PERSONALITIES

Southland Times, Issue 18963, 9 June 1923, Page 9 (Supplement)

PERSONALITIES

WILHELM’S SECOND WIFE.

(By

Aedile)

Although the world regards him variously as an arch-fiend or an arch-fool, the personality of the Kaiser still excites curiosity. He was a remarkable man take .him how you will, and his name will be retained in history as one of the central figures of the great upheaval which threw* crowns and states on to the rubbish heap. Wilhelm II was a dangerous man because he was clever, though hardly as clever as he should have i been to have filled adequately the pair of shoes he had decided on wearing, and he was dangerous because he was not difficult to manipulate. The inner history of Germany shows the Kaiser as a picturesque figure, with lofty notions regarding his abilities and his power, turning obediently, like a wireless marionette, to the will of the real rulers of Germany. Europe had two absolute monarchs before the war ended—in Russia and Germany. Neither man was strong enough for the job, both were better men than the world thought. The Tsar fell under the brutal hand of Bolshevism, and will be remembered with more respect than his qualities as a ruler warrant; the Kaiser went to Doorn and there took a second wife, a challenge to the world to forget him. Politically he has ceased to be of significance, but the world still likes to know how the monarchs out of , business are getting on. In the case of the Kaiser it would seem, from the accounts given by observers, that there has been a marked change. A second marriage is no less a gamble because a man haa more experience, and the Kaiser has had to alter his habits to suit the tastes of the second Mrs Hohenzollern. It is stated that Wilhelm now has to rise earlier. Up to the morning of his second wedding he enjoyed the luxury of breakfast isi his bedroom, but now we are told, he has to go to the chilly downstairs and breakfast at seven o’clock, with the Princess Hermine in silence, because she is credited with holding fast to the idea that there should be no talking during eating, thereby disclosing her poor opinion of the Beetonian dogma. This observer proceeds with his picture: From about seven-thirty till eight he is allowed to promenade the grounds, but not until his wife has inspected his attire, and satisfied herself that it is suitable to the weather. She is most particular about his health ,and insists that he wraps himself up. More than this, she is possessed of a very complete medicine chest with which Wilhelm has recently become only too familiar. This medicine chest is really one of the outward visible signs of a very great economy. It removes the necessity of a doctors frequent attendance and as every effort is being made to save fnoney, this is looked upon as being a very important means of cutting down expenditure. The Kaiser’s wife keeps a tight hold of. the family purse, and compels her spouse, much against his will, to keep accounts. Before the fall, Wilhelm was not the victim of expensive tastes but he was particularly finicky about his footwear, and after the exile in Holland began, this characteristic was the cause of some substantial bills for boots, Wilhelm proceeded to buy his footgear by the dozen pairs without trouble to ask about the price. Since his marriage this costly process has been discontinued and Mr Hohenzollern has to wear out one pair of boots before he can think of asking for another pair, and he has to discover the price for the purpose of his accounts. The economies introduced by the Princess also involve a reduction in his pocket money, which must mean a lot to one who only a little while ago was an absolute monarch.

The humiliation of the ex-Kaiser, if we can trust this observer, does not end with the finances: the Kaiser has learnt to knit! It is difficult to reconcile the shining armour and rattling sabre with the click of the knitting needles, but the Princess Hermine is a very rich woman, abeit rather frugal. The Princess Hermine makes quite a lot of her own wardrobe, and is always busy with her needles. It is stated that Wilhelm’s first introduction to home garment making was when his wife requested him to help her wind some wool. It is difficult to imagine Wilhelm manipulating the skeins, but the story goes that he did. Having thus been initiated, he progressed to the extent of trying his hand in the way of doing a little actual knitting, and one of the domestic staff is responsible for the circulation of a statement to the effect that the would-be. ruler of Europe became quite engrossed in his task. Her energetic pursuit of economy, which affected the life of the ex-Kaiser, can be seen in her recent gift of 300,990 marks to the Augusta Hospital at Breslau to establish the “Kaiserin Hermine” fund. In view of the fact that the Kaiser’s wife is reputed to be the richest women in Germany, and taking into consideration the present value of the mark, this gift of about £3 will not go very far! This estimation of the needs of charity serves to indicate how very careful this wealthy woman is in financial affairs while the name she has given to the fund she desires to be established by her munificence is significant. Does it point to the hope that some day she will be the actual Kaiserin, and asknowledged as such ? If the Princess Hermine dreams of the purple she may not be entirely innocent of interest in the monarchist exhibitions which occur occasionally. The Kaiser, of course, cannot legally communicate with the royalists in Germany, but there is nothing to stop his wife doing so. Her freedom is not restricted and there is a suspicion growing that the second Mrs Hohenzollern has been more active in these affairs than -the Berlin authorities suspect. The re-

ascent of the throne would not go unaccompanied by family squabbles. There is no love lost between the Crown Prince and his step mother and it is unkindly suggested that she keeps the heir away from Doorn because she does not wish to give him the chance to once more become the subject of his father’s affection and later on rival for the ex-Emporor’s private estate. For all these hard things that are said about her, the people of Doorn are emphatic in the opinion that the marriage has made life easier for the Kaiser. It would be daring to say that contentment reigns at Doorn. Mr Hohenzollern has had to give up much that he valued, and the economies put on him are in some measure a punishment for the part he played in the war; Mrs Hohenzollern is suspected of harbouring dreams of great events. A household of shattered ambitions and of ambitions unsatisfied is not the place to look for contentment.