Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-09-20
KING EDWARDS KITCHEN.
A Very Elaborate Affair and Employs
Hundreds Of Servants.

Hundreds OF Servants.
From London Tit-Bits.
The royal kitchen Is a room Of consider
able size, much larger, in fact, than the
kitchens of many Of the leading London
restaurants, for some hundreds Of meals
have to be prepared there every day 1t is
fitted up with black oak throughout, for
which George III was responsible, he hay-
ing expended $4,000 in this direction alone
Besides the kitchen proper there are the
confectionery room, the pastry room and
the bake house.
The clerk of the kitchen, who rejoices In
a salary Of 800 year, is responsible for
the conduct of these departments. and he
has to deal with all the tradesmen who sup
ply the royal household. But the potentate
of the kitchen is the chef, who also re-
ceives 81, 500 a year, and under him are four
master cooks. each of whom has control Of
small army of assistants, while the con-
fectionery department Is ruled by two yeo-
men with salaries Of $1,000 and 81 $50
Such thing as unpunctualty Is unknown
| in the kings kitchen. The most rigid
economy Is practiced. and such food as re-
mains unconsumed Is distributed among the
day.
The kings kitchen hides something like
$4,000 in copper and iron utensils and
So 100000 in plate Among the former
should be mentioned the enormous meat
screen of solid oak lined with metal, which
is nearly 300 years old, and bears the i'm
perial badge of the house of Tudor-the
portculis and arms. Connoisseurs have
sighed in vain for this meat SCREEN for its
| worth is inestimable. Then. there are 1000
knives. 5000 forks and as many spoons
| used for cooking and kitchen purposes,
which do not include the 5000 forks and
spoons of massive silver for use at the
| royal table. There are 800 pots and pans,
mostly of copper. and five scourers are
solely employed to keep them brightly bur-
nshed.
Not far away are the plate rooms, two in
| number, which, although they measure only
| ID by 16 feet, hold treasures eighteen tons
of soveregns would not buy
The most valuable item IN the store room
| Is, Of course. the famous service consisting
Of plates, Dishes tureens, epergnes and can
delabra. all of solid gold, which were made
by Roundelle & Bridges for George w.
This service is only used on state occa-
sions. Equally famous is the emperor's
service of silver gilt, the worth of which
! may be vaguely CLEANED from the fact that
each plate weighs a stone and the epergnes
| two hundredweight apiece
There Is one gold dish Of SURPRISING love-
| illness which Is supposed to have been used
| by Alexander the Great before the battle of
| Hydaspes. and for upward of six centuries
valued piece of plate is the silver gilt
f1agon three feet in height, which was re-
covered from an Armada wreck three CEN
turtles ago, while there Is also a table Of
solid silver, the surface of which measures
nine feet square and IS engraved with the
four emblems Of Great Britain.
But perhaps one Of the most cherished
relics in the kings pantry Is the golden
eagle which was taken from the Tippoo
Sahib's throne. 1t Is of solid gold through
out, the feather tips being pointed with
priceless diamonds and rubies, while the
| beak Is carved from a f1awless emerald