New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-09-30
RUMORSAB0UT THE PRINCE
Stories Current about Italvs
Future King and Their Oyigin

no undue Importance should be attached N the
afher SAD report which is being circulated a. .oT
u.cfion with TIE decay il me christening Of the
eat Prince of Piedmont TO the erac, |no. ~
~ OF the KING of Italy IS deforrned ava - -.
,te unti. definite Information en- the s,tfo. :
attained Il wiz be well 10 ascrIbe the -,,n,,r -,
the old popular superstition. prevailing Throughout
T,sly according 70 which each generation of tho
INDUSTRIOUS House OF Savoy is characterized h, 80.
h,rth Of q scion az the family who is ethe- de-
s,-roe6 sometimes even q TaonstroSitv ~ aIsa
mentally afilicied
The present King os italy was formerly ,,pcb
,npressed Hy the superstition and made no secret
- The fact that il largely responsible for MIS-
-.iuctan,e 70 marry. Indeed. il was not ,,r+sI bo
ssn head over ears II love with Princess Hele, ~
,Tsuteneg7o taat his affection blinded hin, for
re time 70 his Gears. keenly alive To his ovyr
DhvscaI deficiencies, that Is 10 say. his extraordi
,argy stunted stature ard his length OF body al
,nrsrhe- out Of proportion 10 that OF his legs he
sreaded tlat any child Of which he might become
the father would be more likely to be deforn,Ad
fssn the offspring OF his exceedingly handsome and
manly cousin the Duke OF Aosta and OF the latters
beautiful and athletic duchess.
Fer the hrst Eve years OF the Kings marriage his
80, remainsI childess. and when 1t was al
s.nrth annou1 led that Queen Helen was about 20
h.rorne a mother a certain uneasy feeling pre-
,-sled not only at court. but even among the peo-
rla A. large lest the well known apprehensions Of
she King might be realized. The birth OF Princess
voIaDds- Who beautiful child OF superb
nbvsioue followed by The birth OF little Princess
NsfaIda- equally comedy IN every respect, year
,a+er dispeIed all these fears Their revival in
connection with the birth Of the infant Prince Of
piedmont Is probably due 10 ualevolence II is also
east possible that there be foundation for
,be ruror. though il Is hoped that such is not
the case
king Victor Emmanucls own physique may be
-srrgbed 10 the fact that he IS the offspring ~ a
rnjon between FIRST cousins. Put no such pretext
rould be found for the unfortunate Prince OHIO Of
savoy. & younger brother of the late King Humbert
late Duke of Aosta VINO reisned for a time over
gpsi- as King Amadeus. The Unfortunate lad. who
bore the title OF Duke o. Mor-ferra,. was not only
b-ncbback. but also Otherwise horribly mis-
sbaper from his birth. and IL was happy release
n every sense q the word. only 10 himself but
likewise 70 his relatives when he aied shortly after
staining his twentieth birthday. His name figures
n the "AIuaanach de Gotha' and in some a the
standard works Of record NJ the fourth, fifth and
sixth decades OF the nineteenth century But there
are fe people even those connected with The court
o. the House Of SAVOY half century ago, who can
recall ever setting ewes on This unhappy prince
who was kept in the srrcfesr seclusion. and whose
death was allowed 10 pass by so quietly that neither
the Italian Court nor any % the foreign courts
went into mourning.
Carefrl search e., IRE records of the House q
Savoy VII reveal the birth o. some equally
afflicted primes or princess in nearly every genera
zion. Hence il IS not altogether Astonishing that
stories should be current impIzring il may be
hoped without foundation. the physique and per
haps che mind OF the and heir OF Victor En-
manuel.