Evening star., 1901-07-06
Claimed to Be Queen Victoria's Eldest
Daughter.
SGHE BELIEVED Her STORY
Passed Away in Poverty in a New
York Hospital
SOME OF HER ALLEGATIONS

sophia-Adeiaide Is dead. says the New
York World today.
The woman who. with almost her last
breath. held to the story that she was the
eldest daughter Of Queen Victoria and the
prince consort, breathed her last In the
German Hospital early on Thursday morn
ing. victim OF the heat and of insufficient
nutriment.
By the merest chance this woman, whose
story is one OF the most remarkable ever
told. was saved from a grave In potter's
field DR.. J. II. Guntzer Of No 34s East
s6th street, a frm believer In the truth Of
the woman's story. learned of her death
only after her body had been removed from
the German Hospital. where she died.
Through his charity It will be buried this
afternoon in Calvary cemetery.
Sophia Adelaide was known In this coun-
try as Mrs. Kent. Kent was the name un-
der which she was placed In the household
of the Count de Lundi, in Poissy. and she
always maintained IL. In Paris she was
known as the Countess Lundi having mar
ried while he was on his death bed. in Day
ton. Ohio, the brother OF the man who
passed as her father. She had long won
dered at her anomalous position. and 1t
was from the Count de Lundi. whose
brother had been the chum of the prince
consort that she learned the story of her
life.
Mrs. Kent had lived at various places In
this city since 1887. supported by the sales
OF her remarkable book. the history Of her
life. which was suppressed In England and
Germany. and which was brought out here
by Belford. Clark & Co. In 1887. Six
months ago she came TO the notice of the
st. 1gnatius Council of the st. Vincent de
Paul Society OF St. Josephs Church. This
society and DIR. Guntzer. to whom she came
originally as a patient supported the old
ha MN w
sixty-one years old. having been born she
claimed. on November 81. 1s4O.
Mrs. Kent's last residence was at No 2Il
East 92d street where she occupied three
small rooms on the top floor. She mingled
little with her nefghbors and her only call
ers were President Valentine MaiclSal OF
the St Ignatius Council and others of its
members. who came to give her tickets for
groceries and other necessities OF life
Said the Pope Kept Her Pagers.
When she moved into the apartment
nearly two months ago she brought a lot
Of papers and bundles with her and had
put on her door a special lock. None Of
her nefghbors ever went to her room. Mr..
Maickal and Dr. Guntzer last night wrote
Of Mrs. Kent's effects. There may be pa
pers Of value among them. but the docu-
ments proving her claims. she said she
gave years ago to the pope and she had
On Saturday last, when the old woman
went to the grocery store OF Otto Never
at seth street and LIST avenue to got proyi-
sions on the tickets given her by the socI-
ETY.. she was so weak that she could barely
walk. and Mr.. Meyer sent her home In his
wagon. On Monday a nurse from the cltv
hospital came to tend to her. out she grew
weaker as the heat Increased. and on We'd
neSday she was removed to the German
Hospital Early the next morning sne died
DR.. Guntzer. who had taken the greatest
interest In the woman. said last night that
she was Of remarkable attainments. No
person. he said, could hear the woman's
story and not believe H. To manufacture IT,
he declared, would be weilnigh impossible.
and nothing could be gained from such Q
step. She was cared for because she was q
worthy woman and a Catholic. not because
she was. she claimed. the daughter OF
Queen Victoria. Many OF her statements
were capable of verihcation. he said. and
the marvellous circumstantial evidence con-
nected with II all. borne out a. 1t was by
many historical facts. made II almost i'm
possible for him to disbelieve her.
Resenbla.ce to the Late 0seea.
Ter resemblance to the accepted pictures
OF England's late queen. DIR. Guntser said.
was remarkable.
Among the many people who Sophia AIDE
laide interested in her story was DR.. John
De Morgan. a writer and lecturer oe inter
national repute some years ago DIR. De
u
Europe. and In an article published In
brakes Magazine In December. 1887. he
says that In 1872 he was In the Immediate
presence Of Queen Victoria and had an ex-
cellent opportunity of studying her face.
She was then ffty-three years old
I'm the present year" QSSD. says the
writer. II met and conversed with Sophia
Adelaide. known in New York as Mrs.
Kent. who claims to be Victoria's eldest
daughter. As the lady entered the room
she seemed to me an appartion or
the Victoria I had seen fifteen years ago.
There was the chin. the Identical mouth.
the Identical char acteristic nose and the
soft pleasing expression OF the eyes L had
noticed in the English queen
Sophia Adelafde's claim was that as an
infant she was taken from her royal
mother and In her place was substituted
the daughter Of Prince Albert by his NOR
ganatic wife. the Countess de Reuss.
II Sophia -Adelaides claim be true then
the marriage of Queen Victoria to Prince
Albert was null and void. he having wife.
albeit morganatic. living at the time.
Prince Albert. In that case. was bigamist.
II her story was true the Dowager Empress
Of Germany, the mother OF the present em-
peror. instead Of being the daughter OF
Queen Victoria was really the daughter
of Albert and the Countess de Reuss
Got Money From Royalty.
The fact remains that up to the time OF
her coming 20 America, which was shortly
after the de ath of John Brown. the queens
highland attendant. Sophia Adelaide. was
supported in royal fashion. She received
remittances in Paris or wherever she might
be through the Rev. Edward Bouverte OF
England. When these remit
tances stopped and she inquired into the
cause she found that Mr. Bouyerie was
lead, and thenceforth her remittances were
paid to her by John Brown himself.
Extracts From Her Book.
At his death they ceased altogether. She
made several Intellectual attempts to obtain
/ settlement. and when these failed she
came to this country and brought out the
book which had been suppressed In Eng
and and Germany. The book contains the
preface, addressed To the read
er:"
II am the daughter of one Of the greatest
queens on earth; she who has usurped my
place IL the wife Of one of the future mas
.ers OF the world"
The first recollections Of the writer are
Of Poissy, near Paris. where she WAS liv-
ing with Lady Anna Campbell She was
told that her father was the Count de
Lundi. When she was eight years old her
supposed father was brought home muir
dered. In the meantime, q man whom she
49,