The sun., 1903-05-17
ROMANCES OF THE PEERAGE.
CASES INJOL, ING BRiTISH TITLES
ND ESTATES
Ne Oti,a's suit against Lord SackN,ile
--Fsutter Against Lord MountS Ssrret
The Drucc Case The Famous Bcrke.
lev Peerage--J.Ord A,OnmOre's Nhr.
and the Vanishing Wicklow BabH.

anh the vanishing Wicklow Bab,
The romance Of the British peerage re-
veaIed by the action begun 10y Henry q.
Olivia. otherwise called Wes,. against hi'
father, Baron Sackville. is not unlike sew
eral other roInanoes Of former times There
h no doubt that De Olivia is Lord Sackville e
son. lie il b+ginung suit not to prove lis
relationship. hut to prove his legitimacy
Lord Sackville's story is that the young
man is his son 10y Spanish woman who
lived with him for many years. but having
. husband. though bad one, could hot
and did not marry him legally. The son
has applied for a commission 20 perpet uate
testimony in Spain. to use after his rather Il
death in proving his legitimacy and trying
10 get the Sackville title aud estates
The court issued an order for the appoint
ment of the commission. but gave LORD
Sackviile the right TO appeal. IT is reason
ably certain that Lord Sackville Will appeal.
for he is said to dislike his son; and If the
delays in tho case Of Mrs. Druce against
the Duke OF Portland offer any precedent,
Il is reasonably certain also that all that
morey and influence can do to prevent the
perpetuation q! the testimony will he done
Mrs Druce. it may be remembered,
alleges that thc late Duke Of Portland mar
ried her G.der all assumed name, and she
applied FOR permission TO eXhume his body.
and have it Identified. If possible, ss that of
her husband The Duke was famous for
his ecteUtr;cities, aiI disappeared from
time to time from bis ducal haunts-just
about at the times that Mrs. Druce under
take, 90 prove that hsr husband was living
with hel Her husband left her from time
to time TOO, lust about the times that the
Duke wcs sen in his favorire places.
But she hg- ro' obrGired th" desired
permission rom IN" courts, Tin" prescott
Duke fighting successfully every attempt
on her part to settle the matter on its merits.
SO probably Lord Sackviile will fight his
sons attempts.
In 1875, tharc was a romance Of the peer
age which is row almost forgotten. bur at
the time vas described a. SURPRISING any
imaginary romantic story the case OF Butler
against Ni-couut Mount garre;. tried in the
Irish courts before IA Jury,
The els yepth EMco,lL, died. leaving four
SOUS: Edmund. who succet ded a. twelfth
Viscount. ard was made Earl of Kilkenny.
yrd died irssrc in 1915; Somerset, Henry
ard Pierce. all of whom died before that
date On the leath Of Lord Kilkenny
the earldom expired, but the viscountcy
went TO tho nearest heir. Henry Edmund.
scn of Henry.
In 1851 his cousin Pierce Somerset Butler.
son Of Pierce Butler. brought suit to sat
aside his cousin as illegitimate. His case
was briefly as follows:
Henry Butler the third son Of the eev
enth Vfscount. having run away with and
deserted a married woman, in 1903 became
, 10 - yytNnW Mrs (DlpbrOnkp
described as one of the lcveliest and most
fascinating women Of the day She had
an income conditioned on her not marrying
again One child was born to them, which
In 1911. in Scotland John Taaffe began to
share Mrs. Colebrooke's affections with
the Hon. Henry Butler: and one night the
latter broke into Mrs. Colebrooke's house
in Edinburgh while Taahe was there
room. and at Buffers desire, called three
Of her servants. and in their presence.
she and Butler declared themselves man
and wife, this declaration making them
Illegally marred according to Scots law
and kicking at the door in vain The Irish
lawyer in the case said it was lovely per-
Torrance in every way but there was no
real ruction,
Five months later Butler married Miss
Harrogate. and later Mrs. Colehrooke
married according to Scots law the finally
released Mr.. Taaffe. The son OF Butler
and Anne Harrison assumed the title OF
eseonn. IN lSse ana hr rierGs n ,ss.
He won the case before the jury. the Wis.
count being held illegitimate on the ground
OF former marriage. But the verdict
was set aside on appeal. and the matter
Mountgarret Of ls4s held the title and es-
tates until his death, three years ago.
Pierce Somerset Buffers son, however.
is the second heir to the tito now. 80 there
IS q chance that the peeraRe Will 60 to the
line Of the man who fought for it half
century ago.
The Berkeley peerage case is the, most
famous romance in England having lasted
for nearly century and having elements
OF interest apart from its longevity, In
formed an alliance with Miss Mary Cole,
and to them were born four sons, William.
Maurice. Augustus and Francis. In !;e8,
believing himself to be dying, the Earl
formally married Miss Cole.
the father OF three daughters and three
more sons, Thomas, Grantly and Craven.
He died in lslo, and then the romance got
into court.
William Berkeley applied for summon
ing arisen as to his legitimacy. the matter |
was taken into tho House OF Lords, which
ia at the "a me time the highest court in |
the United Kingdom and the judge Of the |
QUA lificatio ions Of its own members. VIII |
liam Berkeley set up former marriage OF
hi mother and father in 1885, but no record |
OF it could be found
The page Of the parish register which |
should have shown the marriage was miss
ing, but that fact did not prove that II 1t had
been in its place 1t would have had the |
desired entry. So the House of Lords
decided, with much common sense that
II there had been a marriage in i7ss none
would have been necessary In 1904, and
refused to accept William Berkeley as Earl,
but declared that Thomas Berkeley. the
first son born after the marriage in 1895,
was the real Earl.
The loyalty OF the Berkeleys to their
father and mother was very great, and is
the really romantic part Of the story.
Earl Of berkeley and lived and died as
plain the Hon, Thomas Berkeley He did
not die until 1882. when he was 49,
In fact, the promise Of the command
nent that those who honor their parents
shall be long lived was borne out in the case
Of the Berkeleys William lived TO be II,
Maurice was 10 when he died, Augustus
was So, Fra ncis 10, Thomas as said was &c.
Grantley lived to he 80, and only Craven,
the youngest, died under the age OF 6o.
Grsntley Berkeley was great sports
man Of the Regency type. He was great
buck, the last man In London TO wear