The watchman and southron. (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, January 30, 1901, Image 8
EDWARD VII,
ENGLAND'S
NEW KING.
The Kind of Man Who Comes to the Throne
j of Great Britain After Many Years of
Waiting ? His Gracious and Noble
Queen, Alexandra?Some Facts About
the New Heir Apparent.
-? -
Edward VII, tiie new king of Eng
ami emperor ot India, It in his six?
tieth year. II? Is well preserved, of av?
er* *? height, of portly baild. florid as
Io complexion and of an even, placid
temperament.
In ths shadow of the throne he has
Ihred an almost uneventful life. While
.waiting for the scepter and royal robes
be has had little chance to show what
kingly mettle was In him.
The world knows him only aa r jolly
prince who baa done nothing: very p>od
nor any great evil. Perhaps the most
notable feature of his life thus for has
been his fondness for sports. He has
raced horses, sailed yachts, shot birds,
played cards and gambled mere or less,
with more or leva discretion.
He might have come to the thr one as
Alt ert I. stattin:: a new line of kings.
EDWA1
hut many years ago be announced that
when be ascended tbe throne be would
use tla second name. Edward, und be
known aa King Edward VII In prefer?
ence to King Albert 1. The English
people have always looked forward to
him as Klag Edward VII.
His eldest son. tbe Duke of York.
WhA becomes the Prince of Wales by
hat father's accesslou to the throne,
has also an Edward In his Ion? Hat of
names, and bis eldest sou. who will be
king of Eoglaml some day. If ho lives,
bas also an Ed word In Iiis nnme It
has been argued that by calling him?
self Edward VII the now klug could
wtvlvo Ibe line of kiugly Edwards snd
Jo time 'hey would exceed lu number
tbe Ueurys who have sat upon tho
Kmjllsb tbroue.
^it was long the fond hope of Victo?
ria's heart that her sou should reign
ander the title of Albert, the uan e of
his father, her beloved husband But
Albert Is o strange name lo Rogllah
ears lu tbe lint of royal titles. The
prince himself jislrsd to he roiled Ld
ward. Tin- queen's ministes ami the
queen's subjects desired It, m* at last
the mother so fund of her own w: y in
everything', saw that It were hotter to
yield. Hut she is reported in have shed
tears over it.
It was ou the morning or the tit It of
Noven.^' ft MM1, thnt an anxious group
of personage* waited in the i:rout ,
rooms of Ituckinghatu palace They
were dignitaries of ehtireh and | t?te
who had l>een summoned tn nccordauce
with royal etiquette to tie presort at
the arrival of a possible holr to the
tbrouo of Kngluud. They gathered io
getber In the anteroom close by the
queen's bed chamber Among them
were archbishops aud bishops, nrnytd
In silk shovel huts and gorreosji aprons:
members of tbe cabinet, headed by the
prime minister; nurse* and doftOfl by
the score.
Ifor hours tljls motley assemblage
awaited tbe event. Their patience was
rewarded.
?*le It a boy?" anxiously asked the
Duke of Wellington of the nurse.
"H Is a prince, your grace." answered
tb< wonmn, with DOratiled dignity.
When It w.'im announced that the
hopes and wishes of a natiou had been
fulfilled and that a boy bad been born,
there was universal gratulatlon. Prel?
ates and statesrueu embraced one an?
other with uucontrolled effusiveness.
Cannon from the grounds without
thundered the news to all the surround?
ing districts. Thousands of church
bells took up the glad tidings and peal
ad out the announcement to an expect?
ant nation. Early iu the morning the
privy council met in state to ordain
prayer and thanksgiving from ono end
of the country to the other.
A few weeks later, on the occasion
of the prince's baptism In the Koynl
chapel of Windsor, he was shown from
the balcony to a huge crowd of persons,
who went wild with delight.
The boyhood of the prince was un?
eventful. His early education wos
conducted ni homo under the tutelage
of the !?ev, II. M. Rirch, letter of
TreMwIch; Mr. Gitta barrister at law:
I
ID 711.
the Rev. C. F. Tarver and Mr. H. W.
Fisher. Ho then studied for a session
st Edinburgh and later entered Christ
church, Oxford. Here he attended pub?
lic lectures for a year and afterward
resided for three or four terms at Trin?
ity college. Cambridge, for the same
purpose.
Ills earliest appearance In n leading
I*art ou any public occasion was In 1859,
at the laying of the foundation stone
of the I.amheth School of Art at Vnux
lall. After the death of his father In
Dcccmlier, lStil. he naturally became
the must desirable functionary at all
ceremonies In which beneficent or char?
itable undertakings were to he rocog
ulxed by royal approval. This work
has over since occupied a large share
of his time and has always been per?
formed with dignity, tact and patience.
Indeed no piince of any couutry hay
ever personally exerted himself more
faithfully to render services of this sort
to the community. The multiplicity
ana variety of his engagements on bo
half of local and special enterprises
make a surprising list ami ne cessarily
Involved I sacrifice of ease 00d leisure
which few men of high rnnk would
care to make.
Among lbs aSfaObsrl of the royal
family the j rinse of W?lfl has been
called Bertis from his OOltdbOOd. Ills
father rolled him by that name: his
mother SOtSred It In her daily diary
long after he hud grown to manhood
Slid become the father of a large fam?
ily: his wife . alls him Bertie t. day.
Hut tree be 10 any outsider, however
Intimate, who dares address the prim e
by that name!
An adoring I'.ritish aristocracy has
appltrd all sorts of names to the DODth
lar heir apparent, which have beeil
taken up by many Americans who
have met Mm and a great many more
WOO have not. Some of these pet
names have not been altogether dig
Ullled. or even respectful such as
"turn-turn." Bot tOO prince has put up
with them all good nnturedly. Hut
BtrtIs was for the family alone. The
Princess of Wales* wedding ring Is set
with a beryl, an emernld, a ruby, a
turquoise, an laclnth and a second
emerald. The Initials of these six
gems spell ?'Bertie." It was the prln
ccaa' Idea.
lathe summer off800 thajjiynce. pale}
a visit t? Cafiad.r V.nd' We United
States: Everywhere, he W*f"ret*eftM
with boundless, ypihqsia-.m... Jl^ymc
?d at a tall given in his hoimr at. Wash?
ington, whore he was cordially wel?
comed by President- Buchanan.
The United States indeed was pre-1
pared to revive,him with open arms.
At Hamilton, the last place. In Canada
where bo made a halt, he had spoken
some kindly words, which awoke gen?
eral approval here.
"My duties." he said, "as representa?
tive of the queen cease tlds day, but
in a private capacity I am about to
visit before my return home that re
THK XKW PRIXCK5S OF "WALES.
markable land wh<ch claims with us
a common ancestry and in whose ex?
traordinary progress every Englishman
feels a common interest."
In 1802, accompanied by Dean Stan?
ley, lie made a journey to the east, In?
cluding a visit to Jerusalem. The
young prince was now of a marriage- 1
able age. Speculation was rife as to i
who would be the Lady of his choice. ;
Tho questiou was settled in the early I
part of 18Q& when his engagement was I
announced to Princess Alexandra, ths j
eldest daughter of the king of Den?
mark. She was three years younger
than the prince and, though compara?
tively poor, was beautiful aud accom?
plished. The marriage was celebrated
In St. George's chapel, Windsor castle,
on March 10.1SC3.
All England rejoiced o\er the event.
Tennysou, who had Just been made po?
et laureate, wrote one of his fine poems,
"A Welcome to Alexandra," on this oc?
casion. The princess soon made her?
self vejy popular with all classes of
the r.ritish public, not ouly by her out?
ward grace of mauner. but also by her
virtues and amiability. The prince
himself has always shared In this pop?
ularity, although the sterner puritan
Itn of his potential subjects has often
been shocked by stories of his dissipa?
tion.
As a social factor In England the
prince has always been supreme. Ward
McAllister called him "the great social
dictator." It was largely through hid I
Influence that many Americans?a na?
tion whom he has always liked?have
received their entree into the iunei
circles of the r.ritish aristocracy. Nev?
ertheless tbe social aud fashionable
side of his life lias been more of a duty
than a pleasure to him. lie has always
been most content when surrounded by
a circle of ids old friends at his palace,
in Sandringham. a small village in tho
county of Norfolk. There he has lived
the life of an English country geutle
mau.
The affection and esteem in which
tho prince has been held were never
better exemplified than in December,
1871. when he was nttneked by typhoid
fever and for some weeks hung be?
tween life and death. The anxiety of
the public was iuteuse, and the news of
h'.s recovery was greeted with great
joy. On his first appearance in public
to take part In the memorable "thanks?
giving service" In St. Paul's cathedral
on Feb. 27, 1872, the streets along the
line of his route were crowded with a
cheeriug multitude.
Since then the prince has been put?
ting in several years of quiet work, tak?
ing a great deal of the responsibility that
attaches to sovereignty off his mother*!
hands. He visited India and Ireland,
engaged In solidifying tbo empire, lb'
staiked intercolonial and international^
exhibitions. He encouraged and liber
ally subscribed to public charities. lit
has been a liberal patron of art and of,
tin* drama/ It is Impossible to overs*;
ttntnte hisjs^wer as a social factor lb
has dicta ^^toshlons and dominated
manners ^?-yv^^b'" ''" full respon
Plhflilt <mm\m ^mm%v''' ,ul
t celebration Of bis .mother's Jubilee, in
1S87. lie worked like a slave.
It Is Impossible iiot to mention two
?notable things of recent years?the bac?
carat scandal and the death of the
prince's eldest son and his heir, the
Dttke.of Clarence. The card scandal
came up In the winter of 1890 while
the prince was visiting ,Mrs. Arthur
I Wilson at Trauby Croft. Sir William
|.Qordon-Cumming, a cavalry officer of
i good family, was charged with cheat
I ing. It'was said that he increased hi?
I stake after seeing that the cards were
j In his favor. It was a famous trial;
I the priuce was a witness, and Sir Wil
, liam Gordon-Cumming lost. He mar
! rled the daughter of an American mil
j lionalre. Miss C.arner of New York, and
I retired Into private life.
] Two years later the Duke of Clar?
ence fell a victim to the grip. It was
j a great blow to both the prince and
princess, a bereavement from which,
they have never fully recovered. After
the funeral the prince retired to the
i deepest privacy. It was many months
I before he could take up his public du?
ties.
Of late years Marlborough House has
become the center of the prince's social
and official life. His study, where none
but his Intimates is admitted, looks
like the room of a hardworking man
of business. He works at an old fash?
ioned pedestal desk table. The desk
shuts with a spring and can be opened
only with a golden key, which the
prince carries on his watch chain. Ev?
ery hour of his day Is mapped out for
him. First comes his private corre?
spondence, which is very large. From
10 till 11 each morning is spent In talk?
ing over and dictating replies to letters
that have been sorted over by his sec?
retary. The remainder of his day is
j governed by his appointment book.
I The social feature of It is very large.
I When the prince does have an idle
j hour, he enjoys a new novel that . ?
has picked from the bookstall himsel
No political party lias < vor been abk
to rightly claim the Prince of Wales
as an adherent, or even at an active
! sympathizer. He has always managed
I to keep conspicuously clear of party or
sectional interests and still remain an
aggressive Englishman.
Iu 1808 the late king of Sweden ini?
tiated Albeit Edward Into the myste?
ries of Freemasonry. His father had
refused to associate himself with the
craft, but the prince had views of his
own. In 1875 he was elected grand
master of Euglaud. At one Freemason
dinner, when the prince presided, the
list of subscriptions reached the enor?
mous sum of $230.000, the largest
amount ever raised at a festival dinner
In the history of the world.
Americans know the new king as n \
game sportsman. He began that ca?
reer early. When he was only 15 year*
old. accompanying his father on deet
stalking expeditions, he was the best
shot In his family, lu manhood the
royal colors?purple, gold band, scarlet
sleeves and black velvet cap with gold
fringe?have been a familiar sight on all
British race courses of the first class.
His name has often stood high in the
list of winniug owners. He is general?
ly agreed to be a capital juoge. of a
horse. His greatest triumph was the
winning of the Derby by Persimmon in
lSGti.
During the past few years King Ed?
ward VI1 has seldom been seen follow?
ing the hounds, but in the game season
he Is foremost in big shooting parties.
As a yachtsman he has been particular?
ly fortunate, lie Is the owner of many
splendid prizes.
While no one can confidently say
what political changes the advent of
the uew king will make?and it is pos?
sible that his rule may materially af?
fect the course of British |>olitlcs?it Is
kuown that he has always had liberal
leanings. He detested Beaconsfield;
he felt a warm admiration for Glad?
stone. His most intimate frieud among
the leadlug politicians of England \a
Kosebery. It is already predicted that
the uew king will work for Uosebery
for the premiership.
As for the uew queen of England, shu
Is a daughter of the north who at 56
Is still beautiful. She Is a splendid
type of woman aud was Princess Alex?
andra of Denmark prior to her mar?
riage to the Prince of W'ales 38 years
ago.
A very pretty and romantic story I*
told of how the Princess of Denmark
became the wife of Prince Albert Ed
ward of Wales. The prince chanced to
be whlllng away part of a long sum
mer afternoon with two or three con
genial friends when one of them, a
colonel, produced from his pocket tt
photograph.
The prince Immediately became
struck by the beauty and simplicity Ol
the young person in the picture and
soon b>came possessor of It. Within a
very short time bv bail dispatched a
continent ial emissary to Denma/k to
carry his suit fo the princess; ' The
emissary was struck by the simplicity
I of the royal personages, but particular?
ly by the grr.ndeor and beauty of ihe
young prtnceas. Becar.se of her simple
homo training the princess was best
fitted for the pomp and honor of her
station, she Is a brilliant woman,
strictly conservative, of commanding
presence and stature.
Her character is at once strong and
sweet, and she shows a kindly consid?
eration for all who approach her.
As a mother she is Ideal. Her cbil
?drcn were reared and educated as be
tits their station, and their discipline Is
a matter of comment in England. She
is a thoroughly practical woman, fond
of the best literature aud an accom?
plished musician.
I young prince, like bis brother auu sis*
j ters, was brought up with the most
studied simplicity both in London end
j at Sandrlpgham and mocb-more like
' the child of a plain country gciii Ionian
j than \ho son of a royal prince najracfc
i bringing up is Ulidfl Hood in oiher
I countries. Tbe Rev. J. N. Dal toft was
selected by the Prince of Wales as his
son's tutor,,and under Iiis snperiatend
I enoe the first few years of the youug
! prince's life were passed tq quiet study
and In a happy home life of which b^
was tbe leading spirit.
In 1S77 Prince George and the late
Duke of Clarence and Avondalo be?
came naval cadets and entered on
I board H. M. S. Britannia, the training
I ship stationed at Dartmouth. 11 ere th ?
j young prince entered upon his truitiing
l for the profession to which his after
I life was to bo devoted and showed a
| great deal of taste for naval studies,
? ?
ALEXANDRA, TH
An intimate friend of the Princess of
Wales?for only an intimate friend can
be pardoned In so describing her?says
tbat she Is "sweet, noble, pretty, snap?
py, arrogant und disagreeable." Her
temper is quick, disagreeable and un?
certain." Yet. withal, this friend adds
that she is "just the most lovable wo?
man in the world."
Queen Victoria during her long
reign lias shown heradf to bo more
a man than a woman. Her conduct in
time of trouble has been calm and se?
rene, and in.time of peace she lias dis?
played the stolidity so admired by Eng?
lishmen.
Queen Alexandra? on the other hand,
is always a woman. Excitable at
times, fervent, pathetic, variable?aud
womanly always.
ThO strongest feature displayed by
the new queen of England is her clique.
No one ever knew Vlctoi'iu to have au
intimate friend. Even Mine. Albaui
was kept at length, but Queen Alexan?
dra has her friends and fells out witli
them in a woman's way.
At one time she loved Lady Brooke,
but her love cooled: at another she and
Lady Randolph Churchill were insep?
arable?one never shopped without the
Other?but at a later date she took
Lady Craven instead and insisted that
she become ?nie of her ladies of honor.
It is not in temperament alone tbat
the new queen differs from her prede?
cessor, but in every- other detail.
For years Alexandra has been not.nl
for her taste in dress? an accusation
never mode of Queen Victoria
In admirable characteristics Alexan?
dra is not wanting. She Is the only one
of Queen Victoria's royal daughters
ill-law who has been able to get along
with her. Even her daughters have
found little sympathy in the cool rigid*
neaa of the throne. Hut Alexandra be?
gan by detenuinitig to like her mother
in-law. and she has kept it up.
Queen Victoria declared that she liked
tlio Princess of Wales l?etter than any
one of her own family except Beatrice
and that she would sooner see her ou
the throne than any other one that she
could mention.
The new Prince of Wales, like the
new king. Is a man who lias sown his
wild oats with a princely and lavish
hand, lie has. however, settled down
and become a man of family and dig
nlty.
Ueorge Frederick Ernest Albert, tbe
second and eldest surviving son of
the new King Edward VII, has iong
been known as the Duke of York. He
has also been called "the sailor prince"
from the fact that he has had a naval
career.
He was born June 3, 18G3. The
E NEW QUEEN.
; applying himself in praiseworthy DBOaV
i nor to the intricacies of navigation and
j to the mysteries of knotting and splie
j iug and the other details of a seaman's
! education. His elder brother, Albert
Victor, the duke of Clarence, died in
1892. ant* George took his place in the
succession. York's training has been
altogether naval. In 1S83 he became
a midshipman on board the Canada,
with the North American squadron.
In 1S85, after passing the examinations
with great credit, he was promoted to
a lieutenancy. His first command was
PBINCB SLBSOT RDWARO OK COM
that of the gunboat Thrush on the
West Indian station, nud while occupy?
ing thai post he opened the Jamaica
Induatrial exposition in 1&)0.
.lust one year later the young man
was raised to the rank of ooiniuaudcr.
but Iiis actual service was brought to
a close by the death of his brother and
his own suddenly acquired Importance
as heir presumptive.
The Duchess of York, his wife, was
formerly the pretty Princess May of
Teck. The marriage has been very
happy, and this royal couple are prob
abl\ the most democratic of thclt' kind
in Great ItrltOlD. They have throe pret?
ty children, two of whom are princes.
The new Prince of Wales has earned
for himself a warm place in British
hearts, lie is extremely popular, for
the English heilere him to be thor?
oughly manly. Only I year ago. when
the situation Id South Africa developed
Into a serious war. he declared his
eagerness to go and fight the Boers.
Only peremptory orders from the
queen herself kept him at home.