The King of Holland is sick unto death. He has
had a paralytic stroke, and although the latest accounts report him still alive, the physicians entertain no hope of his recovery. The event was, till lately, greatly dreaded in Holland, because with the King the direct male line of Orange-Nassau ends ; but it appears to be understood that a peaceful succession has been provided for. The King's daughter, Princess Wilhelmina, a child of eight years, suc- ceeds to the Throne of Holland under a Regency, and Luxem- burg passes away from the dynasty, falling to the mediatised Grand Duke of Nassau. This Prince, an unusually wealthy man, but otherwise undistinguished, has, it is reported, made his peace with the Hohenzollerns, and his son will be per- mitted to reign in the little Principality. The Dutch lose nothing by the transfer, but the Luxemburgers will have to sustain a Court, and will always be trembling for the privileges conferred by their neutrality. Neutrality is an admirable thing when it is the interest of Great Powers that it should be respected ; but when it is not, it is very apt to mean exposure to any enemy. We might fight for Holland or Belgium, and many Powers would fight for Switzerland, which, besides, has 200,000 riflemen and many mountains ; but who is to fight for Luxemburg, except the Power who would be attacked through it? We could not even get there.
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