The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-02-25
HE Died GARTERLEss.
Because He Smoked the Last Duke OF
TecI1 Missed an Honor.
London Letter.

London Letter
He was a great smoker. and seems TO
have been privileged to smoke on all occa-
sions, and even in the houses of his iIius-
trious relations, when other guests hao to
be most strict in their conformity to the
rules of tobacco.
| myself have seen the Duke of reck
driving through the Strand, accompanied
by the princess, his wife, and by the Grand
Duchess of MecklenburgSc putting
furious clouds from a huge cigar between
MS teeth. l have also seen him, on the ter
race OF Marlborough House, standing amid
a group of his royal highness's relations of
both sexes, not only smoking, but the only
one smoking. Indeed. il IS said that this
naDlt or his for cigar lost him the Order
OF the Garter, which he very nearly
ceiyed at the time OF his daughters we'd
ding. His solitary decoration at that time
was the Grand Cross of the Order of the
Bath. and 1t is whispered that the Prince
or Wales himself suggested to his royal
mother that the Duke of Teck ought to be
given the garter If only in view of the fact
mat ne was the father of daughter who
would probably become, in such time as
God willed 1t. Queen Of Great Britain and
Empress Of India
Her Majesty, it is said, acquieced. There
had been family dinner at Windsor and
the Tecks were present and had also been
invited TO sleep at the castle. The rooms
assigned TO the duke and duchess were
IN close vicinity to those of her Majesty.
Now, the Queen never was a lover Of to-
bacco. Her late husband was not much of
a smoker She was brought up in an age
when tobacco never came near a lady's
drawing ROOM and certainly remained very
TAR from her boudoir. Her sons, the Prince
OF Wales and his brothers, are all smokers,
out 1t Is stated that they never smoke in
their mothers presence except in the open
air. The only man connected with the
court who was ever known to openly smoke
In places where the Queen might possibly
detect the narcotic odor was the late John
Brown. However, to return to my NUT
tons.
On the particular night of the family din
ner mentioned above, after the Queen had
retired to bed. and when presumably she
had made up her mind that Francis of
Teck should be told the following morning
at breakfast that he should have the gar
ter, she suddenly detected the smell of
smoke, Her Majesty at once touched the
bell beside her couch, and two of the wo-
men who are always awake and in attend
ance in the royal ante-chamber while the
majesty of England is at rest, rushed in TO
see what was the matter
Who dares to smoke in the CASTER" ex-
claimed the Queen.
The two bedchamber women e.azed at
the great old lady with fear and amaze
ment, but they We're soon ordered to find
| out. and for the next few minutes there
was a dreadful commotion in that paIticu-
| lar corner of Windsor Castle
There was ringing of bells. tramping of
sentries, rousing Of deputy assistant cham
pertains from their beds, hasty summon
ing of the lord high controller of the
household and a scurry into garments on
the part of equerries and deputy gold and
silver sticks in waiting. 1.-The Queen
smells smoker was banded from mouth
to mouth Tobacco smoker Horror and
CONSERVATION covered the features of the
haif-dreSsed bevy of court attendants, who
all knew only too well of her Maiesty's
adherence of 1.-The weed that cheers" Then
there was a tour of investigation. Cham
berlains, with their noses shifting up, went
in one direction. Equerries, with their
noses shifting down, went in another and
at last the smell was traced-and definitely
| traced-to the apartment occupied by his
highness the Duke and her royal highness
the Duchess of Teck. The lower court
officials such as equerries and chamber
lains. scarcely ventured to hammer at the
ducal door; after all the Duchess of Teck
was a royal highness, and just much a
granddaughter of George III as the Queen
herself. But the grand controller of the
household did venture to knock. and he
hammered with such effect upon the panels
| that the Duke of Teck himself opened the
door, attired in pajamas somewhat short
| in the ankle. and. awful to relate, a short
briarwood pipe in full operation clenched
| between his teeth
His highness looked surprised naturally.
| Then he asked what was the matter, and
| then suddenly drew back for a second, per-
haps thinking that there was Paris con-
| spiracy. and he was about to be assassi-
| mated like his late great-uncle, the En-
peror Paul of.Russia Ct think IL was Paul..
and then the chorus of royal myrmidons
| yelled: "Tis the pipe, your highness, the
| pipe. Her Majesty smells smoker'
1t is presumed that his highness at once
put his pipe out. 1t is believed that in
cense was burnt in the corridors and eau
de cologne sprinkled upon the carpets in
great quantities before her Majesty ceased
to find the smell of tobacco offending her
Eostriis and had sunk once more into
slumber. But the next morning, when the
Prince of Wales ventured to remind his
royal mother of the Duke of Teck and the
garter, he peremptorily silenced with:
mo, BERTHE, no. 1 am very angry with
L. III 4. 1t FL
bacco." And the Duke OF Tcck has died
garterless!