had no London house, the latter soon took a very prominent place in
society; she became a great favourite both with the Prince and with
the Princess of Wales, and she was constantly included in the lists of
house parties invited to meet their Royal Highnesses.
Many years of Lady Mandeville's married life were spent in Ireland.
She was devoted to her three children, twin daughters and one son,
known during his childhood as Lord Kimbolton; and though she often paid
flying visits to London, she did not revisit America for a long time.
On the death of the seventh Duke of Manchester, in 1890, Lady
Mandeville became at once the reigning Duchess of Manchester, and she
was for a time the only American duchess in the peerage; during the two
years which elapsed before the duke's death, the duchess gave a series
of splendid entertainments both in her London house in Great Cumberland
Street, and at Kimbolton Castle, in Huntingdonshire, the splendid place
which was, for so many years, the home of poor Catherine of Arragon
after her divorce from Henry VIII.
Her mother-in-law, now the Duchess of Devonshire, always proved a firm
and loyal friend to her son's beautiful American wife; and on the death
of the eighth duke, which occurred in the August of 1892, it was his
mother who persuaded the young duchess that she should continue to live
in London, and not retire, as she thought of doing, to her son's Irish
seat.
The greatest grief of the Duchess of Manchester's life was the death of
Lady Mary Montagu, one of her beautiful twin daughters, whose charming
portraits by Lady Granby and Mr. Edward Hughes have made their features
familiar. Since her death, which occurred very suddenly in Rome, the
duchess has lived very quietly until this spring, only emerging from
her retirement in order to introduce her young daughter to society.
It is a curious fact that the young Duchess of Marlborough, _née_
Miss Vanderbilt, is the godchild and namesake of Consuelo, Duchess
of Manchester, owing to the circumstance that the latter and Mrs.
Vanderbilt were intimate friends. The Duke of Marlborough first met
Miss Vanderbilt when she was visiting her godmother, but the engagement
and marriage took place, as all the world knows, in New York.
The Duchess of Marlborough, like most of her fellow countrywomen, has
shown remarkable powers of adaptability. She is very much liked, both
round Blenheim and in the more critical London world where her rank
gives her a very important place.
Everyone is aware that Lady Randolph Churchill is one of three
beautiful sisters who all married Englishmen. The brilliant younger son
of a Duke of Marlborough first met Miss Jennie Jerome in Paris. Like so
many American women, she was and is a very excellent conversationalist;
in fact, during Lord Randolph's lifetime, it used to be said that the
only woman who was his match in repartee was his own wife. Although
brought up in an intensely republican atmosphere, she developed, after
her marriage, into an enthusiastic Tory, and a pillar of the Primrose
League.
When her husband decided to enter Parliament, his wife set herself to
promoting his interests in every way; and it was openly averred at the
time, that he owed his appointment as Chancellor of the Exchequer to
her efforts, for in those days Lady Randolph Churchill may be said to
have had a _salon_ in the true sense of the word, and her beautiful
house in Connaught Place was a rendezvous for her husband's friends
and supporters. She showed American thoroughness in everything about
the establishment, keeping the best _chef_ in town and being a perfect
hostess from every point of view.
Since the premature death of Lord Randolph Churchill, his widow has
continued to make her home in London. She is very devoted to her two
sons, and is said to be as ambitious for them as she was for their
father. It was at one time widely asserted that Lady Randolph was about
to become the second wife of her millionaire fellow-countryman, Mr.
William Waldorf Astor, but up to the present time the rumour has not
been confirmed.
[Illustration: (1) LADY GREY-EGERTON.
_A. Hughes, Photo_
(2) LADY RANDOLPH CHURCHILL.
_A. Hughes, Photo_
(3) THE COUNTESS OF CRAVEN.
_Lafayette, Photo_]
Lady Randolph's great interest in life is music. She is a very fine
pianist, and sings almost as well as she talks. She has of late devoted
a great deal of her spare time to private theatricals, her first
appearance having taken place at Blenheim, during the now historical
visit of the Prince and Princess of Wales to the Duke of Marlborough
and his young American bride.
Lady Randolph has preserved an extraordinary look of youth, and, though
the eldest of the three, she looks younger than either of her sisters,
Mrs. Jack Leslie, and Mrs. Morton Frewen.
Among the American women who have been called upon to take an active
interest in British political life, Mrs. Joseph Chamberlain certainly
deserves the foremost place. She is devoted to her husband, and has
made herself thoroughly conversant with all that affects or that may
affect his political ambitions. But she is quite content--unlike, it
must be admitted, most American women--to take a second place, and she
is liked and respected by many people who still retain their prejudice
against the Colonial Secretary.
Mrs. Chamberlain, _née_ Miss Mary Endicott, belongs to one of the
oldest families in New England, one of her forebears having been the
first English governor of Massachusetts. Mr. Chamberlain, then a
widower for the second time, first met Miss Endicott in 1887, when
he was one of the British delegates on the Fishery Commission; but
their engagement did not take place till the following year, and Mr.
Chamberlain returned to America to be married, the wedding being
celebrated at Salem, Mass., the residence of the bride's father.
At the present moment it is interesting to recall that Mr. W. C.
Endicott was Secretary for War in President Cleveland's first
administration, and perhaps Mr. Chamberlain's openly expressed
sympathies with America during the Hispano-American war are greatly
owing to the fact that his wife's family have always been ardently
patriotic.
Mrs. Chamberlain has now become quite an Englishwoman. Her husband's
people have become her people, and she has even gathered Birmingham to
her heart, for although Highbury has become a very "smart" house, its
mistress is always ready to welcome there her husband's old supporters
and early friends; Mrs. Chamberlain has also ever been on the happiest
terms with her step-children, one of whom, Mr. Austen Chamberlain, is
older than herself.
What orchids are popularly supposed to be to the Colonial Secretary,
roses are to his charming American wife; and the rosery at Highbury
is one of the most beautiful in the United Kingdom, and this although
Mr. and Mrs. Chamberlain spend a considerable portion of the year in
Prince's Gardens, where they are always reminded, however, of their
much-loved Warwickshire home, great baskets full of roses being sent
them almost daily from Highbury.
Mrs. Chamberlain does not see very much of what may be called the
American colony. On all important occasions she is to be seen in the
Ladies' Gallery of the House of Commons, and during the famous Home
Rule Bill debates she was as faithful in her attendance as was Mrs.
Gladstone herself. She is one of the very few American women for whom
the Queen has shown a distinct partiality, and she often accompanies
her husband when he receives a "dine and sleep" invitation to Windsor.
Lady Harcourt belongs to an altogether older and more serious
generation than that from which have been drawn those American women
who now leaven English society. She was the daughter of the famous
American historian, Motley, and much of her youth was spent in Europe,
where her father, who was a diplomat as well as a student, was seeking
materials for his great history, "The Rise of the Dutch Republic."
Miss Motley married Mr. Ives when quite a girl, and after becoming a
widow continued to live in England; and thus it fell about that Mr.
Vernon Harcourt, himself a widower with one little boy, had the good
fortune to win as his second wife one of the most charming and kindly
of women.
The Liberal ranks are, when compared with their rivals, poor in
hostesses; but it is universally admitted that in Lady Harcourt they
are exceptionally blessed, and her house parties at Malwood have done
much to make Sir William popular with the party, the more so that Lady
Harcourt does not confine her interest to politics. She is devoted
to literature and art, and accordingly she is very eclectic in her
choice of guests. Thus Sir William and Lady Harcourt were on intimate
terms with Disraeli, and after the great Tory leader's death, a very
valuable and unique miniature of Byron which had been in the possession
of the author of "Lothair" was given to the Squire of Malwood by Lord
Beaconsfield's executors.
Lady Harcourt also frequently entertained Mr. and Mrs. Gladstone, and
in her garden is a walnut tree planted by the Grand Old Man, while
close by is an ash which is known as Mrs. Gladstone's tree.
It is an interesting fact that, through the Vernons, Lady Harcourt
is the only American who can claim relationship with Royalty. The
story goes that on one occasion, to his annoyance rather than to his
amusement, a friend of the Liberal Leader once proposed at a Radical
gathering the health of "Mr. Vernon Harcourt and the rest of the Royal
Family!"
Mrs. George Curzon is the latest addition to the group of American
women which is now playing so prominent a part in English political
society. The future Lady Scarsdale is the daughter of a great Chicago
millionaire, whose home, however, has now been for many years in
Washington. It was said at the time of the marriage that Mr. Leiter had
settled on his daughter £10,000 a year.
As Miss Leiter, Mrs. Curzon spent several winters in Europe, and she
met her future husband first in London, although their engagement and
marriage took place at the bride's own home in Washington. Even in
America, that land of beautiful women, Miss Leiter was distinguished
for her exceptional good looks, and she was also said to be, as a
girl, one of the best conversationalists in Washington. Owing to her
intimate friendship with Mrs. Cleveland, she was constantly at the
White House, and while there became acquainted with all the diplomatic
world; indeed, at one time every foreign attaché in Washington was
said to aspire to the honour of becoming Miss Leiter's husband. She
speaks French and German perfectly, and has always been interested in
literary matters; indeed, her interest in Mr. George Curzon's literary
work first caused them to become friends. Their engagement lasted some
months, and aroused great interest throughout the States.
The marriage took place in Washington four years ago, and ever since
Mrs. George Curzon has entirely identified herself with her husband's
aims and interests. When he was standing for Southport she was the most
energetic of canvassers, and her beautiful London house is becoming
quite a rendezvous of the Conservative party.
Of all the American women who have married Englishmen none has a more
interesting house than has the Countess of Essex; indeed, Cassiobury
Park, which is near Watford, is not only one of the loveliest country
houses in the United Kingdom, but is said to date its name and fame
from the days of the early Britons. The house itself is of recent
construction, having been built by Inigo Jones, while the gardens were
laid out by Le Nôtre, who was persuaded to leave Versailles for a brief
period in order that he might lend his aid to beautifying the property
of the Lord Capel from whom the present Earl of Essex is descended.
Lady Essex, _née_ Miss Adele Grant, has fine taste. Her special hobby
is the collecting of miniatures, and in her boudoir at Cassiobury are
over a hundred exquisite portraits of the dead and gone beauties and
beaux of a former day. Curiously enough, the title of Countess of
Essex has been invariably borne by a beautiful woman, and one of the
most charming pictures in the house is a portrait of the lovely Kitty
Stephens, who became the wife of the fifth earl.
The Countess of Essex, although belonging to a well-known American
family, has lived in London from her earliest girlhood, and she was at
one time regarded as the prospective bride of the late Lord Cairns. Her
marriage, five years ago, to the seventh Earl of Essex was a social
sensation of 1893.
[Illustration: _Alice Hughes, Photo_
COUNTESS OF ESSEX AND BABY.]
Lord and Lady Essex are both keenly interested in sport and in animals.
They have no town house, but entertain a great deal in their beautiful
Hertfordshire place.
The young Countess of Craven is the daughter of an immensely wealthy
American couple, Mr. and Mrs. Bradley Martin; even before their
daughter's marriage, they generally spent half the year in Europe,
and their entertainments and house parties became notable for almost
"Ouidaesque" lavishness. Mrs. Bradley Martin possesses the most
valuable collection of jewels belonging to any American woman. Her
rubies alone are valued at £40,000, and a fan which she gave her
daughter, and which is encrusted with pearls, rubies, emeralds, and
diamonds, is intrinsically worth £2,000.
Since the marriage of Miss Cornelia Bradley Martin to the fourth Earl
of Craven, the young American countess has taken a prominent place
among the country hostesses of the day. She has already entertained
Royalty several times.
One of the most attractive American women who have made their home on
this side of the Atlantic is Lady Terence Blackwood, the pretty young
daughter-in-law of the Marquis of Dufferin. Before her marriage, Miss
Flora Davis was for some time a member of the American colony in Paris,
and her marriage took place while Lord Dufferin still occupied the
British Embassy.
Miss Davis, though the daughter of a very wealthy man, was not, in the
ordinary sense of the word, an heiress; and since her marriage she
and her husband, who is Lord Dufferin's second son, have lived quite
quietly either in a pretty flat in Paris, or more lately in Cadogan
Square, where their house is one of the prettiest in London, each room
representing a different period, the curious and valuable furniture
having been a present from Lady Terence's father.
Lady Naylor-Leyland is the most beautiful American in society. As Miss
Jennie Chamberlain her loveliness was the talk of two continents, and
her beauty has an exquisite setting in her present London house, for
her father-in-law was one of the foremost art collectors in Europe.
Mrs. Arthur Paget takes a very leading place among the American women
who have made England their home, for to exceptional loveliness
she joins great vivacity and charm of manner. This latter quality
is probably owing to the fact that her mother, Mrs. Paran Stevens,
was always surrounded in New York by a circle of intellectual and
interesting people.
Mrs. Arthur Paget is celebrated for her wonderful collection of jewels,
which includes a rope of the largest pearls in the world. She is also
very fond of emeralds, and is often seen wearing a tiara of these
beautiful stones. Like Lady Naylor-Leyland, she is a very successful
London hostess, and she has revived the fashion of _poudré_ and fancy
dress balls. Colonel Paget is a cousin of Lord Anglesey.
The same year that witnessed the marriage of the Earl of Essex to Miss
Adele Grant witnessed another interesting Anglo-American alliance,
that of Miss Mary Caroline Cuyler to Sir Philip Grey-Egerton. Lady
Grey-Egerton, who is the proud mother of twin sons, born two years
after her marriage, is very fond of society. She is an enthusiastic
cyclist.
IGNOTA.
* * * * *
[Illustration: THE BIRDS OF THE MONTH.]
THE TRAGEDY OF A THIRD SMOKER.
A STORY OF THE METROPOLITAN RAILWAY.
BY CUTCLIFFE HYNE.
_Illustrated by J. Finnemore, R.B.A._
[Illustration]
"I abominate detective stories," said the Q.C., laying down his cue
along the corner of the billiard-table and going across to the shelf
where the cigar-boxes stood. "You see, when a man makes a detective
story to write down on paper, he begins at the butt-end and works
backwards. He notes his points and manufactures his clues to suit
'em, so it's all bound to work out right. In real life it's very
different,"--he chose a Partaga, looking at it through his glasses
thoughtfully--"and I ought to know; I've been studying the criminal
mind for half my working life."
"But," said O'Malley, "a defending counsel is a different class of
animal from the common detective."
"Oh, is he?" said the Q.C.; "that's all you know about it." He dragged
one of the big chairs up into the deep chimney corner and settled
himself in it, after many luxurious shruggings; then he spoke on,
between whiffs at the Partaga.
"Now I'll just state you a case, and you'll see for yourself how we
sometimes have to ravel out things. The solicitor who put the brief in
my hands was, as solicitors go, a smart chap. He had built up a big
business out of nothing, but criminal work was slightly out of his
line. He had only taken up this case to oblige an old client, and I
must say he made an uncommonly poor show of it. I never had such a thin
brief given me in my life.
"The prisoner was to be tried on the capital charge; and if murder
really had been committed, it was one of a most cold-blooded nature.
Hanging would follow conviction as surely as night comes on the heels
of day; and a client who gets the noose given him always damages his
counsel's reputation, whether that counsel deserves it or not.
"As my brief put it, the case fined down to this:
"Two men got into an empty third-class smoking compartment at Addison
Road. One of them, Guide, was a drain contractor; the other, Walker,
was a foreman in Guide's employ. The train took them past the
Shepherd's Bush and Grove Road Hammersmith stations without anything
being reported; but at Shaftesbury Road Walker was found on the floor,
stone dead, with a wound in the skull, and on the seat of the carriage
was a small miner's pickaxe with one of its points smeared with blood.
"It was proved that Guide had been seen to leave the Shaftesbury Road
station. He was dishevelled and agitated at the time, and this made the
ticket collector notice him specially amongst the crowd of out-going
passengers. After it was found out who he was, inquiries were made at
his home. His wife stated that she had not seen him since Monday--the
morning of Walker's death. She also let out that Walker had been
causing him some annoyance of late, but she did not know about what.
Subsequently--on the Friday, four days later--Guide was arrested at
the West India Dock. He was trying to obtain employ as coal trimmer on
an Australian steamer, obviously to escape from the country. On being
charged he surrendered quietly, remarking that he supposed it was all
up with him.
"That was the gist of my case, and the solicitor suggested that I
should enter a plea of insanity.
[Illustration: "THE TICKET COLLECTOR SPECIALLY NOTICED HIM."]
"Now, when I'd conned the evidence over--additional evidence to
what I've told you, but all tending to the same end--I came to the
conclusion that Guide was as sane as any of us are, and that, as a
defence, insanity wouldn't have a leg to stand upon. 'The fellow,' I
said, 'had much better enter a plea of guilty and let me pile up a long
list of extenuating circumstances. A jury will always listen to those,
and feeling grateful for being excused a long and wearisome trial,
recommend to mercy out of sheer gratitude.' I wrote a note to this
effect. On its receipt the solicitor came to see me--by the way, he was
Barnes, a man of my own year at Cambridge.
"'My dear Grayson,' said he, 'I'm not altogether a fool. I know as well
as you do that Guide would have the best chance if he pleaded guilty;
but the difficult part of it is that he flatly refuses to do any such
thing. He says he no more killed this fellow Walker than you or I did.
I pointed out to him that the man couldn't very conveniently have slain
himself, as the wound was well over at the top of his head, and had
obviously been the result of a most terrific blow. At the P.M. it was
shown that Walker's skull was of abnormal thickness, and the force
required to drive through it even a heavy, sharp-pointed instrument
like the pickaxe, must have been something tremendous.
"'I tell you, Grayson, I impressed upon the fellow that the case was
as black as ink against him, and that he'd only irritate the jury by
holding out; but I couldn't move him. He held doggedly to his tale--he
had not killed Andrew Walker.'
"'He's not the first man who's stuck to an unlikely lie like that,' I
remarked.
"'The curious part of it is,' said Barnes, 'I'm convinced that the man
believes himself to be telling the absolute truth.'
"'Then what explanation has he to offer?'
[Illustration: "GUIDE WAS ARRESTED AT THE WEST INDIA DOCK."]
"'None worth listening to. He owns that he and Walker had a fierce
quarrel over money matters, which culminated in a personal struggle.
He knows that he had one blow on the head which dazed him, and fancies
that he must have had a second which reduced him to unconsciousness.
When next he knew what was happening, he saw Walker lying on the floor,
stone dead, though he was still warm and supple. On the floor was the
pickaxe, with one of its points slimy with blood. How it came to be so
he couldn't tell. He picked it up and laid it on a seat. Then in an
instant the thought flashed across him how terribly black things looked
against himself. He saw absolutely no chance of disproving them, and
with the usual impulse of crude minds resolved at once to quit the
country. With that idea he got out at the Shaftesbury Road Station,
and being an ignorant man and without money, made his way down to the
Ratcliff Highway--beg its pardon, St. George's High Street. Using that
as a centre, he smelt about the docks at Limehouse and Millwall trying
for a job in the stokehold; but as that neighbourhood is one of the
best watched spots on earth, it is not a matter for surprise that he
was very soon captured. That's about all I can tell you.'
"'I'm afraid it doesn't lighten matters up very much.'
"'I never said it would. The gist of this is down in your brief,
Grayson. I only came round to chambers because of your letter.'
"'Still,' I persisted, 'you threw out a hint that Guide had offered
some explanation.'
"'Oh, yes; but such a flimsy, improbable theory that no sane man could
entertain it for a minute. In fact, he knew it to be absurd himself.
After pressing him again and again to suggest how Walker could have
been killed (with the view of extorting a confession), he said, in
his slow, heavy way, "Why, I suppose, Mr. Barnes, someone else must
ha' done it. Don't you think as a man could ha' got into the carriage
whilst I was lying there stupid, and hit Walker with the pick and got
out again afore I come to? Would that do, sir?"
"'I didn't think,' added Barnes, drily, 'that it was worth following
that theory any deeper. What do you say?'
"I thought for a minute and then spoke up. 'Look here, Barnes; if in
the face of this cock-and-bull story Guide persists in his innocence,
there may be something in it after all; and if by any thousand-to-one
chance we could bring him clear, it would be a red feather in the caps
of both of us. Do you object to my seeing the man personally?'
"'It's a bit irregular,' said Barnes, doubtfully.
"'I know it is bang in the teeth of etiquette. But suppose we
compromise, and you come with me?'
"'No, I won't do that. My time's busy just now; and besides, I don't
want to run up the costs of this case higher than necessary. But if you
choose to shove your other work aside and waste a couple of hours, just
go and interview him by yourself, and we'll waive ceremony. I'll get
the necessary prison order, and send it round to you to-morrow.'
[Illustration: "THEY HAD A FIERCE QUARREL OVER MONEY MATTERS."]