A COY CUPID

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 22 January 1927, Page 11

A COY CUPID

SHOOTS DILATORY DARTS

ROYALTY’S LANGUISHING ROMANCES

TN the fairy tale books the meeting of a handsome prince and a charming princess is a sure sign of wedding bells in the next chapter; but in real life romance and royalty rarely come together. There is not an eligible prince or princess in Europe who, if rumour is to be believed, has not been on. the point of becoming engaged a dozen times. Yet they are still single —still awaiting the impelling breath of romance, says a Sunday Chronicle writer. Nobody, is a bigger enigma in the royal marriage market than the Prince of Wales. The public, which dearly loves the pomp and panoply of a royal wedding, has been thrilled a score of times at the possibility of his choosing a bride from the many pretty princesses available, but so far he has shown no desire for matrimony. Ten vears ago the Prince remarked: “I don’t think any man should marry before be is thirty-two. - - When his 32nd birthday arrived and two eligible princesses came to England on a visit, the nation was agog with curiosity and speculation. But the princesses returned home, and to the general disappointment there was no report of a royal engagement. Time after time the Prince’s name has been coupled with that of some daughter of a royal house. First one princess then another has been announced as his choice, but always the pitiless official denials have got heavily to work. The limelight which focuses ou the Prince of Wales rather obscures his two brothers. Prince George and Prince Henry—two more royal bachelors, who find love long in coining. So far they are heart-whole. Rumours arise regarding them, but die quickly from want of nourishment,. Though he has made several gallant attempts, and enlisted some of the prettiest princesses in Europe to his aid Cupid has also failed to transfix the heart, of Prince Olaf of Norway. Not long, ago it was said he was on the point of becoming engaged . to Princess Astrid. There were felicita- j tions in the Swedish and Norwegian!

newspapers, but nothing happened. Some time before rumour had associated. him with the name of Lady May Cambridge, the only daughter of Princess Alice and the Earl of Athlone. There was no doubt about it, said the gossips—an engagement was on the point of being announced. But again the little god had to admit defeat, and the reported romance never came to flower. To-day Prince Olaf's matrimonial intentions are almost as vague as the Prince of Wales’. Tt is said that he may never marry. At one time or other practically all (he eligible princesses in Europe have been marshalled to persuade King Boris of Bulgaria to take the plunge into matrimony, but without avail. Not until last year, when he met Princess Giovanni, who came incognito to a dis tinguished party given by the Duchess of Aosta, at Lugano, has he shown the slightest interest in the choice of a bride. Even now—though rumour is strong that the two will make a. match of it.—it is not at all certain that there will bo a match. Prince Nicholas of Rumania's another royal bachelor whom Cupid has not yet. succeeded in bringing to the altar. His difficulty is not in falling in love, but in falling in love with an eligible princess. A certain beautiful nobody with whom he became violently infatuated at the seaside resort of Tekirghiol made Ins prospects of marriage rather more complicated. After several warnings from Queen Mario, lie was finally ordered to leave, and embarked on a gunboat which should have taken him to Gaiatz. Instead of proceeding there, however, he landed 1 at Oonstanza and hastened back to bis lady-love. Unfortunately lie was seen in her company by a member of the Rumanian Government. who promptly informed the Queen. Confronted with the Queen’s stern decree that the affair must end, Nicholas weighed his youthful love and the Regency in the. balance, and found the inevitable decision very difficult, to make.

One of the prettiest of the princesses who still remains heart-whole is Princess Ileana of Rumania, who toured America with her mother. It does not seem long since she was a schoolgirl in England, but now she is in the full bloom of young womanhood, and one of the brightest and most charming princesses in all Europe. Several times rumour has been busy with reports of her possible engagement, but; here again love is a long time in dying through the palace windows. Less than a year ago she was definitely engaged (by rumour) to King Boris, but the romance —if any—came to nothing. Soon afterwards il was “officially” announced that she was going to marry Prince Amadeo of Italy. The rumour, however, was promptly killed stone dead by a, flat and. uncom*' promising contradiction. The Princes Sigvard and Gustav Adolf, sons of the Grown Prince of Sweden, boys of Iff and 20. accompanied pretty Princess Ingrid, their sister, on a visit to England about three years ago. The princess is very English in her ways, and is somewhat proud of the fact that she is a granddaughter of the Duke of Connaught, as well as a. descendant, of the great Bernadette. Two other interesting eligibles are Prince Charles of Belgium, second son of King Albert, and the Princess .Marie Jose, his sister. Educated at the Hrsulino Convent a Brentwood, the Princess retains a great love for England, and owns to being fascinated by London. Spending a holiday at her old school two years ago, she made it a headquarters for visits to 'London for exploration of art galleries, and other famous sights. Prince Charles holds the rank of lieutenant in the British Navy, and accompanied the Prince of Wales to India and Japan on the Renown in 1022. His latest venture is an expedition to Central Africa, including the jungles of Tanganyika and the Belgian Congo. Cupid lias also done his best to find a handsome Prince for the Infanta Beatrice, elder daughter of'the King of Spain, but so far she has been proof to his attacks.