The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1859-06-14 00:00:00

Court Nis.

HER MAJESTY'S STATE BALL—The Queen gave on
Wednesday evening a State Ball, to which a party of
1.110) were invited. Earl De La Warr, Lord Chamber-
lain, and the other officers of State, conducted the Queen
and Prince Consort to the Ball and Concert Room.
Her Majesty and his Royal Highness were accompanied
by the Princess Alice, the Duchess and the Princess
Mary of Cambridge, the Duke of Cambridge, Prince
Frederick of Holstein, and the Maharajah Dhuleep
Singh. The Queen were a dress of yellow tulle over
yellow silk, trimmed with white blond and red ceme-
nting, and ornamented with diamonds. Her Majesty's
head-dress was a circlet of diamonds and Jed carnations,
to correspond. The Princess Alice wore a dress of white
glace silk, with festoons of white tulle, tastefully trimmed
with bunches of lilies of the valley and pink roses. The
Princess wore a wreath of lilies of the valley and pink
roses as ahead-dress. The Duchess of Cambridge wore
a mauve glace silk dress with double skirt, trimmed with
Honiton lace. The stomacher and necklace of diamonds.
Her Royal Highness's head-dress was composed of a tiara
of diamonds and white feathers. The Princess Mary of
Cambridge wore a double skirted white tulle dress richly
trimmed, with pink riband, inossrose buds, and long
grass, the corsage trimmed to match with an emerald
and diamond stomacher. The necklace and earrings of
emeralds and diamoads. The Princess's head-dress was
formed of a tiara of diamond stars, entwined with rose
buds and hing grass. Soon after the entradice of the
Royal party and the company the ball commenced ; the
tin:ell-ilk band of Messrs. Coote and Tinney performed a
selection of dance music from the works of Strauss,
D'Albert, Gung'l, and the Hon. C. H. Lindsay.
The Court went into mourning, for ten days, for the
late King of Naples on Thursday last.
DISTRIBUTION Or THE VICTORIA CROSS. Her
Majesty the Queen distributed the Victoria Cross at 11
o'clock on Wednesday morning within the quadrangle
of Buckingham Palace. A detachment of gig companies
of the Grenadier and Coldstream Regiments of Foot
Gaards lined three sides of the quadrangle, and were
co 11111 l ended by Colonel Lewis. Field Officer in Brigade
Waiting. The band of the Coldstream Guard* was on
duty. The Queen and Prince Consort entered the apace
formed by the troops. His Royal Highness the Duke
of Cambridge, General Commanding in Chief, and
Major.l;eneral Peel, Secretary of State for War, stood
on Her Majesty's right. The Queen placed the Victoria
Cross, suspended from a red ribaml, on the left breast of
each officer and soldier. Their Royal Highnesses Prince
Arthur, Prince Leopold. the Princesses Alice, Helena,
Louisa, and Beatrice, with the ladies of the Court, wit.
noised the ceremony. After the investiture the Queen
and Prince Consort. accompanied by the Doke of Cane
bride. passed to the middle of the south side of the
quadrangle. the band occupying the centre of the
spittle. The troops then marched past in slow and
quick time. and afterwards quitted the Palace, the band
playing " See the Conquering Hero comes."
His Royal Highness the Prince Consort presided at a
meeting of the Finance Committee of Her Majesty's
Conunissioners for the Exhibition of 1851, held on
Thursday morning at Buckingham Palace. The other
members present were Karl Granville, Lord Oyerstone,
the Right Hon. If. Labouchere, M.P.. the Right Hon.
\V. E. Gladstone, M.P., the Right Hon. C. It. Adder-
ley, M.P., Sir A. Spearman. Bart., Sir William Cubitt,
Mr. Thomas Baring. M. P., Mr. Coulson, Q C., and Mr.
T. F. Gibson. Mr. Edgar Bowring, Secretary to the
Royal Commission, was in attendance. The meeting
broke up at 2 o'clock.
Her Majesty's Royal Ynelit Victoria and Albert 'ar-
rived at Portimotith early Monday morning main Ant-
werp with one engine disabled from the ship getting
onshore.