The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1873-10-04
GLIMPSES OF ROYALTY.

pinned to know how the great live at court?
What rules regulate dress, receptions, and
other ceremonies, are a mystery to the
unnitiated. A writer in Lippincot's Mag
dzine shows that court life is no such mys-
terry after all. To be presented at court is
not in England necessarily social dis
tinctiou: " though say it is of but small
social advantage to an Englishman to be
presented, yet undoubtedly the greatest
people in the empire attend court, and are
to be seen at the ceremonials and fesitiv-
ties at Buckingham and St. James palaces.
At present the queen holds drawing rooms
and levees at Buckingham palace, and the
Prince of Wales at st. James palace. The
latter are attended only by gentlemen, and,
though not so grand as the queens, are
pleasanter. Trousers are allowed instead
of the knee breeches and stockings which
must be worn at all court ceremonialS
where there are ladies. At two o'clock
for the Prince is very punctual-the doors
Of the reception-room are thrown open,
and the displomatists begin to file in
First come the ambassadors. 1t must be
remembered that there is a wide difference
between an ambassador and an envoy or
minister plenipotentiary. The original
difference was that the ambassador was
supposed, by sort of transub-stantiation,
to represent the person of his sovereign
He had a right at any time to demand an
audience with the king. An envoy must
see the foreign secretary. This, of course,
has ceased to have any practical signif-
tions; and no doubt minister can at any
time demand an interview of the sovereign
1t is still true, however, that an ambassa-
dor is accredited to the king, while an
envoy is accredited to the foreign secre-
tary. Practically, the difference is that an
ambassador represents bigger country,
has better pay, lives in finer house, and
gives more parties and grander dinners.
An ambassador has precedence of every
body in the country in which he resides,
except the royal family.
"Behind each ambassador march the
secretaries of the embassy. After the am
bassadors come the ministers. The whole
diplomatic corps moves from an anteroom
into an apartment i'll which the Prince of
Wales awaits them. The prince and sew
eral of his brothers, his cousins, the Duke
of Cambridge, and the Prince of Teck,
stand up in a row like an old-fashioned
spelling class. Next to the prince, on his
right, stands Viscount Sidney, the lord
chamberlain, who calls off each detachment
as it Apprenticeship Austrian ambassa-
dor, the Spanish Minister the United
States minister etc. The prince shakes
hands with the head of the embassy or
mission, and bows to the secretaries
When the diplomatists, cabinet ministers,
and household officers have all made their
bow, it is the turn of British society. The
diplomatic circle, and such as have the
entree to it, remain in the room; the Eng
lishmen pass out. The lord chamberlain
in loud voice calls off the name of each
person as he appears, so that each conner
is, as it were, labelled and ticketed The
observer learns quite as much as if the lord
chamberlain was the verger and was show
ing off his collection.
GONE may often guess the rank or i'm
portance of the courter by the manner of
his reception. If he shakes hands with
the prince, you may know he is somebody;
if he shakes hands with all five or six of
the princes, you may know he is very
a wide berth, bows hastily and chances fur
lively at them, and runs by skittishly,
then you may know that he is some half
pay colonel or insignificant civil servant
length of time the lord chamberlain takes
to decipher the name of the conner on the
slip of paper which is handed him. If he
scans it long and hard, and holds it good
way from him and says, Major Te-e-e
-bosh-bow,' then in loud voice, Ma
jor Tebow,' you will be safe in thinking
that Major Tebow is not one of the great
est of warriors or largest of landed pro-
prietors.''
Every one who has read Barnum's &C
count of his visit to the queen has laughed
heartily over the description of his awk-
ward attempt to 6ack out of the royal pres
ence, after presentation. On that point
there is trife less rigor now: "The cere-
mony of a presentation to the queen is
quite the same as that at a Prince of
Wales levee. The spelling-class of royal
ladies stand up in rigid row. On the
queens right is the lord chamberlain, who
reads off the names. Next to the queen,
on her left, is Alexander, then the queens
daughters and the Princess Mary of Cam
bridge. Next to them stand the princes,
and the whole phalanx which stretches
entirely across the room. Behind this
line, drawn up in battle array, stand three
OF four ranks of court ladies.
"The act of presentation is very easy
and simple. Formerly-indeed, until
within few years-it must have been
very perilous and important feat. The
courtier the term is used inaccurately, but
goes to court for single time) was COM
PEELED to walk up a long room, and to back,
bowling out of the queens presence. Fer
ladies who had trails to manage the ordeal
must have been a trying one. Now it has
been made quite easy. There is but one
point in which presentation to the queen
differs from that already described at the
Prince of Wales levee. You may turn
your back to the prince, but after bowling
to the queen you step off into the crowd,
still facing her. There Gf you have had
the good luck to be presented in the diplo-
matte circle) you may stand and watch
most interesting pageant.
"The name of each is called out loudly
by the lord chamberlain: The Duchess of