St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1884-03-27
CETEWAYO,
Interesting "Reminiscences Of the South
african King.

Interesting "reminiscences of the South
african King.
''We are both alike" said the late lamen-
| ted Cetewayo of Queen Victoria. Credit,
Cetewayo could not understand, and he car
| cried his aversion to accounts to such an ex-
tent that he refused even to allow two items
of his purchases to be included in the same
bill. Every article that he bought he insisted
upon paying for separately; partially, Of
course, this was due to his ignorance Of
arithmetic. In the establishment of the Lon
don cheap store that which most interested
the king were the mechanical toys, and there
was no limit to his admiration of the talking
dolls, the walking foxes, the growing cocks,
and the little hen which occasionally stopped
to lay an egg. But that which touched Cete-
wayo's sense of humor more than anything
else was a life-size figure of frog seated on
stool and feeding juvenile frog upon its
knee with ladle out of large bowl that
stood near by. Among the articles of wear
ing apparel which impressed him most were
fur mantles and the long gauntleted gloves
worn by ladies. AS a customer, Cetawayo
bought French prints for each of his twenty
five wives, and a large quantity OF beads,
chiefly those of gold, yellow, scarlet color.
They were for the use of his household in
making beadwork. Unlike the pitman's
wife, who liked none of your gaudy colors,
but expressed preference for plain red and
| yellow, Cetawayo's taste in the matter of
colors was very subdued. He was most de-
| lighted with pattern which showed little
rose ON black ground, or pink flower on
a chocolate ground.
| His untutored mind succumbed, however,
| to the garish charms of satin brocatelle,
which has crimson ground, with a gold
border Among the other articles which he
| bought was high silk hat His only head
gear when he arrived in England was mill
tary forage cap but he refused to go and see
! the queen at Osborne in anything but high
| silk hat, so speedily were the uses of clYiliza-
| ton grated upon the savage mind. The
| difficulty of making a hat for Cetewayo was
was very great, owing to the fact that he al
ways carried wedding ring upon his head.
| A Zulu wedding ring is a cord covered with
| gum, thickened with ashes. This is fixed
round the head at marriage, and worn until
death. Nothing, however, being impossible,
! a silk hat of the most abnormal proportions
ever witnessed in England was turned out
half an hour before the train left for Os-
| borne. In diet Cetewayo was very particu-
| lar. NO Otner klnu OF meat imam peel was
ever eaten by him, and he was obliged to de-
cline the gift of venison sent him by Lady
Florence Dixie. His beef was grilied in
humps; black outside and raw inside. HI
always dined in the following order: First lie
ate his beef, then his bread, afterward his po'
tatoes, and last of all he finished up with
champagne or whisky. Cetewayo's habits
were very regular. He usually rose at and
went to bed at 10; and one part of his time
every day was devoted to gloating over the
presents which he received, and they were
| both numerous and valuable.