Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-05-06
4 SLAVE TO DRESS
Kaiser Wi|helm's Great Hobby Is
Changing His Costume.
DONS A DOZEN STYLES A DAY.

Majesty 10 a Lightning Change Artist.
10 change his costume seven or
cight-yes. even t~welve--times a day
is Kaiser W.ilhelm's idea of having a
good time. He has fifty castles. and
in every one he has at least fifty uni
forms. His wardrobe is valued at
100000. In the palace at Potsdam
four immense rooms are filed with his
costumes.
William II. has more uniforms than
any other man i'm the world. He has
all that Germany a offer and all he
can acquire from other countries.
His chief desire in life is to be dress.
ed according to the situation. If he
receives an officer he dons the uniform
Of that particular regiment; if be is
sailing he is the immaculate yachts
man. from his snow white canvas
shoes to his natty yachting cap.
If the son Of an officer or a well
known dignitary comes to give the
official news of his fathers death the
kaiser receives him in the uniform of
the dead father. If it is a delegation
from one of those regiments of which
he is the head he holds the audience
In the uniform of the regiment thus
favored-Bavarian, Hessian, Saxon or
that Of Baden or of Wurttemberg.
II a foreign ambassador is %announc'
ed tho kaiser wears the uniform OF a
Prussian general, gaudily decorated
with tho honorary orders Of the coun.
try OF the visitor.
Every day the list Of his audiences IS
given to his chief valet. who must su-
pervise the preparation Of the various
costumes, for a costume does not mean
a simple affair. There are all the little
accessories-swords, epaulets. orders.
gloves, boots, helmets, everything that
shall send the kaiser out perfectly
dressed in all the fine feathers" that
ne loves.
Bauer, his chief valet, has twelve
Wallets under him and is the head Of a
workshop with twelve tailors. who
work eight hours each day creating
new costumes for his majesty and
keeping his old ones in perfect repair.
not that the kaiser deigns to wear a
uniform more than three or four times
or to put on for a second time a cos"
tune he has worn to the hunt.
But where things are necessarily
complicated is in travel.
A good example Of what q quick
change artist the kaiser is when the
conventions Of Il foreign country call
for varied costumes was seen on bis
| visit to England in 1902.
The kaiser's yacht, the HohenZOllern.
was sighted off the British coast. and
| the dignitaries sent to meet the kaiser
awaited him at Port Victoria. With a
marine glass they scrutinized the royal
yacht and saw on the bridge a Ger
man general p%romenading up and
down. The word was passed that the
kaiser was in the costume Of a Prus.
| sian general. The %gangplank was
dropped. The ENJOYS of the court has
| tened aboard and looked about them
for a German general. but in vain.
| William II. greeted them as an Eng
lish admiral.
On landing the guests excused them
| selves, and the kaiser went to bis spe-
cial train. He disappeared a few mo.
ments, and shortly afterward an Off
Ger Of the First Royal dragons walk.
cd into the drawing room of the train.
No one rose in salute until the officer
spoke. 1t was the emperor.
Arriving at the Wolferton station.
where the attaches of tho court await
cd him. the word had gone around of
his costume. But they strained their
eyes uselessly for the dragon. The
kaiser stepped off The train in a frock
coat, a top hat and pearl gray gloves.
the picture Of a well groomed Eng.
lishman.
While in England he appeared in the
costume Of a Berlin field marshal. a
British admiral. in both the dress and
undress uniforms Of an officer of the
Royal dragons and finally in the robes
of a D. L. c., the degree that Oxford
university conferred. upon occasions
that he was seen in civilian clothes.
He infinitely prefers to be emphasized
as war lord. and it is a relief to see
him in robes associated with peace.
The truth is he hates to look like
other people. and v for the hunt he
has had a special costume designed.
1t is gray, almost military in cut. and
with this he "a a Tyrolcan hat Of
the same color, ornamented with a tall
cocks feather.
He evidently fancies that this be-
comes him nearly as well as the white
cuirasseur costume, which is his favor.
lite, for he wears it whenever the cp-
p%ortunity offers to take a stroll in the
park at Sans Souci, to ride a bit in the
forest with the kaiserin. It is quite
immaterial to him that there is no
hunt.
His most characteristic dress, how
ever. and the one in which all Berlin
has grown to think Of him is either
that Of the cuirasseur-gleaming white.
topped by a FURNISHED helmet with a
poised e~agle-or the more informal uni
form Of a Prussian general. over which
he draws the we'll known loose Over
coat, lined and cuffed and collared
with fur, reaching to his heels. With
~ IT, l---- 49, - l---a 80