South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1918-01-25
BEHIND THE SCENES
With Rulers and Leaders of Wartime Europe
By the Princess RddZiWill
Copyright


celebrated Glars Louise de Ker--
saint. the friend of Chateaubriand,
who as Duchess de Duras presided
in the beginning OF the 18th century
over the most important salons of
Paris. wrote several novels and was
quite a power during the whole time
OF the restoration of the Bourbon
dynasty. she also had no son, and
that branch OF the house Of DurfoTt
came TO an end with the death OF
her husband, Amedee Due de Duras,
first gentleman Of the chamber of
Louis XVIII. The title OF Due de
Duras died with him, and his cou-
sin, Jean Laurent Marquise de
Civrac, Who succeeded him as head
Of his family having married his
niece, the daughter OF the duke Of
Lcrge. revived that dukedom, and
was the great-grandfather Of the
young Due lie Lorge who was wound
ed the other day. Should he die
the title would pass TO a distant rel
alive, Bernard, count of Durfort,
who. with his brothers and sisters,
is the only person living in France
who can boast Of having in their
veins the blood of the old Mont
mOrency's. Their mother, the vi
comtesse Eugene de DurfOrt, who
died a few years ago, was the last
descendant of this old stock. and the
daughter OF EdOuard de MOntmor-
ency. Due de Beaumont and Prince
de Luxembourg.
She was an amiable woman this
Viscountess de Durfort, though gift
ed with a caustic tongue which she
often used quite mercillessly, and
sometimes even uselessly. In the
Faubourg st. German she had made
for herself a position such as no
woman ever had succeeded in ac-
quiring and her house in the Rue
ST. Dominique was the meeting place
Of all that was considered in the
light of a celebrity, not only in
Paris, but also in the whole of
France. Her decisions in regard TO
social matters were always final, and
it would have been next TO impOs-
sible for anyone to make his way
in Partisan society if she had once
declared that he were not worthy TO
be admitted into it.
Many foreigners, who have liked
to do so. were obliged to give up on
account OF the ostracism TO which
she subjected them; among others
the beautiful Princess GOrtschakoff,
nee Stourdza, who by reason of her
birth and social position in Russia
would have been quite entitled TO be
received even in such an exclusive
house as that over which presided
the last of the Montmorencys. But
Madame de Durfort did not tolerate
divorces, and the princess was di-
vorced. Her case was quite hope
less. and in spite of all her efforts
she was compelled TO submit to the
snubs which the small cOterie into
which she had so much desired to
be admitted lavished upon her,
simply because the vicomtesse had
decreed that she deserved them.
However, being very clever, she
took her revenge one day when, hav-
ing arranged a charitable entertain
ment of some kind or other in the
splendid residence which she had
bought in that very same Rue ST.
she refused TO sell to the daughter
in-law of the latter, the Countess de
Durfort, nee de Vignacourt, the
tickets which she had wished to
buy, saving as she did so, that none
of the Durforts were rich enough to
pay the price that she had put for
the privilege Of entering her house,
when people who had refused to ad-
NIT her in theirs asked for il. Ma
dame de Durfort, to whom the re-
mark was repeated, was silly enough
TO try 10 get the better of the angry
princess, and whilst, of course, not
pressing for the tickets she had
wished TO acquire, sent TO her a
check for 5.OOA francs with the
simple words W itten on her card:
Pour vos pauvres" (fCr your poor,
to which she received as a reply an
other card and the laconic phrase:
Pour les yOtres" (for yOurs.) His
tory does not say whether the Incl
dent ended there or not