The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1885-08-01
PRESENTED AT COURT.
"A Woman's Story of IA Presentation at Il
Royal Drawing Room.

"A Wnman's Story of IA Presentation at a
Royal Drawing Room.
From he Christian Union
DO you think you can go to "draw-
lng-room" without learning how to
make a proper reverence? No, in
deed ! You must 60 to coy little
house IN the West End, where a very
elegant and quaint little old French
lady will show you all you have to do,
for guinea lesson, and then on the
afternoon before the great day you 60
to see the lady who is to present you,
to get the important tickets, and to re-
ceiye explicit instructions as to your
line of conduct for, as the lady be-
longs to the diplomatic circle, she will
be in the room with her royal high
ness, and you must enter alone. At
her house you meet some gentlemen,
and one tells you that when he was
presented was the only moment in his
life that he has known what fear was.
and that he was in agony lest he should
trip over his sword and you think of
your three or four yards of train, and
you are sure that will be much worse
than a sword And another tells you
that the young ladies usually are white
and trembling with fear, and that often
they make a terrible fiasco; they tell
you of one poor unfortunate who, in
stead OF kissing the Queens hand
when it was extended to her, shook it
vigorously, and then realizing what she
had done, lost her head completely,
and, forgetting all the great line of
personages, turned her back and in.
continently fled.
By the time you leave your instruct
ress' house you are trembling in every
limb, and you spend all the rest of the
evening making courtesies to the chairs
and sofas, and fervently hoping that
you may not disgrace your country on
the morrow.
Your landlords daughter devotes
herself to you for the next day, and
makes the most helpful and obliging
of little dressing maids, and at last you
are ready, all pearls, lace and shining
silk. 1t is quite a long drive to the
park, but suddenly you see the Horse
Guards and thenyou know you have ar
rived, and inside the gates you find hun
dreds and hundreds of people waiting
to see the carriages pass and standing
on tiptoe to catch glimpse of you.
All the way upthe long drive the Horse
Guards, in their long plumes and bril-
liant scarlet, are stationed at right and
left, and inside the palace gates is a
long row of horsemen standing close
together, and you alight to the sound
of martial music. When you have left
your wrap in room near the entrance
you go up very grand stairway, past
men with spears, called "Beef-eaters,n
dressed in red and yellow; you hand
one of your tickets to the Queens
page, and are ushered with a great
many ladies into huge room, all red
and gold, and there you sit for quite a
long time gazing at the lovely views
of the park through the wide windows,
and studying the dresses.
As you pass the door to the pres
ence chamber you drop your train
from your arm, and the two chamber
lains-or whatever they are called
| quickly and deity straighten it to its
full length as you walk slowly forward
at the door of the throne room some
one takes your second card, and then
you hear the Lord Chamberlain pro-
nouncing your name in very loud
voice, and now you are bowling to the
Princess ; you wish the ladies behind
you would not come quite SO fast, for
you feel hurried and are conscious YOU
are not making your reverence the way
you were taught you courtesy to the
ladies next the Princess but how many
there are, or what they look like, you
| haven't the least idea you see the
| Prince quite distinctly, and you walk
1 sideways and make a series Of little di-
miniShing bows to the row of dukes or
princes or whatever they may be, but
of them you retain not the faintest i'm
preston. Suddenly you feel your
train hustled on to your arm, for in
your confusion you have forgotten to
hold your arm out properly; and the
great deed is done 1t has lasted in
all about fifteen seconds ; you haven t
seen anything very distinctly, and you
retain only one idea, that her ROYAL
Hjghness was dressed in light yellow
but you have been presented at court,
and surely ought to be satisfied The
next day your name appears in the
Count Circular.
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