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TH iJ UCfrA mOTHEK
What Will Finally Become of Lady Constance
Richardson's Unfortunate Children
Their Father Dead and Their Eccentric
Mother Bringing Them Up in a
Strange, Impossible
Lady Constance Richardson, the Mother, in
One of Her Barefoot, Lightly Dressed
Dances. Her Ideas of Bringing Up
Her Children Are as Unconven
tional as Is Her Costume.
'HAT will become of Lady
C o n s t a ace Richardson's
three strangely reared lit-
Pa BODS BOW?
They knelt last month beside (heir
father's grave. Sir Edward Richard
Son had been a tender father and
sportsmanlike companion for his lit-
Way
tie lads. Dying from wounds re
celved In the war, his last thought
was of them.' "Rory, old chap," he
muttered hoarsely. "Hammlsh." '
There was mors than sorrow of
parting In his ayes and voles. There,
was trouble.
When the three boys wept beside
their father's grays, their Scotch
neighbors shook their heads.
Toor lads! Poor ladsl Twas
the wrong start they had," said the
wise man of the country neighbor
hood. Others than the canny Scotch
neighbors, and the dying father,
hare these misgivings for the future
of Rory. Hammlsh and Terqull Rich
ardson. They fear that children
trained according to Lady Constance
Richardson's Ideals may fare sadly in
a world of practicalities. Ideals are
expensive. They require affluence,
or at least competence for their nur
turing. They require stlti more for
their practice. The Richardson boys
ar poor. For the poor lire Is full
of brutal practicalities.
There is not the slightest doubt
that the eccentric titled dancer is
bringing up the three boys accordtug
4o her highest Ideals and Ideas. But
Lady Constance's ideals and Ideas
re. at least, singular. Many believe
them Impossible.
London society was shocked by her
(dancing for It In costume nearly as
toiirht as that in which the daughter
of Herodlaa danced before ber royaj
tepfather tor the head of the .
prophet. It was grieved past for
giveness by her dancing in the musio
halls of England. .
When she came to this country to
continue that dancing, society mute
ly bade her farewell. She and the
friends of her youth and her family
would know her no more.
Her husband reluctantly, but with
loyalty, accompanied her to Amer
ica. There was po question as to
his devotion to his beautiful aid
eccentric wife. Any such doubt was
banished from the skeptical Ameri
can mind by the sight of Kir Edward
sprinkling her feet with a siphon of
aerated water when his gifted wife
returned from her dance to rest In a
botel lobby I
Yet despite this attitude of the
ravalier, it was well understood by
all who knew the pair that while his
wife was brilliant. Sir Edward was
aound. That be represented the tra
ditional brlttsh virtues of sanity,
rlear headeduess and conservatism,
la all family crises and conferences
tie was the balance wheel.
While he might not enjoy, nor ap
prove, his wife's public career, he
afforded her the protection of his
presence. While tie msy not have
agreed with his wife In her unusual
theories of education, he permitted
her to tent them with their three boy
tabes. They who knew Sir Edward
JUchardson knew him to be manly,
honorable, a good clilten. His fault,
if he had one, was over-indulgence
to those he loved. His principles
were unquestioned. His patriotism
ha proved by his death In the field
for his country. '
Bach memories will his sons have
of him for inspiration. It is their
training for service In the campaign
bt life that is problematic. Lady
Constance Richardson's vogue as a
professional dancer chiefly depended
upon the fact that she stepped out of
tier class to attain It. It was told by
.he late William Hammerstetn, who
engaged her for his famous Corner
lloune of amusement, that be com
plained to his father, on whose
recommendation he had signed a con
tract for hr appearance:
"She can't dance."
"Never ii.!nd," responded Oscar
Ilammerstin. "We don't export her
to daacj. lier title does that."
Lady Richardson's professional
career has suffered also by reason of
the war, Lugland is la Impatient.
V
V
mood with titled dancers and other
vagaries.
How will she provide for her sons,
and how, when they are of the age
of personal responsibility, will they
provide tor themselves T They have,
practical people eay, not teen given
the sort of education that fits a child
for future self-support
1 do not care especially what my
boys learn," their beautiful mother
has often said, "beyond the mere
rudiments."
"I will not have their talents '
trained to the abnormal point ' of
genius. I want them to become sim
ple country gentlemen, i' I should'
hate to see one of them become, for
distance, a Cabinet Minister. ' ;
"A very Important part of the edu
cation of my children Is teaching
them a love of beauty. It they love
the beautiful they aeek to become
beautiful. We think of what is about
its and we become like what we
think about, so it la most necessary
to see only beautiful objects. Keep
ing this in mind, I am most careful
about the selection of my children's
toys. I never allow them to see any
thing that is maimed or distorted.
"1 went shopping in London to buy
my children toys. To my surprise
and disgust, I found that the six or
aevan leading toys were all hideous
distortions of human or animal
bodies. You may be sure my chil
dren received none of these toys. I
never give them anything like your
Bllllkens or Kewplea or Brownies.
They have never had any dolls with
huge abdomens and little legs and
heads either too large or too small
for their bodies, never in right pro
portion to them. Your Teddy bears
are not bad, because they look like
bears. Most animal toys era hideous
travesties of the real."
Also the Richardson boys are de
prived of the ordinary picture book
that ao stimulate the Imagination of
the average child.
"My children's picture books are
copies of the sculptures and paint
ings In the Louvre aud Luxembourg
ana other galleries of art. They have
never been allowed to aee anything
maimed. So clear a picture that I
implanted la their minds of the
human body that when my oldest
son, Rory, saw a picture of Venus de
Milo. he said, '1 don't like it.' The
arms were missing, and ha thought
her Imperfect. He gave the same
criticism of the Winged Victory.
"1 let them look at picture books
only after I have gone carefully
through them and scissored every
picture that shows the human figure
other than as perfect.' Also I cut
out every picture that shows killing.
My boye have never Keen the picture
of Jack the Giant Killer, nor of the
witch astride a broomstick, nor such
an absurdity as the cow jumping over
the moon."
Nor have the Richardson boys had
their Imagination stimulated by fairy
stories. Alice in Wonderland Is a
forbidden delight to them.
"1 read or tell them only such
stories as deal with beauUful themes.
I go back to mythology for them,"
said Lady Constance in unfolding
her educational theory and practice,
"for Instance, I tell them the story
of Theseus and Andromache."
Every morning of very day for
nine months a year Lady Constance
has sent her children naked into the
garden to play.
"I make my boys take ixerclse
every morning for fifteen minutes In
a perfectly nude state." che explains.
"In that way the air ant suushlne
directly reaches their vital onrans.
lieuerally I send them straight from
their beds to the gardens. In the
mid-Winter they take their morning
exercise nude indoors, and after the
bath. Ordinarily fifteen minutes of
play In the nude la enough. A child's
instluct for play Is an unerring guide.
They do not loiter at their play. In-
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stead, they run about as playfully
and tease each other as persistently
as puppies, until they are tired. I
never excuse my boys from this
quarter of an hour of naked play un
less they are seriously 11L I have
trained them to believe that It Is as
. necessary a part ot the day's pro
gramme as brushing their teeth.
1 teach my children to respect
the human body and to be uncon
scious of It save to keep It clean. I
do not believe In body worship. I do
not believe In giving the body undue
prominence by excessive athletics.
I am training them only to be ath-
I letlo enough to be healthy."
Lady Constance Richardson's Ideals
of moral training are not based upon
; religion. "I never go inside a
church," aha says. "But I want my
boys to believe that it Is their duty
snd pleasure to make those about
them happy."
The titled dancer announced that
aha wished to found a group school
in the Highlands ot Scotland for ten
boys, her own to bo included in the
group. "My husband and I have
very little money." aha said. "When
I have earned enough to maintain
tills school I will stop dancing."
Her theories of education she
summarises thus: "I am bringing
np my three sons to be perfect men.
Bringing up children is striving tow
ard an Ideal. My ideal ot a perfect
man is one wfroia brain and body
and character are equally strong.
The perfect man Is Nature's best ex
ample ot balance. Hia body is strong
and handsome, with no muscle de
veloped at the expense ot others.
His brain is active and well trained
without the extreme Intellectuality
that makes an overdraught upon the
body. His character is clean and
fine and Immovable aa to principle,
Such la the harmonious Individual,
the perfect man. I would not hava
them geniuses. Qenlusea are mon
strosities." The dancer mother expressed her
hopes that her boys might always
live in the country. "But In the un
fortunate emergency that they may
bo compelled to live in town I have
prepared them for it." she said In
one of her educational convert a
clones. "How?" hopefully asked a practi
cal American present.
"By their morning nude games,"
waa the reply. "That will make them
strong. I am preparing them against
possible town life by making them
healthy."
"But a er special training for
something."
Practical Americana hesitate to
speak such crudities as the phrase
"earn a living" to British titles,
though many a British title pays a
visit here for that aole purpose, ot
earning a living by marrying.
"Oh, I shall let them study what
ever gives them pleasure," Lady
Constance replied.
"I only want them to be har
moniously developed. I want them
to be perfect men."
But this hard, material world has
formed the habit ot asking about a
man who must earn his bread not
"What Is her But "What can he
dor
It Is pertinent then to this world
question to ask about the boys trained
by Lady Constsnce Richardson's.,
curious system: "What ran they do?"
For It is the world's edict that we
must do or starve.
And now with their father dead
their father who would certainly at
the right time have asserted hia au
thority and made them more fit for
a work-a-day world what will be
come, ot them?
The Three Sons of Lady Constance Richardion in the "Unclad Play" That ls So Important Part of Their Mother Training
and Which She Believes Will Help Them to Fight Their Way Through the World When They Have to.
How Increasing Popularity Is Ruining Our Breakfast Melons
T
B7 JOHN R, TIMMONS.
The Weil-Known Horticultural Expert.
HE Increasing demand for melons
and particularly the rauakmelon, or
caoteloupe la threatening to con
fine the real article only to those who can
afford luxuries. During recent seasons
there have been many complaints from
the people at large that tke melona they
bought at reasonable prices did not have
the flavor or tenderness of those a few
years back. The reason for this Is In the
methods used to get a quickly growing,
hardy enough crop to supply the demand.
This has been done in many cases by
crossing the melon with a certain variety
ot squash and pumpkin. This baa pro
duced a solid, firm fleshed melon that will
atand shipment, but In the process ot cross
ing the new melon haa lost much ot Its
Savor and tta Eesa Is apt to be stringy.
CoovnAt 1315. h the Star Cojnaw. Qraat Britain Rights Reserved,
However, as the melons have to be grown
under climatic conditions that produce
quick and early development, and as the
best melons will not stand long trans
shipment. It seems as though there were
little else for the farmers to do to supply
the demand than what they are doing.
Unless, of course, a Burbank arises to do
tor the canteloupe and watermelon what
the actual Burbank did for tke blackberry.
Before the demand for melona became
ao great, farmers used to try every means
to keep from coming about the very thing
they are now encouraging. Melon growers
would not permit a pumpkin os a squash
to blossom on their farm. Great care was
taken to keep bees and other Insects from
carrying the pollen tram pumpkin blos
soms to the blooms ot the melona, as it
was known that the mixing of the pollen
produced a tough stringy flesh la the
melon, and the taste was mora or less fiat
like the raw pumpkin. Borne extensive
growers prided themselves on the purity
of their melons.
Bees are now kept on large melon farms
to carry the pollen from one blossom to
another, and when squashes and pumpkins
are planted here and there through the
fields, ot courso the busy working bees
gather the pollen from the pumpkin bloom
and scatter it among the melons. It is
necessary to hava the bees, aa there la sex
In melons aa well as in anything else, and
to produce an abuudant crop the pollen
haa to bo carried from one to the other,
but the deliberate pumpkin and squash
cross threatens to produce a melon that
cannot bo bred back to Its former sweet
ness and crisp tenderness, such aa was to
ba had in the virgin melona of a few years
ago.
Unless there is a herolo effort on the
part of careful experts, we shall actually
lose our luscious melons and wo ahall be
compelled to eat gaards and squashes in
their stead.