The World - Wednesday, May 22, 1895

LONDON, May 22. -- While Oscar Wilde's trial was proceeding at Old Bailey this morning, two of the eccentric Queensberry family--the Marquis and his heir apparent, Lord Douglas of Hawick, whom he hates almost as furiously as he does his younger son, Lord Alfred Douglas--were in the Marlborough Street Police Court explaining about their flight in Piccadilly yesterday afternoon.

Lord Douglas, with his left eye black, a hugely swollen witness of his old father's prowess, was content to be heard through his solicitor, but the Marquis of Queensberry had no lawyer and was loquacious in his own defense.

He told how he had written letter after letter to his eldest son about the Wilde affair in general and Hawick's stand for Wilde in particular.

"At last," said the Maruis, "my letters were returned unopened. I was forced to write to my son's wife in order to reach him.

"I wanted to find out where Lord Alfred Douglas was and whether it was true that my eldest son was harboring Wilde.

"Yesterday my son rushed up to me and, without provocation, assaulted me. I defended myself.

"Three times we were separated, and each time he followed me and attacked me again."

Lord Douglas's lawyer then said that the Marquis had been writing filthy letters to his client's wife. These letters were produced and were read by the Justice, who, however, resisted Queensberry's excited entreaties that they be put in evidence and given to the public.

The Marquis Congratulates.

Douglas's lawyer, however, read one communication, which was in the form of a telegram to Lady Douglas of Hawick. Queensberry must have sent it only a few minutes before his son attacked him and after the verdict of the jury in the Taylor case had been announced:

"I must congratulate you on the result of the trial. I cannot on Percy's appearance. He looks like a dug up corpse. I fear he has had too much madness of kissing Taylor guilty. Wilde's turn to-morrow. "QUEENSBERRY."

Lord Douglass's lawyer then said:

"Again and again my client has requested him to stop sending these communications to his wife. He promised to stop, but only the other day he sent a picture of an antediluvian monster with 'this is Wilde's ancestor,' written under it.

"My client approached the Marquis of Queensberry yesterday, solely to ask him to cease his obscene writing to Lady Douglas."

Both sides produced witnesses, but the testimony all showed that however aggressive a part the famous boxing MArquis may have taken in the row, the onset was made every time by his son.

The Magistrate deplored bringing a family quarrel into the police courts, and reprimanded both father and son, and bound them over £500 to keep the pece for six months.

Father and Son Side by Side.

Father and Son were side by side in the dock during the whole hearing. They stood side by side at signing of the bond and went out of the court-room together, but neither spoke to the other, unless frequent exchange of savage looks may be called speaking.

There was a great crowd outside the court-room, and the Marquis was loudly cheered when he appeared. He has become a sort of hero with the masses ever since he cast aside all restraints of family pride in his exposure of Wilde and the gang of unspeakable wretches who took or pretended to take Wilde as their high priest.

The Marquis has suffered but little in his reputation for heroism from the fact that he has frequently had public rows with various members of his family on all kinds of pretexts, besided making a number of general exhibitions of his eccentricity.

Within a month after his marriage to a young woman down at Eastbourne about a year ago, she had her marriage with him annulled. It was shown that Queensberry left her immediately after the ceremony, and locked himself in a distant part of the hotel at which they were stopping, and refused to have anything to do with her.

Queensberry in Great Glee.

Immediately after the conclusion of the Court proceedings to-day the Marquis repaired to Willis's rooms, the (Continued on Sixth Page.)

QUEENSBERRY LATEST FIGHT (Continued from First Page.)

most fashionable of London restaurants, where he had luncheon with a lady and a young girl.

He was obviously in great glee. He wore a very large white boutonniere, and evidently enjoyed the attention he received from the other guests. He showed to his companions the picture he had sent Lady Hawick.

It was a full page representation in one of the weekly papers of a prehistoric iguanodon as restored by Prof. Woodward and placed in Kensington Museum.

Lady Hawick,to whom he has been sending these remarkable letters, is a daughter of Thomas Walters.

Her husband is only twenty-six years old and made a considerable fortune in the mines of Australia before the death of his older brother last year. Since he went bail for Wilde he has not been so well thought of as before.

The San Francisco Examiner - Thursday, May 23, 1895

LONDON, May 22. - While Oscar Wilde's trial was proceeding at the Old Bailey this morning two of the eccentric Queensberry's family - the Marquis himself and his heir apparent, Lord Douglas of Hawick, whom he hates almost as furiously as he does his younger son, Lord Alfred Douglas - were in Marlborough-street Police Court complaining about their flight in Piccadilly yesterday afternoon.

Lord Douglas, with his left eye black and highly swollen, attesting to his old father's prowess, was content to be heard through his solicitor, but the Marquis of Queensberry had no lawyer and was loquacious in his own defense. He told how he had written letter after letter to his eldest son about the Wilde affair in general and Lord Douglas' friendship for Wilde in particular.

"At last," said the Maruis, "my letters were returned unopened. I was forced to write to my son's wife in order to reach him. I wanted to find out where Lord Alfred Douglas was, and whether it was true that my eldest son was harboring Wilde. Yesterday my son rushed up to me and, without provocation, assaulted me. I defended myself. Three times we were separated, and each time he followed me and attacked me again."

Lord Douglas' lawyer then said that the Marquis had been writing offensive letters to his client's wife. These letters were produced and were read by the Justice, who, however, resisted Queensberry's excited entreaties that they be put in evidence and given to the public.

ONE OF THE TELEGRAMS.

Lord Douglas' lawyer, however, read one communication, which was in the form of a telegram to Lady Douglas of Hawick. Queensberry must have sent it only a few minutes before his son attacked him, and after the verdict of the jury in the Taylor case had been announced. It read thus:

"I must congratulate you on the result of the trial. I cannot on Percy's appearance. He looks like a dug-up corpse. I fear he has had too much madness of kissing. Taylor guilty; Wilde's turn to-morrow. QUEENSBERRY.

Lord Douglas' lawyer then said: "Again and again my client has requested him to stop sending these communications to his wife. He promised to stop, but only the other day he sent a picture of an antedeluvian monster with, 'This is Wilde's ancestor,' written under it. My client approached the Marquis of Queensberry yesterday only to ask him to cease writing to Lady Douglas."

Both sides produced witnesses, but the testimony all showed that, however aggressive a part the famous boxing Marquis may have taken in the row, the onset was made every time by his son. The magistrate deplored bringing a family quarrel into the Police Court, reprimanded both father and son, and bound them in £500 to keep the peace for six months.

Father and Son were side by side in the dock during the whole hearing. They stood side by side at the signing of the bond and went out of the courtroom together, but neither spoke to the other unless frequent exchange of savage looks may be called speaking.

There was a great crowd outside the courtroom, and the Marquis was loudly cheered when he appeared. He has become a sort of hero with the masses ever since he cast aside all restraints of family pride in his exposure of Wilde and the gang who took or pretended to take Wilde as their high priest. The Marquis has suffered but little in his reputation for heroism from the fact that he has frequently had public rows with various members of his family on all kinds of pretexts, besided making a number of general exhibitions of his eccentricities.

HE SHOWED IN PUBLIC.

Immediately after the conclusion of the court proceedings to-day the Marquis repaired to Willis' rooms, the most fashionable of the London restaurants, where he had luncheon with a lady and a young girl. He was obviously in great glee. He wore a very large white boutonniere and evidently enjoyed the attention he received from the other guests. He showed to his companions the picture he had sent Lady Douglas. It was a full-page representation from one of the weekly papers of a prehistoric iguanodon, as restored by Professor Woodward and placed in Kensington Museum.

Lady Douglas, to whom he has been sending these remarkable letters, is a daughter of Thomas Walters, Vicar of Boyton. She is very young and quiet, even shrinking. Her husband is only twenty-six years old, and made a considerable fortune in the mines of Australia before the death of his older brother last year. Since he went bail for Wilde he has not been so well thought of as before.

The Marquis of Queensberry talked with the utmost freedom to the World correspondent this evening and gave many facts heretofore unpublished. He had just returned from a tricycle ride, and was clad in a light-blue dressing robe, preparatory to dressing for dinner. "The cause of my son's anger," said the Marquis, "was this: before Wilde was released on bail I went to Holloway Prison and left a note saying that if he went about with my younger son, Lord Alfred Douglas, after his release he would be at serious risk. Had he replied that he would not see Alfred I would have taken his word, but he sent no reply. I accordingly put a detective on him. I called at his hotel after his release, but he refused to see me.

WILDE FLED BEFORE HIM.

"My other son, Lord Douglas, took him, the Rev. Stewart Hadlam and his lawyer to dine, but just as they were sitting down to dinner I appeared, and Wilde forthwith fled out of the house.

"I could not object to Lord Douglas bailing Wilde or befriending him if he chose, but I did object to Wilde’s renewing his intimacy with Alfred. I heard next day that Wilde had gone to stay at Lord Douglass’ country house, at Kensington on the Thames, and Alfred was there. I went down and presented myself at the house and was received by Lady Douglass, who refused me admission and said I should not come there.

Subsequently, however, I learned that Alfred was at Rouen, Oscar Wilde having frightened him into leaving the country by stating that a warrant had been issued for his arrest. No warrant had been issued, but Wilde was advised that the facts of Alfred’s hanging about the prison and so forth was damaging his case, so he invented the story about the warrant to get rid of him.

"Lord Douglas must still believe in Wilde, but his associating with him is partly obstinacy, out of spite to me, partly to stand by Alfred, for which I don't blame him. I've always thought a little blood-letting a very good thing, and though I felt bitterly against Douglas before, now I have no ill feeling, and rather like him for having gone for me. It showed pluck, and I admire him for it. Of course, when I saw he was going to strike me, I got my right in first, but only for a tap on his eye. It didn't hurt.

"I may tell you that Douglas was the cause of my originally bringing matters to a head with Wilde. He came to his hotel and attacked me for saying in clubs what I believed Wilde to be, and challenged me to make a charge in some way so it could be tested. I went, there and then, to Wilde’s club and left a card, for which I was arrested."

WILDE WILL BE CONVICTED.

"Do you believe Wilde will be convicted?" the World correspondent asked.

"A million to one on it," Lord Queensberry answered, "though I was scanning the jury to-day, and I think there are a couple of queer looking fellows among them."

"Do you believe the authorities want a conviction?" the correspondent inquired.

"It looks as if they didn't," the Marquis replied. "They have got no such evidence as they might have done. By the way, there is one matter I would like you to mention, that is the shabby way in which the authorities have treated me. They are relying altogether on a case prepared at my expense. It has cost me £2,000, and when I applied to the treasury for compensation they offered me £35. I protested against this meanness, and they offered me £100, but I told them they might keep it. I intend to get a question put in Parliament on this subject when the case is concluded. I have already seen Mr. Labouchere about it. I am a poor man and can't stand this expense. Then Wilde was decreed to pay me £800 costs in any suit he has. He offered me £200, and I suppose I shan't get a farthing, but I shall make him bankrupt.

"I have just received a check for £200 from a stock exchange, where it was subscribed to-day out of sympathy with me. My son, Lord Douglas, is a member of the stock exchange. It was very nice of them. My sole object was to keep Wilde and Alfred apart, so I hope Wilde will be convicted. Should he escape I will pursue him until I am satisfied that the intimacy between them is stopped."

Lord Queensberry spoke throughout the interview with perfect calmness, but with the quiet conviction of a man who felt that he had been grievously wronged.

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