Magic in the Daylight

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From President and Mrs. Reagan in the U.S., a Steuben glass bowl christened 'The Crusaders'! From the village of Doughton, bless 'em all, a sheet-iron weather vane for Highgrove! From the far-off land of Tonga, a bedspread, presented by—I want to get this name right—King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV and his wife, Queen Mata'aho, and hand-knitted by the Queen herself; let's have a round of applause for them both! From the Sedgemoor district council in Somerset — how about this? — a ton of peat! A nickel-silvered — oh, this is cute — a nickel-silvered mousetrap in a diamante-jeweled presentation case from West Country Councillor Vernon Gould! One complete bedroom set from Canada! Two additional beds! Three engineering apprenticeships donated by the Greater Manchester Council! Western boots for Charles, Western chaps for Diana, both from Texas and both from Anne Arm strong, the former American ambassador! A herb garden for Highgrove from the Cranleigh Group of Women's Institutes in Surrey! A lace cushion from the Royal School of Needlework! Two cases of specially blended 'C and D' malt whisky from Macallans Distillery! And — wait until you ladies see this — from Geba, in Germany, kitchen furnishings for every culinary pursuit you can imagine, valued at a grand total of $20,000! And, if you think that's something, just take a look at what we've got behind the curtain!"

What's behind the curtain will be revealed in due diplomatic course—the palace usually makes the official announcement of wedding gifts soon after the ceremony—but one thing is already clear. The royal newlyweds are coming up a little short on the practical end. "Actually," confessed a palace spokesman, "they have not got a thing." There is an abundance of silver bowls and candlesticks, of course. But Charles has joked about camping "on my orange boxes" at Highgrove, and there are those who are taking him at close to his word. Despite an annual income of well over $1 million, it seems that the Prince still lacks certain basics.

"Most of the presents received in the past by royalty were never used," remarks H.B. Brooks-Baker of Debrett's Peerage Ltd., publishers of Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage. "Contrary to popular belief, the Prince doesn't really have anything at all beyond museum pieces, such as signed pieces of furniture and valuable paintings. He doesn't have breakfast china or a toaster."

To correct this situation, Charles and Diana raised eyebrows by registering a list of wedding gifts at the General Trading Company, a tony London emporium with a royal warrant to supply fancy goods. Gift givers who are bored by silver and feel that the Germans have pretty well swept the kitchen-equipment field can drop by the store and have a look at the list of some 300 desired items, which include omelette and sauté pans, salt and pepper mills in natural wood, dishes for casseroles and soufflés, 24 champagne glasses, 18 highball tumblers, a dark green tablecloth and two shocking-pink lamps.