Londonderry and from the
Countess of Dudley. There were also letters from the Prince and Princess
of Aremberg (in Belgium) and the Counts Andre and Fernand of Nevers. It
had all been so wonderful and romantic! Then they had gone on their
wedding journey and had been ecstatically happy. In Chicago, they had
been received with open arms. That was before the death of the
Duke--yes, her mourning was for the Duke. She smiled sadly. I think she
still more than half believed that she was a duchess--and she deserved
to be if ever any girl did. Then all of a sudden their money had given
out and the Duke had been arrested for not paying their hotel bill.
Perhaps I would like to see a newspaper clipping? It was dreadful! She
was ashamed to be seen anywhere after that. She had even been obliged to
pawn his cross of the Legion of Honor, the Leopold Cross of Belgium, and
another beautiful decoration which he had been accustomed to wear when
they went out to dinner. This was the clipping:
CHICAGO SOCIETY THE DUPE OF BOGUS COUNT
HOTEL AND SEVERAL WHILOM FRIENDS FILLED WITH REGRET--THE "COUNT"
ARRESTED
Chicago, Jan. 29.--"Count Charles Julius Francois de Nevers" was in
the Police court to-day for defrauding the Auditorium Annex of a
board bill. The Count came to the French Consul, M. Henri Meron,
amply supplied with credentials. He posed as Consulting Engineer of
the United States Steel Corporation. He was introduced into all the
clubs, including the Alliance Francaise, where he was entertained
and spoke on literature.
He was accompanied by a charming young "Countess," and the honors
showered upon them and the adulation paid by society tuft-hunters
was something they will never forget.
They returned the entertainments. The Count borrowed several
thousand dollars.
President Furber, of the Olympic Games, said to-day of the "Count:"
"This man confided to me that he had invented a machine for
perpetual motion, the chief difficulty of which was that it
accumulated energy so fast that it could not be controlled. He asked
me to invest in some of his schemes, which I refused to do."
The fate of the Count is still pending and he was led back to a
cell. He has been a week behind the bars. The "Countess" is in
tears.
"The Countess is me," she explained.
"Was he sent to prison?" I asked.
"Oh, no," she answered. "You see they really c
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