There is much speculation in London as to the fate of Fort Belvedere. For twelve months this historic house has been empty. Not even a caretaker lives there. A gardener and his wife occupy a bungalow on the estate, and they have the grounds to themselves. With the occasional help of two assistants the man mows the lawn and tidies the drive but only rarely is his solitude interrupted. The public are rigorously excluded.
Fort Belvedere is Crown property, built by George LI as a military look-Out post. Troops were encamped there after the 1745 rebellion. George IV found it a convenient retreat for the entertainment of his friends and Queen Victoria held many a quiet tea party there. In 1929 it became the country home of the Duke of Windsor, then Prince of Wales, and thousands of pounds were spent on modernizing the fort and grounds.
King George has visited Fort Belvedere once or twice since his brother's departure and it is rumoured that he intends to offer it to the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, or possibly the Duke and Duchess of Kent. Others are saying that the deserted fort is being left vacant awaiting the return of its former owner. If this last suggestion has any foundation in truth it would appear, from the condition of the estate, that no early return is expected Prime Minister as Clubman music he hopes to give more time to darts.
The darts craze has got the London theatre world in its grip. Stars and chorus girls are at one in their keenness for the game. A West End Theatres Darts League has been formed, with Gordon Harker as president and Jack Buchanan and Ivor Novello among the vice-presidents. Contests are being arranged between whole casts of current West End plays and there is talk of an annual championship.
£700 for a Lecture A man who is reported to have delivered 2,000 lectures in five years in Australia and America has come to London. He is not going to lecture the English, however, but arrange for English celebrities to lecture the Americans.
Mr. Harold R. Peat served with the Canadian army during the war, wrote a best-selling novel called "Private Peat" and after his prolonged bout of eloquence on two continents settled down to manage a lecture agency.
According to Mr. Peat the biggest platform draws in America this season are Mrs. Roosevelt, Mr. H. G. Wells and Mr. Thomas Mann, with the author of "Kipps" an easy first, Lecturers' fees vary. according to fame, from £25 to £700. A figure higher than this last sum is said to have been received by Admiral Byrd for one lecture.
The late Sir Austen Chamberlain was frequently seen at the United University Club. As a contrast his brother, the Prime Minister, rarely makes an appearance at the Carlton, which was until recently his only club. Mr. Chamberlain, fisherman and bird-lover, is more fond of solitude than is customary with leading British politicians, But Mr. Chamberlain has now been elected to another club, the Athencum, under Rule 2. This provides for the annual election by the committee of distinguished men in the public service, literature or the fine arts. Mr. Noel Coward preceded him a short time ago and Lord Nuffield accompanies him now. Lord Nuffield. of course, is a man of many clubs. Tt will be interesting to see if this honour conferred upon the Prime Minister will lead him to take a more prominent part in club life.
London abounds in unorthodox "healers." Some, obviously, are quacks; others, despite the frowns or smiles of the medical profession, frequently achieve astounding results, Particularly when dealing with subnormal types. One treatment for nervous diseases is a combination of psychology and painting. Its exponent, claims that painting has remarkable durative powers; that a study of the rules and laws of art disciplines the mind of the unbalanced person, who acquires concentration and self-possession as he progresses,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.