Lady Dorothy Nevill

"My learned and accomplished friend, , has written a most interesting history, entitled One Generation of a Norfolk House. It is more or less the history of the in early times."

"Among the political squibs in my scrap-book there is one directed against the over-taxation which in long-past days certainly did press heavily upon the people of England. Exceedingly well written, it is, I believe, an extract from an article by Sydney Smith, published in the ' about 1820."

"I remember a story that my great-grandmother, who never drove out but in a carriage and four with outriders, one day met with a mishap, her coach breaking down. In this terrible state of affairs no one knew what to do, my grandmother sitting, ruffled but dignified, in the carriage, the wheels of which seemed damaged beyond repair. Matters seemed at a complete standstill, till a servant of a daringly brilliant and inventive turn of mind ventured to suggest that her ladyship might possibly walk to her mansion, not far away; and, wonderful to relate, she actually managed to do it. As a matter of fact, the rendered exercise almost impossible for ladies."

"Amongst other pictures which I remember in was the famous now in the , as well as a fine portrait of and another of e—both presents from the Cardinal and the poet to ."

"My dear mother was a great friend of the poet Samuel Rogers, and we often went to his breakfasts, which were at that time celebrated, for there were usually one or two great people present. His house at 22, was filled with pictures and curiosities; on a sideboard in the dining-room was a cast of the head of Pope by , whilst between the the fireplace and window was the poet's writing-table; there was an ingenious mechanical contrivance by means of which the larger pictures in the house could be moved from their place so as to be viewed in different lights. The library and drawing-room were on the first floor, the book-cases being surmounted by s, whilst by Sir Joshua Reynolds, hung over one of the two mantelpieces — the other, beautifully carved by , was crowned, I think, by a study by ; altogether, there were six or seven Reynolds's in the house, which was a real haven of artistic rest and repose."

"Not very far from is the quaint old town of , which, I believe, took its name from the de Pydeles, one of those Norman families which came into England with the Conqueror. The church is particularly interesting, being one of the very few unrestored ones in —a county which has suffered terribly at the hands of the . ... If only because Puddletown Church is the church of Mr. Hardy's ', it should be left untouched."

"During my childhood at Islington the vicar of Puddletown was of the fox-hunting sort, quite different to the modern conception of a clergyman. He was popular enough with his parishioners, though I suspect he never saw half of them till they came up to be buried."

"Lady Dorothy Nevill is the most interesting of all known and recognized nonagenarians. The very title of her new book indicates the long backward reach of her memory. She was a little girl when died. She has lived to see the accession of She loves the old days, but she is no bigoted admirer of the old ways. She recognizes that, on the whole, the march of progress has uplifted classes and masses alike, though at some temporary loss, among the first, in charm and distinction of manner, and, among the second, in color and atmosphere."

"Writing a grief-stricken epitaph to Lady Dorothy Nevill née Walpole in 1913, the English poet and then librarian of the , Edmund Gosse observed, ‘life was a spectacle for her and society a congress of little s.’ ... Gosse conjures up an image of Lady Dorothy as a master manipulator, pulling the strings of her many puppets over the years, thus suggesting the influential position this aristocratic woman held in society throughout her long life. Born into the historical dynasty of the Walpole family, Lady Dorothy (1826–1913) was the daughter of the . She grew up at reading the correspondence of , the one-time ambassador to , and stated proudly that ‘like my kinsman Horace Walpole I am fond of collecting’. ... Lady Dorothy gained acclaim as a botanist, a political hostess, one of the founding members of the , an art collector, and a supporter of writers, s, and artists, many of whom she patronized."