The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-01-22
patsca, which implies expression ana sweetness Of

patsca, which implies expression ana sweetness Of
disposition. ID NJ .i.l. I.. I.lt NIa. aII
The announcement of 800
m THE ROYAL BIrRoTHAL
was most sympatheticaLy received at st. Peters
burg botn on account OF the sincere interest felt
In the amisble Princess and also as an earnest Of
good relations between tho two countries to
whom the afnanced belong. Princess Maria Alex
sndrovna IL Honorary Colonel Of the hamburg
regiment Of Uhlans, ana her photograph in the
uniform Of this gallant troop, czapka on head
with the white sultana gracefully hanging down,
certainly makes ner the most charming ofrlcer In
the service OF all the Russias. Her Maesty's
arrival In the Russian capital would be ap-
prectated as one OF the most gratifying
events In the history Of the Court, and perhaps
even OF the country It Ia believed In Russia that
Count Chouvalon, when he visited England few
months ago in order to arrange the Asiatic
difnculty, was ct the same time commissioned
to settle certain preliminary questions incidental
to the matrimonial project recently announced
Unfortunately Count Chouvalor was pre-
vented from attending the betrothal at Heiligen-
berg Castle, his father having died suddenly at
Carlsbad, and the duty devolvtng upon the son Of
conveying the remains to the family estate Of Art-
maya, on the Finnish frontier.
The union, It may be fairly said, offers .l
EVERY REASONABLE PROSPECT OP HAPPINESS.
The Princess, we are given to understand, will re-
tain the fatth-tnat OF the orthodox Greek Church
in which she has been born and bred; but the
children OF the royal pair II their union should be
blessed with ospring, WILL it Is stated, be brought
up in the Protestant creed Of this country. In
point OF rank and station the Prince and Princess
viii stand upon an equal footing, and both Russia
and England will have Just cause to be proud Of
ho linn ptroot bw<
members Of their reigning dynasties 80 speak
frst Of the BRIDE she is the daughter OF the Gear
OF all the Russias, the sister Of the Czarowitz des-
tined day, according to the ordinary probabili-
ties Of life, to ascend the throne OF Russia as
Alexander Ill. AS to the royal bridegroom, apart
from his rank as prince OF the blood royal of Eng
land, he is the heir to the dukedom Of Coburg,
the brother-in-law Of the Crown Prince Of Ger.
many and Of Prince Louis Of Hesse, and both bride
and bridegroom are connected by kindred family
tie Of almost blood relationship with the Crown
Prince OF Denmark and the King of Greece. In the
whole "Almanach de Gotha" there Will not be
found the names OF any royal couple entitled to
claim kinshipr with 30 many ana so power
full sovereigns. In these democratic days the
dignity Of royal dynasties depends rather on the
magnitude OF their possessions and on the great
ness OF their power than ON the antiquity Of their
lineage. The Guelphs, 1t is true, were sovereign
princes centuries before
r. THE ROMANoFFs
were heard Of IN the ranks of royalty, and the
Prince, as the son Of Queen Victoria, stands in
the succession to q throne which was great and
powerful for hundreds OF years before Russia
emerged from barbarian. On the other hand,
the Emperor Of Russia may fairly claim to be
the equal Of any European sovereign in rank
and dignity; and the children OF this Anglo-Ru
sian union may justly boast hereafter with equal
pride that their father was Q son OF England and
their mother daughter Of Russia. We have
no doubt that the royal marriage win
give rise upon the Continent to any
number Of ingenious rumors OF inter-
national alliances and secret compacts.
But we are convinced that the union between the
houses OF Romanon and Guelph possesses" to use
the stereotyped phrase, "no political sgnincance.n
II the real or supposed interests Of the two en-
pires of England and Russia should ever come into
collision the natural policy Of the governments
OF London and st. Petersburg Is not likely to
be affected by the fact that an English Prince is
the son-in-law Of the Gar or a Muscovite Princess
the daughter-m law Of the Queen. The tie uniting
she Hohenzollerns and the RomanoHs ia far closer
than that which will henceforth bind the English
royal family to that Of Russia; and yet this con-
nection has hndered either Prussia or Russia
from pursuing its own objects, without regard to
the wishes or interests Of the State with which 1t
had these close bonds OF family kinsnip. Yet, In q
sense apart from and higher than all diplomatic
action, this marriage does we think, symbolic the
growing connection between Great Britain and
Russia After all, with the possible ana doubtful
exception OF China, the empires ruled over by
Queen Victoria and the Emperor Alexander are
the greatest States tn the world.
GORGEOUS PRESENT. gto sfro
A large silver gilt plateau was made at Wolver-
hampton in preparation for the marriage OF the
Duke Of Edinburgh. 1t presents the appearance Of
Q model of the Coliseum, and is surmounted by or.
naments after the manner Of pinnaces. It Is sur
rounded at the base BY bouquet holders and parian
ngures Of the seasons. bearing fruit stands. II
stands sixteen inches Ia over two feet in diameter
at the apex and weighs eighty -four pounds. The
height to the top Of the cake when on the plateau
will be nine feet.
THE MARRIAGE CEREMONY IN AIT.
There L. likely to be some permanent visible
record OF the splendid ceremonias, as Mr.. Cheva-
her, the artist who accompanied the Duke of Edin-
burgh round the world and the Prince OF Wales to
Vienna, has been commissioned to paint three
pictures Of the wedding-one for the Queen. one
for the Prince OF Wales and one for the BRIDE
groom himself These commissions are the result
Of the satisfaction which the artist has given by
his pictures Of the National THANKSGIVING Day,
painted for the Queen.
THE VILE DU HAVRE.