HOME OF THE EMPRESS JOSEPHINE. 315 



Of the first years of this illustrious child we know 

 little. She resided here with her parents until ten 

 years of age, when she was sent to the convent at 

 Fort Royal, where she remained until fifteen. During 

 the brief period which elapsed between her return 

 from the convent and her marriage to Beauharnais, 

 she dwelt with her family, engaged in domestic duties 

 and in the education of her sisters. At the age of 

 sixteen she was married to Alexander de Beauhar- 

 nais, in France. In 1788, having separated from her 

 husband, she returned to her birthplace, and passed 

 three tranquil years. With her little daughter, the 

 charming Hortense, then five years old, she rambled 

 over the hills and valleys endeared to her by the 

 memory of her childhood days. 



With a loving mother and father, and in the com- 

 pany of her youngest sister, surrounded by sympa- 

 thetic neighbors, she seems to have passed some of 

 the happiest days of her existence. Thus she writes 

 of her retreat, during the separation from Beauhar- 

 nais : 



"Nature, rich and sumptuous, has covered our fields 

 with a carpeting which charms as well by the variety 

 of its colors as of its objects. She has strewn the 

 banks of our rivers with flowers, and planted the fresh- 

 est forests around our fertile borders. I cannot resist 

 the temptation to breathe the pure aromatic odors 

 wafted on the zephyr's wings. I love to hide myself 

 in the green woods that skirt our dwelling ; there I 

 tread on flowers which exhale a perfume as rich as 

 that of the orange grove, and more grateful to the 

 senses. How many charms has this retreat for one 

 in my situation ! . . . I find myself in the midst of 



