Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-12-04
PIGMY RULERS OF EUROPE.
Most of Them Are Undersized and De-
fccttyc I'm Statu-c

From the New Orleans Tmes-nefnacrat
Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria.
who has just passed through this country
on his way back from China and Japan TO
Europe. present an unusually good example
of European royalty. as far as physique
Is concerned, writes the Marquis de Fonte-
noy. When 1 say unusually. l mean that
there are few of his class as well set up as
he, the major portion of the personages Of
blood royal being understood and defective
in stature. especially those of southern Eu-
rope. Thus, King Humbert of Italy is fran
and short. while his son and heir. the
Prince of Naples. is even less than five feet
in height and is slight in proportion. The
king OF Portugal and his brother are both
stumpy and tat. while the late king
Alfonso rescmbled the other members
of his family, excepting Don Carries. in be-
ing understood to an Incredible degree He
was fully coEniz' mt OF the puny Character
of his appcaranc and sought to improve IL
by every means in his power. Including
padding, high heels, &c. but all without
avail. Don Antonio. the husband of Princess
Eulalte, is not Spaniard, but Il Frenchman
by birth, his father the late Due de Mont
penSier, having been a son OF King Iouis
Philippe of France. All the members OF the
British royal family are extremely short
specially the queen. who is not much taller
than ten-year-old girl. and is becoming,
with increasing years, almost as broad a.
she is long. The only two princes OF t;rea,
Britain who are of the average British
stature are the Duke of Cambridge and the
Duke of Cumberland
The members of the Dutch royal family
are, like those OF England, abbreviated IN
stature, and so, too. is the present genera
ton of the HohenZollerns, with solitary eX-
ception of Prince Albert. the regent OF
Brunswick, who is as gigantic as those
Anaks of modern royalty. the princes of
the reignlng house of Sweden. Perhaps in is
due TO the Preneau peasant blood in their
VEINS derived from their ancestor. the
father of Field Marshal Bernadotta that
they are of such magnificent physique and
the same may be said of the car and 81
certain of the Russian grand dukes Whose
blood has been maintained in a healthy
condition BY the frequent MARRIAGES with
women of the humhlest class of society the
Empress Catharine having been little better
than a mere camp follower. Alexan5e-
III is close upon Six feet three In heipbt
This, at any rate, is the measurement re
corded against that wonderful colinn,, Il,
the Danish cathedral of Ropskildo TIE roet-
ing place of the ancient kings of Denmarl;
Against this column number of mona rob.
have been measured and their height re-
corded. Conspicuous among them Is peter
the Great, who measured six feet TOY, o,i,-
one other of the sovereigns was taller and
that was King Christian / of Dan,1,a ri,
who. according TO this authority u-as inst
a trife over seven feet The present Eir .
Christian of Denmark measures close ,,r,C y
six feet. while his grandson. Prince George
of Greece, who visited this country n connie
of years ago, stands six feet in his stock
| ings. The tallest of all the royal ladies
of Europe is assUre1ly the good-n9 tIIra5
unconventional and somewhat uninteiiectu-
al Crown Princess of Denmark, a daughter
of the late King Of Sweden. whose height is
the same as that of her fathcr-in-laU kim,
Christian, gigantic sta ture for woman.
Her children show a tendency to follow her
in this respect. and her sons compare favor
ably in helght with that of their cousins.
the sons or King Oscar, every one OF whom
| is exceedingly tall