The morning call., 1893-06-08
WILL LOSE WILLIE
Mrs. Leslie in the Divorce
Court.
RECOLLECTIONS OF A VISIT.
A Great Matrimonial Comedy About
to CIose-WiIlie Wilde's Failure
as a Husband.

Many people out here who had oppor-
tunities a year andsA half ago to please
themselves by meeting Mrs. Frank Leslie
and the brother of Oscar Wilde will gos-
sip with considerable relish about the dis
solution of the matrimonial alliance be-
tween them.
Mrs. Leslie expects that the bonds will
be put asunder by Judge Brown of New
burg, n Y, in a very few days, and the
very minute she finds herself free woman
again she will sail for Europe.
That was funny sort of match from
the start, and the breaking of it now only
makes people smile The characteristic
passages in the married lie of MIR. and
Mrs William Wilde would make a more
delightful society comedy than the stage
ever presented if properly selected and
strung together.
People out here who ct them when
they visited California with the League OF
Press Clubs were not impressed with the
idea that it was one of those tender love
affairs. They had been married about four
months then. so that the trip came pretty
near being honeymoon tour. Everybody
who had never seen Mrs. Leslie thought
they knew just what she looked ike, Tor
next to President Harrison heripicture had
been published as often as any body else's
in America, displaying the bright, hand
some face and the trim and stylishly
dressed form of a striking and fascinating
young woman.
But oh, what a difference time had
wrought since the negatives from which
all of Mrs. Leslie's pictures have been
made were new! She came as bright, in
dependent, positive and huStlng as she
ever was, but there were furrowS where
the bloom had once rested and nature had
acquired that careless way of letting lines
of grace sag into less pleasing outlines.
No good picture of Mrs. Leslie has ever
been labeled From a recent photograph"
But every body was curious and AMBITIOUS
10 meet the famous woman who had taken
q great publishing business where her
hus band h ad left it at his death-deeply
involved in debt-and by her own shire wd-
ness made an independent fortune out
of it.
And Willie Wilde-William C. Kings
bury Wilde-was regarded with little less
curiosity. He was a great, tall, bewhisk-
cred, large-eyed Engishman in rather ILL.,
fitting clothes, with a sto0p about his
shoulders, a slowness in his talk and
movements and very unaggresslye man
uer.
He was a man who had distinguished
himself-by becoming the brother of poet
aud by marrying Mrs. Frank Leslie. He
was the husband of Mrs. Frank Leslie and
was always identified that way. That
suited the bride to Tin fact, she in
sisted on it herself. She never proposed
to let her identity be swallowed up in a
mere husband and she never betrayed
disposition to do any great amount of
cleaving to him. She was always Mrs.
Frank Leslie" though at times she would
let Wide" be tackled on with a hypheD,
and she always went right ahead
having her own way with as little
regard for her hubby's wishes as though
he were her coachman. In fact, the ruth
less way in which she would "sit down. on
him in the presence of strangers was often
quite distressing. 1t was even more dis
tresslng to be compelled to witness the
apnlegetic will you allow me, madame ?"
way that William c. K. Wilde had in her
presence.
And when Mrs. Leslie and Willie Wilde
returned tn New York 20 take up the rou-
tine OF life they dld it in very different
ways, and as time went on no affinity was
developed. She got ont of beu betmes
and attended to her business, while he,
ready TO receive the good sent by the gods,
took up the dolce far niente" style of Ian
guld existence. the husting wife trying in
vain TO just "Sha-ake" him into doing
something in the way of "gettlng there"
Then there was Willte's careless way of
leaving his teeth lying around her boudoir
and little things like that to gradually in
crease desire Oh her part to lose him. So
1t was no wonder that Willie finally went
back to London where she met him and
whence he came nervei up to grim re-
solve not to weary in persuading, which
resolve enabled him to make the one bril-
liant stroke of his life.
Mrs. Frank Leslie is a brilliant success
as publisher, but like few other women
she was not SO smart about getting mar
ried. Now people will wonder if she will
not go back to Europe to again set the
g0ssips TO talking and perhaps see if she
can't do better next time.