The Indianapolis times., 1936-02-01
BACHELOR PRINCE Who Became KING
for Purposes of State Is SbMned by Edzcu1d VIII

He was Indifferent to much of
life. The new world was cock
eyed. Everything was upside
down.
The fact that he had been de-
MED the actual front-line fighting
had ground into him an addi-
tional sense of Illustration. AT
times he felt an inferiority to
other young men unhampered by
the terrific weight of position.
But like most of them he was
overwhelmed by the injusticeS of
life and death.
Confused, uncertain, with nerves
taut, the Prince became the typi-
cal young returned officer about
town. London night clubs saw
him regularly His companions
were officers who themselves were
shattered and unnerved by war
experiences.
The Prince during these years
Immediately following the war
was young bachelor who must
have looked upon much that had
to do with marriage as simply an
other bit of unreality that was
practiced by world of hypocrisy
and bunk.
The last thing he wanted at
this time was wife chosen for
reasons of state.
DURING the war; when the
IL Prince served with the Brit
ish troops on the Italian front,
he was naturally guest for
time at the Palace in Rome.
True to its possibility, rumors
spread over Europe of his en-
gagement to the daughter of the
King, Princess Yolanda.
The press of the world did not
bother to ascertain how impos-
sible this match was, even if the
young Prince had desired tc
make this beautiful Princess his
wife.
The Queen of England must be
a Protestant. Princess Yolanda
was a Catholic and no Catholic
Princess would ever have con-
sented to change her religion.
Wise heads knew all this, but not
the gossipers.
It was much the same case in
regard to the report that con-
nected the Princes name with
that of Princess Marie-JoSe OF
Belgium, now Crown Princess Of
Italy. She also was a Catholic.
Baffled at last in their efforts
to find a girl likely to win the
Prince of Wales among the daugh-
ters of royal houses, the busy
gossips turned their attention
toward girls belonging to the high
English nobility.
DOSSIBLY the whole matter OF
L the Prince and his relation
ship with women should be
brought out into the bright light
oil open examination.
I have heard many of these ru-
mors mouthed about, and have
taken the trouble to run a num-
ber of them to earth. Almost in
variably they have been eXaggerat-
ed to a point where they have be-
come to all intent and purpose
simply plain lies.
In London there are one or two
women who unquestionably have
meant a great deal to him.
I do not believe that it is pos
sible for any man to reach the
fine tolerance and wisdom that
this 41-year-old King has today,
without having been under the in
f1uence of some woman whose
friendship has been for a time
like the shadow of a rock In a
desert,
1t is said that he has had at
least one woman friend to whom
he could carry the innermost Sc
cret of his soul. Their compan-
ionship has been based on deep
and lasting respect for one an
other.
She has the true heart and she
can offer a busy, harassed and
often weary man the affection
and understanding that only a
woman can.
n Il
A S I have written before, the
n Prince has been no plaster
saint. But he has done no more
or no less than any other normal
and sound young man, living in a
dizzy, changing age.
He played hard, got to know
women of all kinds, but he
worked hard, as well. He never
for a moment shirked his job.
The things he did could not
stay "off the record" They were
on the record always-and with
a. vengeance, too. His prominence
and popularity made every tiny
indiscretion assume the proper
ton of a royal scandal.
And once shot into the air,
these bits of gossip had way of
eternally turning up, like the pro-
verbal bad penny.
Many believe that If he really
wanted to marry today that the
court would stretch many of its
hard and fast rules about the ne
cessity of royalty marrying roy
atty.
England, after all. is demo-
cratic country and the crown is
fully awake TO the changing
world.