AN ECCENTRIC MILLIONAIRE

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1959, 2 October 1888, Page 3

AN ECCENTRIC MILLIONAIRE

Madame De Cuzieu is dead. Never "heard of Madame? Well she was a woman worth knowing — at least at a distance. She died at Lyons, France, a few weeks ago, aged eighty-nine. She left property m real estate to the value of fifteen millions 1 Madame De Cuziou was engaged nearly all her life m law suitß with the city authorities. It is no exaggeration to say, writes the • Courier de Lyons.' that she embittered the lives of every Prefect and Mayor of LyoDs — a city of half a mi'lion people — for the past thirty yearß, An inveterate litigant, Bhe knew thoroughly all the secrets of legal procedure and all the arcina of chicanery. Owing to her money and ber shrewdness, she was generally successful m her suits, and if she lost Bhe was perfectly satisfied provided Bhe worried her opponents; She used to perform some of the queerest freaks imaginable. On one occasion one of Madame De Cuzieu's feminiue neighbors made some remarks derogatory to her (Madame's) beauty. What did Madame do 1 Give her neighbor a tongue thrashing. Throw vitroii on her ? No. Madame was nothing if not original,- She had a monumental tower built — a sort of eocond edition of the tower of Babel—overlooking her neighbor's yard and dwelling. She need to mount this tower and survey through the windowß every movement cf the object; of her aversion, whether In or out of the house. In addition to this unwelcome surveillance, Bhe oaueed an enormous bell to be placed In (his tower, and had It rung every hour of the night to prevent har neighbor from sleeping. She went to law with the authorities Co* maintain the tower, and before the mutter was settled she had driven the hated neighbor from the premises. Then ahe took down the tower. One of the last things oho did waa to iußoe Invitations to a number of wellknown citizens, including the mayor, the oummander of the garrison, judges, clergymen, etc , to meet the Prefect of Lyons, Monsieur Ducroe, In her parlor. The guests all came In evening dress. Madame reaeived them with becoming dignity, and when all had arrived led them with great ceremony into the reception room, where they were aatonnded to behold a huge fat porker sitting on his haunches on the | middle of the carpet 1 The pig was surprised at tbe attention shown him. aa Madame gracefully proceeded to Introdace the amazed company to Monsieur le Prefeot