Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1903-10-09
THRONE OF BULGARIA
Behind 1t Moves the Firm, Able
Hand of the Kings Mother.
Remarkable Traits of Character Oh
Princess Clementine of SnXe-Co-
burg, Whose Efforts Placed
Prince Ferdinand on Throne.


Bulgaria is the most interesting of the
royal personages engaged in playing
role in the near east. He has to be reck-
oned with, not only because he is an as
tute and INSCRIPTIONS man, but also be-
cause he is imbued by ties of blood to
the whole SaXe-Coburg clan; that is to
the royal families of Great Britain, Ger
many, Portugal, Belgium, and last, not
least, Austria, his sister being Arch
duchess Clotilde, wife of the palatine OF
Hungary, and his niece, the duchess of |
Orleans.
Prince Ferdinand is the youngest OF
five children who were born to the late
Prince Augustus of SaXe-Coburg, of the |
Austrian or Kohary branch. and
Princess Clementine of Orleans, the de- |
termined, brilliant daughter of Louis
Philippe, whose brothers nicknamed her,
even as girl, Clementine de Medicis.
! To this remarkable old French princess,
now 50 years of age and the last sur
viyor among the group of princes and
princesses who called Queen Victoria
by her Christian name, Prince Ferdi-
nand owes his unstable throne. He is
| ueT benjamin, DOIH seven yCdio oi'SA
her eldest child, her favorite, and, in
a diplomatic sense, her own creation.
Curiously enough, Prince Ferdinand
was the only one of Princess Clemen-
tines children who was born in Vi
emma French influences were lacking in
his education and upbringing. His god
parents were the tragic couple on whom
in 1861 all seemed to smile, MaXimilian
and Charlotte; and he was just sever
years old when his imperial godfather
was assassinated in Mexico. During thu
years which followed, Princess Clem
entine consolidated her elder children'i
positions by a series of brilliant mar
riages. Her only daughter, as we have
said, married Archduke Joseph, palatin'
of Hungary; Prince Philip married his
second, cousin, the pretty, wilfu
Princess Louise of Belgium, who latel
provided Europe with a terrible ant
sordid royal scandal; yet another o.
Prince Ferdinands brothers married
daughter of the emperor of Brazil.
In 1881, Prince Augustus, a favorite
cousin, by the way, of both Queen Vic.
toria and Prince Albert, died prema'
turely, and Ferdinand passed entirely
under his mothers influence AS a
young man, he bore, it must be admit
ted the worst of regulations. He was
said to be idle, vicious, and what the
: French eloquently style un fruit sec, "a
J. withered fruit" Princess Clementine' :
y pride in her youngest born was thought
= :, even by her nearest relatives, to be a
sign of maternal infatuation, and the
late Comte de Paris refused with indig-
nation the idea of marriage between
= one of his daughters and their cousin
e Ferdinand. Great, therefore. was the
l, general amazement when the Bulgarian
u national assembly elected this little
known and even less respected prince a:
d ruler of Bulgaria; but only the princess
IL mother knew what the cost in brains
J. and what was more important to an Or
II leans, in hard cash, came to before thu
e triumphant election was secured.
Il During the six years that followed
IA Princess Clementine reigned in Sofia
~ adapting herself with astonishing cas-
~ to the strange, half-barbarous way o
u life which obtained in the Bulgarian
capital. Her constant preoccupation il
IL those days-as indeed it has again beel
or recently-was to find a suitable brid
t; for her son. At last, repulsed on ever
le hand. for neither the man nor his pc
Is teton insnired confidence. she secure
a him a consort in the eldest child of tha
duke of Parma whose family of is chi
in dren are the wonder of continental roy
Is al circles.
ay The gentle, pious Marie-Louise, {
90 dwarfish stature, shrinking modest!
Ell and ardent piety, soon found herse
~ crushed between the upper and nethe
us nilIstones The birth of Prince Bor
rs' was followed in two short years by tn
disgraceful quarrel concerning IL
no child's religious faith, and to h
'h' mothers horror he was solemnly rebaI
III tised according to the Greek rite, in o
der to secure his father the friendshi
in of Russia. Princess Ferdinand, by wa
TX of protest. left Sofia for awhile, but h,
i's love for her two little sons brought h
hit hack. Her death, in childbirth. occurrt
ar four years ago last January, and sim
as, then her four children, two boys ar
- two girls, have been under the care
he their redoubtable grandmother. 1t
difficult to say how Prince Ferd
: nand is regarded in Bulgari
The astute, noiseless fashion
,at which he contrived to rid himself
Stambuloff, while apparently in !
sor sense 10 blame, inspired fear and I
he spect in many who had hitherto on
professed to hate and despise him,
JOHN L. EDWARDS
no Temptation.
First Moth.-Its no wonder you
y troubled with Indigestion after eati