Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1910-03-02
GREAT LOVE
STORIES
of HISTORY
BY Albert PaySon Terhune
NAPOLEON III AND
EUGENE
By Albert P1ySon TerhUne
Copyright, by the AuthOT.l

The love story OF Napoleon III. and
Eugene de Montijo has been called
by some Frenchmen "the romance Of
an adventurer and an adventures"
For though the latter term is, too
harsh to apply Gin it's worst sense) to
Eugene, yet Napoleon III. merited the
title Of adventurer--andf far worse.
When Napoleon the Great (Napo-
leon ID was crushed and the old Bour.
bon monarchy once more swayed
France, there was q more or less
strong party that still clamored for
the restoration of the Bonapartes. Ma
poleon's next of kin, in succession,
was his nephew, Louis Napoleon,
known later as Napoleon III, and nick
named by his foes as Napoleon, the
Little" He was q sensationalist, a
mountebank. q charlatan, man whose
word could never be relied on. Time
and time again, as man, he madc
ridiculously useless efforts to per-
suade France to accept him as its
ruler. He was laughed at as failure
and twice was thrown into Jail. Late1
he escaped to England, where he wa1
at one time SO poor that he was gle Z
to accept job as special policeman.
He crossed to America, taught school
in New Jersey
In New Jersey. and got into trou-
Ne" BILE, near Borden
town, N. j., for shooting a farm
er's little pig, which he mistooK
for rabbit. At last he was allowed
to return to France. Elected to the
national assembly he wriggled and
schemed his way to the presidency of
the French republic. Then, violating
his oath as president and causing his
guards to commit wholesale slaughter
he had himself declared emperor, in
1852, under the title Of Napoleon III.
His empire was built upon a tissue of
lies and was soaked in the blood of
innocent people. 1t could not endure.
Napoleon Ill, when he looked about
for a wife, quickly learned that other
European rulers had no faith in him
or in his empires permanency. For
he could find no princess who would
consent to marry him. 1t was about
this time that he fell completely under
Eugenie's influence.
Eugene was the daughter Of an Inn
poverished Spanish nobleman and
Scotchwoman. She grew to be one OF
the most beautiful of women. When
Louis became emperor he met
Eugene much more often than
before and speedily found him
self as madly in love with her
as his sluggish, crafty tempera-
ment would permit. But Eugene held
him at arms length. She had no in
tention of becoming morganatic wife
like Mrs. F1tzherbert. She meant to
make herself empress.
One day she was leaning from
balcony as the emperor rode past.
Seeing her there and wishing to join
her on the balcony, he called out:
"How can 1 reach your"
Through the church, only, Sire"
was the girls laughing retort.
At another time he placed crown
of flowers on her head.
'T would prefer heavier crown
than this" she suggested.
At court she was snubbed right and
left. At length she came to the en-
peror In tears, declaring she could
endure his courtiers' insults no longer
and that she was going to leave Paris
forever. This move brought Napoleon
to terms. He asked her to marry him.
Eugene, well-trained, referred him to
her mother for consent. This consent,
naturally, was easy to obtain; and Ma
poleon informed his ministry of his
approaching marriage. In disgust his
advisors resigned. But, by specious
arguments, he won the nation over to
his views and in January, 1853, made
Eugene his wife and empress of the
French. She was 81; he a.. Other
royal families avoided the couple, with
the exception of Queen Victoria, whose
friendship Eugene soon won. The
young empress lifted her court to un-