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ME. LUCILLE GESPRONDE, wife of the
most Jealous man In the world, doped tear
ing him locked In the wonderful safe whloll
he constructed bo as to be able to watch her
every movement.
M. Gespron.le, after seventeen hours In his
elf-made prison, was released by his employes,
who summoned a professional safobreakcr,
but before he was free his wife, with her lover, hnd crossed
France from Paris and caught a steamer for the United
States.
The man, declared by Parisians to be the most Jealous
In the world, is believed to have driven his wife to the
elopement by his constant suspicion and his Jealousy, which
raised Itself to the height of madnves, almost. Ilia undoing
was caused by his own device, a safe which, according to
the plans which he drew, could be opened either from the In
side or the outside.
The deserted husband now threatens civil suit In the
French court against the makers of the safe, claiming that
the mechanism failed to work at the vital moment and that,
through the fault In the manufacture of the safe, he lost his
beautiful young wife.
Oespronde, a wealthy Jeweler of Paris,' with a large shop
on the Boulevard des Capuclnes, amassed a huge fortune
before he reached his 40th year, and until then he gave no
thought to women.
Fell Violently in Love at Sight.
Two years ago, however, he saw In his shop at Christ
mas time the beauttfu Lucille Nlerclere, daughter of a dep
uty and member of a prominent family which' Is In reduced
circumstances, although atill holding large estates In the
province of the Seine, He fell In love at once, violently and
madly, and, it Is said, approached the mother of the girl In
the shop, pleading with her for permission to pay his ad
dresses to the daughter and seek her hand In marriage.
Mme. Nlerclere at first thought she waa speaking with
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a madman, and the girl, who had not overheard the wild
request of Oespronde, watched curiously while her mother
spoke with the man and told him that she would send her
husband to speak with him concerning his proposition.
The story of the adventure was told that evening, and M.
Nlerclere declared that It waa Impossible that the wealthy
M. Oespronde could make such a request, but he promised to
Investigate, and the following day called upon the Jeweler,
who professed that, having aeen Mile. Nlerclere, he never
could love another.
The advantages of such a match for the daughter ap
pealed to the parents, and M. Nlerclere requested the Jeweler
to wait & week until a family council could consider the plan.
During all this time nothing waa aald to Mile. Nlerclere co-
cernlng the plans for her marriage, but when she walked
with her maid or drove she was frightened because she
found she was being constantly followed.
Shadowed Her Before Betrothal.
Bh complained to her father, and n Investigation re
vealed the fact that, tven before he received permission to
seek the hand of the beautiful girl, then only 18 years of age,
he had placed detectives upon her track, ordering them to
report to him concerning any man who approached her,
spoke to her, or upon whom she smiled. Already he was
madly Jealous.
The family consultation was held, and. In view of the
good record, the high standing, and the wealth of M. Oes
pronde, the engagement was agreed upon, and the jirxt day
M. Despronde was formally presented to his future wife
and gave her, as a betrothal present, a rope of diamonds
which was almost without its equal In Paris. He was a man
of good address, handsome, fairly clever, and these, with
the gifts that he showered upon her, dazsled the young
girl. She consented to the family arrangement and was
married In the church of Balnt Roche, on the Rue St. Honor,
In May. VH.
Even at the wedding Oespronde showed Ws remarka
ble Jealousy, appointing his best friends to watch the bride
and see that she smiled upon none but him.
Afterward he took her to live In hl beautiful home In
St. Oermntn, the moBt beautiful suburb of Paris, and estab
lished her In her town house on the Boulevard Malesherbes,
near where that famous boulevard becomes the Avenut de
Wagram.
Jealousy Becomes Talk of Paris.
His Jealousy for his beautiful young bride became the
talk of Paris. He took her everywhere to the opera, to re
ceptions, to the grand balls but if any man smiled upon her
or If she smiled upon a man Oespronde became wildly Jealous.
Four times he fought duel with men who danrrd with his
wife, and three of them were men whom he hlmnelf had
introduced. He objected because his wife, at his own sug
gestion, danced with them, and challenged them to fl'it.
Paris laughed, but the spectacle of the wealthy husband
Insanely Jealous excited the young men to greater efforts to
win her smiles.
Oespronde was especially jealous of a young French
man named Jules Dumenll, an artist, who was extremely
wealthy and of good family. It was he who Introduced Du
menll to his wife and who brought him to the house In the
Boulevard Malesherbes. Dumenll at that time was supposed
to be in love with Mme. Gesprondo's younger sister, Claire,
who had refused him, according to the family report, being
but 10 years old and promising to become quite as beautiful
as her older sister.
Mme. Oespronde sympathised with the young man and
urged her sister to accept him, and later tried to comfort
Dumenll and urged him to press his suit.
Phonographs to Record Her Words.
Oesproncje became wildly Jealous of Dumenll and ordered
his wife to see no more of her sister's sweetheart. She, an
gersd by her husband's insistence, declared that she would
see him as often as she pleased, and, as punishment, Oes
pronde placed spies upon her and they reported every time
she aspoke to the man. He even placed phonograph records
behind the tapestries of her reception room to record her
conversations with the young man.
The treatment, however, served to arouse the interest
of the wife In Dumenll, who before that had regarded him
merely as her sister's rejected suitor, and her natural
resentment ot the treatment led her to devote more of her
Urne and attention to the young man than she ordinarily
would have done.
The husband, who up to that time had reproached her
for every smile and rebuked her for every gay word spoken
to a man, suddenly became quiet. He said no more about
men and appeared to have ceased to trouble about his wife.
She rejoiced, believing that he had been cured of his Jcnlonsy,
and her love for him returned. Not a shadow, apparently,
came over their ha4noss until, In February, she discovered
that her husband was building In their Paris house on the
Boulevard Malesherbes a curious safe, fitted with glass peep
holes, from which he could look either Into her drawing
room, her boudoir, or her morning room, or the great recep
tion room, and from which he could hear everything that
was spoken in any one of these four rooms.
Builds Safe in Which to Hide.
The wife, outraged by this new proof of her husband's
lack of faith In her, Invited the attentions of Dumenll rather
than repulsed him. She questioned her husband about the
alterations he was having made In the house, and he In
formed her that he was merely building a large safe In which
to keep the family Jewels. She was not deceived by the pre
text, ninl. bribing one of the workmen, learned that a well
known firm of Parisian snfemakers had been employed to
build the safe, which could be opened from within as well as
from without.
Until the safe was finished she was extremely discreet In
her behavior with Dumenll, and, sitting with him within
plain view from her husband's secret hiding place, knowing
that he was watching her, she rejected his advances by her
actions, while whispering to him her promise to flee with
him from the atmosphere of suspicion and Jvalousy.
For weeks the lovers kept up their pantomime while
the husband, locked In the peculiar safe, listened and
watched. His suspicions were lulled to sleep even while his
wife and Dumenll were planning to flee to Atwrica. He made
rich gifts to his wife gifts of tnonoy and Jewels ami et the
same time Dumenll was converting his possessions Into cash.
The elopement was plnnned as a climax to the life of de
celt and suspicion which had thoroughly disgusted the young
wife.
On the day of the elopement Dumenll called at the house
In the Boulevard Malesherbes after luncheon and chatted
with Mme. Oespronde casually until they both realized that
the most Jealous man In the world hnd entered his strange
watch safe. Then, suddenly, their behavior changed. They
threw themselves Into each other's arms, caressed nnd kiiwtil
each other, and. speaking aloud, plnnned the elopement, an
nouncing that thiy would leave for Havre, cntch the steamer
that evening, and sail for America.
, Locked Inside His Safe.
The husband, maddened by Jealousy, rushed to the door
of his safe and turned the handles frantlcnlly, planning to
rush out and confront the lovers. He found them rigid. In
vain he tugged and turned. The door would not turn.
For some reason, not yet explained clearly, the Inside
combination had been destroyed, aud the huslmnd was a
prisoner in the safe he had built to trap his wife. Whether
the mechanism was faulty or whether the wife, angered by
his unjust suspicions, tampered with the locks or caused
Dumenll to tamper with them, the French courts must
clde.
Craced by anger and Jealousy the millionaire diarr
merchant rushed back to the loopholes looking Into his w
boudoir and gtind through them at his wife In the arm
Dumenll. He shouted nnd raved, but If the lovers heard
paid no attention. He heard the orders of hla wife to her
maid to puck her Jewels and clothes, and he heard all the
plans for the elopement, but he was helpless.
Nearly a day later the man was found by h's servants
raving and cursing In the prison. By that time his wife
and Dumenll were well on their way to the United States.
He was released after the locks of his prison had been cut
by an expert
His wild Jealousy ad driven his wife Into the r "i
another man and destroyed his own happiness.
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AMID
SLEEPING ROOM IN ST. PETERSBURG FACIORY.
STORK'S NEST.
LIVE ON STILTS
PYRAMID.
SMALLEST ELEPIfANl IN THE WORLD.
PAJAMAS AND PILLOWS.
In Russian cities the factory employes often live in the big factories, which provlu
sleeping rooms for them so as to enable them to work more hours dally.
BEAD MERCHANT.
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in the Lande
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Ameen Abou Hamadv carrying nine Arabs.
An Ingenious Breton peasant built a most marshy that easy These Arab troupes are extraordinarily agile
satisfactory stork's nest by fastening a old walking Is almost out and always dlxplay great courage. They are
wheel on the top of two upright posts. of the question. first rate tumblers and gymnasts,
CATCHING THE MATERIAL FOR CAVIARE.
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Puuline Chase, known In Amerit'ii hh t)i
pajama girl, la now doing a pillow case dance
In " Patsr Pan " in London.
TURKISH AUTHORESS.
) The smallest elephant in the world travels to and from a Berlin
theater in a cab.
DOWN A VOLCANO
la Elba, the island to which Napoleon was
confined, the peasants wear huts like this.
TROUBLES OF LOVERS, 1S07.
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In 1R07 bonnets like these were la vogue.
' The bead merchants of Cairo, Just like the The Illustration is an old caricature showing
American Indian, gets his beads fU'in Venice, the trouble they caused when " he " wanted
the bead market of the world. to kiss " her."
HUMAN TEETH AS ORNAMENTS.
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'" r e curious ornaments-were found In ancient tombs In Honduras. The teeth are
rmi.:..d Willi Jadails.
Hamlet phrate, " caviars to the general," is the standing proof that ins taste ror tnis preparation or sturgeon s roe is acquired
The sturgeon ttom which the delicacy la obtained Inhabit the Black and Caspian seas and their tributary rivers, and one of the prin- This is tha method of descent Into tha
clpal varieties is the beluga or great sturg ion. The best quallt of caviare Is caught In winter, when tha (lining Is carried on througb bowels of Popocuii j etl. the grtat Mexican
ice holes in the frozen rivers with long rod. Volcano.
Bha Is Nlgular Hantim, the only TurkUh
' literary worn a who js well known outside
er own country. In deference to her na
tion's customs she bad to weur u veil when
photographed.