Year: 1869

THE SIN OF LORD BYRON.
Lady Byrons Revelation of the Secret


Mrs. Harriet Beccher Stowe, who cnioyed
the personal friendship Of the widow OF Lord
Byron, received from her a revelation of the
secret which caused the separation of this un-
happy pair 50 soon after their marriage, and
cmbittercd the subsequent life OF The poet.
Since the death of Lady Byron, Mrs. Stowe
has decided 10 give the facts TO the public, ,and
publishes an article in the Atlantic Monthly
Magazine. The following is its substance


Lord Byron, the hero of Madame Guc-
cioli's story is represented rs u human being
endowed with every natural charm, Gift and
grace, who by the one false step of an insult
able marriage wrecked his whole life. A mar
row minded, cold-hcarted prccsian, without
sufficient intellect to comprehend his genius
or heart to feel for his temptations, formed
with him one of those mere worldly mar
riageS common in high life, and, finding that
she could not reduce him to the mathematical
proprictes and conventional rules other own
mode of life. suddenly and without warning
abandoned him in the most cruel and neXpl-
cable manner.





gentler people, with more tolerant modes of
Judgment, the authoress inlmates that he
found peace and consolation. A lovely Young
Italian countess falls in love with him. and
breaking with her family ties for his sake, de
votes herself to him, and in blsslul retire
ment with her he finds at last that domestic
life for which he was fitted.


Lady Byrons obdurac col,l-heartednrss in
refusing even To listen to his prayers or to
have any intercourse with him which might
lead to 4 reconciliation. was the one point
conceded on all sides. The strictrr moralist~
defended her but gentlrr hearts throughout
all the world regarded her as u marble-hpart-
ed monster Of correctness and morality, Il per
soniication of the law unmitgatcd by the
gospel.


No person in England, probably, would as
yet take the responsibility ofrelating the true
history which is to clear Lady Byron's mem
Dry. But, by a singular concurrence Of cir
cumstances, all the facts of the ease, in the
most undcniable and authentic form, We're ut
one time placed in the hands of the writer of
this sketch, with authority to make such use
of them rs She should Judge best Had this
melancholy history been allowed to sleep, no
public use would have been made ot them ;
but the appearance Of A popular attack on the
character Of Lady Byron calls for vndica-
ton, and the true story Of her married life
will, therefore, now be related.


Lord Byron has described, in one of his let
tcrs, the impression left upon his mind by Il
young person whom he met one evening in
society, and who attracted his attention by
the simplicity of her dress, and a certain air,
of singular purity and calmncss, with which
she surveyed the scene around her. On in
qury, he was told that this young person
was Miss Milbankc; an only child, and one of
the largest heireSses in England


The result of Byrons intimacy with Miss
Milbanke and the enkindling of his nobler
feelings was an offer of marriage, which she,
though at the time deeply interested in him,
declined with many expressions of friendship
and interest In fact, She already loved him,
but had that doubt Of her power to be to him
all that 4 wife should be, which would be
likely to arise in y mind 50 sensitively const-
tuted and 50 unworIdly. They however con-
tinued correspondence us friends. On her
part the interest continually increased on his
the transient rise of better feelings was chok-
ed and ovcrgrown by the thorns of base, un-
worthy passions.


From the height at which he might have
been happy as the husband Of a noble woman,
he fell into the depths Of a secret adulterous
intrigue with a blood relation, so near in con
sangninty that discovery must have been ut
ter ruin and expulsion from civilized society.
From hcnceforth, this damning guilty secret
became the ruling force in his life, holding
him with u morbid fascination, yet filling
him with remorsc and anguish and insane
dread Of detection. Two years after his re
tiusal by Miss Milbankc his various friends,
seeing that for some cause he was wrctched,
pressed marriage upon him, and so he deter
mined to marry, and in IN hour of reckless
desperation, sat down and wrote proposals TO
two ladies' One was declined. The other.
which was accepted, was to Miss Alibankc.
The world knows well that he had the Gift of
expression, and will not be surprised that he
wrote u very beautiful letter. and that The Wo-
man who had already learned TO love him fell
at once int the snare.


Her answer was frank, outSpoken avOw
al of her love for him, giving herself to him
heart and hand. The good in Lord Byron
was not SO utterly obliteratcd that he could
receive such q letter without emotion, or
practice such untairncss on q loving, trusting
heart without pangs of remorsc. He had sent
the letter in mere rccklcsSness he had not Sc
riously expected to be accepted, and the dis
covery Of the treasure of affection which he
had secured was like 4 vision of lost heaven
to a soul in hell.


When he went to visit Miss Milbanke's
parents, rs her accepted lover, she was struck
with his mannerand appearance she saw him
moody and gloomy, evidently wrestling with
dark and desperate thoughts, and anything
but what happy and accepted lover should
be. She sought an interview with him alone,
and told him that she had observed that he
was not happy in the engagement, and mag