The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1872-01-22
A TRAGIc4L STORY OF ROYALTY.
Two Romances OF the Peerage.

n. D. Conway continues to write interesting
letters to the Cincinnati Commercial. Here Is
an extract from his last:
While the Prince of Wales is recovering,
there has passed away an aged and poor w0-
man whose strange history, thus recalled, re-
minds us that whatever the faults of The pre-
sent princess may be, they are free from some
of the deeper vlllanIes of their ancestors,
while OF the same time 1t reminds US how false
and necessarily unjust the whole system OF
monarchy IL. The woman who has Just died,
Mrs. Lavlnia Ryves, was the skeleton of the
royal closet, and, though she be now dead, she
hSa hss M I've @ eysR ES mnS REngs s s
hid.
Mrs. Ryves was the suppressed Princess, in
the Justice OF whose claim to Ee Princess of
Cumberland and Duchess OF Lancaster nearly
everybody believed. though the resolute eva
case OF o wrong Without remedy. Toward
the close OF George IFS reign there was
about the court certain Rev. DR.. James
WIlmot, OF the ancient family of De Vile.
mot, whose wife was daughter of King STAN
lslaus OF Poland. They had beautiful
daughter, who was secretly married (there
was then no royal marriage act) to Henry
Frederick, Duke of Cumberland, DR.. VIII
mot performing the ceremony. George III,
who had now succeeded to the throne, wit
messed the marriage, US did Chatham and the
Earl of Warwick. They all signed the GER
tiacate, which is still In possession Of The
Ryves family q have seen it,) aud the sigma
lures to which have been attested before the
courts by many persons familiar with the
handwriting of the personages named.
AtterWard, however, the Prince Of Cumber-
land publicly married Lady Anne Horton; but
George the III refused 10 receive her at court
The first wife died heart-broken In the south
of France, but lett daughter, whose birth
was certified by nobiemen. George III made
careful provision for the child, who was known
as Olive Wilmot, and subsequently she was
made Duchess OF Lancaster. She was very In
teligent and married the celebraced artist
Serres, of the Royal Academy, from whom,
however, she was separated.
Lord Warwick acquainted the Duke Of Kent
wltS the fact, and the Duke was deeply inter-
ested to have Mrs. Serres's rank attested; and
after her death he continued his exertlons for
the daughter who represented her, the woman
who has Just died. This young girl afterward
married Mr. Ryves, from whom she was d.
yorced on account of lll.treatment. A passage
In Robert Owens autobiography shows the In
terest which Ehe Duke of Kent took In the
matter. From the documents existing and
carefully preserved" writes Mr.. Owen, There
can be no doubt OF the legal claim OF this
family to their being the direct descendants OF
the Duke oil Cumberland, brother TO his Ma
jesty George III, and entitled to his rank and
Kent, introduced Mrs; Series to me as
his cousin, and as legally entitled to
the rank OF the Princess Olive In Cum
berIand. He was deeply interested in
her cause, and In that of her only daughter
and child Lavlnia." There was something
touching in the feeling which George III had
in this matter. In his will he bequeathed to
''Olive our brother OF Cumberland's daughter:
the sum of ELS, 900, commanding our heir and
successor to pay the same privately to our said
neice fer her use, as recompense for the mis-
fortune sne may have known through ner
father, The Court OF Probate decided Indirect
ly In favor Of the authenticity of all the docu-
ments; but when Sir F1tzroy Kelly and others
pressed the matter to direct decision, every
court managed TO eVade ii. Each court said
YOU must go to another. Meanwhile, the fami-
Iy OF Ryyes had become sunk In poverty, and
could hardly live, much less prosecute claim
OF this kind 1t not only involved rank, but
over million pounds. The relening lami-
ly dumbly, without argument, resisted the
whole thing. Poor Mrs, Ryves spent all she
had In the matter, aud becoming aged suffer.
ed considerably. Hearing from friend thai
| had taken some interest In this case, she
sent me word some five or six years ago thai
she would like to have me call upon her.
found her living In q mean apartment In the
suburbs Of CamdentoWn, and yet all was very
neat It was very cold, and there was no fire
plainly because she could not purchase it
though she made some other excuse. II va:
very sad to see this aged woman amid ex
treme poverty-uttery alone, too, her SOM
having gone to sea-struggltng for prince
dom. She was rather fine looking, with
strong eye and brow. She showed me let
ter she had received from The Queen In repl!
to one in which she (Mrs. Ryves) described tn'
povery into which she was reduced Dy tne Ut
NAL OF her rights.
Queen Vlctora's letter Informed her, In sub
stance, that she was willing to give her chall
table aid provided she would give up he
claim to be the Princess of Cumberland
Having read this letter over to me, The the ll!t 1I
woman Strengthened herself up, and viii
flashing eyes Said, II may slarve here, o
freeze here; but will never abandon M
cause; for it is justice |" I lost signt Of ne ne
for some years, but few months ago sh
called upon me to show me some curious OIL
documents bearing upon the case. She wa
very aged; privatlon had told upon her, aud
verify believe that it was maln.y the insplrt