The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1891-12-26

that opened like an idyl of Arcadia on the
shores of the Adriatic in the fall of 1863.
To the beautiful castle of Miramar, where
the Archduke Macmillan and the Prin-
cess Carlotta were passing long and de-
lightful honeymoon such as falls to the lot
of the rich and wise and good, there came
in October of that year deputation OF
Mexican notables to offer the crown of the
newly organized monarchy TO his imperial
highness with the title of emperor of Mex
ico The offer was made in the most
tempting form possible, for the archduke
was not mere kingling out Of a job, but
was a man of ideas, worker, a progress
ist. Ferdinand Max" as the Austrian
people Familiarity spoke of him, was only
about thirty years of age, but had made q
place for himself in the hearts of his coun-
trymen. Bred sailor, he had risen to be
chief admiral of the Austrian navy, and
had won victories with the powers that he
had created by personal care in construct
ing and disciplining ships and crews.
Afterward his imperial brother, Francis
Joseph, made him governor of an Italian
province. During the Italian troubles Of
1859 he had resigned his governorship and
retired with Cariotta to his castle, there to
live, as only princes may, the ideal exist
ence. Surrounded by almost oriental mag
nificence, young, handsome and popular,
with boundless wealth, the royal couple
passed their time in the congenial occupa-
tions of study, experiments, scientific re-
search, noble charities and the most simple
and temperate social recreations. A book,
a model, a picture, or peasant or nun
seeking aims, these were their most con-
slant companions. A student, but not a
dreamer; a user of books, and not porer
over them; churchman and a Catholic,
but hater of monasticism and the dry rot
of the cloister; a monarchist, but foe to
slavery and oppression and every abuse of
power-such was this royal man of the
world, the blond scion of Hapsburg, Ferdi-
nand Max, and Princess Carlotta was to
him in all his aspirations and sympathies
a true companion and mate.
When the offer of the crown came to
break the paradisiacal monotony of Mira
mar, Macmillan heard the summons as
did Arthur of the Table Round when
the king of Cameliard, whose land was
laid waste by the heather, sent to him say
ing, arise and help us, thou, for between
man and beast we die"
''It was, for distracted Mexico" said the
deputies, "a couple of political revolutions
with new dictators each year and chaos
following, or a monarchy with Maximil-
IAN"
The imperial crown was placed upon his
head at Miramar with imposing cere-
monies in the presence of the Austrian en-
peror and his other brothers, he having
first renowned all claims to Austrian sue
nj ha oil
and farewel!' not only of his imperial
brother, but of his kingly father-in-law,
Leopold of Belgium, his cousins-the
queens of England and of Spain, and the
kings of Italy and of Sweden-and also of
his friend and sponsor, Napoleon III, Max
imilian | of Mexico set out for the Aztec
land to drive the heather, slay the beast,
fell the forest and let in the sun and make
broad pathways" for civilization.
Mexico, in the sixties, as the world
knows, was literally gone to the dogs"
1t represented among the nations nothing
but hopeless debts, broken pledges and a
long black page of unavenged oppres-
sions, prosecutions, cruelties. Every state
in the realm was torn By bloody revo.u-
tons. The people looked TO no man as
chief, to no party as the champion of or
der and justice. An army sent by Napo-
leon to protect French subjects had scat
tered the Mexican soldiery; Juarez. the
latest dictator, was a fugitive; Marshal
Bazaine, of France, was at the head of af
fairs and in possession of the capital, the
City of Mexico. Macmillan calmly
awaited six months for the ratification by
the Mexican people of the choice of the
convention of notables, and only set out
on the unequivocal assurance of the depu-
ties that the ratification had been as unau-
imous as the disturbed state of society
would permit. His journey from the sea-