The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1889-06-25
ALL EUROPE LAUGHED At WILLIAM
Entertaining an Embassy from the
Sultan Of Mandara.
The Ambassadors Were Porters and
the suItanate a village.
Alexander, the czar, snubs the Rep
resentatIve of King Humbert.

BERLIN, June 24.-Kaiser Wilhelm has
just been made the victim Of practical joke,
and as not only his subjects but all Europe
are on the broad grin he Is exceedingly
wroth and seeking in vain on whom to vent
his anger. For the past weeks the newspa-
pers here have been filed with the doings Of
the ambassadors Of the Sultan Of Mandara.
They have been received with much dlstinc-
tion by the Emperor and Empress, occupied
at the review in honor OF the King Of Italy
places as prominent as those Of the United
states delegates to the Samoan convention,
were furnished with officers and aides-de-
camps in waiting, and have finally. left Ger
many on their return home, loaded with
costly presents Of every kind. Nobody
seems to have taken the tro uble during their
presence here TO make any inquiries about
the Sultanate of Mandara, and both the gov
ernment and the public appear to have taken
1t for granted that the ambassadors" were
authorized to represent high and mighty
potentate of an Importance and rank at least
equal to that OF the Sultan Of Morocco and
Zanzibar.
Since their departure, however, 1t has
come to light that Mandara is nothing but a
village on the southern side Of Mount Kill
ma-Njaro, that its inhabitants do not number
more than 1900 at the very most, OF which
not more than 200 are able TO bear arms, and
that finally che so-called Sultan is but mere
village chief, whose main source OF revenue
Is derived from brigandage and theft. In
deed, Of so1ittle Importance Is the Empire
Of Manda even deemed wor-
thy to figure on the maps.
Astounded by these revelations, which
we're confirmed by evidence Of the most In
eOntestable nature, inquiries were immedi-
ately instituted as to how the negro 'embas-
sy' in question had come to be despatched
to Berlin. The only person who could have
afforded any exact information on the sub
ject was M. Otto Ehlers Of the German East
African Company, who had accompanied
them from Zanzibar to Berlin. But, unfor-
on his way back to Africa, together with his
sable companions. By dint OF telegraphing
to the German consulate at Zanzibar and to
the director of the German East African
Company there, 1t was finally ascertalned
that the four negroes who had been received
with so much ceremony at court here were
nothing but ordinary villagers, who had been
| designated by the chief Of their tribe TO as
sist M. Ehlers in conveying his impedlmenta
from Mount Kilima-Njaro, where he had
been stationed for some months, to the coast.
| They were, In fact, nothing but mere porters.
On M. Ehlers arrival at Zanzibar, some
| one there had written to Berlin to say that
| four wild Mandara men" had reached that
/ place. anu were dLtFdcLlu2 mucu dttcutlOu. In
response TO this letter cable dispatch was
| received from some parsonage here whose
identy Is as yet unknown, requesting that
| they should be brought to Berlin. M. Ehlers
| had, accordingly with great difficulty per-
| suaded them to embark, and on arrival OF
the vessel at Alden had been obliged to keep
them under lock and key to prevent their
making their escape from the ship. On
learning all this 1t suddenly dawned upon
| Kaiser Wilhelm and upon his Secretary Of
4 Sfata rob hat
Ambassador in question had presented no
| letters Of eredence empowering them TO act
| as such, fact which In itself should have
l aroused suspicion from the first, but which
nobody either at court or at the foreign ONCE
| appears to have thought Of.
| Both the Emperor and the authorities here
l seemed disposed to make M. Ehlers the
| scapegoat of the whole matter, and to hold
him accountable for having rendered them
| for once the laughing stock OF Europe IL Is
fortunate for him that just at present be Is
beyond their reach, and unless he has some
L very excellent excuse to put forward In his
defence, he would do well to avoid German
territory either at home or abroad In the fu-
| ture.
| An exceedingly painful impression has
Il been caused here by the Emperor sale Of
the pony carriage which his father used dur
ing the few weeks Immediately preceding his
death for his drives in the palace gardens.
1t has been purchased by joiner, who uses
II in his trade Ii Is frequently 10 be seen In
the streets Of Potsdam heavily laden with
window sashes, etc, while on Sundays and
holidays the seat once occupied by the ill
fated Emperor Frederick Is filed by the
Herr Tischelermeister and his vulgar look
| ing frau.
Another thing which has somewhat
shocked people here is the action Of the Em-
peror in forbidding the continuance Of the
use Of the name Friedriehskron for the i'm
| perial residence at Potsdam. The palace In
| question had been the summer residence of
| Kaiser Friedrich throughout the 30 years or
more Of his married life, and may be said TO
be Of his creation. 1t was his favorite home.
| and as soon as he assembled the throne he, In
| Difference to the wishes OF his wife, trans
| formed its name from the Neues Palais To
FriedrichskroD. In his anxiety to effaee all
| trace of his noble hearted fathers reign Kai-
ser Wilhelm has restored the Old.names iand
dates all his DEGREES, general orders and let
| ters from the Neues Palais.