The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-07-28
STEPHENS ONLY LOVE.
she WAS a MARRIED WOMAN AND
IS NOW LIVING IN SAVANNAH.

/ She w AS a ID HhlEO WOMAN AND
IS NOW LIVING IN SAVANNAH.
The Fascinating Belle Whom the Great
Commoner Fell ii Love With at
Sight and Who was the Cause of His
| Dying a Bechelor-Mrs. Caroline
Regina Maria Smiths Romantic
Career.
There was always much speculation
during the life of Alexander H. Stephens
why he never married, nor did this specu-
lation cease after he had gone to the grave
a celiba,e. J hnston & Brownies History
of Alexander H. Stephens gives one version,
and the MORNING News, upon the author
ity Of the lady interested, gives another
version, butas TO which is the bsst founded,
or whether there is some foundation for
both versions. the reader must draw his or
her own conclusions.
1.-THE Life OF Alexander II. Stephens"
alluded to says that when Mr.. Stevens was
a teacher at Madison. Morgan county,
Georgia, in the fall 1882. ne lost bis heart.
1t says: Zone little episode not noted here,
or even stated by him until nearly forty
years after this occurrence, we may briefly
| advert to. One Of the pupils at this school
was young girl, lovely both in person and
character, from whom the young teacher
learned more than is to be found
in the books, aud whom he grew to
love with a depth of affection all the
greater that it was condemned to hopeless
ness and silence. The poor student with no
prospect of worldly advancement, the in
valid, who looked forward to an early
death, must not think of marrying-must
| not speak of love. And he never spoke of
it to her nor to any until a generation had
passed, and then to but one friend.
A SAVANNAH LOVE.
The other version of Mr.. Stephens early
love is located in Savanna, which he
visited in the fall OF 1884, and the authority
OF the story is Mrs. Caroline Regina Maria
Smith, a lineal descendant of Lord Richard
Perclval Bland, and the lady of whom the
| MORNING NEWS obtained much interesting
information relative to the early history OF
Christ church, which was published in the
issue Of July 81.
Mrs. Smith says that when Mr. Stephens
| was IN Savannah he met herself, then the
| wife of Edward Thomas Courtenay, her
unmarried sister, Belle, and their father
in this city, and after the meeting Mr..
| stephens asked permission to pay his adj
dresses to Mr.. BANDS daughter. Mr.. Bland,
father of the thsn Mrs Courtenay, on his
return home related to his daughter Belle
what Mr.. Stephens had said, and she very
pettishly said that she would not receive
Mr.. Stephens for a sutton, where
upon Mr.. Courtenay spoke up and said:
II think my wife Is the younger
looking, and the most handsome, and
would not be surprised if Mr.. Stephens fell
IN love with my wife, instead of you, Bell. 1"
The father of the ladies, patting his married
daughter on the shoulder in an affectionate
way, said, 81 would not be surprised if
Courtenay isn't right; l shall see Mr..
Stephens and bring him around to tea this
evening, and then we will find out.n
IN LOVE WITH THE WRONG LADY.
Later in the afternoon Mr.. Bland met
Mr.. Stephens in the office OF Mr.. McLaws
and asked him to which Of the ladies he re-
ferred, and Mr.. Stephens, in reply, described
the personal appearance of Mrs. Courtensy,
and remarked that she was the only lady be
had ever met and loved at first sight; to
which confession Mr. Bland made reply
that the lady in question had been married.
Mr.. Stephens rejoined that he did not care if
she had been married; that he desired to
renew his request to pay his addresses to
her, and then Mr.. Bland. finding that young
Stephens was Ignorant OF the fact that Mr..
Courtenay was living, said: "My daugh-
| ueI ) uuSDauu is lNlnRs anu you see now
vain your request is" A shade of pain
passed over the face of Mr.. Stephens, and
the invitation to tea was, of course, de-
clined.
Many years afterward, when Mr.. Ste
phens occupied an eminent position in con-
gross, group of ladies in this city were
discussing, in the presence of Mrs. Smith
the question as to Why Mr.. Stephens had
never married, and a Mrs Patterson spoke
up and said that the reason Mr.. Stephens
had never married was because he had loved
where he was not privileged to ask for love
in return, and the subject was too sacred
for him ever to disclose the name Of the
lady. Mrs. Smith says she could then have
revealed the secret, but did not, and it il
now given to the press for the first time.
BELLE OF THE TwENTIES.
The lady alluded to above was vivacious
South Carolina belle. and was educated at
Elizabethtown, N. J., after five years Of
application, and she carried off the honors
of her class in 1928 Returning, she was
married in this city in the spring of 1924
Her father resided the greater part of the
time on his plantation at Woodlawn
eight miles from Button. Miss
Bland was schoolmate Of julia
Palmer, who married King Philip of France
and the graceful dancing of Miss Bland at
tracted the attention of the then heir ap-
parant, who requested his fiancee to intro
duce him to the lady whom he observed
picking up bouquet from the floor and
replacing it on her bosom as she went
through the evolutions of the dance. Mrs.
Smitn recalls the "reminiscences Of dancing
with the royal gentleman of France with
apparent pleasure.
| AT THE COURTS.