The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1873-01-22
THE BYRON FAMILY.
The Latest Phase OF the Leigh Scandal
Mrs. Somerville on Lady Lcvelece
and Her Relations. ~

The Latest Phase OF tho Leigh Scandal
Mrs. Somerville on Lady Lcvelace
and Her Relations. ~
From the Cincinnati CommercisLl
The day after Christmas, 1871, In comfort
able stone mansion standing at one of the
angles of the Braschi Palace, near the Piazza
Nsvona, In Rome, saw that venerable old
lady, who had been regarded fer forty years, by
all the savans of Europe, as the most wonder.
full woman of The century. 1t was Mrs. Som-
ervllle's birthday, and In honor OF her having
entered-with good health, perfect senses
(saVe slight deafness) and unimpaired
mindIupon her ninety.second year, few
Tuu' itnns Au eU ~ o.ei ts'H sonsi"'"e
While Mrs. somerville was thus chatting on
abort her old friends, lunch was announced.
Pr .srrlng to remain behind with the venera-
BILE lady, I took occasion, from the absence Of
the others, to ask her of the conclusion of
she said. surrounded by all that afluence,
position In society, kind friends, q tender hus-
band and promising children could bestow,
the restless spirit Inherited from the Byrons
could not be satisfied. Sac bet high at horse
races, played for large stakes at cards, fre-
qnented the rouge-e.-noir gambling tables
curing the season &C Baden Baden and Wies-
land, when George Hudson was King enter
ed deeply into speculations. Lord Lovelace
was either Ignorant oil all this, or choose to
appear go. She had, besides settlements made
upon her on her marriage day, large trusts
held tor her by ante-nuptial deeds, consisting
of property Inherited from her maternal
grandfather, the income Of which was her
own. The failure of her agent, through
whom she bought and sold railway stocks, In
voved her in debts she could not discharge,
and to save her good name her husband paid
Them. think the ohagrin arising from this
brought on the disease from which she
died"
"she had all the proud spirit of her father,
then? 7"
"Yes; and combined with that all the. ex-
treme eccentriclties of her mother. She could
be both of the most genial warmth and arctic
coldness to her friends. AS each mornng's
freak took her, such was her mood through
The day. You never knew beforehand where
you were to find her. She would sometimes
for weeks together, become 40 absorbed In
mathematical studies-in La Places most abb
struse calculations, In physical astronomy, In
the calculs s-thst everything else was Tor
gotten. Again, with the same intensity, she
would travel from place to place on the CONT
nent, would follow up the dissipations Of Lon
don society through whole season with all
the crazy eagerness Of girl at her first en-.
RASSSAAs
great horse.races on both sides OF the chan
mel, aud would gamble unscrupulous!y every
where. She was also as extremely selfish as
she was heedlessly rash, end 1t was from thie,
added 10 her frequent coldness Of manner.
that she retained no constant friends. ~ -
''Dld she resemble her father or mother
most in personal appearance I" Hss:nl'
"Her iather; and was as beautiful woman
as he was handsome man. When she was
staying at Clifton, with her mother, the year
before she became Lady Lovelace, never
saw q more lovely young woman. To the
white clear skin, large, liquid eyes, dark wagy
tresses, Greciap features, and small hands
full expression of Lord Noel Byron. Her lore
head was lower Than Lord Byron's, but this
only added to her beauty. She read the s'Me-
caniuue Celeste" of La Place, In which he
tracrs the influence Of gravitatlon from the
eliiptlcal motions of the planets to Its most
remote effects on their mutual pertur6atlons
"a work, you are aware, which subsequent
| ly translated under my direction for several
weeks, and am sure I never saw clear un-
| derstandlng embodied In physical beauty to
| go great degree as there was apparent In
Ada Byron whenever she arrived at q full
comprehension OF great astronomical truth.
Besides, her voice was low, sweet, and sngu-
Had che, as the world believes, been rear
ed by her mother In entirs Ignorance of her
| fathers worksH
II do not know. She never spoke Of him,
whether Lady Byron was present or absent.
It could have made no difference, however,
tor she had no taste whatever for poetry"
"she had other family troubles besides those
| which arose from her uneasy disposition, had
she not, Mrs. Somerville 7" 1.s..f.t
"Poor lady, yes. There were frequent quar-
res with, aud consequent estrangement from,
Lady Noel Byron. Then was that terrible
affair about Medors Leigh, which lasted
through yeara. and which kept Lady LoVelace
In constant fear OF some public exposure.
Then there was the Leigh family, never rep
utable. always in poverty, about whom dis.
grucrful scandals were forever in circulation" !"
''But you place no credit In Mrs. Beecher
Stoves terrible revelations ~ -.
"Whether do or not one thing is certain,
and that is, the revelation is not, as the world
supposes, something new. have heard OF 1t
many, many years. It was current before
Lord Byron died. Lady Lovelace believed 1t.
and always spoke of Medora Leigh, the al
legged fruit OF The incest, as her Sister. Lady
Byron regarded Medora Leigh as her hus-
bands child"
"But long after this Lady Byron was on
terms of friendship With Mrs. Leigh, which
seems hardly consistent with the belief In such
an unnatural deed. And, besides, Mr.. Leigh
lived with his wife for many years after the
scandal was afoat.
"Of Lady Byron's conduct In this, as IN
thousand other instances, no explanation can
be given that is consistent with human nature
as we know 1t In others. She was q woman
entirely sui generls, never sure OF herself,
never trustworthy to her fri ends or the world.
Whenever the cold of the north pole came
down upon her, as 1t was likely to do at any
time, she wes no longer subject to ordinary
motives. I can conceive OF her making
bosom friend OF Mrs. Leigh, as she did, after
she believed the alleged Incest, and persuad-
ed herself that her motives were divine. Lazy
Byron's likes and dlslikes were as mncn VIII
out reason as they were without control. In
the many schools of which she was pa'roness,
there were no rules which she Wouia Iot
arbitrarily alter, no engagement W1lcu sne
would not deliberately bress. AS Lor M:
I,eIph,s remaining with his wife after ne must
have heard the scandal, he had, In fact, no
where else to live. Poor, shiftless, unlnteiii-
gent, without the pride that scorns an aims
taking or the force that wins bread, he was
from The beginning beneficiary upon bis
wife's pittasce of property. Besides ne was q
Byron, as was his wife, and there is talnt Id
the blood" y.
"Running down through several genera
tions. am told!"
"Yes; from Admiral Byron to Lady Love-
lace's oldest son, Lord Ockam, there were fodr
steps, every one making lower descent tnao
its predecessor. 1t wa5 good thing jor MS
family and the world that death cut short the
djseraceful career OF the last. without tho
gifts Of his race, he inherited all It's Vices.
Cashiered from the army for cowar6ice, ana
expelled from the navy for petty larcenieSi
shioplng before the mast In drunken ironc,
and begging as miserable outcasI III sao