The Emperor Francis Joseph, of Austria.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 340, 6 February 1889, Page 3

The Emperor Francis Joseph, of Austria.

The following interesting gossip aboub bho Austrian Emperor is by tho Vienna corres. pondont of the * Standard ' :—: — • One celebrates one's 25th and one's 50th year, but to make a jubilee of one's 40th is sheer nonsense," With those words, said to the friend of his youth, the present Austrian Premier, Count Taafo, bho Emperor is reported to havo declined tho celebration of the clay on which ho will have completed the 40 bh year of his reign — namely, 2nd December. Very groat preparations were already made throughout the empire, and they had all to be countermanded when the Emperor caused to be published in tho ' Official Gazette 9 thab no deputation will be received, no telegram of congratulations will be accepted, that special school festivals have to be dispensed with, that festive representations in theatres are nob to take place, that even services in the churches of tho different denominations must bear no formal character, and that the only manner of celebrating the anniversary which is in accordance with the wishes of His Majesty is that of offering prayers in church during tho ordinary service, as the clay falls on a Sunday, and of remembering the poor and the noedy by founding charitable institutions of a lasting character. The Emperor Francis Joseph has remained, undor all tho vicissitudes which a long reign must inevitably bring, bho same man of simple habit?, of determination of purpose, of quick perception and of sound judgment, the man of heart and character, and as he is described in the memoir of royal visitors or diplomatists who met him in the first year of his reign. To the Hungarian Bishop Ron ay, the tutor of his children, Crown Prince Rudolph and Princess Valeric, he gave the instruction, 'Toach the truth, and don't conceal your convictions ;' and the man who tells this in his mcmoiis relates that the Emperor, on receiving the telegiam with the news of the enormous loss of life occasioned by the fire in the Ring Theatre, when sitting in his family circle, in the Chateau of Godollo, burst into tears, and did not close his eyes all that night. A painting in tho Industrial Exhibition, which was closed some weeks ago, reminded tho present generation of the heroism of the Empeior in saving life during the Vienna inundation, and how much personal courage the monarch displayed at Szegedin is engraved on the hearts of overy living Hungaiian. Nothing less, it is true, can be expected of a man who, as a dashing, impetuous rider on the manoeuvre field, or as a passionate pursuer of the chamois on the snowcovered, slippery paths of the Alps, has learned to forget fear, and especially of a man who, by a thousand acts of benevolence to which millions and millions of florins were devoted from his private purse, has proved that he feels for the people he lulesover. The Emperor Francis Joseph is imbued with a sonso of duty which makes him a model, quite apart from his lofty position, for Ministers as well as for the thousands of minor officials in this great realm. He never gives his imprimatur to a bill without carefully reading it. A stupendous memory, of which numerous current anecdotes bear witness, assists the Emperor to a groat extent ; but he achieves more by hard work and pains* taking. His scrupulously regulated life a^o provides him with the necessary time for all his duties, even on days when he , has to speak with from 100 to 150 persons, ! as is not seldom the case. The Emperor ! rises all the year round at 6 o'clock in the morning 1 , but very often he is surprised by his personal attendants when sitting at his writing iable as early as 4 o'clack in the morning ; and between the hour of rising and that of going to bed — usually at 10 o'clock in the evening— lies a clay of harrier work than that of the toiier of tho soil, rolieved only by some reading, which, together with the theatre and the shooting in the mountains, constitute the monarch's only pastime. The Emperor is fond of laughing,and this pleasure he mostly enjoys in his family circle — in the society of his children when they were young and at present in that of his granddaughter, the child of Rudolph and Stephanie. With the young damsel, now five years old, the Emperor plays like a child, and the happiness he takes away with him from the interviews Avith Princess Elizabeth is visible on his face for hours, and sometimes for days, afterwards. Although of robust health the Emperor feels already the weight of the manifold cares he went through during 40 years of rule ; but the regularity of his life and the exercise in the open, which he takes whenever the affairs of State allow him time, keep him hale and strong. A people of nearly 40,000,000, thankful for the beneficent "rule of their wise monarch, unite in praying that the life of Francis Joseph, and of his consort and children, may be preserved for a long time, and that he may be able to celebrate a real jubilee on the 50th anniversary of his ascending the throne.