In our opinion, Madame la duchesse de Berry did a graver wrong than by marrying M. le Comte de Lucchesi-Palli, noble and loyal Sicilian gentleman as he was, whose family I had the honour to become acquainted with during my travels in Sicily. That wrong was in signing the declaration of 22 February and the legal document of her accouchement on 10 May 1833; no human power could have compelled her to do so, and the opposition against the Government was such, at that period, that every official bit of paper not signed by Madame la duchesse de Berry could be, if not out of good faith, at least successfully, repudiated as apocryphal. Between the denial of the Carlist party and the affirmation of the moderate party, public opinion would have been left in a state of indecision.
Thus was one of the most heated periods of the beginning of the reign of Louis-Philippe frustrated. It had a real advantage, because it brought the Carlist party and the Republican closer together, not in opinion so much as from respect. MM. Théodore Anne and Berthier, by joining hands with MM. d'Hervas and Grégoire, whilst Carrel was crossing swords with M. Roux-Laborie, gave that proof of esteem to which I referred when talking to Beauchene, which is given among enemies in default of a proof of friendship.
[CHAPTER II]
Lucrèce Borgia—Discouragement—First conception of the Historical Romances
In the midst of all this a great literary event had happened. Victor Hugo had had his first prose drama, Lucrèce Borgia, performed at the théâtre Porte-Saint-Martin. It is difficult to believe it, but it is a fact, that during this stormy atmosphere literature sprang to life, and grew and increased from flower to fruit.
The play was splendidly put on. Georges and Frédérick played the principal parts. It contained powerfully moving passages, and had an immense success. Let us state that we owe this glowing picture of a portion of the life of the Duchesse d'Este to the absence of the censorship.
From the night of 2 February 1833 began the real life of the author of Lucrèce Borgia and of Orientales, as it appeared in his representation of his beautiful drama, Marion Delorme. You, lovely Princess Negroni, know what we mean, you, in whom he discovered the love and devotion that blessed every hour of his life in this his natal land as also in foreign lands.