St. Landry democrat., 1880-03-13
THE UNHAPPY GAR,
"A ieh-and-!nk Sketch of Alexander of
Russia.
From ~ 7

From the London Truth
The feeling which comes upDermost
IN the mind of any one who sees the
Gar for the first time is one of sincere
pity. He is large, ox-eved man, cvi-
IDENTITY Of good intentions, but with a
look OF sadness and perplexity in him
Ills voice is harsh as the grinding Of a
coffee mill out of order, for an affection
OF the throat, under which he has long
! suffered, renders speech painful to him.
lie would nave made a very amiablc
private gentleman, and could have got
far more ease and amusement out of
lite If he had handed all the botheration
OF government over to his brother Con-
stahtlne, who has a taste for that sort
OF nonsense. He himself could hardly
have wanted to reign. He is subject to
melancholy periods Of hypochondriasiS
during which existence seems but a
dreary blank to him. He is haunted by
fears of sudden death and by the dread
of assassination. At these times he
moens about on apparently solitary
walks with large dog, but there is
always policeman handy to keep the
sacr1leglous from approaching him.
hen well he devOteS much of his time
to tailoring, changing his costume with
much stolld perseverance. and he likes
to be attended by q hump backed privv
councillor, who acts as foil to his fine
| figure and sets it off, for he is a we'll
built man, tall and straight, though
rather too German in the rotundity of
certain of his curves.
When his Ma jesty is in the humOr he
| plays good deal at cards with his own
chunls, and it is rather Il good thing for
| these gentlemen, for whenever any one
of them is in want the Gar will lose to
| him the sum of which he stands in need,
as delicate way of giving it, and this
method OF bestowing substantial favor is
perfectly understood among them
The Gar is a good shot, and has done
some grand things on bears He some
times wears a pelisSe which once COW
cred fine bear he brought low with his
own hands, and it has been so exquis-
itely dressed that it is valued at about
IT,, 600, which is even more than is ever
paid either for the sable on. the black
fox. He can ride, too, though not in the
English fashion, and he would be Duz-
ZIed by sharp burst across the country.
Lately his physicians have recommend
ed MIN to walk.
His personal appearance is excellent.
He stands and marches we'll. He shows
to advantage in uniform, though for sew
eral years he has willingly clothed him
self in multi. His manners are those of
Il gentleman, and there is something
extremely sympathetic about him. He
produces the impression that one would
like to know him better, if only he were
not an Emperor. 1t is this unfortunate
circumstance which takes the amiability
out of him. sets him upon his dignity,
and gives certain funnine to his as
pcct. His father really could be digni-
fled, but he can't There is a chubbi-
ness and nervousness in his proceedings
upon great occasions which reminds one
more of drum-major or fugleman of
landwehr than an autocrat.
Formerly the Emperor, as might be
expected from one of his letilarcic
temperament, was ayerse to moving
about; latterly he has been troubled bv |
a perpetual restleSsness. He lives yery |
plainly and his table is sparsely served. |
A beefsteak for breakfast, a roast
gelinotte and salad for his dinner form
the staple of his fare. His appetite is
not robust, and he sleeps badly.
There was Il caricature published in |
st. Petersburg shortly after his accession
which represented him as a droschky
driver in the state that droschky drivers
usually are after dinner. His hat was
pulled over his eyes and his horses were
galloping wildly on the road to ere
form" Behind him was the Grand
Duke Constantine, saying, "Gently,
brother. | am the fare Still the
Emperor laughed; he laughed, too,
when piece was played in the Court
heater exposing the corruption of his
and very fine piece it was
Then somebody shot at him and shat
cred his nerves forever. He fell into
sort of panic, trying hastily to undo
Ill he had done. He had new
yves put on writer's: he ordered some
lwful cruelties in Poland. He tried to
vim back his sulky mobiles. It was all ,
n vain, and now he is thoroughly tius-
cred and frightened right out of his ;
enses. His only chance of peace and ,
happiness would be abdicating and ;
ears yachting without newspapers. At I
present he is worried into fever every
morning by summaryof all the I'M {
leasant things which have been printed |
bout him for the last twenty-four hours
throughout Europe. 1t is prepared by $
special precis writer appointed for the {
urpose, and his Majesty takes care that d
shall spare him no pang of this self i
affected torture, for he will not trust a
Professional diplomatist to do it lest he l
hould gloss over the truth and endeavor G
, make things pleasant for promotions :
AXE. A Baron Herder, connection of @
teiglitz, the banker, not long ago per- r
'rmed this delicate service, and perhaps |
oes so still. The King of Yvetot was +
Apply monarch; the Emperor of Rus t
a is not: Surely, times must be a
5range]y altered. v
"A gentleman living in the northern c
art of the county has been so unfortu- g
ate as to have lost five excellent wives.
e lately determined to erect tomb
of hn Il rs,