A
Train Of White Glace Trimmed With A Ruche Of White Crape.
A wreath
and bouquet of white lilacs, without any green, as green is not used
in mourning.
The array of diamonds on this occasion was magnificent
in the highest degree, and everybody was in their most splendid
array. The next evening there was a concert at the Palace, at which
Jenny Lind, Grisi, Alboni, Mario, and Tamburini sang. I went
dressed in [a] deep black dress and enjoyed the music highly. Seats
were placed in rows in the concert-room and one sat quietly as if in
church. At the end of the first part, the royal family with their
royal guests, the Grand Duke Constantine of Russia, and the Grand
Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Weimar went to the grand dining-room and
supped by themselves, with their suites, while another elegant
refreshment table was spread in another apartment for the other
guests. . . . Jenny Lind a little disappointed me, I must confess,
but they tell me that her songs were not adapted on that evening to
the display of her voice.
On Sunday evening your father dined with Baron Brunnow, the Russian
Minister, to meet the Grand Duke Constantine. It so happened that
the Grand Duke and Duchess of Saxe-Weimar appointed an audience to
Baron and Baroness Brunnow at seven, and they had not returned at
half-past seven, when the Grand Duke and their other guests arrived.
The Baroness immediately advanced to the Grand Duke and sunk on her
knees before him, asking pardon in Russian. He begged her to rise,
but she remained in the attitude of deep humiliation, until the
Grand Duke sunk also on HIS knees and gently raised her, and then
kissed her on the cheek, a privilege, you know, of royalty.
. . . On Monday evening we both went to a concert at Mr. Hudson's,
the great railway "king," who has just made an immense fortune from
railway stocks, and is now desirous to get into society. These
things are managed in a curious way here. A NOUVEAU RICHE gets
several ladies of fashion to patronize their entertainment and
invite all the guests. Our invitation was from Lady Parke, who
wrote me two notes about it, saying that she would be happy to meet
me at Mrs. Hudson's splendid mansion, where would be the best music
and society of London; and, true enough, there was the Duke of
Wellington and all the world. Lady Parke stood at the entrance of
the splendid suite of rooms to receive the guests and introduce them
to their host and hostess. On Tuesday morning I got a note from Mr.
Eliot Warburton (brother of "Hochelaga") to come to his room at two
o'clock and look at some drawings. To our surprise we found quite a
party seated at lunch, and a collection of many agreeable persons
and some lions and lionesses. There was Lord Ross, the great
astronomer; Baroness Rothschild, a lovely Jewess; Miss Strickland,
the authoress of the "Queens of England"; "Eothen," and many more.
Mr. Polk, CHARGE at Naples, and brother of the President, dined with
us, and Miss Murray, and in the evening came Mr. and Mrs. McLean, he
a son of Judge McLean, of Ohio.
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