Nanuleon's Visitor

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume X, Issue 3266, 26 July 1889, Page 2

Nanuleon's Visitor

One day something happened to disturb the calmroutineof life on the _ mountain. The Emperor had again and again swept tho horizon with Ills glasss, It was apparent that ho expected to see something which failed him, Suddenly he bade Bernotli, his orderly, speed down to Porto Perraio, prepare a four horse cariiago and three saddle horses, take them to a certain part of tho shore near the capital, and follow instructions of General Bertrandl* The sun was already about to set. Tho man did not, therefore, reach the place indicated until eleven o'clock at night, He was just in time. A Genoese sloop approached tho island, Shortly afterwards two ladies, a little hoy and a Polish colonel landed from it, Bertrand received them, and stood bareheaded under the moon while speaking to the ladies. Then one of tho ladies and the boy stepped into the carriage the other lady and soldier mounted Jj| horses, and, accompanied by Bert-** rand, the whole party made for Marciana, the townlet at the foot of Capanna. They were half way, when the Emperor himself, on his white horse, and with several attendants, met them. It was pitch dark by thisThe Emperor at once joined the lady in the carriage, and they continued ■ their journey. At Marciana the lady and the little boy took horse, and the .cavalcade began to climb the mountain, How they did it in the dark, I, for one cannot conceive It any time arduous enough, and not without its moments of peril, Some of the party wero thrown, but no one was hurt. However, at three o'clock m the morning the" Hermitage," as it was called, was reached." Madame behold thy palace!" said Napoleon, uncovering and indicating his tent. This occurred in the night of the Ist of September. The visitors stayed at Monte Capanna until the evening of the third, Then, at nine o'clock in tho night, the return journey was begun with the same secrecy, Napoleon descending the mountain with w his guest as far as the seashoro. si During the intervening two days and nights, tho lady and Napoleon wore closeted together; nor did she once show her iaeo outside the " Hermitage," The boy, however, was allowed to- climb about the rocks. Such an incident, so dramatically contrived, hugely oxcitcd the spies of Elba, especially as their victim 'had for a week or more been out of their way. They wroto to their respectiNf chiefs, and had no doubt that tlie visitor was tho Empress herself,3laria Louisa of Austria. . They argued, therefore, that great events wore browing. But they were wrong, llio lady was a beautiful Pole, the Countess Walewska, whom Napaleon had met for the first time at Warsaw in 1807; and the little boy tfas hor son by the Emperor. It is said of her that she had given him a gold ring enclosing a lock of her fair hair, and with the inscription-" When you cease to lovo me, do not forget that I love you." The devoted woman, hearing that Maria Louisa was not with her husband in Elba, & had travelled thither to offer him hor own loving attentions. But, out oi regard for the Empress,] whom ho believed to be detained on the Continent against her will, Napoleon would not let hor stay with him. He probably had some affection for this lady oven in 1814, for when his orderly rejoined liim on tho night of her departure, ho found 'him sfiMh by the chestnut tree with a M expression on his face, as ho loaned with his cheek resting in his right hand—From Napoleon at Elba in the Coruliill Magazine,

Attempt to derail the Lyttelton Train' '

The following particulars aro sup. plied by the Telegraph:—A dastardly attempt was made by some person p,r persons to derail'the 8.45 p.m. tram from Ch-istchurch qu Sunday. This train, whiclfflfj' usually well filled, with' passengers from the city, when' about 200 yards/on the Lyttelton side of the tunnel ran against' some obstruction on the line, which A checked its speed aud caused a•, grating sqund to be heard, but doing no injury whatever tp the train, whjch arrived at the station in duo CQui-sp, Tj)e matter was then reported 'ft tl|P authorities, and an examination was,' made of the place yjhero tho trouble was noticed, ItlJSg found that three large pieces of iron tfiipwu as chairs, which were usod in the old broad guage days, had been placed on tholiao. Theso ohairs aro still used for the doublefaced rails, The engine had broken two of them and the third had been pushed oft'the line. As.the line itself was found to bo all right the train was dispatched again for Ohristchurch, only being delayed ten minutes through the occurence. It is' usual for trains arriving frpra Chiistchurch when 'clearing ''the I tunnel to' Blacken in'speed as tbjj

curve to the straight is rather short. It was on this curve at llio completion that tho clinirs wo placed, and it is probably duo to the taut that the train coming slow when the ongino struck ttio clinks they wero hrokon. Had the train been going at a' groat speed a terrible disaster might have occurred. Tlio chairs were made of cast iron and consequently wore easily broken. It may ho said that near tlio place where the Abstraction was laid there is a large "neap of these old disused chairs,

which liavo been there for sonic time. Tlio act ot laying the chairs, which would t-ako from ten to fifteen minutes to do, must have been done between 5.85 p.m«nd!) p.m., us the line was clear when the train at the former time was despatched for Christcliiirch, A police olliccr was on the station when the

traiu arrived from Christclmrcl

at 9.10 p.m., and he, hearffug of .tlio mutter, at once comV mumcatcd with Sergeant O'Malley, who immediately instituted enquiries but up to noon to-day had not found any cluo to tlio perpetrators of the doed. It is a matter for congratulation that nothing serious happened, and it is to be hoped that the polico will bo nblo to lind the wretch who has been guilty of such a dastardly act, and who will in turn bo sufiiciently punished to deter any others from performing similarly.