New-York tribune., 1890-04-20
KING AND MINISTER.
A MIDNIGHT CONVERSATION.
4 LITERARY TOUR DE FORCE

| houses two pillows may be seen inviting to re-
pose. We'll may they invite. ior the heads tnat
with conflict OF speculatlohs, duDlcues, I'M
| pulses which, in the outcome, may have all the
importance of battle IN which the fortunes ol Ia q
nation are engaged. 1t IS near midnight, Dut
the conflict is not yet In either brain this
which is the Kings, or tnat which Is the Lord
Keepers Repose is not for either great man ye',
| even for the night; and when some thought OF
resi- does interrupt the hurly-burly that goes on
in the minds Of both, imagination presents TO thc
view of both dn one case mls'iiy. IN the othei
| with a more welcome distinctness different sort
| of pillow from that which awaits them at the
moment. For it is not the worst OF Their dis
| turbanccs that the King ana 'nc Minister are IN
| conflict with each other. though II is that which
keeps each of them broodns and iinlne ,rcsoiNihs
dissoving and resolving anew so late on the even
| ing when they are TO have II ouu part or 20 Oh
| together in more or less oil concord.
The picture presented by the younger man-and
| though he is King and master To an immense eN-
tent. there is much about him that justieS that
synonvme of cav-is well worth marking. As
| infant in arms. Child Mt mothers knee, brecched
hoy grown man King in expectation. King in
very fact. he las lived only thirty years alto
gcthcr. A young man. then ana one OF iis ,iie
ever grow older Had His Majesty been born
eighty or "A hundred years ago. no anxiety would
have arisen on this p9lni' 10 'na' prIi1H' , OF
50 there is reason TO believe, 1t was rare thns
for Young men to remain young till they became
too old 10 profit by the rlpcnng Of age Now
adays, nothing is more eo'inpn % innings, w.
in encte Bengal the educated young gentleman IS
often a mine of promise AT twenty one anu - rN-
haustion without results at thirtN-three. buC
whatever the explanations many promising youh?
man of our time and race has been ruined. ana
his whole career turned 10 mischief, by the gnu
of perpetual youth ana no, oniy MI nj own , i",u tn
difference IL this impulsve and self-conidcnt
Young sovereign should turn out to be oi those
who never grow older. There Is great anNely
ON that point already in many quarters, but IL
tormcnts nobody more than the kcenest observer
in his court. who is also one Of the nearest to
him and His Maies'y,s Prime Minister. orcs fo.
vors the dlreiul apprehension that he does Deiong
to the cver-youihful. ncvcr-mature though not
so much, perhaps, at this moment, whcn we T
hold him pondcrng what coursc he Should take
at an cycntful turning point. But even under
circumstances that would put the mark OF years
of sobriety on most figures there is no sSttlcn
weight in the look OF the King though there Is
an abundance Of activity in his appearance
Whether he moves rcstessly in his great chair. or
PAGES his severely ordered room with military heel;
ihr idea lie would convey 10 Brltish rrah'r OF
romance is that the fundamentals ot MS chnf-
actrr resemble those Of Sergeant Troy though the
serrcaut's superficial gallantries are replaced III
the Young monarch by an equipment OF the Stern
est onicer-on-duty manners II his FEATURES ni"s.
be described, the reader OF this vcIacohS sNc'c
no doubt expects. we may again 90 7" romance
with advantage The King bears strong gen
oral resemblance ~ Mr. Rider iiageard as repro,
sented by the engravcrs. and again fo Mr. kendai
as represented by himself II II not rom per- PER-
,Se ccmnnrison None sufficiently like are 10 he
found. and while these two present thc advanlaec
Of being generally known, the IDEAS aNsocla''g
with them serve 10 carry tne Itsen"Idh'c "'S"""
form and feature.
Whether moving restlcssly in his chair or pacing
the room to measures somewhat less militar: 'hah
are usual 10 him, the young King Is eNiden'y III 4
statc of neryous expectancy. The doors being
closed upon any pofrn'a'c he becomes hwaf" q.
once that he is hut human. No matter now grr''
hc nnv be-a NAPOLEON. a Nicholas. William Inc
of "A ne SltS lONll III
the solitude of his own room something happchs
10 him which corresponds to the TRANSFORMATION
IF the Grand Monarch in Mr ThacScraNs famous
sketches The wig comes OF. the bucltram gives
ont tho lofty heels sink into slippers the KING
is bat a man. and he is conscious of IL
How much Of change there Is "e-
pcnds. Of course. upon how much ,9i
a man the prince may be an fond. and wha' ms
sense of his natural inilrmitics Now IN nn,s
vounr rri,ce the conscious ego is dinerrnt
Thing at different times His estimate OF s.n
nuctnatcs much more widely than lac would have
any ybody else 10 know for worlds. Ihc TIi-
confident exataiion which never dechncs WH,ru
he is in the presence Of others. aud which ne
maintains in every word and decd with dc-
termination more feminine than he Is aware "
runs down good deal when his Majesty j. OH
poradr and alone. Thus II Is that closc oD-
server who, by impossbllltN, happened L" View
him from some dark corner t0-hi2W, ""Ip
hardly fail To detect subtle hraclne-up III MS
whole demcanor wherever lc suspected The np
proach OF football from without Inc lassltnn"
Of limb. the relaxation Of facial muscles which
accOmDlny dublcfv OF rind are startled away ~
once not ns by an effort Of conscious WILL put
rather with habitutc Of prcauiion almost as
instructive a. that OF Tie flower that closes Us
petals at the most distant approach oi ram
10 dnuhf there is a special reason - account for
this exhibition of srnsitivcncss Tonight; Tor
orders have been given that as soon as certain
Great person arrives hc shall be- brought 10 me
Kings (nuggcrN without announcement: bu'
even flf,urh no one dare approach tie door un-
snmmo ;cd. the effect would be much the same
Ills Majesty IS In his downcas' MOOD me splrl'
md ftple ls pr
nor is what he was few hours ago III the midst
of little knot of generals and Ministers, nor as he
will look and hc a few minutes hence. when The
wOmanish PRIDE energy and obsiinacy IN hun
are reused 10 rcas,cit themselves rs the very
character Of the King.
AZ this moment Ire is conscious Of weakness
what he feels weakness, though II Is soi)rr
thing quite diicrent-whch impcls him 10 do
two really weak 'hings. He has certain minia-
| fures in locked case, and littlc manuscript
tnnl, stored away where no hand but his own can
touch IT, These hc takes from . cabinet with
that fcclinc OF stealth which wc ali experience on
like occasions. and places them before him. HIS
Maiesiys tastes are simple BY the tradition OF his
| house and that tradition he Is careful 10 follow
| in many domestic PARTICULARS; Of all the
varions pot-niaics styled The Ma fccnt, none
| ever loved splcndor more than he does In his
| heart The mnaturc-casc is plain enough but
as for the little volume, nothing III morocco and
| hcraldic gliding was ever more cosly OF more
| thoughts, aspirations, resolutions, vows: and
Quite early in youth the King fixed his eyes
| upon the throne that might be hlsIcavcn only
| knew how soon and, with n forcthouSht rare
| in 50 young n man, he spent many an hour IN
| pondcrlng what lac would do II lac were king.
| Ills grandfather still in tha, exalted station,
| but wherever the young prince went, whenso'
| ever hc looked into the public journals Of his
| own or other lands, he rarely heard or read any
| thing about the king: SO rarely, indeed, that il
| hardly seemed if lie was the master Of his
| countrys dcstinics at all. \ magnificent, an
august GcuIc. no doubt but very little more
than a nuuIc All the world saw and acknowl-
| edged that the mind, will, power Of the State
| resided IN subordinate person, not long since
a country gentleman. Under The name Of Min
| istcr he was the great man; uncontrolled and
| uncomfortable In the palace itself hc was
master. as well as in the bureau whence hc dl-
| rcccd The affairs of the kingdom according 10 his
| wisdom and his will. Now the young prince,
| looking along his line Of ancestors while he
| listened 10 the everlasting rcvcrbcra'ions af the
| great mans name perceived that this was "a
| state of things which no rcigning member of such
| a house MS his should endure. Studying 10 put
| an end TO il when his turn came he provided
| himself with this little book and there he en-
| tered not only his Thoughts on Government, and
| on the Dignity and DufV of "A