chap. XIV. ACCEPTABLE PRESENTS TO THE QUEEN. 
395 
the queen would send for the presents to-day, I had made 
all ready; and about noon the officers came from the palace 
to take them to the queen. I had previously arranged them, 
and made out lists of all the articles. I repeated what I had 
already stated to the officers, that I had not the treasure of 
the merchants who sometimes visited the capital, and re¬ 
gretted that my presents were so insignificant; but desired 
to offer what I had brought as expressive of my grateful sense 
of the kind reception I had met with and a trifling memorial 
of my visit. I then handed to them a parcel containing 
jewellery from His Excellency the Gfovernor of Mauritius; 
and afterwards delivered to them the boxes containing my 
presents for the queen, the prince, and the princess, which 
were to be taken to the palace. Those for the chiefs were to 
be taken to their own houses. 
Amongst my presents to the queen was a large framed en¬ 
graving of our own Gracious Sovereign, and of His Eoyal 
Highness the Prince Consort, together with a large coloured 
print of Windsor Castle, also in a gilt frame. I had heard 
that there were good-sized plates of the portraits of the Em¬ 
peror and the Empress of the French in the palace, and the 
officers when they saw the portraits of Queen Victoria and 
the Prince Consort said they thought they would be acceptable 
to their queen. The presents for the prince royal and the 
princess were arranged separately. When the officers had 
ascertained that the articles accorded with the lists, their 
own attendants and two of my men carried them to the 
palace. Amongst the presents were a number of articles 
which had been kindly contributed by my friends at home, 
and though in many instances of simple and inexpensive 
material, their value was enhanced by the beautiful forms 
into which they had been wrought by skilful and industrious 
hands. 
As soon as the officers had left me, I returned to my expe- 
