The drama of Saint Helena . on the roof, but none couldboast of having caught sight of the legendarysilhouette in the grey overcoat, with hands crossedbehind the back, and hat worn in martial style. Their curiosity became exasperated ; they talkedof nothing but the great captive at mess, and wastedtheir time in making wild o-uesses as to his mode oflife. Some suggested that he spent whole days inbed ; no, others replied, he rises early and is busydictating his memoirs. At times they imagined hewas always playing billiards, cards, chess, or read-ing novels ; the next day they declared with a sm
The drama of Saint Helena . on the roof, but none couldboast of having caught sight of the legendarysilhouette in the grey overcoat, with hands crossedbehind the back, and hat worn in martial style. Their curiosity became exasperated ; they talkedof nothing but the great captive at mess, and wastedtheir time in making wild o-uesses as to his mode oflife. Some suggested that he spent whole days inbed ; no, others replied, he rises early and is busydictating his memoirs. At times they imagined hewas always playing billiards, cards, chess, or read-ing novels ; the next day they declared with a smilethat he never left the Countesses Bertrand and deMontholon for a moment. The majority maintainedthat his health was excellent and that he ate greedily ;a few gainsayers protested that he was losing hisappetite, was becoming weaker, and dying of tediumand melancholy. Henry laughed at the latter, whom he ironicallydescribes as some wiseacres, who shook theirheads. But perhaps it was these very people who werein the SIR HUDSON LOWE. From a Pencil Drawing.} CHAPTER ILTHE GOVERNOR, HUDSON LOWE. CONTRADICTORY as were the accounts re-lating to the invisible guest of Longwood,they nevertheless agreed in one particular : his pro-found antipathy for Sir Hudson Lowe, the Governorof Saint Helena. Henry and his comrades only learned in an im-perfect and doubtless incorrect manner the reasonsfor this antipathy. They are well-known at thepresent day : a score of memoirs relate them withsimilar details. Napoleon had arrived in the island in the custodyof Admiral Cockburn, a boorish individual whoshowed little deference to him. Hudson Lowe, whocame somewhat later, in April, 1816, gave the Emperorcause for reorettino- Cockburn. Hardly had he assumed office, when he set aboutdepriving Napoleon of his companions in exile, onthe pretext of reducing his establishment. Twenty-three Frenchmen lived at that period atLongwood— Count and Countess Bertrand, and their threechildren. 38 THE DRA
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectnapoleo, bookyear1910
