The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-02-03
VICTORIA 5 SIMPLE TASTE
AS SHOWN IN THE FURNITURE
AND DECORATIONS OF HER
PRIVATE ROOMS
SOME OF THE PORTRAITS
A Description of the Dressing Room
Peep Within the Walls Where
the Queen sOrroved
and Joyed.

From Appleten's Life. of the Queen.
The queens private. sitting room might
well belong to any one of her Weather
subjects who might possess a simple
taste in furniture and decorations, a
large collection of pictures and sketches
and a full circle of relations and friends.
The general scheme of color is crimson
and cream and gold. Heavy damask
draperies frame the windows, the lower
panes of which are yelled with short
curtains of snowy muslin. The blinds are
Of dainty material called diaphane in
which are woven IN a transparent pattern
the insignia and motto of the Garter The
furniture is principally upholstered in the
same Powered crimson and gold damas6
that Grapes the windows The walls are
paneled in the same, ,siIk, and here the
constant recurrence Of the pattern Ca
conventional bouquet of ffowers) would
become mcnotonous We're 1t not for the
number of pictures of every description
which cover the walls from within a
short distance of the ceiling of deep
cream and gold to within four feet Of
the rich crimson carpet, which is pattern
ed with delicate tracery. of scrolls and
garlands in pale yellow. The many doors
are painted cream color and decorated
with floral panels and gold mouldings
This scheme of paint prevails through
only differing froma the sitting room in
that the walls of the former are pam
eled in a soft shade of green silk while
the latter are papered with rich Grim
son flock The most striking feature of
the Queens private rooms are, to a cas-
ual observer, the pictures. In the eyes
of their owner each separate one has a,
history or recalls a "Reminiscences. Chief
among the portraits, and landscapes, the
oils, water colors and crayons, are the
many lil1enesses of The prince consort
The best OF these, which hangs in the
sitting room, opposite the fireplace is
a life size, full length picture, by Winter
halter, of the prince, attired in black
walking costume and holding the top
hat of modern times in his hand. But a
most charming Landseer that hangs
above the cabinet on the left of the
fireplace also shows the prince to great
advantage. He is in shooting costume,
and the fruits, in fur and feather, Of
his days sport lie heaped at his feet.
The baby Princess Royal, his favorite
greyhound Eos and Skye terrier are
playing on the floor, while her majesty,
in plain gown of white satin. and with
her slender girlish shoulders bare, stands
at her husbands side. The picture,
which was painted in the bay of the
green drawing roon1s has for the distant
background a fine view Of the east ter
race and the park beyond and is re-
plete with grace and tenderness.
SOME OF THE PORTRAITS
A delightful little picture in an old
fashioned gilt frame of carved wood
shows the prince consort and the Duke
Ernest of SaXe-Coburg in velvet doublets,
slashed with white satin, and wearing
the collar and order of St George. Close
by hangs another portrait Of Prince AL
bert in Stuart costume, the accompany
ing figure being most Gainty portrait
of the queen, dressed for the great fancy
ball of the Charles II. period which was
given at Buckingham palace on June Ii,
1851 It is a singularly pretty likeness
of the queen. The Duke of Connaught
appears twice in fancy dress, when quite
a tiny boy of three. IN one picture he
wears the full panoply of an officer in
the Scots Fusilier guards; in another he
Helena Gagged three) is represented in
full Highland costume, and Prince Al
fred wearing his first MILDLY uniform.
There Is also a charming picture Of Prin-
cess Beatrice when ten months old. She
wears lovely white lace frock, and is
lying on white satin cushion
In the queens BEDROOM hang two
portraits of Prince Albert and his brother
IN their youth. Near them is fine por-
trait of the Duchess OF Kent, and also
a pictorial recollection of her room, and
IN 1851, IN the presence of the queen, the
prince consort and Princess Alice. a
sketch Of the queen CARRIED as nun,
standing with clasped hands In the pres
ence of a vision of Prince Albert is from
the brush of the late Princess Alice. In
the wardrobs room hang portraits of
faYorite gillies and pipers, among them
being good likenesses of John Brown
and Ross Clark and Campbell.
Among other pictures to be found on
the walls of the queens rooms are four
different portraits of the queen of the
Belgians in as many different costumes,
and many likenesses of cousins and rel
at1ves too numerous to specify
Two portraits of Baron Stockmar. most
stanch of friends and sympathetic of adj
Vlsers, are interesting. They show him
as kindly old gentleman with shrewd
face: A charming portrait Of the Prince
Of Wales, when a child, is drawn by
The Queen and Sir Edwin Landseer5'
Other portraits, many of them being in
tinted crayons, are Princess Mary Of
Cambridge now the Duchess of TeclO
little girl all golden curls and ribbolls:
tie great Duke of Wellington; a most
quaint study of the Princess Royal when
a baby, by the prince consort, and
lovely head of the handsome marchioness
of Douro.
OF sketches of BalmoraI Rosenau
prince Albert's birthplace, Osborne.
and the favorite apartments of the queen
at her different residences, there are