The daily morning journal and courier., 1896-02-17
HAS REACHED THE CLIMAX
THOUSANDS WAITED IN VAIN TO SEE THE IMPERIAL PROCESSION.

The Cause of the Non-Appearance of Elm peror William Was Feud Which He
 Had Had With M. Herbette, the French
 Ambassador and Dean of the Diplomatic l Corps.
 | Berlin, Feb. 16.-The Berlin season reached it's climax on Wednesday upon the occasion of the annual subscription ball, which took place in the Berlin op- era house, The ball is one of the func- tions of the year at which those in no way attached to the court circle and are not recognized as being eligible to association with the higher circle are permitted to mix with the court per- sonages.
 l At Wednesday evenings ball the crush exceeded that of any that has been known in the experience of the oldest habitue of this function. A crowd numbering thousands, among whom were many ladies resplendent with diamonds. bankers, manufacturers and other representatives of the weal- | llllCSL CldSS OL llC WdutCu to view the usual imperial procession, but they waited in vain. The court party appeared in the imperial box att tended by the members of the court When the royalties had taken their places the orchestra struck up the mu- sic of the program for dancing and kept going from number to number, and it was some time before any one realized that there was to be no procession. Everybody was asking what had hap pened to cause the emperor, who is a stickler for traditional customs, to abandon the precedent which has en- dured for years.
 Although the public did not know, l the court and the diplomatic circlo knew. The emperor had feud with M. Herbette, the French ambassador. who was present in his double capacity as foreign ambassador and dean of the diplomatic corps. It has been the rule at this function that at the con- clusion of the court procession the inn perial party have paid visit to the diplomatic group and have been receive ed by the dean of the corps. The em- peror decided to avoid a reception by M. Herbette and therefore ordered that the procession be abandoned. This slight seems to be a personal one, but 1t may have important political results. l A report is in circulation, which IS generally credited in the diplomatic cir cle that the emperor is going to Huber tusstock to remain over the carnival, so as to avoid the duty of receiving M. Herbette at the court ball. If M. Her. bette should be recalled in the mean time the emperor will return in time to be present at the ball. M. Herbette has made his continuance at his post l impossible through a succession of acts which have been offensive to the em- peror's ideas of gentlemanly deport- ment. Members of the diplomatic corps are free to say that while M. Herbette 1 is diplomat of undoubted ability, he i is by no means Q courier. His man ners are conspicuously bad and his share in influencing the recall of Lieu- tenant Baron de Grancy, the naval att tache to the French embassy here, rep- resenting that he was not a persona grata at the German court, brought things to crisis. s.
 The Cologne Gazette prints g vicious article on the subject, declaring that the relations between Germany and France have been rendered a great deal worse than they have been, or other wise could have been, through the press ence of M. Herbette in Berlin as the chief representative of France. The article has created a great sensation.