INTERVIEWS WITH KINGS

Hokitika Guardian, 24 December 1923, Page 3

INTERVIEWS WITH KINGS

AIR LF OUFL'N’S I!FA 11X1 SCEXCFS LONDON, Oct. 2b.

.Mr AYilliam Le Queux'x In ok of reminiscences: “Tilings | Know About Kings, Celebrities, and Crooks-'' is. nst about as full of movement, ami excitement, li' on'.’ of lu- typical novels. His conversations with iimna relis seem to have been porticul.Hy friendly and conlideiitiall.v. The late Czar said to him : “You have written a hook varuing us that war will come between G.-r----liumy and Ftigland. It was sent to me from London. I may tv!! you that I entirely agree with Lor,! Roberts. Germany is preparing for war, and Britain turns a blind eye to everything. But, of course I beg you not to publish this. Our conversation is entirely private, remember. Old King Nicholas ot Alentenegro was not only a great patrnt. lull apparel it ly liked to tiil'n an honest penny.

“On one occasion, while walking in the main street of Cettinie. I saw him stop a man and ask lor ms revolver. The man addressed drew hi- weapon from his belt and gave it sheepishly to the King, who examined it, and. finding it unloaded, promptly trued him live francs. The man paid merrily. while his Afajcsty pnekelcd the Ulanov with a unde ol evident silislaet ion. There was a law that everyone must go armed, and anyone louml with a weapon without cartridges was liable to a line. H was apparently his Majesty's delight to go about and udmiiiixir the law—to his own advantage." TOO “FOXY." Fx-K ing Ferdinand of Bulgaria was. we fear, too "foxy" for Mr l.e L'noux. lie Yehetliantly a-si'l’l.’d 'is love oi Knglaud t i the friend mi ' -mlidar.t of kings. ’’ Ree,,Hoe! . if war mines 1 will never fight agaii-i Fug-land. I would raiher abdicate. 1 love your country, and admire your policy. H i- nl| b v your vacillating politicians that ' ealinol endure. ) oil I’rili-n hate yeiii eyes ( 10.-od to Germany's inaeliinaiions. TYue, my mether was G 'rnmn. and to a degree I am German myself. Bui d war comes, as n must. I ’■ dl light on vour -ide. li yumr preemus ill-iniormed officials will allow me!"

But let li- leave the kings and talk a little of the celebrities. -Mr Le (tueiix was a friend of the famotlCoitntess of Cardigan, and it wim, indeed. owing to liis eiieouragemeiit that her ‘ ’ ReeolleeLi ells” came to lie written. She was loud of sitting under a magnolia tree oil the terraee at Deene when the weather permitted. Ixr/F DlS’fF R B!-'.D. One dav her doze was disturbed by the sound <»f voices. •And now. de;ir Mr Smith, cjiim’ in the (-ultured High Church accents of tile neighbouring vicar's wile, you will get a good view ol the park, and here- - is i|h’ wonderful’ magnolia. Dh. how trulv tail’, drawled the impulsive young shepherd of soul', who accompanied her. lon how verv sad il i- to refect on the inn it v scandalous s‘“’rn - ■. mr.ui al«an this beautiful ancestral home I Suddenly an imperious. high-pitched voice made itself heard. Y-.'ho arc you. and how dare you wall, on my ter rae"' it demanded. Th” intruder- approached the locality when ti"’ void’ proceeded, and there they -aw all irate and golden-haired he.lv. whose facial adornment would hare given pun:-- in.

Jezebel, vet whose attire va- Isuitable for a young lady in her teem-. The vicar's wife was. a- befitted her , ailing, r otirageous. Alt’ Smith was lunching with is. your ladyship, she said, and I thought I would Icing hint across the park to look at the I’caut ii’ui magnolia. Am I Countess c! ( a rdigau or am I not .’ demanded Ihe l.ady ol the .Magnolia. You’ve no business to lit ing any fool of a euinte about ]:i’ I 1 hat,” cm !” Tile -cation of the hook which deals with ’. MMiioils i- perhaps the u;n'-k ie;:i!v eitrtou . Mr Is t,liieiix had the (ic.n'htl'iii pleasure i.f meeting two notorious timid nets. I' ippen and Armst tong, in in ivnLe li!e. Ciipqc’ii, who passed himself oil' to Air le (,p.aax a- “Doctor Adams." got Ml tom n with him hv letter, saying that he had a new and exciting plot to suggest for a novel. In the course of Gieir ling. l:o observed : ■'i’oi-sigei s are tlways Imnglers. The tools use arsenic, antimony, alkaloid.'d and glueosida.l poisons, under ting delusion t.'iat they wasn't he found out.’’ On aiiothei mansion lie wa- equally lot ! lieoniing : “He deserihed to me the formula of c. i Inin secret poisons, and after a long chat, told me more about the newly discovered poisons, ami mm ot which, if given by po, h’l’mica lly would cause almost instant death :i > though from heart failure. Mnjni Armstrong was a fellow-niem-hrr with All be L>ueux of a AVesl Fill! club. Tin’ ’.liithor ehmiccd to reluai’l-: to him on one m elision that he was going that evening to a dinner i.f the Crimes (Tub. 'file mnibn-Jied major, who had murdered his wife I”" than a month previously. answered : "In my profession I am constantly dealing with petty climes. I would so n;u-h like to go to one of your dinners. I suppose you discuss the celebrated cases of poisoning and »n on.' It must I c trust hu resting." "JACK THH Kf ITItR." Bill peiliaps the nnist renia i kalrle thing, in Mr Is IJncuxs laaik is the di>. closure of tile identity of “Jack the Ri,.per“ which lie owed to the ngotiisj• 1 1 r t. ol an iinlinishcd Leak Rasputin

was writing on ‘‘Circal Russian Crimi lids." The leal mu idol cr, it appears v.’is Dr. Xie'iander 1 Vdaclicttko. a Rtt--i.'ir. living in AYalwoiili. The Russian Secret Police soon knew all about it. hut they "actively aidei ami I'Moiwrnged Dm crimes in nnlei to exhibit to the world certain defect) uf the Lngli-h nolicc st stent.” liven! tl ally they rim Russia I Secret Police - smuggled Peilai'lieiiko out of this conn try hack to Russia v.i'ore he me- even tnalK |m !;'d up hi an : syimii. dying it t()PS, It .-ill reads jd;e one of Mr l.e Qtieuxh melodramatic novels ;