The Savannah morning news., 1901-01-23
THE DEAD QUEEN.

THE DEAD QUEEN.
Throughout Christendom there will
be demonstrations of sorrow be-
! Queen Victoria; and wherever the
English language is spoken. these
/ demonstrations will be sincere expressions
of regret. respect and esteem. The life
of Victoria T. both public and private,
was such as TO endear her to her subjects
wherever they may, be scattered through
out Engand's vast domains. and to win
for her the highest respect from the
civilized peoples.
1t may be claimed, without fear OF sue
cessful contradiction. that the reign of
Queen Victoria was the most brilliant
in the history of England. During the
slxty-three years and more that she hela
the scepter her kingdom grew into a
mighty empire, upon the territory of
which 1.-THE sun never sets" But, better
than that, in that same period the sum
Of human liberties was greatly added to.
so that at the present time the people OF
the United Kingdom are among the freest
happiest and richest on the face of tho
globe. The hereditary nobility still OBJ
tains as feature of English life, and
the throne remains as a reminder of the
former absolutism of the monarch but
the government of England is now a gov
eminent of the people, with the occupant
OF the throne hardly more than figure
head representing the dignity OF author.
ity. 1t is not meant by this that Queen
Victoria became a nonentity on her throne.
She was a good politician, and ). took
deep interest in affairs of
state and welded much influence. 1t
has been said of her and doubtless with
truth, that she several times kept the
country from going to war. She had
horror of armed conflict and only CONSENT
ed 40 the war with the Beers in South
Africa when 1t was shown to her to be
the last resort.
To aid her in the making of her reign
brilliant Queen Victoria had the services
of at beast four great statesmen, Palmer
ston, Disrael, Gladstone and Salisbury,
besides a host of able and patriotic states
men Of lesser powers. OF the four named
only the last named survives. Victorias
reign, embracing nearly two-thirds of the
century recently ended. includes prac-
tically all of the wonderful improvements
that have been made in the arts and sci
ences in a hundred years; and it has been
embellished, too, with a richness in lit
erature unequaled heretofore since the
reign of Elizabeth.
1t was, however, the private and domes-
tic life of the Queen that made the deep
est and most lasting impression upon her
people. While a queen, she was a de-
voted wife and mother and a womanly
woman. She adored her husband, aud
lavished her mother-love upon her chill
dren, of whom there were nine. These
nine, it may >be remarked, all came 10
maturity and were married, showing the
strong vitality their mother had to inn
part to them. There was no thin and
impoverished blood in her line Many
charming stories are told of the domestic
felicity existing between the Queen aud
her husband, and iteis alleged as a truth
that basis of fact existed for the most
OF them. Upon the death of the Prince
Consort the Queen was inconsolable, and
Notwithstanding that bereavement occur
red nearly forty years before her own
death, the Queen never ceased to mourn
her husband-lover.
1t is typical of the times that the death
OF the Queen win cause no CONFUSION in
either the political or the financial world
The change in the head of the government
has long ago been discounted. hence the
accession of Albert Edward to the throne
will find the trend of events precisely
as they were before.
Meanwhile the world mourns Victoria,
a good wife good mother and good Queen.