Evening star., 1919-02-09

cordingly. lack many perhaps less ais
interested suitors than the brilliant
young soldier, photographer, surveyor
and engineer who was so rapidly
forging his way to the front in the
person of Horatio Herbert Kitchener.
To all the rest she gave uncompromis-
ing denials. The urgings of the lover
OF her childhood We're the hardest of
all for Caroline Hutchison to with
stand. She did withstand them. but
when she made 1t clear to him that
she could not be his wife she like
wise made it plain that her reason
was twofold.
II must devote myself to the duty
that has been laid upon me-" she said,
but there Is another reason why 1t
cannot be. l have become accustomed
to a small life. For you there is
great future and you must have as
your wife woman accustomed to
lofty station and to presiding over
great establishment. But always to
remain one of your best friends is the
dearest wish of my heart"
Man among men as he was, Lord
Kitchener pleaded no more. Probably
he knew at the beginning that there
never would be another woman for
him. At all events, there never was.
During all the rest of his life the
strong man who was supposed to lean
on no human being leaned on this
magnificent woman who dominated
and inspired him equally. To her he
went with his triumphs, to her alike
when he needed consolation, counsel,
sympathy
In the early days OF the European
war when ne was toiling most strenu-
ously, when he wss most harassed and
the burden of his gigantic RESPONSE
bility lay heaviest upon him, there
We're times when he came to ID sudden
stop and declared to the men around
him at the war office:
"(tpptlpmpp I am weary / am
ing away to rest for a few hours. /
will be back at such and such a time"
Then he would order his motor car
and would drive away and seek the
solace of communion with the woman
who was veritably his balm OF Gilead.
Wherever he was, he wrote to her
constantly, telling her all that was
in his heart and mind, and these let
ters of his, all lovingly treasured by
their recipient. numbered. at the end,
many hundreds. One of these mis-
sives was written by Lord Kitchener
to Miss Hutchison from Dover, just
previous to the outbreak of the war.
when he was about to leave for
Egypt to take over the post there
that had been intrusted to him In
this farewell letter the great soldier
wrote: God grant that the crisis that
now prevails may pass and general
European war be averted."
X
AS everybody knows, he was In
structed not to sail, but to return to
London at once, and he appeared at
Miss Hutchison's home before his let
ter arrived.
IT have been asked to report to the
war office at once" he told her, "and
am on my way there now" A few
hours later he wrote to her that the
government had asked him, the con-
dict having begun, to take the Office
Of secretary of state for war, and
that he had accepted 1t. II was some
days before she saw him again, and
then the full weight of the great
burden that he had assumed was
upon him.
Together not long after the be-
ginning of the great European cam
Kitchener founded the *. X. Empire
Association" whose valuable work
for the fighting men is so well
known. The "K X" as it is known
to it's members and to thousands OF
British fghting men, grew out of n
little organization known as the I'm
perial Lady Workers" that had been
founded some years before the war
by the daughter of distinguished
court painter Its object was to as
sst women who are obliged to add
to or to earn an income, and. like the
greater organization that grew out
of it. it was entirely without the
charity element.
AS soon as the war came. the I'M