Albert Edward's Expensive Joke

Albert Edward, prince of Wales, is perhaps the most popular man in Eugland. This popularity is due to his love of sports and all manly traits which are particular lycommendable in the eyes of the average Britisher. As a youth his audacity and appreciátion of a joke, either us a parpetrator or victini, were well known. One of his early escapades resulted in her majesty the que en footing a bilí for broken crockery and wrecked furniture which the yOng prince caused in the house of one of the lesser menibers of the nobility. A rather elderly countess whose quick temper and sharp tongue drove even her servants away from her advertised for a footman. The prince, to whose ears tales" of the peculiarities of the old lady had come, resolved to teach her a lesson. He therefore presented himself in disguise at her ladyship's house and applied for the position of footman. The countess had just finished her breakfast, and pushing her chair back from the table iustrncted the servant to bring beïore her the applicant. The prince was thereupon ushered into the room. The couutess looked him over from his feet up. Apparently pleased with the appearance of the prince, she said, "Let me see you walk. ' ' Albert Edward did as commanded and walked backward and forward several times across the floor from one end of the room to the other, now wálking briskly at the request of the old lady and then pacing slowly, as she wished to obtain points on this soore. This performance over, the countess ordered him to trot. The dining room still the theater of aotion, the prinoe trotted around it several times. When this exercise was completed, he again carne to a standstill near the head of the table, where the countess was seated. Hef ladyship seemed pleased and was just on the point of asklug the young man some questions about himself when he shouted : "Now see me gallop!" Grasping a corner of the tablecloth firmly in one hand, the prince rushed aronnd the room, puiling the crockery off on the floor in a heap, knocking over the furniture and finally winding her ladyship up in the folds of the cloth. He then bolted for the door, leaving the countess sputtering and shouting and the servants running abont in a distracted way to libérate their mistress and quiet her rage. In the hubbub and confusión the prinïe escaped. The next day a check from the keeper of the privy purse settled the ainount of the damages and likewise established the ideutity of the mischief