AMAZING CAREER

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21467, 15 April 1933, Page 2 (Supplement)

AMAZING CAREER

MAUNDY GREGORY'S LIFE COUNSELLOR TO KINGS COLLECTION OF JEWELS £2OOO A YEAR FOR CLOTHES Remarkable accounts of the amazing career of J. Maundy Gregory aro published iii London newspapers. As related on this page'of the Herald Supplement on April 1, he was in February sent to prison for two months in the second division and fined £SO Tor endeavouring to obtain £IO.OOO from a retired commander of tho Royal Navy, as an inducement to assist in obtaining for that % officer the graut of a dignity or title. Though unfamiliar to the general public, says the News of the World, Mr. Maundy Gregory for years has been one of the most conspicuous figures in the environs of Whitehall, where "ho had an elegant and impressive tiiito/ of offices close to the residence of the Prime Minister. In bis wide circle of acquaintances he numbered some of the most celebrated people of the day, and was ou terms of intimate friendship with kings, princes, peers, statesmen and representatives of all the arts and sciences. A man of distinguished presence, lie was always faultlessly dressed, and wore a, conspicuous watch chain of diamonds. Born the son of a vicar of St. Michael's, Southhampton, 60 years ago, Maundy Gregory / was at Oxford for live or six years, tried the stage as a career and in 1908 lost money in a revival of " Dorothy " at the old Waldorf (now the Strand)" Theatre. Then lie ran an agency the object of which as to detect undesirable guests at the big hotels, and his experience in this connection secured him an introduction to Whitehall when war broke cut. / International Reputation A vigorous anti-Bolshevist, Mr. Gregory raised largo sums of money and employed the Whitehall Gazette to expose Moscow and all its ways, while at the same time emphasising all that a citizen, of the British Empire could regard as national and patriotic. Rather more than a year ago he entered the / Church of Rome, and thereafter helped to- raise considerable sums for church purposes. He holds the Order of the White Rose of the highest honour of. that young Republic, and belongs among others to flic Orders of St.- John of Jerusalem, the Holy Sepulchre and Pius IX. Ln his very ■ elaborately-equipped Whitehall offices Mr. Gregory received civil servants of high position, university' professors and members of the diplomatic service, most of whom wrote articles for his publication. After a period of waiting in an ''buter room, a visitor to his suite would observe mysterious lights flash on the desks. It was the ,signyi that Maundy Gregory was at liberty. .The visitor would find him seated in a massive crimson chair in a lofty and beautifull3--fnrnished apart- . ment. •' Portraits of Potentates The walls of tins noble room were bung with magnificent portraits of many of the crowned heads of Europe, as well as of Eastern potentates; and impressive-looking dispatch boxes rested on the tables. Maundy Gregory is a connoisseur of art and curios and lie has had in his possession one of the most famous diamonds in the world. It is a heartbbaped, roso-colouj-ed jewel of great historical interest, 'which once belonged to the Empress Catherine of Russia and had passed through the hands of a . kinsman of the Tsar murdered by tho Bolsheviks. The diamond was taken to England by a ''diplomat at the request of a- grand duchoss in straitened circumstances. Outside A\ hitehal! Mr. devoted himself to- the arts. He entertained many literary people at his house,in. Hydj Park Terrace, where, lining a bachelor, he lived with his sister. He bad had a: good deal to do also V ith the Ambassador Club, and was a prime mover in the Faber dinners on the eve of the Derby. Generosity to Friends Although always thought to be a wealthy man, Mr. Gregory made no ostentatious display of weaith. He was generous to his friends and to his employees alike, but of himself one saw little evidence of the affluence which to judgfe by his activities, bo must have possessed. Stories of Mr. Gregory's generosity are many. To his friends and acquaintances he has presented specially-in scribed walking sticks, gold-mounted fountain pens and gifts of jewellery Euch, as tie-pins and cuff-links. He has surprised many who attended his lavish parties by giving astonishingly heavy tips, and waiters, doormen and other attendants have been the recipients of large sums of money. Here is another story which shows ihe humanity behind the austere man of politics. A poor woman was the mother of a lad whom she could ill a fiord to educate. He was promising and came under the eye of Maundy Gregory. Ho took the' lad in hand, paid lor him to attend extra classes, had him specially trained in elocution and eventually made him a private secretary. Coat of Arms Mr. Gregory possessed a taxi-cab of his own and on many occasions his guests have been surprised at its appearance. It was always there when Gregory needed it. His bills for private i car hire are said to have run up to as much as €2OOO a, year. -Mr. Gregory throw his heart into a big effort to help the Order of St. John of Jerusalem, promising, it is said, ie, raise £IOO,OOO in three years, lu I..'lie had investigations made ' into Ins ancestry, and .soon afterwards he mas the possessor of a coat oi arms. Prints of this coat of arms were sent to many of hid friends. Tho inscription on, the scroll was " Vigilate." This al:.o was the narhe. of a motor-launch that he owned and which lie used during his frequent week-end visits to the Uiamos at Long Ditton. His interests extended to the stage, with which he had been connected during the early days of his career in an administrative • capacity. \ cry rarely one of Mr. Gregory's seei etanes would got a fleeting glimpse of the_ contents' of a large safe that stood In a corner of Mr. Maundy j Gregory's private sanctum in his Whitehall office. There lie would see a collection of jewellery that looked worth a king's ransom. He was never • at a loss to produce a valuable present lor any of hi.s special friends, and it Mas in this safd that he kept his store bi gifts. Equally he was never at a loss to produce a largo sum of money ®t -a given moment. He used regularly

to carry about liiin notes .worth thousands of pounds. Mrs. Edith Marion Rosse, a. friend of Mr. Gregory, and who died last September, left an estate valued at over £IB,OOO. All was left to Mr. Gregory. Above the outer door of the office were a red electric bulb and a white one. When the red bulb glowed it meant that on no account was Mr. Gregory to be disturbed. The white bulb was illuminated when he wanted one of his two secretaries. On his desk was a Morse tapper and this controlled the white light. He would tap out the initial of the man lie wanted anci the whit' l bulb would flash its message to the secretary. lie had three telephones on his desk, one of which was fitted with a special device which prevented the line from being tapped. The office was magnificently furnished and round the walls were old masters, one of them a portrait of Bloody " Judge Jeffreys. In a corner of the room was a powerful wireless set with seven valves, which could pick up messages from as far afield as America. Mr. Gregory's emissaries were many, and among them were members of distinguished, families. The scion of a noble Breton "house often carried out important missions. When revolution broke out in Spain and tho King of Spain was hurriedly preparing to leave bis palacejjijpnd the country, Mr. Gregory sent tlire young nobleman to King Alfonso with a sealed parcel. To get to the King the messenger had to take his life in his hands and enter tho palace through a littleused window at the back. The mission was successful. From time to time many strange people approached Mr. Gregory with schemes of various sorts and asking for help in one way or another. A famous Turkish tobacco merchant who had for many years been a friend of Sir Basil Zaharoff had spent a long period writing Sir Basil's life history. The Turkish merchant took the manuscript, which contained approximately 120,000 words, to Mr.. Gregory and asked him it he would help in its publication. Mr. Gregory, after reading the manuscript, realised its great dramatic appeal to a public to whom

Sir Basil Zaharoff has for years proved a man of insoluble mystery. He Vfas considering the publication of the manuscript when the author, who was nearly 90 years old, djed. It it believed that the manuscript is still among the papers of Mr. Gregory at Whitehall. Mr. Gregory's friend for nearly 30 years was Mrs. Edith Marion Rosse. On her death, on September 14 last, her personal fortune went to Mr. Maundy Gregory under the terms of her will, which read: " Everything I have, if anything happens to me, to be left to Mr. J. Maundy Gregory, to Indisposed of as he thinks best and in accordance with what I should desire." In the death certificate Mrs. Rosse was described as the wife of Frederick Rosse, musical composer. Her age was given as 59 years. A close friend of Mr. Gregory and Mrs. Rosse told a Daily Mail reporter that the latter

always referred to Mr. Gregory as Uncle Jim," and it was understood that she was a relation of , his. She occupied the upper half of Mr. Gregory's premises at 10 Hyde Park Terrace. The friend said: "I believe that Mrs. Rosso gave Mr. Gregory a good deal of assistance some years ago, when he set up m business. Jt was she who suggested that offices should be taken in Whitehall when Mr. Maundy Gregory was proposing to take an office on the third floor of a building in Piccadilly. That was in 1919. She had exceptional business qualities and was ablo to help Mr. Maundy Gregory in many ways. She had a private income, which was largely derived from a halfshare of her husband's royalties." The contrast between the modes of life of Mr. Posse and Mr. Gregory is shown by a statement made by Mr. Posse. " Unfortunately I am not working now," he said. " I run writing a little music, hut 1 am what you would call a poor man. I really crippled myself by making an allowance to my wife when wo parted JO years ago. 1 gave her more than I could really afford, but J did not wantjj&o lower her standard of living just IPLause we did not agree.. I suppose- in the best year I allowed my wife between £SOO and £6OO, and in another year it would only be half that, but it was a lot of money for mo. There is not much .Jnoney in music now for a composer like myself. Most of the music comes out of a box or tin." Mr. Rosso said that lie vprmld not contest the will of his former wife. " Candidly i do not see whv Gregory should get it all," ho said, "but 1 cannot afford to contest it."