Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-12-11
New Lady Mayoress of London
Will Clean Up Mansion House

Dress has beautiful garden at Black
| heath, where flowers are always in
bloom. She also has an eye for art in
decoration. which is why she shlvcrs
whenever she goes TO the great Greek
mansion and sees quantities of indiffsr-
ent blooms crowded anyhow in historic
vessels of heavy gold plate.
Her remedy here was simple: she dis
pensed with the slovcnly decorators
who had never been interfered with
since contracts were placed years and
years ago. Then she called n motor
cab and drove to the establishment Of
young woman florist she knows in
Piccadllly.
The new lady mayoress told her what
was wanted. and asked could she do
1T? The up-to-date girl was oVerJoyed
she had never hoped to enter profess
sionally the exclusive portals of the
city palace, where She understood the
aldermen who ate turtles and beef were
Indifferent to the charms OF pretty fl6w-
crs. During 1910. every room In the
mansion house Will be scented with
sweet flowers. attractlvely arranged in
groups. and guests will find by their
plates dainty nosegays according to the
season,
WAS NO SPRING CLEANING.
Lady Knill was not surprised to find
the mansion house in a very dirty con-
dition. She asked the Oldest servants.
with grey hair beneath their powdered
wigs, when was the usual time for
spring cleaning They shook their
heads. as II they did not understand
the question. r,
AS a matter OF fact, tho dull and
stately mansion" has never been prop
erly cleaned and renovated since Lord
Mayor Perry laid the foundation stone
in 1879. Lady Knill thinks the reason
for the appalling state OF dirtiness is
that every successive lord mayor. wish
Ing to get the full benefit of his years
residence. has passed the spring clean
ing duty on to- the next
Patching-up and surface cleaning has
been done from time to time, at con-
siderab BILE, Inconvenience and annoy
ance to the occupant for the period.
But in order. to do the thing properly
the great house, which by reason OF Its
position in the heart OF the city collects
more CRIME than any other inhabited
place, would have to be closed for at
least eight months. That is Lady
Knill's estimate -
Where is the brave lord mayor who
would sacrifice so much precious time
on the only occasion OF his life when
he can be master of those historic
halls? Probably not even the presi-
dent OF the public health institute
would have courage for that!
Lady Kniil however, is going to have
all the carpets up in easy stages; the
foors scrubbed. and the furniture pol
ished. Tables. chairs, and sideboards
of whose structure dust, through long
habitation, has become part, will be
stored in attIcs, and replaced where
necessary with furniture borrowed from
Blackheath.
LOFTY HALL THE DRAWBACK
The lofty Egyptian hall. where 400
guests can sit down to- dinner and still
leave plenty of room for the army OF
mansion house walters, will present
the greatest difficulty. But 1t Will be
tackled. bit by bit. In the on days
Other diningrooms. such as the VIC
toria parlor and Wilkes parlor. and
the drawing room and the ball room
will not escape. They will all trem-
pie very soon under the swish OF Lady
Knilrs great new broom.
Then the kitchen-that mighty hall
In the basement story. where each range
is large enough to roast an entire OK,
and where the vegetables arc cooked
In tanks. no pot being sufficiently big.
There Will be no mistake about the
cleaning operations here; the Kitchens
turn VIII be an easy hrst.
IS OF DIFFERENT TYPE.
Lady Kniu has no great opinion of
some former mayoresses who have
been content to take things as they
found them. and go to a restaurant
when they wanted a really nice meal.
She herself is q handsome woman. who
dresses well, and buys her frocks In
Bond street. and is quite a different
type from the spouse OF the self-made
city man who often by wealth and
years OF undlstinguished public service.
climbs to the portico OF the mansion
house. dragging his good lady after
him. I..
Neither does Lady Knill. who belongs
to an old Catholic family. think much
OF the lord mayors procession.
ITS a circus" she says to her
friends. land I wonder the populace
don't expect the lord mayor to do d
Juggling turn or a lion-taming act"
So Lady Knill is altering that too.
MARTHA CUNNINGTON. Z.