Page:Daughters of Genius.djvu/384

 37S JOSEPHINE, WIFE OF NAPOLEON I. " I found the crown of France on the ground, and I picked it up." On the great day, the sisters of Napoleon were forced to carry the train of the empress ; a duty which they per- formed with so much repugnance, and so badly, that she could scarcely walk, until the emperor growled a sharp reproof through his clenched teeth. The most startling anecdote which these Memoirs have so far given, is one showing that Napoleon was will- ing at one time to palm off on the French people a false heir to the throne. Attempts of this kind have been the subject of more than one popular novel; but here it figures as a fact. Josephine, to save her crown, gave her consent to the fraud, and Bonaparte sent for his chief physician, Corvisart, to arrange with him the details. Dr. Corvisart proved to be a man of courage and honor. He refused to lend himself to the deception, and the nota- ble project was of necessity given up. It was not until after the marriage of Bonaparte with Marie Louise and the birth of her son, that Dr. Corvisart confided this secret to Madame de Rdmusat. Such is personal government. Such are courts. Such are the consequences of resting the honor and safety of a nation upon one man.