The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-06-15

who was so shortly to have been his
wife and a little later held that sob
bing girl. who declared that her only
wish was to die with her lover, in her
arms.
Less than 10 months afterward that
girl went down to stay at Sandring
ham as the affianced wife of the Duke
OF York ,now King of Engand). The
news of the engagement had become
known to the royal family but two
days previously. though. of course 1t
had been anticipated and spoken about
for some little time before in the Sand
ringham household, but Princess Maud
fatty refused to believe it.
When the Princess May arrived at
Sandringham she was greeted by all
the members of the royal family with
the exception of Princess Maud, who
had remained in her room in spite of
her fathers and mothers wishes to the
contrary; later the Princess May went
up to her future sister-in laws room
TO receive her congratulations.
What took place between them no
one but the two princesses know. The
story is that the Princess May came
downstairs an hour later crying, and
that the Princess Maud got into very
hot water with her father. The only
account that the Queen of Norway is
reported ever to have given Of that
interview Is the statement that "she
told May the truth" Anyway, from that
date there has always been a GOODNESS
between the two queens and neither
would ever willingly become the guest
of the other
The King and Queen of Spain were,
of course, fairly frequent visitors to
the English court in the late reign,
but they will not be so in this. King
Edward frankly liked the hoyish King
and Alfonso had the greatest regard
for the sovereign, who, among other
things taught him how to dress. But
King George and the King of Spain
have scarcely an idea In common; they
bore each other to death and between
Queen Mary and the Queen of Spain
there is even less sympathy.
There is one aspect of the absence
of royal visitors from the English court
that, when properly understood, reveals
King George and his consort in the
light of rather clever economists and
shows how they cleverly fooled even
the sharp Lloyd-Georgc. In 1910, when
parliament was called upon to arrange
the various salaries and allowances for
the crown, Lloyd George stated in the
house of commons that at King
Georges own desire it would be set
tied that his majesty in future should
pay out of his own private purse all
the expenses of entertaining foreign
monarchs at the English court. During
the past three reigns suck expenses
have been met by a special grant out
of the national eXchequer The chan
cellor of the eXchequer presumably as
the result of conference with King
George suggested that in return for
the sovereign meeting these heavy ex-
penses out of his own pocket, all the
revenues of the King and Queen should
be relieved of income tax that amount !
ed to an annual charge of about $780,
600 and the commons of course agreed
But since that date King George has s
not entertained any foreign monarch
SO that his majesty certainly had
scored by an arrangement which heii
majesty however, may be entirely
credited with having planned. The|
Tecks come of shrewd, careful stock|
and Queen Mary inherits their shrewd.
ness in marked degree.