The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1909-05-28

that the line OF Orange Will continue
else the Dutch would see the German
spectre looming up more and more
distinctly in their history There is
of course court at The Hague. but
its influence is not felt in the province
es of the ':Lowlands which. al
though ever ready to demonstrate
their affection for the lady who was
once known to the mas the konigin-
netje, or ''Little Queen. are at
heart democratic. Once year, in
April (this year will naturally be an
exception), the queen visits for per
iod Of ten days the old Stadhuis on
the Dam. at Amsterdam, which was
converted into a royal palace in 1908,
when Napoleon imposed his brother
Louis as sovereign over the Dutch
nation. For all that he had been
forced on Holland, King Louis and
his followers made themselves liked,
and to the present day is his memory
cherished, while Of all the foreign
languages French is the most popu-
lar one in the country; it is fluently
spoken in many places by the peasan-
try and the fsherfolk. Utrecht, Ley
den, Haarlem and The Hague are not
alone in their knowledge Of the
French language When the queen
arrives in Amsterdam the event is
celebrated with great rejoicings and
the cheers of her subjects proceed un-
mistakably from their hearts as we'll
as from their lips. There is some
, thing touching in this enthusiastic
! love of the Hollanders for the house
of Orange, but it may be pointed ont
by way Of explanation that there are
| in Europe few dynasties whose his
/ tory is so closely bound up with that
of nation from the day in which the
! latter achieved its independence to
! the present time.
How came it about that William
was styled "the Silent?' The ap-
pellation would seem a more appro-
pirate one in the case Of Philip II.
of Spain, who seldom spoke and
whose stern lineaments never revealed
that which was in his thoughts. Will
liam could. indeed speak, and elo-
quently when circumstances demand
ed, but he was a great statesman who
knew when to keep his own counsel
and who knew the, Dutch, people
who required of him deeds and not
mere words. Hence perhaps his sur
name. It is perhaps difficult to say
WHY In the first instance the Dutch
50 concentrated their trust in Will
liam of Orange rathen than in any
other man at the time they were striv-
ing to overthrow the cruel Spaniard s
yoke. Indeed it was not he who was
the instigator of the fight against the
oppressor Of the country, nor was he,
at least in the beginning, the incar-
nation of Calvinism, which was tine
soul and the strength Of the revolt
against Spain.
It was an apparently fortutious cir
cumstance which connected William
of Nassau with Holland-viz., the
fact Of his coming into the title OF
Prince Of Orange. the principality
Of that name was situated in the
south of France. in what is now the
department Of Vaucluse, a depart
ment formed of a part Of Comtat-
Venaissin and the principallty OF
Orange. The little town Of Orange,
with its Roman amphitheatre in
which the actors of the Comedie
Franchise have in recent years given
performances, recalls the name.
The sovereignty of this principality
passed to the family Of Nassau after
the death Of Phillibert de Chalon,
Prince Of Orange, WHO died in 1880,
while in the service Of Pope Clement
VII, he who refused to divorce kath-
crime Of Aragon and denounced the
marriage Of Henry VIII. with Anne
Boleyn. Phillibert had designated
as his successor the only son of his
sister Claude, the wife Of Count Hen
ry of Nassau. Young Rene Of Nassau
adopted his uncle's motto, "Je Main
tiendrai," which is seen today on the
royal arms. At his death which oc-
CURED at the siege of Saint Dizier,
his possessions passed to his counsin,
William of Nassau. Had Rene de
Chalon not died without leaving any
heirs it is more than probable that
William of Nassau would have re-
mined on his German estates, but
owing to his acquisition Of the lands
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