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Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..ab9cb79 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #60770 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/60770) diff --git a/old/60770-0.txt b/old/60770-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index d3912fa..0000000 --- a/old/60770-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7026 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Royal Romances of To-day, by Kellogg Durland - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Royal Romances of To-day - -Author: Kellogg Durland - -Release Date: November 23, 2019 [EBook #60770] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROYAL ROMANCES OF TO-DAY *** - - - - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - - ROYAL ROMANCES OF TO-DAY - - [Illustration: THE TSARITSA.] - - - - - ROYAL ROMANCES - OF TO-DAY - - BY - - KELLOGG DURLAND - - AUTHOR OF - - “THE RED REIGN,” “AMONG THE FIFE MINERS,” - ETC., ETC. - - [Illustration] - - NEW YORK - DUFFIELD AND COMPANY - 1911 - - COPYRIGHT, 1911, - BY DUFFIELD AND COMPANY - - - - - TO - - H. E. THE MARQUIS OF VILLALOBAR - - A SLIGHT TOKEN OF A HIGH APPRECIATION - - - - -TABLE OF CONTENTS - - -FOREWORD ix - - -PART I. QUEEN VICTORIA EUGENIE OF SPAIN - -CHAPTER PAGE - -I AN ISLAND PRINCESS 3 - -II GIRLHOOD 7 - -III COURTSHIP 15 - -IV A ROYAL WEDDING 24 - -V A BAPTISM OF BLOOD 36 - -VI WINNING A NATION’S LOVE 40 - -VII DON ALFONSO XIII 49 - -VIII A KING’S LIFE 54 - -IX COURAGE AND KINGSHIP 67 - -X THE PRINCE OF ASTURIAS 75 - -XI THE ROYAL NURSERY OF SPAIN 86 - -XII THE PRINCES AT PLAY 96 - - -PART II. THE EMPRESS ALEXANDRA -FEODOROVNA OF RUSSIA - -I “SUNNY” 107 - -II COURTSHIP AND A JOURNEY TO THE NORTHLAND 114 - -III ASSUMING THE BURDEN 124 - -IV MOTHERHOOD AND QUEENSHIP 134 - -V SPIRIT WHISPERINGS 149 - -VI FAMILY LIFE AT THE RUSSIAN COURT 169 - -VII THE GRAND DUCHESS OLGA 185 - -VIII TATIANA, MARIE AND ANASTASIE 193 - -IX THE TSAREVITCH 204 - -X THE END OF THE ROAD 210 - - -PART III. QUEEN ELENA OF ITALY - -I A MOUNTAIN PRINCESS 219 - -II THE ROMANCE 229 - -III VICTOR EMMANUEL 234 - -IV A ROYAL HONEYMOON 240 - -V ELENA THE MOTHER 249 - -VI SIMPLICITY OF THE ITALIAN COURT 256 - -VII THE HEROISM OF QUEEN ELENA 261 - -VIII ELENA THE QUEEN 267 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - -The Tsaritsa _Frontispiece_ - - PAGE - -The Queen of Spain 12 - -“The End Crowns the Work” 26 - -The Procession of Bull Fighters 44 - -Don Alfonso and His Heir 60 - -The Prince of Asturias 78 - -The Court of the Virgins at Seville 90 - -The Tsaritsa Is Honorary Colonel of the Uhlans of the Guard 118 - -The Five Children of the Tsaritsa 136 - -The Winter Palace, the Scene of “Bloody Sunday” 178 - -The Tsar and Tsaritsa at the Head of a Reviewing Party 212 - -Princess Milena of Montenegro, the Mother of Queen Elena 222 - -The Queen of Italy 232 - -Four Generations: The Prince of Piedmont, His Father -the King, the Dowager Queen Margherita, and her -Mother, the Duchess of Genoa 244 - -The Royal Children of Italy 252 - -Snapshots by Queen Elena: The King and Her Children 272 - - - - -_“Your task is difficult,” remarked a friend to whom I had just -explained that I was writing the lives of the Empress of Russia, the -Queen of Spain, and the Queen of Italy. “Your task is difficult, because -these are three good Queens, and good Queens, like all good women, have -no history.” Now that I have told the stories of these three good -Queens, I wonder if my friend will not grant that they have been worth -the telling?_ - - - - -FOREWORD - - -In the year 1907, the Woman’s Home Companion commissioned me to go to -Russia to write the story of the early days, courtship and marriage of -her whom the world knows to-day as the “Tsaritsa.” The following year, -the same periodical sent me to Italy to write a similar account of the -life of Queen Elena; and in 1910 I was once more sent abroad, this time -to Spain, to learn all about Queen Victoria Eugenie. - -The chapters printed in the magazine articles constitute only a part of -the material which I gathered on these three trips, and consequently the -stories herewith presented are to my best knowledge and belief the most -complete records of these three Queens, which have yet been gathered and -published. It was necessary for me to rely almost entirely upon members -of the several Courts of St. Petersburg, Madrid and Rome for my -biographical data. In each capital I spent many months, cultivating the -acquaintance of all who were in a position to give me this material, -especially members of the entourages of these several sovereigns. -Accuracy was always my prime aim and the greatest care has been taken to -corroborate impressions and to check up each particle of information -which has been utilised. I have every confidence that the details -herewith presented may be relied upon by future biographers and -historians. Readableness has in no instance led me to sacrifice, or in -any way to exaggerate or alter literal facts. - -I have endeavoured to present the stories of these three Queens mainly -from the standpoint of the heart interest which attaches to the romances -which have characterised each of their marriages. - -I should be most ungracious if I were to omit expressing my cordial -appreciation of the valued co-operation which I received in St. -Petersburg from Harold Williams, Esq., from Miss Margaret Eager, for six -years Nursery Governess to the Royal Family of Russia; and in Rome from -Doctor Guido Pardo, whose energy, industry and wide knowledge of men and -affairs in Italy were all placed so generously at my disposal; and in -Madrid from El Señor Don Emilio M. de Torres, confidential Secretary to -His Majesty King Alfonso XIII, and El Señor Don Pablo de Churruca of the -Spanish Diplomatic Service. - -The justification for the publication of this work in more or less -permanent form lies in my belief in the verity and authenticity of every -last detail, all of which were gathered at such considerable expenditure -of time and labour. Material so carefully gathered and verified should -be of certain service to future writers. - - - - - -PART I - -QUEEN VICTORIA EUGENIE OF SPAIN - - - - -CHAPTER I - -AN ISLAND PRINCESS - - -Once upon a time, not so many years ago, there lived on a lovely island -of the sea, a beautiful, golden-haired, blue-eyed Princess. The mother -of this Princess was kind and good to everybody on the island and all -who knew her loved her. The father of the princess was a soldier, a -warrior who led men to battle, and who sailed over distant seas to fight -for the honour and glory of his country. The grandmother of the little -Princess was a great Queen, known and revered by the whole world, for -she enjoyed a long life and a long reign. The little Princess was born -in the fiftieth year of the reign of the good old Queen and so the -little Princess was called “the Jubilee baby.” - -The Jubilee baby became the favourite grandchild of the old Queen who -loved to have the young Princess with her, and so it happened that the -training of the Princess was largely at the knees of the great -Queen,--and her nursery days were spent on the steps of a throne. - -When the Princess was eight years old, her soldier father was sent to a -foreign land to fight in a cruel war. The ship that carried him and the -soldiers who left their homes with him, stopped for a few days at the -port of a friendly country and the officers, including the father of the -Princess, got off the ship to visit the strange country. It was a -pleasant land, a land of sunshine and flowers, where even in midwinter, -the fragrance of roses and orange blossoms filled the air. The island -home of the Princess was cold in winter, and harsh winds swept in from -the sea. The Prince, seeing all the beauty of the new land, would have -liked to linger in the balmy atmosphere where birds were as merry at -Christmas as in his own land at Easter. But he was on a stern journey, -fulfilling a great and responsible duty. The ship was about to start on -to its destination--the land of discord and strife where war was being -waged, and human lives were being sacrificed--where blood was running -and suffering and sorrow came with each day’s sun; the ship was about to -start on, and the Prince, thinking of the country whither he was going, -and of the land which he now was glimpsing like a beautiful dream, -thought also of the home he had left and his fair-haired, darling -daughter, her three baby brothers, and their mother whom he loved very -dearly. Then he sat down and wrote a letter to the little Princess. It -was the first time he had ever written a letter to her, because she was -still a wee girl and had never left his side. In this letter he told her -how beautiful was the land that he then was visiting, and he went on to -say to her: “Always be a good girl, and love your mother. If you do -this, when you grow up and are big, you too, will travel, and you will -come to this beautiful country. You will see for yourself that you will -like it and how happy you will be here.” - -The little Princess was very pleased when she received this letter from -her father of whom she was extremely proud, and being the only one she -had from him treasured it like a relic. She never dreamed how -wonderfully prophetic were the simple words he wrote. - -One short month later the Prince was dead. The shadow of this loss -deeply darkened the life of the little Princess and all her family, and -indeed the whole country mourned. A few years passed and the little -Princess grew up and was ever and always more beautiful and lovely of -character, as well as of face and form. When she was eighteen, there -came to visit her country the young ruler of the very land her father -had visited on his last journey--the land which he told her she would -one day visit and where she would be happy. The King of this land, as it -happened, was then only nineteen years old, and in quest of a Princess -to share his throne. When he saw the Princess of this story, he fell -instantly in love with her, and she with him--and after a wooing and -courtship they were married. So after all, the Princess did go to the -land her father told her she would one day see, and now the “Jubilee -Baby” is the Queen of that country, and the people there have become as -devoted to her as she is to them--and she is very, very happy. - -Does this read like a pretty fairy tale, written for children? Possibly. -But it isn’t; at least, if it is a story and pretty, it is every word -true, for “the Jubilee Baby” was Queen Victoria’s thirty-second -grandchild, the daughter of Princess Beatrice and Prince Henry of -Battenberg. The Isle of Wight of Southern England was the home of the -Battenbergs and Princess Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena--or Princess Ena, as -she was generally called--was Queen Victoria’s favourite grandchild. -When Princess Ena was eight years old, her father, Prince Henry, went -off to the Ashanti campaign in Africa and when his ship was detained a -few days at Gibraltar, he ran up to Seville, from where he wrote the -letter--the only letter he ever wrote to his little daughter--telling -her that one day she would come to Spain and be happy. This letter was -written in November and in December, Prince Henry died of a fever -contracted in the deadly climate of that part of the African coast. Ten -years later, King Alfonso XIII went to England, met Princess Ena and -within the twelve month, they were married and now she is Queen Eugenie -of Spain! - - - - -CHAPTER II - -GIRLHOOD - - -Princess Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena was born October 24, 1887. She -enjoyed the distinction of being the first royal baby born in Scotland -for precisely two hundred and eighty-seven years. Through her girlhood -she was much with her grandmother, Queen Victoria of England, and she -also enjoyed the particular interest of her godmother, the Empress -Eugenie of France, who later on was largely instrumental in bringing -about the meeting between the young King of Spain and her godchild which -resulted in her elevation to a throne. - -Princess Ena was the only daughter in a family of four children, and her -childhood was spent much in the company of her brothers, whose studies -and play she shared. Before she was twelve years old she had learned to -ride like a boy, to manage a boat and had acquired considerable skill -with the fishing rod. After the death of her father, Prince Henry of -Battenberg, Princess Ena assisted her mother in the administration of -the Isle of Wight, which was the particular bailiwick of her family. -Doubtless the early lessons of administration which she learned at this -time was the kind of preparation for the administrative duties of -Queen, which, after her marriage, were to devolve upon her. - -She received an education befitting a Princess of Great Britain. When -still very young she had acquired a knowledge of French and German, and -this practice in mastering new languages proved of great value later -when she came to take up Spanish--a rich and full-throated tongue in -which she became fluent within a few months. - -Princess Ena also showed a decided talent for music and she is not only -a ready, skilful pianist, but she also composes music. - -Her young life was happy. She was the favourite, not only of Queen -Victoria and Empress Eugenie, but of all the Royal family in England. -There was no touch of the hard and sordid in those years. She dwelt in -the midst of wholesome, happy people and always in beautiful places. The -Isle of Wight, her home, is a sweet, tranquil haven, remote from the -frequented paths of the world, far from the hurry and noise and dirt of -modern England. In Spring and Summer it is like a great garden with -abiding places set therein. - -Balmoral in Scotland, where she was born and where she frequently lived, -especially when her grandmother, Queen Victoria, was in residence in -Scotland, is one of the most glorious spots in Britain. The magnificent -Royal Park is widely encircled by the rugged mountains of that -Northland. The river Dee, famed in song and story, runs close to hand. -This Northland is more mountainous and stern than Ayr or Dumfries, the -land of Bobbie Burns, and as instinct with tradition of the fighting -Jacobite times as the Border country--the land of Scott--or Loch Leven -with its memories of Queen Mary. Princess Ena revelled in the stirring -past as she breathed the strong air of the Cairngorms, growing -physically strong and sturdy, innocent of the Destiny which was to shape -her life and make her a Mother of Kings. - -One winter Princess Henry of Battenberg went to Egypt, taking with her -her four children. This proved a memorable year to Princess Ena, for she -became familiar with new surroundings and acquainted with ancient -civilisations, in which she evinced a remarkable interest. Here, too, -the Princess had her first experience away from royal precincts, as the -winter was mostly spent in the Cataract Hotel at Aswan. It was the wish -of Princess Henry that she and her children be treated precisely as the -other guests of the hotel were treated, and the Princess Ena came to -know many people who were of a world far removed from her own. - -Many stories are told in Egypt to-day of the laughing golden-haired -English Princess who was never so weary as to cease from fun and -mischief, and many a prank instigated by her and her brothers is -recalled. Her brightness and abounding good nature were widely -appreciated and the memory she has left there is sweet and good. - -Christmas Day in a foreign land is always dull and dreary, and English -people, perhaps, miss home on this day above all others in the year. - -The manager of the Cataract Hotel--Herr Steiger--being anxious to lift -in some measure the pall of gloom which hung over his guests that -Christmas planned a little surprise which he sprang at the dinner hour. -Toward the close of the meal the lights in the dining salon were -suddenly extinguished and a band of picturesque Orientals entered the -room bearing lighted tapers and trays of gifts. Their fantastic garb of -white bournous, red fez and white turbans looked weirdly strange against -the darkness and as the file approached the table where sat the royal -party a burst of loud applause came spontaneously from the guests at the -other tables. No sooner had the first defile circled round the royal -table than other similar groups entered the room and ranged around the -other tables. In a moment of silence the Princess Ena was heard to -exclaim: “Oh! how nice of Herr Steiger to have given this pleasure to -everyone and not only to us!” - -This charming consideration for others is a characteristic of her nature -which has deepened with years and has proved one of the qualities which -so quickly endeared her to the people of her adopted land. - -At the age of eighteen Princess Ena had her formal “coming out” into -Society. The event took place at the Infirmary Ball at Ryde, and -immediately after she was presented at Windsor and entered upon a gay -season in London. It was toward the end of this very first season that -she met for the first time the impetuous and dashing young man who at -first sight of her surrendered his heart and in record time led her up -the steps of a throne to share with him the ermine of sovereignty. - -In their meeting and courtship lies a tale of pure romance. No story of -any “castle in Spain” runs more delightfully, and no tale of the storied -Alhambra quickens the pulse beats faster. - -Don Alfonso XIII of Spain, who was literally born a king, his father -having died several months before his birth, at the early age of 28, was -still in his teens when his court and ministers began to drop thinly -veiled hints concerning a possible alliance for the young sovereign. The -King from earliest boyhood had showed that he had a mind and -determination of his own, and whenever the matter of his marriage was -broached he would make reply: “I shall marry a princess who takes my -fancy, and nobody else. I want to love my wife.” A noble and worthy -ambition surely, especially for a king! - -The Emperor of Germany had long hoped to arrange a match between the -King of Spain and a German princess, while several princesses in other -countries of Europe nourished secret hopes that they might one day sit -on the Spanish throne. Political exigencies, however, demanded an -English princess if a suitable and acceptable one could be found for the -youthful monarch. - -During the spring of Don Alfonso’s twentieth year, the very year of -Princess Ena’s coming out, he went with a regal suite to London. -Wiseacres had picked Princess Patricia of Connaught as the probable -choice of the dashing young sovereign. Indeed the whispers of Mayfair -drawing-rooms had the match entirely arranged long before the King -arrived in London. - -June in London is often a delightful and beautiful month--a month of -awakening surprises, when the trees and flowers come quickly into bloom -and blossom through the spring haze. The June week chosen for the visit -of the Spanish King, however, proved a disappointing exception, for mist -and drizzling rain characterised the period of his stay, but all the -rain and dampness of Britain, if concentrated in London, would not have -marred the indefatigable energy of this strenuous young man, who not -only participated in all the festivities arranged for him by the -committees of the Court and Municipality, but also managed to do much -extra sight-seeing and, most important of all, to make up his mind which -princess should be the next Queen of Spain--his bride. - -Despite the gossips who already had Princess Patricia the affianced -bride of the young King, when these two met it was evident that neither -attracted the other. Far too often in the history of nations personal -attraction has not been a dominating influence in royal marriages. If -reasons of state have demanded the marriage the individuals - -[Illustration: THE QUEEN OF SPAIN.] - -have sunk their own feelings, surrendered their personal happiness--and -lived on, perpetual victims of the political demands of their respective -states. But Don Alfonso XIII had no desire to martyr himself in this -way. No more the Princess Patricia. - -The late King Edward had arranged dinners, dances and fêtes in -Buckingham Palace in honour of the King of Spain. There were gathered -the very flower of the youth of Britain. Don Alfonso was seen to be -instantly struck by the sight of a certain golden-haired girl whom he -saw flitting here and there across the rooms. - -“Who is she?” he finally inquired. - -“Princess Ena of Battenberg,” was the reply. - -The two were presented. They talked together and were visibly interested -in each other. They met again and each day so long as the King remained -in London. - -A few months later, King Alfonso confessed that the first moment he saw -Princess Ena, he determined that she was the one who must share the -responsibilities of his Kingdom with him, and that if his suit were not -accepted by the Princess, or if any reasons of State intervened to -prevent the marriage, his country would go without a queen so long as he -lived. Fortunately, no reasons of State developed to hinder the marriage -and the one obstacle raised by the Church was overcome when the Princess -declared her readiness to accept the Roman Catholic Faith, for King -Alfonso is known as His Most Catholic Majesty, and church influence, -though waning, is still strong in Spain. - -The marriage was favoured and encouraged by King Edward, that gracious -and genial Uncle of Europe, and his sanction was sufficiently strong to -bring about what was to King Alfonso and to Spain an exceedingly -desirable union. No public announcement of the betrothal was made for -six months after the visit to England, but rumour carried abroad the -suspicions which were later confirmed. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -COURTSHIP - - -Much curiosity was exhibited upon the return of King Alfonso to Madrid -on the part of his courtiers. Many times and often intimates of the King -pressed him indirectly in regard to this great secret, but Don Alfonso -preserved a careful silence. Shortly after this visit, the King bought a -racing yacht, and, upon its arrival, gave a launching party to inspect -his new possession. As yet the yacht had not been named, and the King -invited his guests to suggest an appropriate name. Someone suggested -that it be named after himself, but the King shook his head at this; -then one bolder than the rest slyly suggested that the name of the -future Queen of Spain would be appropriate. “Excellent,” said his -Majesty, “and now you will please inform me what is the name of the -lady?” “Ah, sir,” replied the other, “on that momentous point we are as -yet without information.” “Nevertheless,” said the King, “it is a good -suggestion,” and forthwith sent instructions that the new yacht be named -“Queen X.” The Spanish newspapers quoted the story of the King’s little -joke and concluded who the real Queen was to be from the fact that the -words were printed in English, a conclusion that was very soon -confirmed. - -Towards the close of January, following the visit to London, a -Chamberlain of the King’s arrived at Biarritz in southern France, near -to the border of Spain, and two days later the King, travelling -incognito, left his capital for the same frontier, and it immediately -became an open secret that the time of the public betrothal was at hand. - -The day following the King’s arrival he joined the party of Princess -Frederica of Hanover and Prince Alexander of Battenberg, Princess Henry -of Battenberg--and Princess Ena. That very afternoon King Alfonso and -his future Queen were publicly seen together for the first time in a -motor drive along the frontier. The Press of the world was unanimous in -its approval of the match, and for the most part stating that it was -really a marriage of affection, reasons of State happily harmonising -with the impulses of the royal hearts. The courtship which followed was -very boy and girl-like according to all intimate accounts. Little gifts -were exchanged and the two were constantly in each other’s company, -dodging as much as possible public gaze. They strolled many miles -together alone and unattended through the parks and woods and, on more -than one tree carved interlaced hearts and each other’s initials just -like lovers the whole world over. - -One day the happy lovers were seen to proceed to a carefully selected -spot where two round holes had been freshly dug out of the earth. A -gardener stood nearby, apparently awaiting their coming, for in his arms -he carried two small fir plants. - -“This one is mine,” exclaimed the King, eagerly taking one. - -“And this one is mine,” rejoined the Princess. - -Each having taken a plant they set about planting them. - -“We must plant the trees side by side,” said the King, “so that they may -always remind us of these never-to-be-forgotten days.” - -The plants were set in place and each taking a spade they began to cover -the roots with earth. - -The Princess finished her task first, and dropping her spade stood -watching the King, laughing merrily all the while. At last the King, -pausing for a moment, said: - -“There is no doubt about it, I am very awkward! I must put in a month -with the engineers!” - -That day King Alfonso handed Princess Ena a beautiful heart set with -diamonds and rubies, one of the earliest gifts to his bride-to-be. - -One day they sped off into the country in the King’s motor car. -Alighting just outside of the little village of Cambo they entered the -village on foot. Passing a shop where postcards were on sale they went -in and selected several of the picture cards to send to King Edward and -Queen Maria Cristina, the Queen Mother of Spain. The village shop-keeper -did not recognise his distinguished customers and began to question them -if they knew when the King and Princess would come to Cambo, which they -had not yet visited. King Alfonso and his fiancée, inwardly smiling, -made an evasive reply indicating that they knew nothing about the Royal -arrangements. After they had gone out the shopkeeper was apprised of the -identity of his recent customers and his surprise resulted in his -complete bewilderment. - -On Friday, the 27th of January, the Princess crossed into Spain for the -first time. She and the King were accompanied by her mother, the Marquis -of Viana and the Marquis of Villalobar; the party motored over the -International Bridge which marks and connects the borders of the two -countries and, as the Princess alighted on Spanish soil, the Marquis of -Villalobar remarked to the Princess: “Señora we have set foot on Spanish -territory,” to which the Princess gave answer: “I am delighted that this -moment has arrived; it fills me with joy and never shall I forget the -first day on which I trod the soil of Spain.” The English party then -proceeded to the Palace of Miramar at San Sebastian, where they were the -guests of the Queen Mother. - -A San Sebastian newspaper, commenting upon the appearance of Princess -Victoria Eugenie said: “She is very beautiful, very elegant, very -sympathetic.” These three characteristics indeed are the predominant -features of her character. She has beauty, an aristocratic carriage, and -her nature is deeply sympathetic. - -This first visit of Princess Ena to Spain was necessarily of brief -duration and, pending the arrangements of State for the marriage, the -King was obliged to return to Madrid while his fiancée proceeded to -Paris, there to prepare her trousseau. Don Alfonso designated his own -Chamberlain--the Marquis of Villalobar--to accompany her to the French -capital and there to wait attendance upon her. Simultaneously with her -arrival in Paris, Don Alfonso remembered that the Princess had no -automobile in France, so he telegraphed to his Chamberlain to hire one -immediately for his fiancée’s use. The Chamberlain telegraphed back to -the King that there was not a car to be hired in Paris good enough for -the Princess, whereupon Don Alfonso wired instructions for a Panhard car -to be purchased and sent the next morning to the hotel where the -Princess was staying. - -The King went at this time to pay an official visit to his province of -Valencia and wrote to the Princess of the beautiful oranges growing -there, at which the Princess manifested a desire to have some. One -morning, the Marquis of Villalobar received a telegram from the King -advising him that he was sending a few oranges for the Princess by a -certain train and directing him to meet the train at the station and -convey the fruit directly to the Princess. The telegram did not state -the quantity of oranges which were being sent, and the Marquis was at a -loss to know whether it would be a basketful of fruit which could be -conveyed in a cab, or a truck load. Upon the arrival of the train, the -astonished Chamberlain beheld the largest orange tree he had ever seen, -the branches bowed with ripe fruit! - -While the necessary preparations were in progress for the Royal Wedding, -King Alfonso visited his betrothed at her home in the Isle of Wight. -This visit, which lasted three weeks, was regarded as strictly private -and during these three weeks the Royal wooing progressed under idyllic -conditions. It was a period of country walks and drives, simple picnic -parties, private entertainment and family dinner parties. During this -visit at Osborne Cottage, the King and Princess planted a tree in -commemoration of their betrothal, and during this time also His Majesty -took his first lessons in the ancient Scottish game of golf, at which he -later became most proficient. Their seclusion was only intruded upon by -the most necessary of formal functions--a visit of respect by the -Spanish Ambassador to London, by the Commander of the Royal Yacht -Squadron, and certain other dignitaries whom etiquette obliged to wait -upon the King. Don Alfonso lived up to his reputation of being the -surest shot in Spain when on one day the Isle of Wight Gun Club held an -exhibition shoot, the first prize of which was won by the visiting -sovereign, who broke eight clay birds out of ten in a high wind. - -Toward the close of the visit the Royal party proceeded to London for a -short stay at Buckingham Palace. During the few days spent in London, -Don Alfonso and his fiancée shopped together publicly in the streets of -London, attended several theatrical performances and visited Madame -Tussaud’s wax works where were brand new wax models of himself and his -wife to be. On the 4th of May Don Alfonso returned to his own country. -On Thursday, the 24th of the same month, Princess Victoria Eugenie set -out for the land where she was henceforth to live as Queen. - -She travelled from England via Dover and Calais. A friend who met her on -her landing upon French soil remarked how sad she seemed, whereupon she -replied: “It is nothing--I cannot help feeling moved when I think that I -am leaving the country where I have spent so many happy days, to go -toward the unknown.” That night she slept not at all. Her emotions held -full sway. She passed over in sweet reverie the scenes of her sheltered -girlhood in the Island home and in the charming Highlands of Scotland; -and then she fondly remembered the letter her father wrote her years and -years before, the only letter she had ever had from him whom she had -loved so dearly, in which he had told her that one day she would come to -the fair land where he was tarrying for a night--and that she would be -happy there. - -When first I saw Princess Ena--several years later, when she was Queen -Victoria Eugenie--she had this same wistful, sorrowful expression. As I -gazed into her calm eyes I instantly appreciated the great depth of -feeling and beauty of nature which lay beneath the tranquil expression -of her lovely features. I had been with Señor Torres, the able and -amiable confidential secretary of the King, in the Royal Palace at -Madrid. As I left him and tried to thread my way quite alone through the -intricate maze of palace halls toward the court, I came suddenly and -unexpectedly upon the King and Queen. Her Majesty was in deep black, for -it was but a day or two after the death of her beloved Uncle King Edward -VII of England. Her usually bright face and rosy cheeks were ashen -white, and her countenance bore a saddened look which commanded -sympathy. Her fair hair was soft and golden against her mourning garb -and despite her grief there was dignity and majesty in her carriage. -Perhaps the lines which shadowed her pale face had not come solely with -her latest suffering, for in the interim of years--few as they -were--more than one sore trial had been hers. Indeed, during the few -short days that elapsed between her crossing the frontier of Spain and -her reception into the Royal Palace as bride and Queen there occurred -her baptism of blood which was to try her beyond anything she had yet -endured and which was to test to the uttermost the qualities which above -all others are essential to queenship. - -Princess Ena came to her throne through tragic and dramatic scenes, and -the spirit which she manifested in the midst of trying and harrowing -circumstances convinced the Spanish people for good and all that their -King had not erred in wooing the golden-haired Princess from the little -Isle just off the coast of Southern England. She proved at once that she -is of the stuff of which great queens are made--and that she is indeed a -born mother of kings. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -A ROYAL WEDDING - - -The train which carried Princess Ena across France toward her unknown -Destiny approached the Spanish frontier at dawn. On the platform of the -first station within the borders of Spain paced the awaiting -bridegroom,--eager, impatient, anxious. He smoked cigarette after -cigarette as the minutes went by, pausing ever and anon to peer into the -gloom which still lingered of the passing night as if to catch the first -sight of the coming train. When at last it arrived and the Princess had -alighted, her very first act was one which made an appeal to the Spanish -people. Turning almost directly from the group of ministers, generals -and courtiers who were there to greet her, she stepped toward the Mayor -of the little village who was surrounded by a group of peasant -delegates, and extending her hand for him to kiss, she graciously -accepted the bouquet which he handed to her. This man was a field -labourer--a peasant--and his comrades were all of the soil. Thus the -first homage which she received and acknowledged was that which came -directly from the people. - -The evening of the day of her arrival at Madrid she seized a splendid -opportunity. In the town of Badajoz, the capital of the Province of -Estremadura, was a man condemned to death and whose sentence was to have -been carried out the day following the arrival of the bride-elect. On -the evening of her arrival in Spain, the people of the town, -representatives of all classes, telegraphed to the Princess an earnest -petition beseeching her to exercise her influence with the King for him -to exercise his prerogative of Royal clemency and pardon the condemned -man. The Princess went immediately to the King and told him that almost -the first message she had received upon her arrival in Spain was this -petition asking her to save the life of a man. This wedding present, she -said, would please her more than any gift she might receive. King -Alfonso instantly granted her request and the Royal pardon was -despatched by telegraph, arriving at Badajoz less than one hour before -the sentence was to have been carried out. Upon receipt of the news, all -the bells of the town were set ringing and there was a scene of -extraordinary demonstration; the whole community gathering in the -streets crying: “Long live Queen Victoria Eugenie.” - -Thursday the 31st of May, 1906, had been appointed for the wedding. The -day broke bright and clear in Madrid, a glorious sun tempered by a -cooling breeze shone throughout the day and with not a cloud in the sky. -The King arrived at the Palace of the Pardo just outside of Madrid where -the Princess and her suite had remained during the few days preceding -the wedding, in a motor car at 6.30 in the morning; he appeared in the -uniform of an Admiral. The first act of the day was an attendance at -Mass in company with his bride-elect. Shortly after 8 o’clock the couple -were driven in an electric brougham straight to the Ministry of Marine -where the Princess donned her bridal robes. In this she was assisted by -ladies-in-waiting, who had come in her suite from London, the last touch -being added by Queen Maria Cristina who placed upon the head of the -Princess the bridal veil. This veil was of Alençon lace and was the very -one worn by herself at the time of her marriage to King Alfonso XII. -This veil is being carefully preserved by Queen Victoria, who says that -at the marriage of her first daughter she hopes to place it upon her -head. - -In Spain it is customary for the bridegroom to present his bride with -her wedding gown; this is a universal custom common in all ranks of -society. Don Alfonso, aided by his Royal Mother, had had prepared one of -the most elaborate and exquisitely embroidered gowns ever seen at the -Spanish Court Forty of the most expert Spanish women were engaged for -fifty-six days in making this wonderful creation. Or, to put it another -way, one woman, working constantly every day of the year, Sundays -excepted, would have required almost precisely seven years to the task! -The material was of the richest white satin and cloth of silver, cut in -the style of dress known as Louis XVI. The dress - -[Illustration: “To the Marquis of Villalobar.] - -was bordered with dull silver, slightly burnished and shaded at -intervals and trimmed with exquisite rose-point lace, which was -festooned over a background of cloth of silver. The lace flounce was -eighteen inches in width and the whole gown was relieved with loops of -orange blossoms. - -The wedding took place in the Church of San Jeronimo, which is on the -far side of the city from the Royal Palace. The church is not large, but -there are no large churches in Madrid, Madrid being one of the most -modern of all continental capitals, and big churches of the cathedral -order are mostly relics of the Middle Ages. The selection of St. -Jeronimo for the event was made in order that the bridal procession -should of necessity pass across practically the entire city, thus -affording the largest number of people an opportunity to view the -spectacle. - -The marriage service conformed to every last detail with the etiquette -and rites of the Roman Catholic Church in Spain. The Archbishop of -Toledo, Cardinal Sancha, was assisted by Dr. Brindle, Bishop of -Nottingham, who had come from England especially for this occasion. - -The bridal procession advanced very slowly, receiving the homage of the -distinguished congregation section by section, the Spanish legislators, -the courtiers, Ambassadors, the Special Missions, and the foreign -Princes saluting in turn. Preceded by a crucifix, while the band -continued playing the National Anthem, the King and his bride advanced -and took their places before the altar. After kneeling for a short -period, King Alfonso rose, and passing behind the Princess approached -his mother, who was on the bride’s left, and knelt and kissed her hand. -Queen Cristina, bending over, affectionately embraced her son who -thereupon returned to his _prie-dieu_ before the altar. Following the -bridegroom’s example Princess Victoria Eugenie descended the altar steps -and passed down the nave to where her mother stood beside the Duchess of -Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and warmly embraced her. The Princess then -returned to the altar and the religious ceremony began. - -Cardinal Sancha, arrayed in his Pontifical robes and having on either -side the assisting bishops, gave his archiepiscopal crozier to the -Master of Ceremonies, and addressed King Alfonso and his bride as -follows: - -“High and Mighty Senor Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and Austria, -Catholic King of Spain, I demand of your Majesty, as I also demand of -your Royal Highness Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena Maria Cristina, Princess -of Battenberg, to say if you know of any impediment against the -celebration of this marriage, or against the validity or legality; That -is to say, if there exists between your Majesty and your Royal Highness -any impediment either of consanguinity, affinity, or spiritual -relationship; if you have made a vow of chastity or of religion; and, -finally, if there is any other impediment, your Majesty and your Royal -Highness shall declare it. And the same I demand of all those here -present. For the second and the third time I require that if there exist -any impediment whatsoever you shall freely make it known.” - -Having concluded these questions, the Cardinal paused for a while, and -then, turning to the Princess, said: - -“Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena Maria Cristina, Princess of Battenberg, does -your Royal Highness desire to have Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and -Austria, Catholic King of Spain, for your lawful spouse and husband by -words _de presente_, as is ordained by the Holy Catholic Apostolic and -Roman Church?” - -This was a very solemn moment, and not a whisper broke the almost -painful silence. All eyes were turned toward the Princess who replied, -in a clear voice: - -“Yes, I do desire him.” (Si, quiero.) - -His Eminence then said: - -“Does your Royal Highness consent to be the lawful spouse and wife of -the high and mighty Señor Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and Austria, -Catholic King of Spain?” - -Looking at His Majesty, Princess Victoria Eugenie replied, in clear -tones: - -“Yes, I consent.” (Si, otorgo.) - -Continuing, Cardinal Sancha asked: - -“Does your Royal Highness accept the said Señor Don Alfonso XIII, of -Bourbon and Austria, King of Spain, for your lawful spouse and -husband?” - -With even stronger emphasis, the Princess replied: - -“Yes, I accept him.” (Si, recibo.) - -Cardinal Sancha thereupon asked the three questions, in identical terms -of King Alfonso. His Majesty, with his eyes fixed upon his bride, and in -a strong and clear voice, which was distinctly heard in every part of -the church, answered to the several questions, “I desire,” “I consent,” -and “I accept.” - -At this moment, Princess Ena betrayed emotion and glanced toward the -place where her mother sat. Queen Maria Cristina was scarcely able to -restrain her tears and looked alternately from the King to his bride and -from the bride to her son. King Alfonso, who was perfectly calm, gave -his hand to the Princess according to the directions of the Master of -the Ceremonies, and while the Royal couple had their hands joined, -Cardinal Sancha took his archiepiscopal staff and said: - -“And I, on the part of Almighty God and of the Holy Apostles, Peter and -Paul, and of the Holy Mother Church, do join in matrimony your Majesty, -Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and Austria, Catholic King of Spain, to -your Royal Highness, Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena Maria Cristina, Princess -of Battenberg, and I confirm this Sacrament of matrimony in the name of -the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.--AMEN.” - -Then the Bridal Mass began, the King and Queen kneeling, and as the -swell of music filled the church and died away, a faintly tinkling bell -announced the Elevation of the Host. All knelt with heads bowed low--the -most impressive moment of great silence broken only by the clinking of -swords and the hum of distant voices outside the church. Mass over, the -Royal bride and bridegroom proceeded to the daïs. A little lower down -the Queen-Mother, in her beautiful robes and splendid jewels, stood -beside her Chair of State, while kneeling on either side were the -heralds, in their gorgeous uniforms. Princess Victoria Eugenie, now -Queen of Spain, lovely, young, dignified and looking “every inch a -Queen,” standing beside the youthful and most charming King-Bridegroom, -whose face was beaming with proud happiness, all made a picture, -touching, beautiful and never to be forgotten by any of those present. - -Then came a most picturesque and ideal scene. The newly-married Royal -pair proceeded arm-in-arm to the spot nearby where formerly a grand old -monastery had stood, and where there still remains a ruined cloister, -and here the register was signed, the King having chosen this spot a few -days before the wedding. One corner of the cloister had been screened -off with magnificent tapestries of world-wide renown, on which were -depicted scenes from Don Quixote; on a wide table, covered with crimson -cloth, stood the necessary implements--a silver inkstand, pens, and the -books in which the signatures were to be entered. The procession of -Royal personages who followed the bride and bridegroom in pairs through -the quaint old cloister was led by the Prince of Wales, who conducted -the Queen-Mother; then came the Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria -with the Princess of Wales, followed by the other Royalties in order of -rank. - -On the return of the procession to the church, the assemblage dispersed -according to Spanish Court etiquette, in order of precedence, commencing -with the lowest, each couple advancing to the daïs, where they bowed and -curtsied to the King and Queen, who were seated in their Chairs of -State. The Prince and Princess of Wales were the last of the Royal -guests to go. The Queen-Mother then rose, and, advancing to the front of -the daïs, made a reverence to her son and his bride, both of whom rose -simultaneously and returned the salutation. Last of all the Royal -personages, the King and Queen passed down the nave under the baldaquin -and the gorgeous scene melted away. - -Just before midday, the sound of saluting cannon announced to all that -the King and Queen had left the church, and the procession started for -the palace in the following order: - - THE BRONZE LANDAU - The Kings of Arms. - STATE CARRIAGE - Miss Cochrane - Lord and Lady William Cecil - Gentlemen-in-Waiting on Her Majesty the Queen. - - STATE CARRIAGE - Her Majesty Queen Maria Cristina’s - Mistress of the Robes - The First Huntsman - Gentlemen-of-the-Chamber-in-Waiting on - His Majesty the King. - SEMI-GALA CARRIAGE - Mistress of the Robes of the Palace - Grand Chamberlain of Queen Maria Cristina. - STATE CARRIAGE - Superior Chief of the Palace - Grand Chamberlain of their Majesties - Commandant-General of the Halberdiers. - SEMI-GALA CARRIAGE - Princes Leopold and Maurice of Battenberg - STATE CARRIAGE - Princess Marie of Battenberg - (Princess of Erbach-Schönberg) - Prince Alexander of Teck - Prince Alexander of Battenberg. - CARRIAGE - The Infante Don Alfonso of Orleans - Princes Rainer and Philip of Bourbon. - SEMI-GALA CARRIAGE - The Infantas Doña Paz and Doña Eulalia. - STATE CARRIAGE - The Infantas Doña Maria Teresa and Doña - Maria Isabel - The Infante Don Fernando of Bavaria and Prince - Gennaro of Bourbon. - - GALA CARRIAGE - Princess Frederica of Hanover - Princess Alexander of Teck. - COACH OF THE DUCAL CROWN - The Duchess of Saxe-Coburg - Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg - Prince Henry of Prussia. - THE AMARANTH COACH - Prince Eugene of Sweden - Crown Prince of Monaco - Princes Louis Ferdinand and Alfonso of Bavaria. - THE CIPHER COACH - The Duke and Duchess of Genoa - Prince Albert of Prussia - Prince Andrew of Greece. - THE TORTOISE-SHELL COACH - Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria - Crown Prince of Portugal - Prince Albert of Belgium - The Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia. - GALA CARRIAGE - The Prince and Princess of Wales. - THE MAHOGANY COACH - Her Majesty the Queen, Doña Maria Cristina - Princess Henry of Battenberg - The Infante Don Carlos - The Infante Don Alfonso (Heir-presumptive). - THE COACH OF GOLD PANELS - (Unoccupied) - THE CROWN COACH - Their Majesties the KING and QUEEN. - -The spectacle along the route of the return journey was one of -indescribable rejoicing and excitement. The Pageant was magnificent, and -the procession took nearly an hour to pass. The batteries of artillery -thundered out a royal salute, trumpets blared, the bells of the churches -pealed forth, and the populace raised a mighty roar of acclamation. -Coach after coach passed along the route--each to be greeted with cheers -by the delighted crowds. The beautiful “mahogany coach,” in which were -seated Queen Cristina, Princess Henry of Battenberg, Don Carlos, and his -son Don Alfonso, came in for a specially warm greeting. That containing -the Prince and Princess of Wales was also received with shouts of -welcome. At last came that which most of all the multitude had assembled -to see, and to greet with demonstrations of the greatest enthusiasm--the -coach of the Royal Crown drawn by eight superb horses, with nodding -white plumes, and containing the Royal couple. That the young King and -his beautiful bride were immensely popular there could be no doubt. One -had only to hear the hearty and repeated cries of “Viva el Rey!” “Viva -la Reina!” to know that the young couple had won the hearts of the -people and all Spain was rejoicing at their wedding. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -A BAPTISM OF BLOOD - - -The last street to be traversed was the Calle Mayor. All the world -remembers how, as the end of the street was almost reached, a huge -bouquet in which was hidden a small iron casket was tossed from a -balcony, striking immediately in front of the royal carriage. With a -tremendous roar, the casket exploded, killing more than thirty persons -and wounding over one hundred, besides killing and maiming a number of -horses. People in front of the royal carriage were killed, and behind -the carriage, and even on the balconies above the street. I have seen -the effect of many bombs--in Russia and the Caucasus--but never have I -seen the results of a bomb as extensive as this one. Great chunks were -literally gouged out of huge granite blocks in nearby buildings, and -people on the balconies at a distance where safety would seem absolute -met instant death. To this day the traces of this bomb are to be seen in -the Calle Mayor, to my thinking one of the most curious and interesting -sights in all Madrid. - -The smoke had not cleared when the King, taking the head of his bride -and Queen between both his hands, kissed her tenderly. - -“Are you wounded?” he anxiously asked. - -“No, no, I am not hurt. I swear it,” she replied. - -The King threw open the carriage door and as he stepped out, calmly -saluted a flag which happened to be fluttering near by. Then he assisted -the Queen, whose beautiful wedding gown became smirched with blood. - -According to an ancient Spanish custom a so-called “carriage of respect” -was immediately behind the royal coach, a carriage which apparently was -originally designed for any emergency. The King called for this carriage -and after seeing the Queen comfortably seated he turned to his equerries -and in a clear voice said: “Very slowly to the Palace.” - -Arrived at the Palace, the King sprang lightly to the ground, and, -having given his hand to the Queen, their Majesties ascended the flight -of steps with ceremonious deportment, as if nothing untoward had -occurred. The King saluted all the Princes in accordance with the -demands of etiquette; and when one of the Royal guests asked him if he -remembered that this was the anniversary of the attempt in the Rue de -Rohan, in Paris, he replied with inimitable spirit, “Yes, I remember, -and I notice that the bomb has grown.” - -As soon as the King had arrived in the Palace he asked for exact -information as to the number of victims. He received the reply, “It is -not yet possible to know; we only know that there are many dead and many -wounded.” Then the King passed his hand across his forehead, and, as if -the words came from the bottom of his heart, said slowly, “Now I feel -what it is to be King; and I feel it because if I were not King I might -have had the consolation of tears in the presence of so much blood and -so many victims.” His words were echoed in the heart of his young Queen -who was, indeed, coming into her queenship under stress and trial. - -The next morning the King and his bride, evading the court guard, swept -out of the Palace gates in a motor car and slowly traversed the main -streets of the city without escort or guard. Every inch of the way their -Majesties were frantically cheered by the populace who appreciated their -courage and considerateness in thus proving to the world at large that -they had suffered no injury. Queen Victoria as she was henceforth to be -known, acknowledged the salutations by bowing continuously to right and -to left and constantly waving her handkerchief in greeting to the -people. - -The members of the Royal Household were beside themselves with fear when -they saw the King and Queen, in an automobile, pass out of the Palace -gates into the city absolutely unarmed and unescorted. But the King was -wise that day. He threw both himself and his Queen-bride on to the -honour of the people. As the car moved through the crowded -thoroughfares, the people were first stunned with amazement and then -bewilderment gave place to a delirium of joyous enthusiasm. Eager hands -grasped the car to pull and push it. Women fought desperately to get -close to the brave couple, and the Queen’s dress was actually torn to -shreds by the multitude who sought to kiss the hem of her garment. When -they returned to the Palace, it was 1 o’clock in the afternoon. Thus -began the Queenship of the little English Princess who heretofore had -led a quiet, sheltered life in her island home and among the Scottish -braes and moors and in the tranquil atmosphere of the Court of St. -James. - -Queen Victoria at this time may have recalled the lines of George -Meredith: - - “We see in mould the Rose unfold, - The Soul through blood and tears.” - -Verily the soul of Princess Ena was tempered by fire and brought to its -fulness through blood and tears on the day when she became at once a -wife and a Queen. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -WINNING A NATION’S LOVE - - -Don Alfonso took his bride at once from the Royal Palace at Madrid to -the Palace of La Granja (the Grange or farm-house) behind the Guadarrama -Mountains, in Castile, for their honeymoon. This palace is situated on a -slightly pinnacled hill four thousand feet above the level of the sea, a -veritable “Castle in the Air.” La Granja is surrounded by lovely woods, -a garden which includes some three hundred and sixty acres, probably the -finest in Spain, and even Versailles cannot boast of more numerous or -lovelier fountains than this charming country residence. The laying out -of the gardens alone cost eight millions of dollars. It is easy to -understand why King Alfonso selected this spot for the honeymoon; it is -the one spot in Spain, above all others, where royal lovers might hope -to find seclusion amidst bowers of foliage musical with birds, and where -they might hope to wipe from their recollection the vivid memories of -the tragic scene of their wedding day. - -Spain is one of the richest of countries in regard to the number of its -palaces. Until the reign of Philip II, the Kings of Spain did not -maintain any one permanent Royal residence, but journeyed from region -to region, maintaining a Palace in practically every district of the -country, and, as a result of this custom much of the history of Spain is -to be found and embodied and crystallised in the various Castles which -are inherited by the Royal family of to-day. There is the Alcazar at -Seville, which is associated with Pedro the Cruel. There is the Retiro, -built to divert the attention of Philip IV from the decay and -backsliding of his country; the Escorial in which the gloomy and -melancholy Philip II has perpetuated his own memory in stone; and La -Granja, which marks the bitterness and humiliation of Cristina before -Garca and his rude soldiery; and Miramar at San Sebastian, in which a -widowed Queen secluded herself to mourn the loss of her kingly spouse! -Time was indeed when, within comparatively easy distance of Madrid, -there were no less than thirty-five Royal residences; to-day only five -of these, however, are still kept up, but throughout the rest of the -country are many other Palaces. - -It would be indeed a delightful task to write an entire book on the -palaces of the Kings of Spain. El Pardo, Aranjuez, Miramar, El Escorial, -El Alcazar and the Royal Palace of Madrid, but even then it would indeed -be difficult to describe in words the beauty and the wondrous maze and -labyrinths of woodland and garden; the galleries of tapestry and -painting; the statutes; the armory; the varied treasures which they all -contain. George Borrow, who early made familiar to the English-speaking -world the wondrous beauties and treasure houses of all Spain, waxed most -eloquent over the palace of Alcazar at Seville. “Cold, cold must be the -heart,” exclaimed Borrow at the Alcazar, “which can remain insensible to -the beauties of this magic scene. Often have I shed tears of rapture -whilst I beheld it and listened to the thrush and the nightingale piping -forth their melodious songs in the woods and inhaled the breeze laden -with the perfume of the thousand orange gardens of Seville.” La Granja, -however, remains the favourite abiding place of all the present Royal -family, hallowed by the sweet memories of honeymoon days. - -Each summer the Royal family have returned to La Granja for two months. -Here as nowhere else the Queen leads a life of charming simplicity, a -life almost like that she was accustomed to in England. Here the King -and Queen have but little company. They walk and ride and drive -together. The King is a keen sportsman and while he shoots, the Queen -goes a-fishing. Trout are abundant in the streams that come dashing down -from the higher mountains and she is adept at landing the speckled -beauties--only she will not bait her own hooks! - -A golf course has been laid out and at this game the Queen excels her -royal spouse. As a matter of fact polo is more to the King’s taste and -to La Granja he always takes the best of his string of forty polo -ponies. Here it may be truly said the King and Queen are idyllically -happy. Free from the ceremony of political and social circles they are -the boy and girl sweethearts once more. They go through country lanes -hand in hand and follow woodland paths unescorted. As La Granja was -their haven of quiet after their turbulent wedding day, so has it since -been their harbour of peace and happiness away from the harassing cares -of sovereignty. - -Queen Victoria Eugenie had been only a few days in the country which was -henceforth to be her own, when she had made great progress in the -winning of the nation. Her sympathy for the condemned man, her poise and -self-command in the face of shock and danger had all a tremendous -influence in prejudicing people in her favour. If possible, a yet more -difficult task now confronted her; for she faced the daily scrutiny of -court and people. - -One of the earliest duties which she had to perform was to attend a bull -fight. The Spanish people could never give absolute allegiance to a -sovereign who did not in some measure share their joy and enthusiasm in -this national and tradition-honoured sport. So to a bull fight went the -Queen. Simple English girl that she was, with fine sensibilities and -delicate feelings, we can well appreciate her horror at it all. When the -moment had arrived for the signal to be given from the Royal Box for the -fight to begin all eyes were turned expectantly toward the King, but it -was the young Queen who fluttered the white scarf. When the crowd saw -this, they rose like one man, frantically cheering their Queen. It was -distinctly a popular thing to do. - -Ordinarily, six bulls are despatched at a single fight, but before -death, each bull generally kills one to three horses besides horribly -goring others and sometimes injuring one or more of the men. That a bull -fight is not a pleasant thing to watch, I know, for I have seen several. -At one which I attended on the Day of Ascension (bull fights are always -held on Sundays and religious fête days) the killing of the six bulls -was accompanied by the outright killing of eleven horses and the maiming -of four others, while one man was tossed high in the air by a bull and -two others hurt by their horses falling on them. The fourteen thousand -spectators were delirious with delight and called it “a good bull -fight.” - -The young Queen remained in the Royal Box throughout the _correda_ and -thus concluded her initiation into Queenship. - -The year following the marriage sped to a happy close. The Queen grew -increasingly popular. As the months went on, the shock of the wedding -day drifted into a hideous memory, and the hearty enthusiasm of the -Spanish people melted the somewhat austere bearing which was native to -her and she began to return the cordial greetings of the people -everywhere she went. Nowhere on earth--not - -[Illustration: THE PROCESSION OF BULL FIGHTERS.] - -even in France--are beautiful women more appreciated than in Spain, and -Queen Victoria is lovely to look upon. She is tall and of majestic -bearing. She has an abundance of golden hair which she wears in long -rich braids wound about the back of her head and generally loosely -dressed in front. She has eyes of a singularly clear blue and quite as -sharp and twinkling as are the King’s snapping brown eyes,--and his are -famous. - -“Such exquisite colouring!” is an exclamation frequently heard -concerning her. At nineteen she combined all the freshness of youth with -the dignity of maturity, and to-day, though she is three times a mother, -she retains the high colour characteristic of English women, and set -against a clear white skin. The first time I saw her close, her cheeks -reminded me of charming porcelain--if it were not trite, I would say a -bit of Dresden. - -With all her instinctive charm she has a genius for dressing well. In -this, again, she easily and naturally excels her sister Queens. - -When first she went to San Sebastian, the fashionable mid-summer -watering resort of Spain on the west coast near the northern border, she -appeared like a modern Gainsborough duchess. Her stylishly cut gowns -worn with grace and perfect naturalness were offset by great hats which -were much in vogue at that time and which resemble the picturesque -Gainsboroughs. She is a woman who can carry any amount of tasteful -dressing, but her own preference seems to be toward simplicity. - -A more elegant woman one rarely sees anywhere in the world. The eye of -the Spanish people, quick and sensitive to taste and beauty instantly -caught all these details, and even if her nature, disposition and -character were not as they are, she would still be idolised for her -beauty alone. - -At Seville, in the south of Spain, where beauty is worshipped even more -than in the north the people went mad over her on her very first ride -through the streets--from the railroad station to the Alcazar, as the -ancient Moorish palace there is called. Throughout southern -Spain--Andalusia--there is a Moorish strain noticeable in the people. -The women are of the swarthy type, with large lustrous eyes, hair of -ebony, and deep passionate natures that one senses almost tangibly. As -with most people of this type and character, the opposite type makes a -tremendous appeal to them. The golden beauty of the fair young Queen -took Seville by storm. To this day, and probably for all time, she is -and will be known in the south as the “Idol of Andalusia.” - -One small detail which pleased the Andalusian people greatly was her -donning the _mantilla_ on appropriate occasions. The _mantilla_ is a -lace scarf, sometimes white and sometimes black, which is worn over the -head by women in place of a hat Any lace scarf, however, is not a -_mantilla_, and there are certain precise ways of wearing this -typically Spanish headdress. To be exact, there are thirteen different -ways of adjusting it, each way adapted to a particular occasion. For -example, the Sevillano will wear a black _mantilla_ low over her head at -a funeral, and a white _mantilla_ high over her head,--the elevation -being accomplished by the aid of a huge amber comb,--at a bull fight or -in a slightly different arrangement for a wedding. The art of adjusting -the _mantilla_ is almost as difficult to acquire as the use of castanets -or some of the Andalusian dance steps. It is seldom that one not of -Spanish blood can wear a _mantilla_ becomingly at all, but on Queen -Victoria Eugenie it looks quite natural. A peculiar thing about -Andalusian women is that they are so altogether charming in the -_mantilla_ that not one in a thousand can wear any kind of a dress hat, -even one strictly _à la mode_ and direct from Paris. The women of -Southern Spain and the _mantilla_ seem peculiarly adapted to go -together. The cost of a _mantilla_ by the way is as much as of the most -fashionable Paris hats. Ordinary ones frequently cost from thirty to -fifty dollars, and specially good ones as much as one hundred dollars. - -In Seville Queen Victoria Eugenie was as quick to catch the warmth of -spirit as the Sevillanos were to appreciate her beauty and now, after -five years she looks forward to her annual visit to the ancient Moorish -city as to no other city in the kingdom. - -A custom which prevails in Andalusia and which nearly always results in -extreme embarrassment to foreign ladies, is the passing of remarks out -loud by passers-by, of a wholly personal nature. When an Andalusian sees -a beautiful woman he is filled with joy and gladness and he wants her to -know the pleasure she has given him by the flash of her eye or the -loveliness of her face or form--so he spontaneously exclaims: “What -beauty!” “How sympathetic.” “Those eyes!” “Such hair!” or whatnot. The -women of that country, from the lowliest right up to the wives of the -most exclusive grandees, expect this appreciation and miss it when they -fail to catch what strangers may say of them. - -Queen Victoria had had this all explained to her so that she was -prepared for direct remarks of this nature. Once she laughed outright as -an enthusiastic Andalusian cried out: “You are not only Queen of Spain; -you are the Queen of Beautiful Women.” - -In her visits to Seville, the Queen is ever and always reminded of her -dearly beloved father, for the one letter which she had from him was -written from Seville, the letter in which he had told her that one day -she would come to this lovely land and be very happy. This is a happy -memory, despite the tinge of sadness, and in Seville, she says she is -always most happy. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -DON ALFONSO XIII - - -What manner of man is the young King whom the Island Princess married? - -Don Alfonso XIII is unique among the kings of the earth, inasmuch as he -was practically born a king. His father, Alfonso XII, died five months -before he was born. The widowed Queen, his mother, became the Regent of -the Throne, but the little Alfonso XIII knew, from the time he knew -anything, that he was a ruler already, where most kings have spent years -of preparation for kingship while heirs-apparent. - -He was born May 17, 1886. He received the tenderest care and attention -from his mother; her favourite pet name for him while he was a baby was -“Puby.” From the time of his birth he appeared delicate, which -occasioned the greatest solicitude for his physical well-being. - -He has always manifested the greatest love for his mother. From earliest -childhood he entertained for her a supreme regard and affection, and -frequently when he was inclined to be headstrong and oppose the wishes -of his governesses the Queen Regent--as she was called until Alfonso -reached the age of sixteen--would be called to make him obey. Her -methods were all her own, her coercion only that of love. - -One winter morning Alfonso was reluctant to take his usual cold bath and -stubbornly remained in bed. His nurses made appeal after appeal to him, -but his Majesty remained obdurate. Finally, in despair, the nurse went -to his mother the Queen Regent. - -“You must take your bath, Baby,” said the Queen, coming to his bedside. - -The baby king gave no answer. - -“If I tell you to do it, you will--won’t you?” - -Again no response. - -“Very well, then,” continued the Queen, “I will not ask you again, but I -shall go to my room and cry because you will not obey me. Do you wish -that?” - -“No, no, mamma,” cried the young Alfonso, and flinging aside the bed -clothes he sprang from the bed and took his cold plunge. - -King Alfonso was brought up in this atmosphere of love and affection and -it is doubtless owing to this that his own nature is so warm and lovable -to-day. - -When he was four years old, he fell very ill. His anxious mother watched -constantly by his bedside. One day, he turned his little face toward -where she was sitting and said: “Are you not very tired, mother mine? Do -you love me so very much? Do go to bed. You must be so tired. I think I -ought to send you away.” - -Not until he was seven years of age did he begin any regular course of -studies and then he began with only one hour a day. In a short time, -however, he had learned to read and write easily. Much of his boyhood -was spent at the beautiful Miramar palace. After he had learned to read -and write, the study of geography and history came next and a little -later French and Latin. From all accounts, the boy Alfonso was quite as -full of mischief and capers as are most small boys. - -One of his Chamberlains relates the story that, when he was eight years -old, streams of water were one day seen running down the corridor from -the bathroom of the Royal Palace. The door of the apartment was securely -fastened and the little fellow refused admission to any one until -finally the Queen herself was sent for, and, when she demanded -admittance, found her Royal son enjoying what he called “A Naval Battle -in High Seas,” the ships being logs which he had collected from various -wood baskets and his high seas, the overflowing bathtub. - -Queen Cristina found Alfonso a little backward in acquiring German, and -as none of the text-books then used in Spain seemed adapted to his use, -she went to the trouble of preparing a grammar for him, which enabled -him to become familiar with the rules of the language in a simple and -amusing form. Alfonso has always been of an inquiring turn of mind, and -the interest he has recently displayed in aeroplanes and automobiles is -the natural outcome of the interest he displayed in all mechanics when a -mere boy. - -Mr. Frederic Courtland Penfield has related as one of his experiences in -Spain the breaking down of his motor car near La Granja which -necessitated sending to Madrid for new parts to replace the damaged -mechanism. While the men were at work upon the machine, the King -happened along, and, not content with watching the progress of the -repairs, he proceeded to direct the men himself, getting down under the -car and examining minutely each of its parts and aiding the men by -constant suggestion. He took apparently all the interest in the work of -a boy who has removed the back of his first watch to see the wheels go -round. Not until the car was ready to proceed did the King leave the -spot. - -As a matter of fact, Don Alfonso is the most ardent motorist in Spain -and the most skilful if not the most reckless driver. He has several 70 -h.p. machines and when he drives these machines in the country, he -sometimes goes at the rate of seventy-five and eighty miles an hour. -During the Spring months, when the court is at La Granja, the King comes -to Madrid several times a week. The distance is ninety kilometres and he -allows one hour and a quarter for the journey. The road lies right -across the Guadarrama mountains which rise to a height of six thousand -feet. The ascent and descent of these mountains is tremendously steep, -being made by a series of loops like the roads which cross the Alps in -Switzerland. Only the most skilled chauffeurs can go over this road at -even a moderate rate of speed, but the King goes all the way at high -speed, averaging for the entire distance nearly a mile a minute. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -A KING’S LIFE - - -Amazing few are the people outside his kingdom who do not know him who -appreciate the unusual personality of this precocious young king. -Indeed, he must be known to be appreciated. - -A tall, athletic young man of narrow but muscular physique, with a -smooth, olive skin, dartling black-brown eyes and a kaleidoscopic -expression,--Don Alfonso is one to command attention, interest and -respect. He sits a horse superbly. He excels in everything he -undertakes. He is the surest shot in Spain; the most skilful as well as -the most reckless motorist, a capable yachtsman, an efficient, -dependable polo-player,--above all he has infinite pluck and daring. The -world is familiar with his courage not only at the time of the bomb on -his wedding day but on many other occasions when he has displayed iron -nerve and superb poise. The first time I had a formal audience with His -Majesty, I gathered my real impressions of the man. After this audience, -I saw him many times and under varied circumstances, but always the -impressions of the first day were deepened and confirmed. As I entered -his study in the palace of Madrid, he came with quick, nervous step -toward me and grasping me firmly by the hand, spoke words of greeting -in the Spanish language. - -“Your Majesty has no objection to English?” I asked, as he still tightly -held my hand. - -“Objection? Rather not, provided you can stand for my wretched English.” -This was the only note of affectation in King Alfonso’s entire -conversation. He speaks English fluently, correctly and idiomatically. - -“Put aside your hat and gloves and sit down. Let us talk,” he continued. -I placed my hat aside as he bade me and started to seat myself opposite -the chair His Majesty had already taken. - -“Not there, not so far away,” he exclaimed. “Come here,” and he patted -with the palm of his hand the sofa which was in juxtaposition to his -chair. - -“Have a cigarette,” he added, as I moved close to him and he held out a -silver cigarette case with a small monogram in the upper left hand -corner. - -“May I smoke?” I queried, I must confess, in some surprise. - -“Naturally, why not? Here”--and before I had fairly taken the cigarette, -His Majesty, with characteristic quickness had struck a wax vesta and -was holding it toward my mouth that I might get my light. - -My slow wits happily returned in time for me to catch the match from the -Royal fingers, to offer it first to him and then light my own. These -were the preliminaries. They were over in a minute. After we had -lighted our cigarettes, he leaned forward, his elbows resting on his -knees and the joints of his fingers closed against each other before -him. He spoke rapidly but thoughtfully, and in his voice was the ring of -a man of enthusiasms. - -Beneath the smooth, olive skin and the flashing black eyes, one _felt_ a -strong, passionate nature. One got instantly behind the glamour of -royalty and saw only the man, the man of conviction and of courage,--the -man of Destiny. - -No photograph has ever portrayed King Alfonso. He is unphotographable. -The man is not in his features but in his expressions, his manners, his -atmosphere of charming manliness; above all in the scintillating glints -of his flashing eyes. - -“You have come at a very interesting moment in our history,” he said, -“because it is a moment of change for Spain. We are just recovering from -our long era of costly wars, ending with the disastrous war with -America, and our recent colonial wars.” He paused and smiled genially as -he added, “In the war with America, we were badly beaten, but that is a -matter which has now passed into history and that page of our history we -have turned over. I think I can speak for everyone in Spain when I say -that not the slightest feeling of rancour remains with us; and I have -ample evidence that the American people have none but the best of wishes -for Spain.” I replied that many Americans were ready to congratulate -Spain in being well rid of Cuba and the Philippines, those frightfully -expensive drains on the resources of Spain--which are proving a by no -means light drain upon the resources of America. - -His Majesty’s eyes twinkled merrily as he looked directly into my face. -After a brief pause, he went on: “However that may be, a new era for -Spain began with the close of the war. The recent war in Africa cost us -heavily--fifty-three million pesetas ($10,600,000).” - -“Surely that is not much as the cost of wars go nowadays,” I -interrupted. - -“No, quite true--for a modern war, it was not so expensive,” he -returned, “especially in view of the results we have obtained.” - -Then he sketched the present lines of Spanish influence in Morocco and -outlined the policy of Spain for the development of this influence and -the increase of trade. Incidentally, he paid a high tribute to the -courage and marksmanship of the Moors. “They don’t fire till they see -the whites of the eyes of the approaching troops and they pick the -officers first of all with amazing accuracy.” - -“That war being now over,” he went on, “we have entered a period of -peace and it is my aim to further the development of Spain in every way -possible. It would be interesting to realise all that we have already -begun, what we are about to do and what we hope to do in the next years -before us.” - -I lighted another cigarette and the King, without shifting his position, -began afresh. - -“First of all, we are giving our attention to each branch of the State -separately. I have my ambitions for the army, the reëstablishment of the -navy, the general education of the people and how we hope to deal with -other internal problems, the Republicans, the Socialists, the Anarchists -and others.” - -During the last decade I have listened to statesmen and leaders of men -in almost every country of Europe and in America, but I have never met -any man who could say as much in an hour as did King Alfonso; I have -never met a politician or statesman who was so intimately familiar with -small details, and I have never met anyone who could talk so succinctly -to the point. He elucidated each question with graphic clearness. Each -subject that he took up in turn, he summarised. As a feat of -intellectual conversation, it was without parallel so far as my -experience extends. He expressed himself very rapidly, in clear, -incisive language, showing toward each topic an enthusiasm and personal -interest almost incredible. At the same time, he watched my expression -carefully and at the least shadow of question which I betrayed, he -delved deeper into details in order to make everything perfectly clear. -I touched upon the question of the Church in Spain and found His -Majesty’s views as liberal and as clear as they were upon the secular -subjects. He went on, however, to explain that any hasty reform was -impractical, although it was the project of his government to undertake -all of them as circumstances would permit. If he were to introduce -liberal and progressive measures at once, the opposition would throw the -whole country into a turmoil. - -Politically, the attitude of the King is for all that makes for the -common weal of Spain in the platforms of all parties and movements--even -those that are opposed to his monarchy. - -The amazing development of Spain during the last decade is directly due -to the extraordinary dynamic spirit which has been exhibited by this -remarkable young King. No department of national life has been neglected -by him. - -The Iberian peninsula has long been regarded as a doubtful, not to say -dangerous proposition from a financial standpoint. Spain and Portugal -have been judged more or less alike. No greater mistake could ever have -been made. Portugal has long been in the hands of aristocratic -buccaneers, pirates in broadcloth, but none the less rascals of a most -desperate character. The Portugal Ship of State was looted and scuttled -by the very class who constituted her monarchy. Nowhere could one find a -dominant personality. - -Spain on the other hand is well equipped with statesmen, with diplomats, -with politicians of large calibre and more so now than in any decade of -recent centuries and all because of the personal attention given to the -affairs of state by King Alfonso. Don Alfonso is the hero and the idol -of the whole Spanish army. From earliest boyhood, he devoted a large -part of his time to building and strengthening the army and increasing -its _esprit de corps_. Two forenoons of every week, he devotes to -military audiences. He never tires of reviewing troops, often leaving -the palace at six o’clock in the morning to visit some outlying -garrison. When he is caught overnight in some remote town, he is sure to -be up early the next morning to inspect any body of troops which may be -quartered in the neighbourhood. I recall once seeing the King overtake a -body of infantry in the street called Arenal, in Madrid. As soon as the -royal automobile came up even with the rear rank, the order was given to -the troops to have them swing round so as to face the sovereign in -salute as he went past. The King at once rose to his feet in the car, at -the same time uncovering, and as the car swept by the regiment, his -piercing, intelligent eyes seemed to dart an individual glance to each -soldier along the entire line. Not once did his eyes wander from the -troops, although a hurrahing crowd blocked the pavement on the other -side of the street. Ask any soldiers of the Mellila campaign who wore -the cool sun helmets that the King presented from his private purse, -speak the name of the King to any officer of the Spanish army and see -him square his shoulders. - -King Alfonso does not trust entirely to military supremacy, however, for -he believes in the peaceful - -[Illustration: KING ALFONSO AND HIS HEIR.] - -progression of his country and appreciates to the full the necessity of -economic development. At the time of the Spanish-American war when Cuba -and the Philippines were lost to Spain, it seemed as if her greatest -markets had been taken from her, but during recent years, since Don -Alfonso has extensively taken up the reins of sovereignty, he has -stimulated commerce and trade in other parts of the world. Spain has -seaports which give her splendid natural commercial advantages. A few -years since, Spain went quietly but earnestly to work to build up an -exchange trade with the new countries of the world which seemed to offer -the greatest opportunity for large commercial expansion,--trade with the -Argentine Republic, Paraguay, Brazil, Chili, Peru and Mexico. During the -last few years, under the wise counsel of the King, these states have -been courted diplomatically and socially to the incalculable stimulus of -trade; and with what result? In ten years, Spanish bonds have doubled in -value. Spain now sends $12,000,000 worth of textiles, minerals and wines -to the Argentine while only six years ago, 1905, the amount was only -$6,000,000. In Uruguay, almost a proportionate increase has been -witnessed since 1905 when $9,000,000 worth of exports went from Spain -and it is probable that within the near future, Spain will be sending -$20,000,000 worth of stuffs to Uruguay alone. - -Spain’s trade with Mexico has been particularly happy because the credit -system is practically non-existent. Of $7,000,000 worth of goods -shipped to Mexico in one recent year, 90 per cent. was paid for in cash. -To the United States, Spain sends annually approximately $8,000,000 -worth of minerals, cork, olives, Malaga grapes, etc., and in return -purchases from us nearly $30,000,000 worth of goods. Raw cotton is the -chief import from the United States, but modern machinery forms a big -item. Spain, however, buys most of her goods from Great Britain and the -amount shipped annually to the Iberian Kingdom averages $80,000,000. -This is the result of long years of trade study, nursed and built up and -consequently it is less significant than the trade with South America -which has received such extraordinary stimulus, not in ten but in five -years, or in other words, since King Alfonso has been personally -concerned with this phase of the development of his kingdom. Spain is a -country in which the people went in a single bound from petroleum to -electricity and this is indicative of her entire development. She is -rapidly skipping through the gas stage of progress through which the -rest of the world has so long toiled. - -The keynote of King Alfonso’s character is in his courageous -determination. Once convinced of what is right, I believe he would be as -steadfast as the rugged crags of the Pyrenees, that he could be swayed -by neither favourites nor ministers, threats nor prayers. - -The sense of duty has been highly developed in him, thanks to the -careful training he received at the hands of Queen Maria Cristina, and -his sense of moral obligation is absolute. - -The general idea of the King is to encourage the industrial and economic -development of the country, at the same time he is upholding the state, -and to strengthen at every point the bulwarks of the state until its -whole fibre is of the strongest character. Commercial development -without a thoroughly grounded state, he believes to be worthless. - -Don Alfonso XIII believes in Spain. He glories in her proud past and he -has the conviction that greater glories and prosperity are still -awaiting her. It is toward her greater future that he is ever looking, -and with that greater future in view, so he is building. He wants the -world to know Spain. He wants tourists from every country to come and -see her natural beauties, her resources and her possibilities. To -stimulate interest abroad he is now giving special attention to the -seemingly trivial, but after all most important matter, namely, better -roads throughout the Kingdom and improved hotels. Till now, many of the -roads of Spain are utterly wretched. When Spain can vie with France in -her road beds, the Sovereign believes that many more tourists will come, -especially in view of the increasing use of automobiles. And having come -to the country he wants people made comfortable. - -There are, at this time, but few first-class hotels in Spain. There is -one at Granada, built by the Duke of San Pedro, and others at Algiciras -and Ronda. The hotels of Madrid are all rather bad and excessively -expensive. The prices are paramount to the best hotels of London and -Paris and the rooms are small, poorly equipped and in general comfort -are decidedly lacking. The King manifested his interest to the extent of -asking me many minute details about the hotel where I was lodged, the -size of my room, number of windows, was there running water (which there -was not), the kind of bed, etc., etc. He knew quite well, however, the -actual conditions before he asked the questions. A new Ritz-Carlton was -therefore built in Madrid through the personal interest and influence of -the King, and it is the aim of His Majesty to make this the first of a -chain of good hotels all over Spain. This practical interest in details -of this character indicates that he is no mere dreamer of empires, no -idealist who lives in the future because he is looking forward. Like all -strong men of history, King Alfonso is a practical idealist who gives -heed to each step of the road he is travelling, conscious that on the -work of to-day the work of to-morrow must stand. - -History will ultimately place him, but at twenty-four he has already -taken his place among the signal figures of his time and his promise for -the future is immeasurable. - -An estimate of King Alfonso’s statecraft at so early a period is not -possible. But there is great promise in the young sovereign. Don Alfonso -does everything that he undertakes. It is a bred-in-the-bone -characteristic with him to excel in all things. - -King Alfonso, like King George in England, is one of the best shots in -his kingdom. This, at least, is a matter of merit, and cannot be said as -a courtesy to the King. This year, King Alfonso came out second best at -the annual pigeon shoot, having taken nineteen birds out of twenty-one. -The high record was twenty-one out of twenty-three. Previous years, the -King has captured the first prize. - -The English Princess who became a Spanish Queen, therefore, came to a -land of extraordinary activity. Spain’s development is proceeding with -greater rapidity than in any other country in Europe during the present -decade. King Alfonso is the most wideawake, alert, progressive man in -Spain and he is controlled by a tremendous ambition to bring Spain into -line with the most modern of nations. He is kept well informed as to -what all parties in his kingdom are doing--what they want and why they -want it. He is as quick to accept a plank from the platform of the -Republicans or Socialists as from the Liberals or Monarchists. By -nature, Don Alfonso is a radical. It is by virtue of his personality and -what he has accomplished for Spain that he is the most popular man in -his Kingdom. Republicans to whom I have put the question: “If a Republic -were declared in Spain, who would be the first national leader--the -first president?” The answer has been “probably Don Alfonso. He is the -most popular man in the country.” - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -COURAGE AND KINGSHIP - - -One afternoon, shortly after the audience already referred to, I was -crossing the Plaza de Oriente in Madrid, towards the Royal Palace. An -automobile came whirling up from the Casa de Campo and as it passed, a -hand waved through the window. It was the spontaneous action of a man -aglow with youth and energy. Just beyond, the car stopped, the door -opened, and the King jumped out. I was so surprised I even forgot to -throw away the cigar I was smoking. In the friendliest and most natural -way possible, His Majesty shook my hand and told me that at five o’clock -they were going to play polo for the Queen’s cup at the Casa de Campo -grounds and if I cared to go along, to find one of the Palace -secretaries and tell him to order a carriage for me from the royal mews. - -It did not take long to find Don Pablo Churruca, who promptly procured -the carriage and we drove together through the lovely gardens of the -Royal Park, arranged by the Queen Maria Cristina, to the polo field. -These polo grounds are some three or four miles from the Palace, and -command an imposing panorama of Guadarrama mountains which, owing to -their considerable height, are snow-capped until late June. The polo -field was laid out by the Marquis of Viana, the King’s bosom friend and -his Master of the Horse. The Marquis is prouder of this polo field than -almost anything else in the world, and with reason. It is a magnificent -greensward, kept in perfect condition. Here the King comes to play three -times a week during the stay of the Court in Madrid. - -Don Alfonso looks upon his regular daily exercise as much as a part of -his kingly duties as signing documents or reviewing troops. He is the -only polo-playing sovereign in the world, and in this, as in everything -else, he is an enthusiast. - -That day, he had a string of seventeen ponies in charge of eleven grooms -on hand for frequent changes. At the royal mews, he has more than double -this number, most of them at present coming from the Argentine Republic. - -King Alfonso is at his best in the saddle. He rides like a born horseman -and nowhere,--not even in military uniform,--does he appear to better -advantage than at polo. His reckless energy and boundless spirit are -ever to the fore. When he starts after the ball, he goes full tilt, -showing no consideration, asking none. As the riders sweep up and down -and across the field, the King is ever in the thickest of the game, -riding hard, driving hard and holding his own with the strongest and -best. During the succeeding weeks I went many times to the Polo games. - -At the close of the game each day, His Majesty would walk across the -field to ask the few invited guests present to join the players for tea -which is served in a spacious tent erected near to the club châlet. The -usual players whom I saw there were the Duke of Alba, the Marquis of -Viana, the Marquis of Santo Domingo, Count de la Cimera, Count de la -Maza and Mr. Marshal, an English professional. Besides these players -there were usually three or four other gentlemen and half a dozen -ladies. - -After the game, the King would come strolling across the grounds in his -riding togs, a loose coat on, but unbuttoned, a grey soft hat carelessly -balanced on the back of his head. As he approached, the gentlemen would -uncover as would His Majesty, and in turn he would greet each one. As he -shook hands with the ladies, each in turn would do a fascinating -curtsey. Then all would repair into the tent--and the rest was like -afternoon tea in any English country house. And incidentally, English is -the language most used by all the company. The King and several of the -players use English almost precisely as their mother tongue. - -The fearlessness of Don Alfonso at polo is typical of his whole life. He -is a fatalist. His spirit is as much endless courage as an absolute lack -of the knowledge of fear. I doubt if he has any conception of the nature -or quality of that emotion. - -Now that the lamented King Edward is gone, it will perhaps be no -indiscretion to make public an incident in connection with King -Alfonso’s going to Barcelona when that city was believed to be on the -eve of a revolution. “I am needed there,” said Don Alfonso. Despite the -entreaties of the entire court, he planned to go. Just before the day he -was to start from the capital, King Edward summoned one of the Spanish -Embassy in London. He said that he had not slept the entire night -through worry about King Alfonso’s going to Barcelona. He begged that a -message be immediately sent to Madrid beseeching Alfonso to abandon the -trip. Don Alfonso acknowledged the message. But, he proceeded to -Barcelona. The results of the trip vindicated the young King’s wisdom. -The long and short of it is, King Alfonso is a man, a man to be trusted -in a tight place. His theory is, “If they set out to kill me, they will -get me anyway, so in the meantime, why bother my head about it?” This -allegiance to duty is with him a passion, a veritable religion in the -highest sense. - -Take the regular routine of the King’s day. He rises early--from seven -to seven-thirty; some mornings when he reviews troops, he leaves the -Palace at six. He is occupied with his correspondence and state papers -until ten when he receives the Prime Minister and one other minister. -The Premier reports every morning and the other members of the Council -are received every day in turn. Then come the regular audiences which -occupy him until one-thirty or two, when he takes luncheon. In the -afternoon, he does whatever chores may come up,--the opening of a bazaar -or exhibition, or any of the endless calls which are made upon the -sovereign. At four, he has tea with the Queen and then goes to polo or -pigeon shooting or takes his regular exercise, whatever it may be for -the day. Upon his return, there are sometimes further audiences, and -always before dressing for dinner, he peruses the day’s cuttings from -the newspapers of the world. Forty-six daily newspapers come regularly -to the Palace. Each afternoon, the King’s private secretaries (there are -five of them in all, appointed from the diplomatic corps) glean from -these every item of news likely to be of interest to the sovereign. -Nothing is skipped, criticism and unkindly comment go in with all the -rest. These clippings are pasted on sheets of paper which are bound -together with a red and yellow cord and left on His Majesty’s table. - -At eight-thirty he dines. Week day evenings, the King goes to whatever -social functions he has to attend. King Alfonso appreciates his social -duties as a sovereign quite as much as his duties of state. - -Coming down the main stairway of a house in Madrid after a dance at five -o’clock in the morning once he met one of his secretaries. “You lucky -beggar,” he exclaimed, “you need not get out of your bed before three in -the afternoon, while I must be up to receive my ministers as usual!” One -of the great reasons for the popularity of King Alfonso is his -attention to social affairs. He enters into these functions with the -same zest that he does everything else and he is seldom accused of -putting a damper on an occasion by leaving too early. - -The great fact concerning Don Alfonso that appeals to me is his extreme -humanness. He is ever and always on the spot. In his movements, he is as -quick as lightning and his mind is extraordinarily alert. Disciplined to -the very highest pitch of efficiency, he is an all round able man, and -would be so considered in any walk of life. He is never too busy to -attend to the last, smallest detail concerning any matter in his -Kingdom. - -One day he said to me, “Anything that you want in Spain, or about Spain, -don’t go anywhere else--let me know directly.” - -Whether he is presiding over his Council of Ministers or amiably and -gracefully performing some ceremony incident to the duties of -sovereignty or receiving in audience, or playing polo with his own -chosen companions, or driving his great 70 h.p. car across country at -reckless speed, or taking tea with the Queen, he is always at once the -same blithe spirit, the spontaneous youth and the earnest man of -affairs. In uniform, he looks a born soldier. At polo, he appears like a -man who lives for sport. In ordinary attire, he is the dapper young -blood of any capital city, sleek, well-groomed, immaculate. His face is -as elusive as a kaleidoscope, changing each second. Smiles and laughter -play around his mouth and eyes but underneath the surface one -instinctively feels the intense, thoughtful nature of an inspired leader -of men. - -These glimpses of the man--Alfonso,--his character, temperament and -personality, may enable us to picture the environment of the English -Princess, whose early life was spent in the tranquil atmosphere of the -Isle of Wight and the favourite Scottish home of Queen Victoria of -England. From the moment of her entrance into Spain, she has lived amid -strenuous scenes, and in an atmosphere as different from her native land -as anything could be. Yet she has risen to it all like the born Queen -she is. That the lurking dangers which so often apprise her royal -spouse, sorely try her spirit and sometimes wear her nerves is not to be -wondered at. That she exercises the control she does is the cause of our -admiration. - -Not since the year 1170 had an English Queen been called to the throne -of Spain. In that year, Alfonso VIII, wooed and won the English Eleanor, -who, as Queen, distinguished herself as a patroness of scholarship and -learning, largely supporting by contribution, the University of -Palencia. It is the belief and hope of Spain, that Queen Victoria will -carry into Spain English traditions along this line and during the years -of her reign materially raise the educational standard of the whole -people. Certain it is that any work which she attempts will be heartily -encouraged by her royal spouse. - -Queenship carries with it myriad duties,--not merely the duties of -sovereign, official or political as the case may be, but first and -foremost, the duties of motherhood, the duties of bearing and rearing -kings and queens to be. For this high office, Queen Victoria was soon to -demonstrate her aptitude and the best part of her romance lies in the -story of the royal princes of Spain which have blessed the marriage -during the first four years. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -THE PRINCE OF ASTURIAS - - -One year to a month after the Royal marriage Spain’s happiness and -satisfaction in the new Queen were made complete by the birth of an heir -to the throne. The official title of the newcomer, as heir apparent, is -Prince of Asturias, and as such he is always spoken of, but in addition, -he has a string of names almost as long as his Royal father’s string of -polo ponies. He is now three years of age and accomplished in many -things, but he cannot yet repeat his full name! Indeed, it seems -probable that he will be considerably older before he can memorise them -all in proper sequence. Fancy this wee boy learning to write: Alfonso -Pius Christian Edward Francis William Charles Henry Eugene Ferdinand -Anthony Venancio, Prince of Asturias, heir to the thrones of Spain, -Castile, Leon, Aragon, the Two Sicillies, Jerusalem, Navarre, Granada, -Toledo, Valencia, Galicia, Majolica, Minorca, Seville, Sardinia, -Cordova, Corsica, Murcie, Jean, Algarne, Algeciras, Gibraltar, the -Canary Islands, the Oriental and Occidental Indies; Archdukedom of -Austria, dukedoms of Burgundy, Brabant and Milan; Count of Hapsburg, -Flanders, the Tyrol and Barcelona; Seigneur of Biscay and Molina! This -is official. Doubters may turn to the almanach de Gotha, page 34, and -read in verification. - -The joy not only of the Royal Family but of the whole Spanish people may -be conceived at the birth of this child, for this is the first son born -to a reigning King in Spain in four generations. - -With these numerous names and appendages it is not surprising to find -Queen Victoria’s first born ushered into the world with considerable -ceremony. - -In olden days changeling children were sometimes foisted upon a nation, -and in certain historical instances such imposed children have succeeded -to thrones and held sway while the _camarilla_ which perpetrated the -trick have fattened and grown rich. To thwart these daring humbugs laws -were enacted in many countries to the effect that the birth of a Royal -child, especially an heir, must be in the presence of a certain number -of responsible dignitaries of the Court. Spain still technically holds -that the Prime Minister must be present, and according to tradition all -of the ministers, grandees and foreign ambassadors and ministers present -in the city shall be summoned to the Palace. The King then marches -through the room into which these numerous privileged ones have been -gathered bearing the Royal child on a silver salver. - -The exuberant happiness of King Alfonso may be surmised from the report -of all present on the memorable occasion that as the proud father passed -through the chamber, his face transformed into one great smile, he -could only say: “He weighs four kilos! He weighs four kilos!” - -One week later the baby Prince was baptised in the chapel of the Royal -Palace, the Bishop of Toledo, Primate of Spain, officiating. Be it said -that his serene Highness was quite on his dignity on this his first -public appearance. Only once did he jeopardise the quiet of the solemn -occasion and that at the font when he made known his presence by one -long, loud baby shriek--which afforded as much amusement to his father -the King, as it did embarrassment to the most reverend Prelate. - -This ceremony was in ample keeping with all the traditions of this most -ceremonious of courts. Vienna and St. Petersburg alone of all the -capitals of Europe are more punctilious than Madrid in the observance of -traditional functions. For Madrid and the Spanish Court be it said, -however, that these ceremonies are observed in an amiable and happy -fashion which is possible only in a country where grace and charm and -warmth of nature are characteristic of the temper and temperament of the -people. - -On this occasion the chapel in the Royal Palace in Madrid was occupied -to its utmost capacity, chiefly by the grandees of Spain, visiting -royalties, and the ambassadors and ministers of foreign countries. - -The wonderful tapestries which are one of the proudest art possessions -of Spain and which are only displayed on very special occasions were -brought out to line the walls, while the Halberdier Guards who lined the -aisles added colour to the setting. The ladies present all wore -_mantillas_ while the men were in full uniform or evening dress. The -Christening procession was one of glittering and imposing magnificence. - -First came the mace-bearers followed by the ushers in double file, then -two long lines of Chamberlains in gold-laced coats and white silk -stockings, after them the grandees of Spain in their striking military -uniforms and feathered cocked hats. Then came seven specially picked -grandees carrying seven salvers on which were such requisites for the -holy ceremony as a salt-cellar, a gold basin and ewer, a cut lemon, a -lace towel, a cape, and a large cake. Behind this party came the royal -Prince himself, ensconced in rare and beautiful laces. His fair little -uncovered head and tiny face, and his clenched fists were the admiration -of all beholders. He was in the arms of the Marquesa de los Llanos, who -is the chief of his retinue, and on one side walked the Papal Nuncio, -who is the representative of His Holiness, the Pope, as godfather, and -on the other was the Queen-mother, as the godmother. The King strode -behind. The Infantes and Infantas followed, with their suites. The -Infanta Maria Teresa, sister of the King, and her husband, Infante -Fernando, being only convalescent from measles, were unable to be -present. Don Carlos, the widowed husband of the King’s late sister, the -Infanta Mercedes, led little Prince - -[Illustration: THE PRINCE OF ASTURIAS.] - -Alfonso, who was known as the heir to the throne until the birth of his -little cousin. - -The little sister of the ex-heir was led by the hand by the Infanta -Isabel, at whose side walked Princess Henry of Battenberg, beautifully -robed in grey velvet and ermine. Prince Arthur of Connaught, with -Captain Wyndham and the Princes from Russia and Germany, and other Royal -representatives, all had their places in the procession. China was also -represented. The personal staff of the King was conspicuous, and the -halberdier band of music marshalled the glittering throng to the chapel. - -The altar was decorated with white flowers. The historic font in which -the members of the Royal Family have for centuries been baptised was in -the centre of the chapel. - -Thirty-six Bishops and four Cardinals officiated. The Royal child was -carried in the arms of his grandmother, the Dowager Queen Maria -Cristina. The water sprinkled on his brow was from the River Jordan. The -christening ceremony over, the King decorated his infant son with the -Order of the Golden Fleece, the Order of Isabella the Catholic, and the -Collar of Charles III. All the ladies of the Court were in full dress. - -The little Prince thrived as a baby, and he was a sturdy chap of almost -three when I went to Spain to write this story. In Madrid, I found him -already a feature of the capital. Each day, when it was nearing the time -for him and his little brother and sister (who have since arrived) to -go for their afternoon drive, a great crowd would collect before the -Palace gates to catch a fleeting glimpse of him who will (D. V.) one day -reign over them. - -On his first birthday, the Prince of Asturias was formally enrolled as a -member of one of the crack royal regiments in his father’s kingdom. The -regimental register for that day describes the new recruit as “resident -in the province of Madrid: age one year; and a _bachelor_!” It was the -day before his third birthday that I first saw him. He had profited by -his military connection during these two years, for he had learned to -salute as properly as any soldier, to wear a uniform, and to play with -soldier toys. Incidentally, he was still a bachelor. - -This early martial association is a custom common to kings and princes. -Not infrequently, heirs apparent are made honorary commanders of -regiments before they reach the age of five, and all through boyhood a -military uniform is the favourite costume of many of them. King Alfonso -nearly always wore a military uniform during his childhood and -youth--but Don Alfonso has never been other than a King. A nation was -already his at birth, an army, a navy and more palaces than he could -ever know what to do with. - -From the day the Prince of Asturias became a member of his regiment, a -bed was set aside and will always be reserved for him in the regimental -barracks, and the regulation plate, mug and spoon of his equipment kept -ready for his use. An incident of that memorable first birthday of the -little Prince which must have bored the young man intensely was the -reading to him of the penal laws in order that thereafter he might not -be able to justify any infraction of discipline by maintaining his -ignorance of these laws. The papers which he was obliged to sign were -marked with an “X” signifying “The Prince of Asturias, his mark.” - -One day, when I was in the Palace in Madrid, the little Prince was -discovered in one of the chambers of the private apartments, playing -with the sword of one of his father’s aides. My companion looked at the -little fellow and the sword which was bigger than he, and said: “What -does your Royal Highness propose to do with that sword?” The Prince -paused in his play and after a moment’s hesitation replied: “Have no -fear, no harm shall come to you!” - -That afternoon, His Royal Highness (as he is addressed at Court) went -riding. His horseback lessons began when he was a little more than two -and one-half years old. If he does not prove the best horseman in his -kingdom, as is his father to-day, it will not be for lack of early -training. - -The Crown Prince has one remarkable faculty which is already -phenomenally developed, and which is bound to prove of enormous value to -him in the future. That is an exceptional memory for faces--and names. -He knows perfectly well every face about the palace, and certain members -of the court whom he sees but seldom he remembers as readily as those -he sees every day. For many of the intimates of the household he has his -favourite nicknames, usually established by his Royal Highness when the -proper names are too long or too difficult for his baby mouth. The Royal -Governess is the Marquesa Maria de Salamanca. This is rather sonorous -for the Prince so he always calls her “Mia-manca,” a natural contraction -of the two names. This trait is one that was very pronounced in his -father when he was a child. Many anecdotes are still current of the -embarrassment the baby King Alfonso would frequently cause his nurses -and governesses and even his mother, the Queen Regent Maria Cristina, by -the curious and quaint names he would dub various courtiers and grandees -who were frequently staid and dignified old gentlemen. - -There is something unmistakably regal in the manner and bearing of the -Prince of Asturias. He seems to have a full realisation of who he is, -and of his own importance. This spirit is naturally fostered by his -environment. Officers and soldiers everywhere salute him, while -courtiers and populace uncover when he approaches. Being the recipient -of universal obeisance almost from his cradle accustoms him to continual -homage and he comes to expect it from everyone. - -The coachman Corral who drives the big mules to the nursery coach is a -prime favourite with the princes. One day, just as they were about to -go for their afternoon drive the Prince of Asturias went to the King -and asked for a cigar. The King was greatly surprised at the request, -coming from the Prince who was then not much over two, but he gave the -young man a cigar and watched with much curiosity what he would do with -it. The cigar was carefully carried throughout the drive and on the -return to the Palace the Prince handed it to the coachman. Since then he -frequently brings a cigar with him for the coachman, but if for any -reason he becomes displeased with the coachman over something during the -drive he carries it back upstairs for another day when the coachman is -better behaved! - -The Prince of Asturias has his mother’s fondness for sweet chocolate, -and Her Majesty keeps a supply always at hand to reward the princes for -good behaviour, and every day after luncheon they each get a piece -anyway. - -The Queen was taken ill during the week that the King was in London -attending the funeral of King Edward. The Prince of Asturias seemed -considerably worried when he learned that his mother would not be down -for luncheon. The Queen Mother, Maria Cristina, who lives in the Royal -Palace, noticed the anxious look on the face of her grandson and -inquired what was the trouble. - -“I am thinking,” he replied, “that if mother is ill and father is in -London--who will give us chocolate to-day after lunch?” - -One afternoon the Prince of Asturias was naughty. In the Casa de Campo -he had been very cross, and had been reprimanded. That night at -supper-time when the dessert was placed before him he said: “To-day I -was naughty. I do not deserve these sweets. Dessert is not for naughty -children. But before I was naughty; now I am good. Now I deserve my -sweets, so I shall take this dessert.” - -This self-depreciation as well as appreciation is one of his -characteristics. He is as quick to admit his own disapproval of himself, -as he is to insist on approval at other times. - -One day when His Majesty was going to a pigeon shoot just outside of -Madrid he took the Prince of Asturias along in the automobile. The -little Prince was greatly pleased at this and very proud. During the -next several days he went about the Palace telling everybody how pleased -he had been with the excursion. - -Travelling also delights the little man. He has from his earliest months -been interested in railroad trains and the journeys to Seville in the -winter time, to La Granja in the spring, and to San Sebastian in the -summer are great treats to the nursery. - -When the Prince of Asturias was about a year old the Royal Family moved -to La Granja. One afternoon the Queen was walking in the gardens with -one of her ladies-in-waiting when it occurred to her that she would like -to go outside of the Palace grounds for a stroll down one of the -country lanes. So without any other escort than her one lady companion -she started out. Presently they met an old peasant woman trudging toward -them carrying a basket. As she came nearer she recognised the Queen and -moved toward her. The lady-in-waiting, not understanding the motive of -the peasant woman, quickly stepped in between her and the Queen, but the -Queen at once said, “No--let her speak. She has something she wants to -say to me.” The woman then told the Queen that in the basket she carried -a litter of baby rabbits and they were so pretty and cunning that she -thought the little Prince would like them--and would Her Majesty not -send them to the Prince. The Queen peeped into the basket and was so -delighted with the wee warm bunnies that she told the woman to bring -them herself to the Prince, and to the astonishment of the -lady-in-waiting and the unbounded joy of the peasant woman the Queen led -the way back to the Palace and up to the nursery where the Prince duly -received the bunnies and was highly pleased with them. - -At another time, in Seville, a litter of rabbits was presented to the -Prince of Asturias. This time the rabbits were bigger and lively. -Someone left the cover off the basket and the rabbits all jumped out and -ran off through the Palace, affording the Prince much amusement, but -creating no end of trouble for the nurses who had to catch them. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -THE ROYAL NURSERY OF SPAIN - - -There is a striking contrast between the two princes. The Prince of -Asturias is absolutely fair with flaxen hair, while Don Jaime is as dark -as a typical Spaniard. Even at the age of two, his hair is dark and his -eyes are as lustrously brown as his father’s. - -All three of the children are learning to speak English, Spanish and -French, with equal fluency. They have between them two English nursery -governesses and one French maid in addition to a usual number of Spanish -maids and other servants. Their mother, the Queen, was brought up -familiar with French and German, in addition to her own English, while -King Alfonso was taught English, French and German from his boyhood. It -is expected that a modern king be able to talk and think in two or three -languages, but it is exceptional to find a crown prince of three who can -already express himself in three tongues. - -When speaking to his mother, the Queen, the little Prince invariably -uses English, but with his father, the King, he uses Spanish. He seems -to know instinctively one tongue from the other. If he is handed -something--for example, a box--he will take it and pronounce the word -in English and Spanish and sometimes in French also. In that way he -seems to instinctively teach himself the three languages simultaneously. - -The two Princes are naturally constant playmates. In the Casa de Campo -where they are taken every morning at half-past ten they play in the -sand together and stand up their little toy soldiers. As I had the -privilege of playing here with them one morning I shall have more to say -of this later. The Crown Prince usually refers to his brother as “my -brother, the Infante,” never as Don Jaime or Jaime, although -occasionally he lapses into English and calls him “Jimmy.” - -The Princes are very fond of each other, but like all children they have -their quarrels now and again. The Crown Prince has a good deal of a will -of his own and sometimes his nurses find him something more than a -handful. One morning he rushed up to the Royal Governess and said: “My -brother the Infante has been very naughty, _very_ naughty, so I kicked -him and he cried. But now he is no longer naughty so I shall run and -kiss him,” whereupon he rushed off to the playroom in the châlet where -he found Don Jaime and tenderly kissed him. - -Don Jaime has one of the sweetest baby faces I have ever seen. He has -inherited his father’s soft, beautiful eyes and winning smile. His -nature is said to be as lovely as his smile. He is a great favourite in -the Royal Household and already is manifesting unusual signs of -keenness and intelligence. - -Curiously enough, the newspapers of Europe including England, and also -of America, have from time to time printed stories to the effect that -these two Princes are deaf and dumb and otherwise defective. These -rumours are all baseless slanders. The King’s secretary has been put to -great trouble writing to inform people all over the world that there is -no truth in these stories. On one occasion the Prime Minister found it -necessary to issue a public signed statement to the effect that he had -personally talked with the Princes and that he knew them to be mentally -and physically fit and normal. As a matter of fact, I found them both -unusually sturdy boys with exceptional intelligence for their years. - -In this connection I had a striking experience of the way these stories -are circulated. The second or third day after I arrived in Madrid the -head porter at my hotel said to me: “So you are the American physician?” - -“What American physician?” I asked in surprise. - -“The doctor who has been brought from New York to attend the Crown -Prince.” - -“No,” I replied, “I am not a doctor. How did you come to think that I -was?” - -He thereupon explained that shortly after my arrival in Madrid the -King’s private secretary had called for me at my hotel and that directly -after I had been seen entering the Royal Palace. This aroused some -curiosity among the hotel people and finally someone concluded that as I -wore a Van-dyke beard I must be a physician, and as I had gone to the -Palace I had undoubtedly gone to examine the Princes who were said to be -deaf and dumb! This absurd tale circulated about the capital and as it -went from mouth to mouth details were added, and that which at first was -characterised as probable and circumstantial became absolutely definite. - -It is really cruel to spread such nonsensical stories about two such -bright boys as the Prince of Asturias and Don Jaime. - -Both the Prince of Asturias and Don Jaime are devoted to horses and all -the trappings of the stables. They are also very fond of cats. There is -one big nursery cat which is an especial favourite. So far they have not -taken much interest in dogs, and in fact there isn’t even one dog about -the Royal Palace in Madrid. Formerly the King had many dogs, but now -very few and these are kept in the country. The Queen had a dog which -was presented to her by her uncle, the late King Edward of England, but -one day at La Granja the dog strayed away--as the best of dogs sometimes -will, even when their masters are sovereigns and their abode a royal -palace. - -The palace of the Alcazar in Seville is a favourite residence with the -Princess just as it is with the Queen. The gardens of this old Moorish -palace are very delightful and here the Royal children love to play -just as their father did when he was a boy. Down one of the walks is a -series of tiny holes. Ordinarily no one would even see them. It was a -favourite prank of the little Don Alfonso to send some unsuspecting -person along this walk while he loitered in the rear; suddenly he would -turn a hidden wheel and instantly a fine stream of water would shoot up -through each of these squirt holes, to the astonishment and oftentimes -consternation of the victim of the Royal joke. - -There is a maze of boxwood in these gardens which affords the children -endless amusement. A stranger once entering this maze gets completely -entangled and bewildered. It takes even an adult some time to discover -the path leading out. Here, too, are several small ponds stocked with -gold fish and every day the Princes visit the ponds to feed the fish. - -The Prince of Asturias is especially fond of playing in sand, and on his -third birthday the Queen bought for him a set of sand pails and little -shovels which pleased him tremendously. - -One day I was in the nursery playroom at the Alcazar and I took occasion -to examine the toys of the Royal children. What was my surprise to find -a great assortment of little tin mechanical toys such as one sees -exhibited all along Fourteenth street or Twenty-third street--toys that -cost about ten cents each. The things that are wound up with a - -[Illustration: THE COURT OF THE VIRGINS AT SEVILLE.] - -key and then rush about in circles. There were boxing men, and little -go-carts drawn by monkeys and donkeys and a great assortment of similar -devices. - -Of course, they have many grand toys, gifts from sovereigns, potentates -and ambassadors, but so far neither of the Princes has exhibited any -particular predilection for these expensive toys. The simple ten-cent -things afford them as much pleasure as anything. - -The favourite toy of the Crown Prince for a long time was a doll dressed -as a soldier. The one positive passion that this little fellow has as -yet revealed is soldiering. To most children, soldiering is the most -fascinating thing in the world. But to the Prince of Asturias, soldiers -are almost an obsession. The sound of bugles and drums excites him -tremendously and he never wearies of watching troops at drill or on -parade. The guard mount at the Royal Palace in Madrid takes place every -morning at eleven o’clock, and is considerable of a ceremony, many -troops being employed and representing several branches of the -army--infantry, cavalry and field artillery, while two bands are -constantly playing. The Prince’s room in the Palace looks out upon the -esplanade where this takes place, and never a day does he fail to watch -this when he is in the Palace. This is another trait inherited from his -father. - -Another remarkable evidence of more than ordinary brightness in the -Prince of Asturias in his familiarity with the different uniforms. He -knows them all and rarely makes an error. Even from his window looking -down into the street, he can distinguish an artillery uniform from the -infantry,--a lancer from a halberdier. - -Queen Victoria Eugenie is one of the most devoted of mothers. As it has -been the policy in Spain for queens-consort to hold aloof from politics, -she has been able to devote more of her time than would ordinarily be -the case to her children, without at the same time neglecting other -duties of queenship. - -She is devoted to each of them alike, with a possible special fondness -for the Infanta Beatrice. But the Infanta is only one year old and as -she is the baby as well as the one daughter, this slight preference is -understandable. - -The Princes get up every morning at half-past seven. After their bath -they repair at once to the Queen’s room and remain for an hour or more. -Thus is every day started. - -Every bright morning when the Royal Family is in residence at Madrid all -three children are taken to the Casa de Campo to play, at half-past ten. -When they tire of their play they drive a little, and the Prince of -Asturias takes his morning ride on his pony “Belaye,” and then they go -to the pretty little châlet which has been built for them in the park -and enjoy a nap before luncheon. The Prince is keen to hear -stories--especially stories about soldiers. They must be invented -stories, however, and each morning the governess or one of the nurses is -implored to tell a story. Generally he drops off to sleep before the -story is finished, which is what he likes. At bedtime the Queen -generally tells him a story until he falls asleep. - -One Monday morning in one of the rooms of the private apartments in the -Royal Palace at Madrid I noticed a suspended sheet. There were a group -of chairs in front and obviously the sheet had been used as a screen for -lantern pictures. Upon inquiry I was told that every Sunday evening the -King and Queen and all the Royal Family dine together informally--_en -famille_ as it were--and after the meal they all adjourn to the -adjoining room for a biograph exhibition. These Sunday evening suppers -and entertainments constitute one of the most charming features of the -Spanish court life. - -The children of the Spanish Royal Family are especially fortunate in -having parents who are above all things human--vibrant with youth, -indulgent with the pranks and pleasantries of childhood. It is not so -long since King Alfonso himself was a mischievous lad, and Queen -Victoria Eugenie a capricious girl. According to all reports, the boy -Alfonso was quite as full of spirit and mischief as the average small -boy anywhere in the world. - -King Alfonso even now has not outgrown this love for fun. The first -Shrove Tuesday that Queen Victoria was in Spain she was made the victim -of a joke by her Royal spouse and his sister, the Infanta Maria Teresa. -As Her Majesty was passing through one of the corridors of the Palace -the King and the Infanta suddenly sprang out upon her, disguised behind -masks, giving her a considerable start. This is the survival of an -ancient custom in Spain peculiar to this particular day. This boyishness -is constantly cropping out, often to the amusement of the court. There -can be no doubt that when the little Princes are old enough to indulge -in practical jokes that they will find their Royal father and mother the -most sympathetic of parents. - -I had seen the Royal children a good many times during my stay in Spain, -but I had had no opportunity for close observation of them. I wanted to -see them at play, and to take some snap-shots of them with my own -camera. None of my friends at court quite knew how to obtain this -privilege for me. The request was without precedent, as the Princes have -not yet reached the age of holding audiences. So I spoke to His Majesty -the King about it. I broached the matter delicately, but without the -slightest hesitation the King replied: “Most certainly you may meet -them. In the Palace if you like, but they are so little I am afraid they -would be shy and quiet. The best thing would be for you to go to the -Casa de Campo one morning and play with them. There you may also have -your camera and take as many snap-shots as you like. And if the pictures -are good,” he continued, “you will let me show them to Her Majesty the -Queen who is always much interested in all photographs of the Princes.” - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -THE PRINCES AT PLAY - - -I thanked His Majesty warmly for this unusual courtesy, and the second -morning after Señor de Torres called for me at my hotel just before ten -o’clock and we drove together to the Reserve in the Casa de Campo. The -Marquesa de Salamanca, who is the First Royal Governess, passed us in an -automobile near the entrance. The Marquesa de Puerta, who is the Second -Governess, was not there that morning. We arrived a brief moment behind -the nursery. The Princes and their nursemaids were still in the mule -coach driven by Corral, the favourite nursery coachman. Behind was the -little open carriage drawn by the two donkeys “Sol” and “Luna,” and the -tiny Shetland pony, “Belaye,” of the Crown Prince. - -As we approached, the Marquesa de Salamanca lifted the Prince of -Asturias from the carriage and brought him in her arms toward us, -presenting him as the Little Crown Prince. Anticipating her, however, -the little fellow cried out: “Kaulak--Kaulak, is coming.” Now, Kaulak is -a Madrid photographer who takes most of the photographs of the Royal -family and the Prince had noticed the cameras in my hand. The Marquesa -told him, as she put him down at our feet, that I was not Kaulak, -though I had cameras and could take his picture. He surveyed me -critically for a moment and then came and posed himself before me with -his little right hand at salute, asking that I first take him that way. -He wore the same broad-brimmed white straw hat encircled by a pale blue -ribbon and the cunning little white flannel suit in which I had first -seen him going out to drive. He tried valiantly to wrestle with my name -but this proved too much of a mouthful. - -The two English governesses and the French maid gathered the children’s -toys from the coach and we started for a stream of water where the -children wanted to play. As we started the Infante Don Jaime was brought -over. He is a dear boy with a wonderfully sweet and friendly smile. It -was evident from the first moment that he, at least, had no intention of -standing on ceremony. The wee Infanta Beatrice was too sleepy to pay -much attention, so she was put to rest in an ordinary baby carriage and -was soon trundled fast asleep. - -The Prince of Asturias first took up the sand pail and shovel that had -recently been given him by his mother the Queen for his third birthday. -Don Jaime, however, found more interest in the water. He splashed the -stream for a few minutes then toddled off to a spring and began tossing -stones into the water, laughing with delight at each splash. When he had -used all of his stones he asked me to recover them. This was a task, -but I rolled up my sleeves, and getting down on my knees I began to -pick them from the bottom one by one and arrange them around the spring -wall. Just as I finished the Prince of Asturias ran up and seizing the -largest stone of all splashed it violently back into the water, wetting -me from head to foot. This gave them both great pleasure and they -laughed tremendously. “See,” exclaimed the Infante, “I have given you a -bath!” - -The next moment the Prince decided that my dress was incomplete, as I -had no flower in my buttonhole. He asked me if I wouldn’t like him to -get me a nice flower. I told His Royal Highness that I should be very -pleased. So away he went to the flower beds. He was critical in his -selection. A number of flowers were successively rejected. Finally he -plucked a beautiful white rose and bringing it back placed it (with a -little assistance) in my buttonhole. Don Jaime, in the meantime watched -his brother with evident interest and decided that it was his turn to do -something toward entertaining me. So he went off to the strawberry bed -and picked some luscious ripe berries to feed me. - -The morning was unusually dark and gloomy for Madrid in June, and I am -very much of an amateur at photography, consequently dependent upon -bright light. About eleven o’clock the clouds lightened somewhat and I -got out my cameras. Instantly both Princes were interested. The Prince -of Asturias particularly seemed to enjoy having his picture taken. I -snapped him repeatedly and found that he never seemed to weary of posing -for me. - -The Infanta Beatrice had now waked up, so she joined us. Corral, ever -attentive and watchful, took great delight in catching the eye of the -small Princess so that her face should be turned toward the camera. She -showed a silent interest in the performance, but her little eyes were -still heavy with sleep and it was evident that she would much have -preferred to remain in her perambulator. She grew alert, however, when -the donkey carriage was brought round. She enjoys her rides about the -gardens, sitting by the side of her brother Don Jaime. - -Don Jaime climbed into the carriage by himself and picked up the whip. -The Infanta thought that she should hold this and straightway reached -out her hand to grasp it. The two wrestled back and forth until between -them they dropped it onto the ground. Then there was storm and tears. - -When I looked round the Prince was proudly seated on Belaye. Belaye is -one of the smallest of Shetland ponies, and his saddle precisely like a -toy. It is not quite a real saddle for it has a seat and straps to -secure the little rider. But these are the first lessons of the Prince -in riding. By the time he is six he will doubtless mount a real saddle -and ride just like a little man. - -Besides his Shetland pony he has two little donkeys, so tiny that any -man could carry one under each arm. These are harnessed to a little -cart and the young Prince takes his first lessons in driving in the -beautiful and extensive park behind the Royal Palace, known as the _Casa -de Campo_. Formerly he had a third donkey called “Astra,” but Astra -died. Sometime after this distressing event the Prince was asked about -Astra by someone in the Palace, and he made answer with a certain manner -of mystery, “Oh! he is gone away. He is in the Casa de Campo eating -strawberries.” - -In amusing contrast to these dwarf donkeys are four sturdy mules which -are attached to the big nursery coach in which ride not only the Prince -of Asturias but also his brother Don Jaime, his sister Infanta Beatrice -and two of their nurses. Beside the carriage, ride two splendidly -mounted equerries and behind, two Royal grooms. On the whole, it is an -imposing cavalcade, this nursery out a-airing. - -The two Princes--aged three and two respectively--sit on the main seat. -A brace for their feet has been adjusted to the carriage and two leather -belts keep them securely in place. One day I was going into the Palace -just as the nursery was about to start out. The little Prince and the -Infante were in their seats and the baby Infanta was just being brought -downstairs. As I passed the carriage, I raised my hat to the wee boys, -both of whom were dressed in white with broad-brimmed straw hats. -Instantly, two little hands were raised to their right temples, elbows -out, eyes front--all with military precision. No soldier could have -given a truer salute. It was so charming, so unexpected, that I laughed -outright. On later days when I saw them out driving, I noticed that each -time they passed a flag they saluted it, and each time an officer or -soldier saluted them, the salute was returned. - -The morning wore on till noon time when Don Jaime grew overpoweringly -sleepy, and the Prince grew anxious for his morning story--preliminary -to his noon nap. We drove and rode and picked more flowers and threw -more stones into the water and made more sand piles--and we were all -very happy. I found them wholesome, hearty children, normal in all -respects, bright beyond their years, and well developed. How the -baseless stories concerning their supposed infirmities and defectiveness -ever started, is a mystery to me, unless political enemies of the -monarchial parties set them in circulation with malice aforethought. - -After my morning with them in the Casa de Campo some people at my hotel -said to me: “What a pity that the Princes are not right in their -faculties!” - -“But they are perfectly right,” I replied, indulgently, “those stories -are pure nonsense.” - -“Oh! no, sir. You must be mistaken.” - -“How can I be mistaken?” I answered, “I have just spent a morning with -them and I found them not only normal in every way, but particularly -intelligent.” - -“That cannot be,” was the reply, “because it is said that they are -defective.” - -I began to grow indignant and finally I gave up the controversy. After I -had gone they asked one another, as I later learned, how much the King -had paid me to say that the Princes were all right! What is one to do -with such people? And this is characteristic of what is met often in -Madrid. - -The Prince of Asturias is to-day one of the loveliest of children. -Presently he must submit to the discipline which will make of him a -strong, fearless man fit to lead and rule a nation. If he lives he will -succeed to the throne of Spain as King Alfonso XIV. - -There is no better wish that I may express for my readers than that when -they come to this beautiful summer land of Spain, they may have -something of the same privileges I have enjoyed; that they may meet this -manly, courageous, wise King, Alfonso XIII--face to face, clasp his hand -in hearty grasp and sit with him in his study by the hour listening to -his clear-cut, incisive conversation, enjoying his ideas and ideals, all -expressed in most excellent English; or go with him to the beautiful -polo ground and watch him play the fastest sort of game, riding his -beautiful ponies brought over from the Argentine Republic; that they may -meet the beautiful Queen Victoria Eugenie, the English Princess, who is -the true heroine of this romance and perhaps hear from her own lips the -story of the beautiful prophesy of her father, now long dead, that one -day she should come to Spain and be very, very happy. Perchance, indeed, -some favoured ones may be shown the Spanish fan he sent her from Seville -and which is to-day her most treasured possession. Above all, I would -wish that all might spend a morning such as I spent in the Casa de Campo -with the little Princes, playing in the sand, splashing water and eating -strawberries plucked by these dear, little, Royal hands and carry away a -pure white rose, selected and plucked by him who will one day, God -willing, be King Alfonso XIV of Spain. - - - - -PART II - -EMPRESS ALEXANDRA FEODOROVNA OF RUSSIA - - - - -CHAPTER I - -“SUNNY” - - -“The most beautiful Queen on any throne,” she was called when first she -became Empress of all the Russias. She still is tall and stately, her -hair is luxuriant and rich in colour. Eyes that some call blue and some -call grey look out through long, dark lashes, and in them lies a great -sadness, an appealing wistfulness touched with regret, a silent -melancholy betraying soul tragedy. Yet as a child she was known as -“Sunny.” - -The life story of “Sunny” has never before been comprehensively told in -English. This is curious, because there probably is not a person in the -whole world who would not like to hear the wonderful romance of how a -poor little German Princess became a great Sovereign, the co-ruler of -one of the vastest empires on earth, the mistress of a fabulously rich -and bewilderingly extravagant court, and with opportunity for becoming -the most powerful woman in Europe. “Sunny” was the childhood nickname -of this little Princess, and after the hardships and vicissitudes of a -quiet girlhood, where there was a constant struggle to maintain -appearances, she was courted by a wayward gallant who was heir to a -mighty crown. “Sunny” lost her heart to the Royal wooer, and he, putting -aside the less noble loves of his reckless, youthful days, pledged -himself to her--persistently courted her against wide opposition--turned -a deaf ear to the councils of Emperors and Queens who tried to -discourage the match, and after years of battling with diplomatic -intrigue and personal restraint he carried his purpose, married the -German Princess who was truly the bride of his heart, and in marrying -her raised her from the obscurity and poverty of her own simple home to -the exalted rank of Empress. This is the true story of Princess Alix of -Hesse whom Nicholas II made Tsaritsa of Russia! - -There is something tremendously dramatic about this little German -Princess stepping out of the quiet of her Darmstadt home into the arena -of world affairs, and taking her position as Empress over one hundred -and forty millions of people. Yet, of her life, almost nothing is known -by the world at large. - -No woman of modern times has had such marvellous opportunities for the -exercise of personal influence and power. Yet who knows her? I had seen -her in St. Petersburg, I knew men and women of the Court who had told me -things about her from time to time. But I felt less acquainted with her -life than that of any sovereign in Europe. I turned to the magazine and -newspaper files of the last fifteen years and I was amazed at the -meagreness of information concerning her. I made diligent inquiry among -people who frequently are veritable mines of gossip and stories -concerning Royal personages, but scarcely a thing could I gather -concerning the Tsaritsa who in many ways occupies the most unique -position of any woman in the world. When I set forth in all seriousness -to learn of her from her childhood to the present time, to gather the -details of her charming romance and the story how she became the wife of -an Emperor, I found I must go far afield--overseas, to Germany, to -Russia; I must seek my information from her courtiers, her -ladies-in-waiting, her friends, princes and princesses of the realm, -tutors of her children, servants in her palaces, officials of the -Imperial Household. So I went. I talked with all these people and many -more besides, and the story I set down here is the story of her life, as -I have heard it piecemeal from the lips of those who have been closest -to her during the years that she has occupied a position of world -eminence. - -The Tsaritsa is now thirty-nine years old. She was born at -Darmstadt, Germany, June 6, 1872, and christened Princess -Alix-Victoria-Helene-Louise-Beatrix. She was the youngest daughter of -the Grand Duke and Duchess of Hesse and the Rhine. Her mother was -Princess Alice of England, daughter of Queen Victoria. - -Her sister, Princess Victoria, became the wife of Louis of Battenberg; -her sister Elizabeth became the wife of the Grand Duke Sergius of -Russia, uncle of the present Tsar; while a third sister became Princess -Henry of Prussia. Prince Henry is the brother of Emperor William of -Germany, and he is the official head of the German Navy. The only living -brother of these remarkable sisters eventually came into the title of -Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine, which he holds to-day. Besides all -these close connections with important Royalties, she was a niece of -King Edward of England and cousin to innumerable lesser Royalties. After -her marriage she became connected with the courts of Denmark and Greece. - -The Dukes of Hesse were made Grand Dukes during the time of the -Napoleonic wars and Grand Dukes they have remained to this day. - -Thus Princess Alix has always had grand connections, but the duchy of -Hesse and the Rhine was poor and as the Grand Duke, her father, was not -even ruler of the Duchy, and possessed of only small financial -resources, the family household was forced to accept a comparatively -frugal régime. There are hundreds of girls in America to-day who have -never felt the press of poverty as did Princess Alix through the early -years of her life. The little Princess was taught to sew and to assist -in home duties, not only because this was all part of the proper -training of a princess, but because of necessity. - -The simplicity of this home was like the simplicity of an ordinary -German or English middle class home of to-day. In her letters to Queen -Victoria, the mother of Princess Alix was wont to speak very freely of -the straitened circumstances of the family. Some of the items and -incidents mentioned in these letters can hardly be credited. For -instance, in one letter the death of a cow is lamented--“because it will -be so difficult to get another.” In another she sends thanks for some -furniture. In another the summer holiday is discussed and frank -acknowledgment made that they cannot afford to go to Sheveningen, the -charming and fashionable Dutch watering resort a few miles from The -Hague, because it is too costly, but they must be content with -Blankenberghe which is treeless, dull and uninteresting, but more -reasonable of price. - -Princess Alix’s allowance of pocket money was twenty-five cents a week -up to the time of her confirmation, when she received double that -amount. Alix was the youngest born of the Grand Duke and Duchess and was -called “Alix” because Queen Victoria had always been annoyed at the way -Germans pronounced Alice. And so at her suggestion Alice was changed to -Alix to simplify it for the people of her own country. “Alicky” she was -frequently called by her mother, but the neighbours and friends of the -family early came to call her the “Little Princess Sonnenschein,” and -from this came the name of endearment which she carried for so -long--“Sunny.” - -“Baby is a sweet, merry little person, like Ella (her sister), but her -features are smaller,” her mother once wrote to Queen Victoria, “and her -eyes are darker, and she has very long lashes and auburn hair. She is -always laughing, and with a deep dimple in one cheek just like Ernie.” -(Ernie was her brother who is now Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine.) On -another occasion her mother wrote: “She is indeed the personification of -her nickname ‘Sunny.’” During all this time Empress dreams were far off, -and the big world with its infinite possibilities, its large joys and -burden of days, but visions of twilight hours. When she was only six -years old her mother died. This was the first deep shadow of her life, -and from that time on she carried little responsibilities that tended to -weigh upon her, to drive her more and more into herself, and perhaps to -plant the seeds of moroseness which some say is now a quality of her -character. At twelve the True Romance of her life came to her. - -Princess Elizabeth, the older sister of Alix, had been courted by Grand -Duke Sergius, of Russia, an uncle of the present Tsar and brother of the -then reigning Emperor. In 1884 Sergius came to Darmstadt for his bride, -and young Nicholas was of the Royal party. Nicholas here met Princess -Alix for the first time and in her saw his future bride--the future -Empress of his country. Nicholas, though nearly four years older than -she, was only sixteen, but sometimes hearts can choose their own at -sixteen as surely as in later years, and if love has since been the -dominant element in the family life of this royal couple, it entered in, -there in Darmstadt at this early time. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -COURTSHIP AND A JOURNEY TO THE NORTHLAND - - -From the hour of their first meeting, Princess Alix never doubted the -love of her young Russian scion, whose still boyish heart she knew she -had reached. Child as she was, Princess Alix already felt germinating -within her beginnings of woman love, and from that time through all the -following girlhood days, through her period of lovely maidenhood, she -held in close memory the picture of her first wooer. That her young -lover was less faithful was not so much a matter of surprise, because -first of all being a man, and especially a Russian man, not to include a -Prince besides, Nicholas naturally went the way of all the rest, the way -of so many men, of most Russians, and of all Princes, and under the -tutelage of his relatives, the Grand Dukes, and other unavoidable -corrupt associates of the Court, he sowed his wild oats as part of the -day’s work, and as a matter of course, sowed them furiously and very, -very wildly. Nicholas’ mother, spouse of the Emperor Alexander III, -herself early suggested that a mistress for the young Nicholas might be -well as a choice of evils, the lesser one. Thereupon, Nicholas was taken -to the Imperial Ballet, there to make his choice of a temporary love. -The woman whom he chose at that time lives to-day in St. Petersburg, in -a grand palace, given her by the little man who now rules the mighty -Empire of Russia, built by money exacted from thousands of starving -peasants throughout the length and breadth of the vast empire. - -Perhaps--for a time--Nicholas forgot the little German girl, but she -never forgot her Prince! Perhaps Nicholas was lacking in that blessed -quality we call “loyalty.” Or it may be that he was only weak of -character as most of his friends of the time would have us believe. At -all events, he was not even true to his Polish dancer, and when he -became infatuated with a Jewess, his Imperial father cried “Enough!” and -sent his son on a tour around the world. Nicholas was accompanied on -this trip by another _bon vivant_, his cousin Prince George of Greece. -Prince George, however, was also an athlete and a man of ready wit, and -when in Japan a fanatic rushed upon the Tsarevitch to kill him, Prince -George raised his arm and succeeded in so diverting the stroke that -Nicholas received only a glancing blow on the forehead. Thus was he -spared to return to Darmstadt and renew his suit with his love of -earlier days. - -Royal marriages are so rarely love matches, that the world watches the -few that are with admiration and hope. Too often diplomatic objections -prevent the coming together of royal lovers. And so in the case with -Nicholas, his father desired the union of his son with a Montenegrin -princess. - -Queen Victoria never really opposed the match, but she feared for the -safety of her grand-daughter. The Russian throne is supposed to offer -unparalleled peril to its occupants, and the health of the Princess Alix -had never been rugged. Queen Victoria feared that under the great stress -and strain of St. Petersburg Princess Alix would not have the strength -to bear up. The Empress Frederick of Germany, an aunt of Princess Alix, -was also doubtful of the wisdom of the match. Her reasons, however, were -somewhat different. Empress Frederick had had many opportunities to -watch the development of her sister’s daughter and she had noticed, -perchance with pain, certain qualities of temperament which may have -been the result of her trying circumstances in early years, together -with the fact that she had been left so much alone through the early -death of her mother. She was reserved and shy, therefore seeming cold of -nature, and haughty of manner. Having seen far less of the great world -than most royal princesses she shrank from the social whirl. The -loneliness of her childhood had taught her to find resource within -herself, thus habits of reading, study, and contemplation had become -part of her nature. These characteristics all make for the development -of a splendid, substantial woman, but they fail to bring out the -qualities essential to a woman who is to preside over a brilliant court, -where the sway of personality, of grace, charm and wit--all of the -surface virtues--count for as much, if not more, than the deeper -qualities of sound character and a disciplined mind. - -Appreciating all this Empress Frederick did not encourage, even if she -refrained from actively opposing the marriage. - -The Polish Princess, Catherine Radziwill, chanced to be passing through -Germany about this time and lingered for a few days, the guest of the -Empress Frederick. One afternoon, Princess Radziwill referred to the -betrothal and remarked on the happy fate which had led Nicholas to -select a bride who had been imbued with the ideas of Germany and -England. To her surprise the Empress gravely shook her head and remarked -that it was not always safe to trust what was said by people ignorant of -the true character of those they praised or blamed, according to the -exigencies of the moment. When Princess Radziwill pressed the Empress -further she added that “Princess Alix had a haughty disposition, and -would be inclined to take more seriously than might be supposed, her -position of absolute sovereign.” - -She went so far as to refer to the despotic temperament of her niece, -and her self-opinioned tendencies. “She is far too much convinced of her -own perfection,” said the Empress, “and she will never listen to other -people’s advice, besides, she has no tact, and perhaps, without knowing -it, will manage to wound the feelings of the persons she ought to try -and conciliate.” - -Princess Radziwill remarked that it was passing strange a daughter of -Princess Alice, and a grand-daughter of Queen Victoria could have such a -disposition. Whereupon the Empress returned sadly: “Oh! but when do you -see daughters taking after their mothers?” Then, after a short pause she -continued: “It would not be possible for anyone to be like my sister.” - -But Alix loved Nicholas and she would be daunted by neither the perils -of a restless empire, nor the fear of physical weakness or suffering, -nor the discouragements of her royal relatives. And Nicholas, with that -stubbornness that has ever characterised him, set about to win over all -opponents to their marriage. First he appealed to his uncle, Grand Duke -Serge, who had married Alix’s sister, Elizabeth. Then he went to London -and pleaded with Queen Victoria. Finally, he gained the consent of his -own father, who was the last to yield. Then Nicholas went himself to -Darmstadt to carry the news in person to his Princess who had now waited -for this message for nine long years. - -There still remained one important obstacle. And that this was a -difficulty to the German Princess, is to her everlasting credit. -According to the laws of Russia, the throne may never be occupied or -shared by anyone not of the Greek Catholic faith. Now Princess Alix, -being born in Germany and brought up in Germany, was a Protestant. From -earliest childhood, she had been devoted to the Church and to her -religion, and the tenets of the Greek Church were totally unfamiliar to -her. - -[Illustration: THE TSARITSA IS HONORARY COLONEL OF THE UHLANS OF THE -GUARD.] - -When they were presented to her there were many things that seemed so -strange that for a long time she could not acknowledge her acceptance of -them. - -In most royal marriages, the brides change their faith as lightly as -they change their gowns, and learn the priest-taught formulas that their -tutors prescribe, and subscribe to the doctrines of their adopted church -without fear or question. Alix demanded intimate knowledge of all the -doctrines she must accept, so learned theologians and doctrinaires were -dispatched to Darmstadt to give her instruction. Many are the stories -told of her long arguments with these learned men over points that were -not clear to her, and of her deep prying questions into the reasons for -certain regulations and laws. At one time it seemed as if she could not -accept certain things that these holy men were endeavouring to press -upon her and more than one rumour went abroad that the royal marriage -would never take place simply because of these religious difficulties. -There seemed some ground for these reports, for the priest who had been -her especial instructor, one Yanisheff, at one time became so despairing -of his “heretical” charge, that he left Darmstadt altogether and -returned to Russia. - -A long letter from the Princess was received by Nicholas, and he, -instead of being hurt by the way she held out on these matters, -expressed himself as highly pleased. A vigorous correspondence then -passed quickly between them. And in the end, it was her love that -conquered. I do not think that Princess Alix has ever been what the -world calls an “ambitious woman.” No one believes that the Greek priests -“converted” her. But she loved Nicholas with a love that transcended all -creeds and dogmas and finally, after long hesitation, her love rose to -the highest point and for his sake she “accepted” the state church of -the land that was to be her future home. - -At the time the betrothal was definitely announced, it was anticipated -that Alexander would probably continue to reign for some years, and that -in the meantime the bride of the Heir Apparent would have ample time to -accustom herself to Russia, and to school herself for the difficult rôle -of Empress, which she would one day have to assume. - -The Russian press was flooded with stories and anecdotes of the beauty, -the cleverness, and the varied accomplishments of the German Princess -whom Nicholas was bringing to Russia. This was to popularise her among -the people. It was said that she was a rare musician, a great scholar, -and even that she had taken the degree of doctor of philosophy at some -university! Flaming lithographs of her were circulated by the thousand -among the peasants, and in the space of a few months her name had become -a household word across the Empire and the Russian people were prepared -to accept her as a worthy consort to the Heir Apparent. - -The betrothal was announced in April. In September of the same year, -Tsar Alexander’s health began to fail rapidly and he was removed from -the cold of the northern capital to the Royal estate of Livadia in the -Crimea. - -I have seen royal palaces and parks in every part of the world, but I -have never seen a more beautiful place than Livadia. It is on the slope -of the Crimean Alps, some of whose peaks tower more than three thousand -feet above the glorious blue waters of the Black Sea that here lap the -shores of Livadia. Yalta, lovely Yalta, a winter jewel daintily set in a -wondrous setting of sea and hills, is removed from Livadia by only a -spur of mountains easily and quickly crossed. And here, when all the -rest of Russia lies frozen beneath semi-Arctic snows, roses and -oleanders bloom, and ripe fruit hangs luscious for the pickers. Here -winter suns are warm and winter evenings balmy. - -I think the fairest nights I have ever seen have been in Yalta and on -the road to Livadia when a December moon shone brightly over the -restless water and aslant the lovely hills as in dream nights of June. - -To this most beauteous spot in all Russia, Alexander III was taken. It -was the monarch’s last journey. When it became evident that the end was -near Nicholas sent for his bride-to-be. Probably no woman or man in -modern times has had so warm a welcome prepared. The press of Europe was -echoing and re-echoing the praise of the young Princess, in happy attune -with the inspired press of Russia. The Emperor William himself went to -meet the Princess at the Berlin railroad station and bid her -Godspeed--she who was to wear an Imperial crown. - -Warsaw was the first Russian city where Princess Alix paused on her -journey to Livadia whither she was hastening in the expectancy of -marrying prior to the death of Alexander III. At Warsaw she was met by -her sister, the Grand Duchess Elizabeth, and farther along in the -journey by the Heir Apparent. Her progress across the Empire was like a -triumphal march despite the sadness that hovered over a nation whose -ruler lay dying. Great arches of welcome were raised to her, and the -populace turned out all along the way to do her honour. - -We can well imagine the mingled feelings of surprise and awe which must -have overwhelmed the retiring and somewhat austere German Princess, as -she came in contact now for the first time with the great world, and -with the homage of a vast people which from that day was to be her’s for -all the rest of the days of her life. Princes and potentates, like -peasants from the isolated villages of the Steppes, bent their knees in -humble obeisance, while soldiers stood at salute as she passed. She knew -full well that she was leaving behind her forever the simple life she -had always known up until now. She knew that she was going to a -death-bed scene, between ranks of gold and silver. Though her path was -scattered with flowers and the plaudits of the people continuously rang -in her ears, she knew what the end of the journey must be, and she must -have known too, in a dim, tragic way, all that lay beyond the endraped -gold, toward which she was speeding in the Crimea. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -ASSUMING THE BURDEN - - -Upon arriving at Livadia Princess Alix hastened to the bedside of the -moribund Emperor. The following day, in the royal chapel of Livadia she -was received into the Greek Orthodox Church under the name of Alexandra -Feodorovna. Her own preference was for the name Catherine, but yielding -to the wishes of Nicholas, she accepted the name of his choosing. The -wedding day was fixed for the following Wednesday, but the nearing end -of Alexander necessitated a brief postponement--only till the end had -come, and all that remained of him had been transported to St. -Petersburg and laid to rest beside the remains of his father, and his -father’s fathers for many generations, in the golden-spired Chapel of -the grim fortress of Saints Peter and Paul on the banks of the swift -flowing River Neva. - -Some there are, believers in omens, who attribute many of the -difficulties of her life as Tsaritsa to the name she took when she was -received into the Russian Church,--Alexandra Feodorovna, after the -grandmother of the Tsar, her husband. For Alexandra has long been an -ill-fated name in the unhappy land of Princess Alix’s adoption. - -A daughter of the Emperor Paul who was called Alexandra had a very -tragic end. When she was but seventeen years of age her grandmother, -Catherine II, arranged that she should marry the King of Sweden. The -preparations for this royal wedding were all elaborately made and on the -day set all was well, so far as the world knew. The tables were laid for -the marriage banquet and the bride, all robed and ready, awaited her -royal bridegroom. The guests were assembled and the priests stood by in -their gorgeous mantles of gold. Suddenly His Majesty the King announced -that he would not go on with the wedding! His courtiers and suite -pleaded and implored him not to offer so terrible an insult to the -daughter of an Emperor and to the whole Russian nation. But in vain. The -King was obdurate. - -The news was tardily announced to Catherine, whose wrath knew no bounds. -The guests withdrew and the Swedish party quit the Winter Palace and -returned to Stockholm. The humiliated Alexandra was given no further -choice even after this terrible ordeal, but was speedily married willy -nilly to an Austrian Grand Duke. But she really did not survive the -shock of the failure of her marriage with the King of Sweden, and she -died of humiliation and a broken heart--only nineteen years of age. - -A daughter of Nicholas I was named Alexandra. She was early married to a -step-son of Napoleon Bonaparte. But a fatal disease carried her off -before she was twenty, again emphasising the traditional tragedy -associated with his name. - -Alexander II had a daughter Alexandra, a lovely, golden-haired child, -but she succumbed to an illness in childhood. - -No wonder then, that the superstitious feared for the future of Princess -Alix, when she took for herself the name that has so often been borne by -daughters of sorrow in Russia. But Alexandra was the name Nicholas chose -for her, and that sufficed. The mourning family returned to St. -Petersburg after the death of Alexander III and as soon as preparations -could be made, the wedding took place--the entire Court laying aside its -mourning weeds for one day. Thus edged in black, the official ceremonial -life of the Tsaritsa began. - -At the wedding ceremony, she did not show to advantage. She was reserved -in her manner to the point of severity, and a trait was noticed on that -day that has militated against her ever since. Despite her natural -physical grace she does not know how to dress! Her simple German -training had not taught her how to wear beautiful clothes. Possibly the -wearing of lovely gowns well is an instinct born in some women. At all -events on her wedding day, the Empress-bride failed to please the court. - -A few days later when the young Tsar was receiving deputations from -different parts of the Empire, there occurred a rupture between him and -some deputies from the Province of Tver, which he has never been able to -outlive, and for some unexplained reason the sentiments that he then -expressed in heat, were accepted as the sentiments of the Empress as -well. The Chairman of the deputation humbly offered the congratulations -of the people of Tver, and ventured to add that it was their hope that -the new Emperor might be pleased, in the course of his reign, to grant -certain liberties to his people, perhaps even a Constitution. This hope -was partly based on their faith in the young Empress, whom they expected -would have liberal sympathies as a result of her life in Germany and her -affiliations with England. But the Tsar burst forth into a terrible -tirade against such notions, told them “to be done with these idle -dreams,” and even threatened the whole deputation with banishment. - -The whole country was astounded at this uncalled for outburst, and a -lurking suspicion sprang up that the Tsaritsa might not be so liberal as -they had hoped. And this indeed seems to have proved true, for whatever -influence the Tsaritsa has exerted in Russia from that day to this, has -been in the direction of Reaction and severe administration. She has -always accepted the point of view of her husband. Nicholas II believes -himself a God-ordained Autocrat, and the great ambition of his life is, -not to hand on to his successor a happy and peaceful nation living under -a constitutional monarchy, but an absolute autocracy, and Alexandra -Feodorovna has supported and worked for the realisation of this -ambition. - -When one remembers the glorious, golden romance of this girl, one’s -imagination is fired to highest heat, and one rejoices when the child -who was called “Sunny,” who early battled bravely with life, was at last -coming unto her own. But alas! At the very moment when it would seem -that Providence had filled her cup to the full, the dark clouds began to -gather, and the little German Princess, when she ceased to be Princess -Alix, also ceased to be “Sunny.” Instead of entering upon a period of -life rich in blessings, showered with happiness, she faced graver -responsibilities, greater hardships and harder battles than she yet had -known. The crudest blows of fate were yet to fall upon her. - -The wedding of the Tsar and Tsaritsa was almost the only bright day of -the winter of 1894 in St. Petersburg society. Mourning was resumed -before even the usual wedding ceremonials were ended and few court -functions were held until after the coronation, which took place the -following spring. This event was looked forward to by the entire court -and the most elaborate arrangements were made to make it the most -magnificent and dazzling spectacle of the kind that a traditionally -magnificent court had yet known, an historic occasion, notable from -every point of view. - -During the festivities celebrating this event, the young Empress might -have been expected to have won all hearts. Instead, the popularity of -the Dowager was enhanced, and the suspicions against Alexandra, which -had been aroused during the wedding celebration, were deepened. - -Russia, always poor, was in especially straitened circumstances the year -of the coronation. Crops had failed--the winter had been severe--and -peasants were starving in different parts of the Empire. Yet the -coronation show cost the Government many millions of dollars. The -harness worn by the horses that drew the carriage of the Empress alone -cost more than one million dollars! - -The German Princess, born amid frugal surroundings, simply reared, early -taught to value pennies, and never affluent, on this occasion found -herself in a strange setting, indeed. Her coach followed the carriage of -the Dowager Empress. Eight snow-white horses adorned with red morocco -trappings trimmed with exquisitely engraved gold, champed their teeth on -bits of solid gold, and above their heads waved snow-white ostrich -plumes; in her shining chariot sat the Empress in a silver and satin -gown with an ermine cloak over her shoulders, ropes of diamonds hanging -from her shoulders, and a crest of diamonds above her head. How -wonderful a change from the life she had always known! Too great a -change, perhaps. For even now her manner did not please the populace. -The Dowager was hailed with acclamations and unprecedented enthusiasm. -The Empress was received in dead silence. The situation was an -impossible one. She tried to smile upon the throng, but her smiles were -stony and cold, and people remarked to one another that she only “stared -in disdain.” After the long and tedious coronation service, as the -Emperor was painfully making his way to the Church of the Ascension, -staggering under the weight of his royal robes and crown, he stumbled -and fell in a long swoon--just as he has fallen ever since under the -weight of responsibilities and cares he has never been strong enough to -carry. - -The following day the coronation festivities were interrupted by a -terrible catastrophe. Some five thousand peasants were crushed or -trampled to death in a stampede and panic preceding the distribution of -certain simple meals, which were to have been in honour of the great -event of the coronation. The calamity has never been satisfactorily -explained, but there seems to have been a general lack of efficiency -among those who had the distribution in charge. No sooner was word -received of the disaster, than the Dowager Empress hurried to the -overcrowded hospitals, administering personal comfort, and relief, and -cheer to the surviving wounded. Her great activity and sympathetic -devotion endeared her yet more to the people, and as long as she lives, -thousands will revere her for her expressions of grief and solicitude on -this occasion. - -Nicholas, however, made himself conspicuous by doing nothing. On nearly -every occasion during the course of his reign when he has had a signal -opportunity for doing the right thing, he has acted precisely as he -acted on this occasion--he has turned his back and gone off. And -Alexandra Feodorovna has acted in concert with her husband. They both -attended the ball at the French Embassy that same night, thus horrifying -not only Russia but the civilised world. - -I do not believe that the Tsaritsa is lacking in heart warmth or human -sympathies, but her life is dominated by one man. Before she was an -Empress she was a woman, and as a woman she loved, and as a woman she -gave all to that love, and to the end of the chapter one must look for -the real life of the Tsaritsa in those spheres where her personal love -for this one man holds sway. - -From the coronation day the Tsaritsa never regained a place in the -affections of the Russian people, and having recognised this fact, and -having realised the futility of usurping the place of the Dowager -Empress, she simply ceased trying. The Russian people don’t dislike her, -they merely do not know her. - -When travelling through the interior of Russia, I constantly heard the -Tsar spoken of by the peasants. Sometimes reverently, of late more often -disdainfully, occasionally in the terms of the old Russian proverb: “God -is in heaven and the Tsar is far off.” But I do not recall of ever -hearing a peasant speak of the Empress. When I have asked about her the -_moujiks_ have invariably shrugged their shoulders in silence. They -often have a bright coloured lithograph of her on the walls of their -houses, and they all think the picture very beautiful. More than that, -they know nor care not at all. - -Once in an interior village I heard a group of peasants discussing the -Tsar with a trace of old-time superstitious reverence and I asked, “What -of the Empress?” - -A shaggy old _moujik_ shook his towsled head stolidly as he replied: -“She is the Little Father’s woman--but what can we know of her?” - -The Tsaritsa entered upon a life of unusual difficulty from the moment -she crossed the Russian frontier. She realised even at the time of her -wedding, and more than ever at her coronation that she was not liked at -court, so she did what any sensitive soul would have done under similar -circumstances--she turned from the people who criticised her, who failed -to appreciate her trying, turned to those whom she loved, who loved her. -How many women in our own country have been through just such -experiences! Not called upon to serve as queens or empresses, but -summoned to positions they never were fitted or trained to occupy. With -the realisation of failure comes a terrible disappointment and sorrow, -sometimes heartbreak. Good women then turn to the fruits of love and in -their children seek the salvation necessary to counteract the first -failure. - -The Dowager Empress had never approved of the marriage of Nicholas to -Princess Alix. She herself had always been exceedingly popular with the -Russian people. In her affliction and bereavement the sympathy and -affection of the nation went out to her. At the coronation of her son -and his spouse, her warm personality so completely outshone that of her -younger successor as Empress of the people, that a circle of the court -immediately gathered about her. From that day to the present time the -influence of the Dowager Empress and her “court party” has been more -potent than that of the Tsaritsa. At times this influence has been -directed openly against her rival and always to the embarrassment of the -younger woman. For several years they were not even on speaking terms -and to-day they rarely meet save on formal occasions when court -etiquette demands the presence of them both at some particular function. -The attitude of the Dowager Empress has been a source of continual pain -to the Tsaritsa and besides actively militating against her, it has been -one more strong influence driving her away from the usual interests and -activities and more into her family life. - -This estrangement between the two first women of the court has also -tended more than anything else to isolate Nicholas. It has resulted in -periodic ruptures between the Tsar and his mother, and it has strained -his relations with his numerous relatives and important personages of -the court, who have remained loyal to her. - -These are some of the reasons why the life which ought to have been -bright and happy has been utterly miserable, and now there are -indications that a complete nervous breakdown may crown the burden of -her years. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -MOTHERHOOD AND QUEENSHIP - - -Alexandra Feodorovna, as the wife of the Emperor, was expected to be the -mother of an heir to the throne of Russia. And even here long years of -enduring pain and travail were before her, for four girls were born -before a son came to them. When the first child was born, in November, -1895, there was disappointment throughout the Empire. But the Tsar said -a splendid thing at that time: “I am glad,” said the Royal father, “that -our child is a girl. Had it been a boy he would have belonged to the -people, being a girl she belongs to us.” - -One year and a half after the birth of the Grand Duchess Olga the second -daughter was born, and she was named Tatiana. Marie followed in another -two years, and Anastasie exactly two years later. More than three years -then elapsed before Alexis, the son and heir, made his appearance. -During these three years the aid of all kinds of soothsayers and -charlatans was invoked to influence the sex of the child. An old priest -of the interior who had been dead seventy years was canonised in the -hope that the miracle of a boy might be worked! This is a story by -itself, however, and it would be premature to tell it now. - -It is wellnigh impossible for people in America to understand the -disappointment and vexation of the court when girl after girl was -born--four of them--before the long wanted son. The Tsaritsa fell more -and more into disfavour, and the aristocracy--especially those who were -the friends and followers of the Dowager--took advantage of the simple, -superstitious peasants to point out to them that the Empress was not -beloved in heaven or she would have borne a son. - -When finally a son was born many people loudly asserted that the boy was -a substitution and not the Tsaritsa’s child at all. This was a very -malicious thing to say and was, of course, entirely untrue. The rumour -persisted, however, and received certain credence until it was pointed -out that the Dowager Empress was far too watchful, and too much at -enmity with the Empress to allow any such imposition to be perpetrated. - -Until the birth of the son the Tsaritsa took little part in public -activity. Indeed, it was not until the war year of 1904 (which was also -the year of the birth of a son) that she undertook to participate to any -extent in work for the nation. - -At the breaking out of the war between Russia and Japan the Tsaritsa -undertook to assist the work of the Red Cross Society. I have seen -several of the rooms in the Winter Palace which were turned over to the -work of preparing bandages and warm clothing for the wounded soldiers in -the hospitals at the front. In connection with this work the Tsaritsa -was conspicuous before the people for the first time since her -coronation as Empress in an undertaking properly belonging to the -nation. She gathered together hundreds of young ladies of the court, -organised working parties, and before long among the women of -aristocratic circles it was distinctly the thing to do to belong to one -of the Empress’s working groups, to prepare warm caps, and mufflers, and -stockings and bandages for the army. The Empress herself worked -indefatigably. And so did the two older Grand Duchesses, Olga and -Tatiana. They both sewed and knit till their little fingers were stiff -and sore. - -The earnest spirit of patriotic pride and sacrifice exhibited by the -Empress at this time was inspiration to thousands of young women in St. -Petersburg and Moscow, and on the big estates of rich noblemen -throughout the Empire. One group of fashionable St. Petersburg girls -presented themselves in a body to the Empress with the request that they -be sent to the front to serve as volunteer nurses. But the Empress -replied: “You are not experienced enough for that work, nor strong -enough to endure the hardships of life in Manchuria. What you may do is -to serve in the hospitals of St. Petersburg, thus enabling the regular -trained nurses to go to the front.” Almost without exception these young -ladies acted upon this suggestion, and many of them did most excellent -service, eventually becoming as useful as nurses who - -[Illustration: THE FIVE CHILDREN OF THE TSARITSA.] - -had undergone the usual training in preparation for such work. - -Some idea of the extent of this work may be gathered from the single -fact that in the year 1904 the depot at Kharbin alone received from the -Winter Palace headquarters, over which the Empress presided in person, -no fewer than eleven million eight hundred articles. In addition to -these things more than a million dollars in money was collected and -forwarded for the purchase of surgical instruments and such other things -as were sorely needed by the badly equipped Russian forces. Some seventy -ambulance trains were organised, and a number of chapels and libraries. - -In thanking the corps of women who had assisted her in this work the -Empress said: “I am happy to know that through the efforts of the -workers in my depot my most ardent desire to give relief to our dear -troops has been satisfied.” And in a telegram to one of the generals -commanding at the front she said: “Inform the troops in the Far East -that I rejoice that it has been given me to lighten even to a slight -extent the lot of the unhappy victims of a cruel war, who have so -self-sacrificingly shed their blood for the honour of the Throne of -Russia. United in prayer with you all I lift up to the Highest my ardent -petition that He may comfort all who have suffered on the field of -battle and continue to keep alive in the hearts of the valiant and -heroic Russian warriors, the feeling of devotion to their duty, their -oath and their love to the Fatherland.” - -The Empress also organised the famous “Dog Detachment,” by which, with -the help of dogs especially trained in Germany, the overlooked wounded -were sought out after the tides of battle had swept the Manchurian -plains and hills. Unfortunately this detachment was never given proper -opportunity for activity, as the fields of battle almost invariably -remained in the hands of the enemy. - -Besides the Red Cross work, the most important public undertaking of the -Tsaritsa has been the establishment of Labour Aid Institutions. This is -really an incipient charity enterprise and is being gradually extended -to different parts of the Empire. - -Viewed as the charity organisation of a great nation the whole scheme is -a ridiculous farce, but viewed as the work of an individual its -proportions seem substantial. A complete list of these institutions -practically means a complete list of the charities of the Empire, and -includes temporary nurseries for babies, homes and asylums for children, -lodging-houses for workless men, old people’s homes, lying-in hospitals, -institutions for the insane, libraries and reading-rooms and various -depots where simple work is provided for those who are able. - -I visited a number of these institutions and satisfied myself that, -however satisfactory a catalogue of this work might be, that the work -itself had small value. It is the crudest and most careless organisation -of charity I have seen anywhere in the world, and carried on on such a -trifling scale as to be practically valueless. If the time ever comes -when the Russian Government can take up the work thus begun it will be -given a value--the value that ultimately accrues to all pioneer work. - -There are more starving peasants in Russia every year than in any -country of the western world. The numbers annually mount up into the -millions--in 1906 there were twenty-seven millions in the famine belt. -The beggars and workless, the maimed and the crippled victims of the war -fill the streets of all the large cities. A lodging-house for fifty or a -hundred men in a city where fifty thousand are in want is the merest -drop in the bucket. The schools for girls are better equipped and better -endowed than any of the other institutions embraced in this work, and -this is owing to the personal interest of the Empress in girls. - -This interest of the Tsaritsa’s in girls is doubtless owing to the fact -that she has so many daughters of her own. Many of the schools which she -has helped to start and to support have been named after her own little -girls. The “Olga Children’s Homes” in St. Petersburg and Moscow were -first inaugurated in 1898 and now are on a firm foundation. - -In Russia, the Labour Aid Institutions are treated lightly. Even friends -of the Empress speak of them as trivial. Judged by their present -capacities they _are_ trivial. They are badly managed. They offer rich -opportunities for what is variously called “protection,” “patronage” -and “graft”--opportunities which are fully taken advantage of, as I saw -for myself in several of the places which I visited. There were -elaborate offices, luxuriously fitted with selected furnishings, and -small regiments of young aristocrats and noblemen (like all public -servants of rank in Russia, called “chinovniks”) serving as clerks and -directors. Positions of absolute sinecure carrying rich emoluments. Not -one of these institutions--outside of the orphanages--would stand the -test of scientific charity or philanthropy. For all this I am inclined -to give the work a higher value than do the Russian people for, after -all, Russia will one day be a modern nation in forms and institutions, -and then all of this work will needs be developed. It will then be good -to have this little experiment scattered about the country. It may prove -the foundation for a work of worthy proportions. And I am glad that the -Empress may claim credit for most of what has been done. There are -schools and institutions of one sort or another named after each of the -children, as well as after the Empress herself, and to all of these the -Empress contributes annually from her private purse. - -In no sense can any, or all of these enterprises be considered a great -work, but they are all characteristic of the Tsaritsa. It is indicative -of simple, human sympathies, it is quiet and unostentatious--almost -timidly so--but the idea underlying it all is real. - -The court of Nicholas II does not entertain nearly so frequently nor so -lavishly as the preceding Courts of the last hundred years. This is -partly owing to the temperament of the present Tsar, and the retiring -characteristic of the Tsaritsa, and also because of the troubled and -distraught condition of the Empire during the last several years. -Several court balls each winter are required, however, and on these -occasions the Tsaritsa is always a conspicuous figure. Her own enjoyment -at these Royal functions may well be questioned. In the first place, -there are certain aged ministers, ambassadors and potentates with whom -she must dance. Doubtless these eminent worthies are frequently endowed -with great dignity, but statesmanship and imposing presence do not make -up for grace and ease in tripping figures to light music. And if, -perchance, the Tsaritsa would waltz with a brilliant young officer, or -charming courtier, all the other dancers must at once stop and clear the -floor for the Empress and her favoured partner. To be thus the observed -of all observers cannot be otherwise than trying to one of so modest and -retiring a nature. - -Years before, when the Tsaritsa was still only Princess Alix of Hesse, -she had visited St. Petersburg as the guest of her sister Elizabeth, who -had married the Grand Duke Sergius. During one of the dances at a -certain ball given during this visit, Princess Alix slipped on the -polished floor and fell. Her partner, as well as a number of young -officers, sprang toward her to assist her to her feet, but the Grand -Duke chanced to be near and he, too, sprang to her assistance. Instantly -the embarrassed partner and other officers stepped back. The privilege -of assisting the confused and blushing Princess was the prerogative of -the Grand Duke because of his exalted position! - -When the Tsaritsa does participate in a public function she does it with -a stateliness and grace that commands respect, whatever of coldness her -manner may suggest. - -I had the privilege of being near to her on one of these occasions. It -was the 10th day of May, 1906, in the Throne Room of the Winter Palace -in St. Petersburg. - -The Emperor had called together the First Duma and the members of this -extraordinary body, together with the council of Empire and the entire -Court, were assembled to hear the speech from the Throne. It was the -first time in sixteen months that the Royal Family had visited the -capital. These sixteen months had been characterised by almost -continuous revolutionary activity, successive mutinies in the army and -navy, general strikes and disturbances of every description. There was -wide speculation as to the probable outcome of this meeting between the -Tsar and the representatives of the people. “To us,” remarked one of the -Ladies of Honour attached to the Empress, “to us, it is like letting the -Revolution into the Palace”--this reception of the elected deputies of -the people! Members of the court were fearful lest the Tsar would never -return from the Throne Room. Many, if not most of the nobles present, -went in fear and trembling, and went because they had been commanded by -the Emperor and for no other reason. - -I met one well known Prince the morning of that day and he immediately -bade me congratulate him, as he had been excused from appearing at the -function. - -When the music of the National Anthem was heard, announcing the approach -of the Royal party the atmosphere of the Throne Room became so tense -that it was painful. Not one person in the room dared think what the -next minute might bring forth! When the Tsar and the Grand Dukes and the -Empress and the Dowager Empress and the Grand Duchesses were all -assembled before the richly attired Metropolitans and high priests for -the interminable preliminary blessings, the slightest sound echoed -throughout the room, so still and strained was every human being in the -room. The nervousness of the Tsar was apparent to all. The agitation of -the Grand Dukes was laughable, especially the manifestations of their -fear in their repeated and excited crossing of themselves. Even -correspondents, schooled and trained to recklessness in all kinds of -danger and calm to the point of being blase in the face of any -situation, breathed hard and showed the terrible strain and tension of -the minutes. - -The Empresses alone appeared in full command of every nerve and muscle. -I looked upon the Tsaritsa in silent admiration. The picture of her -strong, immovable figure is imaged forever upon my memory. The -fluttering of a glove or a handkerchief from the balcony to the floor -would surely have upset the entire assemblage in spite of its -magnificent show of military symbols, buttons, medals and gold and -silver trappings. The thought came to me there, and I have recalled it -many times since, had such an untoward incident occurred the Tsaritsa -alone, or at least, the Empresses alone, would have stood stolid. The -exquisite poise and complete possession of the Tsaritsa commanded -absolute admiration. Cold and indifferent she may be toward the people -of her court, but on an occasion like this she certainly acquits herself -with rare credit. At all times a magnificent woman to look upon, tall, -statuesque, imposing, imperial, she never appeared to better advantage -than on this occasion. - -With her, somewhat back in the procession were the four older children -of the Tsar and Tsaritsa--Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasie. These -little girls bear the title of Grand Duchess, and in them has the life -of the Tsaritsa long been centred. Presently I shall have a number of -stories to tell of their nursery days. As we go on we shall learn how -completely the life and time of the Tsaritsa have been taken up with her -children and their home and family life. - -Easter is one of the greatest fêtes of the year in Russia. The long -Lenten fast is usually kept rigorously by all classes over whom the -church maintains dominion, and even by many who have ceased to reverence -Orthodoxy, but in whom the instinct of traditional observance remains. - -On Easter Eve there is a tremendously solemn service in all of the -churches in the land. At the stroke of midnight priests and choir burst -forth in loud hallelujahs and all the people shout “Christ is Risen!” -“Christ is Risen!” and greet one another with a holy kiss. Everybody -kisses everybody else in sight regardless of previous acquaintance. I -remember standing bolt upright in a fearful press in St. Isaac’s -Cathedral one Easter Eve for two mortal hours in the middle of the -night, the atmosphere hot and fetid till even men swooned and all -wearied unspeakably. - -On Easter morning presents are exchanged and masters and mistresses -greet all the servants of their households with the holy kiss. The Tsar -and Tsaritsa observe this custom as religiously as the humblest of their -subjects, and every palace maid and stable boy is greeted in this way. -Long before the hour when the Emperor and Empress are to receive the -household, there is great excitement below stairs where all the servants -busily scrub their honest faces with soap and water till they shine like -great apples in preparation for the kiss of their imperial master and -mistress. The Tsar kisses every man in the palace, even to the soldiers -on duty, and the Empress every maid servant. On one occasion the -Tsaritsa remarked that she “sometimes thought the Emperor had rather the -better of it because of the new leather that the soldiers wear on that -day, and which smells so nice!” - -In view of the fact that court observance would naturally expect the -Tsaritsa to play the rôle of Empress, rather than of mother and wife as -her life work, it is the more extraordinary that this mighty Queen (in -point of power and opportunity) has chosen the quieter life of the home. - -In addition to the private fortune of the Tsar, an immense income -accrues from the gold and precious stone mines of Siberia which are -worked by convicts for the private purse of the Emperor and from the -vast timber holdings that he controls; besides all this, the Government -officially grants him a “salary” of nearly five million dollars a year, -which is paid to him in monthly instalments of four hundred thousand -dollars each. - -The Tsaritsa, as head of the Royal Household, is mistress of nearly -thirty thousand servants, scattered in many palaces and residences -throughout the Empire. It is not likely that this vast retinue is any -particular care to her, for the army of servants, just like the army of -soldiers, is divided into groups and officered by various functionaries. -In fact, it is likely that the two armies are not dissimilar in the -minds of the Tsar and Tsaritsa. Every wish of the Tsar’s is a command to -the army and has only to be uttered to an aide to be executed. So the -word of the Tsaritsa spoken to a lady-in-waiting is all sufficient to be -carried out by any or all of her servant host. - -There are fifty thousand head of cattle in the Royal pastures, and five -thousand horses in the Royal stables. Over all these the Tsaritsa is -supreme--as the wife and consort of the Tsar,--and one hundred and forty -million subjects besides! - -The point of her whole life as Empress is that when Princess Alix -married Nicholas she gave herself and all of her activity to -Nicholas--not to the Russian nation. - -Every act of hers has been one of personal devotion. If Princess Alix -had been ambitious as many women in court circles are, or if she had -never loved so intensely and so blindly, the world looking back upon her -career as it does to-day, might have deemed her a better Empress. As it -happened, circumstances throughout her life have all driven her back -from the public role and more into the circle of the family. Thus it -comes about that the chronicler of her life must pass lightly over her -life as Empress and dwell at length upon those sides of her character -which the words wife and mother indicate. In other words, her entire -life has been one long romance. A life of devotion to her husband and to -her children, and this at the expense of her duties as Empress. - -As the years have passed the disposition of the child once called -“Sunny” has altered and changed, and the lines of wistful pathos which -have settled round her still lovely face are doubtless indications of -the drops of gall that have tainted her cup of life’s happiness. For all -these mellowing lines the Tsaritsa wears an expression that in many -lights is of that unusual other-worldly beauty, so seldom seen in the -great world of to-day, but common to so many of the women whose -portraits have been left us by the world artists of the Middle Ages. It -is an expression that appears and ripens only under soul development, -and as we see it in the Tsaritsa we do not find it difficult to -understand and trace, for a considerable part of her life has been given -over to religious thought and contemplation, and not to the study of -theological doctrines and controversies only, but to the deeper truths -of spiritualism and mysticism, truths whose elusiveness holds them for -ever remote to all save the few, and whose realities are measured only -by the standards of the eternal verities. This brings us to one of the -most extraordinary, and at the same time one of the fascinating sides of -the life of the Tsaritsa. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -SPIRIT WHISPERINGS - - -An interesting trait of the forebears of Princess Alix was their belief -in ghosts. Presently we shall see that Princess Alix, even after she -became Tsaritsa, gave much of her time to the study of the mystics and -has always had spiritualistic tendencies and beliefs in the -supernatural. Most of the Dukes of Hesse are credited with similar -superstitions. - -Duke George II, who lived in the seventeenth century, is said to have -seen the ghost of his dead brother Wilhelm on one occasion. Before the -death of Wilhelm there had been a quarrel between the two brothers. The -ghost chastened and severely reproached Duke George for his bitterness -and hatred. The incident made such an impression upon him that as long -as he lived, he could not shake off the spell of the weird experience. - -Another Duke of Hesse, a William, had a life-long terror of ghosts and -always slept in a brilliantly lighted room. A story is on record of this -man that he once returned to one of his hunting lodges at night, when -suddenly all of the lights went out, a great wind magically arose, doors -slammed, windows shook--and presto!--the lights as suddenly reappeared, -but all of the soldiers of the guard had mysteriously vanished and the -entire lodge was dismantled. Long before this the lodge was reputed -“haunted,” so that when the Duke was there the soldiers of the guard -were changed every thirty minutes and the whole establishment kept well -lighted. - -Just prior to the birth of the fifth child to the Empress, a phase of -temperament developed, which attracted the attention and comment of the -world. From early girlhood, the Princess Alix had manifested an interest -in things philosophical and theological. Back in her old home at -Darmstadt, the Royal betrothal had once nearly been broken owing to the -religious scruples of the bride-to-be. Princess Alix could not convince -herself or be convinced that she was right in renouncing the Protestant -faith of her mother and adopting that of the Greek Catholic Church. -Finally, her love for Nicholas overcame her scruples of conscience and -she forced herself to accept the doctrines of the State Church of -Russia. Priests who had been assigned to tutor her, to this day relate -their experiences and difficulties in meeting the arguments and -answering the questions brought up by the Princess: the familiarity -which she exhibited with German theological writings and philosophical -theories confused them. In Russia, as Empress, she continued to -encourage her interest in religious doctrines and theories. The friends -of her own choosing were generally men and women with whom she could -discuss vital religious problems. Surrounded as she was by an atmosphere -perennially surcharged with the sense of impending tragedy, she not -unnaturally, developed pronounced morbid tendencies. From time to time, -she believed that she caught the glint of certain gleams of spiritual -truths in the distance and these she pursued with that fatal persistence -which so often leads people, especially women of temperamental or -melancholy tendencies to ultimately accept various “isms.” The Tsaritsa -became more and more markedly spiritualistic. By nature and by training, -she was retiring and preferred the splendid isolation of the court in -her home circle to the more brilliant opportunities offered her by her -supreme social position. These tendencies toward retirement, encouraged -as they were by the Court which did not take kindly to her nor exhibit -at any time the cordiality and friendliness generally accorded Queens, -she came to live more and more in the realms of the spiritual. She -carried her intellectual interests far beyond the things we know and -over into the borderland of Faith and Belief. To those who knew her -well, it was not a matter of special surprise when, after the birth of -three children and no heir to the throne, the Tsaritsa turned an open -ear to various men who claimed supernatural control over things -physical. - -Prior to the birth of Anastasie, the aid of eminent medical and -scientific men was sought to influence, if possible, the sex of the next -child, but all to no avail. (What pangs of bitterness must sometimes -have come to her mother heart when she remembered the two boys whose -father was also the father of her daughters,--two sons who could never -be recognised by their own father and who were destined forever to be -exiled to a foreign land because of the blot on their ’scutcheon! What -piercing irony of fate for the father who must sometimes have remembered -his outcast sons upon whom he had bestowed the bastard mark while the -birth of a legitimate son and heir was so long deferred!) - -When science failed, religion and spiritualism were appealed to. Rumours -were rife of various charlatans imported from one place or another to -practise their magic. Of these, the one who came to be the most widely -known was called Philippe. Philippe first joined the royal entourage at -Livadia. Later, he was brought to Moscow and St. Petersburg, and for -several years, he is said to have exercised great influence not only -over the Empress but over the Tsar as well. The Tsar has ever been an -impressionable man and though he has displayed all the stubbornness of a -weak nature, he has frequently been under the domination of others. Just -as he was willing to lend a ready ear to Pobiedonostzeff and to his -uncle, the Grand Duke Sergius, so also was he willing to listen to -charlatans who came to him well recommended. It was under the -Reactionary Grand-ducal party that Philippe was brought to Russia. In -course of time, this man came to be known as “the Tsar’s magician.” An -atmosphere of profound mystery always surrounded Philippe, although of -the extent of his domination, there never was any question. From all -that I can gather, this man’s name was Philippe Landard. Landard is -supposed to have been the son of a shepherd and that he was born in a -small village situated high among the French Alps. When quite a boy, his -father would regularly take him to the local abattoir, and on one of -these visits, he made the acquaintance of a butcher who took the boy -into his employ. Landard possessed imagination even as a child, as is -evinced by the fact that his contract with the slaughter-house prompted -him with the desire to become a surgeon. With this hope in view, he -attended evening classes and night lectures in the medical school at -Lyons. Handicapped, however, by lack of money and presumably not endowed -with keenest intelligence, he never succeeded in passing the -examinations necessary to admit him to practice. What he did succeed in -doing, however, was to discover and develop certain magnetic powers -which he undoubtedly had,--powers of personality which he cultivated -remarkably. He turned this power especially in the direction of healing. -He practised auto-suggestion and by the judicious use of massage, -frequently succeeded in convincing people that his healing powers were -literally real. Ultimately, he was able to establish himself as a -thaumaturgist or practising healer in the Rue Tape d’Or at Lyons where -he acquired considerable local notoriety which presently spread all -over France among people who believed in his art. At least twice, he is -said to have been arrested and charged by the police as an illegal -practitioner. This led him to be more discreet in his methods and he -refrained from ever writing a prescription or committing himself in -writing on any point. The leader of the French School of Occultism -became interested in him and through him, he met Dr. George von -Langsdorff of Freyburg. Dr. von Langsdorff had been brought to Russia by -the Grand Duke Constantine Nicholevitch and presented to the Emperor -Alexander II who had actually commissioned him to sense out and unravel -Nihilist conspiracies. Dr. von Langsdorff, whether through the -connivance of the political police or not we do not know, succeeded in -foretelling certain plots which actually materialised. He attained -considerable notoriety in connection with the blowing up of the -dining-room of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in 1880. Dr. von -Langsdorff evinced considerable interest in Landard but unlike von -Langsdorff and other members of the French School of Occultism, Landard -ascribed his supernatural powers, both in matters of healing and -prophesy, to divine influence, that is to say, whereas the French -practitioners were avowedly irreligious and proclaimed themselves -Freethinkers, Landard cultivated the spiritual element and professed -himself a religious man. - -Through von Langsdorff, Landard was brought into contact with certain -members of the Russian colony of royalties who annually visit the -Riviera. It was upon their invitation that Philippe visited Nice and -while there was fortunate enough to win the favour of the Grand Duke -Alexis. This was accomplished through curing the Grand Duke of a painful -attack of rheumatism of the knee by his “laying on of the hands” method -and magnetism. The Grand Duke Alexis passed Philippe on to the Grand -Duchess Vladimir, who in turn brought him to Russia and was instrumental -in having him put in touch with Tsar Nicholas II. From all accounts, -Philippe was a man of courage, personality, of winning and sympathetic -manner. The Tsar frankly liked him and before long, Philippe was -established as a more or less permanent member of the Royal Household. -The Emperor consulted Philippe on all kinds of personal questions and -later sought his counsel in regard to the weightiest questions of state. -It has even been said that during the winter of 1902-3, the influence of -Philippe had grown so supreme, that a determined protest was submitted -to the Tsar by the members of his council and ministers, including Conte -Witte. Philippe was retired for a time from practice, but was still -retained as a member of the Royal household and, privately, Nicholas -continued to listen to the spiritualistic haverings of this man. From -time to time, Landard also appeared to effect cures upon various members -of the Royal household and of the court. These things naturally tended -to strengthen his position and to enhance his prestige. The result of -these manifestations of power upon Emperor Nicholas was to confirm his -confidence in Philippe’s supernatural connections. In him, Nicholas -thought he had found another, if not the actual reincarnation of Joan of -Arc. Nicholas seems to have had little difficulty in persuading the -Empress to trust in the potency of Philippe’s power in regard to -influencing the sex of their next child. At all events, the next child -proved to be a son. Philippe claimed much of the credit for this, but it -is evident that the entire credit was not accorded him by the Royal -Family inasmuch as a certain parish priest in the Province of Tambov was -later given credit for exerting a like influence. The priest had been -dead many years, but his tomb had been made a kind of shrine by the -_moujiks_ and it had been annually visited by barren women who claimed -to have found in the shrine the secret of fruitfulness and also the -spirit of influencing the sex of unborn children. - -The effect of Philippe’s ministrations upon the Tsaritsa let her still -deeper within the portals of the Spirit World. To conclude the story of -Philippe, it is said that he became intoxicated with the power and -confidence bestowed in him by the Royal Family and that he overshot -himself at the time of the Russo-Japanese war. He is supposed to have -been largely instrumental in persuading Nicholas to take the attitude -that he did which brought about the war and throughout the long, -disastrous campaign was continually prophesying a turn in the tide which -never came. Landard is said to have represented to the Emperor that he -had been selected by Divine Inspiration to assure the Emperor that the -war in Manchuria would inaugurate a new and great era of Russian glory -that would forever overshadow the Yellow Peril which at that time was -popularly feared to be menacing Europe. When disaster followed disaster, -members of the Court and Royal Household lost faith in Philippe and -finally the Tsar himself ordered him to leave Russia within forty-eight -hours. This banishment proved a great blow to Landard, who, heart broken -and covered with disgrace, returned to his own native villa of St. -Julian d’Arbresle where he died the following year from a complication -of internal disorders. - -Despite the downfall of Philippe, the faith of the Empress was not -shaken in the least in things mystic and spiritual and there is ample -evidence that this inherent characteristic has in reality become a -veritable second nature. - -Miss Margaret Eager, an Irish lady of good education, was called to -Russia in the year 1899 to serve in the capacity of Nursery Governess to -the Royal Family. Miss Eager is very much of a Celt. She has a profound -belief in the philosophy of mysticism and indeed she herself seems to be -possessed of certain supernatural powers, second sight, visions and -dreams that come true. Miss Eager related to me various occurrences in -the Royal Family concerning strange and seemingly mystical -manifestations. Miss Eager herself, believes firmly in the reality of -the spiritualistic sense of the Empress. - -When the Grand Duchess Olga was three years old, she was taken ill with -a gastric attack from which she did not fully recover for two or three -weeks, the attack itself, in its severe form, keeping the Royal child in -bed three or four days. The first time Miss Eager left the bedside of -the sick child for a breath of fresh air, she went for a walk along the -quays of the Neva. Upon her return, as she entered the room, little Olga -looked up and said, “An old lady was here!” “What old lady?” she asked. -“An old lady who wears a blue dress,” the child replied. Miss Eager was -frankly puzzled because the Court was in mourning at that time and there -was no one wearing a blue dress. “Surely, you mean blue. What kind of -blue?” questioned Miss Eager. “It was not like Mamma’s,” and the child -paused. Miss Eager thought perhaps one of the maids had had a visitor -and so they were all questioned, but nobody knew of any visitor during -Miss Eager’s absence, and so the matter for the moment was dropped and -dismissed by Miss Eager as a possible vagary of the child’s imagination. -A few days later, Miss Eager was sitting on the floor with the Royal -children in a certain room in the Royal Palace playing at building -castles of cards. Suddenly, Olga looked up and exclaimed, “There is the -old lady in blue!” “Where? Where?” said Miss Eager and the other -children. “There! she came through the bedroom door; she is standing at -the door now!” Miss Eager quickly caught up the child and ran through -the bedroom into the room beyond and into yet another room, but she -could find no one nor could she hear any footsteps. “Well,” said Olga to -Miss Eager, “you must be very stupid because the old lady was there.” -Two days later, the Empress directed Miss Eager to take the child to the -Chapel in the Winter Palace and there, in the hall on the way to the -chapel, are two life-sized portraits of the Emperor Alexander II and his -wife. Looking at the picture of Alexander II’s wife, Olga said, “Why, -that is the lady I saw in the blue dress and see, her dress is not the -dress Mamma wears.” The identification was made by the Grand Duchess -with the utmost assurance. - -Now, this incident by itself would have no significance, but Miss Eager -relates in connection with it other incidents which give it interesting -if fantastic value. Miss Eager, during her long stay in the Royal -Household, always slept with the nursery. One night, she maintains, she -distinctly heard a voice coming from directly beneath her bed. The voice -was far off and weird and was as of one weeping bitterly and making -terrible complaints and the language used was French. The story she was -relating was one of extreme intimacy. Miss Eager says that she sat up in -bed to try to locate from whence the sounds were coming, but no sooner -had she raised herself upright than the voice ceased. Upon laying her -head on the pillow again, the voice resumed and the complaints were of -her husband’s unfaithfulness. While Miss Eager was still meditating the -extraordinary experience, the Empress as was her wont, entered the room -and Miss Eager asked her what room was directly beneath the room they -were then in. The Empress replied, “Merely storerooms.” Miss Eager then -said to the Empress, “But there is some poor woman there and suffering -from the most terrible affliction.” The Empress replied, “What are you -saying?” Whereupon, Miss Eager related what she had just experienced. -The Empress then asked if the words were spoken in English. “No,” -replied Miss Eager, “It is French; at first I thought it might be the -cook, but that is impossible because the French spoken was very pure and -elegant.” The Empress then said that if Miss Eager thought there was any -one below, she had better get out of bed and listen at the floor, which -she did, but could hear nothing. The Empress then told her to get back -into bed and go to sleep. Immediately her head touched the pillow, the -voice was again audible to her. Suddenly the Empress said, “Tell me, -does it remind you of anything you have ever heard before? Do you know -anything of the story of this room before it was done up for my little -ones?” Miss Eager replied that she knew that the wife of Alexander II -slept in this room and then she recalled having heard that this woman -was very unhappy because of her husband’s numerous peccadilloes with -other women. She recalled, also, that the Princess Dolgoruki was -Alexander II’s mistress. His wife, who used this room over a long period -of time, used nightly to bury her face in her pillow and cry aloud. -After she recalled these things, the Empress said, “Yes, but before she -died, she went to the Dolgoruki and told her of her unhappiness, using -the very selfsame words that you have just repeated to me as having -heard while on your pillow.” The Empress thereupon told Miss Eager that -she was sleeping on the very bed which Alexander II’s wife had used and -upon which she died. The next day, the Empress herself, insisted that -the entire furnishings of the room be changed and that a new bed be -installed. It is said that Alexander II, after the death of his wife, -wanted to marry the Princess Dolgoruki, which indeed, he may have done -morganatically. Miss Eager was deeply impressed by this experience and -in the mind of the Empress there was no question or shadow of doubt -whatever. - -Another incident related by Miss Eager in connection with the Empress -occurred in the Palace at Peterhof. One night, according to her custom, -the Empress entered Miss Eager’s room. Miss Eager relates that she awoke -to find herself being shaken by Her Majesty who was crying, “Awake! -awake! come back!” and when Miss Eager came to her senses, she realised -that she was crying bitterly. “What is it? What is it?” exclaimed the -Empress. “I have been here five minutes shaking you and you would not -wake up; what is the matter?” Miss Eager replied that she must have had -a nightmare. The Empress insisted upon knowing what Miss Eager had seen -in her unhappy dream, whereupon, the nursery governess related that in -her dream, she appeared to be in a town of some far distant country--a -southern land. The streets were badly lighted; many of them were narrow -and the people round about her who filled the streets, were dark and -swarthy. Traversing these streets, she presently came to a great -building before which a crowd had collected. As she stood and wondered -what interest held the people, an open carriage drove up. The thought -flashed through her mind, “Royalty must be expected; who can it be?” -Just then, out of the building came an elderly gentleman whom Miss Eager -did not recognise, but he was followed closely by a man in uniform. -After the man got into the carriage, there was the glint of flashing -steel and immediately the oldish man dropped back apparently lifeless. -At once, all was turned into a mad dream and Miss Eager found herself -trying to crush the Empress and the Royal Princesses under the seat of -the carriage. Whereupon, the Empress laughed and said, “You can see for -yourself, that it was only a dream, for you could not shove me under the -seat of the carriage even if you could succeed in putting the children -there.” When the Empress had gone Miss Eager once more drifted off into -sleep. In the morning when she awoke, she was tired and nervous as if -after some long journey. When Mary, the nurse, came in, she said, “Why, -Miss Eager, what is the matter with you this morning?” and Miss Eager -told her that in the night she had had a terrible dream in which she had -seen a man in a carriage murdered. At breakfast time, when she saw the -Empress, she said, “Have you had any more nightmares?” and then turning -to the Emperor, who had just entered the room, Her Majesty directed Miss -Eager to relate to him the hideous dream of the night before. Whereupon, -Miss Eager related the unhappy scenes of her nightmare. The Tsar -listened with the utmost attention and when Miss Eager had finished -speaking, he said, “Miss Eager, I hope that you won’t be very much -frightened because what you saw in your dream last night was an incident -which occurred in a town of Northern Italy where His Majesty, King -Humbert, was assassinated at precisely the hour that the Empress entered -your room and in that manner that you describe in your dream.” Miss -Eager, like a flash, remembered the picture she had seen of the late -King of Italy and it was the man whom she had seen enter the carriage -followed by the officer in uniform! As the Tsar told her this, he held -in his hand a telegram which had just been received detailing the news -of this assassination. - -On one occasion, the Empress told Miss Eager that all her life she had -been much interested in the spiritual world, but that she had come to -the conclusion that it was wrong to meddle with such things because if -there was anything in it, it must come from the devil. - -Early one evening, the Empress entered the nursery and told the children -that she was going to dinner and would probably be very late, -consequently would not come in to see them on her return, as was her -wont. There was going to be a séance after the dinner. The next day, -Miss Eager took occasion to ask Her Majesty if she had enjoyed the -séance. The Tsaritsa proceeded to tell her all about a clairvoyant -called Philippe but with a note of bitterness in her recital, for she -said that Philippe had mesmerised her husband and made him do exactly -what he told him. The Empress steadfastly refused to see Philippe after -that. Just what occurred at this séance, the Empress never did say, at -least to Miss Eager, but it was quite clear to her that Her Majesty had -been unfavourably impressed and that she would have nothing more to do -with the mysterious Frenchman. Considerable pressure was brought to bear -upon the Empress by various ladies of the Court to persuade her to go -once more to Philippe, but she never would do it. - -These incidents indicating this phase of the Tsaritsa’s character are, -of course, sympathetically interpreted by Miss Eager because she, -herself, believes so absolutely in the spirit world, in dreams and -intuitions. - -For example, before Port Arthur was beseiged, Miss Eager in a dream saw -its fall and told the Empress about it. The Empress afterwards reminded -her of this dream and deeply regretted that the Tsar had not taken -counsel from Miss Eager’s vision rather than from Philippe. - -On another occasion, Miss Eager told Mary, the nurse, to go and tell a -certain lift-man in the Palace that he was not to work that day as, in a -dream, she had seen him terribly crushed and mangled, but Mary laughed -and refused to convey the message. Miss Eager thought it seemed rather -foolish and so did not insist upon sending the message to the man. That -afternoon, when she returned from the daily drive with the Grand -Duchesses, the Empress sent for her and said, “Miss Eager, this morning, -you told Mary to warn the lift-man not to work to-day and Mary refused -to carry your message.” Miss Eager said, “Yes, that is true.” “Well,” -said the Empress, “I sent for you because I wanted to tell you myself -that while you were out with the children, the lift-man was killed.” - -Another curious incident which is hard to explain occurred at the time -of the death of Princess Ella, a daughter of the Grand Duke of Hesse, a -charming child of seven years, who succumbed to an illness of only 36 -hours’ duration,--apparently ptomaine poisoning. The child was staying -at the time with her Royal uncle and aunt, the Tsar and Tsaritsa at the -Palace in Poland. While the child was ill, and just before her life -spark was extinguished, two of the Russian Grand Duchesses, Olga and -Tatiana, who were sleeping together in a neighbouring room, suddenly -began to scream frantically. The Empress, the physicians in attendance -upon Princess Ella and Miss Eager rushed into the room where the -children were and saw them standing in their beds and shrieking in -terror. It was long before they could be pacified and then they told how -they had seen a strange man with flowing robes and great wings, walk -through their room. While they were still telling of the fearful -apparition, the eyes of both the children suddenly became dilated with -terror and both of them simultaneously pointing in the same direction, -cried, “Look! Look! There he is again. Don’t you see him? He is going -into Ella’s room. Poor Ella! Poor Ella!” Of course, none of the adults -could see anything and the physicians assured the Empress that it was -but an attack of childish hysteria which had suddenly and strangely come -upon both children. Only a few moments later, the Empress and the -physicians were hurriedly summoned to the bedside of the dying child -who, lapsing into a state of coma, died in the Tsaritsa’s arms. To this -day, the Empress, as well as the Emperor and Miss Eager, are convinced -that the children actually saw this Angel of Death passing into the room -of the dying Princess. At least, it is true that there are many similar -inexplicable cases on record of children and sometimes of animals, as -well as of dying persons, having supernatural vision at moments of -death. Horses, for example, have been known to become terror-stricken -when passing the scene of a murder, while the well-known death-rap is of -such common occurrence that there can be no doubt of its existence. - -These incidents are related in order to explain much that is otherwise -inexplicable in the character of the Tsaritsa. The mental development -which she has experienced through her entire life has been logical and -in natural sequence. Her early philosophical and theological interests -have simply been developed abnormally in the abnormal environment in -which she has lived. While the Empress has been ever sceptical when -conversing with her friends and reluctant to accept as reality, -manifestations of the spirit world, there can be no doubt that both she -and the Emperor have nevertheless been secretly convinced that they are -both instruments of God as well as possessing the power of holding -converse with the spirit world. - -This is proved by the canonisation of Seraphim, the parish priest of -Tambov, whose tomb they visited prior to the birth of the heir, Alexis. -Seraphim had been dead seventy years, but the Tsar, anxious to leave no -stone unturned to procure a son and heir, encouraged by the Tsaritsa, -insisted upon the canonisation of Seraphim. When the remains of the old -priest were unearthed, it was found that the body was badly decomposed, -and to canonise a man whose body yields to the influence of -decomposition is contrary to the traditions and customs of the Church. -Orthodox Bishop Dmitry of Tambov made bold to call attention to this -fact and protest the canonisation of Seraphim. For his temerity, the -Tsar, deeply angered, ordered that Dmitry be deprived of his see and -exiled to Viatka. According to Emperor Nicholas, the preservation of -bones, hair and teeth were sufficient qualification for saintship. -Furthermore His Majesty was upheld in this by various sycophant but -prophetic monks, who, with sublime assurance, allowed that God will one -day work a miracle and restore Seraphim’s body. So Seraphim was -canonised with great pomp and ritualistic solemnity. If anything were -needed to fasten the belief of the Tsar and Tsaritsa in these extreme -forms of religion it was the patent answer to their faith and trust in -Philippe and Seraphim. - -The boy was called Alexis and he was born on July 30, 1904, according to -the Russian calendar, and since that time, Tsar and Tsaritsa have been -given more and more to spiritualistic religion. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -FAMILY LIFE AT THE RUSSIAN COURT - - -Of recent years, since the war with Japan and the revolutionary outbreak -in 1905-6, few court functions have been held. In the ordinary daily -routine the Tsaritsa prefers to breakfast alone, to lunch with only one -lady-in-waiting and the Emperor with but one adjutant. The dinners are -likewise simple as often as is possible. The older children are brought -in for meals when there are no guests. The tastes of both Tsar and -Tsaritsa are equally simple as to food and to dress. The Tsar’s -favourite uniform is that of Colonel of one of his regiments, except in -the summer, when he frequently appears in hunting costume--an English -Norfolk jacket, knee trousers and leggings or high boots. - -English is the language generally used by the Royal Family when -alone,--English and German. The Tsaritsa speaks Russian quite correctly, -but with a marked German accent. This is not strange in view of the fact -that she did not begin to study the language until after her betrothal. -Like most Germans, she speaks French poorly and consequently French has -never been a popular language with them, although the Tsar speaks it -most excellently well. - -Because English is used so much by the Emperor and Empress it is the -popular language in court circles and among officers. Many Russians send -their children to England when they are very young in order that English -may be their first language. I have known many Russians who spoke -English absolutely perfectly; fluently and without the slightest trace -of foreign accent. The children of the Tsar and Tsaritsa use English -most. - -The Tsaritsa’s voice is low and deep, not unmusical. Her laugh is light, -usually breaking into a silvery falsetto. She is slightly taller than -the Tsar, being about five feet eight and one-half inches, while he is -barely five feet eight inches. Her face still wears an expression of -soft, wistful beauty, which is enhanced by a small mole near the corner -of her mouth. It is so small that it frequently is not noticed at all, -but if one stands near her it is observed and not unpleasantly. - -Miss Eager relates an incident which reveals the curious stolidity not -to say cold-bloodedness of the character of the Empress. The Empress had -gone to the christening of a battleship at St. Petersburg and returned -to the Palace at St. Petersburg in the evening. In the nursery the -Empress told Miss Eager how the officers of the ship had been drawn up -in line for the ceremony when a sudden thunderstorm had descended and a -peculiarly vivid flash of lightning had struck a flagstaff nearby, -shattering as it fell and striking some of the officers. One man rolled -right to the feet of the Empress and her dress had been splashed with -blood. The Dowager Empress had fainted at this sight, but the Empress -herself insisted that the man had died in the service of his country and -that consequently it was not a matter for mourning! - -Of late years, the health of the Empress has been decidedly shattered. -During the summer of 1910, the Tsar took her for a long holiday to -Germany. She visited her childhood home of Darmstadt and later took a -cure at a watering-place known for its beneficial effects upon people -suffering from nervous and heart disorders. - -During the summer of 1907 when the Imperial Family were holidaying on -the yacht, _Standart_, off the islands of Finland, there was an attempt -to do away with the entire family, the full details of which have never -leaked out into the broad world. It is known, however, that this attempt -was the result of a conspiracy which included some of the officers and -men of the Royal yacht. The shock which the Empress sustained at that -time, she has never recovered from and more or less sensational rumours -are frequently given to the world suggesting the precarious condition of -her mind as well as of her nerves. - -From this extraordinarily exclusive family life, which is at present the -rule at Peterhof and Tsarskoe-Selo (the two places where the Imperial -Family spend most of their time) the Tsar has come to be spoken of -among the Grand Dukes and people of the court as “The Little Married -Man.” This phrase is indicative of the supercilious way that family life -is regarded in Russia. Americans are frequently horrified at the -nonchalant way that Russian nobles flaunt their mistresses about the -streets and public restaurants of St. Petersburg. - -The Tsar, as a young man, was probably as fast as any of his court, but -after his marriage he settled down wonderfully. Whether he still has his -wayward periods, as gossip sometimes asserts, I do not know. On the -whole he is a good husband and a fond father. He undoubtedly appreciates -the tremendous love the Tsaritsa pours upon him. - -The attitude of the Tsaritsa toward the education of the Russian people -will seem somewhat extraordinary to Americans, though after all it is -probably consistent with her life. In this, as in everything else, she -accepts the attitude of her liege and lord, the sovereign of the Russian -people. When a certain Count Tolstoy (not the late Leo Tolstoy) was -Minister of Public Instruction he once appealed to the Empress to aid -him in extending the educational advantages of the Empire to the girls -and young women of the country. (I have Count Tolstoy’s own permission -to relate this incident.) - -The Tsaritsa listened to the Minister attentively as he set forth the -needs of Russia in this direction, and when he had concluded she replied -that she thought all young girls should be taught to sew, to care for -their homes, in short, to become helpful wives and good mothers, but as -for granting them the privileges of so-called “higher education,” -knowledge of history, philosophy and the sciences--to this she was -entirely opposed. “Because these studies, when offered to women, only -result in such terrible times as Russia is now passing through.” - -This, surely, is a remarkable tribute to the women of Russia, the -Tsaritsa holding them responsible for the movement toward liberty and -freedom, as a result of their contact with education and culture! - -On the other hand, the Tsaritsa sometimes generously encourages the -extension of school opportunities to individual girls whose efforts -happen to have been brought to her attention. For example, Miss Eager, -who for six years was governess to the little Grand Duchesses, and who -probably saw as much of the Tsaritsa during those years as anyone -outside of the Royal Family has ever seen, relates this anecdote, which -I repeat with particular gladness, because it is one of the few of the -kind that I have heard concerning Her Majesty. - -“This story was told me by the Empress herself,” says Miss Eager. “One -morning there arrived on the train from the Caucasus, a little girl aged -eleven. She approached a station porter and asked to be sent to the -Minister of Education. The porter was greatly astonished and hesitated -as to what he should do. Then the child said with oldish solemnity, ‘I -have come from the Caucasus, a seven days’ journey, to be put to school; -you must please get me a droshky and send me to his house.’ So the -porter called a carriage and directed that she be driven to the Ministry -of Education. Arriving there she had great difficulty in gaining -admission to the Minister, but the doorman finally consented to tell the -Minister that a little girl from the Caucasus desired to see him. - -“The Minister was occupied at the moment, with a Secretary of the -Empress, but the latter was interested in the message and the child was -ushered into the office. The little girl bowed to the two dignitaries -and proceeded to relate her case. The Minister appeared greatly amused -and told the child she must return to her home, as he had no vacancy. -But the little girl was persistent and soon showed that she had no idea -of returning so easily to her distant home across the Empire. ‘You are -Minister of Education,’ she exclaimed, ‘and I have come all the way from -the Caucasus to St. Petersburg to be put to school. You _must_ put me -somewhere.’ The Minister, though puzzled, was beginning to be impressed. -At last the Empress’s Secretary begged that the child be cared for until -there was a vacancy in one of the schools patronised by the Tsaritsa. -These schools are few in number and are very exclusive. A note was -thereupon written by the Minister to the Mistress of one of these -schools and the little girl was sent to her under escort of a footman. -The joy of the child was unbounded and she could scarcely express her -gratitude to the Minister. - -“The Secretary went that afternoon to Peterhof and related the incident -to the Tsaritsa herself. The Empress asked that an inquiry be made -immediately and the truth of the child’s story substantiated. The -investigation showed that the two older sisters of the child had been -admitted to a local school, but there was no room for her. She took this -greatly to heart and fretted over it until at last she determined to get -a schooling anyway. She appealed to friends, to the local priest and the -doctor, and all of their combined efforts to reconcile her to the ‘Will -of God’ proved futile. At last, to pacify her, they subscribed enough -money for a ticket to the capital, and the child set forth on her long -journey all alone. - -“When the Empress heard the story in detail, her heart was touched and -she commanded that place be made for her in one of her own schools. The -child is there to-day, receiving careful instruction, and enjoying the -direct patronage of the Empress.” - -The Empress really loves all children, and in spite of the coolness -which exists between her and her court, all children are fond of her. On -the name day of each of her own children, she takes a long drive with -the child whose celebration it is, and this event is much looked forward -to by them all. Whatever leniency may be exercised in correcting the -capricious whims of Alexis, I believe that she is a strict mother with -all of her daughters. - -The Empress has few recreations. Owing to the fact that she rides badly -she practically never rides for pleasure. Because of her disposition she -has few, if any, real confidantes and intimate friends among the ladies -of the Court. She has ladies-in-waiting--several hundred of them--but -these are chiefly for formal occasions, and of her own choice she has -but one near her at a time and different ladies are chosen for brief -periods. Evenings she and the Emperor choose to retire to their private -apartments and if she has no guests she reads aloud to him, not -infrequently from English newspapers or an English novel. - -The Tsar is fond of cards. The game of wint, a gambling game much played -all over Russia, is a favourite of his, and he usually plays for high -stakes, much enjoying the zest that the gambling element lends to the -game. The Tsaritsa, on the other hand, is fond of the camera, and enjoys -photography immensely. The children have few playmates apart from their -own family and sometimes Royal cousins, children of one or another of -the Grand Dukes, or one of the Royal relatives of their own mother or -father abroad. - -The Princess Ella, daughter of the present Grand Duke of Hesse and -brother to the Tsaritsa, was a playmate whom the little Russian Grand -Duchesses adored up to the sad and untimely death of the German -Princess. Being left most of the time to themselves, the children of the -Tsar and Tsaritsa enjoy joining their mother in her pastimes when it is -possible, and photography is one of the things that they all can do -together. - -The Emperor has always done some shooting each year and is really fond -of the sport. One morning a few summers ago he returned to the Palace -quite fatigued, having been out all night after blackcock. Blackcock -shooting is considered right good sport because the birds are so shy -that it is difficult to get near them, and indeed, it is only at certain -times of the year that they can be shot at all. On the morning that I -refer to the Empress greeted the Royal sportsman and turning to a friend -said: “Blackcock can only be shot at the mating season, when the males -are pouring forth their song in deaf and blind rapture.” Could anything -be more cruel than to kill them at such a time? - -In the summer the Tsaritsa is fond of sailing in and out among the -Finnish wherries, but this annual outing is for two or three weeks only. -Previous to “Bloody Sunday” in January, 1905, the Winter Palace in St. -Petersburg was occupied, but since that fateful day the two outlying -palaces only have been used. This has been a disappointment to Grand -Duchess Olga, who always loved the Winter Palace and often expresses the -wish to “live there all the time.” The Winter Palace is the largest -building in Europe and is a marvel in appointments. It contains rarest -malachites and jaspers, rich paintings, gifts galore that have been -showered upon other Tsars, priceless jewels, and wonderful carved -furniture. Besides the great rooms of state, salons and banquet rooms, -suites of residence, libraries, offices, and vast halls that are now -used as public museums, are beautiful winter gardens, great -conservatories rich in tropical plants, rare ferns and orchids, -blossoming plants exuding fragrance, and among the forest of greenery -hang many cages of singing birds. In the centre of these winter gardens -are pools of water in which gold fish sport, and at times pretty -fountains play into these pools. - -Whenever I have been in this wonderful palace I have felt as if I were -wandering through a dream world. Several times I have been through -portions of this palace and each time I have felt a new thrill of -unreality. - -The occasion of my first visit was when the Tsar received the members of -the first Duma, the occasion when I first saw the Tsaritsa, the Dowager -Empress and the little Grand Duchesses. The Tsar had commanded all of -the grand dames of the Court to appear in full court costume, and the -result was a scene of unparalleled splendour, a spectacle imposing -beyond imagination. The Throne Room and halls that were in use that day -suggested scenes from the magnificent days of the Empire of France when -beautiful women and emblazoned, uniformed men arrayed themselves in -costumes of glittering splendour. The old Russian court costumes which -were worn in the Winter Palace that - -[Illustration: THE WINTER PALACE, THE SCENE OF “BLOODY SUNDAY.”] - -day were quite as splendid as any the French ever conceived even in the -days of greatest pomp and show. - -On another occasion I was received at the Winter Palace by a well-known -and powerful nobleman of the Court, who has been close to the Empress -for many years in the dual capacity of high functionary and friend. He -is one to whom my high thanks are due for some of the material contained -in these articles, for he not only told me some of the anecdotes which -are here related, but he verified much of the material that I had -collected from other persons and sources. - -Peterhof is the favourite residence of the Tsaritsa and four of her five -children were born there. One of the several buildings of this palace -boasts a charming romantic history. About half a century ago when the -first Nicholas was soon to be Emperor of Russia, he paid a visit to the -German court. During the visit a tournament was held and Nicholas, then -a Grand Duke, acquitted himself with honour. At the close of the -tournament the victors rode past and close under a balcony, where were -seated the ladies of the court and the Royal Family. A young Prussian -Princess tossed a wreath of roses which the Russian Grand Duke caught on -his sword. - -The incident proved the beginning of an attachment which culminated in -their marriage. Some years after, when the Grand Duke had become -Emperor, he bought the great park of Peterhof and built a palace for -his Empress. Remembering the incident of the wreath of roses, at the -tournament at the Prussian court, the device of a sword and a wreath of -roses was made the predominant decorative figure of the palace. You may -see it there to-day. Now as then, Peterhof belongs to the ruling -Empress. Tsarskoe-Selo is an Imperial residence belonging to the -government. Both of these palaces are within an hour of St. Petersburg. - -Any visitor may stroll through the outer gardens and adjoining parks of -the palaces and at any time one may meet the Tsaritsa or the Grand -Duchesses driving or riding. The Tsar is the only real prisoner of the -family, although Alexis, the four-year-old heir, is jealously guarded. - -The Tsaritsa rides badly. Despite the fact that she is commander and -“honorary Colonel” of at least two cavalry regiments she does not sit a -horse well and never rides for pleasure. In this respect she is very -unlike many modern Queens, notably the Empress Elizabeth of Austria, who -was a marvellous horsewoman, possessing that rare hypnotic influence -over the most spirited horses that the animals themselves are quick to -recognise and yield to. It is only on such occasions as a review of one -of her own regiments that the Tsaritsa mounts a horse. Ordinarily she -drives--in summer in an open carriage, and generally unescorted. - -The children may from time to time be seen playing about the lawns with -a favourite pony, or driving in little wicker-work carts. They are as -full of frolic as any little girl in America, and in the nursery and the -household apartments of the palaces they are as ingenuous, as -irrepressible and often quite as embarrassing as any children we all -know. Royal manners, at least in the children, are no different from -manners of other people, and the daughters of even an Emperor and -Empress have sometimes to be rebuked quite as severely as any children -the world over. - -The Tsaritsa dresses very plainly. Richly often, but in general effect -simple. The Court has never approved her clothes, chiefly, I think, -because of her inability to wear good clothes well. As a child she -dressed in the utmost simplicity and the habit has remained with her. At -certain court functions etiquette prescribes her costume. When she dons -court dress known as Old Russian, she has merely to wear elaborate -clothes that have been described in detail for her generations ago. It -is when she dons costumes for everyday wear that she fails to please a -fastidious court. - -The average American girl very naturally thinks of the clothes of the -Tsaritsa of Russia with a combined feeling of awe and interest, with -just a little of envy creeping in. Imagine having all the money you want -to spend on your clothes and being able to wear jewels valued at -millions of dollars. And, of course, the American girl wants to know all -the details of the Tsaritsa’s wardrobe, and how many hats and dresses -she has each season, and how much they cost. - -It may be a disappointing fact, but it is nevertheless true, that the -Tsaritsa just hates the thought of clothes, and though her costumes are -of expensive fabrics, they never have any chic individuality of their -own, for the very good reason that she cares so little about them. Of -course, she does her shopping in Paris, but she does it by proxy. One of -the Ladies-in-Waiting is commissioned to buy each season her gowns and -her hats and all the other little details appropriate for a Tsaritsa’s -wardrobe, in Paris, but many times when they reach the Tsaritsa, she -discards them with the expression, “Indeed, that is perfectly lovely and -very Frenchy, but it would never do for me at all.” - -The corsetiere in Paris who makes the Tsaritsa’s stays has troubles of -her own, for the Tsaritsa utterly refuses to change her figure to suit -the ever-changing modes. Her waist is growing large of late, according -to the Parisian idea of a fashionable figure, but this doesn’t trouble -the Tsaritsa as much as it would trouble many women in America. - -For everyday wear her gowns are all of the plainest, but, of course, -there are occasions when she must wear regal robes. Her court costume is -a magnificent creation of the richest satin elaborately trimmed with -heavy embroidery. Masses of the embroidery are used, while the corsage -is laden with jewelled trimming. The buttons which trim this court -costume are each one of them worth a small fortune. They consist of a -large pearl in a wonderfully artistic setting. The Tsaritsa’s pearls, -which she wears with her court costume are famous the world over. - -It is no wonder she has all of these magnificent things, for in addition -to the hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of gifts that she has -herself received from her subjects and from fabulously rich kings, -princes and potentates of the East and Central Asia, she has at her -disposal jewels that belong to the Russian Crown--gifts to other -Empresses, and Emperors, far back, perhaps for several hundred years. - -Sometimes she wears drop-earrings of matched pearls, which are -marvellously valuable, and her dog collar and necklace and corsage pin, -also of pearls, have a value of millions of dollars. The Tsaritsa is -always glad when the time comes for her to take off her court costume. -The long, heavy train is a burden to her. She is very partial to -light-in-weight gowns. - -Many of her dresses are of the lingerie order, consisting of lace and -fine nainsook. - -Yet, on the other hand, she has many house gowns and cloaks of velvet, -trimmed with rare laces. Perhaps, of all her jewels, she cares most for -a long string of wonderful pearls, which she wears very often. The -string is so long that she can wear it twice around her neck, and yet -have the longest loop reach to her knees. The short loop comes to the -waistline, and is finished with one single pear-shaped pearl of enormous -value. - -All the children’s clothes are made according to the Tsaritsa’s idea, -and simplicity is their key-note. The children are very apt to wear -white entirely, and the four little girls are dressed exactly alike. -Their hair is arranged in the same way, too, brushed straight back from -their foreheads. Of course, the finest of materials is used in making -their clothes, but the design is always extremely simple. Their -christening costumes were all made alike, even the small boy’s this -time. They were of the sheerest of white mull with exquisitely fine lace -insertions. The little dresses had short sleeves and were cut out round -at the neck, and tied on the shoulders with white ribbon, having long, -silk fringe. The shoulder bows were the dress-up touch, the touch which -is so seldom seen in any of the costumes worn by the Tsaritsa’s -children. - -The young man of the family is also usually dressed in white, and though -his little Russian suits come from Paris, they are strictly plain in -design, generally of heavy white linen, and trimmed with bands of -embroidery. - -All these little details may be commonplace, but they are perhaps all -important when we are trying to analyse the character of the Tsaritsa -through her tastes. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE GRAND DUCHESS OLGA - - -The effect of the war upon the children of the Tsaritsa caused much pain -to their gentle English governess, Miss Eager, who relates the following -experience: “It was very sad to witness the wrathful, vindictive spirit -that the war raised in my little charges. One of the illustrated papers -had a picture of the baby children of the Crown Prince of Japan. Marie -and Anastasie came running across to see the picture, and wanted to know -who those queer little children were. I told them, and with a look of -hatred coming into her sweet face Marie slapped the picture with her -open hand. ‘Horrid little people,’ said she; ‘they came and destroyed -our poor ships and drowned our sailors.’” Miss Eager then explained to -the little Grand Duchess that it was not these children who had done -this terrible thing, because they were only babies and could not -possibly fight. But Marie answered obstinately, “Yes; those little -babies did it. Mamma told me the Japs were all only little people!” - -Olga, as usual, was yet more bitter toward the Japanese. One day she -opened up vituperatively: “I hope the Russian soldiers will kill all of -the Japanese; not leave even one alive.” Her teacher tried to explain -that there were many little children and women in Japan, who had nothing -whatever to do with the war and could not fight under any circumstances. -Would it be good, she asked of Olga, for the Russian soldiers to kill -these too? The child was thoughtful for a moment, then asked: “Have they -an Emperor in Japan?” “Yes, certainly,” the teacher answered. Olga then -asked several more questions, and finally remarked: “I did not know that -the Japs were people like ourselves. I thought they were only like -monkeys.” - -Olga, like so many children, who are the oldest in a family, has always -been a handful. About Marie, and Anastasie, and Tatiana too, for that -matter, are many pretty little stories of charming childish ways, but -almost every anecdote I heard of Olga was when she had been up to some -mischief, or disobedient, or stubborn, or quick of temper. One or two of -these stories, however, are interesting and show that even the mother -task of an Empress’s life is very much like every mother’s life, and -especially in the case of the Tsaritsa who has ever undertaken so much -more personal care of her children than most Queens--and one may even -say, than many mothers right here in this land. - -One day, before the outbreak of the war, when Olga was quite a little -girl, she was taken for a drive with her nurse along the Nevsky -Prospect, the principal street in St. Petersburg. The little Grand -Duchess simply would not behave. She was continually jumping up and -attracting the attention of people along the streets, and as it was that -time in the afternoon when the Nevsky is crowded, this meant pretty much -the attention of all St. Petersburg. - -Suddenly the child dropped back into her seat and sat bolt upright as -quiet as you please, her hands folded demurely in her lap. After a -moment she turned to her nurse and said: “Did you see that policeman?” -The nurse replied she had, but there was nothing extraordinary about a -policeman on the street. “But this one was writing something,” pursued -Olga. “I am afraid he was writing, ‘I saw Olga and she was very -naughty.’” - -When the nurse replied that this was unlikely Olga reminded her, -somewhat reproachfully, that a few days before they had seen a policeman -arresting a woman who was under the influence of liquor, and when Olga -had begged that the woman be let off the nurse had replied that the -woman had been very naughty and deserved to be arrested, adding that one -had to be very naughty indeed to be taken off by the policeman in that -way. - -The incident evidently made a deep impression upon the child, for no -sooner had they got back to the Palace than Olga began to inquire if any -policeman had been there for her. As soon as she could, she related the -whole affair to the Tsar and the Tsaritsa and ended by asking her father -if he had ever been arrested. The Emperor laughed and said he had never -been quite naughty enough for that, to which Olga exclaimed: “Oh! how -very good you must always have been!” - -A little while before this Olga had been naughty all day and her nurse -said to her: “I am afraid you got out of bed with the wrong foot -foremost this morning.” Olga looked thoughtful for a moment but said -nothing. The next morning, before getting out of bed she called to her -nurse to ask which was the right foot for her to get out with. The nurse -indicated one of her feet and Olga slowly descended upon it. “Now,” she -said, “that bad foot won’t be able to make me naughty to-day.” And all -day, whenever Olga started to do things she ought not to do, the nurse -had only to remind her that she had got out of bed with her right foot -that morning, therefore she couldn’t be contrary. - -Tatiana’s next youngest sister, the Grand Duchess Marie, one day caused -a ripple of amusement in the same Winter Palace. She was looking out of -one of the windows when a regiment of soldiers marched past, through the -magnificent Winter Palace Square over which a colossal Angel of Peace -broods, perched on a towering marble column. Suddenly Marie exclaimed, -“Oh! I love these dear soldiers; I should like to kiss them all!” - -One of the family who was standing near overheard the child’s remark and -said: “Marie, nice little girls don’t kiss soldiers.” - -Marie made no reply, but a little later there was a children’s party at -the Palace, and among the guests were the children of the Grand Duke -Constantine. One of the boys, aged twelve, had just entered in the -military school where high noblemen’s sons are trained for the army--the -_Corps de Pages_. This miniature officer arrived in his brand new -uniform and as he met his cousin Marie he made to kiss her. But Marie -sprang away, covering her mouth with her hand. “Go away, soldier,” she -cried. “I don’t kiss soldiers--nice little girls don’t kiss soldiers.” - -Her cousin was so well pleased at being taken for a real soldier that he -readily forgave his dignified little cousin for declining his proffered -kiss. - -Tatiana and Marie have always been sweet children, and, on the whole -even tempered if mischievous. Olga, however, the eldest, has never been -so popular. In 1899, when Olga was four years old the Royal Family -(which then included only three children), went to Moscow for a brief -sojourn. While there the Empress decided to have portraits painted of -the three children. - -The artist who was entrusted with this commission began to take -innumerable photographs of them all. This was preliminary to the -sittings. The sittings proved tedious and tiresome and after the fourth -or fifth sitting Grand Duchess Olga quite lost her patience and her -temper, and at last exclaimed to the artist: “You are a very ugly man -and I don’t like you a bit.” - -To the amusement of several members of the Imperial Household the artist -was much hurt by this Royal comment, and offended as well. He even -ventured to resent the child’s outburst. “You are the first lady who has -ever said I was ugly, and moreover, I’m not a man--I’m a gentleman,” he -replied. - -Ladies of the Court were always loath to talk about Olga. “She is -cranky,” said one. “She is not nice,” said another. And one grand lady -of honour went so far as to shrug her shoulders and say: “She is like -her mother!” When I pressed this and begged her tell me more, the lady -merely referred to the haughty, disdainful manner of the Empress. I -think I have explained this attitude as I have understood it. - -The Empress received very little sympathy and consideration from the -ladies of her Court from her first coming to Russia, and she soon came -to hold her head high and walk heedless through the throng. She -apparently gave no effort to winning friends but accepted the atmosphere -which circumstances and an obstinate Court created for her. Perhaps the -consciousness of her lack of popularity wore upon her, and rasped. That -wide popularity of the Dowager Empress, and her lack of cordiality -toward her young successor doubtless tended to further develop the very -qualities that have been her bane. At all events her disposition toward -most of the people of her Court has never been happy, and their silent -resentment of her coolness has driven her more and more into herself, to -the consolations of religion, and her family. - -One Lady-in-Waiting, for example, told me that she had been attached to -the person of the Empress from time to time for a number of years. She -herself is a Princess of old family and in excellent standing at Court. -One day, when the Grand Duchess Olga was three years old the Princess -and the child were together in one of the nursery rooms. The Princess -stood with her back to one of the walls and Olga came toddling across -the room as fast as her little legs would carry her. The Princess -stretched out her arms, caught up the child and lightly tossed her -ceilingwards, then bringing her slowly down toward her own upturned -face, kissed her and set her down. At that moment the Empress entered -the room. She had no sooner seen this very natural action on the part of -her own Lady-in-Waiting than she exclaimed: “The most you may do is to -kiss the hand of my daughter!” - -St. Petersburg is full of similar gossiping incidents concerning the -Empress. Many of them are doubtless fabricated, as many such anecdotes -always are concerning people who occupy conspicuous positions in the -world, but the one I have just related is true, and all of these -anecdotes possess the virtue that they are likely--that they _may_ be -true. - -One concluding anecdote of the Grand Duchess Olga is vouched for. One -day a professor from Moscow was giving the Grand Duchess Olga a lesson -in history. A Lady-in-Waiting was sitting by, as usual, to insure that -no dangerous doctrines are taught. Suddenly Olga looked up at her -teacher and asked: “Who is Emperor of France?” The professor felt that -this was an embarrassing question, for it was as yet far too early to -undertake the explanation of a republican system of government. The -Lady-in-Waiting, however, was equal to the occasion, for seeing the -embarrassment of the professor, she answered, “In France the Emperor is -called _President_!” - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -TATIANA, MARIE AND ANASTASIE - - -The Grand Duke Vladimir was wont to call the Grand Duchess Marie “The -Amiable Baby,” and from all accounts she is more like what her mother -was in babyhood than any of the children. Between her and her older -sister Olga is a world of difference. If half the stories about her are -true she is indeed the personification of sweetness and unselfishness. - -Whooping cough attacked the whole nursery one spring. Curiously enough -the Empress came down first and it quickly spread to all of the -children. Even the nurses caught it. One day one of the nurses was -holding the baby, Anastasie, on her lap. The little thing was coughing -and choking toward the whoop of relief when Marie ran up close to her, -and putting her face close up to her little sister’s said: “Baby, -darling, cough on me.” The nurse asked her why she desired that and she -answered: “I am so sorry to see my dear little sister so ill, and I -thought if I could take it from her she would be better.” A charmingly -generous impulse, surely! - -Marie is so frequently held up as a model and an example to the other -three sisters that she has been nicknamed the “stepsister.” Her -amiability and sweetness are so marked that her sisters are ready to -admit that she cannot be more than half one of them! - -There is a pretty little story current of a nursery incident which -occurred one afternoon when the little Grand Duchesses were playing -house by piling up chairs. The other sisters entered into a conspiracy -against Marie. “You were to be the footman and wait outside,” they told -her. Marie was quite willing to be footman, but she protested against -leaving the nursery and standing all by herself in the hall. But the -others pushed her out and it looked as if poor little Marie would have -to submit. Suddenly she dashed into the nursery, her arms filled with -toys and dolls’ dresses. Rushing up to her sisters she dealt each a slap -and cried out: “I’ll not be a footman. I’ll be the kind, good aunt who -brings presents to the children.” - -She then proceeded to distribute her gifts, kissed each of her “nieces” -and sat down. The other children looked sheepishly at one another, and -at last Tatiana said: “We are too cruel to poor little Marie, she really -couldn’t help whipping us.” And after that Marie played with the others -in the nursery. - -The children are frequently admitted to where their parents are at tea -time, but they are not supposed to touch any of the cakes that are -served to the older people. It is difficult to prevent this always, for -like all children, they want to sample the good things they see. - -One day, when no one was noticing Marie particularly, she helped herself -to some cake and began to gobble it down as fast as she could. With her -mouth still full, she looked up at the nurse who came to take her and -said: “Dere! I’ve eaten it all up. You tant det it now.” - -The Empress felt that Marie should be punished for this, so nurse was -told to take her off to bed. But the Emperor intervened, saying that he -had always feared Marie would be growing wings and he was glad to see -that she was only a human child after all! - -I remember one occasion when the Tsaritsa was covered with confusion by -the little Grand Duchess Tatiana. The Crown Prince of Siam was visiting -St. Petersburg and during part of his stay, he was a guest of the -Emperor and Empress, who were then occupying the Winter Palace. The -dusky Prince went to pay his respects to the nursery. The Empress -herself accompanied him to present the children. - -On the way they met Tatiana and the Empress called to her second -daughter: “Come, Tatiana, and shake hands with this gentleman.” Tatiana -held off shyly, looking askance and with manifest disapproval upon the -brown-skinned potentate from Siam. At last she exclaimed: “That is not a -gentleman, mamma; that’s a monkey!” - -The Empress flushed with mortification and retorted: “You are a monkey -yourself, Tatiana.” The Prince laughed heartily at the incident and -before the end of the visit of his Imperial Highness to Petersburg, he -and Tatiana became fast friends. - -Tatiana has always been a bright child, with an amusing, alert mind. One -day she and her English governess were walking in the garden of the -Winter Palace, when one of the Emperor’s beautiful great collie dogs -came bounding along the path behind them. With a puppy-like caprice the -dog jumped on Tatiana’s back and threw her down. As the little Grand -Duchess clambered to her feet, the dog gamboled off down the path in a -mad frolic with another dog. Tatiana was not hurt, but considerably -frightened, and after gazing after the dogs for a moment in silence, -great salt tears began to drop down her cheeks. The governess tried to -comfort her by saying “Poor Sheilka, she did not mean to hurt you; she -only wanted to say ‘good morning’ to you.” - -Tatiana looked up at her governess and quickly replied: “Was that all? -Then I don’t think she is very polite; she should have said it to my -face, not to my back.” - -The Grand Duchess Tatiana is one of the sweetest of children. One day -when she was being got ready to go out, the governess went to get her -coat to go with them. When she returned, the nurse, Mary, was shaking -Tatiana. “How dare you shake Tatiana?” Miss Eager exclaimed. “You are -paid to take care of her,--not to correct her.” “She is paid?” said -Tatiana in surprise. “Yes,” the governess replied, “She is paid and I, -also, am paid,” at which Tatiana put her head on the shoulder of the -governess and cried. “You have seen me get my money every month,” said -the governess. “I always thought it was a present to you,” the child -said. The governess then explained that it was necessary that she be -paid, as she had no money of her own and that her way of earning money -was looking after the Royal children. The next morning when the -governess awoke, Tatiana was standing by her bedside and she said, “May -I get into your bed?” As the little Grand Duchess cuddled down in the -arms of her governess, she exclaimed, “Anyway, you are not paid for -this.” - -Another day, as the Royal nursery was going to the beach at Livadia -after a terrible storm, the Grand Duchess Olga picked up a little dead -bird which had fallen on the grass and said, “I will keep this poor, -little bird forever.” The governess did not interfere but watched Olga -carry it, followed by Tatiana who was sympathetically interested. The -governess wondered how long the children would carry this bird before -getting tired of it. Presently, Olga said, “Perhaps I am doing wrong to -take this little bird away because even at this moment, God may have -sent an angel for the bird and what if it is not there? I am going to -put it back.” Whereupon, she retraced her steps to the spot where she -had found it. The next day they were going to the beach again and they -took the same path as on the previous day in order to look for the -bird. When they arrived at the spot where Olga had found and replaced -it, the bird was gone. “Suppose we had taken it away!” said Olga. “Then -God’s angel could not have found it.” “Oh,” replied Tatiana, “I think it -would have been perfectly lovely if He had taken it out of our hands!” - -Anastasie has always enjoyed the reputation of being the most -mischievous of all the children. One year, when the Dowager Empress was -about to celebrate her birthday, all of the Imperial children were -arranging their gifts for their grandmother. Anastasie, for reasons of -her own, determined not to take any part in these arrangements or to -select any gift for her grandmother. She refused even to learn a piece -of poetry to recite to her as all the other children did. “At all -events, she will take grandmamma a bouquet of lilies of the valley tied -with a bow of mauve ribbon?” “O yes, I will gather a bouquet in the -morning,” replied Anastasie. The following day, all the children were -dressed to go into the carriage to offer their congratulations to the -Dowager Empress. Anastasie alone, appeared with empty hands. “I thought -we were going to walk so that I could gather some wild flowers for -grandma; now I shall have none.” “When people go to offer -congratulations, they go in carriages,” their governess explained. -Anastasie thereupon went to the cupboard and took a little toy from it. -When the nursery arrived at the Palace, the other children gave their -grandmother gifts and recited their pieces of poetry until it came -Anastasie’s turn when she hung her head and all the other children -turned away with shame and chagrin for their sister. “Have you nothing -for grandma?” the Empress Dowager said. “Yes, I have brought this, -Grandma,” Anastasie replied. “But have you made nothing for me with your -own little hands?” “Nothing, Grandma,” was the answer. “Well, dear, you -are a very little child,” said the Empress Dowager, “but perhaps you -have learned a piece of poetry to say to me.” Anastasie looked more -chagrined than ever, but, unwilling to confess her negligence, thought -to deceive the Empress Dowager by repeating the following lines: - - I have a pretty doll, - Her name is Miss Rose, - She has two pretty blue eyes, - And a very small nose. - She can’t stand long, - On her tiny little toes, - She just makes a curtsy, - And then, off she goes. - -“That is very pretty,” said the Empress, “but isn’t that what you said -to your mother last week?” Anastasie couldn’t stand it any longer and -fled from the room and burst into tears, but presently she went back to -her grandma to tell her how sorry she was and to beg her forgiveness. -The Empress accepted the child’s apology very sweetly, but told her -that she could not give her the bonbon like the one she had given to all -the other children. - -Anastasie, one day, climbed onto the nursery table and jumped off. The -governess said, “You must not do that; it is too high; you can jump off -the sofa if you want to jump, but not off the table.” Paying no heed to -what had been said to her, Anastasie again climbed on the table and -jumped off. So her governess gently slapped her. Anastasie sat down and -thought a moment, then said, “It is not nice to get a slap, but it is -better to climb on the table and get a slap than to jump off the sofa -and not get a slap,” and she promptly climbed on the table once more and -jumped again. The governess then tied her in a chair with a sash. -Anastasie did not like this so she said, “It is better to climb on the -table and get a slap but it is better not to climb on the table than to -be tied in a chair like this.” - -The Emperor was with the children one day when Anastasie, in a burst of -temper, slapped Tatiana on the face. The Emperor promptly sent for the -nursery governess and told her to take Anastasie upstairs and make her -hear reason. When the governess had Anastasie alone, she said, “Aren’t -you ashamed of yourself to slap your sister?” “I am not ashamed at all,” -replied Anastasie, “because I did not really hurt Tatiana.” “But you -hurt Tatiana’s feelings,” the governess told her, “and you hurt your -father’s feelings.” “I did not hurt Tatiana so I won’t say ‘I am sorry’ -to her but I am sorry I hurted poor daddy’s feelings,” and she -proceeded to go and tell her father how sorry she felt. The governess -allowed her to go downstairs. Anastasie went directly to the Tsar and -said: “Daddy, I am sorry I hurted your feelings,” but to Tatiana she -would not say a word. After a moment, however, she suddenly threw her -arms around her sister’s neck and kissed her. - -Anastasie had long wanted a cat for a pet. In the garden near Peterhof, -where the Royal Family were staying for the annual manœuvres, the -nursery, one day, found a cat following the gardener. Anastasie promptly -said, “Sir, will you please give me your cat?” “You may have the cat if -you can keep it,” the gardener replied. Anastasie took the cat home, -buttered its feet and shut it up in one of the rooms. When she went to -look for her cat, she found it had escaped through the chimney. The next -day, Anastasie went again to the garden and, seeking out the gardener, -said, “You said I might have the cat and I took it home but she ran -away.” “No,” said the gardener, “I said you might have the cat if you -could keep it.” Anastasie begged him to give her the cat again and to -tell the cat that she was to stay with her, but the gardener was -reluctant to give up his pet and so a kitten had to be found for -Anastasie elsewhere. - -One spring, the nursery was taken to an orchard near the Palace to pick -apples, and, as a reward, they were promised some baked apples with -their tea. When the baskets were filled, the apples were sent to the -Palace and the children were taken off to listen to a military band. -While the band was playing, Anastasie suddenly produced an apple which -she had hidden and began to eat it. The governess took it away from her -and told her not to eat it, as it would make her ill. A few moments -later, she produced another, and said to her governess, “If you take -this apple away from me, I will scream and then the people will all -think you are wicked to me.” So the governess said, “Anastasie, as sure -as you eat that apple, you will be punished when you get home.” -Anastasie was not frightened by the threat and calmly proceeded to eat -the apple. When the nursery returned to the Palace, Anastasie was put -straight to bed and at tea time, all the other children had baked apples -but none was given her. The other children thought to tease her by -asking her if she did not want some of their lovely baked apples. “No, -indeed,” remarked Anastasie, “because you don’t know how good that apple -was that I had in the garden.” The next day, Anastasie wanted again to -be taken to the orchard, but the governess took her somewhere where she -did not want to go. Looking out of the carriage window, Anastasie said, -“It is very lovely here; I am enjoying myself much more than in the -orchard.” The following day, she again asked to be taken to the orchard. -Her governess asked her why she wanted to be taken there again and -Anastasie, throwing her arms around the governess’s neck, said: “Because -it was such fun eating that apple.” Several days later, Tatiana said, -“It is too bad because Anastasie was naughty that we cannot go to the -orchard.” The governess said, “Until Anastasie is good and will promise -not to eat any more apples you cannot go.” It was nearly a week after -that before Anastasie’s stubbornness was subdued and she promised to eat -no more apples if the nursery might only go and play in the orchard. - -From these stories, it will be seen that Anastasie is most like her -Imperial father whose traditional stubbornness of character is well -known. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE TSAREVITCH - - -Alexis, son and heir of Tsar Nicholas II and Tsaritsa Alexandra -Feodorovna, was born July 30th (Russian style), 1904. When he was about -an hour old, he was made honorary commander of six regiments of the -Russian army. - -When he was twelve days old he was taken to the Royal chapel at Peterhof -in a gilded coach drawn by eight horses and christened. The name he -bears, interpreted, means “Bringer of Peace.” Yet at this time the -Tsaritsa said: “We are bound to hand over to our son an Autocracy such -as we ourselves received.” - -Here is one of the curious phases of her character. Born of an English -mother, reared in Germany where at least the idea of a constitutional -monarchy is accepted, she yet opposes the least step toward reform and -progress in Russia, if it interferes with or threatens Autocracy. She -acquiesces in the naming of her son “Bringer of Peace” at a time when -nearly the whole nation is aspiring to freedom and almost ready to rise -up in general revolution to fight for a constitution! It would seem that -in this as in so many other things she learned to conform with the will -of the Tsar, who is her sole liege. The Tsar, two years later, said in -private conversation to a friend of mine: “I believe Russia can go for -twenty years more without a constitution.” - -As the Tsar speaks, so thinks the Tsaritsa. Whether this is one of the -tragedies of her life, or whether it is her supreme sacrifice, one -cannot judge. The fact remains, that every thought, every particle of -her own _ego_ has been put aside that she may be more completely the -wife of her husband. - -The little Alexis was started in life with a goodly array of godfathers -and godmothers. Among the former were the King of England, the King of -Denmark, the Emperor of Germany, and various Grand Dukes, uncles of the -Tsar. During the baptismal service the baby Tsarevitch, when he was -being anointed, raised a tiny pink hand and extended his fingers as if -he were pronouncing a benediction or bestowing a blessing. And all the -people present accepted this as a good omen of future blessings to come -from the Heir to the Throne. - -The training of a young Tsar does not conform with American ideas of -training a child, for very largely the Tsarevitch is encouraged to do -everything he is inclined to do on the theory that the instincts and -impulses of an Autocrat must be right. - -During the summer of 1907 I was in Finland when the Royal Family were -cruising along the picturesque Finnish coast in the Royal Yacht -_Standart_, and I gathered various stories of Alexis from sailors and -officers of the ship. On this cruise Alexis was the Emperor’s adjutant, -and by way of training, this three-year-old was placed in command of the -squadron, that is to say, the Royal Yacht and the accompanying pilot -boat, gunboats and other vessels that make up a Royal fleet when the -Imperial Family goes for a summer outing. - -One night in August when the air was still and warm, Alexis had -difficulty in falling asleep. Suddenly he sat up in his little bed and -announced that he desired the ship’s band to come and play for him. The -officer on duty explained that the hour was late and the band had -retired, whereupon Alexis grew furious and _commanded_ that the band be -aroused and brought to him immediately, which was done. The Tsar on this -occasion was inordinately pleased and exclaimed: “That’s the way to -bring up an Autocrat!” - -On another occasion Alexis ordered all the Finnish pilots on the various -ships to be brought before him. As the astonished and wondering Finns -appeared on the deck of the _Standart_ the baby commander shouted: -“Zdorovo rebyata!” (Health children!) The Finns, not understanding -Russian, were much bewildered and frightened, and Alexis, became -exceedingly annoyed at their not understanding. So the Finns were -hurriedly taught to respond: “Zdravie zhelayem vashe Imperatorskoye -Vysochestvo”--(“We wish you health, your Imperial Highness.”) - -The sailor who acts as orderly to the Tsarevitch on the _Standart_ is -called Stefan. He is of huge physique and is in attendance on the -autocrat-in-process day and night. Up to the present time, Alexis has -shown a greater fondness for this man than for anyone else. He insists -upon his “big Stefan” taking part in nearly all of his games and it is -quite clear that he considers Stefan as second only to his father in all -the vast Empire. Morning and night, little Alexis in his prayers -remembers Stefan but even Stefan has not been able to break his young -charge of a certain military tendency which shows itself at the end of -each of his prayers in a loud “hurrah” instead of an “Amen.” Alexis is -perfectly logical in this, for he says that the soldiers on parade -always cry “Hurrah” when his father appears or when he ceases speaking -and, consequently, it is right that his Heavenly Father should be -greeted in the same way. - -Early in the year 1909, the Emperor of China despatched a special -embassy, headed by one of the Princes of the Royal Family in China, to -St. Petersburg for the express purpose of conveying to the Tsarevitch -Alexis a collection of wonderful Chinese toys. The Embassy also brought -with it two wonderfully trained dwarf elephants. This embassy was sent -in acknowledgment of a similar embassy which the Emperor of Russia had -sent to China some time before conveying to the boy-Emperor of -400,000,000 of people, a toy railroad said to have cost more than fifty -thousand dollars and many elaborate and ingenious toys of Russian -design. This toy railroad was similar to one that President Fallières of -France had presented to the Tsarevitch on the occasion of his visit to -the Russian Imperial family. This gift had pleased the Tsarevitch hugely -and he immediately nicknamed the French president, “The train-man.” The -Tsarevitch, like the Royal children of Spain, has frequently been -maligned in the Press of Europe and reported as being defective -mentally. These stories, of course, are all nonsense, for, like the -Spanish Princes, he is a sturdy, wholesome boy in every respect and -takes the keenest interest not only in all the wonderful toys that are -sent him by kings, emperors and eastern potentates but also in childish -sports and games. - -That Alexis has a mind of his own and a pretty keen one at that is -illustrated in a story that the Tsar himself has repeated. It appears -that one day, the Emperor was engaged with a council of Ministers when -the little Alexis suddenly burst into the Cabinet room. Surprised at -seeing his father surrounded by so large a group of dignitaries, he -stopped and looked at them for a moment, then quietly said: “Good -morning, brothers.” The Emperor proceeded to point out to the Tsarevitch -that it was not adequately respectful for so small a boy to address -elderly gentlemen as “brothers.” Alexis appeared a little embarrassed -and with an obvious desire to correct his mistake, he said, “Very well; -good morning, boys.” - -Probably no heir in Europe is being trained with greater care than young -Alexis, for, unless something unforeseen occurs, he will one day be the -ruler over 150,000,000 of people and, according to the will and wish of -his father, he will perpetuate the traditions of the Tsars of old and -rule the vast kingdom with all the rigid severity which has -characterised the autocratic Tsars of Russia. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -THE END OF THE ROAD - - -The Tsaritsa’s life has been lived out on the plane of the family, not -of the Empress. She might have swayed vast power, she might have -liberated or helped to liberate one hundred and forty millions of people -from oppression and tyranny; and her name would have been enshrined in -all hearts for generations. But she has chosen an humbler part. She has -shrunk from the larger burdens of the opportunities presented to her, -and accepted the quieter tasks of the home. This much we may say, it is -a tragedy that circumstances have prevented her carrying both parts. But -to have been the great Empress, she would have been obliged to sacrifice -her love to a degree. Nicholas doubtless cares tremendously for her, but -a man never loves as a woman loves. For a woman’s joy is sacrifice, and -the sacrifice of ambitions, of personal hopes and dreams, of ideas, of -principles, is the greatest of all sacrifices. In proving herself the -absolutely loving and loyal wife the Tsaritsa turned her back upon the -opportunities fate gave her for moulding history by ameliorating the -condition of humanity in her own vast sphere. - -The Tsar must understand the attitude of the Court toward the Empress -and the fact that she is not popular doubtless makes him endeavour the -more to make their own little family circle happy. For after all, the -really exclusive circle of an Emperor and his Empress and their children -is very, very small. - -In August 1907 when the Tsar returned from his meeting with the Kaiser -at Swinemünde, the Tsaritsa went to greet him far down the Gulf of -Finland in a Royal Yacht. Court etiquette merely required that she meet -him at the pier upon his landing, and this effort of hers caused a good -deal of comment at the capital and was accepted as another evidence of -her love for him. - -When the Tsar promised the nation a constitution--and a parliament--all -might have been well had these promises been literally carried out. No -sooner had the waves of revolutionary activity subsided, however, than -the Emperor began to withdraw and nullify his honeyed promises and to -take back piecemeal the constitution which had been granted in a moment -of panic. Now the people feel that Russia will not have a real -constitution nor a real parliament for years to come unless these -institutions of liberalism and progress and civilisation are battled -for. The government by maintaining a watchful grip on the country, by -extraordinary vigilance, by arresting or exiling thousands upon -thousands of citizens, women and girls just as frequently as men, it is -able to preserve a certain surface calm. - -Of late public opinion in Russia, like public opinion in other -countries, has been altering toward the Tsar. He is no longer the -“weak,” “well meaning little man,” who is prevented from doing what he -believes to be right by wicked Grand Dukes, bad ministers and a corrupt -court. If he is ever “led” we know now that it is only in directions in -which he desires to go. If his ministers are “bad,” or the Grand Dukes -“wicked,” we know that the inclinations and ambitions of Nicholas II are -toward Reaction, and that he aspires, in the words of the Tsaritsa, to -“hand on to his successor an Autocracy such as he received.” - -We know, too, that however much local police and other officials may be -directly responsible for a policy which uses massacre as a political -weapon that the Tsar himself is not opposed to these methods, and that -he directly patronises and encourages the “League of Russian men,” -popularly called “The Black Hundred.” We know that the Tsaritsa, -likewise, contributes money to support this organisation. This is the -organisation that carries out the _pogroms_ and the policy of -governmental terrorism. In view of these (now) unquestioned facts, it -seems passing strange that the Tsar has not sooner fallen a martyr to -his own despotism. Scores of governors, generals, and other officials -have paid the penalty for their misdeeds, but the Tsar has thus far been -spared. - -[Illustration: THE TSAR AND TSARITSA AT THE HEAD OF A REVIEWING -PARTY.] - -There are good reasons for this, however. In the first place the person -of the Tsar is constantly guarded, and to such an extent that it would -doubtless be difficult for a mere fanatic to reach him. But the -revolutionists could get him if they believed his death would serve the -cause of Liberty. That the Tsar lives to-day is due solely to this -doubt. The revolutionists have emissaries at court, in the palaces. It -would not be difficult to carry out a death sentence passed upon him. -But what would be the result of this? Who would be his immediate -successor, that is, the Dictator pending the coming of age of Alexis? - -The Russian liberals cannot forget that the assassination of Alexander -II in 1881 instead of helping the Cause, set it back twenty years. It -would be fatal to repeat such a blunder as that. And as to the -Dictator--he might be any one of several Grand Dukes, and one or two of -these would unquestionably be more aggressively tyrannical than the -present Emperor. And while so much doubt prevails the life of Nicholas -II is comparatively safe. On the other hand, if there is a desire to end -the rule of the Romanoffs a much safer method would be to do away with -the successors to the Throne. Such a proceeding would be unaccompanied -by immediate political disturbance, and yet would be effective. - -We can understand, therefore, the anxiety with which the Tsaritsa -watches over Alexis. His birth was so long and so earnestly desired, and -at least so long as he is the only son any disaster overtaking him -would be viewed as the most terrible of calamities--probably worse from -the standpoint of the court than disaster to the Tsar himself. From the -hour of his birth the Tsaritsa has taken it as her especial task to -guard and protect her son from all dangers. - -At Peterhof, at Tsarskoe-Selo, on the Royal Yacht, wherever Alexis goes -the Tsaritsa is close beside. The little Grand Duchesses may sometimes -be seen playing in the park at Peterhof accompanied by only their -governesses and a groom, but if their brother is there too, so is the -Royal mother. At functions, military reviews and the like, when Alexis -is on exhibition to inspire the regiments with loyalty, the Empress -always remains particularly near to her son. - -The education of the children is supervised personally by the Tsaritsa. -The instructors of the children of the Tsar have a very difficult task -indeed. There are certain subjects in which the children must be -thoroughly grounded, and certain others which must be taught -eclectically and others which must be eschewed altogether. - -I have a friend, now living in St. Petersburg, who was a court tutor for -four years, and he has sometimes told me of the difficulties he -encountered during that period. The Russian tutors generally have the -rank of General, and are addressed in great formality as “Your -Excellency.” Teachers from abroad, however, appear in the Palace -class-rooms in what we know as “evening dress.” How strange it would -seem to American boys and girls to go to school one morning and find the -teacher wearing a low cut vest and long-tailed coat! - -The two older children, Olga and Tatiana, inherit from their mother a -fondness for music, and they both play quite well already. The Tsar -enjoys listening to music, but he plays only by ear and never sings -himself. - -The end of the chapter is not yet. The Tsaritsa is still a young woman, -and Empress of one of the most turbulent Empires on earth. The rank and -file of her one hundred and fifty million subjects hold nothing against -her but they are weary of the Romanoff régime. Militarism is now the -last bulwark of the Empire. Martial law is spread over a large part of -the Empire and the people are kept in subjection, in artificial quiet -only through the constant menace of bayonets and prisons whose doors -ever yawn to political heretics. - -No one may prophesy the end, nor when it will come. The future is -shrouded in complete mystery and therefore possesses incomparable -fascination. - -The Tsaritsa is still, by virtue of her position, one of the most -powerful women in the western world, but whose life has been given to -the natural development of the love of her school-girl days, at the -expense of a career which might have rivalled that of the greatest -heroines of history. - -This is the story of the little German Princess, who was left motherless -at six, and came unto her own through her heart’s romance, and has -remained faithful to this romance despite the tempting circumstances of -Opportunity. The simple loving child who was called “Sunny” is to-day -more than anything else the simple, loving wife of Nicholas II, the -devoted mother of his children. Judging from her life, if she had the -dearest will and wish of her heart it would be that she might be -remembered as Wife and Mother, rather than as Empress. Thus the life of -Princess Alix of Hesse--“Sunny”-passed into the Romance of an -Empress--with its burdens and its sufferings and its tragedies, and thus -the end of the road looks dark, uncertain and ominously fearful. - - - - - -PART III - -QUEEN ELENA OF ITALY - - - - -CHAPTER I - -A MOUNTAIN PRINCESS - - -On the eastern shores of the Adriatic, nestling between the unfamiliar -Provinces of Herzegovina and Albania, lies the Kingdom of Montenegro. It -is a tiny spot on the map and until very recently was rated as a -Principality. The entire population of Montenegro would make only a -small American city, yet the Montenegrans are a proud nation, with an -engrossing and noble history, and perhaps no country in Europe has had a -more romantic past. They are an aggressive people, these Montenegrans, -always armed, ever ready to fight for the cause of freedom, a -liberty-loving people, a staunch folk. The denizens of Montenegro have -always been daring and bold; withal a poetic people. Nicholas, their -Prince, is the first warrior in the kingdom and also the first poet. He -is a picturesque figure, familiar to Europe and more or less known to -America, for much has been written about him. Some years ago, some one -had the temerity to inquire of Prince Nicholas, as he then was called, -what were the exportations of Montenegro, to which question he gave -answer, “My daughters.” - -The daughters of King Nicholas have indeed been a wonderful asset to -this little nation. One married a Russian Grand Duke, thus securing the -friendship of Russia. Another married a Servian, who at the present time -reigns over that Kingdom. While another, Elena, married a Prince who -presently became a King, making his spouse Queen of a great nation. - -The story of the romance of the Montenegran Elena and the Italian -Prince, son of the late King Humbert, and now known as King Victor -Emanuel III, is one of the most romantic stories connected with the -Court life of Europe. Princess Elena was the fourth child of King -Nicholas, and she, perhaps more than any of the children, inherited many -of her father’s noble qualities. - -Many times as I have watched her driving through the streets of Rome, -deftly holding the reins and guiding the great black horses up and down -the hilly, badly paved streets, or leisurely reposing in one of the -magnificent Royal automobiles speeding up the Pincio or through the -lovely gardens of the Villa Borghese, complacently acknowledging the -salutes of the people, I have tried to fancy the little black-eyed -Princess among her native hills--bounding like a chamois from rock to -rock among the tallest crags and peaks, rejoicing in the high air, the -free life, the glorious rapture that comes only to the mountain-born. In -fancy I have pictured her returning to her simple Cittenje home at -night, her hands holding delicious bunches of Alpine flowers, her arms -laden with flower branches. A strange girlhood this, for a future Queen. -But so Elena lived as a child--naturally, spontaneously, freely. - -And now--beside this fancy-memory I have to place a recollection of -another phase of her life, when I saw her as Queen, in the midst of the -horrors of Messina, nursing the wounded and comforting the dying. The -night she was injured during a panic following one of the earthquake -shocks I was standing on the deck of a ship lying so close to the -Italian flagship that I could watch the wild rush of refugees across the -decks, many of them to the rails as if to throw themselves into the sea. -One afternoon I was on a British warship when Queen Elena came aboard to -visit the wounded who were about to be conveyed to Naples. She spent -more than an hour among the cots and stretchers and spoke a personal -word to each and every one. All this was fine--a kind of work Queens -rarely do. It was dramatic, too. For during the days immediately -succeeding the first shock, earthquakes were constantly recurring and -there were a hundred dangers to which all were exposed. But when we know -of Queen Elena’s early years we understand the instinct which took her -so promptly to Messina, and we understand many of the other qualities -which distinguish her from the other Queens of the world. - -Elena’s grandfather was called Prince Mirko, a name renowned in the -history of Montenegro, for when Mirko was a very young man, long before -he had become the idol of the Montenegran people, he was serving in a -war against Turkey. One day Mirko and a comrade became detached from -their regiment and fell into an ambush. The situation looked desperate. -Pausing for an instant the two young officers made a vow that if they -both survived the day, and eventually got back to their homes that they -would one day seal their friendship and the memory of that experience, -in blood. Some years later Mirko having married, became the father of a -son whom he called Nicholas. When the boy Nicholas was seven years old, -Mirko’s old comrade of the Turkish war became the father of a daughter -whom he named Melena. These two children became betrothed when Melena -was still in her cradle and when she was only thirteen years old she and -Nicholas were married. The fortune of life was so ordered that in time -Nicholas became the ruler of the little principality, and Melena, his -wife and consort, from the very first shared the responsibilities of -administration with him. So complete a helpmeet has Melena been to -Nicholas that from time to time when the Prince has of necessity quit -Montenegro to visit his friend and ally the Tsar of Russia, or his -son-in-law, the King of Servia, he has left all the reins of rulership -to Melena, who has ever discharged her duties wisely. Besides all this -she has borne - -[Illustration: QUEEN MILENA OF MONTENEGRO, THE MOTHER OF QUEEN ELENA.] - -him thirteen children. Elena was their fourth child. It was no -inconsiderable thing when she was picked by the Prince of Naples to be -his bride, because this meant she would eventually be a great Queen. -Elena was born fairly in the lap of romance, and Fate has been -extraordinarily generous to her in supplying her with exceptional -romantic and dramatic episodes which, ever since she came into her own -have served to bring her before the eyes of the world. - -No Queen in Europe to-day, save the Tsaritsa and Queen Victoria Eugenie, -looks more a Queen than Elena. She is stately and tall, with a -statuesque poise that anywhere singles her from the throng. Her hair is -as black as midnight forest depths, her eyes as luminous as live coals. -Her skin is like unto olives, and her hands firm and strong and large. -Her shoulders are broad and she holds them squarely. The impression the -woman gives is of unusual physical strength. Nor could this well be -otherwise in view of her athletic training. As a child she was always a -devotee of Nimrod, given inordinately to the chase. Long after her -marriage she continued to hunt,--to shoot deer and birds,--to ride to -hounds, and play tennis. A modern Diana might she in verity be called. -But her training was not restricted to sports and outdoor activities. -Far from it. These were but natural incidentals to each day’s work in -Montenegro, and well it were if similar customs held the world over, for -surely there are no better physiques in both men and women anywhere on -earth than in this same little Montenegro. - -Elena’s parents are both extraordinary people. Old Prince Nicholas is -one of the most remarkable rulers in the world to-day. Like Julius -Caesar, he boasts that he knows the names of all the men in his army, -and as all of the men in Montenegro are of the army, his boast is -practically that he knows all of his subjects. A ruler who interests -himself thus deeply in the affairs of his state would naturally look -carefully to his own family. And so when Elena was a wee baby just -learning to toddle, the Prince used to take her upon his knee and give -her her first lessons. Her first tutor, he used to call himself. He it -was who taught her the letters of the alphabet of her mother tongue, -gave her her first lesson in reading. His was the great hand that guided -the little baby fingers as they laboriously traced the difficult Slavish -hieroglyphics. Later, he interested her in geography and in history. -Never a day passed when Nicholas was so occupied with the affairs of his -kingdom, or with the knotty international problems that are forever -engaging the troublesome little Balkan states and the great Ghoul Powers -of Austria and Turkey that are ever lying in wait to gobble them up, -that he neglected the lessons of his little daughter. - -During the early years of her life Elena lived in the great square grey -“palace” of the ruler of Montenegro in Cittenje. It is not a beautiful -nor elaborate home like most of the palaces of the sovereigns and -rulers of Europe. Indeed, it is distinctly plain and unimposing, with -bare and barren surroundings. The stern mountains of Montenegro rise -abruptly behind the town, and the Palace is on the edge of the miniature -capital almost in the shadows of the cragged hills. Here lived Prince -Nicholas and Princess Melena, and all their children until one by one -the latter married and drifted to other lands--Princess Zorka to become -the wife of the present King of Servia; Princess Melitza to become the -spouse of Grand Duke Peter Nicholaivitch of Russia; Elena to become the -Princess of Naples and subsequently the Queen of Italy. - -As a child Elena was always lively and active. In America she would have -been called a “tomboy,” for she preferred the company of her brothers to -that of her sisters and it was through the pains of two of them--Danilo -and Mirko--that she became expert with the rifle and rod, a familiar -horsewoman, and so able a walker and climber. - -The spirit of Elena was wild and free. She loved fresh air, a mad -scamper over the hills, an adventure that savoured of danger. Encouraged -by her father and brothers to all activities in the open she developed -into a strong, stalwart girl and later into the Amazonian woman she is -to-day. Long after her marriage she retained the fresh and breezy way -acquired in girlhood. - -An important influence in Elena’s early life were the grandfather’s -tales she listened to round the great fire in her homely Palace home. -Montenegro, like all older mountain countries, has a folk tale and a -legend associated with every crag and valley. Elena heard from her -veteran grandfather how the Montenegran people battled with the Turks, -and her little heart would fairly quiver with the heroic deeds of valour -that the old man would relate of the stormy days when the Balkan -peninsula was like a great seething cauldron, and men, and the women -too, came down from the mountain fastnesses in their quaint and rude -attire to fight the trained troops of European armies. Thus was her -child’s imagination fired, and love and pride of country aroused. - -One day little Elena brought her father some sheets of paper upon which -were drawn some strange pictures. The Prince held the sheets upside down -at first, trying to make out what his little daughter had brought him. -Elena was much hurt at this and she could hardly keep back the tears. -But when the Prince turned the papers round the right way he quickly -made out, under her guidance, the house and the mountain, and the dog -chasing the sheep. Indeed, he admired not a little this first artistic -effort of Elena’s, and right there and then he sat down with her and -together they drew the pictures all over again, only this time much -better as Elena herself realised. This was the little Princess’s first -drawing lesson. After that Elena had a drawing lesson every day. She -soon showed signs of a distinct talent in this direction and by the -time she was ten years old she had not only conquered the first -principles of drawing but she had also made considerable progress in the -use of water colours. This talent Elena continued to develop, and with -what success may be judged from the fact that when she was still a girl -in her teens she became a kind of unofficial “Minister of Fine Arts” in -her father’s cabinet. She was instrumental in bringing art exhibits into -Montenegro, in organising drawing and painting classes in the public -schools and thus for the first time bringing the refining and civilising -influence of art culture to her people. She even inaugurated -scholarships to encourage art students, and to-day Montenegro has a -number of ambitious painters who are actually building up a school of -art of their own. Influenced by the picturesque barrenness of their -native mountains, together with the gorgeous skies and brilliant -atmospheres, they are developing an individual and nationalist school. -To this day, Queen Elena retains her interest in the native Montenegran -artists, and also in her own drawing and painting. In the Quirinal -Palace in Rome she has a studio, where of an afternoon she may -frequently be found spending an hour at her easel. It is her custom each -Christmas to send as gifts to her more intimate friends sketches and -little water colours of her own handiwork. - -Elena had other tutors than her father and grandfather, however. From a -young child she had a Swiss governess who was her daily companion, and -who instructed her in French, and supplemented the teaching of her -father in the other branches. It is thus the training of Elena from -childhood was the training not only of a Princess but of one who might -easily assume the duties and obligations of a Queen. It is not likely -that the little Elena ever dared to dream of what her future might be or -that her imaginings ever pictured that in womanhood she might occupy a -throne as the consort of the King of a great nation, but her father is -one of the most astute statesmen in Europe, and with all his children he -arranged their education so that they might be acceptable to any high -niche in life to which destiny might call them. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE ROMANCE - - -When Elena was twelve years old an important change came into her life. -She was sent away to St. Petersburg to enter the most wonderful school -of its kind in the world. This was the famous, glorified boarding school -for the daughters of the nobility which for many years has been -patronised by the Empress Marie Feodorovna, wife of Tsar Alexander III -and mother of the present Emperor, Nicholas II. Fancy a girls’ school -where every pupil is a little Countess or Princess or Grand Duchess! In -Russia the family titles usually descend to the children, so that this -is no exaggeration. This school corresponds to one which exists for boys -known as the _Corps des Pages_--or school of pages. The young sons of -the nobility are sent here at an early age and are commonly spoken of as -pages of the courts. Most of the boys who go to this school become -officers and generally are assigned to the crack regiments which guard -the persons of the sovereigns. As a rule only native Russians are -admitted to these two exclusive schools, but the daughters of Prince -Nicholas were easily granted place, because they were the daughters of a -ruling Prince, and also because they had the rare advantage among -non-Russians of already knowing Russian, or at least the Slav tongue -which is very similar to Russian. - -For six winters Elena continued at this school, and on her way to and -from the northland capital she was taken to visit many of the famous art -galleries of Europe. In St. Petersburg she had the privilege of the -Hermitage Gallery, where is one of the foremost art collections in -Europe, and in Dresden and Munich she became yet more widely acquainted -with the masterpieces of the world’s art. Thus was her fondness for art -gratified, and her general education broadened and enriched. - -Another talent that Elena inherited was that of writing poetry. Her -father, Nicholas, is a poet of no mean rank. Many of the folk songs of -Montenegro which mothers croon to their babes at night, which shepherds -in their lonely huts far up the mountain sides sing to give them cheer -when fierce storms are sweeping over their steep pastures, were written -by the Prince when he was a young man and during the forty years of his -reign they have become so universal that already they are classic. Once -indeed he wrote a very long poetic and romantic drama called “An Empress -of the Balkans,” which his son, Mirko, Elena’s oldest brother, set to -music. And this poetic instinct which her father has made such good use -of in endearing himself to his people, is also strong in Elena. For -some reason, however, Elena has never been so proud of this talent as of -her painting. Nevertheless she has published minor verse from time to -time, and as one member of her suite told me once: “She writes -still--but she does not own it.” - -Curiously enough she once wrote a sonnet to Venice, which she called a -“city of poetry, love and feeling.” This sonnet was published in a -school magazine, and was written before she had ever visited the -romantic city of islands. It was in this same Venice that she later met -the Prince who was to make her a Queen, and where the love story of her -life began. - -In the spring of the year 1895, when Elena was twenty-two years old, she -and her sister Anna came with their mother, Princess Melena, to the -opening of the annual International Art Exhibition at Venice. This is -one of the events of the year in the art world of Europe and is looked -forward to almost as much as the annual salon in Paris and the Spring -Academy Exhibition in London. The King and Queen frequently open the -exhibition, and not infrequently distinguished members of other Royal -houses are also present. So it was in the memorable month of April 1895. -King Humbert and Queen Margherita with their son, the heir to the -throne, the young Prince of Naples, travelled up from Rome to inaugurate -the exhibition. Of course courtesy calls were exchanged between the -sovereigns and the other Royal visitors present, including Princess -Melena and her daughters. - -Princess Elena was now a tall, large-framed woman of twenty-two. She had -the physique of one much older, but her manner and face showed all the -keenness and freshness of a young girl. By this time she had outgrown -the hoydenish traits of her girlhood and there was dignity and repose in -her manner. One feature distinguished her from other Princesses in -Europe. She was totally free from the social veneer which comes -inevitably from a long continuance of ceremonious life. Any Prince of a -western European court would have been quick to notice this, and Prince -Victor Emmanuel was by no means the least to fall under the spell of its -charm. - -Prince Victor Emmanuel as heir to the Italian throne was one of the most -sought-after Princes in all Europe. Popular gossip had successively -betrothed him to Princess Clementine, daughter of the King of the -Belgians, to Princess Feodora of Schleswig-Holstein, sister of the -Emperor of Germany, to Archduchess Annunziati, daughter of archduke Carl -Ludwig of Austria; and to Princess Mary Magdalene, daughter of the King -of Greece. The trouble with all of these alliances was, according to the -Prince, that they were political rather than personal, and may it be -writ large on the page of history that Victor Emmanuel had a romantic -soul which would be satisfied whatever came of the political ambitions -of his family. - -[Illustration: THE QUEEN OF ITALY.] - -When grey and hoary councillors of state approached him in regard to the -desirability of his marrying one or another of the Royal Princesses in -the eligible list, he would shake his square head and turn aside saying, -“I have time enough.” He knew that one day he would see the Princess -whom he would love, and for her he was content to wait. - -When in Venice, “The city of poetry, love and feeling,” he met for the -first time Princess Elena of Montenegro, he promptly said to his Royal -father, “There is the Princess I will marry.” Politically, little was to -be gained for Italy by a marriage alliance with the little Balkan state, -so Humbert, a wise king, counselled patience, though not actually -opposing the will of the Crown Prince. - -Elena and her mother and sister returned to their own country after only -two days. But in those two days the Prince had found a time and place to -speak. Only two days! Surely a brief courtship with an interminable -round of official ceremonies consuming, as it seemed, all of the hours. -Two busy days, yet the Prince of Naples had whispered the thrilling -words and Elena, the Balkan Princess, knew that her future was -henceforth spread in greater Europe. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -VICTOR EMMANUEL - - -Victor Emmanuel was at this time considered one of the most desirable of -eligible Princes in all Europe, not only because of his inheritance, but -because of his intelligence and his character. Queen Victoria once -called him “the most intelligent Prince in Europe.” As a child he had -showed marked individuality and his father and mother, King Humbert and -Queen Margherita, both being people of strong characteristics, had -reared him in an atmosphere of strictest discipline which naturally had -its effect upon the man. Like Napoleon, the little Victor Emmanuel was -never ashamed to ask any question, nor did he ever ask any question -twice. Until he was twelve years old his school hours were regulated by -the state of his health, which was never robust, but on his twelfth -birthday, he was given over into the hands of Colonel Osio, a famous -soldier and disciplinarian, who planned an eight year course of training -which included regular hours for everything, and resulted not only in -developing the boy’s mind and sharpening his wits, but also in hardening -his muscles and accustoming his constitution to all kinds of hardships -and endurance tests. - -One incident of this period of his life Victor Emmanuel has never -forgotten. As a young boy he was not over strong, and frequently he -contracted head colds. One morning he reported as usual at seven o’clock -to his tutor, but coughing badly and his nose and eyes sorely inflamed. -At eight o’clock Colonel Osio appeared to take the young Prince out for -his usual hour of exercise on horseback. The day was rainy and -disagreeable. The tutor ventured to suggest to Colonel Osio that their -Royal charge was scarcely in fit condition to go out that morning. -Whereupon the Colonel replied, “If war were declared to-morrow, would -the Prince be allowed to stay indoors because he had a cold?” As the -Colonel disappeared with the Prince the tutor exclaimed: “Ah! with these -soldiers it is impossible to reason.” - -When Victor Emmanuel began the study of Latin, his mother, the beloved -Queen Margherita, took it up also! One day, she proved to him that she -had made better progress than he. At the time the Prince made no comment -upon this, but a little later when his tutor started to chide him about -this Victor Emmanuel retorted somewhat sharply: “That is all very well, -but my mother has nothing else to do, whilst I have a hundred other -things to attend to!” An answer that every schoolboy and schoolgirl will -surely appreciate. - -Colonel Osio was without doubt a stern disciplinarian. As he outlined -the daily schedule for the Prince, the rising hour was six o’clock, -summer and winter. After a bath and simple breakfast, he sat down to -his first lessons with his tutor. At eight o’clock he rode for an hour -with the Colonel, then returned to his studies which continued all day. -His very recreations were in the nature of studies, for being raised as -a soldier he had to master all military tactics and to dig trenches, -erect redoubts and obstructions with his own hands, so that in time of -necessity he could the better command and direct his soldiers. As the -motto set before the Prince was: “To know everything of something, and -something of everything,” his studies were pursued the year round. -During the dead of summer his books were laid by, but he was taken out -of doors and kept busily at work, learning of nature, or all about guns -and shooting, and ever subject to the discipline of hours. - -The instructions of Colonel Osio to his tutor were: “Treat the Prince as -you would treat any other pupil. Show him no special consideration nor -regard. Indulge him in absolutely nothing. For example, if, during a -lesson something is wanted, he and not you must get it. If a book falls -to the floor, he, not you, must pick it up! You must profit by his -self-esteem, highly developed in him, to exact from him firmly and -always the fulfilment of all his duties.” “As for yourself,” the Colonel -continued, looking full at the tutor, “I want you to understand that the -interests at stake are so great, that if you fail in any way I shall -show you no mercy.” As the tutor felt as much subject to the rules and -regulations laid down by the Colonel as did his pupil, it is needless to -say that he was obeyed to the letter. - -The Rev. Alexander Robertson who has lived many years in Italy, and who -has made a searching study of the life of Victor Emmanuel, says that so -completely did King Humbert give over the education of his heir to -Colonel Osio that if the Prince even asked permission to accompany the -King and Queen to the theatre the answer was invariably: “Ask the -Colonel.” Thus was the young King trained. If the “child is father to -the man,” from these gleanings of his boyhood and the stories of his -early discipline, we may gather what manner of Prince it was who won the -heart of the stately and beautiful Elena, Princess of Montenegro. - -Mr. Robertson tells how on one occasion the little Prince Victor -Emmanuel was playing with the small daughter of the Marchioness of -Villamarina, who was then a Lady-in-Waiting to Queen Margherita, and the -two children quarrelled, as all children will, over some trifle. Of a -sudden the Prince became greatly enraged, and lost his temper. “When I -am King I will have your head cut off!” he exclaimed loudly. Queen -Margherita overheard these harsh words, and the Prince was put on prison -fare for three days. - -Victor Emmanuel and his wife, Elena, were destined to become sovereigns -of Italy upon the tragic occasion when King Humbert was assassinated at -his lovely mountain home of Monza in the north of the Kingdom. An -interesting, if nerve-straining incident occurred when the Prince was -present at a previous unsuccessful attempt upon the life of his father. -This took place when Victor Emmanuel was only twelve years old. The King -and his son were just leaving the railroad station in Naples when a man -named Passananti, calling himself an anarchist, made a lunge with a -stiletto full at the breast of the King. A minister who was also in the -carriage was quick enough to turn aside the glittering blade. The King, -with superb poise, drew his sword, and crashed it broadside over the -would-be assassin’s head. Throughout the scene the young Prince sat -immovable, not showing the slightest trace of fear. Courage may not be -the highest virtue, but it is essential in a King, and in any one, never -fails to excite admiration. - -Queen Margherita was as exceptional a mother as she was an unusual -Queen. As Queen Elena has of late years proved herself devoted to the -Royal nursery, so Margherita always gave a large part of each day to the -rearing of the heir apparent. She it was who insisted upon his keeping a -strict account of all the money that passed through his hands. In this -way he learned to appreciate the value of money--the little sums, the -trifles which in themselves seem of no consequence, but which aggregate -so large in the course of months. Under directions, he also kept a -diary, in order that he might not be prodigal in the use of time--the -moments we are all so apt to waste carelessly and thoughtlessly a score -of times each day. - -It was the custom of the Prince to lunch with the King and Queen certain -days each week. One day the King was occupied with his ministers much -longer than usual, and the luncheon hour was long past. The Prince -ventured to remark to the Queen, somewhat petulantly, that he was hungry -and couldn’t wait any longer for his meal. Crossing the room to a -bookshelf, the Queen took a copy of Dante and laid it before the boy, -saying: “Read this, and your hunger will all go.” - -Any boy, especially a Prince, would naturally possess qualities of -attractive manhood that would appeal to a woman of domestic instincts. -That Princess Elena possessed these innate qualities her life since -testifies. To her, unquestionably, Victor Emmanuel seemed an ideal -Prince. There was only one element to this romance which is distinctly -unromantic, and of this Victor Emmanuel is very sensitive. He is a small -man, distinctly under-sized, while Elena towers far above him when they -are standing side by side. Nowadays the King has his carriage in the -Royal stables built with a specially elevated seat, like a coachman’s -box, so that this discrepancy in size is not so apparent when they -drive. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -A ROYAL HONEYMOON - - -Now that we know more about Victor Emmanuel, we can follow the course of -the love match between him and Princess Elena with more familiarity and -interest. It is strange that these young lovers from two of the -southermost, warmest countries of Europe must go for the second chapter -of their romance to the northermost, coldest country on the continent. -Yet so was it to be. Their next meeting was in far away Moscow, the -occasion was the Coronation of the present Tsar. Here another -coincidence appears. Four years before when Princess Elena was finishing -her course at the Royal Academy in St. Petersburg she was presented at -the Court of Alexander III through the influence of her sister, the -Grand Duchess Melitza. Soon after this a rumour was circulated -throughout Europe that the eyes of the young Nicholas, heir to the -Russian Throne, had looked with favour upon the Montenegran Princess. -Certain it is that Elena’s father, wily Prince Nicholas, did not -discourage this match, but the young Tsarevitch had long before set his -heart upon a German Princess--Alix of Hesse and the Rhine--and if he -looked upon Elena at all it was only an idle flirtation, for his mind -was made up in regard to his consort long before Elena went to -Petersburg. - -The Prince of Naples represented the Italian sovereigns at the Russian -Coronation festivities, while Elena was a guest of her sister. -Naturally, the two met. This was only their second meeting, but from the -noticeable intimacy that immediately sprang up between them it was -evident that the Venice meeting had been followed by a lively -correspondence. The Coronation procession was the most splendid pageant -of the closing decade of the nineteenth century, and the balls and -dinners which were given in honour of the accession of Nicholas II to -the throne of his fathers, the most magnificent that human ingenuity and -unlimited wealth could devise. Against this golden background Prince -Victor Emmanuel and Princess Elena pursued their courtship, -indefatigably, if not always discreetly. Even the Tsar was not so -engrossed that he did not observe the daring suit of the Italian Prince. -Having a kind of paternal interest in Montenegro, Tsar Nicholas felt it -not improper to express his good will toward these two sweethearts and -it was largely through his personal interest and encouragement that the -betrothal was finally arranged. When the coronation festivities were -over and the myriad royal and noble guests from all parts of the world -returned to their homelands, it was pretty generally understood that the -Prince of Naples would presently wed the Montenegran Princess. - -Toward the middle of August of the Russian Coronation year, to the -surprise of no one, the Italian Royal yacht _Cajola_, having aboard the -Crown Prince, rounded Cape S. Marie de Leucca, prow pointed toward -Cattaro, the port of Cettenje, the capital of Montenegro. A large part -of the Montenegran population gathered along the shore to welcome the -Italian Prince. All knew what his coming meant. All appreciated, too, -his coming in person, for Royal etiquette allows that on such an -occasion a Prince may send an ambassador and Royal entourage to formally -arrange the details of official betrothal and marriage. Cettenje was -arrayed in gala dress as never before in its history. As a local -newspaper quaintly but enthusiastically put it, “the twenty-five hundred -people comprising the entire population of the capital met on the one -street of the town shouting their greetings.” Surely in this alone is -romance enough for one lifetime, the Princess of a country whose capital -has one street, whose entire population is twenty-five hundred, about to -become the Crown Princess, and presently the Queen, of one of the first -powers of Europe! - -The official announcement of the betrothal was made August 18, 1896. Two -days later a great hunt was organised by Prince Nicholas and his oldest -son Mirko, in honour of the event. All of the Prince’s household and all -of the suite of the Prince of Naples were invited to participate. The -two lovers alone declined. At such a time, they said, when they were -both so happy they preferred not to spill one drop of blood, for that -would be to mar their own happiness! For two young people unusually keen -for the hunt and both splendid shots, this was indeed a delightful -sentiment. - -Shortly after this hunt the Prince of Naples returned to Rome to begin -preparations for the reception of his bride. On the second day of -October--just six weeks later--Elena held her last conference with her -father, who brought her to the quay where lay the ship that was to -convey her to Italian soil. When Prince Nicholas had said his last -farewell and kissed his beloved daughter on both cheeks, he turned and -slowly climbed the hill behind the town, on which stands a chapel. -Entering the tiny church the Prince fell to his knees and there remained -for a long time absorbed in silent prayer. - -When he emerged once more, the ship to which he had consigned Elena was -but a speck in the distance, across the deep blue waters of the -Adriatic. They did not meet again before the marriage, which took place -in Rome. - -Elena landed at the Italian port of Bari. Her first act was to go up to -the old town church, and there be received into the Roman Catholic -Church. Montenegro, like all Slav countries is still under the -domination of the Greek Catholic Church, and it was in this Church that -Elena had been reared. The difficulties of her release from the Greek -Church were made simple by the personal appeal of the Tsar of Russia, -whose influence is all powerful with the Greek hierarchy, who bespoke a -friendly word on behalf of the young Princess. - -The marriage was to take place in the great hall of the Quirinal Palace. -An incident occurred at this time, which, though trifling, is not -wanting of a certain savour. - -The private apartment of Queen Margherita had been designated for the -formation of the cortège. Prince Nicholas and Princess Elena, by -inattention, or because it had been omitted to inform them, entered the -Quirinal from the stairs of honour and found only the Mayor of Rome who -had come to assist at the marriage. Happily the Prince of Naples had -witnessed this scene from the window of the Palace. He ran immediately -to relieve their perplexity and escorted Prince Nicholas and his own -Princess to the Queen’s apartment. - -When the time of the ceremony arrived, Count Gianotti took the head of -the cortège. Behind the King and the Queen walked Prince Nicholas and -Princess Elena, the Duke of Oporto and Princess Laetitia, Prince Victor -Napoleon and Princess Helena of Aosta, the Duke of Aosta and the Dowager -Duchess of Genoa, Prince Mirko and the Duchess Isabel of Genoa, the -Count of Turin and Princess Anna, sister of Princess Helena, and then -the Civil and Military houses of the sovereigns. - -Monseigneur Auzine brought a silver veil that the Duke of Aosta, the -Count of Turin, Prince - -[Illustration: FOUR GENERATIONS: THE PRINCE OF PIEDMONT, HIS FATHER THE -KING, THE DOWAGER QUEEN MARGHERITA, AND HER MOTHER, THE DUCHESS OF -GENOA.] - -Mirko and Prince Harageorgevitch, to-day King of Servia, unfolded and -kept over the bride and bridegroom during the whole ceremony. - -After the ceremony Elena was more than ever nervous and deeply moved; -her olive skin grew exquisitely white, almost like alabaster. The sun, -which up to that moment had loitered behind clouds, suddenly broke -through the misty screen, suffusing the whole city in a glorious fulsome -light The bells of the American Church in Rome nearby, began to chime -the Wedding March from Lohengrin, and from the great Roman populace -gathered in the streets near the Palace went up a tumultuous cheer. Thus -propitiously began the married life of the most romantic Royal couple of -that time in Europe. - -To compensate for their all-too-brief courtship, Prince Victor Emmanuel -decided that their honeymoon should be protracted, and far from the eyes -of the curious. To accomplish this they went at once to the distant -isles of Greece, to the romantic coast of Sicily, to wherever waters are -emerald, skies azure blue and the days golden. In their own yacht they -managed to escape from all public vision, and so weeks and months were -spent like a prolonged summer idyl. Never were lovers more secluded, -more care-free, more at ease, less trammelled to live with and for each -other, as fiercely and as intensely as the flame within them burned. The -world heard little of them on this long honeymoon trip of theirs. -Sometimes a message came from an Algerian or Tunisian port, or from a -remote Mediterranean spot like the Island of Monte Christo, where they -spent untold happy weeks. - -This Island of Monte Christo, belonging to Victor Emmanuel, is very -secluded. Only the members of the household are allowed thereon. The -Prince liked being there free of all responsibility and unrestrained to -enjoy absolute liberty. - -As a bride Elena gave herself to a unique régime for a Royal -Princess--she shared in the household work, performing with her own -hands the duties of the home. This policy was adopted because the young -couple dreaded to have others, even servants, about them, and this -lonely island was, perhaps, the only place where they could find -absolute seclusion and isolation. - -This Royal property, which for a certain time was called Gombo, was the -favourite residence of the grand dukes of Tuscany. It formed a part of -the private estate of Victor Emmanuel II, who, as an indefatigable -hunter, used to make there a hecatomb of deers and fallow-deers. About -1865 he ordered the building surrounded at a distance of twenty yards -from the shore by a wood fence posed on pillars; he often spent there -the night, lying on a couch in order to hear, on his awaking, the -rocking song of the waves. - -Once during their protracted honeymoon Elena and her Prince went on a -great hunting trip far up in semi-Arctic regions around the White Sea. -I have heard tales of this trip from the lips of a Montenegran artist -who was one of the party, and I have seen photographs of Elena and her -Prince-bridegroom skurrying across frozen ice packs, bringing down -Arctic game with their rifles, fishing through the ice for great deep -sea fish--filling the days and weeks with pure pleasure, storing up joy -against the years when the cares and responsibilities of state should -hold them ever close to home. For four years this dream life went on. -Then, in the summer of 1900, they were on one of their long cruises -among the Greek Islands when they were rudely awakened. News reached -them of the assassination of King Humbert! Both Elena and Victor -Emmanuel knew what this meant. Their yacht was quickly turned toward -Italy. This was their last care-free cruise. - -At this time Victor Emmanuel shut up within his heart the tortures he -was enduring, to meet as a courageous man the duties imposed on him by -that misfortune. But Elena, who had become devoted to her new family, -was completely overcome and abandoned herself wholly to her sorrow, -weeping and crying aloud: “My father!” “My good father!” - -On their journey to Monza, the scene of the tragedy, and on their -arrival at the station at Naples, Elena, weeping bitterly, pressed on -the bosom of her Lady-in-Waiting. Victor Emmanuel, by the side of the -Duke of Genoa, looked almost overpowered by sorrow, but he bore up -bravely. He invited the Prefecto and General Brusate to come near him. -He shook hands with them and talked to them with a heavy voice veiled by -tears. “It seems to me,” said he to them, “that I am under the effect of -a dream; such a horrible murder seems to me impossible!” - -With the tragic death of King Humbert, Prince Victor Emmanuel became -king, and his Montenegran Princess Elena, Queen of Italy. In nearly -every country where kings and queens sit upon thrones, the Coronation -ceremony is a spectacle of great splendour and magnificence, but in -Italy it is scarcely a ceremony at all. So far as the Queen is -concerned, it amounted to nothing, while the King merely appears before -the Parliament and takes his vows of allegiance and devotion to Italy -and the Italian people. The simplicity of this sacred occasion is in -peculiarly fitting keeping with the mind and character of Victor -Emmanuel. - -For four years he and his bride had basked in the sunshine of love and -romance. They had led the most ideal and romantic of lives. With their -accession the more serious business of life began. Elena presently -became a mother, first of a girl, then of another girl, then of a son, -and then of a third daughter. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -ELENA THE MOTHER - - -The prettiest sight I know in Rome is when the Royal Princesses and the -little Crown Prince, Humbert, go driving. I lived for a winter in an -apartment adjoining the Quirinal Palace, so that it frequently fell to -me to catch glimpses of the Royal Family going or coming. Like the King -and Queen, they drive out almost daily during the months the Royal -Family spend in the capital, but it was the little ones who always -caught my eye and made me turn to watch so long as they were in view. -Usually there are the three girls, and a nursemaid holding the Prince on -her knees. Their carriage is an ordinary two-horsed, double-seated -coach. Immediately behind the carriage always ride two guards, on -bicycles, men in plain, dark-blue clothes with knee breeches. A stranger -in the city would not even notice them, although if one were observant -he might observe many of the passers-by lifting their hats and turning -to watch. Almost every pleasant afternoon, when the King is in residence -in Rome, immediately after lunch, or on a Saturday forenoon, the -children are driven just outside the walls of Rome to Villa Savoy, a -playhouse which is all their own. During that portion of the year spent -in Rome this is practically the only change they have from the Palace -nursery and the Quirinal gardens--the latter by no means a cramped -play-ground. When the Duke of Ascoli, Gentleman-in-Waiting to Queen -Elena, first showed me these grounds I was quite astounded by their -extent and their unique beauty. There are long avenues of boxwood -hedges, groves of dark firs and picturesque parasol pines, fields of -untended grass and acres of carefully nurtured flowers. And all this -behind the dull yellow Quirinal walls, fairly in the centre of the city. -But any growing kiddies long for more than the yard of a city home, -though that yard attain the proportions of a park, and the home be a -Palace. Villa Savoy supplies the want, and here the children have their -ponies and their pet donkey. Here Queen Elena, too, finds relief and -refreshment, for the quiet of the children’s playhouse is never intruded -upon by the court or visitors who are not intimates of the Royal Family. - -The Italian sovereigns are striving to purify and elevate the atmosphere -and tone of their court so that their children may grow up in sweet home -surroundings, protected from the careless waywardness of the -aristocratic world of Europe. Some call it a “straight-laced” court. One -influence which may be responsible for this may be traced to an incident -in the schoolboy days of the King. - -When the King was a youth of sixteen he determined to change his -handwriting from the ordinary sloping hand in universal vogue to the -so-called vertical. The formula which he took for his motto was, -“Writing straight, paper straight, body straight.” This boyhood motto -has been before him ever since. One of the first things the present King -and Queen Elena did, upon their accession to the Throne, was to attach -to their persons _only_ married couples. Ladies-in-Waiting to the Queen -could only be married ladies whose husbands were during the same period -Gentlemen-in-Waiting to the King. This was an early step toward -elevating the moral standards of the Italian Court. Italian aristocracy -had not been renowned for virtuous living, but the present sovereigns -holding to a high standard of morality determined to purify the court in -so far as in them lay by banishing from active service all ladies and -gentlemen whose names had ever been bandied by current gossip. This -crusade, if it may be so called, was aided by the existing laws of the -country which are still sufficiently under the influence of the Roman -Catholic Church to prohibit divorce. No divorced man or woman has -standing in Queen Elena’s court. King Victor Emmanuel is himself -extremely devoted to his Queen and this devotion has often led to his -being charged with intense jealousy. Whether or not this is true, his -attitude toward Elena has resulted in her more and more withdrawing from -the companionship of people of the court and devoting herself to her -children. It is a pretty picture, that of the home life of this Queen. -Six months of the year the Royal Family live at the Quirinal Palace in -Rome. The remainder of the year is spent at various palaces and castles -in different parts of the Kingdom, but chiefly at Monza in the North, -where the summers are delightful. The long cruises and excursions that -they were wont to indulge in previous to their accession--cruises in the -Mediterranean and the Levant, hunting trips to Spitzbergen and the far -North--are now a thing of the past, and a simple home life is their -daily régime. - -The marriage took place in 1896. Their first child, Yolanda, was born -June 1st, 1901. Royal babies are never permitted to do with only two or -three Christian names. They must perpetuate the names of grandfathers -and grandmothers, and not infrequently of uncles and aunts and -grand-uncles and grand-aunts besides. Thus the full name of the first -little Italian Princess is Yolanda Margherita Milena Elizabeth Romana -Maria! The next little Princess, born November 19th, 1902, was -christened Mafalda Maria Elizabeth Anna Romana. On the 15th September, -1904, at the Château of Racconigi the boy was born. This was a momentous -day for Elena and Victor Emmanuel, for the boy, if he lives, will -eventually occupy the throne of his fathers, and the birth of a Crown -Prince is a matter of utmost importance in the household of a Royal -Family, and indeed in the - -[Illustration: THE ROYAL CHILDREN OF ITALY.] - -annals of a nation. Queen Elena had been married eight years, all but -one month, when His Royal Highness Prince Humbert arrived. There was -some difficulty in finding suitable names for the future King, -especially a first name which he would carry as King. The Royal -Household was divided between the name of Victor Emmanuel, after his -father, and Charles Emmanuel. The choice was finally left to the baby -Prince’s Royal father who said, “it was a good custom which was followed -in some families of naming the first girl after the grandmother and the -first boy after the grandfather.” So the name Umberto, or Humbert as we -write it in English, was chosen. - -Since the birth of the Crown Prince, one more child has been born to -Queen Elena, a Princess, who is called Giovanna. She is still a wee -child, having been born as recently as November 13, 1907. - -Princess Yolanda, the first born, has colouring and features very like -her mother, while Mafalda and Humbert are more like their father. - -Queen Elena herself spends a great share of her time with the children, -and while they have the usual nurses and governesses, the latter of whom -are already teaching the three older children French and English in -addition to Italian, Queen Elena perhaps does more with her own hands -than any other Queen mother in Europe. For example, she always bathes -them, she is present at their supper hour and when they are being made -ready for bed; each afternoon she tries to spend two hours with them at -their play. Thus their training is very largely in her hands. The -children are all very young still, but the two older girls are beginning -to appreciate the love and devotion of their mother, for little Mafalda -recently remarked to a gentleman of the court: “Mamma is the comfort of -everyone in trouble.” - -The Queen’s birthday falls on January 8th. The year of the terrible -earthquake at Messina Her Majesty returned to Rome from the devastated -regions on the eve of her birthday. This year, oppressed by the terrible -scenes she had witnessed, she abolished all of the usual festivities in -her honour and devoted the forenoon to superintending the making of -garments for the Messina orphans in one of the Quirinal Palace rooms -which she had made into a temporary workroom. In the afternoon she made -a round of the Rome hospitals, visiting all of the “earthquake -children,” and with her own hands distributing sweets and little gifts, -thus endeavouring to bring a gleam of sunshine into their darkened -lives, and helping them for the moment to forget their sufferings. When -someone spoke to her afterwards of this beautiful way of celebrating her -birthday, she replied: “When these children grow up they may remember my -birthday.” Her own children, too, were encouraged on this occasion to -remember the wounded and orphaned victims. Instead of purchasing -presents for their mother, according to their usual custom, they put -the money into the Relief Fund, to which all the world was contributing. -Little Prince Humbert brought his favourite plaything, a set of toy -soldiers, to his mother and said: “Take this for the poor children.” - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -SIMPLICITY OF THE ITALIAN COURT - - -The Italian Prince and Princesses, though they live in very beautiful -Palaces, are simply brought up, and are not encouraged to have -extravagant toys. Formerly, and even now sometimes, it has been the -custom of foreign Ambassadors to the Italian Court, and even other -sovereigns, to send gorgeous toys, and magnificent great dolls as big as -the Princesses themselves, to these children. Queen Elena, fearing to -have them grow accustomed to toys so much richer and better than other -children, had taught them to surrender these things to poor children by -sending them to hospital wards. Now the playthings of the Royal children -are just ordinary toys like those that most children have and enjoy. - -The Queen endeavours to make her children forget that they are of Royal -blood, or in any way different from other children. In this particular -she is very different from the Tsaritsa, who never allows her children -or her court to forget that her son will one day be an Autocrat and Tsar -of all the Russias, that her daughters are Grand Duchesses, and must, -therefore, be kowtowed to by every Prince and granddame of the court. - -While I was in Rome, Queen Elena related the following anecdote of her -own children, which illustrates her simplicity of attitude toward the -Italian Prince and Princesses. - -The young Prince Humbert was recently put through an examination by his -two older sisters, who wished to have an experience of their brother’s -knowledge about colours. - -Yolanda, pointing with her hand to the cloth of a piece of the -furniture, asked: “What colour is this?” - -“It is red,” Humbert readily answered, without mistake. - -“And that other piece of furniture, what colour is it?” - -For the second time the young Prince gave a right answer. - -“It is green,” he said. - -But Mafalda wanted to take part, too, in what they intended to be the -first examination of the future King of Italy. - -“What colour are your small shoes?” - -Here the matter became rather complicated. As far as it was a question -of usual colours, little Humbert had found no difficulty in answering, -but now, looking at his small shoes, he found that they had to him an -unknown colour. But he was not discouraged, especially as he perceived -on his sister’s lips a light smile, which could not be interpreted as of -approval. It was clear that his wily sisters were teasing him. - -“Well, what colour are they?” - -Vanquished? Not he. “My shoes are Marron glacé,” he replied. - -Yolanda and Mafalda laughed gaily at that answer, and little Humbert, -considering himself scorned by them, began to weep, and ran to his -mother for help. - -Queen Elena endeavoured to explain to the little examiners that the -Prince’s answer was right, as the little shoes had really a beautiful -chestnut colour bright and brilliant. - -Humbert is not fond of being quizzed by his sisters, and he is rather -inclined to be resentful. Indeed, this little Crown Prince is a born -soldier of a fighting disposition, and many a nursery quarrel does the -Queen have to settle. He is ever ready to defend with great boldness his -small soldiers, his guns and his swords and other favourite toys, which -Mafalda and Yolanda attempt sometimes to take from him. Humbert has one -amusing weakness. He is fond of the two black eyes and beautiful little -face of one of his sisters’ dolls. Sometimes he wants to take possession -of this doll. Unhappily, his sisters are not always disposed to let him -have it. - -Ordinarily Humbert is glad to assume rather a martial air, and to dress -in military uniforms. But the uniform that he likes best is a smart one -of a Cuirassier regiment with boots, cuirasse and helmet. The little -fellow distinctly prefers the company of boys of his own age, and he -enjoys the little friends that he is allowed to have, and who are the -children of the Ladies at Court. - -One of these little friends, a boy of five years who showed himself -enthusiastic over his Princely friend, was asked if he loved him much. - -“Yes, I love him very much, because he never complains when they take -something belonging to him, and he never cheats,” he replied. - -“And Yolanda and Mafalda, and the little Giovanna?” - -“Yolanda and Mafalda, I like them also, but they always laugh at us -men!” - -Yolanda, who is especially beloved by all those who live closely to her, -has always been a lively young girl with a frank and gay smile. Being -the eldest sister, she endeavours to look in some manner the wisest and -most serious, and she is at the same time the most charitable and -kindly. In fact, it is known to everyone, that many times she answers -the letters that the little girls of the people address to her -continually, by sending to them as a gift some of her own toys, of which -she willingly deprives herself. - -There is in her a lovely soul, which appears in a thousand ways and -especially in the unlimited affection to her parents. - -An old friend of the Queen’s once asked her to show her an ancient -photograph very dear to her, representing Queen Elena having Yolanda on -her lap, when she was only two or three months old. - -The Queen afterwards sent for Yolanda, and showed her the photograph. -The little Princess, seeing her mother in the portrait, asked with -suspicious anxiety who was the child she was keeping in her lap. - -“She is a dear baby, of whom I am very fond,” said the Queen. - -Yolanda’s face turned very serious, and after she looked again at the -photograph, she could not abstain from showing a certain contempt. - -“Don’t you see how ugly she is, Mamma? Throw it away.” - -“You are wrong,” the Queen answered, “you are this baby. It is really -you when you were very little.” - -Then Yolanda smiled gladly, and changing at once her opinion, she said, -with plenty of content: “Oh, yes, she is very handsome. You may keep -it.” - -Yolanda is in fact so affectionate to her mother that she hates in her -heart all those duties which keep the Queen away from her. She, as also -Mafalda and Humbert, like much better the beautiful days spent wholly -near their parents, among the green hills of Racconigi, Sant’ Anna di -Valdiere, and San Rossore. - -Victor Emmanuel, leaving all cares of state in the full liberty of his -acts, thinks only to play with his children from whom he never is widely -separated, and who are really his all-absorbing joy. Even in Rome, the -King, his duties accomplished, spends the rest of each day in the -intimacy of his family. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE HEROISM OF QUEEN ELENA - - -Italy’s Queen has a wonderful reputation the world around for her -heroism and daring. More than once she has rendered signal and -distinguished service when great disasters have visited her country, so -that this reputation is not undeserved. - -I have some personal knowledge of this side of her character and it is a -privilege to give her full credit. There are other sides of her life as -a Queen, however, in which she falls lamentably short of her position. -Of these I shall have to speak also. - -Queen Elena and the King were in Rome at the time of the great -earthquake which devastated Southern Calabria and the western tip of -Sicily. No sooner had the first authentic reports reached their -Majesties than they started for Messina, travelling to Naples by special -train and then by the Italian cruiser _Regina Elena_. As it happened, I -arrived at Messina, also by sea, at almost the same moment as the -Flagship. I was put ashore, to visit the wrecked city, in a small boat, -and not one hundred yards away a little drab launch was bouncing over -the rude waves toward what was left of a slanting stage, bearing King -Victor Emmanuel. On the deck of the _Regina Elena_, anxiously watching -each rise and fall of the little boat, stood the Queen. From almost the -same angle I could watch the progress toward shore, only when the King -stepped ashore I was much nearer, and therefore could see more -distinctly the panic-stricken survivors hurling themselves madly at the -feet of their King, and could hear much better the wild shouts: “Vive -Vitorio Emmanuele!” It was a strange, weird hurrah, coming from the lips -of the bereaved, the sorely stricken, the wounded, the dying. Certainly -it impressed me deeply. Later, from an officer aboard the cruiser, I -heard that the Queen was moved as never before in her life, and well she -might be. Before her, in endless panorama, lay the ruined, smoking city. -The King, and the crowd he attracted, loomed big on the quay, the -foreground. Behind, stretching to the orange and lemon clad hills which -after a mile rise abruptly to a great height, lay the biggest pile of -human suffering, of dead bodies and pinioned, starving living that the -world has known in many centuries. Yet out of this ghastly picture arose -the cry: “Long live the King!” “Long live Queen Elena!” Truly it was -overpowering. The Queen stood it as long as she could, and then with her -hands pressed to her face she went sobbing to her cabin. - -After an hour the King returned to the ship. The Queen met him at the -gangway. Now her tears were dried. She wore a long nurse’s apron, and -from that hour, so long as she remained near the scene of disaster, -Queen Elena worked as a nurse. With her own hands she bandaged the -bleeding. She assisted at amputations and other serious operations and -from time to time she visited other ships that were caring for the -injured and spoke the cheering words, which, coming from the sovereign, -meant so much more than any stimulant. - -In connection with this dire catastrophe there was at least one incident -that was full of humour. M. Tardieu, a French journalist, had occasion -to visit the Minister of Marine who was of the Royal party aboard the -Flagship. When Tardieu had finished his business, the Minister, pointing -to a parrot which was occupying a prominent place on the deck, related -this story: - -“A squad of Italian soldiers at work among the ruins heard a voice -crying ‘Maria,’ ‘Maria.’ They dug for hours getting nearer, but always -the voice cried unceasingly ‘Maria,’ ‘Maria.’ At last when they reached -the room from which the sounds were coming they found not a human being -but a parrot. But, in the adjoining room was Maria, a young girl, alive -and well. When the Queen heard of this she sent to have both the parrot -and its mistress brought aboard the Flagship.” As the Minister finished -relating the story, M. Tardieu doffed his cap to the bird and began a -garrulous speech of congratulations. At that moment the King appeared on -deck and seeing the Frenchman addressing the parrot in all solemnity -and dignity he paused to listen. Tardieu, looking up and seeing the -King, again removed his hat and salaamed low. Whereupon the King -advanced smiling, with extended hand. He chatted with the French -journalist for a few moments and sent an informal message to the French -people. The account of the adventure Tardieu published under the clever -caption: “How a Parrot Introduced Me to the King.” This girl was only -one of many whom Queen Elena became interested in in Messina, and who -have become her special charges now in Rome--wards of the Queen. - -The example set by Queen Elena in going to Messina was followed by -scores of ladies of the Italian court, who left their homes, and, -boarding warships and joining relief expeditions, served as volunteer -nurses. They established field hospitals all along the devastated coasts -and among the hill villages. It was splendid, heroic service and must be -so recorded. Between the work of the ladies of the court and the work of -the Queen was this difference only. The Queen remained for five or six -days, while the others remained four or five weeks. The Queen was -decorated by half the monarchs of Europe--not so the others. But being -the Queen, and having gone there at all, setting the example of personal -service, her mite (comparatively) counted for more than the actual work -of all the others combined. - -When Vesuvius vomited forth its torrents of flaming destruction a few -years ago, Queen Elena and the King at once set forth in an automobile -upon the same mission of comfort and mercy. And again, when Calabria was -visited by a lesser earthquake, in 1905. - -Italy, one is sometimes tempted to believe, was the last place God made, -and he has never rested satisfied with His handiwork. No country that I -know has a more tragic history. Death in horrible forms is forever -sweeping over some portion of the land, while geological changes under -the earth are shaking, jostling and altering her surface contour. Ever -since Elena became Queen she has worked with zeal during the dark days -of these numerous calamities. Fate has been strangely, rudely kind to -her, too, in ordaining that she should be near at hand on many occasions -when accidents have befallen--railroad accidents, fires, as well as dire -disasters. Always has the Queen hurried to the danger point and risen to -the crisis. - -When a collision took place between two trains one dark night, at -“Castel-Giubileo,” the Queen, immediately informed, was the first ready -to run to the spot of the catastrophe. The horrible scene that appeared, -the painful screams of the wounded, the great number of victims, brought -tears to her eyes. But the anxiety which possessed her, could not make -her forget her duty. While the King himself was organising the help, -she, the young Queen, was stooping over the wounded, encouraging and -comforting them. A woman, whose limbs were broken to pieces, was lying -on the road. The Queen rushed to her, kneeled down, kissed her and tried -to encourage her to fortitude. She pursued all the night her consolatory -work and left “Castel-Giubileo,” only after she was satisfied that not a -single victim had been forgotten under the remains of the ruined -trains. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -ELENA THE QUEEN - - -In view of the long list of dramatic, if terrible, events that have from -time to time made Queen Elena the most striking figure in Italy, it -would be the simplest matter in the world for her to make herself the -most popular Queen on any throne in Europe. As a matter of fact, in -spite of her heroism and her daring; in spite of her romantic girlhood -and idyllic years of early married life--which strongly appeal to the -naturally sentimental Italian people--in spite of her charming home -life, there is no doubt that she is one of the most unpopular Queens in -Europe. Her court, which, to meet the tastes of her people, should be -bright, popular, brilliant, is really the dullest, the most stupid in -the western world. I have lived in many countries, and I am more or less -familiar with all the countries of Europe, but never have I heard a -Queen so universally spoken of with disrespect and disapproval by her -own court. Of course, Queen Elena cannot be charged with the sole -responsibility, for the King shares the opprobrium and may, after all, -be the one to blame. It is, nevertheless, a disappointing task that is -set the chronicler of Italian court life of to-day. Elena, as we have -seen, was born fairly in the lap of romance. Her life should have worked -out to an ideal fulfilment. Extraordinary opportunities have been hers, -but she has never taken advantage of the great popularity they have -given her. A Queen’s life is one of stern duty, intensely hard, and -excessively demanding from many quarters. Queen Elena, in an American -phrase, “plays to the gallery,” then retires. She garners the wheat and -ignores the chaff. She is quick to follow dramatic exploits, but -reluctant to submit to the daily grind. - -The Duke of Ascoli, personal friend and adjutant to the Queen, was much -embarrassed when I asked him to tell me about the charities of Queen -Elena. He mentioned Calabria, Vesuvius, certain children’s hospitals and -orphanages, and there he paused. It is, to me, inexplicable that a Queen -who as the Princess of a little State like Montenegro should have done -so much for the people of the country, been a patroness of the arts and -done all the things that Elena did, and then, as Queen of a great nation -do so little. Rightly or wrongly, Queen Elena has the reputation among -her own people for being the stingiest Queen in Europe. Apparently this -is true. She patronises almost nothing at all, regularly, and if once in -a while she lends her name to appear on a public bill, it usually means -this and nothing more. So far as is known, she gives less to charity, in -proportion to her means, than any Queen. In this she is in unhappy -contrast to the Queen-Mother who, when she was on the Throne, did very -much to encourage painting, music and sculpture throughout Italy. This -fact rather discredits the only excuse I have ever heard offered for -Queen Elena, namely, that she and the King have many Palaces to -maintain, inheritances which have come to them from the many dukedoms -and little states which were brought together to make up “United Italy.” -Queen Margherita and King Humbert had the same number of estates, but -their charity and philanthropic list was long and striking. - -Queen Elena has one boast. She says that less has been written of her -than of any Queen in the world, and she is very proud of it. My own -impression is that Queen Elena realises that if more of the facts of her -selfish nature were made world-wide that she would cease to be the -object of veneration that she is to-day. If the world at large -appreciated to what extent she has carried her ideas of simplicity in -dress, the glamour that surrounds her would fade. It is impossible to -worship a dowd--especially if the lady be a Queen with all the splendour -and taste of the world at her hand. - -I have seen her driving in the Campagna, or even through the streets of -Rome, when I would never have believed her the occupant of her exalted -position, had I not known her. It is somewhat ungallant to dwell upon -these things, but Queen Elena _can_ wear good clothes, as her court -costumes testify. It is because she simply _doesn’t_, that makes her a -slouch in dress. One need not be extravagant in clothes to be tasteful, -but Queen Elena is not even tasteful. Here again, she is in unfortunate -contrast to the Queen-Mother who, still living in Rome, is always -exquisitely gowned, and no matter how simply, always with unerring -taste. Queen Elena is, indeed, sorely handicapped by the presence of -Queen Margherita in the capital, for her popular affection will last as -long as she lives, and a woman of Elena’s calibre can never, even at -best, supplant her. - -The most ungracious task in the world is sometimes to tell the truth. -When writing of Kings and Queens, one is expected to write in adulation. -I have done my best for Queen Elena, in telling the story of her younger -life in all its vivid and alluring colouring; and I have paid full -tribute to Elena, the Mother. But the picture is not yet complete. Elena -the Queen is, after all, of first importance to the nation. We, in -America, believe that the institution of kingship--“divine right of -Kings” and all the rest--is largely archaic twaddle. Queen Elena, of all -living Queens, illustrates the emptiness of Queenship as it exists -to-day. I would not give the impression that the Queen and King of Italy -are cruel tyrants like the lately deposed Sultan of Turkey, or autocrats -like the Tsar and Tsaritsa of Russia; nor are they active elements in -the social life of the nation like the Kings and Queens of England and -Spain, or the Emperor and Empress of Germany. What Queen Elena and King -Victor Emmanuel represent, however, are, the biggest of social -parasites. They draw an enormous revenue of many millions annually from -a heartbreakingly poor population, and give the minimum in return. - -I am quite aware that I speak in no measured terms, but a surprising -number of people in Italy--men and women of the Court--have begged me to -state the truth concerning their sovereigns to the world. Perchance they -themselves may take from the lips of an unbiassed observer from overseas -what no one of their subjects dare to say. While not an apostle of -social revolution in Italy, I may perhaps be so suspected, unless I -state that it is the full indifference to everyday affairs of the -Italian sovereigns, especially the Queen, that breeds the widest -discontent. The Italian court, as a whole, is not politically restless -so much as discouraged and disgusted with their apathetic monarchs. - -The four years of blissful honeymooning enjoyed by Victor Emmanuel and -Elena seems to have spoiled them for taking up the tasks of sovereigns. -They seem to have lived too much unto and for themselves. One indication -of this is the almost ludicrous jealousy of the King. He guards Elena -with the greatest care, and few indeed are the male members of the Court -who ever approach her save on formal occasions. The sovereigns always -have their meals alone together. It was the custom of the former -monarchs to have the King’s adjutant and the Queen’s lady-in-waiting at -the table; at dinner there were nearly always guests. Not so Victor -Emmanuel. He prefers to be as much as possible alone with his spouse, -and never entertains at dinner save when duty demands it. It must be -said that he gives Elena a true and loyal devotion and he is one of the -very few, if not the only monarch in Europe, against whom no word of -unkind gossip has ever been spoken. - -The closely watchful attitude of the King may be in some measure -responsible for the impression which is pretty general that Elena is a -timid, shy woman. There are several anecdotes recalled to illustrate -this trait, each of them, to me, interesting. - -One afternoon, near the beginning of her reign, Elena had attended a -function given by the Dowager-Queen. Queen Elena arrived somewhat late -and reached the door of the Salon unattended. There was a large company -present and Queen Elena paused, as if in embarrassment, until Queen -Margherita, seeing her, came forward and taking her by the hand led her -into the room. - -On the rare occasions when Italian Royalty patronise the theatre or -opera, Elena, if she knows the Queen-Mother is to be present, arrives a -little late, and leaves a little early, so that the homage Queen -Margherita had been accustomed to during so many years may still be -hers. - -Social shyness is a thing apart from physical courage, of which, we all -know Queen Elena has - -[Illustration: SNAPSHOTS BY QUEEN ELENA: THE KING AND HER CHILDREN.] - -an abundance. The formalities of ceremonial court life are irksome to -Queen Elena, and the afternoon “teas” that she holds for the court are -stripped of all their formidableness by the present mistress of the -Quirinal. - -Among the English colony in Rome is an aged lady whom Queen Elena calls -to court once every year for a tête-à-tête. During the past year she has -grown very deaf. Queen Elena had obvious difficulty in making herself -understood, and to her very evident embarrassment the old lady noticed -this and said, apologetically: “I am so sorry, your Majesty, that my -hearing inconveniences you.” “Oh,” said the Queen, “I did not know that -you were deaf. Come, sit here on the sofa by me.” This, surely, was -worthy of a Queen. - -That Queen Elena positively dislikes social functions there can be no -question. For three successive winters there was practically nothing -whatever done to stimulate the social life of the capital on the part of -the sovereigns. One year the reason given for the postponing of the -court balls and receptions was the Sicilian disaster. Another year it -was the death of the King of Portugal. Other courts went into mourning -for thirty days. The Italian court cancelled everything in the nature of -festivities for the year. This has a very serious economic result. Rome -is one of the least commercial capitals of Europe. The social season at -best is brief--three to four months--and upon this little season many -of the shopkeepers have to rely for the bulk of their trade. The tourist -trade does not begin to compensate for the loss of the social season. In -every other capital in Europe the presence of Royalty at all star -occasions throughout the season lends a brilliancy that seems to be lost -to Rome for ever--at least during the lives of the present monarchs. The -old Roman families do the best they can to bolster up Rome’s fast -fleeting prestige, but the Royal Box is nearly always empty. More often -than not it looms up in the centre of things like a ghost at the feast. -Each year, fewer and fewer foreigners go to Rome for the season, and -this is laid directly to the door of the sovereigns. It must be borne in -mind that this sort of thing means very much more in Europe than it does -in America. There is no city in the United States that could possibly be -affected in this way, but since it is of so much importance in Italy it -must be mentioned here. This is one of the prime grievances of the -people of Rome against the King and Queen. If Queen Elena were the wife -of a country minister in our country, she would be beloved by all who -knew her. Her domestic virtues, her simplicity of taste and manners, her -fondness for children would all be extolled. It would then be no -drawback that her vision was not extended, her horizon so narrow. She -would be a splendid woman to organise Dorcas societies, to teach the -Infant class in the Sunday School, and even to get up Thursday night -socials. Alas! however, she is a sovereign, and of a sovereign so much -more is not merely expected but demanded. The way Queen Elena has -shirked her daily chores--court functions, audiences and interest in -national activities--during the last few years is a matter of national -comment. “She promised so much, she has achieved so little!” one hears -on every hand. - -The Elena of to-day does not seem the same Elena who came from -Montenegro. The reason for her change of character is beyond my ken. But -these are facts. As a Queen, Elena comes close to the line of failure. -Each time she steps into the blaze of popular admiration the sentiment -toward her seems to change, but I notice that like the fickle waves of -the sea, this quickly recedes. - -Queen Elena has always been given to hobbies, and as her children take -to one hobby or another their regal mother shares their enthusiasm and -interest. The King, too, has one hobby that he has indulged in since -boyhood and that is the collecting of coins. This fad he took up when he -was a very small boy. According to his own statement it was in the year -1879 that one rare coin fell into his hands and he determined to make a -“collection.” To-day his collection is reputed the largest and finest in -Italy. With him, the collecting of the coins is but part of the hobby. -Around each set of ancient and obsolete coins he has grouped a summary -of historical facts so that his collection, if studied carefully would -constitute an education in itself. I have been told that the King has -nearly sixty thousand different coins! A friend writing to Senator -Morandi who is intimately familiar with the life of the King, asked how -Victor Emmanuel had time to make collections of this sort. To which the -Senator replied: “In the midst of all the cares of State, by his -indefatigable capacity for work, aided by a rare promptitude of -perception and by a prodigious memory, he finds time to follow every -scientific and literary movement, and to attend to this collection.” As -a matter of fact, this is the King’s one hobby. The Queen, on the other -hand, still indulges several. In the Quirinal Palace in Rome she -maintains a studio where she spends many an afternoon working over her -sketches and water colours. Her interest in the coin collection is -rather recent, and at bottom only nominal. It is my impression that this -interest on her part is primarily for the sake of her children who will -one day own this interesting and valuable collection. The King once -related to Senator Morandi, in a personal letter, the origin of this -collection. “I got my chance,” he said, “a soldo (one cent) of Pius IX -and I kept it. Afterwards I got another which I put with the first. -Presently I secured fifteen different coins of different kinds. Then my -father gave me about seventy different copper coins. These formed the -nucleus of my collection.” For several years Prince Victor Emmanuel -pestered every one he knew to give him old coins, especially at -Christmas and on other gift days. Before long he had a collection of -three thousand pieces. And now it has attained the proportions of twenty -times that number. Recently the King testified that this collection has -been “an efficacious aid to him in his study of history and geography. -Besides which, when I have time I always find something useful and -pleasing to do, either arranging my coins or searching in books for -dates for this purpose!” Many an American and English boy and girl has a -collection of coins and this testimony of King Victor Emmanuel may be an -incentive to them to continue this hobby, and to make the most of it by -following the scientific example of the King in carefully and accurately -preserving the full data concerning each coin. - -Queen Elena is still a young woman. If the time ever comes when she -determines to throw as much energy and enthusiasm into the everyday work -of Queenship as she does on the special occasions of crisis she may yet -make her mark upon Italy. So far she has not done this. In these -chapters I have tried to portray Queen Elena as she is--a real live -woman who enjoyed a romantic youth; who made a brilliant marriage; who -is a devoted wife and mother; a mediocre Queen. I have written without -malice and without prejudice. My task is done if my readers can now -visualise Queen Elena--can picture her in her mountain home, a daring, -untrammeled girl; can see her as she is to-day, active in her domestic -tasks, lunching and dining and driving with the King, bathing the -babies and watching over their early slumbers. For to-day Elena is wife -and mother above all else--and Queen incidentally as well as -accidentally. It is my impression that the Queen business bores her -utterly; else she would not do it so badly. - - -THE END - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Royal Romances of To-day, by Kellogg Durland - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROYAL ROMANCES OF TO-DAY *** - -***** This file should be named 60770-0.txt or 60770-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/0/7/7/60770/ - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org/license - - -Title: Royal Romances of To-day - -Author: Kellogg Durland - -Release Date: November 23, 2019 [EBook #60770] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROYAL ROMANCES OF TO-DAY *** - - - - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - -<hr class="full" /> - -<p class="figcenter"> -<a href="images/cover_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/cover.jpg" alt="[Image of -the book's cover unavailable.]" /></a> -</p> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" summary="" -style="border: 2px black solid;margin:auto auto;max-width:50%; -padding:1%;"> -<tr><td> - -<p class="c"><a href="#TABLE_OF_CONTENTS">Contents.</a></p> - -<p class="c"><a href="#LIST_OF_ILLUSTRATIONS">List of Illustrations</a><br /> <span class="nonvis">(In certain versions of this etext [in certain browsers] -clicking on the image will bring up a larger version.)</span></p> - -<p class="c">(etext transcriber's note)</p></td></tr> -</table> - -<p class="c">ROYAL ROMANCES OF TO-DAY</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_i" id="page_i">{i}</a></span></p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_1" id="ill_1"></a> -<a href="images/ill_001_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_001_sml.jpg" width="423" height="550" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE TSARITSA.</p></div> -</div> - -<h1> -ROYAL ROMANCES<br /> -OF TO-DAY</h1> - -<p class="c"><span class="smcap">By</span><br /> -<br /> -KELLOGG DURLAND<br /> -<br /><small> -<span class="smcap">Author of</span><br /> -<br /> -<span class="smcap">“The Red Reign,” “Among the Fife Miners,”<br /> -etc., etc.</span></small><br /> -<br /><br /> -<img src="images/colophon.jpg" -width="80" -alt="" -/><br /> -<br /><br /> -NEW YORK<br /> -DUFFIELD AND COMPANY<br /> -1911<br /> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_ii" id="page_ii">{ii}</a></span><br /><small> -<span class="smcap">Copyright</span>, 1911,<br /> -<span class="smcap">By</span> DUFFIELD AND COMPANY<br /></small> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_iii" id="page_iii">{iii}</a></span> -<br /><br /><br /> - -TO<br /> -<br /> -H. E. THE MARQUIS OF VILLALOBAR<br /> -<br /><small> -A SLIGHT TOKEN OF A HIGH APPRECIATION</small><br /> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_v" id="page_v">{v}</a></span><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_iv" id="page_iv">{iv}</a></span></p> - -<h2><a name="TABLE_OF_CONTENTS" id="TABLE_OF_CONTENTS"></a>TABLE OF CONTENTS</h2> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" summary=""> - -<tr><td> </td><td>Foreword</td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_ix">ix</a></td></tr> - -<tr><th colspan="3"><a href="#PART_I">PART I. QUEEN VICTORIA EUGENIE OF SPAIN</a></th></tr> - -<tr><td><small>CHAPTER</small></td><td> </td> -<td class="rt"><small>PAGE</small></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#I-a">I</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#I-a">An Island Princess</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_3">3</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#II-a">II</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#II-a">Girlhood</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_7">7</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#III-a">III</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#III-a">Courtship</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_15">15</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#IV-a">IV</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#IV-a">A Royal Wedding</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_24">24</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#V-a">V</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#V-a">A Baptism of Blood</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_36">36</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VI-a">VI</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VI-a">Winning a Nation’s Love</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_40">40</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VII-a">VII</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VII-a">Don Alfonso XIII</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_49">49</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VIII-a">VIII</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VIII-a">A King’s Life</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_54">54</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#IX-a">IX</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#IX-a">Courage and Kingship</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_67">67</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#X-a">X</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#X-a">The Prince of Asturias</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_75">75</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#XI-a">XI</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#XI-a">The Royal Nursery of Spain</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_86">86</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#XII-a">XII</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#XII-a">The Princes at Play</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_96">96</a></td></tr> - -<tr><th colspan="3"><a href="#PART_II">PART II. THE EMPRESS ALEXANDRA -OF RUSSIA</a></th></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#I-b">I</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#I-b">“Sunny”</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_107">107</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#II-b">II</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#II-b">Courtship and a Journey to the Northland</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_114">114</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#III-b">III</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#III-b">Assuming the Burden</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_124">124</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#IV-b">IV</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#IV-b">Motherhood and Queenship</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_134">134</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#V-b">V</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#V-b">Spirit Whisperings</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_149">149</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VI-b">VI</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VI-b">Family Life at the Russian Court</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_169">169</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VII-b">VII</a></td> -<td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VII-b">The Grand Duchess Olga</a></td> -<td class="rt" valign="bottom"><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_vi" id="page_vi">{vi}</a></span><a href="#page_185">185</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VIII-b">VIII</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VIII-b">Tatiana, Marie and Anastasie</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_193">193</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#IX-b">IX</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#IX-b">The Tsarevitch</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_204">204</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#X-b">X</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#X-b">The End of the Road</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_210">210</a></td></tr> - -<tr><th colspan="3"><a href="#PART_III">PART III. QUEEN ELENA OF ITALY</a></th></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#I-c">I</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#I-c">A Mountain Princess</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_219">219</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#II-c">II</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#II-c">The Romance</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_229">229</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#III-c">III</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#III-c">Victor Emmanuel</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_234">234</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#IV-c">IV</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#IV-c">A Royal Honeymoon</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_240">240</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#V-c">V</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#V-c">Elena the Mother</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_249">249</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VI-c">VI</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VI-c">Simplicity of the Italian Court</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_256">256</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VII-c">VII</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VII-c">The Heroism of Queen Elena</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_261">261</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="rt"><a href="#VIII-c">VIII</a></td><td valign="top" class="smcap"><a href="#VIII-c">Elena the Queen</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_267">267</a></td></tr> - -</table> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_vii" id="page_vii">{vii}</a></span> </p> - -<h2><a name="LIST_OF_ILLUSTRATIONS" id="LIST_OF_ILLUSTRATIONS"></a>LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS</h2> - -<table border="0" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0" summary=""> -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_1">The Tsaritsa</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_12"><i>Frontispiece</i></a></td></tr> - -<tr><td> </td><td class="rt"><small>PAGE</small></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_2">The Queen of Spain</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_12">12</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_3">“The End Crowns the Work”</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_26">26</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_4">The Procession of Bull Fighters</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_44">44</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_5">Don Alfonso and His Heir</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_60">60</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_6">The Prince of Asturias</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_78">78</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_7">The Court of the Virgins at Seville</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_90">90</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_8">The Tsaritsa Is Honorary Colonel of the Uhlans of the Guard</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_118">118</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_9">The Five Children of the Tsaritsa</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_136">136</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_10">The Winter Palace, the Scene of “Bloody Sunday”</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_178">178</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_11">The Tsar and Tsaritsa at the Head of a Reviewing Party</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_212">212</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_12">Princess Milena of Montenegro, the Mother of Queen Elena</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_222">222</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_13">The Queen of Italy</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_232">232</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_14">Four Generations: The Prince of Piedmont, His Father the King, the Dowager Queen Margherita, and her Mother, the Duchess of Genoa</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_244">244</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_15">The Royal Children of Italy</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_252">252</a></td></tr> - -<tr><td valign="top" class="pdd"><a href="#ill_16">Snapshots by Queen Elena: The King and Her Children</a></td><td class="rt" valign="bottom"><a href="#page_272">272</a></td></tr> -</table> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_viii" id="page_viii">{viii}</a></span></p> - -<div class="blockquot"> -<p><i>“Your task is difficult,” remarked a friend to whom I had just -explained that I was writing the lives of the Empress of Russia, the -Queen of Spain, and the Queen of Italy. “Your task is difficult, because -these are three good Queens, and good Queens, like all good women, have -no history.” Now that I have told the stories of these three good -Queens, I wonder if my friend will not grant that they have been worth -the telling?</i></p> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_ix" id="page_ix">{ix}</a></span></p> - -<h2><a name="FOREWORD" id="FOREWORD"></a>FOREWORD</h2> - -<p>In the year 1907, the Woman’s Home Companion commissioned me to go to -Russia to write the story of the early days, courtship and marriage of -her whom the world knows to-day as the “Tsaritsa.” The following year, -the same periodical sent me to Italy to write a similar account of the -life of Queen Elena; and in 1910 I was once more sent abroad, this time -to Spain, to learn all about Queen Victoria Eugenie.</p> - -<p>The chapters printed in the magazine articles constitute only a part of -the material which I gathered on these three trips, and consequently the -stories herewith presented are to my best knowledge and belief the most -complete records of these three Queens, which have yet been gathered and -published. It was necessary for me to rely almost entirely upon members -of the several Courts of St. Petersburg, Madrid and Rome for my -biographical data. In each capital I spent many months, cultivating the -acquaintance of all who were in a position to give me this material, -especially members of the entourages of these several sovereigns. -Accuracy was always my prime aim and the greatest care has been taken to -corroborate impressions and to check up each parti<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_x" id="page_x">{x}</a></span>cle of information -which has been utilised. I have every confidence that the details -herewith presented may be relied upon by future biographers and -historians. Readableness has in no instance led me to sacrifice, or in -any way to exaggerate or alter literal facts.</p> - -<p>I have endeavoured to present the stories of these three Queens mainly -from the standpoint of the heart interest which attaches to the romances -which have characterised each of their marriages.</p> - -<p>I should be most ungracious if I were to omit expressing my cordial -appreciation of the valued co-operation which I received in St. -Petersburg from Harold Williams, Esq., from Miss Margaret Eager, for six -years Nursery Governess to the Royal Family of Russia; and in Rome from -Doctor Guido Pardo, whose energy, industry and wide knowledge of men and -affairs in Italy were all placed so generously at my disposal; and in -Madrid from El Señor Don Emilio M. de Torres, confidential Secretary to -His Majesty King Alfonso XIII, and El Señor Don Pablo de Churruca of the -Spanish Diplomatic Service.</p> - -<p>The justification for the publication of this work in more or less -permanent form lies in my belief in the verity and authenticity of every -last detail, all of which were gathered at such considerable expenditure -of time and labour. Material so carefully gathered and verified should -be of certain service to future writers.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_1" id="page_1">{1}</a></span></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_2" id="page_2">{2}</a></span> </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_3" id="page_3">{3}</a></span> </p> - -<h2><a name="PART_I" id="PART_I"></a>PART I<br /><br /> -QUEEN VICTORIA EUGENIE OF SPAIN</h2> - -<h3><a name="I-a" id="I-a"></a>CHAPTER I<br /><br /> -AN ISLAND PRINCESS</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Once</span> upon a time, not so many years ago, there lived on a lovely island -of the sea, a beautiful, golden-haired, blue-eyed Princess. The mother -of this Princess was kind and good to everybody on the island and all -who knew her loved her. The father of the princess was a soldier, a -warrior who led men to battle, and who sailed over distant seas to fight -for the honour and glory of his country. The grandmother of the little -Princess was a great Queen, known and revered by the whole world, for -she enjoyed a long life and a long reign. The little Princess was born -in the fiftieth year of the reign of the good old Queen and so the -little Princess was called “the Jubilee baby.”</p> - -<p>The Jubilee baby became the favourite grandchild of the old Queen who -loved to have the young Princess with her, and so it happened that the -training of the Princess was largely at the knees of the great -Queen,—and her nursery days were spent on the steps of a throne.</p> - -<p>When the Princess was eight years old, her<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_4" id="page_4">{4}</a></span> soldier father was sent to a -foreign land to fight in a cruel war. The ship that carried him and the -soldiers who left their homes with him, stopped for a few days at the -port of a friendly country and the officers, including the father of the -Princess, got off the ship to visit the strange country. It was a -pleasant land, a land of sunshine and flowers, where even in midwinter, -the fragrance of roses and orange blossoms filled the air. The island -home of the Princess was cold in winter, and harsh winds swept in from -the sea. The Prince, seeing all the beauty of the new land, would have -liked to linger in the balmy atmosphere where birds were as merry at -Christmas as in his own land at Easter. But he was on a stern journey, -fulfilling a great and responsible duty. The ship was about to start on -to its destination—the land of discord and strife where war was being -waged, and human lives were being sacrificed—where blood was running -and suffering and sorrow came with each day’s sun; the ship was about to -start on, and the Prince, thinking of the country whither he was going, -and of the land which he now was glimpsing like a beautiful dream, -thought also of the home he had left and his fair-haired, darling -daughter, her three baby brothers, and their mother whom he loved very -dearly. Then he sat down and wrote a letter to the little Princess. It -was the first time he had ever written a letter to her, because she was -still a wee girl and had never left his side. In this letter he told her -how beautiful was the land that<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_5" id="page_5">{5}</a></span> he then was visiting, and he went on to -say to her: “Always be a good girl, and love your mother. If you do -this, when you grow up and are big, you too, will travel, and you will -come to this beautiful country. You will see for yourself that you will -like it and how happy you will be here.”</p> - -<p>The little Princess was very pleased when she received this letter from -her father of whom she was extremely proud, and being the only one she -had from him treasured it like a relic. She never dreamed how -wonderfully prophetic were the simple words he wrote.</p> - -<p>One short month later the Prince was dead. The shadow of this loss -deeply darkened the life of the little Princess and all her family, and -indeed the whole country mourned. A few years passed and the little -Princess grew up and was ever and always more beautiful and lovely of -character, as well as of face and form. When she was eighteen, there -came to visit her country the young ruler of the very land her father -had visited on his last journey—the land which he told her she would -one day visit and where she would be happy. The King of this land, as it -happened, was then only nineteen years old, and in quest of a Princess -to share his throne. When he saw the Princess of this story, he fell -instantly in love with her, and she with him—and after a wooing and -courtship they were married. So after all, the Princess did go to the -land her father told her she would one day see, and now the “Jubilee -Baby” is the Queen<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_6" id="page_6">{6}</a></span> of that country, and the people there have become as -devoted to her as she is to them—and she is very, very happy.</p> - -<p>Does this read like a pretty fairy tale, written for children? Possibly. -But it isn’t; at least, if it is a story and pretty, it is every word -true, for “the Jubilee Baby” was Queen Victoria’s thirty-second -grandchild, the daughter of Princess Beatrice and Prince Henry of -Battenberg. The Isle of Wight of Southern England was the home of the -Battenbergs and Princess Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena—or Princess Ena, as -she was generally called—was Queen Victoria’s favourite grandchild. -When Princess Ena was eight years old, her father, Prince Henry, went -off to the Ashanti campaign in Africa and when his ship was detained a -few days at Gibraltar, he ran up to Seville, from where he wrote the -letter—the only letter he ever wrote to his little daughter—telling -her that one day she would come to Spain and be happy. This letter was -written in November and in December, Prince Henry died of a fever -contracted in the deadly climate of that part of the African coast. Ten -years later, King Alfonso XIII went to England, met Princess Ena and -within the twelve month, they were married and now she is Queen Eugenie -of Spain!<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_7" id="page_7">{7}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="II-a" id="II-a"></a>CHAPTER II<br /><br /> -GIRLHOOD</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Princess Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena</span> was born October 24, 1887. She -enjoyed the distinction of being the first royal baby born in Scotland -for precisely two hundred and eighty-seven years. Through her girlhood -she was much with her grandmother, Queen Victoria of England, and she -also enjoyed the particular interest of her godmother, the Empress -Eugenie of France, who later on was largely instrumental in bringing -about the meeting between the young King of Spain and her godchild which -resulted in her elevation to a throne.</p> - -<p>Princess Ena was the only daughter in a family of four children, and her -childhood was spent much in the company of her brothers, whose studies -and play she shared. Before she was twelve years old she had learned to -ride like a boy, to manage a boat and had acquired considerable skill -with the fishing rod. After the death of her father, Prince Henry of -Battenberg, Princess Ena assisted her mother in the administration of -the Isle of Wight, which was the particular bailiwick of her family. -Doubtless the early lessons of administration which she learned at this -time was<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_8" id="page_8">{8}</a></span> the kind of preparation for the administrative duties of -Queen, which, after her marriage, were to devolve upon her.</p> - -<p>She received an education befitting a Princess of Great Britain. When -still very young she had acquired a knowledge of French and German, and -this practice in mastering new languages proved of great value later -when she came to take up Spanish—a rich and full-throated tongue in -which she became fluent within a few months.</p> - -<p>Princess Ena also showed a decided talent for music and she is not only -a ready, skilful pianist, but she also composes music.</p> - -<p>Her young life was happy. She was the favourite, not only of Queen -Victoria and Empress Eugenie, but of all the Royal family in England. -There was no touch of the hard and sordid in those years. She dwelt in -the midst of wholesome, happy people and always in beautiful places. The -Isle of Wight, her home, is a sweet, tranquil haven, remote from the -frequented paths of the world, far from the hurry and noise and dirt of -modern England. In Spring and Summer it is like a great garden with -abiding places set therein.</p> - -<p>Balmoral in Scotland, where she was born and where she frequently lived, -especially when her grandmother, Queen Victoria, was in residence in -Scotland, is one of the most glorious spots in Britain. The magnificent -Royal Park is widely encircled by the rugged mountains of that -Northland. The river Dee, famed in song and story, runs close<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_9" id="page_9">{9}</a></span> to hand. -This Northland is more mountainous and stern than Ayr or Dumfries, the -land of Bobbie Burns, and as instinct with tradition of the fighting -Jacobite times as the Border country—the land of Scott—or Loch Leven -with its memories of Queen Mary. Princess Ena revelled in the stirring -past as she breathed the strong air of the Cairngorms, growing -physically strong and sturdy, innocent of the Destiny which was to shape -her life and make her a Mother of Kings.</p> - -<p>One winter Princess Henry of Battenberg went to Egypt, taking with her -her four children. This proved a memorable year to Princess Ena, for she -became familiar with new surroundings and acquainted with ancient -civilisations, in which she evinced a remarkable interest. Here, too, -the Princess had her first experience away from royal precincts, as the -winter was mostly spent in the Cataract Hotel at Aswan. It was the wish -of Princess Henry that she and her children be treated precisely as the -other guests of the hotel were treated, and the Princess Ena came to -know many people who were of a world far removed from her own.</p> - -<p>Many stories are told in Egypt to-day of the laughing golden-haired -English Princess who was never so weary as to cease from fun and -mischief, and many a prank instigated by her and her brothers is -recalled. Her brightness and abounding good nature were widely -appreciated and the memory she has left there is sweet and good.</p> - -<p>Christmas Day in a foreign land is always dull<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_10" id="page_10">{10}</a></span> and dreary, and English -people, perhaps, miss home on this day above all others in the year.</p> - -<p>The manager of the Cataract Hotel—Herr Steiger—being anxious to lift -in some measure the pall of gloom which hung over his guests that -Christmas planned a little surprise which he sprang at the dinner hour. -Toward the close of the meal the lights in the dining salon were -suddenly extinguished and a band of picturesque Orientals entered the -room bearing lighted tapers and trays of gifts. Their fantastic garb of -white bournous, red fez and white turbans looked weirdly strange against -the darkness and as the file approached the table where sat the royal -party a burst of loud applause came spontaneously from the guests at the -other tables. No sooner had the first defile circled round the royal -table than other similar groups entered the room and ranged around the -other tables. In a moment of silence the Princess Ena was heard to -exclaim: “Oh! how nice of Herr Steiger to have given this pleasure to -everyone and not only to us!”</p> - -<p>This charming consideration for others is a characteristic of her nature -which has deepened with years and has proved one of the qualities which -so quickly endeared her to the people of her adopted land.</p> - -<p>At the age of eighteen Princess Ena had her formal “coming out” into -Society. The event took place at the Infirmary Ball at Ryde, and -immediately after she was presented at Windsor and en<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_11" id="page_11">{11}</a></span>tered upon a gay -season in London. It was toward the end of this very first season that -she met for the first time the impetuous and dashing young man who at -first sight of her surrendered his heart and in record time led her up -the steps of a throne to share with him the ermine of sovereignty.</p> - -<p>In their meeting and courtship lies a tale of pure romance. No story of -any “castle in Spain” runs more delightfully, and no tale of the storied -Alhambra quickens the pulse beats faster.</p> - -<p>Don Alfonso XIII of Spain, who was literally born a king, his father -having died several months before his birth, at the early age of 28, was -still in his teens when his court and ministers began to drop thinly -veiled hints concerning a possible alliance for the young sovereign. The -King from earliest boyhood had showed that he had a mind and -determination of his own, and whenever the matter of his marriage was -broached he would make reply: “I shall marry a princess who takes my -fancy, and nobody else. I want to love my wife.” A noble and worthy -ambition surely, especially for a king!</p> - -<p>The Emperor of Germany had long hoped to arrange a match between the -King of Spain and a German princess, while several princesses in other -countries of Europe nourished secret hopes that they might one day sit -on the Spanish throne. Political exigencies, however, demanded an -English princess if a suitable and acceptable one could be found for the -youthful monarch.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_12" id="page_12">{12}</a></span></p> - -<p>During the spring of Don Alfonso’s twentieth year, the very year of -Princess Ena’s coming out, he went with a regal suite to London. -Wiseacres had picked Princess Patricia of Connaught as the probable -choice of the dashing young sovereign. Indeed the whispers of Mayfair -drawing-rooms had the match entirely arranged long before the King -arrived in London.</p> - -<p>June in London is often a delightful and beautiful month—a month of -awakening surprises, when the trees and flowers come quickly into bloom -and blossom through the spring haze. The June week chosen for the visit -of the Spanish King, however, proved a disappointing exception, for mist -and drizzling rain characterised the period of his stay, but all the -rain and dampness of Britain, if concentrated in London, would not have -marred the indefatigable energy of this strenuous young man, who not -only participated in all the festivities arranged for him by the -committees of the Court and Municipality, but also managed to do much -extra sight-seeing and, most important of all, to make up his mind which -princess should be the next Queen of Spain—his bride.</p> - -<p>Despite the gossips who already had Princess Patricia the affianced -bride of the young King, when these two met it was evident that neither -attracted the other. Far too often in the history of nations personal -attraction has not been a dominating influence in royal marriages. If -reasons of state have demanded the marriage the individuals</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_2" id="ill_2"></a> -<a href="images/ill_002_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_002_sml.jpg" width="421" height="550" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE QUEEN OF SPAIN.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_13" id="page_13">{13}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">have sunk their own feelings, surrendered their personal happiness—and -lived on, perpetual victims of the political demands of their respective -states. But Don Alfonso XIII had no desire to martyr himself in this -way. No more the Princess Patricia.</p> - -<p>The late King Edward had arranged dinners, dances and fêtes in -Buckingham Palace in honour of the King of Spain. There were gathered -the very flower of the youth of Britain. Don Alfonso was seen to be -instantly struck by the sight of a certain golden-haired girl whom he -saw flitting here and there across the rooms.</p> - -<p>“Who is she?” he finally inquired.</p> - -<p>“Princess Ena of Battenberg,” was the reply.</p> - -<p>The two were presented. They talked together and were visibly interested -in each other. They met again and each day so long as the King remained -in London.</p> - -<p>A few months later, King Alfonso confessed that the first moment he saw -Princess Ena, he determined that she was the one who must share the -responsibilities of his Kingdom with him, and that if his suit were not -accepted by the Princess, or if any reasons of State intervened to -prevent the marriage, his country would go without a queen so long as he -lived. Fortunately, no reasons of State developed to hinder the marriage -and the one obstacle raised by the Church was overcome when the Princess -declared her readiness to accept the Roman Catholic Faith, for King -Alfonso is<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_14" id="page_14">{14}</a></span> known as His Most Catholic Majesty, and church influence, -though waning, is still strong in Spain.</p> - -<p>The marriage was favoured and encouraged by King Edward, that gracious -and genial Uncle of Europe, and his sanction was sufficiently strong to -bring about what was to King Alfonso and to Spain an exceedingly -desirable union. No public announcement of the betrothal was made for -six months after the visit to England, but rumour carried abroad the -suspicions which were later confirmed.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_15" id="page_15">{15}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="III-a" id="III-a"></a>CHAPTER III<br /><br /> -COURTSHIP</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Much</span> curiosity was exhibited upon the return of King Alfonso to Madrid -on the part of his courtiers. Many times and often intimates of the King -pressed him indirectly in regard to this great secret, but Don Alfonso -preserved a careful silence. Shortly after this visit, the King bought a -racing yacht, and, upon its arrival, gave a launching party to inspect -his new possession. As yet the yacht had not been named, and the King -invited his guests to suggest an appropriate name. Someone suggested -that it be named after himself, but the King shook his head at this; -then one bolder than the rest slyly suggested that the name of the -future Queen of Spain would be appropriate. “Excellent,” said his -Majesty, “and now you will please inform me what is the name of the -lady?” “Ah, sir,” replied the other, “on that momentous point we are as -yet without information.” “Nevertheless,” said the King, “it is a good -suggestion,” and forthwith sent instructions that the new yacht be named -“Queen X.” The Spanish newspapers quoted the story of the King’s little -joke and concluded who the real Queen was to be from the fact that the -words were printed in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_16" id="page_16">{16}</a></span> English, a conclusion that was very soon -confirmed.</p> - -<p>Towards the close of January, following the visit to London, a -Chamberlain of the King’s arrived at Biarritz in southern France, near -to the border of Spain, and two days later the King, travelling -incognito, left his capital for the same frontier, and it immediately -became an open secret that the time of the public betrothal was at hand.</p> - -<p>The day following the King’s arrival he joined the party of Princess -Frederica of Hanover and Prince Alexander of Battenberg, Princess Henry -of Battenberg—and Princess Ena. That very afternoon King Alfonso and -his future Queen were publicly seen together for the first time in a -motor drive along the frontier. The Press of the world was unanimous in -its approval of the match, and for the most part stating that it was -really a marriage of affection, reasons of State happily harmonising -with the impulses of the royal hearts. The courtship which followed was -very boy and girl-like according to all intimate accounts. Little gifts -were exchanged and the two were constantly in each other’s company, -dodging as much as possible public gaze. They strolled many miles -together alone and unattended through the parks and woods and, on more -than one tree carved interlaced hearts and each other’s initials just -like lovers the whole world over.</p> - -<p>One day the happy lovers were seen to proceed to a carefully selected -spot where two round holes<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_17" id="page_17">{17}</a></span> had been freshly dug out of the earth. A -gardener stood nearby, apparently awaiting their coming, for in his arms -he carried two small fir plants.</p> - -<p>“This one is mine,” exclaimed the King, eagerly taking one.</p> - -<p>“And this one is mine,” rejoined the Princess.</p> - -<p>Each having taken a plant they set about planting them.</p> - -<p>“We must plant the trees side by side,” said the King, “so that they may -always remind us of these never-to-be-forgotten days.”</p> - -<p>The plants were set in place and each taking a spade they began to cover -the roots with earth.</p> - -<p>The Princess finished her task first, and dropping her spade stood -watching the King, laughing merrily all the while. At last the King, -pausing for a moment, said:</p> - -<p>“There is no doubt about it, I am very awkward! I must put in a month -with the engineers!”</p> - -<p>That day King Alfonso handed Princess Ena a beautiful heart set with -diamonds and rubies, one of the earliest gifts to his bride-to-be.</p> - -<p>One day they sped off into the country in the King’s motor car. -Alighting just outside of the little village of Cambo they entered the -village on foot. Passing a shop where postcards were on sale they went -in and selected several of the picture cards to send to King Edward and -Queen Maria Cristina, the Queen Mother of Spain. The village shop-keeper -did not recognise his distinguished customers and began to question them -if they knew<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_18" id="page_18">{18}</a></span> when the King and Princess would come to Cambo, which they -had not yet visited. King Alfonso and his fiancée, inwardly smiling, -made an evasive reply indicating that they knew nothing about the Royal -arrangements. After they had gone out the shopkeeper was apprised of the -identity of his recent customers and his surprise resulted in his -complete bewilderment.</p> - -<p>On Friday, the 27th of January, the Princess crossed into Spain for the -first time. She and the King were accompanied by her mother, the Marquis -of Viana and the Marquis of Villalobar; the party motored over the -International Bridge which marks and connects the borders of the two -countries and, as the Princess alighted on Spanish soil, the Marquis of -Villalobar remarked to the Princess: “Señora we have set foot on Spanish -territory,” to which the Princess gave answer: “I am delighted that this -moment has arrived; it fills me with joy and never shall I forget the -first day on which I trod the soil of Spain.” The English party then -proceeded to the Palace of Miramar at San Sebastian, where they were the -guests of the Queen Mother.</p> - -<p>A San Sebastian newspaper, commenting upon the appearance of Princess -Victoria Eugenie said: “She is very beautiful, very elegant, very -sympathetic.” These three characteristics indeed are the predominant -features of her character. She has beauty, an aristocratic carriage, and -her nature is deeply sympathetic.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_19" id="page_19">{19}</a></span></p> - -<p>This first visit of Princess Ena to Spain was necessarily of brief -duration and, pending the arrangements of State for the marriage, the -King was obliged to return to Madrid while his fiancée proceeded to -Paris, there to prepare her trousseau. Don Alfonso designated his own -Chamberlain—the Marquis of Villalobar—to accompany her to the French -capital and there to wait attendance upon her. Simultaneously with her -arrival in Paris, Don Alfonso remembered that the Princess had no -automobile in France, so he telegraphed to his Chamberlain to hire one -immediately for his fiancée’s use. The Chamberlain telegraphed back to -the King that there was not a car to be hired in Paris good enough for -the Princess, whereupon Don Alfonso wired instructions for a Panhard car -to be purchased and sent the next morning to the hotel where the -Princess was staying.</p> - -<p>The King went at this time to pay an official visit to his province of -Valencia and wrote to the Princess of the beautiful oranges growing -there, at which the Princess manifested a desire to have some. One -morning, the Marquis of Villalobar received a telegram from the King -advising him that he was sending a few oranges for the Princess by a -certain train and directing him to meet the train at the station and -convey the fruit directly to the Princess. The telegram did not state -the quantity of oranges which were being sent, and the Marquis was at a -loss to know whether it would be a basketful of fruit which could be -conveyed in a cab, or a<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_20" id="page_20">{20}</a></span> truck load. Upon the arrival of the train, the -astonished Chamberlain beheld the largest orange tree he had ever seen, -the branches bowed with ripe fruit!</p> - -<p>While the necessary preparations were in progress for the Royal Wedding, -King Alfonso visited his betrothed at her home in the Isle of Wight. -This visit, which lasted three weeks, was regarded as strictly private -and during these three weeks the Royal wooing progressed under idyllic -conditions. It was a period of country walks and drives, simple picnic -parties, private entertainment and family dinner parties. During this -visit at Osborne Cottage, the King and Princess planted a tree in -commemoration of their betrothal, and during this time also His Majesty -took his first lessons in the ancient Scottish game of golf, at which he -later became most proficient. Their seclusion was only intruded upon by -the most necessary of formal functions—a visit of respect by the -Spanish Ambassador to London, by the Commander of the Royal Yacht -Squadron, and certain other dignitaries whom etiquette obliged to wait -upon the King. Don Alfonso lived up to his reputation of being the -surest shot in Spain when on one day the Isle of Wight Gun Club held an -exhibition shoot, the first prize of which was won by the visiting -sovereign, who broke eight clay birds out of ten in a high wind.</p> - -<p>Toward the close of the visit the Royal party proceeded to London for a -short stay at Bucking<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_21" id="page_21">{21}</a></span>ham Palace. During the few days spent in London, -Don Alfonso and his fiancée shopped together publicly in the streets of -London, attended several theatrical performances and visited Madame -Tussaud’s wax works where were brand new wax models of himself and his -wife to be. On the 4th of May Don Alfonso returned to his own country. -On Thursday, the 24th of the same month, Princess Victoria Eugenie set -out for the land where she was henceforth to live as Queen.</p> - -<p>She travelled from England via Dover and Calais. A friend who met her on -her landing upon French soil remarked how sad she seemed, whereupon she -replied: “It is nothing—I cannot help feeling moved when I think that I -am leaving the country where I have spent so many happy days, to go -toward the unknown.” That night she slept not at all. Her emotions held -full sway. She passed over in sweet reverie the scenes of her sheltered -girlhood in the Island home and in the charming Highlands of Scotland; -and then she fondly remembered the letter her father wrote her years and -years before, the only letter she had ever had from him whom she had -loved so dearly, in which he had told her that one day she would come to -the fair land where he was tarrying for a night—and that she would be -happy there.</p> - -<p>When first I saw Princess Ena—several years later, when she was Queen -Victoria Eugenie—she had this same wistful, sorrowful expression. As I -gazed into her calm eyes I instantly appreciated<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_22" id="page_22">{22}</a></span> the great depth of -feeling and beauty of nature which lay beneath the tranquil expression -of her lovely features. I had been with Señor Torres, the able and -amiable confidential secretary of the King, in the Royal Palace at -Madrid. As I left him and tried to thread my way quite alone through the -intricate maze of palace halls toward the court, I came suddenly and -unexpectedly upon the King and Queen. Her Majesty was in deep black, for -it was but a day or two after the death of her beloved Uncle King Edward -VII of England. Her usually bright face and rosy cheeks were ashen -white, and her countenance bore a saddened look which commanded -sympathy. Her fair hair was soft and golden against her mourning garb -and despite her grief there was dignity and majesty in her carriage. -Perhaps the lines which shadowed her pale face had not come solely with -her latest suffering, for in the interim of years—few as they -were—more than one sore trial had been hers. Indeed, during the few -short days that elapsed between her crossing the frontier of Spain and -her reception into the Royal Palace as bride and Queen there occurred -her baptism of blood which was to try her beyond anything she had yet -endured and which was to test to the uttermost the qualities which above -all others are essential to queenship.</p> - -<p>Princess Ena came to her throne through tragic and dramatic scenes, and -the spirit which she manifested in the midst of trying and harrowing -cir<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_23" id="page_23">{23}</a></span>cumstances convinced the Spanish people for good and all that their -King had not erred in wooing the golden-haired Princess from the little -Isle just off the coast of Southern England. She proved at once that she -is of the stuff of which great queens are made—and that she is indeed a -born mother of kings.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_24" id="page_24">{24}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="IV-a" id="IV-a"></a>CHAPTER IV<br /><br /> -A ROYAL WEDDING</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> train which carried Princess Ena across France toward her unknown -Destiny approached the Spanish frontier at dawn. On the platform of the -first station within the borders of Spain paced the awaiting -bridegroom,—eager, impatient, anxious. He smoked cigarette after -cigarette as the minutes went by, pausing ever and anon to peer into the -gloom which still lingered of the passing night as if to catch the first -sight of the coming train. When at last it arrived and the Princess had -alighted, her very first act was one which made an appeal to the Spanish -people. Turning almost directly from the group of ministers, generals -and courtiers who were there to greet her, she stepped toward the Mayor -of the little village who was surrounded by a group of peasant -delegates, and extending her hand for him to kiss, she graciously -accepted the bouquet which he handed to her. This man was a field -labourer—a peasant—and his comrades were all of the soil. Thus the -first homage which she received and acknowledged was that which came -directly from the people.</p> - -<p>The evening of the day of her arrival at Madrid she seized a splendid -opportunity. In the town<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_25" id="page_25">{25}</a></span> of Badajoz, the capital of the Province of -Estremadura, was a man condemned to death and whose sentence was to have -been carried out the day following the arrival of the bride-elect. On -the evening of her arrival in Spain, the people of the town, -representatives of all classes, telegraphed to the Princess an earnest -petition beseeching her to exercise her influence with the King for him -to exercise his prerogative of Royal clemency and pardon the condemned -man. The Princess went immediately to the King and told him that almost -the first message she had received upon her arrival in Spain was this -petition asking her to save the life of a man. This wedding present, she -said, would please her more than any gift she might receive. King -Alfonso instantly granted her request and the Royal pardon was -despatched by telegraph, arriving at Badajoz less than one hour before -the sentence was to have been carried out. Upon receipt of the news, all -the bells of the town were set ringing and there was a scene of -extraordinary demonstration; the whole community gathering in the -streets crying: “Long live Queen Victoria Eugenie.”</p> - -<p>Thursday the 31st of May, 1906, had been appointed for the wedding. The -day broke bright and clear in Madrid, a glorious sun tempered by a -cooling breeze shone throughout the day and with not a cloud in the sky. -The King arrived at the Palace of the Pardo just outside of Madrid where -the Princess and her suite had remained during<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_26" id="page_26">{26}</a></span> the few days preceding -the wedding, in a motor car at 6.30 in the morning; he appeared in the -uniform of an Admiral. The first act of the day was an attendance at -Mass in company with his bride-elect. Shortly after 8 o’clock the couple -were driven in an electric brougham straight to the Ministry of Marine -where the Princess donned her bridal robes. In this she was assisted by -ladies-in-waiting, who had come in her suite from London, the last touch -being added by Queen Maria Cristina who placed upon the head of the -Princess the bridal veil. This veil was of Alençon lace and was the very -one worn by herself at the time of her marriage to King Alfonso XII. -This veil is being carefully preserved by Queen Victoria, who says that -at the marriage of her first daughter she hopes to place it upon her -head.</p> - -<p>In Spain it is customary for the bridegroom to present his bride with -her wedding gown; this is a universal custom common in all ranks of -society. Don Alfonso, aided by his Royal Mother, had had prepared one of -the most elaborate and exquisitely embroidered gowns ever seen at the -Spanish Court Forty of the most expert Spanish women were engaged for -fifty-six days in making this wonderful creation. Or, to put it another -way, one woman, working constantly every day of the year, Sundays -excepted, would have required almost precisely seven years to the task! -The material was of the richest white satin and cloth of silver, cut in -the style of dress known as Louis XVI. The dress</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_3" id="ill_3"></a> -<a href="images/ill_003_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_003_sml.jpg" width="343" height="550" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>“To the Marquis of Villalobar.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_27" id="page_27">{27}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">was bordered with dull silver, slightly burnished and shaded at -intervals and trimmed with exquisite rose-point lace, which was -festooned over a background of cloth of silver. The lace flounce was -eighteen inches in width and the whole gown was relieved with loops of -orange blossoms.</p> - -<p>The wedding took place in the Church of San Jeronimo, which is on the -far side of the city from the Royal Palace. The church is not large, but -there are no large churches in Madrid, Madrid being one of the most -modern of all continental capitals, and big churches of the cathedral -order are mostly relics of the Middle Ages. The selection of St. -Jeronimo for the event was made in order that the bridal procession -should of necessity pass across practically the entire city, thus -affording the largest number of people an opportunity to view the -spectacle.</p> - -<p>The marriage service conformed to every last detail with the etiquette -and rites of the Roman Catholic Church in Spain. The Archbishop of -Toledo, Cardinal Sancha, was assisted by Dr. Brindle, Bishop of -Nottingham, who had come from England especially for this occasion.</p> - -<p>The bridal procession advanced very slowly, receiving the homage of the -distinguished congregation section by section, the Spanish legislators, -the courtiers, Ambassadors, the Special Missions, and the foreign -Princes saluting in turn. Preceded by a crucifix, while the band -continued playing the National Anthem, the King and his bride ad<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_28" id="page_28">{28}</a></span>vanced -and took their places before the altar. After kneeling for a short -period, King Alfonso rose, and passing behind the Princess approached -his mother, who was on the bride’s left, and knelt and kissed her hand. -Queen Cristina, bending over, affectionately embraced her son who -thereupon returned to his <i>prie-dieu</i> before the altar. Following the -bridegroom’s example Princess Victoria Eugenie descended the altar steps -and passed down the nave to where her mother stood beside the Duchess of -Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and warmly embraced her. The Princess then -returned to the altar and the religious ceremony began.</p> - -<p>Cardinal Sancha, arrayed in his Pontifical robes and having on either -side the assisting bishops, gave his archiepiscopal crozier to the -Master of Ceremonies, and addressed King Alfonso and his bride as -follows:</p> - -<p>“High and Mighty Senor Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and Austria, -Catholic King of Spain, I demand of your Majesty, as I also demand of -your Royal Highness Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena Maria Cristina, Princess -of Battenberg, to say if you know of any impediment against the -celebration of this marriage, or against the validity or legality; That -is to say, if there exists between your Majesty and your Royal Highness -any impediment either of consanguinity, affinity, or spiritual -relationship; if you have made a vow of chastity or of religion; and, -finally, if there is any other impediment, your<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_29" id="page_29">{29}</a></span> Majesty and your Royal -Highness shall declare it. And the same I demand of all those here -present. For the second and the third time I require that if there exist -any impediment whatsoever you shall freely make it known.”</p> - -<p>Having concluded these questions, the Cardinal paused for a while, and -then, turning to the Princess, said:</p> - -<p>“Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena Maria Cristina, Princess of Battenberg, does -your Royal Highness desire to have Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and -Austria, Catholic King of Spain, for your lawful spouse and husband by -words <i>de presente</i>, as is ordained by the Holy Catholic Apostolic and -Roman Church?”</p> - -<p>This was a very solemn moment, and not a whisper broke the almost -painful silence. All eyes were turned toward the Princess who replied, -in a clear voice:</p> - -<p>“Yes, I do desire him.” (Si, quiero.)</p> - -<p>His Eminence then said:</p> - -<p>“Does your Royal Highness consent to be the lawful spouse and wife of -the high and mighty Señor Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and Austria, -Catholic King of Spain?”</p> - -<p>Looking at His Majesty, Princess Victoria Eugenie replied, in clear -tones:</p> - -<p>“Yes, I consent.” (Si, otorgo.)</p> - -<p>Continuing, Cardinal Sancha asked:</p> - -<p>“Does your Royal Highness accept the said Señor Don Alfonso XIII, of -Bourbon and Aus<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_30" id="page_30">{30}</a></span>tria, King of Spain, for your lawful spouse and -husband?”</p> - -<p>With even stronger emphasis, the Princess replied:</p> - -<p>“Yes, I accept him.” (Si, recibo.)</p> - -<p>Cardinal Sancha thereupon asked the three questions, in identical terms -of King Alfonso. His Majesty, with his eyes fixed upon his bride, and in -a strong and clear voice, which was distinctly heard in every part of -the church, answered to the several questions, “I desire,” “I consent,” -and “I accept.”</p> - -<p>At this moment, Princess Ena betrayed emotion and glanced toward the -place where her mother sat. Queen Maria Cristina was scarcely able to -restrain her tears and looked alternately from the King to his bride and -from the bride to her son. King Alfonso, who was perfectly calm, gave -his hand to the Princess according to the directions of the Master of -the Ceremonies, and while the Royal couple had their hands joined, -Cardinal Sancha took his archiepiscopal staff and said:</p> - -<p>“And I, on the part of Almighty God and of the Holy Apostles, Peter and -Paul, and of the Holy Mother Church, do join in matrimony your Majesty, -Don Alfonso XIII, of Bourbon and Austria, Catholic King of Spain, to -your Royal Highness, Victoria Eugenie Julia Ena Maria Cristina, Princess -of Battenberg, and I confirm this Sacrament of matrimony in the name of -the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.—<span class="smcap">Amen.</span>”</p> - -<p>Then the Bridal Mass began, the King and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_31" id="page_31">{31}</a></span> Queen kneeling, and as the -swell of music filled the church and died away, a faintly tinkling bell -announced the Elevation of the Host. All knelt with heads bowed low—the -most impressive moment of great silence broken only by the clinking of -swords and the hum of distant voices outside the church. Mass over, the -Royal bride and bridegroom proceeded to the daïs. A little lower down -the Queen-Mother, in her beautiful robes and splendid jewels, stood -beside her Chair of State, while kneeling on either side were the -heralds, in their gorgeous uniforms. Princess Victoria Eugenie, now -Queen of Spain, lovely, young, dignified and looking “every inch a -Queen,” standing beside the youthful and most charming King-Bridegroom, -whose face was beaming with proud happiness, all made a picture, -touching, beautiful and never to be forgotten by any of those present.</p> - -<p>Then came a most picturesque and ideal scene. The newly-married Royal -pair proceeded arm-in-arm to the spot nearby where formerly a grand old -monastery had stood, and where there still remains a ruined cloister, -and here the register was signed, the King having chosen this spot a few -days before the wedding. One corner of the cloister had been screened -off with magnificent tapestries of world-wide renown, on which were -depicted scenes from Don Quixote; on a wide table, covered with crimson -cloth, stood the necessary implements—a silver inkstand, pens, and the -books in which the signatures were to be entered. The procession of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_32" id="page_32">{32}</a></span> -Royal personages who followed the bride and bridegroom in pairs through -the quaint old cloister was led by the Prince of Wales, who conducted -the Queen-Mother; then came the Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria -with the Princess of Wales, followed by the other Royalties in order of -rank.</p> - -<p>On the return of the procession to the church, the assemblage dispersed -according to Spanish Court etiquette, in order of precedence, commencing -with the lowest, each couple advancing to the daïs, where they bowed and -curtsied to the King and Queen, who were seated in their Chairs of -State. The Prince and Princess of Wales were the last of the Royal -guests to go. The Queen-Mother then rose, and, advancing to the front of -the daïs, made a reverence to her son and his bride, both of whom rose -simultaneously and returned the salutation. Last of all the Royal -personages, the King and Queen passed down the nave under the baldaquin -and the gorgeous scene melted away.</p> - -<p>Just before midday, the sound of saluting cannon announced to all that -the King and Queen had left the church, and the procession started for -the palace in the following order:</p> - -<p class="c"> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">THE BRONZE LANDAU</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 7em;">The Kings of Arms.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6em;">STATE CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 7em;">Miss Cochrane</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Lord and Lady William Cecil</span><br /> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_33" id="page_33">{33}</a></span>Gentlemen-in-Waiting on Her Majesty the Queen.<br /> -<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6em;">STATE CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1.5em;">Her Majesty Queen Maria Cristina’s</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4.5em;">Mistress of the Robes</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5.5em;">The First Huntsman</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">Gentlemen-of-the-Chamber-in-Waiting on</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">His Majesty the King.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5.5em;">SEMI-GALA CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Mistress of the Robes of the Palace</span><br /> -Grand Chamberlain of Queen Maria Cristina.<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6.5em;">STATE CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Superior Chief of the Palace</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Grand Chamberlain of their Majesties</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">Commandant-General of the Halberdiers.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">SEMI-GALA CARRIAGE</span><br /> -Princes Leopold and Maurice of Battenberg<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6.5em;">STATE CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Princess Marie of Battenberg</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2.5em;">(Princess of Erbach-Schönberg)</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Prince Alexander of Teck</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Prince Alexander of Battenberg.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 7.5em;">CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">The Infante Don Alfonso of Orleans</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 0.5em;">Princes Rainer and Philip of Bourbon.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4.5em;">SEMI-GALA CARRIAGE</span><br /> -The Infantas Doña Paz and Doña Eulalia.<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5.5em;">STATE CARRIAGE</span><br /> -The Infantas Doña Maria Teresa and Doña<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6em;">Maria Isabel</span><br /> -The Infante Don Fernando of Bavaria and Prince<br /> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_34" id="page_34">{34}</a></span><span style="margin-left: 4.5em;">Gennaro of Bourbon.</span><br /> -<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4em;">GALA CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Princess Frederica of Hanover</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Princess Alexander of Teck.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">COACH OF THE DUCAL CROWN</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">The Duchess of Saxe-Coburg</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Prince Henry of Prussia.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">THE AMARANTH COACH</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Prince Eugene of Sweden</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">Crown Prince of Monaco</span><br /> -Princes Louis Ferdinand and Alfonso of Bavaria.<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6em;">THE CIPHER COACH</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">The Duke and Duchess of Genoa</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Prince Albert of Prussia</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Prince Andrew of Greece.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">THE TORTOISE-SHELL COACH</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">Crown Prince of Portugal</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">Prince Albert of Belgium</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">The Grand Duke Vladimir of Russia.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4em;">GALA CARRIAGE</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">The Prince and Princess of Wales.</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 3em;">THE MAHOGANY COACH</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Her Majesty the Queen, Doña Maria Cristina</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 4em;">Princess Henry of Battenberg</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">The Infante Don Carlos</span><br /> -The Infante Don Alfonso (Heir-presumptive).<br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">THE COACH OF GOLD PANELS</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 6em;">(Unoccupied)</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 5em;">THE CROWN COACH</span><br /> -<span style="margin-left: 2em;">Their Majesties the KING and QUEEN.</span><br /> -<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_35" id="page_35">{35}</a></span></p> - -<p>The spectacle along the route of the return journey was one of -indescribable rejoicing and excitement. The Pageant was magnificent, and -the procession took nearly an hour to pass. The batteries of artillery -thundered out a royal salute, trumpets blared, the bells of the churches -pealed forth, and the populace raised a mighty roar of acclamation. -Coach after coach passed along the route—each to be greeted with cheers -by the delighted crowds. The beautiful “mahogany coach,” in which were -seated Queen Cristina, Princess Henry of Battenberg, Don Carlos, and his -son Don Alfonso, came in for a specially warm greeting. That containing -the Prince and Princess of Wales was also received with shouts of -welcome. At last came that which most of all the multitude had assembled -to see, and to greet with demonstrations of the greatest enthusiasm—the -coach of the Royal Crown drawn by eight superb horses, with nodding -white plumes, and containing the Royal couple. That the young King and -his beautiful bride were immensely popular there could be no doubt. One -had only to hear the hearty and repeated cries of “Viva el Rey!” “Viva -la Reina!” to know that the young couple had won the hearts of the -people and all Spain was rejoicing at their wedding.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_36" id="page_36">{36}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="V-a" id="V-a"></a>CHAPTER V<br /><br /> -A BAPTISM OF BLOOD</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> last street to be traversed was the Calle Mayor. All the world -remembers how, as the end of the street was almost reached, a huge -bouquet in which was hidden a small iron casket was tossed from a -balcony, striking immediately in front of the royal carriage. With a -tremendous roar, the casket exploded, killing more than thirty persons -and wounding over one hundred, besides killing and maiming a number of -horses. People in front of the royal carriage were killed, and behind -the carriage, and even on the balconies above the street. I have seen -the effect of many bombs—in Russia and the Caucasus—but never have I -seen the results of a bomb as extensive as this one. Great chunks were -literally gouged out of huge granite blocks in nearby buildings, and -people on the balconies at a distance where safety would seem absolute -met instant death. To this day the traces of this bomb are to be seen in -the Calle Mayor, to my thinking one of the most curious and interesting -sights in all Madrid.</p> - -<p>The smoke had not cleared when the King, taking the head of his bride -and Queen between both his hands, kissed her tenderly.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_37" id="page_37">{37}</a></span></p> - -<p>“Are you wounded?” he anxiously asked.</p> - -<p>“No, no, I am not hurt. I swear it,” she replied.</p> - -<p>The King threw open the carriage door and as he stepped out, calmly -saluted a flag which happened to be fluttering near by. Then he assisted -the Queen, whose beautiful wedding gown became smirched with blood.</p> - -<p>According to an ancient Spanish custom a so-called “carriage of respect” -was immediately behind the royal coach, a carriage which apparently was -originally designed for any emergency. The King called for this carriage -and after seeing the Queen comfortably seated he turned to his equerries -and in a clear voice said: “Very slowly to the Palace.”</p> - -<p>Arrived at the Palace, the King sprang lightly to the ground, and, -having given his hand to the Queen, their Majesties ascended the flight -of steps with ceremonious deportment, as if nothing untoward had -occurred. The King saluted all the Princes in accordance with the -demands of etiquette; and when one of the Royal guests asked him if he -remembered that this was the anniversary of the attempt in the Rue de -Rohan, in Paris, he replied with inimitable spirit, “Yes, I remember, -and I notice that the bomb has grown.”</p> - -<p>As soon as the King had arrived in the Palace he asked for exact -information as to the number of victims. He received the reply, “It is -not yet possible to know; we only know that there are many dead and many -wounded.” Then the King passed<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_38" id="page_38">{38}</a></span> his hand across his forehead, and, as if -the words came from the bottom of his heart, said slowly, “Now I feel -what it is to be King; and I feel it because if I were not King I might -have had the consolation of tears in the presence of so much blood and -so many victims.” His words were echoed in the heart of his young Queen -who was, indeed, coming into her queenship under stress and trial.</p> - -<p>The next morning the King and his bride, evading the court guard, swept -out of the Palace gates in a motor car and slowly traversed the main -streets of the city without escort or guard. Every inch of the way their -Majesties were frantically cheered by the populace who appreciated their -courage and considerateness in thus proving to the world at large that -they had suffered no injury. Queen Victoria as she was henceforth to be -known, acknowledged the salutations by bowing continuously to right and -to left and constantly waving her handkerchief in greeting to the -people.</p> - -<p>The members of the Royal Household were beside themselves with fear when -they saw the King and Queen, in an automobile, pass out of the Palace -gates into the city absolutely unarmed and unescorted. But the King was -wise that day. He threw both himself and his Queen-bride on to the -honour of the people. As the car moved through the crowded -thoroughfares, the people were first stunned with amazement and then -bewilderment gave place to a delirium of joyous enthusiasm.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_39" id="page_39">{39}</a></span> Eager hands -grasped the car to pull and push it. Women fought desperately to get -close to the brave couple, and the Queen’s dress was actually torn to -shreds by the multitude who sought to kiss the hem of her garment. When -they returned to the Palace, it was 1 o’clock in the afternoon. Thus -began the Queenship of the little English Princess who heretofore had -led a quiet, sheltered life in her island home and among the Scottish -braes and moors and in the tranquil atmosphere of the Court of St. -James.</p> - -<p>Queen Victoria at this time may have recalled the lines of George -Meredith:</p> - -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">“We see in mould the Rose unfold,<br /></span> -<span class="i1">The Soul through blood and tears.”<br /></span> -</div></div> -</div> - -<p>Verily the soul of Princess Ena was tempered by fire and brought to its -fulness through blood and tears on the day when she became at once a -wife and a Queen.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_40" id="page_40">{40}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="VI-a" id="VI-a"></a>CHAPTER VI<br /><br /> -WINNING A NATION’S LOVE</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Don Alfonso</span> took his bride at once from the Royal Palace at Madrid to -the Palace of La Granja (the Grange or farm-house) behind the Guadarrama -Mountains, in Castile, for their honeymoon. This palace is situated on a -slightly pinnacled hill four thousand feet above the level of the sea, a -veritable “Castle in the Air.” La Granja is surrounded by lovely woods, -a garden which includes some three hundred and sixty acres, probably the -finest in Spain, and even Versailles cannot boast of more numerous or -lovelier fountains than this charming country residence. The laying out -of the gardens alone cost eight millions of dollars. It is easy to -understand why King Alfonso selected this spot for the honeymoon; it is -the one spot in Spain, above all others, where royal lovers might hope -to find seclusion amidst bowers of foliage musical with birds, and where -they might hope to wipe from their recollection the vivid memories of -the tragic scene of their wedding day.</p> - -<p>Spain is one of the richest of countries in regard to the number of its -palaces. Until the reign of Philip II, the Kings of Spain did not -maintain any one permanent Royal residence,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_41" id="page_41">{41}</a></span> but journeyed from region -to region, maintaining a Palace in practically every district of the -country, and, as a result of this custom much of the history of Spain is -to be found and embodied and crystallised in the various Castles which -are inherited by the Royal family of to-day. There is the Alcazar at -Seville, which is associated with Pedro the Cruel. There is the Retiro, -built to divert the attention of Philip IV from the decay and -backsliding of his country; the Escorial in which the gloomy and -melancholy Philip II has perpetuated his own memory in stone; and La -Granja, which marks the bitterness and humiliation of Cristina before -Garca and his rude soldiery; and Miramar at San Sebastian, in which a -widowed Queen secluded herself to mourn the loss of her kingly spouse! -Time was indeed when, within comparatively easy distance of Madrid, -there were no less than thirty-five Royal residences; to-day only five -of these, however, are still kept up, but throughout the rest of the -country are many other Palaces.</p> - -<p>It would be indeed a delightful task to write an entire book on the -palaces of the Kings of Spain. El Pardo, Aranjuez, Miramar, El Escorial, -El Alcazar and the Royal Palace of Madrid, but even then it would indeed -be difficult to describe in words the beauty and the wondrous maze and -labyrinths of woodland and garden; the galleries of tapestry and -painting; the statutes; the armory; the varied treasures which they all -contain. George<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_42" id="page_42">{42}</a></span> Borrow, who early made familiar to the English-speaking -world the wondrous beauties and treasure houses of all Spain, waxed most -eloquent over the palace of Alcazar at Seville. “Cold, cold must be the -heart,” exclaimed Borrow at the Alcazar, “which can remain insensible to -the beauties of this magic scene. Often have I shed tears of rapture -whilst I beheld it and listened to the thrush and the nightingale piping -forth their melodious songs in the woods and inhaled the breeze laden -with the perfume of the thousand orange gardens of Seville.” La Granja, -however, remains the favourite abiding place of all the present Royal -family, hallowed by the sweet memories of honeymoon days.</p> - -<p>Each summer the Royal family have returned to La Granja for two months. -Here as nowhere else the Queen leads a life of charming simplicity, a -life almost like that she was accustomed to in England. Here the King -and Queen have but little company. They walk and ride and drive -together. The King is a keen sportsman and while he shoots, the Queen -goes a-fishing. Trout are abundant in the streams that come dashing down -from the higher mountains and she is adept at landing the speckled -beauties—only she will not bait her own hooks!</p> - -<p>A golf course has been laid out and at this game the Queen excels her -royal spouse. As a matter of fact polo is more to the King’s taste and -to La Granja he always takes the best of his string of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_43" id="page_43">{43}</a></span> forty polo -ponies. Here it may be truly said the King and Queen are idyllically -happy. Free from the ceremony of political and social circles they are -the boy and girl sweethearts once more. They go through country lanes -hand in hand and follow woodland paths unescorted. As La Granja was -their haven of quiet after their turbulent wedding day, so has it since -been their harbour of peace and happiness away from the harassing cares -of sovereignty.</p> - -<p>Queen Victoria Eugenie had been only a few days in the country which was -henceforth to be her own, when she had made great progress in the -winning of the nation. Her sympathy for the condemned man, her poise and -self-command in the face of shock and danger had all a tremendous -influence in prejudicing people in her favour. If possible, a yet more -difficult task now confronted her; for she faced the daily scrutiny of -court and people.</p> - -<p>One of the earliest duties which she had to perform was to attend a bull -fight. The Spanish people could never give absolute allegiance to a -sovereign who did not in some measure share their joy and enthusiasm in -this national and tradition-honoured sport. So to a bull fight went the -Queen. Simple English girl that she was, with fine sensibilities and -delicate feelings, we can well appreciate her horror at it all. When the -moment had arrived for the signal to be given from the Royal Box for the -fight to begin all eyes were turned ex<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_44" id="page_44">{44}</a></span>pectantly toward the King, but it -was the young Queen who fluttered the white scarf. When the crowd saw -this, they rose like one man, frantically cheering their Queen. It was -distinctly a popular thing to do.</p> - -<p>Ordinarily, six bulls are despatched at a single fight, but before -death, each bull generally kills one to three horses besides horribly -goring others and sometimes injuring one or more of the men. That a bull -fight is not a pleasant thing to watch, I know, for I have seen several. -At one which I attended on the Day of Ascension (bull fights are always -held on Sundays and religious fête days) the killing of the six bulls -was accompanied by the outright killing of eleven horses and the maiming -of four others, while one man was tossed high in the air by a bull and -two others hurt by their horses falling on them. The fourteen thousand -spectators were delirious with delight and called it “a good bull -fight.”</p> - -<p>The young Queen remained in the Royal Box throughout the <i>correda</i> and -thus concluded her initiation into Queenship.</p> - -<p>The year following the marriage sped to a happy close. The Queen grew -increasingly popular. As the months went on, the shock of the wedding -day drifted into a hideous memory, and the hearty enthusiasm of the -Spanish people melted the somewhat austere bearing which was native to -her and she began to return the cordial greetings of the people -everywhere she went. Nowhere on earth—not</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_4" id="ill_4"></a> -<a href="images/ill_004_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_004_sml.jpg" width="550" height="361" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE PROCESSION OF BULL FIGHTERS.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_45" id="page_45">{45}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">even in France—are beautiful women more appreciated than in Spain, and -Queen Victoria is lovely to look upon. She is tall and of majestic -bearing. She has an abundance of golden hair which she wears in long -rich braids wound about the back of her head and generally loosely -dressed in front. She has eyes of a singularly clear blue and quite as -sharp and twinkling as are the King’s snapping brown eyes,—and his are -famous.</p> - -<p>“Such exquisite colouring!” is an exclamation frequently heard -concerning her. At nineteen she combined all the freshness of youth with -the dignity of maturity, and to-day, though she is three times a mother, -she retains the high colour characteristic of English women, and set -against a clear white skin. The first time I saw her close, her cheeks -reminded me of charming porcelain—if it were not trite, I would say a -bit of Dresden.</p> - -<p>With all her instinctive charm she has a genius for dressing well. In -this, again, she easily and naturally excels her sister Queens.</p> - -<p>When first she went to San Sebastian, the fashionable mid-summer -watering resort of Spain on the west coast near the northern border, she -appeared like a modern Gainsborough duchess. Her stylishly cut gowns -worn with grace and perfect naturalness were offset by great hats which -were much in vogue at that time and which resemble the picturesque -Gainsboroughs. She is a woman who can carry any amount of tasteful -dressing,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_46" id="page_46">{46}</a></span> but her own preference seems to be toward simplicity.</p> - -<p>A more elegant woman one rarely sees anywhere in the world. The eye of -the Spanish people, quick and sensitive to taste and beauty instantly -caught all these details, and even if her nature, disposition and -character were not as they are, she would still be idolised for her -beauty alone.</p> - -<p>At Seville, in the south of Spain, where beauty is worshipped even more -than in the north the people went mad over her on her very first ride -through the streets—from the railroad station to the Alcazar, as the -ancient Moorish palace there is called. Throughout southern -Spain—Andalusia—there is a Moorish strain noticeable in the people. -The women are of the swarthy type, with large lustrous eyes, hair of -ebony, and deep passionate natures that one senses almost tangibly. As -with most people of this type and character, the opposite type makes a -tremendous appeal to them. The golden beauty of the fair young Queen -took Seville by storm. To this day, and probably for all time, she is -and will be known in the south as the “Idol of Andalusia.”</p> - -<p>One small detail which pleased the Andalusian people greatly was her -donning the <i>mantilla</i> on appropriate occasions. The <i>mantilla</i> is a -lace scarf, sometimes white and sometimes black, which is worn over the -head by women in place of a hat Any lace scarf, however, is not a -<i>mantilla</i>, and there are certain precise ways of wearing this -typi<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_47" id="page_47">{47}</a></span>cally Spanish headdress. To be exact, there are thirteen different -ways of adjusting it, each way adapted to a particular occasion. For -example, the Sevillano will wear a black <i>mantilla</i> low over her head at -a funeral, and a white <i>mantilla</i> high over her head,—the elevation -being accomplished by the aid of a huge amber comb,—at a bull fight or -in a slightly different arrangement for a wedding. The art of adjusting -the <i>mantilla</i> is almost as difficult to acquire as the use of castanets -or some of the Andalusian dance steps. It is seldom that one not of -Spanish blood can wear a <i>mantilla</i> becomingly at all, but on Queen -Victoria Eugenie it looks quite natural. A peculiar thing about -Andalusian women is that they are so altogether charming in the -<i>mantilla</i> that not one in a thousand can wear any kind of a dress hat, -even one strictly <i>à la mode</i> and direct from Paris. The women of -Southern Spain and the <i>mantilla</i> seem peculiarly adapted to go -together. The cost of a <i>mantilla</i> by the way is as much as of the most -fashionable Paris hats. Ordinary ones frequently cost from thirty to -fifty dollars, and specially good ones as much as one hundred dollars.</p> - -<p>In Seville Queen Victoria Eugenie was as quick to catch the warmth of -spirit as the Sevillanos were to appreciate her beauty and now, after -five years she looks forward to her annual visit to the ancient Moorish -city as to no other city in the kingdom.</p> - -<p>A custom which prevails in Andalusia and which nearly always results in -extreme embarrassment to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_48" id="page_48">{48}</a></span> foreign ladies, is the passing of remarks out -loud by passers-by, of a wholly personal nature. When an Andalusian sees -a beautiful woman he is filled with joy and gladness and he wants her to -know the pleasure she has given him by the flash of her eye or the -loveliness of her face or form—so he spontaneously exclaims: “What -beauty!” “How sympathetic.” “Those eyes!” “Such hair!” or whatnot. The -women of that country, from the lowliest right up to the wives of the -most exclusive grandees, expect this appreciation and miss it when they -fail to catch what strangers may say of them.</p> - -<p>Queen Victoria had had this all explained to her so that she was -prepared for direct remarks of this nature. Once she laughed outright as -an enthusiastic Andalusian cried out: “You are not only Queen of Spain; -you are the Queen of Beautiful Women.”</p> - -<p>In her visits to Seville, the Queen is ever and always reminded of her -dearly beloved father, for the one letter which she had from him was -written from Seville, the letter in which he had told her that one day -she would come to this lovely land and be very happy. This is a happy -memory, despite the tinge of sadness, and in Seville, she says she is -always most happy.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_49" id="page_49">{49}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="VII-a" id="VII-a"></a>CHAPTER VII<br /><br /> -DON ALFONSO XIII</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">What</span> manner of man is the young King whom the Island Princess married?</p> - -<p>Don Alfonso XIII is unique among the kings of the earth, inasmuch as he -was practically born a king. His father, Alfonso XII, died five months -before he was born. The widowed Queen, his mother, became the Regent of -the Throne, but the little Alfonso XIII knew, from the time he knew -anything, that he was a ruler already, where most kings have spent years -of preparation for kingship while heirs-apparent.</p> - -<p>He was born May 17, 1886. He received the tenderest care and attention -from his mother; her favourite pet name for him while he was a baby was -“Puby.” From the time of his birth he appeared delicate, which -occasioned the greatest solicitude for his physical well-being.</p> - -<p>He has always manifested the greatest love for his mother. From earliest -childhood he entertained for her a supreme regard and affection, and -frequently when he was inclined to be headstrong and oppose the wishes -of his governesses the Queen Regent—as she was called until Alfonso -reached the age of sixteen—would be called to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_50" id="page_50">{50}</a></span> make him obey. Her -methods were all her own, her coercion only that of love.</p> - -<p>One winter morning Alfonso was reluctant to take his usual cold bath and -stubbornly remained in bed. His nurses made appeal after appeal to him, -but his Majesty remained obdurate. Finally, in despair, the nurse went -to his mother the Queen Regent.</p> - -<p>“You must take your bath, Baby,” said the Queen, coming to his bedside.</p> - -<p>The baby king gave no answer.</p> - -<p>“If I tell you to do it, you will—won’t you?”</p> - -<p>Again no response.</p> - -<p>“Very well, then,” continued the Queen, “I will not ask you again, but I -shall go to my room and cry because you will not obey me. Do you wish -that?”</p> - -<p>“No, no, mamma,” cried the young Alfonso, and flinging aside the bed -clothes he sprang from the bed and took his cold plunge.</p> - -<p>King Alfonso was brought up in this atmosphere of love and affection and -it is doubtless owing to this that his own nature is so warm and lovable -to-day.</p> - -<p>When he was four years old, he fell very ill. His anxious mother watched -constantly by his bedside. One day, he turned his little face toward -where she was sitting and said: “Are you not very tired, mother mine? Do -you love me so very much? Do go to bed. You must be so tired. I think I -ought to send you away.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_51" id="page_51">{51}</a></span>”</p> - -<p>Not until he was seven years of age did he begin any regular course of -studies and then he began with only one hour a day. In a short time, -however, he had learned to read and write easily. Much of his boyhood -was spent at the beautiful Miramar palace. After he had learned to read -and write, the study of geography and history came next and a little -later French and Latin. From all accounts, the boy Alfonso was quite as -full of mischief and capers as are most small boys.</p> - -<p>One of his Chamberlains relates the story that, when he was eight years -old, streams of water were one day seen running down the corridor from -the bathroom of the Royal Palace. The door of the apartment was securely -fastened and the little fellow refused admission to any one until -finally the Queen herself was sent for, and, when she demanded -admittance, found her Royal son enjoying what he called “A Naval Battle -in High Seas,” the ships being logs which he had collected from various -wood baskets and his high seas, the overflowing bathtub.</p> - -<p>Queen Cristina found Alfonso a little backward in acquiring German, and -as none of the text-books then used in Spain seemed adapted to his use, -she went to the trouble of preparing a grammar for him, which enabled -him to become familiar with the rules of the language in a simple and -amusing form. Alfonso has always been of an inquiring turn of mind, and -the interest he has recently displayed in aeroplanes and automobiles<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_52" id="page_52">{52}</a></span> is -the natural outcome of the interest he displayed in all mechanics when a -mere boy.</p> - -<p>Mr. Frederic Courtland Penfield has related as one of his experiences in -Spain the breaking down of his motor car near La Granja which -necessitated sending to Madrid for new parts to replace the damaged -mechanism. While the men were at work upon the machine, the King -happened along, and, not content with watching the progress of the -repairs, he proceeded to direct the men himself, getting down under the -car and examining minutely each of its parts and aiding the men by -constant suggestion. He took apparently all the interest in the work of -a boy who has removed the back of his first watch to see the wheels go -round. Not until the car was ready to proceed did the King leave the -spot.</p> - -<p>As a matter of fact, Don Alfonso is the most ardent motorist in Spain -and the most skilful if not the most reckless driver. He has several 70 -h.p. machines and when he drives these machines in the country, he -sometimes goes at the rate of seventy-five and eighty miles an hour. -During the Spring months, when the court is at La Granja, the King comes -to Madrid several times a week. The distance is ninety kilometres and he -allows one hour and a quarter for the journey. The road lies right -across the Guadarrama mountains which rise to a height of six thousand -feet. The ascent and descent of these mountains is tremendously steep, -being made by a series of loops like the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_53" id="page_53">{53}</a></span> roads which cross the Alps in -Switzerland. Only the most skilled chauffeurs can go over this road at -even a moderate rate of speed, but the King goes all the way at high -speed, averaging for the entire distance nearly a mile a minute.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_54" id="page_54">{54}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="VIII-a" id="VIII-a"></a>CHAPTER VIII<br /><br /> -A KING’S LIFE</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Amazing</span> few are the people outside his kingdom who do not know him who -appreciate the unusual personality of this precocious young king. -Indeed, he must be known to be appreciated.</p> - -<p>A tall, athletic young man of narrow but muscular physique, with a -smooth, olive skin, dartling black-brown eyes and a kaleidoscopic -expression,—Don Alfonso is one to command attention, interest and -respect. He sits a horse superbly. He excels in everything he -undertakes. He is the surest shot in Spain; the most skilful as well as -the most reckless motorist, a capable yachtsman, an efficient, -dependable polo-player,—above all he has infinite pluck and daring. The -world is familiar with his courage not only at the time of the bomb on -his wedding day but on many other occasions when he has displayed iron -nerve and superb poise. The first time I had a formal audience with His -Majesty, I gathered my real impressions of the man. After this audience, -I saw him many times and under varied circumstances, but always the -impressions of the first day were deepened and confirmed. As I entered -his study in the palace of Madrid, he came with quick, nervous step -toward<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_55" id="page_55">{55}</a></span> me and grasping me firmly by the hand, spoke words of greeting -in the Spanish language.</p> - -<p>“Your Majesty has no objection to English?” I asked, as he still tightly -held my hand.</p> - -<p>“Objection? Rather not, provided you can stand for my wretched English.” -This was the only note of affectation in King Alfonso’s entire -conversation. He speaks English fluently, correctly and idiomatically.</p> - -<p>“Put aside your hat and gloves and sit down. Let us talk,” he continued. -I placed my hat aside as he bade me and started to seat myself opposite -the chair His Majesty had already taken.</p> - -<p>“Not there, not so far away,” he exclaimed. “Come here,” and he patted -with the palm of his hand the sofa which was in juxtaposition to his -chair.</p> - -<p>“Have a cigarette,” he added, as I moved close to him and he held out a -silver cigarette case with a small monogram in the upper left hand -corner.</p> - -<p>“May I smoke?” I queried, I must confess, in some surprise.</p> - -<p>“Naturally, why not? Here”—and before I had fairly taken the cigarette, -His Majesty, with characteristic quickness had struck a wax vesta and -was holding it toward my mouth that I might get my light.</p> - -<p>My slow wits happily returned in time for me to catch the match from the -Royal fingers, to offer it first to him and then light my own. These -were the preliminaries. They were over in a<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_56" id="page_56">{56}</a></span> minute. After we had -lighted our cigarettes, he leaned forward, his elbows resting on his -knees and the joints of his fingers closed against each other before -him. He spoke rapidly but thoughtfully, and in his voice was the ring of -a man of enthusiasms.</p> - -<p>Beneath the smooth, olive skin and the flashing black eyes, one <i>felt</i> a -strong, passionate nature. One got instantly behind the glamour of -royalty and saw only the man, the man of conviction and of courage,—the -man of Destiny.</p> - -<p>No photograph has ever portrayed King Alfonso. He is unphotographable. -The man is not in his features but in his expressions, his manners, his -atmosphere of charming manliness; above all in the scintillating glints -of his flashing eyes.</p> - -<p>“You have come at a very interesting moment in our history,” he said, -“because it is a moment of change for Spain. We are just recovering from -our long era of costly wars, ending with the disastrous war with -America, and our recent colonial wars.” He paused and smiled genially as -he added, “In the war with America, we were badly beaten, but that is a -matter which has now passed into history and that page of our history we -have turned over. I think I can speak for everyone in Spain when I say -that not the slightest feeling of rancour remains with us; and I have -ample evidence that the American people have none but the best of wishes -for Spain.” I replied that many Americans were ready to congratulate -Spain in being well rid<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_57" id="page_57">{57}</a></span> of Cuba and the Philippines, those frightfully -expensive drains on the resources of Spain—which are proving a by no -means light drain upon the resources of America.</p> - -<p>His Majesty’s eyes twinkled merrily as he looked directly into my face. -After a brief pause, he went on: “However that may be, a new era for -Spain began with the close of the war. The recent war in Africa cost us -heavily—fifty-three million pesetas ($10,600,000).”</p> - -<p>“Surely that is not much as the cost of wars go nowadays,” I -interrupted.</p> - -<p>“No, quite true—for a modern war, it was not so expensive,” he -returned, “especially in view of the results we have obtained.”</p> - -<p>Then he sketched the present lines of Spanish influence in Morocco and -outlined the policy of Spain for the development of this influence and -the increase of trade. Incidentally, he paid a high tribute to the -courage and marksmanship of the Moors. “They don’t fire till they see -the whites of the eyes of the approaching troops and they pick the -officers first of all with amazing accuracy.”</p> - -<p>“That war being now over,” he went on, “we have entered a period of -peace and it is my aim to further the development of Spain in every way -possible. It would be interesting to realise all that we have already -begun, what we are about to do and what we hope to do in the next years -before us.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_58" id="page_58">{58}</a></span>”</p> - -<p>I lighted another cigarette and the King, without shifting his position, -began afresh.</p> - -<p>“First of all, we are giving our attention to each branch of the State -separately. I have my ambitions for the army, the reëstablishment of the -navy, the general education of the people and how we hope to deal with -other internal problems, the Republicans, the Socialists, the Anarchists -and others.”</p> - -<p>During the last decade I have listened to statesmen and leaders of men -in almost every country of Europe and in America, but I have never met -any man who could say as much in an hour as did King Alfonso; I have -never met a politician or statesman who was so intimately familiar with -small details, and I have never met anyone who could talk so succinctly -to the point. He elucidated each question with graphic clearness. Each -subject that he took up in turn, he summarised. As a feat of -intellectual conversation, it was without parallel so far as my -experience extends. He expressed himself very rapidly, in clear, -incisive language, showing toward each topic an enthusiasm and personal -interest almost incredible. At the same time, he watched my expression -carefully and at the least shadow of question which I betrayed, he -delved deeper into details in order to make everything perfectly clear. -I touched upon the question of the Church in Spain and found His -Majesty’s views as liberal and as clear as they were upon the secular -subjects. He went on, however,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_59" id="page_59">{59}</a></span> to explain that any hasty reform was -impractical, although it was the project of his government to undertake -all of them as circumstances would permit. If he were to introduce -liberal and progressive measures at once, the opposition would throw the -whole country into a turmoil.</p> - -<p>Politically, the attitude of the King is for all that makes for the -common weal of Spain in the platforms of all parties and movements—even -those that are opposed to his monarchy.</p> - -<p>The amazing development of Spain during the last decade is directly due -to the extraordinary dynamic spirit which has been exhibited by this -remarkable young King. No department of national life has been neglected -by him.</p> - -<p>The Iberian peninsula has long been regarded as a doubtful, not to say -dangerous proposition from a financial standpoint. Spain and Portugal -have been judged more or less alike. No greater mistake could ever have -been made. Portugal has long been in the hands of aristocratic -buccaneers, pirates in broadcloth, but none the less rascals of a most -desperate character. The Portugal Ship of State was looted and scuttled -by the very class who constituted her monarchy. Nowhere could one find a -dominant personality.</p> - -<p>Spain on the other hand is well equipped with statesmen, with diplomats, -with politicians of large calibre and more so now than in any decade of -recent centuries and all because of the personal attention given to the -affairs of state by King Al<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_60" id="page_60">{60}</a></span>fonso. Don Alfonso is the hero and the idol -of the whole Spanish army. From earliest boyhood, he devoted a large -part of his time to building and strengthening the army and increasing -its <i>esprit de corps</i>. Two forenoons of every week, he devotes to -military audiences. He never tires of reviewing troops, often leaving -the palace at six o’clock in the morning to visit some outlying -garrison. When he is caught overnight in some remote town, he is sure to -be up early the next morning to inspect any body of troops which may be -quartered in the neighbourhood. I recall once seeing the King overtake a -body of infantry in the street called Arenal, in Madrid. As soon as the -royal automobile came up even with the rear rank, the order was given to -the troops to have them swing round so as to face the sovereign in -salute as he went past. The King at once rose to his feet in the car, at -the same time uncovering, and as the car swept by the regiment, his -piercing, intelligent eyes seemed to dart an individual glance to each -soldier along the entire line. Not once did his eyes wander from the -troops, although a hurrahing crowd blocked the pavement on the other -side of the street. Ask any soldiers of the Mellila campaign who wore -the cool sun helmets that the King presented from his private purse, -speak the name of the King to any officer of the Spanish army and see -him square his shoulders.</p> - -<p>King Alfonso does not trust entirely to military supremacy, however, for -he believes in the peaceful</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_5" id="ill_5"></a> -<a href="images/ill_005_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_005_sml.jpg" width="399" height="550" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>KING ALFONSO AND HIS HEIR.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_61" id="page_61">{61}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">progression of his country and appreciates to the full the necessity of -economic development. At the time of the Spanish-American war when Cuba -and the Philippines were lost to Spain, it seemed as if her greatest -markets had been taken from her, but during recent years, since Don -Alfonso has extensively taken up the reins of sovereignty, he has -stimulated commerce and trade in other parts of the world. Spain has -seaports which give her splendid natural commercial advantages. A few -years since, Spain went quietly but earnestly to work to build up an -exchange trade with the new countries of the world which seemed to offer -the greatest opportunity for large commercial expansion,—trade with the -Argentine Republic, Paraguay, Brazil, Chili, Peru and Mexico. During the -last few years, under the wise counsel of the King, these states have -been courted diplomatically and socially to the incalculable stimulus of -trade; and with what result? In ten years, Spanish bonds have doubled in -value. Spain now sends $12,000,000 worth of textiles, minerals and wines -to the Argentine while only six years ago, 1905, the amount was only -$6,000,000. In Uruguay, almost a proportionate increase has been -witnessed since 1905 when $9,000,000 worth of exports went from Spain -and it is probable that within the near future, Spain will be sending -$20,000,000 worth of stuffs to Uruguay alone.</p> - -<p>Spain’s trade with Mexico has been particularly happy because the credit -system is practically<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_62" id="page_62">{62}</a></span> non-existent. Of $7,000,000 worth of goods -shipped to Mexico in one recent year, 90 per cent. was paid for in cash. -To the United States, Spain sends annually approximately $8,000,000 -worth of minerals, cork, olives, Malaga grapes, etc., and in return -purchases from us nearly $30,000,000 worth of goods. Raw cotton is the -chief import from the United States, but modern machinery forms a big -item. Spain, however, buys most of her goods from Great Britain and the -amount shipped annually to the Iberian Kingdom averages $80,000,000. -This is the result of long years of trade study, nursed and built up and -consequently it is less significant than the trade with South America -which has received such extraordinary stimulus, not in ten but in five -years, or in other words, since King Alfonso has been personally -concerned with this phase of the development of his kingdom. Spain is a -country in which the people went in a single bound from petroleum to -electricity and this is indicative of her entire development. She is -rapidly skipping through the gas stage of progress through which the -rest of the world has so long toiled.</p> - -<p>The keynote of King Alfonso’s character is in his courageous -determination. Once convinced of what is right, I believe he would be as -steadfast as the rugged crags of the Pyrenees, that he could be swayed -by neither favourites nor ministers, threats nor prayers.</p> - -<p>The sense of duty has been highly developed in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_63" id="page_63">{63}</a></span> him, thanks to the -careful training he received at the hands of Queen Maria Cristina, and -his sense of moral obligation is absolute.</p> - -<p>The general idea of the King is to encourage the industrial and economic -development of the country, at the same time he is upholding the state, -and to strengthen at every point the bulwarks of the state until its -whole fibre is of the strongest character. Commercial development -without a thoroughly grounded state, he believes to be worthless.</p> - -<p>Don Alfonso XIII believes in Spain. He glories in her proud past and he -has the conviction that greater glories and prosperity are still -awaiting her. It is toward her greater future that he is ever looking, -and with that greater future in view, so he is building. He wants the -world to know Spain. He wants tourists from every country to come and -see her natural beauties, her resources and her possibilities. To -stimulate interest abroad he is now giving special attention to the -seemingly trivial, but after all most important matter, namely, better -roads throughout the Kingdom and improved hotels. Till now, many of the -roads of Spain are utterly wretched. When Spain can vie with France in -her road beds, the Sovereign believes that many more tourists will come, -especially in view of the increasing use of automobiles. And having come -to the country he wants people made comfortable.</p> - -<p>There are, at this time, but few first-class hotels in Spain. There is -one at Granada,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_64" id="page_64">{64}</a></span> built by the Duke of San Pedro, and others at Algiciras -and Ronda. The hotels of Madrid are all rather bad and excessively -expensive. The prices are paramount to the best hotels of London and -Paris and the rooms are small, poorly equipped and in general comfort -are decidedly lacking. The King manifested his interest to the extent of -asking me many minute details about the hotel where I was lodged, the -size of my room, number of windows, was there running water (which there -was not), the kind of bed, etc., etc. He knew quite well, however, the -actual conditions before he asked the questions. A new Ritz-Carlton was -therefore built in Madrid through the personal interest and influence of -the King, and it is the aim of His Majesty to make this the first of a -chain of good hotels all over Spain. This practical interest in details -of this character indicates that he is no mere dreamer of empires, no -idealist who lives in the future because he is looking forward. Like all -strong men of history, King Alfonso is a practical idealist who gives -heed to each step of the road he is travelling, conscious that on the -work of to-day the work of to-morrow must stand.</p> - -<p>History will ultimately place him, but at twenty-four he has already -taken his place among the signal figures of his time and his promise for -the future is immeasurable.</p> - -<p>An estimate of King Alfonso’s statecraft at so<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_65" id="page_65">{65}</a></span> early a period is not -possible. But there is great promise in the young sovereign. Don Alfonso -does everything that he undertakes. It is a bred-in-the-bone -characteristic with him to excel in all things.</p> - -<p>King Alfonso, like King George in England, is one of the best shots in -his kingdom. This, at least, is a matter of merit, and cannot be said as -a courtesy to the King. This year, King Alfonso came out second best at -the annual pigeon shoot, having taken nineteen birds out of twenty-one. -The high record was twenty-one out of twenty-three. Previous years, the -King has captured the first prize.</p> - -<p>The English Princess who became a Spanish Queen, therefore, came to a -land of extraordinary activity. Spain’s development is proceeding with -greater rapidity than in any other country in Europe during the present -decade. King Alfonso is the most wideawake, alert, progressive man in -Spain and he is controlled by a tremendous ambition to bring Spain into -line with the most modern of nations. He is kept well informed as to -what all parties in his kingdom are doing—what they want and why they -want it. He is as quick to accept a plank from the platform of the -Republicans or Socialists as from the Liberals or Monarchists. By -nature, Don Alfonso is a radical. It is by virtue of his personality and -what he has accomplished for Spain that he is the most popular man<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_66" id="page_66">{66}</a></span> in -his Kingdom. Republicans to whom I have put the question: “If a Republic -were declared in Spain, who would be the first national leader—the -first president?” The answer has been “probably Don Alfonso. He is the -most popular man in the country.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_67" id="page_67">{67}</a></span>”</p> - -<h3><a name="IX-a" id="IX-a"></a>CHAPTER IX<br /><br /> -COURAGE AND KINGSHIP</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">One</span> afternoon, shortly after the audience already referred to, I was -crossing the Plaza de Oriente in Madrid, towards the Royal Palace. An -automobile came whirling up from the Casa de Campo and as it passed, a -hand waved through the window. It was the spontaneous action of a man -aglow with youth and energy. Just beyond, the car stopped, the door -opened, and the King jumped out. I was so surprised I even forgot to -throw away the cigar I was smoking. In the friendliest and most natural -way possible, His Majesty shook my hand and told me that at five o’clock -they were going to play polo for the Queen’s cup at the Casa de Campo -grounds and if I cared to go along, to find one of the Palace -secretaries and tell him to order a carriage for me from the royal mews.</p> - -<p>It did not take long to find Don Pablo Churruca, who promptly procured -the carriage and we drove together through the lovely gardens of the -Royal Park, arranged by the Queen Maria Cristina, to the polo field. -These polo grounds are some three or four miles from the Palace, and -command an imposing panorama of Guadarrama<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_68" id="page_68">{68}</a></span> mountains which, owing to -their considerable height, are snow-capped until late June. The polo -field was laid out by the Marquis of Viana, the King’s bosom friend and -his Master of the Horse. The Marquis is prouder of this polo field than -almost anything else in the world, and with reason. It is a magnificent -greensward, kept in perfect condition. Here the King comes to play three -times a week during the stay of the Court in Madrid.</p> - -<p>Don Alfonso looks upon his regular daily exercise as much as a part of -his kingly duties as signing documents or reviewing troops. He is the -only polo-playing sovereign in the world, and in this, as in everything -else, he is an enthusiast.</p> - -<p>That day, he had a string of seventeen ponies in charge of eleven grooms -on hand for frequent changes. At the royal mews, he has more than double -this number, most of them at present coming from the Argentine Republic.</p> - -<p>King Alfonso is at his best in the saddle. He rides like a born horseman -and nowhere,—not even in military uniform,—does he appear to better -advantage than at polo. His reckless energy and boundless spirit are -ever to the fore. When he starts after the ball, he goes full tilt, -showing no consideration, asking none. As the riders sweep up and down -and across the field, the King is ever in the thickest of the game, -riding hard, driving hard and holding his own with the strongest and -best. During the succeeding weeks I went many times to the Polo games.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_69" id="page_69">{69}</a></span></p> - -<p>At the close of the game each day, His Majesty would walk across the -field to ask the few invited guests present to join the players for tea -which is served in a spacious tent erected near to the club châlet. The -usual players whom I saw there were the Duke of Alba, the Marquis of -Viana, the Marquis of Santo Domingo, Count de la Cimera, Count de la -Maza and Mr. Marshal, an English professional. Besides these players -there were usually three or four other gentlemen and half a dozen -ladies.</p> - -<p>After the game, the King would come strolling across the grounds in his -riding togs, a loose coat on, but unbuttoned, a grey soft hat carelessly -balanced on the back of his head. As he approached, the gentlemen would -uncover as would His Majesty, and in turn he would greet each one. As he -shook hands with the ladies, each in turn would do a fascinating -curtsey. Then all would repair into the tent—and the rest was like -afternoon tea in any English country house. And incidentally, English is -the language most used by all the company. The King and several of the -players use English almost precisely as their mother tongue.</p> - -<p>The fearlessness of Don Alfonso at polo is typical of his whole life. He -is a fatalist. His spirit is as much endless courage as an absolute lack -of the knowledge of fear. I doubt if he has any conception of the nature -or quality of that emotion.</p> - -<p>Now that the lamented King Edward is gone,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_70" id="page_70">{70}</a></span> it will perhaps be no -indiscretion to make public an incident in connection with King -Alfonso’s going to Barcelona when that city was believed to be on the -eve of a revolution. “I am needed there,” said Don Alfonso. Despite the -entreaties of the entire court, he planned to go. Just before the day he -was to start from the capital, King Edward summoned one of the Spanish -Embassy in London. He said that he had not slept the entire night -through worry about King Alfonso’s going to Barcelona. He begged that a -message be immediately sent to Madrid beseeching Alfonso to abandon the -trip. Don Alfonso acknowledged the message. But, he proceeded to -Barcelona. The results of the trip vindicated the young King’s wisdom. -The long and short of it is, King Alfonso is a man, a man to be trusted -in a tight place. His theory is, “If they set out to kill me, they will -get me anyway, so in the meantime, why bother my head about it?” This -allegiance to duty is with him a passion, a veritable religion in the -highest sense.</p> - -<p>Take the regular routine of the King’s day. He rises early—from seven -to seven-thirty; some mornings when he reviews troops, he leaves the -Palace at six. He is occupied with his correspondence and state papers -until ten when he receives the Prime Minister and one other minister. -The Premier reports every morning and the other members of the Council -are received every day in turn. Then come the regular audiences which -occupy him until one-thirty or two, when he takes lunch<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_71" id="page_71">{71}</a></span>eon. In the -afternoon, he does whatever chores may come up,—the opening of a bazaar -or exhibition, or any of the endless calls which are made upon the -sovereign. At four, he has tea with the Queen and then goes to polo or -pigeon shooting or takes his regular exercise, whatever it may be for -the day. Upon his return, there are sometimes further audiences, and -always before dressing for dinner, he peruses the day’s cuttings from -the newspapers of the world. Forty-six daily newspapers come regularly -to the Palace. Each afternoon, the King’s private secretaries (there are -five of them in all, appointed from the diplomatic corps) glean from -these every item of news likely to be of interest to the sovereign. -Nothing is skipped, criticism and unkindly comment go in with all the -rest. These clippings are pasted on sheets of paper which are bound -together with a red and yellow cord and left on His Majesty’s table.</p> - -<p>At eight-thirty he dines. Week day evenings, the King goes to whatever -social functions he has to attend. King Alfonso appreciates his social -duties as a sovereign quite as much as his duties of state.</p> - -<p>Coming down the main stairway of a house in Madrid after a dance at five -o’clock in the morning once he met one of his secretaries. “You lucky -beggar,” he exclaimed, “you need not get out of your bed before three in -the afternoon, while I must be up to receive my ministers as usual!” One -of the great reasons for the popular<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_72" id="page_72">{72}</a></span>ity of King Alfonso is his -attention to social affairs. He enters into these functions with the -same zest that he does everything else and he is seldom accused of -putting a damper on an occasion by leaving too early.</p> - -<p>The great fact concerning Don Alfonso that appeals to me is his extreme -humanness. He is ever and always on the spot. In his movements, he is as -quick as lightning and his mind is extraordinarily alert. Disciplined to -the very highest pitch of efficiency, he is an all round able man, and -would be so considered in any walk of life. He is never too busy to -attend to the last, smallest detail concerning any matter in his -Kingdom.</p> - -<p>One day he said to me, “Anything that you want in Spain, or about Spain, -don’t go anywhere else—let me know directly.”</p> - -<p>Whether he is presiding over his Council of Ministers or amiably and -gracefully performing some ceremony incident to the duties of -sovereignty or receiving in audience, or playing polo with his own -chosen companions, or driving his great 70 h.p. car across country at -reckless speed, or taking tea with the Queen, he is always at once the -same blithe spirit, the spontaneous youth and the earnest man of -affairs. In uniform, he looks a born soldier. At polo, he appears like a -man who lives for sport. In ordinary attire, he is the dapper young -blood of any capital city, sleek, well-groomed, immaculate. His face is -as elusive as a kaleidoscope, changing each second. Smiles and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_73" id="page_73">{73}</a></span> laughter -play around his mouth and eyes but underneath the surface one -instinctively feels the intense, thoughtful nature of an inspired leader -of men.</p> - -<p>These glimpses of the man—Alfonso,—his character, temperament and -personality, may enable us to picture the environment of the English -Princess, whose early life was spent in the tranquil atmosphere of the -Isle of Wight and the favourite Scottish home of Queen Victoria of -England. From the moment of her entrance into Spain, she has lived amid -strenuous scenes, and in an atmosphere as different from her native land -as anything could be. Yet she has risen to it all like the born Queen -she is. That the lurking dangers which so often apprise her royal -spouse, sorely try her spirit and sometimes wear her nerves is not to be -wondered at. That she exercises the control she does is the cause of our -admiration.</p> - -<p>Not since the year 1170 had an English Queen been called to the throne -of Spain. In that year, Alfonso VIII, wooed and won the English Eleanor, -who, as Queen, distinguished herself as a patroness of scholarship and -learning, largely supporting by contribution, the University of -Palencia. It is the belief and hope of Spain, that Queen Victoria will -carry into Spain English traditions along this line and during the years -of her reign materially raise the educational standard of the whole -people. Certain it is that any work which she at<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_74" id="page_74">{74}</a></span>tempts will be heartily -encouraged by her royal spouse.</p> - -<p>Queenship carries with it myriad duties,—not merely the duties of -sovereign, official or political as the case may be, but first and -foremost, the duties of motherhood, the duties of bearing and rearing -kings and queens to be. For this high office, Queen Victoria was soon to -demonstrate her aptitude and the best part of her romance lies in the -story of the royal princes of Spain which have blessed the marriage -during the first four years.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_75" id="page_75">{75}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="X-a" id="X-a"></a>CHAPTER X<br /><br /> -THE PRINCE OF ASTURIAS</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">One</span> year to a month after the Royal marriage Spain’s happiness and -satisfaction in the new Queen were made complete by the birth of an heir -to the throne. The official title of the newcomer, as heir apparent, is -Prince of Asturias, and as such he is always spoken of, but in addition, -he has a string of names almost as long as his Royal father’s string of -polo ponies. He is now three years of age and accomplished in many -things, but he cannot yet repeat his full name! Indeed, it seems -probable that he will be considerably older before he can memorise them -all in proper sequence. Fancy this wee boy learning to write: Alfonso -Pius Christian Edward Francis William Charles Henry Eugene Ferdinand -Anthony Venancio, Prince of Asturias, heir to the thrones of Spain, -Castile, Leon, Aragon, the Two Sicillies, Jerusalem, Navarre, Granada, -Toledo, Valencia, Galicia, Majolica, Minorca, Seville, Sardinia, -Cordova, Corsica, Murcie, Jean, Algarne, Algeciras, Gibraltar, the -Canary Islands, the Oriental and Occidental Indies; Archdukedom of -Austria, dukedoms of Burgundy, Brabant and Milan; Count of Hapsburg, -Flanders, the Tyrol and Barcelona; Seigneur of Biscay and Molina!<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_76" id="page_76">{76}</a></span> This -is official. Doubters may turn to the almanach de Gotha, page 34, and -read in verification.</p> - -<p>The joy not only of the Royal Family but of the whole Spanish people may -be conceived at the birth of this child, for this is the first son born -to a reigning King in Spain in four generations.</p> - -<p>With these numerous names and appendages it is not surprising to find -Queen Victoria’s first born ushered into the world with considerable -ceremony.</p> - -<p>In olden days changeling children were sometimes foisted upon a nation, -and in certain historical instances such imposed children have succeeded -to thrones and held sway while the <i>camarilla</i> which perpetrated the -trick have fattened and grown rich. To thwart these daring humbugs laws -were enacted in many countries to the effect that the birth of a Royal -child, especially an heir, must be in the presence of a certain number -of responsible dignitaries of the Court. Spain still technically holds -that the Prime Minister must be present, and according to tradition all -of the ministers, grandees and foreign ambassadors and ministers present -in the city shall be summoned to the Palace. The King then marches -through the room into which these numerous privileged ones have been -gathered bearing the Royal child on a silver salver.</p> - -<p>The exuberant happiness of King Alfonso may be surmised from the report -of all present on the memorable occasion that as the proud father passed -through the chamber, his face transformed into<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_77" id="page_77">{77}</a></span> one great smile, he -could only say: “He weighs four kilos! He weighs four kilos!”</p> - -<p>One week later the baby Prince was baptised in the chapel of the Royal -Palace, the Bishop of Toledo, Primate of Spain, officiating. Be it said -that his serene Highness was quite on his dignity on this his first -public appearance. Only once did he jeopardise the quiet of the solemn -occasion and that at the font when he made known his presence by one -long, loud baby shriek—which afforded as much amusement to his father -the King, as it did embarrassment to the most reverend Prelate.</p> - -<p>This ceremony was in ample keeping with all the traditions of this most -ceremonious of courts. Vienna and St. Petersburg alone of all the -capitals of Europe are more punctilious than Madrid in the observance of -traditional functions. For Madrid and the Spanish Court be it said, -however, that these ceremonies are observed in an amiable and happy -fashion which is possible only in a country where grace and charm and -warmth of nature are characteristic of the temper and temperament of the -people.</p> - -<p>On this occasion the chapel in the Royal Palace in Madrid was occupied -to its utmost capacity, chiefly by the grandees of Spain, visiting -royalties, and the ambassadors and ministers of foreign countries.</p> - -<p>The wonderful tapestries which are one of the proudest art possessions -of Spain and which are only displayed on very special occasions were<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_78" id="page_78">{78}</a></span> -brought out to line the walls, while the Halberdier Guards who lined the -aisles added colour to the setting. The ladies present all wore -<i>mantillas</i> while the men were in full uniform or evening dress. The -Christening procession was one of glittering and imposing magnificence.</p> - -<p>First came the mace-bearers followed by the ushers in double file, then -two long lines of Chamberlains in gold-laced coats and white silk -stockings, after them the grandees of Spain in their striking military -uniforms and feathered cocked hats. Then came seven specially picked -grandees carrying seven salvers on which were such requisites for the -holy ceremony as a salt-cellar, a gold basin and ewer, a cut lemon, a -lace towel, a cape, and a large cake. Behind this party came the royal -Prince himself, ensconced in rare and beautiful laces. His fair little -uncovered head and tiny face, and his clenched fists were the admiration -of all beholders. He was in the arms of the Marquesa de los Llanos, who -is the chief of his retinue, and on one side walked the Papal Nuncio, -who is the representative of His Holiness, the Pope, as godfather, and -on the other was the Queen-mother, as the godmother. The King strode -behind. The Infantes and Infantas followed, with their suites. The -Infanta Maria Teresa, sister of the King, and her husband, Infante -Fernando, being only convalescent from measles, were unable to be -present. Don Carlos, the widowed husband of the King’s late sister, the -Infanta Mercedes, led little Prince</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_6" id="ill_6"></a> -<a href="images/ill_006_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_006_sml.jpg" width="372" height="550" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE PRINCE OF ASTURIAS.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_79" id="page_79">{79}</a></span></p> - -<p>Alfonso, who was known as the heir to the throne until the birth of his -little cousin.</p> - -<p>The little sister of the ex-heir was led by the hand by the Infanta -Isabel, at whose side walked Princess Henry of Battenberg, beautifully -robed in grey velvet and ermine. Prince Arthur of Connaught, with -Captain Wyndham and the Princes from Russia and Germany, and other Royal -representatives, all had their places in the procession. China was also -represented. The personal staff of the King was conspicuous, and the -halberdier band of music marshalled the glittering throng to the chapel.</p> - -<p>The altar was decorated with white flowers. The historic font in which -the members of the Royal Family have for centuries been baptised was in -the centre of the chapel.</p> - -<p>Thirty-six Bishops and four Cardinals officiated. The Royal child was -carried in the arms of his grandmother, the Dowager Queen Maria -Cristina. The water sprinkled on his brow was from the River Jordan. The -christening ceremony over, the King decorated his infant son with the -Order of the Golden Fleece, the Order of Isabella the Catholic, and the -Collar of Charles III. All the ladies of the Court were in full dress.</p> - -<p>The little Prince thrived as a baby, and he was a sturdy chap of almost -three when I went to Spain to write this story. In Madrid, I found him -already a feature of the capital. Each day, when it was nearing the time -for him and his little brother<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_80" id="page_80">{80}</a></span> and sister (who have since arrived) to -go for their afternoon drive, a great crowd would collect before the -Palace gates to catch a fleeting glimpse of him who will (D. V.) one day -reign over them.</p> - -<p>On his first birthday, the Prince of Asturias was formally enrolled as a -member of one of the crack royal regiments in his father’s kingdom. The -regimental register for that day describes the new recruit as “resident -in the province of Madrid: age one year; and a <i>bachelor</i>!” It was the -day before his third birthday that I first saw him. He had profited by -his military connection during these two years, for he had learned to -salute as properly as any soldier, to wear a uniform, and to play with -soldier toys. Incidentally, he was still a bachelor.</p> - -<p>This early martial association is a custom common to kings and princes. -Not infrequently, heirs apparent are made honorary commanders of -regiments before they reach the age of five, and all through boyhood a -military uniform is the favourite costume of many of them. King Alfonso -nearly always wore a military uniform during his childhood and -youth—but Don Alfonso has never been other than a King. A nation was -already his at birth, an army, a navy and more palaces than he could -ever know what to do with.</p> - -<p>From the day the Prince of Asturias became a member of his regiment, a -bed was set aside and will always be reserved for him in the regimental -barracks, and the regulation plate, mug and spoon<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_81" id="page_81">{81}</a></span> of his equipment kept -ready for his use. An incident of that memorable first birthday of the -little Prince which must have bored the young man intensely was the -reading to him of the penal laws in order that thereafter he might not -be able to justify any infraction of discipline by maintaining his -ignorance of these laws. The papers which he was obliged to sign were -marked with an “X” signifying “The Prince of Asturias, his mark.”</p> - -<p>One day, when I was in the Palace in Madrid, the little Prince was -discovered in one of the chambers of the private apartments, playing -with the sword of one of his father’s aides. My companion looked at the -little fellow and the sword which was bigger than he, and said: “What -does your Royal Highness propose to do with that sword?” The Prince -paused in his play and after a moment’s hesitation replied: “Have no -fear, no harm shall come to you!”</p> - -<p>That afternoon, His Royal Highness (as he is addressed at Court) went -riding. His horseback lessons began when he was a little more than two -and one-half years old. If he does not prove the best horseman in his -kingdom, as is his father to-day, it will not be for lack of early -training.</p> - -<p>The Crown Prince has one remarkable faculty which is already -phenomenally developed, and which is bound to prove of enormous value to -him in the future. That is an exceptional memory for faces—and names. -He knows perfectly well every face about the palace, and certain members -of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_82" id="page_82">{82}</a></span> court whom he sees but seldom he remembers as readily as those -he sees every day. For many of the intimates of the household he has his -favourite nicknames, usually established by his Royal Highness when the -proper names are too long or too difficult for his baby mouth. The Royal -Governess is the Marquesa Maria de Salamanca. This is rather sonorous -for the Prince so he always calls her “Mia-manca,” a natural contraction -of the two names. This trait is one that was very pronounced in his -father when he was a child. Many anecdotes are still current of the -embarrassment the baby King Alfonso would frequently cause his nurses -and governesses and even his mother, the Queen Regent Maria Cristina, by -the curious and quaint names he would dub various courtiers and grandees -who were frequently staid and dignified old gentlemen.</p> - -<p>There is something unmistakably regal in the manner and bearing of the -Prince of Asturias. He seems to have a full realisation of who he is, -and of his own importance. This spirit is naturally fostered by his -environment. Officers and soldiers everywhere salute him, while -courtiers and populace uncover when he approaches. Being the recipient -of universal obeisance almost from his cradle accustoms him to continual -homage and he comes to expect it from everyone.</p> - -<p>The coachman Corral who drives the big mules to the nursery coach is a -prime favourite with the princes. One day, just as they were about to -go<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_83" id="page_83">{83}</a></span> for their afternoon drive the Prince of Asturias went to the King -and asked for a cigar. The King was greatly surprised at the request, -coming from the Prince who was then not much over two, but he gave the -young man a cigar and watched with much curiosity what he would do with -it. The cigar was carefully carried throughout the drive and on the -return to the Palace the Prince handed it to the coachman. Since then he -frequently brings a cigar with him for the coachman, but if for any -reason he becomes displeased with the coachman over something during the -drive he carries it back upstairs for another day when the coachman is -better behaved!</p> - -<p>The Prince of Asturias has his mother’s fondness for sweet chocolate, -and Her Majesty keeps a supply always at hand to reward the princes for -good behaviour, and every day after luncheon they each get a piece -anyway.</p> - -<p>The Queen was taken ill during the week that the King was in London -attending the funeral of King Edward. The Prince of Asturias seemed -considerably worried when he learned that his mother would not be down -for luncheon. The Queen Mother, Maria Cristina, who lives in the Royal -Palace, noticed the anxious look on the face of her grandson and -inquired what was the trouble.</p> - -<p>“I am thinking,” he replied, “that if mother is ill and father is in -London—who will give us chocolate to-day after lunch?”</p> - -<p>One afternoon the Prince of Asturias was<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_84" id="page_84">{84}</a></span> naughty. In the Casa de Campo -he had been very cross, and had been reprimanded. That night at -supper-time when the dessert was placed before him he said: “To-day I -was naughty. I do not deserve these sweets. Dessert is not for naughty -children. But before I was naughty; now I am good. Now I deserve my -sweets, so I shall take this dessert.”</p> - -<p>This self-depreciation as well as appreciation is one of his -characteristics. He is as quick to admit his own disapproval of himself, -as he is to insist on approval at other times.</p> - -<p>One day when His Majesty was going to a pigeon shoot just outside of -Madrid he took the Prince of Asturias along in the automobile. The -little Prince was greatly pleased at this and very proud. During the -next several days he went about the Palace telling everybody how pleased -he had been with the excursion.</p> - -<p>Travelling also delights the little man. He has from his earliest months -been interested in railroad trains and the journeys to Seville in the -winter time, to La Granja in the spring, and to San Sebastian in the -summer are great treats to the nursery.</p> - -<p>When the Prince of Asturias was about a year old the Royal Family moved -to La Granja. One afternoon the Queen was walking in the gardens with -one of her ladies-in-waiting when it occurred to her that she would like -to go outside of the Palace grounds for a stroll down one of the -country<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_85" id="page_85">{85}</a></span> lanes. So without any other escort than her one lady companion -she started out. Presently they met an old peasant woman trudging toward -them carrying a basket. As she came nearer she recognised the Queen and -moved toward her. The lady-in-waiting, not understanding the motive of -the peasant woman, quickly stepped in between her and the Queen, but the -Queen at once said, “No—let her speak. She has something she wants to -say to me.” The woman then told the Queen that in the basket she carried -a litter of baby rabbits and they were so pretty and cunning that she -thought the little Prince would like them—and would Her Majesty not -send them to the Prince. The Queen peeped into the basket and was so -delighted with the wee warm bunnies that she told the woman to bring -them herself to the Prince, and to the astonishment of the -lady-in-waiting and the unbounded joy of the peasant woman the Queen led -the way back to the Palace and up to the nursery where the Prince duly -received the bunnies and was highly pleased with them.</p> - -<p>At another time, in Seville, a litter of rabbits was presented to the -Prince of Asturias. This time the rabbits were bigger and lively. -Someone left the cover off the basket and the rabbits all jumped out and -ran off through the Palace, affording the Prince much amusement, but -creating no end of trouble for the nurses who had to catch them.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_86" id="page_86">{86}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="XI-a" id="XI-a"></a>CHAPTER XI<br /><br /> -THE ROYAL NURSERY OF SPAIN</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">There</span> is a striking contrast between the two princes. The Prince of -Asturias is absolutely fair with flaxen hair, while Don Jaime is as dark -as a typical Spaniard. Even at the age of two, his hair is dark and his -eyes are as lustrously brown as his father’s.</p> - -<p>All three of the children are learning to speak English, Spanish and -French, with equal fluency. They have between them two English nursery -governesses and one French maid in addition to a usual number of Spanish -maids and other servants. Their mother, the Queen, was brought up -familiar with French and German, in addition to her own English, while -King Alfonso was taught English, French and German from his boyhood. It -is expected that a modern king be able to talk and think in two or three -languages, but it is exceptional to find a crown prince of three who can -already express himself in three tongues.</p> - -<p>When speaking to his mother, the Queen, the little Prince invariably -uses English, but with his father, the King, he uses Spanish. He seems -to know instinctively one tongue from the other. If he is handed -something—for example, a box—he<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_87" id="page_87">{87}</a></span> will take it and pronounce the word -in English and Spanish and sometimes in French also. In that way he -seems to instinctively teach himself the three languages simultaneously.</p> - -<p>The two Princes are naturally constant playmates. In the Casa de Campo -where they are taken every morning at half-past ten they play in the -sand together and stand up their little toy soldiers. As I had the -privilege of playing here with them one morning I shall have more to say -of this later. The Crown Prince usually refers to his brother as “my -brother, the Infante,” never as Don Jaime or Jaime, although -occasionally he lapses into English and calls him “Jimmy.”</p> - -<p>The Princes are very fond of each other, but like all children they have -their quarrels now and again. The Crown Prince has a good deal of a will -of his own and sometimes his nurses find him something more than a -handful. One morning he rushed up to the Royal Governess and said: “My -brother the Infante has been very naughty, <i>very</i> naughty, so I kicked -him and he cried. But now he is no longer naughty so I shall run and -kiss him,” whereupon he rushed off to the playroom in the châlet where -he found Don Jaime and tenderly kissed him.</p> - -<p>Don Jaime has one of the sweetest baby faces I have ever seen. He has -inherited his father’s soft, beautiful eyes and winning smile. His -nature is said to be as lovely as his smile. He is a great favourite in -the Royal Household and already is<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_88" id="page_88">{88}</a></span> manifesting unusual signs of -keenness and intelligence.</p> - -<p>Curiously enough, the newspapers of Europe including England, and also -of America, have from time to time printed stories to the effect that -these two Princes are deaf and dumb and otherwise defective. These -rumours are all baseless slanders. The King’s secretary has been put to -great trouble writing to inform people all over the world that there is -no truth in these stories. On one occasion the Prime Minister found it -necessary to issue a public signed statement to the effect that he had -personally talked with the Princes and that he knew them to be mentally -and physically fit and normal. As a matter of fact, I found them both -unusually sturdy boys with exceptional intelligence for their years.</p> - -<p>In this connection I had a striking experience of the way these stories -are circulated. The second or third day after I arrived in Madrid the -head porter at my hotel said to me: “So you are the American physician?”</p> - -<p>“What American physician?” I asked in surprise.</p> - -<p>“The doctor who has been brought from New York to attend the Crown -Prince.”</p> - -<p>“No,” I replied, “I am not a doctor. How did you come to think that I -was?”</p> - -<p>He thereupon explained that shortly after my arrival in Madrid the -King’s private secretary had called for me at my hotel and that directly -after I<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_89" id="page_89">{89}</a></span> had been seen entering the Royal Palace. This aroused some -curiosity among the hotel people and finally someone concluded that as I -wore a Van-dyke beard I must be a physician, and as I had gone to the -Palace I had undoubtedly gone to examine the Princes who were said to be -deaf and dumb! This absurd tale circulated about the capital and as it -went from mouth to mouth details were added, and that which at first was -characterised as probable and circumstantial became absolutely definite.</p> - -<p>It is really cruel to spread such nonsensical stories about two such -bright boys as the Prince of Asturias and Don Jaime.</p> - -<p>Both the Prince of Asturias and Don Jaime are devoted to horses and all -the trappings of the stables. They are also very fond of cats. There is -one big nursery cat which is an especial favourite. So far they have not -taken much interest in dogs, and in fact there isn’t even one dog about -the Royal Palace in Madrid. Formerly the King had many dogs, but now -very few and these are kept in the country. The Queen had a dog which -was presented to her by her uncle, the late King Edward of England, but -one day at La Granja the dog strayed away—as the best of dogs sometimes -will, even when their masters are sovereigns and their abode a royal -palace.</p> - -<p>The palace of the Alcazar in Seville is a favourite residence with the -Princess just as it is with the Queen. The gardens of this old Moorish -pal<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_90" id="page_90">{90}</a></span>ace are very delightful and here the Royal children love to play -just as their father did when he was a boy. Down one of the walks is a -series of tiny holes. Ordinarily no one would even see them. It was a -favourite prank of the little Don Alfonso to send some unsuspecting -person along this walk while he loitered in the rear; suddenly he would -turn a hidden wheel and instantly a fine stream of water would shoot up -through each of these squirt holes, to the astonishment and oftentimes -consternation of the victim of the Royal joke.</p> - -<p>There is a maze of boxwood in these gardens which affords the children -endless amusement. A stranger once entering this maze gets completely -entangled and bewildered. It takes even an adult some time to discover -the path leading out. Here, too, are several small ponds stocked with -gold fish and every day the Princes visit the ponds to feed the fish.</p> - -<p>The Prince of Asturias is especially fond of playing in sand, and on his -third birthday the Queen bought for him a set of sand pails and little -shovels which pleased him tremendously.</p> - -<p>One day I was in the nursery playroom at the Alcazar and I took occasion -to examine the toys of the Royal children. What was my surprise to find -a great assortment of little tin mechanical toys such as one sees -exhibited all along Fourteenth street or Twenty-third street—toys that -cost about ten cents each. The things that are wound up with a</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_7" id="ill_7"></a> -<a href="images/ill_007_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_007_sml.jpg" width="550" height="369" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE COURT OF THE VIRGINS AT SEVILLE.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_91" id="page_91">{91}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">key and then rush about in circles. There were boxing men, and little -go-carts drawn by monkeys and donkeys and a great assortment of similar -devices.</p> - -<p>Of course, they have many grand toys, gifts from sovereigns, potentates -and ambassadors, but so far neither of the Princes has exhibited any -particular predilection for these expensive toys. The simple ten-cent -things afford them as much pleasure as anything.</p> - -<p>The favourite toy of the Crown Prince for a long time was a doll dressed -as a soldier. The one positive passion that this little fellow has as -yet revealed is soldiering. To most children, soldiering is the most -fascinating thing in the world. But to the Prince of Asturias, soldiers -are almost an obsession. The sound of bugles and drums excites him -tremendously and he never wearies of watching troops at drill or on -parade. The guard mount at the Royal Palace in Madrid takes place every -morning at eleven o’clock, and is considerable of a ceremony, many -troops being employed and representing several branches of the -army—infantry, cavalry and field artillery, while two bands are -constantly playing. The Prince’s room in the Palace looks out upon the -esplanade where this takes place, and never a day does he fail to watch -this when he is in the Palace. This is another trait inherited from his -father.</p> - -<p>Another remarkable evidence of more than ordinary brightness in the -Prince of Asturias in his<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_92" id="page_92">{92}</a></span> familiarity with the different uniforms. He -knows them all and rarely makes an error. Even from his window looking -down into the street, he can distinguish an artillery uniform from the -infantry,—a lancer from a halberdier.</p> - -<p>Queen Victoria Eugenie is one of the most devoted of mothers. As it has -been the policy in Spain for queens-consort to hold aloof from politics, -she has been able to devote more of her time than would ordinarily be -the case to her children, without at the same time neglecting other -duties of queenship.</p> - -<p>She is devoted to each of them alike, with a possible special fondness -for the Infanta Beatrice. But the Infanta is only one year old and as -she is the baby as well as the one daughter, this slight preference is -understandable.</p> - -<p>The Princes get up every morning at half-past seven. After their bath -they repair at once to the Queen’s room and remain for an hour or more. -Thus is every day started.</p> - -<p>Every bright morning when the Royal Family is in residence at Madrid all -three children are taken to the Casa de Campo to play, at half-past ten. -When they tire of their play they drive a little, and the Prince of -Asturias takes his morning ride on his pony “Belaye,” and then they go -to the pretty little châlet which has been built for them in the park -and enjoy a nap before luncheon. The Prince is keen to hear -stories—especially sto<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_93" id="page_93">{93}</a></span>ries about soldiers. They must be invented -stories, however, and each morning the governess or one of the nurses is -implored to tell a story. Generally he drops off to sleep before the -story is finished, which is what he likes. At bedtime the Queen -generally tells him a story until he falls asleep.</p> - -<p>One Monday morning in one of the rooms of the private apartments in the -Royal Palace at Madrid I noticed a suspended sheet. There were a group -of chairs in front and obviously the sheet had been used as a screen for -lantern pictures. Upon inquiry I was told that every Sunday evening the -King and Queen and all the Royal Family dine together informally—<i>en -famille</i> as it were—and after the meal they all adjourn to the -adjoining room for a biograph exhibition. These Sunday evening suppers -and entertainments constitute one of the most charming features of the -Spanish court life.</p> - -<p>The children of the Spanish Royal Family are especially fortunate in -having parents who are above all things human—vibrant with youth, -indulgent with the pranks and pleasantries of childhood. It is not so -long since King Alfonso himself was a mischievous lad, and Queen -Victoria Eugenie a capricious girl. According to all reports, the boy -Alfonso was quite as full of spirit and mischief as the average small -boy anywhere in the world.</p> - -<p>King Alfonso even now has not outgrown this<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_94" id="page_94">{94}</a></span> love for fun. The first -Shrove Tuesday that Queen Victoria was in Spain she was made the victim -of a joke by her Royal spouse and his sister, the Infanta Maria Teresa. -As Her Majesty was passing through one of the corridors of the Palace -the King and the Infanta suddenly sprang out upon her, disguised behind -masks, giving her a considerable start. This is the survival of an -ancient custom in Spain peculiar to this particular day. This boyishness -is constantly cropping out, often to the amusement of the court. There -can be no doubt that when the little Princes are old enough to indulge -in practical jokes that they will find their Royal father and mother the -most sympathetic of parents.</p> - -<p>I had seen the Royal children a good many times during my stay in Spain, -but I had had no opportunity for close observation of them. I wanted to -see them at play, and to take some snap-shots of them with my own -camera. None of my friends at court quite knew how to obtain this -privilege for me. The request was without precedent, as the Princes have -not yet reached the age of holding audiences. So I spoke to His Majesty -the King about it. I broached the matter delicately, but without the -slightest hesitation the King replied: “Most certainly you may meet -them. In the Palace if you like, but they are so little I am afraid they -would be shy and quiet. The best thing would be for you to go to the -Casa de Campo one morning and play with them. There you may also<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_95" id="page_95">{95}</a></span> have -your camera and take as many snap-shots as you like. And if the pictures -are good,” he continued, “you will let me show them to Her Majesty the -Queen who is always much interested in all photographs of the Princes.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_96" id="page_96">{96}</a></span>”</p> - -<h3><a name="XII-a" id="XII-a"></a>CHAPTER XII<br /><br /> -THE PRINCES AT PLAY</h3> - -<p>I thanked His Majesty warmly for this unusual courtesy, and the second -morning after Señor de Torres called for me at my hotel just before ten -o’clock and we drove together to the Reserve in the Casa de Campo. The -Marquesa de Salamanca, who is the First Royal Governess, passed us in an -automobile near the entrance. The Marquesa de Puerta, who is the Second -Governess, was not there that morning. We arrived a brief moment behind -the nursery. The Princes and their nursemaids were still in the mule -coach driven by Corral, the favourite nursery coachman. Behind was the -little open carriage drawn by the two donkeys “Sol” and “Luna,” and the -tiny Shetland pony, “Belaye,” of the Crown Prince.</p> - -<p>As we approached, the Marquesa de Salamanca lifted the Prince of -Asturias from the carriage and brought him in her arms toward us, -presenting him as the Little Crown Prince. Anticipating her, however, -the little fellow cried out: “Kaulak—Kaulak, is coming.” Now, Kaulak is -a Madrid photographer who takes most of the photographs of the Royal -family and the Prince had noticed the cameras in my hand. The Marquesa -told him, as<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_97" id="page_97">{97}</a></span> she put him down at our feet, that I was not Kaulak, -though I had cameras and could take his picture. He surveyed me -critically for a moment and then came and posed himself before me with -his little right hand at salute, asking that I first take him that way. -He wore the same broad-brimmed white straw hat encircled by a pale blue -ribbon and the cunning little white flannel suit in which I had first -seen him going out to drive. He tried valiantly to wrestle with my name -but this proved too much of a mouthful.</p> - -<p>The two English governesses and the French maid gathered the children’s -toys from the coach and we started for a stream of water where the -children wanted to play. As we started the Infante Don Jaime was brought -over. He is a dear boy with a wonderfully sweet and friendly smile. It -was evident from the first moment that he, at least, had no intention of -standing on ceremony. The wee Infanta Beatrice was too sleepy to pay -much attention, so she was put to rest in an ordinary baby carriage and -was soon trundled fast asleep.</p> - -<p>The Prince of Asturias first took up the sand pail and shovel that had -recently been given him by his mother the Queen for his third birthday. -Don Jaime, however, found more interest in the water. He splashed the -stream for a few minutes then toddled off to a spring and began tossing -stones into the water, laughing with delight at each splash. When he had -used all of his stones he asked me to recover them. This was a task, -but<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_98" id="page_98">{98}</a></span> I rolled up my sleeves, and getting down on my knees I began to -pick them from the bottom one by one and arrange them around the spring -wall. Just as I finished the Prince of Asturias ran up and seizing the -largest stone of all splashed it violently back into the water, wetting -me from head to foot. This gave them both great pleasure and they -laughed tremendously. “See,” exclaimed the Infante, “I have given you a -bath!”</p> - -<p>The next moment the Prince decided that my dress was incomplete, as I -had no flower in my buttonhole. He asked me if I wouldn’t like him to -get me a nice flower. I told His Royal Highness that I should be very -pleased. So away he went to the flower beds. He was critical in his -selection. A number of flowers were successively rejected. Finally he -plucked a beautiful white rose and bringing it back placed it (with a -little assistance) in my buttonhole. Don Jaime, in the meantime watched -his brother with evident interest and decided that it was his turn to do -something toward entertaining me. So he went off to the strawberry bed -and picked some luscious ripe berries to feed me.</p> - -<p>The morning was unusually dark and gloomy for Madrid in June, and I am -very much of an amateur at photography, consequently dependent upon -bright light. About eleven o’clock the clouds lightened somewhat and I -got out my cameras. Instantly both Princes were interested. The Prince -of Asturias particularly seemed to enjoy<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_99" id="page_99">{99}</a></span> having his picture taken. I -snapped him repeatedly and found that he never seemed to weary of posing -for me.</p> - -<p>The Infanta Beatrice had now waked up, so she joined us. Corral, ever -attentive and watchful, took great delight in catching the eye of the -small Princess so that her face should be turned toward the camera. She -showed a silent interest in the performance, but her little eyes were -still heavy with sleep and it was evident that she would much have -preferred to remain in her perambulator. She grew alert, however, when -the donkey carriage was brought round. She enjoys her rides about the -gardens, sitting by the side of her brother Don Jaime.</p> - -<p>Don Jaime climbed into the carriage by himself and picked up the whip. -The Infanta thought that she should hold this and straightway reached -out her hand to grasp it. The two wrestled back and forth until between -them they dropped it onto the ground. Then there was storm and tears.</p> - -<p>When I looked round the Prince was proudly seated on Belaye. Belaye is -one of the smallest of Shetland ponies, and his saddle precisely like a -toy. It is not quite a real saddle for it has a seat and straps to -secure the little rider. But these are the first lessons of the Prince -in riding. By the time he is six he will doubtless mount a real saddle -and ride just like a little man.</p> - -<p>Besides his Shetland pony he has two little donkeys, so tiny that any -man could carry one under<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_100" id="page_100">{100}</a></span> each arm. These are harnessed to a little -cart and the young Prince takes his first lessons in driving in the -beautiful and extensive park behind the Royal Palace, known as the <i>Casa -de Campo</i>. Formerly he had a third donkey called “Astra,” but Astra -died. Sometime after this distressing event the Prince was asked about -Astra by someone in the Palace, and he made answer with a certain manner -of mystery, “Oh! he is gone away. He is in the Casa de Campo eating -strawberries.”</p> - -<p>In amusing contrast to these dwarf donkeys are four sturdy mules which -are attached to the big nursery coach in which ride not only the Prince -of Asturias but also his brother Don Jaime, his sister Infanta Beatrice -and two of their nurses. Beside the carriage, ride two splendidly -mounted equerries and behind, two Royal grooms. On the whole, it is an -imposing cavalcade, this nursery out a-airing.</p> - -<p>The two Princes—aged three and two respectively—sit on the main seat. -A brace for their feet has been adjusted to the carriage and two leather -belts keep them securely in place. One day I was going into the Palace -just as the nursery was about to start out. The little Prince and the -Infante were in their seats and the baby Infanta was just being brought -downstairs. As I passed the carriage, I raised my hat to the wee boys, -both of whom were dressed in white with broad-brimmed straw hats. -Instantly, two little hands were raised to their right temples, elbows -out, eyes front—all<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_101" id="page_101">{101}</a></span> with military precision. No soldier could have -given a truer salute. It was so charming, so unexpected, that I laughed -outright. On later days when I saw them out driving, I noticed that each -time they passed a flag they saluted it, and each time an officer or -soldier saluted them, the salute was returned.</p> - -<p>The morning wore on till noon time when Don Jaime grew overpoweringly -sleepy, and the Prince grew anxious for his morning story—preliminary -to his noon nap. We drove and rode and picked more flowers and threw -more stones into the water and made more sand piles—and we were all -very happy. I found them wholesome, hearty children, normal in all -respects, bright beyond their years, and well developed. How the -baseless stories concerning their supposed infirmities and defectiveness -ever started, is a mystery to me, unless political enemies of the -monarchial parties set them in circulation with malice aforethought.</p> - -<p>After my morning with them in the Casa de Campo some people at my hotel -said to me: “What a pity that the Princes are not right in their -faculties!”</p> - -<p>“But they are perfectly right,” I replied, indulgently, “those stories -are pure nonsense.”</p> - -<p>“Oh! no, sir. You must be mistaken.”</p> - -<p>“How can I be mistaken?” I answered, “I have just spent a morning with -them and I found them not only normal in every way, but particularly -intelligent.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_102" id="page_102">{102}</a></span>”</p> - -<p>“That cannot be,” was the reply, “because it is said that they are -defective.”</p> - -<p>I began to grow indignant and finally I gave up the controversy. After I -had gone they asked one another, as I later learned, how much the King -had paid me to say that the Princes were all right! What is one to do -with such people? And this is characteristic of what is met often in -Madrid.</p> - -<p>The Prince of Asturias is to-day one of the loveliest of children. -Presently he must submit to the discipline which will make of him a -strong, fearless man fit to lead and rule a nation. If he lives he will -succeed to the throne of Spain as King Alfonso XIV.</p> - -<p>There is no better wish that I may express for my readers than that when -they come to this beautiful summer land of Spain, they may have -something of the same privileges I have enjoyed; that they may meet this -manly, courageous, wise King, Alfonso XIII—face to face, clasp his hand -in hearty grasp and sit with him in his study by the hour listening to -his clear-cut, incisive conversation, enjoying his ideas and ideals, all -expressed in most excellent English; or go with him to the beautiful -polo ground and watch him play the fastest sort of game, riding his -beautiful ponies brought over from the Argentine Republic; that they may -meet the beautiful Queen Victoria Eugenie, the English Princess, who is -the true heroine of this romance and perhaps hear from her own lips the -story of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_103" id="page_103">{103}</a></span> the beautiful prophesy of her father, now long dead, that one -day she should come to Spain and be very, very happy. Perchance, indeed, -some favoured ones may be shown the Spanish fan he sent her from Seville -and which is to-day her most treasured possession. Above all, I would -wish that all might spend a morning such as I spent in the Casa de Campo -with the little Princes, playing in the sand, splashing water and eating -strawberries plucked by these dear, little, Royal hands and carry away a -pure white rose, selected and plucked by him who will one day, God -willing, be King Alfonso XIV of Spain.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_105" id="page_105">{105}</a></span><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_104" id="page_104">{104}</a></span></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_106" id="page_106">{106}</a></span> </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_107" id="page_107">{107}</a></span> </p> - -<h2><a name="PART_II" id="PART_II"></a>PART II<br /><br /> -EMPRESS ALEXANDRA FEODOROVNA OF RUSSIA</h2> - -<h3><a name="I-b" id="I-b"></a>CHAPTER I<br /><br /> -“SUNNY”</h3> - -<p>“The most beautiful Queen on any throne,” she was called when first she -became Empress of all the Russias. She still is tall and stately, her -hair is luxuriant and rich in colour. Eyes that some call blue and some -call grey look out through long, dark lashes, and in them lies a great -sadness, an appealing wistfulness touched with regret, a silent -melancholy betraying soul tragedy. Yet as a child she was known as -“Sunny.”</p> - -<p>The life story of “Sunny” has never before been comprehensively told in -English. This is curious, because there probably is not a person in the -whole world who would not like to hear the wonderful romance of how a -poor little German Princess became a great Sovereign, the co-ruler of -one of the vastest empires on earth, the mistress of a fabulously rich -and bewilderingly extravagant court, and with opportunity for becoming -the most powerful woman in Europe. “Sunny” was the childhood nickname -of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_108" id="page_108">{108}</a></span> this little Princess, and after the hardships and vicissitudes of a -quiet girlhood, where there was a constant struggle to maintain -appearances, she was courted by a wayward gallant who was heir to a -mighty crown. “Sunny” lost her heart to the Royal wooer, and he, putting -aside the less noble loves of his reckless, youthful days, pledged -himself to her—persistently courted her against wide opposition—turned -a deaf ear to the councils of Emperors and Queens who tried to -discourage the match, and after years of battling with diplomatic -intrigue and personal restraint he carried his purpose, married the -German Princess who was truly the bride of his heart, and in marrying -her raised her from the obscurity and poverty of her own simple home to -the exalted rank of Empress. This is the true story of Princess Alix of -Hesse whom Nicholas II made Tsaritsa of Russia!</p> - -<p>There is something tremendously dramatic about this little German -Princess stepping out of the quiet of her Darmstadt home into the arena -of world affairs, and taking her position as Empress over one hundred -and forty millions of people. Yet, of her life, almost nothing is known -by the world at large.</p> - -<p>No woman of modern times has had such marvellous opportunities for the -exercise of personal influence and power. Yet who knows her? I had seen -her in St. Petersburg, I knew men and women of the Court who had told me -things about her from time to time. But I felt less acquainted with her -life than that of any sovereign in Europe. I turned<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_109" id="page_109">{109}</a></span> to the magazine and -newspaper files of the last fifteen years and I was amazed at the -meagreness of information concerning her. I made diligent inquiry among -people who frequently are veritable mines of gossip and stories -concerning Royal personages, but scarcely a thing could I gather -concerning the Tsaritsa who in many ways occupies the most unique -position of any woman in the world. When I set forth in all seriousness -to learn of her from her childhood to the present time, to gather the -details of her charming romance and the story how she became the wife of -an Emperor, I found I must go far afield—overseas, to Germany, to -Russia; I must seek my information from her courtiers, her -ladies-in-waiting, her friends, princes and princesses of the realm, -tutors of her children, servants in her palaces, officials of the -Imperial Household. So I went. I talked with all these people and many -more besides, and the story I set down here is the story of her life, as -I have heard it piecemeal from the lips of those who have been closest -to her during the years that she has occupied a position of world -eminence.</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa is now thirty-nine years old. She was born at Darmstadt, -Germany, June 6, 1872, and christened Princess -Alix-Victoria-Helene-Louise-Beatrix. She was the youngest daughter of -the Grand Duke and Duchess of Hesse and the Rhine. Her mother was -Princess Alice of England, daughter of Queen Victoria.</p> - -<p>Her sister, Princess Victoria, became the wife<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_110" id="page_110">{110}</a></span> of Louis of Battenberg; -her sister Elizabeth became the wife of the Grand Duke Sergius of -Russia, uncle of the present Tsar; while a third sister became Princess -Henry of Prussia. Prince Henry is the brother of Emperor William of -Germany, and he is the official head of the German Navy. The only living -brother of these remarkable sisters eventually came into the title of -Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine, which he holds to-day. Besides all -these close connections with important Royalties, she was a niece of -King Edward of England and cousin to innumerable lesser Royalties. After -her marriage she became connected with the courts of Denmark and Greece.</p> - -<p>The Dukes of Hesse were made Grand Dukes during the time of the -Napoleonic wars and Grand Dukes they have remained to this day.</p> - -<p>Thus Princess Alix has always had grand connections, but the duchy of -Hesse and the Rhine was poor and as the Grand Duke, her father, was not -even ruler of the Duchy, and possessed of only small financial -resources, the family household was forced to accept a comparatively -frugal régime. There are hundreds of girls in America to-day who have -never felt the press of poverty as did Princess Alix through the early -years of her life. The little Princess was taught to sew and to assist -in home duties, not only because this was all part of the proper -training of a princess, but because of necessity.</p> - -<p>The simplicity of this home was like the sim<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_111" id="page_111">{111}</a></span>plicity of an ordinary -German or English middle class home of to-day. In her letters to Queen -Victoria, the mother of Princess Alix was wont to speak very freely of -the straitened circumstances of the family. Some of the items and -incidents mentioned in these letters can hardly be credited. For -instance, in one letter the death of a cow is lamented—“because it will -be so difficult to get another.” In another she sends thanks for some -furniture. In another the summer holiday is discussed and frank -acknowledgment made that they cannot afford to go to Sheveningen, the -charming and fashionable Dutch watering resort a few miles from The -Hague, because it is too costly, but they must be content with -Blankenberghe which is treeless, dull and uninteresting, but more -reasonable of price.</p> - -<p>Princess Alix’s allowance of pocket money was twenty-five cents a week -up to the time of her confirmation, when she received double that -amount. Alix was the youngest born of the Grand Duke and Duchess and was -called “Alix” because Queen Victoria had always been annoyed at the way -Germans pronounced Alice. And so at her suggestion Alice was changed to -Alix to simplify it for the people of her own country. “Alicky” she was -frequently called by her mother, but the neighbours and friends of the -family early came to call her the “Little Princess Sonnenschein,” and -from this came the name of endearment which she carried for so -long—“Sunny.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_112" id="page_112">{112}</a></span>”</p> - -<p>“Baby is a sweet, merry little person, like Ella (her sister), but her -features are smaller,” her mother once wrote to Queen Victoria, “and her -eyes are darker, and she has very long lashes and auburn hair. She is -always laughing, and with a deep dimple in one cheek just like Ernie.” -(Ernie was her brother who is now Grand Duke of Hesse and the Rhine.) On -another occasion her mother wrote: “She is indeed the personification of -her nickname ‘Sunny.’<span class="lftspc">”</span> During all this time Empress dreams were far off, -and the big world with its infinite possibilities, its large joys and -burden of days, but visions of twilight hours. When she was only six -years old her mother died. This was the first deep shadow of her life, -and from that time on she carried little responsibilities that tended to -weigh upon her, to drive her more and more into herself, and perhaps to -plant the seeds of moroseness which some say is now a quality of her -character. At twelve the True Romance of her life came to her.</p> - -<p>Princess Elizabeth, the older sister of Alix, had been courted by Grand -Duke Sergius, of Russia, an uncle of the present Tsar and brother of the -then reigning Emperor. In 1884 Sergius came to Darmstadt for his bride, -and young Nicholas was of the Royal party. Nicholas here met Princess -Alix for the first time and in her saw his future bride—the future -Empress of his country. Nicholas, though nearly four years older than -she,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_113" id="page_113">{113}</a></span> was only sixteen, but sometimes hearts can choose their own at -sixteen as surely as in later years, and if love has since been the -dominant element in the family life of this royal couple, it entered in, -there in Darmstadt at this early time.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_114" id="page_114">{114}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="II-b" id="II-b"></a>CHAPTER II<br /><br /> -COURTSHIP AND A JOURNEY TO THE NORTHLAND</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">From</span> the hour of their first meeting, Princess Alix never doubted the -love of her young Russian scion, whose still boyish heart she knew she -had reached. Child as she was, Princess Alix already felt germinating -within her beginnings of woman love, and from that time through all the -following girlhood days, through her period of lovely maidenhood, she -held in close memory the picture of her first wooer. That her young -lover was less faithful was not so much a matter of surprise, because -first of all being a man, and especially a Russian man, not to include a -Prince besides, Nicholas naturally went the way of all the rest, the way -of so many men, of most Russians, and of all Princes, and under the -tutelage of his relatives, the Grand Dukes, and other unavoidable -corrupt associates of the Court, he sowed his wild oats as part of the -day’s work, and as a matter of course, sowed them furiously and very, -very wildly. Nicholas’ mother, spouse of the Emperor Alexander III, -herself early suggested that a mistress for the young Nicholas might be -well as a choice of evils, the lesser one. Thereupon, Nicholas was taken -to the Imperial Ballet, there to make his choice of a<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_115" id="page_115">{115}</a></span> temporary love. -The woman whom he chose at that time lives to-day in St. Petersburg, in -a grand palace, given her by the little man who now rules the mighty -Empire of Russia, built by money exacted from thousands of starving -peasants throughout the length and breadth of the vast empire.</p> - -<p>Perhaps—for a time—Nicholas forgot the little German girl, but she -never forgot her Prince! Perhaps Nicholas was lacking in that blessed -quality we call “loyalty.” Or it may be that he was only weak of -character as most of his friends of the time would have us believe. At -all events, he was not even true to his Polish dancer, and when he -became infatuated with a Jewess, his Imperial father cried “Enough!” and -sent his son on a tour around the world. Nicholas was accompanied on -this trip by another <i>bon vivant</i>, his cousin Prince George of Greece. -Prince George, however, was also an athlete and a man of ready wit, and -when in Japan a fanatic rushed upon the Tsarevitch to kill him, Prince -George raised his arm and succeeded in so diverting the stroke that -Nicholas received only a glancing blow on the forehead. Thus was he -spared to return to Darmstadt and renew his suit with his love of -earlier days.</p> - -<p>Royal marriages are so rarely love matches, that the world watches the -few that are with admiration and hope. Too often diplomatic objections -prevent the coming together of royal lovers. And so in the case with -Nicholas, his father desired the union of his son with a Montenegrin -princess.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_116" id="page_116">{116}</a></span></p> - -<p>Queen Victoria never really opposed the match, but she feared for the -safety of her grand-daughter. The Russian throne is supposed to offer -unparalleled peril to its occupants, and the health of the Princess Alix -had never been rugged. Queen Victoria feared that under the great stress -and strain of St. Petersburg Princess Alix would not have the strength -to bear up. The Empress Frederick of Germany, an aunt of Princess Alix, -was also doubtful of the wisdom of the match. Her reasons, however, were -somewhat different. Empress Frederick had had many opportunities to -watch the development of her sister’s daughter and she had noticed, -perchance with pain, certain qualities of temperament which may have -been the result of her trying circumstances in early years, together -with the fact that she had been left so much alone through the early -death of her mother. She was reserved and shy, therefore seeming cold of -nature, and haughty of manner. Having seen far less of the great world -than most royal princesses she shrank from the social whirl. The -loneliness of her childhood had taught her to find resource within -herself, thus habits of reading, study, and contemplation had become -part of her nature. These characteristics all make for the development -of a splendid, substantial woman, but they fail to bring out the -qualities essential to a woman who is to preside over a brilliant court, -where the sway of personality, of grace, charm and wit—all of the -surface virtues—count for as much, if not more,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_117" id="page_117">{117}</a></span> than the deeper -qualities of sound character and a disciplined mind.</p> - -<p>Appreciating all this Empress Frederick did not encourage, even if she -refrained from actively opposing the marriage.</p> - -<p>The Polish Princess, Catherine Radziwill, chanced to be passing through -Germany about this time and lingered for a few days, the guest of the -Empress Frederick. One afternoon, Princess Radziwill referred to the -betrothal and remarked on the happy fate which had led Nicholas to -select a bride who had been imbued with the ideas of Germany and -England. To her surprise the Empress gravely shook her head and remarked -that it was not always safe to trust what was said by people ignorant of -the true character of those they praised or blamed, according to the -exigencies of the moment. When Princess Radziwill pressed the Empress -further she added that “Princess Alix had a haughty disposition, and -would be inclined to take more seriously than might be supposed, her -position of absolute sovereign.”</p> - -<p>She went so far as to refer to the despotic temperament of her niece, -and her self-opinioned tendencies. “She is far too much convinced of her -own perfection,” said the Empress, “and she will never listen to other -people’s advice, besides, she has no tact, and perhaps, without knowing -it, will manage to wound the feelings of the persons she ought to try -and conciliate.”</p> - -<p>Princess Radziwill remarked that it was pass<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_118" id="page_118">{118}</a></span>ing strange a daughter of -Princess Alice, and a grand-daughter of Queen Victoria could have such a -disposition. Whereupon the Empress returned sadly: “Oh! but when do you -see daughters taking after their mothers?” Then, after a short pause she -continued: “It would not be possible for anyone to be like my sister.”</p> - -<p>But Alix loved Nicholas and she would be daunted by neither the perils -of a restless empire, nor the fear of physical weakness or suffering, -nor the discouragements of her royal relatives. And Nicholas, with that -stubbornness that has ever characterised him, set about to win over all -opponents to their marriage. First he appealed to his uncle, Grand Duke -Serge, who had married Alix’s sister, Elizabeth. Then he went to London -and pleaded with Queen Victoria. Finally, he gained the consent of his -own father, who was the last to yield. Then Nicholas went himself to -Darmstadt to carry the news in person to his Princess who had now waited -for this message for nine long years.</p> - -<p>There still remained one important obstacle. And that this was a -difficulty to the German Princess, is to her everlasting credit. -According to the laws of Russia, the throne may never be occupied or -shared by anyone not of the Greek Catholic faith. Now Princess Alix, -being born in Germany and brought up in Germany, was a Protestant. From -earliest childhood, she had been devoted to the Church and to her -religion, and the tenets of the Greek Church were totally unfamiliar to -her.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_8" id="ill_8"></a> -<a href="images/ill_008_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_008_sml.jpg" width="550" height="360" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE TSARITSA IS HONORARY COLONEL OF THE UHLANS OF THE -GUARD.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_119" id="page_119">{119}</a></span></p> - -<p>When they were presented to her there were many things that seemed so -strange that for a long time she could not acknowledge her acceptance of -them.</p> - -<p>In most royal marriages, the brides change their faith as lightly as -they change their gowns, and learn the priest-taught formulas that their -tutors prescribe, and subscribe to the doctrines of their adopted church -without fear or question. Alix demanded intimate knowledge of all the -doctrines she must accept, so learned theologians and doctrinaires were -dispatched to Darmstadt to give her instruction. Many are the stories -told of her long arguments with these learned men over points that were -not clear to her, and of her deep prying questions into the reasons for -certain regulations and laws. At one time it seemed as if she could not -accept certain things that these holy men were endeavouring to press -upon her and more than one rumour went abroad that the royal marriage -would never take place simply because of these religious difficulties. -There seemed some ground for these reports, for the priest who had been -her especial instructor, one Yanisheff, at one time became so despairing -of his “heretical” charge, that he left Darmstadt altogether and -returned to Russia.</p> - -<p>A long letter from the Princess was received by Nicholas, and he, -instead of being hurt by the way she held out on these matters, -expressed himself as highly pleased. A vigorous correspondence then -passed quickly between them. And in the end, it was her love that -conquered. I do not think that<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_120" id="page_120">{120}</a></span> Princess Alix has ever been what the -world calls an “ambitious woman.” No one believes that the Greek priests -“converted” her. But she loved Nicholas with a love that transcended all -creeds and dogmas and finally, after long hesitation, her love rose to -the highest point and for his sake she “accepted” the state church of -the land that was to be her future home.</p> - -<p>At the time the betrothal was definitely announced, it was anticipated -that Alexander would probably continue to reign for some years, and that -in the meantime the bride of the Heir Apparent would have ample time to -accustom herself to Russia, and to school herself for the difficult rôle -of Empress, which she would one day have to assume.</p> - -<p>The Russian press was flooded with stories and anecdotes of the beauty, -the cleverness, and the varied accomplishments of the German Princess -whom Nicholas was bringing to Russia. This was to popularise her among -the people. It was said that she was a rare musician, a great scholar, -and even that she had taken the degree of doctor of philosophy at some -university! Flaming lithographs of her were circulated by the thousand -among the peasants, and in the space of a few months her name had become -a household word across the Empire and the Russian people were prepared -to accept her as a worthy consort to the Heir Apparent.</p> - -<p>The betrothal was announced in April. In Sep<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_121" id="page_121">{121}</a></span>tember of the same year, -Tsar Alexander’s health began to fail rapidly and he was removed from -the cold of the northern capital to the Royal estate of Livadia in the -Crimea.</p> - -<p>I have seen royal palaces and parks in every part of the world, but I -have never seen a more beautiful place than Livadia. It is on the slope -of the Crimean Alps, some of whose peaks tower more than three thousand -feet above the glorious blue waters of the Black Sea that here lap the -shores of Livadia. Yalta, lovely Yalta, a winter jewel daintily set in a -wondrous setting of sea and hills, is removed from Livadia by only a -spur of mountains easily and quickly crossed. And here, when all the -rest of Russia lies frozen beneath semi-Arctic snows, roses and -oleanders bloom, and ripe fruit hangs luscious for the pickers. Here -winter suns are warm and winter evenings balmy.</p> - -<p>I think the fairest nights I have ever seen have been in Yalta and on -the road to Livadia when a December moon shone brightly over the -restless water and aslant the lovely hills as in dream nights of June.</p> - -<p>To this most beauteous spot in all Russia, Alexander III was taken. It -was the monarch’s last journey. When it became evident that the end was -near Nicholas sent for his bride-to-be. Probably no woman or man in -modern times has had so warm a welcome prepared. The press of Europe was -echoing and re-echoing the praise of the young Princess, in happy attune -with the inspired press<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_122" id="page_122">{122}</a></span> of Russia. The Emperor William himself went to -meet the Princess at the Berlin railroad station and bid her -Godspeed—she who was to wear an Imperial crown.</p> - -<p>Warsaw was the first Russian city where Princess Alix paused on her -journey to Livadia whither she was hastening in the expectancy of -marrying prior to the death of Alexander III. At Warsaw she was met by -her sister, the Grand Duchess Elizabeth, and farther along in the -journey by the Heir Apparent. Her progress across the Empire was like a -triumphal march despite the sadness that hovered over a nation whose -ruler lay dying. Great arches of welcome were raised to her, and the -populace turned out all along the way to do her honour.</p> - -<p>We can well imagine the mingled feelings of surprise and awe which must -have overwhelmed the retiring and somewhat austere German Princess, as -she came in contact now for the first time with the great world, and -with the homage of a vast people which from that day was to be her’s for -all the rest of the days of her life. Princes and potentates, like -peasants from the isolated villages of the Steppes, bent their knees in -humble obeisance, while soldiers stood at salute as she passed. She knew -full well that she was leaving behind her forever the simple life she -had always known up until now. She knew that she was going to a -death-bed scene, between ranks of gold and silver. Though her path was -scattered with flowers and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_123" id="page_123">{123}</a></span> the plaudits of the people continuously rang -in her ears, she knew what the end of the journey must be, and she must -have known too, in a dim, tragic way, all that lay beyond the endraped -gold, toward which she was speeding in the Crimea.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_124" id="page_124">{124}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="III-b" id="III-b"></a>CHAPTER III<br /><br /> -ASSUMING THE BURDEN</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Upon</span> arriving at Livadia Princess Alix hastened to the bedside of the -moribund Emperor. The following day, in the royal chapel of Livadia she -was received into the Greek Orthodox Church under the name of Alexandra -Feodorovna. Her own preference was for the name Catherine, but yielding -to the wishes of Nicholas, she accepted the name of his choosing. The -wedding day was fixed for the following Wednesday, but the nearing end -of Alexander necessitated a brief postponement—only till the end had -come, and all that remained of him had been transported to St. -Petersburg and laid to rest beside the remains of his father, and his -father’s fathers for many generations, in the golden-spired Chapel of -the grim fortress of Saints Peter and Paul on the banks of the swift -flowing River Neva.</p> - -<p>Some there are, believers in omens, who attribute many of the -difficulties of her life as Tsaritsa to the name she took when she was -received into the Russian Church,—Alexandra Feodorovna, after the -grandmother of the Tsar, her husband. For Alexandra has long been an -ill-fated name in the unhappy land of Princess Alix’s adoption.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_125" id="page_125">{125}</a></span></p> - -<p>A daughter of the Emperor Paul who was called Alexandra had a very -tragic end. When she was but seventeen years of age her grandmother, -Catherine II, arranged that she should marry the King of Sweden. The -preparations for this royal wedding were all elaborately made and on the -day set all was well, so far as the world knew. The tables were laid for -the marriage banquet and the bride, all robed and ready, awaited her -royal bridegroom. The guests were assembled and the priests stood by in -their gorgeous mantles of gold. Suddenly His Majesty the King announced -that he would not go on with the wedding! His courtiers and suite -pleaded and implored him not to offer so terrible an insult to the -daughter of an Emperor and to the whole Russian nation. But in vain. The -King was obdurate.</p> - -<p>The news was tardily announced to Catherine, whose wrath knew no bounds. -The guests withdrew and the Swedish party quit the Winter Palace and -returned to Stockholm. The humiliated Alexandra was given no further -choice even after this terrible ordeal, but was speedily married willy -nilly to an Austrian Grand Duke. But she really did not survive the -shock of the failure of her marriage with the King of Sweden, and she -died of humiliation and a broken heart—only nineteen years of age.</p> - -<p>A daughter of Nicholas I was named Alexandra. She was early married to a -step-son of Napoleon Bonaparte. But a fatal disease carried her off -be<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_126" id="page_126">{126}</a></span>fore she was twenty, again emphasising the traditional tragedy -associated with his name.</p> - -<p>Alexander II had a daughter Alexandra, a lovely, golden-haired child, -but she succumbed to an illness in childhood.</p> - -<p>No wonder then, that the superstitious feared for the future of Princess -Alix, when she took for herself the name that has so often been borne by -daughters of sorrow in Russia. But Alexandra was the name Nicholas chose -for her, and that sufficed. The mourning family returned to St. -Petersburg after the death of Alexander III and as soon as preparations -could be made, the wedding took place—the entire Court laying aside its -mourning weeds for one day. Thus edged in black, the official ceremonial -life of the Tsaritsa began.</p> - -<p>At the wedding ceremony, she did not show to advantage. She was reserved -in her manner to the point of severity, and a trait was noticed on that -day that has militated against her ever since. Despite her natural -physical grace she does not know how to dress! Her simple German -training had not taught her how to wear beautiful clothes. Possibly the -wearing of lovely gowns well is an instinct born in some women. At all -events on her wedding day, the Empress-bride failed to please the court.</p> - -<p>A few days later when the young Tsar was receiving deputations from -different parts of the Empire, there occurred a rupture between him and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_127" id="page_127">{127}</a></span> -some deputies from the Province of Tver, which he has never been able to -outlive, and for some unexplained reason the sentiments that he then -expressed in heat, were accepted as the sentiments of the Empress as -well. The Chairman of the deputation humbly offered the congratulations -of the people of Tver, and ventured to add that it was their hope that -the new Emperor might be pleased, in the course of his reign, to grant -certain liberties to his people, perhaps even a Constitution. This hope -was partly based on their faith in the young Empress, whom they expected -would have liberal sympathies as a result of her life in Germany and her -affiliations with England. But the Tsar burst forth into a terrible -tirade against such notions, told them “to be done with these idle -dreams,” and even threatened the whole deputation with banishment.</p> - -<p>The whole country was astounded at this uncalled for outburst, and a -lurking suspicion sprang up that the Tsaritsa might not be so liberal as -they had hoped. And this indeed seems to have proved true, for whatever -influence the Tsaritsa has exerted in Russia from that day to this, has -been in the direction of Reaction and severe administration. She has -always accepted the point of view of her husband. Nicholas II believes -himself a God-ordained Autocrat, and the great ambition of his life is, -not to hand on to his successor a happy and peaceful nation living under -a constitutional monarchy, but an absolute autocracy, and Alexandra<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_128" id="page_128">{128}</a></span> -Feodorovna has supported and worked for the realisation of this -ambition.</p> - -<p>When one remembers the glorious, golden romance of this girl, one’s -imagination is fired to highest heat, and one rejoices when the child -who was called “Sunny,” who early battled bravely with life, was at last -coming unto her own. But alas! At the very moment when it would seem -that Providence had filled her cup to the full, the dark clouds began to -gather, and the little German Princess, when she ceased to be Princess -Alix, also ceased to be “Sunny.” Instead of entering upon a period of -life rich in blessings, showered with happiness, she faced graver -responsibilities, greater hardships and harder battles than she yet had -known. The crudest blows of fate were yet to fall upon her.</p> - -<p>The wedding of the Tsar and Tsaritsa was almost the only bright day of -the winter of 1894 in St. Petersburg society. Mourning was resumed -before even the usual wedding ceremonials were ended and few court -functions were held until after the coronation, which took place the -following spring. This event was looked forward to by the entire court -and the most elaborate arrangements were made to make it the most -magnificent and dazzling spectacle of the kind that a traditionally -magnificent court had yet known, an historic occasion, notable from -every point of view.</p> - -<p>During the festivities celebrating this event, the young Empress might -have been expected to have<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_129" id="page_129">{129}</a></span> won all hearts. Instead, the popularity of -the Dowager was enhanced, and the suspicions against Alexandra, which -had been aroused during the wedding celebration, were deepened.</p> - -<p>Russia, always poor, was in especially straitened circumstances the year -of the coronation. Crops had failed—the winter had been severe—and -peasants were starving in different parts of the Empire. Yet the -coronation show cost the Government many millions of dollars. The -harness worn by the horses that drew the carriage of the Empress alone -cost more than one million dollars!</p> - -<p>The German Princess, born amid frugal surroundings, simply reared, early -taught to value pennies, and never affluent, on this occasion found -herself in a strange setting, indeed. Her coach followed the carriage of -the Dowager Empress. Eight snow-white horses adorned with red morocco -trappings trimmed with exquisitely engraved gold, champed their teeth on -bits of solid gold, and above their heads waved snow-white ostrich -plumes; in her shining chariot sat the Empress in a silver and satin -gown with an ermine cloak over her shoulders, ropes of diamonds hanging -from her shoulders, and a crest of diamonds above her head. How -wonderful a change from the life she had always known! Too great a -change, perhaps. For even now her manner did not please the populace. -The Dowager was hailed with acclamations and unprecedented enthusiasm. -The Empress was received in dead silence. The situation was an -im<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_130" id="page_130">{130}</a></span>possible one. She tried to smile upon the throng, but her smiles were -stony and cold, and people remarked to one another that she only “stared -in disdain.” After the long and tedious coronation service, as the -Emperor was painfully making his way to the Church of the Ascension, -staggering under the weight of his royal robes and crown, he stumbled -and fell in a long swoon—just as he has fallen ever since under the -weight of responsibilities and cares he has never been strong enough to -carry.</p> - -<p>The following day the coronation festivities were interrupted by a -terrible catastrophe. Some five thousand peasants were crushed or -trampled to death in a stampede and panic preceding the distribution of -certain simple meals, which were to have been in honour of the great -event of the coronation. The calamity has never been satisfactorily -explained, but there seems to have been a general lack of efficiency -among those who had the distribution in charge. No sooner was word -received of the disaster, than the Dowager Empress hurried to the -overcrowded hospitals, administering personal comfort, and relief, and -cheer to the surviving wounded. Her great activity and sympathetic -devotion endeared her yet more to the people, and as long as she lives, -thousands will revere her for her expressions of grief and solicitude on -this occasion.</p> - -<p>Nicholas, however, made himself conspicuous by doing nothing. On nearly -every occasion during the course of his reign when he has had a signal -opportunity for doing the right thing, he has acted<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_131" id="page_131">{131}</a></span> precisely as he -acted on this occasion—he has turned his back and gone off. And -Alexandra Feodorovna has acted in concert with her husband. They both -attended the ball at the French Embassy that same night, thus horrifying -not only Russia but the civilised world.</p> - -<p>I do not believe that the Tsaritsa is lacking in heart warmth or human -sympathies, but her life is dominated by one man. Before she was an -Empress she was a woman, and as a woman she loved, and as a woman she -gave all to that love, and to the end of the chapter one must look for -the real life of the Tsaritsa in those spheres where her personal love -for this one man holds sway.</p> - -<p>From the coronation day the Tsaritsa never regained a place in the -affections of the Russian people, and having recognised this fact, and -having realised the futility of usurping the place of the Dowager -Empress, she simply ceased trying. The Russian people don’t dislike her, -they merely do not know her.</p> - -<p>When travelling through the interior of Russia, I constantly heard the -Tsar spoken of by the peasants. Sometimes reverently, of late more often -disdainfully, occasionally in the terms of the old Russian proverb: “God -is in heaven and the Tsar is far off.” But I do not recall of ever -hearing a peasant speak of the Empress. When I have asked about her the -<i>moujiks</i> have invariably shrugged their shoulders in silence. They -often have a bright coloured lithograph of her on the walls of their -houses, and they all think the picture very beauti<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_132" id="page_132">{132}</a></span>ful. More than that, -they know nor care not at all.</p> - -<p>Once in an interior village I heard a group of peasants discussing the -Tsar with a trace of old-time superstitious reverence and I asked, “What -of the Empress?”</p> - -<p>A shaggy old <i>moujik</i> shook his towsled head stolidly as he replied: -“She is the Little Father’s woman—but what can we know of her?”</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa entered upon a life of unusual difficulty from the moment -she crossed the Russian frontier. She realised even at the time of her -wedding, and more than ever at her coronation that she was not liked at -court, so she did what any sensitive soul would have done under similar -circumstances—she turned from the people who criticised her, who failed -to appreciate her trying, turned to those whom she loved, who loved her. -How many women in our own country have been through just such -experiences! Not called upon to serve as queens or empresses, but -summoned to positions they never were fitted or trained to occupy. With -the realisation of failure comes a terrible disappointment and sorrow, -sometimes heartbreak. Good women then turn to the fruits of love and in -their children seek the salvation necessary to counteract the first -failure.</p> - -<p>The Dowager Empress had never approved of the marriage of Nicholas to -Princess Alix. She herself had always been exceedingly popular with the -Russian people. In her affliction and bereavement the sympathy and -affection of the nation went<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_133" id="page_133">{133}</a></span> out to her. At the coronation of her son -and his spouse, her warm personality so completely outshone that of her -younger successor as Empress of the people, that a circle of the court -immediately gathered about her. From that day to the present time the -influence of the Dowager Empress and her “court party” has been more -potent than that of the Tsaritsa. At times this influence has been -directed openly against her rival and always to the embarrassment of the -younger woman. For several years they were not even on speaking terms -and to-day they rarely meet save on formal occasions when court -etiquette demands the presence of them both at some particular function. -The attitude of the Dowager Empress has been a source of continual pain -to the Tsaritsa and besides actively militating against her, it has been -one more strong influence driving her away from the usual interests and -activities and more into her family life.</p> - -<p>This estrangement between the two first women of the court has also -tended more than anything else to isolate Nicholas. It has resulted in -periodic ruptures between the Tsar and his mother, and it has strained -his relations with his numerous relatives and important personages of -the court, who have remained loyal to her.</p> - -<p>These are some of the reasons why the life which ought to have been -bright and happy has been utterly miserable, and now there are -indications that a complete nervous breakdown may crown the burden of -her years.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_134" id="page_134">{134}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="IV-b" id="IV-b"></a>CHAPTER IV<br /><br /> -MOTHERHOOD AND QUEENSHIP</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Alexandra Feodorovna</span>, as the wife of the Emperor, was expected to be the -mother of an heir to the throne of Russia. And even here long years of -enduring pain and travail were before her, for four girls were born -before a son came to them. When the first child was born, in November, -1895, there was disappointment throughout the Empire. But the Tsar said -a splendid thing at that time: “I am glad,” said the Royal father, “that -our child is a girl. Had it been a boy he would have belonged to the -people, being a girl she belongs to us.”</p> - -<p>One year and a half after the birth of the Grand Duchess Olga the second -daughter was born, and she was named Tatiana. Marie followed in another -two years, and Anastasie exactly two years later. More than three years -then elapsed before Alexis, the son and heir, made his appearance. -During these three years the aid of all kinds of soothsayers and -charlatans was invoked to influence the sex of the child. An old priest -of the interior who had been dead seventy years was canonised in the -hope that the miracle of a boy might be worked! This is a story by -itself, however, and it would be premature to tell it now.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_135" id="page_135">{135}</a></span></p> - -<p>It is wellnigh impossible for people in America to understand the -disappointment and vexation of the court when girl after girl was -born—four of them—before the long wanted son. The Tsaritsa fell more -and more into disfavour, and the aristocracy—especially those who were -the friends and followers of the Dowager—took advantage of the simple, -superstitious peasants to point out to them that the Empress was not -beloved in heaven or she would have borne a son.</p> - -<p>When finally a son was born many people loudly asserted that the boy was -a substitution and not the Tsaritsa’s child at all. This was a very -malicious thing to say and was, of course, entirely untrue. The rumour -persisted, however, and received certain credence until it was pointed -out that the Dowager Empress was far too watchful, and too much at -enmity with the Empress to allow any such imposition to be perpetrated.</p> - -<p>Until the birth of the son the Tsaritsa took little part in public -activity. Indeed, it was not until the war year of 1904 (which was also -the year of the birth of a son) that she undertook to participate to any -extent in work for the nation.</p> - -<p>At the breaking out of the war between Russia and Japan the Tsaritsa -undertook to assist the work of the Red Cross Society. I have seen -several of the rooms in the Winter Palace which were turned over to the -work of preparing bandages and warm clothing for the wounded soldiers in -the hospitals<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_136" id="page_136">{136}</a></span> at the front. In connection with this work the Tsaritsa -was conspicuous before the people for the first time since her -coronation as Empress in an undertaking properly belonging to the -nation. She gathered together hundreds of young ladies of the court, -organised working parties, and before long among the women of -aristocratic circles it was distinctly the thing to do to belong to one -of the Empress’s working groups, to prepare warm caps, and mufflers, and -stockings and bandages for the army. The Empress herself worked -indefatigably. And so did the two older Grand Duchesses, Olga and -Tatiana. They both sewed and knit till their little fingers were stiff -and sore.</p> - -<p>The earnest spirit of patriotic pride and sacrifice exhibited by the -Empress at this time was inspiration to thousands of young women in St. -Petersburg and Moscow, and on the big estates of rich noblemen -throughout the Empire. One group of fashionable St. Petersburg girls -presented themselves in a body to the Empress with the request that they -be sent to the front to serve as volunteer nurses. But the Empress -replied: “You are not experienced enough for that work, nor strong -enough to endure the hardships of life in Manchuria. What you may do is -to serve in the hospitals of St. Petersburg, thus enabling the regular -trained nurses to go to the front.” Almost without exception these young -ladies acted upon this suggestion, and many of them did most excellent -service, eventually becoming as useful as nurses who</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_9" id="ill_9"></a> -<a href="images/ill_009_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_009_sml.jpg" width="550" height="457" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE FIVE CHILDREN OF THE TSARITSA.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_137" id="page_137">{137}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">had undergone the usual training in preparation for such work.</p> - -<p>Some idea of the extent of this work may be gathered from the single -fact that in the year 1904 the depot at Kharbin alone received from the -Winter Palace headquarters, over which the Empress presided in person, -no fewer than eleven million eight hundred articles. In addition to -these things more than a million dollars in money was collected and -forwarded for the purchase of surgical instruments and such other things -as were sorely needed by the badly equipped Russian forces. Some seventy -ambulance trains were organised, and a number of chapels and libraries.</p> - -<p>In thanking the corps of women who had assisted her in this work the -Empress said: “I am happy to know that through the efforts of the -workers in my depot my most ardent desire to give relief to our dear -troops has been satisfied.” And in a telegram to one of the generals -commanding at the front she said: “Inform the troops in the Far East -that I rejoice that it has been given me to lighten even to a slight -extent the lot of the unhappy victims of a cruel war, who have so -self-sacrificingly shed their blood for the honour of the Throne of -Russia. United in prayer with you all I lift up to the Highest my ardent -petition that He may comfort all who have suffered on the field of -battle and continue to keep alive in the hearts of the valiant and -heroic Russian warriors, the feeling of devotion to their duty, their -oath and their love to the Fatherland.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_138" id="page_138">{138}</a></span>”</p> - -<p>The Empress also organised the famous “Dog Detachment,” by which, with -the help of dogs especially trained in Germany, the overlooked wounded -were sought out after the tides of battle had swept the Manchurian -plains and hills. Unfortunately this detachment was never given proper -opportunity for activity, as the fields of battle almost invariably -remained in the hands of the enemy.</p> - -<p>Besides the Red Cross work, the most important public undertaking of the -Tsaritsa has been the establishment of Labour Aid Institutions. This is -really an incipient charity enterprise and is being gradually extended -to different parts of the Empire.</p> - -<p>Viewed as the charity organisation of a great nation the whole scheme is -a ridiculous farce, but viewed as the work of an individual its -proportions seem substantial. A complete list of these institutions -practically means a complete list of the charities of the Empire, and -includes temporary nurseries for babies, homes and asylums for children, -lodging-houses for workless men, old people’s homes, lying-in hospitals, -institutions for the insane, libraries and reading-rooms and various -depots where simple work is provided for those who are able.</p> - -<p>I visited a number of these institutions and satisfied myself that, -however satisfactory a catalogue of this work might be, that the work -itself had small value. It is the crudest and most careless organisation -of charity I have seen anywhere in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_139" id="page_139">{139}</a></span> the world, and carried on on such a -trifling scale as to be practically valueless. If the time ever comes -when the Russian Government can take up the work thus begun it will be -given a value—the value that ultimately accrues to all pioneer work.</p> - -<p>There are more starving peasants in Russia every year than in any -country of the western world. The numbers annually mount up into the -millions—in 1906 there were twenty-seven millions in the famine belt. -The beggars and workless, the maimed and the crippled victims of the war -fill the streets of all the large cities. A lodging-house for fifty or a -hundred men in a city where fifty thousand are in want is the merest -drop in the bucket. The schools for girls are better equipped and better -endowed than any of the other institutions embraced in this work, and -this is owing to the personal interest of the Empress in girls.</p> - -<p>This interest of the Tsaritsa’s in girls is doubtless owing to the fact -that she has so many daughters of her own. Many of the schools which she -has helped to start and to support have been named after her own little -girls. The “Olga Children’s Homes” in St. Petersburg and Moscow were -first inaugurated in 1898 and now are on a firm foundation.</p> - -<p>In Russia, the Labour Aid Institutions are treated lightly. Even friends -of the Empress speak of them as trivial. Judged by their present -capacities they <i>are</i> trivial. They are badly managed. They offer rich -opportunities for what is<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_140" id="page_140">{140}</a></span> variously called “protection,” “patronage” -and “graft”—opportunities which are fully taken advantage of, as I saw -for myself in several of the places which I visited. There were -elaborate offices, luxuriously fitted with selected furnishings, and -small regiments of young aristocrats and noblemen (like all public -servants of rank in Russia, called “chinovniks”) serving as clerks and -directors. Positions of absolute sinecure carrying rich emoluments. Not -one of these institutions—outside of the orphanages—would stand the -test of scientific charity or philanthropy. For all this I am inclined -to give the work a higher value than do the Russian people for, after -all, Russia will one day be a modern nation in forms and institutions, -and then all of this work will needs be developed. It will then be good -to have this little experiment scattered about the country. It may prove -the foundation for a work of worthy proportions. And I am glad that the -Empress may claim credit for most of what has been done. There are -schools and institutions of one sort or another named after each of the -children, as well as after the Empress herself, and to all of these the -Empress contributes annually from her private purse.</p> - -<p>In no sense can any, or all of these enterprises be considered a great -work, but they are all characteristic of the Tsaritsa. It is indicative -of simple, human sympathies, it is quiet and unostentatious—almost -timidly so—but the idea underlying it all is real.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_141" id="page_141">{141}</a></span></p> - -<p>The court of Nicholas II does not entertain nearly so frequently nor so -lavishly as the preceding Courts of the last hundred years. This is -partly owing to the temperament of the present Tsar, and the retiring -characteristic of the Tsaritsa, and also because of the troubled and -distraught condition of the Empire during the last several years. -Several court balls each winter are required, however, and on these -occasions the Tsaritsa is always a conspicuous figure. Her own enjoyment -at these Royal functions may well be questioned. In the first place, -there are certain aged ministers, ambassadors and potentates with whom -she must dance. Doubtless these eminent worthies are frequently endowed -with great dignity, but statesmanship and imposing presence do not make -up for grace and ease in tripping figures to light music. And if, -perchance, the Tsaritsa would waltz with a brilliant young officer, or -charming courtier, all the other dancers must at once stop and clear the -floor for the Empress and her favoured partner. To be thus the observed -of all observers cannot be otherwise than trying to one of so modest and -retiring a nature.</p> - -<p>Years before, when the Tsaritsa was still only Princess Alix of Hesse, -she had visited St. Petersburg as the guest of her sister Elizabeth, who -had married the Grand Duke Sergius. During one of the dances at a -certain ball given during this visit, Princess Alix slipped on the -polished floor and fell. Her partner, as well as a number of young -officers,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_142" id="page_142">{142}</a></span> sprang toward her to assist her to her feet, but the Grand -Duke chanced to be near and he, too, sprang to her assistance. Instantly -the embarrassed partner and other officers stepped back. The privilege -of assisting the confused and blushing Princess was the prerogative of -the Grand Duke because of his exalted position!</p> - -<p>When the Tsaritsa does participate in a public function she does it with -a stateliness and grace that commands respect, whatever of coldness her -manner may suggest.</p> - -<p>I had the privilege of being near to her on one of these occasions. It -was the 10th day of May, 1906, in the Throne Room of the Winter Palace -in St. Petersburg.</p> - -<p>The Emperor had called together the First Duma and the members of this -extraordinary body, together with the council of Empire and the entire -Court, were assembled to hear the speech from the Throne. It was the -first time in sixteen months that the Royal Family had visited the -capital. These sixteen months had been characterised by almost -continuous revolutionary activity, successive mutinies in the army and -navy, general strikes and disturbances of every description. There was -wide speculation as to the probable outcome of this meeting between the -Tsar and the representatives of the people. “To us,” remarked one of the -Ladies of Honour attached to the Empress, “to us, it is like letting the -Revolution into the Palace”—this reception of the elected deputies of -the people!<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_143" id="page_143">{143}</a></span> Members of the court were fearful lest the Tsar would never -return from the Throne Room. Many, if not most of the nobles present, -went in fear and trembling, and went because they had been commanded by -the Emperor and for no other reason.</p> - -<p>I met one well known Prince the morning of that day and he immediately -bade me congratulate him, as he had been excused from appearing at the -function.</p> - -<p>When the music of the National Anthem was heard, announcing the approach -of the Royal party the atmosphere of the Throne Room became so tense -that it was painful. Not one person in the room dared think what the -next minute might bring forth! When the Tsar and the Grand Dukes and the -Empress and the Dowager Empress and the Grand Duchesses were all -assembled before the richly attired Metropolitans and high priests for -the interminable preliminary blessings, the slightest sound echoed -throughout the room, so still and strained was every human being in the -room. The nervousness of the Tsar was apparent to all. The agitation of -the Grand Dukes was laughable, especially the manifestations of their -fear in their repeated and excited crossing of themselves. Even -correspondents, schooled and trained to recklessness in all kinds of -danger and calm to the point of being blase in the face of any -situation, breathed hard and showed the terrible strain and tension of -the minutes.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_144" id="page_144">{144}</a></span></p> - -<p>The Empresses alone appeared in full command of every nerve and muscle. -I looked upon the Tsaritsa in silent admiration. The picture of her -strong, immovable figure is imaged forever upon my memory. The -fluttering of a glove or a handkerchief from the balcony to the floor -would surely have upset the entire assemblage in spite of its -magnificent show of military symbols, buttons, medals and gold and -silver trappings. The thought came to me there, and I have recalled it -many times since, had such an untoward incident occurred the Tsaritsa -alone, or at least, the Empresses alone, would have stood stolid. The -exquisite poise and complete possession of the Tsaritsa commanded -absolute admiration. Cold and indifferent she may be toward the people -of her court, but on an occasion like this she certainly acquits herself -with rare credit. At all times a magnificent woman to look upon, tall, -statuesque, imposing, imperial, she never appeared to better advantage -than on this occasion.</p> - -<p>With her, somewhat back in the procession were the four older children -of the Tsar and Tsaritsa—Olga, Tatiana, Marie and Anastasie. These -little girls bear the title of Grand Duchess, and in them has the life -of the Tsaritsa long been centred. Presently I shall have a number of -stories to tell of their nursery days. As we go on we shall learn how -completely the life and time of the Tsaritsa have been taken up with her -children and their home and family life.</p> - -<p>Easter is one of the greatest fêtes of the year in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_145" id="page_145">{145}</a></span> Russia. The long -Lenten fast is usually kept rigorously by all classes over whom the -church maintains dominion, and even by many who have ceased to reverence -Orthodoxy, but in whom the instinct of traditional observance remains.</p> - -<p>On Easter Eve there is a tremendously solemn service in all of the -churches in the land. At the stroke of midnight priests and choir burst -forth in loud hallelujahs and all the people shout “Christ is Risen!” -“Christ is Risen!” and greet one another with a holy kiss. Everybody -kisses everybody else in sight regardless of previous acquaintance. I -remember standing bolt upright in a fearful press in St. Isaac’s -Cathedral one Easter Eve for two mortal hours in the middle of the -night, the atmosphere hot and fetid till even men swooned and all -wearied unspeakably.</p> - -<p>On Easter morning presents are exchanged and masters and mistresses -greet all the servants of their households with the holy kiss. The Tsar -and Tsaritsa observe this custom as religiously as the humblest of their -subjects, and every palace maid and stable boy is greeted in this way. -Long before the hour when the Emperor and Empress are to receive the -household, there is great excitement below stairs where all the servants -busily scrub their honest faces with soap and water till they shine like -great apples in preparation for the kiss of their imperial master and -mistress. The Tsar kisses every man in the palace, even to the soldiers -on duty, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_146" id="page_146">{146}</a></span> the Empress every maid servant. On one occasion the -Tsaritsa remarked that she “sometimes thought the Emperor had rather the -better of it because of the new leather that the soldiers wear on that -day, and which smells so nice!”</p> - -<p>In view of the fact that court observance would naturally expect the -Tsaritsa to play the rôle of Empress, rather than of mother and wife as -her life work, it is the more extraordinary that this mighty Queen (in -point of power and opportunity) has chosen the quieter life of the home.</p> - -<p>In addition to the private fortune of the Tsar, an immense income -accrues from the gold and precious stone mines of Siberia which are -worked by convicts for the private purse of the Emperor and from the -vast timber holdings that he controls; besides all this, the Government -officially grants him a “salary” of nearly five million dollars a year, -which is paid to him in monthly instalments of four hundred thousand -dollars each.</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa, as head of the Royal Household, is mistress of nearly -thirty thousand servants, scattered in many palaces and residences -throughout the Empire. It is not likely that this vast retinue is any -particular care to her, for the army of servants, just like the army of -soldiers, is divided into groups and officered by various functionaries. -In fact, it is likely that the two armies are not dissimilar in the -minds of the Tsar and Tsaritsa. Every wish of the Tsar’s is a command to -the army and has only to be uttered to an aide to be executed.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_147" id="page_147">{147}</a></span> So the -word of the Tsaritsa spoken to a lady-in-waiting is all sufficient to be -carried out by any or all of her servant host.</p> - -<p>There are fifty thousand head of cattle in the Royal pastures, and five -thousand horses in the Royal stables. Over all these the Tsaritsa is -supreme—as the wife and consort of the Tsar,—and one hundred and forty -million subjects besides!</p> - -<p>The point of her whole life as Empress is that when Princess Alix -married Nicholas she gave herself and all of her activity to -Nicholas—not to the Russian nation.</p> - -<p>Every act of hers has been one of personal devotion. If Princess Alix -had been ambitious as many women in court circles are, or if she had -never loved so intensely and so blindly, the world looking back upon her -career as it does to-day, might have deemed her a better Empress. As it -happened, circumstances throughout her life have all driven her back -from the public role and more into the circle of the family. Thus it -comes about that the chronicler of her life must pass lightly over her -life as Empress and dwell at length upon those sides of her character -which the words wife and mother indicate. In other words, her entire -life has been one long romance. A life of devotion to her husband and to -her children, and this at the expense of her duties as Empress.</p> - -<p>As the years have passed the disposition of the child once called -“Sunny” has altered and changed, and the lines of wistful pathos which -have settled<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_148" id="page_148">{148}</a></span> round her still lovely face are doubtless indications of -the drops of gall that have tainted her cup of life’s happiness. For all -these mellowing lines the Tsaritsa wears an expression that in many -lights is of that unusual other-worldly beauty, so seldom seen in the -great world of to-day, but common to so many of the women whose -portraits have been left us by the world artists of the Middle Ages. It -is an expression that appears and ripens only under soul development, -and as we see it in the Tsaritsa we do not find it difficult to -understand and trace, for a considerable part of her life has been given -over to religious thought and contemplation, and not to the study of -theological doctrines and controversies only, but to the deeper truths -of spiritualism and mysticism, truths whose elusiveness holds them for -ever remote to all save the few, and whose realities are measured only -by the standards of the eternal verities. This brings us to one of the -most extraordinary, and at the same time one of the fascinating sides of -the life of the Tsaritsa.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_149" id="page_149">{149}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="V-b" id="V-b"></a>CHAPTER V<br /><br /> -SPIRIT WHISPERINGS</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">An</span> interesting trait of the forebears of Princess Alix was their belief -in ghosts. Presently we shall see that Princess Alix, even after she -became Tsaritsa, gave much of her time to the study of the mystics and -has always had spiritualistic tendencies and beliefs in the -supernatural. Most of the Dukes of Hesse are credited with similar -superstitions.</p> - -<p>Duke George II, who lived in the seventeenth century, is said to have -seen the ghost of his dead brother Wilhelm on one occasion. Before the -death of Wilhelm there had been a quarrel between the two brothers. The -ghost chastened and severely reproached Duke George for his bitterness -and hatred. The incident made such an impression upon him that as long -as he lived, he could not shake off the spell of the weird experience.</p> - -<p>Another Duke of Hesse, a William, had a life-long terror of ghosts and -always slept in a brilliantly lighted room. A story is on record of this -man that he once returned to one of his hunting lodges at night, when -suddenly all of the lights went out, a great wind magically arose, doors -slammed, windows shook—and presto!—the lights<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_150" id="page_150">{150}</a></span> as suddenly reappeared, -but all of the soldiers of the guard had mysteriously vanished and the -entire lodge was dismantled. Long before this the lodge was reputed -“haunted,” so that when the Duke was there the soldiers of the guard -were changed every thirty minutes and the whole establishment kept well -lighted.</p> - -<p>Just prior to the birth of the fifth child to the Empress, a phase of -temperament developed, which attracted the attention and comment of the -world. From early girlhood, the Princess Alix had manifested an interest -in things philosophical and theological. Back in her old home at -Darmstadt, the Royal betrothal had once nearly been broken owing to the -religious scruples of the bride-to-be. Princess Alix could not convince -herself or be convinced that she was right in renouncing the Protestant -faith of her mother and adopting that of the Greek Catholic Church. -Finally, her love for Nicholas overcame her scruples of conscience and -she forced herself to accept the doctrines of the State Church of -Russia. Priests who had been assigned to tutor her, to this day relate -their experiences and difficulties in meeting the arguments and -answering the questions brought up by the Princess: the familiarity -which she exhibited with German theological writings and philosophical -theories confused them. In Russia, as Empress, she continued to -encourage her interest in religious doctrines and theories. The friends -of her own choosing were generally men and women with<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_151" id="page_151">{151}</a></span> whom she could -discuss vital religious problems. Surrounded as she was by an atmosphere -perennially surcharged with the sense of impending tragedy, she not -unnaturally, developed pronounced morbid tendencies. From time to time, -she believed that she caught the glint of certain gleams of spiritual -truths in the distance and these she pursued with that fatal persistence -which so often leads people, especially women of temperamental or -melancholy tendencies to ultimately accept various “isms.” The Tsaritsa -became more and more markedly spiritualistic. By nature and by training, -she was retiring and preferred the splendid isolation of the court in -her home circle to the more brilliant opportunities offered her by her -supreme social position. These tendencies toward retirement, encouraged -as they were by the Court which did not take kindly to her nor exhibit -at any time the cordiality and friendliness generally accorded Queens, -she came to live more and more in the realms of the spiritual. She -carried her intellectual interests far beyond the things we know and -over into the borderland of Faith and Belief. To those who knew her -well, it was not a matter of special surprise when, after the birth of -three children and no heir to the throne, the Tsaritsa turned an open -ear to various men who claimed supernatural control over things -physical.</p> - -<p>Prior to the birth of Anastasie, the aid of eminent medical and -scientific men was sought to influence, if possible, the sex of the next -child, but all<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_152" id="page_152">{152}</a></span> to no avail. (What pangs of bitterness must sometimes -have come to her mother heart when she remembered the two boys whose -father was also the father of her daughters,—two sons who could never -be recognised by their own father and who were destined forever to be -exiled to a foreign land because of the blot on their ’scutcheon! What -piercing irony of fate for the father who must sometimes have remembered -his outcast sons upon whom he had bestowed the bastard mark while the -birth of a legitimate son and heir was so long deferred!)</p> - -<p>When science failed, religion and spiritualism were appealed to. Rumours -were rife of various charlatans imported from one place or another to -practise their magic. Of these, the one who came to be the most widely -known was called Philippe. Philippe first joined the royal entourage at -Livadia. Later, he was brought to Moscow and St. Petersburg, and for -several years, he is said to have exercised great influence not only -over the Empress but over the Tsar as well. The Tsar has ever been an -impressionable man and though he has displayed all the stubbornness of a -weak nature, he has frequently been under the domination of others. Just -as he was willing to lend a ready ear to Pobiedonostzeff and to his -uncle, the Grand Duke Sergius, so also was he willing to listen to -charlatans who came to him well recommended. It was under the -Reactionary Grand-ducal party that Philippe was brought to Russia. In -course of time, this man came to be known as “the Tsar’s magi<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_153" id="page_153">{153}</a></span>cian.” An -atmosphere of profound mystery always surrounded Philippe, although of -the extent of his domination, there never was any question. From all -that I can gather, this man’s name was Philippe Landard. Landard is -supposed to have been the son of a shepherd and that he was born in a -small village situated high among the French Alps. When quite a boy, his -father would regularly take him to the local abattoir, and on one of -these visits, he made the acquaintance of a butcher who took the boy -into his employ. Landard possessed imagination even as a child, as is -evinced by the fact that his contract with the slaughter-house prompted -him with the desire to become a surgeon. With this hope in view, he -attended evening classes and night lectures in the medical school at -Lyons. Handicapped, however, by lack of money and presumably not endowed -with keenest intelligence, he never succeeded in passing the -examinations necessary to admit him to practice. What he did succeed in -doing, however, was to discover and develop certain magnetic powers -which he undoubtedly had,—powers of personality which he cultivated -remarkably. He turned this power especially in the direction of healing. -He practised auto-suggestion and by the judicious use of massage, -frequently succeeded in convincing people that his healing powers were -literally real. Ultimately, he was able to establish himself as a -thaumaturgist or practising healer in the Rue Tape d’Or at Lyons where -he acquired con<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_154" id="page_154">{154}</a></span>siderable local notoriety which presently spread all -over France among people who believed in his art. At least twice, he is -said to have been arrested and charged by the police as an illegal -practitioner. This led him to be more discreet in his methods and he -refrained from ever writing a prescription or committing himself in -writing on any point. The leader of the French School of Occultism -became interested in him and through him, he met Dr. George von -Langsdorff of Freyburg. Dr. von Langsdorff had been brought to Russia by -the Grand Duke Constantine Nicholevitch and presented to the Emperor -Alexander II who had actually commissioned him to sense out and unravel -Nihilist conspiracies. Dr. von Langsdorff, whether through the -connivance of the political police or not we do not know, succeeded in -foretelling certain plots which actually materialised. He attained -considerable notoriety in connection with the blowing up of the -dining-room of the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg in 1880. Dr. von -Langsdorff evinced considerable interest in Landard but unlike von -Langsdorff and other members of the French School of Occultism, Landard -ascribed his supernatural powers, both in matters of healing and -prophesy, to divine influence, that is to say, whereas the French -practitioners were avowedly irreligious and proclaimed themselves -Freethinkers, Landard cultivated the spiritual element and professed -himself a religious man.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_155" id="page_155">{155}</a></span></p> - -<p>Through von Langsdorff, Landard was brought into contact with certain -members of the Russian colony of royalties who annually visit the -Riviera. It was upon their invitation that Philippe visited Nice and -while there was fortunate enough to win the favour of the Grand Duke -Alexis. This was accomplished through curing the Grand Duke of a painful -attack of rheumatism of the knee by his “laying on of the hands” method -and magnetism. The Grand Duke Alexis passed Philippe on to the Grand -Duchess Vladimir, who in turn brought him to Russia and was instrumental -in having him put in touch with Tsar Nicholas II. From all accounts, -Philippe was a man of courage, personality, of winning and sympathetic -manner. The Tsar frankly liked him and before long, Philippe was -established as a more or less permanent member of the Royal Household. -The Emperor consulted Philippe on all kinds of personal questions and -later sought his counsel in regard to the weightiest questions of state. -It has even been said that during the winter of 1902-3, the influence of -Philippe had grown so supreme, that a determined protest was submitted -to the Tsar by the members of his council and ministers, including Conte -Witte. Philippe was retired for a time from practice, but was still -retained as a member of the Royal household and, privately, Nicholas -continued to listen to the spiritualistic haverings of this man. From -time to time, Landard also appeared to effect cures upon various members -of the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_156" id="page_156">{156}</a></span> Royal household and of the court. These things naturally tended -to strengthen his position and to enhance his prestige. The result of -these manifestations of power upon Emperor Nicholas was to confirm his -confidence in Philippe’s supernatural connections. In him, Nicholas -thought he had found another, if not the actual reincarnation of Joan of -Arc. Nicholas seems to have had little difficulty in persuading the -Empress to trust in the potency of Philippe’s power in regard to -influencing the sex of their next child. At all events, the next child -proved to be a son. Philippe claimed much of the credit for this, but it -is evident that the entire credit was not accorded him by the Royal -Family inasmuch as a certain parish priest in the Province of Tambov was -later given credit for exerting a like influence. The priest had been -dead many years, but his tomb had been made a kind of shrine by the -<i>moujiks</i> and it had been annually visited by barren women who claimed -to have found in the shrine the secret of fruitfulness and also the -spirit of influencing the sex of unborn children.</p> - -<p>The effect of Philippe’s ministrations upon the Tsaritsa let her still -deeper within the portals of the Spirit World. To conclude the story of -Philippe, it is said that he became intoxicated with the power and -confidence bestowed in him by the Royal Family and that he overshot -himself at the time of the Russo-Japanese war. He is supposed to have -been largely instrumental in persuading<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_157" id="page_157">{157}</a></span> Nicholas to take the attitude -that he did which brought about the war and throughout the long, -disastrous campaign was continually prophesying a turn in the tide which -never came. Landard is said to have represented to the Emperor that he -had been selected by Divine Inspiration to assure the Emperor that the -war in Manchuria would inaugurate a new and great era of Russian glory -that would forever overshadow the Yellow Peril which at that time was -popularly feared to be menacing Europe. When disaster followed disaster, -members of the Court and Royal Household lost faith in Philippe and -finally the Tsar himself ordered him to leave Russia within forty-eight -hours. This banishment proved a great blow to Landard, who, heart broken -and covered with disgrace, returned to his own native villa of St. -Julian d’Arbresle where he died the following year from a complication -of internal disorders.</p> - -<p>Despite the downfall of Philippe, the faith of the Empress was not -shaken in the least in things mystic and spiritual and there is ample -evidence that this inherent characteristic has in reality become a -veritable second nature.</p> - -<p>Miss Margaret Eager, an Irish lady of good education, was called to -Russia in the year 1899 to serve in the capacity of Nursery Governess to -the Royal Family. Miss Eager is very much of a Celt. She has a profound -belief in the philosophy of mysticism and indeed she herself seems to be -possessed of certain supernatural powers, second sight,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_158" id="page_158">{158}</a></span> visions and -dreams that come true. Miss Eager related to me various occurrences in -the Royal Family concerning strange and seemingly mystical -manifestations. Miss Eager herself, believes firmly in the reality of -the spiritualistic sense of the Empress.</p> - -<p>When the Grand Duchess Olga was three years old, she was taken ill with -a gastric attack from which she did not fully recover for two or three -weeks, the attack itself, in its severe form, keeping the Royal child in -bed three or four days. The first time Miss Eager left the bedside of -the sick child for a breath of fresh air, she went for a walk along the -quays of the Neva. Upon her return, as she entered the room, little Olga -looked up and said, “An old lady was here!” “What old lady?” she asked. -“An old lady who wears a blue dress,” the child replied. Miss Eager was -frankly puzzled because the Court was in mourning at that time and there -was no one wearing a blue dress. “Surely, you mean blue. What kind of -blue?” questioned Miss Eager. “It was not like Mamma’s,” and the child -paused. Miss Eager thought perhaps one of the maids had had a visitor -and so they were all questioned, but nobody knew of any visitor during -Miss Eager’s absence, and so the matter for the moment was dropped and -dismissed by Miss Eager as a possible vagary of the child’s imagination. -A few days later, Miss Eager was sitting on the floor with the Royal -children in a certain room in the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_159" id="page_159">{159}</a></span> Royal Palace playing at building -castles of cards. Suddenly, Olga looked up and exclaimed, “There is the -old lady in blue!” “Where? Where?” said Miss Eager and the other -children. “There! she came through the bedroom door; she is standing at -the door now!” Miss Eager quickly caught up the child and ran through -the bedroom into the room beyond and into yet another room, but she -could find no one nor could she hear any footsteps. “Well,” said Olga to -Miss Eager, “you must be very stupid because the old lady was there.” -Two days later, the Empress directed Miss Eager to take the child to the -Chapel in the Winter Palace and there, in the hall on the way to the -chapel, are two life-sized portraits of the Emperor Alexander II and his -wife. Looking at the picture of Alexander II’s wife, Olga said, “Why, -that is the lady I saw in the blue dress and see, her dress is not the -dress Mamma wears.” The identification was made by the Grand Duchess -with the utmost assurance.</p> - -<p>Now, this incident by itself would have no significance, but Miss Eager -relates in connection with it other incidents which give it interesting -if fantastic value. Miss Eager, during her long stay in the Royal -Household, always slept with the nursery. One night, she maintains, she -distinctly heard a voice coming from directly beneath her bed. The voice -was far off and weird and was as of one weeping bitterly and making -terrible complaints and the language used was French. The<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_160" id="page_160">{160}</a></span> story she was -relating was one of extreme intimacy. Miss Eager says that she sat up in -bed to try to locate from whence the sounds were coming, but no sooner -had she raised herself upright than the voice ceased. Upon laying her -head on the pillow again, the voice resumed and the complaints were of -her husband’s unfaithfulness. While Miss Eager was still meditating the -extraordinary experience, the Empress as was her wont, entered the room -and Miss Eager asked her what room was directly beneath the room they -were then in. The Empress replied, “Merely storerooms.” Miss Eager then -said to the Empress, “But there is some poor woman there and suffering -from the most terrible affliction.” The Empress replied, “What are you -saying?” Whereupon, Miss Eager related what she had just experienced. -The Empress then asked if the words were spoken in English. “No,” -replied Miss Eager, “It is French; at first I thought it might be the -cook, but that is impossible because the French spoken was very pure and -elegant.” The Empress then said that if Miss Eager thought there was any -one below, she had better get out of bed and listen at the floor, which -she did, but could hear nothing. The Empress then told her to get back -into bed and go to sleep. Immediately her head touched the pillow, the -voice was again audible to her. Suddenly the Empress said, “Tell me, -does it remind you of anything you have ever heard before? Do you know -anything of the story of this room before it was done up for my little -ones?<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_161" id="page_161">{161}</a></span>” Miss Eager replied that she knew that the wife of Alexander II -slept in this room and then she recalled having heard that this woman -was very unhappy because of her husband’s numerous peccadilloes with -other women. She recalled, also, that the Princess Dolgoruki was -Alexander II’s mistress. His wife, who used this room over a long period -of time, used nightly to bury her face in her pillow and cry aloud. -After she recalled these things, the Empress said, “Yes, but before she -died, she went to the Dolgoruki and told her of her unhappiness, using -the very selfsame words that you have just repeated to me as having -heard while on your pillow.” The Empress thereupon told Miss Eager that -she was sleeping on the very bed which Alexander II’s wife had used and -upon which she died. The next day, the Empress herself, insisted that -the entire furnishings of the room be changed and that a new bed be -installed. It is said that Alexander II, after the death of his wife, -wanted to marry the Princess Dolgoruki, which indeed, he may have done -morganatically. Miss Eager was deeply impressed by this experience and -in the mind of the Empress there was no question or shadow of doubt -whatever.</p> - -<p>Another incident related by Miss Eager in connection with the Empress -occurred in the Palace at Peterhof. One night, according to her custom, -the Empress entered Miss Eager’s room. Miss Eager relates that she awoke -to find herself being shaken by Her Majesty who was crying, “Awake!<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_162" id="page_162">{162}</a></span> -awake! come back!” and when Miss Eager came to her senses, she realised -that she was crying bitterly. “What is it? What is it?” exclaimed the -Empress. “I have been here five minutes shaking you and you would not -wake up; what is the matter?” Miss Eager replied that she must have had -a nightmare. The Empress insisted upon knowing what Miss Eager had seen -in her unhappy dream, whereupon, the nursery governess related that in -her dream, she appeared to be in a town of some far distant country—a -southern land. The streets were badly lighted; many of them were narrow -and the people round about her who filled the streets, were dark and -swarthy. Traversing these streets, she presently came to a great -building before which a crowd had collected. As she stood and wondered -what interest held the people, an open carriage drove up. The thought -flashed through her mind, “Royalty must be expected; who can it be?” -Just then, out of the building came an elderly gentleman whom Miss Eager -did not recognise, but he was followed closely by a man in uniform. -After the man got into the carriage, there was the glint of flashing -steel and immediately the oldish man dropped back apparently lifeless. -At once, all was turned into a mad dream and Miss Eager found herself -trying to crush the Empress and the Royal Princesses under the seat of -the carriage. Whereupon, the Empress laughed and said, “You can see for -yourself, that it was only a dream, for you could not shove me under the -seat of the carriage even if<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_163" id="page_163">{163}</a></span> you could succeed in putting the children -there.” When the Empress had gone Miss Eager once more drifted off into -sleep. In the morning when she awoke, she was tired and nervous as if -after some long journey. When Mary, the nurse, came in, she said, “Why, -Miss Eager, what is the matter with you this morning?” and Miss Eager -told her that in the night she had had a terrible dream in which she had -seen a man in a carriage murdered. At breakfast time, when she saw the -Empress, she said, “Have you had any more nightmares?” and then turning -to the Emperor, who had just entered the room, Her Majesty directed Miss -Eager to relate to him the hideous dream of the night before. Whereupon, -Miss Eager related the unhappy scenes of her nightmare. The Tsar -listened with the utmost attention and when Miss Eager had finished -speaking, he said, “Miss Eager, I hope that you won’t be very much -frightened because what you saw in your dream last night was an incident -which occurred in a town of Northern Italy where His Majesty, King -Humbert, was assassinated at precisely the hour that the Empress entered -your room and in that manner that you describe in your dream.” Miss -Eager, like a flash, remembered the picture she had seen of the late -King of Italy and it was the man whom she had seen enter the carriage -followed by the officer in uniform! As the Tsar told her this, he held -in his hand a telegram which had just been received detailing the news -of this assassination.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_164" id="page_164">{164}</a></span></p> - -<p>On one occasion, the Empress told Miss Eager that all her life she had -been much interested in the spiritual world, but that she had come to -the conclusion that it was wrong to meddle with such things because if -there was anything in it, it must come from the devil.</p> - -<p>Early one evening, the Empress entered the nursery and told the children -that she was going to dinner and would probably be very late, -consequently would not come in to see them on her return, as was her -wont. There was going to be a séance after the dinner. The next day, -Miss Eager took occasion to ask Her Majesty if she had enjoyed the -séance. The Tsaritsa proceeded to tell her all about a clairvoyant -called Philippe but with a note of bitterness in her recital, for she -said that Philippe had mesmerised her husband and made him do exactly -what he told him. The Empress steadfastly refused to see Philippe after -that. Just what occurred at this séance, the Empress never did say, at -least to Miss Eager, but it was quite clear to her that Her Majesty had -been unfavourably impressed and that she would have nothing more to do -with the mysterious Frenchman. Considerable pressure was brought to bear -upon the Empress by various ladies of the Court to persuade her to go -once more to Philippe, but she never would do it.</p> - -<p>These incidents indicating this phase of the Tsaritsa’s character are, -of course, sympathetically interpreted by Miss Eager because she, -herself, be<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_165" id="page_165">{165}</a></span>lieves so absolutely in the spirit world, in dreams and -intuitions.</p> - -<p>For example, before Port Arthur was beseiged, Miss Eager in a dream saw -its fall and told the Empress about it. The Empress afterwards reminded -her of this dream and deeply regretted that the Tsar had not taken -counsel from Miss Eager’s vision rather than from Philippe.</p> - -<p>On another occasion, Miss Eager told Mary, the nurse, to go and tell a -certain lift-man in the Palace that he was not to work that day as, in a -dream, she had seen him terribly crushed and mangled, but Mary laughed -and refused to convey the message. Miss Eager thought it seemed rather -foolish and so did not insist upon sending the message to the man. That -afternoon, when she returned from the daily drive with the Grand -Duchesses, the Empress sent for her and said, “Miss Eager, this morning, -you told Mary to warn the lift-man not to work to-day and Mary refused -to carry your message.” Miss Eager said, “Yes, that is true.” “Well,” -said the Empress, “I sent for you because I wanted to tell you myself -that while you were out with the children, the lift-man was killed.”</p> - -<p>Another curious incident which is hard to explain occurred at the time -of the death of Princess Ella, a daughter of the Grand Duke of Hesse, a -charming child of seven years, who succumbed to an illness of only 36 -hours’ duration,—apparently ptomaine poisoning. The child was staying -at the time with her Royal uncle and aunt, the Tsar<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_166" id="page_166">{166}</a></span> and Tsaritsa at the -Palace in Poland. While the child was ill, and just before her life -spark was extinguished, two of the Russian Grand Duchesses, Olga and -Tatiana, who were sleeping together in a neighbouring room, suddenly -began to scream frantically. The Empress, the physicians in attendance -upon Princess Ella and Miss Eager rushed into the room where the -children were and saw them standing in their beds and shrieking in -terror. It was long before they could be pacified and then they told how -they had seen a strange man with flowing robes and great wings, walk -through their room. While they were still telling of the fearful -apparition, the eyes of both the children suddenly became dilated with -terror and both of them simultaneously pointing in the same direction, -cried, “Look! Look! There he is again. Don’t you see him? He is going -into Ella’s room. Poor Ella! Poor Ella!” Of course, none of the adults -could see anything and the physicians assured the Empress that it was -but an attack of childish hysteria which had suddenly and strangely come -upon both children. Only a few moments later, the Empress and the -physicians were hurriedly summoned to the bedside of the dying child -who, lapsing into a state of coma, died in the Tsaritsa’s arms. To this -day, the Empress, as well as the Emperor and Miss Eager, are convinced -that the children actually saw this Angel of Death passing into the room -of the dying Princess. At least, it is true that there are many similar -inex<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_167" id="page_167">{167}</a></span>plicable cases on record of children and sometimes of animals, as -well as of dying persons, having supernatural vision at moments of -death. Horses, for example, have been known to become terror-stricken -when passing the scene of a murder, while the well-known death-rap is of -such common occurrence that there can be no doubt of its existence.</p> - -<p>These incidents are related in order to explain much that is otherwise -inexplicable in the character of the Tsaritsa. The mental development -which she has experienced through her entire life has been logical and -in natural sequence. Her early philosophical and theological interests -have simply been developed abnormally in the abnormal environment in -which she has lived. While the Empress has been ever sceptical when -conversing with her friends and reluctant to accept as reality, -manifestations of the spirit world, there can be no doubt that both she -and the Emperor have nevertheless been secretly convinced that they are -both instruments of God as well as possessing the power of holding -converse with the spirit world.</p> - -<p>This is proved by the canonisation of Seraphim, the parish priest of -Tambov, whose tomb they visited prior to the birth of the heir, Alexis. -Seraphim had been dead seventy years, but the Tsar, anxious to leave no -stone unturned to procure a son and heir, encouraged by the Tsaritsa, -insisted upon the canonisation of Seraphim. When the remains of the old -priest were unearthed, it was found that the body was badly decomposed,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_168" id="page_168">{168}</a></span> -and to canonise a man whose body yields to the influence of -decomposition is contrary to the traditions and customs of the Church. -Orthodox Bishop Dmitry of Tambov made bold to call attention to this -fact and protest the canonisation of Seraphim. For his temerity, the -Tsar, deeply angered, ordered that Dmitry be deprived of his see and -exiled to Viatka. According to Emperor Nicholas, the preservation of -bones, hair and teeth were sufficient qualification for saintship. -Furthermore His Majesty was upheld in this by various sycophant but -prophetic monks, who, with sublime assurance, allowed that God will one -day work a miracle and restore Seraphim’s body. So Seraphim was -canonised with great pomp and ritualistic solemnity. If anything were -needed to fasten the belief of the Tsar and Tsaritsa in these extreme -forms of religion it was the patent answer to their faith and trust in -Philippe and Seraphim.</p> - -<p>The boy was called Alexis and he was born on July 30, 1904, according to -the Russian calendar, and since that time, Tsar and Tsaritsa have been -given more and more to spiritualistic religion.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_169" id="page_169">{169}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="VI-b" id="VI-b"></a>CHAPTER VI<br /><br /> -FAMILY LIFE AT THE RUSSIAN COURT</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Of</span> recent years, since the war with Japan and the revolutionary outbreak -in 1905-6, few court functions have been held. In the ordinary daily -routine the Tsaritsa prefers to breakfast alone, to lunch with only one -lady-in-waiting and the Emperor with but one adjutant. The dinners are -likewise simple as often as is possible. The older children are brought -in for meals when there are no guests. The tastes of both Tsar and -Tsaritsa are equally simple as to food and to dress. The Tsar’s -favourite uniform is that of Colonel of one of his regiments, except in -the summer, when he frequently appears in hunting costume—an English -Norfolk jacket, knee trousers and leggings or high boots.</p> - -<p>English is the language generally used by the Royal Family when -alone,—English and German. The Tsaritsa speaks Russian quite correctly, -but with a marked German accent. This is not strange in view of the fact -that she did not begin to study the language until after her betrothal. -Like most Germans, she speaks French poorly and consequently French has -never been a popular language<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_170" id="page_170">{170}</a></span> with them, although the Tsar speaks it -most excellently well.</p> - -<p>Because English is used so much by the Emperor and Empress it is the -popular language in court circles and among officers. Many Russians send -their children to England when they are very young in order that English -may be their first language. I have known many Russians who spoke -English absolutely perfectly; fluently and without the slightest trace -of foreign accent. The children of the Tsar and Tsaritsa use English -most.</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa’s voice is low and deep, not unmusical. Her laugh is light, -usually breaking into a silvery falsetto. She is slightly taller than -the Tsar, being about five feet eight and one-half inches, while he is -barely five feet eight inches. Her face still wears an expression of -soft, wistful beauty, which is enhanced by a small mole near the corner -of her mouth. It is so small that it frequently is not noticed at all, -but if one stands near her it is observed and not unpleasantly.</p> - -<p>Miss Eager relates an incident which reveals the curious stolidity not -to say cold-bloodedness of the character of the Empress. The Empress had -gone to the christening of a battleship at St. Petersburg and returned -to the Palace at St. Petersburg in the evening. In the nursery the -Empress told Miss Eager how the officers of the ship had been drawn up -in line for the ceremony when a sudden thunderstorm had descended and a -peculiarly vivid flash of lightning had struck a flagstaff nearby, -shat<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_171" id="page_171">{171}</a></span>tering as it fell and striking some of the officers. One man rolled -right to the feet of the Empress and her dress had been splashed with -blood. The Dowager Empress had fainted at this sight, but the Empress -herself insisted that the man had died in the service of his country and -that consequently it was not a matter for mourning!</p> - -<p>Of late years, the health of the Empress has been decidedly shattered. -During the summer of 1910, the Tsar took her for a long holiday to -Germany. She visited her childhood home of Darmstadt and later took a -cure at a watering-place known for its beneficial effects upon people -suffering from nervous and heart disorders.</p> - -<p>During the summer of 1907 when the Imperial Family were holidaying on -the yacht, <i>Standart</i>, off the islands of Finland, there was an attempt -to do away with the entire family, the full details of which have never -leaked out into the broad world. It is known, however, that this attempt -was the result of a conspiracy which included some of the officers and -men of the Royal yacht. The shock which the Empress sustained at that -time, she has never recovered from and more or less sensational rumours -are frequently given to the world suggesting the precarious condition of -her mind as well as of her nerves.</p> - -<p>From this extraordinarily exclusive family life, which is at present the -rule at Peterhof and Tsarskoe-Selo (the two places where the Imperial -Family spend most of their time) the Tsar has<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_172" id="page_172">{172}</a></span> come to be spoken of -among the Grand Dukes and people of the court as “The Little Married -Man.” This phrase is indicative of the supercilious way that family life -is regarded in Russia. Americans are frequently horrified at the -nonchalant way that Russian nobles flaunt their mistresses about the -streets and public restaurants of St. Petersburg.</p> - -<p>The Tsar, as a young man, was probably as fast as any of his court, but -after his marriage he settled down wonderfully. Whether he still has his -wayward periods, as gossip sometimes asserts, I do not know. On the -whole he is a good husband and a fond father. He undoubtedly appreciates -the tremendous love the Tsaritsa pours upon him.</p> - -<p>The attitude of the Tsaritsa toward the education of the Russian people -will seem somewhat extraordinary to Americans, though after all it is -probably consistent with her life. In this, as in everything else, she -accepts the attitude of her liege and lord, the sovereign of the Russian -people. When a certain Count Tolstoy (not the late Leo Tolstoy) was -Minister of Public Instruction he once appealed to the Empress to aid -him in extending the educational advantages of the Empire to the girls -and young women of the country. (I have Count Tolstoy’s own permission -to relate this incident.)</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa listened to the Minister attentively as he set forth the -needs of Russia in this direction, and when he had concluded she replied -that she thought all young girls should be taught to sew,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_173" id="page_173">{173}</a></span> to care for -their homes, in short, to become helpful wives and good mothers, but as -for granting them the privileges of so-called “higher education,” -knowledge of history, philosophy and the sciences—to this she was -entirely opposed. “Because these studies, when offered to women, only -result in such terrible times as Russia is now passing through.”</p> - -<p>This, surely, is a remarkable tribute to the women of Russia, the -Tsaritsa holding them responsible for the movement toward liberty and -freedom, as a result of their contact with education and culture!</p> - -<p>On the other hand, the Tsaritsa sometimes generously encourages the -extension of school opportunities to individual girls whose efforts -happen to have been brought to her attention. For example, Miss Eager, -who for six years was governess to the little Grand Duchesses, and who -probably saw as much of the Tsaritsa during those years as anyone -outside of the Royal Family has ever seen, relates this anecdote, which -I repeat with particular gladness, because it is one of the few of the -kind that I have heard concerning Her Majesty.</p> - -<p>“This story was told me by the Empress herself,” says Miss Eager. “One -morning there arrived on the train from the Caucasus, a little girl aged -eleven. She approached a station porter and asked to be sent to the -Minister of Education. The porter was greatly astonished and hesitated -as to what he should do. Then the child said with oldish<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_174" id="page_174">{174}</a></span> solemnity, ‘I -have come from the Caucasus, a seven days’ journey, to be put to school; -you must please get me a droshky and send me to his house.’ So the -porter called a carriage and directed that she be driven to the Ministry -of Education. Arriving there she had great difficulty in gaining -admission to the Minister, but the doorman finally consented to tell the -Minister that a little girl from the Caucasus desired to see him.</p> - -<p>“The Minister was occupied at the moment, with a Secretary of the -Empress, but the latter was interested in the message and the child was -ushered into the office. The little girl bowed to the two dignitaries -and proceeded to relate her case. The Minister appeared greatly amused -and told the child she must return to her home, as he had no vacancy. -But the little girl was persistent and soon showed that she had no idea -of returning so easily to her distant home across the Empire. ‘You are -Minister of Education,’ she exclaimed, ‘and I have come all the way from -the Caucasus to St. Petersburg to be put to school. You <i>must</i> put me -somewhere.’ The Minister, though puzzled, was beginning to be impressed. -At last the Empress’s Secretary begged that the child be cared for until -there was a vacancy in one of the schools patronised by the Tsaritsa. -These schools are few in number and are very exclusive. A note was -thereupon written by the Minister to the Mistress of one of these -schools and the little girl was sent to her under escort of a footman. -The joy of the child was un<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_175" id="page_175">{175}</a></span>bounded and she could scarcely express her -gratitude to the Minister.</p> - -<p>“The Secretary went that afternoon to Peterhof and related the incident -to the Tsaritsa herself. The Empress asked that an inquiry be made -immediately and the truth of the child’s story substantiated. The -investigation showed that the two older sisters of the child had been -admitted to a local school, but there was no room for her. She took this -greatly to heart and fretted over it until at last she determined to get -a schooling anyway. She appealed to friends, to the local priest and the -doctor, and all of their combined efforts to reconcile her to the ‘Will -of God’ proved futile. At last, to pacify her, they subscribed enough -money for a ticket to the capital, and the child set forth on her long -journey all alone.</p> - -<p>“When the Empress heard the story in detail, her heart was touched and -she commanded that place be made for her in one of her own schools. The -child is there to-day, receiving careful instruction, and enjoying the -direct patronage of the Empress.”</p> - -<p>The Empress really loves all children, and in spite of the coolness -which exists between her and her court, all children are fond of her. On -the name day of each of her own children, she takes a long drive with -the child whose celebration it is, and this event is much looked forward -to by them all. Whatever leniency may be exercised in correcting the -capricious whims of Alexis, I believe<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_176" id="page_176">{176}</a></span> that she is a strict mother with -all of her daughters.</p> - -<p>The Empress has few recreations. Owing to the fact that she rides badly -she practically never rides for pleasure. Because of her disposition she -has few, if any, real confidantes and intimate friends among the ladies -of the Court. She has ladies-in-waiting—several hundred of them—but -these are chiefly for formal occasions, and of her own choice she has -but one near her at a time and different ladies are chosen for brief -periods. Evenings she and the Emperor choose to retire to their private -apartments and if she has no guests she reads aloud to him, not -infrequently from English newspapers or an English novel.</p> - -<p>The Tsar is fond of cards. The game of wint, a gambling game much played -all over Russia, is a favourite of his, and he usually plays for high -stakes, much enjoying the zest that the gambling element lends to the -game. The Tsaritsa, on the other hand, is fond of the camera, and enjoys -photography immensely. The children have few playmates apart from their -own family and sometimes Royal cousins, children of one or another of -the Grand Dukes, or one of the Royal relatives of their own mother or -father abroad.</p> - -<p>The Princess Ella, daughter of the present Grand Duke of Hesse and -brother to the Tsaritsa, was a playmate whom the little Russian Grand -Duchesses adored up to the sad and untimely death of the German -Princess. Being left most of the time to themselves, the children of the -Tsar and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_177" id="page_177">{177}</a></span> Tsaritsa enjoy joining their mother in her pastimes when it is -possible, and photography is one of the things that they all can do -together.</p> - -<p>The Emperor has always done some shooting each year and is really fond -of the sport. One morning a few summers ago he returned to the Palace -quite fatigued, having been out all night after blackcock. Blackcock -shooting is considered right good sport because the birds are so shy -that it is difficult to get near them, and indeed, it is only at certain -times of the year that they can be shot at all. On the morning that I -refer to the Empress greeted the Royal sportsman and turning to a friend -said: “Blackcock can only be shot at the mating season, when the males -are pouring forth their song in deaf and blind rapture.” Could anything -be more cruel than to kill them at such a time?</p> - -<p>In the summer the Tsaritsa is fond of sailing in and out among the -Finnish wherries, but this annual outing is for two or three weeks only. -Previous to “Bloody Sunday” in January, 1905, the Winter Palace in St. -Petersburg was occupied, but since that fateful day the two outlying -palaces only have been used. This has been a disappointment to Grand -Duchess Olga, who always loved the Winter Palace and often expresses the -wish to “live there all the time.” The Winter Palace is the largest -building in Europe and is a marvel in appointments. It contains rarest -malachites and jaspers, rich paintings, gifts galore that have been<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_178" id="page_178">{178}</a></span> -showered upon other Tsars, priceless jewels, and wonderful carved -furniture. Besides the great rooms of state, salons and banquet rooms, -suites of residence, libraries, offices, and vast halls that are now -used as public museums, are beautiful winter gardens, great -conservatories rich in tropical plants, rare ferns and orchids, -blossoming plants exuding fragrance, and among the forest of greenery -hang many cages of singing birds. In the centre of these winter gardens -are pools of water in which gold fish sport, and at times pretty -fountains play into these pools.</p> - -<p>Whenever I have been in this wonderful palace I have felt as if I were -wandering through a dream world. Several times I have been through -portions of this palace and each time I have felt a new thrill of -unreality.</p> - -<p>The occasion of my first visit was when the Tsar received the members of -the first Duma, the occasion when I first saw the Tsaritsa, the Dowager -Empress and the little Grand Duchesses. The Tsar had commanded all of -the grand dames of the Court to appear in full court costume, and the -result was a scene of unparalleled splendour, a spectacle imposing -beyond imagination. The Throne Room and halls that were in use that day -suggested scenes from the magnificent days of the Empire of France when -beautiful women and emblazoned, uniformed men arrayed themselves in -costumes of glittering splendour. The old Russian court costumes which -were worn in the Winter Palace that</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_10" id="ill_10"></a> -<a href="images/ill_010_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_010_sml.jpg" width="550" height="193" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE WINTER PALACE, THE SCENE OF “BLOODY SUNDAY.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_179" id="page_179">{179}</a></span>”</p></div> -</div> - -<p class="nind">day were quite as splendid as any the French ever conceived even in the -days of greatest pomp and show.</p> - -<p>On another occasion I was received at the Winter Palace by a well-known -and powerful nobleman of the Court, who has been close to the Empress -for many years in the dual capacity of high functionary and friend. He -is one to whom my high thanks are due for some of the material contained -in these articles, for he not only told me some of the anecdotes which -are here related, but he verified much of the material that I had -collected from other persons and sources.</p> - -<p>Peterhof is the favourite residence of the Tsaritsa and four of her five -children were born there. One of the several buildings of this palace -boasts a charming romantic history. About half a century ago when the -first Nicholas was soon to be Emperor of Russia, he paid a visit to the -German court. During the visit a tournament was held and Nicholas, then -a Grand Duke, acquitted himself with honour. At the close of the -tournament the victors rode past and close under a balcony, where were -seated the ladies of the court and the Royal Family. A young Prussian -Princess tossed a wreath of roses which the Russian Grand Duke caught on -his sword.</p> - -<p>The incident proved the beginning of an attachment which culminated in -their marriage. Some years after, when the Grand Duke had become -Emperor, he bought the great park of Peterhof and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_180" id="page_180">{180}</a></span> built a palace for -his Empress. Remembering the incident of the wreath of roses, at the -tournament at the Prussian court, the device of a sword and a wreath of -roses was made the predominant decorative figure of the palace. You may -see it there to-day. Now as then, Peterhof belongs to the ruling -Empress. Tsarskoe-Selo is an Imperial residence belonging to the -government. Both of these palaces are within an hour of St. Petersburg.</p> - -<p>Any visitor may stroll through the outer gardens and adjoining parks of -the palaces and at any time one may meet the Tsaritsa or the Grand -Duchesses driving or riding. The Tsar is the only real prisoner of the -family, although Alexis, the four-year-old heir, is jealously guarded.</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa rides badly. Despite the fact that she is commander and -“honorary Colonel” of at least two cavalry regiments she does not sit a -horse well and never rides for pleasure. In this respect she is very -unlike many modern Queens, notably the Empress Elizabeth of Austria, who -was a marvellous horsewoman, possessing that rare hypnotic influence -over the most spirited horses that the animals themselves are quick to -recognise and yield to. It is only on such occasions as a review of one -of her own regiments that the Tsaritsa mounts a horse. Ordinarily she -drives—in summer in an open carriage, and generally unescorted.</p> - -<p>The children may from time to time be seen playing about the lawns with -a favourite pony, or driving in little wicker-work carts. They are as<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_181" id="page_181">{181}</a></span> -full of frolic as any little girl in America, and in the nursery and the -household apartments of the palaces they are as ingenuous, as -irrepressible and often quite as embarrassing as any children we all -know. Royal manners, at least in the children, are no different from -manners of other people, and the daughters of even an Emperor and -Empress have sometimes to be rebuked quite as severely as any children -the world over.</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa dresses very plainly. Richly often, but in general effect -simple. The Court has never approved her clothes, chiefly, I think, -because of her inability to wear good clothes well. As a child she -dressed in the utmost simplicity and the habit has remained with her. At -certain court functions etiquette prescribes her costume. When she dons -court dress known as Old Russian, she has merely to wear elaborate -clothes that have been described in detail for her generations ago. It -is when she dons costumes for everyday wear that she fails to please a -fastidious court.</p> - -<p>The average American girl very naturally thinks of the clothes of the -Tsaritsa of Russia with a combined feeling of awe and interest, with -just a little of envy creeping in. Imagine having all the money you want -to spend on your clothes and being able to wear jewels valued at -millions of dollars. And, of course, the American girl wants to know all -the details of the Tsaritsa’s wardrobe, and how many hats and dresses -she has each season, and how much they cost.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_182" id="page_182">{182}</a></span></p> - -<p>It may be a disappointing fact, but it is nevertheless true, that the -Tsaritsa just hates the thought of clothes, and though her costumes are -of expensive fabrics, they never have any chic individuality of their -own, for the very good reason that she cares so little about them. Of -course, she does her shopping in Paris, but she does it by proxy. One of -the Ladies-in-Waiting is commissioned to buy each season her gowns and -her hats and all the other little details appropriate for a Tsaritsa’s -wardrobe, in Paris, but many times when they reach the Tsaritsa, she -discards them with the expression, “Indeed, that is perfectly lovely and -very Frenchy, but it would never do for me at all.”</p> - -<p>The corsetiere in Paris who makes the Tsaritsa’s stays has troubles of -her own, for the Tsaritsa utterly refuses to change her figure to suit -the ever-changing modes. Her waist is growing large of late, according -to the Parisian idea of a fashionable figure, but this doesn’t trouble -the Tsaritsa as much as it would trouble many women in America.</p> - -<p>For everyday wear her gowns are all of the plainest, but, of course, -there are occasions when she must wear regal robes. Her court costume is -a magnificent creation of the richest satin elaborately trimmed with -heavy embroidery. Masses of the embroidery are used, while the corsage -is laden with jewelled trimming. The buttons which trim this court -costume are each one of them worth a small fortune. They consist of a -large pearl in a wonderfully artistic setting. The Tsaritsa’s pearls,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_183" id="page_183">{183}</a></span> -which she wears with her court costume are famous the world over.</p> - -<p>It is no wonder she has all of these magnificent things, for in addition -to the hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of gifts that she has -herself received from her subjects and from fabulously rich kings, -princes and potentates of the East and Central Asia, she has at her -disposal jewels that belong to the Russian Crown—gifts to other -Empresses, and Emperors, far back, perhaps for several hundred years.</p> - -<p>Sometimes she wears drop-earrings of matched pearls, which are -marvellously valuable, and her dog collar and necklace and corsage pin, -also of pearls, have a value of millions of dollars. The Tsaritsa is -always glad when the time comes for her to take off her court costume. -The long, heavy train is a burden to her. She is very partial to -light-in-weight gowns.</p> - -<p>Many of her dresses are of the lingerie order, consisting of lace and -fine nainsook.</p> - -<p>Yet, on the other hand, she has many house gowns and cloaks of velvet, -trimmed with rare laces. Perhaps, of all her jewels, she cares most for -a long string of wonderful pearls, which she wears very often. The -string is so long that she can wear it twice around her neck, and yet -have the longest loop reach to her knees. The short loop comes to the -waistline, and is finished with one single pear-shaped pearl of enormous -value.</p> - -<p>All the children’s clothes are made according to<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_184" id="page_184">{184}</a></span> the Tsaritsa’s idea, -and simplicity is their key-note. The children are very apt to wear -white entirely, and the four little girls are dressed exactly alike. -Their hair is arranged in the same way, too, brushed straight back from -their foreheads. Of course, the finest of materials is used in making -their clothes, but the design is always extremely simple. Their -christening costumes were all made alike, even the small boy’s this -time. They were of the sheerest of white mull with exquisitely fine lace -insertions. The little dresses had short sleeves and were cut out round -at the neck, and tied on the shoulders with white ribbon, having long, -silk fringe. The shoulder bows were the dress-up touch, the touch which -is so seldom seen in any of the costumes worn by the Tsaritsa’s -children.</p> - -<p>The young man of the family is also usually dressed in white, and though -his little Russian suits come from Paris, they are strictly plain in -design, generally of heavy white linen, and trimmed with bands of -embroidery.</p> - -<p>All these little details may be commonplace, but they are perhaps all -important when we are trying to analyse the character of the Tsaritsa -through her tastes.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_185" id="page_185">{185}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="VII-b" id="VII-b"></a>CHAPTER VII<br /><br /> -THE GRAND DUCHESS OLGA</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> effect of the war upon the children of the Tsaritsa caused much pain -to their gentle English governess, Miss Eager, who relates the following -experience: “It was very sad to witness the wrathful, vindictive spirit -that the war raised in my little charges. One of the illustrated papers -had a picture of the baby children of the Crown Prince of Japan. Marie -and Anastasie came running across to see the picture, and wanted to know -who those queer little children were. I told them, and with a look of -hatred coming into her sweet face Marie slapped the picture with her -open hand. ‘Horrid little people,’ said she; ‘they came and destroyed -our poor ships and drowned our sailors.’<span class="lftspc">”</span> Miss Eager then explained to -the little Grand Duchess that it was not these children who had done -this terrible thing, because they were only babies and could not -possibly fight. But Marie answered obstinately, “Yes; those little -babies did it. Mamma told me the Japs were all only little people!”</p> - -<p>Olga, as usual, was yet more bitter toward the Japanese. One day she -opened up vituperatively: “I hope the Russian soldiers will kill all of -the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_186" id="page_186">{186}</a></span> Japanese; not leave even one alive.” Her teacher tried to explain -that there were many little children and women in Japan, who had nothing -whatever to do with the war and could not fight under any circumstances. -Would it be good, she asked of Olga, for the Russian soldiers to kill -these too? The child was thoughtful for a moment, then asked: “Have they -an Emperor in Japan?” “Yes, certainly,” the teacher answered. Olga then -asked several more questions, and finally remarked: “I did not know that -the Japs were people like ourselves. I thought they were only like -monkeys.”</p> - -<p>Olga, like so many children, who are the oldest in a family, has always -been a handful. About Marie, and Anastasie, and Tatiana too, for that -matter, are many pretty little stories of charming childish ways, but -almost every anecdote I heard of Olga was when she had been up to some -mischief, or disobedient, or stubborn, or quick of temper. One or two of -these stories, however, are interesting and show that even the mother -task of an Empress’s life is very much like every mother’s life, and -especially in the case of the Tsaritsa who has ever undertaken so much -more personal care of her children than most Queens—and one may even -say, than many mothers right here in this land.</p> - -<p>One day, before the outbreak of the war, when Olga was quite a little -girl, she was taken for a drive with her nurse along the Nevsky -Prospect, the principal street in St. Petersburg. The little Grand -Duchess simply would not behave. She<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_187" id="page_187">{187}</a></span> was continually jumping up and -attracting the attention of people along the streets, and as it was that -time in the afternoon when the Nevsky is crowded, this meant pretty much -the attention of all St. Petersburg.</p> - -<p>Suddenly the child dropped back into her seat and sat bolt upright as -quiet as you please, her hands folded demurely in her lap. After a -moment she turned to her nurse and said: “Did you see that policeman?” -The nurse replied she had, but there was nothing extraordinary about a -policeman on the street. “But this one was writing something,” pursued -Olga. “I am afraid he was writing, ‘I saw Olga and she was very -naughty.’<span class="lftspc">”</span></p> - -<p>When the nurse replied that this was unlikely Olga reminded her, -somewhat reproachfully, that a few days before they had seen a policeman -arresting a woman who was under the influence of liquor, and when Olga -had begged that the woman be let off the nurse had replied that the -woman had been very naughty and deserved to be arrested, adding that one -had to be very naughty indeed to be taken off by the policeman in that -way.</p> - -<p>The incident evidently made a deep impression upon the child, for no -sooner had they got back to the Palace than Olga began to inquire if any -policeman had been there for her. As soon as she could, she related the -whole affair to the Tsar and the Tsaritsa and ended by asking her father -if he had ever been arrested. The Emperor laughed and said he had never -been quite naughty enough<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_188" id="page_188">{188}</a></span> for that, to which Olga exclaimed: “Oh! how -very good you must always have been!”</p> - -<p>A little while before this Olga had been naughty all day and her nurse -said to her: “I am afraid you got out of bed with the wrong foot -foremost this morning.” Olga looked thoughtful for a moment but said -nothing. The next morning, before getting out of bed she called to her -nurse to ask which was the right foot for her to get out with. The nurse -indicated one of her feet and Olga slowly descended upon it. “Now,” she -said, “that bad foot won’t be able to make me naughty to-day.” And all -day, whenever Olga started to do things she ought not to do, the nurse -had only to remind her that she had got out of bed with her right foot -that morning, therefore she couldn’t be contrary.</p> - -<p>Tatiana’s next youngest sister, the Grand Duchess Marie, one day caused -a ripple of amusement in the same Winter Palace. She was looking out of -one of the windows when a regiment of soldiers marched past, through the -magnificent Winter Palace Square over which a colossal Angel of Peace -broods, perched on a towering marble column. Suddenly Marie exclaimed, -“Oh! I love these dear soldiers; I should like to kiss them all!”</p> - -<p>One of the family who was standing near overheard the child’s remark and -said: “Marie, nice little girls don’t kiss soldiers.”</p> - -<p>Marie made no reply, but a little later there was a children’s party at -the Palace, and among the guests were the children of the Grand Duke -Con<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_189" id="page_189">{189}</a></span>stantine. One of the boys, aged twelve, had just entered in the -military school where high noblemen’s sons are trained for the army—the -<i>Corps de Pages</i>. This miniature officer arrived in his brand new -uniform and as he met his cousin Marie he made to kiss her. But Marie -sprang away, covering her mouth with her hand. “Go away, soldier,” she -cried. “I don’t kiss soldiers—nice little girls don’t kiss soldiers.”</p> - -<p>Her cousin was so well pleased at being taken for a real soldier that he -readily forgave his dignified little cousin for declining his proffered -kiss.</p> - -<p>Tatiana and Marie have always been sweet children, and, on the whole -even tempered if mischievous. Olga, however, the eldest, has never been -so popular. In 1899, when Olga was four years old the Royal Family -(which then included only three children), went to Moscow for a brief -sojourn. While there the Empress decided to have portraits painted of -the three children.</p> - -<p>The artist who was entrusted with this commission began to take -innumerable photographs of them all. This was preliminary to the -sittings. The sittings proved tedious and tiresome and after the fourth -or fifth sitting Grand Duchess Olga quite lost her patience and her -temper, and at last exclaimed to the artist: “You are a very ugly man -and I don’t like you a bit.”</p> - -<p>To the amusement of several members of the Imperial Household the artist -was much hurt by this Royal comment, and offended as well. He even<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_190" id="page_190">{190}</a></span> -ventured to resent the child’s outburst. “You are the first lady who has -ever said I was ugly, and moreover, I’m not a man—I’m a gentleman,” he -replied.</p> - -<p>Ladies of the Court were always loath to talk about Olga. “She is -cranky,” said one. “She is not nice,” said another. And one grand lady -of honour went so far as to shrug her shoulders and say: “She is like -her mother!” When I pressed this and begged her tell me more, the lady -merely referred to the haughty, disdainful manner of the Empress. I -think I have explained this attitude as I have understood it.</p> - -<p>The Empress received very little sympathy and consideration from the -ladies of her Court from her first coming to Russia, and she soon came -to hold her head high and walk heedless through the throng. She -apparently gave no effort to winning friends but accepted the atmosphere -which circumstances and an obstinate Court created for her. Perhaps the -consciousness of her lack of popularity wore upon her, and rasped. That -wide popularity of the Dowager Empress, and her lack of cordiality -toward her young successor doubtless tended to further develop the very -qualities that have been her bane. At all events her disposition toward -most of the people of her Court has never been happy, and their silent -resentment of her coolness has driven her more and more into herself, to -the consolations of religion, and her family.</p> - -<p>One Lady-in-Waiting, for example, told me that<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_191" id="page_191">{191}</a></span> she had been attached to -the person of the Empress from time to time for a number of years. She -herself is a Princess of old family and in excellent standing at Court. -One day, when the Grand Duchess Olga was three years old the Princess -and the child were together in one of the nursery rooms. The Princess -stood with her back to one of the walls and Olga came toddling across -the room as fast as her little legs would carry her. The Princess -stretched out her arms, caught up the child and lightly tossed her -ceilingwards, then bringing her slowly down toward her own upturned -face, kissed her and set her down. At that moment the Empress entered -the room. She had no sooner seen this very natural action on the part of -her own Lady-in-Waiting than she exclaimed: “The most you may do is to -kiss the hand of my daughter!”</p> - -<p>St. Petersburg is full of similar gossiping incidents concerning the -Empress. Many of them are doubtless fabricated, as many such anecdotes -always are concerning people who occupy conspicuous positions in the -world, but the one I have just related is true, and all of these -anecdotes possess the virtue that they are likely—that they <i>may</i> be -true.</p> - -<p>One concluding anecdote of the Grand Duchess Olga is vouched for. One -day a professor from Moscow was giving the Grand Duchess Olga a lesson -in history. A Lady-in-Waiting was sitting by, as usual, to insure that -no dangerous doctrines are taught. Suddenly Olga looked up at her<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_192" id="page_192">{192}</a></span> -teacher and asked: “Who is Emperor of France?” The professor felt that -this was an embarrassing question, for it was as yet far too early to -undertake the explanation of a republican system of government. The -Lady-in-Waiting, however, was equal to the occasion, for seeing the -embarrassment of the professor, she answered, “In France the Emperor is -called <i>President</i>!<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_193" id="page_193">{193}</a></span>”</p> - -<h3><a name="VIII-b" id="VIII-b"></a>CHAPTER VIII<br /><br /> -TATIANA, MARIE AND ANASTASIE</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> Grand Duke Vladimir was wont to call the Grand Duchess Marie “The -Amiable Baby,” and from all accounts she is more like what her mother -was in babyhood than any of the children. Between her and her older -sister Olga is a world of difference. If half the stories about her are -true she is indeed the personification of sweetness and unselfishness.</p> - -<p>Whooping cough attacked the whole nursery one spring. Curiously enough -the Empress came down first and it quickly spread to all of the -children. Even the nurses caught it. One day one of the nurses was -holding the baby, Anastasie, on her lap. The little thing was coughing -and choking toward the whoop of relief when Marie ran up close to her, -and putting her face close up to her little sister’s said: “Baby, -darling, cough on me.” The nurse asked her why she desired that and she -answered: “I am so sorry to see my dear little sister so ill, and I -thought if I could take it from her she would be better.” A charmingly -generous impulse, surely!</p> - -<p>Marie is so frequently held up as a model and an example to the other -three sisters that she has been<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_194" id="page_194">{194}</a></span> nicknamed the “stepsister.” Her -amiability and sweetness are so marked that her sisters are ready to -admit that she cannot be more than half one of them!</p> - -<p>There is a pretty little story current of a nursery incident which -occurred one afternoon when the little Grand Duchesses were playing -house by piling up chairs. The other sisters entered into a conspiracy -against Marie. “You were to be the footman and wait outside,” they told -her. Marie was quite willing to be footman, but she protested against -leaving the nursery and standing all by herself in the hall. But the -others pushed her out and it looked as if poor little Marie would have -to submit. Suddenly she dashed into the nursery, her arms filled with -toys and dolls’ dresses. Rushing up to her sisters she dealt each a slap -and cried out: “I’ll not be a footman. I’ll be the kind, good aunt who -brings presents to the children.”</p> - -<p>She then proceeded to distribute her gifts, kissed each of her “nieces” -and sat down. The other children looked sheepishly at one another, and -at last Tatiana said: “We are too cruel to poor little Marie, she really -couldn’t help whipping us.” And after that Marie played with the others -in the nursery.</p> - -<p>The children are frequently admitted to where their parents are at tea -time, but they are not supposed to touch any of the cakes that are -served to the older people. It is difficult to prevent this<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_195" id="page_195">{195}</a></span> always, for -like all children, they want to sample the good things they see.</p> - -<p>One day, when no one was noticing Marie particularly, she helped herself -to some cake and began to gobble it down as fast as she could. With her -mouth still full, she looked up at the nurse who came to take her and -said: “Dere! I’ve eaten it all up. You tant det it now.”</p> - -<p>The Empress felt that Marie should be punished for this, so nurse was -told to take her off to bed. But the Emperor intervened, saying that he -had always feared Marie would be growing wings and he was glad to see -that she was only a human child after all!</p> - -<p>I remember one occasion when the Tsaritsa was covered with confusion by -the little Grand Duchess Tatiana. The Crown Prince of Siam was visiting -St. Petersburg and during part of his stay, he was a guest of the -Emperor and Empress, who were then occupying the Winter Palace. The -dusky Prince went to pay his respects to the nursery. The Empress -herself accompanied him to present the children.</p> - -<p>On the way they met Tatiana and the Empress called to her second -daughter: “Come, Tatiana, and shake hands with this gentleman.” Tatiana -held off shyly, looking askance and with manifest disapproval upon the -brown-skinned potentate from Siam. At last she exclaimed: “That is not a -gentleman, mamma; that’s a monkey!”</p> - -<p>The Empress flushed with mortification and re<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_196" id="page_196">{196}</a></span>torted: “You are a monkey -yourself, Tatiana.” The Prince laughed heartily at the incident and -before the end of the visit of his Imperial Highness to Petersburg, he -and Tatiana became fast friends.</p> - -<p>Tatiana has always been a bright child, with an amusing, alert mind. One -day she and her English governess were walking in the garden of the -Winter Palace, when one of the Emperor’s beautiful great collie dogs -came bounding along the path behind them. With a puppy-like caprice the -dog jumped on Tatiana’s back and threw her down. As the little Grand -Duchess clambered to her feet, the dog gamboled off down the path in a -mad frolic with another dog. Tatiana was not hurt, but considerably -frightened, and after gazing after the dogs for a moment in silence, -great salt tears began to drop down her cheeks. The governess tried to -comfort her by saying “Poor Sheilka, she did not mean to hurt you; she -only wanted to say ‘good morning’ to you.”</p> - -<p>Tatiana looked up at her governess and quickly replied: “Was that all? -Then I don’t think she is very polite; she should have said it to my -face, not to my back.”</p> - -<p>The Grand Duchess Tatiana is one of the sweetest of children. One day -when she was being got ready to go out, the governess went to get her -coat to go with them. When she returned, the nurse, Mary, was shaking -Tatiana. “How dare you shake Tatiana?” Miss Eager exclaimed. “You are -paid to take care of her,—not to correct her.” “She is<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_197" id="page_197">{197}</a></span> paid?” said -Tatiana in surprise. “Yes,” the governess replied, “She is paid and I, -also, am paid,” at which Tatiana put her head on the shoulder of the -governess and cried. “You have seen me get my money every month,” said -the governess. “I always thought it was a present to you,” the child -said. The governess then explained that it was necessary that she be -paid, as she had no money of her own and that her way of earning money -was looking after the Royal children. The next morning when the -governess awoke, Tatiana was standing by her bedside and she said, “May -I get into your bed?” As the little Grand Duchess cuddled down in the -arms of her governess, she exclaimed, “Anyway, you are not paid for -this.”</p> - -<p>Another day, as the Royal nursery was going to the beach at Livadia -after a terrible storm, the Grand Duchess Olga picked up a little dead -bird which had fallen on the grass and said, “I will keep this poor, -little bird forever.” The governess did not interfere but watched Olga -carry it, followed by Tatiana who was sympathetically interested. The -governess wondered how long the children would carry this bird before -getting tired of it. Presently, Olga said, “Perhaps I am doing wrong to -take this little bird away because even at this moment, God may have -sent an angel for the bird and what if it is not there? I am going to -put it back.” Whereupon, she retraced her steps to the spot where she -had found it. The next day they were going to the beach again and they -took the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_198" id="page_198">{198}</a></span> same path as on the previous day in order to look for the -bird. When they arrived at the spot where Olga had found and replaced -it, the bird was gone. “Suppose we had taken it away!” said Olga. “Then -God’s angel could not have found it.” “Oh,” replied Tatiana, “I think it -would have been perfectly lovely if He had taken it out of our hands!”</p> - -<p>Anastasie has always enjoyed the reputation of being the most -mischievous of all the children. One year, when the Dowager Empress was -about to celebrate her birthday, all of the Imperial children were -arranging their gifts for their grandmother. Anastasie, for reasons of -her own, determined not to take any part in these arrangements or to -select any gift for her grandmother. She refused even to learn a piece -of poetry to recite to her as all the other children did. “At all -events, she will take grandmamma a bouquet of lilies of the valley tied -with a bow of mauve ribbon?” “O yes, I will gather a bouquet in the -morning,” replied Anastasie. The following day, all the children were -dressed to go into the carriage to offer their congratulations to the -Dowager Empress. Anastasie alone, appeared with empty hands. “I thought -we were going to walk so that I could gather some wild flowers for -grandma; now I shall have none.” “When people go to offer -congratulations, they go in carriages,” their governess explained. -Anastasie thereupon went to the cupboard and took a little toy from it.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_199" id="page_199">{199}</a></span> -When the nursery arrived at the Palace, the other children gave their -grandmother gifts and recited their pieces of poetry until it came -Anastasie’s turn when she hung her head and all the other children -turned away with shame and chagrin for their sister. “Have you nothing -for grandma?” the Empress Dowager said. “Yes, I have brought this, -Grandma,” Anastasie replied. “But have you made nothing for me with your -own little hands?” “Nothing, Grandma,” was the answer. “Well, dear, you -are a very little child,” said the Empress Dowager, “but perhaps you -have learned a piece of poetry to say to me.” Anastasie looked more -chagrined than ever, but, unwilling to confess her negligence, thought -to deceive the Empress Dowager by repeating the following lines:</p> - -<div class="poetry"> -<div class="poem"><div class="stanza"> -<span class="i0">I have a pretty doll,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">Her name is Miss Rose,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">She has two pretty blue eyes,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">And a very small nose.<br /></span> -<span class="i0">She can’t stand long,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">On her tiny little toes,<br /></span> -<span class="i0">She just makes a curtsy,<br /></span> -<span class="i2">And then, off she goes.<br /></span> -</div></div> -</div> - -<p>“That is very pretty,” said the Empress, “but isn’t that what you said -to your mother last week?” Anastasie couldn’t stand it any longer and -fled from the room and burst into tears, but presently she went back to -her grandma to tell her how sorry she was and to beg her forgiveness. -The Empress accepted the child’s apology very sweetly, but told<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_200" id="page_200">{200}</a></span> her -that she could not give her the bonbon like the one she had given to all -the other children.</p> - -<p>Anastasie, one day, climbed onto the nursery table and jumped off. The -governess said, “You must not do that; it is too high; you can jump off -the sofa if you want to jump, but not off the table.” Paying no heed to -what had been said to her, Anastasie again climbed on the table and -jumped off. So her governess gently slapped her. Anastasie sat down and -thought a moment, then said, “It is not nice to get a slap, but it is -better to climb on the table and get a slap than to jump off the sofa -and not get a slap,” and she promptly climbed on the table once more and -jumped again. The governess then tied her in a chair with a sash. -Anastasie did not like this so she said, “It is better to climb on the -table and get a slap but it is better not to climb on the table than to -be tied in a chair like this.”</p> - -<p>The Emperor was with the children one day when Anastasie, in a burst of -temper, slapped Tatiana on the face. The Emperor promptly sent for the -nursery governess and told her to take Anastasie upstairs and make her -hear reason. When the governess had Anastasie alone, she said, “Aren’t -you ashamed of yourself to slap your sister?” “I am not ashamed at all,” -replied Anastasie, “because I did not really hurt Tatiana.” “But you -hurt Tatiana’s feelings,” the governess told her, “and you hurt your -father’s feelings.” “I did not hurt Tatiana so I won’t say ‘I am sorry’ -to her but<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_201" id="page_201">{201}</a></span> I am sorry I hurted poor daddy’s feelings,” and she -proceeded to go and tell her father how sorry she felt. The governess -allowed her to go downstairs. Anastasie went directly to the Tsar and -said: “Daddy, I am sorry I hurted your feelings,” but to Tatiana she -would not say a word. After a moment, however, she suddenly threw her -arms around her sister’s neck and kissed her.</p> - -<p>Anastasie had long wanted a cat for a pet. In the garden near Peterhof, -where the Royal Family were staying for the annual manœuvres, the -nursery, one day, found a cat following the gardener. Anastasie promptly -said, “Sir, will you please give me your cat?” “You may have the cat if -you can keep it,” the gardener replied. Anastasie took the cat home, -buttered its feet and shut it up in one of the rooms. When she went to -look for her cat, she found it had escaped through the chimney. The next -day, Anastasie went again to the garden and, seeking out the gardener, -said, “You said I might have the cat and I took it home but she ran -away.” “No,” said the gardener, “I said you might have the cat if you -could keep it.” Anastasie begged him to give her the cat again and to -tell the cat that she was to stay with her, but the gardener was -reluctant to give up his pet and so a kitten had to be found for -Anastasie elsewhere.</p> - -<p>One spring, the nursery was taken to an orchard near the Palace to pick -apples, and, as a reward, they were promised some baked apples with -their tea. When the baskets were filled, the apples were<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_202" id="page_202">{202}</a></span> sent to the -Palace and the children were taken off to listen to a military band. -While the band was playing, Anastasie suddenly produced an apple which -she had hidden and began to eat it. The governess took it away from her -and told her not to eat it, as it would make her ill. A few moments -later, she produced another, and said to her governess, “If you take -this apple away from me, I will scream and then the people will all -think you are wicked to me.” So the governess said, “Anastasie, as sure -as you eat that apple, you will be punished when you get home.” -Anastasie was not frightened by the threat and calmly proceeded to eat -the apple. When the nursery returned to the Palace, Anastasie was put -straight to bed and at tea time, all the other children had baked apples -but none was given her. The other children thought to tease her by -asking her if she did not want some of their lovely baked apples. “No, -indeed,” remarked Anastasie, “because you don’t know how good that apple -was that I had in the garden.” The next day, Anastasie wanted again to -be taken to the orchard, but the governess took her somewhere where she -did not want to go. Looking out of the carriage window, Anastasie said, -“It is very lovely here; I am enjoying myself much more than in the -orchard.” The following day, she again asked to be taken to the orchard. -Her governess asked her why she wanted to be taken there again and -Anastasie, throwing her arms around the governess’s neck, said: “Because -it was such fun eating<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_203" id="page_203">{203}</a></span> that apple.” Several days later, Tatiana said, -“It is too bad because Anastasie was naughty that we cannot go to the -orchard.” The governess said, “Until Anastasie is good and will promise -not to eat any more apples you cannot go.” It was nearly a week after -that before Anastasie’s stubbornness was subdued and she promised to eat -no more apples if the nursery might only go and play in the orchard.</p> - -<p>From these stories, it will be seen that Anastasie is most like her -Imperial father whose traditional stubbornness of character is well -known.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_204" id="page_204">{204}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="IX-b" id="IX-b"></a>CHAPTER IX<br /><br /> -THE TSAREVITCH</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Alexis</span>, son and heir of Tsar Nicholas II and Tsaritsa Alexandra -Feodorovna, was born July 30th (Russian style), 1904. When he was about -an hour old, he was made honorary commander of six regiments of the -Russian army.</p> - -<p>When he was twelve days old he was taken to the Royal chapel at Peterhof -in a gilded coach drawn by eight horses and christened. The name he -bears, interpreted, means “Bringer of Peace.” Yet at this time the -Tsaritsa said: “We are bound to hand over to our son an Autocracy such -as we ourselves received.”</p> - -<p>Here is one of the curious phases of her character. Born of an English -mother, reared in Germany where at least the idea of a constitutional -monarchy is accepted, she yet opposes the least step toward reform and -progress in Russia, if it interferes with or threatens Autocracy. She -acquiesces in the naming of her son “Bringer of Peace” at a time when -nearly the whole nation is aspiring to freedom and almost ready to rise -up in general revolution to fight for a constitution! It would seem that -in this as in so many other things she learned to conform with the will -of the Tsar, who<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_205" id="page_205">{205}</a></span> is her sole liege. The Tsar, two years later, said in -private conversation to a friend of mine: “I believe Russia can go for -twenty years more without a constitution.”</p> - -<p>As the Tsar speaks, so thinks the Tsaritsa. Whether this is one of the -tragedies of her life, or whether it is her supreme sacrifice, one -cannot judge. The fact remains, that every thought, every particle of -her own <i>ego</i> has been put aside that she may be more completely the -wife of her husband.</p> - -<p>The little Alexis was started in life with a goodly array of godfathers -and godmothers. Among the former were the King of England, the King of -Denmark, the Emperor of Germany, and various Grand Dukes, uncles of the -Tsar. During the baptismal service the baby Tsarevitch, when he was -being anointed, raised a tiny pink hand and extended his fingers as if -he were pronouncing a benediction or bestowing a blessing. And all the -people present accepted this as a good omen of future blessings to come -from the Heir to the Throne.</p> - -<p>The training of a young Tsar does not conform with American ideas of -training a child, for very largely the Tsarevitch is encouraged to do -everything he is inclined to do on the theory that the instincts and -impulses of an Autocrat must be right.</p> - -<p>During the summer of 1907 I was in Finland when the Royal Family were -cruising along the picturesque Finnish coast in the Royal Yacht -<i>Standart</i>, and I gathered various stories of Alexis from<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_206" id="page_206">{206}</a></span> sailors and -officers of the ship. On this cruise Alexis was the Emperor’s adjutant, -and by way of training, this three-year-old was placed in command of the -squadron, that is to say, the Royal Yacht and the accompanying pilot -boat, gunboats and other vessels that make up a Royal fleet when the -Imperial Family goes for a summer outing.</p> - -<p>One night in August when the air was still and warm, Alexis had -difficulty in falling asleep. Suddenly he sat up in his little bed and -announced that he desired the ship’s band to come and play for him. The -officer on duty explained that the hour was late and the band had -retired, whereupon Alexis grew furious and <i>commanded</i> that the band be -aroused and brought to him immediately, which was done. The Tsar on this -occasion was inordinately pleased and exclaimed: “That’s the way to -bring up an Autocrat!”</p> - -<p>On another occasion Alexis ordered all the Finnish pilots on the various -ships to be brought before him. As the astonished and wondering Finns -appeared on the deck of the <i>Standart</i> the baby commander shouted: -“Zdorovo rebyata!” (Health children!) The Finns, not understanding -Russian, were much bewildered and frightened, and Alexis, became -exceedingly annoyed at their not understanding. So the Finns were -hurriedly taught to respond: “Zdravie zhelayem vashe Imperatorskoye -Vysochestvo”—(“We wish you health, your Imperial Highness.”)</p> - -<p>The sailor who acts as orderly to the Tsare<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_207" id="page_207">{207}</a></span>vitch on the <i>Standart</i> is -called Stefan. He is of huge physique and is in attendance on the -autocrat-in-process day and night. Up to the present time, Alexis has -shown a greater fondness for this man than for anyone else. He insists -upon his “big Stefan” taking part in nearly all of his games and it is -quite clear that he considers Stefan as second only to his father in all -the vast Empire. Morning and night, little Alexis in his prayers -remembers Stefan but even Stefan has not been able to break his young -charge of a certain military tendency which shows itself at the end of -each of his prayers in a loud “hurrah” instead of an “Amen.” Alexis is -perfectly logical in this, for he says that the soldiers on parade -always cry “Hurrah” when his father appears or when he ceases speaking -and, consequently, it is right that his Heavenly Father should be -greeted in the same way.</p> - -<p>Early in the year 1909, the Emperor of China despatched a special -embassy, headed by one of the Princes of the Royal Family in China, to -St. Petersburg for the express purpose of conveying to the Tsarevitch -Alexis a collection of wonderful Chinese toys. The Embassy also brought -with it two wonderfully trained dwarf elephants. This embassy was sent -in acknowledgment of a similar embassy which the Emperor of Russia had -sent to China some time before conveying to the boy-Emperor of -400,000,000 of people, a toy railroad said to have cost more than fifty -thou<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_208" id="page_208">{208}</a></span>sand dollars and many elaborate and ingenious toys of Russian -design. This toy railroad was similar to one that President Fallières of -France had presented to the Tsarevitch on the occasion of his visit to -the Russian Imperial family. This gift had pleased the Tsarevitch hugely -and he immediately nicknamed the French president, “The train-man.” The -Tsarevitch, like the Royal children of Spain, has frequently been -maligned in the Press of Europe and reported as being defective -mentally. These stories, of course, are all nonsense, for, like the -Spanish Princes, he is a sturdy, wholesome boy in every respect and -takes the keenest interest not only in all the wonderful toys that are -sent him by kings, emperors and eastern potentates but also in childish -sports and games.</p> - -<p>That Alexis has a mind of his own and a pretty keen one at that is -illustrated in a story that the Tsar himself has repeated. It appears -that one day, the Emperor was engaged with a council of Ministers when -the little Alexis suddenly burst into the Cabinet room. Surprised at -seeing his father surrounded by so large a group of dignitaries, he -stopped and looked at them for a moment, then quietly said: “Good -morning, brothers.” The Emperor proceeded to point out to the Tsarevitch -that it was not adequately respectful for so small a boy to address -elderly gentlemen as “brothers.” Alexis appeared a little embarrassed -and with an obvious desire to correct his mistake, he said, “Very well; -good morning, boys.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_209" id="page_209">{209}</a></span>”</p> - -<p>Probably no heir in Europe is being trained with greater care than young -Alexis, for, unless something unforeseen occurs, he will one day be the -ruler over 150,000,000 of people and, according to the will and wish of -his father, he will perpetuate the traditions of the Tsars of old and -rule the vast kingdom with all the rigid severity which has -characterised the autocratic Tsars of Russia.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_210" id="page_210">{210}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="X-b" id="X-b"></a>CHAPTER X<br /><br /> -THE END OF THE ROAD</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> Tsaritsa’s life has been lived out on the plane of the family, not -of the Empress. She might have swayed vast power, she might have -liberated or helped to liberate one hundred and forty millions of people -from oppression and tyranny; and her name would have been enshrined in -all hearts for generations. But she has chosen an humbler part. She has -shrunk from the larger burdens of the opportunities presented to her, -and accepted the quieter tasks of the home. This much we may say, it is -a tragedy that circumstances have prevented her carrying both parts. But -to have been the great Empress, she would have been obliged to sacrifice -her love to a degree. Nicholas doubtless cares tremendously for her, but -a man never loves as a woman loves. For a woman’s joy is sacrifice, and -the sacrifice of ambitions, of personal hopes and dreams, of ideas, of -principles, is the greatest of all sacrifices. In proving herself the -absolutely loving and loyal wife the Tsaritsa turned her back upon the -opportunities fate gave her for moulding history by ameliorating the -condition of humanity in her own vast sphere.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_211" id="page_211">{211}</a></span></p> - -<p>The Tsar must understand the attitude of the Court toward the Empress -and the fact that she is not popular doubtless makes him endeavour the -more to make their own little family circle happy. For after all, the -really exclusive circle of an Emperor and his Empress and their children -is very, very small.</p> - -<p>In August 1907 when the Tsar returned from his meeting with the Kaiser -at Swinemünde, the Tsaritsa went to greet him far down the Gulf of -Finland in a Royal Yacht. Court etiquette merely required that she meet -him at the pier upon his landing, and this effort of hers caused a good -deal of comment at the capital and was accepted as another evidence of -her love for him.</p> - -<p>When the Tsar promised the nation a constitution—and a parliament—all -might have been well had these promises been literally carried out. No -sooner had the waves of revolutionary activity subsided, however, than -the Emperor began to withdraw and nullify his honeyed promises and to -take back piecemeal the constitution which had been granted in a moment -of panic. Now the people feel that Russia will not have a real -constitution nor a real parliament for years to come unless these -institutions of liberalism and progress and civilisation are battled -for. The government by maintaining a watchful grip on the country, by -extraordinary vigilance, by arresting or exiling thousands upon -thousands of citizens, women and girls<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_212" id="page_212">{212}</a></span> just as frequently as men, it is -able to preserve a certain surface calm.</p> - -<p>Of late public opinion in Russia, like public opinion in other -countries, has been altering toward the Tsar. He is no longer the -“weak,” “well meaning little man,” who is prevented from doing what he -believes to be right by wicked Grand Dukes, bad ministers and a corrupt -court. If he is ever “led” we know now that it is only in directions in -which he desires to go. If his ministers are “bad,” or the Grand Dukes -“wicked,” we know that the inclinations and ambitions of Nicholas II are -toward Reaction, and that he aspires, in the words of the Tsaritsa, to -“hand on to his successor an Autocracy such as he received.”</p> - -<p>We know, too, that however much local police and other officials may be -directly responsible for a policy which uses massacre as a political -weapon that the Tsar himself is not opposed to these methods, and that -he directly patronises and encourages the “League of Russian men,” -popularly called “The Black Hundred.” We know that the Tsaritsa, -likewise, contributes money to support this organisation. This is the -organisation that carries out the <i>pogroms</i> and the policy of -governmental terrorism. In view of these (now) unquestioned facts, it -seems passing strange that the Tsar has not sooner fallen a martyr to -his own despotism. Scores of governors, generals, and other officials -have paid the penalty for their misdeeds, but the Tsar has thus far been -spared.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_11" id="ill_11"></a> -<a href="images/ill_011_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_011_sml.jpg" width="550" height="372" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE TSAR AND TSARITSA AT THE HEAD OF A REVIEWING -PARTY.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_213" id="page_213">{213}</a></span></p> - -<p>There are good reasons for this, however. In the first place the person -of the Tsar is constantly guarded, and to such an extent that it would -doubtless be difficult for a mere fanatic to reach him. But the -revolutionists could get him if they believed his death would serve the -cause of Liberty. That the Tsar lives to-day is due solely to this -doubt. The revolutionists have emissaries at court, in the palaces. It -would not be difficult to carry out a death sentence passed upon him. -But what would be the result of this? Who would be his immediate -successor, that is, the Dictator pending the coming of age of Alexis?</p> - -<p>The Russian liberals cannot forget that the assassination of Alexander -II in 1881 instead of helping the Cause, set it back twenty years. It -would be fatal to repeat such a blunder as that. And as to the -Dictator—he might be any one of several Grand Dukes, and one or two of -these would unquestionably be more aggressively tyrannical than the -present Emperor. And while so much doubt prevails the life of Nicholas -II is comparatively safe. On the other hand, if there is a desire to end -the rule of the Romanoffs a much safer method would be to do away with -the successors to the Throne. Such a proceeding would be unaccompanied -by immediate political disturbance, and yet would be effective.</p> - -<p>We can understand, therefore, the anxiety with which the Tsaritsa -watches over Alexis. His birth was so long and so earnestly desired, and -at least so<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_214" id="page_214">{214}</a></span> long as he is the only son any disaster overtaking him -would be viewed as the most terrible of calamities—probably worse from -the standpoint of the court than disaster to the Tsar himself. From the -hour of his birth the Tsaritsa has taken it as her especial task to -guard and protect her son from all dangers.</p> - -<p>At Peterhof, at Tsarskoe-Selo, on the Royal Yacht, wherever Alexis goes -the Tsaritsa is close beside. The little Grand Duchesses may sometimes -be seen playing in the park at Peterhof accompanied by only their -governesses and a groom, but if their brother is there too, so is the -Royal mother. At functions, military reviews and the like, when Alexis -is on exhibition to inspire the regiments with loyalty, the Empress -always remains particularly near to her son.</p> - -<p>The education of the children is supervised personally by the Tsaritsa. -The instructors of the children of the Tsar have a very difficult task -indeed. There are certain subjects in which the children must be -thoroughly grounded, and certain others which must be taught -eclectically and others which must be eschewed altogether.</p> - -<p>I have a friend, now living in St. Petersburg, who was a court tutor for -four years, and he has sometimes told me of the difficulties he -encountered during that period. The Russian tutors generally have the -rank of General, and are addressed in great formality as “Your -Excellency.” Teachers from abroad, however, appear in the Pal<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_215" id="page_215">{215}</a></span>ace -class-rooms in what we know as “evening dress.” How strange it would -seem to American boys and girls to go to school one morning and find the -teacher wearing a low cut vest and long-tailed coat!</p> - -<p>The two older children, Olga and Tatiana, inherit from their mother a -fondness for music, and they both play quite well already. The Tsar -enjoys listening to music, but he plays only by ear and never sings -himself.</p> - -<p>The end of the chapter is not yet. The Tsaritsa is still a young woman, -and Empress of one of the most turbulent Empires on earth. The rank and -file of her one hundred and fifty million subjects hold nothing against -her but they are weary of the Romanoff régime. Militarism is now the -last bulwark of the Empire. Martial law is spread over a large part of -the Empire and the people are kept in subjection, in artificial quiet -only through the constant menace of bayonets and prisons whose doors -ever yawn to political heretics.</p> - -<p>No one may prophesy the end, nor when it will come. The future is -shrouded in complete mystery and therefore possesses incomparable -fascination.</p> - -<p>The Tsaritsa is still, by virtue of her position, one of the most -powerful women in the western world, but whose life has been given to -the natural development of the love of her school-girl days, at the -expense of a career which might have rivalled that of the greatest -heroines of history.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_216" id="page_216">{216}</a></span></p> - -<p>This is the story of the little German Princess, who was left motherless -at six, and came unto her own through her heart’s romance, and has -remained faithful to this romance despite the tempting circumstances of -Opportunity. The simple loving child who was called “Sunny” is to-day -more than anything else the simple, loving wife of Nicholas II, the -devoted mother of his children. Judging from her life, if she had the -dearest will and wish of her heart it would be that she might be -remembered as Wife and Mother, rather than as Empress. Thus the life of -Princess Alix of Hesse—“Sunny”-passed into the Romance of an -Empress—with its burdens and its sufferings and its tragedies, and thus -the end of the road looks dark, uncertain and ominously fearful.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_217" id="page_217">{217}</a></span></p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_218" id="page_218">{218}</a></span> </p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_219" id="page_219">{219}</a></span> </p> - -<h2><a name="PART_III" id="PART_III"></a>PART III<br /><br /> -QUEEN ELENA OF ITALY</h2> - -<h3><a name="I-c" id="I-c"></a>CHAPTER I<br /><br /> -A MOUNTAIN PRINCESS</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">On</span> the eastern shores of the Adriatic, nestling between the unfamiliar -Provinces of Herzegovina and Albania, lies the Kingdom of Montenegro. It -is a tiny spot on the map and until very recently was rated as a -Principality. The entire population of Montenegro would make only a -small American city, yet the Montenegrans are a proud nation, with an -engrossing and noble history, and perhaps no country in Europe has had a -more romantic past. They are an aggressive people, these Montenegrans, -always armed, ever ready to fight for the cause of freedom, a -liberty-loving people, a staunch folk. The denizens of Montenegro have -always been daring and bold; withal a poetic people. Nicholas, their -Prince, is the first warrior in the kingdom and also the first poet. He -is a picturesque figure, familiar to Europe and more or less known to -America, for much has been written about him. Some years ago, some one -had the temerity to inquire of Prince Nicholas, as he then was called, -what were the exportations of Monte<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_220" id="page_220">{220}</a></span>negro, to which question he gave -answer, “My daughters.”</p> - -<p>The daughters of King Nicholas have indeed been a wonderful asset to -this little nation. One married a Russian Grand Duke, thus securing the -friendship of Russia. Another married a Servian, who at the present time -reigns over that Kingdom. While another, Elena, married a Prince who -presently became a King, making his spouse Queen of a great nation.</p> - -<p>The story of the romance of the Montenegran Elena and the Italian -Prince, son of the late King Humbert, and now known as King Victor -Emanuel III, is one of the most romantic stories connected with the -Court life of Europe. Princess Elena was the fourth child of King -Nicholas, and she, perhaps more than any of the children, inherited many -of her father’s noble qualities.</p> - -<p>Many times as I have watched her driving through the streets of Rome, -deftly holding the reins and guiding the great black horses up and down -the hilly, badly paved streets, or leisurely reposing in one of the -magnificent Royal automobiles speeding up the Pincio or through the -lovely gardens of the Villa Borghese, complacently acknowledging the -salutes of the people, I have tried to fancy the little black-eyed -Princess among her native hills—bounding like a chamois from rock to -rock among the tallest crags and peaks, rejoicing in the high air, the -free life, the glorious rapture that comes only to the mountain-born. In -fancy I have<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_221" id="page_221">{221}</a></span> pictured her returning to her simple Cittenje home at -night, her hands holding delicious bunches of Alpine flowers, her arms -laden with flower branches. A strange girlhood this, for a future Queen. -But so Elena lived as a child—naturally, spontaneously, freely.</p> - -<p>And now—beside this fancy-memory I have to place a recollection of -another phase of her life, when I saw her as Queen, in the midst of the -horrors of Messina, nursing the wounded and comforting the dying. The -night she was injured during a panic following one of the earthquake -shocks I was standing on the deck of a ship lying so close to the -Italian flagship that I could watch the wild rush of refugees across the -decks, many of them to the rails as if to throw themselves into the sea. -One afternoon I was on a British warship when Queen Elena came aboard to -visit the wounded who were about to be conveyed to Naples. She spent -more than an hour among the cots and stretchers and spoke a personal -word to each and every one. All this was fine—a kind of work Queens -rarely do. It was dramatic, too. For during the days immediately -succeeding the first shock, earthquakes were constantly recurring and -there were a hundred dangers to which all were exposed. But when we know -of Queen Elena’s early years we understand the instinct which took her -so promptly to Messina, and we understand many of the other qualities -which distinguish her from the other Queens of the world.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_222" id="page_222">{222}</a></span></p> - -<p>Elena’s grandfather was called Prince Mirko, a name renowned in the -history of Montenegro, for when Mirko was a very young man, long before -he had become the idol of the Montenegran people, he was serving in a -war against Turkey. One day Mirko and a comrade became detached from -their regiment and fell into an ambush. The situation looked desperate. -Pausing for an instant the two young officers made a vow that if they -both survived the day, and eventually got back to their homes that they -would one day seal their friendship and the memory of that experience, -in blood. Some years later Mirko having married, became the father of a -son whom he called Nicholas. When the boy Nicholas was seven years old, -Mirko’s old comrade of the Turkish war became the father of a daughter -whom he named Melena. These two children became betrothed when Melena -was still in her cradle and when she was only thirteen years old she and -Nicholas were married. The fortune of life was so ordered that in time -Nicholas became the ruler of the little principality, and Melena, his -wife and consort, from the very first shared the responsibilities of -administration with him. So complete a helpmeet has Melena been to -Nicholas that from time to time when the Prince has of necessity quit -Montenegro to visit his friend and ally the Tsar of Russia, or his -son-in-law, the King of Servia, he has left all the reins of rulership -to Melena, who has ever discharged her duties wisely. Besides all this -she has borne</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_12" id="ill_12"></a> -<a href="images/ill_012_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_012_sml.jpg" width="429" height="550" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>QUEEN MILENA OF MONTENEGRO, THE MOTHER OF QUEEN ELENA.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_223" id="page_223">{223}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">him thirteen children. Elena was their fourth child. It was no -inconsiderable thing when she was picked by the Prince of Naples to be -his bride, because this meant she would eventually be a great Queen. -Elena was born fairly in the lap of romance, and Fate has been -extraordinarily generous to her in supplying her with exceptional -romantic and dramatic episodes which, ever since she came into her own -have served to bring her before the eyes of the world.</p> - -<p>No Queen in Europe to-day, save the Tsaritsa and Queen Victoria Eugenie, -looks more a Queen than Elena. She is stately and tall, with a -statuesque poise that anywhere singles her from the throng. Her hair is -as black as midnight forest depths, her eyes as luminous as live coals. -Her skin is like unto olives, and her hands firm and strong and large. -Her shoulders are broad and she holds them squarely. The impression the -woman gives is of unusual physical strength. Nor could this well be -otherwise in view of her athletic training. As a child she was always a -devotee of Nimrod, given inordinately to the chase. Long after her -marriage she continued to hunt,—to shoot deer and birds,—to ride to -hounds, and play tennis. A modern Diana might she in verity be called. -But her training was not restricted to sports and outdoor activities. -Far from it. These were but natural incidentals to each day’s work in -Montenegro, and well it were if similar customs held the world over, for -surely<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_224" id="page_224">{224}</a></span> there are no better physiques in both men and women anywhere on -earth than in this same little Montenegro.</p> - -<p>Elena’s parents are both extraordinary people. Old Prince Nicholas is -one of the most remarkable rulers in the world to-day. Like Julius -Caesar, he boasts that he knows the names of all the men in his army, -and as all of the men in Montenegro are of the army, his boast is -practically that he knows all of his subjects. A ruler who interests -himself thus deeply in the affairs of his state would naturally look -carefully to his own family. And so when Elena was a wee baby just -learning to toddle, the Prince used to take her upon his knee and give -her her first lessons. Her first tutor, he used to call himself. He it -was who taught her the letters of the alphabet of her mother tongue, -gave her her first lesson in reading. His was the great hand that guided -the little baby fingers as they laboriously traced the difficult Slavish -hieroglyphics. Later, he interested her in geography and in history. -Never a day passed when Nicholas was so occupied with the affairs of his -kingdom, or with the knotty international problems that are forever -engaging the troublesome little Balkan states and the great Ghoul Powers -of Austria and Turkey that are ever lying in wait to gobble them up, -that he neglected the lessons of his little daughter.</p> - -<p>During the early years of her life Elena lived in the great square grey -“palace” of the ruler of Montenegro in Cittenje. It is not a beautiful -nor<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_225" id="page_225">{225}</a></span> elaborate home like most of the palaces of the sovereigns and -rulers of Europe. Indeed, it is distinctly plain and unimposing, with -bare and barren surroundings. The stern mountains of Montenegro rise -abruptly behind the town, and the Palace is on the edge of the miniature -capital almost in the shadows of the cragged hills. Here lived Prince -Nicholas and Princess Melena, and all their children until one by one -the latter married and drifted to other lands—Princess Zorka to become -the wife of the present King of Servia; Princess Melitza to become the -spouse of Grand Duke Peter Nicholaivitch of Russia; Elena to become the -Princess of Naples and subsequently the Queen of Italy.</p> - -<p>As a child Elena was always lively and active. In America she would have -been called a “tomboy,” for she preferred the company of her brothers to -that of her sisters and it was through the pains of two of them—Danilo -and Mirko—that she became expert with the rifle and rod, a familiar -horsewoman, and so able a walker and climber.</p> - -<p>The spirit of Elena was wild and free. She loved fresh air, a mad -scamper over the hills, an adventure that savoured of danger. Encouraged -by her father and brothers to all activities in the open she developed -into a strong, stalwart girl and later into the Amazonian woman she is -to-day. Long after her marriage she retained the fresh and breezy way -acquired in girlhood.</p> - -<p>An important influence in Elena’s early life were the grandfather’s -tales she listened to round the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_226" id="page_226">{226}</a></span> great fire in her homely Palace home. -Montenegro, like all older mountain countries, has a folk tale and a -legend associated with every crag and valley. Elena heard from her -veteran grandfather how the Montenegran people battled with the Turks, -and her little heart would fairly quiver with the heroic deeds of valour -that the old man would relate of the stormy days when the Balkan -peninsula was like a great seething cauldron, and men, and the women -too, came down from the mountain fastnesses in their quaint and rude -attire to fight the trained troops of European armies. Thus was her -child’s imagination fired, and love and pride of country aroused.</p> - -<p>One day little Elena brought her father some sheets of paper upon which -were drawn some strange pictures. The Prince held the sheets upside down -at first, trying to make out what his little daughter had brought him. -Elena was much hurt at this and she could hardly keep back the tears. -But when the Prince turned the papers round the right way he quickly -made out, under her guidance, the house and the mountain, and the dog -chasing the sheep. Indeed, he admired not a little this first artistic -effort of Elena’s, and right there and then he sat down with her and -together they drew the pictures all over again, only this time much -better as Elena herself realised. This was the little Princess’s first -drawing lesson. After that Elena had a drawing lesson every day. She -soon showed signs of a distinct talent in this direc<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_227" id="page_227">{227}</a></span>tion and by the -time she was ten years old she had not only conquered the first -principles of drawing but she had also made considerable progress in the -use of water colours. This talent Elena continued to develop, and with -what success may be judged from the fact that when she was still a girl -in her teens she became a kind of unofficial “Minister of Fine Arts” in -her father’s cabinet. She was instrumental in bringing art exhibits into -Montenegro, in organising drawing and painting classes in the public -schools and thus for the first time bringing the refining and civilising -influence of art culture to her people. She even inaugurated -scholarships to encourage art students, and to-day Montenegro has a -number of ambitious painters who are actually building up a school of -art of their own. Influenced by the picturesque barrenness of their -native mountains, together with the gorgeous skies and brilliant -atmospheres, they are developing an individual and nationalist school. -To this day, Queen Elena retains her interest in the native Montenegran -artists, and also in her own drawing and painting. In the Quirinal -Palace in Rome she has a studio, where of an afternoon she may -frequently be found spending an hour at her easel. It is her custom each -Christmas to send as gifts to her more intimate friends sketches and -little water colours of her own handiwork.</p> - -<p>Elena had other tutors than her father and grandfather, however. From a -young child she<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_228" id="page_228">{228}</a></span> had a Swiss governess who was her daily companion, and -who instructed her in French, and supplemented the teaching of her -father in the other branches. It is thus the training of Elena from -childhood was the training not only of a Princess but of one who might -easily assume the duties and obligations of a Queen. It is not likely -that the little Elena ever dared to dream of what her future might be or -that her imaginings ever pictured that in womanhood she might occupy a -throne as the consort of the King of a great nation, but her father is -one of the most astute statesmen in Europe, and with all his children he -arranged their education so that they might be acceptable to any high -niche in life to which destiny might call them.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_229" id="page_229">{229}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="II-c" id="II-c"></a>CHAPTER II<br /><br /> -THE ROMANCE</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">When</span> Elena was twelve years old an important change came into her life. -She was sent away to St. Petersburg to enter the most wonderful school -of its kind in the world. This was the famous, glorified boarding school -for the daughters of the nobility which for many years has been -patronised by the Empress Marie Feodorovna, wife of Tsar Alexander III -and mother of the present Emperor, Nicholas II. Fancy a girls’ school -where every pupil is a little Countess or Princess or Grand Duchess! In -Russia the family titles usually descend to the children, so that this -is no exaggeration. This school corresponds to one which exists for boys -known as the <i>Corps des Pages</i>—or school of pages. The young sons of -the nobility are sent here at an early age and are commonly spoken of as -pages of the courts. Most of the boys who go to this school become -officers and generally are assigned to the crack regiments which guard -the persons of the sovereigns. As a rule only native Russians are -admitted to these two exclusive schools, but the daughters of Prince -Nicholas were easily granted place, because they were the daughters of a -ruling<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_230" id="page_230">{230}</a></span> Prince, and also because they had the rare advantage among -non-Russians of already knowing Russian, or at least the Slav tongue -which is very similar to Russian.</p> - -<p>For six winters Elena continued at this school, and on her way to and -from the northland capital she was taken to visit many of the famous art -galleries of Europe. In St. Petersburg she had the privilege of the -Hermitage Gallery, where is one of the foremost art collections in -Europe, and in Dresden and Munich she became yet more widely acquainted -with the masterpieces of the world’s art. Thus was her fondness for art -gratified, and her general education broadened and enriched.</p> - -<p>Another talent that Elena inherited was that of writing poetry. Her -father, Nicholas, is a poet of no mean rank. Many of the folk songs of -Montenegro which mothers croon to their babes at night, which shepherds -in their lonely huts far up the mountain sides sing to give them cheer -when fierce storms are sweeping over their steep pastures, were written -by the Prince when he was a young man and during the forty years of his -reign they have become so universal that already they are classic. Once -indeed he wrote a very long poetic and romantic drama called “An Empress -of the Balkans,” which his son, Mirko, Elena’s oldest brother, set to -music. And this poetic instinct which her father has made such good use -of in endearing himself to his people, is also strong in<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_231" id="page_231">{231}</a></span> Elena. For -some reason, however, Elena has never been so proud of this talent as of -her painting. Nevertheless she has published minor verse from time to -time, and as one member of her suite told me once: “She writes -still—but she does not own it.”</p> - -<p>Curiously enough she once wrote a sonnet to Venice, which she called a -“city of poetry, love and feeling.” This sonnet was published in a -school magazine, and was written before she had ever visited the -romantic city of islands. It was in this same Venice that she later met -the Prince who was to make her a Queen, and where the love story of her -life began.</p> - -<p>In the spring of the year 1895, when Elena was twenty-two years old, she -and her sister Anna came with their mother, Princess Melena, to the -opening of the annual International Art Exhibition at Venice. This is -one of the events of the year in the art world of Europe and is looked -forward to almost as much as the annual salon in Paris and the Spring -Academy Exhibition in London. The King and Queen frequently open the -exhibition, and not infrequently distinguished members of other Royal -houses are also present. So it was in the memorable month of April 1895. -King Humbert and Queen Margherita with their son, the heir to the -throne, the young Prince of Naples, travelled up from Rome to inaugurate -the exhibition. Of course courtesy calls were exchanged between the -sovereigns and the other<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_232" id="page_232">{232}</a></span> Royal visitors present, including Princess -Melena and her daughters.</p> - -<p>Princess Elena was now a tall, large-framed woman of twenty-two. She had -the physique of one much older, but her manner and face showed all the -keenness and freshness of a young girl. By this time she had outgrown -the hoydenish traits of her girlhood and there was dignity and repose in -her manner. One feature distinguished her from other Princesses in -Europe. She was totally free from the social veneer which comes -inevitably from a long continuance of ceremonious life. Any Prince of a -western European court would have been quick to notice this, and Prince -Victor Emmanuel was by no means the least to fall under the spell of its -charm.</p> - -<p>Prince Victor Emmanuel as heir to the Italian throne was one of the most -sought-after Princes in all Europe. Popular gossip had successively -betrothed him to Princess Clementine, daughter of the King of the -Belgians, to Princess Feodora of Schleswig-Holstein, sister of the -Emperor of Germany, to Archduchess Annunziati, daughter of archduke Carl -Ludwig of Austria; and to Princess Mary Magdalene, daughter of the King -of Greece. The trouble with all of these alliances was, according to the -Prince, that they were political rather than personal, and may it be -writ large on the page of history that Victor Emmanuel had a romantic -soul which would be satisfied whatever came of the political ambitions -of his family.</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_13" id="ill_13"></a> -<a href="images/ill_013_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_013_sml.jpg" width="449" height="550" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE QUEEN OF ITALY.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_233" id="page_233">{233}</a></span></p> - -<p>When grey and hoary councillors of state approached him in regard to the -desirability of his marrying one or another of the Royal Princesses in -the eligible list, he would shake his square head and turn aside saying, -“I have time enough.” He knew that one day he would see the Princess -whom he would love, and for her he was content to wait.</p> - -<p>When in Venice, “The city of poetry, love and feeling,” he met for the -first time Princess Elena of Montenegro, he promptly said to his Royal -father, “There is the Princess I will marry.” Politically, little was to -be gained for Italy by a marriage alliance with the little Balkan state, -so Humbert, a wise king, counselled patience, though not actually -opposing the will of the Crown Prince.</p> - -<p>Elena and her mother and sister returned to their own country after only -two days. But in those two days the Prince had found a time and place to -speak. Only two days! Surely a brief courtship with an interminable -round of official ceremonies consuming, as it seemed, all of the hours. -Two busy days, yet the Prince of Naples had whispered the thrilling -words and Elena, the Balkan Princess, knew that her future was -henceforth spread in greater Europe.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_234" id="page_234">{234}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="III-c" id="III-c"></a>CHAPTER III<br /><br /> -VICTOR EMMANUEL</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Victor Emmanuel</span> was at this time considered one of the most desirable of -eligible Princes in all Europe, not only because of his inheritance, but -because of his intelligence and his character. Queen Victoria once -called him “the most intelligent Prince in Europe.” As a child he had -showed marked individuality and his father and mother, King Humbert and -Queen Margherita, both being people of strong characteristics, had -reared him in an atmosphere of strictest discipline which naturally had -its effect upon the man. Like Napoleon, the little Victor Emmanuel was -never ashamed to ask any question, nor did he ever ask any question -twice. Until he was twelve years old his school hours were regulated by -the state of his health, which was never robust, but on his twelfth -birthday, he was given over into the hands of Colonel Osio, a famous -soldier and disciplinarian, who planned an eight year course of training -which included regular hours for everything, and resulted not only in -developing the boy’s mind and sharpening his wits, but also in hardening -his muscles and accustoming his constitution to all kinds of hardships -and endurance tests.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_235" id="page_235">{235}</a></span></p> - -<p>One incident of this period of his life Victor Emmanuel has never -forgotten. As a young boy he was not over strong, and frequently he -contracted head colds. One morning he reported as usual at seven o’clock -to his tutor, but coughing badly and his nose and eyes sorely inflamed. -At eight o’clock Colonel Osio appeared to take the young Prince out for -his usual hour of exercise on horseback. The day was rainy and -disagreeable. The tutor ventured to suggest to Colonel Osio that their -Royal charge was scarcely in fit condition to go out that morning. -Whereupon the Colonel replied, “If war were declared to-morrow, would -the Prince be allowed to stay indoors because he had a cold?” As the -Colonel disappeared with the Prince the tutor exclaimed: “Ah! with these -soldiers it is impossible to reason.”</p> - -<p>When Victor Emmanuel began the study of Latin, his mother, the beloved -Queen Margherita, took it up also! One day, she proved to him that she -had made better progress than he. At the time the Prince made no comment -upon this, but a little later when his tutor started to chide him about -this Victor Emmanuel retorted somewhat sharply: “That is all very well, -but my mother has nothing else to do, whilst I have a hundred other -things to attend to!” An answer that every schoolboy and schoolgirl will -surely appreciate.</p> - -<p>Colonel Osio was without doubt a stern disciplinarian. As he outlined -the daily schedule for the Prince, the rising hour was six o’clock, -summer<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_236" id="page_236">{236}</a></span> and winter. After a bath and simple breakfast, he sat down to -his first lessons with his tutor. At eight o’clock he rode for an hour -with the Colonel, then returned to his studies which continued all day. -His very recreations were in the nature of studies, for being raised as -a soldier he had to master all military tactics and to dig trenches, -erect redoubts and obstructions with his own hands, so that in time of -necessity he could the better command and direct his soldiers. As the -motto set before the Prince was: “To know everything of something, and -something of everything,” his studies were pursued the year round. -During the dead of summer his books were laid by, but he was taken out -of doors and kept busily at work, learning of nature, or all about guns -and shooting, and ever subject to the discipline of hours.</p> - -<p>The instructions of Colonel Osio to his tutor were: “Treat the Prince as -you would treat any other pupil. Show him no special consideration nor -regard. Indulge him in absolutely nothing. For example, if, during a -lesson something is wanted, he and not you must get it. If a book falls -to the floor, he, not you, must pick it up! You must profit by his -self-esteem, highly developed in him, to exact from him firmly and -always the fulfilment of all his duties.” “As for yourself,” the Colonel -continued, looking full at the tutor, “I want you to understand that the -interests at stake are so great, that if you fail in any way I shall -show you no mercy.” As the tutor felt as much subject<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_237" id="page_237">{237}</a></span> to the rules and -regulations laid down by the Colonel as did his pupil, it is needless to -say that he was obeyed to the letter.</p> - -<p>The Rev. Alexander Robertson who has lived many years in Italy, and who -has made a searching study of the life of Victor Emmanuel, says that so -completely did King Humbert give over the education of his heir to -Colonel Osio that if the Prince even asked permission to accompany the -King and Queen to the theatre the answer was invariably: “Ask the -Colonel.” Thus was the young King trained. If the “child is father to -the man,” from these gleanings of his boyhood and the stories of his -early discipline, we may gather what manner of Prince it was who won the -heart of the stately and beautiful Elena, Princess of Montenegro.</p> - -<p>Mr. Robertson tells how on one occasion the little Prince Victor -Emmanuel was playing with the small daughter of the Marchioness of -Villamarina, who was then a Lady-in-Waiting to Queen Margherita, and the -two children quarrelled, as all children will, over some trifle. Of a -sudden the Prince became greatly enraged, and lost his temper. “When I -am King I will have your head cut off!” he exclaimed loudly. Queen -Margherita overheard these harsh words, and the Prince was put on prison -fare for three days.</p> - -<p>Victor Emmanuel and his wife, Elena, were destined to become sovereigns -of Italy upon the tragic occasion when King Humbert was assassinated at -his lovely mountain home of Monza in the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_238" id="page_238">{238}</a></span> north of the Kingdom. An -interesting, if nerve-straining incident occurred when the Prince was -present at a previous unsuccessful attempt upon the life of his father. -This took place when Victor Emmanuel was only twelve years old. The King -and his son were just leaving the railroad station in Naples when a man -named Passananti, calling himself an anarchist, made a lunge with a -stiletto full at the breast of the King. A minister who was also in the -carriage was quick enough to turn aside the glittering blade. The King, -with superb poise, drew his sword, and crashed it broadside over the -would-be assassin’s head. Throughout the scene the young Prince sat -immovable, not showing the slightest trace of fear. Courage may not be -the highest virtue, but it is essential in a King, and in any one, never -fails to excite admiration.</p> - -<p>Queen Margherita was as exceptional a mother as she was an unusual -Queen. As Queen Elena has of late years proved herself devoted to the -Royal nursery, so Margherita always gave a large part of each day to the -rearing of the heir apparent. She it was who insisted upon his keeping a -strict account of all the money that passed through his hands. In this -way he learned to appreciate the value of money—the little sums, the -trifles which in themselves seem of no consequence, but which aggregate -so large in the course of months. Under directions, he also kept a -diary, in order that he might not be prodigal in the use of time—the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_239" id="page_239">{239}</a></span> -moments we are all so apt to waste carelessly and thoughtlessly a score -of times each day.</p> - -<p>It was the custom of the Prince to lunch with the King and Queen certain -days each week. One day the King was occupied with his ministers much -longer than usual, and the luncheon hour was long past. The Prince -ventured to remark to the Queen, somewhat petulantly, that he was hungry -and couldn’t wait any longer for his meal. Crossing the room to a -bookshelf, the Queen took a copy of Dante and laid it before the boy, -saying: “Read this, and your hunger will all go.”</p> - -<p>Any boy, especially a Prince, would naturally possess qualities of -attractive manhood that would appeal to a woman of domestic instincts. -That Princess Elena possessed these innate qualities her life since -testifies. To her, unquestionably, Victor Emmanuel seemed an ideal -Prince. There was only one element to this romance which is distinctly -unromantic, and of this Victor Emmanuel is very sensitive. He is a small -man, distinctly under-sized, while Elena towers far above him when they -are standing side by side. Nowadays the King has his carriage in the -Royal stables built with a specially elevated seat, like a coachman’s -box, so that this discrepancy in size is not so apparent when they -drive.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_240" id="page_240">{240}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="IV-c" id="IV-c"></a>CHAPTER IV<br /><br /> -A ROYAL HONEYMOON</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Now</span> that we know more about Victor Emmanuel, we can follow the course of -the love match between him and Princess Elena with more familiarity and -interest. It is strange that these young lovers from two of the -southermost, warmest countries of Europe must go for the second chapter -of their romance to the northermost, coldest country on the continent. -Yet so was it to be. Their next meeting was in far away Moscow, the -occasion was the Coronation of the present Tsar. Here another -coincidence appears. Four years before when Princess Elena was finishing -her course at the Royal Academy in St. Petersburg she was presented at -the Court of Alexander III through the influence of her sister, the -Grand Duchess Melitza. Soon after this a rumour was circulated -throughout Europe that the eyes of the young Nicholas, heir to the -Russian Throne, had looked with favour upon the Montenegran Princess. -Certain it is that Elena’s father, wily Prince Nicholas, did not -discourage this match, but the young Tsarevitch had long before set his -heart upon a German Princess—Alix of Hesse and the Rhine—and if he -looked upon Elena at all it was only an idle flirta<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_241" id="page_241">{241}</a></span>tion, for his mind -was made up in regard to his consort long before Elena went to -Petersburg.</p> - -<p>The Prince of Naples represented the Italian sovereigns at the Russian -Coronation festivities, while Elena was a guest of her sister. -Naturally, the two met. This was only their second meeting, but from the -noticeable intimacy that immediately sprang up between them it was -evident that the Venice meeting had been followed by a lively -correspondence. The Coronation procession was the most splendid pageant -of the closing decade of the nineteenth century, and the balls and -dinners which were given in honour of the accession of Nicholas II to -the throne of his fathers, the most magnificent that human ingenuity and -unlimited wealth could devise. Against this golden background Prince -Victor Emmanuel and Princess Elena pursued their courtship, -indefatigably, if not always discreetly. Even the Tsar was not so -engrossed that he did not observe the daring suit of the Italian Prince. -Having a kind of paternal interest in Montenegro, Tsar Nicholas felt it -not improper to express his good will toward these two sweethearts and -it was largely through his personal interest and encouragement that the -betrothal was finally arranged. When the coronation festivities were -over and the myriad royal and noble guests from all parts of the world -returned to their homelands, it was pretty generally understood that the -Prince of Naples would presently wed the Montenegran Princess.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_242" id="page_242">{242}</a></span></p> - -<p>Toward the middle of August of the Russian Coronation year, to the -surprise of no one, the Italian Royal yacht <i>Cajola</i>, having aboard the -Crown Prince, rounded Cape S. Marie de Leucca, prow pointed toward -Cattaro, the port of Cettenje, the capital of Montenegro. A large part -of the Montenegran population gathered along the shore to welcome the -Italian Prince. All knew what his coming meant. All appreciated, too, -his coming in person, for Royal etiquette allows that on such an -occasion a Prince may send an ambassador and Royal entourage to formally -arrange the details of official betrothal and marriage. Cettenje was -arrayed in gala dress as never before in its history. As a local -newspaper quaintly but enthusiastically put it, “the twenty-five hundred -people comprising the entire population of the capital met on the one -street of the town shouting their greetings.” Surely in this alone is -romance enough for one lifetime, the Princess of a country whose capital -has one street, whose entire population is twenty-five hundred, about to -become the Crown Princess, and presently the Queen, of one of the first -powers of Europe!</p> - -<p>The official announcement of the betrothal was made August 18, 1896. Two -days later a great hunt was organised by Prince Nicholas and his oldest -son Mirko, in honour of the event. All of the Prince’s household and all -of the suite of the Prince of Naples were invited to participate. The -two lovers alone declined. At such a time, they<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_243" id="page_243">{243}</a></span> said, when they were -both so happy they preferred not to spill one drop of blood, for that -would be to mar their own happiness! For two young people unusually keen -for the hunt and both splendid shots, this was indeed a delightful -sentiment.</p> - -<p>Shortly after this hunt the Prince of Naples returned to Rome to begin -preparations for the reception of his bride. On the second day of -October—just six weeks later—Elena held her last conference with her -father, who brought her to the quay where lay the ship that was to -convey her to Italian soil. When Prince Nicholas had said his last -farewell and kissed his beloved daughter on both cheeks, he turned and -slowly climbed the hill behind the town, on which stands a chapel. -Entering the tiny church the Prince fell to his knees and there remained -for a long time absorbed in silent prayer.</p> - -<p>When he emerged once more, the ship to which he had consigned Elena was -but a speck in the distance, across the deep blue waters of the -Adriatic. They did not meet again before the marriage, which took place -in Rome.</p> - -<p>Elena landed at the Italian port of Bari. Her first act was to go up to -the old town church, and there be received into the Roman Catholic -Church. Montenegro, like all Slav countries is still under the -domination of the Greek Catholic Church, and it was in this Church that -Elena had been reared. The difficulties of her release from the Greek -Church were made simple by the personal appeal<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_244" id="page_244">{244}</a></span> of the Tsar of Russia, -whose influence is all powerful with the Greek hierarchy, who bespoke a -friendly word on behalf of the young Princess.</p> - -<p>The marriage was to take place in the great hall of the Quirinal Palace. -An incident occurred at this time, which, though trifling, is not -wanting of a certain savour.</p> - -<p>The private apartment of Queen Margherita had been designated for the -formation of the cortège. Prince Nicholas and Princess Elena, by -inattention, or because it had been omitted to inform them, entered the -Quirinal from the stairs of honour and found only the Mayor of Rome who -had come to assist at the marriage. Happily the Prince of Naples had -witnessed this scene from the window of the Palace. He ran immediately -to relieve their perplexity and escorted Prince Nicholas and his own -Princess to the Queen’s apartment.</p> - -<p>When the time of the ceremony arrived, Count Gianotti took the head of -the cortège. Behind the King and the Queen walked Prince Nicholas and -Princess Elena, the Duke of Oporto and Princess Laetitia, Prince Victor -Napoleon and Princess Helena of Aosta, the Duke of Aosta and the Dowager -Duchess of Genoa, Prince Mirko and the Duchess Isabel of Genoa, the -Count of Turin and Princess Anna, sister of Princess Helena, and then -the Civil and Military houses of the sovereigns.</p> - -<p>Monseigneur Auzine brought a silver veil that the Duke of Aosta, the -Count of Turin, Prince</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_14" id="ill_14"></a> -<a href="images/ill_014_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_014_sml.jpg" width="550" height="366" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>FOUR GENERATIONS: THE PRINCE OF PIEDMONT, HIS FATHER THE -KING, THE DOWAGER QUEEN MARGHERITA, AND HER MOTHER, THE DUCHESS OF -GENOA.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_245" id="page_245">{245}</a></span></p> - -<p>Mirko and Prince Harageorgevitch, to-day King of Servia, unfolded and -kept over the bride and bridegroom during the whole ceremony.</p> - -<p>After the ceremony Elena was more than ever nervous and deeply moved; -her olive skin grew exquisitely white, almost like alabaster. The sun, -which up to that moment had loitered behind clouds, suddenly broke -through the misty screen, suffusing the whole city in a glorious fulsome -light The bells of the American Church in Rome nearby, began to chime -the Wedding March from Lohengrin, and from the great Roman populace -gathered in the streets near the Palace went up a tumultuous cheer. Thus -propitiously began the married life of the most romantic Royal couple of -that time in Europe.</p> - -<p>To compensate for their all-too-brief courtship, Prince Victor Emmanuel -decided that their honeymoon should be protracted, and far from the eyes -of the curious. To accomplish this they went at once to the distant -isles of Greece, to the romantic coast of Sicily, to wherever waters are -emerald, skies azure blue and the days golden. In their own yacht they -managed to escape from all public vision, and so weeks and months were -spent like a prolonged summer idyl. Never were lovers more secluded, -more care-free, more at ease, less trammelled to live with and for each -other, as fiercely and as intensely as the flame within them burned. The -world heard little of them on this long honeymoon trip of theirs. -Sometimes a mes<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_246" id="page_246">{246}</a></span>sage came from an Algerian or Tunisian port, or from a -remote Mediterranean spot like the Island of Monte Christo, where they -spent untold happy weeks.</p> - -<p>This Island of Monte Christo, belonging to Victor Emmanuel, is very -secluded. Only the members of the household are allowed thereon. The -Prince liked being there free of all responsibility and unrestrained to -enjoy absolute liberty.</p> - -<p>As a bride Elena gave herself to a unique régime for a Royal -Princess—she shared in the household work, performing with her own -hands the duties of the home. This policy was adopted because the young -couple dreaded to have others, even servants, about them, and this -lonely island was, perhaps, the only place where they could find -absolute seclusion and isolation.</p> - -<p>This Royal property, which for a certain time was called Gombo, was the -favourite residence of the grand dukes of Tuscany. It formed a part of -the private estate of Victor Emmanuel II, who, as an indefatigable -hunter, used to make there a hecatomb of deers and fallow-deers. About -1865 he ordered the building surrounded at a distance of twenty yards -from the shore by a wood fence posed on pillars; he often spent there -the night, lying on a couch in order to hear, on his awaking, the -rocking song of the waves.</p> - -<p>Once during their protracted honeymoon Elena and her Prince went on a -great hunting trip far up in semi-Arctic regions around the White Sea.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_247" id="page_247">{247}</a></span> -I have heard tales of this trip from the lips of a Montenegran artist -who was one of the party, and I have seen photographs of Elena and her -Prince-bridegroom skurrying across frozen ice packs, bringing down -Arctic game with their rifles, fishing through the ice for great deep -sea fish—filling the days and weeks with pure pleasure, storing up joy -against the years when the cares and responsibilities of state should -hold them ever close to home. For four years this dream life went on. -Then, in the summer of 1900, they were on one of their long cruises -among the Greek Islands when they were rudely awakened. News reached -them of the assassination of King Humbert! Both Elena and Victor -Emmanuel knew what this meant. Their yacht was quickly turned toward -Italy. This was their last care-free cruise.</p> - -<p>At this time Victor Emmanuel shut up within his heart the tortures he -was enduring, to meet as a courageous man the duties imposed on him by -that misfortune. But Elena, who had become devoted to her new family, -was completely overcome and abandoned herself wholly to her sorrow, -weeping and crying aloud: “My father!” “My good father!”</p> - -<p>On their journey to Monza, the scene of the tragedy, and on their -arrival at the station at Naples, Elena, weeping bitterly, pressed on -the bosom of her Lady-in-Waiting. Victor Emmanuel, by the side of the -Duke of Genoa, looked almost overpowered by sorrow, but he bore up -bravely. He<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_248" id="page_248">{248}</a></span> invited the Prefecto and General Brusate to come near him. -He shook hands with them and talked to them with a heavy voice veiled by -tears. “It seems to me,” said he to them, “that I am under the effect of -a dream; such a horrible murder seems to me impossible!”</p> - -<p>With the tragic death of King Humbert, Prince Victor Emmanuel became -king, and his Montenegran Princess Elena, Queen of Italy. In nearly -every country where kings and queens sit upon thrones, the Coronation -ceremony is a spectacle of great splendour and magnificence, but in -Italy it is scarcely a ceremony at all. So far as the Queen is -concerned, it amounted to nothing, while the King merely appears before -the Parliament and takes his vows of allegiance and devotion to Italy -and the Italian people. The simplicity of this sacred occasion is in -peculiarly fitting keeping with the mind and character of Victor -Emmanuel.</p> - -<p>For four years he and his bride had basked in the sunshine of love and -romance. They had led the most ideal and romantic of lives. With their -accession the more serious business of life began. Elena presently -became a mother, first of a girl, then of another girl, then of a son, -and then of a third daughter.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_249" id="page_249">{249}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="V-c" id="V-c"></a>CHAPTER V<br /><br /> -ELENA THE MOTHER</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> prettiest sight I know in Rome is when the Royal Princesses and the -little Crown Prince, Humbert, go driving. I lived for a winter in an -apartment adjoining the Quirinal Palace, so that it frequently fell to -me to catch glimpses of the Royal Family going or coming. Like the King -and Queen, they drive out almost daily during the months the Royal -Family spend in the capital, but it was the little ones who always -caught my eye and made me turn to watch so long as they were in view. -Usually there are the three girls, and a nursemaid holding the Prince on -her knees. Their carriage is an ordinary two-horsed, double-seated -coach. Immediately behind the carriage always ride two guards, on -bicycles, men in plain, dark-blue clothes with knee breeches. A stranger -in the city would not even notice them, although if one were observant -he might observe many of the passers-by lifting their hats and turning -to watch. Almost every pleasant afternoon, when the King is in residence -in Rome, immediately after lunch, or on a Saturday forenoon, the -children are driven just outside the walls of Rome to Villa Savoy, a -playhouse which is all their own. During that portion of<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_250" id="page_250">{250}</a></span> the year spent -in Rome this is practically the only change they have from the Palace -nursery and the Quirinal gardens—the latter by no means a cramped -play-ground. When the Duke of Ascoli, Gentleman-in-Waiting to Queen -Elena, first showed me these grounds I was quite astounded by their -extent and their unique beauty. There are long avenues of boxwood -hedges, groves of dark firs and picturesque parasol pines, fields of -untended grass and acres of carefully nurtured flowers. And all this -behind the dull yellow Quirinal walls, fairly in the centre of the city. -But any growing kiddies long for more than the yard of a city home, -though that yard attain the proportions of a park, and the home be a -Palace. Villa Savoy supplies the want, and here the children have their -ponies and their pet donkey. Here Queen Elena, too, finds relief and -refreshment, for the quiet of the children’s playhouse is never intruded -upon by the court or visitors who are not intimates of the Royal Family.</p> - -<p>The Italian sovereigns are striving to purify and elevate the atmosphere -and tone of their court so that their children may grow up in sweet home -surroundings, protected from the careless waywardness of the -aristocratic world of Europe. Some call it a “straight-laced” court. One -influence which may be responsible for this may be traced to an incident -in the schoolboy days of the King.</p> - -<p>When the King was a youth of sixteen he deter<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_251" id="page_251">{251}</a></span>mined to change his -handwriting from the ordinary sloping hand in universal vogue to the -so-called vertical. The formula which he took for his motto was, -“Writing straight, paper straight, body straight.” This boyhood motto -has been before him ever since. One of the first things the present King -and Queen Elena did, upon their accession to the Throne, was to attach -to their persons <i>only</i> married couples. Ladies-in-Waiting to the Queen -could only be married ladies whose husbands were during the same period -Gentlemen-in-Waiting to the King. This was an early step toward -elevating the moral standards of the Italian Court. Italian aristocracy -had not been renowned for virtuous living, but the present sovereigns -holding to a high standard of morality determined to purify the court in -so far as in them lay by banishing from active service all ladies and -gentlemen whose names had ever been bandied by current gossip. This -crusade, if it may be so called, was aided by the existing laws of the -country which are still sufficiently under the influence of the Roman -Catholic Church to prohibit divorce. No divorced man or woman has -standing in Queen Elena’s court. King Victor Emmanuel is himself -extremely devoted to his Queen and this devotion has often led to his -being charged with intense jealousy. Whether or not this is true, his -attitude toward Elena has resulted in her more and more withdrawing from -the companionship of people of the court and devoting herself to her -children. It is<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_252" id="page_252">{252}</a></span> a pretty picture, that of the home life of this Queen. -Six months of the year the Royal Family live at the Quirinal Palace in -Rome. The remainder of the year is spent at various palaces and castles -in different parts of the Kingdom, but chiefly at Monza in the North, -where the summers are delightful. The long cruises and excursions that -they were wont to indulge in previous to their accession—cruises in the -Mediterranean and the Levant, hunting trips to Spitzbergen and the far -North—are now a thing of the past, and a simple home life is their -daily régime.</p> - -<p>The marriage took place in 1896. Their first child, Yolanda, was born -June 1st, 1901. Royal babies are never permitted to do with only two or -three Christian names. They must perpetuate the names of grandfathers -and grandmothers, and not infrequently of uncles and aunts and -grand-uncles and grand-aunts besides. Thus the full name of the first -little Italian Princess is Yolanda Margherita Milena Elizabeth Romana -Maria! The next little Princess, born November 19th, 1902, was -christened Mafalda Maria Elizabeth Anna Romana. On the 15th September, -1904, at the Château of Racconigi the boy was born. This was a momentous -day for Elena and Victor Emmanuel, for the boy, if he lives, will -eventually occupy the throne of his fathers, and the birth of a Crown -Prince is a matter of utmost importance in the household of a Royal -Family, and indeed in the</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_15" id="ill_15"></a> -<a href="images/ill_015_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_015_sml.jpg" width="550" height="368" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>THE ROYAL CHILDREN OF ITALY.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_253" id="page_253">{253}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">annals of a nation. Queen Elena had been married eight years, all but -one month, when His Royal Highness Prince Humbert arrived. There was -some difficulty in finding suitable names for the future King, -especially a first name which he would carry as King. The Royal -Household was divided between the name of Victor Emmanuel, after his -father, and Charles Emmanuel. The choice was finally left to the baby -Prince’s Royal father who said, “it was a good custom which was followed -in some families of naming the first girl after the grandmother and the -first boy after the grandfather.” So the name Umberto, or Humbert as we -write it in English, was chosen.</p> - -<p>Since the birth of the Crown Prince, one more child has been born to -Queen Elena, a Princess, who is called Giovanna. She is still a wee -child, having been born as recently as November 13, 1907.</p> - -<p>Princess Yolanda, the first born, has colouring and features very like -her mother, while Mafalda and Humbert are more like their father.</p> - -<p>Queen Elena herself spends a great share of her time with the children, -and while they have the usual nurses and governesses, the latter of whom -are already teaching the three older children French and English in -addition to Italian, Queen Elena perhaps does more with her own hands -than any other Queen mother in Europe. For example, she always bathes -them, she is present at their supper hour and when they are being made -ready<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_254" id="page_254">{254}</a></span> for bed; each afternoon she tries to spend two hours with them at -their play. Thus their training is very largely in her hands. The -children are all very young still, but the two older girls are beginning -to appreciate the love and devotion of their mother, for little Mafalda -recently remarked to a gentleman of the court: “Mamma is the comfort of -everyone in trouble.”</p> - -<p>The Queen’s birthday falls on January 8th. The year of the terrible -earthquake at Messina Her Majesty returned to Rome from the devastated -regions on the eve of her birthday. This year, oppressed by the terrible -scenes she had witnessed, she abolished all of the usual festivities in -her honour and devoted the forenoon to superintending the making of -garments for the Messina orphans in one of the Quirinal Palace rooms -which she had made into a temporary workroom. In the afternoon she made -a round of the Rome hospitals, visiting all of the “earthquake -children,” and with her own hands distributing sweets and little gifts, -thus endeavouring to bring a gleam of sunshine into their darkened -lives, and helping them for the moment to forget their sufferings. When -someone spoke to her afterwards of this beautiful way of celebrating her -birthday, she replied: “When these children grow up they may remember my -birthday.” Her own children, too, were encouraged on this occasion to -remember the wounded and orphaned victims. Instead of purchasing -presents for their mother, according to their usual custom,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_255" id="page_255">{255}</a></span> they put -the money into the Relief Fund, to which all the world was contributing. -Little Prince Humbert brought his favourite plaything, a set of toy -soldiers, to his mother and said: “Take this for the poor children.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_256" id="page_256">{256}</a></span>”</p> - -<h3><a name="VI-c" id="VI-c"></a>CHAPTER VI<br /><br /> -SIMPLICITY OF THE ITALIAN COURT</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">The</span> Italian Prince and Princesses, though they live in very beautiful -Palaces, are simply brought up, and are not encouraged to have -extravagant toys. Formerly, and even now sometimes, it has been the -custom of foreign Ambassadors to the Italian Court, and even other -sovereigns, to send gorgeous toys, and magnificent great dolls as big as -the Princesses themselves, to these children. Queen Elena, fearing to -have them grow accustomed to toys so much richer and better than other -children, had taught them to surrender these things to poor children by -sending them to hospital wards. Now the playthings of the Royal children -are just ordinary toys like those that most children have and enjoy.</p> - -<p>The Queen endeavours to make her children forget that they are of Royal -blood, or in any way different from other children. In this particular -she is very different from the Tsaritsa, who never allows her children -or her court to forget that her son will one day be an Autocrat and Tsar -of all the Russias, that her daughters are Grand Duchesses, and must, -therefore, be kowtowed to by every Prince and granddame of the court.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_257" id="page_257">{257}</a></span></p> - -<p>While I was in Rome, Queen Elena related the following anecdote of her -own children, which illustrates her simplicity of attitude toward the -Italian Prince and Princesses.</p> - -<p>The young Prince Humbert was recently put through an examination by his -two older sisters, who wished to have an experience of their brother’s -knowledge about colours.</p> - -<p>Yolanda, pointing with her hand to the cloth of a piece of the -furniture, asked: “What colour is this?”</p> - -<p>“It is red,” Humbert readily answered, without mistake.</p> - -<p>“And that other piece of furniture, what colour is it?”</p> - -<p>For the second time the young Prince gave a right answer.</p> - -<p>“It is green,” he said.</p> - -<p>But Mafalda wanted to take part, too, in what they intended to be the -first examination of the future King of Italy.</p> - -<p>“What colour are your small shoes?”</p> - -<p>Here the matter became rather complicated. As far as it was a question -of usual colours, little Humbert had found no difficulty in answering, -but now, looking at his small shoes, he found that they had to him an -unknown colour. But he was not discouraged, especially as he perceived -on his sister’s lips a light smile, which could not be interpreted as of -approval. It was clear that his wily sisters were teasing him.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_258" id="page_258">{258}</a></span></p> - -<p>“Well, what colour are they?”</p> - -<p>Vanquished? Not he. “My shoes are Marron glacé,” he replied.</p> - -<p>Yolanda and Mafalda laughed gaily at that answer, and little Humbert, -considering himself scorned by them, began to weep, and ran to his -mother for help.</p> - -<p>Queen Elena endeavoured to explain to the little examiners that the -Prince’s answer was right, as the little shoes had really a beautiful -chestnut colour bright and brilliant.</p> - -<p>Humbert is not fond of being quizzed by his sisters, and he is rather -inclined to be resentful. Indeed, this little Crown Prince is a born -soldier of a fighting disposition, and many a nursery quarrel does the -Queen have to settle. He is ever ready to defend with great boldness his -small soldiers, his guns and his swords and other favourite toys, which -Mafalda and Yolanda attempt sometimes to take from him. Humbert has one -amusing weakness. He is fond of the two black eyes and beautiful little -face of one of his sisters’ dolls. Sometimes he wants to take possession -of this doll. Unhappily, his sisters are not always disposed to let him -have it.</p> - -<p>Ordinarily Humbert is glad to assume rather a martial air, and to dress -in military uniforms. But the uniform that he likes best is a smart one -of a Cuirassier regiment with boots, cuirasse and helmet. The little -fellow distinctly prefers the company of boys of his own age, and he -enjoys the little<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_259" id="page_259">{259}</a></span> friends that he is allowed to have, and who are the -children of the Ladies at Court.</p> - -<p>One of these little friends, a boy of five years who showed himself -enthusiastic over his Princely friend, was asked if he loved him much.</p> - -<p>“Yes, I love him very much, because he never complains when they take -something belonging to him, and he never cheats,” he replied.</p> - -<p>“And Yolanda and Mafalda, and the little Giovanna?”</p> - -<p>“Yolanda and Mafalda, I like them also, but they always laugh at us -men!”</p> - -<p>Yolanda, who is especially beloved by all those who live closely to her, -has always been a lively young girl with a frank and gay smile. Being -the eldest sister, she endeavours to look in some manner the wisest and -most serious, and she is at the same time the most charitable and -kindly. In fact, it is known to everyone, that many times she answers -the letters that the little girls of the people address to her -continually, by sending to them as a gift some of her own toys, of which -she willingly deprives herself.</p> - -<p>There is in her a lovely soul, which appears in a thousand ways and -especially in the unlimited affection to her parents.</p> - -<p>An old friend of the Queen’s once asked her to show her an ancient -photograph very dear to her, representing Queen Elena having Yolanda on -her lap, when she was only two or three months old.</p> - -<p>The Queen afterwards sent for Yolanda, and<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_260" id="page_260">{260}</a></span> showed her the photograph. -The little Princess, seeing her mother in the portrait, asked with -suspicious anxiety who was the child she was keeping in her lap.</p> - -<p>“She is a dear baby, of whom I am very fond,” said the Queen.</p> - -<p>Yolanda’s face turned very serious, and after she looked again at the -photograph, she could not abstain from showing a certain contempt.</p> - -<p>“Don’t you see how ugly she is, Mamma? Throw it away.”</p> - -<p>“You are wrong,” the Queen answered, “you are this baby. It is really -you when you were very little.”</p> - -<p>Then Yolanda smiled gladly, and changing at once her opinion, she said, -with plenty of content: “Oh, yes, she is very handsome. You may keep -it.”</p> - -<p>Yolanda is in fact so affectionate to her mother that she hates in her -heart all those duties which keep the Queen away from her. She, as also -Mafalda and Humbert, like much better the beautiful days spent wholly -near their parents, among the green hills of Racconigi, Sant’ Anna di -Valdiere, and San Rossore.</p> - -<p>Victor Emmanuel, leaving all cares of state in the full liberty of his -acts, thinks only to play with his children from whom he never is widely -separated, and who are really his all-absorbing joy. Even in Rome, the -King, his duties accomplished, spends the rest of each day in the -intimacy of his family.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_261" id="page_261">{261}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="VII-c" id="VII-c"></a>CHAPTER VII<br /><br /> -THE HEROISM OF QUEEN ELENA</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">Italy’s</span> Queen has a wonderful reputation the world around for her -heroism and daring. More than once she has rendered signal and -distinguished service when great disasters have visited her country, so -that this reputation is not undeserved.</p> - -<p>I have some personal knowledge of this side of her character and it is a -privilege to give her full credit. There are other sides of her life as -a Queen, however, in which she falls lamentably short of her position. -Of these I shall have to speak also.</p> - -<p>Queen Elena and the King were in Rome at the time of the great -earthquake which devastated Southern Calabria and the western tip of -Sicily. No sooner had the first authentic reports reached their -Majesties than they started for Messina, travelling to Naples by special -train and then by the Italian cruiser <i>Regina Elena</i>. As it happened, I -arrived at Messina, also by sea, at almost the same moment as the -Flagship. I was put ashore, to visit the wrecked city, in a small boat, -and not one hundred yards away a little drab launch was bouncing over -the rude waves toward what was left of a slanting stage, bearing King -Victor Em<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_262" id="page_262">{262}</a></span>manuel. On the deck of the <i>Regina Elena</i>, anxiously watching -each rise and fall of the little boat, stood the Queen. From almost the -same angle I could watch the progress toward shore, only when the King -stepped ashore I was much nearer, and therefore could see more -distinctly the panic-stricken survivors hurling themselves madly at the -feet of their King, and could hear much better the wild shouts: “Vive -Vitorio Emmanuele!” It was a strange, weird hurrah, coming from the lips -of the bereaved, the sorely stricken, the wounded, the dying. Certainly -it impressed me deeply. Later, from an officer aboard the cruiser, I -heard that the Queen was moved as never before in her life, and well she -might be. Before her, in endless panorama, lay the ruined, smoking city. -The King, and the crowd he attracted, loomed big on the quay, the -foreground. Behind, stretching to the orange and lemon clad hills which -after a mile rise abruptly to a great height, lay the biggest pile of -human suffering, of dead bodies and pinioned, starving living that the -world has known in many centuries. Yet out of this ghastly picture arose -the cry: “Long live the King!” “Long live Queen Elena!” Truly it was -overpowering. The Queen stood it as long as she could, and then with her -hands pressed to her face she went sobbing to her cabin.</p> - -<p>After an hour the King returned to the ship. The Queen met him at the -gangway. Now her tears were dried. She wore a long nurse’s apron,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_263" id="page_263">{263}</a></span> and -from that hour, so long as she remained near the scene of disaster, -Queen Elena worked as a nurse. With her own hands she bandaged the -bleeding. She assisted at amputations and other serious operations and -from time to time she visited other ships that were caring for the -injured and spoke the cheering words, which, coming from the sovereign, -meant so much more than any stimulant.</p> - -<p>In connection with this dire catastrophe there was at least one incident -that was full of humour. M. Tardieu, a French journalist, had occasion -to visit the Minister of Marine who was of the Royal party aboard the -Flagship. When Tardieu had finished his business, the Minister, pointing -to a parrot which was occupying a prominent place on the deck, related -this story:</p> - -<p>“A squad of Italian soldiers at work among the ruins heard a voice -crying ‘Maria,’ ‘Maria.’ They dug for hours getting nearer, but always -the voice cried unceasingly ‘Maria,’ ‘Maria.’ At last when they reached -the room from which the sounds were coming they found not a human being -but a parrot. But, in the adjoining room was Maria, a young girl, alive -and well. When the Queen heard of this she sent to have both the parrot -and its mistress brought aboard the Flagship.” As the Minister finished -relating the story, M. Tardieu doffed his cap to the bird and began a -garrulous speech of congratulations. At that moment the King appeared on -deck and seeing the French<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_264" id="page_264">{264}</a></span>man addressing the parrot in all solemnity -and dignity he paused to listen. Tardieu, looking up and seeing the -King, again removed his hat and salaamed low. Whereupon the King -advanced smiling, with extended hand. He chatted with the French -journalist for a few moments and sent an informal message to the French -people. The account of the adventure Tardieu published under the clever -caption: “How a Parrot Introduced Me to the King.” This girl was only -one of many whom Queen Elena became interested in in Messina, and who -have become her special charges now in Rome—wards of the Queen.</p> - -<p>The example set by Queen Elena in going to Messina was followed by -scores of ladies of the Italian court, who left their homes, and, -boarding warships and joining relief expeditions, served as volunteer -nurses. They established field hospitals all along the devastated coasts -and among the hill villages. It was splendid, heroic service and must be -so recorded. Between the work of the ladies of the court and the work of -the Queen was this difference only. The Queen remained for five or six -days, while the others remained four or five weeks. The Queen was -decorated by half the monarchs of Europe—not so the others. But being -the Queen, and having gone there at all, setting the example of personal -service, her mite (comparatively) counted for more than the actual work -of all the others combined.</p> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_265" id="page_265">{265}</a></span></p><p>When Vesuvius vomited forth its torrents of flaming destruction a few -years ago, Queen Elena and the King at once set forth in an automobile -upon the same mission of comfort and mercy. And again, when Calabria was -visited by a lesser earthquake, in 1905.</p> - -<p>Italy, one is sometimes tempted to believe, was the last place God made, -and he has never rested satisfied with His handiwork. No country that I -know has a more tragic history. Death in horrible forms is forever -sweeping over some portion of the land, while geological changes under -the earth are shaking, jostling and altering her surface contour. Ever -since Elena became Queen she has worked with zeal during the dark days -of these numerous calamities. Fate has been strangely, rudely kind to -her, too, in ordaining that she should be near at hand on many occasions -when accidents have befallen—railroad accidents, fires, as well as dire -disasters. Always has the Queen hurried to the danger point and risen to -the crisis.</p> - -<p>When a collision took place between two trains one dark night, at -“Castel-Giubileo,” the Queen, immediately informed, was the first ready -to run to the spot of the catastrophe. The horrible scene that appeared, -the painful screams of the wounded, the great number of victims, brought -tears to her eyes. But the anxiety which possessed her, could not make -her forget her duty. While the King himself was organising the help, -she, the young Queen, was stooping over the wounded, encouraging and -comforting them. A<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_266" id="page_266">{266}</a></span> woman, whose limbs were broken to pieces, was lying -on the road. The Queen rushed to her, kneeled down, kissed her and tried -to encourage her to fortitude. She pursued all the night her consolatory -work and left “Castel-Giubileo,” only after she was satisfied that not a -single victim had been forgotten under the remains of the ruined -trains.<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_267" id="page_267">{267}</a></span></p> - -<h3><a name="VIII-c" id="VIII-c"></a>CHAPTER VIII<br /><br /> -ELENA THE QUEEN</h3> - -<p><span class="smcap">In</span> view of the long list of dramatic, if terrible, events that have from -time to time made Queen Elena the most striking figure in Italy, it -would be the simplest matter in the world for her to make herself the -most popular Queen on any throne in Europe. As a matter of fact, in -spite of her heroism and her daring; in spite of her romantic girlhood -and idyllic years of early married life—which strongly appeal to the -naturally sentimental Italian people—in spite of her charming home -life, there is no doubt that she is one of the most unpopular Queens in -Europe. Her court, which, to meet the tastes of her people, should be -bright, popular, brilliant, is really the dullest, the most stupid in -the western world. I have lived in many countries, and I am more or less -familiar with all the countries of Europe, but never have I heard a -Queen so universally spoken of with disrespect and disapproval by her -own court. Of course, Queen Elena cannot be charged with the sole -responsibility, for the King shares the opprobrium and may, after all, -be the one to blame. It is, nevertheless, a disappointing task that is -set the chronicler of Italian court life of to-day. Elena, as we<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_268" id="page_268">{268}</a></span> have -seen, was born fairly in the lap of romance. Her life should have worked -out to an ideal fulfilment. Extraordinary opportunities have been hers, -but she has never taken advantage of the great popularity they have -given her. A Queen’s life is one of stern duty, intensely hard, and -excessively demanding from many quarters. Queen Elena, in an American -phrase, “plays to the gallery,” then retires. She garners the wheat and -ignores the chaff. She is quick to follow dramatic exploits, but -reluctant to submit to the daily grind.</p> - -<p>The Duke of Ascoli, personal friend and adjutant to the Queen, was much -embarrassed when I asked him to tell me about the charities of Queen -Elena. He mentioned Calabria, Vesuvius, certain children’s hospitals and -orphanages, and there he paused. It is, to me, inexplicable that a Queen -who as the Princess of a little State like Montenegro should have done -so much for the people of the country, been a patroness of the arts and -done all the things that Elena did, and then, as Queen of a great nation -do so little. Rightly or wrongly, Queen Elena has the reputation among -her own people for being the stingiest Queen in Europe. Apparently this -is true. She patronises almost nothing at all, regularly, and if once in -a while she lends her name to appear on a public bill, it usually means -this and nothing more. So far as is known, she gives less to charity, in -proportion to her means, than any Queen. In this she is in unhappy -contrast to the Queen-Mother who, when<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_269" id="page_269">{269}</a></span> she was on the Throne, did very -much to encourage painting, music and sculpture throughout Italy. This -fact rather discredits the only excuse I have ever heard offered for -Queen Elena, namely, that she and the King have many Palaces to -maintain, inheritances which have come to them from the many dukedoms -and little states which were brought together to make up “United Italy.” -Queen Margherita and King Humbert had the same number of estates, but -their charity and philanthropic list was long and striking.</p> - -<p>Queen Elena has one boast. She says that less has been written of her -than of any Queen in the world, and she is very proud of it. My own -impression is that Queen Elena realises that if more of the facts of her -selfish nature were made world-wide that she would cease to be the -object of veneration that she is to-day. If the world at large -appreciated to what extent she has carried her ideas of simplicity in -dress, the glamour that surrounds her would fade. It is impossible to -worship a dowd—especially if the lady be a Queen with all the splendour -and taste of the world at her hand.</p> - -<p>I have seen her driving in the Campagna, or even through the streets of -Rome, when I would never have believed her the occupant of her exalted -position, had I not known her. It is somewhat ungallant to dwell upon -these things, but Queen Elena <i>can</i> wear good clothes, as her court -costumes testify. It is because she simply <i>doesn’t</i>, that<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_270" id="page_270">{270}</a></span> makes her a -slouch in dress. One need not be extravagant in clothes to be tasteful, -but Queen Elena is not even tasteful. Here again, she is in unfortunate -contrast to the Queen-Mother who, still living in Rome, is always -exquisitely gowned, and no matter how simply, always with unerring -taste. Queen Elena is, indeed, sorely handicapped by the presence of -Queen Margherita in the capital, for her popular affection will last as -long as she lives, and a woman of Elena’s calibre can never, even at -best, supplant her.</p> - -<p>The most ungracious task in the world is sometimes to tell the truth. -When writing of Kings and Queens, one is expected to write in adulation. -I have done my best for Queen Elena, in telling the story of her younger -life in all its vivid and alluring colouring; and I have paid full -tribute to Elena, the Mother. But the picture is not yet complete. Elena -the Queen is, after all, of first importance to the nation. We, in -America, believe that the institution of kingship—“divine right of -Kings” and all the rest—is largely archaic twaddle. Queen Elena, of all -living Queens, illustrates the emptiness of Queenship as it exists -to-day. I would not give the impression that the Queen and King of Italy -are cruel tyrants like the lately deposed Sultan of Turkey, or autocrats -like the Tsar and Tsaritsa of Russia; nor are they active elements in -the social life of the nation like the Kings and Queens of England and -Spain, or the Emperor and Empress of Germany. What Queen Elena<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_271" id="page_271">{271}</a></span> and King -Victor Emmanuel represent, however, are, the biggest of social -parasites. They draw an enormous revenue of many millions annually from -a heartbreakingly poor population, and give the minimum in return.</p> - -<p>I am quite aware that I speak in no measured terms, but a surprising -number of people in Italy—men and women of the Court—have begged me to -state the truth concerning their sovereigns to the world. Perchance they -themselves may take from the lips of an unbiassed observer from overseas -what no one of their subjects dare to say. While not an apostle of -social revolution in Italy, I may perhaps be so suspected, unless I -state that it is the full indifference to everyday affairs of the -Italian sovereigns, especially the Queen, that breeds the widest -discontent. The Italian court, as a whole, is not politically restless -so much as discouraged and disgusted with their apathetic monarchs.</p> - -<p>The four years of blissful honeymooning enjoyed by Victor Emmanuel and -Elena seems to have spoiled them for taking up the tasks of sovereigns. -They seem to have lived too much unto and for themselves. One indication -of this is the almost ludicrous jealousy of the King. He guards Elena -with the greatest care, and few indeed are the male members of the Court -who ever approach her save on formal occasions. The sovereigns always -have their meals alone together. It was the custom of the former -monarchs to have the Kin<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_272" id="page_272">{272}</a></span>g’s adjutant and the Queen’s lady-in-waiting at -the table; at dinner there were nearly always guests. Not so Victor -Emmanuel. He prefers to be as much as possible alone with his spouse, -and never entertains at dinner save when duty demands it. It must be -said that he gives Elena a true and loyal devotion and he is one of the -very few, if not the only monarch in Europe, against whom no word of -unkind gossip has ever been spoken.</p> - -<p>The closely watchful attitude of the King may be in some measure -responsible for the impression which is pretty general that Elena is a -timid, shy woman. There are several anecdotes recalled to illustrate -this trait, each of them, to me, interesting.</p> - -<p>One afternoon, near the beginning of her reign, Elena had attended a -function given by the Dowager-Queen. Queen Elena arrived somewhat late -and reached the door of the Salon unattended. There was a large company -present and Queen Elena paused, as if in embarrassment, until Queen -Margherita, seeing her, came forward and taking her by the hand led her -into the room.</p> - -<p>On the rare occasions when Italian Royalty patronise the theatre or -opera, Elena, if she knows the Queen-Mother is to be present, arrives a -little late, and leaves a little early, so that the homage Queen -Margherita had been accustomed to during so many years may still be -hers.</p> - -<p>Social shyness is a thing apart from physical courage, of which, we all -know Queen Elena has</p> - -<div class="figcenter"> -<a name="ill_16" id="ill_16"></a> -<a href="images/ill_016_lg.jpg"> -<img src="images/ill_016_sml.jpg" width="2439" height="1515" alt="[Image unavailable.]" /></a> -<div class="caption"><p>SNAPSHOTS BY QUEEN ELENA: THE KING AND HER CHILDREN.</p></div> -</div> - -<p><span class="pagenum"><a name="page_273" id="page_273">{273}</a></span></p> - -<p class="nind">an abundance. The formalities of ceremonial court life are irksome to -Queen Elena, and the afternoon “teas” that she holds for the court are -stripped of all their formidableness by the present mistress of the -Quirinal.</p> - -<p>Among the English colony in Rome is an aged lady whom Queen Elena calls -to court once every year for a tête-à-tête. During the past year she has -grown very deaf. Queen Elena had obvious difficulty in making herself -understood, and to her very evident embarrassment the old lady noticed -this and said, apologetically: “I am so sorry, your Majesty, that my -hearing inconveniences you.” “Oh,” said the Queen, “I did not know that -you were deaf. Come, sit here on the sofa by me.” This, surely, was -worthy of a Queen.</p> - -<p>That Queen Elena positively dislikes social functions there can be no -question. For three successive winters there was practically nothing -whatever done to stimulate the social life of the capital on the part of -the sovereigns. One year the reason given for the postponing of the -court balls and receptions was the Sicilian disaster. Another year it -was the death of the King of Portugal. Other courts went into mourning -for thirty days. The Italian court cancelled everything in the nature of -festivities for the year. This has a very serious economic result. Rome -is one of the least commercial capitals of Europe. The social season at -best is brief—three to four months—and upon this<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_274" id="page_274">{274}</a></span> little season many -of the shopkeepers have to rely for the bulk of their trade. The tourist -trade does not begin to compensate for the loss of the social season. In -every other capital in Europe the presence of Royalty at all star -occasions throughout the season lends a brilliancy that seems to be lost -to Rome for ever—at least during the lives of the present monarchs. The -old Roman families do the best they can to bolster up Rome’s fast -fleeting prestige, but the Royal Box is nearly always empty. More often -than not it looms up in the centre of things like a ghost at the feast. -Each year, fewer and fewer foreigners go to Rome for the season, and -this is laid directly to the door of the sovereigns. It must be borne in -mind that this sort of thing means very much more in Europe than it does -in America. There is no city in the United States that could possibly be -affected in this way, but since it is of so much importance in Italy it -must be mentioned here. This is one of the prime grievances of the -people of Rome against the King and Queen. If Queen Elena were the wife -of a country minister in our country, she would be beloved by all who -knew her. Her domestic virtues, her simplicity of taste and manners, her -fondness for children would all be extolled. It would then be no -drawback that her vision was not extended, her horizon so narrow. She -would be a splendid woman to organise Dorcas societies, to teach the -Infant class in the Sunday School, and even to get up Thursday night -socials. Alas! however,<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_275" id="page_275">{275}</a></span> she is a sovereign, and of a sovereign so much -more is not merely expected but demanded. The way Queen Elena has -shirked her daily chores—court functions, audiences and interest in -national activities—during the last few years is a matter of national -comment. “She promised so much, she has achieved so little!” one hears -on every hand.</p> - -<p>The Elena of to-day does not seem the same Elena who came from -Montenegro. The reason for her change of character is beyond my ken. But -these are facts. As a Queen, Elena comes close to the line of failure. -Each time she steps into the blaze of popular admiration the sentiment -toward her seems to change, but I notice that like the fickle waves of -the sea, this quickly recedes.</p> - -<p>Queen Elena has always been given to hobbies, and as her children take -to one hobby or another their regal mother shares their enthusiasm and -interest. The King, too, has one hobby that he has indulged in since -boyhood and that is the collecting of coins. This fad he took up when he -was a very small boy. According to his own statement it was in the year -1879 that one rare coin fell into his hands and he determined to make a -“collection.” To-day his collection is reputed the largest and finest in -Italy. With him, the collecting of the coins is but part of the hobby. -Around each set of ancient and obsolete coins he has grouped a summary -of historical facts so that his collection, if studied carefully would -constitute an education in itself. I have been told that the<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_276" id="page_276">{276}</a></span> King has -nearly sixty thousand different coins! A friend writing to Senator -Morandi who is intimately familiar with the life of the King, asked how -Victor Emmanuel had time to make collections of this sort. To which the -Senator replied: “In the midst of all the cares of State, by his -indefatigable capacity for work, aided by a rare promptitude of -perception and by a prodigious memory, he finds time to follow every -scientific and literary movement, and to attend to this collection.” As -a matter of fact, this is the King’s one hobby. The Queen, on the other -hand, still indulges several. In the Quirinal Palace in Rome she -maintains a studio where she spends many an afternoon working over her -sketches and water colours. Her interest in the coin collection is -rather recent, and at bottom only nominal. It is my impression that this -interest on her part is primarily for the sake of her children who will -one day own this interesting and valuable collection. The King once -related to Senator Morandi, in a personal letter, the origin of this -collection. “I got my chance,” he said, “a soldo (one cent) of Pius IX -and I kept it. Afterwards I got another which I put with the first. -Presently I secured fifteen different coins of different kinds. Then my -father gave me about seventy different copper coins. These formed the -nucleus of my collection.” For several years Prince Victor Emmanuel -pestered every one he knew to give him old coins, especially at -Christmas and on other gift days. Before long<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_277" id="page_277">{277}</a></span> he had a collection of -three thousand pieces. And now it has attained the proportions of twenty -times that number. Recently the King testified that this collection has -been “an efficacious aid to him in his study of history and geography. -Besides which, when I have time I always find something useful and -pleasing to do, either arranging my coins or searching in books for -dates for this purpose!” Many an American and English boy and girl has a -collection of coins and this testimony of King Victor Emmanuel may be an -incentive to them to continue this hobby, and to make the most of it by -following the scientific example of the King in carefully and accurately -preserving the full data concerning each coin.</p> - -<p>Queen Elena is still a young woman. If the time ever comes when she -determines to throw as much energy and enthusiasm into the everyday work -of Queenship as she does on the special occasions of crisis she may yet -make her mark upon Italy. So far she has not done this. In these -chapters I have tried to portray Queen Elena as she is—a real live -woman who enjoyed a romantic youth; who made a brilliant marriage; who -is a devoted wife and mother; a mediocre Queen. I have written without -malice and without prejudice. My task is done if my readers can now -visualise Queen Elena—can picture her in her mountain home, a daring, -untrammeled girl; can see her as she is to-day, active in her domestic -tasks, lunching and dining and driving with the King, bathing<span class="pagenum"><a name="page_278" id="page_278">{278}</a></span> the -babies and watching over their early slumbers. For to-day Elena is wife -and mother above all else—and Queen incidentally as well as -accidentally. It is my impression that the Queen business bores her -utterly; else she would not do it so badly.</p> - -<p class="fint">THE END</p> - -<hr class="full" /> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Royal Romances of To-day, by Kellogg Durland - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROYAL ROMANCES OF TO-DAY *** - -***** This file should be named 60770-h.htm or 60770-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/0/7/7/60770/ - -Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images available at The Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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