THE GUILD OF KINGS.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1590, 6 November 1912, Page 3

THE GUILD OF KINGS.

STORIES OF EDWARD VII, THE GERMAN EMPEROR. STEAiNED RELATIONS OP UNCLE AND NEPHEW., The October number, of the "Fortnightly Hoview" opens with ail arliclo entitled "King Edward 'VII: His Character and Personality." The author is Mr. Edward Legge, who, as si member of the staff of "The Morning Post," was brought into contact with the laio King both at home and abroad. Mr. Lcggo's article is interesting alike because ot the new matter it contains and the criticisms it passes on Sir Sidney Leo's memoir in the "Dictionary of National Biography," which created a sensation some months ago. Mr. Leggo tells for the first time ■ (on the. authority of M. Mijatovich, former Servian. Minister in London) what trans:pired _at an interview which took place in 1905 between King Edward and the Russian and Italian Ambassadors, who waited on him to support the reopening of diplomatic relations with Servia, which had been broken off in 1303 owing to the assassination of King Alexander and Queen Draga. Tho King regretted that he could not use his inilnenco in the direction suggested, on account of public opinion,, Besides, he said, there was a personal' reason:. "As you see, we belonged to the same guild as labourers or professional men. i cannot bs indifferent to the n.^kisanation of a member of my profession, or, if you like, 'a member of my guild. We should be-obliged to shut up our businesses; if we, the Kings,' considered the assassination of Kings as of no consequence at ail. I regret, but you see that 1 cannot do what you wish .me to do." ' King Edward at Church. Mr. Leggo observes that King Edward's broadly-religious views were one of the most striking of his many characteristics. "Despite frequent assertions to the .contrary," he says, "King Edward was a sturdy Protestant, entirely free from bias,'' and adds. ; "lii the discharge of his religious duties he was thorough; ho gave one the appearance of enjoying to the full tho calm, the repose, and the order of Divine service. The presence of a Cross and ilowers on the altar gratified his sense of the fitness of things. To him they did not savour of 'ritualism,' a phrase often lightly and unmeaningly used. ' They formed part of the -'beauty of holiness,' and that sufficed. This attribute-of Edward VII is .worthy of remembrance in this age of • unrest. . It-was more than once reported of him,that he was 'a Komaii.Catholic in disguise'; that .aba service at tho Catho•lie Church at. Marienbad, when a Mass ' was being celebrated for his friend, the Emperor Francis Joseph, the King had bowed at the 'elevation,' and, still worsej that he had attended Vespers on the same day... I should not like to say that he did not bend his head at the most solemn part of the Mass, because to havo abstained, from doing so would have been irreverent, as it would have been for him to '.have removed 'his hat at a Jewish service;". ' Sunday at the Theatre. . .When the Duke of Edinburgh was married in St. Petersburg in ; 1874 Mr. Legge. was ..there representing .'the "Morning Post." During-the festivities the Prince, of Wales, as King Edward .-.then was, attended. on a Sunday a gala' performance given at the Opera I 'by ImperitCl command. The .fact was,cabled'tp;'Lphdon, and published; in Mr. Lcggo's''''paper., The ,messago;;\ya.s re-cabled to St. ; Petersburg, and ilr. .(now Lord) Knollys : . sent, for Mr. asked him 'why "ho had been so-indiscreet. "With a clear, conscience(says Mr. Legge) I replied th'at, if' the statement had been published- in !niy' paper it must have been sent by an, agency,-as it •was provedr to have beon. The real 'indiscretion''was : ',the Prince's.'.' and it'was s-jino . tune before .jhef-'heard! -the Jest of *it; 'y'et "lie ha'd"-onlj- accompanied the Emperor and all .the foreign Princes, including a King, ..then at St. There was a terrific outburst iii. the" cliapels and'in' some of the papers, and I heard at the time that the. Queen .was 'very irate at her sm's .relapse from the proprieties.' There could :hot- have'been a greater outcry had/the'.Prince of Wales 'desecrated' the by witnessing the contest for the 'Grand Prix,' which, on one occasion, his Royal mother for-. mally forbad him to do." Dealing-with-the memoir in tho "Dictionary of National Biography," , Mr. Legge quotes'a lifo-long friend of tho late "King, who wrote to him shortly after the'appearance of the memoir : "1 never knew a more marked example of: 'belittling' a .person, with 'faint. praise.'" ,Mi\ Legge says-.that '-'it is.incontrovertible, from the letters of persons for .whom'' the King had. the greatest affection,; that parts-bf the 'Dictionary's' memoir havo caused pain." • ' The King and His: Nephew.. . ~fu connection w r ith ;a ; reference -; in- the; memoir to the relations • between ' .King Edward and his "nephew,' tho German Emperor, and .'the statement that "the King was never .loiig estranged 'from his nephew," Mr. 'Legge writes :r----"In reality, "the "personal relations- of, King and Kaiser lapsed into comparative' calm only'when they , were apart from one another. 'By means .of litters. it' was al-ways-possible, by tho form of correspondence, to re-establish ■ a passable modus vivendi. .But even'.this-..possible harmony was repeatedly interrupted by tlio ■ carrying backwards and forwards' of messages through which. King Edward was , invariably a passive sufferer-; the restlessness,, the eccentricity, and the un.accountability of the nephew being a' constant source of irritation > to the longsuffering: uncle. . "One instance of this may bo cited out of many. The Emperor - was desirous of paying one of his thirteen visits to England, and mooted his wish through a ■sonage who was equally 'acceptable to both Sovereigns. The King (then Prince of Wales) received tho emissary, to whom > he said in effect: 'You may . tell my nephew we shall be very pleased to see him, although my.mother in her state of health is, cf course, unable to entertain him adequately. I will, however,, do all I oan to make his stay ihere agreeable. One condition, .however, I should like to ma.ke :'it is that, he should not bring with him- Admiral , who, I havo heard from a reliable source, has spoken of me iii derogatory terms.' What, was the ■Prince of Wales's amazement when he saw, among the large suite which the Emperor brought with him, that veTy man! "The EmperoT's criticisms ' of his uncle's private life and of his associates, his intimate friends, were calculated to rouse the ire and resentment ,of King Edward, for. such • splenetic • outbursts directed against a mail of the King's deep-feeling nature could not be forgotten between sunrise and sunset. In the presence of Witnesses the Emperor was foolish enough to vaunt his own record and to contrast it with that of his unelc. And all these betises. were faithfully carried to the King." AN INTERESTING B00K. : ' SIDELIGHTS ON ROYAL LIFE. There are many interesting stories . in the biography just published of the late King (states a cablegram in the Sydney "Sun"). Mr. Edward Legge is the author; and he entitles his book "King Edward VII in His True Colours." :Mr. Leggo says that until King Edward's last illness his appetite was the envy, of young diplomatists. 'The King was made of rock, and it-ovas impossible! for him to remain unoccupied. In i he .selection of his friends lie displayed considerable acumen. 'Die finances of tho lioyal household were ■ muddled, and he engaged Lord Esher, Lord Farcji>bar, and Sir .Ernest Casssll, three of his closest acquaintances, to place them in order. They established an .amortisation scheme, and after a few years of eliergelic treatment solvency .was the result. An interesting little, incident is related regarding Sir W. H. liussell, the famous., journalist, who accompanied ■ King Edwa rd 'to'lndia. Lord . Kosebery recommended Russell for a knighthood, and Queen Victoria conferred the honour al: Buckingham Palace. Kussell said, "When 1 hoplied in the King remarked, 'Don't kneel, Silly i just stoop." Sit- Dighton Probyn, of. hoi' Alaj'iatjV.'s hdnseiuutU.

handed tho ribbon of tho order, and; King I Edward 'slipped it over Russell's liehd. "Inharmonious Relations." Mr. Legge contends, that King Edward's relations with tho German Emperor WSfe always inharmonious. On one occasion the Emperor arrived in England, and his suite was so numerous that Windsor Castle, was unequal to tho demands made upon it to house them. Some of the staff were accordingly sent to Progmoi'e, and .they wrote home saying that the hospitality extended to them was not good enough, This gossip reached tho King's ears. ■ , • King Edward's conception and good breediug continually caused him to flout the ..exuberant loquacity of .his German, nephew. The Emperor 'Wilhelm used to chatter with scant reticence before other people concerning the;gentlemen whom his uncle had chosen' as personal friends. King Edward was annoyed, and he showed his annoyance. He read the newspaper every day, and even when he was ill. at the last, and could get no sleep, his memory ttas still good. •He never forgot. After the baccarat, case, when ho was drawn into a seamlal at . tho home of the .Wilsons, the wellknown Yorkshire shipping' family, ho w ; as disappointed at the coolness of the "Morning Post," mid pleased with a I chivalrous article which- appeared in the "Daily Telegraph." One paper, which accorded him a Roman burial, was consigned to the flames, and the writer of the article .publicly snubbed. . , lii a'letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury, King Edward said: "I have a horror of gambling, and. I should always do my utmost to discourage others. .1 consider that, it is one of the greatest curses that the country could bp afflicted with." Fond of Theatres. The King was passionately fond ol theatres, and was a regular first-nighter. He had a predilection for the Coiuedie Prancaise in Paris, and loved to- smoke a cigar and drink a glass of beer with the directors in their private room. He "was a hearty spectator of l'arces, even when', they were of a rather pointed character. Very-few-journalists or authors• wern welcomed .at Marlborough House. In- addition to Mr. Kussell, Lord Burnhaln (proprietor of the "Daily Telegraph"), Marie Corelli, Mr. Hull (of the "Daily; Graphic"), and the late Mr. Melton-Prior, the famous war correspondent and artist, were constant Visitors. •So-'was the late Mr. Henry Labouohere, who dispensed with such predicates as ■"Your lioyal Highness", ot "Your.Majesty," and was content to address King Edward 'simply as "Sir." At' a Prime Minister's dinner on one occasion the late .King circled the room' and bade adieit to the guests, but missed one of them. When he'reached the door he turned and walked buck to the solitary guest by the fireplace, and wished him a friendly "Good night." King Edward, saj's Mr. Legge, had a greater variety <)f hats and caps than any other Sovereign. His hats; for ordinary wear numbered 30,' and.his military helmets and hats covered, a larger range than those of the Kaiser. He did not like straw hats. •A German barber is quote.il in the book as recalling an occasion when the King, then Prince Albert, was passing through ICronberg. He went into the .hairdresser's, and in colloquial German, asked that his. beard should be trinimed, and then relapsed into silence. When asked a ques-; tion he. answered most politely that as 'princes-were, on. the free,list he had no-, tiling to pay. Fishbones as Souvenirs. A waiter at. Marienbad, where tho King went nearly every year, was pestered by an American notoriety-hllnter . for something that King Edward had touched. .The..astute .waiter, gave him a.fishbone off tiie King's.plate, for which lie received three dollars. Then lie collected all the other fisjibones in .'the restaurant and sold them to other Americans, clearing <18. dollars over the busluess. . •/ ... . .Other seekers- of souvenirs;"wcr<! indefatigable; They paid fancy prices for the King's cigar butts, 'prtijl scrambled for.thb water in ivhich he .hail "washed, his hands. He' once told a story agaiiist ,hiniself, in. which a girl ;of 13. years Of ago w ; as 1 ! said and his suite;' and ;to have rerii-arkeil ia' her 'ttwther "that "it was very handy lie didn't 'die. fill we'd seen him." .' ; 1 j King Edward staled Uva'i; he : had scarcely time to read novels, "But," he added, "I.do. sometimes. Jt seems to -nie that' a writer's-talent- maniffsts itself not in dealing with psvc.hologicnl problems, but rather in. the fine, descriptive passages. Nothing is so difficult to describe as a landscape. : "When I am in the theatres I prefer . pieces which make me laugh," Mr. Legge maiiitains that • his Majesty was a great diplomatist, a leader of public opinion, , a democratic -monarch,-and ' skilled in worldly lore. '.