The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1900-04-20

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| rying their daughters to the emper-
ors. The daughters were in these cas-
es often the power behind the throne.
| By the laws of Japan the emperor
must be a descendant of this family,
or, rather, he must marry into one
! of five noble families of Japan, all Of
which have come from the ancient Flu
jiwaras. The princess mother was a
sister of the late empress dowager,
which makes her a cousin of her fu-
ture husband.
The silk mills Of Japan are at work
producing their finest stuffs for the
princess stuffs that will stand alone
and are seldom seen outside of the
empire. The empress herself has be-
come interested in the matter and the
costumes are being made by the i'm.
perial dressmakers in the palace Of
her majesty. The cutting and fitting Is
largely under the direction of the no.
BILE ladies of the court, the sewing be.
ing done by the workwomen. The hats
and bonnets are being made by her
majesty's own milliners and a great
part of the trousseau will be of JAP
anese materials. At the same time
many things are being imported from
Paris, London and Berlin, so that al
together the brides outfit will be
something wonderful even for these
times
AS to its cost no one can tell. Prince
Kujo himself is not very rich, but he
has given his daughter 100000 yen, or
$4,000, for the purpose, and to this
the emperor has added 400,0 more.
This sum is equal to about $250,000
in gold, and it certainly should be
enough to cover the expenses of the
imperial orange blossoms. If it should
not the princess can draw further on
his majesty, for he has just directed
that present of 100000 yen, equal to
$350,000 in gold, be given to her out Of
the estate of the late empress dowa-
ger, who was her aunt. This makes
her allowance for trouseau, pin mon
ey, etc, considerably more than half
a million in gold, and she certainly
should be able to buy some pretty
things for that
AS to presents, starting out with
these from his majesty, the imperial
bridal couple will have no end of
them. They will come in every shape
and form from all parts of the empire,
and from high and low. There will be
cranes and turtles of solid gold and
solid silver without number. These
things are emblematic of longevity
and are very common as wedding
gifts in Japan.
1t has not been decided what the
wedding ceremony will be nor wheth-
er it will be after the style of the old
Japan or a new form gotten up by
the advisers of the imperial household
and the emperor to suit the new con-
ditions If 1t is according to the old
forms her royal highness and the
prince will dress for it in Japanese
costume, the princess wearing about
thirteen silk garments, one over the
other, and going through several
changes of clothes before the wedding
is accomplished. In ordinary Japanese
weddings no ring is used and no prom
ises are made by the pair as to fidel-
ity, obedience, etc. The wedding con-
sists of the drinking of a number of
cups of Japanese wine or saki togeth-
er in certain way.
The princess is well advanced for
her age. When she left school her
chief studies were Japanese and Chi
nese literature, universal history,
French mathematics, penmanship
and drawing. She has dropped every.
thing but her history. geography and
French and is devoting more time to
her music. She nov has private tutors.
who come to her house to teach her.
The princess is no.ed for her poetic
ability She writes beautifully, aud
her cherry tree eansions are said to
be especially fine. IN both music and
poetry she will vie with the present
empress who is no.ed as one of the
most beautiful writers Of japanese 20.
ems. Her imperial majesty Displayed
remarkable poetic ability when she
was as young as the Princess Sada.
and her sonnets ale now celebrated
in the Japanese literature Of the age.