say, while the correct substitutes for them only occurred to
him later. And thus it came about that a good deal of his intercourse
with humanity was limited to a pleasant expression of face, wearing
generally, especially when it smiled, a wistful note of interrogation.

To present this face to the public in the regulation doses which were
considered inducive to loyalty, he had sat thirty-nine times for his
portrait to popular rather than famous painters, and to commercially
successful photographers more times than any one could count. And
painters and photographers alike had agreed that he was a steady and a
patient sitter. They all liked him. He himself preferred the
photographers; they came more often but they took less time and did not
require the give-and-take of artificially made conversation. They were
also more amenable to criticism, and kept behind the scenes for
"touching-up" purposes wonderful anonymous artists who gave no trouble
whatever, requiring no sittings and yet producing results that for tact
and skill combined with accuracy could not be beaten. Occasionally,
after having sat for his portrait to one of the painters, the King was
advised to bestow on him a knighthood or an order. In his heart of
hearts he would have much preferred knighting a photographer; but for
some reason which was beyond him to discover this was not considered the
correct thing, and the knighthoods went accordingly to the people who
gave him the most trouble and the least satisfactory results.

It had never been the King's lot to be handsome; but now the approaches
of age were giving to his countenance a dignity which in youth it had
lacked. This was part and parcel of a certain mental obtuseness or
obstinacy: when his Majesty did not understand, majesty became sedentary
in his face. Often when it was the duty, or the device, of his
ministerial advisers to confuse his mind with explanatory details about
things which lay far beyond it, they would presently become aware that
he did not in the least understand what they were saying, or that such
understanding as he possessed at the beginning had become darkened by
judicious counsel. This stage of the reasoning process was marked by a
gentle access of majesty to the royal countenance; and when it appeared
ministers were informed that, for the time being, their object was
attained. When, however, the King did understand, or thought that he
did, he was less majestic and more troublesom