She did not hesitate to openly express her sympathy with the American colonies, and bravely defended their cause.
At Strawberry Hill Mrs. Damer dispensed a generous hospitality, and many distinguished persons were her guests; Joanna Baillie, Mrs. Siddons, Mrs. Garrick, and Mrs. Berry and her daughters were of her intimate circle.
She was fond of the theatre and frequently acted as an amateur in private houses. She was excellent in high comedy and recited poetry effectively. Mrs. Damer was one of the most interesting of Englishwomen at a period of unusual excitement and importance.
When seventy years old she was persuaded to leave Strawberry Hill, and Lord Waldegrave, on whom it was entailed, took possession. Mrs. Damer then purchased York House, the birthplace of Queen Anne, where she spent ten summers, her winter home being in Park Lane, London.
She bequeathed her artistic works to a relative, directed that her apron and tools should be placed in her coffin, and all her letters destroyed, by which she deprived the world of much that would now be historically valuable, since she had corresponded with Nelson and Fox, as well as with other men and women who were active in the important movements of her time. She was buried at Tunbridge, Kent.
Dassel, Mrs. Herminie, whose family name was Borchard. Daughter of a Prussian gentleman, who, having lost his fortune, came to the United States in 1839. His children had enjoyed the advantages of education and of an excellent position in the world, but here, in a strange
