The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1891-12-31
.CLANCARTYS TITLE.
Something About the Variety Ao-
tress, Belle Billion,
WHO is COUNTESS OF CLANCARTY,
And HIS just Given Birth TO Twin
Boys, Thus Making tho Title sair.
A Woman Of Bad Reputation In.
crcascs tho Number OF England's
Aristooracy.-Her Career from Child.
hood to tho Present.

AristOoracy.-HerC Career from Child.
hood to tho Present.
LONDON, Dec. 3O.-rhc Countess OF
Clancarty and her twins are doing well,
though theannounccment OF their birth
has stirred up tho British nobility.
Since the late Earl OF Clancarty cut
Lord Dunlo of without d shilling for
marrying her, she has been obliged to
support his title with the remnants OF
her earnings in Sir Augustus IIarris's
pantomine this time last year.
Hopes OF rcconciling the proud Clan.
carly family wero progressing favor
ably, when Monday night tho Countess
Of Clancarty was delivered OF twins, both
boys, both healthy and likely to live,
and both heirs to tho earldom, which
their blue-blooded father transmits to
them through the coarsest kind OF q
music hall singer, who had two children
by another man before he married her.
AS soon as the first child was born
piece OF white ribbon was tied around
his wrist, SO that there could no no
mistake afterwards, as, unless some ac-
cia,nt should happen, he will be the
next' earl.
Mia, Belle Billion, now the Countess
Clancarty, was born ut Woolwich
little more than thirty years ago. Her
motherwas the wife OF Gunner Billion
The babY. was christened Isabella at the
barracks, ,and became the pet Of the
battery, by whom hor name was short
ened to "BGllc." AS child she was q
light-headcd,. foolish little thing; and
this giddincss increased with her years.
About n dozen years ago among the ut
fractions billed on tho boards Of the
music haNs OF London appeared the
"Bilton Sisters" Belle was popular
singer, and nightly walbled in the Lon
don Supper club, where she first met
Lord Dunlo, who spent great part OF
his time about the music halls Of the
English metropolis.
At that time she is said to have been
married. She was the mother OF two
children and was seven. years'older than
Lord Dunlo. Belle was otherwise
known.as the BaronessLeonda,t through
her association with 4 man named
Alden Weston, who posed as Baron
Leonda. One OF her intinlates was
1sador Wcrtheimer, son OF q wealthy
London art dealer. When only four
teen years old she associated her for
tunes with Charles Barnard. IN actor,
and afterwards with the Baron, the
reputcd fatler OF one OF her children.
Weston, or the Baron, was afterwards
convicted OF fraud md sentenced to the
penitentiary. Weston afterwards testi-
fled in divorce court against
Wcrthcimcr, who took Belle Billion to
Trouville and introduced her to Leo
pold Rothschild's family, causing q
lively scene.
At the time Lopl Dunlo met Belle in
the London dance halls he is described
as callow youth who possessed more
money than brains. He was also the
heir to the carldom OF Clancurty. The
noble youth had pronounced music
hall tastes and fancies and became 4
conspicuous figure at many notorious
resorts.
After an intimate association with
Belle, My Lord, in 1850, married her
and shocked society. He had written
compromising letters to her during
their association and concluded that
matrimony was preferable to posing in
court as defendant in q suit for breach
OF promise.
They had been married only nine
days when His Lordship deserted Lady
Dunlo and fled to the continent. In
March, 1890, he began an action for
& divorce. 1t proved to be the most sen:
sational divorce case London had known
for years. Lady Dunlo acknowledged
having sustained intimate relations
with other men before making the ac-
quaintance OF her husband. But she
declared that Lord Dunlo was aware Of
this, that she had concealed nothing in
her career from him, and that the stain
on her life had been wiped away by her
marriage.
AS to the objections against her FAM
lily, che asserted that her mother had
been Miss Ponrice, OF kilverough Cas-
tie, Wales, and that her aunt married
Sir Charles Van Molten Pole. 4 colonel
in the guards good enough family,
she claimed, TO entitlc her to be the
daughtcr-ill-law OF the s'cantankerous"
old man, Lord Clancarty, who was
drinking himself to death.
Lady Clancarty, she declared, was tho
cause OF all her troubles. "She knows
her husband cannot live much longer
at the rate he is going" she said, sand
at his death would become Countess
Clancarty, while she would be put up
onthe shelf as dowager countess"
After her marriage Lady Dunlo con-
tinucd to earn her living by the stage.
One complication OF tho divorce suit
was that before it was begun, frgn tho
day OF tho marriage until Lord Dunlo
reached his twenty-frst year, the cou-
pie lived apart. Lady Dunlo proved
that this had been by request OF her
husband, who had declared that his
father had promised 10 consent to the
union ii she would be patient until
December Detectives who had been
hired to watch her were unableto prove
that she had been unfnithful to her
marriage vows. She was offered life
& annuity OF several hundred pounds il
she would make no defense to the suit.
but this she rejected.
The jury gave verdict in her favor
July 80, 1890, and the court granted the
costs against Lord Donlo. Her victory
brought her lucrative offers, one OF them
being to visit the United States and
sing and dance, at a salary OF $500 q
week. This she declined. Alter the
decision Lord Dunlo apologized to her