New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-09-04
PRINCE or WALESs FEATHERs.

From The s. J0HncsS Gazette.
The oucin of the Prince of Wales's feathers Is
question which has led TO some lively discussions
Some years ago Mr. Taboys Wheeler announcel
that the royal plume Of three feathers of Mogd
origin. and probably very ancient. lie pointed out
that sir Thomas Roe. who was sent on a mission 70
India 10y King James l.. describes the plume Il
herons' feathers which was worn by the Mognl Eur
perors of Hindostan when they took the field: also
plume of three herons feathers which was worn ~
the Ottoman Porte. and explains that il had mill
tary meaning, and was a symbol of command On
taking the field the Ottoman Porte cave one of tha
feathers TO the Grand NiZer who was acknowle lodged
by the whole army as heir commander-in-chief.
In Il recent number of FrGseT's Mdga-ine the sub
jecr has been treated at length by Mir. ". Simpson
In the Santa Casa at Loretto he saw marble scup-
position as those borne by the Prince of Wales: and
he was told that II was the onbieRe MAGNITUDE OK
Lorenzo de Medici the father OF Leo y. At Athens
he saw a heel-plat- of q Turkish musket made OF
solid gold and profusely onamented, which had
been ished up after the battle Navarlno In boro
a representation OF two crowns, each surnounted by
a triple plume subsequently Mr.. Simpson was
presen: al "A meeting of the British Association held
AZ Alhoulh' Wheh paper was read by IrofesS0r
Beal on a soapstone image from Pekin. Over the
head of the image was the figure of descending
cove, ana thSrS was also dove on each side. Mr..
Beal believed that this figure represented the three
rays of the rising sun, and brought corroboTative
evidence from the Nedas, from Buddha's crown at
Ceylon, from Japan, and varions oher Eastern
countries. Above ALL he quoted the Prince of Wales
feathers, and showed, on Mr.. heeler's authority.
that II was an Eastern symbol. adding that The
Sanskrlt deryative of Ich dien' was not Il serve
but II shine"
We might add To the data furnished by Mr. Sim1-
son by stating that Nadr Shah. who during the
o al quarter of the eighteenth century conouerr!
Asia from Bagdad 10 Delhi wore three black hrrong
tea hers in his dIadem rs may Toe the frpnt-
lsplece Oh the second volume OF Jonas hanWays
history of the revolutions of Persia. Hanway ~.
marks that Nadlr Shah changed the feathers from
the left side 70 the right II 10 show that he
indebted Tor ms sovereignty 20 his own right arm
On the whole II appears most likely that the three
feathers belonging 10 the Persian. the Mogul Tho
Turk, are borrowed from the Old native worship
which finds expression i'm the Nedic HYMNS. and pre-
vailed throughout the greater part Ot Asia before
the advent of Buduha or Mahonct. They prob
AMY represent the three delties of fire. air and
water. According 10 Brahmanlcal teaching. all the
gods OF the universe were resolved into these thee
:uh'VpuohS' WIlcn IN thelr turn are SNmhohzed
into the three mystic letters A T. NJ which repres
ent the three m one. as the Idea OF supreme spl
who Is sometimes pcrsoniied is BTahma, sometimes
al lsliiu. anu sometimes a. silva.
Nh. Simpson points out anoi her fact i'm association
win tile rlhc' OF aleSs feathers. which nle> uD
an entirely ne" question. lie brings evidence 10
show that the first Prince Of Wales wore only tNO
feathers and not three; ana he Is inclined Think
though with some hesitation. that they are com
bination of the solar and lunar symbols. This con-
lecture, however, Will scarcely bear consideration
There is no symbol SIN any age or CLINE that sc
call 10 mind in which the sun and moon as
re prescnted by pair of pluIneS Again ina most
my thoosics, The sun and moon are used symbols
of the masculine ana feminine elements in mature:
and II i difficult To conceiVe thai s..Nal iasls
should bc represented 10y feathers. Ia the Ia
dllonS of the remote past the sun and moon a.c
symbols of the anragoniSm between Iran and
Iuran, the Persian and the Turk the children of the
sun and the children of the moon. The l. repre-
sented by "A solar disc or a peacock, while the moon
ical difference between the two must Ice
obvious To all. The use of these symbols b IS
lei 10 some unfortunate mistakes in modern times
Thus the little RaJah OF Mysorc, who is a feudatory
OF the British Crown, has been recently allowed 10
adopt the peacock as his inS gnia although The pea
cock s an assumption of sovereignty which belongs
oi right 90 the Empress of India and her Majesty
alone. The peacock Is the assertion Oi imperial
supremacy. IL was the insignia of the great HndOo
Empire OF NDayanagar, which, in the days of The
Plantagenets, covered the whole of Southern
lndla-the whole of what Is now known the
Madras Presidency. The peacock was also the M
sigma of the Mogal Emperors OF Hmdost3n. In
days gone by, the pcacock-throne Delhi WAS the
wonder OF the world, although historians have
sought To calculate the value OF the leWes of which
II was composed rather than 10 ascertain It's SYM
bohcal meaning. To this day the peacock Is the
emblem of sovereignty in BuTmah, rs well m
many parts of Mongolia aud Chlaa. A still more
curious blunder has been made regards The
and adopted as symbol of the Mahometan Te-
nglon, although all such images IN direct VIOLA
ton OF the law OF the Koran. The peacock and the
crescent, like the lion and the SUM- are maintained
"a symbols DY Mahometan princes. but never
theleSs the of all such symbols is strictly prOh
bited by the Prophet of Arabia The use of the term
crescentade Is thus mere ignorant pedantry.'
Dut, IN spite OF all that has been said abOnt ING
Eastern origin of the Prince of Waess feathers II
lis possible enough that the plumes capable oi
turned 10 his Capital after the invasion of India, 10
wore four plumes, TO represent Persia Turkesian
Afghanistan, and Hlndostan: thus ignoring al
esoteric meanings which might be associated with
the emblem. In like manner the Prince OF Wales
may have originally worn two feathers 10 represent
England and Wales and subsequently tn &c feathers
To represent Great Britain France and Ireland. IN
the present day the feather which once represented
France may perhaps be taken TO represent India, as
| II did In the days of Nadir Shah.