Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-11-11

he might certainly have made name
and fortune by his sartorial skill.
while other men will spend half an
hour in choosing at pattern for a pair
of trousers, the prince, as he was in my
time. would select a dozen in as many
minutes, and each one was faultless in
taste. 1t used to be my duty to wait on
him by appointment at Marlborough
House with patterns, and I can truly
say that l was never detained more
than ten minutes or quarter of an
hour, although in that short time he
would choose patterns for perhaps a
hundred pounds worth of clothes.
eleven o'clock in the morning was
the invariable time, and on the very
first stroke of the hour the prince
would enter the room from his library,
and. after CHEEKY Good morning, get
to work in the most business-like way
imaginable. His punctuality, by the
way. was something amazing; l never
knew him to be minute late. Once,
indeed, it was Just two minutes past II
by my watch when he made his APP
pearance, and I thought for once l had
caught the prince mapping. But I
found later that it was my watch and
not his royal highness that was wrong.
"By the way, l ought to tell you of
how he once quietly rebuked me for
unpunctuality. l had been detained in
the street by an old friend I hadn't
seen for many years, and reached
Marlborough House ten minutes late
The prince was already awaiting me;
but, to my relief, all he said was, Good
morning, Mr.. -. You see | have
beaten you this time. OF course, l ex-
planned the reason for my lateness, and
he made the kindest inquiries about my
friend.
occasionally, as he chose first one
pattern and then another, he would do
me the honor of consulting me. Don't
you think this will make up well, Mr..
- or This is a pretty cloth, don't
you think So? and it was by no means
merely out of politeness that 1 in
dorsed his choice, for it was always
unimpeachable.
HE would often, too, drop in at my
place to look at any new patterns
might have, and would bring one or
both of his sons with him. He never
attempted to influence his sons choice,
but I always noticed that they followed
his lead and chose the same patterns as
himself-in which they We're very wise.
On these occasions he would frequently
have a long chat with me on matters
sartorial, and the way in which he
would discuss the relative merits of
cheviots and diagonals and vicunas,
and the knowledge he showed of all the
fo6hnic1litiaS Of uSo6 tO
me.
"Of course the king pays good price
for his clothes, but by no means the
fancy prices commonly believed, and
he always gets good value for his
money. In fact, if you were to order
the same things you would have to pay
just the same prices. For trousers, for
instance, he pays from 81 to 50 shillings
a pair; a frock coat and vest will cost
him to 10 guineas: an evening suit
perhaps guineas more, and a tweed
suit, s guineas.
His wardrobe, as you may imagine.
is very extensive. He rarely wears a
pair of trousers more than three or four
times, and he must get through a
hundred pairs a year. He orders
dozen evening suits yearly, and other
clothes in like proportion; so that his
clothes, apart from uniforms, must
make big hole in a thousand pounds
year.
"As for the kings uniforms, scarce
ly think he himself could give offhand
the number of them, though he could
describe each of them down to the
minutest item, and could tell at a
glance if any detail were wrong. In
fact, l should say the king has almost
the most remarkable memory in Eng
land for many things. His uniforms, |
should imagine, number nearly hum
dred, and I should put down their cost
at something like 10000.
Fortunately, the king is a rapid
dresser, and can get out of and into his
clothes in remarkable quick time. In
deed, of all the customers I have ever
had, not one has displayed such dex-
terity in this way as the king. In his
younger days he had rather a weak
ness for pronounced clothes. but for
many years his taste has been ire
proachable for neatness. The simpler
his clothes are the better he likes them,
and of them all he prefers his yachting
suits of blue serge or quiet tweed suit,
while to frock coats and evening suits
he is by no means partial.'-Tit- Bits.