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The Omaha Sunday Bee Magazine Page
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The Fblo Victors
jarred EngWsSnobociacy;
The Amazing Story of the Most
Unwelcome Triumph Ever Won by
English Sportsmen
Lady Wimborno, Who Now
Laughs in tho Faces of tho
Snobbish Westminster "Blue
Blood" Set.
SfDCRET chapters of history, even
of social and sporting history,
are far moro Interesting than
those which are open for all to road.
The apathy, the open hostility, of
English society toward the polo
toam which came to Now York this
(year to fight for tho cup has boon In
explicable to tho goneral public, not
only In this country, but In Europe.
But this attitude is all made clear in
some secret chapters of English
soolal life which aro faoro presented
to tho publlo for tho first time.
From those chapters it Is seen that
tho aristocracy of England places its
own importanco first, with patriotism
and sportsmanship playing a bad
last. English society would rather
have lost tho cup than to have had
It won by the Wimborno team. Tho
beautiful Viscountess Curzon was ono
of the bitterest foes of tho team, and
threw all hor influenco over to tho
Westminster crowd.
Polo has always boon tho sport of
kings and millionaires. It has novor
been a gamo, especially In and about
New York and In England, for thoso
whoso Incomes stopped short of five
figures. $ An aura of oxtravagant
wealth, of subllmo aristocracy, 1ms
always surrounded tho gamo. Tho
men who playod in tho tournaments
In this country and England must bo
of tho purest, bluest blood. It had
always been thus, and thus, thought
aristocratic England, It would al
ways continue to be.
In accordance with this bollef,
after losing the polo cup to tho Am
erican "Big Four." Harry Payno
Whitney, Larry Waterbury, Devor
eux Mllburn and Monte Waterbury,
the aristocrats of England, headed
by the Duke of Westminster, sent
three years in succession a team to
win it back. This toam was purely
of the aristocracy. Each time it
went sadly back to England In uttor
rout The American "Big Four"
played all round thorn. Last June,
when tho defeated team reached
homo, England decided that she had
had enough. Sho, or rather tho aris
tocrats Duke of Westminster nnd
his friends, had' spent half a million
to win the cup and, lo, tho team re
turned without a game to its credit.
Thereforo tho Duko and England
said:
"We have had enough. We will
not competo next year. It is too ex
pensive." But lower down in the social scale
were several men who wanted to sor.
that cup brought back to England.
From out of this group strodo tho
oalthy, but not so aristocratic Lord
WImborne, and with ono throw ho
lung his gauntlet in the faces ot
3ritlsh and American aristocracy.
"I'll fiend a team to America, and
I'll send ono that will bring back tho
cup."
And at onco English eocloty was
split in twain. Tho ultra aristocrats
lined up with tho Duko of West
mlnlsttr, whtlo of course thoso who
dearly lovo a lord, and moro dearly
still, lovo a duko, foil In lino with
the Westminster clique. Thoso who
placed sportsmanship above class
sided with Wimborno and hoped him
luok la forming his team.
As tho financial backer, Wimborno
was given tho prlvllogo of Inciting
tho mon to servo on his team. Ho
began of course, by asking thoso
who had formed tho Westminster
teams. Ho ABkod Lord Wodohouso.
"Mo lord" refused, bocauso ho had
personal buslnoss affairs to koop
him In England. Ho asked tho fa
mous Captain Cheapo. Tho captain
hommod and hawod, and finally said:
A'fully sorry, but I have appoint
ments with my tailor which will
keep mo In London during May and
Juno."
Ho aBkod Captain Vivian Lockott,
V. . th. douBty Lockott regretted
that his roglmontal duties would
prevent his playing.
And so It wont, every man who
over had any connection with tho
Wostmlnstor foams refused tho
Wimborno bids.
Tho British ana American public
wore frankly puzzlod. Why? Why?
They kopt asking. And the "why"
Is now explained.
Lord Wimborno, millionaire and
sportsman, that ho Is, Is not Of tho
samo "rank" as Wostmlnstor and
i,.,e?dB 11,8 Present tltlo, that
of WImborne, dates back only a few
years, and worso than that, ho took
tho Ashby St. Lodgers title, when
,AWn? r,a?od to th0 Peerage in
iii;mA?d th0 '"K or that famous
?!itI,tlo,.by..a mnh thy considered a
social climber, was too much for tho
wmi. of, aroat Britain. The
Ph,,m 18 "ected with the
un urchin and
Quest families
does not holp him
with tho West-
minster crowd.
These "Littlo
Englanders," as
nudyard Kipling
would call them,
scoffod at Wlm
homo's "lovo of
oport,"
"It is only a
social stepping
stone," said they, when his offer was
made. Deep In their aristocratic
souls thoso mon of Westminster's,
thought that no one In England
could play polo but themselves.
They laughod at the idea that Wim
borno would succeed whore their
duke had failed.
Tho history of the forming of the
toam will not rankle. In England's
heart. Tho King of Spain Invited
tho Wimborno players to use the
royal grounds In Madrid. Ho took
an active interest in their practise
games; frequently ho played against
them again he playod with them.
Tho Westminster crowd looked on
aghast. "Well, Alfonso may bo a
king but ho Is no aristocrat," said
they.
When tho players roturned from
Spain they found English Boclety ar
rayed against thorn. They found
the wealthy sportsmen wero actually
crying down tho team and betting
against It. Such a stato of affairs
had novor been known in "sporting"
England. In evory way possible tho
"aristocrats" did tholr best to keep
tho Wimborno team from living up
to its challonge. The nowspapers
in England nnd America wore filled
with roports of tho rottennoss of
tho chnllengors. It was frequently
stated that tho challenge would be
withdrawn.
Thoro was no doubt that tho toam
needed strong players. Captain
Lookott had already, much to tho
chagrin of tho Westminsters, offered
himself to Wimborno and been ac
cepted. Ho looked bothered whon
over anyono asked him why ho had
gone over to tho enemy, but refused
to tell
Then at tho eleventh hour, when
oven Wimborno despaired of getting
a strongor team, word camo that
Leslie Cheapo was to play. And lo,
Captain Choape appeared on the
team during Its last week In Eng
land. Wostmlnstor was wild. Ho
boratod Cheapo for having lost his
social sense." Cheape shrugged his
shoulders. "Can't holp it. Tho War
Department ordered me to on pain
of being sent to Africa"
Tho publlo did not know those
socrot chaptors It almply wondered
at Locketf and Cheape's change of
heart The truth was that tho War
Department had ordered both men
to play for tho "honor of tho flag,"
or else get ready to servo at an
Isolated African post! With this
fear at their heelB was it any won
der that Cheapo and Lockott not
only Joined tho team but played as
thoy had novor playod before?
But oh, tho shock to English
society whon the "climber's" team
won that first gamot And oh, the
greater shock when It won the
second I "Could anything cut more
deoply the crust of tho aristocratic
Westminster crowd than having that
cup captured by tho WImborne
crowd I
The fickle fanoy ot the public
voored Immediately to tho Wlm
borne's, and In tho twinkling of an
eye, all men wero talking affection
ately of "Our Wimmy." If Lord
Wlnfoorne wont Into this cup con
test as a social game, he has played
so well that not ovon the West
mlnstor crowd can keep him down
any longer. Not even tho fact that
ho was foolish enough to ask for
tho Ashby St. Ledger title will
weigh against him any longer. With
the winning of the cup he has won
England, lot Westminster do or say
what ho may. Of course, that ele
ment which calls the duke their
"over lord," will turn tho cold
shoulder to tho victorious Wim
borno, but the rank and fllo at last
realizes that oven tho "Sport of
Kings" can he played by "com
moners" and England has learned
that It Is better to win by "rod"
blood than to lose by "blue" blood.
It Is woll known that tho reason
William Buckmastcr, tho greatest
polo player in England, was not ask
ed to play on Westminster's team
last year was because he was a
"commoner." Buckmastorfs social
position not coming up to West
minster's standard, kept him out of
the team and his absence last year
Viscountess
Curzon,
Foremost
Among
Aristocratic
English
Beauties
Who
t Joined
the Duke
of
Westminster
in
Deriding
the Polo
Pretentions
of
"Mushroom"
Lord
Wimborn.
Th Defeated American Polo Team Prom Leftto Right: Devereux Milburn, Rene La Montagne, Monte Waterbury and Larry Waterbury Who Share with the Duke of Westminster the Social
Discomfiture of Having Been Beaten Through the Enterprize of the "Unaristocratic" Lord Wimborne.
Copyright. 1914, by tho Star Company. Great Britain nights Reserved
was largely the cause for their do
feat, so said polo experts.
But "social position flrst,,"'is the
Westminster slogan.
This samo attitude has been held
to a great extent by the players
here in New York. The Polo Asso
ciation has always given the "mil
lionaire crowd," headed by Whitney,
the first choice when making up &
team. Because this year the asso
ciation would not take In the news,
red blood eagerly clamoring at its
doors, tho cup went back to Eng
land. New blood, strong, young, un
excited nerves are needed on tho
American team. Let tho American
Polo Association take notice of tho
lesson Just taught England. If the
cup comes back next year, it will
bo won by "new red" blood, not by
tho vitiated blood of the present
prominent players.
Is France the
"Drunkest" Nation
WHICH Is the "drunkest" na
tion? At the fourth Alco
hol Congress, Dr. G. Bcrtll
Ion tried to answer the question
by showing that France consumes
proportionately an enormous quan
tity more Intoxicating liquor than
any other European country.
Tho figures, regulated on a basts
of the number of litres of pure alco
hol consumed per inhabitant a year,
work Out approximately as follows:
Franco 5 gallons
Italy 3 gallons
Belgium 3 gallons
Switzerland 3 gallons
Denmark 2 gallons
Spain i 2 gallons
' Germany 2 gallons
Great Britain 2 gallons
Sweden 1 gallons .
Russia li gallons
This table affords a great sur
prise In that Italy and Spain are
usually looked on as the least In
dulging countries.
Dr. Bertlllon's figures do not, how
over, 'fairly answer the questlota,
"Which Is the drunkest country?"
Great Britain, despite the strik
ingly low average, probably pro
vides as much, if not more, inso
briety than any other state. The
beer-drlnklng countries aro Germany
and England, and the wine-drinkers
aro France, Spain and Italy, and
if the latter actually consume more
alcohol per head, they don't show it
so freely.
On the other hand, the saddest
stato of affairs prevails in Belgium,
where absinthe has become practi
cally the national beverage. It has
often been asserted that the phys
ique and morals ot Belgians make
them tho least attractive people in
Eurooo.
