The Sunny Side of Diplomatic Life, 1875-1912His brother, Prince Joachim Albrecht, is also a very good musician, but differs radically from Prince Wilhelm. He plays the violoncello very well, and favors modern music. He composes ballads, and leads his own regimental orchestra. He is as jolly and unconventional as his brother is reserved and grave. When he dines with us he brings his violoncello, and I accompany him on my piano. He composed two very pretty and successful ballets, both given for charity. The first one was danced by Frederikke and two other girls and three young officers.
It was called "_La Lecon de Danse_." On the top of the program, instead of the English device, "_Honi soit qui mal y pense_," I put "_Honi soit qui mal y danse_" in the same shield. Hardly any one in the German audience saw the joke--nothing more than that it was a _druckfehler_ (printer's error). The rehearsals were in my _salon_, and we had great amus.e.m.e.nt over them. The second ballet was more pretentious, and was danced in one of the largest theaters in Berlin.
It was called the "Enchanted Castle." A parvenu buys an ancestral castle, and on his arrival there falls asleep in the great hall, filled with the portraits of ancestors and knights in armor. The ladies, in their old-fashioned dresses, step out from their frames, and with the knights in armor move in a stately quadrille. After they return to their frames, thirty young couples dance a ballet, and when they finish, the parvenu wakes up. It was very pretty and brought in a lot of money, and there was a question of its being repeated for the Emperor, but this was not done.
_February, 1908._
Dear L.,--The Crown Prince and the Crown Princess gave a small _bal-costume_. It was their first entertainment of any importance, though there were very few people invited. As Frederikke is a dancing young person, we were invited, enabling me to take many girls under my protecting wing. The Emperor was dressed as the Grand Elector of Brandenburg. The Empress had copied an old family portrait at San Souci. She had a voluminous blond peruke and a flowing blue dress. She looked very handsome. The Princes were generally dressed as their ancestors and looked very familiar, as almost all of them stand in the _Sieges Allee_. I learned much of German history that evening. The Emperor was very kind and gave me a spirited and concise history of those whom his six sons represented. No one except the Kaiser would ever have had the persistency to stay booted and spurred during the whole evening without a murmur, though he must have suffered from the heat and been uncomfortable to a great degree. He had thick, brown curls which hung close about his ears; thick, high, and hot leather boots; and heavy leather gloves which he conscientiously kept on till the very end.
The Kaiser is a wonderful personality. The more I see him the more I admire him. He impresses you as having a great sense of power and true and sound judgment. And then he is kind and good. I do not think him capable of doing a mean or small action.
Mrs. Vanderbilt drove me out to Potsdam in her motor, and, going through the forest, we pa.s.sed in our hurried flight an automobile which we did not have time to remark upon. That evening there was a ball at court. When the Emperor spoke to me he said: "You flew by the Empress and me like lightning this afternoon when we were walking in the forest."
"Was that your Majesty's motor?" I asked. "We went so fast that I did little else than hold on to my seat. It must have seemed ill-mannered to have flown by like that."
There is to-night a _Gesinde Ball_ to which we are going. I know that you have no idea as to what a _Gesinde Ball_ is, so I will tell you that it is a ball given at some kind house by a kind lady. People dress themselves up as servants. It is our wildest dream, and we are never so happy as when we are gotten up to look like ladies' maids. I can tell you how some of them will look--self-made and to the manner born. I am going, since commands from superior quarters make it imperative, as a giddy old housekeeper or a care (worn) taker who has taken a smart gown from her mistress's wardrobe on the sly.
Several evenings later I heard your _prima donna_ with patience (because you sent her), but not with enthusiasm. She is like a hundred other would-be _prima donnas_ who cannot sing now and never can. These flock to Berlin, study with all their might for two or three years, and sing worse each year. Then they give a concert, for which they give away the tickets. They say they must have the Berlin criticism.
In the mean time their families are eating dry bread and their friends are squeezed like lemons. They get their criticism in some paper, cut it out, stick it on a nice piece of paper, and send it to their countrymen, who are out of pocket for a thousand marks or so. Then they go back to their homesteads, discouraged and unhappy, and sing for nothing in the village choir for the rest of their lives.
Our winters are very much alike--always the same routine. The season commences with the reception of the _grande maitresse_, then comes the _Schleppenkur_, the _Ordensfest_, and after that the Emperor's birthday, with a gala opera in the evening; then the first, second, and third b.a.l.l.s at court, and the gala performances at the Opera when any sovereign comes to Berlin on a visit. In Lent there is always one entertainment at court. After Easter every one disappears and all the blinds are pulled down. Those who remain in Berlin pretend they are away.
The Emperor speaks French and English with equal ease, but he likes best to speak English. He can be very lively at times, and then the next moment just as serious again. While talking to you he never takes his eyes off your face. He is seemingly all attention. Sometimes when the diplomatic ladies stand side by side he glances to the next lady, evidently making up his mind about what he will talk with her. His voice is singularly clear, and what he says is straight to the point.
He has the rare gift of making the person to whom he is talking appear at his very best. The life in Potsdam is, I have been told, very home-like and cozy. The Emperor often spends the evening reading aloud, while the Empress sits near with her knitting. They love to be in the Neues Palais and stay there until after Christmas. Their Christmas festivities must be worth seeing. Each prince has a Christmas tree and a table of his own, makes his own choice of presents, and ties up his own packages--as it were--and lights the Christmas candles. These festivals are held in the mussel-room, on the ground floor, original if not pretty--a combination of sh.e.l.ls, mother-of-pearl, and gla.s.s stone, which must be very effective in the brilliantly lighted room.
The Empress is very fond of riding, but often drives a little pony-carriage with two English "high-steppers." Once when the Shah of Persia was spending the day at Potsdam the Empress offered to take him out for a drive in the park. Half-way to their destination the lively pace of the horses alarmed the Shah. He put his hand over hers, which held the reins, and said in his pigeon-French, "_Vous-mourir seule_"
and got out and walked back.
The Emperor said to me, "Do you know Mr. Carnegie?"
I said that I did not.
"He is a clever gentleman," continued the Emperor. "Can you guess what he said to me?"
I shook my head.
The Emperor then quoted Mr. Carnegie: "You and Mr. Roosevelt would make a nice tandem."
"That shows tact and discrimination," I remarked.
The Emperor laughed. "I asked him which he thought would be the wheel-horse?"
"What did he answer to that?" said I.
"I am afraid Mr. Carnegie did not find anything to answer just then.
He has not your talent for repartee."
"In this case," I a.s.sured his Majesty, "I should not have answered at all, for I have no idea what a wheel-horse is. If it is the horse which makes all the wheels turn, then it must be your Majesty."
"You see!" said the Emperor, shaking his finger and laughing.
We had the great pleasure of welcoming Prince Hans (King Christian's brother). Johan was with him in Greece many years ago and has never ceased to love him. He is the most polite gentleman I ever saw; he almost begs your pardon for being kind to you. He dined with us yesterday. We invited to meet him Prince Albert Schleswig-Holstein (his nephew) and Prince and Princess Wied[3]. This young couple are delightfully charming. The Prince has the most catching smile. It is impossible not to be in good spirits when you are with him. We sat out on the balcony after dinner and took our coffee and looked out into the brilliantly lighted square of Brandenburger Tor with its network of trams. I think our apartment is the most beautifully situated in all Berlin.
[3] Now King and Queen of Albania.
_March, 1908._
Dear L.,--The King of Spain is in Berlin now on a visit of a few days to the Emperor. We only saw him at the gala performance at the Opera.
The Kaiser had chosen "The Huguenots." It was beautifully put on.
Madame Hempel sang the part of Marguerite de Valois, and Madame Destinn sang Valentine. The house was decorated in the usual manner, with carpets hanging from the balconies and flowers in great profusion everywhere. The King of Spain sat between the Kaiser and the Kaiserin.
He looks very young and very manly. After the first act, when we all met in the foyer, the Emperor stood by him, and sometimes would take him by the arm and walk about in order to present people to him. I was presented to him, but I did not get more than a smile and a shake of the hand--I could not expect more. Johan was more favored, for the King asked him how long he had been in Berlin. You must confess that even that was not much.
I was compensated by having quite a long talk with the Kaiser--long for him, as he has so many people to talk to, and he feels, I am sure, every eye of the hoping-to-speak-to-him person in the room. He said:
"I have just been reading the memoirs of General von Moltke. Did you ever know him?"
"No," I said, "I never saw him, but I have a letter from him, written in 1856 to my father-in-law, dated from the Tuileries."
"He often speaks in his letters of your husband's grandparents' home in Copenhagen--how he always felt at home and happy there, and was always sure to find a charming circle of interesting and literary people. You must read it; it would interest your husband, too."
"Did your Majesty ever hear about Moltke's visit to some grand-ducal court? Moltke thought, of course, that as he had all the grand cordons and decorations in creation, he had also that of this court. When he was going to visit the Grand Duke he said to his servant, 'Don't forget my decoration,' The servant looked high and low, but could not find it, and, thinking that he had mislaid it, went and bought one.
Moltke put on his uniform, the decoration being in place on his breast. When the Grand Duke entered he had in his hand an _etui_ containing the decoration, intending to hang it around Moltke's neck himself. Imagine his surprise at seeing it there already!"
BERLIN, _November, 1908_.
Dear L.,--Our King and Queen visit Berlin.
When the Emperor learned of the date for the visit, and that their Majesties were to be accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Frederick) he proposed that Nina should also come, and he invited them to be his guests at the _Schloss_. This was joyful news for me.
Though Nina had just had a dreadful fall while riding and had broken her arm and wrist, she had the courage to undertake the journey. They traveled with their Majesties.
The _Lehrter Bahnhof_ is particularly well adapted to receive royalties. It has a fine _facade_, and the open square in front is large enough to contain the military bands and the hundreds of carriages of all sorts. Today it was overflowing.
Inside the station a broad flight of steps lead down to the platform, where was spread the traditional red carpet; the plants, bushes, and flowers all made it look very gay and festive. The train was expected at eleven o'clock. We hoped to get there very early, but found the Emperor and his staff already on the platform, waiting. As our little party arrived (we and the Secretaries) the Emperor came forward, took my hand, and kissed it very graciously. We stood talking until the Empress came, accompanied by all her ladies and suite. The train was announced by many signals and many whistlings, but no train came in.
The locomotive had given out and the train had stopped a good way out of the station. The carpet not reaching so far, their Majesties were obliged to walk quite a distance on the wet platform. By means of shunting and jerking the royal train was brought in under the station roof, but nowhere near the carpet. The small steps were put up to the carriage door, and the King and Queen descended. The Emperor kissed the King on both cheeks. The Empress received the Queen affectionately and gave her a bouquet, which she carried in her hand. I saw Nina's pale face, pinched with pain, in the distance, and longed to fly to her, but etiquette compelled me to stay to make my obeisance to their Majesties. The band which was in the station struck up the Royal Danish March, and we could hardly hear ourselves speak on account of the tremendous resonance. The procession of resplendent uniforms and the bright colors of the ladies' dresses made a brilliant sight as they walked through the station. The Empress led the way, and we all followed to the waiting-room, where presentations to the Queen took place. The Empress presented every one of the ladies to the Queen, _even me_. All the royal carriages seemed to be out--two open barouches with four horses were for the four royalties. I drove to the castle to see Nina, who was already installed in her regal apartment.
I went up the _Wendeltreppe_, through two antechambers and a small _salon_, before reaching her magnificent drawing-room. It had superb tapestries on the walls and was filled with fine old Dutch inlaid furniture. It is called the Braunschweig suite, nine rooms in all.
Frederick had a separate staircase and entrance. Nina and I went to the window to look out onto the _Platz_ in front of the castle, and saw the parade pa.s.s before the Emperor and the King, who stood in the rain while the troops marched by.
Nina had a court carriage and lackey at her disposal all the time she was in Berlin. In the evening there was a state dinner in the superb _Weissesaal_. Johan and I and the members of the Legation were the only diplomats present. We all met in the Grand Gallery; the Emperor took in the Queen of Denmark, placing her on his right, and the King gave his arm to the Empress and sat facing the Emperor. The table was in the shape of a horseshoe, and there were about eighty people present. Prince Schleswig-Holstein (familiarly called Prince Abby) took me in, and the Emperor's son, Prince Adalbert, sat on my left.
The _menu_ was in German. Some of the French dishes seemed to have puzzled the translator. The Empress wore a dress of blue brocade and many beautiful jewels. Our Queen wore a light-gray satin trimmed with lace, and her famous diamond-and-pearl necklace. The Emperor wore the Danish uniform, and the King was in the uniform of his Prussian regiment. A military band played throughout dinner.
I was amused when the fruit and bonbons were pa.s.sed. Both the princes next to me piled their plates high with them and pa.s.sed them over their shoulders to the young gentlemen pages who stood behind each royal person, thus depriving many ladies of the longed-for bonbons, which were adorned with the portraits of their Majesties.
The Emperor made a very charming and touching speech in German, when we all stood up and emptied our gla.s.ses. The King replied in German, and we again got up and drank. After dinner every one went into the long gallery, and their four Majesties talked very informally with us while taking their coffee. At eleven o'clock their Majesties retired.
I was glad, for Nina's sake, that she could rest after her fatiguing day. I knew that she was suffering agonies from her tightly bandaged wrist. Her arm was in a plaster cast, and she carried it in a sling cleverly hidden under her laces. The next day the Empress took the Queen with her to visit some charitable inst.i.tutions. The King and the Queen had graciously promised to lunch at our house, which was surrounded by a cordon of police, on foot and on horseback, in front and in the courtyard belonging to the Legation.
At two o'clock quite a procession of court carriages entered our _porte-cochere_, where I met the Queen, presenting her with a bouquet tied with ribbons of the Danish colors--red and white. Our lunch was for forty people, and was served in two rooms. The King gave me his arm. The Emperor had sent in the morning a life-sized crayon portrait of himself by Lenbach as a present. The whole staircase was lined with palms and bushes, and of course there were plenty of flowers in the rooms.
After luncheon a deputation of the Danish colony met in the large _salons_ and were presented to their Majesties. It was after five o'clock before every one had departed. The policemen had filed off, and the crowds which had collected in the street disappeared.