Omaha daily bee., 1910-03-20

King James /. Of Scotland. OF whom an
other lineal descendant, Scott Moncroif, has
written me only this morning. Including
the Earl Of Crewe, our chairman, we have
nearly a dozen members OF the peerage
among-our hoped for guests.
"As regards the great poets, themselves,
there are, Of course, some regrettable gaps.
There is no actual descendant Of Shakes
peare, although we have found descendants
Of his grand parents on both sides. Milton
is as yet wholly unrepresented and the
name Of Keats seems to have vanished as
though Il had in very truth been writ in
water.
Shelley has no living descendant, al
though, Of course. the present Sir John
Shelley and others Of the family are dis
tant cousins.
LAS far as length of pedigree is con
cerned Mr.. Scott Moncrien's nearest rival
is, as yet, Mr.. Gisslng SHELTON, directly
descended from the CHEEKY old Poet Laur-
cate, whose breathless rhymes gave Car
dinal Wolsey such a ticklish time Of It. 1t
has been very pleasant, too, to find, at
least, two Of Spencer's direct descendants
living. OF some more recent poets we have
a plethora Of representatives. No fewer
than six claimants to Wordworth's name
and fame have been heard Of"
Since Mr.. Kyle made the foregoing state
ment the society has made a remarkable
discovery in Mr.. Rowed, a railway official
Of Exeter, who declares himself to be a
relative Of the wife of Chaucer, the father
Of English poetry. Mr.. Rowed's claims are
set forth by his wife, who has given the
subject much study, having had the assist
anco Of Prof. Skeat Of Cambridge.
According to Mrs. Rowed, after his mar
riage to Philippa de Rect, younger daughter
Of Sir Paon de Roet, Chaucer took the
arms Of the de Roet family-the three
wheels-Mr. Rowed's coat Of arms today.
The three wheels are supposed to repre-
sent the name OF Rect.
P~hilippa's sister, Katherine de Rect, in
1896. became the third wife Of John of
Gaunt. She was therefore the ancestress of
about five kings Of England. An old docu-
ment at the British Museum shows how the
de Rect family came to England in 1900
from Hainault and afterward changed their
name to Rowed of the present day. The
present Mr.. Rowed, 1t is claimed, Is de-
sccndended from Sir Paon de Rect. The
following is a list Of a few OF those whose
claims are fully credited:
Earl of Crewe lin the chair, son of Rich
ard Moncton Mines Lord Houghton).
Duke Of Norfolk, descendant of the Earl OF
Earl Of Lytton. grandson Of Bulwer Lyt-
Marquis of Dufferin, great-great-grandson
Lady sandhurst, daughter of Matthew
Lord Tennyson, son of the late Poet
Lady Margaret ~sackvllle, descendant of
the Earl Of Dorset.
Lady Wentworth, Observation-Disclosures or
Lord Byron.
Mr.. WIN G.. Shakespeare Of HiEhgate, de-
Miss Rose Walton of Bournemouth' de-
scendant of Shakespeare's sister Joan.
Mr.. Vivian Wood Of Rickmansworth, de-
scendant from Shakespcare's grand
mother on mothers side,
descendant of Edmund Spenser and also
of william Someryille (Shakespeares
r~clative) and John Fountain Q66O).
DR.. Francis Maginn Of Dublin, descendant
of Edmund Spenser and son of founder
of F~raser's Magazine.
Mr.. Scott Monscreiff of Hove, descendant
of James 1 Of Scotland through the
Stewarts of Dunearn.
Mr.. A. w. Shepherd of DRrnall, near Shelf
field, descendant of William Collins.
SHELTON Gi6O-l529), author of "Coiyne
Mrs. Kate Coates, descendant of Baroness
Mr.. Robert Barrett Browning, son of Rob
ert and Mrs. Barrett Browning;
Mrs. Compton Reade of Hereford, descend
ant Of George Herbert
Miss Southey of Martock, somerset, grand
daughter of Southey.
Mrs. Maud Southey-Jahn of Surbiton,
granddaughter Of Southey,S "a,
Mrs. Rachel Fam de Sails of Uxbridge, 1h
in descent from Edmund Waller.
Mr.. Ernest Hartley Coleridge, grandson of
S. T. Coleridge and granddaughter OF
Mr.. Gordon Wordsworth of Ambleside,
grandson of Wardsworth.
Rev. John Wordsworth of Mealsgate, Cum
berland, grandson Of Wordsworth.
Mr.. II. H. Sherard, great-grandson OF
Wordsworth.
Mr.. James Glencairn Thomson of Glasgow, h
grandson Of Robert Burns.
Mr.. George william Pyrkes of Clerkenwell,
great-grandson of Robert Burns;
Lieutenant Colonel Percy G. Whalley of
T~eignmouth, descendant Of Bishop
Percy of "Reliques'' fame.
Mr., James Orr, great-granddaughter OF
George Crabbe.
daughter of George Crabbe.
Mr.. William MaXse Merdith, son of George
Meredith.
Mrs. Halliday Sparkling. daughter of Will
lam Morris.
1t will be noticed that John Fountain is
a descendent Of no fewer than three poets
Edmund Spenser, William Somerville and
John Fountain.
A member of the London staff of a New
York paper, Dryden by name, is spoken
of as a possible representative of Dryden,
the poet. HI can trace his ancestry back
to the middle of the eighteenth century,
but cannot prove any actual relationship
with the Immortal John" which is not
remarkable, inasmuch as it is generally
understood that Dryden's issue failed in
tho first generation after him.
Miss Ann Herrick of Bristol claims de-
scent from the poet. but Herrick himself
has given the world a description of his
own life as a sworn bachelor. There is
certainly no record OF his marriage.
Thomas Gray died unmarried and so
did Cowper. A descendant Of Sir Walter
Scott is to be found in Mrs. Constable
Maxwell-Scott the last Of Sir Walters
Observation-Disclosures.
1t is estimated that from 200 to $50 guests
viii attend the dinner, which will take
place on April 8, the anniversary of the
birth Of Swinburne.