Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1936-12-24

Morgan Twins, Lazy FurneSS ana
Gloria Vanderbilt, the wife of Benja-
min Thaw had known the prince for
several years. Lady Furness had been
one of the princes favorite dancing
partners.
Since the day when the American
press first became aware that q new
star was in the ascendancy on the
royal horizon. many stories have re-
counted the first meeting Of Wallis
Simpson and the man who has just
told the whole world he loved her. It
Is true that Mrs. Simpson, then the
wife Of Lieut.. Earl Winfield Spencer.
jr., met" the Prince of Wales at San
Diego when he was In America In
1920. AZ far as have been able
to discover. so did practically every
body else in the United States.
But the romance that transcends
fictions fondest began that evening Of
December "A, 1881, when the heir 10
the throne of the Windsors met my
American friend"
Many Errors by Press.
Many are the errors committed I'M
Willingly by the American press dur.
ing these exciting weeks, when the
love of a man was balanced against
the crown of an empire. I shall at
tempt to correct a few of them.
First of, I was not the gray-haired,
man" who accompanied
Mrs. Simpson to France. no matter
how hard one press service sought to
leave that impression. It is with con-
siderable pain that admit the de-
scription fits. But, although I would
have traded my right eye for the privi-
lege of taking part in such q historic
occasion, I remained in London that
night and. to my chagrin, was unable
to confirm her departure until the
next day.
Wallis Simpson was not Gin
derella." She has met her Prince
but she has never had to
sit by the fire and spin. At no stage
in her life did she ever lack for the
means and the background TO make
life very much worth while.
The yarn about that "two-story
in Baltimore in which her
mother rented rooms isn't exactly cor
rect, either. The reporters took on
a story to make story. 1t was q
three-story house, and very elite one
in its day. Taking in boarders inci-
Gated a lack of ready cash at that time,
but it caused very little loss in prestige
for any family that had an established
background. And Wallis family had
exactly that.
Incidentally, her father did not die
before she was born, as so many papers
have stated. He died about four
months after her birth.
I have seen In many newspapers
since I have returned from England
story that Wallis mother, Mrs.
Charles Gordon Allen of Washington,
told a faithful nurse on her DEATH
bed:
1T will be impossible for Wallis
ever to have child"
A "deathbed statement" is .
rather hard thing to disprove. But
the fact is that neither Wallis her
self nor any member Of her family
ever heard her mother make any such
statement or knows any justification
for such belief.
v1Olet Ii favOfltE COiOIs
"Her favorite colors are blue, jade,
amber, soft browns, flame and the
pink of rose quartz" it has been
quoted.
As a matter of fact Wallis Simp-
sons favorite color is light shade Of
violet, almost matching her eyes. Her
stationery is that color. Her informal
letterheads have wallis" reproduced
in her own handwriting at an angle
in the upper left corner. Her more
formal stationery also carried her adj
dress, 16 Cumberland Terrace. What
address it will carry after this, who
can tell?
Reaching King Edward directly is
impossible" quote from New
York afternoon newspaper. The
statement Is not correct. asked the
King whom I should contact when I
wanted to talk to him. He said:
IT will be my own press relations
man."
He gave me the number Of his pri-
vate switchboard and thereafter,
when I wanted to inform him Of some
new development. could reach him
Is easily as you could reach the ONCE
Of your newspaper.
Mrs. Simpson has acquired purely
British tastes"
Perhaps 10. But she served pop
overereal Southern popovers-with
roast pheasant in her home In Lon
don.