The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1906-04-29

feathers. These were followed by mot
ley groups. pages and squires. mem
bers of the fools council in harlequin
dress, commoners and members of the
royalty. AS soon as the signal was
given the crowd scattered over the
mountain-side, and whoever found the
! first blossom was proclaimed king OF
/ the festival. The lucky one was given
the seat of honor at the banquet which
followed, and was presented with a
golden v.o,et. He also had the priv
Hege of dancing with the Duchess
and his name was entered in the chron-
icles as a participant in royal cere-
monies.
/ The Emperor has given many sting
ing rebukes to the aristocracy for their
undue pride and seeking of privilege.
Once when nobleman was giving vent
to his ideas concerning the few per-
sons he considered fit companions for
himself, the Emperor replied: why.
If I were like you and wanted to mix
only with my equals I should have to
go to the cemetery where the rest of
the Hapsburgs are buried The fol-
lowing letter written to titled woman
who importuned the Emperor to favor
much quoted for it's severe castigation
of the pretensions of the aristocracy.
Although it was written years ago,
it applies with equal force to the fail
ings of upper class Austrians today:
A FAMOUS REBUKE.
Madam do not think that it is
amongst the duties of a monarch to
orr Mt rIo IN Of hi to
merely because he is a gentleman. That
however. is the inference to be drawn
from the request you have sent to me.
Your late husband was, you say. dis
tinguished general, a gentleman of
good family, and thence you conclude
that my kindness to your family can
do no less than give a Company OF
Foot to your son. Madam, man may
be the son of general, and yet have
no talent for command. A man may
be of a good family. and yet possess
no other merit than that which he
owes to chance-the name of gentle
man. 1 know your son, and 1 know
what makes the soldier; and this two
fold knowledge convinces me that your
son has not the disposition of a war
rior and that he is too full Of his birth
49,
ever rendering it any important SER
vice You may be thankful to that
destiny which, in refusing military tall
ent to your son. has taken care to
put him in possession of great wealth,
which will sufficiently compensate him
for other deficiencies. and enable him
at the same time to dispense With any
favor from me"
&c CT a q
the prime minister worked on the sty-
lish but negligent Burgomaster of
Vienna in order to induce him to clean
the streets The minister invited the
to take a drive. When
the former appeared he was clad in
his state raiment, consisting Of an EN-
broidered suit, silk stockings, and low
shoes fastened with silver buckles.
The carriage was driven for miles
through the dirtiest streets of the city
and finally stopped at the edge of a |
mud hole in front of the city hall. "A
thousand pardons," said the minister
70 the Burgomaster, but l shall have I
% put you down here, for I find that /
[ have fingered too long and another |
engagement takes me in the opposite !
direction" The footman opened the
ioor and stood ready TO assist the +
to alight, but the latter
insisted that he could not get down in
he mud. The prime minister was
bdurate and the pompOus official fin
lily had to soil his silk stockings by 4
vadfng ankle deep in the mud which
lis own negligence had allowed to exist
lie was mad as a hornet, but he order
d the streets cleaned at once.
CRAZE OVER SNAIL RACES.
The fads of Austrian society have
AIKEN many eccentric forms. The
mania generally prevails
mong the upper classes. and there
as great excitement over a wide
pread craze for snail races. The. man
er Of matching these unusual con-
sstants was TO arrange a miniature
ace course for them, consisting of a 4
1v of glass rods. During the race
2ch snail moved along its own rod,
hich was marked in centimetres and s
,iIlimetres. Each tiny competitor :
rs designated by a numher on its
Tell. and a n;uute record Of all its
was kept. to be used as (
basis for haEdfcars in subsequent /
-ents Vienna maintained p club !
hich was devoted exclusively to this /
form OF sport, and i is !
id that more than one ancestral es- I
2