Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1889-05-19

tines, but the make-believe English ones,
who only live there because they cannot af-
ford to live at home and keep up their little
circle as Exclusively" and stiffiy as If 1t
were little old English village. Some
years since, enraged by some fancied slight,
she wrote novel satirizing them and their
narrow, affected life-society drew its skirts
httle tighter together, and Ouida became
more unapproaehable than ever.
So much romance gathers about her that
there have been desperate attempts to know
OF her real life and to beard the lioness in
her actual den-strange stories of her canine
pets have been circulated-it is said that
one adventurous Englishman, determined
to know more of her, disguised himself as q
servant and actually succeeded in becoming
engaged by her and was admitted to her
house, but betrayed himself at dinner time
by his awkwardress and ignorance Of his
supposed duties.
ABSURD STORIES
To us who know Ouida we'll, all this is
very absurd. She is like some of those
strange plants Of the sea, when touched by
a rude hand, or approached by an unsympa
thetic magnetism, that shut themselves, and
display surface only of rude spines or re-
pulsive clammyness, but when in their
native element undisturbed, open like the
most gorgeous flowers, with scintillant and
rythmic motion.
Disliked by women in general, she is ad-
mlred and beloved by women in particular.
know OF no woman of my acquaintance
more understandable, more unlockable and
more full of treasure if you have the key.
but the door is iron-bound. You must know
her, when rambling on the Tuscan hills,
where woman to woman she speaks her
heart, or to man she converses with that
bon eamraderie that recalls poor Cigarette"
at her best. She is sincere woman Of
wonderful genius, nature wonderfully
sensitive to all the slaps the world has given
her, and thought her callous.
She is the real author of "Under Two
Flags, SIN Maremma" and "Bimbi," and
it is all there in the woman, but the world
must be more polite and more kind, and
above all more artistic on finding 1t out.
Swine should be very careful not to feed too
near one afflicted with seven devils, es-
pecially when the second advent is expected
SO soon. 1 love her, but would not invite
her to dinner.
sCoRE OF THE WORLD.
She is at her best with restraint thrown
~ 40 DONyJ VI bo II sAOy
dared to be sincere to themselves and not
to society-the peasants know the "real
Ouida;" how sweetly she talks to them. how
generous is her nature. The dogs love her
and everything that is beautiful she loves.
She is impetuous; she is like her own de-
scription OF a ride after the hounds. Butone
scornful Quiver of an eyebrow or tightening
OF mouth corner, she retires into her shell
and only gives you and can only give you
the prickly side, and SO the British matrons
did not see the .''real Ouida." When we
were girls together she used to say-"0
Natalie, do not hate humanity, I only
hate societyp'
Our modern life is so unnatural that I
wonder all artists do not scorn the world as
Ouida does. 1 believe most do, and those
that do not show it must love to school
themselves to a great deal of repression. I
know whenever l feel ugly to anyone and
uncomfortable about going down to dinner,
l always draw my corsets tighter and all the
evening know that am saying harder, mar
rover. more spiteful things in consequence
feel like the poor, laced up, "tailor-made''
world. But when am at my best and with
congenial people I let the strings fly looser
and looser, and in Italy I always kick them
into corner or put them into the lowest
tray Of my trunk and when have spent a
month with Ouida have to wear size or
two larger for several months until society
has Whitfield me down again.
OLIVE WESTON.