Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1879-09-07
Queen Ellzabeth's Dinner.

Atlantic for June.
I will close this portion Of our sketch
of English manners with an extract from
the travels of Hentzner, who visited Eng
land in 1893, and saw the great queen 20
in state to chape! at Greenwich, and after
wards witnessed the laying Of the table
for her dinner. 1t was OH Sunday. The
queen was then in her sixty fifth year,
and ''very majestic" as she walked in the
splendid procession Of barons, earls and
knights OF the garter: "her face, oblong,
fair, but wrinkled; her eyes small, vet
black and pleasant; her nose little
hooked; her lips narrow and her teeth
black "a defect the English seem subject
to from their great use Of sugar. She had
IN her ears two pearls with very rich
drops; she wore false hair, and that red !;
upon her head she had a small crown, re-
ported to be made of some of the gold of
the celebrated Lunebourg table. Her
bosom was uncovered, as all the English
ladies have it till they marry and she had
on necklace ofexceeding fine jewels; her
hands were small, her fingers long, and
her stature neither small nor low; her air
was stately, her mann n ofspeaking mild
and obliglng. That day she was dressed
in white silk, bordered with pearls of the
| size Of beans, and over it q
mantle Of black silk, shot with silver
threads; her train was very long, and the
end of it borne by marchioness; instead
of a chain she had an oblong collar of
gold and jewels" As she swept on in
this magniticence, she spoke graciously
first TO one, then to another, and ALWAYS
IN the language of any foreigner she ad-
dressed; whoever spoke to her kneeled,
and wherever she turned her face, as she
was going along, everybody fell down on
his knees. When che pulled off her glove
to give her hand to be kissed, it was seen
to be sparkling with rings and Jewels.
The ladies of the court, handsome and
well shaped, followed, dressed for the
most part in white; and on either side
she was guarded by fifty gentlemen pen
sioners, with gilt battle-axes. In the an.
te-chapel, where she graciously received
petitions, there was an acclaim of "Long
live Queen Elizabeth!' to whom she an
swered: II thank you, my good people, .
Tee music in the chapel was sexcellent
and the whole service was over in half an
hour. This is Hentzner's description of
the setting out of her table:
"a gentleman entered the room bear
ing rod, and along with him another
who had a table-cloth, which, after they
had both kneeled three times, he spread
upon the table. Then came two others,
one with rod again, the other with q
salt-cellar, plate and bread; and when
they had kneeled as the others had done,
and placed what was brought upon the ia
bic they two retired with the same cere-
monies performed by the first At last
came an unmarried lady 1--WE are told she
was courtesy and along with her mar
ried one, bearing tasting knife: the for
mer was dressed in white silk, who, when
she had Frustrated herself three times, in
the most graceful manner approached the
table, and rubbed the plates with bread
and salt, with as much awe as if the queen
had been present. When they had waited
there little while, the yeomen of the
Guard entered, bareheaded, clothed in
scarlet, with golden rose upon their
backs, bringing in at each turn course
Of twenty-four dishes, served in plate most
OF them gllt; these dishes were receiv ed
! by gentleman in the same order they
were brought, and placed upon the table,
while the lady faster gave to each of the
guard a mouthful to eat, of the particular
dish he had brought, for fear of any pol
son. During the time that this guard,
which consists of the tallest and stoutest
men that can he found in all England, be-
ing carefully selected for this service,
were bringing dinner, twelve trumpets
and two kettle drums made the hall ring
for half an hour together. At the end Of
all this ceremonial, a number of unmar-
RED ladies appeared, who with particular
solemnity lifted the meat off the table
and conveyed it into the queens inner
and most private chamber, where, after
she had chosen for herself, the rest goes
to the ladies' of the COURT
The queen dinned and supped alone
with very few attendants.