The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1909-09-16
THE TRUE BLUEBEARD.
He Was a Cruelty and Malevo-
lentIy Maiigned Frenchman.
NOT A MURDERoUS MONSTER.
He Had Matrimonial Misfortunes, II
10 True, but He Seems TO Have Been
the Only One Who Came to Grief on
Account Of Them-His Tragic End.


the Only One Who Came to Grief on
Account OF Them-His Tragic End.
The supposedly detestable Bluebeard.
the monster of murderous polygamy.
the very name Of the ogre into whose
mouth one used. II one could. in child
hoods happy hour, to throw india rub
ber balls, was in truth man who has
been as cruelty and malevolently ma
lgned by history as Nero. Richard ILL.,,
Macbeth, tutti quaint. So says NJ.
Anatole France-and pray who can
speak with higher authority on the
real facts Of faery?-in lies Sept
Femmes de In Barbe- Beue ct Autres
Contes Merveilleux." One knew al
ready that Charles Perrault first wrote,
In about 1860. the historical biography
Of Bluebeard. but one did not know
until now how deeply Perrault. prob
ably through false information. wrong
ed the memory of an excellent and III
treated parsonage. From NJ. France
we learn that NJ. Bernard de Montra-
goux. Of old and noble descent, lived
In 1850 or thereabouts at the ancestral
Chateau Les Guilettes. on his estates
between Compiegne and Pierrefonds
The castle, Of frowning outward as
pect, was inside treasure house of
taste and wealth Its owner. contrary
TO long existing tradition. wore no
heard. only mustache and little
tuft below the lower lip. He was
known through the countryside as
Bluebeard because his hair was very
black. and therefore his close shaven
cheeks and chin were markedly blue.
He was fine figure of man who.
In spite OF his manifest advantages as
a good match, did not get on well with
women Of his own rank In life. This
was due 20 an incurable shyness on his
part. Pleasant and pretty girls who
had been well brought up attracted
him Immensely. but also filed him
with an indescribable terror.
The first notable result of this af.
Fiction was that the unfortunate or.
phan. for such he had been since his
early youth. incapable of making pro-
posals for the hand of any of the at
tractive and high born ladies' In the
neighborhood, married certain Co
lette Passage, a fascinating girl in her
way, against whose character nothing
seems known, who was going round
the country with dancing bear.
Things went well enough for n few
months, and then Colette, who had at
first reveled In being a lady of quail
ity. began TO long for her old freedom.
The longing became Irresistible and at
last she took her departure secretly
with her justly beloved bear. It is
noteworthy that they made their es-
cape by way of room that had door
leading TO what had been water
meadows, and so to open country.
Perrault called this room "le petit cab
met" but It was also known as 1.-THE
wretched princesses room." because
a Florentine painter had covered its
walls with the most lifelike figures of
Circe, Niobe and Procris. The tragic
effect Of these paintings was enhanced
by the porphyry flooring of the room.
which suggested bloodstains.
MontragouX appeared inconsolable
ut the disappearance. which was COM
plete, Of Colette, his first wife, and
doubtless his lot would have been far
less unhappy II he had never tried to
console himself. This, most unfor-
he did by marrying one
Jeanne de la Cloche, who turned out
to be violent dipsomaniac. Blue
beard was Of nature so kindly and
noble that, although in a fit of mad
passion she nearly killed him with a
kitchen knife, he continually hoped to
reclaim her by kindness. But one day
she strayed into the generally shut up
princesses' room. took the painted fig
ures for real people and was so terri
fed that she rushed wildly into the
open fields, tumbled into a deep pool
and so was drowned.
So things went on, new affiiction
with each new wife, and In each case
the final catastrophe was associated
with the princesses' room. The climax
TO the unhappy career Of the more
than worthy and lovable Bernard de
Montragoux came with his seventh
"ANt LtSPplbSCy NlCNtItSJ
and most fascinating of a family of
utterly INSCRIPTIONS Adventures. No
one knew anything about the supposed
late husband of the mother. OF the
two brothers, dragon and a musket-
eer, one was low rascal and a mere
sponge; the other lived on gaming and
on the good nature of women to whom
he made love. Anne. the sister, was
the incarnation of malicious cunning.
Associated with this precious family
was a certain Chevalier de Merlus,
who had a great deal to do with the
final tragedy of NJ. de Montragoux's
career. The nature Of this tragedy
may be inferred. but 1t is curious that,
while Perrault represented Bluebeard
as taking a journey in order to lay a
trap for his wife, the fact was exactly
opposite. Both before and after his
marriage he had heaped benefits on
all these wretches. When he was
obliged to go away in the matter Of