The romance of royalty; . ecision was the result of the appearanceof the Princess Mathilde, as already described byLord Malmesbury, together with the ways of thatexuberant woman on the same occasion. Between her and the Princess Clotilde there waseven less sympathy than between her and the featured, brusque in manner, likmg her jokeshighly flavoured, delighting in the society of paintersand writers, whose emotional nature and love oflatitude were the best commendations to the friendshipwith which many of them were favoured, the PrincessMathilde regarded with pity and contempt thi
The romance of royalty; . ecision was the result of the appearanceof the Princess Mathilde, as already described byLord Malmesbury, together with the ways of thatexuberant woman on the same occasion. Between her and the Princess Clotilde there waseven less sympathy than between her and the featured, brusque in manner, likmg her jokeshighly flavoured, delighting in the society of paintersand writers, whose emotional nature and love oflatitude were the best commendations to the friendshipwith which many of them were favoured, the PrincessMathilde regarded with pity and contempt this sister-in-law whose views of enjoyment were so if she laughed at the Princess Clotilde, she hatedthe Empress, who filled a place she might have heldif fate had been kinder, her father less blind to thefuture. Sarcastic, vindictive, and capable of framingan epigram that at times had as much wit asbroadness, she could sting the woman whose refine-ment and dulness did not permit her to repay inthe same PRINCESS MATHILDE a portrait bj- Girard. [Facing page 446. XTbe IRomancc of tbc Second Empire 447 Resembling her brother Prince Napoleon in many-ways, in none was their disposition more in harmonythan in their common dislike to the Empress. Nordid he care to conceal this feeling, to which on oneoccasion he grossly and publicly gave vent. Thiswas on her fete day, November 15th, 1863, speakingof which one who was present, Prosper Merimee,writes to his friend, Sir Anthony Panizzi, at one timePrincipal Librarian of the British Museum. Atdinner, writes Merimee, Prince Napoleon, courteousas ever, would not propose the health of the was seated on her right, pro consuetudine^ andthe Emperor told him to propose a toast and makea speech. He made a face instead. The Empressin her turn said to him, * I am not particularly anxiousfor a speech. You are very eloquent, but yourspeeches occasionally alarm me. In reply to a secondappeal from the Emper
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectnapoleo, bookyear1904
