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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Seaforth News, 1955-09-01, Page 7Her ;"oohs Sol; ,I By Tens Of Milli ITS When the woman who had "thrilled our grandparents with the magic of her pen died, the cry went up, "Who Was Marie Corelli?" Everybody was eager for the truth that lay behind the mystery built up around this queen of best-sellers. But it was not easy to dis• cover. One newspaper stated that Marie Corelli had been found one wintry night, a .blue- eyed baby with £10 pinned to Ther shawl, on the doorstep of a certain Doctor Charles Mackay, who had adopted her. Another announced the finding of a birth certificate proving without doubt that Miss Corelli was the daughter of - Thomas Cody, a Marylebone labourer. And yet a third paper entered the fray to publish an account Of a romantic meeting in a Stratford -on -Avon church be- tween Doctor Mackay and Maria Coralie Gonsalez, a beautiful Italian countess. Hence the name "Marie Corelli," they suggested. Marie herself always declared she had been adopted by Mac- kay. But a lifelong friend in- sisted that the doctor was the novelist's legal parent. Research has proved this last statement true, but although Marie was born on May 1st, 1855 (thus the centenary of her birth fell this year), Mackay eouldn't marry her mother an Englishwoman named Mills until 1861, after his first wife died. From a letter found after Marie Corolli's death it is clear she did not know the truth about her birth until 1889, when the decease of her father revealed the facts to her. But she managed to keep the secret for the rest of her life, putting busybodies off the scent not only by declaring she was an adopted child, but by deduct- ing ten years from her age to make the story more convincing. While yet in her teens Marie started to write, but she could not find a publisher. One editor even declared that fiction -writ- ing was obviously "not her forte " (Tow furious he must have felt a few years later when the novels of Marie Corelli burst upon a startled world. Like a dazzling meteor this unknown writer sent her works soaring into the blaze of publicity and b_clune the famous author whose sensational books were the talk of the world. Queens, princes, prime minis- ters and bishops, all were tre- mendously impressed by the thirty-one novels s h e wrote. Their subject -matter ranged from disembodied souls to ab- sinthe addicts in the Parisian underworld, and her imagination was so powerful that everything she touched was charged with rich emotion. Is it any wonder her world sales could be reckoned in tens of millions, and her earnings £10,000 for each book? But behind this astonishing success story lay years of grind. ing slavery for the sake of two worthless men, Otte. was Marie's philandering father, Doctor Mac- kay; and the other his rascally son Eric. As soon as these jackals real- ized what a money -spinner they had in the young Marie they allowed her to support them in idleness for the rest of their days. Eric was a particularly nasty specimen; fat, flabby and lazy, he had been a sponger all his life. Blind to his vices, his step- sister financed his shady affairs, and permitted him to escort her to the various social functions she attended. On these occasions Eric dis- played such devotion towards her that tongues began to wag. It was whispered they were lovers and even secretly mar- ried. When, later, Erie showed his true colours by boasting that it was really he who had written all Marie's books, she did at last turn against him. Among Marie's many admirers were the Prince of Wales (after- wards Edward VII) and Mr. Gladstone, When the latter vis- ited her one day he brought Mrs, Gladstone, who was obliged to sit outside the house in Earl's IMPRESSIONISTIC ART — Sculpture affects people in different ways, as witness young Ray Plummer. "Migrant," one of the art treasures exhibited at the Bement Centennial, inspired Ray to make like a bird. The Theodore Roszack creation is valued at $7500. "COMES OF AGE"—Princess Margaret holds her pet dog asshe poses for an informal 25th birthday portrait in the garden of Clarence House, London. in royal circles, a princess "comes of age" when she is 25. Court in an open carriage for over two hours while her hus- band chatted and laughed within. Marie Corelli was presented to the Prince of Wales wnen oho stayed in Germany. He gave a dinner party in her honour at which he commented upon the smallness of her hands "Out of small things what wonders arise!" he exclaimed admiringly. This was followed by a ltmch-. eon in which Marie was intro- duced to "my son, George, who is well acquainted with your hooks." When, eventually, the deaths of the two Mackays relieved her of much responsibility Marie moved to Stratford -on -Avon. Here she became so great a leg- end that more people went to stare at her house( with its cas- cading window -boxes, .than to Shakespeare's birthplace. Cploured postcards of her were on sale in all the shops, and one tourist was overheard to boast that she had seen "Shakespeare's daughter"! But Marie was no heroine to the townsfolk. She threw her weight about too much and was not above telling the shopkeep- ers haw to arrange their goods. She drove around in a tiny car- riage drawn by Shetland ponies, with a footman perched up be- hind, and even bought a gondola to glide upon the. Avon with a gondolier specially i m p o r t e d from Venice. To hit the Headlines was ever Marie's aim, and she went to great lengths to keep her name before the public. "Nothing suc- ceeds like excess" was her motto and she kept inventing more fables to keep the interest from flagging. S h e refused to be photo- graphed, and all likenesses of her had to be faked. She announced that she belonged to a secret re- ligious sect not allowed to wor- ship in church and that she could speak Hebrew fluently. There was no truth in either statement. But so well did her self -adver- tising work that if she visited the Memorial Theatre the audi- ence rose to its feet as though she were the Queen; and when m3iySa'n- UNITED STATES FARMERS IN RUSSIA—D. Gale Johnson, second from left, former farmer land now an economics professor at the University of Chicago, lets Russian grain run through his, 'fingers as he chats with women workers who help operate a collective farm in the Russian (Ukraine. Fourth/from left is Ralph Olsen, Ellsworth, Iowa, farmer. Johnson and Olsen are Itnembers of the United States farm delegation which made an exchange visit to Russia while their! iSSviet counterparts were visiting'this country. "PRETTY PLEASE"—Yank's photo- genic catcher, Yogi Berra, is caught with an angelic expres- sion on his face as his prayers are answered with a neat snare of a pop foul at New York's Yankee Stadium. the poetess, Ella Wheeler Wilcox, called upon her, she knelt to kiss Marie's hand while her male es- cort stood behind her with bowed head. Little wonder the novelist was not amused when the following limerick was circulated: "There was a fair Siren of Strat, Who narrated the Sorrows of Sat., She'd a gond. on the Av., She was everyone's fay., Though she used Shake's Crus - tees as a mat" Perhaps one of Marie's most ardent fans was Sir Thomas Lip- ton, and she often went yachting with him. But during the first World War this friendship land- ed her in a spot of bother. At her request Sir Thomas sent her quantities of sugar for jam -making and the incident was reported to the police. The re- sult appeared in prominent head. lines: MARIE CORELLI CON- VICTED OF FOOD HOARDING. She was fined £50 with twenty guineas costs. When Marie Corelli was fifty- one she fell in love with a well- known artist who was already married. For her it was a deeply emotional affair, but to him no more . than a passing flirtation. She was blissfully happy until he dropped her like a hot coal. Then she poured out her soul into her private journal. This was published, after her death, under the title: "Open Confes- sinn. To a Man from a Woman." During this affair she was startled one night by shots in her garden. A young man was arrested, the smoking revolver still in his hand. He had fired through the window of Marie's music -room ... "only to see Miss Corelli and bring her out to spear to me." He was found insane, and Marie senthis mother a generous cheque. In January, 1924, Marie Cor- elli had a heart attack and, for four months, sat propped in a chair. One day she asked for a window to be opened so that she might hear some children sing- ing, and as a result she con-' ' traded congestion of the lungs. As actress Ellen Terry placed a wreath of .lilies upon the grave of the woman whose books had fascinated so mann. 'she was. heard to whisper, "God bless the darling," How to Pick A Name for Baby Strange as it may seem, there are more ways of finding a name for baby than by calling a fam- ily conference, thinking about characters in films and fiction, or by sticking a pin in a list. For instance, what a Hindu in- fant will eventually be called often depends upon the bright- ness of a flame. The mother's choice of name for her offspring is usually ap- proved, But if her husband de- sires something different, each suggestion is written on a sep- arate slip of paper. On the twelfth day after the birth, two lamps are placed over the two names. And the flame which burns more brilliantly de- notes which "label" the child shall bear. In Egypt, three pieces of paper resting under three wax candles are used in a similar ceremony. But, in this case, one of the three names under consideration is al- ways that of a god or martyr. Arid the candle which lasts the longest bestows a name on the little one. Mohammedans have for cen- turies employed an even more unusual system, which prevents any possibility of argument. The five most favoured name suggestions, inscribed on separ- ate squares of paper, are placed between the pages of the Koran, the sacred book of the Moham- medans. Then after an interval a priest is invited to bless the book, ex- tract the final choice and reveal it to relatives assembled round the child. More curious still is a custom Observed by the Ainos, inhabi- tants of Northern. Japan, who do not name a child until he or she is five years old. When at last the auspicious day has dawned and the father gravely announces his decision, he also explains that he needed time to ponder over the problem! In some Japanese regions a baby's name is changed four times. with irregular periods in- tervening, This wily plan is adopted to confuse evil spirits who may be plotting to harm the youngster. In German rural districts, too, parents are perpetually on guarff against adverse influences, and, they always pick a fresh name for an infant who is stricken with serious illness. It is generally believed that the new choice will bring better health to the unfortunate mite. European gipsies declare that a baby should never be named af- ter a dead brother or sister. Ac- cording to ancient Romany lore, parents who are foolish enough to do so are inviting bad luck: The Chinese have the oddest notions of all when selecting a name for junior. In certain provinces if asked how many offspring he has, the Chinese father of a boy and a girl replies, "I have only one child," This extraordinary viewpoii'tt is explained by the fact that baby girls are regarded as Infe- rior to boys. Therefore, they are not considered worthy of a proper name, but are simply re- ferred to One, Two, Three or Pour, according to their order of arrival on earth. HARD TOP — Yep, that's a tur- ban she's wearing — turban squash, that is. Mrs. Ralph Kramer, brought the seed from Vermont and raised the turban squashes in her garden. CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING BABY CHICKS NOT too soon to place your chicle and turkey orders for Fall delivery. We have three special breeds that lay more eggs on less feed. Special 1st. generation Broiler chicks that convert feed into meat quickly. Dual purpose breeds. Hatches every week In the year. Older pullets 12 Weeks to lay- ing. Catalogue. TWEDDLE CHICK HATCHERIES LTD. 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America's Greatest System illustrated uatatogue Irreo Write or Call MARVEL HAIRDRESSING SCHOOLS 358 Moor 51. W , Toronto Brunches: 44 King St.. Hamilton 72 Rideau qt.. Ottawa PATENTS FETHERSTONNAUGR & Company Patent Attorneys. Estabtished 5890. 800 University Ave.: Toronto. Patents all countries, AN OFFER to every inventor List o2 Inventions and run Information sena free, The Ramsay Co., Registered Pat- ent Attorneys, 273 Bank St. Ottawa, PERSONAL $1.00 rRLAL offer. Twenty -ave deluxe personal requirements, Latest cata- logue included. The Medico Agency, Box 124, Terminal A" Toronto Ont. TEACHERS WANTED, DARLING Township School Area re- quires one qualified teacher. State sal. ary also name of last inspector. Har- old Devlin, Secretary, R.R.2, Calaboete, Ont. ISSUE 15 -- 1911,.