The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-02-11
BERLlN'S BRILLIANT BALLS.
A WEEK OF MAGNIFICENT FETES
AT THE GERMAN CAPITAL.

Every Court Spectacle since the
Days Of the Last Empire I'm France
EcIipsed by the Great Function OF
the TeutOnie Court.
Berlin. Feb. 1o-Neither the coldness OF
the weather nor the dreariness of the par
Hamentary politics has affected the splen-
dor Of the court season. The last week
was crowded with magnificent fetes at the
Old Castle and calls and receptions at the
palaces of the court nobility. II is the
climax Of the social gaiety OF the short
season decreed by the emperor and is fast
approaching its close. and by the end of
the week the people who make fashion
here will be making ready for their trips
northward.
The great function of the week was the
small court bali" on Wednesday evening.
1t was instituted by Emperor William J.
and the Empress Augusta. and an invita-
tion TO it is regarded as d mark of special
favor. Although nominally small, the list
of speciality favored guests has been
heightened from year to year. until last
week it contained more than 800 names.
The scene in the white hail when the inn
perial family appeared was more imposing
than usual. Conspicuous in the circle of
guests were many members of the prince
ly families Of Germany. the ambassadors
and ministers of foreign powers, and the
troop Of state ministers and chief officials
with Chancellor Prince Hohenlohe at their
head. All the men were in uniform, and
the women glistened with diamonds.
The familiar rapplng Of the court
marshars staff was followed by the en-
trance Of the pages Then came the en-
peror, leading the empress, and behind
them the other members of the regning
house, and the high functonaries of the
imperial court. The emperor wore the pa
rade uniform of the Body Guard and the
empress a cinnamon colored robe with
a panel of duh silk A fringe of pearls
bordered the robe panel and train and
head dress, and diamonds studded the di-
adem which held the long veil in place.
| The empress breast-band was the high
est Prussian decoration, the great star in
brlllants.
The Prince and Princess Henry of
Prussia walked next TO the imperial
couple. and behind them were the Prin-
/ cess Frederick Charles and Princess
/ Frederick of Hohenzolern. The women
/ i'm the long line which followed the
] AON0A lt1MttH were res 1AlitllAElk aAA jewels
! and costumes, which far surpassed in
/ magnihcence anything seen at the birth
/ day reception, and probably any court
/ spectacle since the end Of the last en-
/ pire in France.
After the exchange of greetings with
/ the chief guests, the empress ascended
! the dais and gave the signal that dam
cling should begin. Neither she nor the
emperor danced.
The emperor moved through the hall
speaking with his intimate friends and
occasionally stopping for a long talk
with a minister of state or an ambassa-
dor He devoted fully half an hour to
| Chancellor Prince Hohenlohe. The en-
press summoned the wives of the ambas-
sadOrs to her and passed most of her
time before supper in conversation with
them After the minuet lancers. gavotte
quadrille and several waltzes, the guests
went to supper, which was followed by a
repetition of the former programme un-
til the close of the ball.
A hardly less splendid affair in its way
was the Princess Radziwills ball, which
is supposed to have reached the hight of
of splendOr among private entertainments.
There We're 800 guests, among them many
royal princes and their wives, the Prince
and Princess of Fuerstelberg and all the
titled leaders of Berlin's fashionable set
The magnihcence of this and other private
receptions is regarded as an unmistakable
response to the emperor's declared am
bition to make his court and capital the
most splendid in Europe
Chancellor Prince Hohenlohe's second
parliamentary dinner was given on Thurs
day 1t had a less political and a more
general character than his first entertain
ment. Among the 400 guests were some
thirty of the best known newspaper men
in Berlin, and others might have been
there had they not seen fit to ignore their
invitations. During the three hours which
the reception lasted, the chancellor moved,
almost necessarily, among his guests. He
sat down only now and then to converse
with some political leader
The chancellor had brought most of the
Hohenlohe family treasures to his castle,
and they were spread on the tables for the
edihcation of the company. They certainly
were calculated to please the clericals,
whose favor is most coveted by the prince
at present, for the majority of them are
religious relics which bear testimony to
the unshaken Catholicism of his house.
All were encased in gold jeweled caskets
TO protect them from the touch of the
curious. There was splinter from the
cross on which Christ was crucified, a
small piece of the sponge which was Of
fered to Christ on the cross bones from
the bodies of several saints, a gold and
sapphire crown of antique workmanship
in imitation Of the crown Of thorns and
any number or 1eWeled crucinXeS which
once belonged to the great men of the
church. Besides these treasures, the
prince had spread out a collection of mas
sive gold plate which his family had gath
cred through centuries Everybody who
had the good fortune TO see the chancel-
Ior's treasures remarked that nobody, af-
ter seeing them could doubt the earnest
ness Of his religious convictions.
The chancellor had long talk with Dr.
Iieber on the center's attack on the anti
socialist bill He touched also upon Herr
Won I.evitzow's determination to give up
the presidency Of the Reichstag in case the
DEPUTIES should decline to increase his dis
culinary powers. 1t is understood that
he extracted from DR.. Lieber a pledge that
The clerfcals would support Herr Levitzow
and his demand for more ample authority
In conversation with other guests the
chancellor spoke of the new agrarian
movement in favor of bimetallism. To one
he said: Germany will take no steps in
this matter without first reaching an un-
derstanding with England. OF what use
would it be for me to make a declaration
in the Reichstag in favor Of bimetallsm.
ar to tell everybody that 1 am agreeable
"a II While all the time England prevents