Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-11-22
MOST VALUABLE F1DDLEsr1cK,
Empress Treasure Pen-Thimble
That Was Wedding Gift.
From Tit-Biti

From Tit-Blts
Inc Queen of Siam possesses thimble
winch was wedding gift and Is in the
shape OF a lotus flower. 1t Is valued at
tA'.VD Each petal bears the enlaced
initials Of his majesty King Chulalons-
korn l and Queen Pongsi, set In rLbies
and emeralds. while inscribed round the
rim Is the date of the marriage, the let
tiers and numbering being decorated with
diamonds and pearls
The empress Eugene trea sures a men
made from the quill of a golden eagles
wing and richly mounted with diamonds
and gold. which was used at her request
by the fourteen plenipotentiaries who
signed the treaty Of Paris in 1856. When
the Hon. Mr.. Ward. eldest son Of Lord
Bangor, was married some me ago the
register was signed with a quill pen which
Was used by the high contracting powers
In signing the treaty of Vienna, and
which has several times been utilized at
weddings in the Ward family.
The most valuable f1ddlestick in the
world Is the one used by Eaganini at his
farewell recital, afterward possessed nv
Verdi, the great composer. 1t was given
by Paganini to his tavorite pupil, the late
Count di Cessole. and by him bequeathed
to Verdi Many large sums. ranging from
e 600. have been offered in vain for this
unique possession, and its estimated value
Is at least 41J,0OO.
Seventeen pounds is large price to paw
Tor key. but this sum has been given
by a member of the Rothschild family
for what may be said to re The most
valuable key in the world. It is marked
with the arms of the Strozzi family and
Is believed to be the work of the great
Italian artist Benvenuto Cellini, who
fourished In the sixteenth century. The
key is chiseled out of block of steel,
presenting two grotesdue female figures
and ornamented with various scrolls.
Five hundred and fifty pounds was paid
by nobleman at the beginning of the
gold. A collar of silver. with four small
diamonds, costing 200 guineas, was sold
to a society lady for her pet pug dog. II
Is fashionable in France to put gold
bracelets studded with jewels on the fore.
legs of poodles. The plain gold collars
with jeweled settings cost no less than
$50. while the jeweled collars run to
S1OO. The bracelets cost from s2 to s7O
each
A thermometer can be bought for q
smiling. but there is one used at the
Johns Hopkins University in the United
States, known as Prof. Bowland's Their
mometer. which is valued at $4,000. The
gradations on the glass are so fine that
1t is necessary to use microscope to
read them.
Mr.: Singer Of sewing machine fame paid
t12,OOO for pair of opera glasses The
lenses are. of course. the best obtainable,
but 1t was the fact that the glasses
were of solid gold. surmounted by a
Tyre encrusted with diamonds and sap
phires. which accounted for the tall
price.
Women's hats are both conmon and
costly as rule. but woman in Bruins
wick. who made no great pretensions to
fashion. holds the record for the highest
price paid for an article Of millinery. She
bought hat with lottery ticket which
the merchant accepted in place Of the
money A few weeks later the ticket
drew the great prize of f15,OOO. and
though the woman's husband tried to
induce the merchant to share the results
he only received ELS. That hat cost
E14,975.