The Washington herald., 1911-10-05

the young squire from Flintshire is hav-
ing to turn Scot in order to win Kill
| marnock, just as his grandfather several
decades ago had to do in order to win
| Midlothian
The announcement that King George
proposes to reduce the number of the
Kings messengers calls attention to one
| Of the most useful and interesting
branches in the diplomatic service. There
are two classes Of Kings messengers:
Home messengers, men employed in
| carrying important dispatches from the
\ King to his ministers, or vice versa,
when they are in different parts Of the
country; and the Kings foreign-service
messengers, intrusted with the impor-
tant, duty of carrying letters from one
ambassador to another, or from one
power to another. There are eight Of
| the latter. of whom the senior receives
f4OO year. the annual salaries Of his
| colleagues being ESQ.
An appointment as a Kings messenger
is only obtained through powerful in
| fiuence. The men appointed are Of great
| resource and intelligence, a very neces-
! sary qualification being that they should
be good linguists. The messengers are
| termed silver Greyhounds," because
their badge of Office consists of a silver
greyhound. surmOunted by an imperial
| crown, attached to a red ribbon. The
| badge is always carried by a Kings
messenger, but the semi-military uni
| form, which is part of his equipment,
! is seldom used excepting in war times,
and then only under circumstances when
II becomes part of his passport from
one country to another.
Story writer's have often woven thrill
ing narratives around the duties of a
Silver Greyhound" and many exciting
tales have been told of unscrupulous
plotters who have endeavored to obtain
the contents of their dispatch cases At
times such stories have been founded
on fact. for 1t may be recalled how the
dispatches in connection with the Drey-
fus affair, sent by the German Ambas-
sador at Paris to Berlin by imperial
messenger, were surreptitiously opened
and the contents photographed during
the trip from Paris to the German
frontier. 1t will thus be realized that
the career of the bearer OF the Kings
dispatches is not. even in these prosaic
days. altogether without an element OF
excitement.
At the same time. however, the mes
sengers are employed occasionally upon
trivial errands, and there is story that
n gentleman on board a steamer one
day observed that a messenger. whom
he knew. was not guarding his bag with
the extreme vigilance which tradition
prescribed. He suggested that there was
some risk of the bag being tampered
with, and received the light-hearted re-
ply: We'll. the thief would only get the
Ambassadors old boots. which l am TAX
ing home to be mended."
King Edward kept his secret post
men very busy, for he was continually
travelling about Europe. and the messen-
gers services were required almost every
day for the purpose of carrying dis
patches between his majesty and the
cabinet King George. however. is not
so fond Of travelling. and the consequence
is that the fOreign-service messengers
have, had a somewhat idle time. 1t is
for this reason that it is proposed to
reduce the number of messengers. who,
during the lifetime OF King Edward.
were employed to carry dispatches be-
tween London and Biarritz, the Riviera,
or Marienbad. where his majesty so fire.
quently stayed FLANEUR.
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