Daily American organ. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1856, 1855-04-04
NUMBER l19.
From the New York Times.
The Countess Of Blessington.

Countess Of Blessing gton. BY r. r. MADDEN.
Two vols Harper 4 Brothers, New York.
Save me from my friends, Ia an adage partic.
ularly applicable to these volumes and their sub
ject. Dr. Maddens acquaintance with Lady Bies-
sngton commenced over thirty years ago, and CON
| tinued TO her death. His friendship would have
best been eyinced by allowing her memory 20 rest
undsturbcd For, though he Processes to relate
only the incidents of her literary career, he has
found II impossible to avoid an exposure of her per-.
sonat conduct and character. The issue Is a work
| which, In remarkable degree, will afford matter
| and information for the lovers of scaH MAG The
object was to exhibit literary lady, long the oil
| served of all observers" in London, but he also
| shows her as fashionable demirop For nearly
twenty years Lady Blessngton was n noticeable
woman in London life. Men of all ranks in society,
provided they had talent and popularity, were 10
be met with in her house; their wives, daughter,
sisters did not visit her, because she entered FASH
onabe life with doubtful character, which did
| not improve as she grew older Her male visitors
corresponded freely with her. and she was fond of
| writing to them - fancying because she wrote
well-turned sentences, that she was a second Mad.
anne Dc Scvigne Her correspondence, illustrated
as it is by DR.. Madden's sketches of the writers.
is full Of finterest--suflicient, indeed to command
large sale of the book, even if it did not contain
any scandaous revelations respecting the lady her
self There Is very good, because a very full
| index, which adds much value to the volumes.
Very little was known of Lady Bessington in
| this country until Mr. n. p Willis mentioned her
| in his "Pencilngs by the Way He made her
acquaintance in 1884, and describes her az "a
woman Of remarkable beauty as "a celebrated
| and beautiful woman !" as g. one of the most lovely
| and fascinating women he ever saw y as Zone of
| the most handsome, and quite the best-dresscd
woman in London" and admiringly dwells on
"her excessive beauty" the only drawback being
that her person is full" though he qualities this
by Mt nll fbn IF
admirable shape"
Who, reading such eulogy, would suspect that
its object was mtdiie-aged stout, had-be hand
some woman9 She confessed to forty, he said, but
looked g asomething on the sunny side of thirty
The truth Is, at this very time, Lady Blessincton
| was in her forty-sepenh year Six years later
Tin ls40) Mr. Willis addressed some verses to her,
| in which he spoke Of her
| Face as fair
As made lip of heaven
Falter amid its musc-prayer =
Men murmur when that shape is seen
My youthsangelic dream was of that form
and mein"
At this period, the lady so Landed for her anrel,
beauty and sylph-like shape, was stout. n9ssls
dame of ffy-thrcef Like Queen Elizabeth, she
liked those who praised her personal charms after
her May of life had faded into the sore the yellow
leaf. No fattery was too strong for her.
Margaret Blessington was second daughter OF Mr..
Edmund Power, a Tpperary sguirees, who wa.
made magistrate through Lord Donoughmores
influence, shortly before the rebellion Of i79s. and
displayed great zeal In hunting down the unfortu-
nate rebes. His reward was--a letter of thanks
from tho Irish government. An official appoint.
ment was promised but tired of waiting for il
Power, who first failed as a corn merchant set ~,
| a newspaper in Clonmel. Being merely whiskey
| drinking, bucksh sporting mau, tho newspaper
did not pay expenses. lie got into libels for his
| noble patron, who ef, him TO pay damages and
la ygQQ ap INN LIANT hat ~
ters' education was irregusrly paid for. He was
dismissed the magistracy for misconduct 1.-THE bru-
tai murder OF "a suspected rebel " and died poor
pensioner on hls daughters bad man, by all
accounts
His family led a very scrambing life. Theh,
fathers convivial habits made his home the rem
devious Of the young military officers at Clonmcl.
The Misses Power (hargaret and Elen) got into
all sorts Of frtations, and, DR.. Madden admits.
were good deal talked about In Conmel 10
this day. strange and scandalous traditions con-
tinue current as to their imprudent conduct In
1904, being then a few months over sixteen Mar
gnret Power married Captain Farmer. After three
months she fled from him, she says, because no was
cruel and even insane, but his family declare really
because she declined accompanying him to India.
Her father, to whose house she ned declined har,
boring her, and she then commenced a wandering
life.
In 1909 she quilted Ireland She was then %
years old, and had become handsome woman-on
rather large scale, but very welooking There
issome trace OF her residence in the south Of Eng
land, but the first authentic record of her where
abouts after she quilted ireland, locates her in
Manchester square, London, in 1916. DR.. Med.
den gives no idea of how and where the intcryen.
ing years we're passed, but we can gather from h4
memoir that, in the interval she had twice resided
In Paris.
In London, It Il well remembered that she lived
at an expensive rate. Who supplied the means
has been always matter Of oonjecture-for though
she had no pecuniary resources Of her own, she
lived in fashionable square, kept carriage and
livery servants, n great deal Of male COM
pany, and among other gentlemen, iBtmats
with the Earl Of Blessington a wealthy Irish
peer, and widower, whom she had met, years be.
fore, in ireland. Captain Farmer her husband.
had returned to England in lslG--his mind not
improved by a coup dc soiicl in india, and by tho
accounts which had reached him Of his wifes light
conduct He met his death in October, 1917, by
falling when worry drunk, out of window In the
Kings Bench Prison. -Four months after, his wild
ow become the wife Of the Earl Of Blesaington,
who was only four years her senior.
At this time Lady Blessington was 81 years old
fashionable handsome talented. She had receiv.
ed the groundwork Of a good education in Ireland,
and had not been idle In the fourteen years be.
tween her first and second marriages. Her hus.
bands fortune was over f23,00 year. For threo
years, at the family mansion In st. James square,
Lady Blessington aimed at establishing sort Of
sovereignty in London society," as n bcile esprii,
but though crowds Of learned men, poets, artists,
statesmen, lawyers, and officers were her visitors
she was not noticed by the female members Of
their families. Her previous character bad a shads
Of suspicion IT, and this she never could get rid
Of Like Lady Holland (who had been diporee,)
she had to rely solely upon male society Vexed
at the pcrtinacity with which the naughty ladies' Of
London fashion continued TO ignore her preteu-
siOns to their recognition, she prevailed upon ber
husband to leave England, knowing, by former
experience, that the morals Of French society was
less eracting and more tolerant
In September 1922, Lord and Lady Blessington
quilted England, accompanied by the Young Miss
Power and Charles Matthews now the husband Of
the notorious Madame Vestris. And here il may
be stated that her sister Ellen who first married
Captain Home Parvs, had the Viscount Canterbu-
ry for her second husband. Mary Ann Power, who
accnra.,aricd hnr .ista- a. Eantiu1.,t .nhac