Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-07

~ pursued by an evil genius. In
- the vernacular of the day. he is
~ y a '"hoodooed" monarch.
Such Is the verdict Of the
courts of Europe, where for centuries
traditions regarding good and bad luck
have held sway, amounting to supersti-
ton.
| Just why the cloud of ill-fortune
should have settled upon the young
monarch, the tradition mongers and SUI
perstition- weavers do not venture to say.
Save for the unlucky numeral which
marks his title there has been little
for the prophets of hard luck to work
upon. But the fact remains that an imp
of bad fortune has logged his footsteps
and closed in upon him just at times
when the world should have been bright
| est.
Troubled by internal strife in his king
| dom since his accession, and-boy though
he was then-dealt terrible blow by
| the war with America, Alfonso took
/ queen only to have his wedding fete
marred by disaster, from which he him
self escaped only by miracle Then,
while still rejoicing over the birth of
an heir, he learns the terrible news that
like his father, he has a consumptive
! tendency, and even now may be suffer-
| ing from the dread malady. Mean
while his girl bride has alienated the
| affection of the Spanish court and is
fast losing the esteem of the masses.
! Hurrying to London the other day to
visit King Edward and to consult a
! specialist regarding his condition, AL
| fonso and his queen were in a railway
wreck for the second time in few days
Both escaped but the effect of such a
mishap on the minds of the Spanish
people who are watching Alfonso's
/ course uneasily cannot be discounted
The superstitious recall every I'M
lucky incident in his career when just
such trivial accidents as the railway
wreck are reported. and gradually the
conviction that the evil genius of Spain's
royalty will not down grips the people
and spreads discomfort.
A Hard-Luck Record.
Alfonso was born in 1886 His fathers
death from consumption before his birth
made his advent one of mingled sor-
row and rejoicing, for the double blow
of losing the monarch without an heir
menaced the country until Alfonso's
coming was announced.
His father had succeeded in a Meas
ure in reconciling the unruly factions in
his kingdom, but upon Alsonsos Access
SION fresh trouble broke out, and crisis
followed crisis in the government.
Ihen came the Spanish war, when the
boy king was only twelve years old. 1t
cost the nation Cuba, Porto Rico and
the Philippines to say nothing of the
lives sacrificed. the warships sunk and
the treasure lost SmartinS under this
defeat the Spaniards renewed their in
ternal quarrels and the lives of the boy
king and the queen mother were any-
thing but happy for several years after
the war.
Then the ..'hoodoo' kept quiet for a
number Of years. and save for couple
of minor mishaps the boy king ap
peared to have got the better Of. his
evil star. He went over to England
and picked cut for bride Princess Vic
toria F:na of 'BattenbArg. niece of King
Edward, and all Spain rejoiced at the
match "
They were married last year, and the
story of the bomb hurled at the royal
carriage during the wedding process
SION is of too recent memory to need
repetition. True enough, Alfonso and
his queen escaped unhurt. but scores of
nrrsons. including many who bore
SPANS grnnd'st names. were killed or
wounded. and the catastrophe served to
remind the nation that the royal NenIe-
siS was busy again.
Tie bomb horror passed into history.
and the Spanish people did their best
10 make up to the young queen in 10y
tally and enthusiasm for the tragedy