y of the Prussian royal house.

Countess Brockdorff is a most able woman. I grew to have not only
a great respect, but almost an affection for her. At court
functions she usually wears a mantilla as a distinguished mark
and several orders and decorations. We had three women friends
from America with us in Berlin whom we presented at Court. All
were married, but only the husband of one of them could leave his
work and visit Germany. The two other husbands, in accordance
with the good American custom, were at work in America. Countess
Brockdorff spoke to the lady whose husband was with her, saying
to her, "I am glad to see that your husband is with you," an
implied rebuke to the other ladies and an exhibition of that
failure to understand other nations so characteristic of highly
placed Germans. With us, of course, a good-natured American
husband, wedded as much to his business as to his wife, permits
his wife to travel abroad without him and neither he nor she is
reproved in America because of this.

Among the other ladies attendant on the Empress are Fraeulein von
Gersdorff, whose cousin is a lawyer practising in New York, and
Countess Keller. There are other ladies and a number of maids of
honour and all of them are overworked, acting as secretaries,
answering letters and attending various charitable and other
functions, either with the Empress or representing her. One of
the charming maids of honour, Countess Bassewitz, was married
during the war to Prince Oscar, the Kaiser's fifth son. This
marriage was morganatic, that is, the lady does not take the
name, rank and title of her husband. In this case another title
was given her, that of Countess Ruppin, and her sons will be
known as Counts Ruppin, but will not be Princes of Prussia.

There is much misunderstanding in America as to these morganatic
marriages. By the rules of many royal and princely houses, a
member of the house cannot marry a woman not of equal rank and
give her his name, titles and rank. But the marriage is in all
other respects perfectly legal. The ceremony is performed in
accordance with Prussian law, before a civil magistrate and also
in a church, and should the husband attempt to marry again he
would be guilty of bigamy.

I gave away the bride at one of these morganatic marriages, when
Prince Christian of Hesse married Miss Elizabeth Reid-Rogers, a
daughter of Richard Reid Rogers, a lawyer of New York. Prince
Christian has an extremely remo