Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1884-04-16
THREE GENERATIONS.



contains the following lively sketches
of the emperor, his son and grandson:
The Emperor William is, without
among his people the
most popular prince living. without
having remarkable intelligence, he
possesses talent for discovering pcO-
pie who may become useful to him, and
pushes them forward. lie has no
vanity, disappears at the right moment,
keeps in the background behind his
chancellor, and whatever he may suffer
from the imperious will of the latter
he has too much dignity to let the world
behold it, lie is brutally ambitious,
through sentiment of coyetousne5s;
morally he has the same appetite as
physically; he would always hay
more than he already possesses; and
even to this day he cannot console
himself in thinking that he did not take
SaXouy in 1866. lie busie5 himself
about the government more than any
body suspects; when it is something
that concerns himself, he is stubborn
and persistent in the determination to
triumph; in any other event he leaves
everything to others. The army has
in him stout champion, and it is the
only thing which he has not permitted
Bismarck to NEEDLE with. He has
never approved the conduct of the
crown prince during his short regency
in 1873. The treaty Of Berlin dis
pleased him; he would have liked to
see smaller Bulgaria, and was indig-
nant at the emancipation of the Jews
in Roumania. That these two points
have always displeased him is what he
assured one of my friends one day in
moment Of expansion. Perhaps it
was out of spite for not having been
consulted in so grave circumota nee
Perhaps it was truly his political con-
yiCtion which was the animus Of this
plaintivc recrmnation Above all, he
has been very happy in his life, and he
knows how to appreciate this blessing.
In public he never speaks of politics
but is essentially a man of the world
His courtesy is extreme and unaffected,
lie knows that he owes everything to
others, and does not disdain to he
grateful; but, on the other hand, he
allows nobody to forget the fact that it
was his name that covered all that was
done. In fine, he is really kind, truly
frank, of medium intelligence, of a
somewhat narrow mind; n very we'll
developed, good commOn-sense; an eX-
Cellent heart lie is an individuality
which can only inspire sympathy and
respect in his people, and he will hold
a place among the great sovercigns
without ever having been great man
The prince royal is not man of
action; he is 10ter .fumilidS in the full
est sense of the word. lie lives only
for his wife and he adores his children
with the exception Of his oldest son,
whose bold mind eNcites his fears. His
passionate admiration for the princess
has made his heart entirely English.
The emperor and Bismarck look upon
the prince as utopian in his views; he
loves the arts, encourages beiieS-iettreS
When he ascends the throne politics
will undergo transformation. There
fore those who differ politically, in
secret or openly, with the reigning EN-
pcror, put their hopes in the heir ap
parent. Here, in my opinion, is their
mistake. The prince will never know
now to make a decision, or he will
only decide when the time for decision
has passed. His manner is cold; not
withstanding his courtesy one does not
feel at ease wnen in his presence lie
has no other ambition than the lcgiti
mate desire to reign. NOtwithstand
ing his kindness, which is unbounded
he never forgets an injury. Under
his reign Germany will have peace,
and the greatest happiness for France
will be in the prolungation of his reign.
He is not popular with the army. His
father fears him and cndcavOrs to keep
him in the shallow us much as possible.
The Prince William is but twenty.
four years old; it is difficult, therefore,
to foretcll what he may become eventu-
ally. 1t is an incontestible fact that
he is young man of mind, of goodness
of heart. He is the most intelligent
among the princes of the royal family
he is brave, enterprising, ambitious
somewhat tlighty, but has a heart of
gold; sympathetic to a fault, fiery, act
i've, and 50 vivacious in conversation
and possessed of such quickness of
repartee that one som,times finds it
hard to believe that he is a German.
lie adores the army and the army re
turns his love. He has found, notwith-
standing his extreme youth, the road
to popularity with all classes of socie
ty. He is educated; well read: he
forms plans for the well-being of his
country and is possessed of u keen
political insight. His greatest fault is
apronounced susceptibility to feminine
Establishments His wife is a person
of too much insigniticance to exercise
any restraint upon his spirited nature
4. 1 L 4 4