The Galveston Daily News. (Galveston, Tex.), Vol. 48, No. 239, Ed. 1 Sunday, December 22, 1889 Page: 6 of 20
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THE GALVESTON DAILY tfJSWS, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 22, 1889-TWENTY PAGES.
'j HE BABY KING OF SPAIN
HOW ALFONSO 13 DEPRIVED
PLEASURES 3Y ETIQUETTE.
OF
An Abannl Puraiie cS I>;£n;ty— Musn't
Play on (lie Sand I.iUo ether Chil-
dren- Preparing for Snuta Clans
at the lioyal Palace.
Maup.ii>, Dec. 8.—[Speoial Correspond-
ence]—Little King Alfonso XIII, although
only 3J j years old, is already beginning to
realize that the lot of a monarch, and es-
pecially of a baby monarch, is not always
an enviable one. Ha is a bright little fel-
low, and, lam told, quite fond of a romp
with his sisters, Mercedes and Maria, but
the hard rules of royal etiquette have al-
ready begun to press upon Uim and rob him
of his childish pleasures.
PRINCESS MERCEDES OF SPAIN".
X was told of a very amusing incident, 11-
lnstrative of the absurd insistence of Span-
ish dignity in this respect, which occurred
lately. It was ou the occasion of the visit
of the Archduke Albrecht of Austria to
Madrid, and when an official riceaemento,
or drawing-room, was held. Of course the
baby ting Lad to appear and he was placed
on the throne, where he sat in state, look-
ing decidedly uncomfortable and apparent-
ly more terrified than anything el«e at the
brilliant array of hatted Spanitth grandees,
the gayly-dressed and decorated diplomatic
corps and the severe-looking official repre-
sentatives of the cortes by whom he was
surrounded.
The po6r little chap could hardly be re-
strained from bawling outright when the
numerous deputations of the universities
and various towns came forward and greet-
ed their sovereign by walking past the
throne and bowing twice before the boy. He
gazed in a sort of awe-stricken fashion with
his groat big brown eyes at the crowd and
eoveral times the chubby fists sought the
eyes, with all the premonitions of incipient
blubbering. Luckily he was kept in humor
by the unceasing attention of the queen
mother, Christina, who stood beside him
during the entire ordeal and whispered to
him a continuous Hood of baby talk calcu
lated to divert him from the serious aspect
of the occasion. Once or twice he started
up and made as though he would slide from
tho throne and run awa v, but her majesty
and the royal chamberlain fortunately an-
ticipated the movement and kept him back.
Presently something occurrcd that Inter-
ested him, and they were greatly relieved.
A delegation of soldiers In glittering uni-
forms was marching past, and he looked
wistfully ot them, as though wishing he
■" 'r side.
When
might be permitted to toddle by their aide,
just like any other boy of his a —
it;t-r had all tiled past he droppe*
back on tho throne cushions very tired.
The crowd in the great drawing-room grad-
ually thinned out until only the royal party
was left.
"I am tired and very hungry," cried the
lad, looking up appea'.ingly in his mother's
face."
c*>
THE BABY KIIWJ A3E IITS POKY.
The king was forgotten. He was a boy
•gain: a littlo democratic boy. like all the
boys in this world who are endowed with
lively appetites; and in a few minutes he
sitting in his mother's apartments
laughing and chattir g as he ate a
drank a bowl of milk
bun aud
His ill-humor had
vanished, and the fruit which he picked
from the cake and shut up tight in his wee
palm was of more value to htm than all the
star* and crosses of the grandees who had
stood up before him.
Alfonso is clever, but not precocious. He
Is passionately fond of his mother, and she
fairly dotes on him. It would go hard with
Queen Christina to be deprived of any of
her three children; but she seems to be
fonder of the little Laby king even than of
Maria and Mercedes. All Madrid talks of
her devotion to the child monarch and
praises her for it. His sisters are his Insup-
erable playmate*. Mercedes, the elder, ia it
and Maria is 7 years old. Doth are
merry little girls with bright, sunny
faces and with just the faintest trace
of the dark Andalusian blood tinting
their fair cheeks, which seem aglow
with oolor. They would be accounted pret-
ty children anywhere, but tothe good folks
of Madrid they ore little angels. In wet or
disagreeable weather the three frolic in the
queen's private apartments in the Palacia
Real, and the old couriers and Attendants
ami!e gravely as they listed to the gay out-
bursts of childish laughter that come from
the play-room. Their sports are of the ap-
proved nursery style, aud the happiest
hours of ths tiny.monarch s life are those 11,
which he is thus engaged.
Already the cares of the education of the
young king embar-ass the qu-en mother
Occasionally be will be taken through the i
old palace by some one of the court attend- [
ante or by his tutor and shown the won-
drous things that are stored there from the
days of the great kings of Spain. The baby
king kas stared with wide open eyes at the
fomr gilded lions that guard the throne. On
the first occasion of his occupying the
throne those same lions badly frightened
him. and it was not until be had been re*s
eured that ha would consent to sit there. !
The armor of Columbus aud tbs sword of
the Cid have no charms for him yet, but he
takes a deep interest in the display of fla«s '
earned during the Spanish conquest of <
America, and in the wonders of the natnrai
history cabinet. Ths palace ia to Lim an
immense kindergarten.
During the summer months the royal
family avoid the heat of ths capital and go
to San Sebastian, cn tbs sea Sucre. There
Mi bttiuJa* StfMWUj M4 I
when they first went to livo there the queen
took the children down on the sands almost
daily. Little Alfonso enjoyed thio greatly,
aud immediately set out to emulate the ex-
ample of otter children there and dig in the
soft sand. With his sisters he contrived for
a time to elude tlio maternal eye while ho
played about, making mud pies and castles
like any plebeian; but Christina wnsshocked
when she saw the sport the throe were en-
joying and ordered the nurses to bring the
children to her instantly.
The demands of Spanish etiquette had
once mora interfered to spoil the pleasures
of the baby king. It was all in vain that
the little fellow pleaded to be allowed to re-
turn. The queen was inexorable.
"My littlo son must never forget that he
is the king," she said, as she led him away,
he sobbine bitterly and bellowing mean-
while.
It was very ridiculous, to be sure, this at-
tempt to impress the boy with the impor-
tance of his rauk. He would have given
more at that moment for a romp in the
white sand and for the fun of wetting bis
royal toes in the tiny puddles upon the
beach than for all the gloomy old hidalgos
and their bowing and fussing around him,
as though they would fall on him, when
they came to the palace.
His gieatest annoyance, however, and in-
deed the sorrow of his baby life, was In
being forced to sit still and stiffly beside
his grown up companions, and to return in
a military manner the incessant greetings
of his faithful subjects. He did it with a
pout and it made him fretful. There was
so much of this at San Sebastian last sum-
mer, and he took to it so badly, that the
beach was finally given up and a garden
was chosen instead, in which he could play
w-ith his sisters to his heart's content and
without being disturbed. Here were spent
the happiest hours imaginable, happier
even than those in the play-room in Madrid.
It was a domain where ha was a true king
and free to do as he liked.
It was in this garden that M. Koppay, the
famous painter, found the little fellow
when he went to paint his portrait for the
queen mother.
'"When I entered," said M. Koppay, In
telling of it afterward, "I heard sounds of
laughter Proceeding forward, I saw the
voting King Alfonso astride a rocking
horse, while his sisters were pulling the
bridle and urging it to greater speed. I hes-
itated at disturbing them, for they were in
the full tide of childish enjoyment. The lit-
t:5 ntoft^sot firmly in his saddle, and swung
his whip ft'sit and left on the animal's
back like a true o^ballero. It was a black
that bad belonged to his father and
been stuffed and placed on a rocker
after it died. Alas, poor king, he died be-
fore his little son was born. It was in that
attituSe, ths most natural and graceful one
that could have been chosen, that I painted
the royal boy."
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CBOWS PBINCEES MARIA.
Christmas is a season of universal festiv-
ity in Spain and nowhere is the many-
making greater than among the gay Mad-
rilenes. This year it will be observed with
all the old-timo fervor. Queen Christina
and her children will share in the celebra-
tion for the first time since the death of the
late king. A stroll along the Puerta del
Sol, the ceutral market place of Madrid,
shows now general is the preparation
among the shopkeepers forthe coming holi-
day. One would hore imagine himself in
Paris rathor than in Spain, for the con-
tents of the stores are more Parisian
than anything else, like the drosses of
the aristocrats themselves. Many of them
are prettily decorated with evergreens and
in a few windows I noticed our old friend
Santa Claus, with bis sleigh and pack, sur-
roundsd by groups of ladies and wonderlug
children. For a week or more tho trains on
the Northern railway have brought in
crowds of Christmas visitors daily to spend
the holidays in the capital.
Ot course dear old Santa in making his
rounds will call at the Palacio Real. I hear
of many beautiful presents that have come
to ths little royalties, and which tho queen
mother is keeping for a genuine Christmas
surprise, somo of them coming from royal
friends snd relatives in France and Austria.
The Christmas tree is not a featnro of the
holiday here, but the little ones do not seem
to miss it. Madrid has resolved to make
the day a pleasant one for the palace little
people, and the storekeepers and merchants
will demonstrate their love and loyalty by
a perfect shower of presents to Alnhonso
and his sisters. With their sad-faced
yet happy mother the three
can be seen on flue days driving
on the Puerta del Sol, and occasionally
along the Fuenta Castellans and* ho Prado,
the famous boulevards of Maavid, where
the show of thoroughbreds and elegant car-
riages is almost as fine as that in Hyde
park or the Prater at Vienna, though ou a
smaller scale. They are the favorite parade
grounds of the Uadrilenes. Tho appearance
of the royal carriage is the signal for a gen
eral movement on the part of the equestri-
ans and drivers to clear the road, und as
Christina and her children pass they are
affectionately saluted oa every side. The
queen unfailingly responds by a slight
bow and a smile to right and left,
and the baby monarch has been taught to
sit erect and duek his round little head in a
properly dignified way to his delighted
subjects. Mercedes, the elder daughter, is
like her mother. She has a frank, pleasing
face, very winning, yet without the childish
beauty of her sistei Maria, who is a spright-
ly little elf. full of merriment and fun. Ihe
baby monarch is well grown for his years
and wesrs a resolute expreseion that indi-
cates a will of his own.
On Christmas eve the 170 churches of the
eapital will be crowded and the celebration
will begin. Wnile Santa Claus is making
his rounds aud distributing bis treasures
among the little Madrilene* Quesa Chris-
tina, who delights to play the role of Lady
Bountiful, will herself send out from the
palace a number of gifts to be bestowed in
quarters where the royal favor has been
won. Some of the children of nobis houses
| will be delighted to receive these tokens of
| friendship from their little royal playmates
I in the great building of whita stone and
| granite that stands In the plaza del
Orients and faces the statue of Philip
IV. Oa Christmas day the queen with the
I children will, if the weather be fine, attend
I divine service In the church of the Atocha,
where tho Spanish monarchs have wor-
j shiped from '.tins Immemorial. Then,
after a drive around to view the decora-
tions, a royal levee will be held st the pal- I
j ace. while ths city enjoys the day sfter Its
own fashion At the ievee the diplomatic
corps, ths grandees, the hidalgos and ths
representatives of the cortes will cersmoni
ously tender their wishes to his juvenile
majesty, and ths Infant monarch will tear
hitr.self a way from his Christmas toys to be
plsced on dress parade Hs is a capital littls
fellow, but I hear that hs Is qaite a rsbel
when it comes to a surrender of the royal
prerogative of doing as he pleases, and
every time he Is pnt under the restraint of
ths absurd etiquette of the Spanish court
tbs remonstrance grows more emphatic. 1
Should ha. ss is not improbable, make up
bis mind to prefer the company of his play- :
mates and Santa's offerings to that of the I
stupid grandees and hidalgos, hs may maks
Christmas day interesting at tbs Palacio i
Baal.
Like other capitals, Madrid will surfeit I
itself with dinners on Christmas day There
will be a great deelruct:en among the lioeka :
of fat turkeys that bars been herded for
weeks in the I'.aix Mayor, and the vast
•how of meat sod vegetables, grapes, pome-
granates. oranges and swsstmeats will dis-
appear as if by magic. For maay days past
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COHEN & MICHAEL,
ARTISTIC MERCHANT TAILORS
HATTERS,
BOYS' AHD CHILDREN'S OUTFITTERS,
TREMONT STREET, - - - GALVESTON, TEX
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The best made Boys' and Children's Clothing; the finest Furnishing Goods for
Men and Boys; the latest Shapes and Novelties in Men's and Boys' Hats and
Caps. In fact, you will find nothing but what is thoroughly good, stylish and reli-
able at our establishment.
COHEN & MICHAEL
MAIL OBDEBS IIPIROI^PTL"^"
LLED.
cred imageB—angels, virgins, mangers and
shepherds—have done a roaring trade. This
traffic culminates at Christmas, and the
streets, now the noisest of any capital city
in the world, will rfsume the slow, easy-
going lethargic aspect peculiar to Madrid at
all times exoupt holy week and Christmas-
tide.
and mantilla for the mora modern if less
picturesque garments of tho Parisian dress-
maker, sweeu grandly past the wives and
daughters of the office holders, while these
in turn snub tho families of the merchants,
aud the latter look down with a
sniff of contempt upon the
petty tradesmen's household. These
In tho ruerta del Toledo nnd the pleheian i again elevate their noses as they meet tne
workingmen's wives, while the last namod
quarters of the city generally the Christmas
preparations are more characteristic of the
people. One sees in these dirty, crooked
and populous streets the true types of tho
common people, the muleteers in their bril-
liant scarlet jackets, gypsies, negroes,
dwarfiMnd a sprlneling of coquettish seno-
ritas. In the cafes the decorations ars very
attractive, and the pretty Valencian wait-
resses are kept busy supplying the thirsty
patrons with liquor and cigarettes. All
ths principal theaters, ths Walia opera-
house, the Variedades, the Circo and the
Prir.clpe have announced Christmas attrac-
tions aud play to crowded houses.
cast withering glances at tho street venders
and beggars. And so it goes, nil down the
gamut, from monarch to mendicant, in a
land where all but a few are of the very
poorest in reality. I learu on authority that
the rumors of an approaching marriage of
tho queen mother ure entirely unfounded.
She lives wholly for her children. The
royal family is exceedingly popular
ami the worries in t ho Cortes are directed
against the momentary ministry alone, nnd
not aimed at tho throne. Whiic the lirazil-
ian upheaval has unquestionably disturbed
affairs seriously in Portugal, the loyalty of
the Spanish people to their rulers is ^n«f-
ected. It is expected, however, that a crisi
must shortly come that will enable the lib-
eral party to form a cabinet under the presi-
dency of Scnor Sagasta. The liberal pro-
gramme promises the inauguration of anew
era of wise and prudent legislation and
great financial reforms. Baron Von M.
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H. YEARGAN, Southern Traveling Agent.
n THE GALVESTON NEWS a ad THE DALLAS NEWS are printed with GEO. MATHER'S SON®
NEWS 1NK8.
I ft
CIT O* A TI?R<
'1 of h frieii
ia dej.rivf
lliood, aud not alio
hi!dren> In Oern;
*t damocr.Vic in t
t ha aame ia 1 la!/
ur
WorLD RATHER ROM
"Why ia it," I ;
court, "that h«?ra y<
the pleasures of cbi
to play like oth-T
tha princea are aim
amoacmenta. It it
Austria an<i England
fie locked at ma in nrnriw.
"If it proper/' ba a»ke-l. "that a r|i
ant of tbe king* of Spain and of t
Campaador should mix with thosa wh
not a drop of tha sangre axul—iL
blood of rurallyP"
And tbia la the view that prevail*
where on tba •abject Nowhere
world perhapa, tare in soma Asiatic
is the person of the ruler so hedged
by dignity and abtnrd parade as bsr<>
claaaifna ia everywhere strictly draw;
charming ladia* of the .^paaiah aristc
Wfeo kare pracUcailjr discard*! tha
i at
d of
A Story of Burton*
The following is from Joseph Jefferson's
autobiography in the December Century.
"I have often thought that ^Ir. Burton
must have had Irish blood in him, for he
was continually spreading the tail of his
coat for a fight—I mean an intellectual
light, as physically he was not pngnacious.
Quarrelsome persons who do not indnlge in
pugilistic encounters are fond of lawsuits;
it is only another way of having it oat, and
Hnrton must have spent a fortune in fees. I
His humor on the witness stand was quite
<ual to that of Sam Waller. On one occa- 1
on, while the actor was going through
bankruptcy, an eminent lawyer In Phila-
delphia thought be detected a desire on
liarton's pari to conceal some facts rela-
tive to a larpe sum of money that he had
made during the production of the Naiad
Queen. Rising with great dignity, and |
glaring fiercely at Burton, he demanded:
What became of that money, sir?' The j
comedian looked him straight in the face; |
then rising in imitation of an attorney, he :
replied: *Tha lawvers got it.' "
use
LAMP
" - wnmn'
Mfl2E0NlYar :,|N THE YvURLD '
Geo.A.Macbeth&Co.Pittsburgh.Pa.
THE DALLAS ELEVATOR'CO
X3^.3LX,^.S. TEX.
Great Eplizer of Prices.
Your Interest
STORE YOUR GRAIN AND
la Our
SAVE 25
Interest.
The Tcrks hate Job
ball's Confffc 8yrnn fc
it ia mid by all arut
reat pMn extinguisi.<
bat the
lore iJr
Children Cry
or PTTCHSJ
Castoria
aha
I grades for sale
TO 50c. PER BUSHEL.
, . off.r iiHocemmta for •taring grain of all ktndo One aol one-balf rest* per
ba.n« for th. flrwt ihirtv day. or ptrl thereof, oae-ualf rent par baihel for er.ch succeeding a ft pea
dnv. or part thereof, on. cent [ar bushel for i iitplug oats. Kecetpta tuned on ciaasidcauon, aud
weisrnta at the Elevator.
We have in More large consignments of Corn. Oats and Wheat of t
ket prices, and solicit the custom of the public at largo.
THE BANES WILL ADVANCE XQHET ON WAKEHOL'SE RECEIPTS AT
RENT BATE OF INTEREST.
Tan ranee rery low. Intereata of the patrons of the Elevator *i)]
stored with us commands the highest price, as we are in constant communication with ail tbw
■nararte of the crentry. Xo charge for t>u?iag. selling or giving Information. Ail grain weighed
eii under the supervisees of Merchants' Exchange if desired.
era-
>d.
\
F. M, COCKRELL, President and General Manager
Dallas Eievator Company, DaUaa, Tex.
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The Galveston Daily News. (Galveston, Tex.), Vol. 48, No. 239, Ed. 1 Sunday, December 22, 1889, newspaper, December 22, 1889; Galveston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth467263/m1/6/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Abilene Library Consortium.