The Royal
HONG KONG DAILY 7 PRESS, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1933.
Christmas
at Sandringham
Who is the world's biggest in-.| dividual..buyer of Christmas gifts? It would not be surprising if this distinction belonged to Queer Mary, who annually buys nearly 1,000 Christmas presents, and chooses every one of them herself.,
England's King and Queen, be- tween them, do as much good at Christmas time as probably any couple on earth, and what it all costs them only they themselves know. The guts that they make to their sons and daughters and grandchildren, and their relatives and personal friends make up a large total naturaly "but these re- present only a relatively small pro- portion of the presents given by their Majesties. which, altogether, aggregate more than 1.200.
tio
Both the King and the Queen make
donations generous hospitals and charitable societies at Christmas-particularly to those that take care of children; to whom quantities of sent from Buckingham and the King makes welcome gifts tons of coal to a large number of poor families at Windsor.
As usual, the Royal Family will spend Christmas at Sandringham. and recently the Queen spent a week there in making her annual arrangements for house party. «
the Christmas
Choosing the Royal Christmas
Tree
In accordance with custom, the Sandringham foresters previously had selected the three fir trees which they considered the finest ad sturdiest in the royal pianta- tions. And shortly after her ar- val the Queen visited the woods and decided which one of them should be the Christmas tree in Sandringham House's drawing
room.
19
friends. The recipe for the pud- ding follows:
The Peaceful Way
(By JOHN THORPE)
'Twas Sunday's eve and brooding
deep
I fared a silent way.
, יי
No feathered friend called mate
or "broad.
And, cheerless was the day. Then as the sun sank sullenly,
Black-robed and downcast eyed, Beside a rugged bridle path
Three nuns walked side by side.
their lips move as they !!passed,
Perhaps they prayed for me, They may have said old words.
heard
Small raisins, one pound, Plums, (stoned and cut in hal- I saw
ves) one pound.
Bread crumbs, one pound. Demerara sugar, one pound. Eggs. weighted in their shella,
one pound.
Sifted flour, one half-pound. Fine grated suet, one pound. Citron, cut into slices, four oun-
ces.
.1
Candied peel, ditto, four ounces. Grated nutmeg, one-half tea-
spoon.
Salt, two tablespoons. Mixed spice, one teaspoon. Brandy, one wine glass. After the tree thus chosen had
Christmas dinner at Sandring the scarlet- been replanted a
bé- draped tub of honour, the Queenham over, the Royal party consulted with the estate electric- takes itself to one of the big draw- where the monster lah about its illumination, for the ing rooms,
with' the always Christmas tree, laden toys are royal Christmas tree
and Palace wreathed wiht fairy lamps. Tm- presents made to the King
mediately above the tree a small Queen and their family and suite has already been lighted. After food lamp has been hidden "bathe it in soft light.
the tree has been admired, all re- ceive their presents, each member of the Royal Family having a se- parate table on which their gifts
placed.
But it is among the humble folk at Sandringham, the King's coun- try estate in Norfolk, where the Royal Family nearly always spends Christmas, and where the King and Queen are really. most "at home that the Sovereign and his consort distribute the greatest number of personal gifts. Alto- gether more than 500 "remem- brances" of one kind and another, every one chosen by the Queen personally, are given to the ten- antry at Sandringham, some 300 o women, about 200 to men and upwards of 50 to children. And besides the "presentation of these personal gifts, no light task in it- self, there is on Christmas Eve a great distribution of joints of beef, at which the King is always present, among the workers on
e Royal estate.
Queen Mary begins her Chris- tmas shopping early. She has to. in order to keep to her rule of selecting every individual present personally." Soon after getting back to London from Balmoral at the end of October she began making her purchases and went right on up to the time of leaving for Sandringham, the other day.
The Queen visits as many Lon- don shops as her time permits and also arranges to have a quantity of goods sent to Buckingham Pa- ce. There they are arranged on large tables in one of the salons, each article carrying a ticket bearing the name of the firm that supplied it and its price. No shop assistant was present when the Queen looked over this year's as- sortment of possible, gifts at the Palace, but a Lady-in-Waiting went around with her while she made a quick survey and selec- tion.
to
brothers and
Christmas at Sandringham is a very homelike festival. Afetr the holidays the King and Queen gen-are erally have a number of friends to stay with them, but the Christmas For some years' after the Prince house party is confined to them- of Wales and his selves and their sons and daugh- sister had grown up, the Royal ter their daughter-in-law and Family's Christmas gathering, son-in-law, the Duchess of York though thoroughly jolly, was and Lord. Harewood. and their appropriately decorous affair, but four children and the various the fun-loving little Princess Eli- members of the royal household.zabeth has altered all that with a The Prince of Wales and his vengeance. two bachelor brothers generally motor down on Christmas Eve.
During thë afternoon before Christmas the King's and Queen's hundreds of presents to the peo-" ple on the estate are sent out, and on Christmas Eve the distribution of joints of beef to the workers on the estate takes place.
More than 600 joints are distri buted cut from a dozen or "more great bullock especially led for the purpose. The names of the workers are read out by the King's estate agent, and as each ployee comes forward to his share the Sovereign greets him and wishes him a happy Christmas .
ex- receive
- On Christmas
the morning
receive their household servants
pouches. pipes. gifts tobacco cigarette cases, wallets and, what exhanged not. Presents are also between the members of the Royal Family at breakfast time, but long before this it goes without saying, Prince Elizabethi and Prin- cess Margaret; the two little
the daughters of
Duke and Duchess of York, and the youthful Viscount Lascelles and his small brother, sons of Princess Mary and Lord Harewood, have explor- ed their respective "stockings."
"een Mary possesses a rare
Later in the morning the en- quality of intuition in making tire Royal party attends service her gifts, and no present is made at St. Mary's. the pretty little ivy- without a knowledge of the de- clad church in the park, which is stined recipient's tastes and tastefully decorated for the occa- wants. The antiques the Queenston by the royal gardeners. Hun- gives, for instance, are carefully dreds of people motor from all sorted out to suit the individual's parts of the country to be present, collections. Glass makes a special and Christinas gifts from the appeal to the Queen, and she has King and Queen in the shape of been resuscitating some quaint bright, new coins generally find Victorian relics as presents to per- their way inot the pockets of the sonal friends, this year.
choir. After the service the Queen motors back to Bandring- ham House, but, the King, and Princes, if the weather is fine, gen- There is one mom at Bucking-erally elect to walk back across
*
The "Surprise" Boom
the park..
hem Palace that is always re- served at the Yuletide season. to
What Their Majesties Eat hold the hundreds of articles the Queen buys as gifts, and this is
The Royal Christmas dinner is being rapidly filed No one may served in the middle of the day, enter this "surprise" room with all the old ritual of Christmas out the Queen's sanction except being kept up. The immense to deposit parcels there as they lighted pudding is brought in by arrive. All in due course are un- the King's French chief, M. Andre packed in order that the Queen Cedard, who makes a picturesque may make a final decision as to entry which is a source of great the destination of every carefully delight to the tour small grand- chosen gift.
children of the King and Queen. Last year the Christmas dinner partaken of at Sandringham was as follows:
Clear Soup;
All the Queen's gifts, large and small, carry with them, a card of greeting, written in her charac- teristic bold, free hand These cards, indeed, are treasured by i their recipients almost more than the presents they accompany.
A few of her presents, notably workbags," the Queen makes her- self during the year, to be sent to old friends with a personal Jet- ter. She also helps the King. with his choice of gifts. These generally take the form of sleeve-
Fried Fillets of Bole. Braised York: Ham. Roast Norfolk Turkey, stuffed
with chestnut.
Lettuce salad.
Cauliflower soule,
Plum Pudding. Mince Pies.
links, scarf-pins, walking" sticks The Christmas puddings served and smokers" requirements. Bo at Sandringham are made accord
r as the King and Queen's pre-ing to a receipe used in the Rayal sents to their sons and daughter Household since the seventeenth are concerned, both are firm be- century. Many more Christmas llevers in useful gifts, on one puddings are made. In the Royal Christmas, when the King's sons kitchens than are required for the were a good deal younger, he gave King's table, to be sent to the each of thema watch to stress, members of the Royal Family abroad and to a number of old the value of punctuality.
3.T
I
Beside my Mother's knee. And tho' my way is not their way (Their creed is none of mine) The sunset seemed to turn to gold,
And twilight was divine.
I had been sad and ill at rest..
And sore was I at heart, But as they passed I felt peace
come
And grief and dread depart. The day itself seemed hotter.
And blest the ground they trod- And I felt as a sinner might
Who'd made his peace with God. I watched them walking silently
Far in a Fading Light,
Till up a hill, and down a hill.
And they were out of sight Through door and pane of wayside
homes,
Pale lights were burning low, And yet it seemed a bright light
shone,
The way I saw them gone
FRUIT CUP
Cut grapefruit in halves and re- move inner fibre. Sweeten and fill with slices of orange and banana. Töp with a cherry and serve either as a cocktail or a dessert.
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