Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-07-31

@e&SHX will surprise many boz
A1@y vivanta The sam'
H1E.. American virtually
r., a NA holds the important Of
fee of Grand Echanson
Mundschenk, as the of
fee is called in Germany, which the "Al
manac de Gotha" credits to some grane
seigaeur of olden lineage.
His name is Jim Weigand and he Is
philadelphia by birth. He learned the
trade when in the employ of one Of the
greatest wholesale liquor dealers of the
Quaker City, and 10 years ago emigrated te
Germany, where he took charge OF
the cellars of q Berlin wine dealer.
His governorship over the Kaiser's cellars
began almost simultaneously with the reign
of William H., who, it seems, had a special
grudge against his grandfather's cellar
master and would not rest until he had one
of his own making Even while the pre-
parations for the funeral of poor Emperor
Frederick were going on Herr Weigand was
commanded to appear before the Grand
Chamberlain, who offered him his present
post, that carries with it a salary almost il
not quite equal to its great responsibilities.
He Is Almost u German Now.
All this the Royal Keller Meister told me
when called ON him some time ago at his
"Comtor," under the left wing of the
Schloss, where most of the household Offices
are located. Weigand is tall. stout man,
with q forid complexion, who wears his
beard after the order of all royal servants
coming into personal contact with their
majesties-that is, closely. cropped at the
sides, no mustache and the chin cleanly
shaven. He has almost forgotten his
English by his long residence in Germany,
and even when talking to Americans fire.
quently dro ps into German.
II have little use for my native tongue at
this Court" he said apologetically, "tor we
have only few English visitors. When for
eign princes are present orders Ut the table
are given in French; otherwise the German
language prevails"
Referring to the meeting between the Gar
and the Kaiser at Kiel, which Herr Wei
gand had attended in his official capacity,
and from which at the time of this interview
he had Just returned, l asked: 1.-THE Gar and
his naval officers, do they not speak
English?"
NO." he said, sat the dinner at the castle
at Kiel His Russian Majesty conversed in
French with our Kaiser, and so did the
gentlemen of his suite among themselves.
Indeed, I learned from his servants that the
Gar detests English and that he considers
it one of the drawb of the annual family
meetings at Fredensburg that, while there
he is obliged to converse with his relatives
exclusively in English. according to the
wishes of Queen Louise"
Chalice of the First Hohenzollern.
The kellermeister's office is small, semi
underground apartment, connected with
the cellars proper by heavy iron doors. Its
walls are of enormous thick
ness. Cupboards with glass doors run along
the walls on all sides, containing samples
of the table glassware in use at the many
low desk in the middle of the room the day
visited the Office stood champagne glass
that had Just arrived from the Bohemian
Crystal Works Its outlines were of an
tique gracefulness and heavily ornamented
with gold. On the chalice part the mono
gram of Frederick I, King of Prussia Che
who created ], 400 grand aud petty court
offices). stood out in bold relief The
chalice rested on small, clear cut crystal
rocks and broad, richly ornamented foot
''This glass" said the cellar master, ''is
an exact counterpart of one designed and
used by the first royal Hohenzollern. The
Kaiser has ordered hundreds of dozens of
that pattern for the New Palace in Pots
dam. They are to be placed regularly on
their majesties' table. Any servant break
ing one of these glasses will be fined 10
is the actual cost of manufact-
ure and ornamentation. The crystal is not
being charged for. We are obliged to make
this rule in order to check the carelessness
Of hired walters whom we engage for the
great festivals whenever our staff proves
insufficient These men seem to have an
dea that the royal master rather enjoys
seeing his things smashed, because, they
argue, it must give him pleasure to issue
orders for their replacement"
The Bookkeeping Of tho Cellar.
Herr Weigand showed me the royal entry
books in which all the wines and spirits
lnder his charge are duly registered, giving
he mInutest dates of vintage, the names of
irnis from whom thev have been purchased,
together with the prices paid, or the names
md titles of persons and corporations who,
1t one time or another, contributed to the
cellars more or less valuable gifts. These
books date from the time of Frederick the
Great, whose thrifty nature first suggested
his system of checking the dainty appetite
,r dishonesty, as the case might be, of his
servants, high or low.
The cellars which we next inspected are
,uilt in the form of the letter L, the short
lrm being directly under that part of the
palace fronting on the new Vegas fountain,
where the imperial family lives during the |
winter months. They cover a space Of $50 |
eet and have low ceilings, but are well |
although without windows or |
'ther openings in the long stretch of walls. |
light is provided by gas jets hanging from |
he inner roof at intervals Of ten feet.
The first 100 feet of the main cellar has !
,een appropriated for the storage of the |
lighest-priced and rarest wines and spir- |
is, each vintage having a separate COM
'artment let into the enormous thickness of |
he walls. These compartments are divided |
nto bins and guarded by an iron grated |
loor, which bears black tin sign giving |
ge, price and number of bottles stored
Worth Forty Marks n Bottle.
There are wines from all countries and |
Forthy of being placed ON the tables of the
ichest gourmet of the age. I gazed with |
we at mountains of bottled "Steinberger
,abinet," whose original price was 40 marks
bottle, and which could no: be duplicated
owadays if the cellars of all the connois-
eurs in Europe were ransacked
Minister Phelps, in Berlin, has, believe,
few bottles OF the same vintage, which he
ecured for the special benefit of Prince
Bismarck, who at one time was q frequent
isitor at the legation. Another compart-
nent contained 5000 bottles of Schloss
ohannisberger, another enough Leibfrau-
1ilch to float pleasure yacht. The divi-
ions for Spanish, Portuguese and italian
zines were equally we'll provided, but the
ust on the bottles and the faded and rao. |