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    _ JANtTARY 29, 1853.] THE LEADER, 99

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    Letters Prom Paris. [From Our Own Corres...

    ^_ V > Uff i ^ ° ^ make ifc re-enter the pale of the old Monarchies . But this result will be more surely attamed by a straightforwartfW frank policy , by loyalty in conduct , than b y Royal alliances , which ' create a false security , and often substitute famil y interests for those of the nation . Moreover , the example of the past has left m the mind of the people superstitious feelings . It has npfc iorgofcten that for seventy years foreim Princesses nave not mounted the throne but to behold their race dispossessed and proscribed b y war or by revolution . One woman alone seemed to bring- happiness , and to live more tJian the others in the memory of the people—and that

    woman , the modest and good wife of General Bonaparte , was not the issue of Eoyal blood . It must , however , be admitted that in 1810 the marriage of Napoleon I . with Mane Louise was a great event . It was a pledge for the luture , a real satisfaction to the national pride , as the ancient and illustrious branch of the house of Austria , who had been so long at war with us , was seen to solicit the alliance of the elected chief of a new empire . Under the last reign , on the contrary , the amour propre of the country jiad to suffer , when the heir to the Crown solicited , fruitlessly , during several years , a princely alliance , to obtain ifc only in a secondary rank and in a different religion . When in

    " presence of old Europe one is borne on by the force of a new principle to the height of ancient dynasties , it is not by giving an ancient character to one ' s escutcheon ( envieillissant son blason ) , and by seeking to introduce oneself at all costs into a family , that one is accepted . It is rather by ever remembering one ' s origin , by preserving one ' s own character , and by adopting frankl y in presence of Europe the position of parvenu—a glorious title when one obtains it by the free suffrages of a great people . Thus , obliged to depart from precedents followed to the present day , my marriage became a private affair , and there remained only the choice of the person . " She who has been the obiect of my preference is of

    distinguished birth . French in heart , by education , by the recollection of the blood shed by her father in the cause of the empire , she has , as a Spaniard , the advantage of not having m Trance a family to whom it might be necessary to give honours and fortune . Endowed with all the qualities 01 the mind , she will be the ornament of the throne ; in the day of danger she would be one of its courageous supporters . A Catholic , she will address to heaven the same prayers with me for the happiness of France . In fine , by her grace and her goodness she will , I have the firm hope , endeavour to revive in the same position the virtues of the Empress Josephine .

    " I come , then , Messieurs , to announce to France that I have preferred the woman whom I love and whom I respect , to one who is unknown , and whose alliance would have had advantages mixed with sacrifices . Without disdaining any one I yet yield to my inclinations , but after having taken counsel from my reason and my convictions . In fine , by placing the independence , the qualities of the heart , domestic happiness , above dynastic prejudices and the calculations of ambition , I Bhall not be leas strong because I shall be more free . " Soon proceeding to Notre Dame , I shall present the Empress to the people and to the army ; the confidence they have in me assures me of ftieir sympathy , and you , Messieurs , on learning better to appreciate her whom I have

    chosen , you will allow that on this occasion also I have been inspired by Providence . " The moral of the message is absolutely that of the Fable . I have not chosen a princess of blood royal for my bride because I have resolved to marry according to the impulse of my heart . Is it not the fox who could not reach the grapes , and said they were sour , and only fit for the vulgar ? Never was spite more manifest . The whole speech , in every phrase , in every won ! , betrays the deepest disappointment . Every turn of expression seems distilled in gall and venom , and in every syllable one catches the murmur of anger ill-suppressed . One perceives that tlio man is conscious of a

    mesalliance : that tins bourgeois marriage makes him secretly ashnmed , and that vanity alone and wounded amour propre drive him to put a good luce upon bud fortune . How bravely it sits upon him to scout dynastic alliances after having so long and ko painfully manoeuvred to get them . ( Aprils les avoir si longtemps " briquces" ) How amusing ho is when-ho expresses Iris perfect disdain for prineosnes of royal blood , after liiiving stooped to tho meanest humblenesses to merit them—after having gone no fur , and mink ho low , j : r to forbid the soil of France to the exiled Poles , and that too , to win the good graces of the Emperor Nicholas , who only despises him the more .

    YVhnt a disastrous efl ' ect in ' France all this creates ; what a Hovero judgment it draws down upon him . Not a sign of approbation . Not oven from his courtiers thin time ; not even from his two most Intimate counsellors , Persigny and Abatueei . Wholesale resignation of all hi « Ministers—now fall in the Funds . On the Bourse , just as tho public securities were recovering faintly , discouragement and decline . Amazement and utter disapprobation in the diplomacy . Since last Saturday , Paris has Hudtlonly recovered

    the uho of speech , to utter its censure audibly . You have no idea what a rummage and uproar it haw idl made . In the very ministerial saloons men have dared to speak out loud ( for the first time since tho meinorablo 2 nd ojf December ) what they contented themselves with whinnering from ear to ear before . Tho danglers of tho Pakco and the courtiers of the Empire are hi consternation ; the public rub their hands , and—lough ! And . vrelj they may , il y a do quo * ! You , too , will

    laugh when I tell you that it is the general belief , perhaps I should say the general certainty , that our bridegroom only marries Mdlle . de Monitjo because his " intentions" were not honoured with acceptance . ( On n'epouse Mdlle . de Montijo que parce qu ' on n ' a pu Vavoir auirement . ) It is only after a long and fruitless siege that the fair beleaguered one marches out with all the honours of war ; indeed , it is the besieger that capitulates iii this case , not the besieged .

    Stories are told of the famous curee by torchlight at Compiegne , and our aping friend is said to have on this occasion aped—not his uncle—but Louis XIV ., whose passages-at-arms with Mdlle . de la Valliere at "the Chateau de St . Germain you may have heard of . But on this occasion , how it fared with the window , rumour whispers not : certain it is that the proud and sprightly Andalusian proved far other than the soft and tender La Vallie-re . Of this tale there are two

    versions current . In one , the two brothers or brothersin-law of the fair lady figure as the Matamors of the Spanish comedy , while Bonaparte enacts the part of the " Knight of the Rueful Countenance . " The other version , without denying the intervention of the brothers , places them at the beginning instead of the denoument of the piece . IJowever this may be ( and that nine-tenths of the floating rumours are wicked scandal who can doubt ?) the character of the new Empress is quite in harmony with her new position . She has a romantic spirit , and a soul of chivalry . Here are two traits which will give you some idea of her nature : Her eldest sister made a superb match in marrying the Due d'Albe ; Mdlle . Theba de Montijo then declared that she would

    surpass her sister , and would marry a crowned head , if it were but some petty German Princeling , furnishing a contingent of four men and a corporal to the forces of the Germanic Confederation . Another trait , equally characteristic , relates to the 2 nd of December , 1851 . At eleven o'clock in the . forenoon of that day , Mdlle . Theba presented herself at the Elysee to mark her name on the visiting book , as having come to compliment Bonaparte on his audacity . She was the first person ( and the only one ) that appeared at the Palace . Bonaparte , puzzled at this unheard-of act of admiration , sent orders that the visitor should be introduced , and gave a brief interview a the lady . He was said to be deeply touched at this strange enthusiasm of a young girl . He did not forget , the visit of that day , as France will not forget him when the day of reckoning comes .

    For the last few days the Government joxirnals have surpassed themselves in folly . The day before yesterday they made Mdlle . de Montijo a Countess , yesterday a Duchess , and to-day again a Countess . In order to mask the mesalliance of their master , they affect to embellish with titles the pedigree of the new Empress , and seek to transform the baptismal name Theba ( St 0 Thebe ) into a title of dignity . Like the sage of the fable , saved by a dolphin , who took the harbour of the Piraeus for a fish , they make Mdlle . de Montijo the Duchess ofThcba—a Duchy which never existed .

    Mdlle . Theba do Montijo is an Andalusian , and was born at Granada , in the country of the Alhambra . Her mother conies from the JCirkputrick family of Closburn . She is daughter of a colonel of artillery , the lute Count of Montsjo . The latter , one of the best officers in the Spanish army , served the French cause till the year 3 814 ; in other words , lie . served in that heroic war of Spanish nationality asserting against the despot of France its independence , and its liberty . The Count de Montijo took amis against his own country ; unfaithful to Spain , he was always faithful to France . In the campaign of 1814 , he served in France sis colonel of artillery ; and even hud the honour to fire tho last shots for the

    defence of Paris . On his return to Spain lie sat in the ( Huunbor of Proeores , or ( Jrandeus of Spain , till Ins death , which occurred in IHlM ) . The Countess of Montijo , his widow , after the fall of Espartero , became Camerera mayor , or xurintendantu oi' Queen Isabella . The Montijo family i . s allied with most of the great families of Spain , among others , with the Gusnian , tho " Leyvn , the Cordova , and the La Cerdu . Ah far as aristocratic blood goes , Mdlle . de JVIonf ijo is of higher birth than Bonaparte" , who ( as we know well enough ) is simply the bustard son of a French Creole and ol" a Dutch admiral . So much for origin . With regard to charms of person , Mdlle . 'de Montijo . is not one of those royal and sovereign beauties who Heeni to have been born to the diadem , and before whoso native majesty every brow uncovers and every head bows down spell-bound- ; neither is slus one of those dn / ' / . ling angelic types which we all are wont , to worship as the ideal of more than mortal loveliness . She is not ; what you would call beautiful , < h- protl y . She is simply pleasing . Sho has the proud air of a noble lady , without the beauty one unuriljcti to noble blood ; and who has all the piquant of the gri « otto without the satts / iuion .

    She has , moreover , 7 c geste hire ct la desivolture cavaliere . Her features are destitute of character . She has your Spaniard ' s eye—the black eye of the Andalusian . Unfortunately , slie is red-haired , and the French detest red hair ! The French people's hatred of poor Marie Antoinette—a blind , dark , unreasoning hatred as it was , which dragged that unhappy Queen to the scaffold , sprang from that fatal antipathy to red hair ; now Marie Antoinette ' s hair was golden ! But you will say , by-what magic spell did Mdlle . de Montijo captivate the heart of Bonaparte ? By the magic of her smile ! In sober truth , that smile of hers is an empire in itself : it is the smile of an enchantress —a triumphant smile ! But here am I lapsing into the poetics , while events arc all turning to prose .

    Bonaparte makes a bourgeois marriage — voila tout ! He was anxious to bring his bachelor days to a close , and to have done with the irresponsible pranks and frolics of the vie de garqon . " I am determined to set the example of virtuous conduct , " lie lately told his courtiers . Virtue at the Court of France—virtue at the Court of Emperor Bonaparte —you may easily imagine how we sliall all enjoy a hearty laugh at these new saints of ours . Since the

    word " virtue" was let slip , wedlock has become quite fashionable among tlie Court danglers . Old Jerome has confessed his left-handed marriage with the Marquise Bartolini , his son Jerome Las demanded the hand of the granddaughter , of Marshal 3 ' Jerthier , who replied that she would have married the Emperor , but that she did not aspire to a cadet of the Imperial family . The intimates , Pietri , Conneau , Chevreau , — all these old bachelors of another epoch , —are now looking out for wives . It is quite an epidemic at the Tuileries . But to return to our subject .

    Bonaparte , I was saying , has made a bourgeois marriage—a mesalliance—and all his courtiers are profoundly discouraged . In fact , the consequences of such a marriage are incalculable . He puts himself at once out of the pale of dynasties , under the ban of crowned heads ; he stands forward before the European sovereigns as the representative of another principlehe stands forward as the champion of the principle of the sovereignty of peoples against the principle of the sovereignty of kings . If this position were only true , —

    if by his acts he had made himself the emancipator of peoples , taking advantage of the immense popularity attached to the name of Napoleon , if he had placed himself , with all France at his back , at the head of the crusade of peoples against kings , what glory , what nobleness , what dignity would he not have achieved , — with what grandeur he might now have pronounced these words ! But it is quite otherwise . What has this man to do with rights or liberties , that lie should flaunt defiance in the face of mouarchs , while he turns his back upon peoples ?

    No one , even among his intimates , h ; w failed to disapprove this perilous escapade . Persigny and Abatucci , to whom on Sunday last , previous to tho meeting of the Council , Bonaparte had communicated his intentions of marriage , could not abstain from expressing their disapprobation . Next came the turn of the ministers . All were unanimous in declaring tin ' s marriage an error , a great political error . So penetrated

    were the ministers with this truth , that on the followingday they met together stud proposed to resign en masse . That was their first impulse , the first impulse of men who are alarmed , and who sock to escape . Others pretend that the design of this collective resignation was to force Honupurtc to reconsider his decision . It was M . Fould who then reminded his colleagues of the doggedness of the man they bad to deal with , and demonstrated to them how futile would he their

    flying in the face of that obstinacy only to precipitate the catastrophe . In the ministerial salons , where all parties on tins occasion a ! - least ; , throwing off all sullenness and reserve , Hocked together from sheer curiosity , there was but . one voice ; tlie ancient friends of the Empire blamed aloud the conduct , of ( lie Emperor . One senator , quite in a pussion , said to I ' ersigny before 800 persons , " Honuparf . e Tor a love afliiir ( jm-nr vne amourette ) , slakes our heads and hi « own . " The fact is , that , tlie men who threw themselves into < he service of Bonaparte , in the regime that sprang from ( lie coup d ' etat , now J > c < Wn to feel the mound trembling , under

    - their feet , and their alarm looks like the first signal for a general sauva t / iti pent . Even the shopkeepers who have rallied to tho government are not less displeased . They would have ^ rcntly preferred it , inarriiigc with a reigning house . Wwi * in default , of ;\ dynastic alliance , they would have consented to u marriage with a Frenchwoman , with some inheritress , / or example , of one of ( lie great names of . tho Vm \ - pire ; even a marriage with a simple daughter of the people , hearing a name made illustrious l > y popuhir virtues . Hut this marriago with a young Spanish lady responds to none of tho ideas , and Honfnncnts of tlicae

    _ Janttary 29, 1853.] The Leader, 99

    _ JANtTARY 29 , 1853 . ] THE LEADER , 99

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 29, 1853, page 99, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_29011853/page/3/