The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-11-25
CORONATION oMENs.

Onlookers at next years great cere-
 mony at the Abbey may take note of
 little incidents and accidents not ar- ranged for in the rubic of the corona
 ton ceremony. If they are newspaper
 onlookers they will no doubt utilize
 such untoward occurrences as aids to 1 the picturesqueness of their copy. But
 neither newspaper men nor their more
 fortunate fellow spectators will read , into any such little incidents the good
 and i'll portents read into similar oc-
 currences at the crownings of former { kings and queens
 It is difficult not to sympathize with
 James II. and the humorous forbear-
 ance he displayed at the supreme mis- l chance which hefel his coronation fes- | tivities when his turn came. It was at | the coronation banquet, and the cham pion of England had just flung his challenge to the world. He had dis
 mounted from his horse and was ad- vancing toward the kings seat to kiss James rand Unfortunately, awk- wardness brought 1t about that he
 stumbled and fell down his full length, equipped in complete armor as he was.
 The queen consort, Mary of Modena, it
 may be remembered, exclaimed See
 you love, what a weak champion you
 have" To which the king said noth-
 ing, but laughed and the champion ex-
 cused himself, pretending his arnor
 was heavy, and that he himself was
 weak with sickness, which was false, for he was very well, and had had
 none.
 The curious may turn gratefully from the contemplation of such sinister DOT
 tents to the omens of a less maevolent character which marked the reign of George the Third. His long reign can hardly be counted to have been an un- mixed benefit to the people. At any rate, the fairies who presided, if mali cious little, were at least altogether eupeptic. The accidents were more or less mirth provoking in themselves, and for the most part ended in smile.
 The Deputy Earl Marshal, the Earl of Effingham. hardly gave that attention to his duties to be expected from an in tellieent nobleman of his exalted rank He forgot, among other things, the sword of state, the state banquet chain for both king and queen, and the can opy The difficulty of the first named of the above mentioned articles was overcome by borrowing the city sword of state, which the Lord Mayor had brought with him. A nasty canopy was extemporized as well. but even with these make shifts the commencement of the ceremony was delayed until af- ternoon. The king afterward sent for | Lord Effingham to complain, and re- | ceived this most delightful reply: Tt | is true sir, that there has been some | neglect, but I have taken care that the next coronation shall be regulated in | the exactest manner possible It was ' to the young kings credit that he was | much amused. How the king took the | Holy Sacrament uncrowned has been | told many times. Neither Archbishop | nor Dean of Westminster could answer | his question whether he should not lay | aside the ccrown, so lately placed upon his head, before kneeling at the com munion table. They could not say l or not there was any rule. The king thereupon removed the crown with the remark, "There ought to be 1ne." But an accident had happened to ' the crown earlier in the ceremony. As !, the king was moving down the abbey with the circlet of dominion upon his head, the great diamond in the upper portion of it fell to the ground, and it was not found again without some trouble. There were not wanting in af- ter days those who saw in this mishap he falling away of the thirteen colonies )f America.--Charles Benham in the Century.