The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-09-12
VIENNA MOURNS.
Concluded from First Page


Victoria assembled the British throne. On
the fathers side she came of the junior
branch of the House of Bavaria. styled
dukes in Bavaria. Her mothers father was
Maximilan-Joseph III, Elector of Bavaria,
whom Napoleon made into a king and took
pleasure in ordering about like an equerry.
one day the great man went for an airing
with their newly cres ted majesties of Ba-
varia, Saxony and Wurtemburg. In the
course of the drive he stopped to pay a
visit 10 some friend, and left the three
klrgs IN the carriage. Sax0ny and Wur-
temDurg were at first sulky, then, as the
visit heightened. indignant. King Max
showed himself a philosopher. Since he
said' we are treated as lackeys, let us
amuse ourselves in lackey fashion," and he
sent one of the grooms in attendance to
procure bread and cheese and fruit, with a
bottle of wine. When these were brought
Max ate and drank and was merry, and
nnaliy induced his royal brethren to follow
lis example. BY and by the Emperor made
his appearance and offered no apology.
No wonder the granddaughter of such a
man was proud of her ancestry, The Wit
teisbachs were always naughty race, ex-
cept when it was dangerous to give ones
self airs. To do Max justice, he cordially
olsllked the upstart to whom he had been
compelled to tIuckle, and deserted him the
moment 1T was safe 10 do so. The Empress
Elizabeth had another reason for pride.
Her parents were poor, and German roy
atty, when poor, Invariably displays the
characteristic quality of Lucifer Her
father was the best zither player in Europe.
and he passed most of his existence travel
ing about with Tyrolean, who was also
an accomplished performer on this instru-
ment. Her eldest brother married an
actress and lived with her in retirement
Her mother formed ambitious projects for
her eldest daughter, Helena, and it was
soon arranged that the Emperor of Austria
should pay them visit and see whether
Inc damsel pleased him. He came, and liked
her well enough, but tn, ught her sister
Elizabeth charming, and proposed to the
latter few days after his arrival She
Vas then romping hoyden. Her father
had house near Munich, and she was
never so happy as when scampering about
the country alone on a horse. The court
ship was soon over and the marriage took
place when the princess was exactly six
teen years and four months old. Helena
was consoled few years later with the
hand of the hereditary Prince of Thurn and
Taxs.
HAD HER OWN WAY.
Francis Joseph was really in love, or
iancied he was, and for some time the union
proved a sufficiently happy one. The EN-
press had been accustomed to imbibe daily
a glass of Bavarian beer at her dinner. To
this the court officials of Vienna objected,
and her right to her national beverage was
only secured by the direct interposition of
her husband. But the Emperor's heart was
too large for a single affection, and the
Empress had temper of her own. 1t is
said she once horsewhipped gentleman On
the grand staircase of the imperial palace.
Smarting with his wounds, the chastsed
one rushed into the presence of the En-
shrugged his shoulders and bestowed upon
him the Order of the Iron Crown, fifth
class, whereat Vienna laughed all the more.
BY and by the august couple entered on
that arrangement which Gin ecclesiastical
matters, be it understood) was so dear to
the intellect of Dean Stanley-they agreed
ever afterwards. The Empress always
cherished with tenderness the memory of
the early spring of her married life. Among
her treasures was d jeweled casket, of the
rarest workmanship, which held a little
bouquet of edegweiss given her by the EN-
peror during the period of their betrothal.
Empress Elizabeth was one of the most
beautiful as Wei as one of the most unfor-
tUnate crowned heads of Europe during the
present century. Both as to beauty and
misfortune she has often been compared to
Eugenia, the deposed Empress of France.
Here the analogy ceases. 1t is an undis-
puted fact that Eugenia of Montijo
achieved the dignity of an empress by spec
u,ation, aided and abetted by an intriguing
mother, while the marriage of Elizabeth to
Francis Joseph. reigning Emperor of Aus
tria, was truly love match. The imperial
couple was very happy, but even in the
early days of the marriage there. were
thorns in the. path of the couple, for the
M mot orO 90,
customed to the dignity of her position
She constantly neglected state duties and
utterly detested the trammels of court life.
She. never lost an occasion to evince. her
dislike for the obsolete stiffness of life at
the Hofburg. During her girinood she had
become accustomed TO simplest and freest
country life, and she was not in the least
adapted to play the part OF an empress,
dignified and queenly as she could be when
life of Empress Elizabeth was happy until
the great tragedy of her life, the death of
her son Rudolph, robbed her of an only
son. and Austria's throne of the only direct
male heir.
Elizabeth was we'll fitted to make sure of
the devotion of a mans heart. She was a
bud of tenderest beauty. She had child
like face full of innocence and cheerful
ness. She was graceful in all her move
ments, and possessed that natrual amiability
which spreads so mighty charm around
could not destroy the beauty of Elizabeth.
it gradually robbed her OF her simplicity
righteousness. "
now, is the most formal the most exclusive
and aristocratic in the world, and it refused
to accept the hoydenish young Bavarian
princess as its empress. The well-known
mot of a princely wit that humanity be-
gins with baron, is intensified in Vienna,
where it is necessary to prove eight success
sive generations of nobility on paternal and
maternal side to be admitted to the court
circle. The young Empress was snubbed and
sighted OH every possible occasion. and
even by some members of the imperial
family AS a result she drew within her
self, and loved her dogs and horses and the
cultivation of her athletic powers.
HER FAVORITE ENJOYMENT.
Elizabeth felt stifled with the formality of
the court-this select herd which felt itself
so above the rest of the world. yet whose
greatest amusement was vulgar gossip. The
court geography she could never learn, and
the chase for scandal did not interest her.
She preferred a mad gallop on her favorte
horse, with the wind in her teeth and her
hair flying behind her. Even in court dress
she liked to let her hair hang down beneath
her crown, and she would only consent to
have it twined with jewels. These masses
of hair, hanging almost to her feet, gave
her a peculiar soft, shy look Her figure
was 1.-the and slender, what modern novel;
lists like to call svelte, her eyes bright and
liquid, like some gentle animals. She
loved to dress in soft fringes, furs, feathers
and swan s-down.
At the time OF her appearance in Vienna
she was thought the handsomest woman in
Europe 1t was in vain that ArchduchesS
the Empress. for the wild Bavarian girl was
a good girl and her only missteps were
against sham and snobbishness and against
bars of speech and originality of character.
Early during her married life Elizabeth re-
tired into a very small circle of intimat
friends. and mingled with the court as little