Evening star., 1916-07-30

road. knelt down and held the bicycle
while the boy mended its punctured
tire.
No one enjoys telling about these and
similar episodes more than the duke,
whose sense of humor is keen. An
acquaintance who dined with him at
Norfolk House. his London residence.
recently. heard the story of the episode
in Rome from his hosts own lips. Also
the following anecdote. which the duke
told with great gusto.
Some years ago he said. II threw
the grounds at Arundel, my country
the many who Immediately availed
themselves of the permission to Won
der through were two Irishw omen.
Presently. to their horror, they observ-
ed a not over-fashionably attired man,
who was no other than myself. leave
the path and walk across a strip of turf
despite the notice: Keep off the grass.
Whereupon one of them cried out, in
dignantly, Hi, Come back there
''I came back humbly." declared the
duke, when to my mingled surprise
and delight, the good woman burst
forth Cant you read. you poor, blind
man, that notice staring you in the
face? It's the loikes of you that kapeS
the loikes of US out of many a dacint
place Quite right she was, but. to
make the thing complete, I could not
refrain from telling her that ! was
the one person who could keep on the
grass
The duke is fond of piano-organs.
which he never allows the police to
move along" from in front of Norfolk
House. and he confesses to something
like passion for penny-in- -the-slot
machines. There is a row of the latter
before the Old Black Rabbit public
house, mile above Arundel Castle,
the dukes country seat, and his grace,
who often strolls along this pleasant
way. arms himself with coppers and
sallies forth to mighty deeds among
the "try-your-grip' machines. the for
tune telling apparatus. and the team
of miniature cricketers who will re-
turn your penny if you score
boundary
To picture Britain's premier duke as
a frivolous character would, however,
be the height of injustice. He has
always proved worthy of the great ira
ditions of his line, and has held many
important posts besides his hereditary
one of earl marshal, for filling which.
by the way, the state pays him just
$500 year. The owner of the greater
part of the city Of Sheffield, he has
several times been it's mayor. and he
has been lord lieutenant OF Sussex.
since 1905
When the South African war came
along the duke was British post
master general, but he promptly re-
signed and went to the Transvaal with
his regiment, the 4th, Royal Sussex,
of which he is still lieutenant colonel
He was at the front for nearly a year
and saw lot of active service, event
ually returning to England with
broken thigh. Were it not for his
age he would be at the front now. He
has always been an advocate of ma
tional service and has done a lot in
10 of
in rifle shooting. offering attractive
prizes to those who exceiled. No
worthy charity appeals to him in vain
and he has been president of the
League of Mercy and is trustee of the
Queen Victoria Jubilee Institute of
Nurses. For children he has an es-
pecially soft spot in his heart, and he
once entertained $4,000 of them in the
grounds of Arundel Castle.
If it were possible to move the cities
of Liverpool. Manchester and Birming
ham. they all could be accommodated
on the dukes land, which includes
some priceless London property. Not
a bly, the considerable slice which the
duke owns of the southeastern side of
the Strand, the busiest street in Lon
don. This comprises the streets bear
ing his grace's family names-Norfolk
street. Arundel street, Surrey street
and four others-and is said to have
cost the dukes ancestor, Henry Fitz-
zalan, exactly f41 IS Sd or a near a pos
sible to 5000 Now, according to a COM
petent authority. the rental value of
153 to 1870 Strand and the strees bear
ing he dukes family names is well
over $250.000 a year and it keeps in
creasing. hand over fist.
Norfolk House. the dukes London
home. though gloomy and unbeautiful
has an exceptionally interesting his
tory. With other things, it was the
birthplace of King George III. in whose
reign the thirteen American colonies
fought for and won their independence.
Today Norfolk House occupies one of
the most aristocratic positions in Lon
don, with the Bishop of London, who