The Osceola times., 1883-07-21
SPANISH COURT SCANDAL.
The infciicities Which Led 10 the Scpara-
tion Of the King and Queen.
Madrid Cor. Innspruck Tagsblatt

tion OF the King and Queen.
Madrid Cor. Innsprck Tsgsblatt
The long expected court scandal shows
signs of soon developing into public no.
toriety. Here, where all the avenues of
actual news are closely guarded, gossip
takes its place, and especially in the
court society prevails freedom OF dis
cussion such as one may not even find
the echo of in the press That the queen
has long been contemplating flight and
escape from the Latin scehol of morals in
which she lives in spite of herself, is
known almost everywhere. Nor is the
cynical indifference of his majesty to the
suggestive conditions of his own access
ion to the throne less freely debated
However little the mild and ascetic
Francis of Assissi may have contributed
to the character of Alfonso, there can be
no doubt that the animalism of his
mother, Isabella, and of his grandmoth-
er, Christine, is repeated with increased
force and abandon in the king. He has
already given to his court the flavor of
pronounced corruption. His first enjoy.
ment of the royal prerogative took the
seigncur." His prohigacy, shocking even
to Spaniards, has been at least candid,
aud his subjects have never been igno-
rant of the times nor places when he
played the part of Haroun Al Raschid
II is generally known that his life has
more than once been endangered in his
street rambles, and a Gypsy girl, on a
certain occasion, nearly put an end to
him and them with a bodkin. His pas
sions are apt to disdain the beauties of
the court and gravitate, like those of
most young men, towards vulgar celebri.
ties. II is true that one young duchess
suffers the sometimes envied taint of
his distinguished presence; but the la
dies who dance for him after his little
supper in the palace, and those whom he
visits incognito, attended by . of his
faithful military chamberlains, are ofthe
common class-circus-riders, tumblers,
singers and half-bred gitane
lie is very active and supple, with a
bull-fghter's physical address. His eyes
are brown, but full of changing tints,
and his mouth is singularly vivacious
and expressive. His mustache is very
fine and silken, his hair all but black,
his teeth very white and his smile ex-
tremely fascinating. lie is less hysteri-
cal than most Latins. and is a great deal
more brusque.
The queen is as proud as most Austri-
an princesses, and is inclined, perhaps,
TO quarrel with the quality of her rivals
than with the morals of her husband
She has not grown very popular here,
not even as popular as Marie Theresa
grew with her French subjects An in.
tense virtue and a sullen pride are equal
/ ly fatal in Spain to the alteration of the
common people. As for the aristocracy
while il views with interested alarm the
profiigacy of the king, it observes with
polite amusement-almost pleasuse-the
evident jealousy and discomfort of the
queen. Happily, in Spain dynasty is
not overturned on moral grounds, so the
| king is reasonably safe for the present
But the Austi ian contingent of the court
does not scruple to express its chagrin
and indeed its indignation. The queens
Gcrmanic household resents the circus
riders "et id omne genus" with a loyalty
that both irrritates and abAshes the
| Spanish encourage oftheir majesties
and it is from this growing discori, il
it is from anything, that the domesti,
troubles of Alphonso and his queen will
derive the dangers of publicity and in
consequence an open rupture. Iean
while, "Nuesta Carmencita" bounds thro
her hoops of fire as gaily as if the flame,
were not likely to be famed by an in
| ternational complication.