[Illustration:  THE ROYAL PALACE AND LUSTGARTEN, BERLIN]

There was a general who stood before me with his plumed hat in his hand, and the plumes waved about like palm-trees, so near were they to my panting!

Then the Emperor appeared with his suite, and stood at the right of the altar.  He was a little ahead of time.  There were about seventy-two princes and princesses.  Each of the princesses had a page or a young lady to hold up her train.

The Empress then entered, followed by her suite.  The youngest demoiselle d’honneur held her train, which was of red velvet covered with heavy embossed gold embroidery.

After the Empress came the Crown Prince in his white garde de corps uniform.  He looked very young and slender and quite pale.

A moment after the bride came in.  Six young ladies held her train, which was light-blue velvet embroidered in silver, over a white-satin gown covered with beautiful point lace.  The train was carefully spread on the floor.

The choir of boys high up in the dome sang psalms with many verses.  Then the clergyman commenced his exhortation, which was very long.  The heat was intense.  Some ladies about me thought they were going to faint, but happily they could not make up their minds.

Although the music was delicious, I longed to hear the organ.  Especially when the ceremony was finished I hoped that we should hear Mendelssohn’s March.  But there was no organ in the chapel.

It took the royal persons a long time to leave the chapel, each princess taking up a great deal of space with her train and her train-bearer.  The last princely couple were strangely contrasted.  The young Duchesse d’Aosta, who is unusually tall, walked with a tiny Siamese prince.  We followed down the steps to the Weissesaal, where the members of the Diplomatic Corps defiled before the throne and made our courtesy—­one only—­before the Emperor.  All the suites and court gentlemen stood massed together opposite the throne.  It was quite an ordeal to walk under the fire of so many eyes, as the parquet was without any carpet and very slippery, and the length of the room immense.

After waiting what seemed an hour, the royalties, headed by the Emperor and the Empress, walked past us.

The spectacle of these fifty princesses with their magnificent dresses, blazing with jewels, made one gasp.

Besides all the royal people of Germany, representatives from other countries were present.  Prince Christian and his wife, who is the sister to the bride, represented Denmark.

They all disappeared in the banqueting-hall at the end of the gallery.  We others sat down at tables each containing twelve people, and were served a regular dinner.

Each table in our room had a superb surtout de table in silver, and silver drinking-cups worthy of a museum.  The menus and bonbons were trimmed with white-satin frills and had the photographs of the Crown Prince and Princess, and were laid by each plate.  A dinner for three thousand people!  The young ladies and officers had their dinner at a standing buffet.