Evening star., 1921-07-24
DIDN'T WANT. TO BE A QUEEN, BUT
FATE PLACES HER IN DIRECT LINE
fRumana Hated the
otsofa
Th-Ce Study Of the Princess He Wa Work and Love Of the Simple Life

Il 50, anu bHe "du AL dutnOTlty on tDe
new sonic force" before the world
at large had even heard of II.
All this sounds very "highbrow" and
| ungirlish. but the princess has her
! full share Of girlishness. During the
war che helped the American contin-
gents of the Red Cross and the Y. NJ.
c. A. and they, knowing her weak
| ness. sent her large boxes OF her
favorite candies No gifts were more
appreciated by this princess
Two memories of her / shall keep.
One is of the princess watching her
little sister Ileana proudly driving
the pony she had harnessed to her
sleigh over the snow near Bucharest.
Her bright and happy face. rosy and
radiant with the stimulus Of the
| wintry cold, was one Of the most in
spring sights II has ever been my
| pleasant lot to look upon. The other
is Of the princess and her newly am
anced husband joyously shopping in
| the capital and fully appreciating
their brief spell OF freedom.
Sometimes one wonder6 IL the dislike
| OF the future queen OF Greece TO a court
came from her mother. one Of the most
i remarkable women who ever sat upon Il
, throne, and one Of the most fascinating.
There must be something in the very air
OF Rur1ania to inspire both beauty and
! brains. This little nation has had n
succession Of lovely and cultured women
AT its head. There was Carmen Sylvia
! the poet queen. And equally brilliant
and more beautiful IL The present queen
No queen has had so many titles Of
affection showered upon her sh-
has been known az the charity queen
''the comfort queen" and the golden
queen" That she has earned them all
there can be no question. To the Pari-
SLAMS she is .'our queen"
| Gifted as an artist. she is also a con-
spicuously successful business woman
and has taken in hand the post war
country In so able and shrewd a man
rner that she is said to have beaten big
American financiers at their own game.
Like her daughter. she never misses All
opportunity to escape from the formali-
i ties Of the court. To the little cottage
few miles out from here she loves Ia
go. for there with her family she can
| throw off all the cares Of state and IN
| unconventional way have high holiday
| with her children.
To see the queen, carefree. happy
! like schoolgirl at the end of term.
| sugaring her children's tea and but
! tering their rolls for them. is TO get
d fascinating glimpse of the other side
/ OF the royal state. side which is rare
| ly seen even by friends.
! Queen Marfe's other recreations are
riding and. whenever she can spare the
time. shopping in Paris. One OF the besr
| Eorsewomen in Europe. nothing pleases
Her more than long gallops through th-
| woods. This form OF exercise demands
a special sort Of headgesr, and the
queen has designed for herself a smart.
picturesque and very workmanlike cap
which fits the head closely. Her shop
/ ping excursions in Paris are generally
devoted to the dressnakers. and she iS
we'll known in the capital of fashion. II
she can get away from the usual at
tentions OF royalty. she invariably does
and l recall her slee once I'm Paris when
we we're able to walk out without escoi
and could call a taxi Just like ordi-
nary shoppers.
the queens of RumRia should b.
literary, and Queen Marie has been
faithful to 1t. Her play. THE Lily OF
1 Life" was successful when produced
recently at the Paris Royal Opera
House. The queen. with her three
daughters, was in the royal box. and
at her request. the two front rows Of
| stalls were reserved for soldiers
| MANNED in the war. 1t was her origi-
nal intention to produce the play in
the opening nights in person, but !
believe she has now given up this
idea.
Not only is Rumania's queen
writer of great poetic ability, but
| she is also an unusually good artist.
! as her flower studies in water colors
j prove. She has designed and made
furniture. and she has her own work
shops In the palace. Her gardens are
\ famous
! Despite the simplicity of the king
| and queen whenever they can tear
1 themselves from the formalities OF
| court life. the etiquette at their pal
/ ace of Cotroceni is strict. and they
; are surrounded with much state.
| When l first visited the queen I was
| ushered into the sitting room of the
! lady in waiting. The arrival of the
king and queen was announced by
fanfare of trumpets. and as they
walked into the room where their
/ guests were received they were pre-
| ced9d by a pair of black spaniels.
| There were twenty of US at lunch
!: and we sat at a round table whose
only decorations was a golden bowl
| overf1owing with pink roses. Among
| the dishes were gray cavieare and
sterlet. luxuries found only on thu
| royal table.
! The queens sitting room is com
ioned divans and a large writing
table. The walls and ceiling are
paneled in unpublished nut brown
wood and the room is decorated with
Norwegian carvings.
This blue-eyed. golden haired queen
! ing beauty, in the stately reception
hall. The walls Of sapphire blue.
enriched with gold carvings, are
copied from the chapel at Curthe de
Harges. which is about 700 years old
, A strange feature of the room 10 that
even the floor is blue. As the furni
ture il Gilded and painted. the room
is a harmony of blue and gold.
The state bedroom is perhaps more
| beautiful still. Built Of warm
cream stone, with lacelike sculptures,
IL enshrines a bed of gold beneath -
fretted stone canopy upheld by stone
| pillars.
1t may not be known that the queen
/ designed every room at Cotroceni, and
that in the Byzantine gold chamber
| she sits on a throne Of gold Lilies
! are everywhere. and her bedroom at
Sinaia, the summer palace. is a poem
in blue, with blue furniture decorated
| with white lilies.
Copyright. 1921