Evening star., 1963-12-29
By sHEILAH GRAHAM

by ShElLAH OhAhAM
North American Newspaper Alliance
NEW York; was invit-
ed 10 tea and q tete q tete by
the Duchess Of Argyll who
was In New York on her first
trip to this country since
starring in the most explo-
sive and the most expensive
divorce Of this or any CEN
tury.
It was on May 9Th of this
year that the Duchess, the
beautiful former Margaret
Whigham, was castigated
publicly in the Edinburgh
courts, by Judge Lord Wheat
ley. as "an oversexed woman
who had ceased to be salts
fled with normal sex rela-
TONS" And in another Sec
ton of the 40,000-word
judgme ent, "her attitude
towards the sanctity Of
marriage was what moderns
would call enlightened. but
IN plain language could only
be described as wholly I'M
moral"
In giving the divorce to
the Duke, who has since
remarked Connecticut-born
Mathilda Coster Mortimer,
Margaret was ordered to pay
all costs of the three-year-
long sizzling and sometimes
shocking no-holds-barred
battle for freedom. The price
has been tabulated at $14O,-
900. And when I said to the
Duchess, "it was a most
expensive divorce" she
added, "and the ugliest."
But" she continued, 81 do
not wish to discuss the d.
vorce." In fact, she cannot,
because the case is not quite
over. There are still some
side issues to be settled. Still
pending is the Dukes action
against his third Duchess for
the return Of what she told
me were some silver spoons
and a silver tankard. She has
replied via her lawyers that
she has no such possessions.
This suit will be heard soon
after she returns to England.
Holds Head Up
Nov that the Duke has
remarked. how does one
address you?" I asked Mar
garet. pretty In Q lacy kind
Of negligee, in the sitting
room Of her suite at the
Mayfair House on Park
Avenue. "In this country I
can be called the Duchess Of
Argyll. In England or in the
same country with the new
Duchess, I would be Mar
garet, Duchess Of Argyll"
I had expected to find
Margaret somewhat crushed
BY the humiliating events of
the long tussle with the
Duke, which included all
sorts Of stories about nude
photographs Of her and an
unidentified man whose head
doesn't appear in the photos,
all of which she denied in
court. and the so-called
sensational writings in her
diaries, which the Duke
produced In court. "I have
always kept q diary, still do,
and there has never been
anything pornographic in my
diaries as all my friends
know" The Duchess's head
was high, and there is moth
ing Of the crushed frightened
woman about her. In fact
there was very little differ
ence between the Duchess !
saw today, and the Margaret
Whigham I knew when she
was the number one debut
tante Of her year.
Why Write q Series?
Nothing in my life has
changed" she assured me. II
am living exactly as I have
always lived" Margaret
spent q week in Nassau with
her son Brian from her
marriage with New York
financier Charles Sweeney.
Brian works as a stockbroker
In New York. In her two
weeks in New York, the lady
who was once nicknamed
eThe Daring Duchess of
Love-" will see her numerous
friends, many Of whom are
giving dinner parties for her,
she told me. She is not
hiding In any shape or form,
although to insure some
privacy. the Duchess used
another name to which she