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228 MY TRANSFER TO STOCKHOLM [ch. xiv.
Emperor’s suite, who shortly before had been speaking
of Dumbadze with sympathy and respect, were one and
all laughing at the Oriental methods of administration
of the prefect of Yalta, at his love of fine speeches and
his other little weaknesses.
The Empress could not recover from the blow to
her dearest feelings; she ceased to receive and to show
herself in public ; one only saw her occasionally driving
in a closed motor with her daughters, with a set and
sad expression on her face.
In spite of all this tribulation, a few days after my
arrival at Yalta I asked the Court Minister, Count
Fredericsz, to obtain an audience of His Majesty the
Emperor for me, and I soon received a command to
go to the Palace of Livadia1 on the 2nd (15th) December
at noon.
I arrived at the appointed hour at the new Palace of
Livadia, which I had not yet seen, and then had to wait
for my audience for more than half an hour. The
Emperor, contrary to his usual habits, was late, as he was
out with his daughters. The Court lived most simply
at Livadia. The Palace did not possess any special
waiting-room, the aide-de-camp on duty usually
accompanied the Emperor in his walks. So I spent half an
hour in the prett}’ and fairly spacious hall of the Palace,
in the porter’s company {the Swiss as we still call him),
an old and friendly servant who questioned me with
great interest and some knowledge of the subject about
the events that had just occurred in Bulgaria. This
original colloquy between the porter and the Minister
Plenipotentiary (and yet foreigners dare to doubt our
democratic ways!) only ended with the arrival of the
Emperor, who begged me to follow him. His Majesty
received me graciously and addressed a few
commonplaces to me; " as to business," he added, " we will turn
to that after luncheon, we are rather late as it is."
1 During their Majesties’ stay at Livadia, persons of a certain rank
who went to see the Emperor, were invited at the close of their interview
to the family lunch.
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