LADIES' GOSSIP.

Otago Witness, Issue 2511, 30 April 1902, Page 61

LADIES' GOSSIP.

— " Most people," writes a Brussels col^ respondent in the society columns of 4 recent M.A.P.. '"have (heard of BaroV Hirsch, but few know anything of th< young girl who has inherited the greatej part of the vast wealth which her grand*' father accumulated. Mile. 'Lilie' HirscF — undoubtedly oue of the greatest heiresses of the twentieth century — lives in Brussels/ where she may be seen daily walking on the Boulevards or driving in the Bois. Of middle height and inclined t,o embon.point, she has a, plump and cheery appearance, with a face crowned by a wealth of the loveliest chestnut hair. Her style oi dress— in elaborate costumes, heavy" furs, etc. — was, I u.«ed to think, not altogether becoming to so young a girl. I have neve* seen her look better than she does at ,pre-< sent, dressed in simple mourning. Mile. Hirsch has made her home with the Montefiores. Her life, .so far, has been very quiet, very happy, and as uneventful aa that of the ordinary Belgian girl of the upper classes. Some years ago"l went to a children's, party given in honour ofi ' Lilies birthday. Most of us spent the gi eater part of the afternoon inspecting her multitudinous dolls, which were of every size and quality, and dressed in the costumes of every nation, known and unknown. We .were much amused, however, to find that of all that gorgeous array, n, gentleman doll was the one de;<rest to its httle owner's heart. It had been dressed by a fashionable tailor, and had quite n, complete wardrobe : riding, evening, and shooting suits, overcoats and caps, ami— not least among the many accessories thufc go to make up the 'toilette de l'homme dv monde' — a dainty little handkerchief with ' Jonathan ' embroidered, across the coi - ncr ! But this was half a dozen years ai,o. A serious matter will soon occupy ths mind of her guardians — the selection of a' life partner for their young ward. May he prove as satisfactory a companion as the little cuily-headed gentleman doll oi long ago ' ' — A hobby of the Princess of Wales is the collection of parasols. It is said that she possesses at least 150, no two of which are alike. They are of all colours and shades, and the handles are perfect works of art. A present from the Princes s of Wales to a bride not infrequently takes the form of a parasol. — Our Sovereign is the most enthusiastic of kingly theatre-goers, and his Majesty, the King of the Belgians, is the next most constant frequenter of theatres. T-h« Kaiser is also a very lavish patron of the drama, and a very keen and somewhat severe critic. The. Emperor of Aus« tria, who for many ; years has been seen but little in places of amusement — for hia great sorrows have thrown a shadow on his life — much astonished his Court and capital by taking a party of little arch< dukes, his grandchildren, to the circus. — ■ Some weeks ago we (Modern Society) pointed out the fact that the Dukes of Xor< folk and Northumberland are both lineal descendants of the "Fair Maid of Bra! bant," Queen Consort and widow of Henry I, and wi.fe of the knight of the Strong Arm, William d'Aibini, Lord of Anindel and Buckcnham. The daughter of Godfrey of Louvaine boie the name of Adelicia. iUeyda, Adelaide, or Alice;, for in all these wv.ys do old chroniclers write her name, which means simply "most noble." The Provencal and Walloon poets, of whom this Queen was a munificent patroness, styie her Adelais. or Alix la Belle. Modern historians generally give the Latinised version of her name, Adeliza. And Adeliza was the name given more then 700 \ears after her death to the daughter of the thirteenth Duke of Norfolk, now Lady .Adeliza Manners, and after hpr to the daughter of the fourteenth Duke, Lady Mary Adeliz.i Fitzalan Hoivaid. to-day the gentle mistress of Anindel Castle, and the chief comfort and stay of England's Ear; Marshal Queen Adeliza the Fair had no children by her sombre Lord Kyig Hi/nry ; but hei second marriage was a very happ* one in every way, and many -<»!is ¥ and 'laughters grew up to inherit their mother '» beauty and their father's stamle;- name. The household at Anindel •■etmed m tiios« stormy days a peifect haven <>[ calm .' and contentment. The Knight ll 11l 1 - rle-crihed as "stout in combat, constant in loyalty ami love." For him Adcliz<i gl-icllv laid down her style and dignity o f QueenDowager, and was known <-imiily as th* Lady of Arundel. — The Qupen R.egent of Spi'ui Iki<- become a motor t-nthtisiast. and uses .in auto< mobile w henever po-sible, in place of the ordinary ejriiape and pair. Her Majesty has always had a gr-at puitniiity for athletic recreations, but it was same time before .she could be induced to take up motoiing Alriariy her Majesty ha 1 - had experience of the fact that motoiing has its duwbacks. for during a recent tovi through a Jully district her autocar c.inie to grief, and the journey had to be continued in a jam waggon. — Two veiy tall young duches«es who will grace Westminster Abbey in June aro the Duchess of Portland and the slim, willowy Uuches- of Mailboiough. Anothez young American duchess who will bo present is her Giace of Manchester. The occasion will, in fact, be lemarkable for the pre<ence of a be\y of youthful duthesse* bearing old and highly-honoured title.-, not least among them being the Duchess of Westminstei. who, if not quite <-o strictly pietty as her mother, Mt~- Coinwalh^-West — the famous beauty of hei <l,i\ or her m*ter, Piince^s Henry of Pi -, a blonde of a rare type, ha« at am iate more vivacity of expression, and is counted charming and sweet -naturecl bj all who know htr. 'ihe» giaiule. dame among ducliov-es will assuredly b ■ the chatelaine of Devonshire Hou«e,

Ethel R. ''exjamix. Barrister and So'icitor, Albert Buildings, Princes street, Dunsd'ii (oi i csita C.P.0.), haa trust moneys to ifMi' l ua "■anreved securitr.— Advt

V

— Xew water trough"! over a mile long ore fcpir.g lai f l on the Great vVestern railway between Dur-ton and Taunton, to make it possible for the train conveying the King and Queen and the members of the family from London to Dartmouth and Plymouth it IMA IhgQUgh — 245 Bailee— WALilOut a. itoo.

and among marchione^es it is safe to predict that none will eclipse in stateline^s and beauty the Marchioness of Londonderry. The present Duchess of Sutherland is also certain to be one of the mo«t charm-ing-looking peeres'-e* at the Coronation. — The Duchess of Sutherland and the Duchess of Marlborough have gone to St. I Petersburg. I am told (writes "Belle," in I Truth) that the Duchess of Sutherland is | going to try to "bring her Highland tweeds and cloths undei the notice of the Russian I tailors and dressmakers, with the object of getting them into fashion there, and she ' took a great quantity of things with her — The Queen of Italy is remarkable chiefly for her taste for all forms of vigorous ! exercise, and is, we imagine, the only Queen who rides a bicycle on the high road. Queen Helene — who during her ohildhood in Monte- , negro was accustomed to little restraint — has no liking for Court life, and dispenses with her attendants on all possible occasions. Her Majesty is an expert handler of the gun. a tireless mountaineer, and a magnificent horsewoman. Perhaps her i gieatpst trouble is that she is unable to speak her husband's language with enough facility to use it in public. | — Mrs Dick-Canyngliam, who has re- , ceived much sj mpathy upon the death of hci daughter, is the widow of the gallant Colonel Dick Cunyngham. who fell at Lady-."-mith. It ie the last of a <*nes of the mo--t crii'-hirj Ik rf <\emcnt% which began J with the accidental drowning of Jje^ fcga

while trying to rescue a companion. Since the death of her husband Mrs Dick-C'unyng-ham has been lady-in-waiting to Princess Chiistlan. — The State dining room at Windsor Castle, which is in the private apartments at the north-east corner of the castle, en suite with the three drawing room 5 :, has been very handsomely redecorated. There are only two pictures in this room — Detaille's equestrian portrait of the King and the Duke of Connaught, which was painted a, few years ago for Queen Victoria, and Constant's portrait of her late Majesty, ■which has been hung on the south wall. This room contains a splendid sideboard of carved rosewood and the immense silvergilt punch bowl which was nude for George IV by Eundell and Bridge, and which is said to have cost lO.OOOgs. — With the history of the admission of women to practise medicine the name of Elizabeth Blackwell may always be accorded an important p'ac-9. After studying the bcierce in the United States, Paris, and London she went to practise in Xew York, and founded theie an hospital and medical school for women. She founded the National Health Society in London and also «'->i>ted in forming the London School of Medicine for Women. Dr Blackwell was 81 on February 5. — Her Royal Highness the Princess Alice of Albany, the elder of the two children left by the King's brother Leopold, who attiined the age of 19 on February 25, will probably take an important part in all the Court festivities which are to occur in connection with the Coronation of the King. — Perhaps the most beautiful of the many fair piincesses who will be present at the Coronation is the Grand Duchess Serge of Russia The daughter of Princess Alice. King Edward's much-loved sister, the Grand Duchess is thought by many people lo be the best looking of the late Sovereign's many descendants. She has had a romantic life, for at one time the present German Emperor wished to marry her, but was prevented from doing so by Bismarck. The Grand Duke Serge is one of the Czar's younger uncles ; he is clever and studious, and some years ago he and his beautiful wife visited the Holy Land. Their home is near Moscow, but of late the Grand Duchess has been constantly with her sister, the Empress. — " Madame " remarks that " for less expensive gowns plain satins and Irish poplins will be very popular, and here again satins are of such soft finish that they can be worn with an overdress. I have seen a charming model, which, let me tell you, was quite inexpensive, in white Oriental satin, the skirt gauged slightly on the hips, but falling in full folds towards the feet, where it was simply finished with three flat strappings of the pa tin. The bodice was cut low, with c"bow sleeves, but otherwise might have been a slip bodice with a few pleats to form fulness over the bust, the onlj- trimming being a layer of chiffon, over which came a lace collar, wide on the shoulders and falling down in points over a pointed satin waist band, which gave a becoming long effect in the j front, but came vp high at the back. Fa- j shion decrees that length should be given to the legs at the back and to the waist in fiont. The skirt in the present instance was softened by the long wings of chiffon which fell to the ground from the elbow sleeves. Such a frock could be made in a variety of fabrics within reach of anyone with an aveiage dress allowance." j — The old-fafehioned dinner parties are intolerable to his Majesty, and when he is the guest of the evening the dinner is brief and the guests are few. The fashion of a round table is one which appeals to the King, and the few people with whom he is in the habit of taking dinner usually adopt the custom. The Queen is not fond of dining out, and has not yet honoured anyone with her presence. When she does, s-avs the Week-End, the dinners will be much more stately affairs than they have been of late. —Of Lord Lvtton, who lias become engaged to Miss Pamela Plow den, very little is known pxcept that he seconded the Address, and that for a peer he is not well off His income will never suffice to keep up the family estate of Knebworth, which iv always let to a succession of plutocrats. He is reputed to have been good-naturedly amused at the sketch of his grandfather, j the ereat novelist, in the recent production of " The Last of the Dandie« " When Lady Giiuiby brought him and Mr Tree face to f ace, he said : " When you next look to the times of the dandies will you not impersonate the novelist?'' '" Certainly." retorted Mr Tree, with equal tact, '" if Ins grandson will furnish me "with the play' —In France even the clergy took to patches and every Indv of fashion cairied a little gold or K ilver box in her pocket containing a mirror, some rouge, and dcs mouches. as patches were called. These were of every shape — square, oval, half moon, star, and pven in the form of an animal, bird, or fish. A celebrated beauty of the period is said to have -w orn a patch lepresenting a coach-and-four. Each patch had its proper name, according to the part of the face where it was worn. Placed below the eye it was '" passionate " ; on the forehead, " majestic "' ; near the lips, " coquette " ; at the corner of the mouth, "'kiss"; on the nose, "the impertinent." In fact, patches spoke in a language of their own, and maybp to «ome purpose Thp modern patch, if it " catches on." will aspire to nothing more bizarre than a tiny sphere of court plaister. — The King's three dauchters, Princess Louise Duchess of Fife, Princess Victoria, and Piincess Charles of Denmark, will, of course, -be very important personages- at the Coronation. The Duchess of Fife leads an ideal, happy, domesticated life between her four beautiful homes, and gives up [ almost all her time to her two charming little daughters, who are so interested in soldiering that they actually coaxed their j mother into having a r>air of khaki suits made for them. The King's three sisters ■« ill form a handsome trio of women in. the Royal group. Each of these clever Princesses has her own particular hobby. Princeaa jQhxistiaaa •inf*wß>-._fa L '

nursing work is well known ; Princess i Louise, Duehe&s of Argyll, is justly styled the " artist Princess " ; and Princess Henry of Battenbsrg is a musician to her fingertips, and spends much of her time in composing sacred and other music. The lady | next in importance to Queen Alexandra will naturally be the Princess of Wales. Princess Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein, Princess Christian's daughter, who, like her namesake cousin, seems in no hurry to leave the paternal roof for a home of her own, will also, of course, be present. — The King of the Belgians, who has been staying with Princess Clementine on the Riviera, is taking to bicycling. His Majesty walks with -a limp, and the doctors, having decided this is due to some affection of the knee, have recommended to the King that he take to bicycling, which is expected to effect a cure. — Lord Howard de Walden, who came of ago la-st was indeed born with a silver spoon in his month, for he is one of the wealthiest members of the British Peerage, being the owner of the enormously valuable London freeholds which are supposed by some people to belong to the Duke of Portland because they are called the " Portland estate. Lord Howard de Walden"s Barony dates from 1579, and he also enjoys the Barony of Seaford, and is one of the co-heirs of the Barony of Ogle. He obtained his commission in the 10th Hussars, and served in South Africa. Latterly he has displayed some interest in social work in London, in which his mother, who was the eldest daughter and co-heir of Mr William. Holden, of Palace Ho-irse, Lancaster, is of great assistance to 'him. -| — Ella Wheeler Wilcox, who is a very sound guide, gives some good advice to clever women who, however, are not quite so clever as they might be : — J " This is woman's hour,' 1 says the writer, " and she is omnipresent. She lectures, she preaches, tlis designs, she paints, she recites, she goe* into business. Xot so very long azo she did none of these things without being obliged to defy every social law and custom. The literary woman has j always existed, but she used to be looked J upon i's a freak of nature, and the family i which produced her felt itself under a ban. Phe was expected to wear short hair and be masculine in appearance, and she frequently lived up to the expectation. " Women's clubs have done much towards enlarging the world's ideas regarding the ability of woman to be both feanlnine and intellectual. And woman's own delightful variety has come to the rescue and enabled her to keop her femininity while she used her intellect. The one important thing for her to do now is to keep her good common sense uppermost in all phases of her public career, and if &he lacks this quality — to cultivate it. " Xot long -ago I dropped into a woman's club for a few moment? at an hour which I had been told would be devoted to social intercourse — after all the exercises of the meeting were over. I was a little late, and expected to hear that amiable buzz of indistinguishable words blended into a harmony of discords v if one may use so paradoxical a phrase, which distinguishes an afternoon tea in America. Instead, I saw a room filled with bored-looking faces, while one high-keyed voice on the platform read monotonously from a manuscript which seemed interminable. One by one ladies rose and tiptoed out, and when the paper was finally completed scarcely half an audience remained, and those who did linger for the social part of the occasion were evidently nervous, and out of haimony with the occasion. One tactless and inconsiderate woman had ruined a whole afternoon for a hundred jjeople by her lack of good sense. Being given the opportunity to air her theories, lost ;>ll idea of the fitness of thinjrs and became a bore. " On another occasion I called to see a woman artist and atked her to show me wjme of her recent work. I had previously remarked that my call mu< of necessity be a brief one, but for one <vn ful houi did that artist compel me to sit and view pictures in various lights, tind then I was almost forced to walk dvpv her opposing body bffore I ronld gain tlic exit, which she was d"fr.-m'su>r! 1 '■houl' l ■"'•>' d-> until I had seen ' just one more — her best ' '" J l i LjiM-iy as \\ oiii i.n has learned that it is not necr^sary or w!«e to 'be a down-at-the-heel ' blue-stocking ' or a masculine crank b°caits,e she has brains, she ought to learn that she need not be a bore because she hn= intellectual he <l«m Plic ha:, learned j that talent, beauty, and fashion may all dwell tojethei in one feminine form, but she seems freouently to ignore the eternal obligation of being charming. No woman can be ch.iimmj, who ptinnts herself to be a b >re."'