New-York tribune., 1912-03-17
GIRL QUEEN
The Childhood of Victoria.

There Is nothing new to he written at
this late day concerning the girlhood Of
Queen Victoria, but Mrs. Jerrold, in her
effort m make the young monarch seem
a really human person, has given there
by an air of freshness 10 her narrative.
She has drawn the portrait OF frank.
good and thoroughly we'll meaning girl,
not a creature Of absurd perfection. but
one whose fault of unreas sonable PRIDE
had heer fostered by a mistaken educa-
ton r. as this author thinks. she had
an exaggerated. almost morbid. belief In
the inflllillity not Of herself as a per-
son. but Of the Crown. 1t was natural
result Of her training at the hands or
two narrow minded. conventional Ger
man women Of the old-fashioned sort
One of these was her mother. the Ouch
ess Of Kent. the other was her bourgeois
govc-ness. Fraulein Lehzen. Neither had
much intelligence; each abetted the other
I'm maintaining over the child a surveil-
lance which forbade any free play OF
thought and spirit. 1t Is said Of her
that "ln her mothers house there had
been no spot in which she could shed
tears unseen" and that she might have
longed for this ease denied may be
guessed from her reference in after
years to her sad and unhappy child
hood" The duchess or Lehzen was AL
ways at hand: not for ten minutes at
time by night or day was the girl out OF
her mothers sight Tho first request
which the eighteen year old Queen made
to the duchess on the day of her sue
cession was that she might "be left alone
for two hours" After Victoria was hap
PLY married. her half-slster. Feodore OF
Leiningen, wrote TO her concerning their
gloomy youth: Not to have enjoyed the
pleasures OF youth is nothing. but 10
have been deprived OF all intercourse and
not ole cheerful thought in that dismal
existence OF ours. was very hard"
Continually at odds with her husbands
family, and especially resentful OF every
attempt OF old William " TO know and
he kind to his niece and beiress. the
Duchess OF Kent managed 10 keep her
daughter secluded from all her relatives.
The German woman carefully nursed all
injuries. real or imagined. received from
them. and not the least Of the young
Victoria's wretchedness must have come
from tn, quarrels which were almost
sure 10 break out at any family meeting.
The first check in the imperious mothers
tyranny came Just before King Williams
death and after the girl had passed her
majority. The King. feeling that she
should nave some INDEPENDENT funds OF
her own, wrote her a letter offering her
ten thousand a year from his own purse,
and this letter he ordered Lord Conyng-
ham to put into the princesss own hand.
1t was with some difficulty that he
gained admission to the presence OF the
duchess and her daughter.
Bowing low. Conyngham said he had
been charged by his majesty with letter
for the Princess Victoria. and at this the
masterfu mother at once held out her
hand TO receive tho precious missive.
Pardon me, madam" said the Courtier,
81 have been expressly commanded by the
King 10 deliver this into the princesss
own hand"
IT must have been a humiliating moment
for the proud woman: and IT was but tie
first Of many such. The princess took the
letter, and Conyngham bowed himself out
of the room. TO the intense anger Of the
duchess her daughter wrote afectionately
to her uncle, accepting the Kind offer made
TO her. William then named responsible
person who was to receive this money for
her and the usual dispute began. for the
duchess thought she. should be the dis
bUrser of the sum. of which she proposed
taking f6 600 and giving Victoria $4,000.
This first independent action of the
Young girl siGnalized the last quarrel
between the King and his vindictive
sister-ii-law. With his death Victoria
mounted the throne and passed forever
from under the thumb Of her mother.
Tha duchess, who had ruled every mo-
mcnt Of her child's life. became a person
Of lttlG consequence. They say that
Victoria was hard I'm her treatment Of
her parent but no doubt the quick witted
Queen knew how unfair it was to gov
ernmcnt and people to admit such
power behind the throne. how necessary
II was 10 check at once any encroach-
Inents os the high handed duchess. The
latter. Mrs. Jerrold tells us. had fully
expected to point the guiding finger for
her daughter TO be present at state dis
cussions to he consulted In all difficult
ties: indeed, TO continue 10 be the ruling
influence In Victoria's life and through
her in England" All this was vain
dream: Mamma sat at home a cipher.
and Victoria transacted all business of
state with her ministers, and In all diff
culties consulted Lord Melbourne. she
was less wise as to the plebeian Lehzen.
whom, as she has herself said, she both
feared ard loved. She kept the woman
ABOUT hcr and II was not until several
years after her marriage that Prince
Albert, weary of the companions per-
petual interference, managed to get her
sent away. in peace and comfort, to her
native Germany. She had the incredible
folly, It would appear, TO be Jealosis OF
the husbands influence over his wife,
been hard for the prince to bear-an
added worry for the high minded and
unselhsh man whose life in England was
not an easy one. He was a reticent per-
son. with no gift for small talk; he cared
for literature. for music. for art. for
science. But for these things the young
Queen had no particular liking. She. had
intellect but little culture. and while the
Victorian age was remarkable for its
literature, that literature owed nothing