Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1902-08-14
WHEN KING EDWARD DIMES.
The Most Splendid State Observed at
the Royal Feasts.

the Royal Feasts.
When King Edward and Queer
Alexandra give a state dinner, writes
' the London correspondent of the Pitts
burg Leader, the following is the form
of invitation:
"The lord steward is commanded by
the king and queen to invite Mrs.
Vanderbilt to dinner Thursday, the
18th, at 9 o'clock. Full dress
The guests assemble in the drawing
room, and there arrange themselves in
crescent to await their majesties'
. entrance, which is made without an
, nouncement. With the ladies only is
there handshaking ceremony. Guests
invited to a private dinner find their
! royal hosts in the drawing-room to
receive them. The guest Of honor
| sits on the kings right hand and the
royal family on the left.
| The precedence at state dinners is
| as follows: Foreign Ambassadors take
| precedence Of English mobiles; arch
| bishops rank with dukes; bishops with
earls; foreign counts and barons take
no precedence, but rank with English
/ barons or great landed proprietors;
ana in entitled precedence an earl's
grandson or near relatives of the
aristocracy precede the esquires or
country gentlemen; next come wives
Of country gentlemen of no profession:
then barristers and their wives, naval
officers and their wives, military men
and their wives. Physicians are
ranked in the royal household as next
to baronets. At private dinners usual
ly some members of the royal house
hold present; the royal household
numbers about 200.
There is no race prejudice in Eng
land, and had not King Edward issued
a decree to the effect that widows of
peers who had married commoners
had forfeited thereby prerogatives as
peeresseS of the realm there would
have appeared among the latter at
Westminster Abbey on coronation day
a negress Of the Hottentot type, for
the widow Of the Earl of Stamford
has lately married a boer.
On state occasions there is a splen-
did display of silver and gold, crystal
and fine porcelain being more in evi-
dence at private dinners. The dishes
which the fiunl1ies carry about must
be deity balanced on three fingers.
One dinner set of pure gold will dine
100 guests; in another set there are
400 silver plates. The sideboard is
decorated with a lot of golden trophies.
some captured from the Spanish Ar
mazda; on the walls of the banuueting
room OF Buckingham palace are dis
played may gold shields, mounted on
scarlet; a peacock Of precious stones.
valued at 100000; a tigers head with
a solid gold tongue and diamond teeth.
The value of the royal plate, including
services for every function, is over
$0,O0O,000 To pay it's yearly house
hold expenses about half a million
dollars is necessary
To return to the state dinner: There |
are three servants to six guests-one !
TO pass the food, one to take away the |
empty dishes and one to go for the
food. Each royalty has his or her own
servant. The king is always waited
ON by the same footman and he IS al
ways served first; the queen has her
special servitor
The menus are printed on beautiful
cards, surmounted by the royal arms,
and with a picture of Windsor castle.
Buckingham palace, or whichever
royal residence may be the scene of
the function. The menu is headed,
Their Majesties' Dinner" this is fol-
lowed by the date, and after that the
French name of the various dishes.
The usual order is two kinds of soups.
two kinds of fish; in fact, two kinds of
each course, with three different des-
serts and side table of various cold
meats. King Edward drinks but little
wine; nor are long menus popular, an
hour at most being the limit of the
dinner