Daily Kennebec journal., 1904-06-24
USES WAsHINcToN's ARMS.
Story Of Lord Dartmouth's Alleged
Right to Fly American Flag.

bears his name. and to lay the corner
stone there of the new Dartmouth Hall,
is peer who is entitled to other claims
on the interest Of the people Of the
United States than the active patronage
accorded by the second Lord Dartmouth
to the old educational institution at
Hanover, N. HI. The first Lord Dar-
mouth, who, as admiral of the British
fleet in the Mediterranean, bombarded
and destroyed Tangier, was a son of
Elizabeth Washington, eldest daughter
and chief heiress of Sir William Wash
ington, Of Packington, Leicestershire.
and as the descendant and heir of
Elizabeth Washington the earl has the
right to use the same arms as the first
President of the United States, though
l cannot find any authority for the con-
tention often put forward that the earl
and his family have the right to fly the
flag of the United States. Probably
this story has arisen from the fact that
George Washingtons armorial bear
ings, consisting of three stars and two
stripes-that is to say, the heraldic
devices of the Washington family
served as basis to the designers of the
first flag of this Republic, and that
Lord Dartmouth is entitled to fly flag
bearing the arms of the Washington
family, though not the American flag
as it now exists.
Lord Dartmouth is no stranger to the
United States. He visited this country
as a young man with the present Duke
of Sutherland. and spent nearly two
years in the West, seeing something Oh
frontier life. of ranching and of big
game shooting in the Rockies. For q
time he was a conspicuous figure at
court, and was Vice-chamberlain to the
late Queen Victoria. In recent years,
however, he has devoted himself to the
management of his large estates, and
also to literary research, to which his
attention was turned by the wonderful
collection of literary treasures among
his family papers, including all the cor
respOndence of Pepys, of DIARY" fame,
with the first Lord Dartmouth, a large
number of letters from Dean Swift,
Lord North, King William III, George
III and John Wesley. There is one of
the letters of Wesley in his possession
bearing the date of June IA, 1775, which
begins as follows: "All my prejudices
are against the Americans" This, of
course, relates to the War of Inde-
pendence. I may add that King
Edward has recognized Lord Dart
mouths interest in literary research by
appointing him one of the members of
the Royal Commission on Historical
Manuscripts.
The family of which the Earl Of
Dartmouth is the head bears the
patronymic of Lega, and is of Italian
origin, the house of De Lega figuring
extensively in the history of Ravenna,
of Naples, and especially Of Venice.
The first of the family to make his
mark in England was Thomas Lega,
who was Lord Mayor of London in the
reign of King Edward III. The an
ceStral homes of Lord Dartmouth are
Patshull House, at Wolverhampton
which was built about two hundred
years ago, and Woodsome Hall, near
Huddersfeld, which has been in the
possession of the family from the six
teenth century.
There is a mystery connected with
Woodsome Hall, in the shape of room
which, like the hidden chamber in Lord
Strathmores home. at Glamis Castle.
has been kept locked for at least two
hundred years. AT one time Woodsome
Hall was the home of the Hon. Susan
Lega, sister of the first Lord Dart
n Outh, who ruled the household, includ-
ing her brother, with a rod of iron.
She relented, however, according to
tradition, toward a favorite servant,
one Simon Jenkins the butler. One
morning, to the CONSERVATION of Miss
Susan and of the entire household, he
was found dead, hanging by rope to a
hook i'm the wall of the Hon. Susan's
boudoir. Whether or not his was 4
case of the pangs of despised love will
never be known, but after the coroner's
inquest, and he had been buried, as re-
quired by the law of those days. at the
crossing of two highroads, with stone
on his face and a stake through his
breast, the Hon. Susan called the
household together and addressed them
as follows:
You all know that Simon was a
worthy servant, and did his duty well.
l was very fond of him, and Inuch re-
gret his loss, but l should not care to
see him again in the flesh walking, as
they say suicides do. So, then, If any
one Of you shall see him walking about
any Of my corridors l give you notice
that he or she shall instantly quit my
service"
So saying, Miss Susan stalked out of
the room, fancying that she had laid
poor Simon's ghost forever. But, alas,
for human hopes! That same night,
after tine Hon. Susan had dined and
taken her usual post-prandial nap In
her boudoir, she suddenly started and
screamed. and pulled the bell. In
rushed all the servants, from the new
butler down, to know what the matter
might be. They found her wild ana
raving. None of them dared ask what
the matter was. But suddenly she re-
covered her composure. and, sitting bolt
upright in her chair in her prim and )
dignifled way, exclaimed, Let this !
room be kept locked from this time |.
forth for evermore," and with that, I
leaning on her gold headed cane, she .
left the room.
In spite of this, the saying goes that
Simon's ghost haunted the adjoining
until one day the Hon. Susan |
mysteriously, no record of her !
death being found in the family ,
archives or parish registers. Then it is