Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-03-30

Magnificent Wedding Presents Received
By Miss Virginia Fair.

JEWELS ENOUGH FOR "A hlN0 .
RANSOM SHOWERED ON AN
AMERICAN GIRL WHO CARES
LITTLE FOR SUCH ORNAMENTS.
New York, March 29-"William x.
Vanderbilt has duplicated his wedding
present to his daughter, Conseulo,
Duchess of Marlborough, for his son,
William K Vanderbilt, Jr. Securities
amounting in value to $1O,O0O,0OO have
been turned over to the young man by
his father" Miss Virginia Fair, the
bride-to-be, is said to have $5,00O,O0O in
her own right.
If Miss Virginia Fair were queen
and w. K. Vanderbilt, Jr, a prince,
it is very unlikely that they would re-
ceive wedding presents as costly as
those that they, simple young Amerl-
can citizens, will get upon the occasion
of their marriage.
There are hundreds of these presents.
It would be impossible to put an esti-
mate upon their value that would be at
all accurate At least one OF them is
worth $150,O00 All told, the cost of
the entire lot will be considerably more
than $1,000,000.
The possession of such wealth has its
disadvantages. The care of such pres
ents gives anxiety. On their receipt
they are carefully guarded by servants
and at once shipped to the vaults OF a
trust company, where they are guarded
by the latest things in the way of bur-
glar proof safes and patent locks. Miss
Fair cannot see her jewels together
without taking trip to the bank. In
this respect she is much worse Off than
the happy bride whose wedding pre-
sents are SO simple as to not tempt the
cupidity of the burglar. Miss Fair,
when she becomes bride, will have
SO many diamonds that if she put them
On all at one time she will be practical
ly one great big diamond herself. If
she tried to carry all her jewelry from
one room into another in all proba bil-
ity she would be unable to accomplish
the task, so great is the weight of gold
and silver gems.
Among the very remarkable presents
ire two huge solid silver trays, given
10 the young couple by Mrs. Shepard.
These are so heavy that when they
were brought out for visitor to see it
took two men to carry them. On the
surface of the trays, in relief, on an
embossed ground, are old English
paintings, religious in character. This
combination Of color and silver is most
unusual and most effective. Few of
those who have seen the trays had ever
before come across anything of the
kind. The cost of this work, done. as
it was, by the best artists and best
silversmiths in the country, must have
been enormous. The title of one of the
pictures-Which is in itself a magni-
1icent work Of arts "a Visit to the
Cardinal"
Mrs. o. H. P. Belmont has sent what
is possibly the finest diamond riviere
In the world, apart from royal and i'm
perlal collections. 1t is made up of
very large stones, some of them as big
as the proverbial pigeons egg. ,
There are thirty or forty stones in
the riviere, the smallest of which is as
large as an almond, and which in it.
self would be worth a small fortune:
w. x. Vanderbilt chose on this occa-
sion to purchase pearls. He has sent
her pearl necklace that in every re-
spect excels any of recent collection.
The rope of pearls which the late Au-
gust Belmont spent fifteen years in COL
Letting is the only one to compare with
1t. Each pearl is perfect. Compare
sons in the jewelry line are very diff
cult to make, as experts differ, but in
all human probability no Indian or
Persian princess ever wore anything
in pearls approaching the necklace
that will go around the neck of Miss
Fair.
A quaint present came from Mrs.
Astor. 1t is brooch made in imita-
ton of piece of the bark of a tree
Upon the brooch are five small birds
made of sapphires, a jewel Indicative
of affection. There is something quaint
and almost humorous about this gift.
It is beautifully designed and finished.
There is certainly nothing else like it
in the country.
From John W. Mackay comes the
finest piece Of jewelry ever made in
America, so experts say. 1t is a dia-
mond ornament, sort of half stom-
acher and half breastplate, to cover the
whole front of Miss Fairs dress Dia-
monds have been employed in this or
nament in way suggesting that Mr..
Mackay bought them by the wholesale.
In addition to this being the finest and
most artistic piece of jewelry ever put
together in this country, it is also the
most expensive.
A fact interesting to women is that
Miss Fair cares little for jewelry,
dresses very simply and sensibly, and
will probably wear her elaborate jew
els only occasionally, if at all.