The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1910-04-11
OF INTEREST TO WOMEN.
THE LADY MAYORESS.
The Social Duties of LondOn's New
ChateIaine.


From the London Chronicle.
People are apt TO imagine that the posi-
ton Of lady mayoress Of London is a
sinecure. so little is ever heard of the
formidable amount OF exacting duties
which the hostess of the Mansion House
fulhlls during her tenure of Office. All
is done so quietly and unostentatiously
that there is a certain amount OF excuse
for the general assumption. But moth
ing could be farther from the truth. It
means a great deal more than just being
the wife of the chief magistrate of the
city.
Lady Truscott, London's new Lady
Bountful. Will find no small demand
made on her good health in the round
of enjoyment that must be sustained
throughout the entire year. There is a
long list of compulsory obligations
which it is the duty OF every lady mayor
ess of London to get through.
For Lady Truscott yesterday probably
ushered in the most arduous year of her
life. A lord mayor with a conscientious
appreciation of the multlfarious duties
OF his Office Is one of the busiest men IN
the whole of London, and In all cases a
very large share Of his work must be
borne by the lady mayoress.
Among the civic pleasantries which Sir
William TreIoar was wont to fling with
so lavish n hand among his audiences
will be remembered perhaps those which
he uttered concerning the question OF
whether 1t would be possible-in face
Of what is usually referred 10 as the
advancement Of women'-for a member
of the voteless sex 10 fulfill the onerous
duties OF a lord mayor He considered
it physically impossible. mo woman
would. think. be physically strong
enough to fill the position Of lord mayor
of London" said Sir william; 80 It Is
just as well that the qualifications Of
women do not include the city" What
was especially meant by the physical"
impossibility was the confederation of
banquets which extend over the mayoral
year, and which no LADY" mayor could
survive. To the ordinary mortal they
would present unsurmountable Difficult
ties. It Is only the aldermanic practice
that makes the lord mayor perfect in this
respect. One occupant OF the civic chair
with a tendency TO statistics declared
that the gastronomic obligations OF his
position entailed the eating Of his share
OF 90 public dinners during his year of
Office. adding that he fulfilled meanwhile
over 1000 public engagements. Two din
ners or three dances in one evening soon
became a mayoral commonplace.
II is generally conceded that were
women qualified 10 discharge the duties
OF a lord mayor they could not be ex-
pected TO rise 20 such epicurean heights.
and would in consequence relegate civic
banquets to the legendary domain where
in dwell the immortal Cog and Magog.
As things are at present constituted
the lady mayoress is not subjected 10 the
physical strain incumbent on the lord
mayor. Still she has a sufficiently heavy
list TO get through. and cannot consider
her duties wholly fulfilled by the pro-
posing OF an agreeable toast or the
making of a delicious" speech Her
task OF hostess is a far more exacting
one. for with her lies the social success
Of failure OF each entertainment
The first plunge into civic life IS made
before the banquet. It Is customary dur
ing the procession for the lord mayor to
stop IN his own ward and TO receive an
address. At such times the lady mayor
ess IS the recipient of a floral tribute
II is the signal that a year OF hard work
has begun.
II frequently happens that the Mansion
House is not ready for its new occupant
by November 2. In such cases from this
date until their Official residence Is open
TO receive them. the lord MAYOR and lady
mayoress make private house or hotel
their temporary home. The task TO which
most lady mayoresses find It hardest to-
reconcile themselves is that Of relinquish-
ing their own home IN a bright and airy
suburb or the country for the gloomy
mansion in the city. For Lady Truscott,
who will come from her charming house,
Greenwood, Chislehurst, situated among
fresh woods and copses which border the
undulatlng sandy lanes Of one OF the
prettiest parts OF Kent, the contrast will
be extreme One wonders whether the
historic associations OF the Mansion
House will counterbalance its gloom and
whether these can be dis
PEELED by such high thoughts as that
from the steps OF ones house the birth OF
heirs and the death of sovereigns are
proclaimed, public calamities announced.
and defeats by sea and land her
aided. that here are felt the throbs Of
the heart OF the empire. At any rate. it
much be a unique experience TO live in
house df only for a year, for which one
hax 20 a al 10
of private owner-according
to present-day value of $4,000, or four
times the entire official salary Of the lord
mayor,
During her residence therein the Man
sion House becomes in every sense the
home of the lady mayoress. Pictures and |
familiar articles of furniture are brought |
from the permanent home to make the |
temporary hearth as cosy and bright as
possible. Lady Truscott has already ar
ranged to receive large and never |
falling supply of flowers from Chisle- |
hurst. with which to decorate her private |
apartments and the public rooms for re- |
ceptions and banquets The new lady /
mayoress is an enthusiastic grower of /
bulbs. and the pleasing results of her /
horticulture viii be a conspicuous feature |
Of future Mansion House gatherings.
The first great social event in which /
Lady Truscott will participate IS the visit /
Of the King and Queen of Sweden. who I
are 10 honor the city with their presence /
on the 18th There are a great number /
Of societies which hold their annual meet /
Ing at the Mansion House. Then will |
come the entertainment OF foreign visit |
Ors and scientific societies. banquets 10 1
mayors. balls, fetes, bazaars converse
ziones varied by visits to metropolitan /
ooroughs. attendance at charitable con-
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