Evening star., 1911-01-08


shooting lodges and game preserves.
which are maintained for
ExnensivA the benefit Of the kaiser
%. and his court by revenues
VutHt. derived from the crown
lands. It costs between two and three
million dollars to keep them up. which
is a cause Of continual criticism from
people who think that so large a sum
should not be expended simply to pro-
vide their sovereign with opportunities
to shoot birds and animals and grat1ry
his love of sport. They are not his
private property. however. AS they are
entailed and follow the crown, they
cannot be disposed Of without an act
of the reichstag, and it would not be
dignif1ed to rent them.
A few years ago a multi-mtllionalre
from Chicago offered 100000 for the
ancient castle of Rheinsberg. situated
Frederick the Great lived from 1885 to
174O, when he was crown prince. III
was occupied a few years by Prince
Henry, the emperor's brother. but since
then has fallen into very pad cohution
from neglect. No money has been ex-
pended upon it for years: nobody ever
goes there except tourists, and the care
takers do not seem to devote much time
in keeping it in order. Hence tne
American millionaire was surprised and
bewildered because his proposition re-
ceived no attention. 1t was not even
but upon inquiry ne as
certaiped that the estate belonged 10
the Prussian government. and could not
be disposed Of WITHOUT a vote OF the
diet.
The kaiser has two private game pre-
serves, with shooting lodges Of his own
and two palaces. two villas
p-;ro%o and one ancient castle
which are maintained from
property. his own private purse and
can be disposed Of by him In any way
he likes. Not long ago he sold Erdmanns-
dorf-a dilapidated castle ten miles from
it has since been made q
summer resort. It is beautifully situated
In the midst OF forest more than a
thousand feet above the sea- About the
same time he sold another of his private
estates, called Freidenwald, on the Bal
tic near Danzig. It was originally a
and has also been converted
into a hotel.
dences have been assigned by the en-
peror to members Of his family for whom
he has to provide. They are occupied by
his brothers, sisters, sons, cousins and
other relatives: ten or twelve in different
parts of the empire are kept constantly
in readiness for his own use, because he
is likely to appear at any time as the
impulse seizes him. Several OF the pal
aces at Berlin and POtsdam. familiar
to every tourist, are more museums than
residences, and only few are In con-
stant use by the imperial family and the
,N< rhA nj itcp ic Het fHft tho y,v>f-
vate property of the kaiser: A chateau
at Cadinem, a shooting box at Rominden
a palace at Urville. Villa Alexander at
POtsdam, Villa Ingenheim at POtsdam.
the winter Villa Achilleion at Corfu and
the restored castle Of Hoh-Konigsburg, on
The winter villa at Corfu is so called
because OF famous statue Of Achilles
that ornaments the grounds.
Winter 1t formerly belonged to the
-, late Empress Elizabeth OF
villa. Austria, who spent her win
ters there for several years before her
She found the place
restful and the climate delightful. and
took great interest in the peasants,
who grow olives on the hills surround
ing the place. I wrote a full account
of 1t from Corfu last spring. It is q
Pompeiian house. with Pompeiian dec
orations and terraces. An American
gambler tried to buy 1t, according to
local gossip. but Emperor Francis
Joseph rejected the offer with 1ndigna-
ton.
The Villa Alexander and the Villa
Ingenheim are show places. The former
is in the center OF q colony of fourteen
log houses and q Greek chapel, built
in 1925 by King Frederick William III
to accommodate the musicians Of a
Russian band imported from st. Peters
burg for the foot guards. the pet regt-
posed Of men Of unusually large stat
ure. 1t was organized by Frederick
the Great.
From an historical point of view one Of
the most interesting of the emperor,s es-
tates is an insignificant chateau called
distance by rail from Berlin. It was
built by King Frederick William II q
hundred and fifty years ago as q summer
and he spent several months
there every year. Although he laid the
Of Prussia's military renown
he was q vulgar, violent and cruel mon
ster. and his queen and children suffered
martyrdom because of his brutality and
cOarseness.
It was at Koenigs- -Wusterhausen that
his famous tobacco parliament used to
sit almost daily and de-
Kings term'ns e, ans important important. poit'- @
Cronies. tions that perplexed the
governments The "ta'bak kollegium," rs
1t was called. consisted Of a dozen or
more cronies Of the king. men OF similar
tastes and habits whom he gathered
around him for this congenial comrade-