New-York tribune., 1905-03-03
WHY KING LEOPOLD oRJEcrs

While King Leopold persists in denying that
-Jtere is any engagement between his daughter
CIementine and Prince Victor Napoleon, Vet he has
now publicly admitted that the prince is suitor
for the hand Of the princess and that the latter
in love with the prince This is printed in the
Brussels .'EtoiIe Beige" which is the recognized
organ OF the court and OF the King. and in the
columns OF which he is accustomed to make semi
official communications to his subjects. The denial
and the admission OF the existence of affection
between the prince and princess printed in that
portion of the newspaper devoted to the express
sion Of the Kings views and communications, and
It winds up with the words: we are authorized
10 add that the King is strongly opposed to the
union, and have reason to believe that her
royal hghness the princess would not wish to act
contrary to the wishes OF her father in the matter
II must be confessed that in this particular in
stance. at any rate, King Leopold is acting SEN
SHY and that he is justified in his hostility to the
projected matrimonial alliance, for Prince Victor
Napoleon has been enthusiastically married for
years 10 a former ballet dancer of the name
Of Mariet Blot who at time enjoyed quite
vogue on the French and likewise the Belgian
stage She is slightly older than the prince that
IS 70 say. about forty-seyen years OF age, and is
disposed to embonpoiRt- BY her he has family of
several children. Neither she they occupy his
house, in Avenue Louise. at Brussels, but live in
adjoining mansion. that even the French
nohlsnen who volunteer TO act as his gentieen-in-
waiting, do not come into contact with the ex-
baerina.
In Belgium, IN France. parental consent lis re-
gsroed as indispensable the validity of a mar
rage. no matter what the age Of the contracting
parties II is understood that the prince avaiis
himself OF this plea. that he neglected to obtain
MS mothers sanction to declare his marriage to the
Stout and no longer comely mother of his children
ss null and void, for morganatic marriages are not
recognized such. either by Belgian or French
law, and either marriage is full fedged union
no matter what the difference of rank between the
contracting parties else ii is marriage at all
IN Germany and Austria morganatic marriages are
perfectly legal in the eyes of the law But their
3stence does prevent the higher in rank of the
marriage 10 a woman OF his rank during the
lifetime OF his morganatie wife and without having
secured any legal dissolution of his norganatic
marriage 10 her. II is only fair that many
years have elapsed since any sovereign or prince
took advantage of this strange pFerogative, and in
most cases of norganatic marriages of the last
quarter of a century the contracting them have
chosen TO regard them sufficiently binding to
stand in the way Of any other matrimonial alliance
Prince Victor Napoleon. by-the-bye is in the line
OF succession to the throne OF England through his
fathers mother, who a princess of the royal
house Of Wurtennberg and a descendant of King
George II Of England. Indeed. at the time of the
accession 10 the of Queen Victoria there wera
only about half dozen lives between Prince Victor
Napo!eon's father the late Prince Jerome Napoleon
and the English throne.