The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1880-07-31 00:00:00

THE STOURBRIDGE OBSERVER.

THE " ATALANTA" FETE.

A fete in aid of the fund for the relief of the suffering
caused by the training-ship Atalanta was held in London
at Kensington House on Saturday, when the Prince and
Prince N of Wales, with their children, and the Princess
Christian testified by their presence to their interest in an
effort to alleviate the distress which has resulted from this
calamity. —We take the following account of the fete from
Monday's Tinics:—

Considerably over £l,OOO was taken in cash at the
doors, and large numbers of visitors had provided
themselves with tickets purchased beforehand at the
libraries, for which it is probably within the mark to
allow another 4000.
At Lady Charles Beresford's stall £253 was taken
by the ladies who from time to time occupied places
there. Among these were the Princess of Wales, the
Duchess of Manchester, Maria, Marchioness of Ailes-
bury, the Marchioness of Waterford, the Marchioness
of Hamilton, the Marchioness of Ormonde, in Mar-
quesa di Santurce, the Countess of Clarendon, the
Countess of Lathom, the Countess of 'Westmoreland,
the Countess of Shrewsbury, Viscountess Mandeville,
Viscountess Grey de Wilton, Viscountess Donne and
Hon. Alice Harbord, Lady Alington (whose little
girls sold flowers at the entrance), Lady Claude
Hamilton, Lady Emma Baring, Lady Carington,
Lady Florence Chaplin, Lady Musgrave, Laly Forbes
of Newe, Lady Lindsay, of Belcarres Hon. Mrs.
William Gerard and Miss Milner, Hon. 'Airs. Gilbert
Stirling, Hon. Mrs. Candy, Mrs. Sa.ssoon, Mi s. Ronalds.
Flowers, bonbons, Japanese sunshades, and articles
de Paris were the staple of this flourishing commerce.
Emissaries from the stall peopled every corridor
and invited visitors to buy roses for the benefit of the
charity. Miss Violet Lindsay and Mrs.:ll.layson were
among the most active of the uncommercial travellers,
and realized £lO is. 6d. by their journeys through the
crowd for flowers alone. The Princess Christian of
Schleswig-Holstein presided for some time over Mrs.
Keith-Fraser's stall, held under a great Japanese um-
brella in the blue drawing-room. Her Royal High-
ness sold here the pretty photographs ot the Princess
of Wales with one of the kittens which the Princess
bought of Mdlle. Sara Bernhardt at last year's Albert
hall bazaar, and sold also other photographs and
flowers, by means of which, in all, with the assistance
of the young Prince Christian Victor and Lady Susan
Melville, who was in attendance, the contribution of
the stall to the charity was raised to £BB 17s. The
Duchess of 'reek came late in the afternoon with the
Hon. Mary The4iger, and real Lied £2O in a little over
an hour by the sale of flowers at a little stall in the
central hall.

The Princess of Wales had already performed a
fatiguing function at Wimbledon, and took little part
personally in the sale. The Prince and Princess
stopped from 6 to 7, having come straight from
Wimbledon with their three daughters, the Princesses
Louise, Victoria, and Maud, attended by Lady
Suffield, Lord Colville of Culross, and Lieutenant-
Colonel Stanley Clarke. The little Princesses were
in mauve; the Princess wore gold berries in her
bonnet and had a dark foulard dress which glanced
green or blue in different lights and was covered with
golden disks. Golden hues were frequently employed
with great effect. The tall figure of Mrs. Langtry
was conspicuous on the lawn in a silk and striped
plush dress of "old gold" colour, with red and gold
poppies, as, attended by two gentlemen who bore cups
of Badminton and champagne, she wandered from
group to group, and ended by distributing cup and
cigars to the sailors of the Osborne, who cheered her
as she departed by the Royal entrance. The Countess
of Lonsdale wore a dress of black and "old gold," and
the two ladies last-mentioned, with Lady Augusta
Pane, took in the grounds and in their little tent on
the left of the principal steps leading from the
terrace £63 13s. 7d. Prince Louis of Battenberg was
among the purchasers who paid most dearly for the
flowers and glasses of " cup " which were supplied at
the stall. _

Mrs. Wheeler, who was dressed in black, with
yellow flowers above her rosette of lady patroness,
took about £3O at the refreshment stall, at which 2s.
was charged for a CUD of tea and half-a-guinea each
for peaches. Here was the Marchioness of Tweed-
dale, wearing pink feathers, Lady Garvah in a Pom-
padour dress, Mrs. Cornwallis West wearing a rose-
coloured toque, Mrs. Molesworth, Mrs. Arthur-
Kennard, Mrs. Patrick Bayle, Mrs. Plowden, and
Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Mundy organized a raffle for a
picture in oils of the two ill-fated training-ships,
Eurydice and Atalanta, and made £43 15s. 6d. by her
unaided exertions; Mrs. Bayle handed in £l3 125.;
Mrs. Cropper sold button-holes with much success.
Lady Borthwick's stall was on the terrace, where,
helpbd by her children and the Conntess of Romneye
and lady Blanche Hosier, she made by the "wheel of
fortune" (all prizes and no blanks) £5O 14s. Mrs.
Brassey's stall on the lawn was filled with luscious
peaches and ripe grapes, and gay with bunting. Here,
with the help of her daughters, who wore white Stu-
dentenkuppen, with Sunbeam "on a riband, £6O 9s. 2d.
was collected. These were some of the principal
pecuniary results of the fite, and if less lucrative than
the bazaar last year, to which the Com6die Francaise
brought its business organization and the fierce rivalry
of its principal artistes, the sums realized were un-
doubtedlpgreater than those of a day's sale at any
previous fancy fair this year.
The grounds and the house were very pretty. Lord
Henry Lennox, Lord Charles Beresford, Lord Baring,
and Mr. John Penn, may be regarded as the principal
organizers of the entertainment, and the work had
been done very skilfully. The rooms were decorated
with palms and flowers, and the grounds with flags.
Thirty sailors from the Royal yacht Osborne, in their
neat white "frocks," formed a bodyguard to the
Prince and Princess of Wales, and their Royal High-
nesses passage from stall to which they first repaired
to the refreshment stall and back was preceded by
the march of these stalwart men, who lined the way,
and made all crushing impossible. Twelve boys of
the St. Vincent training-ship were also on the ground,
helped to manage the water bicycles on the lake, and.
were "first oars with the fine city ladies" who ven-
tured on the werries. The scene on the lake was very
animated. The instrumental music on Saturday was
supplied by the band of the Royal Marine Artillery
and by the Hungarian Band, but there was also an
amateur concert, of unusual excellence.
Generou contributions of fruit, bonbons, and
flowers were made by the Countess of Bective, the
Countess of Clarendon, Lady Grey de Wilton, Lady
Lindsay of Balcarres, Mrs. Gerard and Mr.
and Mrs. John Penn. The General Horticultural
Company furnished 10,000 roses.