WOMAN'S CAREER AS A MAN

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14926, 31 August 1910, Page 8

WOMAN'S CAREER AS A MAN

ROMANCE OF LIFE MASQUERADE. ~ "DAUGHTER'S" RECOLLECTIONS. After passing as a man for 55 years;, a woman calling herself " Harry Lloyd,". lrv- • ing at Enfield Lock, had tho secret of her ssx discovered through death. Short and slightly built, with long grey hair, she lived in u tiny four-roomed cottage with a girl of 26, who believed tho ; "man" lo be her father. Twcnty-fivo years ago "ho" was living in tho district, and an old man named Slight remembers that " Lloyd " shortly after that time was lodging with his ■ mother-in-law. "He" had a baby girl, who is now a teacher. " Lloyd" let. .it bo understood that tho • girl was "his" daughter, and she called • him "Dad." " Ojieo I questioned him," said Mr Slight/ ' "He had said that ho had relations in Franco who were very well-to-do. I asked • hnn why he did not go to them, for he was often hard up. 'I disgraced myself, • and shall never see my paoplo again,' he said.""' . '' The sole income of " Lloyd " and " his " daughter was her salary as a teacher. At ono time "he" had l earned small sums by leaching French and by distributing hand- . bills. For the last year, however, "he" had been in very poor health. Nothing oauld induce " him" to, see a ■ doctor. "He" was usually dressed in. a loose-, fitting blue sorgo reefer suit, with a -soft felt hat, and wore- a monocle. When "Lloyd" died in Juno last Dr F. \V. Foott was called. "I had known Lloyd . well," ho said to a representative of this ~ journal, "and although she was short and slight, sho never struck mo. as being of feminine appearance. But when I went..', into the room and saw her lying dead I . know at once that it was a. woman, All , the hard lines had disappeared from, the face, and it was tho face of an. old. woman!" At the inquest Elizabeth Lloyd, the' ■ young woman, referred to, was..tho first 1 , witness called. Sho is 26 years of age. Sho said sho always knew the deceased as her "father."' Her memory wont back 23 years to childhood, and throughout that, timo tho deceased always dressed in man's attire. Tho witness remombered the death., of her mother perfectly (July, 1895) at Pondera End, being then jtist 6| years old.. The Coroner: During the whole of that. time, what has been the employment ofi your "father"? Tho Witness: Various. Did you understand what your nationality was?—l always understood it was French. Sho spofce French perfectly. The Coroner said ho had received a telegram from Mr Kols, auctioneer at South-ond-on-Sea, stating that the deceased was' in his employment at Edmonton. The witness said the i deceased worked: for Mr Kels at Edmonton when she firet remembered anything'definitely. She did some distraint work and kopt a lodginghouse for him. •-.-.-,

:Do you know whether during the time that you have lived with her, 20 years, she ever saw a doctor?— Never to my knowledge. 'Sha was never ill untiil last Augus6._ Then I many times made the suggestion, but she always said, "No," she would bo better when, tho weather got' better. Tho witness, continuing, 6ai<t that about 3.30 p.m. on Juno 18 thoro was a)' change in the deceased, and witness sent for-Dr Foott.

Did he make a statement about 'her being a woman.?—He said as soon,as he saw the btfdj Mat it was a woman, and not a man. Proceeding, the witness said that there had never at any time beeroauythang which aroused her suspicions that the deceased was not her father ' Did the deceased. ever 6pcak about your mother'/—lf I questioned him he would tell mo little details. I rarely asked him, be-' causo it always wipset him. \V!ia'. did lie tell you?—Ho told mo my mothw's name was Condoit, or a name somSfching like that. He said my mother and her brother wore Londoner} born, were left orphans, and were brought up'in Hoiborn, and that while they lived there her brother went away, and she wont to her maiden aunt. : .' Did he tell you. what became of tli©. brother?—Ho told me he nover knew, but thought lie went to the colonies. Did she over say anything to you about the' circumstances of marriage with your mother?— She.never gave me any circumstances. I asked, and ho always said "another time." She said eho came of Welsh .pwplc. who some generations back settled in France, and that she had one' brotnor named Paul Lloyd. I suppose we may take it now that your mother was a sister of the deceased?— Weil, I privately don't think so. What do you think?— Sometimes I think she was one of the maiden aunts, because 60 for as I know she went as a man before ray birth. i see he was acquainted with Mr Qharlcs Bradl.'insfli?—Yos, he had a very intimate knowledge'of him. Ho went about and helped him to arrange meetings. A juror said that ho knew deceased in 1877 and 1878 as manager of a common MaL'rsr-ho'ise at Eaton place, Ponder's End. He was'then dressed as a man. Dr Foott, 'examined, said he had known dcreasod by sight for some time, always as a man, His attention visa directed to her by her peculiar individuality. He had tried to come into conversation with her,' but siin had' always "shut him up sharply." When he arrived at the house and saw the deceased lying on tie couch. He said '.n Miss Lloyd: " I thought it was a man I was called to see." She replied: "Yes, it is; that's my father," Mies Lloyd was genuinely surprised- when told the \*v~</ was that of a woman. He satisfied himself that the deceased had never given birth to a child. ' Tim Coroner, summing up, said he ift-t ; not know that their inquiry would "load to any definite discovery regarding why the deceased passed as a man. It looked as if she had been, attached to Miss Lloyds mother, and. in order to protect her in some way in her lifetime, passed as her husband, and continued after her With to pass as the father of the little girl who was loft behind, and that she did it to protect the honour of Eliza Lloyd. Jf that was so, it was a. very pathetic and kind reason which prompted the deceased to undertake that task of unselfish love for so many years. Ho trusted that Miss Lloyd's position would not bo affected by what had taken place. The jury returned a verdict of death from pleurisy, and iixpressed their sym. pathy with Miss Lloyd. The widow of tho late Mr Austin. Holy, oake (Mr Bradlau.jh's publisher) stated to a press representative that sho believed Harry Lloyd to be identical with Marie Le Roy, a bright little Frenchwoman and a teacher of Fronoh, who used to • visit the Hall of Science in the days when Mr bnarlss Bradlaugh and Mi' Austin Holy* oaka lectured there.