Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-05-05

accepts it as part of his destiny.
At half-past five he is home to tea. If
tainly she will not send them away.
They will not make receptions for him:
but the family life goes on. He will
meet the people whom the Breteuils
as. they would meet them. One can
imagine the heartburnings and the prob
able need of a master of ceremonies,
should any other course be taken.
Aristocratic French boys between seven
teen and twenty are In an anomalous
position. AT seventeen they are still
under tutors. preparing their baccalau-
reate. They have less freedom than
American girlA Except in vacation, they
do not bulge without the tutor. even in
their games and leisure. Such is the
position of Robert de Breteuil. cousin
of these others, grandson of the late and
Immensely rich Nine. Roussel, the estate
sale of whose art treasures recently as
tonished the world by the prices fetched.
Such is the position of the second
Breteuil son.
Yet there are youths Of nineteen who
are practically in society. This is recent
and numerically exceptional. and either
because they do not try for army officer,
because of recent "fiche" encouragement
or because they do not take a degree,
since it no longer carries army service
immunity. All at twenty-one must serve
two years as common soldiers
The majority, on the other hand, are
still-at nineteen and twenty-either In
the university or at ST. Cyr. The latter
lead the lives Of West Point cadets, and
the former, in this class of Paris fami-
lies. go daily from the home nest to the
Sorbonne. far from aLtin Quarter &C.
centricities
Which simpli1es in the summer life of
q a ND far f1O Ia
In the valley Of the Chevreuse, twenty
five miles outside Paris, rise Bebilliers-
Bretueil and Meridon, the two great
county seats of this single family. Be
with spreading wings. without architec-
tural pretension or special family inter-
est
Like the beautiful modern town house.
it is part of the new deal. Three times
the Breteuils We're nearly down and out
The first time was in 1119. Eustache
de Pacy. seigneur of Breteuil. with a for
titled town in Normandy, was already an
intimate OF England's king. The proof
is that he married Julienne. Henry rs
natural daughter. But he did not become
English. On the contrary, he turned
Julienne against her invading father, and
the English king. besieging Breteuil. saw
his child on the walls encouraging French
bowmen. Finally the young couple were
stripped of their town and castle.
-
The second time was in 1855. The Bre-
teuils. having acquired great lands and
titles, sent forces to the crusades and
became hereditary In the Order of Malta
But now only one frail girl was left, sole
heiress. She chose Claude le Tonnelier,
husky young lord Of Crevecoeur, who by
royal decree took her name and titles
Their descendants. of course. had all the
Breteuil blood-by their mother.
The third time was in 1859. The Bre-
teuils were now trebly marquises. first
Barons of Touraine. with the head of
the family minister of Louis xvI's house.
hold and in charge Of lettres de cachet.
You can read in Dumas Countess de
how his unpopularity brought
about the destruction of the Bastille by
the people, but history has justified him.
The crash was terrible. A brother died
in prison. The rest fed to ENGLAND. Re-
turning broke. under Napoleon I. they
obtained q pension of $4,000 through
Josephine. Louis. XVIII made them peers