The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1897-10-24
A new AMERICAN COUNTESS.
Kitty Howell, Of South Carolina, AEoke
10 Find Herself Countess Of B6mOnt.
SHE HAD WORKED IN LONDON.
The Earl Was "Poor Relative" of His
Uncle and Lived a yariegated Ex-
istence-Sudden Trip to
the Peerage.

Augustus Arthur Percival, who has
Knocked about the world as a laborer.
fireman, janitOr and sailor since he was
big enough to take care of himself, awoke
the other morning to find himself Earl Of
Egmont. Viscount Percivai of Kanturk,
Baron Percfval OF Burton Baron Arden
OF Bohort Castle, Lord Loveland Holland
OF Enmore, Baron Arden OF Arden and q
baronet. That was because his father,
his uncle and his fathers cousin had all
died within a short time or each other,
leaving the honors and estates OF the an
Gent family Of Percival 10 deYolve upon
this Wandering Willie or the peerage.
A short time AGO he had apparently no
more chance Of becoming Earl OF Egmont
that he did OF becoming Khan OF Iartary.
But Il is a great thing 10 be related TO the
British nobility, even II one does have 20
carry the hod, for no one can ever tell
when an epidemic in the family VIII en-
able one to exchange the Jumper Tor tho
peers robes.
AMERICAS LATEST PEERLESS.
with the elevation OF "Gussy' Perciyal,
as his companions call him, to the peer
age. America gets another peeress' Tor
while "Gussy" was a fireman in the Me
tropOutan Fire Brigade Of London he mar
ried Kate Howell, an American girl VINO
was employed I'm q city restaurant. ll
will be interesting to see what THIS new
earl. who had the advantages or only Il
rudimcntary education, who since ne was
"a boy has associated entirely with people
OF the labOring classes. will do. now that
he comes into a great estate ana many
ancient titles.
A Mr.. Wyckoff. a college graduate mas
lately been going about the country max
ing his living as a workman ana j. now
writing his experiences. But be did u
with a purpose-to see how the other halI
Iivod-and need not have done IL If he had
not wanted to. while Augustus Arthur
Earl of Egmont has been knocking about
the world AN his life. making MS hVlls
by manual labor because he had 10. ne
was not am observer Of the laboring class
as. but Of them. 10 is doubtful II the Eail
could or would write a book about MS
experiences, but I'm his life there IS tho
material FOR n book. and with what
dramatic and satisfactory ending!
ONE OF ENGLAND's SONS.
The branch OF the Pcrclvals to which
"Gussys father belonged were anything
except rich and were living out In New
Zealand, wncrc Augustus Arthur was born
Zoo 1856 IFS father did not see any pros
poets Of being able TO educate the boy as
n scion of an ancient house should bee edu-
Gated, so he called In the family influence
Now. poor relations are no more accep-
table I'm England than they are IN the
United States, and half the family said
the youngster might go hang for all they
cared.
Finally il was decided that something
must Doe done. and as soon as DE was Old
enough the family council decided that
they would give the boy a show. irksome
as IL was 90 bo bothered with Charley s
family So they sent Augustus 10 the
training ship Worcester at Grccnhite-on-
thc-Thamcs and told him that If he stu
died hard be might one day get COM
mission i'm the navy. But "Gussy' some
how was .unable 10 get along with the
studies and tho discipline Of the training
ship. and after a time loft her and shipped
before the mast as a sailor I'm the mer-
chant service
SAILOR. THEN FIREMAN.
For about eight years the future Earl
roamcd the world as "a sailor before the
mast. and from PernambuCO 90 Ceylon
he shared the common lot Of the fore
castle. There were nights when he lay
out ON an icy yard off Cape Horn trying
90 furl q sail that Tapped and beloved
I'm its attempt TO fling him from the foot
ropes.
rhere were the hard work and the
coarse fare of q sailors life varied by
the days and nights ashore when with
seven men from all tho world back 10
port again" ne went "reolng down the
Radcliffe road drunk and raising Cain"
But Augustus was a pretty good sailor.
and 30 prospered in his business Of sea-
faring that when be was twenty-five years
old he found himself with a second mates
certificate
Now. be thought he would get his sea
chest ashore for a full due" and settle
down. I'm restaurant which he had
once visited in London he had seen Just
the girl who, he thought, would make a
good sailors bride. She was Yankee
girl. and came from South Carolina Her
name was Kitty Howell, and her father
was Warwick Howell. not bad sound