The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1873-04-07

The Death OF the Mistress Of Lord
Byron.
,ptom tho New York WORLDLY

The Death of the Mistress OF Lord
Byron.
(PGom tho New York Worldly
TIE COUNTIES GUICCGoLI.
In reading of the death Of this celc-
bralcd lady, which event Is recorded In q
dispatch from Rome, the mind instantly
reyerts to those palmy days Of her beau
tiiul and fascinating womanhood when
She drew TO her side and retained there
until his death, the gifted Lord Byron.
There must have been something truly
enchanting in the charms Of the Countess
GuicciOli-charms not only OF the person,
bnl OF the mlnd-to have so influenced
Byron as TO lead him from the path Of an
apparently reckless career OF dissipation
and misant hrOpy, into u. ltGasOttened al.
most to repose, ButsbeGauso she did so.
and because the poet has immortalized
her in his poems, her name has become
historical and her'death becomes mat
ter Of general interest.
The Countess GuiCcioli's family was q
noble one. She was the daughter Of the
Count dl GAMBIA, a member o: the Ro-
man nobility, and was born at Romagna
IN 1901, Her education was accomplish
ed at convent, and she was still a resi-.
dent within its holy walls when O mar
rage of convenience was arranged for
her by her father In pursuance OF Gus
TON ut that time In vogue in Italy and
elsewhere on the, continent Shewas not
consulted even In the arrangement Of
this match, and the husband who had
been selected for her was the Count GuiC-
CiolI, of Ravenna, As,rich man Of some
literary taste, and who had been the
friend in life oil Alfieri, the distinguished
Italian author, bnt who added TO his six
" years the unsav0ry memory OF having
already possessed two wives. This was
the practical, uxorious person into whose
keeping was consigned the beautiful, fer
vid, romantic young woman who. at the
age Of eighteen, was taken from tho con-
vents seclusion to assume the duties oil o
wife.
At the time Of the marriage Of Lord
Byron, whose destiny was afterwards to
be interviewer so closely with hers, was
living In Venice, running the gamut OF a
wild liCentiousness In that city ofdlsslpa-
lions, which aslonished even the Vene-
tians themselves, experts as they were IN
the evil courses that he enacted. Still
dwelling with sort Of gloomy reckless
ness upon his separation from his wife
an event which had occurred three years
before, when, in 1916, he had left Eng.
land, never 10 return to 1t again, Lord
byron, after two years OF such life, met
the Countess GuiCCioli in Venice, whittier
she had gone with her husband. This
was in April, 1910. Tho meeting be-
tween the two was shortly followed by
the sudden growth Of q mutual affection.
We write now Of facts, without weighing
the conduct OF either in the scale oil NOR
atty. Nine. Guiccioli, who was then
nineteen years of age, especially felt a
warm attachment for the handsome, or.
ratio genius whom chance had thrown In
her way. From the first hour Of their
acquaintance she permitted this impulse
to control her,and writing long atterward
oEthis meeting she says: "His noble and
exQuisitively beautiful CountenAnCe, the
tone OF his voice, his manners, the thou
sand entertainments that surrounded him
rendered him so different and so superior
Il being to any whom had hitherto seen
that ii was impossible he should not have
left the most profound impression upon
me- From that evening during the whole
Of my subsequent stay at Venice, VIC mel
every day"
From Venice, after brief residence
the Count and Countess Guicciol
returned 10 the home Of the Countess in
R4venna. Before their journeys end
was reached, however, tho Countess be,
came seriously III, and when she arrived
Il, Ravenua, her sickness RSsum-
ed so dangerous q phase that Il
was feared she would die. Their
her ihOughts'reverted more strongly thar
before to Byron. In response to a lettel
which she wrote TO him In which shC
hlle him come and sec her, Byron SCI
ouL for Rayenna. His reception by Coun
GucCiOli both astoniShed and embarrassed
him ~ can't make him out at all, " ht
writes in one Of his letters Of this period
he visits me frequently and takes mt
out Uikc Wilmington, the lord Mayor
inaA coach and six horses. Tho TACT ap'
pears to be that he Is completely govern
r!by hCr-iOr that matter so am l. The
people here don't know what to make Of
Us, Us he had the character Of Jealousy
With all his wives-this Is the third"
Several months thus passed away il
hsvema. Byron in the meantime paying
court the woman who had Captlvated
aud unclaimed his fancy. Hehad dropped
EASILY into the role OF that product O
Italian social life, the cavalier sorrento
ana 10 all appearances without any oppo
s!'Ion from the easy good nature OF Coun
GIuiccOli, Then another change Of resi-
uence was made, and the Count and BIZ
young vile journeycd TO Bologna, WHITTIER
lhey were followed by Byron, who wen
upon their invitation. But the thiA dis
sulse Of decorum which had hitherto
marked the relations of the poet with the
count and Countess, was soon after Aban
Uoned, when Count Guiccioli returned
"one to lSavcnnn, and with his consent
,ae Countess accompanied Byron Z
Venice About this time the Count, VIII
seemed TO view drifting events en- hOHN
"aVdrS, wrote 10 Ills wife in verI
practical way, urging her to prevail upol
byron to let them have the sum Of q ,00C
WI which he promised good security ant
~ interest OF five per cent, He insisteI
strongly upon these terms, in case III
.oAA was effected, US he deemed it"dls
sEacelul' to accept the money withOu
uese considerations attached 10 Its &C