Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1884-01-14
miscellaneous.
A Queens Busy Life.

rev DtDplt ruspttt WHat oeO 81
engagements have to be made when Queen
Victoria goes on a journey. says the Mod
ern Age. To keep her secure from harm
within her own residence, requires no lit
tie alertness, but when the QNeen travels
from London to Barmoral-a distance of
about $50 miles, which takes nineteen
hours to perform-hundreds Of men, rail-
way employees. policemen and other Off
Gals have to be told off for special duty
and scores of trains carrying passengers
or freight are delayed in their progress.
The lines of rail on which the Gar jour-
neys bristle with soldiers; and, during the
King Of SPANS late voyage to Estrama-
dura one heard Of whole regiments being
modified to form cordons along the pas
sage Of the royal train; even NJ. Grevy,
when he goes from Paris to his seat at
Montsous Vaudrey, is reminded of his
greatness and its dangers by attachments
of mounted geudarmes. and by sentries
with fixed bayonets in every station. In
England there is nothing of all this; the
Queen has no military guard or escort. and
yet all the measures for her protection are
admirably complete. A pilot engine pre-
cedes the royal train by twelve miles. and
for half an hour before it passes all traffic
on both tracks along its route is suspended.
There is no resumption of the traffic at the
different stations until quarter of an
hour after the Queens own train has
gene by them. and. during this time, dan
ger signals are exhibited at all these sta.
tons. Moreover. every grade crossing
has its gate locked and guarded: the
switches have all been safely locked. and
men are posted along the lines to see that
by no chance any human being or ami
NAL strays on to them.
In the royal train itself there are two
.look OUT men besides the ordinary
guard. One of them stands on the engine
and faces the rear OF the train to watch
for signals from-anv of the windows: the
other is stationed in the guards van, aud
keeps his eye on the track behind the train.
An electric apparatus connects all the car
riages with the engine and guards van !;
and three telegraph operators travel in
one of the compartments with appliances
for repairing the wires on the road if. in
the event of an accident. these wires
should be found damaged. Finally. Di-
rector OF the Northwestern Company goes
with the train. and is supposed to have
charge OF it-a necessary precaution, for
il anything went wrong it would be de-
sirable that an official should be on the
spot with powers to issue orders to all
railway servants in the name of the com
pany No capricious. unsocial feeling on
the Queens part dictates the arrange
ments made to secure full privacy during
her travels.
When she is in good health it is neces-
sary that she should travel in such way
that no inroads be made on the time which
she devotes TO business There is not a
lady in her dominions so constantly oc-
cupied as she; and she can only transact
public and private affairs tn her satisfsc-
ton by never allowing yesterdayss bust.
ness to overlap to-day's. Every morning
while Parliament sits. and twice q week al
other times. she receives a report on the
general state of affairs from the Prime
Minister, who writes in the third person.
MIR. Gladstone presents his duty to your
Majestv," etc; and these reports are al.
ways answered. Despatch boxes are
brought into the Queens train at all the
stopping stations while she travels. and
she dictates letters to one of her ladies as
the train hurries her along-these missives
being afterwards handed for registry and
copying to the Private Secretary.
SOpic> OF All uiSpatCneS sent out from
the foreign. colonial and India officers are
forwarded to her. and she reads through
the most important of them; she has also
to affix her signature to great many
papers every day. Formerly she signed
with her own hand, using quill pen, bu,
about Eve years ago she adopted stamp.
ing machine with facsimile OF
her signature. The only documents which
she signs now in writing are patents OF
creation of peers and knights Of
the different orders. The heaviest par
of the Queens correspondence. however,
consists in sending letters to the members
of her widely-scattered family in England
and abroad. Most Of the princes of Ger.
many are in some way her cousins or
nephews, and no marriage takes place be-
tween members Of the Protestant houses
without her being consulted a to the pre.
liminaries What is more. Queen Victoria
is often appealed to a. peace-maker in
princely quarrels, and the assistance which
she gives TO her ministers in this wav. a
regards their foreign policy. is perhaps
hardly realized The Queen writes letters
which her ministers, having the fear Of
Parliament before their eyes, could no,
always dare to write They must use cir
cumlocutory forms. whereas the Queen
can go straight to the point. and never
fails to do so when the occasion demsnds