The Washington herald., 1907-09-01

-t'''7tSt VI tfit oiutIf Dul WufIt the
jewel is Of great value. or of historical
interest it is returned TO the family.
Among the decores Of the world. King
Edward VII. holds pride of place and OF
number. for ne has nearly a hundred or
ders of chivalry. many Of which are ex-
quisite examples OF the goldsmith's and
enameler's arts. while others being set
with-the finest of matched stones. are of
immense value. When the King is travel
ing abroad-as a sovereign-the necessity
Of carrying in his baggage the orders Of
the various countries through which he
Will pass forms a considerable response
bility.
Where the King has arranged to meet
representatives Of countries. the orders
are duly set out IN an apartment adjoin-
ing the reception-rOOm, and are changed
before the entrance Of the different
guests. Etiquette, however, permits the
King to retain IN every instance the great
orders Of his own kingdom. merely add
ing 10 them the collar or badge OF the
foreign order. At the same time when
al his own court the King does not wear
any foreign orders, excepting only on
such occasions as state visits from other
sovereigns or from special mission sent
by an important; ruler whom his majesty
particularly wishes 10 honor.
order of Garter.
The most important Of all King Ed
wards orders is that Of the Garter, at
once the most ancient, splendid. and en-
viable decoration. The velvet Garter OF
fun blue velvet. edged and buckled with
gold and bearing the famous motto. is
the badge Of the order, which commem-
crates the quaint old story. The magni-
icent star is eight-polnted. and is intend
ed to initiate the Round Table" OF Ar
thurian times. The kings order is set
with wonderful brilliants. and IS Of great
value. The Order Of the Thistle. which
IS two centuries younger than the Garter.
also furnishes the king with a beautiful
badge. the twelve points of the glory
being thickly Jeweled, and the figure of
st. Andrew IN the centre OF the star
being enameled The star Of the Order
Of ST. Patrick. owned by the king, is a
blaze OF diamonds, the cross being in
rubies and the trefoil IN emeralds. OF
this order the ruling viceroy az ireland.
is grand master, under the sovereign.
Other British orders are those OF the
Bath, the Star OF India, ST Michael and
St George. and the Indian Empire. The
Star OF India. and the ST Michael and
st. George badges. are extremely beau
tifuL The former is a fine cameo carved
from onyx, with the efflgy of Queen
Victoria. who founded the order. The
latter claims 10 be the most perfect Of
all the stars" The George" as If Is
generally called, has fourteen points. and
IL one solid mass OF diamonds. The
George" now worn by the king. belong
ed 10 the late Duke OF Cambridge, who
left it TO his majesty. Il is not only a
most valuable jewel. but possesses consid-
cradle family interest.
The Golden Fleece.
In direct contrast TO these gorgeous
decorations is that OF the principal for
eign order-nameIy, that Of Malta. known
as ST. John Of Jerusalem. Though Malta
has long ceased to be a separate State.
the 'Almanach de Gotha" gives this
ancient and interesting Order of Chivalry
the rank Of a sovereign power. The
badge is a small Maltese cross OF white
enamel. hung from a narrow black rib
bon. The famous Golden Fleece ranks
next in knightly precedence. but for In
trinsic value il has to give place to the
very magnificent badge of the Order Of
ST. Andrew. the leading Russian order.
founded by Peter the Great in 1898. The
kings badge of this order is wonderfully
enamelled in red and blue; in the center
is the figure Of ST. Andrew cruciied. the
rest Of the order which is OF considera-
BILE size, being set with very large dia-
mOnds Of the first water, worth many
thousands of pounds. A double-headed
eagle surmounts the jewel, which is
among the most valuable possessions Of
the king. A very beautiful order is that
Of Christ. the chief Portuguese order, the
long cross. enamelled in bright red. sur
charged with a white cross and edged
with fine pearls, being very graceful.
That most exclusive order, the Black
Eagle Of Prussia, is practically confined
in the first classic princes OF blood
royal. No other orders are allowed to
be worn with IT. unless the knight is a
foreign prince or holds the Order Of St.
John. 1t Is the only order that nowadays
obliges its knights to intimate to the
grand master when and where they IN
tend travelling. The kaiser regards this
order with the sincerest generation, and
great ceremony attends the annual
chapter, (which is held IN Berlin every
February. King Edwards badge of tho
leading Order OF Austria Hungary is a
beautiful Jewel, finely enaiaelled and lew
eled, but being only founded in 1854 by
Maria Theresa to commemorate King
Stephen, the first Christian ruler of Hun
gary, It gives place in interest to the
Marianen Cross Of the Teutonic Order,
one Of the oldest religious orders.
German Orders.
OF German orders-small and great-the
King has scores. They never see the light
unless grand duke or a margrave comes
to court. More interesting are the various
Eastern orders, many Of which are more
grotesque than valuable. though his
majesty is extremely proud of his Jap
anese order Of the Chrysanthemum.
which is a marvellous piece OF exquisite
japanese enarnel work. and consists Of
one large yellow bloom set among green
leaves and surrounded by four smaller
flowers. The Siamese order Of the White
Elephant is less peculiar than the Dan
ish Order Of the Elephant, which Is ex-
traordinarily clumsy and eccentric. The
King IS proud Of his Legion OF Honour,
and he nearly always wears a tiny slip
of red ribbon when he is in France. He
also holds the French military medal and
the ambulance cross. Other countries
that have contributed to the scores of
r Ia H. In