Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1891-12-27
THE CARS FRIENDS.
ONLY TWO MEN SHARE lis IMPERIAL CON
FDENCE.
Ops IS a Jew - Reasons br tie Cars Ez,.1-
sivsaeSs The Divinity that Dota
Hedge an AutO-a-

treate6 bv the Car and Czarina as per-
soma friends and relatives, writes cor
RESPONDENT OF the New 1orA I"i'sS'
They ara the sole persons having access
IN The monarch and his cOuSort who are
nermitted 20 say what they please, ana
n TAX 70 Alexander and the Empress
in a perfectly free and unconstraIsleSI
fashion. IRdeed, they may De regaISeu
as the sole means OF COMMUNICATION Vua'
exists between the autocrat ana tue
masses OF the population. Inc OtheI
digpitsrjes Of the court, though honest
snd devoted 10 the Imperial master anu
mistress eDdeavOr 70 keep tue latter
from knowing anything disagreeaole'
OF eourse. their objec, is 70 spare the
EmDeror and Empress from trouble ana
.nrovance. but tue result Is that the
larter are kept in ignorance or many
tbings that II would be far better that
they should know, especially IN so iar
81 nublic oDinion and the sentiment OF
their subjects are concerned. Count
Sbaranpriew and bis wife are indebted
for their exceptional position 10 theIaet
that the Countess Is daughter u
the EmperOr's aunt, the Grand DucheSs
Marie. and OF her second husband, count
Stroganof. Moreover, the Count MIN
self is the son Of a natural daughter OF
Car Alexander l., and, besides holding
tho most Of GraDd HuntSman OF the En-
nire he is one OF the wealthieSt mobiles
IN Russia. This wealth has been further
increased In the past few days by the
destb M Odessa of old Count StrOganoH,
the father OF the nObleman by that
name who married the Grand Duchess
Marie. and the grandfather, therefore
OF Countess SCheremetew
The terror with which the press
avoids the possibility Of giving any o.
tense TO the imperial family IS striking
" demonstrated by the fact that in the
obituary notices Of the old Count not
single paDer mentioned that he had
been father-jn-iaw 10 daughter OF Gar
Nicholas. Count Alexander StroganoH
was al the time Of his death over ninety
seven wears old, and without exception
the best known and most popular hgure
ar Odessa. where he had resided
upinterruDtedly for fifty years. lie
was the Dean OF the Order OF
81. Andrew, and Of all other Rus
sian orders. an Adjutant General OF the
Emperor and a member OF the Grand
Council. but for over half century he
abstained from exercising any OF the
functions connected with these Offices
and digpfties. A. the time of his self
imposed exile he was Minister OF the In
terror, but quagreled with Emperor
Nicholas on the ground OF his son re-
lations 20 the Cars daughter. Inc
Grand Duchess was at the time married
10 the Duke OF Leuchtenburg, who
was a grandson OF Empress Jose
mime. OF France, aud the latter'S
first husband, VI. de BeaUharnRiS. The
Grand Duchess, after few years OF
marriage, declined TO live with the
Duke any longer, and had given her
heart instead TO Count Gregory
Stroganof, whose principal title 10 fame
was that OF being the most gigantic and
most powerful man in the entire Russian
army.
Immediately upon the death Of the
Duke Of LeuchtenbeFg the Grand Ouch /
ess contracted inorganic marriage
with the Count, greatly 20 the NORTH
cation and disgust Of her father
and brothers, who insisted that
henceforth she should reside as much
as possible abroad. The Grand Duchess
aud her husband spent most OF their
time In the French Riviera, and IL was
there that the Count became implicated
in disagreeable scandal, which would
have resulted in his trial for murder
had il not been for the personal inter
ventiou Of Napoleon Ill, at that time
a e al
1t appears that one day the Count,
entering mis- wifeS dressing room, found
the coiiIeur arranging her hair with far
too muca impressment and familiarity.
Although not ordinarily jealOuS-for q
Jealous disposition would be out Of place
In the husband OF a Russian Grand
Duchess-the spectacle presented proved
TOO much for his feelings, and, Seizing
the unfortunate figaro by his neck, and
his neither garments, he hurled him
bodily through the window and into the
garden, two stories below. The man
died a few hours later from his injuries,
and 90 was only by the personal Inter
vention OF the Grand Duchess, who
proceeded TO Paris for the purpose OF
invoking the assistance Of Napoleon and
OF his sister, Princess Mathilde, that
criminal proceedings against the Count
were averted. A heavy indemnity,
however, bad to be paid by the Count
10 the family Of his victim.
From the time OF his dispute with
Emperor Nicholas, Count Georges
father never revisited either 81. Peters
burg or Moscow. He lived in a besnti-
ful house looking out on the sea at
Odessa. His household was on princely
scale, as behtted a man OF his rank and
immense fortune. Exceedingly courtly
and generous, age and experience had
rendered him much Of a cynic, and he
prOfeSsed a profound contempt for man
kind. His friends were few In number,
and, strange though it may appear, his
most Intimate and confidential cOmpan-
ion was an aged Jew, almost as old as
himself. About fifteen years ago the
jew lost his entire fortune, through no
fault OF his OVID. The Count, within
twenty-fOur hours OF receiving the news
OF his friends loss, appeared in his house
and laid on the table package contain
Ing bank notes 70 the amount OF money
which the jew had lost.
Il am your Oldest friend, said he
poverty at our age is hard 70 bear.
From me you can have no compunction
about taking this money after our years
OF close friendship ana intimacy" DO
not be offended, my dear Alexa Greg
OrOyitch, II / refuse your kindly offer"
replied the Hebrew. I'VE have been
close friends for many yesrs. DO not
know II either Of US will live much
longer, but would not for the world
that any one should be able TO say, dur
ing the remaining years that we have TO
live, that my friendship has been OF an