Morning journal and courier., 1880-05-05
Price Four Cents


AS a hard-working. psinstaking officer the
 Prince has no superior and 1t was exempli-
 fled years ago, when the Chancellor decreed
 that all officers in the Prussian army ought to
 learn Russian and, hard as it is for middle
 aged man to acquire a new language, and
 such difficult one the Prince applied him.
 self to the task, and learned it. Yet his Inn
 perial Highness is not generally accredited
 with literary tastes; and hunting, as conduct
 ed at German Courts, cannot be exciting to
 man who has served throughout such cam
 paigns as those with Austria and France. He
 was formerly not unknown at the gaming
 tables in Hamburg and Baden, and was gene-
 rally fortunate at play; but since these estab-
 lishments have been baushed altogether
 from Germany, he has not even had that re-
 source. Perhaps he finds the entertainment
 of the royal visitors to Berlin, with the stiff
 etequette still preserved at that court, some
 what irksome and monotonous, as it is re-
 ported that he is already tired of ten years
 peace. When the Shah paid his first visit to
 Berlin, and severely tried the patience of his
 hosts, the Prince at last made his escape to
 Babelsberg, but was pursued unceremoniously by his wearisonee guest, who, it was said,
 found him sitting out in the garden by the
 side of his wife, smoking short pipe and
 without his coat. The Shah's visit was fol-
 lowed by one from the late King Victor Eman-
 uel, who was almost as unappreciative as the
 semi -barbarous potentate of the monuments
 of Prussia's greatness and of the souvenirs of her philosopher king In fact, it was even stated that when the Italian monarch, whose education had been much neglected, was ask ed if he should like to drive to Potsdau, it was found that he had never even heard of Frederick the Great, and the only sight he wished to see in Berlin was the Geological
 Gsrdens. Thither the Prince accompanied
 him in glass state-carriage, with the win
 dows down, and almost invisible to the outer
 world through the thick clouds of smoke from their cigars. It may be supposed that
 they did not find each others company very
 congenia as Victor Emanuel abruptly out
 his visit day shorter than had been arrang-
 ed, for no other reason but his own pleasure, and declined to taste 8 morsel of the stump.
 tuous repast placed before him on every oc-
 casion when he dined with the German I'm
 perial family; but, having brought his Ita
 ian cooks to Berlin, he ate the soups and rag
 outs in private which they prepared in his
 own apartments. No wonder if the Prince grew tired of such visitors.
 Prince Frederick William is 8 well propor- tioned man of feet 10, his most striking fea- turo being his thick whiskers beard and hair, and he looks particularly we'll in the light-blue uniform of the Prussian Imperial Guard. His eldest son, very amiable looking young man, in appearance takes after his mothers family; wlhle the next brother, Prince Henry, resem- bles their father, and is reported to be of more volatile, wayward disposition than his elder, who was 8 diligent student at college and is now an excellent officer. Besides the young Princess of Saxe- -Meiningen, the
 Prince has three daughters - Victoria, Sophie and Margaret. But the most prominent member of the family will always
 be the Imperial Princess, our Princess Royal, whose influence over her husband is well
 known, and who has closely superintended
 the education of her children to au extent for which she could have hardly had the time
 if she had already occupied a share of the
 throne. Loyalty is not characteristic of the people of Berlin and Englishmen who are accustomed to see crowds wait patiently for hours to catch a glimpse of even one of the younger members of tho royal family are surprised at the little outward respect which the Germans show for their fine old Emperor or for his gallant son, who is good temper personifed, and has pleasing bow or military salute for everybody. Even the children of ths Impe- rial Prince have been hissed in part of Der lin which they had never visited before, mere- Iy on account of their royal percentage. Yet there is hardly a German who has not good word for the Princess, owing to ths admirable manner in which she fulflls her duties as 8 mother and wife; and their praise would probably be warmer still were 1t not fer q lurking fear, often expressed, that some day she may lead her husband into wars for the benefit of Great Britain rather than of Ger 1 many for the German middle class, feeling ! the weight of taxation and the conscriptiop, ! have as great horror of war Ss Mir. Bright himself. Her economy, as setting good ex | ample to the upper class, is also highly spo- ken of but it must be admitted that the Prussien royal family has seldom failed in \ that respect, and the present Emperor, brought \ up, as he was, in diversity, is 8 notable proof | of it. His sons more lavish disposition used \ to be regarded as very contrary to the tradi- l tions of his house; yet his income is less than I that of the youngest English Prince, and he | has never been known to exceed 1t.