The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1903-08-16

LONDON, Aug. Is. = King Edward
VII, who isn't as hard up now as he
was when he was merely a prince,
would be poor indeed, if he had to live
on the salary allowed him by his peo-
pie. Not that it is a small salary for
1t is very considerable one, with the
purse strings pulled tight by'a special
keeper, the Right Hon. Sir Dighton
Macnaghton Probyn, of $550,000
year, aside from housekeeping ex-
penses But it is estimated that his
majesty spends not less than half this
great amount in private entertaining
and gifts, and that leaves small pro-
portion for the various other expenses
devolving upon him in the capacity of
English gentleman. Fortunately, how
ever, Queen Victoria, Baron Hirsch and
others have left King Edward nicely
fixed" His revenues, apart from the
crown, are enormous, and are derived
from innumerable sources, including
mining stock and rent money paid in
at the rate of as little as $50 year by
modest cottagers in the country. In
all his majestys income is about 3d.
100000 a year.
But his own share Of his actual sal
airy does not even approach the total
cost of the kings private entertaining,
because his subjects do so much of it
for him. The king is practically host
at every house party he attends 1t is
considered that he pays back his social
obligations when he asks his hostess to
include certain guests in the list of
those hidden to meet him.
Where Guest Is Host.
In all the great English houses the
king is practically at home. His own
servants attend him. His own waiter
hands him his food. as the same waiter
does, for the matter of that at every
dinner his majesty attends in town
or country. When the king dimes out
SO also does his chief waiter. At the
country houses his majesty simply
takes possession, and has all meals eX-
cept dinner there in private. The guests
are his, and so are the servants, the
horses, and everything else about the
place SO long as he remains. The
Duchess of Marlborough and the
Countess of Craven, formerly Miss
Bradley Martin, have had more fire.
quent opportunity than any American
peeresses of assisting King Edward to
pay off his social duties by acting as
hostess for him, and they could testify,
If they would, how completely he takes
possession of their houses whenever
he deigns to honor them with his pres
ence.
For this and several other reasons
number of the English nobility not
minister and Sutherland. are said to
spend much more on lavish entertain
ing than does the king himself He
has, sat least, no king to entertain, save
on rare occasions when one visits him
privately. For certain distinguished
foreign guests his majesty has spent
as much as $4,000 week for a house.
A cosy dinner at his club, the MARI
borough-an organization controlled
by the king, and whose members are
mostly princes-costs his majesty 500
or Whereabouts, and when he and the
queen entertain cat home" the price Of
the dinner frequently runs up into the
four figures.
His majesty pays out Of his own
pocket figuratively speaking, for the
special trains which take his guests to
and from Windsor and Sandringham.
When there are command" perform
ances, while actors and actresses are
not paid anything, the leading lady
always receives a costly present, and
the leading. man souvenirs Of some