, 1874-07-19
ROYAL DUKES.

ROYAL DUKES.
An 1ntercftinE Review OF English
| Htst0ry--The PaAt and PreAent In.
fiueasce, OF the Sons Of British Mon.
arChH.
From chs london Saturday Rtpte.c.
another son Of tile Queen has received 8 seal
| IN tho House OF Lords aud there has naturally
been the usual kind Of talk in tlls papers, And
not the least notable thing in the matter is the
piece OF advice given by the Times to the Duke
Duke, yet he is not to do what another Duke
may do that, though the law gves him certain
powers, he must take care not to mike use OF
them that, though he becomes 8 member Of the
Legislature with tho right to speak nnd vote in
one House Of Parliament, yet he must not think
OF voting there, while other members of the same
body freely may. We are not going to discuss
the practical wisdom Of the advice that is quite
another matser. We are going only to mediate
little On the singular state Of things which it
really is when d man who has just been clothed
with new powers and new rights, to say tho
least, without manifest absurdlty. be at once
cautioned to abstain from all use OF the rights and
powers with which he has just been clothed.
This state OF things, like many othot things in
this country. has come Of itself; it is not the
result Of any formal enactment; for it would
be lard to conceive law forbidding man to
exercise his legal rights without taking those legal
rights from him. It is one OF the coses in which
conventional understanding almost as strong
as law has gradually grown up. The Duke of
Connaught, few days back, WAS q Commoner
eligible to seat in the House Of Commons; now
he Ii Peer with seat in the House OF Lords.
But it would certainly be thought strange, most
likely it would be called Unconstitutional" it
he Wore to take to tue career which ls open to
other members OF the Houses Of Lords and
Commons. It would not bo thought tho thing
for 8 sou Of tho sovereign to take, as any other
member may il he can, 3 leading par. III tho de-
bates Of tho House, to hold place in the body
which practically administers the Government,
or to take part among those whoso functions
no less constitutionally recognizable is to look
out for the errors Of those who administer the
Government, and to take their place if they can.
But no law binders him from dong these things:
il the Duke of Connaught should stand forth, as
the Black Prince did, as Parliamentary leader.
q chief OF opposition, the foremost among the
champions Of reform, he has exactly the same
legal right 10 do ali ths Us the Black Prince
had.
The change which makes it impossible for the
Duke OF Connaught to do with tho general ap-
proval what the Black Prince did, change
which therefore makes it impossible for him 70
do it at all-comes very naturally from the
changes which have taken place since then IN
the condition Of the kiugly office itself. But it
comes from them combined with certain other
OF quite another kind, and coming
from Quite another quarter, but which have
fitted in with those changes IN most
way. The changes which made our
soyoreigns what is now understood By the words
!" constitutional monhrchs" are all OF native
growth, and every change has implied some
leasening of the real royal power. but side BY
side with this process, the continental notion Of
B royal family, as something altogether distlnct
from tho nation, notion which had it's root i'll |
The EXTREMIST notions Of royal power, came in
along with the Hapoyarian dynasty; and the |
,wo things, 80 utterly opposite III thor origin, |
starting from principles the most hostile to one |
another, have been found III practice to wore |
3cen from tho beginning, family honored
above al others as the
NoBLEsr AMONG THE NOBLE.
family out OF which, in M earlier stage, Rings !
we're chosen, aud whose members IN 3 later |
,tase have succeeded to the crown according to
7lles marked down BY law. Two members of
his royal family, the eldest sou and the eldest
laughter Of the 1eiguing sovereign, have actual ]
tights and privileges bestowed by the law. The
est have, like the children OF peers, barren
'irtL the other members Of the family are not.
r anything else, unless the King chooses to do
or them what he may equally do for any other
his subjects.
1t must OF course, not be forgotten that,
hough reverence for the roynl family has GER
ainly grown stronger, though the distinction
el ~ee1 them and other people has certainly
rown wider within the last hundred and fifty
ears or SO, Jet it would have oeen equally q
ign Of what We meau il it had mere
, stayed as it was. For all other dis
motions have got fainter and faint
r. It Is now thought to be an honor to
attend on-in plain words, to be servant to
q :" royal" Duke or Duchess. No one thinks
not royal. Now We need not say that there
as time when men OF any rank thought it an
onor to '' attend" men Of the rank next
bove their own. When a noblenan had
entlemeu and knights in his own, ser
ice, it was not wonderful that be should
OF dlsdain the service OF q King, or even OF
ing's son. The remarkable tling is that, while
10 service Of rank to rank has died out in all !
her cases, it has lived on in this. We suspect
,at the distinction has, in some points, grown
ositiyely stronger; but even it it has not, 1t i
as practically grown stronger by remaining tho
aly distinction. While the royal family WAS |
ace merely the highest stage OF masy ascend ,
6 stages, it now stands by itself, parted from
below in = way in which mona Of the lower ,,
ages are parted from ono another. Or, per-
lps Ie should say, that it is the highest stage
1t one which has gained, while the highest IT {
has lost. When We call the doings Of the !,
theling "royal,' we certainly e1alt the Ethel
e ut the expense of the King.
We have said that two opposite causes. At !
ast two CRUISES springing from opposite sour-
g. have Joined together to bring about this I
ato Of things. AS the personal authority Of
g crown becomes less and less, ns royalty be-
.action, it follows almost naturally that the
mage paid to the sovereign will become, il
greater in degree. at least different in kind. &
10 Iess real authority sovereign has, the more
es he become person whose sayings are not !
be cootradicted, whose acts are not to be -
ticised- For the conventional system OF q T
Institutional monarchy takes care that the
sereign shall not say thing that can be con- Z
dicted, or do anything that can be criticised.
does lot follow that 3 constitutional King Is
re- puppet. What Anmianus said mockingly \
8 despot and his favorlte, may be said more /
lyely and in better sonse OF q King who is /
! despot ,Constautius was said to I
70 good deal OF influence with tho chief
the eunucl,s, and, in q better sense,
sensible King mny have q good deal Of
uence with q sensible Minister. But it il the
ulster alone vino il set up to be contratlicted
I criticised; the King personally never comes
ward, ~ Kings who really rnled often did, to -
pose or dispute with any OF bis subjects. No =
dern King is likely to be told By one OF his
rls "By God. Sir King. will neither 90 nor ~
,e." But that is because no modern King ii T
,ly to say to one of his Earls, BY God, Sir |
Il, you shall either 60 or haug." The greater
Kings personal power, the more sure he is
meet with direct opposition, tho more sure
F,,I1-