New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-11-05
RoYALTY's TOUCH.
WHY EUROPEAN sovEREIGNs ARE so
CHARY IN SHAKING HANDS.

nal 10 the announcement that the Austrian En-
peror had at some public function or other hon.
ored two Of the principal 0ignitares present by
shaking hands with them The manner In
which this, TO American people very common
Mace. act was related made it clear that the
writer of the article in question considered the
inperial handshake in the light OF rare ana
onviabIe mark of distinction. superior indeed TO
the presentation of any decoration or order OF
knighthood In order to appreciate this 1t must
he borne in mind that the members OF the
reigning houses of the Old World are exceeding
~ cbary i'm Offering their hands by way OF
greeting and IL so many Americans admit'ed
TO presentation to royalty have had ro!a'
hand extended to them, it is because the princes.
or princcsses in question are convinced that the
handshake is the customary form OF salutaton
in the United States. and they wished to mani
fest particular graciousness to the sons ana
daughters Of Uncle Sam. They are far more
reserved in according their hand to their own
countrymen. and indeed so great is the hohor
which they imagine to be conferred thereby
that on the Continent, at any rate, they expect
the person to whom the hand is EXTENDED 10
bend down and reverently kiss it.
The European Prince who displays the great
est freedom and lberaty in shaking hands is
the Prince of Wales. probably because ne Is so
thoroughly fin de steele. and yet at ieVees ana
drawing -rooms he merely shakes hands with
his acquantances responding to the ooeisahces
Of the majority Of those who pass before MIN
By a slight inclination of the mead In cases
where he does honor some stranger win a
handshake the latter. II he be an Engllshman,
is wont to look back upon the act as one OF the
most notable events Of his life and to refer
upon every possible occasion to the fact that he
had actually shaken hands with his future
King. -
Continental sovereigns are far less catholic in
this respect than Queen Victoria's eldest son.
and not only the Emperors of Germany, Aus
tria and Russia, but even the petty sovereigns
of Central Europe. never offer their hand to any
of their rountrymen except in the expectation
of having II kissed. The only sovereign VINO
discharges this token of subserviency is King
Uumbert of Italy who, while he is most re-
served in offering his hand to the great mobiles,
statesmen and dgntaries of his kingdom may
often be seen giving hearty handshake to
some laboring man. farmer. or indeed any one
of the humber classes of his subjects. among
whom he is specially popular.
In Oriental countries the touch Of the SOW
ereign is regarded so great an honor That
none Of the natives would dream of Selling
The roval hand even when extended to them,
and have often watched. with mingled amuse-
n,ent and disgust old Nubar PaCha the most
imposing and majestic-looking of Oriental states
men, humbly bending to kiss the hem Oh the
stambouline, or single-breaSted black frock coat.
of the squat. fat and vulgar-looking little hhe-
dives Isma and Tewfk In Japan the Mikado
never offers his hand. and in the days when was
stationed there he did not even bow in re-
sponse to the obeisances of the diplomatic corps,
but preserved a motionless attitude, speaking
straight before him in a kind OF sing-song
monotonous tone and without giahcihs
either to the right or to the LETT. Inc
Shah, when l had the questionable honor
70 be presented to him at Vienna. treated me
in the same way that he behaved to gray
headed generals and celebrated statesmen; that
is to say. he leered at me through his spectacles
in a sort of maudn fashon-it was after
very heavy luncheon at Schoenbrunn-and, in
stead of extending his hand used it to twirl
his long mustache otherwise eetraying no
manifestation of greeting or goodwill
Only one sovereign of Europe-and his empire
is Of a spiritual character-has retained the ola
Roman form of homage of extending, not ms
hand hut his foot to be kissed. That is, the
Pope who continues to accept the same species
of salutation as that exacted by the Caesars
This chariness which royal personages mani
fest in giving their hand, and the Importance
which they seem to attach to the honor which
they consider that they confer thereby, Is at
tributable in great measure to the TACT that
their touch was, even down to the midole Oh
the present century. believed to have been en-
dowed with those miraculous powers OF healing
the sick which we read of in the Bible as hav-
ing belonged to the Founder of Christianity
and to His apostolic contemporaries. King
Charles X, who assembled to the throne OF
France in 1925. was the last monarch to claim
these powers in that country. On the day OF
his coronation in the ancient Cathedral of
Rheims he paid state visit to the hospital OF
St MarcouL where he extended his royal hands
10 126 patients suffering from scrofua and
other kindred maladia,. Every year afterward
until his abdcation he went through similar
performance on the day of st. Louis. An aged
relative Of mine connected in her youth with
the French Court was present at the ceremony
ON St Iouis's Day in 1929 and used to be fond
of relating to me this quaint survival of me-
diaeval times. 1t appears that as soon as high
mass had been celebrated the King, attended
by the members Of his court all arrayed III
fun uniform descended from the chapel into
the courtyard Of the Tuieres and there passed
between long rows of sick people, principally
persons suffering from scrofula. and whose
names addresses and ailments had been pre-
yiousy investigated and recorded by the royal
physician Those who were in condition to
do so knelt, while the others reposed on
stretchers. On the forehead of each. the King
with his ungloved hand made the sign of the
Cross, exclaiming ut is the King who touches
thee! May God in His mercy heal thee"
Strangely enough. the cures recorded on these
occasions by the official and public press seem
to have been almost numerous and quite as
miraculous as those automatically reported
from Lourdes.
Neither Napoleon I Napoleon III vent
ured to pat forth any claim TO this peculiarly
royal prerogative. nor did King Louis Philippe
or King Louis XVIII neither of whom had I'M
dergone the ceremony of coronation and
anointment with the sacred oils. which seems to
have been considered as indispensable to the