Evening star., 1900-01-27
QUEER GIFTS TO ROYALTY
Legacieg of ALI Sorts have Been Left to
Queen Victoria
Emperor of Austria Presented With
a Hotel-The kaiser's Share in
Steamship Line.
From Tit Bits.

During the sixty-two years that Queen
Victoria has sat on the throne she has been
the recipient Of some rather curious lega-
cies, to say nothing of several very SUBJ
stantial ones, notably that of 100000 left
her by certain Mr.. Neale. However,
many of her majesty's humber subjects,
who have had just as much admiration for
their queen as their more fortunate fellows,
have sought % remember her in their wills,
and cats, dogs and other quadrupeds galore
have been bequeathed to the head Of the
state. Whenever possible her majesty has
done her best to accept these bequests, but
they have so often bordered on the realms
Of eccentricity that she has frequently rhad
to refrain from doing SO.
Curiously enough, she has repeatedly been
left cats, and as she Is not fond OF the feline
race. has been obliged to refuse them. 1t
Is said that her name has been mentioned
in not far short of 200 wills the recipient
of the family mouse catcher, and on more
than one occasion a small annuity has been
left her by the same testator, in order that
the maintenance of the animal should be
of no expense to its royal mistress.
Dogs, too. she might have had in scores,
were 1t not that her affections are already
centered on those she has obtained by other
means. Nevertheless, she has frequently
accepted these legacies and afterward be-
slowed them on members of her household.
On one occasion she was bequeathed
IN its younger days. As far as the writer
is aware, the animal was afterward sold,
and the proceeds given to a well-known
charity. Moreover, she can always be sure
OF final resting place, for an eccentric old
Scotchwoman named McWilliam, upon
whom her majesty had frequently bestowed
fayors while at Balmoral died a few years
ago and left iier benefactress family vault
IN neighboring kirkyard. At first the au-
thorities thought fit to inquire into the case
which they very naturally believed to be
bogus one, before acquainting the queen
with the fact. Investigations however
only went to prove that the old Iady's will
was correct and that she had purchased
and gorgeously fitted up a large vault at
the place in question. Needless to say, her
trouble was in vain, for a sovereign like
ours could never be permitted to rest in
such obScurity.
The Prince and Princess CT Wales have
also come in for their share of peculiar
legacfes, among which, of course pets fig
Gre prominently. Several Of the dogs on the
SandrinSham estate have been the final
bequests of their donors, and the princess,
Witese love OF animals is proverbial. has
caused them to be as carefully looked after
as those more c'osely connected with her.
Among other things. she once received a
PAIR or cage birds of al almost extinct va
ffiety, ieft IT. her by an old gentleman who had
brought them home frcm abroad, and they
were valued by experts at 500 guneas.
among the many bequests which have
fallen to the lot of the Emperor Franz
pi VI Id Is d HOIel at Brunn, lett
hln' by the proprietor some years since 1t
was on a SOUND financial basis and there
1cre valuable property. The emperor ac-
cepted the bequest, although he did not en-
rloy 1t for his own benefit, but sold it for
an enormous sum, which he gave in its en-
tirety to a popular child's hospital.
1t Is not generally known that the Ger
man emperor oraws an income from a line
OF steamships, besides that derived from
his regal position. The origin of this is
rather curious. The late Kaiser William 1
while crown prince, went out of his way to
90 a good turn for a man, who eventually
became celebrity in the shipping world
being chief partner in line of vessels ply
ing between Hamburg and the French and
British coasts
A few years before the death of the en-
peror the man in question died and left the
Whole of his property, consisting of the
share In the business, to his old benefactor,
then the kaiser. The bequest of course
was valuable as well as an acceptable
one, and is likely to be handed down for
many generations.
Another gift which came into the possess
sion of the German emperor the other day
took the form of three enormous elephants
OF great value which were bequeathed by
menagerfe proprietor. To the emperor,
of course, the gift was useless, but it was
accepted, and he presented the animals to
the Geological Gardens at Berlin.
1t is generally believed that the head of
the Russian empire is never popular man
with the majority of his subjects. and yet
czar has received rather goes to belle this
statement. They are, of course, as various
as they are numerous, but among the bet
ter known is a large white Polar bear-a
hitting gift for Czar-which is kept in cap
tivity at the winter palace. Where bruin
originally came from, and by whom he was
sent, is a mystery, for a letter was received
one day stating that the beast was on the
read, and was legacy from loyal SUBJ
ject.
On arrival it was inspected by the czar
and czarina, and as the latter took such
fancy to 1t, and admired its magnificent
coat of exquisite whiteness, the emperor
had no alternative but to order a home to
be fitted up and bruin duly installed therein.
But this is not the legacy to which the
czar shows the greatest partiality. 1t is a
small piece of metal unprnamented and
crude in the extreme, which was left two
years ago by famous physician in St.
Petersburg, and the reason it receives SO
much regal favor is because it formed part
of the fatal bomb which destroyed the
cars illustrious predecessor, Alexander IL.