Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-01-09
A P1oUED PRINCESS.
Why the Qateen's Daughter Chooses to Absent
Herself from the CanodiGn Capital I'M
pleasant Relations sUith tho Wife of Sir
John Macdonald.

Herself from the Can0diGn Capital I'm
John Macdonald.
The announcement that her royal high
ness, the Princess Louise, is to be absent
from Ottawa all the winter has, says
correspondent of the New York Times at
the Canadian capital, caused great disap-
pointment here, as the parliamentary ses-
sion to be opened on Feb. 3 was looked
forward to by the fashionable folks of Can
ada with hopeful satisfaction. 1t was to
be the last season of Lord Lorne's term as
governor general, and many brilliant en-
t4rtainments were expected The last
winter of the stay of the princess
in Canada was to be made
memorable. The tradespeople of Ottawa ex-
pected rich harvest, and they do not now
conceal their chagrin at the turn affairs
have taken. The visit of the vice-regal
party to British Columbia seems to have
been pleasant one, and their return to
the capital was expected about Dec. 20.
The announcement that the marquis and
princess and their suite were to travel in
the Southern states until February caused
a little surprise, which soon changed to
disgust when it was stated, on unquestiona-
BILE authority, that the princess was to pass
the winter in Bermuda. The expected gay
season will not, therefore, be very gay, and
many Americans who selected apartments
here for the winter will doubtless be
obliged to seek pleasure elsewhere.
Many were disposed to find fault with
the princess for thus deliberately turning
her back upon Canada and the Canadians.
Business men viewed the matter in the
light of dollars and cents, while patriotic
highness had thrown away splendid OPP
the people of the old world. Others as
serted that they always knew the expert
ment of transplanting royalty to this
country would be failure, and that it was
piece of gross stupidity ever to suppose
that the daughter of Britain's queen would
find congenial society among the plebeian
races inhabiting the wila5 of North Amer
lea. But apart from all these, there are
knowing ones' who stand up
for her royal highness and insist that
she is not in any degree to blame, and that
the responsibility for her absence must
rest with the Canadian people themselves.
In short, persons who profess to belong to
the inner circle confidently assert that the
Princess Louise refuses to remain in OF
tawa because of the repugnance which she
entertains toward Lady Macdonald, wife of
S'r John A. Macdonald, premier of the
Dominion. Ladies and gentlemen known
to 10y the confidence of her royal high
ness who have been spoken to on the sub
ject do not deny that such is the true cause
of Louise's continued absence from Can
ada. In fact, since the assertion has been
publicly made there are few who seem to
doubt it. It is further said the result of
the general elections in June last was ex-
tremely disappointing to her royal high
ness, who hoped that Sir John Macdonald's
government might be defeated and Lady
Macdona'd's domination over society cir
Giles thus brought to an end.
The Marquis of Lorne and the Princess
Louise arrived in Canada in November,
1878. Sir John A. Macdonald had just
been returned to power by an overwhelm-
ing majority. He and his friends had
been for five long years in opposition, and
were disposed to exercise their newly
gained power to the utmost degree. Sir
Johns government is one of almost purely
personal rule. His will is law in all party
councils as we'll as at the executive board.
He selects for his colleagues usually men
of pliable nature, who are never great
sticklers for matters of principle, and these
he rules absolutely. He feels that without
him his party could not exist an hour, and
that his followers a1e under greater
obligations to him than he to
them. Lady Macdonald, who has been
cruelty described as "a large masculine
looking woman with wart on her cheek"
partakes largely of her husbands feelings
and ambition, and seeks to rule in society
as Sir John does in politics. When the
princess was installed as mistress of Rideau
hall, it soon became evident that Lady
Macdonald was anxious to manage her."
She sought to monopolise more than an
ordinary share of the princess attentions,
and endeavored to thrust her personality
into everything connected with Rideau hall
affairs. It is even stated that she went so
far as to advise the princess in the matter
of selecting her personal friends. Her
royal highness, although reputed to be of
a most amiable temperament, is possessed
of all the Guelph dignity, and promptly re-
scented what she thought to be an unwar-
ranted interference with the affairs of roy
atty, even coming, as it did, from a prime
minister's wife, and gave Lady Macdonald
to understand that there was limit to her
forbearance. Lady Macdonald, however,
was not to be so easily beaten upon her
own ground, and on all public occasions
took care to appear more prominently, if
possible, than the princess herself. Hav-
ing plenty of patronage at her disposal
she easily kept on banda retinue of ad-
mirers and fatterers. She was destined,
however, soon to receive a severe snubbing.
One evening when her royal highness was
sat home" Lady Macdonald appeared on
the scene with her usual bevy of personal
friends. There were not many
others present but ameng
these was pretty French
Canada lady, the wife of senator. To
this lady the Princess Louise was particu-
larly attentive. Entering into converss-
ton with her in French, she soon grew
quite interested, for the senator's wife,
besides being young and comedy was well
educated, and had travelled in Europe.
Neither Lady Macdonald nor any of her
friends understood word of French, and
it is easy to imagine how Inundated they
felt as the conversation proceeded; finally