144 THE CECILS
to the Queen, and colonel in 1860 ; Treasurer of the Household, 1866 7 ; sworn of the Privy Council, 1866 ; Captain of the Corps of Gentle- men-at-Arms, 1867 8 and 1874 5. But his chief interest lay in the management of his estates, which were considerably encumbered by his father's extravagance, and by the prevailing depression. On all matters connected with agri- culture he was a recognised authority, and he achieved greatness in pisciculture and in breeding shorthorns. Though obliged to cut down his establishment, he liberally supported all local charities, and performed his duties as a magistrate and as a guardian. He was also an enthusiastic yachtsman, and a general favourite among all classes.
The third Marquess married Georgina Sophia Pakenham, daughter of the Earl of Longford, a foolish woman, of whom Peel said he thought she was " the sort of person who would do pretty well for a public man ; she wouldn't ask what the division was when he came home. " l They had four sons and six daughters. The eldest son, Brownlow, who succeeded his father in 1895 at the age of forty-six, enjoyed the title and estates for only a short three years. But he had lived for some time at Deeping St. James, between Spalding and Stamford, and was well known and immensely popular in the district. He had been Captain in the Grenadier Guards (in which regiment his two brothers, Lord William Cecil and Lord John
1 Sir M. Grant Duff, Notes from a Diary, January 25th, 1894.
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