OLD WORLD ROMANCE

Waipukurau Press, Issue 283, 16 July 1908, Page 7

OLD WORLD ROMANCE

——-gs I——' The loveliest woman at one time in Russia was Carolina, the wife of Alexis, eldest son of Peter —the Great, and the only person indifferent to her charms of mind and person was her husband, whose brutal nature made him hate his wife solely for her goodness. One • day this monster, struck his gentle wife so inhumanly that she seemed apparentlydead. Alexis manifested no signs of grief, but merely gave orders tnat the body should be buried with all fitting pomp, and he then left Moscow as quickly as possible. When the terrified maids- of-honour came to raise their beloved Princess they found that she was still alive, and the old Countess of Konigsmark and two other devoted attendants gradually nursed her back to life. Meantime her supposed funeral was duly celebrated, and the Courts of Europe were mourning her untimely end. The Princess determined to remain as one dead, and collecting all her jewels and valuables, she left Russia secretly with an old servant, who passed as her father, and from Paris she journeyed to Louisiana, where she down quietly in New Orleans. Here she lived a happy and retired life, her identity unknown until she met a young man named Moldask who had lived in St Petersburg, and was thunderstruck ■when he recognised the beautiful stranger as the Princess Carolina. Moldask, however, kept his knowledge secret, and it was only when the news of Prince Alexis’ death reached New Orleans that he apprised the Princess that he knew who she really was. Carolina begged Moldask to keep her secret, which he readily agreed to do, and when her old servant died, and left her alone, the Princess accepted Moldask as her husband, and found complete happiness in her second marriage, which resulted in the birth of a little girl. Unfortunately, Moldask was attacked by an illness which was beyond the skill of the New Orleans doctors, so he and his wife Z/ went to Paris to consult the best physicians who speedily cured him; and Moldask and his wife decided to remain in France. One day when Carolina was walking in the Tuilieries Gardens she was recognised by the son of her devoted friend the Countess of Konigsmark. He begged her to allow him to petition the King to restore her to her former dignity and honours, but Carolina refused, and left Paris with her husband. Their whereabouts were traced, and the Marshal von Konigsmark entered into negotiations with Maria Theresa of Austria, who was niece of the Princess. Maria Theresa begged Carolina to make her home with her at Vienna, but in vain. Years passed, and the Princess lived an ideal life until death robbed her of her husband and daughter. She then retired to a little cottage at Vitry, and accepted a pension from Maria Theresa. After a quiet life of a few years in her retreat Carolina died. Few people arc aware of this old-world romance of Royalty, which in its extraordinary history proves that truth indeed is sometimes stranger than fiction !