The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-06-13

OF all ornaments wherewith human be-
ings are won't to adorn their persons none
are of more ancient or universal use than
rings. No other ornaments have ever been
endowed with such intimate and sacred
meanings as finger rings, From the signet
ring of Solomon, before which all the
Djinns and Affects Of the world of spirits
bowed in awed humility and fear, to the
golden circlet which is placed on the finger
of the bride at the altar; from the ring
given in pledge for kings ransom to the
ring of Queen Bess, which she sent too late
to save the life of her favorite, Essex, fable
and history, sentiment and symbolism
hover round these little objects. Certainly
few forms of ornament, says an exchange,
have less to be said against them than
rings when they are used with taste and
discrimination. The beauty of a well
shaped hand is enhanced by single dia-
mond, lying like a drop of dew on the
petal of lily or by the blood red pulsa-
tions of light in ruby, or by the glorious
blue of a sapphire.
But in the wearing of rings as in every
other detail of dress, taste must incline to
moderation, and this is matter in which
English women are grievous sinners. 1t is
the conmonest sight in that country to see
hands disfgured with rings worn in such
numbers as to cover the joints of the fourth
finger and prevent it from bending Every
sort OF ring is placed one on top of the 9TH
er-heavy mems rings with stones imbed-
ded in thick bands of gold, utterly unfit
ted to the delicate lines of woman's
hand; cluster rings, single stone rings-all
are crammed on until the finger looks like
one of those sticks one sees in jewelers.
windows for the display of rings.
A well dressed woman would not think
of wearing half a dozen necklaces of differ
emit designs around her neck simply be-
cause there was room enough, to place
them there, bpS she will not hesitate to
place as heterogeneous collection of rings
on her fingers as her jewel box can supply
her with. A single beautiful stone is quite
sufficient for any finger, and its splendid
individuality and distinction are worth all
the conglomerations of stones Lady Cor
gius Midas may elect to deck herself with.
The present condition of the wedding
ring and it's plain unvarnished appearance
are a modern convention and one that
might pefectly be dispensed with were it
not for certain convenience in knowing
at a glance which of ones female acquaint-
ances claim to be married women. In
olden days the wedding ring was not only
adorned with gems, but was also worn on
the thumb, practice alluded to by Butler
in "Hudibras" and Southerne in 'sThe
Maids Last Prayer" It is great pity
that the only really appropriate wedding
rings, the gemel rings, are not revived in
England. It is strange they should not
have been, for in France the alliances
are always made on the interlaced gemel
plan. The gemel ring is horizontally split
in such a way that the ring when off the
finger falls apart into two links, which pass
through each other On the inner side of
one half is engraved the name of the bride,
on the other half that of the bridegroom,
and the date of the wedding is added On
the outside, when the two halves are
Joined together, may be engraved a motto
at will.
A clasped pair of hands or interlaced
hearts are often used on these gemel rings,
the design being constructed only to be
perfect when the ring was in place on the
finger. What lover worthy of the name
but would enjoy devising the ring that is
to be the pledge of his life's love, letting
his fancy play around the symbolism of
the jewels he chooses for it's adornment
and racking his brain for motto that will
convey his alteration of the unutterable
she? Perhaps he elects that the ge1nel
shall be finished with the clasped hands,
that signify lifelong friendship and mu-
tual confidence as well as love, or perhaps
he may incline to two hearts-one of fiery
ruby, typifying his ardent passion; the
other of brilliant diamond, the symbol of
the purity of his spouse-or, peradventure,
his leaning is to faithfulness, and the
steady blue of the sapphire will crown the
gemel, or, more modest still, he confines
himself to hope, and an emerald will bring
with it suggestions of verdant and idyllic
joys.
That the most important event in hui
man existence, full of every kind of po-
tentiality of good and evil, should be SYM
bolized by an object no better than cur
tain ring show to what an ebb human
imagination and sentiment have sunk.
On an emergency, such as when that
bouillant Achilles, the Duke of Hamilton,
insisted on marrying the lovely Miss Gun
ming at midnight, no doubt curtain ring
did excellently well, but that after weeks
of courtship and preparation nothing bet
ter than golden edition of that useful
domestic article should be evolved by hui
man imagination to do honor to so great
an occasion is a saddening thought. At
the present every woman's wedding ring
resembles that worn by her neighbor. If
they were all thrown together into tub,
hardly one woman would be able to know
the ring she may have worn day and night
for years.
Individuality and poeSry are banished
from modern wedding rings. Is it too late
to plead that they may be restored to the
symbol which to loving wife is her most
precious possession and to which the
knowledge that her husband had designed
it for her, or at least given it some more
special thought than buying it out of a
gross at jewelers., could not but add still
greater value? The most personal bit of
property of woman, the last one she will
part with, should certainly be personal to
her. At present it is less SO than any other
of her ornaments. Let US, therefore,
abandon the curtain ring and its stupid,
unimaginative monotony for the gemel
ring, with its poetic sentiment and dainty
levices.
The Britia Colonies.
The British colonies are of three classes