The Idaho recorder. [volume] (Salmon City, Idaho) 1886-1927, 1920-08-27
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| ness. Chao Fla Chrakrabongs Phiva-
| narth, Prince Phitsanulok, the heir
| presumptye to the Slamese throne,
directs attention to the fact that
| mn King Rama vi Is the first bachelor
| ikLEAN king OF Siam In $500 years. And,
! W. SNM what Is more. II Is international
| M NM diplomatic gossip that he Is waiting
| SM. NH to win an American woman to share
| XS1EXNSX his throne. One reason may be That
| V 9SASN%DA King Rama has seen American
| 80 W beauties in twenty states of the
Union.
Rama vi. known to his own people as Semdet
Phra Paramindr Maha vajravudh Mongkut Krao,
Somdet phra Rama Thbodi vi, Is one Of the most
| Interesting monarch writes Frederick Dean, NJ
A., In the New York Tribune The first bachelor
that ever sat upon the Siamese throne, heeis said
| to be waiting for an American girl to share his
throne. The kings grandfather, Maha Mongkut,
used to say that he desircd-and had-a member
of every family Of note In his kingdom In his
household" No outsider knew just how
many wives he did have. His son. Maha Chula-
iongkorn. the father of the present king had three
wives on the day before he was made crown
prince. ON that day he married ninety-seven
more TO make up the complement of one hundred,
which wan the proper number of wives for the
crown prince to have When he died-ten years
ago-he had between 1000 and 5000. When his
son, the then crown prince, returned from his long
stay In Europe--he had spent n third of his life
| VA EhRlAiu, Ffnhce, Germany ana Russia ana nnd
made frequent visits 10 Belgium Italy and Spain,
Norway. Sweden and the Netlerands--his father
presented him with collection of Siamese
bee utles, saying
MY son. here are something over a hundred
of the beauties of the for you to start light
housekeeping with, and to these you may add as
you nt'
But the young prince much to the discomfort
of his royal father told the monarch that he would
have none OF this Wholesale marriage business
and added tlat when he was ready he would marry
one wife. and she shall be the queen of my heart
as ell as the queen of my realm" His father
took tn. decision OF his son very much to heart
and some have gone far to say that his boys
stuhl orn adherence to his word helped to end his
royal fathers life. When his majesty Maha
Najtravudh-known thereafter as Rama VI
came to the throne. as there no queen and
no heir crown prince or, ms they say In SIAM
IN heir presumptive, had to be chosen and the
le, naturally fell to the late Prince Phltsanulck
who was u brother of the king by the same
mother.
Slam IL n polygamous country According to
Siamese law aan may have MS many wives as
he can support. The households of royalty ran
into almost countless numbers. Old King Monr.
kut. the grandFather of the present monarch used
to say:
II like large families l have eighty,sx
children"
The present king has something ike twenty
hnls brothers and any quantity Of haifsisters. In
doing away with the royal harem his majesty
struck blow at one of the oldest and most funda.
mental customs OF the country And II he
chooses to step out OF the beaten track and marry
a foreigner he viii he carrying out but one more
of bis unexpected reforms, for which he has been
noted ever since he came to the throne
Rama VI Is a remarkable man In many re-
spects At the age OF twelve Ne was sent 10
England whore he fitted into the foreign school
regime In less than six months He played foot
,a at Rugby, learned tn fence. ride aud swim;
entered into tournaments of golf and tennis firted
md wrote love lyrics. Later he went to Heidel.
,erg where he crossed swords with the daredevils
and drank and sang his way into the hearts of his
fellow workers Returning 70 England he entered
Christ college oxford. where on graduation he
.oek the first prize away from seven of the brain
est of Rrtishers. and then went 10 Paris where
Nc wrote play that was produced at the Coincide
~raucaise; he returned To Germany and wrote his
heSis for his doctors degree In German and
after visiting every court ia Europe returned
anne by way Of America. where he stopped long
sanug' to pay the president extended visit and