It may be some encouragement to those ladies with literary aspirations to learn that Baroness Orczy - who, among other notable books, wrote " The Scarlet Pimpernel," one of the most successful novels of recent years, which, in dramatised form, has also broken stage records - did not commence to write until she was over thirty years of age. As a matter of fact, the Baroness - who is an Hungarian by birth, and who did not see England until she was about fifteen years of age - intended to become an artist. On several occasions she exhibited at the Royal Academy, one of her most successful pictures being " A Jolly Young Waterman," which was exhibited in 1892. It was while studying art that she met her husband, Mr. Montagu Barstow, a well-known artist, and for some years after their marriage she assisted him in doing illustrations for books and magazines. Her desertion of painting for writing came about in this way. She and her husband were staying with a family whose chief recreation was the writing of stories and reading them to each other. Fired by the example of this storytelling family, the Baroness began to write short stories herself, and met with instant success. Then came " The Scarlet Pimpernel," written in collaboration with her husband - a story which has been translated into over a dozen foreign languages. Since then the Baroness has written quite a number of popular stories - notably " A Son of the People," " I Will Repay," " Beau Brocade," and a sequel to "The Scarlet Pimpernel "-" The Elusive Pimpernel."

Baroness Orczy Lyddell Sawyer