Omaha daily bee., 1884-09-23

carriage drew up IN front OF the hotel
which is d~iagonally opposite the Barberi
ma palace, and before any Of us got out
the coachman pointed up the hill tina
passes the Barberiua palace and said
'De King, he come" Then he mad,
the same remark in Italian, which wa.
better understood than his English.
Down the steep cobble stone hill cam,
four coal black horses. They wero the
most fiery animals l ever saw, and most
Of the time a couple Of them were or
their hind feet, paving the air with theft
front legs. The vehicle was a wagon with
high seats and Of very strong workman.
ship, but highly finished and polished.
The king was the driver, and ho sat on a
scat that was slightly above those occu.
pied by his three companions. His stur.
dy legs were firmly braced against the
bottom of the strong dashboard, and he
held those four wild horses with his loft
hand, while with his right he frequently
raised his hat to his cheering subjects
Any mau whe could manage with such
ease, by one hand, four such horses,
that were evidently mad for a runaway,
had no little nerve and muscle.
The king was dressed in a dark suit that
differed in no particular from the costume
of any other we'll dressed gentleman.
The hat he raised was an ordinary 50. 30
plug, and when he took it off he showed
a bullet head as closely cropped as if he
had just got out of state prism. each
particular hair"-what there was of it
''stood on end like quilts of the frettul
%porcupine." His face was one of great
tirmness, and there was little in Its lines
to show that he would risk his life freely
for his fellow-men in the slums of Ma
ples-the vilest spot on earth, as far as
my observation goes. His huge mus.
tache. which swept each side of his
face like the wings of a bird, gave a
fierce military air to his appearance. He
seemed to me q man who would stand no
nonsense, and would relentlessly have
his Gown way about everything. We
were all standing up in the carriage as
the horses came prancing past and the
ladies enthusiastically waved their hand
kerchiefs, while we mon folks took off
our democratic hats. The king seemed
to know that we were Americans; his
dark face lit up with a smile that went
far to counteract the brigandish effect of
thegreat mustache, and he took off his hat
and made a bow to our party, all the
while keeping a tight rein on his ener-
getic horses. The three men who sat in
the wagon with him wore each a lower
ing scowl and each had his arm folded
tightly over his breast. They were
dressed in a most gorgeous and resplend-
ent uniform, that dazzled such simple
republicans as we were. The two in the
back seat had their backs turned to the
king, and their feet braced against the
hindboard of the vehicle. They sat
stolidly without moving n muscle as the
wagon jolted over the tones of Rome.
No n saw King Humbert would
doubt for a moment that he is a born
ruler OF men. He is a king that the
Italians are proud of, and he drives
around Rome without a body-guard near
him. He has done much for the santa
ry welfare of the imperial city. The new
Rome which he has caused to be built on
the heights near the railroad station
is much like those parts of Paris erected
by Napoleon III. In his new Rome
there is little of even the dreaded Roman
fever, to which all other parts of the city
are subject.
The queen of Italy drives around in an
even more democratic mi than her
husband. She is generally seen in a
little, low phaeton, drawn by ponies.
These docile little animals clatter along
in a lively manner over the rough Roman
streets, and the queen herself is a very
good driver. She ia very devout and
snenda almost all her time in visiting the
poor and helping them. There is little
doubt but it is largely the influence of
this good woman and her fierce-looking
husband that has set such a noble exam
pie to the panic-stricken Neapolitans.