The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1901-02-08
VICTORIA IS FUNERAL.
IMPRESSIVE CEREMONIES IN LONDON
AND AT OSBORNE.


Thirty five Thousand Men In the Pro-
cession which Escorted victoria's
Body to Windsor-yast Crowds Pay
| Last Tribute to the Empress.
! Queen Victoria has been laid to rest
beside the prince consort in the royal
mausoleum at Frogmore.
The ceremonies began at Cowes on Fri
day, when the body of the queen was
borne from Osborne House to the royal
yacht Alberta to be taken to Portsmouth.
On board the royal yacht when she left
Trinity pier were King Edward Queen
Alexandra, Kaiser Wilhelm and the other
princes and princesses of the blood. The
Alberta advanced through ten miles of
warships, the pick of the British and con-
tinental navies. The naval display was
the grandest since the diamond jubilee in
1896.
Friday night the body Of the dead
queen and empress rested on the Alberta
in Portsmouth harbor. On Saturday the
funeral proper was held in London.
Never in English history has a sover-
eign been borne to the grave attended by
so many distinguished mourners. The
number of crowned heads surpassed that
of the jubilee procession. All the great
officers of state participated. The dis
play of the naval and military forces
reached the great total of $4,000 men.
At Portsmouth.
Early in the day the remains of the
queen were taken from the royal yacht
Alberta to a special carriage in Ports
mouth and conveyed to the kings train,
which started for London amid the
boom of the guns from the forts. The
scene was pathetic and imposing. The
king, accompanied by Queen Alexandra
and some princesses who passed the night
on board the royal yacht Victoria and Al
bert, proceeded to the royal yacht AL
berta in steam launch. King Edward
boarded the yacht five minutes after EN-
peror William had steamed alongside the
Alberta from the Hohenzollern.
The guard of honor of the jetty con-
sisted of several hundred marines and
bluejackets The commanders of the
warships which took part in the naval
pageant had already assembled under
the covered way leading from the yacht
to the railroad station.
There was short service on the yacht
before the body was removed, the Duke
of Connaught, the crown prince of Ger
many, Prince Arthur of Connaught,
Prince Henry of Prussia, the Duke of
Saxe-Coburg and Gotha and Princess
Henry of Battenberg being present. The
only mourning visible was the dresses
of the Processes.
The firing of minute guns marked the
passage of the coffin to the draped rail-
road station, to which it was borne shout
der high by petty officers of the royal
yachts, preceded by clergyman.
Immediately behind the coffin were car
ried the crown, globe, standard and a few
choice wreaths.
The train from Portsmouth with the
body reached Victoria station just ahead
of that conveying the king, queen, En-
peror William and the other royalties.
The royal party Immediately alighted
and were conducted to a pavilion, where
the kings of Portugal, Greece and Bel
GUM and other distinguished personages
had already assembled. The brilliant
gathering was received by the king and
queen with the briefest delay.
The coffin was removed by an officer
and IL grenaders and deposited The
pail, with the crown on a cushion, the
regalia and the insignia of the Garter
were placed thereon, and the procession
marshaled ahead became mobile.
The procession, apart from the gun
carriage carrying the coffin, with the roy
al family and official mourners about it,
was not noteworthy. Parliament, the jul
dietary and the commercial bodies were
not represented. Royalty, the army and
the navy monopolized the pageant. Three
thousand soldiers and sailors, picked
companies representing all branches of
the seryiee-cavalry. artillery, infantry,
yeomanry, militia, volunteers and coloni-
als-formed the advance escort. They
marched slowly and without music. Most
of the uniforms were covered with dark
overcoats, and the standards were draped
with black, the officers wearing bands of
Grape on their sleeves. The infantry
marched in columns of four with rifles
reversed. They were half an hour passing.
Earl Roberts Next.
Then came Field Marshal Earl Rob
erts and his staff and after them four
massed bands, playing funeral marches.
Three hundred musicians announced the
coming of the body of the queen. There
was long array of court officials under
the leadership of the Duke of Norfolk
(the earl marshaD, all attired quantity
and brilliantly, bearing maces or wands,
most of them elderly men, who for years
had served the royal lady for whom
they were performing the last offices.
Most of the spectators expected an i'm
posing catafalque, and the coffin was
almost past before they recognized its
presence by removing their hats. 1t was
pathetically small, oblong block, con-
cealed beneath rich pail of white satin,
on the corners of which CLEANED the roy
al arms. Across the pail the royal stand
ard was draped, and a large crown of
gold incrusted with jewels rested at the
head of the coffin, which was at the end
of the gun carriage, just over the gun.
On the foot of the coffin were two small
er crowns, with gold, jeweled scepter
lying between them.
The eight horses which drew the gun
carriage We're almost concealed beneath
their rich harnesses. A large bow OF
purple was attached to the coffin. This
was the only symbol of mourning.
Around the coffin walked the stalwart
bearers, noncommissioned officers of the
guards and Household cavalry, and on
either side were the queens equerries
lords in waiting and physicians. All The
uniforms were covered with long dark
| cloaks.
Then Came the King.