The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-10-07
AMERICA WESTMINSTER
Yankee Bleed in the British House of
Parliament

OlA0f size Oh Inc Ab1dutIc nave any 1O0sb
of the extent to which American blood
and American influence are represented
in English political life. A very large
proportion of the members of the ma
tiona1 Legislature, as now constituted,
have American wives, American moth
ers OF near kinsfolk, while others again
have spent portion of their lives in
the United States or still retain their
houses Of business and chief interests
in this country Thus the Hon. Charles
Ramsay, brother to the late Earl of Dali
housie and husband of Miss Estelle
Garrison Of New York, was defeated in
his recent attempt to secure his re-elec-
tion to parliament for the constituency
of Forfarshire by Mr.. James Martin
White, head of the New York firm Of
White & Co.
Both Mr.. Burdett- Coutts and his
brother, Sir Ellis Ashlnead Bartlett,
were born in the United States and
reared in Brooklyn before being taken
across the water to complete their edu-
cation in England. They have large
number of relatives still living at Phil
adelphia. Dr. J. T. Fox, too, who rep
resents Kings county in parliament, al
though born in Cork, spent all the early
part of his life in New York and in
Troy, first of all as a schoolteacher and
then as a physician with large prac-
tice. Mr.. Joe Chamberlain, the member
for Birmingham and secretary of state
for the colonies, is married to a daugh-
ter of that Mr.. Endicott who was at the
head of the United States war depart
meDt in the last Cleveland administ1a-
ton, and it is no secret that his son,
Austin, who holds Office as civil lord of
the admiralty, is very susceptible to the
influence of his charming stepmother,
with whom he is a great favorite.
The undersecretary of state for for
eign affairs, the Hon. George Nathaniel
Curzon, heir to Lord Scarsdale, recently
became the husband of Miss Letter of
Washington and Chicago and defeated
at the polls few weeks ago Sir Herbert
Nay lor-Ley land, formerly member for
Colchester, and who is married to Miss
Jennie Chamberlain of Cleveland. Lady
HarcOurt, whose husband was the chan
cellor of the exchequer in the defunct
ROsebery administration and who has
Just been elected for Welsh constituent
cy, after being defeated at Derby, is a
daughter of the celebrated American
historian and diplomat, John LGthrop
Motley, the friend and schoolmate of
Prince Bismarck Mr. Smith Barry, the
representative of Huntingdonshire in
the new parliament, and one of the
great landowners in Ireland, is married
to Mrs. Post of New York, daughter
of General Wadsworth of the United
States army, while Mr. G. j. Murray,
who makes his temperance in parlia-
ment as the Conservative member for
Coventry, has likewise Wadsworth blood
in his veins, the late Lady Murray, his
mother, having been daughter of Mr..
James Wadsworth of New York.
Meath is represented at Westminster
by Mr.. John Parnell, who until the
time when the death of his famous
brother rescued him from obscurity was
employed in managing a fruit farm at
Westpoint, in Georgia. His mother, as
everybody knows, is daughter of the
celebrated United States admiral, Charles
Stewart Among his colleagues in the
Nationalist party in parliament is
Thomas Power o Conner, married to
daughter of Judge Paschal of Texas.
Mr.. John Bidulph- Martin, the member
for Finsbury, has branch of his Lon
don bank in New York and is welded
to the American lady who achieved SO
much notoriety in this country under
the name of Victoria Woodruff, while
her sister, Tennessee Clafin, now the
wife of Sir Francis Cook. is the step
mother of Mr.. F. L. Cook, the Conserv-
ative member for Lambeth.
The Hon. Valentine Duncombe, mem
Der for Cumberland, spent number Of
years in this country after being dis
owned by his family in consequence of
his unfortunate marriage with a music
hall star of the name of Nellie Lemar.
The couple underwent no end of misery
and suffering in America, and it was
only when downright starvation stared
them i'll the face that they returned to
England, Mr. Duncombe's parents, the
Earl and Countess of Feversham, re-
storing him to their favor as soon as
ever he had succeeded in obtaining a
divorce from his somewhat peculiar
wife He is the only surviving brother
of the beautiful Duchess of Leinster,
who died the other day, as well as Of
Lady Helen Vincent and of that Lady
UIrica Duncombe whose rejection of the
suit of Lord Houghton, now earl Of
Crewe, is popularity credited with hay
ing inspired his muse in writing his re-
Gently issued volume Of poems. Mr.. E.
W. Beckett. a cousin of Mr.. Duncombe
and heir to the clockmaking peer, Lord
Grimthorpe, was married to Miss Lucy
Tracy-Lee of New York. but lost his
wife a couple of years ago during the
great influenza epidemic, while another
member of parliament, Mr. Charming,
who represents Northamptonshire, is a
son-in-law of Mr.. Henry Bryant of Bos-
ton Sir Francis Evans, the member for
southampton, is married to Marie Ste
vens, daughter Of the former attorney
general of tho state of New York; Lord
Edmond Fitzmorice, who was formerly
undersecretary Of state for foreign af-
fairs, and who sat for Game, married