Evening star., 1946-06-09

inal investigation branch and his
assistant. Maj. John B. Salb, con-
Quoted the tour of the treasure
room as they had done in directing
details of the manhunt in the
United States.
Between them and around the
sides of the room and the tables
stood armed guards under command
of 1t. j. P. Smith of the Wash
ington Military District. Newsmen
were allowed to pick up a jeweled
case, the historic Queen Victoria
Bible, even permitted to handle
12-carat diamond that glittered
brilliantly-but a dozen pairs of
MP. eyes were constantly on the
job.
On the tables were items for
which noted collectors would pay
a small or even large fortune. The
jewelry- studded rings, bracelets,
necklaces, and the four double
hands full of loose gems were sufi-
cient to appease the avarice of an,
Hollywood or royal queen.
Officials estimated the intrinsic
value of the jewelry at we'll over
S1500,000. How much more the
heirlooms and other items of that
character would bring in the open
market no one could hazard a guess.
Spread out in labeled array were
1913 items, exclusive of several
Bibles. autograph books and a set
of nine bound volumes of letters
written by Queen Victoria of Eng
land In 1888 prolific writer, ap-
parently. Some of the items, like
the dining sets, contained numer-
GUS pieces of gold and silver table
ware.
Princess Margerita of Hesse,
from whose castle the valuables
were removed, is a 74-year-
granddaughter of Queen Victoria
and a sister of the late Kaiser
Wilhelm II.
Used for Ordinary Service.
Ironically, Army investigators had
found some of the gold knives and
forks, their handles studded with
jewels. in the kitchen of the Hud-
son (Wis.) house. Capt. Durant,
they said, had been using them for
ordinary service.
In a gold-encrusted velvet bind
ing, presented to Queen Victoria
as child from an aunt, was a
small Bible, with no date. The
inscription in it read:
Presented to my dear niece Vic
toria, as token of my affection by
her affectionate aunt. May you often
seek information in the Book of
Books, the Holy Scriptures, and may
you always find consolation and
peace of mind in them, is the anx-
ious wish and prayer of your aunt
who loves you dearly and has your
happiness and welfare at heart more
than words can express. God bless
you" There was no signature.
The small Bible contained a later
inscription, written in Queen Vic
toria's fine, discernible handwriting
when she presented it to her daugh-
ter, also named Victoria.
That inscription read:
This Bible given me by my dear
late aunt when I was a child, I give
to you, my beloved child, Victoria,
in recollection of the last Sunday we
went to church together, before you
leave your paternal roof and beloved
native land. May He, who gives us
such words of comfort and hope,
help and protect you and your dear,
excellent husband and may you
both ever be a blessing to one
another and to your country and to
your parents and relations. This is
the fervant prayer of your devoted
mther, Victoria, January 81, 1855"
From wedding prayer book, It'll
was believed this reference was to
the Victoria who married Emperor
Frederick of Germany, father of
Kaiser Wilhelm, II.
Volume by Thomas a Kempis
Another intriguing volume was
Imitation of Christ" by Thomas a
Kempis, 1t was bound in gold and
velvet, mo doubt an original" and
therefore of additional value. At
its end was the inscription of Fred
erick Wilhelm, 1848.
A set of nine volumes bound in
black leather and bearing the date
of 1892 and 1893 was filled with
family letters written by Queen Vic
toria. One volume is missing, it was
believed.
Probably one of the most valuable
collections of autographs in exis-
tence was bound in a very small
illumined binding encrusted with
jewels. It contained numerous au-
tographs of royalty, statesmen and
other noted men and women of the
period-1603. The volume weighed
less than a pound. A tribute to