear OF divorce
when he was AT distance Much less
'ould she endure Il when the resplen.
lency Of his unfadlng glory Illuminated
M Europe with It's rays But In con-
'enting to surrender his proposal Bon.
,partc exacted as an absolute condl,
ion the Punishment OF NJ. Charles
Yet NJ. Charles was not banished
GEORGE L. KILMER.