The Washington herald., 1912-08-24
ROYALTY CAREFULLY GUARDED
DURINGTHEIR SLEEPING HOURS


diplomats valet Balmoral which King
Edward ordered modernized. after hts
mothers demise. now is a very comfort-
able abode.
The duties Of a minister in attendance
are not arduous, except at times when
the political horizon is clouded. When
things are normal-duli-the minister has
little to do but enjoy himself. Break
fast Is served In his private room. II he
so desires Il. or he Joins the gentlemen
Of the court. Luncheon. too. is q meal
at which the attendance OF the minis
ter 10 optional. When the King Is out
the open; and IL the minister happens to
be sportsman. he is invited to join
the royal party.
The minister's presence at dinner. how
ever. is insisted upon. and he is required
to be present In the .drawing-room after
ward. Queen Victoria used to 30
through official documents with her min
listers twice a day-in the morning and
after dinner. King Edward. who was
methodical, devoted the first part Of the
morning to official business. and unless
dispatches received during the day were
specially urgent they were not discussed
until the following morning.
King George IL equally methodical He
expects all documents to be ready for
him. and business Is therefore dispatch
ed very expeditiously. and no time Is
urgency should demand attention busi-
ness is then dismissed for the day. the
evenings being devoted to amusement
and general conversation.
Mr.. Lloyd George, who possesses q
great fund of humor. is very popular.
Mr.. Balfour was much liked by reason
-. thS
piano. Lord Beaconsheld's wit and satire
amused Queen Victoria. Mr.. Gladstone's
deep knowledge. especially Of matters
theological also appealed to her strongly.
All Official dispatches are opened by the
minister. who masters their contents
and makes such notes as may be neces-
sary before submitting them to the King.
II the latter approves OF the manner In
which II Is suggested they should be
dealt with. replies are dictated to the
private secretaries. of whom there are
usually two. In the event Of the King
desiring Information on any subject II
Is the duty OF the minister to obtain II.
King Edward kept somewhat late hours.
but the motto of the court to-day is
early to bed" and the minister who
Is called upon to be in attendance upon
King George may be perfectly sure of
enjoying a restful and pleasant time.
Something like ninety cases Of Egyp-
tian antiquities. discovered during last
years exploration work at Assiut under
the auspices of the italian archaeology
cal mission. or are, on the way to the
royal museum at Turin. which already
contains one of the finest and most
complete collections of this kind In all
Europe.
Special interest centers in these finds
owing to the circumstance that they re-
late mostly to the period between the
fourth and twelfth dynasties. that is,
ond centuries before Christ. with regard
to which archaeological material hither-
to has been very scarce.
The tombs Of this epoch were found
intact and some 10 cofiins were recov-
cred In a fine state of preservation. They
contain skeletons and all kinds of art
objects. pieces OF furniture, and frag-
sarcophagi among the collection are said
to be exceptionally fne specimens.
The E!Eabethan tourney at Earl's
Court recalls the famous Egiinton tourna-
ment of 1889. But on that occasion the
feudal display was badly marred by
thousands of umbrellas. while the Queen
of Beauty, Lady Seymour, preferred her
dry carriage to the palfrey provided for
her.
Eglinton tournament was two years
in preparation and Prince Louis Napol-
con 0ater Emperor Of the French) was
among the filters. The Marquis of Wat
erford and Lord Afford entered so much
into the spirit Of the thing that they had
to be separated by the marshal
When the armor used at the Eglinton
tournament was sold in 1870 the prices
IL brought were by no means consider
able. The suit of polished steel. richly
gilt. with fitting shield. lance. plume.
and crest which had been worn by the
Knight of the Lions Paw sold for only
81 guneas. That OF the knight Of the
Burning Tower brought IS guineas,
and that of the knight of the
Ram "a guineas. Prince Louis Napol-
cons armor fetched Q guineas. and Lord
Affords 100 guineas. The suit of fiuted
mail Nnrn by the Marouis of Waterfnrd