Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-11-10

either side of the landing are marble lions.
When Napoleon the Great after his cap
ture of Madrid in 1903, entered the palace
for the first time, he stroked the head of
one Of them and remarked with satisfac-
ton: AT last, lion Of Spain, I have ac-
complished my desire" And, turning to his
brother Joseph, who had been designated
King of Spain, he remarked; MY brother,
you will be lodged better than L. Napo-
leon did not stop in the palace, however,
He preferred to remain in a less pretentious
structure belonging to the Duke of Infan
tado on the outskirts Of the city.
The ceiling of the -vestibule is decorated
with elaborate frescoes, representing the
triumph of the CHURCH, to which Spain is
offering her trophies her treasures, her
armies and the fruits of her soil. Accord
ing to the original design, this staircase
was to have been duplicated. Another ex
actly like it was to have run up the other
side of the grand arched entrance leading
from the parade ground IN front of the pal
ace to the interior court but for reasons Of
economy 1t was abandoned. 1t can be put
in at any time, however. On occasions of
ceremony the carriages drive under this
archway, and guests alight al the foot of
the stairs, which are lined on either side
with guards IN medieval costumes. When
a royal visitor arrives the sovereign of
Spain greets him at the landing of the
lions, half way up the stairs.
The State Suite.
No palace in Europe has finer or more
tasteful suite of state apartments. The
throne room especially is unsurpassed, both
for its proportions, decorations, equipments
and furnishings. The throne is superb. 1t
is guarded by four life-sized bronze lions,
two on either side When the king was a
child to ride these lions was his greatest
delight, and, on one solemn occasion, when
he and his mother were receiving delega-
ton or dignitaries, he slipped off the throne
and bestrode one of them in the midst of
the grafton.
The master OF ceremonies stepped to his
side and requested him to return to the
throne, which he refused to do. Being ad-
monished that his eminent visitors might
not approve of his conduct, he replied that
he did not ask them to come and that they
might go any time they liked. His respect
for his mother was then appealed to, and
when told that she was deeply grieved at
his behavior, he slipped off the lion quietly,
returned to the gilded chair by her side,
and, placing his little hand in hers, re-
NAMED tEeTe unIi the emu OF the ceremony.
It was upon this throne that her majesty
sat in 1892, when l delivered to her large
white envelope, containing letter from
President Harrison, inclosing a resolution
from Congress inviting her to attend the
worlds fair, and after the formalities were
finished she came down from the platform
and chatted with us in English as cordially
as If she were an ordinary parsonage and
we everyday visitors.
The queen no longer appears on ceremo-
NAL occasions. She has effaced herself en-
tirely from the official functions of the
court The first edict issued by the king
after his coronation, and upon the same
day, proclaimed her Queen of Spain, and
gave her full rights and privileges which
she had enjoyed during the life of his
father, but she has never awaited herself
Of that authority, and shows her tact by
declining to take part in the formalities
except at official dinners, when she sits
opposite the king. -
Hangings in the Throne Room.
The hangingst OF the throne room are of
crimson velvet, woven in Geneoa in the six
teenth century. and heavily embroidered with
gold thread. The embroidery is laid on so
profusely that It stands half an inch high.
but has turned black and can never be re-
stored to it's originalfcolor This was caused
by the incense and smoke from the candles
that surrounded the coffin of Charles "
when he lay in state, in this room, and the
gold embroidery was practically ruined
Since then theu bodies of dead kings and
queens have been laid in the old dining
room.
After his beloved Mercedes had lain there
however, King Alfonso XII refused to per-
nit 1t to be used for festivities or frivolties.
and it is now utilized as cloak room at
great functions, and there on the evening
before Good Friday the king washes the
feet of twelve beggars brought from the
poor house in imitation of Christ's wash
ing the feet of his disciples. King Alfonso
lay in state there after his death in 1856.
A superb room adjoining the throne room
is called the Camara de Girardini, having
been designed by an Italian artist of that
name in the reign of Charles III The CELL
ing is entirely of porcelain made In the
Madrid factories, the walls are covered
with white satin embroidered in gold, while
the door frames are of bronze and the
trimmings of gold. There are several other
rooms Of great beauty and artistic decora-