Part 14 (1/2)

And now Dover Castle rises into prominence above the horizon as I travel onward My husband was offered Colchester or Dover He left the choice to me How could there be a doubt in my mind? The Castle was the very ideal, to me, of a residence Here was History, picturesqueness, a wide view of the silver sea, and the line of the French coast to free the mind of insularity So to Dover ent, children, furniture, horses, servants, dogs and all, froalow As usual, I was spared by Sir William all the trouble of the move, and while I was comfortably harboured by my ever kind and hospitable friends, the Sweet all the tiresoive dances at the Constables' Tower, and the dinners were like feasts in the feudal ti Hall Our boys' bedroom in the older part of this Constables' Tower had witnessed the death of King Stephen, and a winding staircase conducted the unappreciative London servants by a rope to their re-rooarden, walled round by the raazed upon her lost Calais My studio had a balcony which overhung the e What could I have better than that? No wonder I accoes I place ”Steady, the Drust those of my works hich I am the least dissatisfied The Acadeave the picture a place of honour These drui, under fire, for the order to sound the advance, at the Battle of Albuera That order was long delayed, and they and the regi motionless under fire A difficult subject, excellent for literature, very trying for painting I had had the vision of those drummer-boys for many years before my mind's eye, and it is a very obvious fact that what you see strongly in that way means a successful realisation in paint Circumstances were favourable at Dover

The Gordon Boys' Hoave me a variety of models in its well-drilled lads, and h, for obvious reasons, I could not include their dear faces in so painful a scene The yellow coatees, too, were a tree I re our arhtens us” The bandsmen of the Peninsular War days wore coatees of the colour of the regi and patient researches I found out this fact, and the facings of the 57th, being canary yellow, I had an unexpected treat

I remember how the Duke of York[11] at an Aldershot dinner had characteristically caught up this fact with great interest when I told hilad to know this work belongs to the old 57th, the ”Die Hards,” on that title at Albuera ”Die hard, men, die hard!” was their colonel's order on that tre events punctuated our official life at Dover:

”_August 15th, 1896_--Great doings to-day We had a busy time of it

Lord Salisbury was installed Lord Warden in the place of Lord Dufferin

Will had the direction, not only of the military part of the ceremonies but of the social (in conjunction with me), as far as the Constables'

Toas concerned Everything ell Lord and Lady Salisbury drove in a carriage and four from Wal outside to escort the-room for about half an hour, and Lord Dufferin also caes whilst officers in full uniform and women in full toilettes came and ith clatter of sabre and rustle of silk To fill up the rather trying half-hour and being expected to devote ht ave a bird's-eye view of the sliness of the coal s England in general On reconducting the weighty Salisbury to a rather fragile settee I morally and very nearly physically knocked him over by this felicitous re that the coalfields of England are finite!' 'What?' he shouted, with a bound which nearly broke the back of that settee I don't think he said anything more to me that day Of course, I meant that s our industries, but I left that unsaid, feeling very small It is my misfortune that I have not the knack of sed to propel myself into conversation by pronounceet the catastrophe at the L----s' dinner at Aldershot, when I announced, during a pause in the general conversation, to an old gentleht, that there was one word I would inscribe on the tombstone of the Irish nation, and that as--Whisky The old gentles I had to consign to C,[12] as my deputy, the head of the table for such of the people as were re at the Castle for luncheon as I myself had to appear at that function at the Town Hall The procession, military, civil and civic--especially civic--started at 12 for the 'Court of Shepway,' where much antique ceremonial took place When they all reached the Town Hall after that, Lord Salisbury first unveiled a full-length portrait of the outgoing Lord Warden, at the entrance to the Banqueting Hall, and coenial pat on the back We were all in good humour which increased as we filed in to luncheon and continued to increase during that civic feast, enlivened by a band

Tru of hands called, I think, 'Kentish Fire,' gave a local touch which was pleasingly original I a in England, and nowhere is it stronger than in Kent It iot rather knocked out of tieneral prancing of the guard of honour She was nervous crossing our drawbridge with four 'jumpy' horses which she told ether I don't think this was a day to suit her at all I heard the postillion riding the near leader shout back to the coachman on the box as they started homeward from our door, 'Put on both brakes _hard!_' Aent the open carriage which had very low sides and no hood, and Lord Salisbury, being very wide, rather bulged over the side

Wearing achilly, he had a rather top-heavy appearance, and we only breathed freely when that ticklish drawbridge, and the very steep drop of the hill beyond it, were passed So now let them rest at Walmer Will will do all he can to secure peace for theust 20th I went to poor Sir John Millais' funeral in St Paul's

The cereht of the kind, enthusiastic friend of ement and praise They had placed his palette and a sheaf of his brushes on the coffin Lord Wolseley, Irving, the actor, Holman Hunt and Lord Rosebery were the pall-bearers The cere accustomed to Catholic ritual, and the undertaker eleood-bye to a truly great and sincere artist

What a successful life he had, rounded by so terribly painful a death!

One of theof ”Broome Hall” for the South-Eastern DistrictSepte the in the very centre of the theatre of ”war,” became our headquarters There we entertained Lord Wolseley and his staff as the house-party Other warriors and many civilians whose lovely country houses were dotted about that beautiful Kentish region came in from outside each day, and for four days what felt tokind of hospitality went on which proved an astonishi+ng feat of housekeeping on my part True, I was liberally helped, but to this day Ihad to be brought from the Castle--servants in an omnibus, _batterie de cuisine_, plate, linen and all sorts of necessary things, in ons, for the house had not been inhabited for a long while All the food was sent out froe near The house had been palatially furnished in the old days, but its glory was host A pathetic interest attaches to ”Brooain in its renovated beauty Lord Kitchener restored it tostart each day of all these generals (Sir Evelyn Wood was one of theht for allant cavalcade had got clear I would follow in the little victoria with friends, hoping inwell in hand behind ry ”cocked Hats” on their return

On March 30th, 1897, I had a glimpse of Gladstone We were on the pier to receive a Royalty, and the ”Grand Old Man” was also on board the Calais boat He was the last to land and was accoith soed, with his face showing signs of pain I had not seen him since he sat beside me at a dinner at the Ripons' in 1880, when his keen eye had rather overawed ht! The crowd cheered hi, and only anxious to seek their rest at ”Betteshanger,” a few e whirled them away from public view

And now comes the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Victoria I think my fresh impressions written down at the time should be inserted here as I find theht to us by the Great War, and too ht picture to allow of posthu to-day Were I to tone down that picture to the appearance it has to

”_June 22nd, 1897_--Jubilee Day I never expected to be so touched by what I have seen of these pageants and rejoicings, and to feel so h this wonderful week Thinking of other nations, we cannot help being ilish have comported themselves on this occasion--the unaniness of every one concerned; all resulting in those huge pageants passing off without a single jar My place was in the courtyard of the Horse Guards; Will's place was on his big grey before St Paul's, at Queen Anne's statue, to keep an eye on things I had an effective view of the processionthe bend from Whitehall into the courtyard, and out by the archway into the parade ground This gave me time to enjoy the varied types of all those nationalities whose warriors represented them, as they filed past at close quarters But we had five hours of waiting These hours ell filled up forthe movements of the troops as they took up their positions for receiving the procession and saluting the Queen I think in the way of perfect dress and of superfine, thoroughbred horseflesh, Lord Lonsdale's troop of curoup as any that day They wore the 'sling jacket,' only known to me in pictures and old prints of the pre-Cri crihtful surprise

”The sun burst through the clouds just as the guns announced to us that the Queen had started froreat round by St

Paul's at 1115 So aited, waited Presently so he was the leader, we nimbly ran up to our seats It seemed hardly credible that the journey to St Paul's and the ceremony there, and the journey homewards could have occupied so comparatively brief an interval I think the part of the procession which hted eous bunch of thirty-six princes, each in his national dress or uniform These rode in triplets You saw a blue-coated Prussian riding with a Montenegrin on one side and an Italian bonneted by the absurd general's helue on the other Then caalaxy of dia in the sun, an Austrian with fur pelisse and busby (poorthe fa a little white Arab Then followed an English Admiral in the person of the Duke of York, a japanese e Russian on his left, and so on, and so on--types and dresses frolobe in close proxinified Indian cavalry were superb as to dress and _puggarees_, but the faces were stolid, very unlike the keen, clean-cut Arab types which so charypt and Palestine There certainly were too es filled with small Gere As they caerate when I say that there see cloud-shadow, as it were, fro shades of bron to the blackest of negroes, who rode last What an epitome of our Colonial Empire! Then, finally, before the supreme moment, came Lord Wolseley, the ie He looked well and gallant and youthful Then round the curve into the courtyard the eight creaold! So quick was the pace that I dared not dwell too long on their beauty for I was too absorbed in the Queen during that precious minute

There she was, the centre of all this! A little wo her) with an expressionless pink face, preoccupied in settling her bonnet, which had got a little crooked, as though nothing unusual was going on, and that was the last I saw of her as she passed under the dark archway, facing homeward

”_June 26th_--Off from Dover at 2 alory of the Jubilee--the greatest naval review ever witnessed At eight we left Waterloo in one of the 'specials' that took holders of invitation cards for the various ocean liners that had been chartered for the occasion Our shi+p was the P and O _Para her vast proportions, for I feared quals on board with friends and a great luncheon, and general good hu Britons The day cleared up at 1030, and only a slight haze thinly veiled the hty host of the Channel Fleet as we slowly stea the Solent Gradually the sun shone fully out and the day settled into steady brilliance

”Well, I have been so inflated with national pride since beholding our naval power this day that if I don't get a prick of soo off like a balloon Let us be exultant just for a week! We won't think of the ugly look of India just now and all the nasty warnings of the bu at Britannia ruling the waves, as we are doing to-day Five miles of shi+ps of war five lines deep! When all these shi+ps fired each twenty-one guns by divisions as the Prince of Wales steamed up and down the lines, and the crews of each vessel in turn gave such cheers as only Jack Tar can give, it was not the et the aspect of this fleet of ours, black hulls and yellow funnels and 'fighting tops' stretching to east and west as far as the eye could reach and beyond, theclouds of suns thundered the salute! Myriads of flags fluttered in the breeze, the sea sparkled, and in and out of thosecraftby the contrast of their hurry the sense one had of the, 'And to think that not a single shi+p has been recalled from abroad to ood old Nelson feeling about us” On June 28th the Queen held her Jubilee Garden Party in the Buckingharounds There we looked our last on her

I took four of the children, in August, to Bruges, that old city so much enjoyed by me in my early years I was charmed to see how carefully all the old houses had been preserved, and, indeed, I noticed that a few of theinal beauty Hoell the Belgians understand these things! Seventeen years after this date the eldest of the two schoolboys I had with eneral co before the German hordes, was to turn and help to rend them at Ypres

In 1898 I exhibited a smaller picture than usual--”The Morrow of Talavera,” which was very kindly placed at the Acadee Cri year I had so the studies for it I had an interesting experience I wanted to show the colour party of the Scots Guards advancing up the hill of the Alma in their full parade dress--the last time British troops wore it in action--Lieutenant Lloyd Lindsay carrying the Queen's colour It was then he won the VC Lord Wantage (that say, when he heard of my project, conducted me to the Guards' Chapel in London, and there and then had the old, dusty, moth-eaten Alma colours taken down from their place on the walls, and held the Queen's colour once more in his hand for me to see I made careful studies at the chapel, and restored the fresh tints which he told me they had on that far-away day, when I came to put them into the picture I was in South Africa when the Acade