The Washington herald., 1912-03-31
BRAVERY MEDALS THAT ARE HIGHLY
REGARDED BY THEIR POSSESSORS

| fcers. az reward for gallant conduct at
Civita Yecchia-
That human nature IL not always proof
against the temptations Of wearing gar
ments designed for exalted personasss is
revealed by . practice by no means un-
known to milllners ana dressmaksrs in
Bohd street, the Rue de Ia Paix, the,
Ring. or the Lsipxissr strasse- Likely
patrons are shown q hat or q gown with
whispered intimation that II was made
specially for Princess so-and-so or her
highness Of -. but sent back for
some trifiing though not detrimental rse-
son. And Il cannot be denied that the
effect Of these little court secrets not. In
frequently proves magical.
Not long ago q dealer IN secondhand
garments revealed the fact that once
he had received q handsome price for
suit OF clothes which, he believed,
had been worn by King George. At the
time he was under the impression that
the buyer was actuated by motives OF
vanity or curiosity, but subsequently, he
discovered that the destiny Of the royal
garments was to figure in a travelling
waxwork show upon an efiigy of the
king. But the man, after all, could hot
vouch for the pedigree Of the suit. Il
had come to him In q roundabout way.
AS a matter OF fact, the wardrobe Of
members Of any royal family very rare
ly finds It's way into the market" and
the chances are that when the contrary
occurs the garments would be both un-
saiably ancient and unrecognizable sven
by their makers.
A collector OF historic garments would
find 1t almost impossible to secure a SIN
gle item OF royal clothing which might
at some future time become relic Of
historic value; least Of all uniforms and
trappings Of state that have figured on
public occasions. In the new London
Museum. Kensington Gardens. a number
Of such articles will be seen. Some OF
them have at this date no particular i'm
portancs. but they all have been ordered
preserved and presented with . view
to the information Of posterity.
Queen Victoria treasured a tiny pair Of
shoes worn by King Edward as a baby.
and King George has given permission
for these to figure among the Kensington
exhibits. In the British royal household
there are certain personages entitled to
''perduisites," but the rules as to the
disposal Of such property are rigid. Royal
''regimentals" and robes are never re-
garded in this Hight. In the wardrobe
nous store of uniforms never likely to
be required again. Periodically. how
ever. these are sorted out. all gold lace
and buttons stripped on, and the cloth
picked to pieces.
Charities formerly used to beneht con-
siderably by cast-of garments Of royalty,
but changes have taken place in this re-
Pensioners and poor persons on the royal
estates also have been kept warm and
comfortably clothed in the garb Of mon
archs and princes
In some countries there Is a regular
market for the secondhand clothes Of
royalty. The German Empress for in
stance, presents her old state robes TO
the ladies OF her court, while the gowns
she wears daily become the property Of
the maidservants in the imperial house
Hold. These perquisites are sent straight
to Berlin. where there are dealers who
specialize in the discarded toilettes OF
the Empress and other royal ladies.
The German Empress at one time gave
her sanction to the formation OF q So
court dresses Of all kinds to actresses
who could not AFFORD 10 purchase the
elaborate and costly costumes required
for their parts.
Queen WiIhelmina of the Netherlands.
whose taste in dress Is simple and SEN
sible, gives a large number Of clothes TO
the poor each year, but no item in her
wardrobe Is sold.
Carmen SYLVIA" the potetic Queen OF
Roumania, always has been noted for
her great charity in this respect, and at
a very early age she arranged
for the disposal OF her garments in 4
manner which occasioned considerable
anxiety. When she was only ten years
of age her attendants often had to pre-
vent her from taking of her cloak in
the street and bestowing &c upon some
ill-clad child that she had chanced to
meet. FLANEUR.
tCopyrisht, lgs. by Court Gossip syndicats)