Mathilde was never so happy as when in her own house
in the Rue de Courcelles, where all that was distinguished in
France considered it an honour to be admitted, and where
she could live the life of a private lady of high rank. She
was too frank to conceal what she felt, and too honest to
natter the Empress, or to find charming what she considered
to be the reverse. Though she disapproved of many things
that her brother, Prince Napoleon, did, she did not care to
blame him publicly, and thus she maintained a neutral attitude
in regard to both. Eugenie's airy disposition and love of
amusement in any shape or form prevented her from finding
pleasure in the company of the Princess Mathilde, whom she
thought exceedingly dull, and whom she accused of fomenting
the accusations which her enemies showered upon her. So
long as the Empire lasted there was no sympathy between
the Empress and her husband's cousin, and it was only later,
when both ladies had realised the emptiness of worldly things,
that their relations became intimate and affectionate, so
much so that when Mathilde Bonaparte died, it was Eugenie
who watched beside her, and whose hands were the last she
pressed before expiring.
The best friend that the Empress Eugenie had among
the members of the Imperial Family was the Princess Anna
Murat, who married the Duke of Mouchy, to the horror of
all the Noailles family, and the chagrin of the Faubourg St.
16



Friends of the Sovereigns

Germain generally. Princess Anna was one of the loveliest
women of her time, though perhaps not one of the brightest.
