Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-12-02
Believed She Was Wise.


ness for attention. Like many beautiful
and virtuous women she allowed herself
TO encourage men, only to turn them down.
In so doing she imagined herself to be eX-
tremeIy wise;bu once Napoleon wounded
her deeply by trying to open her eyes to
the case.
you admit to your intimacy men who
are no better than PAID spies he SAID.
You think you are playing with mem, pc
cause you imagine them to be in love with
You. Go, | know you! ! have no fear for
my happiness as a man! But before you
turn down Nigra and Metternich and the
others, they have made yen tell them a
thousand things, every one OF which Is
repeated at Vienna and Turin!
How deyotedly she loved Napoleon was
shog,n at the Orsini bomb throwing. The
enrpcror Rad accepted an invitation from
Plon-Plon to the first representation of a
new piece by Angler at the Palals Royal;
ard Euppnie either by preSeuttm mt or
C-ln-fca had begged him not to go. Finding
him inf1eyible she dutifuiiy accompanied
him. The rest is known. But what IS not
generally known is that just as the bomb
exploded in front of the opera. bai ehead-
ed man with haggerCd eyes opened the dCoE
of the imperial carriage and, dagger IN
hand appeared on the step.
Eugene uttered great cry, raised her
self and instinctiVely cast herself on Ma
poleons body covering il with her own to
save him from the dagger But her fears
were vain. The man was one OF the two
extraordinary Alessandri brothers, the
faithful Corsicans who never quilted the
emperor.
If she encoura ged foreigners it was very
much because the old French aristocrats
held aIoof from her. In vain did Napoleon
appoint broken-down counts and dukes 10
fat government places. They took the jobs
as their due and continued 10 give him the
marble heart. y saying OF the Marquise de
RocheLambert explained their attitude.
Hearing that one of her own rela;ives-a
Of to 4 han hOr
had accepted an invitation from Napoleon,
she approved it:
He did well to CO." she said. What
can there be astonishing at his presence a
court? After all, these BOnaparteS are only
camping in the Tuilleries. The chateau is
always ours, and we are always at home
in it!'
Apparently Eugenie's own court loved
her, but it also feared her sudden changes
of disposition and lack of liberanty in
money matters caused her to make many
enemies She often reproached Napoleon
for his prodigality.
one day, made only ingrates by giving
right and left. Do you want to he as badly
recompensed as he was? Do good-yes but
do not gorge these people, who only flatter
you because they fear You, and who Will
turn their backs on you in misfortune
Not Loved by the Common People
She never had the emperor's faculty for
creating real deVOtonS ana entHuSlaSmS.
The common people certainly did not love
her. In spite Of her beauty and grace, she
never touched their heart. As she never
at any moment came into direct contact
with the crowd, the demi-hostiEty 1t had
for her is hard to explain. But she was
foreigner, she was not the daughter of 4
sovereign, and at the beginning they had
saluted her with a pun on her name-and
that is enough TO ruin any one in Paris
Contrary to the general idea. she was not
really extravagant in dress. She was cal
culating and had principles of rigid econ
omy At the Tuilleries the luxury applied
rather to those around her. She herself
was elegant and simple. Each day her la
dies had to present her personal accounts:
and she went over her own dressmakers'
bias, asking for details and cutting down
oyercharges pitilessly.
Indeed Napoleon often demonstrated with
her for her simplicity in dress. Once, dur
ing a stay they made at Plombieres, he
heard that the peasants were astoulshed
and disappointed not to see her going about
with crown on her head. He made ii
text for sermon on the duty of an en-
press to dress like AN empress and recalled
what Napoleon l had said to Madame de
yalencay:
Dress magnifcently, madame. when you