somewhat by its long seclusion from the light,--and will remain one of
the most delightful and _spirituel_ creations of the old-English
school.




[Illustration: EMMA, LADY HAMILTON by ROMNEY]


Lady Hamilton


With the name of Lady Hamilton is ever associated the names of
England's most famous sailor and of one of her most famous painters.
Hers was a life redolent of ill-repute. Though her beauty was great,
it served her for ill purposes; but she came by her lack of character
by heredity. She was born in 1761, the daughter of a female servant
named Harte, and at the age of thirteen was put to service as a nurse
in the house of a Mr. Thomas of Hawarden, Flintshire. She found
tending children a tedious task, and forsook it. At sixteen, she went
to London, and became a lady's maid there. Her leisure time was spent
in reading novels and plays, which inspired a love for the drama. She
early developed a rare ability for pantomimic representation; and
this became a favorite form of entertainment in drawing-rooms and
studios. Her duties as a domestic agreed not with the drama, so her
next position was as barmaid in a tavern much frequented by actors and
artists. She formed the acquaintance of a Welsh youth, on whose being
impressed into the navy, she went to the captain to intercede for him.
The boy was liberated, but the comely intercessor was impressed into