New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-09-10
MRS. JONES AND LONDON LITERARY 50.
CIETT
Lrom The Lonnon S,andard.

from The LOnoOn standard.
A lady who but few years ago WAS an active ana
weil-known figure IN London society and whose
name the centre Of many undressing associations.
has Just passed away. Mrs. lnwood Jones wa tue
niece Of Lady Morgan. She inhertei. not few of
the talents and perpetuated some Of the most char
acteristIc traditions Of her gifted relative. without
atteinptngtO emulate the Ieats of her ndeiatlgabo
aunt in authorship, she did much To keep alive
her memory, and was scarcely inferior to hcr IN
point OF social tact and vlvacity. she diu not
prctead to be a lady OF fashion, but there period
iral IL assembled AZ her mouse IN -Oanest. and
women whom any hostess might be proud To le-
ceiye. She can hardly he sad to have been tho
queen of a saxon. But htI rooms were "a wonderful
museum Of literary relics ana seldom wanted
visitors when sue was well enough to entertain
them. Mrs. lnTOOd Jones was a INK with past
which is not likely to recnr III the literary anu
social history of England. The nearest approach
possible at tue present time. to the company when
assembled at Lady MOrgans. at Mrs. Aortons aud
at l.. l.. l. = might be under her roof. few
other ladies no be Jug 10 nearly the same category
as Mrs Jones, Al who had much OF her experience,
llugcr on. and show, IN spite OF years. an almost
unmatched capacity for the enjoyment OF ne. But
the lines on which social llfe nowadays Is organized
do not point IN the direction OF "a. repetition OF
reunions like those Of Lady BleSsingion or tho
POetess VINO wrote Kate kearncy." society has
become too large Tor such select euteranno pts aud
as they have ceased to exist so 1t l. possible that
the taste lOI them has ceased to exist also. IL -
more than twenty years ago that the curtain tell
upon the attractions OF Gore House The dainty
and valuable collection was sold by auction. ana
realized some thirteen thousand pounds. LAZY
BlessingtOn herself did not lSng survive the dis
her
10 Paris and died on the 3D. of June, $40, IN her
rooms in tho Rue lie Ceroe Champs Elysees. Lady
Morgan, indeed did not move upon precisely tho
same social level as the brilliant dame IN whose
drawing-roOm the author of Endyml0n first mot
Prime, Florestau, four decades since. Her place
is rather among those whom Maginn styled
Reginas Maids Of Honor whose gifts aud graces
he cOInmemorated III FrdseTS Hdg1stHe and con
spicuous among whom weGe Caroline Norton.
LetitIa Elizabeth Landon; Mrs; = [. liall. Jane
Porter and IN her earller days, Harriet Nartlncan.
Popular, Lady Morgan always was; during the
last twenty yeats of her he she was socially pow
orful ~ well. There are some yet living VINO wHl
recOilect the bright and pleasant parties IN her
house in LOwndes-squarc from which her niece.
who has Just gone was seldom absent. Years bad
brought with them much dignity ana gravity OF
bearing but had not eXtugulsied the force OF her
nature. Happy and cheerful herself. she was the
cause OF happiness in others; and when, IN AprH
1852 ut the age OF SoN enty seven, SIZE ls,od
away London society experienced 4 loss which has
not yet been repaired. Why such u loss II ltrcp-
arabic it is not dllbcult to understand When
Lady Morgan was parsonage IA her own dTa"ing-
vel rs in he drawing rooms OF the neirop-
oils generally, and even during the earlier years
of Ms Inwood JonesS succession TO her IN that
capacity LONDON Society presented, IN some I'M
pOrtant respects, marked contrast TO what II now
t. The best ana brightest life uf the capital was
moro simple and easy theIe were few OF those
WOmen-eSpecially men-iIOm what were known -
pleasant houses" The storm and stress, tine
TreC and lever of existence had not then attained
the height Of raging mllades Clubs, indeed, were
"a feature IN our civilization, but they were not
essential TO it. Instead OF having about thirty
theatres, rs Is now the case, London was provided
with barely half score. People were generally
content 10 live little less en- nee and. IT may
be added, contriycd tn enjoy themselves good
deal more. Again. the reputation which Lady
Morgan possessed, and the mantle ot which do
Scended TO her niece, was ut thln period what II -
not howl c0nparatl o rarity; There were prob
ably scores of EuSlish. Scotch aud Irish ladies'
who not only can, bat who 10, write novels quito
as good those which came from the Zen OF
sydney OwensOn" The competition nowadays
is too severe to admit of any Lady. whatever ler
literary merits may be, achieving the same KIND of
" O'DOnuel." ii must also Ge remembered that tho
social circles in which We rcyolvo are infinitely
larger IN the last quarter of The nlneteehil con-
turv, than they were a generation OF generation
and a hall since. There was IL London then, what
there Is not AZ the present day, largo ainOL NJ OF
the Little Society and the Pet'ts oom'ies which
survive only IN some PROVINCIAL towns. CiqueS
and cotercs may still be known, but beyond their
own limits they exercise little or no influence.
Lady Morgan and Eer niece were something moro
than the presiding goddeSscS OF a marrow cHbal.
The social area in which they moved was not 50
confined that It's atmosphere was sulocatlng; nor
was ii 80 conducted rs 10 be unmanageable. Per-
sOnal ability and merits had an opportunity,
which is Withdrawn from them now, OF success and
of recognition, upon grounds on which they were
sure OF being appreciated. The audience, II tho
metaphor is permiSs bic, was moo select, and,
without being ianatical, WAS discriminating. Oh
the scale on which Society is conducted at tho
present time the possibilities Of this sort of recog
milton are remote If, indeed they can be said 10
exist. Moreover. when Lady Morgan held her
receptions IN LOwndcs-square end Mrs. lnNood
Jones held hers IN Sloane-St clever ana agreeable
women had the capacity and the courage to receive
their friends in tie character which naturally be-
and unnatural character of dictators of
Fashion which, il the truth is to be spoken, does
not become them at all,