Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-06-12

firmly. Queen Draga,s who seemed perfect
husband. motioned theAlitter to silence. and
said; The win Of the Monarch is the more
around. she alnos$ dr&sged him to the
door, and the royal couple left the audience
chamber without the usual formalities.
The cabinet EXCHANGED glances and re-
tired. Within few days they took occa-
sion to have the leader~of the radical ma
1ority In the parliament send a message to
the queen by person who would be sure to
deliver 1t correctly .Athat the plan to name
her brother heir to the throne would
never be agreed to. and admonished her
that her own safety required her to relin-
Quish it.
King and queen outcasts.
Her brother being rejected. Queen Draga.
who had a fertile mind conceived the idea
of Offering the successorship to Russia as
the price Of the social recognition of herself
and her husband at the court of st. Peters
burg. They were boycotted at every court
in Europe. No king or queen or prince of
any other royal family ever visited Servia,
and the King and Queen Of Servia were
never invited to any of the other capitals
of Europe.
They have been regarded as vulgar out
casts ever since the trick with the French
upon the throne.
She was confident that If the imperial
family Of Russia took them up that the
rest OF Europe would follow and hence, by
her instructions, the minister Of foreign
anairs at Belgrade entered into negotia-
tons with the Russian government, propos-
Ing that If the Emperor and Empress Of
Russia would receive the King and Queen
OF SerVla ana entertain them at the I'M
perlal palace at St Petersburg, King Alex
ander would nominate as his successor on
the Servian throne Prince Mirko, son of
Prince Nicholas of Montenegro and brother
OF Helena. Queen Of
IL was suggested that Peter might for
mally renounce all pretensions to the throne
OF Servia on the part of himself and the
karageorgeovitch family If his brother-in-
law, Prince Mirko, were proclaimed heir
apparent. This would have been a great
advantage to Servia and would put an end
TO the ccnspiracies and political agitations
winch have distracted that country.
King Alexander as well as Queen Draga
were compelled to swallow a great deal Of
chagrin in making this proposition. be-
cause ne had received most humilfating
snub from the lovely Princess Xenia, the
fourth daughter of Prince Nicholas. At one
time, before his marriage to Draga Mas
chin the boy king, agreed to yield to the
opportunities of his ministers and seek a
wife elsewhere. and there was correspond
ence concerning an alliance with the royal
family of Montenegro
Princess Xenia Disguised.
King Alexander made a visit to Cettinje,
the Montenegrin capital, to become ac-
auainted with the young lady who was
recommended as a suitable bride, but when
the Princess Xenia saw him she
disguised with his appearance and manners
that she refused to sit at the same dinner
table or receive any attentions whatever
from him, and Alexander had to be told
that his suit would not be successful.
He left Cettinje in state of furious in
dignation, and when he returned to his cap
ital .-e dismissed from Office and banished
from the country all the members of his
cabinet who had advised him to go there,
and married Draga Maschin forthwith.
But all this planning and negotiating
came to naught, simply because Alix, the
pure and beautiful Empress of Russia. alb
solutely declined to receive the Queen of
Servia or have anything whatever to do
with her.
The sympathy of the people has been
with the parliament and in obedience to
public sentiment that body went so far as
to amend the resignation of the premier
and the appointment Id his place of M.
Pasics, leader of the radical party, but the
king declined to accept him on account of
his intimate connection with the Karageor-
geovitch faction.
But his controversies with parliament
were not the worst of Alexander's troubles
During the past winter he has had several |
serious QuarrelS with his wife.
Quarrels With Queen.
Only few weeks ago a letter from Bel |
grade related the circumstances and his |
efforts to- obtain divorce. When SDraga |
discovered that she was losing her influence |
over him, she sent for reinforcements in |
the form of her sister. Helena, a beautiful
girl, about eighteen years of age, with whom
the king Immediately fell in love and ex-
cited the jealousy of his wife; SO much so
that, finding his majesty and her sister In
a compromising position she boxed his ears
and scratched his face SO badly that he was
unable to attend the usual reception to the
corps and the members of parlia-
ment on the following day,
1t was then that Alexander proposed to
apply for a divorce. and. after getting rid
OF Draga, he intended, of course to marry
her more attractive sister 1t Is said thai
this plan was encouraged by his minister's.
first, because they hated Draga and would
do anything they could to drive her out of
the palace, and second. because of a hope
that Helena might bear an heir to the