Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1905-02-06
THE CARS OLD NURSE,
Grief of an AutOcrat for the Woman
Who Had Loved Him.

Grief of an AutOcrat for the Woman
Who Had Loved Him.
A picture of the way in which love
levels all earthly distinctions Is given In
James Creelman's book. ION the Great
Highway" Mr.. Creelman was in Rus
STA as special correspondent at the
time when the Car. Alexander ILL.,,
walked. grief stricken mourner,
through the streets of ST. Petersburg.
behind the coffin of his old English
nurse. He says:
On that dark. stormy day when the
Cars English nurse died In the Win
ter Palace. | was in st. Petersburg. and
| remember well how the wet snow fell
from the blOtched sky. and the wind
whistled up the frozen Neva.
Wherever went in Russia there was
always present in my mind the figure
OF Alexander ILL.,. as once saw him,
iding at the head of his cuirassiers. an
arrogant giant. on "A great black horse
pwering above his soldiers. the incar
lNti0n of brute force. splendid and ter
j)le. But | was yet to see'the human
nature hidden under that glittering he'll
met and breastplate.
The Car was with his minister
when a messenger told him that his
Nurse was dead. Through the dul.
harsh nature of Alexander there ran
one stream of tendcrneSs-lOve for tni
woman. Kitty. who had mOthered n :,
in boyhood. And she was dead.
The autocrat of all the Russias went
alone through the storm to the dark
ened room in the Winter Palace where
his dead nurse lay. The giant knelt be
side her body with a great cry. and the
attendants withdrew and left him
alone.
For long time he remained there
with bowed head. and when he came
out of the hushed chamber there was
Il look on his face that no one had ever
sen there before.
A whisper went about the city that
none but himself and his brothers
should keep watch over Kitty's coffin.
Alexander was the second son. and
while his elder brother. the heir to the
throne. was alive, the big. awkward
boy was neglected. Even then. how
ever. he was the favorite child of the
English nurse. and his sullen nature re-
spOnded to her touch.
There was little known about the life
of this humble woman. She was quiet
and shy, rarely seen outside the mag
nj w inf D.,1n xx,bA ,,I, a.
a patient. soft-voiced subject Of Queen
Victoria. but she modified and subdued
the boys hard nature.
How true was the love Of the Car
for this friend of his boyhood is shown
by the humility with which he followed
her to the grave. No mOurner rode that
day. Through the snow and the slush
the Car and his brothers walked be
hind the hearse. side by side. the Car
In the middle. Not note of pOmp vio
lated the simple pathos of the scene
The autocrat was simply man walk.
ing humility and reverently after the
corpse of the woman who had loved
him.
1t was long way to the cemetery,
but the Car walked the whole dis.
lance. He sat in pew Of the Church
Of England for the first time. and
watched the coffin at the altar rails. At
the cemetery when they lowered the
coffin into the frozen ground. the keep.
er Of the cemetery laid a piece of car.
pet at the feet of his imperial lord, and
the Car sank on his knees. He knelt
there with the snow falling upon his
bare head until the grave was filled.
Then. as he went away. he turned for
a last look at the mound where he had
laid the woman who had loved him
ever since he was boy.