The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1902-10-04
KING EDWARDS KITCHEN.
A Very Elaborate Affair and Employ.
Hundreds of Servants.

The royal kitchen is room of con-
siderable size, much larger, in fact,
than the kitchens of many of the lead
ing London restaurants, for some hun
dreds of meals have to be prepared
there every day. 1t is fitted up with
black oak throughout, for which George
III was responsible. he having expend-
ed $4,000 in this direction alone Be
sides 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 $1,000 year, is respon-
sible for the conduct of these depart
ments, and he has to deal with all the
tradesmen who supply the royal house
hold. But the potentate of the kitchen
is the chef who also receives $500
year, and under him are four master
cooks, each of whom has control of a
small army of assistants, while the con-
fectionery department is ruled by two
yeomen with salaries of 81, 500 and 81, $50.
Such a thing as unpunctuality is I'M
known in the kings kitchen. The most
rigid economy is practiced, and such
lOOd d. TcIudluS unCOISuIIlSu IS us
tributed among the poor, who apply at
the castle gate every day.
The kings kitchen hides something
like $4,000 in copper and iron utensils
and 100000 in plate. Among the for
mer should be mentioned the enormous
meat screen of solid oak lined with
metal, which is nearly 300 years old, and
bears the imperial badge of the house
of TIrnnr-tha nd
Connoisseurs have sighed in vain for
this meat screen, for its worth is in
estimable, 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
FURNISHED.
Not far away are the plate rooms, two
in number, which, although they
measure only IL by 16 feet, hold treas
ures eighteen tons of sovereigns would
not buy.
The most valuable item in the store
room is. of course, the famous service
consisting of plates, dishes, tureens,
epergnes and candelabra, all of solid
gold, which were made by Roundelle
& Bridges for George w. This service
is only used on state occasions. Equally
famous is the emperor's service of sill
yer gilt, the worth of which may be
vaguely CLEANED from the fact that each
plate weighs stone and the epergnes
two hundredweight apiece.
There is one gold dish of surprising
loneliness which is supposed to have
been used by Alexander the Great be-
fore the battle of Hydaspes, and for
upward of six centuries it has reposed
at Windsor. Another much valued piece
of plate is the silver gilt flag on three
feet in height, which was recovered
from an Armada wreck three centuries
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 cherish
ed relics in the kings pantry is the
golden eagle which was taken from the
Tippoo Sahib's throne. 1t is of solid
gold throughout, the feather tips being
pointed with priceless diamonds and
rubies, while the beak is carved from
a dawless emerald.