The Daytona daily news. [volume] (Daytona, Fla.) 1903-1926, 1912-12-11

home. These are 8777O]
a few of the thou FRf6tRCK WIIHel n
sand contradictions that made up the
nature Of Frederick William l.. second
king of Prussia. and father OF Freder-
lex the Great Perhaps 1t Is not who'll
ly fair, in one sense, to call him a
blackguard, but in other respects few
men have had better claim to the
word.
His father had been extravagant
and had left the newly-formed kingdom
In bad financial state. Frederick Will
liam began his reign in 1713 by cut
ting down official salaries and dis
| charging many state employees. He
| also excited anger and ridicule by
| hundreds of other harsh economies.
Yet this misery course had good ef-
fects. 1t paid his fathers debts and
| gave Prussia a full treasury More
over. Wilhelm had full share of the
national German honesty and stanch
uprightness. His chief faults were un.
governable temper and parsimony.
Stingy as he was in other ways,
William lavished huge sums on the
army. His great joy in life was to
play at soldering. He had a scheme
for collecting a corps of giants and
would pay unheard-of prices to induce
tall men to serve in his ranks.
In spite of his craze for military at
fairs, Frederick William managed to
reign ~ years with only one little war
to mar the peace of his realm. He
sneered at all sorts of education that
were not absolutely practical teven
forbidding his son to learn Latin.) He
also chose vulgar and illiterate men
and women as his boon companions.
rather than such persons of intellect
as happened to be at the court. He
used to walk the streets, beating with
MS cane any one who CHANGED to De
idling. His rule was one or iron, and
he firmly believed in the divine right
OF kings" to do as they pleased with
out considering the rights or feelings
Of others.
Frederick William held his wife in
contempt and more than once publicly
made her the object OF brutal tests OF
his ten children he had a positive nat
red for mis- clever daughter Wilhelm.
ina and Tor his eldest son Frederick.
Young Frederick was brought up |
IN a strict. cruel manner. such as few
modern boys would endure. He was
sensitive and highspirited. The pris. !
on-hke discipline and harshness might |
well have broken a weaker spirit. It
merely strengthened Frederick's At
length Frederick Williams cruelty to- |
ward the lad became unbearable. Fred |
erick, in 1870, when he was eighteen !
years old, planned to escape from |
bondage and to take refuge with his |
uncle, King George II. of England. He
needed confederate to help him es-
cape. So he chose his dearest friend |
Lieut.. Won Katie
The plot was discovered by the king. |
Won Katie was thrown into prison and |
was sentenced by military court-mar-
tial to remain there for two wears
Frederick was also arrested and taken
Deiore MS father. The king was mad
with rage, heaped vile insults on the
helpless youth, then rushed fiercely at
MIN, beating him almost to death be-
lore Dystanders could drag him away.
But this did not check Frederick VIII.
mans wrath. He declared that
his son, as a colonel IN the Prussian
army, had been guilty of ATTEMPTED
assertion In trying to escape to Eng
land. He had him placed in solitary
confinement in the fortress OF Custrin
and ordered him beheaded.
only the stern protests of other Eu-
ropean sovereigns prevented the king
from carrying out this unnatural
threat. But he chose another punish
ment almost as cruel. Condemning
Lieut.. Won Katie to death, he had a
scanold erected just outside Freder-
lcks prison window and forced the
wretched prince to witness his friends
execution. AS the lieutenant mounted
the scaffold Frederick called ont IN
him, sobbing: Il
oh, forgive me, dear KATIE"
The lieutenant answered braveIv.
1t is a pleasure to die for so gal.
liant prince"
Inc king next tried in vain to force
Frederick to give up his claims as
heir to the throne. Failing in this he
kept him long in semi-imprisonmen
and forced him to marry a princess he
greatly disliked.
Yet, at the time of his own death in
1740, the old kings last words were.
! die content, having a noble son to I
succeed met"
Heart Throbs Stopped.