Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1919-10-26
WV Ho will be the Prince OF Wales's

wv ttO VIII De tne fIiACe Oh Haieo
w Driaes
That is perhaps the most in
teresting question from the society point
OF view in the world today.
AS long as there are kings and queens,
the position of Queen OF England will prob
ably be the most cnviablc that can be
attained hy woman with social ambitions.
Who can blame any girl for dreaming Of
being crowned in wonderful Westminster
Abbey and sharing the picturesque cere
monies that center about the oldest and
most historic court.in the world?
The fact that the young Prince OF Wales,
the future king Of England, is an unusually
attractive and amiable young man must
add considerably to the gamor which sur
rounds him in the eyes of many girls
who can say how many?
The Prince is now on his way to this
country for q very brief visit Will he
marry an American girl? The question
is net SO absurd many persons may
think. but the answer must be very doubt
full.
The Prince OF Wales is twenty-five years
old, and II has been decided by royal
family and government that he ought TO
marry soon. II has also been officially
decided that he must marry in different
class in that in which British princes
used to find their brides.
1t has, in brief. been decided that he
must not marry a princess OF a foreign
royal dynasty. Before the war such
marriage would have been in the regular
order of things. but now the point OF view
has entirely changed. The situation with
regard to royal marriages may be sum-
married. as follows: Marriages with Ger
man princesses are impossible The Rus.
sian imperial family no longer exists.
Many OF the remaining royal families Of
Europe are Catholics. and the King OF
England cannot marry into them. because
his queen must by law be Protestant.
Finally. all marriages with foreign royal
families are unpopular in England. and 1t
has been found wisest to avoid them al
together.
This decision does not necessarily mean
that the Prince will marry a daughter Of
the common people" All information in.
dcates that he vii! choose the daughter
of some English noble family of wealth,
with creditable record in public life for
many generations. There would be no
strong objection to his marrying the daugh-
ter OF a prominent American or Colonial
family, but the possibility is rather remote.
1t is more likely that one Of his younger
brother or cousins will marry an American
or Colonial girl. The Prince Of Wales is
novel experiment.
The only alternative to the marriage
already suggested would be for the Prince
to marry one Of his own cousins born in
England. Two years ago an English news.
paper announced that he was engaged to
his cousin, Princess Maud of Fife, daugh.
ter of King Georges sister, the late Prin-
cess Louise. This engagement has not
been made, for the Court would announce
it as soon as it was a fact, but 1t did appear
likely. The Princesss sister. the Duchess
OF Fife, had Just before this been married
to her own first cousin, Prince Arthur of
Connaught.
A union OF the Prince Of Wales with his
own cousin would be deplored by all ell.
lightcned and scientific persons from O
cugenic point OF view. 1t is proved that
cousin marriages intensity in the offspring
any defect existing in an ancestor from
which both parents are descended. The
Prince Of Wales has too many weak spots
in his heredity to run such risks. The
Princess Maud is related to him not only
through her mother. but through her
father, the Duke Of Fife, who was de.
scended from King William w., monarch
who carried eccentricity to the verge of
imbecilty.