OCR Text |
Show WAGES OF SIN WERE FINE. The. first wife of M. Rouvler, the new premier of Fnnrf, is said by "Ex-Attache" to have been the real cause of his success In life. She was a most extraordinary extraor-dinary and brilliant woman, and was at the time he first met her (1870 representing represent-ing the great Belgian newspaper, the Independence In-dependence Belgs, in Paris, more particularly partic-ularly as regarding political and social features of the Frencn capital. She was the natural daughter of the famous aeulp-1 aeulp-1 tor Cadlot. Her mother disappeared when she was scarcely 2 years old, and from I t.'at time forth her childhood was spent 1 in the vicious atmosphere of her father's studio. At 13 she became deeplv infatuated infatu-ated with the celebrated Abbe Constant, one of- the most eloquent and learned priests of Ihe age, and in lfjO he abandoned- the church In order to marry her. his apostacy creating a tremendous sensation sen-sation at the time, of course, the ex-able ex-able was excommunicated, and thereupon assumed the name of Ellphas Levi, and became the friend of Slan(iil and of Felix Fe-lix I'yat. the Communist leaders. Some years after her marriage she departed from tho man who had sacrificed his brilliant bril-liant prospects In the church for her sake, ami became, thanks to the tuition of Pra-dler, Pra-dler, a very talented sculptress. Her busts of the late Due de Morn v. of Thiers, and her group entitled "The Childhood of Bacchus." won great fame for her at the annual salons, and were acquired by the State for the national collection. col-lection. They were signed by the name "Claude Vlgnon." and the name name likewise appeared on the title-page of several very clever novi Is. which gained as great populruity an her sculptures. It was her huccc-s as a novelist which led her to turn lu-r attention to newspaper writing. ;uid to bciuiie one of the most highly paid 1'arls correspondents of the Independence Beige. About two years after af-ter making the aei:aintance of Mr. Rouvler. Rou-vler. the death of her former husband, the ex-priest, permitted her- to wed that statesman, and she at once became a conspicuous llguie in French political life. Indeed, she was a woman of such remarkable re-markable genius and brilliancy that people peo-ple ok every degree, even great churchmen, church-men, came to look with Indulgence upon the Indiscretions of her early life. The Papal Nuncio frequently dined with her when her hi-sfcand was Minister of France, and at other official ranquets. when he was her neighbor at table, he more than once found himself discussing doctrinal questions pertaining to church. In which ehe displayed an astounding knowledge, which he well knew could only have been acquired from her first husband, the ex-Abbe Constant. She died about eight years ago. deeply mourned bv M. Rouvler. who was accustomed to ascribe as-cribe to her support oil the ruccess which he had achieved as a stutesman. He has since then contracted another marriage. But It Is hla first wife who constituted the romance of his life, and with whom his career as a statesman will always be associated in the mind of bla country-" country-" men. The Argonaut |