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It was at Villafranca, at the very outset of the campaign, in the action between part of the division led by Prince Humbert and two brigades of Austrian cavalry, that the prince first tasted powder, while at Monte Torre his brother Amadeus not only won the same experience, but received his first wound. Thenceforward Humbert was ever bravely to the fore, and at Custozza he fought so fiercely, and exposed his life so freely during a charge of Uhlan cavalry, that it was with great difficulty that he managed in the smoke, dust and confusion to penetrate unscathed through the Austrian horse and throw himself into a square of his own infantry, who pluckily withstood and beat off repeated attacks of the enemy. Curiously enough, this staunch little square, numbering in all 416 soldiers, consisted of men

drafted from every part of Italy-an encouraging omen for the future Sovereign of the newlywelded kingdom. It was doubtless these early scenes that helped to inspire the Prince with his martial tastes and to impart the soldier's stamp to his figure and bearing.

Two years later, Prince Humbert married. It is said that Victor Emmanuel grew uneasy at the Heir Apparent being still a bachelor, while his younger brother Amadeus was married, and told General Menabrea, the Premier, that he really must find a wife for Umberto; to which the former quietly replied that he had already found the lady in the person of the King's own. niece, the Princess Marguerite Marie Therèse Jeanne of Savoy, daughter of the late Duke Ferdinand of Genoa. Victor Emmanuel was astonished, for he had never thought much about the young Princess; but Menabrea told him so many stories of her

Humbert was not much known, and his father's genuine popularity and reputation for bon camaraderie had rather eclipsed the merits of the son. But the Prince soon proved that he was something more than a plucky soldier, and that he inherited the best qualities of the Savoy family. He has fully justified the popular hopes, and as monarch has displayed both commonsense and tact, and though occasionally more outspoken than would be thought fitting for a king-from our cautious, British notion of royalty-there is no doubt that his geniality and perfect courtesy to high and low have helped to make him thoroughly beloved of his people. After his marriage, he and the Princess made a tour through the chief cities of Italy-with the natural

THE QUEEN OF ITALY.

(From a photograph by Guigoni and Bossi, Milan.)

attractiveness and so enlarged on her nobility of feeling, that the King determined to rush over to the Duchess of Genoa's palace at Turin and see for himself what the damsel was like. He came, he saw, and was conquered, and was enabled to rescue the Princess from the Prince of Roumania, who, it was believed, was on the very point of tendering an offer of marriage. The young bride, only sixteen years of age, was happily won for Prince Humbert, and the marriage was celebrated at Turin amid a scene of festivity and magnificence, on April 22nd, 1868, the happy occasion being further signalised by the creation of a new Order, the Corona d'Italia.

THE HEIR APPARENT.

The young Prince and his consort thus emerged on to the stage of international politics, and much general curiosity was aroused as to the future King of Italy.

exception of Rome-and were everywhere enthusiastically received. A year later, on November 11th, 1869, a son was born, and named Victor Emmanuel Ferdinand Marie Januarius, the title of Prince of Naples being bestowed on him in recognition of his place of birth. This young Prince is said to be of modest and somewhat shy demeanour, but he most favourably impressed our Queen on the occasion of his recent visit to England, and he is known to be devotedly attached to his parents. He has been brought up as a soldier, and has attained to the rank of Major-General.

On Rome falling to the Italian troops the Prince and Princess moved to the Quirinal, and the latter soon took her natural place at the Court; a more important position even (in view of the absence of a Queen) than that held by our own Princess of Wales at home.

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HIS THRIFT AND ECONOMY. On the death of Victor Emmanuel, Humbert issued a brief proclamation to his subjects, announcing his devotion to progressive Liberalism and to Italy, and when shortly after he was enthusiastically hailed from beneath the balconies of the Quirinal as King, the warmth of his people's acclamation so touched him that he embraced his young son, the Prince of Naples, with these significant words, "My son, I swear to you to live in such wise that at my death you may be proclaimed King with similar devotion." And one of the new King's earliest acts was undoubtedly both right-thinking and popular. Victor Emmanuel had been most extravagant, both in regard to the lavishness of his charities and his pleasures, but he was so generally beloved that Parliament was minded to defray the debts from the public purse, considerable though they were. This, however, the new

THE PRINCE OF NAPLES.

For

King would not hear of. Humbert declared that his father's debts were his own, and that it was no one else's duty to liquidate them. Consequently, he set to work to economise throughout the royal establishments, and by rigid reductions succeeded in raising a fund sufficient not only to pay off the accumulated debts, but also to enable him to draw upon it for charitable purposes, to which he is generally foremost in subscribing. instance, about a couple of years ago, at the time of the earthquakes in Calabria and Sicily, King Humbert sent 140,000 lire (£5,600) out of his private purse in aid of the relief fund, 20,000 lire of this being reserved specially for the poor of Messina; while after the disaster at Adowa he sent no less a sum than half a million lire (£20,000) for the benefit of the widows and orphans of the soldiers killed in Africa.

HIS ATTEMPTED ASSASSINATION.

About a year after bis accession, an alarming attempt was made on Humbert's life. He was entering Naples in state, riding in an open barouche by the side of the Queen, and with Cairoli, the Prime Minister, sitting opposite, when a half-crazy cook, Giovanni Passanante, dashed at his majesty with an open knife, and would undoubtedly have done terrible mischief had not Cairoli leaned forward and intercepted the blow, getting wounded himself instead of his royal master. The crime aroused intense excitement throughout Italy, and undoubtedly helped not only to discredit the Anarchists, then rising into unpleasant prominence, but also to quicken the better feelings of the enemies of royalty, and to enhance the general popularity of the sovereign. The Queen, however, sustained a bad nervous shock from the event, and for many months was seriously weakened and prostrate. Passanante was tried and condemned to death, but on the intervention of Humbert the sentence was commuted to penal incarceration for life, and since then the criminal lunatic has been transferred to an asylum.

HIS POPULARITY.

Humbert's prevailing trait of character is his strong patriotism; at the same time he finds the routine of

government very irksome. Although he is of open and generous disposition, his temper is short, and he is said to be wanting occasionally in patience, while the complex minutiæ of public affairs worry him. He is not much enamoured of his exalted but responsible position, and (according to Mr. Arthur Warren, whose opinion cannot be disregarded) there is a tolerably widespread belief that while he would do a great deal for his country, he is not wholly without fear that Italy's troubles and some Minister of the fiery and uncompromising type of Crispi may combine at some critical juncture to shake the Monarchy to its foundations. At the same time it would be misleading to omit count of the King's strong popularity. He was always liked, but at the time of the cholera panic in Naples he rose to the dignity of a popular hero. He fearlessly traversed the hospitals and the fever-stricken slums of the city, and did not desist from his errand of mercy and succour till the cholera abated, after which he returned to Monza protesting, in response to the shower of congratulations that overwhelmed him on every side, "I have done nothing but my duty."

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and it is said, with much truth, that Italy's policy was less liable to misconstruction during his tenure of office than since. Whether this was mainly due to Madame Cairoli's undoubted influence over the King it is difficult to say. Crispi's administration has been marked by various sensational events, such as the Sicilian rising of 1894. and the Abyssinian disasters of 1896, the latter having brought about the resignation of the Government. The Marquis of Rudini's tenure of office has been characterised by a welcome return to a more moderate policy, both at home and abroad. One of his very earliest acts was to recommend to King Humbert the expediency of granting an amnesty to those prisoners who, without being guilty of felony, had been imprisoned for political offences. To this the King gave a wise assent, and the conscquence was that Europe was spared the continuance of the painful scandal of witnessing the unjustifiable imprisonment of De Felice Giuffrida, Deputy for Catania, in the dungeon of the Mastia at Volterra, and the deprivation of the electorate of their municipal and communal rights. Numerous other political prisoners were released, the consequence being that the Radicals, who had fiercely opposed Crispi's rough-shod rule, were conciliated by Rudini's more merciful régime, and since then Italy has beheld the anomaly of a Conservative Ministry supported and maintained in power by a Liberal and Radical majority.

HIS LOVE OF MERCY.

to his study, where he works until the luncheon or late breakfast hour. The meal is succee led by an hour or two's work with his secretaries, or he will receive Ministers or give audiences, after which he often goes for

KING HUMBERT (AS CROWN PRINCE) IN 1873.

It is said to be largely due to King Humbert's personal intervention that this amnesty was conceded, and the effect on public opinion has been undoubtedly salutary. It was recognised more and more that the Sicilian risings were not due to Socialistic propaganda so much as to purely economic causes. One significant incident is that when the soldiery were ordered to fire upon the peasants who had risen against the extortionate demands of the local tax-gatherers, the poor Sicilians lifted up portraits of their King and Queen to shield them against the bullets, as a Palladium or relic too sacred for the military to fire upon! A pretty clear proof, one would venture to think, that these more than half-starved, ignorant peasants, misguided though they might be, were not all of them dangerous, anarchical and revolutionary desperadoes, as depicted by Signor Crispi in his famous speech in the Chamber of Deputies. A new Commissioner for Sicily has been appointed, and it is sincerely to be hoped that the obvious advantage of having one responsible Minister for the Ireland of Italy may conduce to some well-planned and efficacious measures for the regeneration of the island.

PERSONAL HABITS.

King Humbert's personal habits and tastes are simple and regular. He is an early riser, and is generally astir about 7 a.m. After a light breakfast with the Queen, he often takes a walk in the beautiful gardens of the Quirinal when in Rome, after which he betakes himself

notice any particular or those around him..

a drive, handling the ribbons himself in right good style. Dinner is often followed by a visit to the opera or a reception, but even then the King seldom goes to bed without an hour or more spent on his correspondence and papers.

THE KING AT A BLIND ASYLUM.

Here is a picture of the King at the opening of the new Institute for the Blind at Milan, as told by M. René Bazin, in his excellent little work, "Les Italiens d'Aujourd'hui " :-

The King arrived first from Monza, in a carriage and pair, nothing at all out of the common. He wore a great coat and a silk hat. As soon as the different personages had been presented, every one, at his command, put on their hats, and the King began to chat familiarly with the Milanese authoritics and the administrators of the new Institute, standing meanwhile in the centre of the vestibule, which received the gush of cold air from without. I didn't excessive empressement on the part of

He spoke to every one in short phrases, and in a low voice with a frequent, curious, upward jerk of the chin. His bearing is military, and one can guess from his appearance that he prefers to talk standing, with his chest well expanded, and making one or two steps forward now and then, a habit which he retains even during the Court receptions, and of which young diplomatists in particular never complain. His moustaches, though formidable, are less so than on the coinage, but his glance, somewhat astonishing in its fixity, has nothing harsh about it. The King has gained enormously in popularity since the cholera in Naples, and he feels it.

The arrival of the Queen is thus told:

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She has

A carriage and four with smart postillions dashed up to the steps. The Queen descended and passed in on the King's arm between the hedges of guests. She wore a Medici black velvet cape, a black velvet bonnet with large feathers, and a dark blue gown. The two hedges bowed, the Queen smiled, and, as every one knows, her smile is celebrated. lovely long golden eyelashes, which give a charm to her glance. M. Bazin seems to have been bored with the subsequent proceedings, which included an address, and music rendered by the blind pupils; but having had the pleasure ourselves of going over the very same establishment, presided over by that energetic friend of the blind, the Abbé Vitali (with whom King Humbert conversed, on the occasion described, with great animation), we cannot plead guilty to the same lack of interest in the institution and its work. We remember in particular the admirable singing of the blind damsels in that graceful spinning chorus from "The Flying Dutchman," and the capital industrial work turned out in the workshops by the adult pupils.

THE KING AMONG THE PEOPLE.

M. Bazin's further remarks are, however, worth noting:

In Paris for a Negro Prince, Worth and Félix would have

been besieged; here every one came dressed quite plainly. The greater part of the men present wore only round hats, though at the evening receptions all changes as by enchantment, and under the glitter and glare of torches and lamplight the greatest luxury in toilettes and jewellery may be seen. One more thing astonished me, namely, the almost entire absence of uniforms, of barriers, and of palice. The white plumes of an aide-de-camp were visible waving here and there above the various groups, and a questorino with belted blue tunic asked people to make way for the King and Queen, otherwise the sovereigns seemed unguarded. One could approach them easily, as they were surrounded with people just as in any saloon where all the guests are known to or intimate with one another.

Meanwhile the King chatted resignedly with various personages. All Italians live on this footing of familiar diplomacy. I was told that in Genoa during the centenary of Columbus, the small steam launch of the King was surrounded by boats full of common people, and that sometimes one or other of the poorer classes, otherwise quite unknown to the King, would touch his arm or his shoulder, saying: Buona sera, Maestà!

I had scarcely got nearer home when the Queen's carriage passed me, the four horses snorting and shaking their bells. All the cabs stopped and ranged up alongside of the road, almost all the shopmen, paviors, and coachmen raised their hats and caps, but no one called out. And when I expressed my astonishment I was answered with," We are monarchists here, but not courtiers!"

Although in some respects King Humbert bears a decided resemblance to his father, he has not the same robust constitution, though he has, of course, grown stronger and stouter than when a young man. Smoking was a favourite practice with Humbert, and at one time he carried this to excess; but on his doctor prescribing abandonment of the habit he gave it up for good, and has never reverted to it.

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The Queen was anxious that her husband should follow the example of his father and the fashion common among elderly Piedmontese officers, and dye his hair. Her pleadings were in vain. Umberto's is an honest nature that does not love these subterfuges. Seeing entreaty was in vain, the Queen had recourse to stratagem. She caused a quantity of fine hair-dye to be sent from Paris and put in the King's dressing-room, together with directions for its use, making, however, no allusion to the subject. The King too said nothing, though.e could not fail to see the pigments. Now, the Queen has a large white poodle, of which she is very fond. What was her horror a few days later to see her pet come running into her room with his snowy locks all turned to a jet black. King Umberto had expended the dyes upon changing the colour of the poodle's hair! From that day forth the subject of hair-dye was dropped between the royal couple.

THE QUEEN.

Queen Margherita since her accession to the throne has more than justified the favourable anticipations formed of her. She then assumed her full position, and her grace, beauty, and winning ways have undoubtedly charmed all brought in contact with her. She is said to have been at first excessively fond of dress, and to have perhaps not sufficiently set the example of simplicity in Italian society. When quite young she was thin and delicate, but since then has grown stouter -possibly since she has given up, to some extent, her favourite pastime of mountain climbing. Queen Margherita is said to be well acquainted with German

and Italian literature, and like so many of her countrywomen, to be a good musician and vocalist, and her receptions are noticeable, not only for the clever people one meets, but also for the absence of that excess of ceremonial and constraint observable in other royal circles. Informal receptions are held on Sunday evenings, which all those having the entrée and the standing of personal friends are free to attend, and the relish of the King and Queen for all the current chit-chat and their familiarity with the up-to-date gossip about their neighbours are surprising. The following description of the Queen's private sitting-room throws light on her tastes:

Books in many languages and on varied subjects not only fill the bookcases, but strew the chairs and tables, showing they are really used; stacks of music abound; fancy-work, finished and in course of making, meets the eye at every turn -for the Queen puts to good use the few hours she can call her own-and her quick intelligence and tenacious memory allow her to make the most of her reading.

THE COURT AT THE QUIRINAL.

The Quirinal Palace at Rome is the royal residence during the Parliamentary Session, which begins in November. It occupies a commanding position on a hill 150 feet in height, but is not quite an ideal palace, having been built by three popes for different purposes. The garden laid out in 1627 by Pope Barberini is exquisite. The best room is the Paolino Chapel, but it cannot be used, as the Pope persistently refuses to let divine service be performed there. The royal speech on the opening of Parliament is delivered by King Humbert in person, and we may take the opening of the Chamber in 1894 as a typical scene. The Queen drives from the palace in a state coach drawn by six bay horses, and is received at Montecitorio by the Committee of the Senate and Chamber deputed for the purpose. The King arrives later with equal state. He and his consort are escorted to the thrones erected in the spacious amplitheatre and take their seats, surrounded by the Crown Prince of Naples, the Count of Turin, the Duke of Aosta, the Duke of Genoa, and all the Ministers. The diplomatic corps in their rich and varied uniforms form a striking feature of the brilliant scene. Emile Zola and his wife (the famous novelist was then collecting material for part of his trilogy "Paris-LourdesRome") occupied a box just opposite the throne, and were the objects of universal attention. At half-past eleven, after delivery of the Speech, the royal party returned to the Palace.

HUMBERT THE HUNTER.

The King possesses a large number of royal establishments and properties, which cost him a great deal to keep up. These consist of no fewer than fourteen palaces and villas and five domains, chiefly scattered over northern Italy, while one, the Abbaye de Hautecombe, on the picturesque shores of Lake Bourget, near Aix-les-Bains, is situated in a sort of enclave in French territory. Several ancestors of the House of Savoy are here buried. In the Gran Paradiso six hundred ibex or bouquetins are preserved, and in the Castel Porziano domain there are a great many fine specimens of the American elk, specially imported from the Yellowstone Range in the United States. Humbert is devoted to sport, especially mountaineering sport, and one of his favourite occupations has been to go on shooting expeditions into the Piedmontese mountains, where he is quite content to put up with the roughest shelter and subsist on ordinary peasants' food. His indifference to changes

of weather is well known; rain, snow, and the Italian sun are all alike to him, a contempt of the elements which his friends and suite find it very trying to emulate. He is also an excellent horseman, and is said to keep about three hundred horses altogether, selected from the best breeds of various countries, in a fine range of stables built by Victor Emmanuel at the Quirinal, and in his stud farm in the country.

MONZA.

Monza, the ancient capital of the Lombards, and at present the summer and autumn retreat of the King and Queen, is situated in a fertile and prosperous plain, close to the southern slopes of the Alps and about nine miles north of Milan. Its antiquity may be gauged from the fact that the cathedral of St. John the Baptist (see illustration) was founded by Queen Theodolinda, one of the earliest Lombard sovereigns, in the sixth century. The original

iron crown of Lombardy, said to be hammered out of a nail of the true cross, is there preserved in a casket. The crown is of pure gold, with twenty-two precious stones set therein, the iron portion, which gives the name, consisting of a thin circlet in the interior. Along the narrow, cobblestone paved streets of this picturesque little town, according to the correspondent of an Italian paper, King Humbert may often be seen driving at a quick rattle a small low coun

of agriculture, Italian farming, the rotation of crops and kindred questions, is said to be quite remarkable. The stables are his special care, and he is well up in the breeding and care of horses.

ITS PARK.

The park at Monza, one of the largest in Italy, is between seven and eight miles in circumference, and beautifully diversified, being laid out in ornamental slopes, rising grounds and dells, interspersed with grottoes, lakes, and fountains. It was originally planned and laid out by Eugene Beauharnais, Viceroy of Italy under the first Napoleon. Five gates give access thereto, and a few picturesque villas and chalets are dotted about. It has a characteristically English appearance, and is traversed by the placid stream of the Lambro, which is shaded by some fine trees, larger than the generality of those seen in Lonbardy.

THE CHURCH OF SAN GIOVANNI BATTISTA AT MONZA.

try cart, not unlike in general construction those affected by our London costermongers, but lighter and smarter in appearance. The Castle of Monza, or Villa Reale, as it is popularly called, is approached through an avenue of trees which connects it with the Communal Palace, a brick structure built in the early Lombardo-Gothic style of architecture on the site of a palace of King Theodoric. The castle was erected in 1777 by the Archduke Ferdinand, son of Maria Theresa of Austria, while Governor of the Austrian Province of Lombardy. The architect was Piermarini, the designer of the great theatre of La Scala at Milan. The living-rooms of the King and Queen are simply furnished, though with decided taste and elegance. On the walls are to be seen choice works by modern Italian artists, the royal couple being great picture buyers, though King Humbert modestly disclaims all critical knowledge of art. As he possesses no villa at Rome, the King devotes himself with all the more zest to the embellishment and improvement of his Monza property, and his knowledge

Hither King Humbert

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his consort repair as soon as the Italian Parliament is prorogued, generally about the middle of July, by which time the Eternal City usually becomes intolerably hot and trying. Until late in the autumn the King and Queen abide in their beloved Monza, and the Quirinal remains empty, while messengers flit backwards and forwards between the capital and the Lombardian villegiatura. In his private life Humbert is said to be most unaffected and

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