Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1873-02-22
THE COMING .SHiH

I
! Narraddeen Shah, sovereign of Persia,
purposes to visit Europe this year, and
is making up little purse cf $4,000,
900 for travelling expenses. He will be
accompanied by retinue of imposing
proportions, consisting of mollahs, as
trologers, peish khidncts, councillors,
interpreters, and the like, and there is
little doubt that his suite will make a
more gorgeous and meteoric display than
any royal retinue which has ever come
| in peace from the East to visit the ma
tons of the West. The Sultan, who is
in fact much more powerful ruler than
the Shah, lording it over larger terrific
res and more numerous subjects, WIS.,
tied Paris and London few years ago,
but he made no particular display. He
wore red skull cap, with a black tassel,
a plaid frock coat, and "eight and a
half Courvoisieur kids, took his cham
pagne like cocotte, and, in short, con-
Quoted himself much as any private
Turk on his travels might do. His divan
is rather nearer Europe and European
influences than the distant court of the
Shah and in visiting the West he sensi-
bly, adopted the simple usages prevail
ing among the people whom he visited.
This the Shah will in all likelihood not
do. He will come i'll full splendor; a
genuine Eastern monarch, like Timur, or
Togrul Beg. He is not a very rich king,
but he does not lack wardrobe nor rega-
liza. In fact the crown jewels of Persia
are said to be the finest in the world,
and the display on court days is some
thing unrivalled. Ker Porter says, de-
scribing the appearance and dress of the
predecessor of the present Shah on some
state occasion: "He was one blaze of
jewels, which dazzled the sight on first
looking at him. But the details of his
dress were these: A lofty tiara of three
elevations was ON his head, which shape
appears to have been peculiar to the
crown of the great King. 1t was entire
ly composed of thickly set diamonds,
pearls, rubies and emeralds, so exquis-
itely disposed as to form mixture of
the most beautiful colors in the brilliant
light reflected from it's surface. Several
black feathers like the heron plume were
jntermixed with the resplendent aigrettes
of this truly imperial diadem, whose
bending points We're furnished with
pear-formed pearls of an immense size.
The vesture was of gold tissue nearly
covered with similar disposition of
jewelry, and crossing the shoulders were
two strings of pearls, probably the
largest in the world. But for splendor
nothing could exceed the broad bracelet
round his arms and the belt which encir-
cled his waist. They actually blazed
like fire when the sun met them, and
when we knew the name derived from
such excessive luster we cannot be sur
prised at seeing such an effect. The
jeweled band on the right arm was called
the mountain of light, and that on the
left the sea of light" MI. A. H. Noun
sey, recent traveller to Persia, describes
the state attire of the present Shah in
terms of similar gorgeousness, though
he states, oddly enough, that the kingly
hands were covered with pair of cot
ton gloves of an ugly brown color, and
that the cushion of the throne, a fabric
of sandal wood, studded with priceless
emeralds, was covered with Manchester
chintz wort about pence per yard.