St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1885-02-21
PRINCE BISMARCK.
characteristics of the Man Who Rules tn
German Empire.


The Chancellor is not ayaricious, but
he is Prussian, and the Pantheon des-
tined for generous Prussians is known
to be still waiting for its first guest.
Without being avaricious, he is as fond
of order, economy and regularity as the
Great Frederick, and enters into details
of housekeeping to which one would
naturally suppose him stranger. |
have heard him relate, with the broad
humor characteristic of him, that one of
his former Wallets had begged him for
lease of an inn on his property at Var
Yin. ''As soon as he became the ten
ant, said Bismarck, ''of the inn,
which used to yield 1000 marks, he be-
took himself, in the capacity of my ex-
valet, to the study of politics. He sub
scribed to all kinds of newspapers, and
passed his time sitting in large arm
chair reading them. When guests ar
rived he treated them insolently for dis
turbing him. He soon fell into disre-
pute as surly landlord, and travellers
took care not to enter the inn. He now
earns scarcely enough to pay for his
newspapers. As to myself, | shall have
to evict him, for he has long ceased to
pay his rent" And you could see that
the loss of the rent affected him. Yet
the tone was not that of a miser, but
that of discomfort at having his calcula-
tons deranged.
Prince Bismarck leads very method
ical life, and in the country, as in town,
no event is allowed to interfere with its
regularity. His grand dinners are
abundant, with mathematical suffi-
cheney, without stint or waste. His
daily meals are those of good family
burgher, and the servants are methodi-
cal, attentive and silent. None of his
household ever commits the mistake Of
speaking at the table before the master
Of the house has, SO to speak, tacitly
given him leave All wait to see
whether the Prince is in converse
tional mood, and when he is pleased to
Speak all are huShed, not to lose one of
his words. To this, in part, is due the
large number of words, anecdotes and
dialogues attributed to him, for it has
already long been customary for his
listeners to treasure up every word he
utters.
One of the Princes characteristics is
his love for q large dog, which he
makes his constant companion and
feeds himself-a dog, for intsanc ;, like
the one that so terrified Prince Gorts-
chakof. The dog follows the Prince
into his dining-room and stretches itself
on the carpet. In the course of the
meal the butler brings large piece of
boiled beef on one plate and bits OF
soaked bread on another. The Prince
in person cuts up the beef and prepares
the food for the dog. which stands by,
grave and attentive, pending the solemn
preparation of its food. The Princes
dog is never fed in any other way.
There is something noteworthy in the
habits of this man, who personitles the
| Prussian race in it's most elevated Char
acter.
If Bismarck is not close, he is not
generous either. He does what he
deems right, and expects everyone to do
also what is right by him. Generosity,
in the ordinary sense Of the term, is too
mild, unrefecting, effeminate quality
to enter into this colossal, rough hewn
nature. He treats men too much ike
| figures, to be added, multiplied ana dl-
vided at will. to entertain any tender
feelings toward them. He aspires less
to rule them by gentleness than by the
vigorous ascendency of his genius, and
he would not be greatly fattered by an
affection unmixed with dread and adj
miration. Even on the rare occasions
where, in other men, what is called the
heart comes into play, in him the mas
ter-nay, almost the tyrant-is to be
found. His very affection bears the
character of oppression, and no glove
| is thick enough to conceal the iron hand
beneath it.
/ Yet, such as he is, this man is the
most prominent, most striking figure OF
the age, and this is SO true, that amid
/ all the execration he excites, it is here
considered mean by his very enemies to
treat as the Reichstag has done one OF
the monuments of the century. Cor.
London Times.