Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-03-29

- in panic and humble folks are
excited. because King Carol is
L. developing habits which, for
Bucharest at least, lack precedent.
Now and then Carol escapes his cour-
tiers and suite to disappear for hours
at a time. He pays surprise calls in
government offices, visits market stalls,
inquiries the retail prices OF food and
commodities, and plays almoner in the
quarters of the poor, distributing thou
sand lei banknotes. And he does 1t in
an ordinary lounge suit looking so much
like other lounge suits that even detec-
tives are misled.
The poor mother Of seven children In
an out-of-the-way street. to whom a
kindly disposed man, whom she had
never seen before, gave couple OF
thousand lei, would not believe It when
she was told that this was the King,
for he wore no crown and no GOLDEN
broidered uniform. The oflcial who
lost his position because Of brusqueness
toward the unexpected visitor who dis
turbed his peaceful meditation, grum-
bles that this is bad joke to trick old
state servants out Of their jobs.
Seeks Truth About Conditions.
For Bucharest this is all new. Gossip
has seized the opportunity to invent
miracles dDOuL AhIO SUI ptlSS bAlpSs
King Carol has good reasons for col
| lecting first-hand information in the
way he does. Rumania, rich in natural
resources. Is tumbling from one eco
nomic crisis to the other and, although
many attempts have been made to set
| things right, no improvement has been
made Graft in of1cialdom is almost
proverbial: prices In the shops and on
the markets are higher than they
ought to be, and unemployment Is
| growing
When Carol was called back from his
exile, 1t was expected that the presence
of a young, energetic King would help
to restore order and to establish a
strong authority. But conditions have
become worse rather than better. Natu-
rally Carols personal prestige viii suffer
| at length If he cannot bring about a
change for the better. A threatening
factor Is the dissatisfaction Of the peas
ant class, for 1t is the farming popula-
I ton in which the monarchical ideal Is
deepest rooted.
To find a way out of the present
calamities Carol wants to know the full
| truth and his official informants often
hide this from him. Only by getting
! in direct contact with the lower grades
Of the public services and with the peo-
pie in the street can he expect to see
and hear the unvarnished reality.
Martial SpIendOr Restored.
Although Bucharest now is the CAPT.
! tai of Greater Rumania 1t has preserved
much of its former character of small
city. This character was strengthened
when Carol returned from France and
restored to the royal house its focal fig
IRE. The city royal palace again has
become the central point OF interest
King Carol on his return Immediately
saw to it that the martial splendor
| which had become a little threadbare
| during his absence, was revived.
This Frightening up of the outward
| display of monarchism Immediately
won the fancy Of the Bucharestians
who are q lively, temperamental people
who enjoy a good spectacle. Their per-
sonal interest in the daily life of the
royal family again became intense.
In the narrow Calea Victoriei, MAR
shopping street of the inner town, are
smart shops of the purveyorS to the
court. When the King or member Of
the royal household enters one Of then
the curiosity of the people Is at once
aroused and soon afterward the pur-
chases are publicly exhibited in the
show windows, for the Bucharestians
never would forgive the shop owners il
they withheld these purchases from
| their naive inQuiSitiveness.
The display of q pair Of golden shoes
ordered by Princess ueana, or q little
railway engine bought for the Great
Voivod Mihai by his grandmother In
variably causes q trafnc jam In the
Calea Victoriei, for hundreds of gazing
eyes stare at them and read the notice
Of the store announcing who bought 1t
and for whom.
Strongly Appeals to Country People.
Especially the country people study
these displays with awe and look on
the tall guardsmen in :. front of the
palace In their colorful new uniforms
with admiration. They are simple
folk, Economically inclined and the new
tales of the King unpretentiously mix
ing with his subjects and personally
looking after their well being strongly
appeals to them.
This Is how Carol started on his new
venture, which fits well his own tenn
per and his notions of the duties of a
monarch. One day in February he let
all authorities know that for several
days he would hold no receptions. Then
with his private secretary, a young man
who Rad shared his exile with him, he
boarded an automobile. The King acted
as his own chauffeur. OF they went.
The inspection trip began at the police
station in the Pake street. The King
pulled up his car, went into the build
ing unaccompanied and politely