The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-11-26

clan. linguist, and perfectly amiable, but
slightly arctic in temperament. Afonso's favorte
on the contrary. was Spanish beauty whose
accomplishments were of n more spontaneous or
der Senior Arano editor of the Liberal. and
member of the Cortes. was the conidant of
Queen Christina, and espoused ner cause in his
paper and it is said that two friends of Alfonso,
Duke de Tamanes and Count de Benalua. called
on HIM and proposed to slice off his ears IT be did
not convert himself to different views. Happily,
in Spain dynasties are not overtbrown on moral
grounds, and, although the story was circulated
that the Queen had departed for Bohemia with
her children, never to return, because OF the
Kings intdelities the matter was hushed up,
and the Madrid newspapers giving currency to
1 the story were suspended. A writer thus gives
an idea Of Alfonsos inclinations:
However little the mild and ascetic Francis
OF Assist may have contributed to the character
of Alfonso there be no doubt that the
animalism of his mother. Isabella, and of his
grandmother, Christine, is repeated with in
creased force and abandon in the King. He has
already given to his court flavor of pronounced
corruption His first enjoyment of the royal
prerogative took the form of an insstance on
his droits de seigneur. His profigacy, shocking
even to Spaniards, has been, at least, candid
and his subjects have never been ignorant of the
times places when he played the part of
Haroun Al Raschid. 1t is generally known that
his life has been more than once endangered in
his street rambes, and gypsy girl on certain
occasion nearly put an end to them with her
z bodkin. His passions are apt to 6isdain the
beauties of the court and gravitate like those of
most young men, towards vulgar celebrities. 1t
/ is true that young duchess suffers the some
times envied faint of his distinguished prefer
ence, but the ladies who dance for him after his
little supper in the palace, and those whom he
visits iucognito attended by two of his faithful
military chamberlains, of tho common class
Circus riders, tumblers, singers, and half bred
gitane."
y The young King who has ruled Spain has had
4 an anxious experience His tenure of the crown
was most precarious, being dependent on the
good will of the army, which is said to be large
ly Influenced by the revolutionary opinions dis
tributed by Gorilla, from his place of safety in
foreign country. Perhaps worse than this
! to bear by a sovereign who has always manifest
ed tender regard for the welfare of his subjects
were the consequences of the terrible vistations
Of earthquakes and cholera in some of the prov
inces of Spain, which have caused the death of
many persons, and otherwise inflicted incalcu-
liable loss and injury. Then too, Alfonso himself
was slowly wasting away, the victim of an incur
able consumption. In connection with the Gues-
I ton of succession the situation is perhaps best
expressed by the recent utterance of the leading
q revolutionist Gorilla who prophesied that King
Alfonsos illness would without doubt soon ter
inmate fatally and then there would be trouble in
SPAIN for the heiress to the throne is child in
q the nursery, and the Queen mother, who by law
will be the regent during the minority is a
Z esteem and affection of the people Some would
Z then wish to restore the ex-Queen Isabella, and
others to bring about an ''infantne" marriage
Z between Alfonsos baby daughter and the young
son of Don Carlos. Either of these expedients
would mean coup detat.