The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-02-01
PARIS LAWSUIT RECALLS SENSATIONAL
SCANDALS IN EUROPEAN CLUB LIFE

another member Of the club at a single
sitting. presumably by cheating. and tho
nearly 900. 900 francs which he had CLEARED
at the Jockey Club at Paris durin, IN.
course Of the preceding summer wa.
presumably won in the same unfa,,
fashion. When caught in the act by Coin,
Antonelli he was numerically thrasbal
by those present in the card room hefors
being thrown by the servants, ha,less
and with his clothes in rags. into ths
street.
II was these and several other scandol.
OF similar character which bv reason
Of their publicity caused the Hun, Cuh
to fall from its high estate and which
led the most prominent members. in.
Guiding tho Princes Doria, Odcscllch
Chigi. Pallavicini. &c.. to WITHDRAW their
names and to found a now club bearing
the name Of the Union in the old Sciarra
Palace.
Another club which at one time on.
joyed international fame and high
sta nding was the Cercle de la Mediterranee
Mt Nice. Of which the Duo de Montebclo
was the last president and which has Just
been transformed into Riviera branch
OF the Travellers Club in Paris IL never
recovered from the DANA ging effects
Of the public scandal which was created
when Major the Hon Walter Hartford
then OF the Seventh Hussars Of the Eng
fish army. was hurled. dishevelled. clothes
torn. face covered with blood and BODY
with bruises. down the steps into tho
/ utr hv h~ ,l,,I
caught in the act of cheating at cards.
| II the Travellers Club in Paris. N
superbly housed In the former mansion
Of the demi- mondaine the Maruuise Il.
Paiva, In the Champs Elysees, has not
proved 30 successful as might otherwise
have been the case It is because it has
on several occasions figured in the pub
| lie prints in an unpleasan mt fashion. nota bly
when the Italian pseudo Prince d For.
mosa was arrested there by the police
on charges OF fleeing men by unfair
play and expelled from France as a most
undesira bic alien
So keenly alive are men to injury dons
TO their club by the associat ton of its
name in the popular mind with card
scandals. 40 much do they dread any
thing OF the kind. that sometimes when
suspicious are aroused concerning the
play Of fellow member they will pur-
, posely refrain from any move toward
detection They prefer to remain in
doubt rather than TO convince them
selves of the mans guilt so as to avoid
the necessity of charging him Herewith
and provoking the scandal which they
desire at all cost to avert
80. t.t,- -
pered under pledge of secrecy from one to
another and end by reaching the pryiug
ears OF the club servants. and through
them the outer world This is what han
pened many years go al the Travellers
on Pail Mall, which is without exception
the best of all the clubs in London and
the one to which it is most difficult To ON.
tain admis. sion The member SUSPECTED
was no less than the twenty Lord
de Ros. Premier Baron of England
The matter might have gone on in
definitely had not n scurrilous London
newspaper the Sdtirist, printed "a story
to the effect that throughout the two
previous years he had been playing un
fairly at cards at the Travellers; thai
its members we're aware of the fact and
tolerated it. limiting that some of them
with more cynicism than honesty. were
accustomed to bet on his hand as d sure
thing Lord de Ros was then compelled
to take legal proceedings against tho
paper.
A number Of members of the club were
subpPnaed. both by Lord de Ros himself
and by the lSutirist. but the evidence
was very dana ging against the plaintiff.
the testimony of Lord Henry Bentiuc.
and George Payne, two of the most nota ho
figures on the English turf, being par
ticularly strong against him. while even
those who sought TO shield him found n,
other plea in his behalf than mental
alteration. The Jury decided in favor Il
the Sdhrisi. which was equivalent To- q
declaration that Lord de Ros was guilty
of the practices imputed To him On tia
following day he left Eng land forever. and
after being permitted to resign from all
the clubs tn which he belonged he dicd
couple of years later in the utmost h
scurity, completely ostracized 10y socic'v,
both in Great Britain and abroad Fur.
tunately he was unmarried
All this occurred in the early years u'
Queen Victoria 5 reign and il took nearly
half a century to e.face from the minis
on the people the fact that the sensational
Lord de Ros card scandal had taken place
at the Travellers.Swhichh has now entirely
regained Its place as far and away ta'
| leading club of the British metropolis