Show NEW SWEDISH KING GUSTAF A PLEASING BLEND OF DEMOCRAT AND ARISTOCRAT Applies Himself with Great Diligence to Tasks of Administering Government Gov-ernment Not a Soldier by Nature Stockholm Swedens new King Gustaf Is proving n worthy heir to the great traditions running back not only to his own martial ancestor Dor I nadotte but to those which go back toils to-ils countrys great hero his own namesake and ho Is meeting his great responsibilities with nn earnest ness history has only In notable Instances in-stances associated with kingship A correspondent who recently Interviewed Inter-viewed the king In his working quarters quar-ters found him not only busily engaged en-gaged but devoting very serious attention atten-tion to tho numerous matters of state brought before him for Gustaf has come to tho throne at a crisis In tho history of Scandanavla due to the secession of Norway awakening slum boring antagonisms and rousing a new spirit In the people The king Is conscious con-scious of these dangers for his interest Inter-est In politics has been always keen and personal and ho brings to thom a trained mind and a sympathetic understanding un-derstanding The king still occupies the apartments apart-ments of the crown prince and they are small enough to maim ono reflect how little of a royal palace as of a royal life Is at tho exclusive disposal of a monarch They are working quarters too Messengers come and po telegrams and letters arrive min isters nnd officers In uniform pass to and fro stewards and chamberlains hurry from one placo to another and the telephone works hard Tho small low ceiling room Is as busy as a stockbrokers stock-brokers office If King Gustaf Is a descendant of ono of Napoleons marshals ho Is none the less Swedish for his French descent de-scent Ho has assimilated the character char-acter of the race he governs Like the of r VH King Gustaf Swedes he Is a pleasing blend of aristocrat aris-tocrat and democrat His family might be called In evidence of tho democratic strain for of his brothers ono Is a doctor and another nn artist i and neither can be styled amateur But this proof of atavism Is not needed if ono talks with his majesty Ills attitude at-titude toward life Is frankly democratic demo-cratic tempered perhaps with a vein of sadness that may be born of the moment Qustaf Is not considered to be a sol tiler though the descendant of ono of Napoleons great marshals and ruler of a land made glorious by tho martini deeds of Gustavus Adolphus That he lacks this particular capacity Is not duo to a lack of courage Those who know him best declare that If war menaced his country he would place himself at the head of the army as readily and as confidently as ho assumes as-sumes the government Officers do not hesitate to declare that had Gustaf been king In 1905 tho preparations of tho headquarter staff would not havo been In vain and the kingdom would not have been divided Happily tho danger of war has ceased to bo Imminent Im-minent and tho energies of both countries coun-tries are turned to peaceful rivalries If not a soldier his i ujcsty In at any rate a sportsman He rides like a centaur Is a crack shot and plays tennis like a Doherty Some of his subjects hint that It would be more In keeping with tho dignity of his position posi-tion If he played tennis only with his courtiers They forget that tho true sportsman is tho true democrat and that sportoven tho sport of kings Is not only a bond but a leveler To these exercises and to music of which also ho is a devotee his majesty majes-ty will have little time to give Tho duties of king In Sweden aro no sinecure sine-cure Ho must preside over every council of state and Is responsible for every act of administration Somo people consider him Impatient or discussion dis-cussion and detail but those who know him best declare him to bo the embodiment of steady endurance Ills courtesy and good nature are inexhaustible inex-haustible |