The studio of the archd.u.c.h.ess is situated on the second floor of her palace, in the Favoritenstra.s.se, and is a very lofty, long and narrow apartment, looking out on the street. It is particularly remarkable for its simplicity, presenting therein a powerful contrast to the magnificence of the two salons through which it is necessary to pa.s.s in order to reach it. The few stools, tabourets, armchairs and divans therein contained, are upholstered with soft-toned Oriental rugs, the walls are hidden by some sort of olive-colored velvety fabric, and the wall opposite the windows is divided in the middle by a species of gallery, the exquisite wood carvings of which were brought by the archd.u.c.h.ess herself from Meran. The parqueted floors are partly concealed by the skins of tigers and polar bears, shot in the Arctic regions and in India by her brother, Dom Miguel, Duke of Braganza, the legitimist pretender to the throne of Portugal, while on easels, and suspended from the walls, are oil-color portraits by the archd.u.c.h.ess of Baroness C. Kolmossy, to whom she is indebted for her knowledge of painting, of her husband, the late Archduke Charles-Louis, and of her sister-in-law, the lamented Empress Elizabeth, in riding habit and in ball-dress.
There is also a very pretty picture of a cat in the act of effecting its escape from the basket in which it had been confined, and a wonderful crayon sketch of Maria-Theresa"s stepson, Archduke Francis-Ferdinand, the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. The colossal fire-place niched in one of the corners of the studio, is surmounted, not by a mirror, but by a panel of well-nigh priceless Oriental embroidery, the brilliant colors of which have been softened and rendered harmonious and mellow by age.
The doors are draped by portieres of Flemish tapestry, and shielded by Mucharabieh screens of curiously-carved wood from Cairo. Preserved from dust and damage beneath plate-gla.s.s are some unique pieces of antique Venetian point lace, presented by another brother-in-law, Don Alfonso of Spain, the younger brother of the Pretender Don Carlos, while on a huge square writing-table, the equipments of which are of Oriental gold filigree-work, richly jewelled, are usually found letters either to or from the favorite brother-in-law of the archd.u.c.h.ess, Duke Charles-Theodore of Bavaria, the celebrated oculist, who during the course of his practice has performed more than three thousand successful operations for cataract without accepting a single penny-piece by way of remuneration.
True, the patients of this royal physician are nearly all of them poor people, and it is for their benefit that he has converted one of his castles into an ophthalmic hospital, and another palace into a species of convalescent home and resort, where poor gentlefolk and government servants with inadequate means can spend a couple of weeks in the country free of all cost.
It is difficult to refrain from a deep degree of sympathy for this so brilliant and accomplished Archd.u.c.h.ess Maria-Theresa, whose character is best ill.u.s.trated by the fact that she is literally worshipped by her grown-up step-children. The sudden death of her husband was not only a cruel bereavement, but was also the destruction of great and much-cherished ambitions.
Through the death of Crown Prince Rudolph, her husband, as next brother to Emperor Francis-Joseph, became heir to the throne, and owing to the refusal of Empress Elizabeth to take any part whatsoever in court life, the archd.u.c.h.ess was from that moment, to all intents and purposes, the "first lady in the land." It was she who presided at all court ceremonies and official functions, who received the presentations, and who filled the post of empress alike at Vienna and at Pesth. Her husband was entirely swayed by her, and completely subject to her influence, and it is notorious that she looked for the day when, through his accession to the throne, she would become the virtual ruler of the great dual empire, and be in a position to inaugurate all sorts of political ideas, peculiar to herself, notably in connection with a reversal of Austria"s present foreign policy. She has never made any secret of her disapproval of the Austrian alliance with Italy, and has even gone so far as to attend with her husband public meetings in favor of the restoration of the temporal power of the Papacy, at which King Humbert was bitterly denounced and abused as a usurper! There seemed no reason whatsoever why her consort should not live to succeed his elder brother, and as the archduke possessed a singularly strong const.i.tution, and had scarcely suffered a single hour"s illness since his childhood, there was no cause to fear any untoward event. Indeed he might have been alive at the present moment had it not been for his unfortunate pilgrimage to Jerusalem, where in some way he contracted the malady which carried him off so very suddenly. He enjoys the distinction of being the only member of his house whose whole body reposes in the vault of the Capuchin Church at Vienna, where so many hundred Hapsburgs sleep, some in coffins of silver and gold, others in caskets of exquisitely ornamented copper.
According to a very gruesome custom in vogue with the reigning house of Austria for many centuries, the heart is extracted from the body of the imperial dead within twenty-four hours after their demise, placed in a silver urn filled with spirits of wine, hermetically sealed, and then conveyed with the utmost pomp and ceremony, though at night, to the old cathedral of St. Stephen, where it is received with much solemnity by the clergy, and placed in niches of the wall, near the high altar. The entrails are in the same way removed, and conveyed with identically the same ceremonies to the ancient church of the Augustines, and it is only what is left that is buried in the vaults of the Capuchin Church.
Archduke Charles-Louis did not relish this extraordinary yet traditional treatment of his remains after death, and fervently believing in the resurrection of the body in the flesh, thought it distinctly uncanny that his heart and his entrails should each have to go hunting through the city for his body on the Day of Judgment.
Accordingly, he was laid to rest just as he died, instead of being entombed, like all the other members of the House of Hapsburg, in sections.
CHAPTER XI
If I have refrained in the preceding chapter from making any mention of the attainments of the Dowager Empress Frederick, either as a sculptor or as a painter, it is because she is so immeasurably superior to all other royal personages in the realms of art that she can no longer be regarded as a mere amateur, no matter how clever.
Besides this, her individuality is so strong, her intellectual gifts so great, and the part which she has played in German politics so important that she really deserves separate treatment.
If I link her name with that of her daughter-in-law, Empress Augusta-Victoria, it is because the latter"s influence on German affairs has been even still more weighty, though she is far less brilliant and clever than her husband"s mother. Indeed my readers after perusing this chapter may feel disposed to ask themselves whether ordinary intelligence in high places does not work more successfully than genius.
It is difficult to describe Empress Frederick as anything else than a genius. Certainly I have never known a more gifted woman. The diversity, the scope, and the depth of her knowledge are simply amazing. In conversation it is difficult to broach any subject, no matter what it is, that she has not mastered. Her acquaintance with the mediaeval, Renaissance and modern schools of painting, and with every form and work of art industry is unsurpa.s.sed even by those men who have devoted their entire lives to these studies. I have on one and the same evening heard her converse on Venetian art with Ludovic Pa.s.sini, proving herself his equal in her astounding knowledge of Venice, past and present; talk with a distinguished physician, who was amazed by the theoretical knowledge which she displayed of the throat and breathing organs, and who declared that if she had only had practical experience, she would have been the finest throat specialist in the world; and discuss literature with a celebrated Englishman of letters, chiding him upon his admitting his inability to cap a pa.s.sage from Pope, which she quoted! The late Sir Richard Wallace, than whom no one possessed a more profound knowledge of the masterpieces of the painters, goldsmiths, jewelers and potters of bygone centuries, was wont to declare that Empress Frederick surpa.s.sed him as an expert, although, with unlimited wealth at his disposal, he had devoted more than half a century of his life to the collection of "chefs d"oeuvre"
in all parts of the world.
The depth of her researches into chemical science exceeds that of Lord Salisbury, who is her most intimate personal friend in England, and at whose Elizabethan country seat she invariably visits when in her native country, most of her time while under his roof being spent with him in his laboratory. But it is particularly as an artist, both with brush and chisel, that she excels, and while as a painter she ranks with some of the leading professional masters of the present day, as a sculptor she surpa.s.ses anything achieved or even attempted as yet by a woman.
The subject which naturally stimulates her most to artistic effort is the portraiture of her fondly-loved husband. His memory, although he has been dead eleven years, is so fresh in her mind, her eye is so capable of recalling his image, and her hand is so well trained to follow her impressions, and to reproduce what she can visualize, that no sculptor could vie with her in reproducing his splendid form and manly features. She once gave a commission to the celebrated German sculptor Uphues for a colossal statue of "Unser Fritz," and calling at the artists" studio, whilst he was at work on his clay model, she pointed out to him some points in which he had not caught the right expression. Verbal explanations not adequately conveying her meaning, she asked permission to use the roughing chisel, set to work, and in half an hour with a touch here and a touch there, modified the features to such a degree that the sculptor was astounded at the striking improvement. The model has since been transferred to marble, and is universally considered to be the best portrait extant of Emperor Frederick.
No greater tribute to her brilliancy and penetration in the matter of statecraft could possibly be given than the undisguised and openly acknowledged animosity with which she was, throughout her married life, regarded by the late Prince Bismarck, who feared her more than all his masculine rivals and opponents together. She was a political foe worthy in every respect of his steel, for she repeatedly checkmated his moves; and if he sometimes spoke of her with a brutality and a degree of vehemence altogether out of place, this must be regarded as more in the light of a compliment than as an intentional piece of discourtesy, as it was a virtual admission of the fact that her opposition to his projects was of altogether too masculine and virile a character to admit for one moment of his according to her that forbearance and chivalrous deference which men as a rule are wont to concede to women as a tribute to their s.e.x. She fought him unceasingly, from the time when he violated the Prussian const.i.tution, shortly before the war with Denmark, until the day when through her efforts and statecraft he was driven from office,--a vanquished foe. He had used in vain every weapon against her that his ingenuity could devise. He had even gone so far as to publicly charge her with treason in betraying to the English, and through them to the French, military secrets which had been imparted to her by her husband, during the war of 1870. He had, in short, done everything that lay in his power to prevent her husband from succeeding to the crown, mainly, as he admitted, with the object of preventing her from sharing the throne as empress; and after having grossly insulted her in the presence of her dying, voiceless and helpless husband by refusing to transact any state business, or to communicate any confidential reports to the monarch as long as she was in the room, he incited her eldest son, whose mind he had deliberately poisoned against her, to take steps which could only intensify the sorrow of the grief-stricken woman immediately after her so fondly loved husband had been taken from her.
Yet she carried the day in the end, and her son is now the very first to acknowledge his mother"s cleverness and the fact that she showed herself more than a match in statecraft for the man reputed as the greatest statesman of the century, namely, Bismarck.
One of the cleverest of the many clever things that she did, was the manner in which she brought about the fall of Bismarck. She was too shrewd to dream of exercising any direct pressure on her son. It was done indirectly, and with so much diplomacy, that William never dreamt at the time of dismissing the iron chancellor that he was playing his mother"s game. Abstaining from any steps towards a reconciliation with her son, she merely took advantage of the kaiser"s visit to Westphalia, to place in his path his old tutor, Professor Hintzpeter, a pedagogue of whom William had been very fond, and whose teachings had left a deep impression upon the mind of his imperial pupil. The empress knew the professor"s characteristics, his fads, and his views.
She likewise recognized and understood, as only a mother can do, the complex character of her son, and she foresaw the effects that were likely to be achieved by bringing the two men once more into communication with each other.
Like William II., Hintzpeter is full of contrasts, for while on the one hand he has always professed the most advanced radical and even socialistic doctrines,--doctrines with which he impregnated the mind of his princely charge,--yet he would tolerate no familiarity or condescension on his part towards inferiors, and was even wont to force William to wash his hands when he had so far forgotten himself as to shake hands with anyone of a subordinate or menial rank. Another trait of character of Professor Hintzpeter, is his firm conviction that difficulties, no matter how vast and intricate, are always capable of being settled and satisfactorily arranged by means of eloquent phrases and good intentions.
At the time when William renewed his acquaintance, in the capital of Westphalia, with his old tutor, the socialistic and labor problems were engaging the attention not merely of Germany, but likewise of all Europe. Prince Bismarck was in favor of a continuance of harsh measures with regard to labor, and of persecution of the most resentless nature so far as the socialists were concerned. Hintzpeter, full of his former sympathies for autocracy and socialism at one and the same time, called William"s attention to the fact that Bismarck"s policy had merely had the effect of vastly increasing the strength of the socialists as a factor in German politics, and of rendering the labor difficulties more acute. He, therefore, suggested to the emperor the idea that he should endeavor to solve both problems by means of an international congress, under his own presidency, at which means should be devised for reconciling the interests of socialism with the state, and those of capital with labor.
William, with all his common-sense and cleverness, has inherited from his ancestress, Queen Louise, and one might almost say from his grand-uncle, King Frederick William IV., a very strongly developed tendency towards idealism. It was to this phase of his nature that the recommendation of Professor Hintzpeter particularly appealed, and the more he considered the matter, the more he discussed it with his old tutor, the more convinced he became that it was in his power to solve the difficulties of both socialism and labor, and thus to earn the grat.i.tude, not only of his own people, but of the entire civilized world.
Of course, Prince Bismarck immediately realized the Utopian character of the scheme, saw its impracticability, and proceeded to condemn it with more than his ordinary irritability and _brusquerie_. Finding, however, that the emperor was not to be argued out of the idea of holding a labor conference, he proceeded to ridicule it, and what was worse, to cause it to be scoffed at and treated with derision as the vaporings of an inexperienced and altogether too generous-minded youth, in German as well as foreign papers, which William knew derived their inspiration from the chancellor"s palace in the Wilhelmstra.s.se.
All this served to embitter the relations between the emperor and the prince. The latter perceived that the kaiser was getting beyond his control, and was subject to other influences, while the emperor now commenced to appreciate the extent to which, he had been made subservient to the policy and to the wishes of his chancellor.
Meanwhile the necessity became apparent of taking some immediate step, one way or another, in connection with the prolongation of the exceptional measures against the socialists which were just expiring.
The chancellor was determined that they should be renewed, while the emperor felt that, with the international congress coming on, he would be handicapped in his role of arbitrator, and his good faith would justly be suspected by the socialists were he to consent to the continuance of repressive measures against them that were extra-legal, that is to say, beyond the laws of the land, and as such, strictly speaking, unconst.i.tutional.
Finally, William discovering that Bismarck was negotiating with the various party leaders, notably with the late Dr. Windhorst, leader of the Catholic party in the Reichstag, with a view to the prolongation of the anti-socialist measures, made up his mind to dismiss him, and called for his resignation for having ventured to negotiate with the opposition leaders in the Reichstag, without his knowledge or consent, in order to obtain their support to a measure about which he had expressed his disapproval. That was the real cause of Bismarck"s fall, despite all other stories current on the subject, and had not Empress Frederick engineered the meeting in the Westphalian capital between her son and his former tutor, it is possible that Prince Bismarck might have died in office.
It is scarcely necessary to remind my readers that, as predicted by the old chancellor, the international labor congress resulted in a fiasco, while the emperor ultimately became so embittered by the failure of the socialists to appreciate his kindly intentions towards them, that he now regards them as his most bitter enemies, and practically calls upon every soldier who joins the army to be prepared to use his rifle, not only against the enemies from without, but also against the enemies within--that is, the socialists.
Naturally William to-day regrets that he permitted himself to be talked into any such schemes as the reconciliation of the socialists with the crown, and of capital with labor, and Professor Hintzpeter, while retaining the affection of his former pupil, has long ceased to enjoy his confidence as a political adviser. He is no longer looked upon in the light of a German Richelieu, as the foreign newspapers were wont to describe him when he was at the climax of his power, and he no longer possesses anything in common with his Russian counterpart, Professor Pobiedenotsoff, except in a singular peculiarity of appearance. Indeed, Hintzpeter"s looks invite caricature. He is lanky, ungainly and lantern-jawed, and seems like a man who has never been young, and who has not yet obtained the venerability of old age. His manners are exceedingly ungracious, and even repellent, but when once he becomes interested in a discussion he seems to undergo an entire transformation. He is no longer the same man, and gives one at that moment the impression of being nothing but a bundle of seething nerves, the vibrations of which seem to extend to, as well as to influence, all those who are within range of his voice.
The Empress Frederick was shrewd enough to keep in the background all the time! She took no part in the fight between her son and Prince Bismarck, and was particularly careful to avoid identifying herself in any way with Professor Hintzpeter. The result was that the kaiser did not dream of ascribing to her any responsibility for the mistake into which he had been led by his former tutor.
As foreseen by Empress Frederick, with Prince Bismarck once in retirement and disgrace, and the emperor disposed to reverse the entire Bismarckian policy, it commenced to dawn upon his majesty that among other errors into which he had been led by his ex-chancellor was his own harshness and unfriendliness towards his mother. It was while under this impression that he took the first steps towards a reconciliation with the imperial widow, who, by showing herself particularly affectionate and amiable, made her son feel still more bitterly the unfilial nature of the conduct which he had been led by Bismarck to adopt until then towards his mother. The friendly relations thus established between mother and son have subsisted ever since, and the emperor does not disdain now to seek Empress Frederick"s advice in a number of matters, having realized how clever she is, while there is no one whose approval he values more highly than hers. Most people are in the habit of portraying the Empress Frederick as a woman embittered and soured by disappointment. Yet if the truth were known, there are few whose existence at the present moment is of a more ideal character, She has lost a n.o.ble and devoted husband, but this bereavement must, to a certain extent, have been softened by the genuine sorrow manifested by all, not only in his own country, but throughout the civilized world, when he died. Her marriage was a singularly happy one, unclouded by even the faintest difference of opinion with her consort, and she is now enjoying a delightfully contented eventide of life.
She resides during the greater part of the year in a home constructed in one of the loveliest portions of Germany, near Homburg, according to her own designs, and her own ideas; she possesses a vast fortune, which renders her independent of all her relatives, and which she is free to spend as she wishes. With all her sons and daughters married, she has no domestic cares of her own, and is at liberty to order her mode of existence as she pleases, unhampered by any obligations or restrictions, save those which her son may see fit to impose. Her rank is of the highest, for she is the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria, and the mother of the present German emperor, besides which she has the status and t.i.tle of an empress-queen. In fact, she has the rank of a sovereign, without any of the responsibilities that are attached thereto, and while she may have experienced, at one moment, disappointment at being deprived by her husband"s premature death of engineering a number of political, social and economic reforms in Germany, upon which she had set her heart, yet she cannot but have realized by this time that her existence as an empress-dowager is infinitely more agreeable than that of an empress-regent would have been, for had she been at the present moment seated by her husband"s side on the throne, she would have found no time to devote to those arts and sciences to which she is so pa.s.sionately devoted, and which nowadays occupy the greater portion of her life.
In spite of being a great-grandmother, Empress Frederick is still in splendid bodily health and vigor. She rides on horseback daily in summer, and in winter spends a considerable amount of time skating on the ice. She is not handsome, and, in fact, has never been even pretty, but has always had a bright, intelligent and pleasing face.
Moreover, she has inherited her mother"s peculiarly melodious voice.
Unfortunately, she is imperious, and intolerant of stupidity; it is this, coupled with her lack of tact, which is responsible for her unpopularity.
In spite of all her philanthropy, her generosity, and her cleverness, and notwithstanding the blamelessness of her life, she is not liked by the people of her adopted country, and this, while it has not prevented her from playing a preponderant role in German politics, as above described, has proved an obstacle to her exercise of any influence upon the German people. After all, this absence of tact may be excused, for it is usually wanting in people of genius. She is very tender-hearted, and will not, if she can prevent it, allow any living thing on the estate to be disturbed or killed.
No description of Empress Frederick seems complete without adding thereto a brief reference to the grand-master of her court, Count Seckendorff, who may be said to have devoted his entire life to her service, and to that of her husband. A scion of one of the oldest houses of the Prussian aristocracy, and bearing a name that figures frequently in the pages of German history, he was attached to the household of Empress Frederick as chamberlain in the early days of her marriage, and the only time since then when he has been absent from her side was during the war; for the count is no mere drawing-room soldier, as is the case with so many military men who are in attendance on royalty. He has seen active service in the wars of 1864, 1866 and 1870, winning the iron cross for bravery in the latter campaign, and was likewise attached to Lord Napier"s expedition to Abyssinia, which found its climax in the storming of Magdala, and in the death of Emperor Theodore.
As an artist he may be said to be almost as gifted as Empress Frederick is herself, and his paintings have won distinctions of the highest order at many national and foreign exhibitions. Indeed, it is this sympathy of artistic tastes that has contributed in no small measure to the altogether exceptional position which he enjoys in the favor and confidence of the widowed empress. He has seen all her children grow up around her, has been the confidant of many of her sorrows, and at a moment when both she and her dying husband were surrounded by chamberlains and officers who were devoted to the interests of Bismarck, and virtually traitors in the camp, he alone remained loyal in evil as well as in happier days. Being a bachelor, he makes his home with the empress, attends her wherever she goes, and, after having been the object of much abuse and even calumny,--the latter originated and circulated by the so-called "reptile press,"--that is to say, the newspapers, domestic and foreign, drawing pay and inspiration from Prince Bismarck,--he now enjoys the regard and the good-will of everyone at the Courts of Berlin and Windsor, particularly at the latter, where his lifelong devotion to the widowed empress is keenly appreciated by her mother, Queen Victoria.
No greater contrast can be conceived than that which exists between Empress Frederick and her daughter-in-law, the empress-regnant. Far less brilliant than either her husband"s mother or grandmother, she has nevertheless managed to achieve, as I have remarked before, not only an infinitely greater degree of popularity, but likewise a more extensive influence upon the German people. Experience and history show that ordinary sense on the throne is far more beneficial to the population than a lofty order of intellect, and Empress Augusta-Victoria merely offers another ill.u.s.tration of the truth of this a.s.sertion. None of the queens of Prussia, nor either of the first German empresses, can be said to have left any impress upon the subjects of their respective husbands. There is no doubt that the so celebrated Queen Louise of Prussia was the cause of Prussia"s receiving infinitely harsher treatment at the hands of Napoleon than the kingdom would otherwise have experienced; while the consort of old Emperor William, a pupil of Goethe, and famed for her culture and accomplishments, was disliked by the people, and was just as little in touch with them as her still more talented daughter-in-law, Empress Frederick.
For Empress Augusta-Victoria, however, a most profound sympathy extends throughout the length and breadth of Germany. Every housewife, every mother, looks to her as to a model, knows that she is satisfied to excel in her purely domestic duties, and that she does, not strive to render herself superior to her s.e.x by intellectual brilliancy and scientific attainments. Thanks to this sympathy which she inspires, and to the fact that she is looked upon by men and women alike in her husband"s dominions as the ideal of what a German "_hausfrau_" should be, she has been able to exercise an influence of infinitely greater importance upon the nation at large than any other consort of a Prussian sovereign can have boasted to achieve.
It is to this estimable woman, whom some were disposed at first to denounce as narrow-minded and witless, that must be attributed the very strongly developed religious revival apparent throughout Protestant Germany since the present emperor came to the throne. Prior to the present reign, church-going was as a rule eschewed by the male s.e.x, women const.i.tuting the backbone of the congregation, while the clergy of the Lutheran persuasion was looked down upon, being treated by the territorial n.o.bility much in the same way as upper servants, that is to say, on a par with the farm bailiffs, the stewards and the housekeepers In a word, religion and everything pertaining thereto was not considered fashionable.
To-day all this is changed. Under the guidance of the empress, her husband, reared by his broad-minded mother in the ideas of Strauss and of Renan, has become a strict churchman, and court, n.o.bility, bureaucracy and in fact the middle and lower cla.s.ses too, have followed suit. Free-thinking and neglect of religious duties are at present considered the acme of bad form in Germany. Everybody professes the most profound interest in questions and enterprises relating to the church, and a large number of daughters of the most ill.u.s.trious houses of the German n.o.bility have conferred their hands and their hearts upon penniless Lutheran pastors, whose social status has thereby been entirely changed. Moreover, if during the past ten years more churches have been built, particularly in Berlin, than had been the case in the entire previous half-century, this is because every one has become aware that the most facile way of winning the good graces of the empress, and the favor of her consort is by building a church, or endowing some hospital.
The empress is ever ready to help in every good work, and her private charities are very great, but she does not approve of the higher education or the emanc.i.p.ation of women, and entertains a holy horror of everything pertaining to the female suffrage movement. Women, according to her views, should remain in their own sphere, and should regard their duties to their husbands, their children, and their homes as their first and foremost obligations; the nursing of the sick, the training of young people, and the organization and direction of charitable inst.i.tutions, affording plenty of scope for those members of the fair s.e.x who have no domestic tasks to occupy their time.
[Ill.u.s.tration: _AUGUSTE VICTORIA EMPRESS OF GERMANY_]
_From Life_
She claims that in this way a woman is able to exercise a far more important and beneficial influence than by endeavoring to supplant men in professions essentially masculine, and certainly she herself const.i.tutes a striking ill.u.s.tration of the truth of her contention, for the influence of the present German empress is felt throughout the length and breadth of the land--a gracious womanly influence in every sense of the word.
Among the many philanthropic organizations which owe their origin to the empress, is the Central a.s.sociation of German Actresses, which has of late years done more towards elevating the stage than has ever been accomplished by members of the aristocracy who have seen fit to join the dramatic profession with that avowed object in view. The work of this society is to enable actresses to provide themselves, at the lowest possible cost, with the costumes considered necessary by the managers of the theatres. It is well known that while in Germany the pieces are beautifully put on the stage, the salaries paid to the actresses do not in many cases cover the expenses of the stage dresses. The empress makes a point of giving all her court and evening gowns, which were formerly the perquisites of her dressers and maids, to the a.s.sociation, and has invited the ladies of the Court of Berlin to follow her example. Those ladies who feel that they cannot afford to give the dresses, are asked to sell them to the a.s.sociation as cheaply as possible, and the latter then turns them over at a merely nominal cost to such ladies of the dramatic profession as are considered worthy of support and a.s.sistance.
This organization is managed entirely by great ladies, the empress herself acting as president, and in this manner they are brought into personal contact with actresses both of high and low degree. The intercourse thus established has been most beneficial, for it has not only helped to place the social status of the stage on a more agreeable basis, but it also const.i.tutes an incentive to actresses to keep their names and reputations free from blemish, since they naturally understand that the empress and the great ladies of the aristocracy can only treat them as friends, so long as they live up to the same standard of respectability as that which prevails in the highest circles of society, and at court.
One of the most valuable qualities of Empress Augusta-Victoria is her extraordinary tact. It is due to this, more than anything else, that she has been able to retain, not only a hold upon the affection and regard of her impulsive and brilliant husband, but also an influence over him without his being aware of the fact. By the leading members of his court, and by his princ.i.p.al ministerial advisers, she is regarded not merely in the light of his guardian angel, but as his most sensible counsellor. She may be relied upon at all times to soothe his anger, soften any bitterness which he may entertain towards this or that person, and call forth at critical moments the most generous and chivalrous phases of his, on the whole, very attractive character.
She is claimed by those who know the true state of affairs to act in the capacity of a brake and a safety-valve to her husband, and it is no secret that both the cla.s.ses and the ma.s.ses feel an additional sense of security when they know their popular empress to be by the emperor"s side; for every mistake that he has made since he ascended the throne has taken place during her absence, and he himself is the first to acknowledge that she is largely responsible for every success that he has achieved.
The sentiments of the empress towards Bismarck have been much misunderstood and misconstrued. It is perfectly true that she was brought up from her earliest childhood to regard him as the enemy of her house, the prince having, as I have already related, been the author of the indefensible act of spoliation, by means of which her father had been deprived of the duchies of Schleswig and Holstein, now forming part of the kingdom of Prussia. The manner in which the Iron Chancellor was viewed in the home of the empress when a young girl, may best be gathered from the fact that whenever her nurses and governesses were desirous of putting a stop to her naughtiness and of frightening her into obedience, they would exclaim: "_Bismarck"s coming! wow! wow!_" This childhood impression has continued so deep that even to this day, whenever the empress shows any signs of reluctance to comply with her husband"s wishes, or betrays irritation, the kaiser is in the habit of springing upon her the familiar old cry of "_Bismarck"s coming! wow! wow!_" which at first always makes her start as she did in infancy and girlhood, and then causes her to burst into laughter, and restores her to good humor.