Evening star., 1923-12-07
BY THE MARaUIsE DE FoNrENoY.

Premier Mussolini. whose features
and mannerisms are SO distinctly
Napoleonic. has now taken another
leaf out of the book of the first.
emperor of the French. The latter
quickly realized, after attaining
power in Paris, the impression caused
upon people by handsome uniforms
and by abundance of gold lace. The
troops of the convention were mag
nifcent fighters, but were virtually
in tatters and rags, as is apparent
from the cotemporary pictures Of
the regiments which Napoleon led
across the Alps. He quickly reme-
died this and rendered the army.
popular among the people and proud
of itself by the Splendor and pic
turesqueness Of its garb and equip
ment Mussolini has a similar eye
to sartorial advantages. Ever since
the accession of. the present king.
Victor Emanuel III. twenty-three
years ago, the dominant note at court
has been simplicity, in keeping with
the character of the monarch and
his consort. Gold lace uniforms were
superseded at all court and official
functions by ordinary evening dress,
in the case of civilians.
Mussolini has changed all this.
He has issued peremptory directions
that cabinet ministers and under
secretaries OF state must appear at
court and official functions in the
former uniforms of their rank, richly
adorned with gold lace; uniforms
which is large sum in Italy. es-
pecialiy with tho Italian rates of
official stipends. For those who are
neither cabinet ministers nor yet un-
boz f1,ar
high officials, who are, nearly all
of them, knights of one grade or
another Of the Order of st. Maurice
and st. Lazarus, they are directed
TO wear the uniform formerly pre-
scribed to the knights. which con-
more or less richly embroidered with
silver lace, according TO rank in the
order. Indeed, from now on, the en-
tertainments at the court of the
Quirinal will be a riot or color ana
Of gold and silver lace. instead OF.
as formerly, darkened by the plain
black evening dress coat of the men,
liehtened up here and there by the
ribbons and Insignia of the various
orders and decorations.
black shirts Of the fascist as the
acme of simplicity. But he has found
that simplicity of the Jenersonian
order does not appeal to the Latin
races and that they want something
w.hv even the fascist black shirts
are now beginning TO show all sorts
of embellishments in. the form or
esuillettes, gold lace ana other IN
sigma, which all goes to show that
Mussoiini. like Napoleon, understood
the character of the. people whom he
was called upon to govern.
Sir Anseim Guise. whose impending
marriage to Margaret, daughter OF
Mrs. ]. H. Grant Of IIousehill, Nairn.
has Just been announced, is the head
Of one of the oldest families of the
county of Gloucester. where his fam
ily has been settled at Elmore Court
ever since the year 1902, when Mich
olas de Guyse married niece OF
John de Burgh, Earl of Kent, and
received with her, by way or ooWrys
the Iordship Of the manor OF FL
more, the present mansion, built In
the reign OF Queen Elizabeth, over
Looking the most picturesque portion
of the Severn. The Guise family can
show many interesting alliances,
Notably that of Sir Christopher
Guise Of Elmore Court. who married,
of SIR, Lawrence Washington.
This Sir Christopher was, by all
accounts, the most Important scion
Of the house, at any rate i'm his own
estimation. For heN has left most
extraordinarily long -drawn-out auto
biography. in which he begins, not
WITH the creation, but. as in the case
Of Knickerbocker's t'History. of New
York. with the division of the world
into fonr parts. Then he goes on to
the division of Europe and. in due
sequences, to the division of England,
and in this way he reaches the
county OF gloucester. Of which he