The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1896-12-09

beyond that OF mere amateur,
while her sculptures surpass any
thing of the kind ever attempted
by a woman. The subject which
naturally stimulates her most to
artistic effort is the portrait of her
fondly loved husband. His mem
DRY is so fresh in her mind, her eye
so capable of recalling his image,
and her hand Sd well trained to fol
low her impression and to repro
duce what she can visualize, that
no sculptor could vie with her in
reproducing his likeness. On one
occasion she had given a commits
sion to the celebrated German
sculptor Uphus for a colossal
statue of the Emperor Frederick.
One day she called at his studio
while he was at work on the clay
model of the bust. She pointed
out to him some features in which
he had not caught the likeness.
When verbal explanations did lot
adequately convey her meaning
she asked permission to model her
self, set to work, and in half an
hour, with a touch here and there,
modified the features to such de-
gree that the sculptor was astound-
cd by the striking likeness. The
model has since been put into mar
bic, and is universally considered
to be the best portrait extant of
Emperor Frederick,
In spite of being a grandmother
the widowed empress is still in
splendid bodily health and vigor.
She rides on horseback daily, and
in winter spends a considerable
amount of time on the ice skating.
Kindhearted, generous and impul-
sive, she is, nevertheless, fierce
hater and dangerous enemy, as
Prince Bismark found to his cost.
For it was mainly through her
cleverness and diplomacy that he
lost his post of chancellor and was
relegated to private life. Indeed.
his overthrow was universally re-
garded at the time as her victory,
a victory which no one could
grudge her who remembered the
crusl persecution 10 which she had
been subjected by the prince, both
prior and subsequent to her hus-
bands death. Had Bismarck had
his way and been permitted 10 full
fill his projsct, Emperor Frederick
would not have been permitted to
ascend the throne for the three
short months that his rsign lasted,
and his wife would never have OBJ
tanned either the rank or the reve-
nues OF an empress.
The empress is not comedy, and,
in fact, has never been pretty, but
has always had a bright, intelligent
and pleasing face. Moreover, she
has inherited her mothers pecu-
liarly melodious voice. She is i'm
perious and intolerant of stupidity
and sffectation. Her objection to
the latter renders her particularly
averse to her eldest SOC, whose
fondness for posturing and posing
she abominates, and whose conduct
in the early part of his reign was
of so unfiIial a character as to
arouse the indignation of people
both in and out of Germany. Of
late the relations between the
mother, who really knows every
thing, and the son, who merely
possesses a smattering thereof,
have improved, mainly in conse-
quence of the fact that the empress,
thanks to her husbands will and
to the bequest of the fortune of
the Genoese Duchess Galliers, is
enormously rich, whereas the en-
peror is constantly hard pressed
for ready cash.
In spite of all her philanthropy,
generosity and cleverness, in spite,
too, of the blamelessness of her