, 1889-03-07
NO PEACE IN A PALACE.
ANGRY SCENES IN THE ROYAL
HOUSEHOLD OF GERMANY.

The Empress Doesn't Get Along Vol
with Her Husband, and She DetestG
the Crown Prince,s-Fscts Not GeneF'
ally Known.
When Emperor William receives
stranger he looks at him sharply and gives
the impression that he is turning over in
his mind whether the person before him
would be moro suitable rs hussar, q
cuirassier, dragon or mere infantry
man. His face is wrinkled to an extraor-
dinary degree, and the look OF the eyes Is
somewhat sad. But the face hghtens up
with kindly smile as the old gentleman
gives q military twist upward to his snow
white mustaches. The emperor talks IN
short sentences. His conversation Is OF
thc brusque, stocky nature affected by
old soldiers who prefer hearty shake OF
the hand to fine speeches.
He used to be able to speak French
pretty well, but has now almost forgotten
il, only remembering a few set ceremonial
phrases, which he uses in addressing the
French ambassador or ambasSadresS.
English he still speaks correctly, having
learned it thoroughly when, after the sad
events OF 1S4S, he was forced to spend al
most two years in England. The en-
peror has never had any pretensions TO be
considered q man interested in science or
art. Together with Prince Bismarck and
Field Marshal Count Moltke, he takes
pride in never having set his foot inside
museum or exhibition of pictures. The
only French novel which he has ever read
is the Wandering jew" His table Is
covered with military pamphlets, and
every week he glances through The Lon
don Illustrated News, Graphic and The
French Illustration. There is certain
kind of mysticism pervadihg the old
Gentleman's manner and conversation IL
is even discernible in tho sympathetic
tones OF his voice. He nscribes every
thing to Divine Providence. Nor must 1t
be supposed for one instant that this is
merely q figure OF speech to be produced
for the benefit of the public. On the con.
trary, his life shows that he Is pervRded
with the idea that in everything he Is the
mere instrument Of the Almighty.
AN ILL TEMPERED RhPRESs-
Early in the morning, about 10 O'Clock,
the empress makes q point OF visiting tha
emperor in his study. This is tho only
time during the whole of the twenty -four
hours when husband and vito sec each
other without witnesses. OF course, moth
ing certain is known about their conversa'
ton on these occasions, but presumably
of her favOrito Count Arnim the empress
has withdrawn from all interference in the
affairs of the government, and has even
become reConciled to her former Own
particular enemy, Prince Bismarck.
1t is somewhat amusing TO know
that the only newspaper which she
reads is The Paris Temps, which
she prefers to all others, even The Cologne
Gazette. In the evening, toward 1O
o'clock, the emperor makes his way up
stairs toward the empress tea table, where
he invariably spends about twenty min
uteS to half an hour in Gossiping with heI
and with her pet cronies, the Duke and
Duchess of Sagan.
He always maintains the most complete
equanimity of temper, and II his wife is
more than usually irritable he merely
shrugs his shoulders with a smile and
mutters something about her Russian
BLOOD" alluding, no doubt, to the fact OF
her being direct descendant Of the crazy
Emperor Paul OF Russia. The subject
which above all others forms the fayorite
topic of the empress conversation is the
unpleasantness which exists between her.
self and her daughter-in-law, the crown
princess, whom, Notwithstanding all ap-
pearances to the contrary, she most cor.
| daily detests. Both the emperor and om-
press feel and believe that the moment the
new sovereign succeeds to the throne most
of their old servants will be got rid OF and
perhaps the whole policy OF the empire
changed. The empress is most bitter on
the subject, and often asserts that when
| her husband dies she will take up her
quarters at Rome, since her life not only
at Berlin, but even anywhere else In Ger
many, would be rendered perfectly impos-
| sible by the new empress, whom she Rlludes
TO as an alien with new tangled notions,
| whose pernicious influence has already de-
prived her Of the affection and respect OF
her only son.
THE EMPERoR's SEVERITY.
Meanwhile at the palace of the crown
prince the evaporation at the present
state OF affairs daily grows intense. So
| jealous is the old emperor Of every vestige
of his power, that he makes a point OF
keeping the crown prince as much as
| possible stranger to everything that
| is going on. The authority of the head
| OF the family Is one of the most sacred
| principles of the Hohenzollern dynasty,
and until 1853, when the present emperor
became prince regent, both he and his
wife were subject to the caprices and
often ridiculous orders OF the reigning
| sovereign, who was an elder brother.
In their turn tho emperor and empress
are treating the crown prince, and
especially his wife, with similar and