I can do it, Margaret told herself, as she set off back through the snow towards Dalkeith Palace. Ex adversis dulcis. Ex adversitas felicitas. A favourite quote of her father’s. “From adversity comes strength and happiness.” Something else for her to heed. As soon as she got indoors she would write to her parents, and if they didn’t reply, she would write again and again until they took her seriously.

Turning in through the gates, she was surprised to see Molly rushing towards her, waving something in the air. “It’s a telegram, Lady Margaret,” she said, smiling. “From your father. It looks like they haven’t abandoned you after all.”

Margaret grabbed the envelope with a squeal of delight. It looked like opportunity had knocked sooner than she dared imagine!

Telegram from the Duke of Buccleuch to Lady Margaret

Telegram from the Duke of Buccleuch to Lady Margaret

Drumlanrig, 25 December 1865

NOTIFICATION OF URGENT CHANGE OF PLAN. PREPARE TO DEPART FOR LONDON ON THE FIRST AVAILABLE TRAIN. MAID TO ESCORT YOU. MONTAGU HOUSE WILL BE OPENED TO RECEIVE. ON NO ACCOUNT MAKE YOUR RETURN TO THE CAPITAL KNOWN TO ANYONE UNTIL HER GRACE AND I ARE ABLE TO JOIN YOU. ALL WILL BE EXPLAINED AT THAT JUNCTURE.

BUCCLEUCH

The Morning Post, Saturday, 23 December 1865

The Morning Post, Saturday, 23 December 1865

A CAUTIONARY TALE FOR OUR TIMES

Regular readers will recall our dismay at the sudden departure of Lady M——, second daughter of the Duke and Duchess of B——, from London society back in July. The young lady was taken suddenly ill at a ball given in her honour by her esteemed parents (often acclaimed as the de facto Scottish royal family) at which a most significant announcement was anticipated.

Nothing more had been heard of Lady M—— since her retreat to one of the family homes near Edinburgh until yesterday, when a certain personage closely connected with the Duke of B——’s London household contacted us. We can now reveal the true sequence of events leading to Lady M——’s departure from the capital. Scandalous and shocking in the extreme, we cannot see how the lady in question can ever be redeemed in the eyes of society. We recount the details reluctantly, in the hope that it proves a salutary lesson to our young and still blessedly innocent female readers.