of taxes in Dieppe, who died soon after the marriage, leaving her

a youthful widow. She concealed her talents, howeyer, till the charms of youth were past, and first published her productions in 1746, The first was a poem "On the Mutual Influence of the Fine Arts and Sciences." This gained the prize from the Academy of Rouen. She next attempted an imitation of "Paradise Lost," ki aix cantos ; then of the "Death of Abel ;" next a tragedy, the "Aiiia> zons ;" and a poem in ten cantos, called "The Columbiad." Madame du Boccage was praised by her contemporaries with an extravagance, for which only her sex and the charms of her person can account. Forma Venus arte Minerva, was the motto of her admirers, among' whom were Voltaire, Fontenelle, and Clairaut. She was always surrounded by distinguished men, and extolled in a multitude of poems, which, if collected, would fill several volumes. There is a great deal of entertaining matter in the letters which she wrote on her travels in England and Holland, and in which one may plainly see the impression she made upon her contemporaries. Her works have been translated into English, Spanish, German, and Tt'ollon

possessed some poetical merit, and ' of Normandy, etc. She died Septem- 5ven.

the island of CJorsica, in 1748. The Dble origin, and is derived fVom the ler of the Corsican branch had mar- of Ctenoa, and had received firom that le distinctions. The mother of Madame le a Swiss named Fesch, whose family Protestant, but was proselyted by his iic church. From this second marriage , half-brother of Madame Bonaparte, beautiful gh-ls of Corsica. She married 1 the midst of civil discords and wars ; 3 followed her huAband, and as few more difficult conjunctures, few have ad, courage, fortitude, and equanimity, erity, and most unlooked-for adversity- difficulties of each. Her eight children he following : — Joseph, King of Naples^ sleon ; Eliza, grand-duohess of Tuscany ; ■ghese; Louis, King of Holland; Caro- Jerome, King of Westphalia. being sent to France as a deputy ftom jized with a cancer of the stomach, and ns of his son Joseph. He left a widow fortune. Two of the family were edu- government — Napoleon at Brienne, and others found their mother an instruc- Hers was a character that displayed and she always managed to maintain to which they were naturally entitled itized by Google