The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-09-20


 w refused to become a Duchess. Miss Edyth Havemeyer has broken her engagement to marry the Earl of Euston who is son and heir of the nonegenarian Duke of Grafton.
 The engagement was officially announce ed last June. The wedding was to cur some time during tie present month, Now it is all off Why? The cables do not tell; they hardly need too. Miss Havemeyer, who is a girl of great inde- pendence of spirit and action, simply found she couldn't stomach the bar sinistered," notorious Duchess of Cleve- land origin of the Fitzroy family and for tune, even thought it included a ducal title.
 Where would she stand with her sister American ses-Marlborough, Rox- burghe and Manchester-whose fortunes were joined with those of noblemen of fairly respectable origin? Having been ed ucated in England, and being a resident of that country ever since-Miss Have meyer is now thirty-two years old-this detail did not disturb her at first But being, after all, American born, the un- savory Duchess of Cleveland genesis Of the Graftons finally got on her nerves. The American idea" prevailed, and she called the engagement off.
 The "taint" borne by the Havemeyer Sugar Trust millions was bad enough, without uniting it in marriage with worse one.
 Miss Edythe Havemeyer is a daughter of the late Henry Havemeyer, of New York. Of still greater importance, she is a granddaughter of William Frederick Hayemeyer, principal founder of the Have meyer sugar fortune, and great niece of the late Henry O. Havemeyer, who was in personal charge of the Sugar Trust up to the time of his death.
 When the United States Government claimed S9,000,000 on account of frauds perpetrated by the Sugar Trust, that con- cern compromised by paying more than $2000,000 in fines. As it was charged that these frauds covered period of at least fourteen years, it is not easy for any Havemeyer fortune to escape the sus- picion of being tainted
 But there was no occasion for the future Duchess of Grafton to experience any qualms on this account The fortune which she would bestow with the same hand that received title in return is pure and undefiled compared with that of the Fitzroy family into which she was to marry.
 To the initiated the name "Fitzroy," borne by the Dukes of Grafton and their direct descendants, defines itself-son of the King, "by the left hand" Its coat-of- arms bears the "bar sinister in heraldic confession of that fact
 family was founded-and endowed with lands and gold and titles-upon a kings dissolute practices. In this case the king was one of the most dissolute in history-Charles H., of England And the mother of the first of the Fitzroy line was the most notorious of all the royal fav- orites who darken the pages of history. By Charles II. she was created Duchess of Cleveland. She was the great beauty of the period-Barbara Villiers, married to an humble subject named Roger Palmer ha 1xi for hAo husbands great opportunity. Seizing it, he was enabled to go down in history as the Earl of Castlemaine.
 In 1875 the Duchess of Cleveland's son was created Duke of Grafton. The Earl of Huston, whom Miss Havemeyer is en- gagged to marry, is his lineal descendant. The Earl's father, the present Duke is ninety-four years old. Although the Earl himself is sixty-four, he can hardly escape succeeding to the greater title.
 That Of Fitzroy is by no means the only existing noble family of similar origin. Of itself the "bar sinister' carries no reproach according to the ethics of the hereditary nobility. Quite the contrary in this case, as 1t proclaims possession of royal blood Ordinarily, after lapse of more than two centuries, most Americans would be will ing to consider contemporary descendants on their individual merits and forget about the ugly epithet that was applicable to the ldIiily iOuuueT. buL the DucneSS or Cleveland is a bit too much to be swal lowed without a grimace.
 This beautiful but unprincipled woman was more truly queen that was the crowned, but neglected, Catherine of Braganza. For ten years she had her will of King Charles in every way She drained the Kings purse of enormous sums while constantly deceiving him so openly that the court was constantly scandaized Wycherly the dramatist, several actors and a rope dancer could boast of her friend ship.
 She founded the fortune of the impe- cunious young Churchill, who became the Duke if Marlborough, giving him $25,0OO out of what the deceived King had given her. Of her rapacity, one of the chroni- clers of the period wrote: "They have signed and sealed 10000 pounds ($50, 0,0OO), a year more to the Duchess of Cleveland who has likewise near 10000 pounds a year more out of the new farm of the coun- ty excise of beer and ale; 5000 pounds a year out of the post office, and, they say,