Aftermath
The deaths of Douglas, Croz, Hadow and Hudson led to years of recriminations and debate, many blaming Whymper, others suggesting sabotage and even murder. The coroner in Zermatt (a hotelier) asked few searching questions, and the climbing fraternity was deeply divided over the matter until long after the deaths of all concerned. The incident is seen as marking the end of the Golden age of alpinism.
The Rev. Arthur G. Butler was inspired to defend the climbing of the Matterhorn in verse:
| “ | We were not what we are Without that other fiery element— The love, the thirst for venture, and the scorn That aught should be too great for mortal powers. |
” |
Two years after Lord Francis Douglas's death, his brother the Marquess of Queensberry achieved fame as the man who gave his name to the Marquess of Queensberry rules of boxing. Forty years on, as the father of Lord Alfred Douglas, he became the man who brought down Oscar Wilde. Their sister Lady Florence Dixie also came to public attention, as a traveller, war correspondent, writer and feminist. Their brother Lord James Douglas suffered for many years from depression and alcoholism, and in 1891 he killed himself by cutting his throat.
A book about the death of Douglas and his companions, The First Descent of the Matterhorn, by Alan Lyall, was published in 1997.
Read more about this topic: Lord Francis Douglas
Famous quotes containing the word aftermath:
“The aftermath of joy is not usually more joy.”
—Mason Cooley (b. 1927)