The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1902-09-27

correspondent of the London Morning
Post during the first Boer contest in
South AFRICA In 1850. Here she came to
KNOW that fne old savage. Cetewayo.
King OF Iululand. and admired him.
When. all broken and defeated. his
country tributary OF the British. Cete-
wayo was brought to England. Lady
Florence>Dixie interceded with the gov
eminent and never let UP till she had
the royal captive released and sent
back free man TO his own land Elo-
quent as well as persistent is Lady
Florence.
one OF her noblest traits Is that--rare
among women-of having sympathy
with everything that lives, So soon as
she found time after returning from
Africa she studied the Irish question
and became an ardent advocate OF
home rule. When convinced OF the
righteousness OF any measure she acts
and acts swiftly. regardless OF conse-
quences.
In her early hunting days Lady Flor
ence killed all kinds OF game that was
lawful prey i'm Great Britain. Then she
turned 20 the rest OF the world. still
killing things. She shot elephants In
India, lions and gazeles in Africa.
bears in the Rocky mountains and ey-
cry variety OF game in Australia. But
during the later years of her hunting
career something had been working on
her mind. In Patagonia she went os-
trich hunting. In those days ostriches
were caught by throwing a loaded lariat
at them. which wound around a birds
neck and brought IL to the ground. The
lariat had a stone or piece OF lead at
each end. LADY Florence sighted her
ostrich, whirled her lariat around.
hurled IL and hit a native guide upon
the head and killed him. IL is true she
gave his widow Immediately $500, which
that bereaved woman valued more
highly than her lost husband. since IL
enabled her at once to get another one
whom she liked better.
But Lady Florence could not forget.
The incident stayed with her. AT
length the old fiery craze for killing
things died out I'm her breast she
hung up her rifle and fowling piece for
ever.
What she thought in the DAYS when
her heart was changing is shown in this
that she wrote:
Once l left scene OF warmth ana
light and went forth into the N,ntrv
night. The snow was trampled down.
was generally tinged with blood. fox
crept across the road. a pheasant In his
mouth--no doubt one of the unpicked
up victims OF the days sport. As
stood looking around my dog went to
the edge of the lake. He found some-
thing in the rushes and returned with
that something in his mouth. took IL
from him, a poor. half frozen hen
pheasant with two broken wings. vet
still alive. II had been there all
through those cold hours waiting for
kindly death to come and still its suf-
ferings. That act of mercy / now did
for it,"
The sportswoman that had been made
her flop" and she made IL thoroughly
and for keeps, as she does everything
else. Thenceforward she who had been
the foremost woman hunter of her time
set all the force of her strong soul
against killing dumb creatures for mere
sport" She wrote a poem called "The
Massacre of the Innocents" on the
slaughtering of sea gulls and King Ed
ward approved IL. She has also written
two books. called THE Mercilessness OF
Sport" and The Horrors Of Sport" In
her repentance she has even turned
vegetarian.
Such is the lady who asks President
Roosevelt TO put down child slavery
in the United States.
MARILLA WEAVER