Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-12-29
.BAR0NET TOOK WATER
ApoIogized for an Insult to
Americans in General.
INCIDENT OF HUNT DINNER
Victoria of Spain Has a Passion for
Dress.
FURs AND JEWELS GORGEOUS
Passing Of the Street Hawkers on
Ludgate Hill-Record Pro-
duction Of Coal.
7URS AND JEWELS GORGEOUS


LONDON, December 2s.-"The Ameri-
canizing of the Shires." as the invasion
during the present season of several ia
nous English hunting centers by wealthy
citizens of the United States has been
described, is not at all to the liking of
some of the more old-fashioned county
magnates. A Leicestershire hostess. who
had not previously discovered that a GER
tain baronet whom she included in the
invitations to dinner party the other
evening has perfectly unreasonable an
| tipathy for Americans, was astounded to
hear him, while seated at table, make an
audible remark expressing his utter con-
| tempt for all visitors from the other side
of the Atlantic. AS very popular Ameri-
can and his wife were present, the re-
mainder of the guests tried as far as
possible, to appear to take no notice of
the remark. but in private subsequently
the baronet's breach of good manners
was severely censured. The sequel came
next day. when the American who had
| been at the dinner rode up to the baronet
in the presence Of number of members
| of the hunt and coolly declared that if
| ne OlQn dDOlORlZe ne WOulO give MIN a
sound thrashing with his hunting whip.
After lot of clustering, the baronet
| finally agreed to eat humble pie, and has
| since been the laughing stock OF the
| countryside.
Cutting the CuIlinan.
London diamond cutters are consider
| ably agitated over the prospect of the
| Cullinan diamond, which was recently
| LII, I>xyI I
government, being sent out of this country
to be cut to the requisite size and shape.
| It appears that pressure is being brought
| to bear to have the diamond sent to
| Amsterdam, although it is claimed that
| London diamond cutters could perform
| the work satisfactorily, If not better,
| than the Amsterdam operators. Owing
| to the great size of the stone it will take
some eighteen months to two years to cut
| it, and a special machine would Have to
| be made for the operation. In the opinion
! of leading London expert, the diamond
will probably be cut into three stones
one of 1000 carats and two of 50 carats
| each.
Street Fair Abolished.
There is universal sympathy with the
Ludgate Hill hawkers in their protest
against the decision of the city police to
prevent them in future plying their trade
| in that thoroughfare. The hawkers have
| of late years become one of the recog-
nized features Of the metropolis, and it
was curious spectacle to see them, espe-
cially during holiday time. lined in hun
dreds along the curbstones selling their
wares to thousands of people, who came
| specially from all parts of London to
buy their wares and toys. They are a
quiet, inoffensive class, and the market
they provided supplied real need. Dur
ing the Christmas holidays last year they
sold over 100000 toys alone The po-
lice, however, have decided that the pres
| ence of the hawkers causes too much
| congestion on the pathways, necessitat-
| ing pedestrians to walk on the roadway
| at the peril of being run over by the
motor buses and other vehicles. Conse-
quently they have decreed that the haW-
kers must move, though it is probable
that they will be allowed to continue their
| trade in some of the adjoining thorough
fares This, however, will mean serious
| loss to these poor people.
New Turbiner Sails.
| With the sailing of the turbine steamer
Heliopolis for Egypt the traveller to the
| near east has the advantage Of a new
| line of steamers, which reduces the jour-
ney from six or seven days to four days.
With the possession of this new line of
steamers Egypt has come to it's own. and
will probably in future be visited by an
| Increased number of travellers. The He
| liopolis, which Is owned and controlled
| by the Egyptian Mail Steamship Com
pany, left Greenock on it's maiden trip
last Friday, and on the following day
sailed from Plymouth to sMarseille with
| some hundreds of passengers. Those who
| were privileged to travel on the vessel
| from Greenock expressed the opinion that
| this latest production of the Fairfield
| Shipbuilding Company is in many respects
| the finest passenger vessel that has ever
| left the Clyde. The turbine engines are
| $4,000 horsepower. developing an average
speed of nineteen knots on go tons of
| coal per day. and the highest speed that
| has been attained is twenty-five knots.
| There are in all seven decks, beginning
with the lower, and rising in rapid sue
cession to the main upper bridge, prom
enade and boat docks, which contain
cabins for 100 passengers and $50 of the
| crew. The trend of modern times is to
provide a separate la carte restaurant
| ON board ship, and this feature Is not
lacking here. In the cabinS-de-luXe are
| tastefully decorated reception rooms. mu-
sic rooms and smoking room, and the
Second-class passengers enjoy only a
shade less luxury. There are offices for
| the receipt and dispatch of wireless tele-
| grams. and in connection with the same
| department a daily newspaper will be
| published. containing the latest import
ant news. No detail, indeed, however
| minute, has been neglected on the vessel
| Queen Victoria of Spain. whose craze
| for dress is almost amazing. must have
| spent thousands upon thousands of pounds
upon all manner of finery and jewels while
| in this city. The resources of London
were not sufficient for her in this drec-
ton. and famous jewelers. from Paris,
! Berlin and even ST. Petersburg, to say
i nothing of costumers, laid their choicest
wares before her at Kensington Palace
Queen Victprias clothes are the envy and
! despair of the greatest and most eXtrava-
CANT dressers among her sex here. Her
| furs alone must be enormously valuable
as 1t is said that she has three of the
i finest suits of sable obtainable. AS to her
jewels, they fairly staggered even those
i who have been accustomed to the barbaric
i display of jewels in which the Anglo
American Observation-Disclosures revel.
i Production of Coal.
/ The statistics comprised in the board OF
Il trades annual statement as to the pro-
duction and consumption of coal in the
principal countries of the world show what
a record year of industry 1906 was and
give promise of even more remarkable
i figures for 1907. From the home office
| several weeks ago came the information
that In 1904 the British output reached