Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1910-03-26
Perfumes for Royalty
All Come From Paris
respondence Of The Star

PARIS. March 10. 1910.
"HERE is q great perfumer In Paris
who boasts OF the confidence Of
= queens and flatters himself he 10
more Indispensable to them than any
drsssmaker of the Rue de In Paix. Reign
ing sovereigns are his best customsrs.
They use perfume az lavishly n their
predecessor did In the times Of Henry
Qua.re or Louis Quatorse. when an at
court drenched themselves with perfume
ani none used soap.
The most extravagant user of perfume
i'm our day Is the Empress of Russia
whose supplies of 1t. wherever she II. come
from Paris. Her apartments In the royd
palaces and her cabins in the royal yacht
are daily sprayed with essences OF ulac.
jasmine, jonquil. tuberose and white
violet The perfumer, who loves to cir
his English and speaks like Mrs. Maia-
prop. says tho empress rooms are ''Dua-
verixed'' with perfume to such an extent
that even her accustomed attendants are
sickened by the atmosphere.
Some hint that overheated rooms -ladsn
with scent have much to do with thA
Naturally her purveyor SCOTS at such an
idea. He points out that mono but the
very les. perfumes are used by his Inn
perial customer. The flowers from which
these perfumes are made are selecteo
specially. the very hours at which they
are .ulled being fixed by imperial ordsr.
From Grasse comes an immense quantity
of violets to perfume the empress toiiee
water. These are gathered between the
hours OF live and seven in the evening.
when their perfume is most deiica1e.
All tho Eases Of perfume for the Russian
court are sent directly on their arrival
from France to the imperial LABORATORY
for analysis; needless formality, says the
manufacturer, since his prudency 10 90
great that nothing injurious can get into
any of the carefully packed fiagons.
Formerly the queen-mother or spain
used perfume made from a flower found
in the Philippines, but since Spain lost
these islands the patriotic queen has
abandoned the use of IL and adopted In
stead eau d'Espagne, manufactured In
Madrid. She still obtains the perfume for
great man in Paris. It's composition is
secret which he only half discioses. It 10
made, he says. "of rose water. COCOA
nut oil and The rest 10 mystery.
fitness Of things. He surrounds Spain
with mystery and becomes poetic when
he talks OF Roumania and the poet-queen
OF that country, Carmen Sylvia.
he says. ''is proud Of her white hair ana
her compile xion. In spite of her sixty
years not wrinkle is to be seen on her.
forehead, thanks to the marvellous water
This water Is distilled from flowers found
only In the heart Of a distant forest into
which none but the queens flower gather
ers may penetrate. Around that forest
there is at all times a Gordon of sentineIs
who protect IL for the queen
TIE Paris porfumer believes this tale
to be true. It seems like one OF the fairy
tales the quee~ loves TO write for children.
the wild land where that romantic lady
reigns.
This imaginative tradesman. who weaves
poetic fancies about the toilet requisites
of the Queen OF Rormania uses blunt
English to describe the bright. open ways
of the wife Of the heir to the Roumanian
throne, who is descended from the late
Queen Victoria OF England.
THE Princess of Roumania hasno cere-
monies or fads about her perfumes he
says. She likes three. rose water. the
triple essence OF jasmine ana white hello
trope, and she uses them all to the best
Queen Wflhelmina OF the Netherlands
is self-wilied In most things and caFvlss
her own will TO her toilet. She will have
nothing to do with perfumed water for
her baths, powder or even to soap. A
daily bath. taken for seven minutes, fol-
lowed by minutes cold douching, IL hep
Spartan rule: but she is not quite hope
less from the perfumer's point Of view,
for she uses pint OF eau de cologne daily.
1--we
Queen Alexandra remains faithful to tha
'Ess Bouquet" which has been In use
by the royal family OF England since
1922. The recipe for this perfume is
guarded by the manufactursrs
and handed down by them from father
to son. When the great court perfumcr
talks OF % mighty q secret az this no
becomes purposely vague. All he VIII say
of it is that 1t Ia composed Of amber
mixed with the essences Of roses vioieff.
jasmine, orange flowers and lavendsr. "a
fitting bouquet from which to cuil a nor.
fume for a beloved queen