Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1892-07-22
ZINE, HORSES AND COACHES
FOR ENGLANDs RULER.
Costly State Carriages and Thor
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES the. Royal
Children Learn to Ride-an
Expensive establishment
VYeyHEN first lived in London
NjN/ / could not at all under
V stand the meaning of the

VI.
] learned that the word "mews" comes
naturally from "mew," which is the call
of baby falcons. The place where royal
falcons were housed in the early days of
falconry in England, therefore, was
known as .the news" From the time
of the second Richard kings kept
private news. In that. same Richards
time Sir Simon Burnley, Knight of the
Garter, was falcon-keeper of the royal
news, and the name has ever since been
passed down without single break in
the Office. The position Is an ancient
one, and in early days was valuable
gift of royalty.
The practical map at the news Is the
superintendent, MI Norton, who comes
next to the crown equerry, Colonel Sir
George Maude, X. @. B., at the royal
news. or, to explain, the royal stables,
Buckingham Palace. His duties are to
offend to the general working details of
the establishment, and the position, as
there are nearly eighty men busy con-
hnuously, is no sinecure. There are half
dozen coachmen, five irregular helpers
to them, FIVE and-thirty livery men and
IS many more outliveried ones. This is
outside the Windsor coachmeu.
The royalsst shelter 40 almost iu-
credible number of horses as well us car.
tiages, and the royal riding school, where
al the children Of the royal house learn
10 ride very early in life.
OF course falcons are no longer the
reason for the existence of aIy news
Instead, thereare $50 horses to be looked
after, outside of the Queens private
Itock Of thoroughbreds.
In 1926 George ~. built the present
eommodious quarters ut Buckingham
Palace, on the north side of the Buck
A1ngham Palace road. They are not par
ticularly attractive from an architects
standpoint. A lion and unicorn guard
IN iron gateway. Then comes an arch
way of stone, and then a good-sized
quadrangle, nearly hundred yards
square. This is surrounded by brick
buildings with stone facings. Two sides
are devoted to the stabling for twenty
'mall horses used for general work. On
another side are the houses were the
coaches ore kept, one house being de-
voted to the care of the great state coach;
others or: used FOR the semi:state coach,
The c.even dress coaches, the ce !ebrated
jubilee landau, and other Carriages.
Another side is devoted to stabliny six
teen horses and holding the state hsr-
ness. At the north end of the quad
rapgle are the stables for the state horses,
thirty-two bays, tine eleven creams and
the eleven blacks. The stable men live
in comfortable apartments over the sta
b!es and oolchhouses. A fine reading
room is provided at one corner of the
building. This is supplied with books
and magazines and daily newspapers in
plenty. Tie riding school, already
alluded to, is fifty yards long by twenty
wide. Let us now leave the school and
glance briefly at few of the coaches.
Naturally the first coach to view is the
estate coach" This vehicle has figured
for over hundred years 10 England's
pageants. 1t is an elaborate, unwieldy
old affair, with panels painted by one of
the greatest artists of the eighteenth
century. To an American it looks like
q circus coach in menagerie sawdust
play. 1t is undoubtedly splendid, as it
cost altogether nearly $4,000, or, in our
Yankee reckoning, about $40, 000-a
tidy sum that. 1t was used at the crown
ing of George I'LL, George w., William
Nv and Queen Victoria. Those SOW
ereigns generally employed the coach to
open Parliament. Qneen Victoria never
took to it much. She used it when she
dined with the Lord Mayor of London
soon after her marriage. 1t was also used
at the opening of the Great Crystal Pal
Nee Exposition of 1851 1t was drawn
by eight cream-colored horses, with har-
ness trappings of red morocco aud blue
ribbons. 1t WINS such an uncomfortable
old affair that the Queen had to have
the seats made thicker and softer, and
foot-stools provided for her feet. 1t
rumbled along on its too-strong springs,
and made the Queen by its motion as
seasick as a Caleis steamer across the
channel would have done. Therefore
the Prince Consort arranged semi-state
coach on the royal visit to Dublin in
1852. The Lord Mayor Of London was
retired coach builder. The Prince
Consort ordered this carriage built at
once. 1t is grand coach, and is painted
and decorated in most exquisite designs,
and, more to the purpose, it is delight.
fully comfortable. Never since the
Prince Consort died has the Queen used
any but this for extra state occasions.
Its last use was on the marriage of the
Prince of Wales's eldest daughter with
the Duke of Fife 1t was then drawn
by two favorite bays of the popular
Prince of Wales.
i. The dress coaches are used generally,
and of these there are eleven very like
the semi-state, save that they are less
decorated. They were used by the Shah
I'll his London visit, also the German
Emperor.
OF oil the ccachcs.the "public landau"
is the most interesting to those Ameri-
cans who were in London during the
jubilee summer and who saw the Queen
drive to Westminster in that landau.
This celebrated vehicle is posting
landau, and drawn by six of the cream
colored horses so dear to her majesty. 1t
is driven by postillions. Along with the
landau there arc seventy other carriages
for private use. These are driven by