The Idaho Springs siftings-news., 1920-08-13


the go-between and interpreter for Siamese hoo.
fty and many of the other young European lauies
who like herself, had married the bue-boous u
Siam. She was the first of their number 10 oon
the Siamese costume and wore it with stch si"ee
that the others followed, and not long ago
the queen mother delighted to see All ol
the foreign prncesses" appear before her, ropeo
in the brilliant-hued dress of her own court.
OF course, being foreigner and not being
equal in blood to her royal husband 1t would De
impossible to think that one of her two SONS
should possibly wear the Siamese crown. And SO
the choice may be the third son of the late King
Chulalongkorn and his royal spouse the late queen
mother, who before her marriage was known as
Princess Sawa Pa Pongse. This third son, Prince
Nakorn Rajasrima, like his brother, the king Is
unmarried His younger brother however is
married. and married to half-sister daughter
of King Chuaongkorn. His ISSUE therefore,
would be in line for the throne
What may work great change in the policy
of the king at the present crisis is the fact OF
the death Of the queen mother. who died last
November and was cremated last MONTH She
woman of great character and her opinions
had weight with her son, the king. As a child
she was brilliant creature-in both mind and
body. Long befors she was chosen to be the
queen of her royal brother she was eager to learn
everything that "brother" learned and nothing
too hard too difficult for her impatient
and impetuous mind.
In after life the little princess proved to be all
beautiful. she demanded and had about her the
beautiful things of life. Not only flowers and
colors and jewels for the body did she demand,
but flowers and colors and jewels for the mind
Never before had the young women of Siam so
universal opportunity for study. The queen
mother built school after school-schools for the
princesses-over which her own niece was Placed
school mother" and for the staff of teachers
of which she searched England Europe and Amer
ica Not content with this she instituted other
fba ott,o --erfr1 yyhn hQ
blood in their veins but who had brains in their
heads-primary schools, graded schools, high
schools.
Long before the she had become interested
in hospital work and had hospitals for the women
Of Siam as plentifully scattered throughout her
kingdom as had her royal husband planted hos
pitfalls for men. And, when Siam entered the war,
it the queen mother who started the Red
Cross work and gathered around her the chief
women of the nation. Not content with the hos
pitfalls already built, she built still another
larger and better equipped than any other in the
kingdom. and for 1t she sent to the uttermost
parts of the world for the best in every depart
ment.
When the young king overthrow all precedent
and declared that he would not marry any OF ms
half -ssters-that he would not tolerate the royal
harem-and that rather than this he would re-
main single, 1t the queen mother who stood
by him and who assisted him In bringing out the
women of the court and compelled them to be
AT his majesty's coronation ceremonies the young
Of the rourt-the kings half-sisters and
others who would naturally have become men,
bers of his household-were. for the first time In
Siamese history seen at the royal ball. In the
theaters. at dinners and other royal public func-
tions. 1t was the young king who decreed the
order, hut 1t was the faithful queen motfer
who made the order practical factor IN
the life of the Siamese court
Siam is tiny little kingdom, cunningy
tucked away under the caves of greater China thai
the average globe trotter passes 1t by without sc
much a backward glance But he who does
stop fingers and lingering Is lost in the lure OF
the luxury of this dminutive Asiatic paradise
For Siam is the richest country of its size in the
world. and those who have lived there longest
claim that it is most fascinating
The capital of the state. Bangkok is situated
on the Menam Chao Phya ('the Royal Mother OF
Waters) a stream that rising up in the teal
forests of the North. cuts in twain both the coun
try and its capital and broadening its banks flow:
majestically past the fishing Villages past tn,
paddy fields and empties into the Gulf of Siam
The capital is ten miles upstream city o.
nearly nine hundred thousand persons 1t is call
ed the Venice of the East and IT has more canal,
than its namesake in the Adratc
The siamese are soft-voiced, pleasure-Iovin,
people; the corners of their mouths turn un-tbe,
are always looking for something better.