WHAT KINGS CAN'T DO.

King Country Chronicle, Volume VII, Issue 534, 18 January 1913, Page 7

WHAT KINGS CAN'T DO.

THEY LACK FREEDOM OP, ACTION. It may sound a littb curious, but there are quite a number oi t inrs which, despite his exalted positicn a3 Sovereign of. the Realm, Gesrge V. cannot do. These dira' ilities range over all sorts of matters, and concern etiquettes, politics, •:' reli'gift, and law. To begin, with etiquette, it,.is an established practice that His Majesty : must, never, qall upon or grant an audience to a foreign, monarch except in the. presence of a responsible Minister. Etiquette also, precludes him from accepting a gift which a loyal subject may wish, to make to him. Should.j ho.vevcr, the gift be a joint offering, ibe prohibition does not apply.

A king never writes a letter to anybody outside his family circle. All other correspondence has to be conducted through one of his secretaries. Nor does King George accent invitations to dine or" stoi> with a subject. What he does when lie wishes to pay such a visit is to in.ite himself. Another strictly observed point of etiquette is that on ascending the throne a King shall withdraw from any club to which he has hitherto belonged. Similarly,,, he cann.jt become a Freemason,, fnd if he happens to be one at the date ,of his accession he must resign from the craft. King George, however, his not been initiated. .

Even in affairs of the heart, a Sovereign must bow to Ihe will, of others. Although Kinj Coghatua might have loved and shared his throne with, a beggar-maid, the Royal Marriages Act would render the occurrence of any'such romantic union "Impossible in Eritain. Members of the blood Royal must have the sanction of Parliament before they can marry ; and tin's would certainly not be accorded unless the birth and position of the lady were beyond reproach.— "Bellman."