The Saint Paul globe., 1899-03-19
A HEROINE AT HOME.
An Hour with Mrs. Rudyard Kipling and
Her Precocious Little Ones.

During the past month the eyes Of the
whole world have been concentrated upon
those four small rooms in the Grenoble
Hotel, New York City, where Rudyard
Kipling lay battling with life. There was
little hope, and even those who passed
the door felt it, for the faces Of those who
came and went were very solemn; and g
aong line of carriages showed that there
were numerous callers, while steady
stream of messenger boys carried letters
and telegrams. The postman came each
day laden with messages Of sympathy,
and the telephone bell rang from morn
Ing till night. - i
/ Up stairs, calm In the midst of all the
excitement and unterrifed by the spec
the most interested of all those who were
taking, part in the great drama of life,
and the least disturbed outwardly, al
though 1t meant to her more than life it
self. Toward the last of the deepest
trouble the messages were all addressed
to Mrs. Kipling and. to the burden Of
suffering and care, was added that OF
personally replying to everybody. Day
after day she found it necessary to issue
bulletins thanking her friends, and night
and morning, almost to the. present, she
has gone down stairs in the hotel and
personally pinned a letter of thanks to
the doctors bulletin.
The last letter issued was as follows:
Mrs. Kipling desires to thank her many
friends for their kind messages of sym
rathy and good wishes. She takes this
are too numerous to answer Individual
ly." In this brief note is expressed all
the emotion and all the thanks which q
woman is capable of feeling for the gift
of world Of sympathy.
One of the recent letters was from the
Princess Louise of Lorne: and another
was from the Empress Frederick. The
Kipling, and Lady Randolph Churchill
expressed the wish that the churches of
England would set aside q day of prayer
for her happiness.
AT HOME.
The woman living in the midst of all
this cannot be but interesting, yet SO
little is known of Mrs. Kipling, that the
curiosity of the public has never been
gratifed even by sketch of her. Mr..
iKipling has so bitterly resented public
intrusion of his private life, that he for
bade her to give any interviews, and
she has never up to this time even au-
thorized biography of herself.
Small, dark and pathetic in her sad
ness. Mrs Kipling is not a woman who
would attract attention anywhere except
3or her WomanllneSS. she has sweet,
quiet voice. gentle ways and is decidedly
a home woman. There is no trace OF
newness about her. and she has never
smoked a cigarette, ridden wheel, or
belonged to a woman's club.
Brought up in New England, In the
very heart of Yankeedom, she met Rud-
yard Kipling through her brother, Wal
cott Balestier, who was a literary man,
and great friend of Mr.. Kipling's. They
cola borated for several years, and when,
finally, Mr.. Kipling sued for the hand Of
Miss Carolyn Balestier. the delight Of
her brother was unbohnded, for he saw
o delightful future in store for his favor
tie sister. Another brother, Beatty, was
less pleased, for he did not like the
match; but as Mr.. Kipling himself would
say, That's another story"
The Kiplings went to i've in an old
fs fashioned taEVmahogse, EVmah 6fteen miles from
Brattleboroi ", where, they had most
home, in what Mr.. Kipling
called .the great pie belt of America"
It Is snid that at that time Mr.. Kipling
did not like America as whole, although
he was intensely fond Of the Brattleboro
people and enjoyed nothing better than
rubbing Shoulders with his neighbors.
He Was TOO busy to be socjable, and sell
dom went out 70 teas, and never was
known TO attend a church sociable. Yet
the people liked him; and Mrs. Kipling