The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1913-09-17
GARDENER SAYS
HE'S A MARQUIS
Claims He Is RightfuI Heir ts
Waterford Title.
KNOWN AS GEORGE TOOTH.

Begins Suit In London to Establish
His Claim to the Marquisate and Big
Estates of the Head of the Well
Known Beresford FamiIy-His Birth
Concealed.
According to dispatches from Lon
don, the courts there may have to de-
eide whether or not George Tooth,
London jObbing gardener, is the son OF
a cook or of the fifth Marchioness OF
Waterford.
The first step in what may prove to
be a sensational fight was taken re
Gently in the chancery court 1t con
cerned the technical point of proce-
dure referring to the perpetuation OF
evidence taken before an examiner
which would be embarrassing to the
general reader. but behind these tech
meal preliminaries lies a romantic
story, the truth Of which will require
much disentangling.
Tooth's claim to the marQuisate Of
Waterford and the big family estates
nf the head of the we'll known Beres-
ford family is briefly this:
The fifth MarchionesS of Waterford,
who died on April i, 1873, was first
married to Captain tthe Honl John
Vivian. but she eloped to Paris with
the fifth Marquis of Waterford. who
married her after Captain Vivian had
secured divorce at the registrars of
flee at st. Georges. Hanover square
on Aug. 8, 1872. On March % 1873,
the marchionesS at Gresham place
bore child. 1t was reported to have
been stillborn. but Tooth declares that
the child was born alive ana is him
self. He suggests that the existence
of the child was concealed because the
Waterford family objected to the
marchoness.
Tooth's Strange Story.
THE death of the marchioness. says
Tooth, was registered at Somerset
/ House. but the death certificate lacks
the signature of any doctor At =
o'clock in the evening of the day | was
I born | was taken to my first fostr.
mother, Mrs Duncan, Iow dead. who
I lived in Seymour place, Fulham. My
mothers maid. Priscilla kynaston, and
the doctor took me there l have
gathered this information from Mrs.
Duncan's daughter, who is now Mrs.
/ Godfrey Thorutog.ath and who was
my foster mother after the death of
her mother
Il remained i'll the care of the DIM.
cans until l was about 4iAteen yea,
/ old. my father. tie Marquis OF Water
ford, paying them qHineas pei
month. AS often as not, especially -
+ l grew older. he Visited the house per
sonally on the Sth of every month
and refused TO haad over the money
until he saw that l vas alive and well
Mrs. Duncan called me George Tooth
but my father always called me
. George. | went to his house OF
Charles street, off Pail Mall, about {
dozen times. and always before he SAID
goodby he would pun out some
money, f5 or so generally. saying
Here is some money for you. If yor
want more let me know l used t
write him and address him as 'Deal
Father and he wrote to me as 'Deal
George His last letter to me was ii
1895 shortly before he shot himself"
A Workhouse Child.
There is another side to the story o
course Georgina Tooth. a single W.,
man, who was a cook in the service o
the marchioness when she was Mrs
Vivian. became the mother of a chill,
in the Holborn workhouse infirmar,
on Jan. -, 1872. She died there
on Feb. 3 of the same year Mrs
Vivian caused the child, who wa
named John Tooth. to be taken to tn,
Franciscan monastery at Porto Bellor,
for a few days Then a maid PLACED
him in the care of a Mrs. Jones, who's
address is unknown.
1t is asserted that the child wa
afterward placed in care of the Dun
cans and is the present claimant
George Tooth. The various dates Civ
} en- by some people are disputed b.
others, and the usual contradiction
statements are made. Efforts to fin,
a record of the birth of John Tootl
on Jan %. 1872, have hitherto failed
The sixth Marquis of Waterford wa
the son of the 18th marquis by hi
Setoiu IldlIIdSS- IKE WIS dioWlleu !
1911. His son, a hoy of twelve, is til
present marquis.
About year ago Tooth created
sensation by appearing in Fleet stree
in a frock coat and silk hat carryin
sandwich boards, Gu which was il
, scribed: Il am the sixth Marquis q
Waterford l do this to forward m
case and obtain justi e"