Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-06-07
CORONATION BEAUTIES
Prettiest English Women to
soai
Surround the Queen.
COURT W LONELINESS
RADIANTLY HANDSOME ARE HER
Mk1Ds OF HONOR.
Not Only Beautiful, but Are Gentle,
Domestic and High
= r.
:: Bred.

! Written for The Evening Star.
! Queen Alexandra is very like Queen Anne.
| in that she takes the sincerest pleasure in
| flowers and pretty women. Since her hus-
| band has assumed supremely royal state
| and influence she has slowly, gently, but
| firmly been retiring. from all the posts of
| honor about her person and household, the
good but frumpy elderly ladies who minis
| tered to the pleasure of the late gracious
queen.
By the time the coronation takes place
| the English court will be justly famous for
galaxy of lovely girls and youthful ma
| irons, all worthy the brush Of Sir Peter
! Lely and the admiration of that notable
| judge of feminine beauty. gay King Charles
| II. About the court this preference of the
queen for good looks, and good tempers.
and good hearts is well known and nobody
was in the least surprised when two of the
most pictureque twin beauties in Great
Britain were chosen as her first maids of
honor. These sweet girls are the Houora-
bic Doris and the Honorable Violet Vivian.
Though they are twin sisters they are not
counterpartS one of the other, and the
Honorable Violet is esteemed rather the
farest Of the two. If the Honorable Doris
is just a trif1e less perfect than her tall,
slender, chestnut haired violet-eyed, Reset
d-mouthed sister, she is keeniy witty and
quite as popular with the queen, who is not
so severe a sticker for royal etiquette
was her predecessor, and likes to hear of
the jokes and pranks of her shrewd maid of
honor The Honorable Doris is one of the
few persons who can read aloud to the
satisfaction of her mistress, who is hard O.
hearin, but does not wish to be reminded of
her weakness.
Next after the Vivian girls, as these sweet
maids are famiiiarly spoken of in London
drawing rooms, the queen is fondest of the
Ladies Butler, the daughters of the
nj orl1l0 a a ted ho
two handsomest women in Irish society.
Last year Lady Beatrice Butler. the eldest
sister, married for love the gallant General
POle-Carew, and her sister, Lady Constance,
is invited to serve at court. Lady Con-
stance is an all around. modern girl; almost
faultless in feature and coloring; finished
horsewoEan; an-exQert in and on the wa
ter, a clever wafer colorist; maker of the
most delicate varieties of fine Irish lace; a
linguist and a charming companion. She
yachts with her father, physics and advises
and jests with the Irish peasantry on her
fathers estate, and is delightfully."- unspoiled
by admiration and wealth She is to take
her turn a court lady during the coro-
nation, in association with one of the pref
test women and boldest fox hunters in the
united kingdom: The Honorable Ethel
Gerard.
The horse has yet to be found that this
courageous young lady would fear to ride,
and yet, despteJtfe fact that she comes
of a long line of hard-riding maternal as
well paternal, ancestors, she is in no
sense a horsepgfrR Off of her horse she is
as frou-frou ss "a Partisan marquise, and
she has long been al prime favorte with the
queen. who a5nifes her high spirits and
her gentle v6fee' and big, appealing gray
eyes.
If women bel5MsExhe rank of duchess were
permitted to bedfoth6- canopy over the
queen in Westminster Abbey it is safe to
predict that the Countess of Cromartie
would have been one Of four chosen to this
high office. AS 1t was; the queen deiber-
ately passed over the claims of many supe-
rior elderly ladies, who believed in their di-
vine right to assist at corona tons, and
picked out her four canopy bearers because
they were young. pretty and eminently lik-
able. Their graces of Sutherland, Marlbor-
ough Montrose and Portland are to support
the queen. greatly to the disgust of the
Duchess of Devonshire, etc Among the
assisting ladies only will be seen the pretty
piquant Countess of Cromartie, who is a
countess and heiress quite in her own right
She is first cousin of the Duke of Suther-
land. and through her father inherits the
earldom of Cromartie. which he inherited
Cromartie in her own right. Lady Cromar-
tie. with all her wealth and good looks and
high lineage, chose to marry Maj. Blunt,
and he and she live at Castle Leod or at
Tarbard House on Cromartie Firth. In all
things, even to her Draw accent she is
Scotch and speaks Gaelic as fuently as her
Highland tenantry. Her sister is the sturdy
Lady Constance Mackenzie. who rides
astride and swims like South Sea Island
er, and travels as fndustriously as Sinbad
the Sailor, and cares not the snap of her
fingers to be at court. Lady Cromartie Is
gentle and domestic. and truly warm
friend of the queen who, though old enough
to be her mother, is not in the least over
Swallowed by the fresh young beauties she
pleases to gather. about her.