ITEMS OF SOCIAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 9307, 16 September 1893, Page 3 (Supplement)

ITEMS OF SOCIAL NEWS.

[FROM OUR LONDON CORRESPONDENT. ] Those disagreeable rumours to which 1, ■ referred last week, as -to a morganatio marriage having having been formerly con< tracted by the Duke of York, have at) last) found their way into print and bava received definite attention. The story had been met with an authoritative and un« qualified denial. Ib was high time. The tale had been told in nearly every household in the kingdom and was obtaining 1 acceptance as an undoubted historic fact. Plenty of men declared openly in the cluba that they absolutely " knew ib to be so." And some of these were such who had exceptionally good opportunities of know, ing the truth. If false, as we are bound to believe after the explicib denial which has been given, it was a most cruel and wicked slander, tending to do infinite nfischief, alike as causing domestic unhappiness in high quarters and as inspiring distrustful , and disapproving feelings towards our " king to be." Ib appears now that the report was brought directly under the notice of the Archbishop of Canterbury# who deemed himself bound to investigate ib before he would consent to perform tho marriage ceremony. The result of the Archbishop's investigations was to satisfy him that " the silly story was wholly untrue, absolutely baseless." Otherwise I hear tha Archbishop would have held that a mor* ganatic marriage, though void in the eye of the law, nevertheless constituted in the eye of the Church an insurmountable impediment to the consecration of a second marriage so long as • the morganatic wife lived. Bub happily no such problem had to be solved. Ib seemed to me one of the most detestable features of this extra*l ordinary scandal that it dragged in the name of a mosb eminent naval officer whose daughter was said to have been the morganatic bride of Prince George and even the mother of two children of whom he was the father ! It is a pity that the originator of this precious yarn cannob be discovered and condignly punished. The tale has saddened many who took cordial parb in the recent wedding rejoicings, to think that all that seeming happiness should be so miserably hollow and thab apparently romantic union of two young hearts a mere State form for purposes of public convenience. For it was very hard to refuse credence at least to the report, appearing as ib did to be so specially authenticated. Pleasant and touching little accounts o£ the simple and natural manner in which the Duke and Duchess of York spent their honeymoon in Norfolk have found their way into the society papers. Ib was nice to read of their rustic rambles together and of their joint fishing expeditions—"two in a boat"—on the Sandringhatn Lake" just) like any other young couple" as one person observed. Shecontinued," Ido hope there is nothing in thab report— am sure there can't bo," and so say we all. I hear it» second-hand from one who was present that Prince George one day rushed into the drawing-room where Princess May and her mother were sitting, and exclaimed in. high amusement: "Hero's an absurd yarn 1 What do you think is the last thing they say. about me, May ? Why, they actually say I am married already !" And he threw himself into a chair and laughed heartily at the very idea. It also seemed to diver Princess May, who made some joking remark regretting that in that case their wedding would have to be given up "after all these dreadful preparations !" The whole tale was looked on as a screaming joke. They never dreamed thab ib would have serious credence. Nor would ib bub for the assiduous efforts of a few club scandalmongers. The Duke and Duchess have taken up their quarters in " York House," and are more popular than ever. The Duchess, if one may judge from the statements of those who know her most intimately, is a girl of quite exceptional force of character and possessing more than average ability, combined with a peculiarly amiable disposition and charming manner. Assuredly her face and its expression are singularly attractive, although, as I have said before, she is by no means strictly beautiful in the ordinary sense. But she has a very pretty smile, a pure fresh English face, and an exceedingly graceful figure, and well-formed arms, hands, and feet. These make up a very faic total of feminine personal charms. And she usually dresses well—of course I bar that odious mauve dress at the opening of the Imperial Instituteand knows how to move about with grace—not a common accomplishment, but all important in a future Queen. Your feminine readers may be interested to know that she dislikes hats, and seldom wears them, greatly preferring bonnets. Several new photographic portraits of the Princess of Wales have lately been taken by various photographers. They are mosb excellent and show the marvellous preservation of her rare beauty through all the changes that the passage of years necessarily makes in its character. Princess Alexandra of 1593 differs as greatly from Princess Alexandra of 1880 as she did from the Princess of 1863. Ydb all were and are strangely lovely, and the oddest thing is that the Princess looks very little older, if at all, than she did 30 years ago. I am sorry to say that that other wonderful evergreen, the divine Patti, is: beginning to look decidedly middle-ag9d and matronly. She has become " a plump and pleasing —especially " plump." Bub she still sings incomparably—absolutely so. Yet there is one rival who runs her very close ; and that is a boy. Ho is the principal treble soloist in the choir of St. Andrew's Church, Well-sfcreeb, London; a little fair-faced lad of I*2 oc 13. I never , heard his equal, and I have heard all the ( best. The beauty, fulness, and compass of his voice are simply amazing, and his artistic singing in no less remarkable. Ho interprets the mosb difficult songs—including those terribly exacting airs of Sebastian Bach—with consummate perfection. His "(J in alt" is one of the loveliest things I ever ; listened to — almost superhuman in its ethereal beauty and sweetness. It is sad to [ think thab that glorious voice will break in L a year or two. But he may be a future . Edward Lloyd or Joseph Maas, both of } whom were choir-boys in their time.

The London summer season—musical and dramatic—is over at last, and the city •presents a curiously changed appearance during the last week or two. Quite a different class of people pervade the fashionable haunts at the West End. There is a greab deal of the " country cousin" element about Regent-street and Hyde Park just) now ; for this is the time when country residents {nob of the upper ten) flock into London by excursion train, while the regular Londoners are mostly off to the seaside, to Scotland, and to the Continent.

Equally marked has been the change in the weather since the end of the great drought. Jor ». month we have had an unsettled period of frequent showers, much wind, and innumerable thunderstorms, soma very destructive and fatal. Two of exceptional severity broke over the city recently, when the thunder and lightning were tremendous and the rain quite a tropical deluge. But an exquisite evening followed. I trust the harvest has not suffered but very much corn is now in stook.

It, is curious to notice the increasing prevalence of spectacles and eyeglasses among the young people of London. I may mention one specially odd instance in point. At a gay wedding lasb week the bride and bridegroom and five bridesmaids formed a group of seven, and were subsequently photographed. Of those seven no fewer than six wore glasses, including a nine-year-old bridesmaid. Indeed, none of the ages exceeded 24. The effect was decidedly peculiar. Killeen Castle, in County Meath, 25 miles from Dublin, one of the finest and most interesting feudal buildings in Great Britain, and next to Windsor the oldest inhabited castle, was recently offered for Bale at auction, but no offer was forthcoming for either of the nine lots into which the property was divided. * • • A society paper has the following:—.Lady Jersey was kissed on the right cheek by the Queen at her i interview with Her Majesty the other, day at the | Marlborough House garden party, but the Queen "did look" when she saw her ladyship—unthinkingly—< wipe the regal kiss from her cheek. ' '• ;