Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-06-11
RUSSIAN COURT r,rr
Brilliant Festivities Arranged
Pleasure-Loving Czarin, WI

Brilliant Festivities Arranged f..
Pleasure-Loving Czarina.
The court festivities at st. Peto,,
have been more brilliant durips
reign of the present Emperor than
have been for some years past nss
Alexander II. This is chiefly dn n0s
the Empress. Gar Alexander II
fond of pomp and show, bnt Z
wife was broken down by ill.ho.,e
and trouble, and had been broucbt
in strict orthodoxy. The presen, ~
press, on the other hand, is, both in ~
appearance and in all her ideas y
highest type of a bright, lovely woms y
adored by all who know her, and ara
exempt from the gossip of c%alumn;a
tors. In Nihilistic papers She H.
sometimes been called the Russiiss
Marie Antoinette, and she has in1D'
many characteristics which inyite
comparison between her and that =.
happy Princess, but she is without ~
great female weaknesses of the mar
of the French revolution. The Emnrs.
is the inspiriting center of the Cow,
festivities, than which nothing can !
conceived more gay and brilliant. III
first court ball of the season, to whia
some three thousand invitations ws
issued, surprised everybody
tending it by its great splenaaa
There r few princely residence
in Europe which could
compared to the winter palace IA
spaciousness and beauty, and the i'm
preston is still more deepened by I'll
strange uniforms and costumes, hail
Asiatic, and the rich jewels with wbic1
the ladies' toilets are elaborated
adorned. A name, however great
may be, counts for nothing for admil
sion to the court, and it is only thl
rank of the husband which determined
the admission of his wife and daueh|
tiers. No Prince may claim admittanc1
unless he occupies some post in thd
army or in the State, and his wife cal
only be presented at court after he hal
become Colonel in the Guards or hal
obtained a high place in the civil ser
vice. The only exception is mad
WllCll d llit1 LdS DCC1A 1llpC1ldl IAQlu
tant or Chamberlain, or when a lad
has been lady-in-writing to the En-
press, when the privilege or presenta
ton is given to her, irrespective of he
husbands position. But whether sh
is ever invited to court festivities. tina
is a different question. 10 be presente
at court, however, is not worth much
The shining lights of society are thos
who are invited to the small privat
court balls. Many of the highest Sta,
officials do not belong to the real coul
circle. There is, for instance, the Fo
eign Minister, M. de Giers, who, eve
apart from other considerations, is e,
Guided as too German in his ideas; tt
Minister of the Interior, Count Tolstc
who stands high above the court soc
ETY. by reason of his exalted NOR;
ideas; the Minister of War, M. Val
noffski. who is QUITE a homo aovus
society, and many other men in equal
high positions. The Emperor value
them as faithful servants and exceller
councillors, but that is all.
The Empress is passionately fond d
all the pleasures of the winter season
whether they + dancing, skating 0
sleighing on the ice-hills, and is a
graceful on her skates as she is in tn
ballroom and on horseback.-St. P
tersburg Cor. Cologne Gazette.