The times., 1898-05-30
ECHOES FROM ABROAD.

| All Italy Is in a state of semi-siege just
now, and a number of continental royal
| ties have been caught in the blockade
Milan. Florence. Arezzo, Bologna. Rome
and Naples are under military law and
the publication of newspapers has been
forbidden on account Of the strikes. For
/ eigners ara entrapped wherever they hap
/ pen to have been lodged. and, except those
| who were able to slip out of the country
/ before the siege, among whom were the
! two queens of Holland. the Prince of
/ Wales-who was in Italy for a few weeks
and some Russian royalties, all are
! quartered there for an indefinite time.
The Duke of Saxony and the crown prince
and princess of Sweden are in Florence,
| together with the prince and princess OF
| Roumania. q
| The troubles are supposed to be on ac-
| count of the increased price of bread, and
mohs rush up and down,,the streets of the
cities, making barpicadas of trans turn
| ed endwise, paving stones and anything
| that can be moved 10 blockade the streets.
1t was with the greatest difficulty that
| the military forces were able to prevent
| the mad concourseaof crazed people from
rushing into the famnarsf Loggia del Lanzi
! In Florence and hacking to pieces the
precious statues which stand there ex
posed. One brave lieutenant placed him
self before the bronze Judith and HoIo-
| fernes' of Donatel1o and with drawn
| sword and leveled revolver dared anyone
| to approach him. For moment the
! crowd stood Off then on 1t rushed, but
! fortunately just then relay of troops
| came up and saved the situation. There
has just been discovered a plot by which
the republicans. aided by the clerical
| party. proposed to occupy Italy and es-
tablish Milan as the capital of the new
| republic.
| The season along the Riviera was
] closed most brilliantly by the wedding at
Cannes of Prince Christian, nephew of
| the king of Denmark with the Duchess
Alexandrine of Mecklenburg -Schwerin-
| There were present at the ceremony rep
resentatives of nearly all the European
powers and the affair was celebrated with
! the utmost magnificence. The marriage
| was performed three times. once by the
| legal authorities in the person of the
| mayor of Cannes, once in the Greek
] Church by the Russian archpriest and
once in the German Lutheran Church.
| After this last ceremony the pastor treat
ed the young bride to such lugubrious
discourse that the poor little thing burst
into tears and the bridegroom. in SYM
| pathy. wept whereat the assembled con-
| gregation could do no less than join. Diff
| ferent indeed to the joy and gladness OF
| a marriage feast was the appearance of
the entire party as they went to bid the
! couple adieu when they started on their
| short honeymoon through Italy. Prince
I Christian and his wife are TO remain a
! few weeks In the peninsula and then are
TO return Immediately to Mevklenburg,
| where additional wedding feasts viii take
| place.
II is said that this is a love match, but
| when royalties are concerned we are al
| ways told that. and then In few weeks
| we are treated to bits of domestic scan
| dal which cannot be said TO be tinged
with Colour de rose. However, we are
| more than willing to believe that this
time. at least 1t is true. for certainly
the Duchess of Mecklenburg Is as charm
ing a girl as there is in the European
| aristocracy, and Prince Christian thus fan
is an honor to his family. He is a gen
tleman in every sense of the word, and
it is indeed strange that from among the
disgusting collection of royal and aristo-
cratic marriages of convenience there
could not be at least one springng from
real affection.