New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-03-24
an HER OWN RIGHT
SOME PEEREssEs OF GREAT bNiiAi>

rSsrs ~ THEIR OWN i'''''''
Saloon has tina. dreary publication known as
,o,o,to" contained n piece of
-" -, romantic interest attaches
than tho official announcement una "'V Nt"O"
has issuod ROYAL letters patent trahSioiii"e 'i0
six,cen-year-od and as Nf' ""''ia' '''' i''"
e,hou Mackenzie into iu'i-"euSeu poe'c'' W
,ho ,aal,, under the titles az countess Vi Oi"-
,n.,, viecountess Of Tarbat and baroness oil
,,,o1 and Of Castlehaven. THE Gazette
,.o.A-afos the information that Her Majesty :
ro.o,, continues" the dignities in question TO
: adv, SHELL and in order 10 comprehend TINS
e,,,ewhat unusual expression it is necessary 70
ox,la!n that q considerable amount OF contro-
,ersv has existed since the death of the late
Ear, OF Cromartie two years ago. as to whether
his peerages have become extinct, had faileh lh'o
allowance or were to be inherited by the eldest Of
his two children, both girls.
T.e earldom OF Cromartie has a somewhat
peculiar history. Conferred by Queen Anne upon
Sir George Mackenzie who had obtained his first
step in the peerage from King James H. tiles
as well as estates were forfeited to the Crown by
the third earl who was one of the principal Ieau-
ers o: the Jacobite rising of TAG. His son re-
covered posscssion Of the vast estates. thoaeh
,o, If his fathers poerages as a reward TOT HIS
eorvices in the American War for Independents
His crandniecc and sole heiress. MISS Ai"e
Mackenzie. married the late DUKE VI
land and as the Queen was eXceeu-ns''
her. she in 1861 revived in her FAVOR '"o
90 Cro,,artie Tarbat Macleod and CasuehaNo"'
,r,,cb had been attained by the treason Vi '"o
,bird earl II would appear that the patent 'o"-
ferrfnr these dgnites upon the DCchesS "a' NO.
en- clear and definite as II should nave Deeh s'ii'e
-. terms lef. some doub: as to whether the peer
II the latter they might De Construed as Scotch
s,,;,,os whereas If they were fresh creations
they could only be looked upon as titles oil the
I.pita5 Kingdom since by the Act Of Union be-
tv.oon Scotland and England the Crown is de-
barred from adding to the number Of Scottish
noers that existed at that time. Then. too. the
natent while It provided for the inheritance Of
the titles by the second son " tho Duchess OF
Sutherland left the question open as TO whe'her'
IN default of male issue. any daughter that ne
might have could inherit his dignities. The I'M
portance of deciding as to whether these peer
ages were merely a Scotch revival or fresh
United Kingdom creation lay in this. that in the
event OF the former. the eldest daughter-that
is TO saw the Lady Sibe,l--wOuld become Count
ess of Cromarte in her OWL right; whereas IN
the other case, the dignites would have remained
in allowance until one of the girls had died.
barony fell into allowance and only emerged
therefrom seventeen years later when four OF
her five daughters having died childless. the
fifth became sole heir and assumed her mothers
peerage This case. may incidentally state
aptly illustrates the meaning of the word "abey-
ance." as we'll as the only means by which an
allowance can be determined" save when the
Crown, as in the case Of Lady Shell Mackenzie,
grants a special decree continuing" the peerage
10 one of the co-heirs.
The first effect Of this announcement will be TO
transform the widowed Countess of Cromarte
into a dowager without either Of her children
being married which is. | believe entirely UNI
precedented. The next will be that it adds 10 the
already great attractions which Lady She'll
possessed previously as a girl OF exceptional
beauty Of much charm. and as one Of the great
est landholders in Scotland her estates covering
an area of considerably over 100000 acres For,
although If she marries commoner her hus-
bard will remain such. yet he will have ~ any
rate the satisfaction of becoming the father Of
Z lord since the young Cou1tess's eldest son, sif
she ever has one sill be known from his birth
nv the courtesy title of Viscount Tarbat. and will
at her death become the full-nedged Earl Of Gro
marte. and enter into possession of seat in the
House of Lords. a prerogative denied 10 his
mother as peeresses in their own right hold no
vote in the upper house OF the legislature.
There are about dozen peeresses in their own
right Some of them have inherited their digni-
ties. others. like Lady Berkeley, owe them to re-
v;val Willie some again such as Lady Handle
den Lady Burdett -Coutts and Lady Macdonald.
hold their barones by virtue Of creation. Per
haps the best known of them all is Lady Burdett-
Coutts; and certainly there none OF these peer
csses who has received her Vular honor for n
n0ber cause. since the Queen created her Baron
oss as a recognition Of her bound!ess charity ana
Of the phlanthropic uses 10 which she has APP
piled a considerable portion of her vast wealth
She Is married to man nearly half century
her Junior, who has been permitted to assume
her name OF Burdett-COutts though not her tide.
and who was born in Brooklyn, Long Island.
where. believe he spent the greater part of his
youth.
Viscountess Hambledcn, Ike the Baroness Mac
donald. received her peerage for the services
rendered to the Crow and State By her husband.
Lady Hambledens husband having been First
Lord Of the Treasury and leader Of the House
of Commons at the time Of his death while
Lady Macdorads husband was Prime Minister
Of Canada Lady Macdonald's barony will become
extinct at her death; for although her husband
the late SIR John Macdonald. left family Of
sons and daughters, yet they We're all the issue
Of his first wife. whereas his widow The present
holder Of the peerare conferred upon her in
recognition Of mis- services. is his second wife and
Is childless. With Niscountess Iambleden hovev-
err the IS different for at her demise her peer
age will be inherited by her only son. Mr. William
Frederick Smith, NJ T., the head OF the great
publishing house known as W. II. Smith & Son.
which has the monopoly OF the sale of newspa-
pers and books nearly ell the railroad stations
OF the United Kingdom. | may add that he has
already inherited a fortune Of nearly $2)00O.OOO
rrom'his father. "Old Mortality" and that hn is
married to Lady Esther Gore, a wirsomc ana
bright girl who was the most attractive of the
bridesmaids of the Duchess # York and spent
some time in New-York in 1889, with her father,
the Earl Of Arran.
Lady Berkeley was known until two wears ago