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The arrival of the Marquis de Morès was, on the other hand, barely noticed in the press. The China Mail merely reported in its shipping column: 'Arrived Per Calédonien for Hong Kong from Marseilles. Marquis de Morès. Also Marquis de Morès servant'.* The Marquis had boarded the Calédonien, a Messageries Maritimes vessel, at Marseilles on 20 October and had arrived in Hong Kong on 22 November, eight days after Mayréna had taken a room at the Hong Kong Hotel. The Marquis was accompanied by William Van Driesche,' who in fact was not a servant but the Marquis' private secretary or rather homme de confiance. Because Government House was overflowing with guests, Morès had been forced to seek a lodging in the town and had booked into the Hong Kong Hotel. But Morès was not interviewed by any diligent reporter and we have, therefore, no contemporary description of the Marquis' personality or of his bearing and appearance in Hong Kong.*
Both Mayréna and Morès visited Government House, though not on the same occasions. Morès was invited to dine with the Des Voeux because they knew the Marquis's father, the Duke of Vallombrosa,* and had visited him in 1866 and 1872 at his villa 'des Tours' in Nice. Morès brought a letter of introduction from his father. Des Voeux states that he knew nothing of his extraordinary past, which is now so notorious that it is unnecessary to refer to it. At the time of his arrival my house was full, and so I was unable to ask him to stay with us, as I should certainly have done otherwise in memory of hospitality received from his family. But he dined with us several times, and we found him to be decidedly clever, and, I am bound to say, as agreeable and amusing as he was good-looking. His experiences, however, had been of such a wild nature that I was not altogether sorry for the accident which caused him to be a guest at an hotel instead of Government House.10
Mayréna's audience with Des Voeux took place on 15 November, the day after he landed in Hong Kong. We know that Mayréna had contrived the meeting and that Des Voeux was curious to see this strange visitant from pagan Sedang, a country about which nothing was then known in Hong Kong. This is confirmed by Des Voeux himself who states that Mayréna had
30
FL. J. LETHBRIDGE
The arrival of the Marquis de Morès was, on the other hand, barely noticed in the press. The China Mail merely reported in its shipping column: 'Arrived Per Calédonien for Hong Kong from Marseilles. Marquis de Morès. Also Marquis de Morès servant".* The Marquis had boarded the Calédonien, a Messageries Mari- times vessel, at Marseilles on 20 October and had arrived in Hong Kong on 22 November, eight days after Mayréna had taken a room at the Hong Kong Hotel. The Marquis was accompanied by William Van Driesche,' who in fact was not a servant but the Marquis' private secretary or rather homme de confiance. Because Government House was overflowing with guests, Morès had been forced to seek a lodging in the town and had booked into the Hong Kong Hotel. But Morès was not interviewed by any diligent re- porter and we have, therefore, no contemporary description of the Marquis' personality or of his bearing and appearance in Hong Kong,"
Both Mayréna and Morès visited Government House, though not on the same occasions. Morès was invited to dine with the Des Voeux because they knew the Marquis's father, the Duke of Vallombrosa," and had visited him in 1866 and 1872 at his villa 'des Tours' in Nice, Morès brought a letter of introduction from his father. Des Voeux states that he knew nothing
of his extraordinary past, which is now so notorious that it is unnecessary to refer to it. At the time of his arrival my house. was full, and so I was unable to ask him to stay with us, as I should certainly have done otherwise in memory of hospitality received from his family. But he dined with us several times, and we found him to be decidedly clever, and, I am bound to say, as agreeable and amusing as he was good-looking. His experiences, however, had been of such a wild nature that I was not altogether sorry for the accident which caused him to be a guest at an hotel instead of Government House.1o
Mayréna's audience with Des Voeux took place on 15 Novem- ber, the day after he landed in Hong Kong. We know that Mayréna had contrived the meeting and that Des Voeux was curious to see this strange visitant from pagan Sedang, a country about which nothing was then known in Hong Kong. This is confirmed by Des Voeux himself who states that Mayréna had
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