Ballinrobe Chronicle - Saturday, May 25, 1895

LORD QUEENSBERRY AND HIS SON.
ENCOUNTER IN PICCADILLY.

The Marquis of Queensberry and his son Lord Douglas of Hawick, who was one of Oscar Wilde’s bailees, were arrested in Piccadilly shortly after five o'clock on Tuesday evening for disorderly conduct and fighting in the street. An eye-witness states that the father and son met at the corner of Bond-street and Piccadilly. Attention was first attracted by the son loudly asking Lord Queensberry if he intended to cease writing objectionable letters to his (Lord Douglas's) wife. Lord Douglas also said that he thought he ought to chastise his father. The latter said that he would have little fear of: fighting his son for £10,000: in any part of the country, but that he did not care about causing a scene in Piccadilly. Both gentlemen were carrying umbrellas, and Lord Douglas aiming an ineffectual blow at the Marquis of Queensberry, his hand and umbrella caused the latter's hat to fall off, while the marquis stepped back almost into the arms of a constable in his endeavour to get away. The constable, in the course of his efforts to stop the row, received what was evidently an unintentional blow on the mouth, which he certainly took very goodnaturedly. At this stage the disturbance appeared to have terminated, but when the marquis crossed Bond-street on his way along Piccadilly, he was followed by Lord Douglas, and the fight was renewed in a fiercer manner in front of a tobacconists’s shop. Before the encounter was checked Lord Douglas had received a black eye, and the marquis looked as if he would have the best of the encounter. Several constables, however, arrived, and the combatants were taken to Vine-street station, just outside of which the marquis again expressed, in the same terms as before, his conviction that he could beat his assailant without difficulty. As far as could be learned, when in the station the Marquis of Queensberry refused to charge his son with assault, and Lord Douglas adopted the same attitude. They were subsequently released, each, it was stated, on his own recognisance in 40s., and called upon to appear at Marlborough-street Police-court on the charge of disorderly conduct. On coming out of the station, to which they had been accompanied by several friends, who had tried to interfere during the two fights, Lord Douglas walked to Regent-street and jumped into a passing hansom, while the Marquis disappeared in another direction. A veryl large crowd, many of whom apparently knew the Marquis of Queensberry, and took his assailant for Lord Alfred Douglas, collected during the first disturbance, and followed their lordships to Vine-street, where they remained till the principals had driven away.