The times., 1899-07-23
TATTooEp ROYALTY.
Distinguished Persons Who Have
Undergone Personal Adornmcnt.
(From Harmsworth.s Maga.ine.l

Dis'ihGuish fersons Who Have
Undergone Personal Adornment.
(From Harmsworth's MagazneO
Tattooing is just now the popular pas
| time of the leisured world. One of the
| best known men in high European circles,
the Grand Duke Alexis, of Russia, is most
elaborately tattooed. Prince and Princess
| Waldemar of Denmark, Queen Olga of
Greece. King Oscar of Sweden, the Duke
| of York. the Grand Duke Constantine, La
| dy Randolph Churchill. with many others
of royal and distinguished rank. have sub
| mitted themselves to the tickling but pain
| less and albeit pleasant sensation afforded
| by the improved tattooing needle, which Is
nowadays worked on a simple plan, aided
| by the galvanic current, the genius cf the
| artist supplying the rest of the operation.
| The Duke of Saxe-C -Coburg and Gotha, like
| his cousin Alexis of Russia, is another
| elaborately tattooed man. Anyone meet
| ing the Duke of Newcastle or the Earl of
| Portarlington or Sir Edmund Lechmere
| in the street would hardly realize the fact
| that these gentlemen are proud wearers of
tattoo marks-much so. The present fancy
for being tattooed, according to Prof Ri
| ley-than whom no artist has stattooed
more distinguished people-mainly exists
among men who have travelled much: while
| ladies have also taken a strong liking to
| this form OF personal decoration. which,
| from a woman's point of view, is about as
expensive as dress, but not so costly as
| good jewelry In place of spending her
spare time posing in front OF the camera
| or reclining her head in the dentists chair
| or placing herself resignediy in the hands
| of her coiffeuT for want of something bet
| ter to do or for the purpose of passing her
| time in the on. season, the lady about
| town now consents to being pricked by
the tattoo artists operating needle, and to
have her forearm or shoulder adorned with
a serpent holding its tail in its mouth-a
| symbol representing eternity.
The skill OF the tattoo artist, to be re-
allied properly and fairly. must be seen
in beautiful colors ON white skin-work
which is amazing. The sketches he en-
| ploys are made in various coiored inks
His symbol or picture desired by the sit
| ter These designs vary in size from
small fly or bee to that Of an immense
| Chinese dragon occupying the whole space
offered by the back or chest, or a huge
| snake many inches in thickness coiling
round the body from the knees to the
shoulders. Tattooing has is humorous
| side as well as its serious. A lover whose
heart was once melted away in a soft.
sweet, passionate love got the artist to
| imprint in indelible inks over the region
of his heart, single heart of charming
and delicate outline. colored. as it should
| be, in all the blushing tints. with the name
OF his loved one stamped thereon. Three
| years afterward he followed the artist to
London, and. seeking him out, with face
pallid the light of his eye almost gone
out, and looking utterly miserable and
careworn, he requested the tattooer to i'm
| print under that same symbol. in bold, big
letters, the word "deceiver." we'll
known army officer had tattooed over his
| heart the simple name OF Mary with a
| lovers knot. but six months afterward the
same man had the uncanny word trait
ress' tattooed under 1t.
| An English actress had butterfly tat
tooed on her fair shoulder. the initials Of
her fance, IF. V being placed under
| meath. Not long afterward she also came
back and had the F. converted into E.
and the ''v'' into wv" the letters reading
| ''E. w" She eventually married e W"
and to this day e. w" thinks his initials
were the first tattooed on her arm. Colon
| ials visiting England usually return home
| bearing on some part of their body an em-
| blem OF some national Importance. This
| takes the shape of portrait of the Queen
| or the standard the union jack. also, not
being despised. \ man may admire a IA
vorite picture and desire a reproduction of
| it tattcoed on his back or upon his chest.
| Professor Riley is at the present time en-
| gagged etching on a mans back. Land
| seer's famous picture. Dignity and Impu-
|
| twelve by nine inches. The same artist is
also outlining on the chest of Scotch
| baron a copy of Constables famous etch-
| ing. Mrs. Pelham" after Sir Joshua Rey-
nolds, the original etching of which fetch
ed, in June last at Christie's, the record
sum OF 9425.
While most people are pleased to go
through the performance Of being tattooed
just for the fun of the thing. as it were,
1 ha atb ha~ ba
tattooer with a serious object in view.
Eschewing all fancy designs, they choose
frequently their own name and address as
an aid TO Identification in case OF accident,
or, as has been the case recently, wife
may have her husband 10 have her name
| tattOoed on his arm as a guarantee OF good
faith.
An official connected with one of our
leading railways has had tattoed around
his arm. in snake fashion. train going
at full speed. The scene is laid at night.
The shades of evening envelop the snort
ing locomotive and flying carriages. while
the rays of light proceeding from the
opened furnace of the locomotive are ef-
fectiveIy shown lighting up the cars.
There are lights, too. issuing from the
carriages, showing how the passengers in
side are passing away the time. Some of
them are reading. some sleeping, some
talking, some sullenly looking out of the
windows. A darkened portion OF the train
is passing the signal box, and the dim
light therefrom family ligts up that part
of the train. The picture is a perfect ideal
of the tatttoer's art and shows the great
advance tattooing has made during recent
years. Prof. Riley has never done any
thing more striking or effective II per-
haps we except the large snake he tat
tooed all around the body OF a certain
popular member of the royal family.
which is an extremely lifelike reptile.
There are over one hundred thousand peo-
pie In London alone who bear on some
part of their anatomy some evidence of
the tattoing needle.