The Washington herald., 1911-04-02
SOCIAL GOSSIP OF
FOREIGN CAPITALS

itor to London in the near future will bt
the kaiser's only daughter, Princess Vic.
toria Louise. who will accompany hel
parents to London for the unveiling OF
the Victoria memorial. She is n mos,
agreeable type of German girlhood at its
best; little spoiled. perhaps, for the
German Emperor adores her; but good
looking. sunny tempered. and accom-
plished. Her manner. however, always
has been trifie imperious. Sometimes
when talking TO me-" the Kaiser once
remarked. she quite forgrts that I am
Emperor. but ! am confident that she
never for moment forgets that she Rs
the Emperor's daughter
II is just possible that history may be
made as a result of the princess visit to
England, for the matrimonial future OF
the Kaiser's daughter is to be decided
before long. Gossip has been very busy
lately with the name OF likely suitors-
The Queen of SPANS brother. Prince
Leopold of Battenberg. has been men
toned in the matter, but in Berlin the
chances of the future Grand Duke of
cklenberg-StrelitZ meet with most ac-
ceptance. Before his deposition. King
Manuel OF Portugal frequently was
spoken of as a possible husband for her.
Before .long Princess Victoria will be
given a palace of her own. where she
win have her separate establishment.
carriages, and servants.
Austria's representative at the coming
coronation in London will be Emperor
Francis Josephs nephew and heir, the
real driving force behind his throne,
Archduke Ferdinand. This remarkable
man has been seen in London on the
occasion of King Edwards coronation
and also at his late ma ajestys funeral.
He is now n great factor in European
politics, and is reported TO be sympa-
thetic to England. He has also the repu-
tation OF being a capable soldier. his
life having been devoted largely to the
conduct OF military affairs.
The most interesting feature OF his ca
reer is. however. the situation created
by his morganatic marriage TO the Hun
garian Countess Chotel. This lady as
have narrated in a previous letter on the
A Austro-HunSarian succession. in conse-
quence of the irregular character of the
union. never will be Empress of Austria.
the sole difficulty being that she is not
of royal blood. Before the ceremony in
1900 the arehduke formally renounced all
rights OF succession to the throne Of
Austria Hungary for the children born
to the union. and at the same time he
took a solemn oath that after his acces-
sion he would never confer on his con-
sort sovereign honorS. His heir. there
fore. will be his nephew, the Archduke
Charles Francis.
But, in spite of these precautions. there
is likely to be trouble in the matter on
ba Of 10
gary. OF which the Emperor is also King.
does not subscribe to the doctrines for
mulated at the arChduke's wedding, and
Hungarian lawyers declare that his re-
does not affect his vife's po-
sition as regards Hungary, so that. al
though she may never he an empress.
she will. in all probability. be queen.
Her son. therefore. one day would be
come King of Hungary. an event frausht
with mighty issues-the separation, per-
haps OF the dual monarchy.
I have studied Lord Tenterden's appeal
for S3,500oOO with which to purchase and
the Crystal Palace as a memo
rial to King Edward VII. 1t is. think.
that the term King Edward
memorial should be used in
with a scheme which. although
supported by names like Lord Decies and
Mr.. W. J. Potter, is unofficial. Apparently
the promoters have failed to convince
the duly appointed London committee.
The idea of using part OF the palace as
home for aeroplanes and dirigibles is,
after all. a mere detail and hardly af-
fects the broad financial realities of the
business. Again, all the talk about side
shows and covered terraces and recrea-
tions and amusements add nothing. to
previous experiments.
II the Crystal Palace can be made to
pay there ought to be no difficulty in
obtaining on the London Stock Exchange
S. 800 600 to take 1t over. Lord Tenterden
estimates that 100000 persons will visit
the palace every year. and that their
entrance fees will give an income of
s750oo0 He says further that 500 c0o will
be sufficient to keep UP the palace-that
is. not quite $4,000 a week. On this show
ing there would be $4,000 for extension
and reserve. These are mere estimates,
and my impression is that they are
highly speculative, both as to the cost
Of running the palace properly and as to
the number OF persons who will visit the
place.
The promoters recognize that the palace
has suffered through lack of proper rail-
way facilities, and they nave suggested
4 special tube, costing about 100000
and running from the West End. / have
always regretted that London has not
seen its way to concentrate its great
exhibitions at the Crystal Palace. The
OF Earrs Court and Of the
white City at Shepherds Bush were
excellent, but the same facilities could
nave been given on the incompatible site
At Sydenham. / must conclude by ask
ing one pertinent question:: How much
Of the s., 800 900 is to be paid as purchase
price for the palace and its site?
Mr.. Gerald Balfour. who has just re-
the political pension which he
rev as a former cabinet minister, Is
Mr.. A. ]. Balfour's brother. He repre-
;ented Central Leeds for twenty years,
md fought six elections up to his
retirement in 1903. Probably delicate
,ealth had a great deal to do with his
departure from the political arena, for
le was one of the frailest looking men
n the House Of Commons, and hasl
,assed through several dangerous ILL
.esses. Mr.. Arthur Balfour is devoted to
lis younger brother; indeed, the affec-
ion Of the two brothers for one another
s quite admirable. Mr.. Arthur is the
,idesf ana Mr. Gerald fha xot,norst If