The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-12-04

Z hEr ,-Np'T "nGrs -. she says, tine TACT thAt
~ha has met many interesting and dis
? tInGuI>hei contemporaries and partici-
. patai ia a movement which has gradually
+ grown 10 D." oi historic significance. 30
that she has had many ghmpSas I'M" the
political alrdir~ ~ our lime and has some
hing - ~ that IL r"ally worth publish
ING Having haen induced by this con-
ALTERATION - writ. her memoirs She -
datar,r,n'.i that they shall he tn" genuins
record of i l,f., and that IL precisely what
she -r..- u- with "A frankness which Is
refreshing. and a fairness 10 other peoples
TO their rival "Tnrrs and succ.'sae~ which
j. worth mentioning. once for all. at the
outset.
Bartha. horn Countess kinsky. was
the po-rhumrus child Of Joseph. Count
KInskv. lmprr al Lieut. .nant Field Marshal
and Co!rt than. perlaIn. and her paternal
grandmother NaS "A Princess Liechten-
stein. Her mother. horn Won korner.
daughter nf u Captain Of cavalry IN the
AUSTRIAN army WAS his social inferior. In
Cpfls.C, uanCe III her not possessing the
necessary number Of quarterings tn her
h-raliiC shield neither she nor her chill
drcu could attend the Austrian court;
and this fact. together with Berha's lack
-; - iowrv evidently had an Influence on
the < ri = fate. keeping her and her mother
AWAY from Vienna. where they could not
go into "SocI.sy- after the first winter
If her coming out On the other hand
there can h. no doubt that nsr own distn-
glishai name n-r title and her many
lnfiuent ial rpli1t ives exercised a benefiCent
influence which more than compensated
IN securing for her side friends and
oppnr- ,initias that mat erially aided her
career AZ i prophet of universal peace.
and for tn. lack Of which another woman
of equal talent and equal sincerity would
have remained IN obscurity. Moreover.
she must have been the posse-sor OF re-
rlarkahl. beauty. Judging from the sad
b,lt very lovely face which her frontis-
piece portrait shows us.
she WAS well educated in music and the
languages in her early youth. and for
many years mad ~ her playmate u girl
cousin. vino wrote precocious poems and
the like which met with tn. approval Of
distinguished literary men. Ar that time
she herself hai no thought IF writing
Tn. two mothers conceived the idea that
would enable them TO break IN. hank at
Wiesbad.n and after practising that gift
assliuously with tn. aii II the young
girls TO draw the numbers which they
saw and expanding royally-in ina gina
tIon-thelr prospective fabulous wealth.
they Let out for tn. watering place
on their campaign If triumph, The sole
result was - proposal u marriage for
Cd.cln.,i ~ she was only II years Of age,
and serious depict ion Of tn" already
sc.lnty "ych.quer 4 repetition Of the
visit during the following summer re-
suited IN an identical manner, and the
young man whom the youthful COUSINS
had fanci.d they We're in low. with and
had nobly renounced for each ether
never took any motto. Of them The
kInskys were obliged to pract ise the
strtctest economy. and removed from
Vienna 20 "A quiet country place Here
Bertha played fateful prank hy way
Of relief from tn. tntIum - life She
secretly insert 81 "A remarkably worcied
advertisements in q Vienna journal to
the effect that . brother and sister ~
gentle birth, living in a lonely castle,
desired 10 enter into correspondence witt
persons who feel warmly and think
deeply" The correspondcnc" was TO b.
supervised by n stern papa Then the
gifted cousin Elvira read it declared she
would reply. and was forbidden by her
elders Fiv" days later tho lively Bertha
brought packet 81 sixty or seventy
letters from tn" post Office. acknow lodged
that -h" was tn" brother and sister. and
Elvira'- letter betrayed that she had
d.h@i her elders. One ~ the letters
from a woman. SO capt. waited Elvira that
she entered into "A lively correspondence
with her. signing masculine name
B"rrha'- correspondents" rOOn hropped
b,' after ElvirHl'- had listed a full year
her conscience prompted her to cnnfes-
SION lest IN. lady should fall in love with
her Result the lady turned out to ~.
AN officer IN the Austrian navy. who was
delighted 10 find that EIvira was n girl:
~ tn" two married and lived most happily
until tn" fral young wife died several
years later.
Countess Bertha - first and only season
in Vienna brought about her bet roth To- |
i mon -aris'Ocr millionaire went y four
years her senior Her acc.ysance WAS |
Iniu""t 10y experience NJ u hall where no |
mothers rat in group. while !
her mother sat aIOn" III. young Count esses
together. and she knew none of /
'r"'H and where she bong dnwerIe..
wp.li nav" been a wall flower IN tn.
IT hon had not a hpm"ly infantry officer |
- hort" mat rIrnTn.aI proposals. had heen re- |
i..cf"-. IA many quar- ers taken pity on her !
But ~ spite u Il shower Of jewels and tho