Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 109, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 May 1919 — MUCH LIKE PICNIC [ARTICLE]

MUCH LIKE PICNIC

How Royalty Engaged in Peace Conference; — i—_ —.—_—_ Gathering of a Century Ago Hgd Little Thought of the Welfare of the “Common People"—GeneralRound of Jollity. A French writer. M. Adolphe Aderer, remarks in the Temps that with the kaiser safely stowed away in Amerongen castle there is little likelihood of any disturbance at the Versailles conference comparable to that at Vienna when Napoleon escaped from Elba. Npr is .the atmosphere of the two conferences the same. The congress of Vienna in 1815 was a perpetual round of dances, dinners and amusements, whereas “the kaiser’s crimes have cast a pall “over Versailles. The delegates of the democratic nations are counting the victims of the kaiser. There is ho dancing, out of respect for the dead.” It was not like that a hundred and four years ago at the Austrian capital. “It was an endless series of fetes, banquets, routs, drives and hunting parties. Noteworthy among others was a general ‘picnic’ what Americans would call a ‘Dutch’ dinner —followed by a ball. The price of the dinner tickets was three Holland ducats, while it cost ten florins to get into the ball. The proceeds had first been assigned to buying an immense silver lamp for the holy sepulcher at Jerusalem. Afterwards it was decided to use them fpr ransoming the Christian slaves in Barbary. ; “The dinner was served at the Ausgarten, with the famous caterer, Yann, in charge. One hundred and fifty celebrities, including all the kings and emperors present, sat down at a huge table shaped like a horseshoe. Never had so many crowned heads assembled before a single board. At dessert a page, carrying a vermilion platter, went around and collected from each guest the three gold ducats. The giant king of Wurttemberg vainly rummaged through his pockets. To the delight of everybody he could not ‘raise the price.’ The emperor of Russia, lent him enough to pay the bill. “Some time afterward the question of restricting royal prerogatives came up before the conference. The king of- Wurttemberg flew into a rage and jumped to his feet. But his enormous paunch caught under the table, which upset, with books, papers, inkwells and all. There was an uproar of laughter. The king called for his escort and left in a fret for Stuttgart. But the loss of one king was hardly hoticeable in such a gathering. The conference lost none of its splendor thereby. “One evening, in March, 1813, the empress gave a great ball. Tallyrand, always so punctual, was not im evidence. Wellington was absent. So was Metternich. What could have happened? At last the marschall of Schwartzenburg came out of the imperial chambers. He spoke a few words to the few intimates who dared question him. Napoleon had escaped from Elba and was entering Lyons. “The doors swung open and the empress entered on the arm of Emperor Alexander. Then came the king of Prussia with the Empress Elizabeth. In spite of the general emotion, the program was carried out. The conference was over, but the kings danced on.”