The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-05-22
LADY PAGET DIES,
PNEUMONIA VICTIM
Daughter Of Late Paran Ste
vens Became O. Leader in
English Society.
HEROIC WORKER IN WAR
End Comes in Paris After
Long Suffering From
Ill Health.

Like leaf from a romance of am
other age reads tho life story Of Lady
Paset.. wife of Gen. Sir Arthur Henry
FStzroy Paget OF England. daughter of
the late Mr.. and Mrs. Parn Stevens, who
died Of pneumonia In Paris on Tuesday
Never again, probably. will the world
have room for the sort of society in
which Lady Paget go long reigned-l
though, grande dame as she was she ad-
justed herself to the changes which the
war brought and was as active In work
for the soldiers as her Ill health, brought
on by a fall in 1904. would permit And
everyone knows of the great service per-
formed by her daughter. Lady Ralph
PaEet, who founded a hospital in Serbia
with her husband and remained there
through the Turkish invasion despite tho
danger to herself.
The Pagets were Of England's best
fighting blood-the grandfather of Sir
Arthur. the first Marquis OF Anglesey,
lost a leg at Waterloo and got his title
for his gallantry-and when Sir Arthur
married beautiful Minnie Stevens OF
New York he welded an American as
dauntless as any Paget that ev'-
breatehd. Yet the tale of her early life
Is the tale of traditions and customs
irrevocably OF the past.
In a day when one Fifth avenue ca
terer has just had to close his doors be-
cause, for one reason, he "can only get
Bolsheviks for walters and does not
care to throw food at his customers" It
Is like chapter from a novel OF man
ners to read of the entertainments which
Mrs. Paran Stevens gave for her daugh-
ter at her mansion on Fifth avenue near
Twenty-sixth street. and at Delmonico's,
the theatre parties and balls and dinners.
Mrs. Stevens was wealthy for those
times, and the education OF her two chill
dren, Harry and Minnie-Mr. Stevens
died while they were quite small-was
the object of her greatest care. Minnie
was reared in every luxury, taught every
accomplishment fashionable young
lady is expected to have. and at II,
when she was graduated from Mime.
Reeds exclusive school in New York, her
mother took her to Europe to be an
ished'' in music and the languages. Az
ter three years in Paris and Berlin they
returned home, and Miss Minnie, in the
language of the newspapers of the day,
burst like beautiful meteor on New
York society"
Appearance rs Debutante.
There was . quaint description in one
OF the papers of her appearance at her
debutante ball. 'She had that shy look
about her eyes that made her exquisite, >"
1t says Her dress was of some crinkly
soft white material, like angels always
wear in tableaus, and q cluster of white
rosebuds fell from her coil Of dark hair
to her snowy neck. She 10 tall, with a
rounded though slender figure. her fea-
lures are regular, her complexion daz-
zlingly fair and her eyes OF luminous
gray fringed by dark lashes."
Then Capt Paget came to New York,
saw Miss Stevens posing as Europe" In
some tableaus for a charity OF that day.
and promptly fell at her feet. It Is said
that the bouquets and attentions with
which he showered her were the envy
OF her friends; but Miss Stevens was
not easily won. He had TO follow her TO
Newport and ask her more than once
before she agreed TO marry him.
A grand wedding II was, with more
than a thousand guests. and the Amer
lean girls toilet, costing $4,000, was the
talk of the town. as was her dowry OF
$25o,o00, fabulous sum then. So.
showered with. pink roses. she sailed
away to England with her proud hus-
band. where she quickly became a queen
in London society.
Lady Paget-just Mrs. Paget at that
time-was said by the English Ladies'
Pictorial to be almost the FIRST Amer-
can young lady who made her debut at
the Court OF St James" There was
more than a note OF envy in the English
illusions to the American bride, and It
was no easy thing for this pioneer to
gain q footing in London society when
she came BACK as the bride of Col, Ar
thur Paget; but she made every strong
hold go down before her.
Her winter homo at Halkin Street
West was the resort OF the wittiest and
"snartsst' Of Britona She promptly
became a great favorits with Alexandra
this Princess OF Wales and was much at
Sandringham and Marlborough House.
That, of course, made everything easy
for her. In an interview she gave dur
ing one OF her visits to New York she
said that the Klng-Edward had become
King then-"must be amused. like the
kings OF all ages, and the woman who
pleases the King Is the woman who
amuses him. She must be clever King
Edward would never waste his time with
a silly woman" Lady Paget was GER
tainly clever enough to hold heS own IN
royal society or any other; she con-
fessed to having sentiment, but declared
that she kept 1t out OF sight because
tho Englishwoman Is trained from
childhood to hide her emotions" And
for all her American ancestry and birth
Lady Paget became, in manners and
ever in appearance. the typical English
woman.
Mother of Four Children.
Lady Paget had four children. OF
whom Margaret Leila Wemyss Paget.
who married her relative. Sir Ralph
Paget, Minister to Belgrade. and did
such admirable work in Serbia during
the war, is the best known. The elder
Lady Pagets visits TO America were
generally on business. there having been
serious entanglements, due to claims OF
half-sister. daughter of her father by
a former marriage. to the Stevens estate
But her twin sons. Arthur and Reginald,
though educated at oxford, early de-
cided TO marry American girls and set
tie in this country. Their father wanted
his three boys all 10 become officers in
the British army, but the eldest son,
BERTHE, was the only one who gratihed
the parental desire.
Uha othar fuyn anna 20