The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-04-27

Joseph had been discussed. The real reason for the archduke's sudden visit had been to find out what the emper- ,or's position would be in regard to the archdnke's morganatic wife, Countess Chotek, when. he mounted the throne. @e
 The; Emperor and the, archduke were both indignant at the mass of ru- mors.
 . Of course, while it is not easy, it is possible to arrange things in such a way that the heif< to the. Austrian Empire can come, to Berlin secretly and remain there secretly. But when he insists that, at the station, he should be ushered into the hall reserved for royalty, that a compartment should be reserved in his name, and that his ad- jacent and a long string of lackeys precede him to the Hotel Bristol-then it is comically naive to expect that such visit can remain a secret.
 Court Clowns Given Preference
 General Freiherr von Lyncker, chief of the military cabinet, told me the other day that, when he took over his new office, His majesty turned to him and said, rather sadly and as if asking a favor:
 Look here, my dear Lyncker, don't good enough to spice them occasionally with good joke or q comic story or something of the sort.'
 This is philosophical of His Majesty's s 'inordinate .f0ndness for humorous an- ecdotes. He can tell and listen to the identical joke a dozen times. He pre- fers the testers among the people at court. This is why so many impor- tant positions are held by men who have absolutely no training nor quaIi- fications for them. Many an officer or civil servant who is efficient by na- ture will finally change into a clown.
 During the great gala court concert the other night Count Schwerin- Loe- witz, just elected president of the house of deputies, sat next to the emperor. He expected quite naturally that the emperor would address few serious words to him about his new position. But all during supper His Majesty spoke to other men, uttered nothing except friy0iities.
 Ambassador Is AEaae A Bukt,
 A similar thing happened during the dinner for the ambassadors. The em- peror behaved in the same manner, careless of disagfeeable impressions and stconsequences. Count Szoegyeny. the Austrian ambassador, an, old man. came dressed in all the -ancient Asi- atic pomp of Hungarian aristocrat, and the emperor ridiculed his costume in such a way that it was embarrass- ing to everybody. iSzoegyeny, of course, knows us very we'll, and is a calm and intelligent man. But still the result of the emperor's tactIess jests is sure to be dislike and ehate.
 Last night we went to the theatre where we saw Joseph Kaihz as King Richard II. The emperor made .un- favorable criticisms about the whole performance, the staging, the dctors. and even Kainz. Neither the empress nor the princes, nor the crown princess and Princess Victoria Luise seemed to like the play L have the impression that they objected to Shakespeare's simple and at times rather brutalEy expressed truths. His characters are as real, as alive and vital body as they way WASA AS WIVlc tue play. buc we at the German court do not like real, honest truths nor real, honest human beings; we consider them un. sympathetic. In German court circles Shakespeare in person no grata.
 But have a suspicion that there is no drama in which we can find a more. fitting parallel to our present. German conditions, than ssKing Richard II''-
 Zeppelin JaclSass, Then Genius
 Yesterday the Emperor called Count Zeppelin "the greatest German of this century"
 Three months ago, almost every day, he referred to the same Zeppelin as "the biggest jackass amongst the South Germans !' 73 F
 Recently the Emperor gave us one more proof of his extraordinary gift to fascinate and influence people. Laszlo, the Hungarian painter, spent three weeks in the New Palace to paint the Emperor and the Empress. A clever and independent man, he had been com pletely bewitched by His Majesty. He looks at our entire German situation and at international world relations through the Empetor'a eyes, It is really