Evening star., 1912-01-12
GOSSIP OF LONDON
Lord Howard de Walden to
Wed Miss Van RaaIte.
HAS AN IMMENSE INCOME
Has Been Considered the Best Catch
in the United Kingdom.
TO PUT OLD CHURCH ON VIEW
Plan Advocated to Clear Space
Around the Venerable South
wark Cathedral.
HAS AN IMMENSE INCOME
TO PUT OLD CHURCH ON VIEW
LONDON, January 2, 1912.

LONDON, January 2, 1912.
The announcement Of the engagement
of Lord Howard de walden to Miss Mar
gherita Van Raalte has been responsible
for feelings Of intense disappointment
and chagrin in every British society
family In which there are marriageable
daughters. for it is safe to say that no
man in England has been SO hunted by
matchmaking 'mammas'' and fasci-
mating wiGows as "Britain's richest bach
,lor peer as been during the past ten
years.
Rearer o. an ancient name-the first
Baron Howard de Walden took a promi
nen. rart in the discovery Of the Guy
rawkes gunpowder plot, and he is allied
TO the famous Howards Dukes Of Nor
f,lk). Cavend1shes Dukes Of Devonshire)
and Observation-Disclosures Dukes of Port
land)-the present and eighth Baron de
Walden has had phenomenal luck ever
since he was born.
The Ellis family-his fun name Is
thomas Evelyn Elns-had plenty OF
property OF is own. but the sixth
baron tHoward de Waldens grandfather)
married the co-heiress 10 the Cavendish-
Bentinck estates, and on the death OF
u ~
.Druce Duke" on account of the famous
Druce caseJ she inherited a huge slice
of the richest land in London-Maryle-
bone, Cavendsh Square, and the fashion
able districts bounded on the south by
oxford street and Regent street.
Million and a Half Income.
From this property alone the present
peer draws an annual revenue Of over
f1.5OO.oOO. He also inherited share OF
the millions Of his relative. the late Col.
Harry McCalmont. and several comfort
able but comparatively minor fortunes
from other members of his family.
These worldly possessions would alone
make him a NEST desirable CATCH but
he has other attractions. Only thirty
one years of age. Howard de Walden Is
Of the peerage. A gallant soldier, ne
fought in the South African war. with
the 10th Hussars. and was present during
the operations which resulted In the
relief of Kimberley and the capture Of
Gen. Cronje's force. and though he was
eventually invalided home with malaria,
his luck stood him in good stead, for the
transport on which he was to have sailed
with his regiment was wrecked. but
lucky Howard de Walden obtained per-
mission to sail by another vessel.
One Of the finest fencers in England, he
Is also a crack swimmer, has written
poetry. edited a newspaper. and even had
one Of his dramas produced at the Aid
wych Theater-though 1t must be con-
fessed 1t was not an overwhelming sue
cess. His favorite sport is hawking. and
he has tried for several years to re-
introduce the ancient science of venery
and falconry into England. Yachting,
motor boat racing and horse racing are
also numbered among his pursuits, and
his luck has stood him in good stead in
every case -. - -
Has Won Many Races.
AS a racing partner of Col. McCalmont
he won many important races. and his
popular apricot livery is still carried
on the race tracks OF England with con-
siderable success. though he does not
patronize the club Enclosures as much as
he used to- The most famous race horse
he ever owned was probably Zinfandel.
son of King Edwards Persimmon. and
but for the fact that the death Of Col.
McCalmont (who nominated the animaD
conceded that Zinfandel would have
credited his owner with the Derby OF
1892. Won by Ard Patrick.
Finally he Is one Of the few peers
about whom even the most revolutionary
and peer-hating section of the press
can hardly find nasty thing to say.
II is not to be wondered at that such
u paragon should be so much sought
after, and that there should be weep
ing and wailing and gnashing Of teeth
from disappointed "mammas" when
enc of the newest debutantes has
snapped the prize" from under their
very noses. Nobody has al-y real OBJ
jectio to Miss Van Raalte except that
the "biuebicods" su2iest that the de-
scendant of the Howards. Ellises, Cav
endishes. etc. might have chosen from
"a more noble and ancient family.
Miss Van Raalte. who is twenty -One
* ch nd
plished. and has made heself very pop
ular during her brief career in society.
Her father. Charles Van Raalte. was
wealthy stockbrocker, who came of an
Van Raaltes made great deal Of
money in the Dutch East Indies, but
have been anglicized for several en-
erations. Charles Van Raalte left
about two and half million dollars
30 his wife and daughter. so there will
be another nice little addition to the
Golfers OF Lucky Howard de Walden"
Southwark Church Project.
\ writer in the Times is trying to
start a scheme for making Southwark
Cathedral better known. or better seen,
at least. by clearing a big open space
around it. II is a characteristic OF
churches in or near the city to be
tuckeS away in corners behind ware
way OF some tiny slit of an alley and
are unknown to workingmen who
spend their working lives next door),
but Southwark Cathedral is in a hole
well. As YOU cross London bridge
southward You sec its p.nnacled tower
peepins above the warehouses that
fringe the river bark, aud passing the
church you look down some steps into
a sort of gloritied area and see the
tine early English east end. The scheme
is to clear away the warehouses, and
SO make the cathedral landmark
from the north. and to make a wide
open space on the west where now a
lot of squalid sheds built up close to
the church depress the few people who
ever search for the west door. The
few are usually Americans going to
see the tomb of Harvard and the new
Harvard memorial window. but the
place should always interest Shake
speare's fellow townsmen.
His brother Edmund Is buried near
the high altar. and Shakespeare must