The Washington times., 1915-12-19

kDlplomatlc Corps In Difference TO tho
tpreEidenCs expressed wish and his de-
sire to keen the wedding on an entirely
unofficial basis. Vet there seemed to be
no limit 10 the number and VARIETY of
Gifts from all sections Of the country.
, Some are handsome, some merely
am0sinW. about some there Is pa
thetic touch-wltness the quaint bits OF
,stitohery by old-fashioned workers with
tho needle. Some were sent with the
hope OF opening a way fer the sale Of
such wares. some by notoriety seekers
but for the most part they are 'dlsin-
torested' tokens Of affection and In
terest and bear out the old adaRe "All
1.-THE world loves lover"
Some gifts are anonymous. and many
are from people of whom neither the
president nor his bride have ever heard.
Although some of the offerings are not
the last word in wedding gifts they
were received In the same generous
spirit in which they were offered.
In Boxes and Barrels.
Foxes and barrels of all shapes and
Fizes. some expertly packed. others
knocked together with an abandon which
smacked of the hammer and saw IN a
woodshed setting. were delivered at the
Gait house in nocks in the weeks pre-
ccdinE the wedding; and the favored
few who were permitted n peep at the
vast array of gifts were torn between
admiration for the costly and beautiful
things on view and amusement at the
TotSam and ietsnm which the wedding
called forth from all over the world.
The display of gifts differs notably
from that of the average bride, the
Ubiquitous silver and iewelry being
conspicuous by their absence. Guam
titles of pictures and books. several very
handsome o''ertal rugs. rare china and
many fine laces and embroidertes are
among the gifts the Presidents bride
particularly PRICES. Two handsome fur
rugs there are, one of white bcarskin,
the other Of vicuna. which has all the
earmarks of having been presented by
the wife of one of the South American
diplomats. who is a close friend of the
bride. There are some wonderfully
beautiful linens. notable among them
table cover with elaborate insets OF hlet
lace and embroidery and one banded
with heavy Russian lace.
Fans and More Fans.
A great cut glass punch bowl. with a
dozen glasses to match and heavy sill
yer ladle stands near desk set of Tiff
fany glass and brass: nearby is fine
Swiss travelling clock. an alabaster lamp
of Florentine design. an ancient Chinese
box. a really valuable cabinet piece;
and there is wonderful glass of every
description and ilnumerable vases OF
pottery. silver and Elass.
OF the few pieces OF iewelrY among
the gifts the most notable are a dia-
mond and sapphire brooch. and a heX-
ible gold bracelet set with sapphireS.
The collection of fans Is truly mar
Velous, feather fans. painted fans. some
even worked with Jewels. and arranged
each in its own case. a great mahogany
dining table Is one of the gifts.
\ beautiful SeVres vase. painted and
n
Napoleon, is supposed to be the gift OF
one of the Cabinet hostesses; 1t Is un-
derstood that another lady OF TINS
circle sent a picture of famous Nir-
ginia scene. painted bv a widely known
Virginia artist: the gift OF another Is
a splendid piece OF carved Venetian
furniture. for hall or living room use,
a haIl-marked piece of great value de-
signed bv a master and dating back
several centuries.
Navajo Blanket Historic.
The Vice President and Mrs. Marshall
selected a Navajo blanket of great
worth and historic value as their gift;
the members of the Cabinet took the
stand that as the wedding was private
and unofficial the matter should be
treated I'm a personal way Each of the
Cabinet ladies selected her Own gift
and each offering WAS personal in its
nature.
1t was the feeling that Mrs Gait, al
though she was to become First Lady
in The Land. was not a member of aTl
Official family. which led Congress
to decide not to send Il joint wedding
gift. As a matter of fact this was the
first time that Congress had to decide
whether 1t would or would not give. as
body. to e Presidents bride, There
was no precedent in the matter, for, az
the wife of one Senator Donted out
the ony two Presidents who married
in office were President Tyler. who ran
away, and President Cleveland, who
was married in June. when Congress
was not in session."
Joint Virginia Gift.
The selection of joint gift by tho
Virginia delegation in Congress was
on personal and not official grounds.
in the words of the donors IAN eX-
preston of the kindly personal feeling
of twelve gentlemen Who are proud
that Virgnian will again preside over
the White House." 1t is a silver loving
cup in the form of a beaker, with mas
sIVe silver handles. The design is very
simple and very elegant, the only orna-
mcntation being a double row of bead
ing, after Colonial model. The cup
stands about two feet high on a pcdeS-
tai ot ebony. 1t .S meant to mold
American Beauty roses, and when L.
WIS presented few days ago was
II is inscribed or one side Edith
Boiling Gait December IS. 1918. ON
the other side is the inscription "r'rom
the Members of the v. sina Deiesa-
ton to the SNty-four,h Congress. ''
:ieneath this in a double column, roI-
low the names of the members. wl;n
that OF Senator Swanson, senior SEN
Rtor, at q g head OF one, and the name
nf senator Martin. junior member at
tho head OF the other.
Citizens of WvthevIIc. the birth
place OF the Presidents bride, sent a
htndsOIncly framed set of miniatures
or tho brides father and mother, Juc.c
end Mrs. William II. Boiling, painted
hy Miss E'len Douglas Stuart. a native
OF WytheVlllc and a niece of the iato
Gen J. r. b. Stuart She Is a taIen'ed
artist and studied in DrcsdcnO and
Paris.
Scarf From Former Queen.
1t is an interesting coincidence that
Miss Stuart was the artist selected TO
paint the miniatures of President viii
sons father and mother presented by
tho citizens of Staunton to the Presi-
dent when he spent his birthday in MS
native town
Among the most interesting of her
gifts Mrs. Wilson regards the scarf