Full text of "Thirty years in Washington; or, Life and scenes in our national capital. Portraying the wonderful operations in all the great departments, and describing every important function of our national government ... With sketches of the presidents and their wives ... from Washington's to Roosevelt's administration"

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NYPL RESEARCH LIBRARIES

3 3433 08188348 4

A. /

THE

)RK

PUBLIC LIBRARY

MRS. PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT SEATED AT HER DESK IN THE

LIBRARY OF THE REMODELED WHITE HOUSE.

From her latest photograph, approved by herself, and engraved

expressly for this book.

THE
NEW YORK
'JSUCLIBRARY^

- -

" ' ' '

THIRTY YEARS IN WASHINGTON

Life and Scenes in Our National Capital.

TORTRAYING

THE WONDERFUL OPERATIONS IN ALL THE GREAT DEPARTMENTS, AND

DESCRIBING EVERY IMPORTANT FUNCTION OF OUR

NATIONAL GOVERNMENT,

INCLUDING ITS

historical, Crccuttbc, Sltjnvintstratujc, ^Departmental, 9Lrttcstir, ano Social

jFcaturce.

WITH SKETCHES OP

THE PRESIDENTS AND THEIR WIVES

AND OF

ALL THE FAMOUS WOMEN WHO HAVE REIGNED IN THE WHITE HOUSE

From Washington's to Roosevelt's Administration.

EDITED

By Mrs. JOHN A. LOGAN.

Ma''n Entrance to the White House.

^ttpcrblp 3fllustratcU

WITH FIFTY FULL-PAGE PHOTOGRAVURE PLATE- PROM PHOTOGRAPHS MADE BY SPECIAL
PERMISSION OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT EXPRESSLY FOR THIS WORK.

A. D. WORTHINGTON & CO., Publishers,
HARTFORD, CONN.

frHE NEW YO:

I public libra;

309951-

A8TOR, LENOX AND
TILDEN FOUNDATIONS.

-jj> inn-: L.

[ALL

RESERVED]

Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1901,
By A. D. Worthington & Company,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C.

Co TObom ttoav ^CCTn:-^^^^!*^,^

the Puonshers
11RTY YEARS
IN WASHINGTON," by subscription only, is protected by decisions of the United
States Courts. These decisions are by the U. S. Circuit Court of Ohio, rendered by
Judge Hammond, and by the U. S. Circuit Court of Pennsylvania, rendered by
Judge Butler, and are that "when a subscription book publishing house, in connec-
tion with the author, elects to sell a book purely by subscription and does so sell it,
through agents that are agents in the legal sense and not independent purchasers
of the books, the house and author are entitled to the protection of the Courts against
any bookseller who invades their rights by an attempt to buy and sell a book so pub-
lished and sold."

Hence, this is to notify booksellers and the public that all our agents are under
contract, as our agents, to sell this book by subscription only, and to individual sub-
scribers for their own use. They have no right whatever to sell it in any other way,
as books are furnished to them only for delivery to individual subscribers ; and any
interference with our agents to induce them to sell contrary to their contract obliga-
tions and our rights, or any sale of this book by any one not an authorized agent,
will entitle us to the protection of the Courts.

Notice is also hereby given that this copy of "THIRTY YEARS IN WASH-
INGTON " can be identified wherever found, together with the name of the agent
to whom the publishers supplied it ; and the detection of persons supplying it to
booksellers, and the offering of it for sale by a bookseller, will be sufficient justification
for us to institute proceedings against both bookseller and agent.

We trust this notice will be received in the kindly spirit in which it is given, as
it is made simply to protect the author, ourselves, and our agents against infringe-
ments which rob us of the legitimate fruits of our labor and investment.

Agents and all other persons are requested to inform us at once of the offering
of any copies of this book for sale by any bookseller, or by any person not our
accredited agent.

THE PUBLISHERS.

[N presenting this volume, in the preparation of

which the utmost care has been takeu, and no

expense considered too great, I have endeavored

Hs^ to meet the demand for a story of the birth

Fand growth of our National Capital, and for a
comprehensive and interesting description of the
countless and mighty interests that center there. Few
citizens of the United States really appreciate the number
and magnitude of the Departments of the Government, or
realize how marvelously the volume of business has ex-
panded as the population of our ever-widening domain has
increased. Many otherwise well-informed people are un-
familiar with the workings of the giant activities carried
on in these Departments, and much of what I have written
will doubtless be a revelation to them.

The sketches of the Presidents of the great Republic,

from Washington to McKinley, together with those of the

ladies of the White House, whose influence has often been

" the power behind the throne," I am sure will claim the in-

1 (i)

11 PREFACE.

terested attention of my readers. The lives and personality
of these women have been overshadowed, historically speak-
ing, by the more prominent careers of their distinguished
husbands or relatives. Every woman will read with pride
the record of these women who were called to fill the most
prominent and difficult position in the gift of the people. In
almost every instance they were lovely and admirable char-
acters. Most of them were equipped by birth, education,
and social acquirements to adorn this high position ; and
some possessed a rare combination of gifts and graces
that made them pre-eminent as social queens, and made their
reign, as mistress of the White House, a part of our National
history.

My first introduction to life in the city of Washington
was in 1858, General Logan being then a member of Con-
gress, and for more than thirty years I have lived there
almost continuously, an interested observer of passing
events. As the wife of a Senator, I may say that I
enjoyed unusual privileges and opportunities to see and
know the inner life and activities of the Capital City. I
have had my share of the favor of the powers that
were, and the honor of being included among the distin-
guished guests at both private and official entertainments ;
and I have known the pleasure of personal acquaintance
with prominent statesmen, courtly diplomats, gallant com-
manders of our Army and Navy, famous scientists and
authors, and beautiful, winning, and gifted women, filling
with grace and dignity the highest social positions that the
people could bestow. In these years there have been
stormy political times, and troubled years of cruel war,

PREFACE. Ill

when the very existence of the Nation was threatened,
and many happy, prosperous years of peace. Through all,
our great Republic has steadily advanced to the highest
station among the ruling powers of the world.

What I have written has been without prejudice, and
with no striving for sensational effect. I know whereof 1
affirm, and this volume may be looked upon as reliable,
whether in its historical review of the birth and development
of our National Capital ; its presentation of the official duties
and responsibilities of those who occupy high or humble po-
sitions in the government service ; its account of the marvel-
ously interesting workings of great administrative forces;
its biographical sketches of famous characters; its descrip-
tions of remarkable events; or its portrayal of everyday
life in a city that, from a straggling village in the woods,
has grown to be one of the most stately and magnificent of
capitals, vying with those of the Old World in picturesque-
ness, majestic and splendid architecture, artistic decoration,
unique and manifold government industries, and surpassing
all of them in its collections of relics and curiosities from
every part of the world.

It has been my aim to show my readers, both by word
and pictorial art, the wonders and the workings of the elab-
orate machinery of the Government in motion, by leading
them through the great national buildings and explaining
what the army of busy men and women workers do and
how they do it; to show them the works of art, and the
architectural glories and priceless treasures of the Capital ;
to portray not only daily life at the White House, past and
present, but its brilliant social and official functions as

PREFACE.

well ; in short, to present every interesting phase of life in
Washington.

My desire is to be remembered as an intelligent guide,
leading the reader on from one scene of interest to another,
awakening the mind to a finer comprehension of our
country's greatness, and inspiring all with a higher and
more devoted patriotism.

.JlBiainlg from prjotograpbtf taftm erpres's'l)? for tbi0 ujorft b? permission of tbe

ZSnitcb ^tatej* <©otoernment.

1. PORTRAIT OF MRS. JOHN A. LOGAN . . . Frontispiece

Engraved for this work from a photograph taken expressly for it.

2. MAIN ENTRANCE TO THE WHITE HOUSE . . Title page

3. ORNAMENTAL HEADING TO PREFACE i

4. ENGRAVED AUTOGRAPH OF MRS. JOHN A. LOGAN . iv

5. ORNAMENTAL HEADING TO LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

6. ORNAMENTAL HEADING TO CONTENTS

7. ORNAMENTAL HEADING TO CHAPTER I

XIll

33
83

8. EAST FRONT OF THE UNITED STATES CAPITOL, AS SEEN
FROM THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS (Full Page) Facing

The building covers nearly four acres, and was seventy-four years in
process of construction. It cost, including the land, about $16,000,000. The
Senate Witig is at the right ; the House Wing at the left. The great cast-
iron dome weighs 4,500 tons, required ei^ht years for its construction, and
cost over $1,000,000. The bronze Statue of Liberty that surmounts the dome
is 19 feet 6 inches high, weighs 7^ tons, and cost over $24,000.

9. FLOOR PLAN OF THE PRINCIPAL STORYOFTHE CAPITOL 88

(v)

VI LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

10. A SECTION OF STATUARY HALL IN THE CAPITOL (Full

Page) Facing 94

Statuary Hall is the old Hall of Representatives, now dedicated as a Memo-
rial Hall. Here are placed the statues of heroes and statesmen who in life
were devoted to the service of the nation. Each State may contribute marble
or bronze figures of two of her most illustrious deceased sons. Many States
are represented.

11. A SECTION OF STATUARY HALL IN THE CAPITOL (Full

Page) Facing 104

The most majestic room in the Capitol. Here are many notable bronze
and marble statues of the illustrious dead, those who helped to found and up-
build the nation. The statues are contributed by their respective States.

12. DIAGRAM OF THE FLOOR OF THE HOUSE OF REPRE-

SENTATIVES Ill

13. DIAGRAM OF THE FLOOR OF THE SENATE . . . .114

14. THE EXECUTIVE MANSION, POPULARLY KNOWN AS THE

WHITE HOUSE (Full Page) Facing 130

The official residence of the President and his family. The view is of the
north or main entrance front, as seen from Pennsylvania Avenue. It was
begun in 1792, and cost, to the present time, over $1,700,000. Some of the
rooms on the first floor are open to visitors from 10 a. m. to 2 p. m. daily,
except Sunday. The number of visitors has been known to exceed over 3,000
in a single day.

15. MAIN FLOOR PLAN OF THE WHITE HOUSE ... 134

16. THE FAMOUS EAST ROOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full

Page) Facing 138

Showing its daily throng of tourists and visitors. It is open to the public
every day from 10 a. m. to 2 p. m. except Sunday, and is annually visited by
tens of thousands of people. Anyone may enter this room without introduc-
tion or formality. Its three immense crystal chandeliers cost $15,000. Public
receptions are here held by the President, and millions of people have passed
through this historic room.

17. THE FAMILY DINING ROOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full

Page) Facing 146

For the private use of the President, his family, and their guests. It is on
the main floor, but is never shown to visitors.

18. THE STATE DINING ROOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full

Page) Facing 152

Used only for formal state dinners given by the President to high officials.
The President sits at the middle of the farther side of the table. In front of his
seat is a plat sixteen feet long, made up of orchids and ferns, and at intervals
nine other plats similarly decorated, and sixteen vases filled with roses.
About twenty dozen orchids, as many roses, and 500 pots of ferns are used to
decorate the table. The set of cut glass consists of 520 pieces, and cost $6,000.
The set of china consists of 1,500 pieces, each piece exquisitely decorated.

19. THE FAMILY KITCHEN IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full

Page) Facing 158

The family kitchen is for the exclusive use of the presidential family, and is
never shown to visitors. There is another kitchen in the White House where
state dinners are prepared, and which is used only on such occasions.

20. SECOND STORY PLAN OF THE WHITE HOUSE . . . 165

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Vll

21. UPPER CORRIDOR IN THE WHITE HOUSE, SHOWING EN-
TRANCE TO THE PRESIDENT'S PRIVATE OFFICE (Full
Page) Facing 171

The arch is at the top of a flight of stairs that ascend from the main en-
trance. An official messenger with important papers is about to enter the
President's office. The doorkeeper, always on duty, is at the left. Bronze
busts of Washington and Lincoln are on either side of the arch.

22. THE PRESIDENT'S PRIVATE OFFICE IN THE WHITE

HOUSE (Full Page) Facing 172

The beautiful and massive oak table used by the President was made from
limbers of the British vessel Resolute, which was abandoned in the Arctic Sea
while searching for Sir John Franklin in 18,54, but recovered by American
whalers. It is a gift from Queen Victoria, and has a suitable inscription on a
silver plate which can be seen facing the President's chair.

23. INSIDE THE WHITE HOUSE. OFFICE OF THE SECRE-
TARY TO THE PRESIDENT (Full Page) . . Facing 179

Showing assistant secretaries and clerks at their daily work. This room
is on the second floor of the White House and near the President's private
office.

24. THE CABINET ROOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full

Page) . Facing 185

In this room Cabinet meetings are held and important national questions
are discussed by the President and his Cabinet. Around this historic table
many of the greatest men in our history have been seated in council Here the
policy of the administration and the destiny of the nation is shaped. The walls
are adorned with many portraits of ex-Presidents. The President's flag may
be seen in the glass case behind the table.

25. THE LIBRARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE (Full

Page) Facing 191

Showing the steel safe in which are deposited the originals of the Declar-
ation of Independence and the Constitution of the United States, now no
longer exhibited to the public. Many rare and valuable volumes are depos-
ited here.

26. FACSIMILE OF THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

(Insert) 193-6

The original Declaration was almost ruined early in the nineteenth cen-
tury in securing a facsimile for a copper plate. The process caused the ink to
fade and the parchment to deteriorate. The original document and the copper
plate are now deposited for safe keeping in a steel safe in the Library of the
Department of State, and are inaccessible to the public. The full text of the
original document is still legible, but the signatures have, with but few excep-
tions, utterly vanished. The facsimile shown above was photographed from
a perfect copy loaned by the Department of State for use in this volume.

A MYSTERY OF THE TREASURY. SOPHIA HOLMES, A
COLORED JANITRESS, DISCOVERING $21)0.000 IN BANK
BILLS IN A WASTE PAPER BOX IN THE TREASURY ( Full
Page) Facing 213

Upon the arrival of General Spinner, Treasurer of the United States, at
midnight, accompanied by the night watchman, Sophia removed the top layer
of waste paper from the box, pointed to the huge pile of bills beneath, and told
her story to the astonished Treasurer. She was retained in office by the Gov-
ernment until her death, in 1900, a period of thirty-eight years. The mystery
of how this large sum of money found its way into the box has never been
explained to the public.

Vlll LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

28. BUSY WORKERS IN THE TREASURY. THE ROOM WHERE

PRINTED SHEETS OF UNCLE SAM'S PAPER DOLLARS
ARE SEPARATED (Full Page) .... Facing 223

Bank notes are printed four on a sheet, and are separated into single
bills by machines run by women. The bills are then counted and sealed in
packages. Over ioo pounds of wax a month is used in sealing the packages.
Formerly the bills were cut apart by women armed with long shears. Hun-
dreds of millions of dollars have passed through this room.

29. HOW UNCLE SAM MAKES HIS MONEY. THE ENGRAVING

ROOM WHERE UNITED STATES NOTES, BONDS, STAMPS,
ETC., ARE ENGRAVED (Full Page) . . . Facing 229

All the beautiful designs embodied in Uncle Sam's bills, notes, stamps, and
checks are engraved in this room. The most expert engravers in the world
are here employed by the Government, some of them receiving a salary of
$6,ooo a year. The Government owns 65,000 dies, rolls, plates, etc., used in
printing its securities. They are guarded with the greatest care.

30. MAKING MONEY. ONE OF THE ROOMS WHERE UNCLE

SAM'S PAPER DOLLARS ARE PRINTED (Full Page)
Facing 235

All Government notes, bills, bonds, stamps, etc., are printed by hand. No
method for printing successfully from steel plates by machinery has ever
been devised. Each press is run by a.n experienced printer, assisted by a
woman.

31. INSIDE THE TREASURY. THE ROOM IN WHICH UNCLE

SAM'S PAPER DOLLARS ARE NUMBERED AND TRIMMED
(Full Page) .... .... Facing 238

All bank notes, bills, and securities, excepting pension checks, are num-
bered in this room by machines run by women. Great skill and experience
are required. Mistakes are frequent, but each woman is allowed to spoil ten
out of every thousand sheets. The numbering machines are on the left, the
trimming machines on the right.

32. WOMEN'S WORK IN THE TREASURY. COUNTING UNCLE

SAM'S NEWLY PRINTED DOLLARS (Full Page) Facing 245

Every dollar and all the bonds issued by the Government have passed
through the hands of these expert counters, who count and examine more
than a million dollars a day with a celerity that is perfectly astonishing. It is
impossible to count the rapid movements of the fingers of any one of these
women. Each one will average counting 32,000 notes a day. They do noth-
ing but count all day long, week after week and year after year. No one in
the world has handled so many dollars as they.

33. WOMEN'S WORK IN THE TREASURY. COUNTING, IDEN-

TIFYING, AND ASSORTING WORN-OUT MONEY (Full
Page) Facing 249

All worn-out money returned to the Government by National Banks or
from other sources to be " redeemed " is first counted and assorted by expert
women, who, at the same time, keep a keen eye for counterfeits. More than
$160,000 of worn-out money is here daily received for redemption. Each
counter sits at a desk by herself, that the money committed to her care may
not become mixed with that to be counted by any other person.

34. WOMEN EXPERTS IN THE TREASURY IDENTIFYING

BURNED MONEY FOR REDEMPTION (Full Page) Facing 252

On the expert's desk is a lot of burned bills, and she, with a magnifying

flass, is in the act of determining their denomination. In her left hand she
olds a new, perfect bill for comparison. On the top of her desk are bundles
containing thousands of dollars of mutilated bills awaiting identification.
Money has here been received as taken from the stomachs of animals, and
from the bodies of drowned human beings ; some of it has been chewed up by
pigs, goats, and mice, or lain at the bottom of rivers for years.

LIST OF [ILLUSTRATIONS. IX

35. THE FUNERAL OP' UNCLE SAM'S PAPER DOLLARS. THE

TREASURY DESTRUCTION COMMITTEE DESTROYING
$.},D0J,tWJ IN PAPER MONEY (Pull Page) . . Facing 2ttl

Worn-out paper money is destroyed by being ground to pulp in the " mac-
erater." Treasury officials meet here for this purpose every day. After being
weighed, the money is deposited on a table, on otie side of which is a large
funnel leading through the floor to the maeerater, or boiler, beneath. When
all is ready, the huge pile of money is pushed into the funnel and a brawny
colored man hastens its progress into the maeerater with a pole. The largest
sum ever destroyed here at one time was $166,095,000.

36. UNITED STATES SECRET SERVICE DETECTIVES SUR-

PRISING A DEN OF COUNTERFEITERS (Full Page)

Facing 284

$100,000 is annually appropriated for the use of the Government Secret
Service. Its methods of work are naturally concealed from the public, but its
eyes are everywhere. The Chief of the Bureau can instantly place in the field
at any desired point a corps of the most capable and experienced detectives in
the world.

37. MAKING POSTAGE STAMPS. WOMEN SEPARATING AND

PERFORATING THE PRINTED SHEETS (Pull Page)

Facing 318

Each separated sheet contains 100 postage stamps. The perforating is
swiftly done by little machines, each tended by two women. In early days
the stamps were cut apart with scissors. The Government now manufactures
over four billion postage stamps every year.

38. WHO IS IT FOR? A SCENE IN THE DEAD-LETTER

OFFICE. EXPERTS TRYING TO DECIPHER AN ILLEG-
IBLE ADDRESS (Pull Page) Facing 332

Many apparently hopeless cases are brought to life and delivered to their
owners. Last year 2,321,000 letters, including money and values amounting
to $1,100,000, were delivered to owners; 5,393,000 unclaimed letters were
opened, and 4,283,000 letters were sold as waste paper. Some of the keenest-
witted officials in the Government service are employed in the Dead-Letter
Office, and some of the best experts are women.

39. FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT ELIZA-

BETH, N. J 33H

40. FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT JERSEY

CITY, N. J 337

41. FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT NEW-

ARK, N. J 339

42. FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT CAR-

TERET, N. J 33S)

43. FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT HART-

FORD, CONN 340

44. FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT HO-

BOKEN, N. J 341

45. FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT CLEVE-

LAND, N. Y 348

X LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

48. WOMEN'S WORK IN THE DEAD-LETTER OFFICE (Full

Page) Facing 344

An average of 33,000 pieces of dead mail matter are received in the Dead-
Letter Office every day, or over 7,000,000 pieces every year. Of these, last
year, over 50,500 letters contained $44,140 in money; 38,000 contained drafts,
notes, etc., representing $1,136,645. The "dead " mail for that year contained
177,000 parcels of merchandise, books, etc., and about 60,000 photographs;
81,600 letters and parcels bore no address ; 191,000 contained postage stamps ;
145,000 letters and parcels were held for postage ; misdirected, 422,000.

47. FORECASTING THE WEATHER IN THE INSTRUMENT

ROOM OF THE WEATHER BUREAU (Pull Page) Facing 404

The United States Weather Bureau is in close communication with over 200
sub-stations scattered throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the
West Indies. Weather telegrams have the right of way over all other tele-
graphic business. The illustration shows " weather sharps " at work forecast-
ing the weather. One of the Bureau's weather kites, which has been known
to rise to a height of nearly three miles, is seen decorating the ceiling at the
farther end of the room. The yearly cost of maintaining the Bureau is over
$1 ,000,000. Its telegraphic service costs over $180,000 a year.

48. THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, AS SEEN FROM THE CAP-

ITOL (Pull Page) Facing 418

The most beautiful and the costliest library building in the world. Com-
pleted in 1897 at a cost of nearly $7,000,000, including the land. It contains
about 1,000,000 books and forty-five miles of shelving. It is connected with
the Capitol by an underground book tunnel, through which books can be deliv-
ered to Senators and Congressmen in three minutes. The library service
requires a force of 341 persons.

49. FIRST-STORY PLAN, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS ... 424

50. SECOND-STORY PLAN, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS ... 429

51. THE PUBLIC READING ROOM IN THE LIBRARY OF CON-

GRESS (Pull Page) Facing 430

The central and most important part of the building. It is marked by a
magnificence of decoration and splendor of architecture surpassing every
other part of the edifice. It is paneled with the rarest of colored marbles in
great profusion and massive proportions. The room is 100 feet in diameter and
160 feet from the main floor to the apex of the dome. Seats are provided for
over two hundred readers.

52. INSIDE THE MAIN ENTRANCE TO THE LIBRARY OF CON-

GRESS (Full Page) Facing 440

No one is prepared for the vision that bursts upon him when he has passed
through the mammoth bronze doors. It is like entering into another world.
Visitors gaze in dumb amazement, as with uplifted eyes they seek to compre-
hend the beauty and the grandeur that pervade the place. The massive stair-
way is of white marble, delicately carved.

m. THE FOREST OF MARBLE PILLARS ON THE SECOND
FLOOR OF THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS (Full Page)
Facing 448

These massive white marble columns rise in majestic splendor. Through
them are seen glimpses of mural paintings and marvels of mosaic art, and
hundreds of decorative details wrought by famous artists.

54. MAIN FLOOR OF THE CORCORAN GALLERY OF ART

(Full Page) Faci?ig 453

This beautiful marble building contains over 4,000 works of art, including
casts of the most noted works of ancient sculpture, many original marbles, a
large-collection of famous bronzes, 250 valuable paintings, portraits of alt the
Presidents, etc. The value of the collection is over $2,000,000.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. XI

So. A SECTION OF THE MAIN FLOOR OF THE CORCORAN

GALLERY OF ART (Full Page) .... Facing 458

Showing some of the beautiful and notable statues and bronzes now on
permanent exhibition there.

56. BEAUTIFUL ARLINGTON, THE SILENT CITY OF THE

DEAD (Full Page) Facing 528

Here lie the remains of over 17,000 soldiers who died that the nation might
live. The stones are set in rows, uniform in distance one from the other, and
marshaled as battalions for review. Arlington was formerly the home of Gen-
-eral Robert E. Lee. It is the privilege of wives and daughters of soldiers
buried at Arlington to be buried here, and many a woman's grave is here
beside that of her husband or father.

57. FACE OF MONUMENT TO THE UNKNOWN DEAD OF THE

CIVIL WAR 535

58. TOMB AT ARLINGTON TO THE UNKNOWN DEAD OF THE

CIVIL WAR (Full Page) Facing 536

The bones of 2,111 unknown soldiers of the Civil War, whose remains
were gathered from various battlefields, are interred beneath this stone. At
the right, behind the trees, is the Temple of Fame, on whose columns are en-
graved the names of distinguished American soldiers. At the extreme left may
be seen a portion of the mansion owned by General Robert E. Lee until the
opening of the Civil War.

59. THE HOME OF GEORGE AND MARTHA WASHINGTON.

THE MANSION AT MOUNT VERNON AS IT IS TO-DAY.
(Full Page) Facing 544

Its venerable roof sheltered Washington and all he held most dear, from
youth to age. The room in which he died is the end room of the second
story, having two windows opening upon the roof of the veranda. The
dormer window in the attic above is the room in which Martha Washington
secluded herself for two and one-half years after her husband's death, and
here she died. It was chosen by her because its little window was the only one
in the mansion that commanded a view of his tomb.

60. THE ROOM IN WHICH WASHINGTON DIED AT MOUNT

VERNON (Full Page) Facing 557

The room was closed after his death and never again occupied. The bed
now in this room is the one on which he died. The small stand at the head of
the bed is the one on which his medicines were kept during his last illness.

61. THE OLD WASHINGTON TOMB AT MOUNT VERNON (Full

Page) Facing 558

The remains of Washington, and later those of his wife, were placed in
metal coffins and deposited in this vault. Here they remained until 1837, when
they were removed to the new tomb. The vault was once entered by vandals
and a skull and some bones were taken, but it was found that these comprised
no part of the remains of the illustrious dead. The new vault was then built,
and the family remains were removed to it.

62. THE NEW TOMB OF GEORGE AND MARTHA WASHINGTON

AT MOUNT VERNON (Full Page) .... Facing 562

Their remains now lie in this tomb, in separate marble coffins, hewn each
from a single block of marble. When they were deposited here, in 1837, the
tomb was locked and sealed and the key thrown into the Potomac river.

63. THE ATTIC ROOM AT MOUNT VERNON IN WHICH MAR-

THA WASHINGTON DIED (Full Page) . . Facing 576

Martha Washington secluded herself in this room for two and one-half
years after her husband's death, and here on this bed she died. Some of the
furniture was used by Washington's family. The room is a mere garret and
has but one small window.

Xii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

64. THE VESTIBULE IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full Page)

. Facing 586

The main entrance to the White House opens into this vestibule, which is
separated from the central corridor by a magnificent screen of stained-glass
mosaic, studded with cut crystal, which at night shines like the walls of an
enchanted palace. '

65. IN THE LIBRARY AT THE WHITE HOUSE (Full Page)

Facing 634

The stateliest room on the upper floor. It is sometimes used by the Presi-
dent as an official reception room, and sometimes as an evening sitting room
for the presidential family and their guests.

66. THE GREEN ROOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full Page)

Facing 648

A beautiful room furnished and decorated in delicate green, with gold
ornamentation. Notable portraits of famous men and women of the White
House adorn its wails. Here lay the body of Willie, the little son of Abra-
ham Lincoln, awaiting its journey to the grave. Mrs. Lincoln never again
entered this room.

67. THE EAST ROOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE DECORATED

FOR A STATE RECEPTION (Full Page) . . Facing 680

It is a rare sight to see this famous room decorated for a state function.
Over 5,000 decorative plants are used, ranging from giant palms to tiny and
delicate ferns. About a mile of smilax is required. The room is not open to
visitors when decorated for such occasions.

68. IN FRONT OF THE WHITE HOUSE DURING A NEW

YEAR'S RECEPTION (Full Page) .... Facing 694

Every grade of society is represented at a New Year's reception at the
White House, and the President welcomes courtly ambassadors and humble
laboring men with equal cordiality.

69. THE RED ROOM IN THE WHITE HOUSE (Full Page)

Facing 716

Used by the President and his family as a reception room. It is furnished
and decorated in red, and is one of the most attractive rooms in the White
House. At the left hangs a portrait of President Harrison's first wife, who
died in the YVhite House. At the right is a portrait of Mrs. President Hayes.
In the center, over the door, is a portrait of President Hayes. Many por-
traits of former Presidents look down from its walls.

70. THE PRESIDENT'S PRIVATE STAIRWAY IN THE WHITE

HOUSE (Full Page) Facing 724

For the exclusive use of the President and his family. It is near the
family dining room and leads from the first to the second floor.

71. PRESIDENT AND MRS. McKINLEY'S BEDROOM IN THE

WHITE HOUSE (Full Page) Facing 732

The room is furnished and decorated in blue. President McKinley's por-
trait is at the left; Mrs. McKinley's at the right. A portrait of their little
daughter, who died at the age of three years, is in the center.

CHAPTER I.

THE SITE OF THE NATIONAL CAPITAL AND HOW IT WAS
SELECTED — EARLY TROUBLES AND TRIALS.

The Prophet of the Capital — Forecasting the Future — A Government
Moving Slowly and Painfully Ahout on Wheels — Insulted by a Band
of Mutineers — Troubles and Trials — Washington's Humble Ideas of
a President's House — Renting and Furnishing a Modest Home —
Spartan Simplicity — Madison's Indignation — "Going West" —
Where is the Center of Population ? — A Dinner and What Came of
it — Sweetening a "Peculiarly Bitter Pill" — A "Revulsion of Stom-
ach " — End of a Long and Bitter Strife 33

CHAPTER II.

GENERAL WASHINGTON AND OBSTINATE DAVY BURNS-
HOW THE "WIDOW'S MITE" WAS SECURED — HOW AND
BY WHOM THE CITY WAS PLANNED.

Making Peace With Lords of Little Domains — " Obstinate Mr. Burns" —
A Pugnacious Scotchman — The " Widow's Mite" — A Graceful Sur-
render— Republicans in Theory but Aristocrats in Practice — Who
Was Major L'Enfant ?— A Lucky Circumstance — Plans that Were
Ridiculed — Men Who Did Not " Get On " Well Together — The Man
Who Worried President Washington — Demolishing Mansions With-
out Leave or License — An Uncontrollable Engineer — His Summary
Dismissal — Living Without Honor and Dying Without Fame — A
Quaker Successor of "Uncommon Talent" and "Placid Temper" —
Five Dollars a Day and " Expenses " — " Too Much "— A Colored
Genius for Mathematics — " Every Inch a Man " — Why the Capitol,
the White House, Were Set Far Apart 44

(xiii)

Xiv CONTENTS.

CHAPTER III.

BIRTH OF THE NATION'S CAPITOL — GRAPHIC PICTURES
OF EARLY DAYS — SACKED BY THE BRITISH — WASH-
INGTON DURING THE CIVIL WAR.

Raising the Money to Build the Capitol — Government Lottery Schemes —
Hunting for the Capital — "In the Center of the City" — Queer Sen-
sations— Dismal Scenes — Sacked by the British — "The Royal
Pirate"— Flight of the President— BurniDg of the White House —
Mrs" Madison Saves the Historic Painting of General Washington —
Paul Jennings' Account of the Retreat — Invaded by Torch Bearers
and Plunderers — A Memorable Storm — Midnight Silent Retreat of
the British — Disgraceful Conduct of "The Royal Pirate " — " Light
up!" — Setting Fire to the Capitol — Dickens' Sarcastic Description
of the Capital — "Such as It Is, It Is Likely to Remain" — When
the Civil War Opened — Dreary, Desolate, and Dirty — The Capital
During the War — Days of Anguish and Bloodshed. . . 53

CHAPTER IV.

BUILDING THE CAPITOL — HOW WASHINGTON AND JEFFER-
SON ADVERTISED FOR PLANS — COMPLETION OF THE
CAPITOL.

Early Trials and Tribulations— Schemers and Speculators — A "Front
Door in the Rear " — Seeking for Suitable Plans — A Troublesome
Question — Washington and Jefferson Advertise Premiums for the
Best Plan — A Curious "ad" — Some Remarkable Offerings — The
Successful Competitor — Carrying Off the Prize — Laying of the
Corner-Stone by President Washington — A Defeated Competitor's
Audacity — President Washington's Rage — Jealousies of Rivals —
Congress Sitting in "the Oven" — Crimination and Recrimination —
Building Additions to the Capitol — Hoodwinking Congress — How
the Money Was Appropriated to Build the Great Dome — A Successful
Ruse — Completion of the Building — Its Dimensions and Cost —
Curious Construction of the Great Dome 68

CHAPTER V.

A TOUR INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CAPITOL — INTEREST-
ING SIGHTS AND SCENES — UNDER THE GREAT DOME —
A PARADISE FOR VISITORS.

Entering the Capitol Grounds — Inside the Capitol — Bridal Pairs in
Washington — Where Do They Come From ? — Underneath the Capi-
tol— Using the Capitol as a Bakery — Turning Out 16,0U0 Loaves of
Bread Daily — Marble Staircases and Luxurious Furniture — In the
Senate Chamber and House of Representatives — Costly Paintings —
Bronzes and Statues — In the Rotunda — Under the Great Dome —

CONTENTS. XV

la Statuary Hall — Famous Statues and Works of Art— "Brother
Jonathan " — The Famous Marble Clock — The Scene of Fierce and
Bitter Wrangles — The Bronze Clock Whose Hands Are Turned
Back — A Colossal Statue Weighing Twenty-one Tons — Commodore
Hull's Expedition to Bring it to America — Climbing to the Top of
the Mighty Dome — Looking Down on the Floor of the Rotunda —
Under the Lantern — At the Tip-top of the Capitol. . 83

CHAPTER VI.

IN THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES— A
PEEP BEHIND THE SCENES - -CLAIMANTS AND LOBBY-
ISTS — GOVERNMENT PRIZES.

In the House of Representatives —Scenes of Confusion — The Speaker —
A Peep Behind the Scenes— " What Did They Do?" — A Visit to the
Senate— Playing Marbles Behind the Vice-President's Chair — Secret
Sessions— The Veil Lifted — A Senator's Amusing Experience -
Some Revelations —How the Senate Works— "Will Carp Eat Gold
Fish? " — Curious Requests — " We Want a Baby " — Women With
Claims — Professional Lobbyists and Their Ways — Button-holing Sen-
ators — " Who are They': ' — Importance of " Knowing the Ropes " —
Catching the Speaker's Eye — An Indignant Congressman — Catching
"the Measles, the Whooping-Cough, and the Influenza" — Shaves,
Hair-cuts, and Baths at Uncle Sam's Expense — Barbers as "Skilled
Laborers" — " Working a Committee." 109

CHAPTER VII.

A TOUR THROUGH THE WHITE HOUSE FROM ATTIC TO
CELLAR — WHITE HOUSE WEDDINGS AND TRAGEDIES.

Inside the White House — An Historic Mansion — Reminiscences of the
Past—" What Tales the Room Could Tell If It But Had a Tongue"—
Why It Is Called the White House — Its Cost — How To Gain Admis
sion— Its Famous Rooms and Their Furnishings— Invited To "Assist"

— The Great East Room — Chandeliers That Cost $5,000 Each —
Where Mrs. Adams "Dried the Family Wash " — Shaking Hands
with Sixty Thousand Persons — A Swollen Hand and a Lame Arm —
How an Old Lady Greeted the President— Trying To See the President

— Forbidden Rooms — The President's Private Apartments — Efforts
to Peep at the White House Kitchen — Indignant Visitors — Weddings
in the White House — Tragedies of the White House. . . 130

CHAPTER VIII.

DAILY LIFE AND SCENES AT THE WHITE HOUSE — THE
PRESIDENT'S DOMESTIC ARRANGEMENTS.

Official Entertainment at the White House — Social Customs — Daily Life
and Scenes—" His High Mightiness" — Onlv Plain "Mr. President"
— The President's Turnout — Why His Horses' Tails Are Not Docked

XVI CONTENTS.

— Public Receptions — Five Thousand Decorative Plants — State
Dinners — Who Are Invited — Their Cost — The Table and its Costly-
Furnishings — Decorating the Table — A Mile of Smilax — Rare China
and Exquisite Cut Glass — Who Pays for the Dinners — How the
Guests Are Seated — Guests Who Are Not Well-bred — In the Attic
of the White House — What May be Seen There — A Motly Collection
of Articles — " Home Comforts" — Selecting a New Outfit of Linen —
A Requisition for " Soap for the Bath Room " — " Proper and Neces-
sary" Purchases — Paying the Bills — Who Furnishes the Kettles
and Saucepans? — How the White House Is Guarded. . . 145

CHAPTER IX.

OFFICIAL LIFE AND WORK AT THE WHITE HOUSE — A DAY
IN THE PRESIDENT'S PRIVATE OFFICE.

— "Just To Pay My Respects" — The President's Mail — Requests
for Autographs — Begging Letters — A Door That Is Never Closed —
How the President Draws His Pay — A Deficit of One Cent. . 162

CHAPTER X.

THE CABINET — SHAPING THE DESTINY OF THE NATION —
THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE AND ITS ARCHIVES.

The Great Departments — The President's Cabinet — How It Is Formed
— "The Tail of the Cabinet " — "Keeping the Flies off the Administra-
tion" — In the Cabinet Room — What Takes Place at a Cabinet Meet-
ing— Spending More than His Salary — "Mr. Vice-President," "Mr.
Secretary," and "Mr. Speaker"— Two Miles of Marble Halls

— In the Office of the Secretary of State — Precious Heirlooms of
the Nation — How the Original Declaration of Independence Was
Ruined — Originals of All the Proclamations of the Presidents — The
United States Secret Cipher Code 181

CHAPTER XL

THE STORY OF THE UNITED STATES TREASURY — HOW
ITS SECRETS AND WORK ARE GUARDED — A THOUSAND
BUSY MAIDS AND MATRONS.

In the Office of the Secretary of the Treasury — The Treasury Vaults and
Dungeons — "Put the Building Right Here!" — A.n Army of Clerks

CONTENTS. XVII

— Where They Come From and Who They Are — Women Who Hare
Known 'Better Days" — The Struggle f->r " Office" — How Appoint-
ments Are Made —The Story of Sophia Holmes — Finding $200 (io0 in
a Waste Paper Box — $800,u0i» (Jul) in Gold and Silver — Inside the
Great Steel Cage — The Mysteries of the Treasury — Precautions
Against Burglary and Theft — Alarm Bells and Signals — Guarding
Millions of Treasure — How a Package Containing $2-). 000 Was Stolen

— The Man with a Panama Hat — A Package Containing .$47,01)0
Missing — Capture of the Thief — The Travels and Adventures of a
Dollar — From the Dainty Purses of Fair Women to the Grimy Hands
of Toil — When a Dollar Ceases To Be a Dollar. . . .201

CHAPTER XII.

MYSTERIES OF TOE TREASURY— HOW UNCLE SAM'S MONEY
IS MADE — WOMAN'S WORK IN THE TREASURY — WHAT
THEY DO AND HOW THEY DO IT.

The Story of a Greenback — The Bureau of Engraving and Printing —
The Great Black Wagon of the Treasury — Guarded by Armed Men
— Extraordinary Safeguards and Precautions — $4,000,000 in Twelve
Pounds of Paper — 200 Tons of Silver — Some Awe-Struck People —
Placing Obstacles in the Way of Counterfeiters — How the Original
Plates Are Guarded — Where and How the Plates Are Destroyed —
Secret Inks — Grimy Printers and Busy Women — Who Pays for the
Losses— Why Every Bank Bill Must Differ in One Respect from
Every Other — Marvelous Rapidity and Accuracy of the Counters —
The Last Count of All — Wonderful Dexterity of Trained Eyes and
Hands — Counting #25.000,000 a Week — Women Who Have Handled
More Money than Anyone Else in the World 223

CHAPTER XIII.

EXTRAORDINARY PRECAUTIONS AGAINST COUNTERFEIT-
ERS, BURGLARS. AND THIEVES — WOMEN AS EXPERT
COUNTERFEIT DETECTORS — THE FUNERAL OF A DOL-
LAR.

f>erience — A Michigan Tax Collector and His Goat — Women's Skill
n Restoring Worn-out Money — Bills Reeking with Filth — Detecting
Counterfeits — A Woman's Instinct — "That's Counterfeit!" — How
the Treasury Was Swindled by a Woman — An Ingenious Device —
Some Precious Packages — The Return of the Dollar — Nearing Ita
End — From a Palace to " a Pig's Stomach " — The Macerater — Chew-
ing Up Over $166,000,000 at One Gulp — The Funeral of a Dollar —
" Pulp It Was ; to Pulp It Has Returned." . . 24(J

xviii CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XIV.

OFFICIAL "RED TAPE"— SOME LITTLE-KNOWN ACTIVITIES
OF UNCLE SAM'S HOUSEHOLD— WONDERFUL WORK AND
ASTONISHING FACTS.

— Thousands of Dollars Not Called F<>r — How the Money Rolls into
Uncle Sam's Tills — Smugglers and Their Ways — A Dangerous Class
of Def rauders — A Wonderful Pair of Scales — Some Astonishing
Facts About Weights and Measures 262

CHAPTER XV.

THE UNITED STATES SECRET SERVICE — HOW COUNTER-
FEITERS, DEFAULTERS, AND THIEVES ARE CAUGHT —
SOME REMARKABLE DETECTIVE EXPERIENCES.

— Ingenious Methods — An Adroit Counterfeiter and His Shabby
Hand-bag —A Mysterious Bundle — A Surprised Detective — What
the Hand-bag Contained — How Great Frauds Are Unearthed — How
Suspicious Persons Are Shadowed — A Wonderful Story of Detective
Skill — Deceiving the Officials — Detective Experiences. . . 274

CHAPTER XVI.

THE WAR DEPARTMENT — HOW AN ARMY IS RAISED,
EQUIPPED, AND MAINTAINED — WHERE THE BONES OF
LINCOLN'S ASSASSINS LIE.

In the OTice of the Secretary of War — Pins and Tags on the Chess Board
of War — Keeping Track of Our S 'ldier Boys — Soldiers Made of Wax

— "Conquer or Die "— Trophies of War — Huge Boxes Labeled
Like Coffins — Stored Behind Iron-Grated Doors — Curious Relics
Fr 'in Santiago and the Philippines — Handsome but Harmless Guns

— Where and How the Record of Every Soldier Is Kept — Taking
Care of the Sick ami Wounded — Watching Other Nations — The

CONTENTS. XIX

Signal Service — A Dapper Man in a Blue Uniform — Watching for
Raw Recruits — Passing the Surgeon's Examination — A Soldier's
Life — A Surprised Lot of Red-Coats — Where the Bones of Lincoln's
Assassins Lie — Dishonored Graves 289

CHAPTER XVII.

IN THE NAVY DEPARTMENT — CARING FOR " JACK " AFLOAT
AND ASHORE — THE UNITED STATES NAVAL OBSERVA-
TORY—RELICS WITH STRANGE HISTORIES.

Heroic Deeds Recalled — Duties of the Secretary of the Navy — Disap-
pearance of Wooden Warships — Training Jack for His New Duties

— Providing for His Comfort Afloat — Old Time Man-of -Wars-Men —
A Happy Lot of Boys — How the "Man Behind the Gun " Is Edu-
cated in Naval Warfare — Collecting Information for Sailors — Bottle
Papers and Their use — A Valuable Equatorial Telescope — The Won-
derful Clock by Which All Other Timepieces Are Set —The United
States Navy Yard — The Naval Museum — Objects of Great Historic
Interest— " Long Tom " and Its Story — Relics with Strange Histories

— The Marine Corps — A Body of Gallant Fighters — Instances if
Their Bravery — The Marine Band 300

CHAPTER XVIII.

A DAY IN THE POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT — THE STORY OF
A LETTER — SOME CURIOUS FACTS AND INTERESTING
EXPERIENCES — RURAL FREE DELIVERY.

The Greatest Business Organization in the World — Looking After 80,000
Post-Offices — The Travels of a Letter — The Making of a Postage
Stamp — Using 4,000,000,000 Stamps a Year — A Key That Will Un-
lock Hundreds of Thousands of Mail Bag Locks — Keeping Track of
Tens of Thousands of Mail Bags — Why They Never Accumulate —
Testing the Ability of Clerks — Remembering 6,000 Post-Offices —
*' Star Routes " and What They Are — The Smallest Contract the Gov-
ernment Ever Made — Carrying the Mails for One Cent a Year — The
"Axeman" — Chopping off the Heads of Postmasters — Free Rural
Delivery — Opposition of Country Postmasters — A Boon to Farmers

— How Rural Routes are Established 312

CHAPTER XIX.

THE DEAD-LETTER OFFICE — ITS MARVELS AND MYSTERIES
— OPENING AND INSPECTING THE "DEAD" MAIL —
SOME CURIOUS AND TOUCHING REVELATIONS — THE
DEAD -LETTER MUSEUM.

What Is a Dead Letter ? — " Stickers " and " Nixies " — 8.000,000 of Dead
Letters and Packages a Year — Opening the "Dead " Mail — Guarding

XX CONTENTS.

the Secrets of Careless Letter Writers — Returning $50 000 in Money
and $1,200,000 in Checks Every Year -What Becomes of the Valuables
Found in Letters — The Fate of Letters That Cannot Be Returned —
Deciphering Illegible Scrawls — Common Mistakes — Unusual Errors
— Some Odd Directions — " English As She Is Wrote " — Some Queer
Requests — Travels of Misdirected Letters — Remarkable Work of an
Expert — 60,01)0 Missent Photographs Every Year — A Huge Book
of Photographs — Identifying the Faces of Loved Ones — Tear-
Blinded Mothers — Thousands of Unclaimed Christmas Gifts — The
Dead-Letter Museum — Odd Things Found in the Mails— Snakes and
Horned Toads — The Lost Ring and Its Singular Recovery — A Baby
Elephant — The Two Miniatures — Tokens of Love and Remem-
brance — Messages from the Loved Ones at Home — Dead-Letter
Auction Sales 330

CHAPTER XX.

A DAY IN THE PATENT-OFFICE — A PALACE OF AMERICAN
INVENTIVE GENIUS AND SKILL — CRAZY INVENTORS —
FREAKS AND THEIR PATENTS.

The Department of the Interior and Its Functions — The Patent-Office —
Issuing One Hundred Patents a Day — Abraham Lincoln's Patent —
How To Secure a Patent — Patent Attorneys and How They Obtain Big
Fees — Hesitating To Accept a Million Dollars — What Is a Patent ? —
A Minister Who Discovered "Perpetual Motion" —Preposterous Let
ters and Odd Inventions — A Dead Baby Used as a "Model" — A
Patent for Fishing Worms out of the Human Stomach — A Patent for
Exterminating Lions and Tigers by the Use of Catmint — Killing Grass-
Hoppers with Artillery — Crazy Inventors — Freaks and Their Patents —
A Patent for a Cow-Tail Holder — Eccentric Letters — Amusing Speci-
mens of Correspondence — A Cat and Rat Scarer — The Man with
the Long, Black Clerical Coat — An Indignant and Disgusted
Applicant — "I am from Bay City" — Great Fortunes from Small
Inventions 349

CHAPTER XXI.

THE PENSION BUREAU — CLAIMANTS AND THEIR PETITIONS
— SNARES AND PIT-FALLS FOR THE UNWARY.

A Vast Deluge of Pension Papers — Casing For a Million Pensioners —
Disbursing #132,000,000 a Year — The "Alarm Act" — Pension Laws
and Regulations — Who Are Entitled to Pensions — Method of Pro-
cedure — How Claims Are Filed and Examined — Guarding the Rolls
Against Fraud — Medical Examinations — Disgruntled Applicants —
Suspicious Cases and "Irregular" Ciaims — "Widows" — Doctors
Who Disagree — An Indignant Captain — Living on "Corn-bread and
Sour Milk " — Why Decisions Are Delayed — Special Examinations —
Guarding Against Swindlers, Imposters, and Frauds — Claim Agents
and Their Ways — Forging Evidence and Affidavits — Pension Attor-
neys and Their Tricks— " Swapping" Papers — Mean and Petty
Swindlers— Whom To Avoid —Pawning Pension Certificates — The
Disabled Veteran's Best Friend — His Real Enemies. «. . 306

CONTENTS. XXI

CHAPTER XXII.

THE CENSUS BUREAU — COUNTING THE NOSES OF EIGHTY
MILLION PEOPLE — HOW AND WHY IT IS DONE.

Why the Census Is Taken Every Ten Years — Some Pointed Questions

— Tribulations of Enumerators — "None of Your Business "— Be-
ginning of the Process — The Scramble for Positions — Pulling
Wires To Secure Oitice — How the Census Is Taken — Starting
50 000 Canvassers in One Day — Disagreeable Experiences — Meeting
Shotguns and Savage Dogs— "What Is Your Age?"— Irate
Females — How the Question Is Answered by Certain Persons —
'•Sweet Sixteen" — "Fibbing" a Little — Keeping Tabs on the
Enumerators — Enormous Amount of Detail — The Punching Ma-
chine— Cost of the Census of 1900— The Land Olfice und Its
Work — Settlers and Homeseekers — The Geological Survey — Its
Interesting Work — The Indian Bureau — How Poor " Lo " Is Cared
For— The Bureau of Education «76

CHAPTER XXIII.

A DAY IN THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE — THE
FARMER'S FRIEND AND CO-WORKER — FREE DISTRIBU-
TION OF CHOICE AND PURE SEEDS — HOW THEY MAY
BE HAD FOR THE ASKING.

— Adulterated Seeds — Seeds of New and Choice Varieties — Testing
the Purity of Seeds — Free Distribution of Seeds — How the Finest
and Purest Seeds May Be Had for Nothing — Great Opposition of
Private Seedsmen — Diseases of Plants — Something About Grasses —
The Agricultural Museum. 386

CHAPTER XXIY.

THE WEATHER BUREAU — FORECASTING THE WEATHER

— WONDERFUL INSTRUMENTS, KITES, AND WEATHER
MAPS.

— "Fair and Warmer" and "Partly Cloudy " — Noting the Direction

XX11 CONTENTS.

of the Wind — Where Storms Are First Noticed — General Move-
ment of Storms — Traveling 600 Miles a Day — "High" Pressure
and "Low" Pressure — Winter Storms — Where They Originate —
Where Hurricanes Are Bred — Hot Waves and Cold Waves — Import-
ing Weather from Canada — Where Storms Disappear — Perplexing
Problems for the Forecaster — Predicting-Dangerous Storms — Warn-
ings of Danger — Emergency Warnings — A Visit to the Instrument-
Room — Ingenious and Delicate Instruments — How New Discoveries
are Made Kites that Fly to a Height of Three Miles — Interesting
Experiments with Kites. ..... . 396

CHAPTER XXV.

IN THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE — THE PRESIDENT'S LAW-
YER—THE SUPREME COURT AND ITS BLACK-ROBED
DIGNITARIES — THE HEAVEN OF LEGAL AMBITION.

The Majesty of the Law — The Department of Justice — Duties of the
Attorney-General — The President's Lawyer — Claims Involving Mil-
lions of Dollars — The Highest Legal Tribunal of the Nation — The
Supreme Court-Room — Giants of the Past — The Battle Ground of
Clay. Webster, and Calhoun — Wise and Silent Judges — Where
Silence and Dignity Reign — The Technical "Bench" — Illustrious
Names — Why the Bust of Chief-Justice Taney Was Long Excluded
from the Supreme Court-Room — The Mnn who Hastened the Civil
War — The Famous Dred Scott Decision — Its Far-Reaching Effect —
A Sad Figu-e — Death Comes to His Relief — Sumner's Relentless
Opposition — Black-Robed Dignitaries — Ceremonious Opening of the
Court — An Antique Little Speech — Gowns or Wigs? — The Robing
and Consultation-Rooms — Salaries of the Justices - A Tragedy that
Occurred in the Basement of the Law Library — The Dead and
Mangled Body of its Designer 408

CHAPTER XXVI.

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS — ONE OF THE COSTLIEST AND
MOST BEAUTIFUL BUILDINGS IN THE WORLD — ITS
MURAL PAINTINGS AND WONDERFUL MOSAICS.

A Library for the People — Costly Books and Priceless Treasures of Art
Free to All — A Marvelously Beautiful Building — How It Was
Planned — Its Great Cost — Approaches to the Building — The Mam-
moth Bronze Doors — Entering Into Another World — A Stroll Through
Beautiful Marble Halls and Corridors — Marvels in Mosaic — How the
Mosaic Ceilings Were Constructed — The Mural Paintings and Wall
Decorations — A Fairy Scene by Night — Countless Electric Lights —
Famous Mosaic of Minerva — A Marvelous Achievement — The Lan-
tern at the Top of the Dome — Architectural Splendors — Ingenious
Apparatus for Carrying Books — How Senators and Congressmen
Receive Books in Three Minutes — An Ingenious Underground Tunnel
— Forty-five Miles of Strips of Steel. . . . ' . . 417

CONTENTS. XX111

CHAPTER XXVII.

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS, CONTINUED — AMONG ITS
BOOKS AND PRICELESS TREASURES.

Early Struggles of the Library — Starting with 1,000 Books and Nine
Maps — Thomas Jelferson's Contribution — Destroyed by Fire — A
Famous Librarian — Marvelous Growth of the Library — Nearly a
Million Volumes — Some Priceless Old Books — A Unique Collection
of Political Handbills — Some Remarkable Volumes and Still More
Remarkable Illustrations — The "Breeches Bible" — The "Bug
Bible "— Eliot's Indian Bible — A Book Which No One Can Read Val-
ued at $1,500 — Valuable Manuscripts and Papers of Early Presidents
— A Collection of 3<>0,000 Pieces of Music — The Map-Room — A
Wonderful Collection of Maps and Atlases — Reading-Room for the
Blind — A Unique Institution 439

CHAPTER XXVIII.

THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT— THE MOST IMPOSING MON-
UMENT EVER ERECTED IN HONOR OF ONE MAN— THE
CORCORAN GALLERY OF ART.

The Greatest Monument in the World — It Bears No Inscription and Needs
None — Piercing the Sky — A Sublime Picture — First Steps to Erect
a Monument to the Memory of Washington — A Request that the Re-
mains of Washington Be Interred in the Capitol — The Request He
fused — How the Money Was Raised for a Monument — Vexatious
Delays — Its Completion and Cost — The Highest Structure of Stone
in the Woild — Its Dimensions and Height — Si ruck by Lightning —
The Ascent to the Top in an Elevator — What It Costs Uncle Sam
To Carry Visitors Up and Down — The Corcoran Gallery of Art —
Its Treasures of Art — A Wonderful Collection. . . . 453

CHAPTER XXIX.

THE CIVIL SERVICE AND ITS MYSTERIES — HOW GOVERN-
MENT POSITIONS ARE OBTAINED — WOMEN IN THE DE-
PARTMENTS—WOMAN'S INFLUENCE AT THE CAPITOL.

What Is the Civil Service ? — How Heads of Bureaus Are Appointed —
The "Spoils" System — Difficulty of Obtaining a Government Posi-
tion— The Importance of Having a "Political Pull" — Attraction of
Good Pay and Short Hours — Doing as Little as Possible — How To
Obtain a Government Position — The Chances of Getting It — Influ-
ence of Local Politicians — The Government Blue Book — Complex
Rules and Mysterious Injunctions — Taking an Examination — A
Mysterious Marking Process — What Is "An Eligible " ? — Bitter Dis-
appointments and Shattered Hopes — Position Brokers — Mr. Parasite
in Office — Abject Political Beggars 461

XXiv CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXX.

OFFICE-SEEKERS AND OFFICE-SEEKING IN WASHINGTON —
THEIR DIFFICULTIES AND DANGERS — HOW PLACE AND
POWER ARE WON.

Those to Whom Washington Is a Whited Sepulcher and a Sham — An
Omnivorous Crowd of Place- and Fortune-Hunters — "Still They
Come" — Chronic and Ubiquitous Oxflce-Seekers — Slim Chances of
the Average Applicant — Beguiled by Anticipation — '• Placed on File
and Favorably Considered" — Awakening From a Delusion — 'No
Vacancies as Yet" — Making Applicants "Feel Good" — Facing Want
and Destitution — Dejected and Despairing Office-Seekers — Their
Last Hope — Fresh Victims Every Year — A Pathetic Incident —
Women in Quest for Office — Remarkable Story of a Young Lady
Applicant — Lincoln's Aversion to Office-Seekers — An Interesting
Story — A Humorous Incident — A Visit From a Long-Haired Back-
woodsman— "I'd Like To See theGineral." .... 469

CHAPTER XXXI.

INSIDE THE GOVERNMENT PRINTING-OFFICE — THE STORY
OF A "PUB. DOC." — PRINTING SPEECHES THAT WERE
NEVER SPOKEN.

Uncle Sam's " Print Shop " — Using Twenty Tons of Printing-ink a
Year — Utilizing the Skins of 50,000 Sheep To Bind Books — Making
a Book While You Wait — The Celebrated "Pub. Doc." — What
Becomes of Them — Sending Out "Pub. Docs." to All the World —
The Convenience of a "Frank" — The Omnipresent "Doc." — All
Kinds of "Docs." — A Storehouse of Valuable Facts — The Con-
gressional Record — Ready-Made Speeches — What "Leave To Print"
Means — Printing Speeches that Were Never Spoken — Hoodwink-
ing Dear Constituents — Scattering Fine Speeches Broadcast — "See
What a Great Man Am I " — Speeches Written "by Somebody Else "
— Printing-office Secrets — Some Interesting Facts. . . . 476

CHAPTER XXXII.

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM — A WONDERFUL COLLECTION OF
CURIOSITIES AND RELICS — THE ARMY MEDICAL MU-
SEUM—INTERESTING SPECIMENS OF THE RESULTS OF
"WAR, DISEASE, AND HUMAN SKILL."

CONTENTS. XXV

Man's Descent From Monkeys — The Oldest Locomotive in America

— Strange Contrasts — The Army Medical Museum — A Grewsome
Place — A Regiment of Human Skeletons — The Remains of Criminals

— Curious Pathological Specimens — Exhibits of Fatalities of War

— All that Remaius Above Ground of the Assassin of Lincoln — A
Collection of Skulls — Some ''Interesting Cases" — The Spleen of
Guiteau, the Assassin of Gariield — What Became of the Rest of His
Remains — Strange Effects of Rifle Bullets on the Human Body —
How Specimens Are Exchanged — Getting Back "Something Equally
as Good " — A Bottled Baby — Part of the Spinal Column of John
Wilkes Booth — When the Fatal Bullet Entered. . . .484

CHAPTER XXXIII.

iHE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION — STRANGE STORY OF ITS
FOUNDER- ITS WONDERFUL TREASURES — THE NA-
TIONAL ZOO AND THE FISH COMMISSION.

The Strange Story of James Smithson — A Most Singular Bequest — Mak-
ing Good Use of His Money — His Will — "The Best Blood of Eng-
land Flows in My Veins ' — Plans of the Institution — Inside the
Building — Its Intent and Object— Diffusion of Knowledge Among
Men — Facilitating the Study of Natural History — The Latest Inven-
tions and Discoveries — Stimulating Talents for Original Investiga-
tions— A Wonderful Exhibit of Stuffed Birds — Insects of Every Size
and Color — A Marvelous Collection of Birds' Eggs — The Delight of
" Mr. Scientist " — What We " Think " We See — Weighing a Ray of
Light — Some Curious Instruments — Wringing Secrets from the Sun

— Doing Many Marvelous Things — The ISaiional Zoo — Among the
Wild Animals — Pelting an Animal Stranger to "See Him Eat" — A
Visit to the Fish Commission — Curious Specimens of the Finny Tribe

— Sea Horses and Fantastic Creatures — One of the Most Entertaining
Exhibits in Washington 495

CHAPTER XXXIV.

FOREIGN LEGATIONS AND THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS —THE
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF FOREIGN REPRE-
SENTATIVES IN WASHINGTON.

The Exposed Side of Diplomatic Life — Looking " Pleasant " — Social
Status of Foreign Representatives — Daily Routine — Spies Upon
Our Government — Social Lions — Aspiring to Diplomatic Honors
— Glimpses of Foreign Home Life — Peculiar Dress and Queer
Customs — Oddities in House Furnishings and Decorations — Social
Etiquette — Who Pays the First Visit — Official Calls — The Ladies
of the Diplomatic Corps — Why the President Never Crosses the
Threshold of a Foreign Legation — Breaches of Etiquette — Topics
That Are Never Discussed — Tactless Ministers — Giving Meddling
Ambassadors Their Passports — Some Notable Examples — The Fate
of Foreign Representatives Who Criticise the President . . 504

XXVI CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XXXV.

THE NEWS BUREAUS OF WASHINGTON — KEEPING AN EYE
ON OTHER NATIONS — HOW NEWS IS INSTANTLY OB-
TAINED FROM AND TRANSMITTED TO ANY PART OF
THE WORLD.

The Washington Headquarters of a Hundred Newspaper Bureaus — Keen
Newspaper Men — How the News Is Gathered — Transmitting It to
All the World — The Ceaseless Click of the Telegraph — Operations
Far Beneath the Surface — The Best-Posted Men in Washington —
"Newspaper Sense" — How the Wires for News Are Laid — Antici-
pating Future Events — Secret Sources of Information — "Cover-
ing" Anything and Anybody — Receiving News " Tips" — Running
Down Rumors — Officials Who "Leak" — How Great Secrets Are
Unconsciously Divulged — Putting This and That Together —
Reporters' Tactics — Keeping an Eye on the State Department —
Scenting News — " Work Is Easy When Times Are Newsy " — Study-
ing the Weak and Strong Points of Public Men — At the Mercy of
Newspapers. 509

CHAPTER XXXYI.

WASHINGTON STREET LIFE — SOUTHERNERS, WESTERNERS,
AND NEW ENGLANDERS — LIFE AMONG THE COLORED
PEOPLE — INTERESTING SIGHTS AND SCENES.

A Unique City — Sights and Scenes on Washington Streets — Taking Life
Easy — Living on Uncle Sam — Mingling With the Passing Throng —
Life in Washington Boarding Houses — Politicians From the Breezy
West — Politicians From "Way Down East"— The Ubiquitous "Col-
ored Pusson " — The Negroes' Social Status in Washington — Negro
Genteel Society — Negro Editors, Professors, and Teachers — The
" Smart " Negro Set — Colored Congregations and Church Service —
Whistling Darkies — Making Night Hideous — Life in Colored Settle-
ments— Some Wealthy Negroes — How They Became Rich — "Bad
Niggers " — The Paradise of Children — Morning Sights and Scenes
at the Markets — Where Riches and Poverty Meet — Fair Women Who
Carry Market Baskets — Getting Used to Washington Life. . 518

CHAPTER XXXVII.

BEAUTIFUL AND SACRED ARLINGTON — ITS ROMANCE AND
ITS HISTORY — THE SILENT CITY OF THE NATION'S
.. DEAD — THE SOLDIER'S HOME.

Where Peace and Silence Reign — "The Bivouac of the Dead" — The
Story of Arlington — The Graves of Nearly 17,000 Soldiers — How

CONTENTS. XXVU

George Washington Managed the Property — How General Robert E.
Lee Inherited the Estate — The Gathering Clouds of Civil War — A
Sad Parting — Leaving Arlington Forever — Approach of the Union
Troops — Flight of Mrs. Lee and Her Children— Her Pathetic Return
to the Old Home After the War — The Graves of Distinguished
Oilicers — The Tomb to the Unknown Dead — One Grave for Over
2,000 Unknown Soldiers — A Touching Inscription — The Graves of
600 Soldiers of the Spanish- American War — Where the Dead of the
Battleship Maine Are Buried — Memorial Day at Arlington — Where
Forty Soldiers Lie Alone — A Touching Incident — Thinking of the
Dim Past — The Tomb of General Logan 527

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

A DAY AT MOUNT VERNON— AMID THE SCENES OF GEORGE
AND MARTHA WASHINGTON'S HOME LIFE— THEIR LAST
RESTING-PLACE.

The Old Mansion at Mount Vernon — Its Story — How It Was Saved for
the Nation — The Married Life of George and Martha Washington —
His Life as a Farmer — His Daily Routine — His Large Force of
Workmen and Slaves — Out of Butter — Washington's Devotion to
His Wife — Ordering Her Clothes — A Runaway Cook — Looking for
a Housekeeper — "Four Dollars at Christmas with Which To Be
Drunk Four Davs and Four Nights " — His Final Illness and Death —
The Bed on Which He Died — Dastardly Attempt To Rob His Grave

— Death of Mrs. Washington — The Attic Room in Which She Died

— What Was Found in the Old Vault — Removing the Remains to
the New Vault — Opening the Coffins — The New Tomb — A Tour
Through the Mansion 543

CHAPTER XXXIX.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE— FAIR AND STATELY WOMEN WHO
REIGNED IN THE EXECUTIVE MANSION IN EARLY DAYS.

A Morning Dream — Memories of Martha Washington — Her Educational
Disadvantages — An Average Matron and Thrifty Housewife — Her
Virtues and Moral Rectitude — Ministering to the Suffering Soldiers
at Valley Forge — Washington's Letters to His Wife — "My Dear
Patsy" — Domestic Affairs at Mount Vernon — Giving Her Husband
a Curtain-Lecture — An Englishman Who Was " Struck With Awe "
— Martha Washington's Seclusion and Death — Abigail Adams, Wife
of President John Adams — Adams' Early Love Affairs — Life in the
Unfinished White House — A Lively Picture — Not Enough Coal or
Wood To Keep Warm — Some Interesting Details — Drying the Family
Wash in the Great East Room — Jefferson's Grief at the Death of His
Wife — How Jefferson Blacked His Own Boots — A Dignified
Foreigner Shocked — "We Saved de Fiddle." .... 570

XXVM CONTENTS.

CHAP TER XL,

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OP
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — THE MOST BRILLIANT
SOCIAL QUEEN WHO EVER REIGNED IN THE EXECUTIVE
MANSION.

A Famous Social Queen — Gallants in Small-Clothes and Queues — An
Iudignant Barber— " Little Jim Madison"— " Dolly " Madison's Gifts
and Graces — " The Most Popular Person in the United Stated " — Her
Social Nature and Exquisite Tact — Iler Bountiful Table — Ridiculed
by a Foreign Minister — Mrs. Madison's Happy Reply — Her Wonder-
ful Memory of Persons and Incidents — The Adventure of a Rustic
Youth — Thrusting a Cup of Coffee into His Pocket — Her Heroism
in the Hour of Danger — Fleeing from the White House — Mrs.
Madison's Snuff-Box — " This Is for Rough Work " and " This Is My
Polisher" — Two Plain Old Ladies from the West — Unusual Honors
by Congress — Her Last Days — Her Death and Burial — Singular
Mistakes on Her Monument 586

CHAPTER XLI.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — SOME WOMEN OF NOTE
— MEMORABLE SCENES AND ENTERTAINMENTS AT THE
WHITE HOUSE.

A Serene and Aristocratic Woman — Entertaining With Great Elegance —
Interesting Incident in Mrs. Monroe's Foreign Life — Visiting Madame
Lafayette in Prison — Changing the Mind of Blood-Thirsty Tyrants —
Sharing the Dungeon of Her Husband — An Opinion Plainly Ex-
pressed— An Evening at the White House — Creating a Sensation at a
Presidential Reception — An Amusing but Untruthful Picture — Dis-
graceful Condition of the White House Surroundings — Using the
Great East Room for a Children's Play-Room — Mrs. John Quincy
Adams — Long and Lonely Journeys — Life in Russia — The Ladies'
Costumes — Oid-Time Beaux and Belles — "Smiling for the Presi-
dency"— A President Who Masked His Feelings — "My Wife
Combed Your Head" — Calling on an "Iceberg." . . . 599

CHAPTER XLII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED - PRESIDENTS' WIVES
WHO NEVER ENTERED THE EXECUTIVE MANSION.

President Andrew Jackson and Mrs. Rachel Robards — The Story of Jack
son's Courtship — An Innocent Mistake — Jackson's Resentful Dispo-
sition— His Morbid Sensitiveness About His Wife's Reputation —
" Do You Dare, Villain, To Mention Her Sacred Name ? " — His Duel
with Governor Sevier — A Tragical Experience — Kills Charles Dick

CONTENTS. XXIX

inson In a Duel — Mrs. Jackson's Piety — Her Influence Over Her
Husband — His Profanity and Quick Temper — Her Unwillingness To
Preside at the White House -An Arrow that Pierced Her Heart —
Her Agonizing Death — He Enters the White House a Widower —
Faithful to Her Memory— Children Born in the White House — The
Story of a Baby Curl — A Widowed and Saddened Woman — Accept-
ing a Clerkship in the Treasury — "Try Him in Irish, Jimmy" —
An Astonished Minister — The Wife of President Van Buren — The
Wife of President William Henry Harrison 608

CHAPTER XLIII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — SOME BRIDES OF THE
WHITE HOUSE — A PRESIDENT'S WIFE WHO PRAYED FOR
HIS DEFEAT.

Mrs. Robert Tyler — A Former Actress — From the Footlights to the
Executive Mansion — "Can This be I?" — "Actually Living in the
White House ! " — Recalling Her Theatrical Career— President Tyler's
Second Bride — His Son's Account of the Courtship — The Wife of
President Polk — Polk's Courtship — Mrs. Polk's Great Popularity —
Acting as Private Secretary to Her Husband — " Sarah Knows Where
It Is" — The Wi'e of General Zachary Taylor — Her Devotion to Her
Husband — An Unwilling Mistress of the White House — Praying for
Her Husband's Defeat — Shunning the White House and Society —
"It is a Plot" — A Lady of the White House Ridiculed and
Reproached — " Betty Bliss" — A Vision of Loveliness — Death of
President Taylor 620

CHAPTER XLIV.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WrIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — FROM THE VILLAGE
SCHOOL TO THE EXECUTIVE MANSION.

Mrs. Abigail Fillmore— How She First Met Her Husband, Afterward
President Fillmore — A Clothier's Apprentice — An Engagement of
Five Years — Building a Humble House with His Own Hands —

— Working and Struggling Together — Entering the White House as
Mistress — Mrs. Fillmore's Death — The Memory of a Loving Wife —

— The Wife of President Franklin Pierce — Entering the Wrhite House
Under the Shadow of Death — A Shocking Accident — Grief-Stricken
Parents — D«ath of Mrs. Pierce — Last Days of President Pierce —
The Mistake of a Life-Time — James Buchanan's Administration —
The Brilliant Harriet Lane — Why Buchanan Never Married — Miss
Lane's Reign at the White House — Entertaining the Prince of Wrales

— Buchanan's Last Days — The Odious Administration of a Vacillat-
ing President — Miss Lane's Marriage 632

XXX CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XLY.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OP
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED— MRS. ABRAHAM LIN-
COLN—THE WHITE HOUSE DURING THE CIVIL WAR.

The First Love of Abraham Lincoln — His Grief at Her Loss — His Second
Love — Engaged to Miss Mary Todd, His Third Love — Wooed by
Douglas and Lincoln — The Wedding Deferred — Lincoln's Marriage

— Character of Mrs. Lincoln — Fulfillment of a Life-Long Ambition —
The Mutterings of Civil War — Newspaper Gossip and Criticism of
Mrs. Lincoln — Noble Work of Women During the Dark Days of the
Civil War — Mrs. Lincoln's Neglect of Her Opportunity to Endear
Herself to the Nation — The Dead and Dying in Washington — Death
of Willie Lincoln — Wild Anguish of His Mother — The President
Assassinated — Intense Excitement in Washington — A Nation in Mourn-
ing— Mrs. Lincoln's Mind Unbalanced — Petitions Congress for a
Pension — Death of Mrs. Lincoln 643

CHAPTER XLYI.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — SOME BRAVE AND
HUMBLE MISTRESSES OF THE EXECUTIVE MANSION.

The Wife of President Andrew Johnson — A Ragged Urchin and a Street
Arab — Johnson's Ignorance at Eighteen — Taught to Write by the
Village School-Teacher — He Marries Her — Following the Humble
Trade of a Tailor — His Wife Teaches Him While He Works — Begin-
ning of His Political Career — The Ravages of Civil War in Tennessee

— Two Years of Exile — Hunted From Place to Place — Secretly
Burying the Dead — A Night of Horrors — Re-united to Her Husband

— Entering the White House Broken in Health and Spirits — "My
Dears, I Am an Invalid " — The Reign of Martha Patterson, President
Johnson's Oldest Daughter — "We Are Plain People " — Wrestling
with Rags and Ruin — Noble and Self-denying Women — Noble
Characters of Johnson's Wife and Daughters. . . . - . 656

CHAPTER XLVIL

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WrVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — MRS. GRANT'S REIGN
AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

CONTENTS. XXXI

and Encouraging Her Husband — His Election to the Presidency —
Remembering Old Friends — The Grant Children and Their Playmates
at the White House — Marriage of Nellie Grant — Simple and Happy
Family Life — General Grant's Reverses and Physical Suffering —
Mrs. Grant in Later Years 663

CHAPTER XLVIII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — THE REFINING REIGN
OF MRS. RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.

A Woman of Remarkable Ability — Meets Rutherford B. Hayes, a Rising
Young Lawyer — Their Marriage — General Hayes' Brilliant Army
Record — Promoted to General for Extraordinary Services — Wounded
Four Times — Mrs. Hayes' Visits to Her Wounded Husband — Two
Winters in Camp — Ministering to the Sick and Wounded — Gen-
eral Hayes Elected President — Mrs. Hayes' Reign in the White House

— Her Personal Appearance and Traits of Character — Her Dignified
and Charming Presence — Banishing Wine from the President's
Table — Her Love of Flowers — Magnificent Dinners and Receptions

— A Superb State Dinner to Royalty — Returning to Their Modest
Home — Death of President and Mrs. Hayes 674

CHAPTER XLIX.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — GARFIELD'S AND
ARTHUR'S ADMINISTRATIONS.

President James A. Garfield and His Wrife — From a Log Cabin to the
White House — His First Ambition — First Meeting with Miss Ru-
dolph—Pupils in the Same School — Their Engagement — Garfield's
Enviable War Record — Advancing Step by Step to Fame — His Mar-
riage and Election to the Presidency — His Tribute to His Devoted
Wife — His Assassination — Brave Fight for Life — Weary Weeks of
Torture — His Death and Burial — James G. Blaine's Remarkable
Eulogy — Mrs. Garfield's Devotion and Christian Fortitude — A Brave
and Silent Watcher — Intense Grief — Leaving the White House For-
ever— President Chester A. Arthur 684

CHAPTER L.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — A YOUTHFUL BRIDE
AS MISTRESS OF THE WHITE HOUSE.

A Bachelor President — Managing Mammas with Marriageable Daughters
— Brief Reign of the President's Sister — An Intellectual and Self-Re-

XXXII CONTENTS.

liant Woman — The President's Engagement to Miss Frances Folsom
— A Well-Guarded Family Secret — The President Meets His Fiancee
at New York — Preparations for the Wedding — Miss Folsom's Ap-
pearance— Preparing to Receive Herat the White House — Arrival of
the Eventful Day — The President's Unconventional Invitation to His
Wedding — The Wedding Procession and the Ceremony — A Beautiful
Bride — Mrs. Cleveland's Popular Reign — Winning Universal Admi-
ration— Her Return to the White House — Why She Lost Interest in
Social Functions — Retirement to Private Life — A Growing Family —
A Quiet Home and Domestic Bliss 698

CHAPTER LI.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — THE REIGN AND
DEATH OF PRESIDENT AND MRS. BENJAMIN HARRISON.

Boyhood Days of Benjamin Harrison — His Life on His Father's Farm —
The Influence of His Mother's Example — He Becomes "Enamored
of an Interesting Young Lady" — His Early Marriage — Working for
$2.50 a Day — Setting up Housekeeping in a House of Three Looms
— Helping His Wife with Her Household Duties — A Rising Young-
Lawyer — Enlists in the Civil War — His Enviable WTar Record — Be-
comes Brigadier-General — Elected President of the United States —
His Wife a True Helpmate — A Devoted Wife and Mother — Reno-
vating the White House From Cellar to Garret — Burning of the
Home of the Secretary of the Navy — Tragic Death of His Wife and
Daughter — How the Tragedy Affected Mrs. Harrison — Her Illness
, and Death — The President's Marriage to Mrs. Dimmick — His Illness
and Death — Affecting Scenes at His Bedside 706

CHAPTER LII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — PRESIDENT AND MRS.
McKINLEY'S REIGN.

The House in Which William McKinley, Jr., was Born — His Work for
the Family Woodpile — How He Obtained an Education — Striding
"Across Lots" to Teach School — Enlisting as a Private Soldier in
the Civil War — His Conspicuous Gallantry and Rapid Promotion —
Begins the Study of Law — His First Case in Court —The Bow-legged
Man Who Lost His Case for Damages — He Wooes and Wins Miss Ida
Saxton — Their Marriage and Early Home Life — Death of Their Two
Children — Klected to Congress — Elected Governor of Ohio — Elected
President of the United States — Mrs. McKinley at the White House
— Untiring Devotion of the President to His Invalid Wife — Hands
That Are Never Idle — A Patient and Resigned Invalid — Her
Favorite Room in the White House 721

Thirty \ears in Washington • §§|

£DITED BY

CHAPTER I.

THE SITE OF THE NATIONAL CAPITAL AND HOW IT WAS
SELECTED — EARLY TROUBLES AND TRIALS.

The Prophet of the Capital — Forecasting the Future — A Government
Moving Slowly and Painfully About on Wheels — Insulted by a Band
of Mutineers — Troubles and Trials — Washington's Humble Ideas of
a President's House — Renting and Furnishing a Modest Home —
Spartan Simplicity — Madison's Indignation — "Going West" —
Where is the Center of Population ? — A Dinner and What Came of
it — Sweetening a "Peculiarly Bitter Pill" — A "Revulsion of Stom-
ach " — End of a Long and Bitter Strife.

HE Capital of his country should be the Mecca of
every citizen of the United States. The richest
and most influential man in the Nation has no
proprietary rights in its magnificent government
buildings, in the marvelous and manifold industries
and gigantic operations carried on within them, in its
treasures of Art and Literature, its costly paintings and
historic statues, and the mammoth collections in its
museums, that do not belong equally to the lowliest and
humblest citizen. The thoughts of millions who cannot
make pilgrimages hither to behold the sights and scenes of
the Federal City with their own eyes, are constantly turned
toward it. Indeed, it may be said that to it all roads lead,
just as in olden days all roads led to Rome.
3 (33)

34 THE PROPHET OF THE CAPITAL.

Ask any native American who it was that first thought
of the site of Washington as that of the Capital of the Great
Republic and he will be very apt to reply by asking : " Who
else but George Washington? " His title of the " Father of
His Country " was not entirely earned in war. In peace his
ideas and his wishes dominated the noble band of patriots
that founded the constitutional government, and while there
is no real evidence that Washington first marked this site
for the Federal City, it is nevertheless probable that he did.
At least tradition has it that when as a young surveyor, and
Captain of the Virginia troops, he encamped with Brad-
dock's forces on Camp Hill * overlooking the present city of
Washington, he looked down as Moses looked from Nebo
upon the promised land, until he saw growing before his
prophetic vision the Capital of a vast and free people then
unborn. The woody plain upon which he gazed was to
others the undreamed-of site of the yet undreamed-of city of
the Republic. This youth, ordained of God to be the Father
of the Republic, was the Prophet of its Capital. He foresaw
it, in time he chose it, he faithfully served it, he ever loved
it ; but as a Capital he never entered it.

Gazing from the green promontory of Camp Hill, the
young surveyor looked across a broad amphitheater of roll-
ing plain, covered with native oaks and undergrowth. It
was not these only, tradition tells us, that he saw. His pre-
scient vision forecast the future. He saw the gently rising
hills crowned with villas, and in the stead of oaks and under-
growth, broad streets, a populous city, magnificent buildings,
outrivaling the temples of antiquity — the Federal City, the
Capital of the vast Republic yet to be ! The dreary camp,
the weary march, patient endurance of privation, cold, and
hunger, the long, resolute struggle, hard- won victoiy at last,
all these were to be outlived, before the beautiful Capital of
his future was reached. Did the youth foresee these, also ?

* Subsequently and until 1892 the site of the United States Observatory.

A GOVERNMENT ON WHEELS. 36

Many toiling, struggling, suffering years bridged the dream
of the young surveyor and the first faint dawn of its fulfill-
ment.

After the Declaration of Independence, before the adop-
tion of the Constitution, the government of the United
States moved slowly and painfully about on wheels. As
the exigencies of war demanded, Congress met at Philadel-
phia, Baltimore, Lancaster, York, Princeton, Annapolis,
Trenton, and New York. During these troubled years it
was the ambition of every infant State to claim the seat of
g( >vernment. For this purpose New York offered Kingston ;
Rhode Island, Newport; Maryland, Annapolis; Virginia,
Williamsburg.

June 21, 1783, Congress was insulted at Philadelphia by
a band of mutineers that the State authorities could not sub-
due. The body adjourned to Princeton ; and the troubles
and trials of its itinerancy caused the subject of a per-
manent national seat of government to be taken up and
discussed with great vehemence from that time till the form-
ation of the Constitution. This insult led Congress to deter-
mine that wherever the Capital Avas placed, it should be in
a district freed from any State control. The resolutions
offered, and the votes taken in these debates, indicate that
the favored site for the future Capital lay somewhere be-
tween the banks of the Delaware and the Potomac — "near
Georgetown," says the most oft-repeated sentence. October
30, 1784, the subject was discussed by Congress, at Trenton.
A long debate resulted in the appointment of three Commis-
sioners, with full power to lay out a, district not exceeding
three, nor le;s than two miles square, on the banks of either
side of the Delaware, for a Federal town, with the power to
buy land and to enter into contracts for the* building of a
Federal House, President's house, house for Secretaries, etc.

Notwithstanding the adoption of this resolution, these
Commissioners never entered upon their duties. Probably

36 WASHINGTON'S FAVORED PROJECT.

the lack of necessary appropriations did not hinder them
more than the incessant attempts made to repeal the act
appointing the Commissioners, and to substitute the Potomac
for the Delaware, as the site of the anticipated Capital.
Although the name of President Washington does not
appear in these controversies, even then the dream of the
young surveyor was taking on in the President's mind the
tangible shape of reality. First, after the war for human
freedom and the declaration of national independence, was
the desire in the heart of George Washington that the Capi-
tal of the new Nation whose armies he had led to triumph,
should be located upon the banks of the great river which
rolled past his home at Mount Yernon and at the point
where he had foreseen it in his early dream. That he used
undue influence with the successive Congresses which debated
and voted on many sites, not the slightest evidence remains,
and the nobility of his character forbids the supposition.
But the final decision attests the prevailing potency of his
preferences and wishes, and the immense pile of correspond-
ence which he has left on the subject proves that, next to
the establishment of its independence, the founding of the
Capital of the Eepublic was dear to his heart. May 10,
1787, Massachusetts, New York, Yirginia and Georgia voted
for, and New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland
against the proposition of Mr. Lee of Yirginia, that the
Board of Treasury should take measures for erecting the
necessary public buildings for the accommodation of Con-
gress, at Georgetown, on thp Potomac Kiver, as soon as the
land and jurisdiction of said town could be obtained. But
these and other proposed measures led to no immediate

results.

Many and futile were the battles fought by the old Con-
tinental Congress over the important but troublesome ques-
tion. These battles doubtless had much to do with Section
8, Article 1, of the Constitution of the United States, which

RIVALRY OF THE STATES. T,

declares that Congress shall have power to exercise exclu-
sive legislation in all cases whatsoever, over such district
(not exceeding ten miles square), as may, by cession of par-
ticular States and the acceptance of Congivss, become the
scat of government of the United States. This article was
assented to by the convention which framed the Constitu-
tion, without debate. The adoption of the Constitution was
followed spontaneously by most munificent acts on the part
of several States. New York appropriated its public build-
ings to the use of the new government, and Congress met in
that city April 6, ITS!). On May 15 following, Mr. White
of Virginia presented to the House of Representatives a
resolve of the Legislature of that State, offering to the Fed-
eral government ten miles square of its territory, in any
part of that State, which Congress might choose as the seat
of the Federal government. The day following, Mr. Seney
presented a similar act from the State of Maryland. Memo
orials and petitions followed in quick succession from Penn-
sylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. The resolution of the
Virginia Legislature begged for the co-operation of Mary-
land, offering to advance the sum of $120,000 to the use of
the general government toward erecting public buildings, if
the Assembly of Maryland would advance two-fifths of a
iike sum. Whereupon the Assembly of Virginia immedi-
ately voted to cede the necessary land, and to provide $72,-
000 toward the erection of public buildings.

" New York and Pennsylvania gratuitously furnished
elegant and convenient accommodations for the govern-
ment" during the eleven years which Congress passed in
those States, and offered to continue to do the same. The
Legislature of Pennsylvania went further in lavish generos-
ity, and voted a sum of money to build a house for ohe Pres-
ident. When George Washington saw the dimensions of
the house which the Pennsvlvanians were building for the
President's Mansion, he informed them at once that he

38 BITTERNESS AND CONTENTION.

would never occupy it, much less incur the expense of buy-
ing suitable furniture for it. In those Spartan days it never
entered into the designs of the State to buy furniture for the
" Executive Mansion." Thus the Chief Citizen, instead of
accepting a pretentious dwelling, rented and furnished a
modest house belonging to Mr. Robert Morris.

Meanwhile the great battle for the permanent seat of
government went on unceasingly among the representatives
of conflicting States. No modern debate, in length and bit-
terness, has surpassed this of the first Congress under the
Constitution. Nearly all agreed that New York was not
sufficiently central. There was an intense conflict concern-
ing the relative merits of Philadelphia and Germantown ;
Havre de Grace and a place called Wright's Ferry, on the
Susquehanna; Baltimore on the Patapsco, and Conoco-
cheague on the Potomac. Mr. Smith proclaimed the advan-
tages of Baltimore, and the fact that its citizens had sub-
scribed $40,000 for public buildings. The South Carolinians
cried out against Philadelphia because of its majority of
Quakers who, they said, were eternally dogging the Southern
members with their schemes of emancipation. Many others
ridiculed the project of building palaces in the woods. Mr.
Gerry of Massachusetts declared that it was the height of
unreasonableness to establish the seat of government so far
south that it would place nine States out of the thirteen so
far north of the National Capital ; while Mr. Page protested
that New York was superior to any place that he knew
for the orderly and decent behavior of its inhabitants.

September 5, 1789, a resolution passed the House of
Representatives "that the permanent seat of the govern-
ment of the United States ought to be at some convenient
place on the banks of the Susquehanna, in the State of
Pennsylvania." The passage of this bill awoke the deepest
ire in the members from the South. Mr. Madison declared
that if the proceedings of that day could have been fore-

SHOULD IT BE A COMMERCIAL CITY ? 39

seen by Virginia, that State would never have condescended
to become a jjarty to the Constitution.

The bill passed the House by a vote of thirty-one to
nineteen. The Senate amended it by striking out " Susque-
hanna," and inserting a clause making the permanent seat
of government Germantown, Pennsylvania, provided the
State of Pennsylvania should give security to pay $100,000
for the erection of public buildings. The House agreed to
these amendments, but it was at the very close of the
session and never reached final action.

In the long debates and pamphlets of 1790, the question
as to whether the seat of the American government should
be a commercial capital was warmly discussed. Madison
and his party argued that the only way to insure the power
of exclusive legislation to Congress as accorded by the Con-
stitution was to remove the Capital as far from commercial
interests as possible. They declared that the exercise of
this authority over a large mixed commercial community
would be impossible. Conflicting mercantile interests
would cause constant political disturbances, and when party
feelings ran high, or business was stagnant, the commercial
capital would swarm with an irritable mob brimful of
wrongs and grievances. This would involve the necessity of
an army standing in perpetual defense of the capital. Lon-
don and Westminster were cited as examples where the com-
mercial importance of a single city had more influence on
the measures of government than the whole empire out-
side. Sir James Macintosh was quoted, wherein he said
''that a great metropolis was to be considered as the heart
of a political body — as the focus of its powers and talents
— as the direction of public opinion, and, therefore, as a
strong bulwark in the cause of freedom, or as a powerful
engine in the hands of an oppressor." To prevent the Cap-
ital of the Republb becoming the latter, the Constitution
deprived it of the elective franchise, and hence residents of

0 LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE.

the District of Columbia have never had a vote in federal
elections and for many years no vote even in local affairs.

In view of the vast territory now comprehended in the
United States the provision made by Congress for the future
growth of the country may seem meager and limited. But
when we remember that there were then but thirteen
States, that railroads, telegraphs, and the wonderful electric
inventions of modern times were undreamed of as human
possibilities — that nearly all territory west of the Potomac
was an impenetrated wilderness, we may wonder at their
prescience and wisdom, rather than smile at their lack of
foresight. Even in that early and clouded morning there
were statesmen who foresaw the later glory of the West
foreordained to shine on far-off generations. Said Mr.
Madison : " If the calculation be just that we double in
fifty years we shall speedily behold an astonishing mass of
people on the western waters. . . . The swarm does not
come from the southern but from the northern and eastern
hives. I take it that the center of population will rapidly
advance in a southwesterly direction. It must then travel
from the Susquehanna if it is now found there — it may
even extend beyond the Potomac."

These are but a few of the questions which were discussed
in the great debates which preceded the final locating of the
Capital on the banks of the Potomac. Bitterness and dis-
sension were even then rife in both Houses of Congress.
An amendment had been offered to the funding act, providing
for the assumption of the State debts to the amount of twenty-
one millions, which was rejected by the House. The North
favored assumption and the South opposed it. Just then
reconciliation and amity were brought about between the
combatants precisely as they often are in our own time,
over a well-laid dinner table, and a bottle of rare old wine.
Jefferson was then Secretary of State, and Alexander Ham-
ilton Secretary of the Treasury. Hamilton thought that

Hamilton's anxiety. 41

the North would yield and consent to the establishment of the
Capital on the Potomac, if the South would agree to the
amendment to assume the State debts. Jefferson and Ham-
ilton met accidentally in the street, and the result of their
half an hour's walk "backward and forward before the
President's door" was the next day's dinner party, and the
final, irrevocable fixing of the National Capital on the banks
of the Potomac. How it was done, as an illustration of
early legislation, which has its perfect parallel in the legis-
lation of the present day, can best be told in Jefferson's
own words, quoted from one of his letters. He says :
"Hamilton was in despair. As I was going to the Presi-
dent's one day I met him in the street. He walked me
backward and forward before the President's door for half
an hour. He painted pathetically the temper into which
the legislature had been wrought ; the disgust of those who
were called the creditor States ; the danger of the secession
of their members, and the separation of the States. He
observed that the members of the administration ought to
act in concert ; . . . that the President was the center
on which all administrative questions finally rested ; that all
of us should rally around him and support by joint efforts
measures approved by him, . . . that an appeal from
me to the judgment and discretion of some of my friends
might effect a change in the vote, and the machine of gov-
ernment, now suspended, might be again set in motion. I
told him that I was really a stranger to the whole subject,
not having vet informed mvself of the svstem of finance
adopted . . . that if its rejection endangered a dissolu-
tion of our Union at this incipient stage, I should deem that
the most unfortunate of all consequences, to avert which all
partial and temporary evils should be yielded.

" I proposed to him, however, to dine with me the nexl
day, and I would invite another friend or two, bring them
into conference together, and I thought it impossible that

42 SWEETENING THE DOSE.

reasonable men, consulting together coolly, could fail by some
mutual sacrifices of opinion to form a compromise which
was to save the Union. The discussion took place. . . .
It was finalty agreed to, that whatever importance had been
attached to the rejection of this proposition, the preserva-
tion of the Union and of concord among the States was
more important, and that therefore it would be better that
the vote of rejection should be rescinded, to effect which
some members should change their votes. But it was ob-
served that this pill would be peculiarly bitter to Southern
States, and that some concomitant measure should be
adopted to sweeten it a little to them. There had before
been a proposition to fix the seat of government either at
Philadelphia or Georgetown on the Potomac, and it was
thought that by giving it to Philadelphia for ten years, and
to Georgetown permanently afterward, this might, as an
anodyne, calm in some degree the ferment which might be
excited by the other measure alone. So two of the Potomac
members (White and Lee), but White with a revulsion of
stomach almost convulsive, agreed to change their votes,
and Hamilton agreed to carry the other point . . . and
so the assumption was passed."

June 28, 1790, to carry out the agreement an old bill was
dragged forth and amended by inserting " on the River
Potomac, at some place between the mouths of the Eastern
Branch and the Conococheague." This was finally passed,
July 16, 1790, and entitled "An Act establishing the tempo-
rary and permanent seat of the government of the United
States." The word "temporary" applied to Philadelphia,
whose disappointment in not becoming the final Capital was
to be appeased by Congress holding their sessions there till
1800, when, as a member expressed it, "they were to go to
the Indian place with the long name, on the Potomac."

The long strife ended, and the permanent Capital of the
United States was fixed on the banks of the Potomac, in

THE CONTROVERSY ENDED. \'-'>

the amendatory proclamation of President Washington,
done at Georgetown the 30th day of March, in the year of
our Lord 1791, and of the independence of the United
States the fifteenth, which concluded with these words :
"I do accordingly direct the Commissioners named under
the authority of the said first-mentioned act of Congress to
proceed forthwith to have the said four lines run, and by
proper metes and bounds defined and limited, and thereof
to make due report under their hands and seals ; and the
territory so to be located, defined, and limited shall be the
whole territory accepted by the said act of Congress as the
district for the permanent seat of the government of the
United States."

CHAPTEK II.

GENERAL WASHINGTON AND OBSTINATE DAVY BURNS—

HOW THE "WIDOW'S MITE" WAS SECURED — HOW

AND BY WHOM THE CITY WAS PLANNED.

Making Peace With Lords of Little Domains — " Obstinate Mr. Burns " —
A Pugnacious Scotchman — The " Widow's Mite" — A Graceful Sur-
render — Republicans in Theory but Aristocrats in Practice — Who
Was Major L'Enfant ? — A Lucky Circumstance — Plans that Were
Ridiculed — Men Who Did Not "Get On" Well Together — The Man
Who Worried President Washington — Demolishing Mansions With-
out Leave or License — An Uncontrollable Engineer — His Summary
Dismissal — Living Without Honor and Dying Without Fame — A
Quaker Successor of " Uncommon Talent " and " Placid Temper " —
Five Dollars a Day and "Expenses" — "Too Much "— A Colored
Genius for Mathematics — " Every Inch a Man " — Why the Capitol,
the White House, and Government Buildings Were Set Far Apart.

'HAT part of the district of ten mile, square fall-
ing within the boundaries of Maryland and
designated for the center of the Federal City,
while covered with sturdy trees, seamed with
gullies and, in fact, nearly as wild as when it had
been the camping ground of the savage Manahoacs,
was nevertheless the private property of a few indi-
viduals, one or two of them holding patents dating back for
more than a hundred years. Following the cession of the
land by Maryland, therefore, the next step in the settlement
of the government was to make peace with these lords of
their little domains. With one exception they sought and
welcomed the establishment of the proposed city, three of
them being appointed Commissioners for the purpose.

(44)

AN EARLY OBSTRUCTIONIST. 45

The single, exception was a pugnacious little Scotchman
named David Burns. He owned an immense tract of land
south of where the White House now stands, extending as
far as that which the Patent Office called, in the land
patent of 1681 which granted it, "the Widow's Mite, lyeing
on the east side of the Anacostia River, on the north
side of a branch or inlett in the said river, called Tyber."
This "Widow's Mite" contained 600 acres or more, and
David Burns was at first in nowise willing to part with
any portion of it. Although it lay within the District of
Columbia, ceded by the act of Maryland for the future
Capital, no less a personage than the President of the
United States could move David Burns one whit, and even
the President found it no easy matter to bring the Scotch-
man to terms. More than once in his letters he alludes
to him as "the obstinate Mr. Burns," and it is told that
upon one occasion when the President was dwelling upon
the advantage that the sale of his lands would bring, the
planter, testy Davy, exclaimed : " I suppose you think
people here are going to take every grist that comes from
you as pure grain, but what would ijou home been if ij<>"
hadnt married the widow Cu.stis?"

After many interviews and arguments even the patience
of Washington finally gave out, and he said : w' Mr. Burns,
T have been authorized to select the location of the National
Capital. I have selected your farm as a part of it, and the
o-overnment will take it at all events. I trust you will,
under these circumstances, enter into an amicable arrange
ment."

Seeing that further resistance was useless, the shrewd
Scotchman thought that by a final graceful surrender he
might secure more favorable conditions; thus, when the
President once more asked: "On what terms will yon
surrender your plantation?" Davy humbly replied : "Any
that your Exeellencv may choose to name." The deed con-

46 THE LAND PURCHASED.

veying the land of David Burns to the Commissioners in
trust is the first on record in the city of Washington. This
sale secured to him and to his descendants an immense for-
tune. The deed provided that the streets of the new city
should be so laid out as not to interfere with the cottage
where David Burns lived in the most humble manner, with
his daughter who was to become one of the richest heiresses
of Washington. The other original owners of the land on
which the city of Washington was built cheerfully accepted
the proposed terms, and on the 31st of May Washing-
ton wrote to Jefferson from Mount Vernon, announcing
that the owners had conveyed all their interest to the
United States on consideration that when the whole should
be surveyed and laid off as a city jthe original proprietors
should retain every other lot. The remaining lots were to
be sold by the government from time to time and the
proceeds applied towards the improvement of the place.
The land comprised within this agreement contained over
7,100 acres.

The founders of the Capital were all very republican in
theoiy, and all very aristocratic in practice. In speech they
proposed to build a sort of Spartan capital, fit for a Spartan
republic ; but in fact, they proceeded to build one modeled
after the most magnificent cities of Europe. European by
descent and education, manv of them allied to the oldest
and proudest families of the Old World, every idea of cul-
ture, of art and magnificence had come to them as part
of their European inheritance, and we see its result in every-
thing that they did or proposed to do for the new Capital
which they so zealously began to build in the woods.

The art-connoisseur of the day was Jefferson. He knew
Europe not only by family tradition but from travel and
observation. Next to Washington he took the deepest per-
sonal interest in the projected Capital. Of this interest we
find continual proof in his letters, also of the fact that his

THE .MAN WHO PLANNED THE CITY. 47

taste had much to with the plan and architecture of the
coming city. In a letter to Washington dated Philadelphia,
April 10, 1791, he wrote: "I received last night from
Major L'Enfant a request to furnish any plans of towns
I could for examination. 1 accordingly send him by this
post, plans of Frankfort-on-the-Main, etc.,* which I pro-
cured while in those towns respectively. They are none of
them, however, comparable to the old Babylon revived in
Philadelphia and exemplified." Evidently it did not occur
to these two fathers of their country that a mercurial
Frenchman would never attempt to satisfy his soul with
acute angles of old Babylon revived through the arid and
level lengths of Philadelphia.

The man who planned the Capital of the United States,
not for the present but for all time, was Pierre Charles
L'Enfant, born in France in 1755. He Avas a lieutenant
in the French provincial forces, and with others of his
countrymen was early drawn to these sliores by the mag-
netism of a new people, and the promise of a new land. Tie
offered his services to the revolutionary army as an en-
gineer in 1777, and was appointed captain of engineers
February 18, 1778. After being wounded at the siege of
Savannah, he was promoted to major of engineers, and
served near the person of Washington. Probably at that
time there was no man in America who possessed so much
genius and art-culture in the same direction as Major
L'Enfant. In a new land, where nearly every artisan had
to be imported from foreign sliores, the chief designer and
architect surely would have to be. It seemed a fortunate
circumstance to find on the spot a competent engineer for
the prospective Capital.

The first public communication extant concerning the

*Other plans were those of Carlsruhe, Amsterdam, Strassburg, Paris
Orleans, Bordeaux, Lyons, Montpelier, Marseilles, Turin, and Milan

48 THE CITY NAMED.

laying out of the city is from the pen of General Wash-
ington, dated March 11, 1791. In a letter dated April 30,
1791, he first called it the " Federal City." Four months
later, without his knowledge, it received its present name in
a letter from the first Commissioners, Messrs. Johnson,
Stuart, and Carroll, which bears the date of Georgetown,
September 9, 1791, to Major L'Enfant, which informs that
gentleman that they have agreed that the federal district
shall be called The Territory of Columbia, and the federal
city The City of Washington, directing him to entitle his
map accordingly.

In March, 1791, we find Jefferson addressing Major
L'Enfant in these words : " You are desired to proceed to
Georgetown, where you will find Mr. Ellicott employed in
making a survey and map of the federal territory. The
special object of asking your aid is to have the drawings
of the particular grounds most likely to be approved for the
site of the federal grounds and buildings."

The French genius " proceeded," and behold the result,
the city of "magnificent distances," and from the begin-
ning, of magnificent intentions, — intentions which for years
called forth only ridicule, because in the slow mills of time
their fulfillment was so long delayed. As Thomas Jefferson
wanted the chessboard squares and angles of Philadelphia,
L'Enfant used them for the base of the new city, but his
genius avenged itself for this outrage on its taste by trans-
versing them with sixteen magnificent avenues, which from
that day to this have proved the confusion and the glory of
the city.

The avenues were named after the states. The great
central avenue running a length of over four miles from the
Anacostia to Rock Creek was named after Pennsylvania.
The commonwealth of Massachusetts was dignified by a
parallel avenue of equal length on the north, and Virginia
in like manner on the south. The avenues crossing the

AN INTRACTABLE GENIUS. 4'.)

great central thoroughfare were named after New York.
New Hampshire, New Jersey, Maryland, the Carolinas and
Georgia, while Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Vermont
were given shorter and non-intersecting avenues in the
rather unpromising northwest, though, contrary to the gen-
eral belief, they could not have been regarded as possibili
ties quite so remote as those avenues east of the Capitol
which later received the names of the new states Kentucky
and Tennessee, the former running south from Pennsyl-
vania avenue and the latter north. At any rate the
small New England states ultimately had the satisfaction of
seeing their avenues become the finest residential streets of
the city.

Two months after the publication of his magnificent de-
signs for posterity, Major L'Enfant was dismissed from his
exalted place. He was a Frenchman and a genius. The
patrons of the new Capital were not geniuses, and not
Frenchmen, reasons sufficient why they should not and did
not "get on" long in peace together. Without doubt the
Commissioners were provincial, and limited in their ideas of
art and of expenditure ; with their colonial experience they
could scarcely be otherwise; while L'Enfant was metro-
politan, splendid, and willful, in his ways as well as in his
designs. Hampered, held back, he yet " builded better than
he knew," — builded for posterity. The executor and the
designer seldom counterpart each other.

L'Enfant worried Washington, as a letter from the latter
written in the autumn of 1701, plainly shows. He says:
" It is much to be regretted that men who possess talents
which fit them for peculiar purposes should almost in-
variably be under the influence of an untoward disposition.
I have thought that for such employment as
he is now engaged in for prosecuting public works and
carrying them into effect, Major L'Enfant was better
qualified than anyone who has come within my knowj-

50 THE RETIREMENT OF L'ENFANT.

edge in this country, or indeed in any other. I had no
doubt at the same time that this was the light in which
he considered himself." At least, L'Enfant was so fond
of his new "plan" that he would not give it up to the
Commissioners to be used as an inducement for buying
city lots, even at the command of the President, giving
as a reason that if it was open to buyers, speculators
would build up his beloved avenues (which he intended, in
time, should outrival Versailles) with squatter's huts — just
as they afterwards did. Then Duddington House, the
abode of Daniel Carroll, one of the Commissioners, was in
the way of one of his triumphal avenues, and he ordered it
torn down without leave or license, to the rage of its owner
and the indignation of the Commissioners. Duddington
House was rebuilt by order of the government in another
place. Nevertheless its first demolition was held as one of
the sins of the uncontrollable L'Enfant, who was summarilv
discharged March 6, 1792.

His dismissal was thus announced by Jefferson in a letter
to one of the Commissioners : " It having been found im-
practicable to employ Major L'Enfant about the Federal
City in that degree of subordination which was lawful and
proper, he has been notified that his services are at an end.
It is now proper that he should receive the reward of his
past services, and the wish that he should have no just
cause of discontent suggests that it should be liberal. The
President thinks of $2,500, or $3,000, but leaves the de-
termination to you." Jefferson wrote in the same letter:
" The enemies of the enterprise will take the advantage of
the retirement of L'Enfant to trumpet the whole as an
abortion." But L'Enfant lived and died within sight of the
dawning city of his love which he had himself created —
and never wrought it or its projectors any harm through
all the days of his life. He was loyal to his adopted
government, but to his last breath clung to every atom of

ELLICOTT AND HIS ASSISTANT. 51

his personal claim upon it, as pugnaciously as be did to his
maps when commanded to give them up. He lived without
honor, and died without fame. Time has vindicated one
and will perpetuate the other in one of the most magnificent
capitals of the earth.

He lived for many years on the Pigges farm, situated
about eight miles from Washington, and was buried in the
family burial-ground in the garden. When the Digges
family were disinterred, his dust was left nearly alone.
There it lies to-day, and the perpetually growing splendor
of the ruling city which he planned is his only monument.

Major L' Enfant was succeeded by Andrew Ellicott, a
practical engineer, born in Pennsylvania. Ellicott was
called a man of "uncommon talent" and "placid temper."
Neither saved him from conflicts with the Commissioners.
A Quaker, he yet commanded a battalion of militia in the
Revolution, and "was thirty-seven years of age when he
rode out with Washington to survey the embryo city." He
finished (with certain modifications) the work which
L'Enfant began. For this he received the stupendous sum
of $5.00 per day, which, with " expenses," Jefferson thought
to be altogether too much. In his letter to the Commission-
ers dismissing L'Enfant, he says: "Ellicott is to goon to
finish laying off the plan on the ground, and surveying and
plotting the district. I have remonstrated with him on the
excess of five dollars a day and his expenses, and he has
proposed striking off the latter."

Ellicott's most remarkable assistant was Benjamin
Bancker, a negro, the first of his race to distinguish himself
in the new Republic. He was born with a genius for
mathematics and the exact sciences, and at an early age was
the author of an Almanac which attracted the attention and
c mamanded the praise of Thomas Jefferson. When he
came to "run the lines" of the future Capital, he was sixty
vears of age. The color-line could not have been drawn very

52 COMMENT, AND AN EXPLANATION.

tensely at that time, for the Commissioners invited him to
an official seat with themselves, an honor which he de-
clined. The picture given us of him is that of a sable
Franklin, large, noble, and venerable, with a dusky face,
white hair, and Quaker coat and hat.

Nothing calls forth more comment from strangers than
the distance between the Capitol and many of the Executive
Departments. It is still a chronic and fashionable complaint
to decry the time and distance it takes to get anywhere.
We are constantly hearing exclamations of what a beautiful
city "Washington would be with the Capitol for the center
of a square formed by a chain of magnificent public build-
ings. John Adams wanted the Departments around the
Capitol. George Washington, but a short time before his
death, gave in a letter the reasons for their present position.
He says : " Where or how the houses for the President
and the public offices may be fixed is to me, as an individual,
a matter of moonshine. But the reverse of the President's
motive for placing the latter near the Capitol was my
motive for fixing them by the former. The daily inter-
course which the secretaries of departments must have with
the President would render a distant situation extremely
inconvenient to them, and not much less so would one be
close to the Capitol ; for it was the universal complaint of
them all, that while the Legislature icas in session, they could
do little or no business, so much were they interrupted by the
individual visits of members in office hours, and by calls for
paper. Many of them have disclosed to me that they have
been obliged often to go home and deny themselves in order
to transact the current business." The denizen of the pres-
ent time, who knows the Secretaries' dread of the average
besieging Congressman, will smile to find that the dread
was as potent in the era of George Washington as it is
to-da}7-. A more conclusive reason could not be given why
Capitol and Departments should be a mile or more apart.

CHAPTER III.

BIRTH OF THE NATION'S CAPITOL — GRAPHIC PICTURES OF
EARLY DAYS — SACKED BY THE BRITISH — WASHING
TON DURING THE CIVIL WAR — THEN AND NOW.

Raising the Money to Build the Capitol —Government Lottery Schemes —
Hunting for the Capital — " In the Center of the City" — Queer Sen-
sations—Dismal Scenes — Sacked by the British — "The Royal
Pirate "— Flight of the President— Burning of the White House —
Mrs. Madison Saves the Historic Painting of General Washington —
Paul Jennings' Account of the Retreat — Invaded by Torch Bearers
and Plunderers — A Memorable Storm —Midnight Silent Retreat of
the British — Disgraceful Conduct of "The Royal Pirate"— " Light
up I" — Setting Fire to the Capitol — Dickens' Sarcastic Description
of the Capital — "Such as It Is, It Is Likely to Remain" — When
the Civil War Opened — Dreary, Desolate, and Dirty — The Capital
During the War — Days of Anguish and Bloodshed.

J^X going through "Washington's correspondence

'IS one ^nc*s ^at tnere *s scarcely anything in the

mw past, present, or future of its Capital, for which

the Father of his Country has not left on record

Fy a wise, far-reaching reason. His letters are full of
allusions to the annoyance and difficulty attending
the raising of sufficient money to make the Capitol and
other public buildings tenantable by the time specified,
1800. He seemed to regard the prompt completion of the
Capitol as an event identical with the perpetual establish-
ment of the government at Washington. Virginia had
made a donation of $120,000, and Maryland one of $72,000;
these were now exhausted. After various efforts to raise
money by the forced sales of public lots, and after abortive

(53)

54 FEDERAL LOTTERIES.

attempts to borrow money, at home and abroad, on the
credit of these lots, amidst general embarrassments, while
Congress withheld any aid whatever, the urgency appeared
to the President so great as to induce him to make a per-
sonal application to the State of Maryland for a loan of
$100,000, which was successful. The deplorable condition
of the government credit at that time is exhibited in the
fact that the State called upon the personal credit of the
Commissioners as an additional guarantee for the re-pay-
ment of the amount.

When in 1792 financial distress was very acute, the
government asked Samuel Blodget of Philadelphia to pro-
mote the city's growth by a lottery scheme, the immediate
necessity being a hotel. He at once instituted what was
called " Federal Lottery No. I " for $50,000, the tickets be-
ing seven dollars each, with 1,679 prizes, the first being
the hotel itself. The drawing took place in 1793, after the
people of Georgetown had bought up a large remnant of
tickets to save the scheme from failure. Federal Lottery
No. II was instituted to build a row of houses west of the
White House, a block which became known as " The Six
Houses," and though very unpretentious they were long-
conspicuous in a city which consisted largely of streets.
The record of Federal Lottery No. I, a quaint book whose
leaves are brown with age, is now one of the relics treas-
ured in the Library of Congress.

Not only was the growth of the public buildings hin-
dered through lack of money, but also through the "jeal-
ousies and bickerings " of those who should have helped to
build them. Human nature, in the aggregate, was just as
inharmonious and hard to manage then as now. The Com-
missioners did not always agree. Artisans, imported from
foreign lands, of themselves made an element of discord,
one which Washington dreaded and deprecated. He led,
with a patience and wisdom undreamed of and unappreci-

IN SIGHT OF THE PROMISED LAND. 55

ated in this generation, the straggling and discordant forces
of the Republic from oppression to freedom, from chaos to
achievement — he came in sight of the promised land of
fruition and prosperity, but he did not enter it, this Father
and Prophet of the people! George Washington died in
December, 1709. The City of Washington was officially
occupied in June, 1800.

The only adequate impression of what the Capital was
at the time of its first occupancy we must receive from
those who beheld it with living eyes. Fortunately several
have left graphic pictures of the appearance which the city
presented at that time. Probably the earliest account we
have was that written in his diary by Thomas Twining, an
energetic Englishman who visited this country in 1795 and
was entertained by Washington. He had arrived at George-
town from Baltimore one April day and on the next set out
on horseback to see the new Capital, elaborate plans of
which he had seen at Baltimore and which he had supposed
must be truly magnificent. The following is taken from
his diary :

"Having crossed an extensive tract of level country
somewhat resembling an English heath, I entered a large
wood through which a very imperfect road had been made,
principally by removing the trees, or rather the upper parts
of them, in the usual manner. After some time this indis-
tinct way assumed more the appearance of a regular avenue,
the trees having been cut down in a straight line. Although
no habitation of any kind was visible, I had no doubt but I
was now riding along one of the streets of the metropolitan
city. I continued in this spacious avenue for half a mile,
and then came out upon a large spot, cleared of wood, in
the center of which I saw two buildine-s on an extensive
scale and some men at work on one of them. . . . Ad-
vancing and speakiug to these workmen they informed me
that I was now in the center of the city and that the build

56 PEN PICTURES OF THE CAPITAL,.

ing before me was the Capitol, and the other destined to be
a tavern. . . . Looking from where I now stood I saw
on every side a thick wood pierced with avenues in a more
or less perfect state."

President John Adams took possession of the unfinished
Executive Mansion in November, 1800. During the month,
Mrs. Adams wrote to her daughter, Mrs. Smith, as follows :
" I arrived here on Sunda}^ last, and without meeting with
any accident worth noticing, except losing ourselves when
Ave left Baltimore, and going eight or nine miles on the
Frederic road, by which means we were obliged to go the
other eight through the woods, where we wandered for two
hours without finding guide or path . . . but woods are
all you see from Baltimore till you reach the city, which is
only so in name. Here and there is a small cot, without a
glass window, interspersed amongst the forests, through
which you travel miles without seeing any human being.
In the city there are buildings enough, if they were com
pact and finished, to accommodate Congress and those at-
tached to it; but as they are, and scattered as they are, I
see no great comfort for them."

Hon. John Cotton Smith, of Connecticut, a distinguished
member of Congress, of the Federal school of politics, also
gives his picture of Washington in 1800: "Our approach
to the city was accompanied with sensations not easily de-
scribed. One wing of the Capitol only had been erected,
which, with the President's house, a mile distant from it,
both constructed with white sandstone, were shining objects
in dismal contrast with the scene around them. Instead of
recognizing the avenues and streets portrayed on the plan
of the city, not one was visible, unless we except a road,
Avith two buildings on each side of it, called the New Jersey
Avenue. The Pennsylvania, leading, as laid down on paper,
from the Capitol to the presidential mansion, was then
nearly the whole distance a deep morass, covered with alder

A FORLORN "NEW SETTLEMENT . 5?

bushes which were cut through the width of the intended
avenue during the then ensuing winter. Between the
President's house and Georgetown a block of houses had
been erected, which then bore, and may still bear, the name
of the six buildings. There were also other blocks, consist-
ing of two or three dwelling houses, in different directions,
and now and then an insulated wooden habitation, the in-
tervening spaces, and indeed the surface of the city gener-
ally, being covered with shrub-oak bushes on the higher
grounds, and on the marshy soil either trees or some sort of
shrubbery. The roads in every direction were muddy and
unimproved. A sidewalk was attempted in one instance by
a covering formed of the chips of the stones which had
been hewn for the Capitol. It extended but a little way
and was of little value, for in dry weather the sharp frag-
ments ci: our shoes, and in wet weather covered them with
white mortal'; in short, it was a 'new settlement.' The
houses, with one or two exceptions, had been very recently
erected, and the operation greatly hurried in view of the
approaching transfer of the national government. A laud-
able desire was manifested by what few citizens and resi-
dents there were, to render our condition as pleasant as
circumstances Avould permit."

The visitor who notes that the name of Thomas Moore
does not appear among the poets in the decorations of the
beautiful Library of Congress will be told of the facetious
lines he wrote when he visited the city soon after its occupa-
tion by the government:

"This famed metropolis, where fancy sees,
Squares in morasses, obelisks in trees;
Which traveling fools and gazetteers adorn
With shrines unbuilt and heroes yet unborn."

Washington was incorporated as a city by act of Con-
gress, passed May 3, IS: '2. The city, planned solely as the
National Capital, was hi id out on a scale so grand and ex-

58 THE SACKING OF THE CITY.

tensive that scanty municipal funds alone would never have
been sufficient for its proper improvement. From the be-
ginning it was the ward of Congress. Its magnificent ave-
nues, squares, and public buildings, could receive due deco-
ration from no fund more scanty than a national appropria-
tion. For a time, its founders and patrons zealously pursued
plans for its improvement. But failing funds, a weak mu-
nicipality, and indifferent Congresses, did their work, and
for many years "the city of magnificent distances" had
little but those distances of which to boast.

The National Capital was sacked by the British under
Admiral Cockburn, known as " The Eoyal Pirate," and
Major-General Ross, an audacious Irishman, on August 24,
1814. The United States had been at war with England
for two years, and Admiral Cockburn had been cruising
about Chesapeake Bay with an English fleet f * a year,
robbing villages and farmhouses and devastating -he whole
Chesapeake coast. Although President Madison had early
received warning that British troops were expected to
co-operate with Cockburn along the Potomac, he was not
aroused to the danger that menaced the Capital.

On July 1, 1814, the President received word that an
English fleet with a large force of seasoned Peninsula vet-
erans on board had reached Bermuda and was about to sail
for the Potomac. The States were called upon for 93,500
militia. About 5,000 reported, mostly raw recruits. An
unseemly squabble over the appointment of a general to com-
mand this army followed. With no cavalry, no vessels, no
mounted guns, and only a few thousand undisciplined troops,
the people of Washington, who then numbered about 6,000,
heard of the approach of the enemy August 18. They were
panic-stricken. Many left the city, and the streets were
filled with wagons loaded with household effects.

The British land force, consisting of 4,500 disciplined
troops and three cannon, disembarked at Benedict, August

THE FLIGHT OF PRESIDENT MADISON. 59

21, and marching rapidly across fifty miles of country
appeared on the river hank opposite Bladensburg, at noon,
August 24, and prepared to cross the bridge. This was but
six miles from the Capital. President Madison and his Cab
inet rode out on horseback to see the struggle. The little
American army was formed in three lines, too far apart to
support each other. There were actually three command-
ing officers, — General Winder, Secretary of State Monroe,
and Secretary of War Armstrong. The Secretaries repeat-
edly changed the order of battle, without the knowledge of
General Winder, and so confused the troops that when
Winder gave a command regimental officers held consulta-
tions as to whether they should obey him or the cabinet
officials. For three hours the battle raged furiously, then
the militia gave way before a heavy column, and the
American forces retreated to Maryland. The President
and his Cabinet scattered and fled, the President continuing
his flight into Virginia, where he hid in a hovel for two
days before he ventured to return to the Capital. Dolly
Madison, the famous mistress of the White House, was also
forced to flee, but before she went she removed from its
frame the historic picture of General Washington in the
White House, and also saved many Cabinet papers and rec-
ords, sacrificing her own personal effects to do so.

The British forces halted a mile and a half from the
city, but finding no officials to negotiate a pecuniary ransom
for the property at their mercy, Ross, with his far less
scrupulous companion in iniquity — Cockburn — with a
corps of torch bearers and plunderers rode into the Capital
at 8 o'clock in the evening. They lost no time in burning
and destroying everything connected with the government.
The blazing houses, ships, and stores brilliantly illumined
the sky, while the report of exploding magazines, and the
crashing of falling roofs, gave evidence of the wanton
destruction that went steadily on. A detachment was sent

60 UNWELCOME GUESTS.

to destroy the President's house, and it is related by Gleig,
an English writer, that they " found a bountiful dinner
spread for forty guests. This they concluded was for the
American officers who were expected to return victorious
from the field of Bladensburg." Gleig goes on to say that
the British soldiers plundered the house, taking a great deal
of President Madison's private property, and then sat down
to the feast. " Having partaken freely of wine, they fin-
ished by setting fire to the house which had so liberally
entertained them." This story, often quoted, has, at least
so far as relates to the " feast," been pronounced absolutely
false. But Mr. Madison's faithful slave, Paul Jennings, a
man of unusual intelligence and education, who afterwards
bought his freedom from Mrs. Madison and lived for many
years a respected citizen of Washington, has left on record
his observations of what happened.

He says : " On that very morning Gen. Armstrong
assured Mrs. Madison there was no danger. The President,
with Gen. Armstrong, Gen. Winder, Col. Monroe, et al.,
rode out on horseback to Bladensburg to see how things
looked. Mrs. Madison ordered dinner to be ready at three
o'clock, as usual. I set the table myself, and brought up
the ale, cider, and wine and placed them in the coolers, as
all the Cabinet and several military gentlemen and strangers
were expected. While waiting, at just about three, as
Sukey, the house-servant, was lolling out of a chamber
window, James Smith, a colored man who had accompanied
Mr. Madison to Bladensburg, galloped up to the house, wav-
ing his hat, and cried out : ' Clear out, clear out ! General
Armstrong has ordered a retreat.'

" All then was confusion. Mrs. Madison ordered her
carriage, and passing through the dining-room caught up
what she could crowd into her old-fashioned reticule, and
then jumped into the chariot with her servant girl, Sukey,
and Daniel Carrol, who took charge of them. Jo. Bolin

MRS. MADISON'S EXPERIENCES. 6L

drove them over to Georgetown heights. The British were
expected in a few minutes. Mr. Cutts, her brother-in-law,
sent me to a stable on 1-Ath St. for his carriage. People
were running in every direction. John Freeman (the col-
ored butler) drove off in the coachee with his wife, child,
and servant; also a feather-bed lashed on behind the
coachee, which was all the furniture saved.

" Mrs. Madison slept that night at Mrs. Love's, two or
three miles over the river. After leaving that place, she
called in at a house and went upstairs. The lady of the
house, learning who she was, became furious, and went to
the stairs and screamed out: 'Mrs. Madison, if that's you,
come down and go out! Your husband has got mine out

fighting, and, d you, you sha'n't stay in my house. So

get out.' Mrs. Madison complied, and went to Mrs.
Minor's, a few miles further on."

During the night a terrible storm came up, and the rain
extinguished the conflagration. General Winder meantime
had rallied his men, and they were beginning to appear on
the outskirts of the city. The British, scattered by the hur-
ricane, and fearing retribution, stole away by night under
cover of the tempest, in a panic of causeless fear. They left
their dead unburied, and their wounded to the care of the
Americans. It was a stealthy but precipitate retreat. Says
a British writer : " The troops stole to the rear by twos and
threes, and when far enough removed to avoid observation,
took their places in silence and began the march. No man
spoke. Steps were planted lightly and we cleared the town
without exciting observation." Thev reached Benedict on
August 20, and embarked on the 30th with their bootv.

During their occupation of the city a detachment of the
British force marched to the Capitol. Only two wings of
the building were finished, and these were connected by a
wooden passage-way, erected where the Rotunda now stands.
British officers entered the House of Representatives, where

62 THE TORCH IN THE CAPITOL.

Admiral Cockburn, seating himself in the speaker's chair,
called the assemblage to order and held a mock session of
Congress. " Gentlemen," said he, " the question is, Shall
this harbor of Yankee democracy be burned ? All in favor
of burning it will say ' Aye.' " There was a general affirm-
ative response. And when he added, " Those opposed will
say ' Nay,' " silence reigned for a moment. " Light up ! "
cried the bold Briton ; and the order was soon repeated and
obeyed in all parts of the building, while soldiers and sailors
vied with each other in collecting combustible material for
their incendiary fires. The books on the shelves of the
Library of Congress were used as kindling wood for the
north wing ; and the much admired full length portraits of
Louis XVI, and his queen, Marie Antoinette, which had
been presented by that unfortunate monarch to Congress,
were torn from their frames and trampled under foot.

The capture of the Capital aroused the nation, and Con-
gress was compelled to investigate the causes that led to its
easy fall and partial destruction. Many eminent men were
smirched, but responsibility was never fixed. The total
damage done to government property by the British was
over $3,000,000.

Of the "Washington of 1842, at the completion of its first
half century of existence, Charles Dickens says in his
" American Notes " : —

" It is sometimes called the ' City of Magnificent Dis-
tances,' but it might with greater propriety be termed the
' City of Magnificent Intentions ' ; for it is only on taking
a bird's-eye view of it from the top of the Capitol that one
can at all comprehend the vast designs of its projector, an
aspiring Frenchman. Spacious avenues, that begin in noth-
ing, and lead nowhere; streets, miles long, that only want
houses and inhabitants ; public buildings that need but a
public, to be complete ; and ornaments of great thorough-
fares, which only lack great thoroughfares to ornament —

AT THE Ol'ENINCi OP THE CIVIL WAR. iiiS

are its leading features. One might fancy the season over,
and most of the houses gone out of town forever with their
masters. To the admirers of cities it is a Barmecide Feast :
a pleasant field for the imagination to rove in ; a monument
raised to a deceased project, with not even a legible inscrip-
tion to record its departed greatness. Such as it is, it is
likel}7 to remain."

Such indeed it continued to remain for another quarter
of a century. When the Civil War opened, Washington
was a third-rate Southern city of about 61,000 inhabitants.
Even its mansions were without modern improvements or
conveniences, while the mass of its buildings were low,
small, and shabby in the extreme. The avenues, superb in
length and breadth, in their proportions afforded a painful
contrast to the hovels and sheds which often lined them on
both sides for miles. Scarcely a public building was fin-
ished. No Goddess of Liberty held tutelary guard over the
dome of the Capitol. Scaffolds, engines, and pulleys every-
where defaced its vast surfaces of white marble. The
northern wing of the Treasury building was not even
begun. Where it now stands then stood the State depart-
ments, crowded, dingy, and old.

All Public offices, magnificent in conception, were in a
state of incompleteness. Everything worth looking at
seemed unfinished. Everything finished looked as if it
should have been destroyed generations before. Even
Pennsylvania- Avenue, the leading thoroughfare of the
Capital, was lined with little two- and three-story shops,
which in architectural comeliness had no comparison with
their ilk of the Bowery, New York. Not a street car ran
in the city. A few straggling omnibuses and helter-skelter
hacks were the only public conveyances to bear members of
Congress to and fro between the Capitol and their remote
lodgings. In spring and autumn the entire west end of the
city was one vast slough of impassible mud. One would

G4 IN DAYS OF STRIFE.

have to walk many blocks before he found it possible to
cross a single street, and that often one of the most fashion-
able of the city. " The waters of Tiber Creek," which in
the magnificent intentions of the founders of the city were
" to be carried to the top of Congress House, to fall in a
cascade of twenty feet in height and fifty in breadth, and
thence to run in three falls through the gardens into the
grand canal," stretched in ignominious stagnation across the
city, oozing at last through green scum and slime into the
still more ignominious canal, the receptacle of all abomina-
tions, the pest-breeder and disgrace of the city.

Capitol Hill, dreary, desolate, and dirty, stretched away
into an uninhabited desert, high above the mud of the
West End. Arid hill and sodden plain showed alike the
horrid trail of war. Forts bristled above every hill-top.
Soldiers were entrenched at every gate-way. Shed hospi
tals covered acres on acres in every suburb. Churches, art-
halls, and private mansions were filled with the wounded
and dying of the Union armies. The noisy rumbling of the
army wagon disturbed every hour of the day and night.
The rattle of the anguish-laden ambulance, the piercing
cries of the sufferers whom it carried, made morning, noon,
and night too dreadful to portray. The streets were filled
with marching troops, with new regiments, their hearts
strong and eager, their virgin banners all untarnished as
they marched up Pennsylvania avenue, playing " The girl I
left behind me " as if they came to holiday glory — and to
easy victory. Later the streets were crowded with soldiers,
foot-sore, sun-burned, and weary, their clothes begrimed,
their banners torn, their hearts sick with hope deferred,
ready to die with the anguish of long-delayed triumph.
Every moment had its drum-beat, every hour was alive with
the tramp of troops going, coming.

How many an American youth, marching to its defense,
beholding for the first time the great dome of the Capitol

THE AWAKENING OP LOYALTY. G5

rising before his eyes, comprehended in one deep gaze, as he
hud never before in his whole life, all that that Capitol
meant to him, and to every freeman. Never, till the Capi-
tal had cost the life of the dauntless patriots of our kind,
did it become to the heart of the American citizen of the
nineteenth century the object of personal love that it was to
George Washington. Up to that hour the intense loyally
to country, the pride in the National Capital which amounts
to a passion in the European, had been in the American
diffused, weakened, and broken. In ten thousand instances,
State allegiance had taken the place of love of country.
Washington was nothing but a place in which Congress
could meet and politicians carry on their games at high
stakes for power and place. New York was the Capital to
the New Yorker, Boston to the New Englander, New
Orleans to the Southerner, Chicago to the man of the West.
There was no one central rallying point of patriots. The
unfinished Washington monument stood the monument of
the nation's neglect and shame. What Westminster Abbey
and Hall were to the Englishman, what Notre Dame and
the Tuileries were to the Frenchman, the unfinished and
desecrated Capitol had never been to the average American.
Anarchy threatened it. In an hour the loyal sons of the
nation were awake to the danger that menaced the Capital,
and ready to march to its defense. Washington City was
no longer only a name to the mother waiting and praying
in the distant hamlet — her boy was encamped on the floor
of the Kotunda. No longer a far-off mirage to the lonely
wife — her husband was on guard upon the heights which
surrounded the Capital. No longer a place good for noth-
ing but political schemes to the village sage — his so?iy
wrapped in his blanket, slept on the stone steps under the
shadow of the great Treasury, or paced his beat before the
Presidential mansion. The Capital was sacred at last to
tens of thousands whose beloved languished in the wards

66 A CITY SACRED AKD BELOVED.

of its hospitals or slept the sleep of the brave in the dust
of its cemeteries.

Thus from the holocaust of war, from the ashes of our
sires and sons, arose new-born the holy love of country, and
veneration for its Capital. The zeal of nationality, the
passion of patriotism, awoke above the bodies of our slain.
National songs, the inspiration of patriots, were sung with
enthusiasm. National monuments began to rise, conse-
crated forever to the martyrs of Liberty. Never, till that
hour, did the Federal City, — the city of George Washing-
ton, the first-born child of the Union, born to live or to
perish with it, — become to the heart of the American peo-
ple that which it had so long been in the eyes of the world
— truly the capital of a great Republic.

The citizen of our times sees the dawn of that perfect
day of which the founders of the Capital so fondly dreamed.
The old provincial Southern city is no more. From its
foundations has risen another city, neither Southern, North-
ern, Eastern nor Western, but national, cosmopolitan.

Where the " Slough of Despond " spread its black mud
across the acres of the West End, where pedestrians were
" slumped " and horses " stalled," and discomfort and dis-
gust prevailed, we now see broad asphalt carriage drives,
(level as floors and lined on each side by palatial resi-
dences,) over which splendid equipages glide with a smooth-
ness that is a luxury, and an ease of action which is rest.
Where ravines and holes made the highway dangerous, now
asphalt pavements stretch over miles on miles of inviting
road. Where streets and avenues crossed and re-crossed
their long vistas of shadeless dust, now plat on plat of rest-
ful grass " park " the city from end to end, and luxuriant
trees with each succeeding summer cast a deeper and more
protecting shade.

Old Washington was full of small Saharas. Where the
great aveuues intersected, acres of white sand were caught

STATELY, BEAUTIFUL WASHINGTON 67

up and carried through the air by counter winds. It blis-
tered at white heat beneath your feet, it nickered like a
fiery veil before your eyes, it penetrated your lungs and
begrimed your clothes. Now emerald " circles," with cen-
tral fountains cooling the air with their crystal spray,
refresh alike the young and the old who are ever to be
found among the flowers and beneath the shades of these
beautiful parks. Pennsylvania Avenue has outlived its
mud. More than one superb building now rises high above
the lowly shops of the past, a forerunner of the architec-
tural splendor of the buildings of the future. Swift and
commodious street cars have taken the place of the solitary
stage, plodding its slow way between Georgetown and the
Capitol. Stately mansions have risen in every direction,
taking the place of the small, isolated houses of the past,
with their stiff porches, high steps, and open basement door-
ways.

No scaffolding and pulleys now deface the snowy sur-
faces of the Capitol. Complete, its grand dome pierces the
sky till the Goddess of Liberty on its top seems enveloped in
the clouds. Flowers blossom on the sites of old forts, so
alert with warlike life during the Civil War. The army
roads, so deeply grooved then, have long been grass-grown.
The long shed-hospitals vanished years ago, and splendid
dwellings stand on their already forgotten sites. The
"boys'' who languished in their wards, the boys who
proudly marched these streets, who guarded this city, alas !
far too many of them were laid to rest years ago on yonder
hill-top under the oaks of Arlington, and in the cemetery of
the Soldiers' Home!

CHAPTER IT.

BUILDING THE CAPITOL — HOW WASHINGTON AND
JEFFERSON ADVERTISED FOR PLANS — COM-
PLETION OF THE CAPITOL.

Early Trials and Tribulations — Schemers and Speculators — A "Front
Door in the Rear" — Seeking for Suitable Plans — A Troublesome
Question — Washington and Jefferson Advertise Premiums for the
Best Plan — A Curious "ad" — Some Remarkable Offerings — The
Successful Competitor — Carrying Off the Prize — Laying of the
Corner-Stone by President Washington — A Defeated Competitor's
Audacity — President Washington's Rage — Jealousies of Rivals —
Congress Sitting in "the Oven" — Crimination and Recrimination —
Building Additions to the Capitol — Hoodwinking Congress — How
the Money Was Appropriated to Build the Great Dome — A Successful
Ruse — Laying of the Second Corner-Stone by Daniel Webster —
Completion of the Building, — Its Dimensions and Cost — Curious
Construction of the Great Dome — Its Weight and Cost.

NE of the first essentials of the Capital city was a
Capitol building. The plans for such a struc-
ture had occupied the minds of the founders of
the young government long before L' Enfant
had surveyed the ground and designated the brow
of the eastern plateau as the site for the Capitol.
Cherishing a vision of the future metropolis with a fervoi
and clearness hardly equaled since the apocalyptic vision
of the aged apostle at Patmos, the earnest patriots of
those days may have pictured the spacious plateau extending
eastward to the Anacostia, two miles or more, as occupied
by the mansions of the cultured and the wealthy, while
the lower lands to the west fell to the humbler classes and

(68)

GROWTH OF THE INFANT CITY. C'J

the commercial interests. This has been assumed to be the
case, because an exorbitant price was placed upon some of
this land to the eastward.

One of the largest of the original proprietors, and the
one whose acres included most of this high plateau, was
Daniel Carroll, a man of culture and of high standing in
Maryland. He was a man in whom Washington placed the
greatest confidence, and was chosen one of the Commission-
ers for the laying out of the city. Naturally he anticipated
that his land would command enormous prices. Specu-
lators were at once eager for it and bought several acres,
largely with promises to pay. Stephen Girard, then the
wealthiest man in Philadelphia, offered $250,000 for a
portion of the estate, but Carroll asked a round million.
The result, it is assumed, was that the city grew in the
other direction where land was cheaper, while Carroll, who
had acquiesced always in Washington's plans, died prac-
tically penniless, and obstinate Davy Burns became one of
the richest men of the city.

It is assumed also that because of the anticipations
of greater growth to the eastward, the Capitol, like the
Irishman's shanty which had its front door at the rear, now
stands with its majestic back to the fashionable and thriv-
ing part of the city. But there are no good grounds for
the assumption. In the first place it is unreasonable to
suppose that the founders would have placed the White
House — the center about which society would inevitably
circle — a mile and a half away in a location which would
not attract home seekers among the elite. Then, too, all
the public buildings planned were located to the west of the
Capitol. Furthermore, a recent careful study of the plans
which were originally accepted for the Capitol, and upon
which the construction proceeded for some years, plainly
indicates that it was originally intended to have the main
entrance, not on the east, but on the west.

70 ADVERTISING FOR PLANS.

It was amid the trials and tribulations attending the
-<arly days of construction, so painful to the placid soul of
Washington and so exasperating to the more impatient Jef-
ferson, that the position of the main entrance was changed.
As we now look at this stately pile of marble, crowned by its
magnificent soaring dome, we can hardly realize that it did
not spring forth a completed whole, like Athena from the
head of Jove, and that it had an extremely complex and
precarious infancy.

The question of how to get suitable plans for the build-
ing was very troublesome to Washington and Jefferson.
Finally the following advertisement, written by Jefferson
and revised by Washington, was printed in New York and
Philadelphia papers :

A PKEMIUM

of a lot in the city to be designated by impartial judges and $500 or a medal
of that value at the option of the party will be given by the Commission-
ers of the Federal Buildings to persons who, before the 15th day of July,
1792, shall produce them the most approved plan, if adopted by them, for
a Capitol to be erected in the city ; and $250 or a medal for a plan deemed
next in merit to the one they shall adopt. The building to be of brick and
to contain the following compartments, to wit :
"A Conference Room. j To contain 300

"A Room for Representatives ( persons each.
"A Lobby or ante-chamber to the latter. }■

"A Senate Room of 1,200 square feet of area.
"An ante-chamber or Lobby to the latter.
"Twelve rooms of 600 feet square are each for committee rooms and
clerks to be half of the elevation of the former.

"Drawings will be expected to the ground plats, elevations of each front
and sections through the building in such directions as may be necessary to
explain the material, structure and an estimate of the cubic feet of brick
work composing the whole mass of the wall.

Thos. Johnson,

Dd. Stewart, )■ Commissioners.

Danl. Carroll,

Mar. 14, 1792.

These rooms to be of
full elevation.

PLANS OF HALLETT AND THORNTON. 71

This drew forth sixteen plans, mostly from amateurs
who had no idea of the artistic or practical. Most of these
plans have been pronounced by modern architects very bad
— some of them bordering on the ludicrous. Some of
these curiosities are now in the possession of the Maryland
Historical Society. None rose to the ideals entertained by
Washington or Jefferson, but the one approaching nearest
was that of Stephen II. Hallett of Philadelphia, an architect
who had been educated in France. He was accordingly
invited to come to Washington ; both Washington and
Jefferson gave him suggestions ; and thus, practically under
official engagement, he spent six months in working up and
revising his plans. Meantime Jefferson had received a
letter from Dr. William Thornton, a native and resident of
the West Indies, saying that he would like to submit plans,
but could not get them to this country within the adver-
tised time. About the time wheii Hallett had his plans re-
vised, as he supposed, to meet the wishes of the govern-
ment, Thornton's plans arrived and at once and completely
captivated both Washington and Jefferson. The latter
wrote "to Dr. Stewart, or to all the gentlemen" Commis-
sioners, January 31, 1793:

"I have, under consideration, Mr. Hallett's plans for the Capitol,
which undoubtedly have a great deal of merit. Doctor Thornton has also
given me a view of his. The grandeur, simplicity and beauty of the ex-
terior, the propriety with which the departments are distributed, and
economy in the mass of the whole structure, will, I doubt not, give it a
preference in your eyes, as it has done in mine and those of several others
whom I have consulted. I have, therefore, thought it better to give the
Doctor time to finish his plan, and for this purpose to delay until your
meeting a final decision. Some difficulty arises with respect to Mr. Hal-
lett, who, you know, was in some degree led into his plan by ideas which
we all expressed to him. This ought not to induce us to prefer it to a
better; but while he is liberally rewarded for the time and labor he has ex-
pended on it, his feelings should be saved and soothed as much as possible.
I leave it to yourselves how best to prepare him for the possibility that
the Doctor's plans may be preferred to his."

72 HALLETT ENGAGED AS ARCHITECT.

February 1, 1793, Jefferson writes from Philadelphia to
Mr. Carroll :

" Dear Sir : — Doctor Thornton's plan for a Capitol has been pro-
duced and has so captivated the eyes and judgments of all as to leave no
doubt you will prefer it when it shall be exhibited to you; as no doubt
exists here of its preference over all which have been produced, and
among its admirers no one is more decided than him, whose decision is
m\>st important. It is simple, noble, beautiful, excellently distributed and
modern in size. A just respect for the right of approbation in the Com-
missioners will prevent any formal decision in the President, till the plan
shall be laid before you and approved by you. In the meantime the
interval of apparent doubt may be improved for settling the mind of poor
Hallett, whose merits and distresses interest every one for his tranquillity
and pecuniary relief."

It has been claimed that the building was erected upon
Hallett's plans, but the facts do not substantiate the state-
ment. There must have been something genuinely mer-
itorious in Thornton's plan to have so completely overcome
the personal equation, the sentiment which just men like
"Washington and Jefferson naturally felt for Hallett, who
had received their encouragement and practically their
endorsement. Thornton was awarded the first premium,
Hallett the second. But Thornton was not a practical
architect, and the Commissioners engaged Hallett on a
moderate salary, to reduce his rival's plans to practical
form.

He immediately embarked upon a crusade against
Thornton's plans ; he continually worried the Commis-
sioners about defects in them ; he charged that Thornton
had stolen his ideas, and later claimed that Thornton's plans
were absolutely impracticable. By the summer of 1793
Washington was almost in despair. He intimated to
Jefferson that if there were such defects in Thornton's plans
that they could not be remedied, steps should at once be
taken to secure new plans, for the " Demon of Jealousy "
was at work in the " lower town," which beheld the White

LAYING THE CORNER-STONE. 73

House nearing completion and the Capitol hardly begun.
Commissioners were appointed, went over all the plans, and
made some modifications in Thornton's designs, much to
Hallett's joy ; but later they dropped most of them and
returned substantially to Thornton's original idea.

September 18, 1793, the southeast corner of the Capitol
was laid by "Washington with imposing ceremonies. A
copy of the Maryland Gazette, published in Annapolis, Sep-
tember 26, 1793, gives a minute account of the grand
Masonic ceremonial which attended the laying of that
august stone. It tells us that " there appeared on the south-
ern bank of the river Potomac one of the finest companies
of artillery that hath been lately seen parading to receive
the President of the IT. S.3' Also, that the Commissioners
delivered to the President, who deposited it in the stone, a
silver plate with the following inscription :

" This southeast corner of the Capitol of the United States of America,
in the city of Washington, was laid on the 18th day of September, 1793, in
the thirteenth year of American independence ; in the first year, second
term of the Presidency of George Washington, whose virtues in the civil
administration of his country have been as conspicuous and beneficial, as
his military valor and prudence have been useful, in establishing her
liberties ; and in the year of Masonry, 5793, by the President of the United
States, in concert with the Grand Lodge of Maryland, several lodges under
its jurisdiction, and Lodge No. 22 from Alexandria, Virginia.
(Signed) Thomas Johnson, \

David Stewart, > Commissioners, etc."
Daniel Carroll, )

The Gazette continues :

" The whole company retired to an extensive booth, where an ox of
500 lbs. weight was barbecued, of which the company generally partook
with every abundance of other recreation. The festival concluded with
fifteen successive volleys from the artillery, whose military discipline and
manoeuvres merit every commendation.

"Before dark the whole company departed with joyful hopes of the
production of their labors."

74 OBSTINATE ARCHITECTS.

Finding that he could not procure official changes in the
plan, Hallett had the boldness to change whatever he
wished without asking authority. He was reprimanded,
threatened to resign, refused to surrender the plans, and
was discharged. When Washington saw the unauthorized
changes Hallett had made he expressed his disapproval in
terms his dignity seldom permitted. As if to secure them-
selves against further dangers of this kind Dr. Thornton
was made one of the Commissioners of the District, and the
construction of the building was begun substantially on his
plans.

But other troubles quickly appeared. Hallett's place as
superintendent was filled in the fall of 1794 by the selection
of George Hadfield, who had come highly recommended as
one who would with becoming meekness and subordination
carry out the designs; but he had been at work only a
short time when he too began to suggest changes, which,
not meeting with favor, he proceeded to make on his own
authority. Washington again vigorously disapproved;
Hadfield resigned ; the Commissioners hastened to accept ;
Hadfield reconsidered, and was again engaged with the
express stipulation that he was to superintend but " not to
alterate." His obstinacy, however, soon overcame his good
resolutions and finally in 1798 he was discharged for not
surrendering the plans.

We need not pursue the disturbed course of events in
detail. The above indicated the nature of the troubles
which seemed to beset the building in these early days.
Slow progress was made. The north wing was made ready
for the first sitting of Congress in Washington, ISTovember
17, 1800. By that time the walls of the south wing had
risen twenty feet and were covered over for the temporary
use of the House of Kepresentatives. It sat in this room
— named "the oven" — from 1802 until 1804. At that
time the transient roof was removed and the wing com

THE CAPITOL COMPLETED. 75

nleted. Meantime Dr. Thornton resigned as Commissioner
to become Keeper of the Patents, and the year following,
1803, Benjamin II. Latrobe was appointed supervising
architect of the building. He also made changes, but they
were largely confined to the interior and the central portion
of the exterior. He was a man of ability and most of
his modifications were undoubtedly improvements. lie
invented what has been called the American style of archi-
tecture, by introducing corn and tobacco leaves into the
capitals of the columns.

It was with Latrobe also that the idea of having the
main entrance on the east originated, and thus it was ten
years after the construction was begun and after the wings
were built that the building was made to face the east.
Thornton's western entrance would have consisted of a
grand semi-circular colonnade with a broad sweep of circu-
lar steps running down the hill, while on the east he planned
a less imposing portico with a basement entrance.

When, after the departure of the British, the new oppo
sition of those who wished to move the Capital elsewhere
and put an end to the troublesome attempt " to build a Cap
ital in the woods " had been overcome, the construction was
resumed under Latrobe. He did not get on well either
with Congress or the Commissioners, and many bitter things
were said in the reports of those days. Finally in 1817 he
resigned. Charles Bulfinch of Boston, the new architect,
completed the center of the building, making the western
entrance more imposing than Latrobe had planned, and in
1827, or over thirty years after the laying of the corner-
stone, he reported the whole building complete. Thus the
Capitol as it then stood was made up of the designs of
Thornton, Latrobe, and Bulfinch, modified by Hallett and
others.

The growth of the country had exceeded the most extrav-
agant expectation of its founders, and when after the war

76 EXPANDING WITH THE NATION.

with Mexico it became evident that the country would
extend to the Pacific, bringing in many new states and
many ^representatives, it was promptly decided " to extend
the wings by greater wings called extensions." Thomas IT.
"Walter of Philadelphia, who had built Girard College, was
secured as architect. As the sandstone walls of the old
structure had been painted white to cover the damage done
by the British, it was decided to construct the additions of
white marble, while the one hundred massive columns to be
placed around them were to be each a solid block. Walter
was an architect of splendid ability. He perceived better
than Congress could the kind of building which the future
of the great country would require, but well knew the oppo-
sition he would meet if Congress had time to deliberate
over the expense of carrying out proper plans. To com-
plete the wings and leave the little flat copper dome in the
center would give the building a squat and unpleasant
appearance. Walter drew his plans complete, dome and
all, much as it at present appears ; but knowing that Con-
gress would not vote the sum required, he first submitted
the plans for the wings. Later, when Congress was about
to adjourn, and was in night session with everybody in good
spirits, he had the plan of the great dome, handsomely
drawn and highly colored, submitted. There was no time
to think of expense. In the enthusiasm of the moment and
the desire to adjourn, the money was appropriated ; but the
amount barely sufficed to remove the old dome ! Yet it was
to this little ruse that we owe the existence of that great
dome which is the crowning glory of the structure.

Fifty-eight years after the first stone was set in place,
another corner-stone was laid, beneath which was deposited
a tablet bearing the memorable words of Daniel Webster :

" On the morning of the first day of the seventy-sixth year of the
Independence of the United States of America, in the City of Washington,
being the 4th day of July, 1851, this stone designated as the corner-stone

MEMORABLE WORDS OF WEBSTER. 77

of the Extension of the Capitol, according <o a plan approved by the Pres-
ident in pursuance of an act of Congress was laid by

MILLARD FILMORE,

President of the United States,

A:-sisted by the Grand Master of the Masonic Lodges, in the presence of
many members of Congress, of officers of the Executive and Judiciary
departments, National, State and Districts, of officers of the Army and
Navy, the Corporate authorities of this and neighboring cities, many asso-
ciations, civil and military and Masonic, officers of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution, and National Institute, professors of colleges and teachers of schools
of the Districts, with their students and pupils, and a vast concourse of
people from places near and remote, including a few surviving gentlemen
who witnessed the laying of the corner-stone of the Capitol by President
Washington, on the 18th day of September, 1793. If, therefore, it shall
hereafter be the will of God that this structure shall fall from its base, that
ils foundation be upturned, and this deposit brought to the eyes of men ;
lie it then known that on this day the Union of the United Stales of Amer-
ica stands firm, that their constitution still exists unimpaired, and with all
its original usefulness and glory growing every day stronger and stronger
in the affections of the great body of the American people, and attracting
more and more the admiration of the world. And all here assembled,
whether belonging to public life or to private life, with hearts devoutly
thankful to Almighty God for the preservation of the liberty and happi-
ness of the country, unite in sincere and fervent prayer, that this deposit,
and the walls and arches, the domes and towers, the columns and entabla-
tures, now to be erected over it may endure forever.
" God save the United States of America.
DANIEL WEBSTER,

Secretary of State of the United States."

Already the mutterings of civil revolution stirred in the
air. Could Webster have foreseen that the marble walls of
the Capitol whose corner-stone he then laid would rise only
ten years later amid the thunder of cannon aimed to destroy
it and the great Union of States which it crowned, to what
anguish of eloquence would his words have risen !

The great building was not fully completed till 1867 or
nearly seventy-five years after the laying of the first corner-
stone. The whole structure is 751 feet, four inches long ;

78 THE CROWN OF THE CAPITOL.

thirty-one feet longer than St. Peter's in Rome, and 175
feet longer than St. Paul's in London. Its greatest dimen-
sion from east to west is 350 feet.

The ground actually covered by the Capitol is 153,112
square feet of floor space, or nearly four acres. Its total
cost from the beginning to the present time, including the
land, is estimated at nearly $16,000,000. The great dome,
the fitting crown to the noble edifice, is of cast iron, and
weighs 8,909,200 pounds, or nearly 4,500 tons. Large
sheets of iron, securely bolted together, rest on iron ribs,
and by an ingenious plan used in its construction the
changes of temperature cause it to contract and expand
"like the folding and unfolding of the lily." It cost
$1,047,291.89 according to the official figures. Eight years
were required in its construction, so carefully was the work
done, and as it is thoroughly protected from the weather by
thick coats of white paint, renewed yearly, it is likely to
last for centuries. Its base consists of a peristyle of thirty-
six fluted columns surmounted by an entablature and a bal-
ustrade. Then comes an attic story, and above this th«
dome proper. The ascent to the dome may be made by a,
winding stairway of 365 steps, one for each day in the year.
It is even possible to climb to the foot of the statue. At
the top is a gallery, surrounded by a balustrade, from which
may be obtained a magnificent view of the city and its
environs. Rising from the gallery is the " lantern," twenty-
four feet and four inches in diameter and fifty feet high,
surrounded by a peristyle. The lantern has electric lights
which illuminate the dome during a night session. Over
the lantern is a globe, and standing on the globe is the
bronze statue of Liberty, designed by Thomas Crawford.
It is nineteen feet six inches high, weighs seven and one-half
tons, and cost more than $24,000. It was placed in position
December 2, 1863, amid the salutes from guns in "Washing-
ton and the surrounding forts, and the cheers of thousands

IMPERFECT, BUT YET MAJESTIC. 79

of soldiers. It was lifted to its position in sections, after-
wards bolted together. The original plaster model is in the
National Museum.

From the very beginning the Capitol has suffered as a
National Building from the conflicting and foreign tastes of
its decorators. Literally begun in the woods by a nation in
its infancy, it not only borrowed its general style from the
buildings of antiquity, but it was built by men, strangers in
thought and spirit to the genius of a new Republic, and the
unwrought and unembodied poetry of its virgin soil. Its
earlier decorators, all Italians, overlaid its walls with their
florid colors and foreign symbols. The American plants,
birds and animals representing prodigal Nature at home,
though exquisitely painted, are buried in twilight passages,
while mythological bar-maids, misnamed goddesses, dance
in the most conspicuous places. Happily the Capitol has
already survived this era of false decorative art.

Phidias created the Parthenon. Beneath his eyes it slowly
blossomed, the consummate flower of Hellenic art. It has
never been granted to another one man to create a perfect
building which should be at once the marvel and model of
all time. Many architects have wrought upon the Ameri-
can Capitol, and there are discrepancies in its proportions
wherein we trace the conflict of their opposing idiosyn-
crasies. AVe see places where their contending tastes met
and did not mingle, where the harmony and sublimity
which each sought were lost. We see frescoed fancies and
gilded traceries which tell no story ; we see paintings which
mean nothing but glare. But a human interest attaches
itself to every part of the noble building. Its very defects
the more endear it to us, for, above all else, these are human.
The stranger fancies that he could never be lost in its laby-
rinths, yet he is constantly finding passages that he dreamed
not of, and confronting shut and silent doors which he may
not enter. But the deeper he penetrates into its recesses,

80 THE TREASURE-HOUSE OF THE NATION.

the more positively he is pervaded by its nobleness, and the
more conscious he becomes of its magnitude and its magnifi-
cence.

The Capitol is vastly more than an object of mere per-
sonal attachment to be measured by a narrow individual
standard. To every American citizen it is the majestic
symbol of the majesty of his land. You may be lowly and
poor. You may not own the cottage which shelters you,
nor the scanty acres which you till. Your power may not
cross your own door-step ; yet these historic statues and
paintings, these marble corridors, these soaring walls, this
mighty dome, are yours. The Goddess of Liberty, gazing
down from her proud eminence, bestows no right upon the
lofty which she does not extend equally to the lowliest of
her sons.

"Within the walls of the Capitol every State in the Union
holds its memories, and garners its hopes. Every hall and
corridor, every arch and alcove, every painting and marble
is eloquent with the history of its past, and the prophecy of
its future. The torch of revolution flamed in sight, yet
never reached this beloved Capitol. Its unscathed walls
are the trophies of victorious war ; its dome is the crown of
triumphant freemen; its unfilled niches and perpetually
growing splendor foretell the grandeur of its final consum-
mation. Remembering this, with what serious thought and
care should this great national work progress.

" The hand that rounded Peter's dome,
And groined the aisles of ancient Rome,
Wrought with a sad sincerity."

Let no mediocre artist, no insincere spirit, assume to dec-
orate a building in whose walls and ornaments a great
nation will embody and perpetuate its most precious history.
The brain that designs, the hand that executes for the Capi-
tol, works not for to-day, but for all time.

'J -J - ^

wtn £ °

< 73 J= C O

CHAPTER V.

A TOUR INSIDE AND OUTSIDE THE CAPITOL — INTEREST-
ING SIGHTS AND SCENES — UNDER THE GREAT
DOME — A PARADISE FOR VISITORS.

Entering the Capitol Grounds — Inside the Capitol — Bridal Pairs in
Washington — Where Do They Come From ? — Underneath the Capi-
tol — Using the Capitol as a Bakery — Turning Out 16,000 Loaves of
Bread Daily — Marble Staircases and Luxurious Furniture — In the
Senate Chamber and House of Representatives — Costly Paintings.
Bronzes and Statues — In the Rotunda — Under the Great Dome —
In Statuary Hall — Famous Statues and Works of Art — "Brother
Jonathan" — The Famous Marble Clock — The Scene of Fierce and
Bitter Wrangles — Where John Quincy Adams Was Stricken — The
Bronze Clock Whose Hands Are Turned Back — Climbing to the Top
of the Mighty Dome — Looking Down on the Floor of the Rotunda
— Under the Lantern — At the Tip-top of the Capitol.

!X all the broad land there is no spectacle so
bright, so inspiring as the gleaming Capitol on a
June day. The crocuses and violets that dotted
the green slopes of the Capitol grounds a few

F weeks ago are gone, and the plumed seeds of dande-
lions are now sailing all around us through the deep,
still air. There is a ripple in the grass that invites the
early mower. The shadows lie in undulating outlines un-
derneath the old trees which throw their graceful branches
against a sky of purest azure, and on the easy seats sit
black and white, old and young, taking rest. There is that
in this new bloom so tender, so unsullied, which makes
politicians appear paltry, and all their outcry a mockery
and an impertinence. The long summer wave in the June
grass ; the low, swaying boughs, with their deep mysterious
6 (83)

84 WASHINGTON IN JUNE.

murmur that seems instinct with human pleading; the
tender plaint of infant leaves ; the music of birds ; the depth
of sky ; the balm, the bloom, the virginity, the peace, the
consciousness of life, new, yet illimitable, all are here.

The grounds include fifty-eight and one-half acres, and
each year they become more and more beautiful. We cross
these lovely grounds and enter the Capitol on the East
front, passing Crawford's famous group over the Senate
portico representing American Progress, for the models of
which, and for those of Justice and History above the
bronze doors of the Senate Wing, he received $17,000, the
cutting of the marble by various Italian workmen costing
over $26,000 more. So many people gather under the great
dome of the Capitol that you wonder where they could all
have come from. They are not the people who crowd and
hurry through the corridors in winter — the claimants, the
lobbyists, the pleasure-seekers who come to spend the "sea-
son" in Washington. Nearly all are people from the
country, many of them brides and grooms, to whom the
only " season " on earth is spring — the marriage season.
They seem to be gazing out upon life through its portal
with the same mingling of delight and wonder with which
they gaze through the great doors of the Capitol upon the
unknown world beyond. Early summer always brings a
great influx of bridal pairs to Washington. Whence they
all come no mortal can tell ; but they do come, and can
never be mistaken. Their clothes are as new as the Spring's.
The groom often seems half to deprecate your sudden
glance, as if, like David Copperfield, he was afraid you
thought him "very young." The affections of the lovely
bride seem to be divided between her new lord and her new
clothes. She loves him, she is proud of him ; but this new
suit, who but she can tell its cost ? What longing, what
privation, what patient toil has gone into its mouse- or fawn-
colored folds ; for this little bride, who regretfully drags

THE CAPITOL IN PEACE AND WAR. 85

her demi-train through the dust of the Rotunda, is seldom a
rich man's daughter. You see them everywhere repeated,
these two neophytes — in the hotel parlor, in the street cars,
in the Congressional galleries.

It is like passing from one world. into another, to leave
behind the bright, sunshiny day for the cool, dim halls of the
lower Capitol. No matter how fiercely the sun burns in
the heavens, his fire never penetrates the mellow twilight of
these grand halls.

Here, in Corinthian colonnades, rise the mighty shafts of
stone which bear upon their tops the mightier mass of
marble, and which seem strong enough to support the
world. In the summer solstice they cast long, cool shadows,
full of repose and silence. The electric lights' steady glow
sends long rays through the dimness to light us on. "We
have struck below the jar and tumult of life. The struggles
of a nation may be going on above our heads, yet so vast
and visionary are these vistas opening before us, so deep the
calm which surrounds us, we seem far away from the world
that we have left, in this new world which we have found.
In wandering on to find our way out, we are sure to make
numerous discoveries of unimagined beauty. Here are
doors after doors in almost innumerable succession, opening
into various committee-rooms. During the Civil War these
halls and committee-rooms were used as barracks by the
soldiers, who barricaded the outer doors with barrels of
cement between the pillars. The basement galleries were
used as store-rooms for army provisions ; and the vaults
were converted into bakeries, where 10,000 loaves of bread
were baked every day for many months. Twice during the
first years of the war, the Capitol was used as a hospital,
and scores of the nation's defenders died there.

It would take months to study and to learn the exquisite
pictures and illustrative paintings that adorn these panels,
which artists have taken years to paint. They make a

86 SOME OUTWARD BLEMISHES.

Department of Art in themselves, yet thousands who think
that they know the Capitol well are not aware of their
existence. The art decorations of the Capitol may have
faults, but like the faults of a friend they are sacred. It
bears blots upon its fair face, but these can be washed away.
It wears ornaments vulgar and vain, these can be stripped
off and discarded. Below them, beyond them all, abides the
Capitol. The surface blemish vexes, the pretentious splendor
offends. These are not the Capitol. "We look deeper, we
look higher, to find beauty, to see sublimity, to see the Capi-
tol, august and imperishable !

The four marble staircases leading to the Senate Cham-
ber and the House of Representatives, in themselves alone,
embody enough of grace and magnificence to save the Capi-
tol from cynical criticism. We slip through the Senate
corridor to the President's and Vice-President's rooms.
Their furniture is sumptuous, their decoration oppressive.
Gilding, frescoes, arabesques, glitter and glow above and
around. Luxurious chairs, oriental rugs, and lace curtains
abound. Gazing, one feels an indescribable desire to pluck
a few of Signor Brumidi's red-legged babies and pug-nosed
cupids from their precarious perches on the lofty ceilings,
and commit them to anybody who will smooth out their
rumpled little legs and make them look comfortable. Here
in the President's room the President sometimes sits during
the last day of a congressional session, in order to be ready
to sign bills requiring his immediate signature. Here in the
room of the Vice-President is a marble bust of Vice-Presi-
dent Henry S. Wilson, whose death occurred in this room,
November 22, 1875. Upon its eastern wall hangs Rem-
brandt Peale's portrait of Washington, probably the best
portrait of him in possession of the government.

Let us pass to the Marble Room, which alone, of all the
rooms of the Capitol, suggests repose —

The end of all, the poppied sleep."

IN TH& SENATE CHAMBER. 8?

Its atmosphere is soft, serene, and silent. Its ceiling is
of white marble, deeply paneled, supported by fluted pillars
of polished Italian marble. Its walls are of the exquisite
marble of Tennessee — a soft brown, veined with white —
set with mirrors. One whose aesthetic eyes have studied the
finest apartments of the world says that to him the most
chaste and purely beautiful of all is the Marble Room of
the American Capitol.

Crossing the lobby, through doors of choice mahogany,
we enter the Senate Chamber. It cannot boast of the
ampler proportions of the House of Representatives. The
ceiling is of cast-iron, paneled with stained glass — each
pane bearing the arms of the different States, bound by
most ornate mouldings, bronzed and gilded. The gallery,
which entirely surrounds the hall, will seat a thousand per-
sons. Over the Vice-President's chair, the section separated
from the rest by a net-work of wire, is the reporters' gal-
lery. The one opposite is the gallery of the diplomatic
corps ; next are the seats reserved for the Senators' families.
The Senators sit in semi-circular rows, behind quaint desks
of polished mahogany, facing the Secretary of the Senate,
his assistants, and the Vice-President. A Senator retains
his desk only during a single Congress, drawing lots at the
becnnnino" of the next session for a choice of seats — the
Republicans sitting at the left and Democrats at the right
of the presiding officer. The President of the Senate is the
Vice-President of the United States. He sits upon a dais,
raised above all, within an arched niche and behind a broad
desk. His high- backed chair of carved mahogany was a
gift to the late Vice-President Hobart.

We leave the Senate Chamber by the western staircase.
Here in the niche at the foot of the staircase, corresponding
to Franklin's on the opposite side, stands Dr. Horatio Stone's
noble figure of John Hancock, he whose name is first in the
list of signatures of the Declaration of Independence. The

NORTH FRONT

INOdd Hinos

PRINCIPAL STORY OF THE CAPITOL.

pedestal is inscribed : " lie wrote his name where all nations
should behold it, and all time should not efface it." The
statue was sculptured in 1861, and $5,500 was paid for it.
The stairs are of polished white marble, and the painting
above them, in its setting of maroon cloth, represents the
" Storming of Chepultepec " in all the ardor of its fiery
action. For this painting $6,137.00 was paid. We saunter
on along the breezy corridors whose doors admit to the
Senate galleries. Through open windows we catch delight-
ful glimpses of the garden city, the sheen of the gliding
river, and the distant hills beyond. In an adjoining hall is

KEY TO THE PRINCIPAL STORY OP THE CAPITOL.

The diagram printed on the opposite page was reproduced from the
government plan. All the rooms now occupied are numbered, and are
devoted to the following uses :

3.
4.

10.
12.
13.

14.

r>.

16.
17.

10.
17.
18.
19.
20.

21. >
22 |
23.
24.

25.
26.

HOUSE WING.

Appropriations.

Committee on Rivers and Harbors.
Journal, printing, and file clerks of the 31.
House. 32.

Committee on Naval Affairs.
Closets. 33.

Members'1 retiring room.

Speaker's room.

Cloakrooms.

Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms of the

House.
Committee on Ways and Means.
Committee on Military Affairs.
House Library.
Elevators.

SENATE WING.

Office of the Secretary of the Senate.
Executive Clerk of the Senate.
Financial Clerk of the Senate.
Chief Clerk of the Senate.
Engrossing and enrolling clerks of the

Senate.
Committee on Appropriations.

Closets.

Cloakrooms.

Room of the President.

The Senators' reception room.

27. The Vice-President's room.

28. Committee on Finance.

29. Official Reporters of Debates.

30. Public reception room.
Committee on the District of Columbia.
Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms of the

Senate.
Elevator.

MAIN BUILDING.

33. House document room.

34. Engrossing and enrolling clerks of the

House.

35. Committee on Enrolled Bills.

36. Office of the Clerk of the House of Repre-

sentatives. It was in this room that
ex-President John Quincy Adams died,
two days after he fell at his seat in the
House, February 23, 1848.

37. Office of the Clerk of the Supreme Court.

38. Robing room of the Judges of the Su-

preme Court.

39. Withdrawing-room of the Supreme Court-

40. Office of the Marshal of the Supreme
Court.

The Supreme Court, formerly the Senate
Chamber.

The Old Hall of the House of Representa-
tives is now used as a statuary hall, to
which each State has been invited to
contribute two statues of its most dis
tinguished citizens.

90 THE BATTLE OF THE IRONCLADS.

a painting representing the battle between the ironclads,
the Monitor and the Merrimac, purchased in 1877 for $7,-
500. The artist is said to have interviewed in person or by
letter some five hundred eye-witnesses of the fight, and con-
sequently this is probably the most correct representation
of the battle in existence. This picture is the only excep-
tion to the rule that no reminder of the Civil War shall bo
placed in the Capitol, an exception due to the fact that this
was in reality a drawn battle, where the courage on both
sides was equal, and when naval methods of the world were
revolutionized.

Outside the Senate Chamber, beyond the staircase, is a
vestibule which opens upon the eastern portico through the
Senate bronze doors, designed by Thomas Crawford. The
workmanship is not considered as fine as is that of the
famous Rogers door. Crawford received $6,000 for the
designs, while the casting and other expenses brought the
total cost up to $56,495. In the East Corridor may be seen
the famous gilt mirror which "Vice-President John Adams
innocently purchased for the room at a cost of $36.00. The
purchase was regarded as a piece of reckless extravagance,
and three days were spent by Congress in stormy and acri-
monious debate and much eloquent denunciation of the pur-
chase, before the bill was ordered paid.

Passing by the Supreme Court Room we enter the great
Rotunda, which is ninety-live feet in diameter, 300 feet in
circumference and over 180 feet in height. Its magnificent
dome is one of the most finished specimens of iron archi-
tecture in the world. The panels of the Rotunda are
adorned with paintings of life-size, painted by Trumbull
and others. Colonel John Trumbull was son of Gov. Jona-
than Trumbull of Connecticut, the original " Brother Jona-
than." The young officer was aid and military secretary to
Gen. Washington, and " having a natural taste for draw-
ing," he, after the war, studied in this country and in

TRUMBULL'S HISTORIC PAINTINGS. 91

Europe and conceived an ambition to produce a series of
national paintings, depicting the principal events of the
Revolution, in which each face should be painted from life,
so far as sittings could be obtained, while others were to be
copied from approved portraits. He painted Adams, then
Minister to England, in London, and Jefferson, in Paris.
He was given sittings by Washington, and traveled from
New Hampshire to South Carolina, collecting portraits and
other material. In 1816, after more than thirty years of
preparation, he was commissioned by Congress to paint the
four great pictures in the Rotunda. They are " Signing the
Declaration of Independence," " Surrender of General Bur-
goyne at Saratoga," " Surrender of Lord Cornwallis at
Yorktown," and " The Resignation of Washington." For
these paintings Trumbull received $32,000 — a large sum in
those days.

Numerous other paintings adorn the Avails, among them
the " Baptism of Pocahontas," the " Landing of Columbus,"
and the " Discovery of the Mississippi." Like most works
of genius, these paintings have many merits and many
defects. Perhaps the favorite of all is the " Embarkation
of the Pilgrims" on the unsea worthy " Speedwell " at Delft
Haven for America. It depicts the farewell service on
board. Its figures and the fabrics of its costumes are won-
derfully painted ; so, too, is the face of the hoary Pilgrim
who is offering a fervent petition to God for their safe pass-
age across stormy seas to the land of deliverance ; but the
enchantment of the picture is the face of Rose Standish. In
those eyes, blue as heaven and as true, are seen only purity,
faith, devotion, tenderness, and unutterable love.

The group in bas-relief over the western entrance of
the Rotunda represents " Pocahontas Saving the Life of
Captain John Smith." The idea is national, but the execu-
tion is preposterous. Powhatan looks like an Englishman,
and Pocahontas has a Greek face and a Grecian head-dress.

92 STATUES OF HEROES AND STATESMEN.

The alto-relievo over the eastern entrance of the Rotunda
represents the " Landing of the Pilgrims." The Pilgrim,
his wife and child, are stepping from the prow of the boat
to receive from the hand of an Indian, kneeling on the rock
before them, an ear of corn.

Over the south door of the Rotunda we have " Daniel
Boone in Conflict with the Indians " in a forest. Boone has
dispatched one Indian and is in close battle with the other.
It commemorates an occurrence which took place in the
year 1773. Over the northern door of the Rotunda we
have "William Penn standing under an elm, in the act of
presenting a treaty to the Indians.

In the Rotunda are statues of men whom patriotism and
death have made illustrious and immortal. The statue of
Col. E. D. Baker, of Illinois, was executed by Horatio
Stone, in Rome, in 1862. While other statues stand forth
in heroic size, that of Baker is under that of life, and barely
suggests the grand proportions of the man. Yet the dig-
nity and grandeur of his mien are here, as he stands wrap-
ped in his cloak, his arms folded, his head thrown back, his
noble face lifted as if he saw the future — his future — and
awaited it undaunted and with a joyful heart. Amid all
the orators of the dark days of the Civil War, no voice
uttered such burning words as that of Baker — he who left
the seat of a senator for the grave of a soldier.

Congress voted ten thousand dollars to Horatio Stone,
then in Rome, to execute the noble and beautiful statue of
Alexander Hamilton, which stands in the Rotunda. ISTo
painted portrait could give to posterity so grand an idea of
the great Federalist. It is eight feet high and represents
Hamilton in the attitude of impassioned speech. The exe
cution of the statue is exquisite, while in pose and expres-
sion it is the embodiment of majesty and power. Burr —
who presided over the Senate, who with the pride, subtlety,
and ambition of Lucifer planned and executed to live in the

Crawford's famous bronzes. o:i

future amid the most exalted names of his time — sleeps dis-
honored and accursed ; while the great rival whom he
hated, whose success he could not endure, whose life he
destroyed, comes back in this majestic semblance to abide
for all time in the Nation's Capitol. Thus we behold in
this statue not only a "triumph of art" but also a triumph
of that final retributive compensation of justice which
sooner or later avenges every wrong.

In the Rotunda is a notable statue of General Grant and a
magnificent bronze statue of Thomas Jefferson. Here also
is Mrs. Vinnie Ream Hoxie's statue of Lincoln, the first glance
at which is the most satisfactory that you will ever have.

No sculptor has left more lasting evidence of his genius
in the decorations of the Capitol than Thomas Crawford, a
bust of whom now adorns the Rotunda. Stricken with an
incurable malady in the fullness of his powers, mai y of his
great works were left unfinished ; but he would need no
other title to fame than the great Goddess of Libertv
crowning the dome, the tympanum of the Senate portico,
and the Senate bronze doors.

We pass from the Rotunda into one of the noblest rooms
of the Capitol, the old Hall of Representatives, which when
first completed was regarded as " the most elegant legisla-
tive hall in the world." Much care was taken in its con-
struction. Above the handsome colonnade of Potomac
marble on the south side rises an immense arch, in the
center of which is the statue of Liberty, with an altar at the
right and an eagle at the feet of the goddess. Under this
statue in the frieze of the entablature is a spread eagle
carved in stone by Valperti, an Italian. The curious atti-
tude of the national bird gave rise to much adverse criti-
cism, and Valperti was so grieved because its resemblance
to a turkey buzzard was so often noted that he drowned
himself in the Potomac, leaving this eagle as his only work
in America.

94 THE HALL OF NATIONAL ART.

It was a happy thought which dedicated the old Hall of
Representatives to national art. The late Senator Justin S.
Morrill, then a Representative from Vermont, first made
the suggestion, which was followed in 1864 by an invitation
from Congress to each State to send marble or bronze stat-
ues of two of her most illustrious sons for permanent preser-
vation. Many States have responded, and some of the stat-
ues are of a high order of merit.

The first effect as we enter Statuary Hall and glance at
these white, silent figures ranged regularly about, is pecul-
iar, a feeling mainly due to the varying size of the statues,
some being of heroic dimensions, others of ordinary size,
and some less than life size. All these men did something
to make them remembered by a patriotic and grateful
country ; but some were heroes of the nation, others were
prominent chiefly in their own States. Curiously enough,
most of the local statesmen appear in heroic size and many
of the great national heroes in ordinary size. For instance,
here are the statues of Benton and Blair of Missouri, Cass
of Michigan, Morton of Indiana, Allen of Ohio, all good
men who lived noble lives and performed good deeds for
their country, towering like giants above Houdon's Wash-
ington and Conrad's Webster. A serious mistake was made
when provision was neglected for making all these statues
of uniform size. In studying them we need to dismiss all
thought of comparison, to forget when examining one that
we have ever seen another, and to lose ourselves completely
for the time in the one we behold. Only in this way may
we catch the real spirit and purpose of the artist. We can
admire the animation chiseled into the figure of General
Muhlenberg, the pious statesmanship revealed in Green-
ough's Winthrop, and the majestic intellectuality in Con-
rad's Webster, even though the sculptured forms of lesser
men rise conspicuously above them.

In studying the statue of Muhlenberg, we recall his sub-

3LIC

PIONEERS OF LIBERTY. 97

lime patriotism when, on the Sunday following the battle of
Lexington, after preaching a sermon to his congregation,
he suddenly threw off the robes of the minister, and stepped
forth in the uniform of the soldier, as he uttered these
words : " There is a time for all things — a time to preach
and a time to fight — and now is the time to light." He
organized a company of troops from among his congrega-
tion, joined Washington's army, became a general, and was
present at the surrender of Lord Cornwallis at Yorktown.

It is interesting to note the dress that marked different
periods in our nation's growth as exhibited in these statues.
There is a charm in the quaint costume of colonial and rev-
olutionary heroes, which is wanting in the dress of men of
later times. It is refreshing to turn from the stove-pipe
hats, shingled heads, and angular garments in which the
men of our generation do penance, to the flowing locks,
puckered knee-breeches and ample ruffs in which Roger
Williams represents his name and time. He holds a book in
his hand, on whose cover is inscribed the words " Soul Lib-
erty," and with free, uplifted glance and spirited pose seems
about to step forward while his lips appear ready to open
with words of inspiration.

One of the most interesting statues is that of Marquette,
the missionary explorer, here represented in his flowing
priestly robes. Here too is Ethan Allen, the hero of Ticon-
deroga, and one can imagine him standing at the head of
his Green Mountain Boys and demanding the surrender of
the fort " in the name of Jehovah and the Continental Con-
gress." Connecticut's contribution — the statues of Jona-
than Trumbull and Roger Sherman — are of heroic size, and
at first glance are most imposing, but the good impression is
not abiding. Jonathan Trumbull was Governor of the Col-
ony of Connecticut, and first Governor of the State. An
influential leader in the Revolution, fertile in resources, he
was a very close friend of Washington, who " relied upon

98 OTHER NOTEWORTHY STATUES.

him as one of his main pillars of support " ; and because of
his great services in providing the sinews of war he gave
him the name " Brother Jonathan," used ever since as the
nickname of the United States.

One of the most noticeable of the group is a plaster cast,
mounted high on a wooden block, of Houdon's life-size statue
of "Washington. Jean Antoine Houdon was a French
sculptor, educated in Paris and Rome. He was employed
by the State of Yirginia to make a statue of "Washington,
and in 1785 he accompanied Franklin to America and
resided for several weeks with "Washington's family at
Mount Yernon. While there he studied his subject, made a
cast of "Washington's face, and subsequently sculptured in
Italy the original statue now in the Capitol at Richmond.
It is the most faithful portrait in existence of Washington
in his later years, and Lafayette pronounced it the best rep-
resentation of Washington ever made. The fact that no
other statue of him was ever made from life renders this
work especially interesting and valuable.

Among other notable statues may be mentioned that of
President James A. Garfield, Ohio; Gen. Philip Kearney,
New Jersey ; Samuel Adams, Massachusetts ; Robert R.
Livingston, New York; Gen. John Stark, of New Hamp-
shire, and others of nearly or quite equal fame, albeit these
memorial marbles and bronzes are of very unequal merit.

Over the main entrance to Statuary Hall, and opposite
the former position of the Speaker's desk, still stands the
famous clock carved from a solid piece of marble, which has
for its theme the Flight of Time. It has for its dial the
wheel of the winged chariot of Time, resting on a globe.
In this chariot stands a figure of Clio, the Muse who pre-
sides over History, with a scroll and pen in her hand,
recording passing events upon tablets.

In itself Statuary Hall is the most majestic room in the
Capitol. Set apart to enshrine the sculptured forms of the

A ROOM OP MANY MEMORIES. 99

illnstrious dead, its arches and alcoves are fraught with
their living memories. Here Clay presided, here Webster
spoke. Calhoun, Randall, Cass, the younger Adams, and
many others here won reputation for statesmanship, and
made the walls ring with fiery eloquence. It has been the
scene of many fierce and bitter wrangles over vexed ques-
tions and displays of sectional feeling. It was here that
ex-President John Quincy Adams, then a Representative for
Massachusetts, was prostrated at his desk by paralysis,
resulting in his death two days later. A star set in the
floor marks the position of his desk.

Statuary Hall has surprising acoustic properties. Curi-
ous echoes, whispers distinct at a distance, and ability to
hear what is inaudible to a person at your elbow, are among
the curiosities of sound observable at certain points.

We pass from this noble room through the open corri-
dor directly into the House of Representatives. It occupies
the precise place in the south wing which the Senate Cham-
ber does in the north wing. Like the Senate Chamber, the
light of day comes to it but dimly through the stained glass
roof overhead. Like that, also, it is entire, encircled by a
corridor opening into smoking apartments, committee rooms,
the Speaker's room, etc.

The House of Representatives is 139 feet long, ninety-
three feet wide, and thirty-six feet in height, with a gallery
running entirely around the Hall holding seats for 2,000
persons. Like the Senate Chamber, the ceilh g is of iron
work, bronzed, gilded, and paneled with glass, each pane
decorated with the arms of a State. At the corners of
these panels in gilt and bronze are rosettes of the cotton
plant in its various stages of bud and blossom. The Speak-
er's desk, splendid in proportion, is of pure white marble.
At the Speaker's left sits the assistant doorkeeper, and the
sergeant-at-arms is within easy call. The symbol of author-
ity of the sergeant-at-arms is the Mace, which lies on a niar-

« >

100 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

ble pedestal at the Speaker's right. When it is placed on
its pedestal, it signifies that the House is in session and
under the Speaker's authority; when it is placed on the
floor, that the House is a committee of the whole. The
Mace is a bundle of thirteen ebony rods, fastened with
transverse bands of silver. On its top is a silver globe on
which is engraved a map of the world, and this is sur-
mounted by a silver eagle with wings outstretched. "When
the sergeant-at-arms is executing the commands of the
Speaker, he bears aloft the Mace in his hands.

Over the main entrance is the famous bronze clock
whose hands are turned back on the last day of the session,
in order that the precise hour of adjournment may not be
marked by it before the actual business of the House is
finished.

The Speaker's room, at the rear of his chair and across
the inner lobbv, is one of the most beautiful rooms in the
Capitol. Its ornaments are not as glaring as those of the
President's and Vice-President's rooms, while its mirrors,
carved book-cases, velvet carpets, and chairs, give it a look
of home comfort as well as of luxury. It has a bright out-
look upon the eastern grounds of the Capitol, and its walls
are hung with portraits of every Speaker from the First
Congress to the present one.

"We pass through the private corridor looking from the
Speaker's room out into the grand colonnaded vestibule
opening upon the great portico of the south extension.
These twenty-four columns and forty pilasters have blos-
somed from native soil. The models of Athens, Pompeii,
Pome, are departed from at last, and their adornments are
distinctively American. Looking up to these flowering
capitals we see corn-leaves, tobacco, and magnolias budding
and blooming from their marble crowns. Every column,
every pilaster bears a magnolia, each of a different form, all
from casts of the natural flower. And far below, beneath

"SIGNING THE PROCLAMATION." 101

the Representatives' Hall, there is a row of monolithic col-
umns formed of the tobacco and thistle. It is above the
marble staircase opposite, leading to the ladies' gallery, that
Ave see painted on the wall the great painting of Leutze
entitled "Westward, Ho!" for which $20,000 was paid. It
represents the advance of civilization. Confusing, disap-
pointing perhaps, at first glance, this painting asserts itself
more and more in the soul the longer you gaze.

At the foot of the eastern grand staircase is Powers'
statue of Thomas Jefferson which cost $10,000. Over the
landing is Frank B. Carpenter's painting " Signing of the
Proclamation of Emancipation," painted at the White
House in 1864. It represents President Lincoln signing the
Proclamation in the presence of his Cabinet, September 22,
1862. It was presented to Congress in 1878 by Mrs. Eliza-
beth Thompson, who paid $25,000 to the artist for the
picture. She received the thanks of Congress, and was
given the privilege of the floor of the House during any of
its sessions. Only one other woman has been similarly
honored, — Dolly Madison, the wife of President Madison,
for her distinguished character and patriotic services.

"We come back to the grand vestibule of the southern
wing, and out to the great portico through one of the
famous bronze doors designed by Rogers, and cast in Mun-
ich. How heavy, slow, and still its swing! The other
opens and closes upon the central door of the north wing,
leading to the vestibule of the Senate. Rogers received
$8,000 for his plaster models of these doors. The casting
cost $17,000 in gold, when gold commanded a high pre-
mium, and their total cost to the government wa? $28,500.
The doors are eighteen feet in height, nine feet in width,
and weigh ten tons.

Here, on this portico, the inauguration of Presidents of
the United States has taken place since the time of Jackson.
From it we look out upon the eastern grounds of the Capi-
7

102 GREENOUGH'S CLASSIC WASHINGTON.

col in the unsullied beauty of a June morning, across the
paved plaza, through the vistas of maples with their green
arcade flecked with light and shadow, to the august form of
Horatio Greenough's statue of George Washington sitting
in the center of the grounds in a lofty Roman chair
mounted on a pedestal of granite twelve feet high. Green-
ough was commissioned by Congress to execute this statue,
the only conditions imposed being that it should be " a full
length pedestrian statue," and that the countenance should
conform to that of the Houdon statue. For this he was
paid $20,000, though he devoted the principal part of his
time for eight years to the work.

This is the most criticised work of art about the Capitol.
It is true that a sense of personal discomfort seems to ema-
nate from the drapery — or lack of it — and the pose of this
colossal figure. George Washington with his right arm out-
stretched, his left forever holding a Roman sword, half-
naked, beneath bland summer skies and within a veiling
screen of tender leaves, is a much more comfortable-looking
object than when the winds and rains beat upon his unshel-
tered head and uncovered form. This statue was designed
in imitation of the antique statue of Jupiter Tonans. The
ancients made their statues of Jupiter naked above and
draped below as being visible to the gods but invisible to
men. But the average American citizen, being accustomed
to seeing the Father of his Country decently attired, natur-
ally receives a shock at first beholding him in next to no
clothes at all. It is impossible for him to reconcile a Jupi-
ter in sandals with the stately George Washington in knee-
breeches and buckled shoes. The spirit of the statue, which
is ideal, militates against the spirit of the land, which is
utilitarian, if not commonplace.

Nevertheless, in poetry of feeling, in grandeur of con-
ception, in exquisite fineness of detail, and in execution, it
is the greatest work in marble yet wrought at the command

HOW THE STATUE CAME TO AMERICA. 10.'}

of the government for the Capitol. It is scarcely human,
certainly not American, but it is god-like. The face is a
perfect portrait of Washington. The veining of a single
hand, the muscles of a single arm, are triumphs of art.
While it is the masterpiece of a master, it has called forth
more ridicule, and been the subject of more rude and vulgar
jests than any other piece of American sculpture.

The statue weighs nearly twenty-one tons, and was
sculptured in Florence. In 1840 Commodore Hull was sent
with a vessel of war to bring it to the United States, but
when he found it would be necessary to rip up the decks of
his vessel in order to place the colossal statue in the hold,
he protested. A merchantman was therefore chartered for
the purpose, her hatches enlarged, and the vessel otherwise
changed in order to receive the statue. Upon its arrival at
the Capitol in 1841, the doors of the building were found to
be too small to admit it, and the masonry had to be cut
away before the statue could be gotten inside. It was sub-
sequently removed from the Rotunda to its present position
in the grounds, facing the east front of the Capitol. The
statue has cost the government, including the sum paid to
Greenough and the amounts paid for work and materials,
the cost of transportation from Italy, and the removal from
the Rotunda to its present site, $42,170.74.

In the center of the Capitol, on the ground floor, directly
under the great dome, is a large circular chamber known as
the crypt. In the center of the floor is a marble star, which
is, theoretically, the center of the city of Washington, as
originally laid out in L'Enfant's plan. Beneath the star, in
the center of the crypt, is a tomb known as the " Washing-
ton Tomb." In 1799 Congress passed a resolution that a
marble statue of General Washington be erected in the
Capitol, and that the family of General Washington be re
quested to permit his body to be deposited under it. Many
resolutions were subsequently offered, and much correspond-

104 MRS. WASHINGTON'S LETTER.

ence carried on regarding the ceremonies of removing his
remains from Mount Vernon, and a tomb at the Capitol was
made ready. The following is a correct copy of one of
these resolutions:

"That the remains of General George Washington be removed, with
suitable funeral honors, from the family vault at Mount Vernon, conducted
under the direction of a joint committee of both Houses of Congress, on

the day of December next, and entombed in the national sepulchre to

be prepared for that purpose under the centre dome of the Capitol in the
City of Washington."

A copy of the resolution was transmitted by John

Adams to Martha Washington, who sent the following

reply :

"Mt. Vernon, Dec. 31, 1799.
"Sir:

"While I feel, with keenest anguish, the late dispensation of Divine
Providence, I cannot be insensible to the mournful tributes of respect and
veneration which are paid to the memory of my dear deceased husband ;
and as his best services and most anxious wishes were always devoted to
the welfare and happiness of his country, to know that they were truly
appreciated, and gratefully remembered, affords me no inconsiderable
consolation.

" Taught by that great example which I have so long had before me
never to oppose my private wishes to the public will, I must consent to
the request made by Congress, which you have had the goodness to trans-
mit to me ; and, in doing this, I need not, I cannot say, what a sacrifice of
individual feeling I make to a sense of public duty.

"With grateful acknowledgements, and unfeigned thanks for the per-
sonal respect and evidences of condolence expressed by Congress and your-
self, I remain, very respectfully, Sir,

" Your most obedient humble servant,

"Martha Washington."

Nothing was done, however, and in 1832 John A. "Wash-
ington, who was then the owner of Mount Vernon, declined
the request made by Congress. When General Grant died
the question of honoring him with a final resting-place in
the "Washington Tomb" was discussed, but the family
were averse to the plan. The tomb in the Capitol is still
vacant except for the simple bier of boards covered with

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A BIRDS-EYE VIEW OP THE CITY. 10?

black cloth which was used to support the remains of Lin-
coln, and which has been used for each citizen laid in state
at the Capitol since that day.

From the Rotunda we turn westward to the lofty colon-
nade outside, from whose balcony we look down upon the
view which Humboldt declared to be the most beautiful of
its type in the whole world. Directly below us, past the
western terrace of the Capitol, stretch the western Capitol
grounds. These marble terraces and their ornamental ap-
proaches cost $200,000. Many varieties of trees grown to
forest height spread their interlacing boughs to form a roof
of cool, green shadow over the sward below, which is dotted
over with the golden dandelions in early May. Broad
flights of stairs, parting right and left around a fountain,
lead down a lower terrace, in the center of which is a bronze
figure of Chief-Justice John Marshall, executed by the
American sculptor William W. Story in Rome in 1883. It
was presented to the United States by members of the bar,
and cost $40,000, Congress supplying the pedestal.

He who has not climbed the winding stairway, which
opens from the corridor near the north door of the Rotunda
and leads by devious ways to the top of the mighty dome,
has missed one of the most inspiring features of the Capitol.
In the ascent one beholds the immense iron work which
supports and makes the great dome. Part way up the
stairway one may look down upon the floor of the Rotunda
from the whispering gallery beneath the canopy. A little
farther, and one walks out upon the great balustrade sur-
rounding the base of the dome, from which may be seen the
whole panorama of the city lying at his feet. Still a little
farther, one arrives at the smaller balustrade beneath the
lantern which supports the goddess. The view from the
top of the Washington monument may be more command-
ing, but it does not reveal the beauties which are thrust
upon the beholder at this dizzy height, for the city radiates

108 UNDER A GREEN CANORY.

in all directions from this point. The great avenues, like
the spokes of a mighty wheel, stretch away till lost in the
green foot hills. The long avenues are marked by soft
clouds of gently-swaying foliage, for each is doubly fringed
with trees ; the whole city seems to be smothered under a
beautiful canopy of green, pierced here and there by a dome
or a steeple or a towering building. Looking directly down,
we see the beautiful grounds of the Capitol, gracefully
marked by shady walks and drives ; farther down the west
lie the Botanical Gardens, in the midst of which glistens
the great Bartholdi fountain ; while to the east, like a vision,
rises the Library of Congress. On the distant hill tops,
gleaming through the soft green, we behold the Soldiers'
Home, and across the Potomac, which winds like a stream
of molten silver to the south, we catch a glimpse of Arling-
ton, the silent city of the Nation's dead.

CHAPTER VI.

IN THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES — A
PEEP BEHIND THE SCENES— CLAIMANTS AND LOBBY-
ISTS—HOW GOVERNMENT PRIZES ARE WON.

In the House of Representatives — Scenes of Confusion — The Speaker —
A Peep Behind the Scenes—" What Did They Do?" — A Visit to the
Senate — Playing Marbles Behind the Vice-President's Chair — Secret
Sessions — The Veil Lifted — A Senator's Amusing Experience —
Some Revelations — How the Senate Works — "Will Carp Eat Gold
Fish?" — Curious Requests — "We Want a Baby" — Women With
Claims — Professional Lobbyists and Their Ways — Button-holing Sen-
ators— " Who are They? " — Importance of " Knowing the Ropes " —
Catching the Speaker's Eye — An Indignant Congressman — Catching
" the Measles, the Whooping-Cough, and the Influenza " — The Frank-
ing Privilege — Providing for the " Comforts" of Members — Shaves,
Hair-cuts, and Baths at Uncle Sam's Expense — Barbers as "Skilled
Laborers " — " Working a Committee."

| •

jE have observed the Capitol as a monument of
the people's history and patriotism, but to
know it as it is, we must see it as the work-
shop of Congress, and enter into the spirit and
understanding of its manifold operations. In its
various and conflicting architectural conceptions Ave
have noted both the weakness and the strength of human
nature and ability; we have yet to observe that same
human nature in its daily activity in both legislative bulls
of the Congress. These grand paintings, these famous
statues and costly bronzes, these wonderful corridors, this
mighty dome, all bring up a past — a history that is made ;
but the life of the Capitol is an affair always of to-day —

(109)

110 THE HOUSE IN SESSION.

history which is being made, and which is ever running
back into our glorious past. We can see no halo about the
present ; that comes with time. All this active, storming
life in the great Capitol is the motion of the mightiest
engine of the government — the legislative machine. There
is nothing in all the world like it ; no legislative machine
that can do and has done so much.

Entering the Senate wing and beholding this machine
on one side, it seems to be proceeding so calmly, so noise-
lessly and serenely, as to be hardly moving at all. When
we visit the House wing and view the other side, we behold
such utter confusion, such an apparently woful lack of
attention to anything that is going on at any one place,
that we are impressed at once with the idea that something
dreadful has happened to the mechanism. We take a seat
in the gallery, which is never empty when Congress is in
session, and which is often full, though people are every
minute going out and others coming in to take their places.
The House is in session. We look down upon a confused
mass of desks littered with books and papers, and men who
are constantly walking about in every direction. The deep,
low buzz of never-ceasing conversation rises and falls and
comes to us from every part of the room, including the gal-
lery. The few men who may at any one time be seen at
their desks appear to be absorbed in attending to a vast
private correspondence. There is an intermittent and
irregular clapping of hands, like the report of distant fire-
crackers, and frequent and urgent calls from impatient
members for the pages, who are constantly running about,
lending life and adding confusion to the scene. In the
background, behind the tall screens, we catch glimpses of
lobbies, coat-rooms, and barber shops, where members are
smoking, laughing, reading, telling stories, and lounging
about. High up behind the white marble desk quietly sits
the Speaker of the House, the most powerful man in the

A SCENE OF CONFUSION.

Ill

government next to the President. He appears to be the
only serene and undisturbed person in the room. Just
below him one of the clerks is droning in a sing-song manner
something which nobody seems to hear or cares to hear.
At a still lower desk are more clerks and stenographers.
Far up one of the aisles a man suddenly jumps to his feet
and makes a violent but only half-audible speech, to which

140

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DIAGRAM OF THE FLOOR OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
D. Doorkeepers. S. Sergeant at-Arms.

no one listens except a stenographer who swiftly runs up
the aisle with note book and pencil in hand, sits at a near-by
desk and takes down every word as if too precious to be
lost. Having made his speech, he strolls back to the cloak-
room and lights a cigar; the stenographer returns to his
chair and the clerk above him continues his monotonous
drone. The confusion increases and the Speaker strikes the
top of his desk with a heavy mallet, the report ringing out
like the crack of a rifle. Comparative silence reigns for a
moment, and he follows up the temporary advantage thus
secured by remarking: — "The House will be in order."
He lapses back into his unruffled state and the House lapses

112 PASSING A BILL.

back into its hubbub. After a time there is a slightly per-
ceptible unanimity in the getting up and sitting down and
walking about of the uneasy crowd, which indicates that a
vote is being taken. Amid the confusion, the Speaker again
brings his mallet down on the top of his desk and says : —
" The ayes seem to have it, the ayes have it ; " and the
clerks appear to be attending to the further details.

" What did they do % " you ask.

Well, just then the House voted to spend $224,000,000
in round numbers. If you had a copy of the bill you would
see that it contained about 150 pages of closely-printed
matter reading something like this : — " For prevention
of deposits New York Harbor, 13 cents ; for maintenance of
Bureau of Yards and Docks, 43 cents ; for building a bridge
across the Potomac, $2.03," and so on, the whole amounting
to $224,000,000. This particular vote happened to be on
the General Deficiency Bill, and these little items are to
make up deficiencies in the expenditures which the govern-
ment is constantly making everywhere in our broad land.
It is to balance accounts for the fiscal year, and it shows
that where a few cents is required for this purpose, thou-
sands and often tens of thousands of dollars are being spent.
The Appropriations Committee is presumed to have exam-
ined this bill ; it has been read and printed, and read again
and printed, and read again, and now it is passed. We
chanced to see the last process of the operation.

Making our way to a seat in the Senate gallery we find
ourselves in an entirely different atmosphere. It is not
because the men are so very different, for they are not.
Most of them have been members of the House earlier in
their careers. The difference lies altogether in the way of
doing business and in the traditions which have come down
from the First Congress. When Congress was sitting in
Philadelphia previous to 1800, a writer in one of the news-
papers of the day said : — " Among the senators is observed

Traditions op* the} senate}. 113

constantly during the debates the most delightful silence,
the most beautiful order, gravity and personal dignity of
manner. They all appear every morning full-powdered and
dressed in the richest material. The very atmosphere of
the chamber seems to inspire wisdom, mildness, condescen-
sion. Should any of the senators so far forget for a moment
as to be the cause of a protracted whisper, while another
was addressing the Vice-President, three gentle raps with
his silver pencil case by Mr. Adams immediately restored
everything to repose and the most respectful attention."

The dignified pace set by the first senators has changed
but little. Then there were but twenty-six senators, and
now there are ninety, or more than there were in the origi-
nal House of Representatives. Time has modified somewhat
the early dignity of the body, but it is hardly perceptible.
The bitterness of partisan feeling seldom shows itself in the
calm and dignified serenity which is the traditional senato-
rial demeanor. There is a slight moving about; senators
come in and are called out, but so quietly do they move on
the soft carpets that no one is disturbed. Occasionally there
is a sharp hand-clap, and one of the pages, all bright-looking,
smartly-dressed youngsters, trips lightly up to some senator
to do his bidding — to get a book or paper from his com-
mittee room, or to take a telegram to the operator in the
corridor. These page-boys, when disengaged, are seated on
the carpeted steps to the Vice-President's platform, and,
when there has been nothing to distract them, they have
been known to have a quiet little game of marbles behind
the Vice-President's chair, but in such a silent and decorous
manner that the dignity of the Vice-President was not ruf-
fled by a knowledge of it. Congressmen who always have
the privilege of coming on the floor during open sessions of
the Senate, drop in often, especially if some great debate is
on, but they leave their house manners outside the door.
The people in the galleries adapt themselves unconsciously

114

WHERE GRAVITY AND DECORUM RULE.

to the calmer and higher atmosphere. If they should be so
rash as to applaud anything a senator said, the gallery
would be cleared. While the Republicans are seated on one
side and the Democrats on the other, it is a common thing
to see a senator of one political persuasion walk over to the
seat of one of the opposite faith and talk with him with
every evidence of sincere good nature, and as if there was
no such thing as differences in political belief. Even in the

DIAGRAM OP THE FLOOR OP THE SENATE.

V. P.

Sec.

President pro tempore.

Secretary.
C. C. Chief Clerk.
L. C Legislative Clerk.
R. C Reading Clerk.

D. Doorkeeper and Assistants.

J. C Journal Clerk.

R. Official Reporters.

P. Press Reporters.

S. Sergeant-at-Arms.

stormy days when Calhoun was the lightning, "Webster the
thunder, and Clay the rainbow of the Senate, and in those
still more tempestuous days just preceding the Civil "War,
there were few occasions when senatorial courtesy was
damaged by passionate outbursts of feeling.

The greatest change that has been brought about is ii)

SECRET SESSIONS OF THE SENATE. 115

the apparent lack of attention given to speakers. It often
happens in the long discussion of some important matter on
which many senators make lengthy speeches that the
audience is small and the attention limited, but this is due
to the fact that the " Congressional Record " brings out
in cold type the next morning all that is said, so that a
senator can lose little at such times if he withdraws to
his committee room to take up the multifarious matters
always demanding his attention. As one-third of the body
is elected every two years, the larger part is always experi-
enced, the more so as most elections are re-elections, and the
absolutely new members are readily assimilated. They
quickly find that nothing offends so much as violations
of Senate traditions of dignity and respect and courtesy.
The one unpardonable sin in the Senate is to be unsenatorial.

How effective are these traditions is shown by the fact
that there is not, as in the House, any means for limiting de-
bate. There is no time this side of eternity when a senator
must stop talking. No matter what business interests may
hang upon the issue, the Senate can not even act till it has
unanimous consent.

Another evidence of the rigidity of tradition is given in
the executive session. The Senate sat with closed doors for
two sessions, or until 1794, when it was resolved that the
legislative sittings should be opened unless otherwise
ordered. The secret sessions are now confined to executive
nominations or treaties, and though so mysterious are gen-
erally very tame affairs. One senator relates that when he
first came to Washington, it was as a Representative, and
when upon t lie floor of the Senate one day, an executive ses-
sion was ordered. The galleries were cleared and the Repre-
sentative was courteously asked to retire with the rest. A s
he went out he drew mental pictures of what sacred and
highly important affairs these secret sessions must be. A
few years later he appeared as a Senator and he anxiously

116 THE EXECUTIVE SESSION.

awaited the moment when an executive session should be
held. Finally one of the venerable Senators solemnly
moved that the Senate go into executive session. The new
member assumed his gravest dignity. The moment he had
so long awaited had come. People filed out of the galleries ;
the doors were closed and at last the Senate was alone.
It was then moved that Mr. Somebody be confirmed in
his appointment to a post-office somewhere. The Vice-
President of the United States remarked: "Without ob-
jection it is so ordered." Then there was a motion to
adjourn and another mysterious executive session was over.

The Senate would not abandon this curious privilege,
however, not because it cares so much about keeping the
proceedings of an executive session secret, but simply be-
cause it is the traditional custom of the Senate. The
secrets of these sessions as a matter of fact are seldom kept,
even when important. One of the rules is that " any sena-
tor or officer of the Senate who shall disclose the secret or
confidential business of the proceedings of the Senate, shall
be liable, if a Senator, to expulsion from the body, and if an
officer, to dismissal from the service of the Senate and to
punishment for contempt." But the secrets always leak out
and no punishment is ever inflicted.

The Senate begins its legislative work at noon, and
when that hour is reached the gallery is generally filled, for
on days when a debate or discussion of some subject of
great public interest is promised, people throng into the
galleries early in the morning, often bringing luncheon with
them. If they should once surrender their seat, they might
not be able to gain an entrance again that day. The Vice-
President enters with the Chaplain, who makes a short,
impressive prayer, after which comes much routine business,
communications, petitions, memorials, bills, and resolutions.
These over, the Senate usually proceeds to its calendar,
which consists of measures reported from committees.

FORMALITIES OF THE SENATE. 11?

Sometimes this is taken in order, but oftener measures are
taken from it during the morning hour "by general
consent," something which could never be had in the
House. The morning hour ends at two o'clock, when the
calendar is laid aside and the Senate proceeds to the con-
sideration of what is known as unfinished business. What
this shall be is also a matter of general consent — that is, a
unanimous agreement has been secured to consider a certain
measure unfinished business. It must come up every day
at two o'clock until it is finally disposed of.

Usually when the President desires to communicate
with the Senate, one of his private secretaries presents
himself in the main aisle of the Senate chamber in the
afternoon. The presiding officer, availing himself of the
first pause in the remarks of the Senator having the floor,
interrupts him by saying : " The Senate will receive a
message from the President of the United States." The
assistant door-keeper, making a profound obeisance, an-
nounces "A message from the President of the United
States," and the secretary then says : " Mr. President, I
am instructed by the President of the United States to
present a message in writing." He then bows and his
package of manuscript is carried to the presiding officer,
after which the Senator whose remarks were interrupted
resumes them. Messages brought from the House of
Representatives by its clerk are received with similar
formalities. Later in the afternoon, a motion is generally
made that the Senate proceed to the consideration of ex-
ecutive business.

Such is the general routine of each day's work in the
Senate, but the days vary greatly in interest to the visitor.
He may chance upon some long, dry speech, which as it
is read empties the galleries, or he may listen to a speech
which will pass into history. He may be still more for-
tunate, and listen to a sharp debate when speeches are made

118 REQUESTS OP CONSTITUENTS.

by leaders on both sides, and the finest abilities of able
men are brought into play.

There have been less than a thousand senators in our
history, and of these seventeen have afterwards become
Presidents, though curiously enough no Senator when in
actual service has ever been called to the Presidency. Most
of the Senators have their private secretaries who attend to
their enormous mails, for there are plenty of people in every
state who consider it their blessed privilege to write to
them upon every conceivable subject and to ask them for
anything they happen to wish. And the Senators are very
particular about replies to their constituents. Almost every
day a senator will find in his mail requests of which the
following, as exhibited by one member, may be taken as
samples :

" Senator — Will carp eat gold fish ? If so, send me some carp."

This was referred to the Fish Commission, which doubt-
less attended to it, for the Fish Commission must needs
please the Senator ; so that when the time comes he may
favor a good appropriation for its work, besides, the
Senator assumes that the writer has a vote which may
come in handy when his term expires.

Here is another :

" Dear Senator — We want a baby. We want you to pick us out a
baby, my wife wants a girl but I want a boy but never mind. I don't
care witch. Tell me what it cost. Respectfully," ■

The writer had probably heard about the Foundling's
Institute of the District of Columbia, over which the
Secretary of the Interior has supervision.

The Senators have their lobbies and lounging rooms
where many a choice cigar is smoked and many a story
told. But this is beyond the rude gaze of the world. If
you wish to see a Senator you are supposed to go to the
large waiting-room at one side of the Senate chamber,
where decorum reigns. At the passage-way sits an elderly

A senator's anxious clients. 119

man with several youths in waiting. You hand your card
to this man, who scribbles the Senator's name on it, and
away goes a messenger. Soon he will return and make to
those in waiting a series of perfunctory announcements like
these :

" Senator So-and-So is not here at present."

" Senator Blank will see you, sir. Step right into
the reception-room."

" Senator X is very sorry, but the Senator makes it a
rule not to see ladies at the Capitol."

There are a plenty who do, however, for it is a noticeable
fact that the waiting-room is frequently thronged with
women. A number of them are conversing with Senators ;
others are gazing towards the doors which lead into the
Senate. Some seem to be waiting with eager eyes and
anxious faces; others are leaning back upon the sofas in
attitudes of luxurious listlessness. Do you ask why they
are here ? Are they studying the stately proportions and
exquisite finesse of the ante-room ? Not at all. It is not
devotion to the aesthetic arts nor the inspiration of patriot-
ism which brings these women here, but necessity, either
real or imaginary. Sometimes it is their only way to
success in securing employment or a hearing of their
grievances and claims. They are a few, only a very
few, of the women with " claims," who through the sessions
of Congress haunt the departments, the AVhite House, and
the Capitol.

The dejected-looking persons on the sofa opposite are
petitioners for relief by an act of Congress authorizing the
payment of some claim. You may be certain by the
unhopeful expression of their faces that it is their own
claims which, almost unaided and alone, they are trying
to " work through " Congress. Their homes are far distant.
They borrowed money to come here and to support their
families meanwhile ; borrowed money to pay their own
8

120 PLACE-HUNTERS AND CLAIM-WORKERS.

board, and the exorbitant fees of the claim agents, who,
constantly fanning the flame of "great expectations,"
assure them every day that Congress will pay them the
thousands which they demand. Meantime the session is
almost ended, and these claims, on which hang such heavy
loads of debt and fear, lie hidden and forgotten in the
pigeon-hole of the Committee which must consider and
report upon each before it will be heard in the Senate
or House.

Members of Committees are beset by such claimants, but
are always kind and considerate. Few have the courage to
add to the misery of these unfortunates by frankly telling
them the truth. They find it out at last, and then, remem-
bsring all the evasions, in their disappointment and hopeless
poverty, they denounce senators and members as " deceitful
and heartless," whereas these honorable gentlemen were
only trying to be kind and encouraging. Besides, members
of both houses are too much interested in immense claims
involving millions to be paid out of the National Treasury,
and too much absorbed in the discussion of the general wel-
fare of the Republic, to be able to come down to the small
particulars of individual claims and grievances. In time —
whose cycles may be as long as those of the Circumlocution
Office and the Court of Chancery — some time, when the
claimants have borrowed and spent more money than the
Avhole claim is worth, it may be investigated, and full or
partial justice done. In either case, it will often take more
than they receive to pay the many expenses which they
have incurred during their long years of waiting. Do you
wonder that their faces look doleful while they wait for
Senator So-and-so to come to answer their cards and their
queries ? Here he is, and we can hear what* he says, " I am
very sorry, but it is too late. I fear that your case cannot
be reached this session." Poor creatures ! It would have
been far better for them to have stayed at home, kept out

A NECESSARY EVIL. 121

of debt, and worked at anything to have supported their
dependent families. This might have been a hard life, but
not so hard as the mortification, suspense, defeat of cher-
ished plans, and the long years of worry and labor devoted
to hopeless expectations.

Unfortunately, the professional lobby has developed into
a necessary evil. Congress is annually so swamped with
appeals for legislation, much of it of a private character and
much of it of questionable merit, that the policy of delay
becomes easy and natural. Even such legislation as does
pass absorbs all of the current resources of the government
that can be spared, and to clean up all the claims at once
might bankrupt it. As all work is done in committee, and
as no bill has a fair chance of passage unless favorably
reported by the committee to which it was referred, the
stress of the lobby comes almost entirely upon the commit-
teeman, and he is haunted quite as much when away from
the Capitol as in it. The deplorable thing about this situa-
tion is that many of the most meritorious claims are neg-
lected simply because there is no professional lobbyist to
bother Congressmen about them. Some of these claims
date back for many years.

When General George R. Clark, the young Virginian
scout of the Revolution, with the approval of Washington,
set out for an operation against the British forts of the
Northwest, and arrived at Kaskaskia, in the winter of 177$,
out of means to prosecute his march to Vincennes, a patri-
otic French priest generously offered him the means, if
Clark would guarantee that he be reimbursed after the war.
Clark accepted the offer, and the consequent capture of Vin-
cennes was the sole ground for the surrender after York-
town of all that great territory now comprising the states
of Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin. Yet Con-
gress did nothing to keep Clark's word with the loyal
priest, who died a poor man, and the claim fell from heir to

122 THE POLICY OF DELAY.

heir, till finally, after a hundred years, and solely because a
smart lobbyist was employed, the claim was pushed
through. Only a short time ago occurred the last vote on
a claim for nearly $100,000 for the destruction of a private
vessel during the Revolutionary war by federal authorities.
When at last the great-grandchildren employed a lobbyist
who took a generous share for his services, the claim was
reached.

It by no means follows that the lobbyist uses money to
effect such legislation. His strength lies in persistence and
in "knowing the ropes." He is often an ex-Congressman,
and Washington is full of them — pension lobbyists, patent
lobbyists, river and harbor lobbyists, war-damage lobbyists,
back-pay and bounty lobbyists, and office-seeking lobbyists.
These people burrow in the records of the government for
possible claimants who might not otherwise give their
claims a thought. As claims are taken on a contingent fee,
there is everything to gain and nothing to lose for the
claimant. With such a wholesale stress always brought
upon Congress, it has fallen into the habit of waiting to be
pushed.

The House as a working establishment is almost every-
thing which the Senate is not. In the Senate the majority
sits with the minority ; in the House the majority sits on the
minority. In the Senate, the Yice-President, as the presid-
ing officer, recognizes any member addressing him ; in the
House, the Speaker does or does not, just as he pleases. He
often pays no heed to members in the front seats who are
endeavoring to attract his attention by cries of " Mister
Speaker ! " in every note in the gamut, accompanied by
frantic gesticulations, and " recognizes " some quiet person
beyond them. " I have been a member of this House three
successive sessions," said an indignant Tennesseean who had
vainly tried to obtain the floor, "and during that time I
have caught the measles, the whooping-cough, and the influ-

THE SECOND MAN IN THE GOVERNMENT. 12.'3

enza, but I have never been able to catch the Speaker's
eye."

In the Senate, a man can talk forever, if he wishes to be
so unsenatorial ; in the House he can have only the time
allowed him. In the Senate the Vice-President has no
influence Avhatever ; in the House the Speaker has all the
influence. So we might continue the contrast.

The autocratic powers of the Speaker do not arise from
any usurpation, but because in such a body it became abso-
lutely essential for an autocrat to exist. The Speaker is
barely mentioned in the Constitution, but, to manage an
ever-growing House, he has developed into the second man
in the government. In many respects he is even more pow-
erful than the President, for while the latter can only
approve or disapprove of measures, the Speaker can largely
determine their nature and decide their fate. He appoints
all the committees and their chairmen, and the committees
practically do everything. He has sole power of recogni-
tion, from which there is no appeal, and as chairman of tb.6
Committee on Rules he can dictate the action of the House.
He can make and unmake men merely by committee assign-
ments or by refusing recognition for the consideration of
local bills which may have passed the Senate and have been
favorably reported in the House. If he decides that it is
inexpedient for a bill to pass, that is the end of the matter.
There is no way a member can reach it, even though he
knows that his fate in the next election at home depends
upon it. The Speaker is not bound by the rulings of any
previous speaker ; there are no precedents for him. Such is
the man who presides over the " popular " branch of the
Congress. Of course he is generally wise enough to use his
power wisely, but his own party will uphold him in the
most drastic treatment of the minority.

There are about fifty standing committees, each of them
averaging a dozen members, and every member of the

124 WORK OP THE COMMITTEES.

House is placed on some one committee. Then there are
always a few select committees for subjects of current inter-
est. When a bill is introduced — they come in by hundreds,
especially in the opening days of Congress — the clerk reads
the titles and the Speaker assigns them to a committee
without consulting any one? though if there is a dispute it is
assigned by vote of the House. That is the last heard of a
majority of them. The committees take up each bill and
hear whatever evidence they think necessary upon it.
About nineteen-twentieths of the bills never come back to
the House for a vote. It is therefore almost wholly as a
committeeman that a Congressman does his work. As a
rule, only large questions lead to extensive debates in the
House and these are generally made up of short speeches.
A large proportion of the speeches printed in the " Congres-
sional Record" are not delivered orally at all, but are
inserted through a privilege generously allowed. Speeches
that are actually delivered are taken down in shorthand by
official reporters. If the orator so desires he can have the
opportunity of revising the manuscript, and he may also
have proof sheets submitted when asked for. Some speak-
ers change, correct, and polish their sentences with infinite
pains, or have others do it for them, until but little of what
they originally said remains. In this way the Congressman
can distribute, at the expense of the government, speeches
which surprise his constituents who never believed him
capable of such exhaustive and eloquent efforts.

As evidence of what a single Congress encounters, it may
be stated that in one of the late ones about 5,000 bills were
introduced in the Senate and 11,000 in the House. Of this
total of 16,000 bills, only 460 passed, two-thirds of them
being private bills. About four- fifths of the bills introduced
were not reported on at all.

The great days in the House are exceptional, but when
they do come they exceed in spectacular interest anything in

METHODS OF THE HOUSE. 125

the Senate. At noon the Speaker walks out of his room and
ascends the steps leading up to his high marble desk. The
Sergeant-at-Arms enters and places his mace in the socket at
the right of the Speaker, where it remains unless he is called
upon to bear it up one of the aisles to overawe unruly mem-
bers. The chaplain comes forward, and all rise while he
offers an invocation. The House then proceeds to business,
but in an entirely different way from the Senate. The
House has three calendars, and in theory it ought to take
them up each day and dispose of each article in its order,
but in practice they are never taken up at all. Everything
is done by special rules made by the Committee on Rules, of
which the Speaker is chairman. This committee brings in a
rule that such and such a measure shall be taken up on a
certain day, and up it comes, the Speaker recognizing no one
except the member privileged to bring it up and those who
have secured permission to speak upon it. Appropriation
bills, however, are privileged because they provide the
money necessary for running the government. These are
the only exceptions.

While business seems to be proceeding always in great
confusion, it is clear enough to those who are familiar with
the process. The visitor who has patience will some day
happen upon an exciting debate upon some subject of great
popular interest. Then he will see the apparently disorderly
members clustering round the man who is speaking and those
who are debating with him. Nothing can exceed in interest
a debate of this kind when keen men are fencing or sparring
with their wits. There are some men always who will com-
mand attention and silence whenever they rise for a set
speech. It is a great privilege to happen into the gallery
when some great debate is closing, and the last speeches are
made by the leaders on both sides, short and to the point.
Then the leader of the minority delivers his last assault upon
the bill , the leader of the majority replies to him, and then

126 CLOSING A DEBATE.

the Speaker says : " The hour having arrived at which the
House has ordered that the debate be closed, the vote will
now be taken upon the bill and amendments." Then follows
a dreary process which may last hours; for each roll-call for
a yea and nay vote requires a full half hour, and often such
a roll-call is taken on every little amendment. Sometimes
whole days are consumed in these roll-calls, the motion for
a yea and nay vote being purposely made by obstructionists
desirous of consuming time and preventing action.

In winding up the debate on a bill each side is allowed a
certain time, which is credited to certain leaders, who are, in
turn, at liberty to give a portion of it to other members.
The member speaking will say : " I yield ' the floor to the
gentleman from Ohio for ten minutes." But in Committee
of the Whole, speeches are limited to five minutes, and he
who gets a chance seldom gives any of it away.

For expediting the great mass of business in which Con-
gress is involved no expense is spared to provide the neces-
sary machinery. There are about 175 telephones in the
Capitol, of which number 100 are on the House side with
their own "central." Another "central" on the Senate side
governs about sixty-five telephones, and there are a dozen
other instruments in other parts of the building providing
connection with the departments and the outside world.
Thus a veritable maze of wires pervades the building, each
committee room having its own telephone, while special
lines connect with the White House and each of the depart-
ments. The folding rooms of the Senate and House are al-
ways busy places. From them the books and documents,
fresh from the Government Printing Office, are sent in a
never-ending stream, each member being credited with a
certain number, and he draws upon them as he wishes.
The Senate and the House each has its own post-office in the
Capital, and each does a business equal to that transacted by
the post-office of a good-sized city ; both are kept open the

FRANKING HIS GOODS HOME. 12?

year round, a great deal of mail being forwarded to Sena-
tors and Representatives when Congress is not in session.

In theory the franking privilege extends only to the
Congressional documents, books, papers, and letters relating
to official business, but in practice it covers almost every-
thing that members of the Senate or House have in their
possession.

Toward the end of the session each Congressman receives
three chests. Two of them are of pine, but strongly built and
braced. They are about three feet long, two in width and
a foot and a half deep. The third is of cedar, slightly larger
than the others, handsome and well-made. They come from
the House carpenter shop and are built by the House carpen-
ter and paid for out of the contingent fund of the Senate and
House. "When the Congressman receives his quota of boxes
he has nothing to pay.

Into these boxes the member or his clerk dumps all his
letter files, papers, documents, books, maps and other publi-
cations that he has in stock. Typewriters, letter presses,
inkstands, and other office paraphernalia are stowed away
in their recesses. Frequently clothing, bedding, and other
personal household effects are packed in these boxes. When
filled to the brim they are locked and the tops screwed down,
and then they are carted off to the Post-office, where they
are franked through the mails to all points within the bor-
ders of the United States. Having been utilized for ship-
ping purposes, the fine cedar box is stored away in some
family closet, there to become the receptacle for the family
furs, fine dresses, and other materials. Sometimes it is used
as a chest for the family silver. As the boxes become the
private property of the members and Senators, they are
privileged, of course, to make such use of them as they de-
sire.

It is no longer considered proper for Congressmen to
ship anything under a frank that cannot be packed in these

128 FRANKING TEN TONS OF MAIL MATTER A DAY.

special boxes or in the mail sacks which are provided for
documents.

Over 1000 boxes, together with more than that number
of bags of public documents, were shipped by members at
the. close of the Fifty -sixth Congress to different parts of the
country in the spring of 1901. Their total weight approxi-
mated 400,000 pounds, and for a number of days these ship-
ments averaged ten tons a day.

The small salaries of hard-working statesmen entitle
them to all possible provision for their personal comfort.
Members of the House pay for their shaves and haircuts in
the barber shops on their side at the regular rates, but such
luxuries are free to the Senators, the barbers being employed
by the government as " skilled laborers " at $900 a year each.
The bay rum and cosmetics are drawn from the general sup-
ply room, being paid for out of the contingent fund. In the
Senate barber shop are four bath rooms, in one of which is
a box just big enough for the fattest possible senator to get
into. It is closed upon him so that only his head appears
through a hole in the top. Then the vapor is turned on,
while, if he chooses, he can take a current of electricity at
the same time. The House of Representatives has superb
baths in the basement, with massage experts in attendance.

A strange life is that of this great edifice of the nation.
All day long, men, women, and children come and go, their
footsteps echoing through the stone passage-ways in the
basement, up and down the marble stairways and through
the long corridors running all the way from the Senate to
the House. Here are all sorts of figures — lean and fat,
long and short, handsome, homely, and ugly, crooked and
straight. The elegant woman of fashion is elbow to elbow
with the visitor from the rural districts, whose manners
plainly show that she is not familiar with the courtesies and
conventionalities of city life. Here we see the disconsolate
face of the unkempt, out-at-elbow office seeker ; the ener-

A HIVE OF INDUSTRY. 129

getic, well-dressed man whose business is " working a com-
mittee " ; the alert young fellow who seems and is perfectly
at home, for he is the correspondent of a great newspaper
and knows every in and out of this great hive of activity ;
the old soldier who has secured a good berth in the building ;
and so wherever we stand, we behold people from every walk
in life passing before us, as motley a crowd as can be seen
anywhere in the civilized world.

One might suppose that when Congress is not in session
the vast Capitol would be silent and deserted. But though
the bustle and activity of Congressional life depart, the Cap-
itol is always a busy hive of industry. No less than four
hundred people are always at work there, to say nothing of
those who are constantly employed to renovate the building,
prepare it for the next session, and keep it always in order.
The restaurants run the year round, the Sergeant-at-Arms
continues his banking business, which mainly consists of mail-
ing to each member the third day of each month a check for
$416.66. The folding and document rooms are always fill-
ing orders from absent Congressmen, and every day brings
its throng of visitors.

CHAPTER VII.

A TOUR THROUGH THE WHITE HOUSE FROM ATTIC TO

CELLAR— SUNSHINE AND SHADOWS OP THE PAST —

WHITE HOUSE WEDDINGS AND TRAGEDIES.

Inside the White House — An Historic Mansion — Reminiscences of the
Past— "What Tales the Room Could Tell If It But Had a Tongue"—
Why It Is Called the White House — Its Cost — How To Gain Admis-
sion— Its Famous Rooms and Their Furnishings — Invited To "Assist"

— The Great East Room — Chandeliers That Cost $5,000 Each —
Where Mrs. Adams "Dried the Family Wash" — Shaking Hands
with Sixty Thousand Persons — A Swollen Hand and a Lame Arm —
How an Old Lady Greeted the President — Trying To See the President

— Indignant Visitors — Feminine Curiosity — Weddings in the White
House — The Shadow of Death — Tragedies of the White House.

" All houses wherein men have lived and died
Are haunted houses. Through the open doors
The harmless phantoms on their errands glide,
With feet that make no sound upon the floors.

"There are more guests at table, than the hosts
Invited ; the illuminated hall
Is thronged with quiet, inoffensive ghosts,
As silent as the pictures on the wall."

HESE lines were never truer of any human
habitation than of the White House at Wash-
ington. The Nation's House! The procession
of families which the people have sent to inhabit
it, in moving on to make place for others, have left
memories behind which haunt these great rooms and
fill staircase, alcove, and pictorial space with historic
recollections. Here human life has been lived, enjoyed,
suffered, and resigned, just as it is lived every day in any
house wherein human beings are born, wherein they live

(130)

A HOUSE OF EVENTS AND MEMORIES. Ho

and die. Marriages, merry-makings, jovial feasts, and cere-
monial banquets ; grave councils of state that shaped the
destiny of the nation ; secret intrigues and midnight con-
claves that made or unmade political parties; war-councils
that flashed forth telegraphic orders which moved great
armies and set lines of battle in deadly front, have taken
place in this historic house. Within its walls many children
have first opened their eyes upon this tantalizing life ; here
children have died, leaving father and mother desolate amid
all the pomp of place and state, and here presidents and
their wives have laid their earthly burdens and honors
down. Think what tales the White House could tell if it
but had a tongue !

The popular name of the President's home is the " White
House," but its official designation is the " Executive Man-
sion." Its corner-stone was laid October 13, 1792. We
have seen how anxious Jefferson was that it should be
modeled after some famous modern palace of Europe. The
one at last selected was the country house of the Irish Duke
of Leinster, in Dublin, who had himself copied the Italian
stvle. It was open, though not ready for occupancy, in the
summer of 1800. It is always pleasant and restful to the
sight when the eyes fall upon its freestone walls, peering
pure and softened through the sea of greenery which sur-
rounds it. Its cost to the present time exceeds $1,700,000.

In 1814 the British set fire to the building, but heavy
rains extinguished the conflagration before it had irretriev-
ably injured the walls. Three years later the house had
been restored, and it was then painted white to cover the
unsightly ravages of fire on its walls, a color which has
ever since been retained. The building is 170 feet in length
and eighty-six feet in depth, and consists of two bug]
stories, with a basement. It contains thirty-one rooms
Excepting the family dining-room every one of the first
floor is devoted to state purposes. The basement contains

THE HOUSE AND GROUNDS. 135

eleven rooms, used as kitchens, pantries, and butler's rooms.
These are open, spacious, comfortable, and cheerful. On
the second floor, five rooms are used as chambers by the
Presidential family, and other rooms are the President's
Office, the Cabinet room, private telegraph office, waiting-
room, and Library of the President. Its north front faces
Pennsylvania Avenue, and has a lofty portico with four
Ionic columns and a projecting screen of three columns.
Between these columns pass the carriages which in the gay
season form a continuous moving line. .

The grounds consist of about eighty acres sloping gently
down to the great circular White Lot, beyond which are the
grounds of Washington Monument, while farther to the
south lies the broad Potomac. These grounds are prac-
tically a public park, for they are at times used freely by
the public. The several gates through the high iron fence
that surrounds the northern grounds stand open always, but
those at the south entrance are closed and locked, except on
certain occasions like the Saturday evening concerts of the
Marine Band, and the Easter egg-rolling, when the grounds
are given up to the children for the whole day.

The White House is usually open to visitors from 10
a. m. to 2 p. m., and any person may enter the great East
Boom without introduction or formality ; but a card from a
Senator or Member, or introduction in some form, is neces-
sary to gain admittance to other rooms, excepting to the
private dining-room on the first floor, which is the only
room of which the President's family has exclusive use.
The ease of access to, and the freedom of, the White House,
are the marvel of foreigners familiar with the difficulty of
gaining entrance to the homes of rulers in other lands.
Charles Dickens, in his "American Notes," gives the follow-
ing description of his visit to the White House in 1842 :

" We entered a large hall, and having twice or thrice rung a hell
which nobody answered, walked without further ceremony through the

136 THE VESTIBULE AND RED ROOM.

rooms on the ground floor, as divers other gentlemen (mostly with their
hats on and their hands in their pockets) were doing very leisurely. Some
of these had ladies with them, to whom they were showing the premises ;
others were lounging on the chairs and sofas ; others, in a perfect state of
exhaustion from listlessness, were yawning drearily. The greater portion
of this assemblage were rather asserting their supremacy than doing any-
thing else, as they had no particular business there, that anybody knew of.
A few were closely eyeing the movables, as if to make quite sure that the
President (who was far from popular) had not made away with any of the
furniture, or sold the fixtures for his private benefit."

"We approach the White House from Pennsylvania
Avenue, passing through a fine Colonial gateway, and
leisurely wend our way along the sidewalk that skirts the
semi-circular driveway leading up to the main entrance.
As we enter, we see that the vestibule is separated from the
central corridor by a handsome screen of wrinkled stained-
glass mosaic, studded with cut crystal, which at night shines
like the walls of an enchanted palace. The ordinary visitor
sees this vestibule but does not see the grand corridor
beyond. This belongs to the more private part of the
house, but is open to the public when there is a reception.
There are in the glass screen, however, doors which can
hardly be detected, and through one of these the privileged
visitor may enter at once to the corridor.

We enter the Red Room first — the family reception-
room. Its prevailing color — Pompeiian red — sheds a light
soft and rosy, and its piano, mantel ornaments, mahogany
furniture, and pictures give it a cosy and home-like look. It
is used as a reception-room and private parlor by the ladies
of the mansion. Many portraits of former Presidents look
down from its walls.

We pass through the Red Room into the Blue Room.
The chairs, the sofas, the carpet, the walls, all are tinged
with the celestial hue, flushed here and there with a tint of
rose. The mantel clock was presented by Napoleon I. to
Lafayette and by him to the United States. The form of

THE BLUE AND GREEN ROOMS. 137

the room is elliptical, and its bay windows look out on the
beautiful grounds stretching away to the Potomac. Here,
with the daylight excluded, soft rays falling from the
chandelier above, flowers everywhere pouring out fragrance,
surrounded by a group of ladies decked in jewels and sostly
gowns invited to ''assist," the wives of the Presidents have
for many years held their receptions.

The Blue Room opens into the Green Room. It is un-
pretentious, with dalicate green upholstered walls and fur-
nishings of the same tint; furniture, mirror-frames, and
window cornices gleam with gold. Above the marble man-
tel-piece is a large mirror which reflects the costly clock of
ebony and malachite and the rare vases that stand on each
side. Beautiful, tall vases, constantly replenished with fresh
flowers from the White House conservatories, ornament the
room. Notable portraits adorn the walls, among them a
full length of Mrs. Benjamin Harrison, presented by the
Daughters of the American Revolution, of whose society
she was president; also one, corresponding in size, of Mrs.
Rutherford B. Hayes, presented by the Women's Christian
Temperance Union as a token of their appreciation of her
courage in maintaining the cold water regime at the White
House in spite of the opposition and harsh criticism of a
certain class.

From the Green Room we enter the famous East Room,
extending across the entire eastern side of the house, which
is the only reception-room usually open to the public. It is
eighty-two feet long, forty feet wide, and twenty-two feet
high. Three immense crystal chandeliers, each costing
$5,000, hang from the ceiling. Originally intended for a
banquet hall, and so used until 1S27, it is now the state re-
ception-room. It has already taken on the mellowness, not
of age, but of use, .and in aspect bears no kin to the un-
finished "Banqueting Hair' in which Mrs. Adams dried the
family wash, and Mrs. Monroe's little daughters played. Its
9

138 AT A PRESIDENT'S RECEPTION.

decorations are frequently renewed, to conform to ever-
changing fashion. The introduction of electric lighting in
the squares of the magnificent ceiling has greatly enhanced
the beauty of the room.

Public receptions are held in the East Room, and hun-
dreds of thousands have passed through it to pay their re-
spects to the President. The late ex-President Benjamin
Harrison says : " The President's popular receptions begin
the next day after his inauguration, and are continued for
a good many days without much regard to hours. When
the great East Room fills up he goes down and takes his
station near the door of exit. The head usher introduces
some who are known or who make their names known to
him, but generally the visitors make known their own names
to the President, or pass with a hand-shake without any in-
troduction — often at the rate of forty or fifty to the min-
ute. In the first three weeks of an administration he shakes
hands with from 40,000 to 60,000 persons. The physical
drain of this is very great, and if the President is not an
instructed hand-shaker a lame arm and a swollen hand soon
result. This may be largely, or entirely, avoided by using
President Hayes's method — take the hand extended to you
and grip it before your hand is gripped. It is the passive
hand that gets hurt. The interest which multitudes attach
to a hand-shake with the President is so great that people
will endure the greatest discomfort and not a little peril to
life or limb to attain it. These are not the office seekers,
but the unselfish, honest-hearted, patriotic people, whose
' God bless you1 is a prayer and a benediction. They come
out to meet the President when he takes a journey, and his
contact with them, and their affectionate interest in him, re-
vive his courage and elevate his purposes. Mr. Lincoln is
said to have called these popular receptions his 'public
opinion baths.' " The arrangement of the line is usually
such that one comes squarely in front of the President be-

the

f N£W y

uc librAry

INAUGURATION VISITORS. 141

fore he is aware of it, or lias had time to collect his thoughts
and recall the nice things he was to say ; like the old lady
who was so surprised as to be speechless till she had passed
some distance along, when she turned and screamed out to
President McKinle)'', "How's Cubey?"

During inauguration Aveek the rush of visitors to the
"White House averages over 1,000 a day, and on the day
preceding inauguration the number frequently swells to
over 3,000. It is often difficult to keep them out of the
executive offices and the President's private apartments.
Attendants are stationed at the doors of forbidden rooms,
and it requires all their persuasive skill to convince people
that they are not permitted to cross the threshold. The
White House attendants are Chesterfields of politeness, and
the visitor must be aggressive and persistent indeed who is
not kept within proper limits without having his sensibilities
wounded.

The great desire of a majority of visitors to the White
House is to see the President, and many are the excuses
made and the subterfuges resorted to to accomplish this
object. Scores of visitors claim to have been boyhood
friends of the President, and are very sure he will be sorely
disappointed should they leave the city without calling on
him. They assure the officials that they want only a mo-
ment of the President's time, merely desire to shake his hand
and offer congratulations. Some of them have been known
to become very indignant because an usher dared to presume
to stand between them and their friend of former davs, and
threats have often been made that their rash impertinence
would be called to the President's attention forthwith.

Women visitors are the most persistent and give the
most trouble. Some of them plead for just a glimpse of
Mrs. President, but being assured that this is impossible
they sometimes seek to compromise by asking permission to
peep at the White House kitchen.

142 WEDDINGS AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

On a reception night, the East Room presents a sight
never to be forgotten. The enormous chandeliers seem to
pour the splendor of noonday light upon the glittering as-
semblage below. Foreign ministers and their attaches in
all the gorgeousness of their court dress; officers of the
Army and Navy in full uniform; and the rich costumes
and dazzling jewels of the ladies, make these receptions
scarcely less brilliant than society functions at the richest
courts Of Europe.

There have been many weddings in the "White House.
The first was during President Madison's administration,
when Miss Todd, a relative of Mrs. Madison, was the bride
and John G. Jackson of Virginia, who was then a member
of Congress, was the groom. The first wedding that took
place in the East Room was that of Elizabeth Tyler, whose
father was then President, and William Waller of Williams-
burg, Va. Miss Tyler was just nineteen, as was also Nellie
Grant when married. President Adams' son, John Quincy,
Jr., married his cousin, Miss Johnson, in the White House in
President Adams' administration. During General Jack-
son's administration there were two weddings in the White
House — Miss Easten, his niece, and Mr. Polk of Tennessee,
and Miss Lewis of Nashville and Mr. Paqueol, who was
afterward French minister to this country. The wedding of
Martha Monroe and Samuel Gouverneur, who was for a while
President Monroe's private secretary, took place in the East
Room, and the bride was only seventeen. The wedding of
Nellie Grant and Algernon Sartoris was the most brilliant
one that has ever taken place in the White House. The
ceremony was performed in the East Room, under an im-
mense floral bell. There were six bridesmaids and a dis-
tinguished company. It was a morning wedding, and Gen-
eral Grant gave away his daughter with tearful eyes and ill-
concealed emotion. During President Hayes' term, his
niece, Miss Emily Piatt, and Gen. Russell Hastings were

FESTIVALS AND FUNERALS. 14o

married in the Blue "Room, which was beautifully decorated
with flowers, and here also the bride stood under a large
floral bell. Though the wedding of Grover Cleveland and
Miss Frances Folsom was the ninth that occurred in the
White House, it was the first wedding of a President that
took place there. President Tyler, who was married during
his term of office, went to the home of his bride, Miss Gard-
ner, in New York, for the ceremony, and the marriage of
Ex-President Benjamin Harrison to his second wife, who was
his first wife's niece, was performed in New York.

But other scenes than those of happiness and mirth have
taken place in the White House. The black pall of mourn-
ing has cast its somber shadow here, and the stillness of
death has often pervaded every room and corridor. Here
the venerable President William Henry Harrison died sud-
denly, soon after his inauguration, the victim of a bitter
campaign and a horde of office seekers. Here Mrs. John
Tyler passed through death unto life, and here President
Zachary Taylor died. Few persons remember that the body
of the gallant Col. Ellsworth, one of the early victims of the
Civil War, who was killed in Alexandria while tearing down
a Confederate flag which floated above a hotel in that city,
was taken to the White House and laid in state in the Blue
Room. In the White House, Willie, the little son of Abra-
ham Lincoln, died, and the grief-stricken mother never again
entered cither the Guests' Room, where her boy breathed
his last, nor the Green Room, where lay his mortal re-
mains, covered with flowers, awaiting their journey to the
grave. Later, in the center of the great East Room, upon
a white catafalque, lay, still and cold in death, the body of
Abraham Lincoln, the supremo martyr of freedom. The
crowd pressing in then, with almost silent tread and bowed
heads, how different from the gay throng that gathers here
on state occasions! Black and white, old and young, rich
and poor, alike bereft, laid their tributes on his bier and

144 SCENES OF SUFFERING AND SORROW.

wept for him — one, only one, if the most august, of the
martyrs of liberty. Father, mother and son now sleep side
by side in the cemetery at Springfield, Illinois. The funeral
of Mrs. Grant's father, Col. F. F. Dent, was held in the
White House.

Even in the midst of mirthful scenes in this historic
house death has stalked in, an unwelcome and unbidden
guest. In 1883, the dean of the diplomatic corps, Mr.
Allen, minister from Hawaii, had but just extended his con-
gratulations and shaken hands with President Arthur, when
he sank to the floor and expired. The presence of death in
the midst of such a gay scene startled every one. In an in-
stant the music of the Marine Band was stopped, the receiv-
ing party, led by the President, withdrew, the guests van-
ished, the White House was closed, and the silence of death
succeeded the merriment of holiday greetings. In 1890 the
Washington home of Benjamin F. Tracy, Secretary of the
Navy, was destroyed by fire, and his wife and daughter per-
ished in the flames. President Harrison directed that the
remains of mother and daughter be brought to the White-
House. Their caskets were placed side by side in the center
of the East Koom, from whence, after the funeral, they
were carried through the long corridor out under the front
portico, where both ladies had so often entered the White
House to participate in brilliant social functions. Little did
President Harrison then dream that the next funeral in the
East Room would be that of his wife. She died in 1892
after months of patient suffering, in the same chamber
where President Garfield had so long battled for life, and in
the following month her father, Rev. Dr. Scott, died, and
was buried from the White House.

CHAPTER VIII.

DAILY LIFE AND SCENES AT THE WHITE HOUSE — SOClAi

CUSTOMS AND ETIQUETTE — THE PRESIDENT'S

DOMESTIC ARRANGEMENTS.

Official Entertainment at the White House — Social Customs — Daily Life
and Scenes — " His High Mightiness" —Only Plain "Mr. President"

— The President's Turnout — Why His Horses' Tails Are Not Dockea

— Public Receptions — Five Thousand Decorative Plants — State
Dinners — Who Are Invited — Their Cost — The Table and its Costly
Furnishings — Decorating the Table — A Mile of Smilax — Rare China
and Exquisite Cut Glass — Who Pays for the Dinners— How the
Guests Are Seated — Guests Who Are Not Well-bred — In the Attic
of the White House — What May Be Seen There — " Home Comforts '

— Selecting a New Outfit of Linen — A Requisition for " Soap for the
Bath Room" — Paying the Bills — Who Furnishes the Kettles and
Saucepans? — How the White House Is Guarded — Automatic Alarm
Signals — A New Executive Mansion.

FFICIAL entertainment at the White House
remains much the same from one administration
to another. Like everything else in official life,
it falls naturally into a system, and those who
are invested with the responsibility of managing the
system are not easily persuaded that changes are
either possible or desirable. Certain things are done in
a certain way because they always have been done in that
manner. The President has troubles enough without
embarking upon any crusade against long-established pre-
cedents of White House social customs, and he knows he
can at least escape criticism in this one thing if he lets it
alone.

(145)

146 SOCIAL REQUIREMENTS.

Still, each Presidential household has modified in some
degree the customs of the White House to suit its own
tastes and habits. General Grant broke through the tra
ditional etiquette which forbade a President to make visits.
Formerly a President saw the inside of no house but
his own, and was in a way a prisoner during his term of
office. He could drive out or go to a theater, but he could
not make a social call, or attend a reception at a friend's
house. Now he is free to go to weddings and parties, make
calls, and dine out. The tendency of White House customs
is toward less formality, and more ease and freedom of
social intercourse, rather than in the other direction ; and
this is remarkable at a time when our new moneyed aristoc
racy is aping the manners of courts and surrounding itself
with liveried flunkies.

Much of the best of White House sociability is found
at informal dinners and lunches, at which only a few guests
are present with the President's f amity, and at evenings "at
home," for which no cards are sent out. Then there is con-
versation and music, and one may meet many famous men
with their wives and daughters.

Daily life and social customs at the White House lie
between two dangerous extremes. The entertaining must,
so far as it can, impress the representatives of foreign coun-
tries and certain of his own people with the President's
dignity and hospitality without shocking the democratic
ideas of a large class of American citizens. While many
will criticise the apparent lack of exclusiveness, a much
larger number would be ready to cry out against any
too exclusive tendency, and demagogues would at once
stand ready to warn the country of the dangerous approach
of imperialism, even if the whole executive branch of the
government, the President's salary included, costs but
$150,000 a year. These considerations were gravely dis-
cussed at the very beginning of the government, and the

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Father of his Country was compelled to give earnest consid-
eration to them. Me. Master says : "While the House was
busy debating by what name the President should be called,
Washington was troubled to know in what manner he
should behave." To solve his difficulties he framed a set of
questions and submitted them to Jay, Hamilton, and Adams.
"Should he keep open house after the manner of the Presi-
dents of Congress ; or would it be enough to give a feast on
such great days as the Fourth of July, the thirtieth of
November, and the fourth of March ? Would one day in
the week be sufficient to receive visits of compliment?
What would be said if he were sometimes to be seen at
quiet tea-parties ? When Congress adjourned, should he make
a tour ? " The difficulty then was the novelty of republi-
canism. There were no precedents in all the governments
of the world. It was Washington's idea that an excess of
familiarity should be avoided for the sake of his official
dignity, but he warned against using any exalted titles.
Some wished the title of the President to be "His Hijdi
Mightiness," but the plain title of " Mr. President " pre-
vailed. The system of entertainment at the White House
was the result of a compromise between the two extremes,
and being once established it maintains its hold. The
President is a potentate who can not with safety make the
rules of his own household — not even of the stable
which he pays for. lie must drive behind horses whose
tails are not docked, and his coachman must not be put in
livery. When you see a stylish liveried turnout on the
streets of Washington some day, therefore, you may know
it is not the President's.

In all his entertainments the President and the mistress
of the White House are in the hands of attaches — the
cog wheels of the system. They know how to make
matters jog along in the same old way while Presidents
come and go. The rigidity of the system is well illustrated

150 ELABORATE FLORAL DECORATIONS.

by the decorations, which must not simply be just as elab-
orate but just the same for a public reception as they are
for a reception to the heir apparent of a foreign throne, or
the President of France, or for a marriage in the President's
family. If you have seen the great East Poom decorated
once, you have seen it as it is decorated always. It is a
rare sight, too, consisting of 5,000 decorative plants varying
from giant palms twenty-five feet high to ferns in three-
inch pots ; and they always appear just the same, so that
one might easily imagine that, having reached this par-
ticular growth, these accommodating plants just stopped
growing in order to be always in readiness for decorating
the East Poom. On one occasion these 5,000 decorative
plants were made up of 200 palms, 500 brilliant crotons, 200
pandanus, 400 marantas, 200 dracaenas, 1,000 miscellaneous
plants, and 1,000 flowering plants and ferns. About a mile
of smilax is used. For the mantels, window seats, etc., are
used about 2,000 azalea blossoms, 800 carnations, 300 roses,
300 tulips, 900 hyacinths, 400 lilies of the valley, 200
bouvardias, 100 sprays of asparagus fern, forty heads
of poinsettia, and 200 small ferns. Only a portion of these
decorations come from the "White House conservatory. In
winter most of them are brought in heated vans from
the propagating gardens, which are in the charge of the
Superintendent of Public Buildings and Grounds, and
who by law must be an Engineer Officer of the United
States Army detailed for that duty.

It is estimated that the cost of an elaborate state dinner,
were the decorations furnished by an outside florist, would
be about $2,500; for, besides the usual decorations of the
rooms, are the costly decorations of the table. In front of
the President is sometimes a plat sixteen feet long, made up
of orchids and ferns, and at intervals nine other plats simi-
larly decorated, and sixteen vases filled with roses, one in
every four feet. About twenty dozen orchids, as many

IClibrary

ALLEGED EXTRAVAGANCES. 151

roses, and five hundred pots of ferns are generally used to
decorate the table.

The President puts a sum into the hands of the steward,
and his expenditure is supposed to be in proportion to the
official rank and grandeur of the invited guests. The gov-
ernment pays an experienced and capable steward for his
services, but the President pays for the dinners, which are
generally prepared by the White House chef and his assist-
ants. Sometimes, however, an experienced caterer is called
in on special occasions, and sometimes he is engaged by the
season. Daring the years immediately after the Civil War
it was fashionable to have many courses, frequently num-
bering twenty or thirty. But now they rarely exceed
twelve, and more often do not exceed eight. The laying of
the table, and its decorations, is simply a matter of taste
displayed by those in charge, who make such things a study
and who are always ambitious that every decoration shall
be considered more beautiful, every dinner more delicious,
than its predecessors. To Mr. Van Buren belongs the
credit of greatly improving the appointments of the Presi-
dent's table, and for so doing he paid the penalty of being
criticised by the demagogues for his extravagance. The
famous mirror which is laid through the center of the table,
with its gilt filagree around the edge, and upon which the
flowers and other decorations are set, doubling their effect-
iveness by reflection, — this and the gold spoons, raised a
great cry against what was denounced as royal extrava-
gance. As a matter of fact, the mirror is a simple affair and
the spoons are nothing more than silver with gold plate.
Nothing belonging to the Executive Mansion can be called
magnificent or in any way comparable to that of many private
homes.

The table, laden with a rare display of plate, porcelain,
and cut-glass, presents a beautiful appearance. The set of
cut-glass is regarded as the finest ever made in this country.

152 A COMPLICATED AFFAIR.

It consists of 520 separate pieces, and was especially ordered
for the White House. On each piece, from the large center-
piece and punch-bowl to the tiny saltcellars, is engraved the
coat of arms of the United States. Several months were
occupied in making this set, which cost $6,000. The china,
numbering 1,500 pieces, was selected by Mrs. Hayes from
special designs. Each piece is exquisitely decorated with
paintings of American flowers, fruits, game, birds, and fish.
The table can be made to accommodate as many as fifty-
four persons, but the usual number of guests is from thirty
to forty.

The seating of guests at a state dinner is one of the com-
plicated tasks in the hands of the attaches. One of the
Executive secretaries, who has for a long time attended to
such matters, has a cardboard plan of the table with little
slits for each seat. Certain inexorable rules of precedence
and pairing off have to be followed, and one of the perma-
nent officials of the State Department makes it a business to
be expert in these. Seating always begins with the Presi-
dent, who sits at the middle of the north side of the table
with the wife of the dean of the diplomatic corps at his
right. The lady of the White House sits opposite the Pres-
ident. The others are placed according to precedence, and
alternating with reference to the President and his wife.
When the seating is definitely arranged, table cards for the
gentlemen are prepared by writing in the corner the name
of the lady to be escorted in, and checking off with a pencil
the chair numbers printed on the edges of the small dia-
gram of the table which is given to each guest. The name
of each guest is also written on plate cards having a gilt
crest of the United States, which is also used on the sta-
tionery for state occasions. There are often curious
arrangements at such dinners, as for example when the
Chinese minister and his wife are out of supporting distance
of each other, and can convey only by smiles and signs the

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A STATE DINNER. 155

enjoyment they feel, unless, forsooth, they both speak Eng-
lish, as often happens.

After receiving their guests in the Blue or East Room,
the number of guests governing as to which is used, the
Leader of the Marine Band is given the signal, and instantly
the band begins to play a selected march. The President
now offers his arm to the ranking lady and they proceed
through the East Room and the corridor to the state din-
ing-room, followed according to precedence, the lady of the
White House with her escort bringing up the rear. Exqui-
site Jinesse is needed to fitly pair these mentally incongruous
diners. Many men officially entitled to White House
dinner invitations are either not accomplished or are ill
adapted to the usages of good society. Naturally the wives
of such men are equally unsuited to their positions, conse-
quently between timidity and ignorance they make very
uninteresting table companions. I have known persons
famous for their conversational powers to be unable through
a two hours state dinner to elicit more than monosyllables
from their partners, who were ill at ease, and no doubt
heartily glad when the dinner was over.

On the contrary, nothing could be more enjoyable than
a state dinner, provided one has an agreeable associate, the
beauty of the accessories awakening and maintaining the
vivacity and high spirits of the dullest, if they are not hope-
lessly dead to pleasant surroundings. A state dinner is a
function of a social character, and an invitation to it should
be deemed the highest compliment that the President can
pay to any one. Full evening dress is required, and guests
who do not realize that they owe it to the President and to
themselves to make their best appearance on such an occa-
sion may write themselves down as bores. Few ladies would
have the moral courage to appear in anything but their best
gowns and rarest jewels ; hence it follows that state dinners
at the White House are very brilliant affairs.

156 THE NEW YEAR'S RECEPTION.

Formerly the President was expected to invite each
Senator and Member of Congress to dinner at least once
a year; but as the two Houses increased in numbers this
custom gradually fell into disuse. He is supposed to have
discharged his social duties if, in a single season, his
dinner invitations include the Yice-President, the Justices
of the Supreme Court, the members of the Cabinet, the
foreign ministers, the more influential Senators and Mem-
bers of Congress, and distinguished officers of the army
and navy.

The New Year's entertainment is the most character-
istically American of the season. Every grade of society is
represented, and the same hand stretched out to welcome
the courtly low-bowing Ambassador shakes the hands of
the humble, sometimes uncouth, laboring man. The long
line begins to form by the western entrance early in the
morning and by 11 o'clock generally reaches several blocks
away. Meanwhile the Cabinet officers and the members of
the diplomatic corps are admitted to the house by the south
entrance and assemble in the Red Room and the corridor.
At 11 o'clock, as the bugle from the Marine Band stationed
in the conservatory sounds the President's call, the receiving
party makes its appearance at the head of the great stair-
way headed by the military officers detailed to make the
introductions. The President and his wife follow, and then
the Yice-President and his wife and the Cabinet and ladies.
Passing into the Blue Room the receiving party takes its
place and the long line begins to file past.

The diplomatic corps is the brilliant feature of the recep-
tion. There are ambassadors in uniforms heavy with gold
trimming and blazing with orders and decorations ; at-
taches, some in white and gold-laced uniforms and high
boots; the Oriental legations in characteristic costumes.
After them pass the Supreme Court justices, senators, repre-
sentatives, and officers of the army and navy in full dress,

HOW SUPPLIES ARE ORDERED. 15?

then veterans of the Civil War, followed by the general
public. The music is continuous.

The attic of the White House is stored full of old furni-
ture, for each new occupant is apt to have ideas of his own
about the furnishing. Even if the President does not care,
his wife generally wants a few changes made, and she has
only to express her desire. The attic also holds a motley
collection of articles which are sent as presents, and which
neither the President nor his wife know what to do with.
Now and then a President's wife buys a new outfit of
linen, and of course she selects the finest for the Executive
Mansion, and very properly it is charged to the appropria-
tion made for such purposes. Under the law the building
and its contents are in charge of an officer selected from the
Engineer Corps of the Army. Under him is the steward of
the White House, who personally inspects much of the sup-
plies, etc. If the President wishes a dictionary, or his wife
soap for the bath-room, the steward makes a formal requisi-
tion. When the goods arrive, he inspects them and receipts
for them. The engineer officer in charge also gives his per-
sonal attention and certifies that the purchases are " proper
and necessarv," are "received in good order" and that the
prices are " just and reasonable," and pays the bill.

The steward has charge of the kitchen and pantry and
takes his orders from the mistress of the house. The gov-
ernment pays him $1,800 a year. While all the supplies
like kettles and saucepans are paid for by the government,
the President must pay for all the. food and also for the
cook, the chambermaid, and the butler. The government
provides a stable, but leaves the President to furnish his own
horses and pay for taking care of them. There seems to be
no reason why he should do all these things except that
it always has been so.

The White House is guarded only by a force of watch-
men. Special police officers are always on duty outside the

158 AN INCONVENIENT RESIDENCE.

house at all hours, and a continuous patrol is maintained by
the local police of the grounds immediately surrounding the
mansion. Automatic alarm signals are fixed in different
parts of the House, and telephones and telegraphs are con-
nected with police stations, so that a strong force of police
could be obtained almost at a moment's notice.

From the great portico of this famous house we look
across Pennsylvania Avenue to an equestrian statue of
Jackson, his horse rearing frantically in the center of
Lafayette Square. Beyond its trees we catch a glimpse
of the brown ivy-hung walls of St. John's venerable church,
its slender, old-time tower showing so picturesquely against
the sky.

The avenue of lofty trees on the west side of the White
House — beneath whose shade, in the dimness of the night,
Lincoln used to take his solitary walk, and carry his heavy
heart to the "War Department — were planted by John
Quincy Adams. No swelling tree-crowned knolls, no grassy
glades could be more restful to the sight than the southern
grounds of the White House. Its windows look down upon
this rolling park, reaching to the Potomac, bounded by its
placid waters, on which many boats lazily drift, their white
sails idly flapping in the languid summer air.

The inadequateness of the White House as a residence
for the President of the United States has long been recog-
nized. It is inconvenient and ill-adapted to such dignity and
occasions of public ceremony as the nation demands of its
Chief. There is no adequate accommodation for visitors, so
that guests of the nation must be sent to a hotel. Many
suggestions, and more or less elaborate plans have been
made for a new and proper President's residence which
should be entirely separate from the Executive offices.

The late Mrs. Benjamin Harrison, during the incum-
bency of her husband as President of the United States,
carefully studied this subject, and plans were drawn under

THE
NEW YORK

(PUBLIC LIBRARY'

\A^r, Lenox and
Foundations,

mrs. Harrison's plans. L61

her direction for the enlargement of the present Executive
Mansion. This was in 1892. Nothing has, however, yet
been done. In 1900 Congress made an appropriation for
developing plans for the extension of the present Executive
Mansion by the Officer then in charge of Public Build-
ings and Grounds, Colonel Theo. A. Bingham, Engineer
Corps, United States Army. This Officer called in the
assistance of Mr. F. D. Owen, the architect who had drawn
Mrs. Harrison's plans. The Harrison plan was restudied
and developed and all the necessary drawings made, to-
gether with specifications and a large model.

At the Centennial Celebration of the establishment of
the permanent seat of Government in Washington, Decem-
ber 12, 1900, the opening exercise was an exhibition of this
model and drawings in the East Room of the Executive
Mansion in the presence of the President of the United
States, Senators, Governors and other prominent and dis-
tinguished officials. An address in explanation was made
by Colonel Bingham. The plans excited great interest, and
although criticised by some, the general verdict was in favor
of the appropriateness in all respects of the plans shown.
Congress has taken no immediate further steps in the
matter, but the necessity for enlargement of the Presi-
dent's home and office is becoming more evident and more
pressing day by day, and it is to be hoped that the beautiful
plans above mentioned may soon have realization, as it
would be impossible to excel them in the reverence shown
to the historical old House, which is to remain absolutely
unchanged and untouched.

CHAPTER IX.

OFFICIAL LIFE AND WORK AT THE WHITE HOUSE — A DAY
IN THE PRESIDENT'S PRIVATE OFFICE.

Inauguration Ceremonies — Old Time Scenes — A Disorderly Mob in the
White House — Muddy Boots on Brocaded Chairs — Overturning the
Punch on the Carpets — Disgraceful Scenes — The President-Elect —
Taking the Oath — Kissing the Bible — The Inaugural Ball — How
the Retiring President and His Wife Depart From the White House —
A Sad Spectacle — Scenes in the New President's Office — A Crowd of
Office Seekers — " Swamped " with Applications — The Cabinet Room
and Its Historic Table— The Library — Privileged CallerS — " Just
To Pay My Respects " — The President's Mail — Requests for Auto-
graphs — Begging Letters — Granting Reprieves and Pardons — An
Interesting Incident — A Door That Is Never Closed — How the Presi-
dent Draws His Pay — A Deficit of One Cent — A Govemr <~rt Check
for That Amount — Presidential Cares and Honors.

OME of the makers of the Constitution apparently
had a wholesome dread that the President of
the United States might become a dictator or
a George J II ; jet there seemed to be no way
to make a government without an Executive, and
so he was carefully hedged about with restric-
tions. He was made the Commander-in-Chief of the army
and navy, but could not declare war; that was for Con-
gress. He could make treaties, but must have the con-
sent of two-thirds of the Senate present ; he was given
power to appoint ambassadors and consuls, judges of the
Supreme Court and all high federal officers, but he must
have the consent of the Senate ; he was made responsible
for the execution of the laws of Congress, and was given

(118)

THE FIRST INAUGURAL. 1G3

power to appoint bis own executive subordinates, but not
without the consent of the Senate. In these and in many
lesser ways, partly by constitutional enactment and largely
by customs that have grown up, the President is handi-
capped by innumerable strings attached to him. Further-
more, he is hampered by the necessity of keeping on good
terms with his party. As a result of these limitations,
the daily work of the President, in ordinary times of peace,
is one of mechanical routine. In times of war, however,
when someone must act quickly and constantly, his pre-
rogatives expand, and in practice he has immense power.

The inauguration of a President possesses unique in-
terest. Under monarchical forms of government the in-
stallation of a new ruler seldom calls for the prominent
participation of the people. It acquires nothing of the
characteristics of a national festival, because the event
happens irregularly, and generally either in the period of
mourning for the dead monarch or in times when scepters
are seized by bloody hands. But in America the world
was to behold a new ruler installed at regular intervals, his
predecessor gracefully passing the reins of government into
his hands. From the first the event became a national
festival, but mixed with its strong democratic flavor was
a smack of imperialism. It was Washington's desire to
be installed without pomp or parade, but his journey from
Mount Vernon to New York was converted by a grateful
people into an unbroken triumphal progress, culminating in
ceremonies of an elaborate character. As with so many other
matters in the government for which there is no law, many
of the precedents established in Washington's time have
endured with little change. Jefferson beheld the display of
pomp with some misgivings, but when he Avas elected
President he evidently thought less of it. A brilliant mili-
tary body escorted him to the new Capitol. The story of
his riding up on horseback and hitching the animal to the

164 AN UNPRECEDENTED UPROAR.

fence was invented by a romance-loving Englishman, and
was long ago exploded, though it clings tenaciously to life.
The out-door ceremonies were established with Jackson,
whose enthusiastic followers expressed their disapproval
of anything even verging upon ceremonious pomp by going
to the other extreme. The uproar was unprecedented. It
was a whirlwind of democracy. The Inauguration cere-
monies over, Jackson mounted his horse and rode to the
White House followed by a shouting and cheering mob of
admirers. It had been announced that refreshments would
be served at the White House. But the people crowded
into the house, overran every part of it, stood in the bro-
caded chairs with their muddy boots, and cheered, over-
turning the punch on the carpets; and they became so
boisterous that Jackson ordered the waiters to take the
punch out on the lawn in tubs, to entice the crowd out of
the house. But, as the waiters appeared, their tubs were
upset by the outside mob and the glasses broken. There
was a similar, though not as disorderly time, when William
Henry Harrison was inaugurated, as a result of the exciting
log-cabin campaign of 1840.

The Inauguration day of the present is a gala-day for
Washington. The city is filled with people. Every hotel
overflows with guests, and thrifty householders get almost
any price they choose to ask for renting their rooms.
There is something inspiring and uplifting in the sight of
massed humanity, in throbbing drums and martial music, in
waving pennons and flashing lances ; but, unfortunately, at
the Inauguration season of the year, enthusiasm and
patriotism demand a fearful price in nerve, muscle,
and human endurance.

Pennsylvania avenue opens before us — a broad, straight
vista, with garlands of flags, of every nation and hue, flung
across from roof to roof. Frequently the weather is mer-
cilessly cold and raw, seriously interfering with carrying

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166 PRELIMINARY CEREMONIES.

out a brilliant program. Your imagination need not be
Dantean to make you feel that there is a dreadful battle
going on in the air, above you and around you. The
windy imps may come down and seize an old man's hat,
and fly off with a woman's veil or blow a little boy
into a cellar. The stronger air-warriors, intent on bigger
spoil, may sweep down banners, swoop off with awnings,
concentrate their forces into swirling cyclones in the
middle of the streets, and bang away at plate-glass windows
till they rattle in their settings. The sufferings endured
by parading organizations, and spectators exposed for hours
to the pitiless beating of a cold March storm on Inaugu-
ration day, have carried many an imprudent onlooker to a
premature grave.

The President does not receive official notice of his
election. Usually, he goes to Washington a few days
before Inauguration day, ready to present himself on the
4th of March to take the oath of office. Immediately upon
his arrival he calls upon the President, and the latter
is expected to return the call within an hour. On the
morning of Inauguration day, the President-elect goes to
the "White House, accompanied by the committee in charge,
where he joins the President, and both are driven to
the Capitol. At noon, the President appears in the Senate
Chamber and takes the seat assigned him. A deep hush
falls on the throng, there is a sort of Judgment-Day atmos-
phere, yet nothing more terrific follows than the voice
of the Vice-President, beginning the words of his valedic-
tory. Now comes the new Yice-President's little speech,
then the oaths of office, the swearing in of new senators,
and the proclamation of the President convening an extra
and immediate session of the Senate. This over, all start
for the Rotunda portico on the east side of the Capitol,
where a grand stand has been erected for the ceremony
of taking the oath of office and delivering the Inaugural

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THE INAUGURAL OATH. 1G7

address. From tin's platform we see a vast mass of human
beings below, line on line of soldiers — a glittering sea of
helmets; bayonets flash, plumes wave; all tell one story —
the love of military pomp and parade, the pride and
patriotism which brings these soldiers here to celebrate the
inauguration of their Chief.

Ou the platform are assembled the Chief Justice of the
United States and the Associate Justices, in their robes
of office, and usually members of the Diplomatic Corps
in resplendent uniforms, the members of the Senate and
House, officers of the Army and Navy, and other dignitaries
of the land ; while on the esplanade in front are gathered
tens of thousands of spectators. "We can catch no word
through the strong March wind, yet know that the Chief
Justice has administered this oath which the Constitution
requires the President-elect to take before assuming the
duties of his high office :

"I do solemly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully
execute the office of President of the United States, and
will to the best of my ability preserve, protect, and defend
the Constitution of the United States."

The new President has sworn to the oath of office, ac-
cording to the Constitution, making him President of the
United States for the ensuing four vears. The Chief Justice
holds forth with solemnity a large Bible, and the new Presi-
dent kisses its open page. Then he rises, and with manu-
script in his hands, begins to read his Inaugural address.
This address, beginning always with "My Fellow Citizens,"
is of a popular character, and is not usually considered a
very important state paper. That of Abraham Lincoln was
perhaps the most eagerly awaited and the most important
ever delivered.

At the conclusion of the Inaugural ceremonies in front
of the Capitol, the newly-made President and usually the ex-
President are driven to the White House, where the Presi-

168 A SPLENDID PAGEANT.

dent is joined by his wife, and both are usually welcomed
by the wife of the retiring President, who should have a
luncheon spread in the family dining-room, but should with-
draw before it is served. March 4th, 1901, the Committee
arranged a new and wise departure by having a lunch served
in the President's room at the Capitol. After lunching he
is escorted to the reviewing stand, erected for the purpose
in front of the White House, from which he patiently re-
views the vast Inaugural procession which is frequently sev-
eral hours in passing. The vast procession of military and
civic organizations marches past the reviewing stand, till as
far as the eyes can reach one sees only shining helmets, the
flash of bayonets, glancing sabers, well-mounted officers in
resplendent uniforms, and imposing drum-majors tossing
their batons in mid-air. All this is to the accompaniment of
the thunder of cannon, the deep roll of the drums, inspiring
strains of martial music, and enthusiastic cheers from tens
of thousands of eager lookers-on.

The ceremonies end with a grand ball. Those of recent
years given in the Pension Office have been resplendent in
decoration and appointment, and from fifty to sixty thousand
dollars have been expended on them. This custom was also
set by Washington, who at the first Inauguration ball danced
the minuet with Miss Yan Zandt, and cotillions with Mrs.
Livingston and others.

One of the saddest spectacles connected with official life
in Washington is the hasty removal of the effects of an out-
going President, just before the fateful fourth of March
which ends his power. After noon of that day the family
has no more right there than the passing stranger on the
street ; and while the cannon are firing salvos of welcome to
the new President, and the long procession is moving up
Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol front, where he is to be
inaugurated, the family of the outgoing President may be
gathering their personal effects together and taking last

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TAKING UP NEW CARES AND DUTIES. 171

looks at the rooms where they have been honored and
courted and flattered for years, and where they have en-
joyed the delightful sense of greatness and power.

When the new President returns from the Inauguration
ball he is alone with his duties and his responsibilities. He
finds the records of the White House filed away by fiscal
years, with the exception of those of the administration of
Johnson, who considered that these papers were his and took
them away. But the new President has little time to look
at the records of predecessors. What impresses him most
are the stacks of boxes which begin to arrive, all filled with
applications for office. He is hardly seated in his office be-
fore he is " swamped " with them. Fortunately there is a
considerable force of permanent clerks and secretaries who
hold their positions from one administration to another, or
during good behavior, and thus become accustomed to the
work and its requirements, so that the formidable and con-
stantly-increasing number of applications are carefully sys-
tematized for reference ; but for a long time after an inaugur-
ation the President and his whole force work in to the small
hours of the morning to keep ahead of the inundation.

From the hall-way between the vestibule and the East
Room there rises a stairway which leads to an ante-room
above, which opens into a corridor so wide and spacious that
it is really a large room. The large windows at the end look
out upon the Treasury building to the east. On the south
side of this corridor, which is provided with many chairs and
sofas, generally filled with people who are waiting to see the
President or his Secretary, are the President's Room, the
Cabinet-room, and the office of the Secretary ; while on the
other side are the offices of other secretaries, clerks, and
stenographers.

The President's business office is a large, plain, comfort-
ably-furnished apartment next east of the Cabinet-room.
7 lere is a door-keeper for the President and one for the Pri-

172 A RELIC OF ARCTIC SEAS.

vate Secretary, the latter having been appointed to his place
by Lincoln. The President's office is lined with cases of
books of law and reference. A large black walnut table,
surrounded with chairs, stands in the center of the room.
On the mantel stands a clock which tells the time of day
and the day of the month, and which is a thermometer and
barometer besides. Tapestry and lace curtains are looped
back from the windows, which look down upon the lovely
southern grounds, and to the river, gleaming at intervals
through the foliage beyond. The President's desk is at the
southern end of the room. In the center of the room is a
massive oak table made from timbers of H. M. S. Resolute,
a British vessel abandoned in the Arctic ice while searching
for Sir John Franklin, in 1854, but recovered by American
whalers. It is a gift from Queen Victoria and bears the fol-
lowing inscription :

" Her Majesty's ship Resolute, forming part of the expedition sent in
search of Sir John Franklin in 1852, was abandoned in latitude 74° 41'
north, longitude 101° 22' west, on 15th May, 1854. She was discovered
and extricated in September, 1855, in latitude 67° north, by Captain Bud-
dington, of the United States whaler George Henry. The ship was pur-
chased, fitted out, and sent to England as a gift to her Majesty, Queen
Victoria, by the President and people of the United States, as a token of
good will and friendship. This table was made from her timbers when she
was broken up, and is presented by the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland
to the President of the United States as a memorial of the courtesy and
loving-kindne'ss which dictated the offer of the gift of the Resolute."

The Cabinet-room is just beyond. It is a plain, handsome
apartment with a long table in the center of the room sur-
rounded by arm-chairs. It is used often as a waiting-room.
On the walls are portraits of several past Presidents. Presi-
dents Grant, Hayes, and Garfield used the Cabinet-room as
an office.

The stateliest room on this floor is the library, used in
Mrs. John Adams' time as a reception-room, furnished then in
crimson. It was almost bookless till Mr. Filmore's adminis-

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THE BUSIEST PLACE IN WASHINGTON. 173

tration, when it was fitted up as a library, and many books
were added during the administration of President Bu-
chanan. It is now lined with heavy black walnut book-
cases. It is sometimes used by the President as an official
reception-room, and sometimes as an evening sitting-room
for the Presidential family and their guests.

The President's office is ever the busiest place in "Wash-
ington. When no one else works, the President must. lie
must lay out a system to meet the most exacting require-
ments, knowing full well that though a thousand and one
details may be arranged by his subordinates, as many more
must pass under his own eye. He must have his regular
Cabinet meetings twice a week, and any member of his
Cabinet must be free to call and consult with him at any
time. Senators are also privileged by custom to see him
whenever they call. If he sets aside a certain day for the
uninterrupted transaction of business, many callers will
come to whom he cannot refuse audience. It is one of the
duties of the Private Secretary to learn if the caller really
has business, and he must do this very diplomatically or get
the President into trouble. Rural visitors in the city inno-
cently call " just to pay their respects." Many come loaded
with good advice, and not reaching the President they give
it to the Secretary. About one thousand letters arrive
every day, there being a special carrier who does nothing
but run back and forth between the White House and the
Post-Office. A great many of these letters are for charity,
such requests sometimes aggregating $20,000 in a single
day. All such letters, as well as those from fond parents
who have named their last boy baby after the President,
are turned over to a certain clerk who sends a stereotyped
reply. Of course the President sees only a very small part
of the numerous letters addressed to him, but any letter of
special interest or importance reaches him through the sec-
retary.

174 REQUESTS AND APPEALS.

Never a day passes without numerous requests for auto
graphs. A card with an engraving of the White House is
provided for the purpose, and on these the President writes
his name whenever he has the opportunity. Autograph re-
quests take up their quota of the Executive's time, though
he may sometimes think out a problem in diplomacy or de-
cide about a post-office appointment while he mechanically
writes his name on the cards. Sometimes he is requested
to write his autograph on patches for bedquilts and lunch
cloths, and then the problem becomes more complicated.

Many letters arrive for the lady of the "White House
whose correspondence is attended to by one of the secreta
ries. Both the President and his wife are always besieged
by a class of newspaper space-writers who wish to get from
them some expressions of opinion about general matters,
and especially about themselves and their experiences.
Many people appear to suppose that the President has such
an abundance of time at his disposal that he can be the
" Great Father " to everyone in the country as well as to
the Indians upon their reservations. A North Carolina
woman wrote to President Benjamin Harrison : " I have six
little children and they want to throw me out of my house.
1 have nowhere to go. I want protection." Another beg-
ged him to pass a. law "prohibiting anybody from hiring a
prodigal boy."

Complete record books have to be kept, one a register of
appointments, another of bills approved or vetoed, another
of resolutions of inquiry, another of pardon cases, and so on.
Press correspondents pay their regular visits, and the secre-
tary gives them whatever information the President con-
siders it wise to give out.

Senators and Congressmen are calling constantly in ref-
erence to appointments, for although under the Constitution
appointments are made by the President, it has become the
custom for Senators and Representatives to consider that

LONG DAYS AND WEARY HOURS. 175

their suggestions should be followed. Of course the Presi-
dent has some friends who have worked for his election, and
he naturally feels under obligations to do something for
them if they desire office; but Senators and Members of
Congress are constantly absorbing more and more of the
Presidential patronage. The President, however, feels it
his duty to personally examine into the qualifications of im-
portant candidates, as the responsibility for such appoint-
ments nominally rests with him. But he can not attend to
all at once, and many a weary hour passes in telling one
applicant after another that the matter will be taken up as
soon as possible. Thus for a year after his inauguration
the President's time is taken up with cares which, in the
very nature of things, cannot reach action for months. In
the nature of things, also, he begins to make enemies from
the start, and if he is a sensitive man he has many a distress-
ing moment. One day during the Civil War a friend
meeting Lincoln observed :

" You look anxious, Mr. President ; is there bad news
from the front?"

"No," replied the President; "it isn't the war. It's
that postmastership at Mudtown, Ohio."

In his long days are dreary hours devoted to signing
commissions, the dullest kind of routine work. The mes-
senger takes the sheets as they are* signed and spreads them
about to dry, the furniture and even the floor being often
covered by them, Next will arrive a pile of bills from
Congress, which have to be examined more closely. Then
come a lot of applications for pardon and for the remission
of forfeited recognizances, which involve the conscientious
examination of hundreds of pages of evidence.

The President has the power to grant reprieves and par-
dons for all offenses against the United States, " except in
cases of impeachment." The late ex-President Harrison, in
speaking of the pardoning power, said:

17b' THE STORY OF A REPRIEVE.

" A reprieve is a temporary suspension of the execution
of a sentence. This power is often used for the purpose of
giving the President time to examine an application for a
pardon, or to enable the condemned to furnish further evi-
dence in support of such an application. One of our Presi-
dents relates this incident :

" ' An application for a pardon in behalf of a man con-
demned to death for murder was presented to me, and after
a careful examination the application was denied. On the
day before the day fixed for the execution I arrived at the
house of a friend on a visit, and found that just before my
arrival a telegram had come asking for a reprieve for the
condemned man. The message had been telephoned to the
house of my host and received by his wife. Her sympa-
thies, and those of the whole household, were at once en-
listed for the poor fellow, and though the gibbet was over
twelve hundred miles away the shadow of it was over the
house, and I was the hangman. A telegram to the United
States Marshal, granting a short reprieve, was sent, and the
day of the execution was again my uncomfortable secret.'
It is not a pleasant thing to have the power of life and
death. No graver or more oppressive responsibility can be
laid upon a public officer. The power to pardon includes
the power to commute a sentence, that is, to reduce it.
When the sentence is death the President may commute it
to imprisonment for life, or for any fixed term ; and when
the sentence is for imprisonment for life, or for a fixed term
of years, he may reduce the term, and if a fine is imposed
he may reduce the amount, or remit it altogether."

Then follows a batch of claims of United States mar-
shals for allowance of expenses in pursuing mail robbers
and other criminals, and these must be examined before ap-
proval. From the Interior Department come certain curi-
ous papers relating to the Indians ; one chief may want per-
mission to have his children travel with a shew and the

*- .2

MONOTONOUS ROUTINE-WORK. 170

President's permission must be had. The War Department
sends in masses of court-martial records which he is sup-
posed to examine to see if there are circumstances which
will permit of executive clemency. These are but samples.
It is all a dull, monotonous routine.

Even if disposed to take the time to "break away"
for a few hours from his multitudinous duties and cares,
he has no other place to go to. The door between his
home and his office is never closed night or day. His
family are continually near him, but he misses that de-
lightful and necessary change which the busy man finds
in "going home."

Usually the President and his wife drive in the after-
noon, or it may be that he takes a prominent visitor or Sen-
ator into his carriage, in order to secure a few moments'
recreation while conferring upon a matter of state. In the
summer he may go for a brief rest to some quiet mountain
or shore resort, but his secretaries and his duties go along
with him, and, in these days of the telegraph and the long-
distance telephone, a day seldom passes when the President
is away that he is not in personal communication with the
"White House or one of the Departments.

It may be wondered how amid all his distractions the
President secures the opportunity to write his long mes-
sages. The answer is that he does not write them all.
After consulting with his secretaries, every department pre-
pares what it regards as a proper statement of its condition
and needs. These are all handed to the President, who runs
them over, adding what matter he desires. A message is
usually one of the easiest of his tasks.

The President is the only man in the pay of the United
States who is not required to sign a pay-roll. The cabinet
officers sign the pay-roll of their respective branches each
month, their names appearing at the head of the long lists.
Since the establishment of the Sub-Treasury system in 1846,

180 A CHECK FOR ONE CENT.

the President has been paid by check on the Treasury each
month.

In order to make up exactly the $50,000, or the yearly
salary of the President, he is paid $4,166.67 per month for
eight months and $4,166.66 per month for four months. At
the close of his term there is besides the monthly warrant,
a settlement warrant to be held by the Treasury in proof of
the President having received his full $200,000 for his term.
During President Cleveland's administration a mistake was
made in the monthly warrants, the amount $4,166.66 having
been paid one too many months, so that when the account
of the term was balanced it showed that Mr. Cleveland
was entitled to one cent more than he had received. It
made great commotion in the book-keeping department and
there was some uncertainty as to how to fix it. It was
finally done by regular " red-tape " processes : another spe-
cial requisition was made out and a check on the treasury
for one cent was drawn, signed and countersigned and
taken over to the surprised President, who had not discov-
ered the shortage and probably never would have. Presi-
dent Cleveland never deposited the check but kept it as a
curious memento of his office.

If the office of the President has its cares, its drudgery
and its perplexities, it has also its compensations. There is
among his people a great respect for the office and a corre-
sponding respect for the man holding it, if he has done
nothing to degrade it. The people in the main show a sim-
ple and hearty deference to one who represents the majesty
of the nation. The President cannot forget that the people
made him President, and the people do not forget it. If
they expect too much of him, they are at least ready to
richly honor him. If he is perplexed by the troubles of his
country, he feels that the hearts of the people are with him.

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CHAPTER X.

THE CABINET — SHAPING THE DESTINY OF THE NATION —
THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE AND ITS ARCHIVES.

The Great Departments — The President's Cabinet — How It Is Formed
— "The Tail of the Cabinet" — "Keeping the Flies off the Administra-
tion"— In the Cabinet Room — What Takes Place at a Cabinet Meet-
ing— Spending More than His Salary — "Mr. Vice-President," "Mr.
Secretary," and "Mr. Speaker "— Two Miles of Marble Halls

— In the Office of the Secretary of State — Precious Heirlooms of the
Nation — How the Original Declaration of Independence Was Ruined

— The Great Seal of the United States — Originals of All the Procla-
mations of the Presidents — The United States Secret Cipher Code —
How the Original Cipher Is Guarded — Tapping the Telegraph Wires

— Our Representatives Abroad — The " Business End " of the State
Department — Consuls and Their Fat Fees.

HE President is in virtual command of a civil
army of about a quarter of a million employees
whose wages are paid by the government. As
the responsible head of the executive branch of
the government, it is his duty to direct this great
•my in the task of executing laws passed by Con-
gress. These various operations are allotted to departments
whose limitations are generally defined by law, which also
provides each with a head officer and the necessary subordi-
nates to direct the work of the various bureaus and divi-
sions into which each large department is subdivided.
These directing officers are appointed by the President, who
is held responsible for the successful operation of the whole
executive machinery; but the Senate confirms his acts.
Naturally, the President's general direction is transmitted
through the executive heads or secretaries of the eight great
1.1 ( 1S1 )

182 EVOLUTION OF THE CABINET.

departments, though it was only by a convenient custom
that these eight high officials developed into a well-defined
body called the Cabinet, after the English ministry which
it in no other way resembles. It is not " the government "
as in England ; it is only " the administration." "Without
the sanction of either the Constitution or the law, therefore,
the Cabinet has become a permanent, prominent, and
honored feature of our executive affairs. Under Wash-
ington, before the custom had developed, the secretaries of
the department were regarded not as his advisers but sim-
ply as secretaries ; indeed, they were called " the President's
clerks," though they were leading men. He began with
only four : — a Secretary of Foreign Affairs, a Secretary of
the Treasury, a Secretary of War, and an Attorney-Gen-
eral ; but, while supposed to be appointed to arrange the
details of the President's commands, such men as Jefferson
and Hamilton could not fail to give their offices dignity and
importance as advisory officials. In 1798 a Department of
the Navy was organized and its Secretary was invited into
the President's council. In 1829 the Postmaster-General
became a Cabinet officer; in 1849 the Department of the
Interior was established, followed in 1889 by the Depart-
ment of Agriculture.

As a matter of fact it rests with the President whether
he shall make any of these officials a member of his Cabinet
or whether he has a Cabinet at all. No law declares that
he must, but custom is stronger than the law at times, and
in such matters it is seldom departed from. When the office
of the Commissioner of Agriculture was raised to one of the
great departments, President Benjamin Harrison at once
made room at the Cabinet table for the new member, the
late Jeremiah Rusk of Wisconsin, who when twitted with
the fact that he was " the tail of the Cabinet," retorted
that it would need a good tail " to keep the flies off the
administration."

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GOOD ADVISERS AND HARD WORKERS. 185

The first task of a newly-elected President is the selec-
tion of these important heads of his administration, and
their names are announced at once after the inauguration,
though his choice is generally known some days before,
lie usually draws them from his list of close political
friends, and always from his own party. Lincoln, facing a
peculiar emergency, selected for some of the important
posts men who were his political rivals ; but this custom
does not usually prevail, for the relations between the Presi-
dent and his secretaries must be of the most confidential
nature. Of late the administration of affairs has become so
extended in scope, and requires such devotion to duty and
familiarity with a variety of affairs, that it is of great
importance to select men who are not simply good advisers
but hard workers.

As the President is himself responsible for his adminis-
tration of executive affairs it might be supposed that he
could select his secretaries without asking questions of any-
body ; but the Senate, in special session, always goes
through the formality of confirming his nominations.
Each Secretary is subject to the President's will in all
matters relating to his department. If there is a difference
of opinion, the President has his way, and if the Secretary
is not disposed to acquiesce, his only recourse is to resign.
In practice, however, the President is largely guided by the
information and advice of his secretaries in their respective
departments. Those questions which concern only a single
department are settled between the President and the sec-
retary in charge of that department ; they are seldom made
the subjects of a discussion by the whole Cabinet, at whose
meetings only matters affecting general polic^are discussed.
The advice of his secretaries is sought less because of their
official position than for their qualifications as practical men
of affairs. If two heads are better than one, then nine must
be much better still.

186 SHAPING A NATION'S DESTINY.

In the famous Cabinet Room, around the table at which
so many of the greatest men in our history have sat, the
policy of the administration and the destiny of the nation is
shaped. No records are kept ; the discussion is always
informal, and a vote is seldom taken, for there is nothing to
vote on. Whatever question is discussed, members of
the Cabinet present express their opinions, to which the
President listens, and then he decides. The President sits
at one end of the table, the Secretary of State at his right,
the Secretary of the Treasury at his left, the others in
the order of the creation of their departments, the Secretary
of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture being
crowded together at the end opposite the President. If
other departments are added, the historic Cabinet table will
have to be lengthened or give way to a longer one.

The position of members of the Cabinet is now one of
such social eminence in the Capital that only men of means
can afford to accept it. The salary is $8,000 a year ; but
society does not regard him as a success, no matter how
great a statesman he may be, unless he spends considerably
more than his salary in living and entertaining. When
Secretary Tracy of President Benjamin Harrison's admin-
istration was seeking a house, he found one to his liking and
was informed that the rent was $7,500 a year.

" What shall I do with the remaining $500 of my sal-
ary ? " he asked the astonished agent.

Many a Cabinet officer, worried by the importunities of
office-seekers, or by the cares and exacting duties of his
department, and conscious that he is spending more than his
salary, while at the same time he is temporarily deprived
of his regular, professional income, has asked himself if the
life of a Cabinet member is really worth living. But it is a
position of great honor, and his family have a social emi-
nence which is fascinating ; he consoles himself, therefore,
with the thought that owing to his prominence in official

A CURIOUS SITUATION. 181

circles greater rewards will come to him when he has
returned to private life. Thus the position is seldom
declined, even by men who can hardly afford the experience.

The dignity of the position was considerably increased
by the passage of the act of 1886 fixing in the Cabinet the
succession to the Presidency in case of death. Previous to
that, in the event of the death of both the President and
Vice-President, the office fell to the President-pro-tem of the
Senate, and at his death to the Speaker of the House. Put
in the first administration of President Cleveland a curious
situation wras brought about by the death of Vice-President
Hendricks when Congress was not organized. If the Presi-
dent should die in that period there would be no one to suc-
ceed him ; whereas, if he should die after Congress organ-
ized, the Senate being of a different political persuasion, the
office would go to one of the other party than that popularly
chosen, and the men who had thought themselves to be com-
fortably settled in their administrative places for four years
would be compelled to step aside for their political enemies.
By the law passed to provide against such possibilities the
President's office falls to the Secretarv of State, rather than
to the presiding officer of the Senate, and after him to the
Secretary of the Treasury and so on. This order of prece-
dence holds rigidly in all social matters. After " Mr. Vice-
President " comes " Mr. Secretary." Formerly after the
Vice-President came " Mr. Speaker," but now the ruling of
society is that he take a lower place.

Just west of the White House and separated from its
grounds by a narrow, smoothly-paved street which in the
olden days used to be known as " Lover's Lane," stands now
the largest and most magnificent office building in the world,
popularly known as the " State, War, and Navy Department."
This majestic pile of granite was begun in 1ST 1 and com-
pleted in 1893. Its 500 rooms open from two miles of
marble halls. The stairways are of granite and the entire

188 THE STATELY DIPLOMATIC HOOM.

construction is fireproof, for within the massive walls are
many priceless records and archives. The fires which had
several times destroyed the most valuable records in the
Patent Office and Treasury, taught the government that
parsimony in its departmental buildings did not pay. This
great $11,000,000 building covers four and one-half acres.
It is a grand, substantial, indestructible edifice for the three
great departments of the State, of "War, and of the Navy.

The office of the Secretary of State is on the second
floor, and adjoining it are the offices of the assistant secre-
taries and the long and stately diplomatic room in which the
American premier receives the representatives of foreign
governments. There is an atmosphere of dignified formality,
of studious quiet, almost of elegant leisure in these rooms
which is found nowhere else in the busy government build-
ings. Greatness looks down upon us from the walls ; here
are portraits of Clay, Webster, Jefferson, Seward, Wash-
burne, Everett, Fish, Evarts, and Blaine. Smaller, but
hardly less elegant in appearance, is the diplomatic ante-
room where foreign dignitaries await an audience with the
Secretary.

In a large department on the third floor is the " Library
of the Department of State," consisting of many rare and
valuable volumes upon international and foreign subjects.
Here, carefully preserved, in the iron hall of the library, are
valuable heirlooms of the nation. The most precious of the
archives — the two great charters — the Declaration of In-
dependence and the Constitution of the United States — are
preserved in a steel case. It is not commonly known that
the Secretary of State forbade their transmission to Chicago
for exhibition at the World's Fair at the risk of a railway
accident in transit and fire after their arrival — hazards suffi-
ciently apparent and by no means trivial.

The Declaration had come to the Department of State
from the Continental Congress. It was subjected to a pro-

THE LIBRARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE.
Showing the steel safe in which are deposited the originals of the Declaration of Inde
pendence and the Constitution of the United States, now no longer exhibited to the public
Many rare and valuable volumes are deposited here.

A PRICELESS POSSESSION. 191

cess early in the century in securing a facsimile for a copper-
plate, that caused the ink to fade and the parchment to
deteriorate. On the 11th of June, 1811, it was deposited in
the Patent Office, and afterwards placed on exhibition in the
Interior Department, in a brilliant light, causing further
dimness and decay. It was returned to the Department of
State in March, 1877, upon the completion of fireproof
quarters, and placed in the library of the Department, In
February of 1891 it was put away out of the light and air,
and this notice was posted on the exhibition case :

" The rapid fading of the text of the original Declaration
of Independence and the deterioration of the parchment
upon which it is engrossed from exposure to the light and
from lapse of time render it impracticable for the Depart-
ment longer to exhibit or to handle it.

" For the secure preservation of its present condition, so
far as may be possible, it has been carefully wrapped and
placed flat in a steel case, and the rule that it shall not be
disturbed for exhibition purposes must be impartially and
rigidly observed.

" In lieu of the original document a facsimile is placed
here.

" By order of the Secretary of State."

While the full text of the original Declaration is still
legible, the signatures have, with but few exceptions, utterly
vanished. Thus the value of the copperplate is inestimably
enhanced, and this also is now kept in a fireproof safe. The
facsimile shown in this volume was photographed from a
perfect impression from this plate loaned to the publishers
by the Department of State.

On the wall of the library hangs the original of Jeffer-
son's first draft of the Declaration with interlineations by
Franklin and John Adams. Jefferson will be remembered
in history as the author of the Declaration of Independence,
when his Presidency has been forgotten. He was much

192 RELICS IN THE LIBRARY.

prouder of having written that immortal document than of
having held any office, and he desired that the fact should be
inscribed on his tomb.

Here may be seen the war sword of Washington — the
very weapon he wore in his campaigns and camps ; the sword
of Jackson worn at New Orleans ; Jefferson's writing desk
at which, tradition says, the Declaration of Independence
was penned; Franklin's staff, and buttons from his court
dress, calling up the picture of the philosopher at the gay
court of Versailles ; the relics of Capt. Hull of the frigate
Constitution, and many other curiosities which have been
presented to the government in connection with some of its
diplomatic incidents. Here also are the papers of many of
the great public men of the past, of Washington, Jefferson,
Madison, Monroe, Hamilton, and Franklin. The papers of
Washington show his precision in every-day matters at Mt.
Vernon ; directions in his own handwriting to his farmer or
steward, " how to plough, buy nails, grains, scissors, shingles,
soap, rakes, dishes, etc." These 117 folio volumes, with the
Jefferson manuscripts and papers of Franklin, Madison,
Monroe, and Hamilton, are appraised at $150,000. The
papers of Washington alone cost the government $45,000 ;
for the thirty-two volumes of Franklin's papers, $35,000 was
paid.

The Secretary of State is also the custodian of the Great
Seal of the United States, adopted by Congress in 1782.
The familiar design consists of an American eagle support-
ing an escutcheon on his breast, holding in his talons an olive
branch and a bundle of thirteen arrows, and in his beak a
scroll inscribed with the motto : " E Pluribus Unum." There
was a design for tli3 reverse side of the seal, but it has never
been cut.

In the archives of the office also are the originals of all
the laws of the United States ; on these engrossed parch-
ments the fabric of the government rests. The parchments

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FAMOUS PARCHMENTS. 197

are fourteen by nineteen inches in size and bound in book
form no matter how brief the law. The penmanship is
coarse but very regular, and the signatures are the originals.
In all cases the bills are signed in the lower right hand
corner by the speaker and the presiding officer of the
Senate, and in the lower left hand corner by the President.
Here also are all the proclamations of the Presidents. The
Emancipation Proclamation, for instance, is written upon
very heavy white paper that is folded once, and each page is
ten by fourteen inches in size. It bagins as do all proclama-
tions — " By the President of the United States of America
— A Proclamation." It nowhere calls itself an emancipa-
tion proclamation ; that is the name which the people have
given it. As our eyes pass over these originals of famous
documents in our history, we seem to get closer to the great
men who framed them, to enter into their spirit, to read
more closely their thoughts and to catch a patriotic inspira-
tion which printed copies cannot give.

The Secretary of State very largely holds in his hands
the national honor. Questions of the gravest difficulty with
foreign powers may arise at any time and must be handled
with the utmost tact and diplomacy. We should never
suppose that under the suave and polite conversation be-
tween the Secretary and the minister from Spain, lay the
issues of peace or war ; that in a few days the minister
would be given his passports and the guns of our navy
would be sinking Spanish ships. The bland smile upon the
features of the Chinese minister as he enters the anteroom
in his rich oriental costume does not indicate the seriousness
of his thoughts or the importance of the interview which
takes place when he meets the Secretary, — a conversation
upon which may depend to a large extent the future of an
ancient oriental empire.

The Secretary is in constant communication with the
diplomatic agents of the United States throughout the

198 DEALING WITH DIPLOMATS.

world, largely through a cipher code, a very intricate affair,
the key to which is only given to ministers under their oath
to regard its secrecy as one of their first duties. Neverthe-
less the foreign office of every government has its code
experts who make it a business to endeavor to master the
codes of other nations, so the key word is changed fre-
quently or the code varied in other ways. When code
despatches are made public they are paraphrased to lessen
the opportunity abroad to compare with the original cipher,
in case it should have been surreptitiously taken from the
telegraph wire while in transit.

While the Secretary, knowing the established policy of
the government in relation to certain general matters or the
policy of the President in relation to current affairs, may
settle some questions upon his own responsibility, he usually
has his daily conference with the President, who is kept
posted on the course of diplomatic events. The diplomatic
representatives of foreign powers at Washington deal
directly with the Secretary, through whom their business
is made known to the President. When a new foreign
minister is received, the State Department prepares a suit-
able reply to be made by the President, and this the latter
delivers with such modifications as he may consider advis-
able. All congratulatory letters in response to official
announcements of the birth of a prince or princess are like-
wise written in the State Department in diplomatic formula,
and given to the President for his signature. It may seem
a little strained for a democracy to pay any attention to
royal babies, but in diplomacy we must do as diplomats do.

The office of the Secretary, being from the first the most
dignified in the Cabinet, was formerly regarded as a step-
ping-stone to the Presidency, — Jefferson, Madison, Monroe,
and John Quincy Adams, having all served as secretaries to
preceding presidents. But it has become more important
to fill the office with men of special experience in foreign

DUTIES OF OUR CONSULS. 199

affairs, even though they do not possess the essentials con-
sidered of paramount importance in a presidential candi-
date. A' hard-working man of experience in diplomacy is
of more value to a President than one who has a command-
ing place in the Senate or House. In the working force of
the department are men who have long held important
positions, who have made a special study of diplomatic
matters, and their training is of especial service to both
the Secretary and the President. It is no small accomplish-
ment to be posted in all the intricate details of diplomatic
precedence, violations of which have often raised a tempest.

Uncle Sam's representatives are now stationed either as
diplomats or consuls at all the great political and commer-
cial centers of the world. The first essential of a successful
diplomatic representative must be that he is "persona
grata " to the power to which he is accredited, and the more
so the better ; for it is a part of his duty to make himself
agreeable and his country respected and liked. It is his
duty not only to transmit to the government to which he is
accredited, the views of his own government, as occasion
may require, but to keep the latter informed of all that
occurs in the foreign country in which he is stationed, that
might in any way affect the present or future policy of this
government. He must transmit information to the Depart-
ment of State as to the general trend of political sentiment
in the foreign country and especially among the governing
classes, and report from time to time upon the progress
being made in the arts and in civilization, the financial
strongth, tariff regulations, and so on. Each of our legations
abroad has a permanent secretary having care of the vol-
uminous archives of the office, keeping thoroughly posted
upon the diplomatic etiquette of the country and acting as
charge d'affaires in the absence of the minister.

Whether in official life or in society, cur representatives
at foreign courts have precedence according to rank, and

200 BUSINESS OF THE CONSULAR BUREAU.

the same is true of foreign representatives in Washington.
If an ambassador calls at the Department of State and finds
a number of ministers waiting in the anteroom to see the
Secretary, the ambassador first passes in. Until 1893 the
highest rank given by our laws to our foreign representa-
tives was Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotenti-
ary, and, as a result, our envoys were frequently placed in
the embarrassing position of seeing ambassadors from small,
and perhaps half-civilized, powers taking precedence in all
matters. We now have ambassadors in all the important
European courts, their salaries being commensurate with
their higher dignity, though frequently by no means equal
to the salary of ambassadors from very much smaller
powers.

The Consular Bureau is called the " business end " of the
State Department. Our consuls are really magistrates for
our government, assisting American citizens in getting
their rights in foreign countries, and noting and reporting
to our government all matters of commercial interest.
Every day brings to the department a batch of reports upon
the state of the markets and the possibilities of the exporta-
tion of American products to foreign countries, and ab-
stracts of these are published in a daily bulletin which is
freely distributed all over the country to export and com-
mercial houses and newspapers, and they are published
entire in monthly pamphlets. In the store-room of the
Consular Bureau, in the basement of the building, can be
had in a moment's time and without expense the fullest
intelligence regarding any subject of foreign commerce. If
you wish to know about automobiles in Australia, or sugar
beets in Germany, or brewing in Bavaria, or rug making in
Persia, or rubber trees in South America, you have but to
ask and you will receive.

CHAPTER XI.

THE STORY OF THE UNITED STATES TREASURY — HOW ITS

SECRETS AND WORK ARE GUARDED — A THOUSAND

BUSY MAIDS AND MATRONS — WOMEN WHO

HAVE SEEN "BETTER DAYS"— THE

GREAT STEEL CAGE.

In the Office of t lie Secretary of the Treasury — The Treasury Vaults and
Dungeons — "Put the Building Right Here!" — An Army of Clerks

— Where They Come From and Who They Are — Women Who Have
Known "Better Days" — The Struggle for " Office " — How Appoint-
ments Are Made — The Story of Sophia Holmes — Finding $200,000 in
a Waste Paper Box — $800,000,000 in Gold and Silver — Inside the
Great Steel Cage — The Mysteries of the Treasury — Precautions
Against Burglary and Theft — Alarm Bells and Signals — Guarding
Millions of Treasure — How a Package Containing $20,000 Was Stolen

— The Man with a Panama Hat — A Package Containing $47,000
Missing — Capture of the Thief — The Travels and Adventures of a
Dollar — When a Dollar Ceases To Be a Dollar.

©T

T a massive, cloth-covered desk, in a large room of
sumptuous furnishings, whose windows look out
^JL across the "White Lot and the winding walks and
stately trees of the grounds of the White House,
sits the Secretary of the Treasury, the man who is
at the head of an establishment doing1 a business
of two or three millions of dollars a day. From the walls
of this room look down many famous men who have held
this import ..it office, silent reminders to the present incum-
bent that some day his picture will probably find a place
here or in the adjoining anterooms and offices of his busy
assistants and secretaries. This man is temporarily at the
head of that department of the government which not only

(201)

202 A NEVER-ENDING STREAM OF MONEY.

handles all the money but makes it. By virtue of his office
he directs the employment of many thousands of people.
In the vaults under his care are millions and millions of
money and bonds. From this vast establishment the money
flows out in a never-ending stream, and back to it returns,
never perhaps to reappear.

Here are millions of bright coins that have never once
moved out of their dark dungeons in the underground vaults
since they came fresh from the mints. Here also are mil-
lions of dollars worth of bonds — Uncle Sam's own promises
to pay years hence — held for security, on which he is regu-
larly paying interest to those who own them. Into this
great office flows all the money collected from customs and
internal revenue taxes; here are settled the money claims
which Uncle Sam's people have against him ; here are super-
vised the operations of the national banks all over the coun-
try ; here is regulated the operation of the mints that are
ever pouring a gold and silver tide into the circulating
medium, thus keeping alive the industries of the nation.
Every day a million dollars in worn-out, mutilated paper
money comes in for redemption, and a million dollars in
new, crisp bills go out to battle with the world, unmind-
ful of the fate of their predecessors.

Great as it is to-day, how small was its beginning!
After the Declaration of Independence, one of the first
things that the Continental Congress did was to appoint
two Joint-Treasurers of the United Colonies, who were to
reside in Philadelphia, and to receive each a salary of $500
the first year, and to give bonds in the sum of $100,000.
The second year their salary was to be raised to $800 each.
In a short time one resigned, but the other remained Treas-
urer for the Colonies to the close of the Revolution, a com-
mittee of five persons having been appointed meanwhile' to
assist him.

Soon after this, an office was created in which to keep

A NATION IN DIFFICULTIES. 203

the Treasury accounts. That office was an itinerant, like
Congress, following it to whatever place it assembled. Acts
were passed for the establishment of a National Mint.
Alas! the poor continentals had no precious ore to coin,
and never struck off a dollar or cent. Money was painfully
scarce. As one writer has said : " Nobody owed the Treas-
ury anything the collection of which could be enforced, and
the Treasury owed nearly everybody something that could
not be paid." The army was half clothed and half fed, and
wholly unpaid. The government had no money of its own
and nothing to make it out of ; not even credit. That made
it the more imperative that this poor little empty Treasury
should have some responsible head who, by the adroit magic
of financial genius, should create a way to fill it, and in some
way provide cash for the emergencies which were perpet-
ually imminent. Thus in September, 1781, Congress ap-
pointed a single supreme " Superintendent of Finance."

The first high functionary of the Treasury was Robert
Morris, of Philadelphia. He had already distinguished
himself by his remarkable financial talents as a merchant,
and his devoted patriotism. Besides, he was the intimate
friend and confidential adviser of Washington. He was the
man for the place and the hour. He kept the credit of the
struggling Colonies afloat in the moment of their direst
need. He gave from his private fortune without stint, and
added thereto the contributions of the infant nation. He
became a member of the Conventie- which framed the
Constitution of the United States, and concluded his public
services to his country as United States Senator.

Two subjects that at the same time moved the first Con-
gress to its depths were the impending bankruptcy of the
country and the location of the National Capital. Sept. 2,
1789, the fundamental act establishing the Treasury Depart-
ment was passed. Meanwhile Washington was anxious to
find out how he was to get money to pay the public debt,

204 Washington's right arm.

and he invited Morris to give him the benefit of his advice.
In one of their interviews, the great Chief groaned out:
" What is to be done with this heavy national debt ? "
"There is but one man," said the astute financier, "who
can help you, and that man is Alexander Hamilton."

In ten days after the establishment of the Treasury De-
partment, Alexander Hamilton was appointed its chief. He
was still in the flower of his youth, but had already proved
himself, not only in practical action, but in the rarest gifts
of pure intellect, to be the most versatile and remarkable
man of his time. He seemed endowed with the quality of
intellect which amounts to inspiration — unerring in percep-
tion, sure of success. At the beginning of the Revolution,
he raised and took command of a company of artillery.
The same transcendent intuition which made him supreme
as a financier, made him remarkable as a soldier. In Wash-
ington's first interview with him, he made him his aid-de-
camp, and through the entire Revolutionary war he was
called " the right arm " of the Commander-in-Chief.

A more remarkable and interesting group of men prob-
ably never discussed and decided the fate of a nation than
Washington, Morris, and Hamilton. Washington, grave,
thoughtful, far-seeing, slow to invent, but ready to compre-
hend, and quick to follow the counsel which his judgment
approved; Morris, wise, experienced, analytic; Hamilton,
young, impetuous, impassioned, prophetic, yet practical; in
comprehension and gifts of creation the supreme of the
three.

The first official act of Hamilton, as Secretary of the
Treasury, was to recommend that the domestic and foreign
war debt be paid, dollar for dollar. When the paper con-
taining this recommendation was read before Congress, it
thought that the new Secretary of the Treasury had gone
mad. How was a nation of less than 4,000,000 of people to
voluntarily assume a debt of $75,000,000! It was left to

THE FATHER OP THE TREASURY. ^05

the untried Minister of Finance of thirty-three years to save
the national credit against mighty odds, and to foresee and
to foretell the future resources of a vast, consolidated people.

Then followed those great state-papers on finance from
Hamilton, whose embodiment into laws fixed the duties on
all foreign productions, and taxed with just distinction the
home luxuries and necessities of life. By hard work and
the magical touch of his genius, he evolved order out of
chaos and established the treasury system of the United
States upon a foundation from which it has never been
shaken, either by political or civil conflict. If Washington
was the father of his Country, Hamilton was the Father of
the Treasury.

While consuming himself for the nation, Hamilton was
harassed by the abuse of personal and political enemies, and
suffering for the adequate means to support his family.
While building up the financial system which was to re-
deem his country, the state of his own finances may be
judged by the following letter from him to a personal
friend, dated September 30, 1791 :

" Dear Sir — If you can conveniently let me have twenty dollars for
a few days, send it by bearer. A. H."

The amount of personal toil he performed for the
government was enormous. Talleyrand, the French states-
man, was at this time a refugee in Philadelphia. Upon his
return to France he spoke with admiring enthusiasm of the
young American patriot. Narrating his experience in
America, he once said:

" I have seen in that country one of the wonders of the
world — a man, who has made the future of the nation,
laboring all night to support his family."

The growth of the Treasury department was slow
and discouraging. When the government was brought to
Washington, the Treasury was housed in a small building
12

206 DETERMINING THE SITE.

near the unfinished White House with barely enough room
for its few clerks, and the records were packed away in a
near-by store which was soon afterwards consumed by fire.
When the British entered Washington in 1814 the Treasury
itself was burned. Then the business was for some time
carried on in the " Six Buildings " west of the White House.
The credit of the country was again at its lowest ebb,
and an effort to negotiate a loan of $25,000,000 ignomini-
ously failed. In 1833 the Treasury and its contents was
again consumed by fire, and the construction of the present
Treasury building, second in architectural importance only
to the Capitol, was begun.

A bitter controversy arose as to where the new building
should be located ; there were plenty of available sites
about the city and each faction had its favorite location.
Finally, so the story goes, President Jackson, whose
patience had been sorely tried and was now exhausted,
stalked out of the White House to the corner of Fifteenth
street and Pennsylvania avenue, thrust his cane into the
ground and thundered : " Put the building right here ! "
There it was erected, where it not only cut off forever a
view of the White House from the Capitol, but where the
great and beautiful proportions of the building itself could
never be seen to advantage.

The building was completed in 1867 at a cost of nearly
$7,000,000. It is 450 feet long and 250 feet wide, built
around two interior courts so that every one of the 200
rooms on each floor is well lighted. The south front is
really the most imposing, and the view from it is superb.
To the left runs Pennsylvania avenue in its undeviating
course for over a mile, till lost in the foliage above which
rises the majestic dome of the Capitol. On the south, like
a lance of light, towers the great Monument, and to the
west lie the grounds of the White House. The western
portico faces the President's house, but the commonly-used

A CITY IN ITSELF. 207

entrance is on the north, facing Pennsylvania avenue. The
building is of granite, three stories high, with a double
basement — the richest basement in the world — and an
attic. It was supposed that the structure would for a long
time, if not always, answer the requirements of the depart-
ment, but long since many of its offices have been forced
into other quarters ; indeed, another building of similar pro-
portions would not now provide sufficient room for the
present Treasury and its manifold operations.

The interior of the building resembles a little city in
itself. The long marble corridors are like streets, into
which swing doors from innumerable offices on each side.
As we pass along we catch glimpses of these busy rooms,
some with rich furnishings, and everywhere are desks and
clerks. Over the doors are signs indicating the particular
duties being performed or supervised within : " Office of
the Secretary of the Treasury " ; " Office of the First Comp-
troller " ; " Office of the Register," etc.

While so many things indicate the making and handling
of money and of accounts, there are not wanting other
indications that reveal the wide range of the activities of
the establishment ; for under the Secretary of the Treasury
are such officers as the Superintendent of the Life Saving
Service, a Supervising Architect, a Supervising Inspector —
General of Steam Vessels, a Light House Board, a Super-
vising Surgeon of Marine Hospitals, Commissioners of
Internal Revenue, of Navigation, of Immigration, of Chiefs
of the Secret Service, and of the Bureau of Statistics.

The employees, men and women, can be numbered
by regiments. They are of all ages and of every grade.
Their labor ranges from the lowliest manual toil of the
charwomen in its basement, to the highest intellectual
employment. There is not another company of women-
workers in the land which numbers so many ladies of high
character, intelligence, culture, and social position. Some

208 AN ARMY OF EMPLOYEES.

of them are remarkable for their literary and scientific
attainments. Many of them are of that large class who
have " known better days " ; for the Treasury, like all
other departments of the government, is a vast refuge
for the unfortunate and the unsuccessful. The only excep-
tions are found in two classes, viz.: those who use depart-
mental life as the ladder by which to climb to a higher
round of life and service, and those who seek it without half
fulfilling its duties, because too inefficient to fill any other
place in the world well.

Luckless authors, sore-throated, pulpitless clergymen,
briefless lawyers, broken-down merchants, poor widows,
orphaned daughters, and occasionally an adventurer, mas-
culine or feminine, of doubtful or bad degree, and repre-
sentatives from nearly every walk in life are found within
the Treasury — "in office." Here are men who have
grown gray, weak-limbed, and wizened at their desks, as
automatic in their movements as machines, and as narrow
in their views as the straight path of their endless routine.

But there are plenty of young men, and young women,
too, and many a little romance of life has centered here.
Here are the daughters or widows of famous legislators or
soldiers, who in serving their country were too busy or too
honest or too indifferent to serve their families also. Some
of these women were reared in luxury without a thought
that necessity would ever compel them to work for their
daily bread.

The daughters of Chief Justice Taney were for some
years employed in the Treasury Department ; the widow
of Governor Ford of Ohio was also clerk there. Mrs.
McCain and Mrs. Crawford, of the McElwee family, were
among the first in this service. All the male members
of the family, nineteen in number, were in the Union army,
and Mr. McCain was lying mortally wounded. It was a
time of great distress, and Mrs. McCain applied in person to

SOME OP THE WOMEN WORKERS. 209

President Lincoln for a position. Tearing a strip from
a paper in his hand the great-hearted Lincoln wrote :

"Give this lady employment.

Abraham Lincoln."

She took this at once to the Secretary of the Treasury —
received an appointment immediately, and held it for
many years. The widow of General Kimball, who fell at
Chantilly, was for years a most valued employee of the
Treasury Department. Governor Fairchild, of Wisconsin,
found his beautiful wife, the daughter of a distinguished
man, occupying a desk in the Treasury. The wife of
Attorney-General Brewster, a daughter of Robert J.
Walker, formerly Secretary of the Treasury, was also a
clerk in that Department, and met General Brewster while
at her desk preparing some document for which he had
applied to the Secretary of the Treasury.

The army of charwomen who take possession of the
Treasury after business for the day has closed, is composed
of women struggling to live by honest, albeit the lowliest
toil. If we could know the history of each one, what revel-
ations of heroism and devotion to duty would be disclosed.
Among these humble women one became famous, and the
story of her rich find in a Treasury waste paper box has
often, though not always truthfully, been told.

Sophia Holmes, a native of Washington, was the widow
of a colored soldier killed at the battle of Bull Run in the
( 'ivil War. Tier husband was a slave whom Col. Seaton, the
noted Abolitionist, had bought to save him from being sold
out of the District. He was valued at $1,000. Sophia was
a free woman who labored many years to save the money
with which she helped to purchase; her husband's freedom,
and at the time of his death the pair had paid $600 towards
the purchase price. The death of her husband left her with
two small children to support. Senator Wilson, James G.

210 SOPHIA HOLMES ON GUARD.

Blaine, and others became interested in her story, and be-
ing the widow of a Union soldier she managed to obtain
work in the Division of Issue, in the Treasury Department,
as a charwoman, at fifteen dollars a month, her duties con-
sisting of sweeping, scrubbing, dusting, emptying baskets
and boxes of waste papers, etc., after the close of business
hours.

Late one afternoon, when the army of Treasury officials
and clerks had departed, while engaged in cleaning the
offices, she seized a box of waste paper to empty it, but the
first handful she removed disclosed to her astonished eyes a
lot of bank bills, genuine greenbacks, of all denominations,
some of them as large as $1,000. For a moment she was
transfixed with amazement. The box was packed full of
them. Recovering her composure she hastily replaced the
top layer of paper, pushed the box out of sight, and resolved
to keep her discovery secret until she could communicate
with some of the higher officials. She would not even trust
the watchman whom she momentarily expected on his
rounds. "I was going to call him," she said afterwards,
" but something kept saying like, ' Sophia, don't you do it !
Don't you do it ! You's a poor black woman ! He may
take the bank notes and say you stole 'em.' " So she went
on with her sweeping and dusting and kept on thinking.

The hour for leaving arrived and yet she was not
through. The tramp of the watchman announced his ap-
proach, but she continued her sweeping with unabated and
unusual energ}^. Seeing her still at work, he stopped and
said, ""What, aren't you through yet?" "Not quite," she
said. " I'se through d'reckly," and kept right on digging
into the floor with her broom. Again the watchman re-
turned and said " You take a powerful time a-cleaning up to-
night, Mrs. Holmes, what's the matter with you ? " " I'se
through pretty soon, pretty soon," said Sophia, raising a
cloud of dust with broom and brush. Darkness filled the

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A SURPRISE FOR GENERAL SPINNER. 213

Treasury. She thought of her two children waiting for
their supper at home. Mechanically she kept at work until,
tired out, she sat on the box of money and dropped into
semi-sleep.

At that time (1862) General Spinner was Treasurer, an
official whose great fidelity to his trust had earned for him
the title of " The watch dog of the Treasury." He was uni-
versally known as " the General " ; crooked, crotchety, great-
hearted, every afflicted woman in the large army of workers
under his care was sure of a hearing, and of redress, if possi-
ble, from him. From his small room in the Treasury a door
opened into a still smaller one. In this little room the
keeper of the nation's millions often slept all night, in order
that he might be within call in case of accident or wrong do-
ing. So great was his personal anxiety and the consciousness
of his vast responsibility that it was his custom every night
to go to the great money vaults and, with his own hand upon
the handles, assure himself beyond doubt that the nation's
money safes were securely locked.

About two o'clock that morning, being restless and un-
able to sleep he arose, and, shod as was his wont in carpet
slippers, started on his customary rounds through the long
and dimly-lighted offices and corridors. Sophia heard his
shuffling steps long before he reached her, and standing by
the box she waited tremblingly for his approach. " General,
general, come here, come here ! " she shouted to the startled
treasurer who, stopping in his tracks, gazed intently at her
and then cautiously approached. Sophia removed the top
layer of waste paper from the box, pointed to the pile of
greenbacks beneath and told her story.

The astonished treasurer speedily summoned the officers
of the Division. Upon their arrival the money was removed
from the box, closely examined, and found to be perfectly
completed bills ready for circulation. Sophia was kept pris-
oner until the money was counted, when she was sent home

214 A USEFUL AND HONORED LIFE.

in a carriage to her children, who had been cared for by the
neighbors. How the bills got into the box is a mystery
known only to Treasury officials, and they have never taken
the public sufficiently into their confidence to make an ex-
planation; nor did they reveal the exact amount found,
though it has been stated by others in position to know that
it was over $200,000.

A few days afterward General Spinner sent for Sophia,
and handed her an appointment to a position as janitress,
her duties being chiefly to run errands and make herself gen-
erally useful, at a salary of $660 a year. She was the first
colored woman ever officially appointed to the service of the
United States Government. For thirty-eight years she re-
tained this position. During her life she probably saw more
money than any woman that ever lived. She used her sav-
ings to bring up her children, as well as a family of relatives
whom she educated and started in life as useful citizens.
Her hair whitened with the frosts of time, but her honest
face was always wreathed in smiles of recognition to the
high and low, to all of whom she was familiarly known as
"Aunt Sophie," and all invariably greeted her cordially when
they met in the halls of the Treasury.

Sophia Holmes died October 10th, 1900, aged about
seventy-nine years. At her funeral, which was largely
attended by whites as well as blacks, the colored minister
who officiated said : " It was recentty stated that all colored
persons will steal if they have a chance. My friends, we
have in this church the body of a colored woman the record
of whose private and official life proves that statement to be
a lie."

Many women find a refuge here through the influence of
friends who take pity on them. Congressmen and Senators
are importuned, the Secretary is " visited," and at last the
appointment is made. Their duties begin at nine in the
morning and are over at four in the afternoon, with a brief

A PEEP AT IMPRISONED WEALTH. 215

intermission at noon. In the evening some of them may be
found in attendance at social functions, or in society, which
they grace with becoming dignity and ease; but the greater
number of them go to humble homes, where await them
those who rely upon them for support. Most of them are
;ilisolutely dependent upon the government, which stands to
them for the very breath of life. Kequiring as it does so
many employees, the government can, if it chooses, benefit
the unfortunate and deserving, though sometimes, as in pri-
vate business, the undeserving secure places to which they
are not entitled, through favoritism of men in power.

We descend to the basement of the great money-making
establishment and are shown something over $150,000,000 in
gold and silver. Such a sight is too rare to be missed,
though, after all, it is little more than a peep at a great
many boxes and packages piled within steel cages within
steel doors within stone walls. We first pause before the
great silver storage vault extending under the terrace at the
south end of the building. Entering through a series of
massive doors we behold a mighty box of steel lattice-work
eighty-nine feet long and fifty-one feet wide and twelve feet
high, full of silver dollars, a little more than 100,000,000
of them. Although each silver dollar weighs less than an
ounce, those stored here would weigh about 3,000 tons.

The silver is tied up in bags of $1,000 each and packed
in wooden boxes, two bags in a box. Formerly the coin was
simply stacked up in bags, but notwithstanding the walls of
steel, dampness rotted the bags and the money was continu-
ally running out on the floor. This made extra trouble, re-
quired fresh counts, — and it is no light undertaking to count
such a gigantic sum in coin. Hence it was decided to pack
the bags in boxes, and, so long as the seal of the Treasurer
on each bag is intact, it is not necessary to count the con-
tents every time a recount is made, which is as often as a
new administration comes in. The boxes are built in tiers

216 RICH TREASURES IN THE VAULTS.

with passage-ways between, and usually on a table in one of
these passage-ways may be seen a thousand silver dollars ex-
posed to view as the contents of one bag. One of the slid-
ing doors of the vault weighs six tons ; the other, a combina-
tion door, is provided with a time lock which is wound up
every afternoon at 2 o'clock and does not run down until 9
o'clock a. m. the next day. Immediately adjacent to this
great vault is another nearly as large containing about $60,-
000,000 in gold and silver — both guarded nightly by watch-
men especially detailed for that purpose.

The bond vault contains all the bonds deposited by
National banks as security for the circulation of their bank
notes. The amount of bonds so held is steadily increasing
and now amounts to about $300,000,000. A dollar here
occupies very little space compared Avith that sum in gold
or silver. The bond clerk can pick up a small package Con-
taining $4,000,000 worth and shake it temptingly before
your incredulous eyes. In another vault is stored a lot of
fractional silver and gold coin, mainly for local uses. Much
of the gold of the reserve is kept at the different sub-treas-
uries, but the entire contents of the Treasury vaults in gold,
silver, currency, and bonds aggregates always over $800,-
000,000, and is constantly increasing.

Although it would be a difficult matter for a thief to
make way with a single dollar of all this money, the gov-
ernment takes ample precautions against thieves and bur-
glars. A force of sixty-eight watchmen — all of them hon-
orably discharged from the army or navy — is divided into
three reliefs. They patrol the building night and day, and
during the day a special force is always on hand in case of
an emergency.

From various parts of the building electric bells ring in
signals every half hour, day and night, to the office of the
Captain of the Watch, who is in electric connection with the
Chief of Police, and with Fort Meyer and the Arsenal, so

PRECAUTIONS AND SAFEGUARDS. 21?

that police, cavalry, and artillery can be instantly sum-
moned. Arms are stored away in many of the rooms where
the money is handled. When the clerical force of the
Treasury is on duty during the day, the Captain of the
Watch could instantly arm a thousand men. The offices of
the Treasurer, assistant Treasurer, and Cashier are each
connected with that of the Captain of the Watch, and in
case of an alarm the Captain can respond in thirty seconds
with an armed force to any of the three offices. Outside
watchmen are stationed at the watchhouses and are so dis-
posed as to command the entire building. And yet in walk-
ing about the great building, even through the vaults, there
is absolutely no sign of the careful preparations made by
Uncle Sam to guard his millions of treasure.

The best safeguard for coin is its weight. A million
dollars in gold coin weighs nearly two tons, and it would
take a very strong man to carry off $50,000 worth of the
yellow metal. Though a gold brick the shape and size of
an ordinary building brick represents $8,000, its " heft " is
something astonishing.

But while the danger from burglars and from armed
attempts to secure even a part of these $800,000,000 is very
small, the Treasury does not claim to be theft proof. One
unlucky day in 1870 a visitor came into the room of the
chief of the Division of Issue holding a large Panama hat in
his hand. The chiefs attention was distracted by other
people who were trying to talk to him, and the man care-
lessly dropped his hat over a package that contained 2,000
ten-dollar bills lying on the desk. It was one of several
packages, and the loss was not noticed till some hours later.
The thief, however, was caught when he tried to deposit
some of the bills. In 1875 a clerk passed a package of bills
of the denomination of $500 each, amounting to $47,000,
out of one of the cash room windows to a saloon keeper
with whom he was in collusion, and for some time the rob-

218 DISCOURAGEMENTS TO THIEVERY.

bery was a mystery. Later, Secret Servic'e detectives
caught a man betting bills of $500 each at the Saratoga
races, and when arrested he implicated the guilty parties,
and a large part of the money was recovered. There have
been no other notable thefts from the Treasury, and under
the improved system the chances of successful thieving are
greatly diminished.

But even if anyone should steal one of these packages,
the notes are so carefully recorded and could be so easily
identified that a description of them would be immediately
advertised, and any one who tried to pass one would be
arrested. While the government has been robbed in many
ways by its agents and by others who have escaped detec-
tion, no one ever took money from the Treasury without
being caught ; nor can it be taken without being missed.

A few years ago the vault in the cash room where the
ready money is kept, refused to open at the appointed time.
The time lock is always set to open at 8:30 a. m., but on this
occasion something was the matter with the mechanism and
the great steel doors remained obstinately closed. Not only
gold and silver but many millions of dollars in paper money
are always kept in this vault, and, if thieves could obtain
access to it, they might easily walk away with an enormous
sum, the notes and certificates being done up in packages
and neatly labeled with the sum each contains. Each
parcel contains 4,000 notes, and if the denomination is $500
a single package represents $2,000,000. Nine o'clock
arrived, and still the doors would not open. For once
Uncle Sam was obliged to suspend payments; the whole
office was in suspense. Experts were sent for, but before
they arrived the big safe opened of its own accord, and then
it was discovered that accidentally the time lock had been
set at 9:30 instead of 8:30.

One of the famous rooms of the Treasury is the great
Cash Room, one of the finest and costliest rooms in the

JOURNEYINGS OF A DOLLAR BILL. 210

world. Seventy-two feet long, thirty-two feet wide, and
twenty-two and a half feet high, the walls, w'th the excep-
tion of the upper corniee, are built entirely of rare and
beautiful marbles. It has upper and lower windows, be-
tween which a narrow bronze gallery runs around the entire
room. The room can be seen to the best advantage from
this gallery, from which we look down upon a busy scene
of people cashing drafts and checks and changing money at
the costly marble counter extending the entire length of the
room. The daily transactions run far up into the millions.
Here are cashed the various warrants drawn upon the
Treasury, and anyone can participate in the operations by
presenting at one of the windows a legal tender note —
which is really, a warrant upon the Treasury — and asking
for gold or silver in exchange. Or if you have a lot of
dirty, torn or worn-out U. S. notes, you may here exchange
them for clean, crisp notes, fresh from the reserve vault.

Look at this old dollar bill, soiled and crumpled, which
not long ago went out from the Treasury, bright, fresh, and
clean. Since then it has nestled in the dainty purses of fair
women, been folded in the plethoric pocket books of million-
aires, and crushed in the grimy hands of many sons of toil.
" The butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker " have each
had possession of it. It has passed from workman to
grocer, to jeweler, to fishmonger, to milliner, and to black-
smith ; it has slipped into contribution plates, bought
theater tickets, and passed over the counters of saloons ; it
has ridden on trolley cars, railroads, and steamboats ; it has
been in and out of banks and in and out of pockets times
innumerable ; it is defaced with ink from some printers
hands, soot from some blacksmith's shop, and grease from
some butcher's market ; it has lain on gamblers' tables, and
been bestowed in worthy charity ; it has eased the burden
of the poor, been hoarded by the miser, clutched by the bur-
glar, and slipped through the hands of the dissipated spend-

220 THE END OF ITS CAREER,

thrift ; human life may have been sacrificed to gain posses-
sion of it, and who knows but that the blood-stained hand
of the murderer has grasped it ?

Yet in its long journey among all sorts of people, this
piece of printed paper bearing Uncle Sam's promise to pay
has been always a dollar and as good as gold. It could
have been brought to this great Cash Room at any time and
a new dollar would have been given in exchange for it.
Even now we might send it out again, smutty, ragged, and
worn as it is, for another zigzag journey in a busy world.
But why not take pity on it, and let it rest after its strange
vicissitudes, especially when b}^ just passing it over this
marble counter we can get for it a bright new bill with a
future before it ? "We pass it in and take the crisp new dol-
lar. But alas ! by that very operation our old dollar ceases
to be a dollar. It cannot retire on its record and quietly
maintain a comfortable existence like a retired army officer.
In passing it in we have sealed its fate, for after receiving
ceremonious attention in the Redemption Division it will be
ruthlessly cut to pieces and soaked into unrecognizable pulp,
as if it were guilty of some terrible crime and no penalty
was too severe for it.

The complete history of a dollar, its travels and all that
it does, good and bad, can never be written, for no one fol-
lows it or can follow it. "We can only follow its history as
it is transformed from a piece of worthless white paper into
a dollar "as good as gold," and again when it returns to its
home to pass, a ragged, dirty thing, to its final doom.

CHAPTER XII.

MYSTERIES OF THE TREASURY— HOW UNCLE SAM'S MONEY

IS MADE — WOMAN'S WORK IN THE TREASURY —

WHAT THEY DO AND HOW THEY DO IT.

The Story of a Greenback — The Bureau of Engraving and Printing —
The Great Black Wagon of the Treasury — Guarded by Armed Men
— Extraordinary Safeguards and Precautions — $4,000,000 in Twelve
Pounds of Paper — 200 Tons of Silver — Some Awe-Struck People —
Placing Obstacles in the Way of Counterfeiters — How the Original
Plates Are Guarded — Where and How the Plates Are Destroyed —
Secret Inks — Grimy Printers and Busy Women — Who Pays for the
Losses — Why Every Bank Bill Must Differ in One Respect from
Every Other — Marvelous Rapidity and Accuracy of the Counters —
The Last Count of All — Wonderful Dexterity of Trained Eyes and
Hands — Counting $25,000,000 a Week.

PAPER dollar, you must remember, is not really
a dollar but simply a representative for a dollar.
No paper dollar is now issued by Uncle Sam
that does not have its real self packed away in
.one of those bags in the silver vault, or in one of the
boxes of bullion, or in one of the glittering heaps of
the gold reserve of the Treasury. Gold and silver, either
in coin or bullion, are too heavy to be good travelers, and
however much people long to own them, they do not fancy
carrying them about. So for convenience paper bills
are issued to represent them, and they pass current easily
and lightly so long as they last, but their life is a short one.
And thus it happens that while Uncle Sam is continually
pouring out paper money at the rate of over $1,000,000 a
day, he is adding nothing in this way to the money in

( 228 )

224 A GREAT PAPER-MONEY FACTOR?.

the hands of the people. The number of government notes
for which the gold reserve is held is limited by law to
$346,000,000 ; the amount of silver certificates is limited to
the number of actual silver dollars in the vaults ; and the
amount of Treasury notes, which came into existence by
virtue of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890 and
repealed in 1893, is limited to the amount of bullion so pur-
chased and now held. As over $1,000,000 of this worn-out
paper money is received at the Treasury from banks and
other sources every day, the great paper-money factory of
the government is kept busy manufacturing new bills to
take the place of old ones.

The history of a paper dollar, therefore, begins at a
paper mill, and at the very inception of its manufacture
Uncle Sam institutes a severe scrutiny and maintains ex-
traordinary safeguards against counterfeiting ; precautions
which are never neglected throughout the whole operation.
The paper must be made at one mill, and no other firm is
allowed to make paper like it ; indeed, the method is a
trade secret, and the law provides not only against its imita-
tion but against the possession of any of it by unauthorized
persons. It is now made at the Crane Mills at Dalton,
Mass., and the machines are provided with automatic regis-
ters by which the mill owners have to account to the
government for every square inch of paper turned out,
the key of the register being in the hands of a government
inspector who receives the paper, counts it, and holds it
carefully guarded until shipped.

The paper stock is made of duck cloth and canvas
clippings, and in it are interwoven fine silk fibrous threads,
red and blue, made in a factory near the paper mill. These
threads are serious obstacles in the way of counterfeiters,
and being distributed differently on each of the various
issues of notes they may become important helps in their
identification later on. The paper is cut into sheets eight

PRECAUTIONS AGAINST COUNTERFEITING. 225

and a quarter inches wide and thirteen and a half inches
long, or just the size of four bank bills. It takes just
1,000 sheets to weigh twelve pounds, and as these sheets
will make 4,000 one-dollar bills, they take the place of over
200 pounds of silver dollars in the vaults ; if two-dollar
bills, twice as much, and so on. A thousand sheets will
make $4,000,000 of 1,000 dollar certificates, in which case
twelve pounds of paper is made to do the work of over 200
tons of silver.

When the paper reaches Washington, it is placed under
lock and key in the basement of the Treasury, ready to be
sent to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in quantities
as desired. For many years after the government began to
issue paper money, the plates were engraved and printed by
private corporations ; but partly as a greater safeguard
against the possibilities of counterfeiting, the government
decided to do a portion of the engraving and printing itself.
So, notwithstanding the strenuous objection of the bank
note companies, Uncle Sam for a time printed the face of
the notes and allowed the companies to print the backs.
This was not always satisfactory, and little by little as the
government became more proficient in the work, it took
more and more of it upon itself and now does it all, and
under such conditions that counterfeiting has become an
extremely difficult and dangerous enterprise.

At first the Engraving and Printing was carried on in
the basement of the Treasury building, but the light was
poor, and as the space became insufficient, owing to the
constantly-increasing demands made upon it, the plant was
transferred to the attic. This, too, finally became inade-
quate, and Congress appropriated $330,000 for a site and a
building to be used exclusively for the engraving and print-
ing of notes, as well as postage and revenue stamps, com-
missions, bonds, and passports. The building, which was
completed in 18S0, stands not far from the Washington
13

226 GUARDING THE PAPER.

Monument, overlooking the Mall on one side and the
S'otomac flats on the other. It is the most complete en-
graving plant in the world, and the specimens of its work
have in recent years taken the highest awards at the great
fairs of Europe and America.

To this building, therefore, we must go to follow the
process of the evolution of our dollar. If we start at the
right time in the morning we may overtake a great black
wagon, closely covered on all sides, two stalwart men with
revolvers in their pockets keeping the driver company, while
three others, similarly armed, ride on the broad step at the
rear. This wagon conveys the packages of paper to the
printing plant, and returns with printed notes every day.
ISTo one has ever attempted a highway robbery of this
wagon, but its armed escort is never absent.

So very careful is the government not to take any
chances at any stage of the process, that the average visitor
to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing sees but a part,
and then only by looking through wire screens, behind
which he beholds men and women busily at work amid
stacks of this precious paper. ]STor is one allowed to wander
where he likes, but when a little group of visitors has gath-
ered in the reception-room — as they are sure to do every"
few minutes every day — a young woman with a marvel-
ously glib tongue requests the group to follow her, and she
leads the way through those rooms open to visitors. Again
and again during the day she — as well as others, for
another party collects generally long before one has had
time to go the rounds — repeats the same story to a group
of interested and astonished people who come from all over
the world. Her sympathizing sisters will ask her if she
does not find it very tiresome saying the same thing over
and over again, every day in the week, year in and year out,
and she will smile sweetly and say that sometimes she
does ; and they will ask her how much she gets for it, and

EXPERT DESIGNERS AND ENGRAVERS. 22U

she will tell them $1.50 a day, just as if everybody had
a perfect right to know. Others will try to encourage her
by saying that it must be agreeable to meet so many people
and tell them so many things they never knew before ; and
she will smile again, just a little incredulously, and beckon
another party to follow her around ; and when after her
weary day's work she goes to her boarding-house, she very
likely thinks, just as do many of the women employees,
that her position is by no means a sinecure.

But to follow the making of a dollar in all its details,
we must obtain a special permit, and this will take us into
rooms not usually shown to visitors. We will enter the
engraving-room first. The first step in making a bank note
is to draw the design. The government changes the
designs of its notes and stamps frequently, and those of the
various denominations always differ. A corps of expert
designers are employed for this purpose, and when their
work is finished and approved it is turned over to the
engravers. Of these none but the most skillful are em-
ployed, some of them receiving salaries as high as $6,000
a year. The fine head of an American Indian on the five-
dollar certificates is the work of one of these high-priced
men, whose skill is not surpassed by anyone in the world,
and this in itself is a good insurance against successful
counterfeiting. Sitting in a long row before the windows
on the north of the first floor of the building, with shades
so arranged as to furnish the best possible light, and sepa-
rated by screens so that each enjoys the privacy of a com-
partment of his own, these men, each an artist in his line,
laboriously engrave upon steel the designs for notes, bonds,
stamps, etc.

So many phases of consummate skill are necessary to
the completion of a single dollar note, that " many men of
many minds" are required to perfect a single plate. No
one of these experts engraves a whole plate. If a dozen

230 A WONDERFUL ENGRAVING MACHINE.

men were to engrave the same design on as many steel
plates, no matter how careful or expert they might be, there
would inevitably exist in the finished plates slight differ-
ences which would make the work of counterfeiters com-
paratively easy; for if variations in genuine notes existed,
the variations in counterfeited notes might pass undetected.
Besides, the government does not consider it a good plan
for any one engraver to be proficient in engraving every
part of a note ; such an engraver, if dishonest, might make
considerable trouble. A single engraver, therefore, does
only a portion of a design — one the portrait, another the
eagle, another the goddess of liberty, another the scroll, and
so on. Each man becomes proficient in his own line, and
too expert to be imitated successfully by a man in another
line.

But this is only one of the many safeguards. Look
closely at a bank note and you will see many lines, involved
and intricate, running to and fro in the most marvelous
manner. They defy imitation, and are the best tantalizer
and detective of the most accurate counterfeiter. This
maze of curving lines is the work of the geometric lathe, a
remarkable machine which mechanically engraves some
portions of the notes, such as the borders, and the back-
ground of the figures in the corners. This machine consists
of a complication of wheels of all sizes, eccentrics, and rods,
all of which is incomprehensible except to an expert ma-
chinist, and no one can operate it at all who does not
thoroughly understand it. Indeed, it is said that the man
who has charge of it is the only man in the country who is
a perfect master of such machines. Moreover the course
the mechanical lines will take depends upon the manner in
which the combinations are set, and, so long as this combi-
nation is a secret, it is practically as secure as a combination
lock to a safe. As the delicate diamond point moves about
with an accuracy and rapidity impossible to hand work, it

MAKING THE REPLICAS. 261

cannot be imitated successfully by hand ; and as few coun-
terfeiters are rich, and these machines cost a large amount
of money, a serious obstacle to counterfeiting is thus intro-
duced. Even if a counterfeiter secured one of these lathes
and a capable man to run it, he would still lack the precise
combination used on particular portions of the note.

It requires from six weeks to two months for each
engraver to finish his part of a plate, and when all the parts
are completed they are transferred to soft steel rollers ; for
it would not do to print from the original dies, for several
reasons. It would be mechanically impossible to print from
any one original the vast amount of money Uncle Sam
issues every day, and in the nature of the case there can be
but one original. Besides, every one of the notes of any
issue must be exactly alike. It is essential therefore to
transfer the engraving from the original dies to plates, in
such a manner that there shall be four engravings exactly
alike on each plate and that there shall be several plates of
the same for use on as many presses. A soft steel roller is
run over the original dies under great pressure, so that the
original design is well impressed upon it. Then the roller is
hardened and run over softened steel plates, four times to a
plate. These plates are then hardened, and when touched
up by the engravers are ready for printing, while the
original dies are deposited in the vaults. If these replicas
are injured or wear out, it is a simple matter to produce
new ones from the original.

But while all notes made are exact copies of the original,
they vary in one little detail not generally noticed but
which makes the greatest difference in identifying notes.
Each one of the replicas of four notes is numbered, and
marked by one of the first four letters of the alphabet.
Looking closely at a dollar bill, you will observe a small A,
B, C, or D, which means that the note was first, second,
third, or fourth on the plate, and by looking a little closer

232 KEEPING WATCH OF THE PLATES.

with a glass, the number of the plate will be discovered
hiding just below or alongside the letter. Its precise posi-
tion in reference to the letter also tells its story to the
expert.

As may be supposed, the original dies and the rollers
and replicas are guarded with the greatest care. Every
evening each plate or piece that has been out during the
day must be returned to the grim warding of the large
vaults with double steel doors and time locks. Nothing can
be taken out in the morning without a process of orders,
checks, and receipts, by which someone becomes responsible
for every plate and piece, and he cannot leave the building
until this responsibility has ceased. At stated intervals a
committee of officials from the Treasury visit the bureau to
see that everything is right, and to pick out such pieces as
are deemed to be no longer fit for use. These are packed in
strong boxes, bound with iron bands, and under an armed
escort are conveyed to the Navy Yard, where they are
destroyed in a fiery furnace.

We have now reached the point at which our dollar
takes more definite shape in the hands of the printer. The
specially-prepared paper which is brought over from the
Treasury is in packages of 1,000 sheets, and this count of a
thousand is kept up all the way through. When the Chief
of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing is ordered to print
a certain number of notes of a certain denomination, he
makes a requisition for just enough paper to print them,
and he is charged with the amount of money the notes will
represent when completed. Thus this official frequently
owes the Treasury many millions of dollars, but the obliga-
tion is discharged when the printed notes are sent in, the
imperfect notes being designated and likewise returned.

Before going to the printer the paper goes through the
wetting process in a long room filled with tubs of water pre-
sided over by women who are known as " wetters." Each

IN THE WETTING-ROOM. 235

package of 1,000 sheets is given to a counter, who, as she
counts, hands over every twenty sheets to a wetter, who
carefully places the sheets between cloths and immerses
them in the tub. These cloths must be scrupulously clean,
and to keep them so a large laundry is connected with the
establishment. When the whole package is thus treated it is
placed under pressure and allowed to remain for about four
hours. The sheets are then taken out, counted again, and
the top sheets placed in the middle to render the dampness
uniform. The package is thereupon placed under still
greater pressure where it remains till morning, awaiting the
call of the printer. Each printer is given one of these pack-
ages and charged with the same on the books, the amount
always being the face value of the proposed notes. At the
close of the day his printed sheets go to the superintendent,
who credits him with them, and any imprinted ones are re-
turned to the wetting division, where he also receives credit.

Extensive experiments have been made with inks, in at-
tempts to secure a chemical mixture which will afford safe
guard against counterfeiters, but little can be done beyond
using the best and most expensive quality. The black ink is
now furnished by contract, and the mixture is said to be a
valuable secret. The government makes its colored inks
after the best chemical formula, and we shall see later, when
observing the work of the Secret Service, that at least on
one occasion, the quality of a carmine ink led to the detection
of a counterfeit which, before the ink had faded, had been
held by experts to be a genuine note.

Entering the printing-room, which covers the entire floor
of the building, we seem at first to have come upon a gen-
uine pandemonium. The air is full of wild and confusing
motions as the long hand spokes of the presses are rapidly
whirled back and forth, and sheets of greenbacks flutter in
the hands of 150 women. As many men are working as if
mad. Their bare arms are smeared to the elbow with ink,

236 PRINTING THE BILLS.

and their perspiring faces are begrimed with it. The room
is uncomfortably hot, for at each one of these hand presses
is a series of gas jets to heat the little table on which the
printer rests the plate while he thoroughly rubs in the ink.
All is noise and confusion, and yet every one of these hun-
dreds of flying sheets of money is identified. If one were
lost not one of these three hundred men and women could
leave the building till it was found ; but none is ever lost.

As the printer takes the plate he rapidly runs the ink
roller back and forth over it, and placing it on the heated
table as rapidly wipes the ink off, so that only that portion
which fills the engraved lines remains. He then polishes
the margin of the plate with whiting applied with the black-
ened palm of his hand, for nothing has been devised for this
purpose that will take the place of the human hand. All
this must be done with the utmost nicety to produce a good
impression, yet one does not notice any evidence of special
care, for each printer appears to be working with all the
speed of which he is capable. He is paid by the piece.
Like a flash he slides the inked plate upon its bed on the press,
and at the same instant the helpmate of his toil, a young
woman standing at the other side of the press, places a sheet
of the precious paper accurately on the plate ; then grasp-
ing the long blackened handles of the press the printer
pulls them carefully around until the plate and its printed
sheet emerge on the other side. The young woman now
carefully lifts the sheet from the plate, and lo ! at last the
beautiful new dollar ! She closely examines it to see if it is
perfect. If it is, she places it on the table at her side ; if she
thinks it is imperfect and the printer agrees with her, a rent
is torn in the sheet and it is laid aside. If both are unde-
cided it is left to the expert examiners who pass upon it later.

An automatic register is attached to each press so that
every impression is recorded and another check is thus made
on the counters and printers. The registers are locked and

WORKING NIGHT AND DAY. 237

the keys are always in the hands of the proper officials who,
at the end of the day's work, examine the instrument and
compare its figures with the number of sheets printed and
wasted. Any loss unaccounted for must come out of the
salary of the printer and his assistant. Such occurrences
are extremely rare, but the rule holds, not only through
each of the fourteen divisions of the bureau, but in the
various divisions of the Treasury where the money is
handled.

The 300 men and women we see working so rapidly in
this large room, turning out dollars like corn from a
sheller, are but a quarter of those regularly employed here.
When revenue stamps were in great demand it required three
shifts of 300 persons each to keep up with the demand for
money and stamps. As soon as one shift went out, another
came in, and the presses were flying all the time, night and
day. In the hot summer days and nights the temperature
of the room rose to a fearful height, the many gas jets add-
ing their quota to the stifling atmosphere. It was not a
pleasant sight to see so many young women standing all day
at these presses, even though their work was light compared
with that of the agile printers. They received $1.25 a day
for their services, which was more than was paid for similar
work in private establishments ; yet none but the strongest
could endure the strain a great while, and there was a con-
stant call for recruits in those busy times.

Although the capacity of the bureau is often put to a
test to meet the current demand for money and bonds, it is
but a portion of its work, for here also are printed 4,000,-
000,000 postage stamps a year, to say nothing of revenue
stamps. Some of the processes in making stamps are unique
and interesting, but we will return later to observe them, and
meantime we must follow our dollar.

After the sheets are printed on both sides, and have been
passed by the official who keeps a complete record of their

238 PRESSING AND STAMPING.

number, they pass into the counting and examining division,
where they are counted by women who do nothing but
count, count, count, all day long week after week and year
after year. Seated at their long tables, with heads decked
with curious paper caps worn to protect their eyes from the
strong light, their hands fly through the piles of greenbacks
and bonds with marvelous "rapidity and accuracy. After
this count the sheets go to the drying-room in which a tem-
perature of 120 degrees is maintained, and from which the
sheets are received in a very wrinkled condition by expert
examiners who are supposed to detect the slightest blemish.
Every dollar must be absolutely perfect. Imperfect sheets
are thrown aside to find their way to destruction, but a
complete record is kept of them. The perfect sheets are
then placed under the enormous pressure of over 200 tons,
and in a few minutes they reappear with that smoothness and
crispness characteristic of brand-new bills.

While every bill of each denomination is supposed to be
exactly alike, in one respect they are all dissimilar. Each must
have an individuality, so that if stolen it can be identified.
To secure this the printed sheets are taken to a division
where rattling little machines fill the room with noise, but
where, unlike the press-room, everything is bright and clean.
The numbers in the upper right- and lower left-hand corners
of our dollar are here stamped by these noisy little machines
run by women. The work requires great skill and experi-
ence, and mistakes are frequent, each woman being allowed
to spoil ten out of every thousand sheets, though when thor-
oughly skilled they seldom spoil as many as that. Spoiled
sheets are punched full of little holes and laid aside for de-
struction. There are many fatalities even in the infancy of
a dollar.

The sheets are now ready to be returned to the Treasury,
but they await the journey behind strong vault doors pro-
vided with half a hundred bolts and a time lock, so that no

A FASCINATING SPECTACLE. 241

man or set of men can open them till the time for the great
black wagon to arrive. Often there are over 200,000,000
dollars worth of bonds and money in this vault.

Arriving there every morning at 9 o'clock, the packages,
still uncut, go through another of the counting tests to
verify the account between the Bureau of Engraving and
Printing and the Division of Issue. This over, the sheets
pass to the sealing-room, where large presses stamp upon
each note the seal of the Register of the Treasury, in red or
blue according to the denomination and character of the
note. A group of visitors is nearly always seen standing
before the screen which separates the presses from the pub-
lic halls, fascinated by the sight of so many sheets of money
dropping in rapid regularity before their eyes — thousands
and thousands of dollars at a time. In more than one spec-
tator there wells up a feeling that where it is so easy to
make money, it ought not to be so difficult to get it. He
thinks how happy he might be if he could only hold his
hand under one of the presses for but five minutes; and it
is hard to explain to some visitors that these paper bills are
not real money but only its shadow, and that if everyone
could have all he wanted of the paper it would not be worth
anything to anybody.

The sheets now go to the cutting-room, where another
small army of women in clean attire and dainty white
aprons are in strong contrast with the women of the wet-
ting-tubs and the hand-presses. It is here that our dollars
cease to march in fours and break into single file. The
sheets are stacked up in piles with the utmost nicety and
passed under the cutters — little guillotines whose shining
blades easily slide through the paper, thus separating the
four notes at a single stroke, each note passing into its
proper place to be tied up in a standard package. How
swift the process compared with that of a few years ago.
Formerly the cutting was done by a bevy of women armed

242 WOMEN AND SCISSORS.

with long shears, — the first work ever performed by women
in the departments, — and it came about in this way :

In the Civil War days, when tens of thousands of men
were withdrawn from civil labor, and when one day's ex-
pense to the government equaled a whole year's in the
time of George Washington, Treasurer Spinner went to
Secretary Chase and said : " A woman can use scissors bet-
ter than a man, and she will do it cheaper. I want to em-
ploy women to cut the Treasury notes." Mr. Chase con-
sented, and soon the great rooms of the Treasury witnessed
the unwonted sight of hundreds of women, scissors in hand,
cutting and trimming each Treasury-note sheet into four
separate notes. Washington was full of needy women ;
women whom the exigencies of war had suddenly bereft of
protection and home. Every poor woman who applied to
the good Treasurer was given work if he had it. A pair of
scissors were placed in her hands, and she was told to go at
it. The shears have long since vanished, but the women
have remained, and furthermore have invaded every depart-
ment of the government and proved their right to hold
their positions by their steady application, superior skill,
and the wonderful accuracy they have shown.

Another count; the last of the fifty-two which marks
the long process, and the most expert and interesting count
of all. Here are more than fifty maids and matrons, count-
ing the new notes, our dollar among the rest. Crinkling,
fluttering, flying, the dollars! Serene, silent, swift, the
women ! That anything can be counted so rapidly and yet
so accurately, defies belief. It is the marvel of this count-
ing, that it is as infallible as it is speedy. The fingers of
the women play the part of perfected machinery, the num-
bered notes passing through them with the celerity and
regularity of automatic action. You could not count the
rapid movements of the fingers of any one of these women
if you tried, and yet as she unties a package, holds it up in

THE FINAL INSPECTION. 245

her left hand with the face of the notes upward and with
her right lifts the upper right-hand end of every one of the
4,000 notes, she not only counts but scans each note for im-
perfections in texture, printing, sealing, or cutting, and sees
that the numbering is in due order and that none are miss-
ing. It is a revelation of what the trained eye and hand
and mind can do.

It is commonly supposed that habitual application to
routine work breeds carelessness and a sort of mental blind-
ness, but here more than fifty women count with unwearied
vigilance, discernment, and accuracy, at a speed so extraor-
dinary that each one of them passes through her hands an
average of 32,000 notes a day, nearly two for every second
she works! So trained have their eyes become that the
slightest irregularity of form or color is noted. This per-
fection of mathematical movement is acquired only by long
practice and by one order of intellect. There are persons
who can never acquire this unerring accuracy of mind and
motion combined. The counting is facilitated, indeed made
possible, by the fact that the notes as they fall from the
cutting machine lie in exact progression of number, so that
the counter need only take cognizance of the final unit, sure
that so long as these run continuously no mistake has been
made ; but to guard against any possible error the notes are
here counted five times by different counters. Through the
swiftly- Hying fingers of these deft women has passed every
dollar in circulation, and every dollar of the million a day
that is constantly going out must pass through their hands,
and all the bonds as well. No one in the world has handled
so many dollars as they, and yet very few of these dollars
go to them. For less than twenty-five dollars a week they
count 25,000,000 of dollars.

Having thus received the final count, the money is en-
trusted to the sealing clerk, whose duty it is to wrap the
packages and seal them with the special seal of the Issue

246 BEGINNING ITS CAREER.

Division of the Treasury of the United States. They then
go to the vaults, there to await the call of the Treasurer
and the mandate of Uncle Samuel. Thus our dollar is fin-
ished. After all these processes and all these counts, which
one might think would have worn it to shreds, it is at last
ready for its adventurous career in the busy world. Some
day, when the doors of the great vault open, our new dollar
goes out and into the outstretched hands of some one of the
tens of thousands who are clamoring to obtain possession of
it. Its unsullied purity will not last long.

If it endures the hardships of its public career, if it is
not burned to ashes in some conflagration, chewed up by some
animal, or lost in some place never to be found, it will re-
turn to its birthplace in about three years, possibly sooner,
looking very shabby and very wretched. By that time it
will have grown tired of the world and returned home to
die.

CHAPTER XIII.

EXTRAORDINARY PRECAUTIONS AGAINST COUNTERFEIT

ERS, BURGLARS, AND THIEVES — WOMEN AS EX

PERT COUNTERFEIT DETECTORS — THE

FUNERAL OF A DOLLAR.

Coming Home To Die — Ill-Smelling Companions — A Dirty-Looking Mob
of Dollars — The Experts' Secluded Corner — Among Shreds and
Patches of Money — Chewed by Pigs and Rescued from a Slaughter
House — Taken from the Bodies of the Dead — An Iowa Farmer's Ex
perience — A Michigan Tax Collector and His Goat — Women's Skill
in Restoring Worn-out Money — Bills Reeking with Filth — Detecting
Counterfeits — A Woman's Instinct — "That's Counterfeit!" — How
the Treasury Was Swindled by a Woman — An Ingenious Device —
Some Precious Packages — The Return of the Dollar — Nearing Its
End — From a Palace to ; a Pig's Stomach " — The Macerater — Chew
ing Up Over $166 000 000 at One Gulp - The Funera; of a Dollar —
" Pulp It Was ; to Pulp it Has Returnee''

UR dollar is not allowed to die peacefully.
Counted at every stage of its growth from a
piece of white paper to a full-fledged note;
counted by all sorts and conditions of people
in its migratory career, it comes back tattered and
torn only to be counted and counted again. For it
stands for a dollar so long as it is in existence. It cannot
enter into its rest until a new dollar goes out to take its
place, and a new dollar must not go out until the govern-
ment is sure that the old one is not a counterfeit. To verify
this there is another force of counters in the Redemption
Division, women whose deft and delicate fingers are cease-
lessly busy detecting counterfeits, or identifying, restoring,

(249)

250 MONEY IN SHREDS AND TATTERS.

counting, and registering worn-out bills which have come
home to be " redeemed." Each counter sits at a table by
herself, that the money committed to her care may not
become mixed with that to be counted by any other person.

Our dollar bill does not come back alone, like a forlorn
prodigal. It is accompanied by a great cloud of ill-smelling
witnesses — the dirtiest-looking mob of dollars you ever
saw. Thousands are received daily from banks and sub-
treasuries, and the receiving-room is always piled high with
them. The receiving clerk delivers the packages, still
sealed, to the expert counters, each of whom receipts for
the packages she receives and becomes responsible for the
whole amount till it leaves her hands. Having verified the
count in the package, the notes are sorted out into packages
of one hundred notes each and bound with a manilla wrap-
per. Fragments are turned over to special women experts
for identification.

These experts work in a secluded corner amid shreds
and patches of money, or what was once money, our dollar,
perhaps, included. Every piece presents a problem which,
though difficult of solution, has its compensations in the spe-
cial features it may afford for the ingenuity of -the patient
expert. The women do 'their work with surprising accu-
racy and dexterity, though it is far from pleasant, for the
money is sometimes frightful stuff, exhaling a shocking odor.

The identification and restoration of defaced and muti-
lated notes is a very difficult and important operation.
From the toes of stockings, in which they have been washed
and dissolved ; from the stomachs of animals, and even of
men ; from the bodies of drowned and murdered human
beings ; from the lurking places of vice and of deadly dis-
ease, these fragments of money, whose lines are often
utterly obliterated, whose tissues emit the foulest odors,
come to the Treasury, and are committed wholly to the
supervision and skill of women.

Mrs. Rev. STEPHEN BROWN.

Over thirty years in service of the United
Suites Treasury. The greatest living expert
in identifying burned, mutilated, and unre-
cognizable money sent for redemption.

Mrs. PATTI LYLE COLLINS.
Twenty-five years in the Dead Letter
Office. The greatest living expert in de-
ciphering illegible and defective letter ad-
dresses.

FOUR HIGH-PLACED WOMEN EXPERTS IN GOVERNMENT SERVICE.
Mrs. W. A. LEONARD. Mrs. S. F. FITZGERALD.

Forty-one years in the United States In service of the United States Treasury

Treasnrv and the fastest money counter in for nearly forty years. It is said of her that

tin- service. The largest amount counted by she knows more about National Hank notes

her in one day was Jiz, 030,000. than any other person living.

IDENTIFYING THE FRAGMENTS. 251

Here are pulpy bits of bills that have been chewed up
by pigs and rescued from a slaughter house; but this expert
can prove to you that this pig chewed a ten-dollar bill or a
five-dollar bill, and possibly she will be able to tell you the
numbers of the notes. Of course there are restrictions upon
the redemption of fragments, the amount allowed being
proportioned to the pieces identified in such a way as to
make overpayment practically impossible. The experts
have a copy of every bill which has ever been printed by
the government. These are used as models as soon as
enough fragments of- a mutilated bill have been laid out to
establish its issue. No bill has ever been received at the
Treasury Department in a condition which has made it
impossible for the experts to establish its character beyond
doubt.

Bills that have been chewed by mice puzzle the experts
more than any other kind of mutilated money. Each of the
minute pieces is carefully laid out on a hard, flat surface,
and with the assistance of a strong magnifying glass the
pieces are assembled together in their proper relation.

The department requires that at least three-fifths of a
mutilated bill shall be recovered before the government will
redeem it. Usually each mutilated bill is carefully pasted
on a backing of paper the size of the complete bill. The
expert has a piece of glass the exact size of the bill. This
glass is divided into forty squares. When placed over the
bill, if the experts can find that the remnants fill twenty-
four of the squares, or three-fifths of all of them, the bill
will be redeemed.

Goats seem to have a special liking for Uncle Sam's
money. An Iowa farmer, while at work in his fields,
removed his vest and placed it on a fence, from whence it
fell to the ground. An inquisitive goat chanced to pass
that way and nosed six five-dollar bills out of the pocket.
No one saw him eat the bills, but when the farmer again

252 A MISAPPROPRIATION OP TAXES.

put on his vest he found the money had mysteriously disap-
peared. The goat was suspected and killed, and the bills
were found in a lump in his stomach. "When received at
the Treasury Department the mass had hardened into a
little dark brown lump that resembled anything but money.
The mass was soaked until the minute particles separated,
and skillful fingers accustomed to the work, separated each
piece. In two hours the entire six five-dollar bills had been
pieced together and were redeemed.

Only recently a Michigan tax collector, who had small
faith in banks, stored $800 in a tin can for safe keeping over
night and hid it under his house. One portion of the house
was elevated so that the family goat was able to walk under
it. The next morning, just as the tax collector started to
crawl under the house to get his improvised safe, he saw his
goat slowly emerging and chewing on the remnants of a
twenty-dollar bill. The excited collector caught the goat
and forced a portion of the bill from his mouth. The col-
lector was a poor man and was faced with the necessity of
making good the amount of funds due to the county. He
killed the goat, secured the contents of the stomach, made
the necessary affidavits as to the circumstances, sent the
mass of chewed bills to Washington, and within ten days
bright, new, crisp bills for the entire amount were sent to
him.

Frequently large amounts of money are received which
keep these experts busy for months. The most noted case
was that of a paymaster's trunk that was sunk in the Mis-
sissippi, in the Robert Carter. After lying three years in
the bottom of the river, the steamer was raised, and the
money, soaked, rotten, and obliterated, given to a Treasury
woman for identification. She saved $185,000, and the
Express Company, which was responsible for the original
amount, presented her with $500 in grateful recognition of
her services. After the great Chicago fire large amounts of

TH&
NEW YORK
'pUBLIC LIBF

fcstor, Lenox ;
Foundat

CHARRED BILLS, AND COUNTERFEITS. 255

charred money were received for redemption, and over
$1,000,000, or over seventy-five per cent, of all that was sent
in, was redeemed after the most careful and painstaking
work. There was a similar experience after the Boston fire.

Burned money is very difficult for government experts
to work on. Recently an elderly German woman living in
Baltimore came in great distress to the department. She
had the charred remnants of some money, which was, she
claimed, all that remained of the savings of forty years.
She thought there was at least $500 in the original roll.
On the evening before, as she knelt at her devotions, a lamp
in the room toppled over and set fire to a dress skirt in
which she kept her savings. She collected as much of the
charred money as she could, and sympathetic friends sent
her to the Treasury Department. She sat in a room rock-
ing to and fro, crying and sighing while half a dozen
experts worked on the money. In three hours she received
over $300 of the amount, and the assurance that if she could
secure the rest of the debris more money might be refunded
to her.

The women who take care of notes that are only soiled
and worn are equally expert in detecting counterfeits, which
is not so easily done in an old as in a new bill. They
scrutinize each note carefully, and can generally tell, so
expert and trained are they, whether it is genuine or coun-
terfeit, or whether it has been "raised." Treasurer Spinner,
who, as already stated, was the first official to employ
women in the department, used to say : " A man will
examine a note systematically and deduce logically, from
the imperfect engraving, blurred vignette or indistinct sig-
nature, that it is counterfeit and be wrong four times out of
ten. A woman picks it up, looks at it in a desultory fashion
of her own and savs :

"'That's a counterfeit!'
"'Why?'

256 AN INGENIOUS SWINDLER.

" ' Because it is,' she answers promptly, and she is right
eleven times out of twelve."

Yet this accuracy is hardly to be credited wholly to
woman's instinct. Founded upon a subtle perception and a
sensitiveness of touch, it develops from experience. Further-
more all women do not excel as counterfeit detectors ; nor
can all become experts as restorers and counters of paper
money. But wherever a woman possesses native quickness,
combined with power of concentration, with training and
experience, she in time acquires an absolute skill in her
work, which, it has been proved, it is impossible for men to
attain. Her very fineness of touch, swiftness of movement,
subtle intuition, and keenness of sight give her this advan-
tage.

The temptations to dishonesty are great, and in the his-
tory of the office there have been cases of theft and dis-
honesty. The most famous swindle was that perpetrated
by a woman who invented a method of making nine notes
out of eight ; that is, she would cut a small section from
each of eight notes, and when these pieces were joined
together nine notes would be redeemed at face value. No-
body ever knew how much she stole before she was caught,
but she gave up a large portion of her ill-gotten gains and
was never prosecuted. She is the only woman ever em-
ployed by the government who ever tried to steal, or in any
way proved dishonest. This method has been tried by
swindlers less expert, but has never since succeeded. In a
frame hanging on the wall of the office of the Treasurer
may be seen what purports to be a five-hundred-dollar bill,
made up of sixteen pieces cut from various parts of sixteen
genuine bills which had been sent in for redemption as
" mutilated." The fragments when pieced together made
up a seventeenth bill, which might have been accepted had
it been less clumsily fabricated.

Each counter enters in a book having a blank duplicate

READY FOR ITS DOOM. 257

form for the purpose, a statement of the result of her count,
containing the net amount found to be due the owner, the
aggregate of "shorts" or "overs1' or counterfeits, if any.
< )ne of these duplicates is retained in the book as her
voucher. Counterfeit bills are returned to the Treasury for
reference to the Secret Service. The counter then places
her precious packages in boxes which are carried to the can-
celing-room, and never for a moment do they leave her
sight so long as she is responsible for them. The counters
now gather round a table in the canceling-room and receive
receipts for the amount in their respective packages, which
are then placed under the canceling-machine. Two holes
are punched in the top of the notes and two in the bottom.
The packages then go to the cutting-machine, where a huge
blade cuts through the middle of each lengthwise, the labels
of each half having the initials of the counter and the
amount of money the package contained. The upper half
goes to the Register's office and the lower half to the office
of the Secretary of the Treasury. In each office every
wretched little half of a bill is counted again, and if these
final counts agree with that of the count in the Redemption
Division, the money is at last ready for destruction.

Alas ! for our dollar that went forth from the paternal
door — as many another child has done — unsullied, only to
return at a later day from its contact with the world, be-
grimed, demoralized, despoiled. Where is our pretty dollar,
fresh and pure ? Every delicate line defaced, tattered,
filthy, worn out — this wretched little rag, surely, cannot be
it! And yet it is. This is what the world's hard hand has
made our dollar. It is nearing its end. It has been counted
for the last time. The dollar that takes its place has
already gone out into the world to go through very much
the same experience.

There is not much left of our poor little dollar, and
nothing left for us but to go to its funeral. Like most of

258 THE ALL-DEVOURING MACERATER.

us, it has had rather a hard time in this world of ours.
Where has it not lived — from a palace to a "a pig's
stomach"; and what has it not endured — from the scarlet
rash to the small-pox — and to think that nothing remains
for it now but to be cut to pieces and macerated !

Formerly old bills were cremated in a furnace located in
a small building on what is now the White Lot. The
" Burning Committee," bearing the boxes of doomed dollars,
used to go to this fiery furnace daily and throw into it their
precious cargo where it was supposed to be consumed. But
the process was found to have dangerous possibilities.
Paper in tightly-wrapped packages does not always burn
well, and a portion of a thousand-dollar bill might be left in
the ashes or blown out of the smoke stack, and some day
turn up for redemption again. Besides, on one occasion
several notes were in some way abstracted.

So the macerater was devised, and now the poor worn-
out dollar, instead of being burned, is first cut in two and
then soaked until it is dissolved to pulp. The macerater is
in the basement of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
It is a huge steel receptacle, very much resembling a large
boiler to a steam engine, and is made to revolve on its axes.
Its interior is partly filled with water, and is fitted with
angle irons, which, as the boiler revolves, beat and mash the
contents exceedingly fine. On one side of the boiler is a
round opening covered by a massive steel lid which is
secured by three Yale locks, each with its individual key.
One is held by the Treasurer, another by the Secretary
of the Treasury, and a third by the Comptroller of the Cur-
rency. Nearly every day these three officials or their
deputies, with a fourth designated by the Secretary, who
are known as the Destruction Committee, assemble at an
appointed time in the room directly over the macerater, to
deposit in it the money to be destroyed. The money is
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FINAL RITES AND CEREMONIES. 261

an armed guard, and after being weighed is deposited on a
large table, on one side of which is a huge copper funnel
which, when let down, fits into an opening in the floor and
connects with the inlet to the macerater beneath. Each
key holder unlocks his individual lock, the heavy lid is
lifted, the funnel is let down into the hole in the floor, the
seals to the packages of bills are broken, and when all is
ready the officials, assisted by one or two trusted workmen,
push the huge pile of money into the funnel, through which
it finds its way into the maw of the insatiate monster
beneath. A brawny colored man with a long pole ruth-
lessly hastens its progress into the open jaws of the macer-
ater, which, in this way, chews up nearly 2,000,000 dollars a
day. It has been known to take 166,095,000 dollars at one
gulp — the largest amount of paper money ever destroyed
by Uncle Sam at one time.

When all the bills have been forced in, the funnel is
withdrawn, the lid is shut, the locks are again turned, the
machinery is set in motion, the great boiler revolves, grind-
ing and cutting the water-soaked bills into an unrecog-
nizable mass. Alas! it is the funeral of our once clean,
crisp dollar. Worn out, used up, gone by — millions of dol-
lars pass into the macerater, our dollar with the rest. At
the proper time a valve is unlocked and a mass of liquid
pulp flows out of the macerater into a pit below. This
is now generally rolled out into boards for bookbinding pur-
poses and sold at forty dollars a ton. Thus the cover of
this very book may one day have represented a million dol-
lars or more. Some of the pulp is purchased by souvenir
makers who fashion from it models of the Capitol, alleged
busts of famous men, queer-looking animals and odd toys,
many of them bearing some such legend as this : " Value
$3,000,000."

Thus ends the story of our dollar. It has had its day.
Pulp it was; to pulp it has returned.

CHAPTER XIV.

OFFICIAL "RED TAPE" — SOME LITTLE-KNOWN ACTIVITIES

OF UNCLE SAM'S HOUSEHOLD — WONDERFUL

WORK AND ASTONISHING FACTS.

Official " Red Tape " — Fraudulent Claims — Guarding Against Errors in
Accounts — An Incident of the Civil War — An Unknown Friend Who
Loaned the Government a Million Pounds — Who Was He ? — A State
Secret — An Important Meeting at the White House — Signing Ten
Million Dollars Worth of Bonds Against Time — How It Was Done —
600 Bookkeepers at Work — Ignorant Country Postmasters — Money
Orders that Are Never Presented for Payment — An Unsolved Mystery
— Thousands of Dollars Not Called For — How the Money Rolls into
Uncle Sam's Tills — Smugglers and Their Ways — A Dangerous Class
of Defrauders — A Wonderful Pair of Scales — Some Astonishing
Facts About Weights and Measures.

*N following the history of a dollar from its birth
to its destruction we have seen but a small part
of the numerous activities carried on by the
Treasury Department. For every room we have
entered there are dozens of others just as interesting
to anyone except to the plodding followers of official
routine who work within them. Should we undertake to
follow a claim against the government in its official journey
we should be compelled to pass from one room to another,
from one division to another, and from one set of book-
keepers and counters to another. We should then discover
that the much-derided " red tape " methods of the govern-
ment, really provide an elaborate system of safeguards
against fraudulent claims and errors in accounts, and that

(262)

THE GOVERNMENT CLEARING HOUSE. 2Go

all through the intricate machinery one set of clerks keeps
a check on another, and that in the final test all must lit like
the everlasting cogs in two cogwheels.

How many different sets of books are kept no one has
ever taken the trouble to learn. How many books have
been written full and are packed away in great heaps in
basement and attic can only be guessed at. How many
files of claims that have been paid and which have each been
the various rounds of official signing and countersigning,
are stored away in this great clearing house of the govern-
ment no one can tell. Every year the mass accumulates,
and every Secretary of the Treasury in his report to Con-
gress calls attention to the fact that these records are packed
away in such a condition that a fire may occur at any time
and wipe out millions of vouchers. This might result in
numberless claims being brought against the government by
those who, though well aware that they had been paid once,
would take advantage of the destroyed voucher to press the
claim again.

The officer immediately in charge and responsible for all
the public moneys is the Treasurer. Pie pays the interest on
public debts, has charge of the issue of notes, and is the cus-
todian of the bonds held to secure the notes of national
banks. The Register of the Treasury signs the issues of
United States bonds, enters the registered bonds, and signs
transfers of money from the Treasury to any depository ; in
fact one of his chief duties is the signing of his name.

Once in the dark daj^s of the Civil War, when the Con-
federate government was having fitted out in England two
privateers like the Alabama, our Minister to England en-
deavored to prevent their departure, and found that the only
way by which this could be done was to put up £l,000,ono
sterling — nearly $5,000,000 — as a bond to indemnify Eng-
land against loss if the ships were detained. This the Min-
ister could not do ; but just when he was in despair, an Eng-

264 A TEST OF HUMAN ENDURANCE.

lishman who knew of the affair and Avas a friend of the
Union, offered the Minister the million pounds on condition
that his name should be kept a secret. The offer was ac-
cepted, but the Minister engaged to have $10,000,000 of
United States bonds deposited as security for the English-
man and to have them in London by the next steamer.
There were no ocean cables in those da}rs, and the letter
from the Minister did not reach Washington till one Friday
night. The steamer on which the bonds must go was due to
sail on the following Monday.

At 11 o'clock that Friday night the Register of the
Treasury was called to the White House, where he found
Lincoln, Seward, and Chase in consultation. Great danger
threatened the Union, they said, if these vessels should leave
England, and they wanted to know if $10,000,000 in bonds
of $1,000 each could be signed and sent on next Monday's
steamer. The Register thought it could not be done unless
he should sign as long as he possibly could and then resign
so that the President could appoint another Register to con-
tinue the task without a break.

But this plan might make the bonds irregular and was
considered only as a last resort, so the Register set to work
signing the bonds. He signed for seven hours steadily, a
messenger taking each bond as quickly as it was signed and
leaving a new bond under the Register's pen. Saturday
morning his hands began to inflame, acute pains set in, but
still the work went on, always the same mechanical repeti-
tion of the same movements of hand and arm in writing his
own name. A physician was constantly on hand ; prepared
foods were given and stimulants were administered at
intervals ; but weakness crept on apace, and the task was
proving too much for human endurance.

At four o'clock on Sunday morning the physician
informed the Register that if he signed any more bonds it
would endanger his life ; but he kept on, signing more and

THE HEAD OF THE CIVIL ARMY. 2G5

more slowly and laboriously. He could not remain in one
position for any length of time, and the bonds were carried
from table to table to break up the dreadful monotony. His
fingers and hand were drawn and twisted. Finally at noon
on Sunday the last bond was signed, the last hundred taking
longer than the first thousand. They were hurried to New
York and were placed on the steamer, arriving in London in
due time. Who that English benefactor of the Union was is a
secret to this day. The Register collapsed completely after
the task was finished, and it was months before he recovered
from the strain. The Register of the Treasury seldom has
such a task as that to perform, but he is often obliged to do
nothing but sign his name for hours and hours to Uncle
Sam's money and papers.

A Comptroller of the Treasury is a superior supervising
officer of accounts, settling them when acted upon by audit-
ors. His decision rules in the adjustment of accounts, and
is even binding on the Secretary of the Treasury. When a
Comptroller once told the President that no one could over-
rule him, not even the President, the latter admitted it, but
calmly suggested that he could appoint a new Comptroller.
The incident indicates how complete a master the President
is throughout all the departments. He is not compelled to
retain troublesome subordinates. When one who, by reason
of the importance of his office or the plenitude of his powers,
is so rash as to disregard the wishes of the President, off goes
his official head, if the President thinks best, and as the sub-
ordinates know this and have no great wish to lose their
positions, the civil army is generally well disciplined.

The office of the Comptroller of the Currency was not
established till 1863 when national banks were created, and
his duty is generally to supervise them and their relations
to the government ; thus he is not concerned with the regu-
lar routine of accounts.

There are six auditors in the Treasury who examine and

260 KEEPING TABS ON POSTMASTERS.

pass upon all accounts. Each of these officials has a deputy,
chiefs of several divisions, and an army of clerks. To
describe the various operations in one of these offices is
to describe all. The office of the Sixth Auditor is exclu-
sively the Auditor of the Post-office Department, and his
office is the largest auditing-office in the world. His duties
consist of the examination and settlement of all accounts
pertaining to the nearly 80,000 post-offices of the country,
as well as of the mail and transportation service. There was
a time when the Postmaster-General kept his own books,
but now it requires an army of 600 people to keep them.

The account of every post-office, from that of the city of
New York, whose postmaster has a salary equal to that of
a Cabinet officer, to those of the most insignificant cross-
roads post-offices in the country paying a salary of only
a few cents a year, must pass through the Auditor's office.
Generally the small accounts are far more troublesome than
the large ones. Each postmaster must render a statement
of his transactions every three months, and where there
is a change of postmasters two reports must be sent for that
quarter. These accounts come into the Auditor's office by
the bushel, and each must be opened, sorted, and delivered
to the proper division, examined, verified, corrected if need
be, and registered. Every figure must be scrutinized,
and sometimes they have to be scrutinized very closely
to determine whether they are figures or not. Every
account passes through four divisions and must pass at
least nine sets of clerks — opening clerks, stamp clerks,
examining clerks, balance clerks, file clerks, etc. When the
registers are made up, they pass to the bookkeeping divi-
sion, where the whole is crystallized into something like
100,000 different accounts, kept so systematically that the
condition of each post-office and mail contractor in the
country may be seen at a glance; and then the original
accounts and vouchers are filed away.

IMMENSE MONEY ORDER BUSINESS. 20?

The money order department was not established till
L864 and has been increasing by leaps and bounds, year
after year, till now the domestic and foreign money orders
number over 30,000,000 a year and aggregate in value over
$200,000,000. All these vouchers — 100,000 a day — have
to be handled in this great auditing-office. If you cashed a
money order ten years ago in the remotest post-office in the
land, you will find it on file here.

Why is it that so many money orders are never paid, and
never appear in this great auditing-office for settlement?
No one knows. Among nearly 80,000,000 people there must
of course be many cases of suicide, murder, sudden death,
and mysterious disappearance, and if these unfortunates
held unpaid money orders they must vanish with them. If
the story of each unpaid money order could be told, how
many tragedies and romances would be revealed. It is not
because these orders are carelessly lost, for a duplicate may
be had upon application, and thousands of such are issued
and paid every year. But for some unknown reason a large
number of money orders are never presented for payment,
and the government is largely the gainer thereby. How
much this sum amounts to every year is not known outside
of the government — and the government does not tell. It
is supposed to run into the hundreds of thousands. There
is always the possibility that some of these orders may
ultimately turn up. Possibly some miserly people are keep-
ing them in their old stockings rather than the bills or the
coin for which they stand.

In auditing these accounts all money orders are sorted
out by states and by officers, and checked against the
offices issuing them. The charge upon the issued side of the
issuing postmaster's account, and the credit upon the paid
side of the paying postmaster's account for any given voucher
should agree ; but some of the backwoods postmasters know
very little about bookkeeping, and tedious correspondence

268 A NEVER-ENDING FLOOD OF MONEY.

and labor, and sometimes months of time, are wasted before
these petty accounts of stupid postmasters can be straight-
ened out. Every new postmaster means more vexatious
grist for the auditing mill. At certain seasons this great
office of 600 workers is buried under unsettled accounts,
some of which are from three months to a year in arrears.

There is no more important bureau or branch office of
any department of the government than the Sixth Auditors
office, for the necessary detail of its enormous business
requires the highest order of clerical ability. Men and
women who have passed the highest civil service examina-
tions are employed here. A few manual positions are
filled by persons who have not passed these examinations,
but they must be capable and become experts in numbering,
classifying, and filing post-office orders, vouchers, and the
innumerable papers that must be preserved.

Another important bureau of the Treasury Department
is the Internal Revenue Bureau, the offices of which are
in the Treasury building. Under the ordinary revenue
system, in which the tax is placed mainly on distilled spirits,
beer, tobacco, oleomargarine, etc., the revenue collected
amounts to about $150,000,000 a year. But under the
emergency of war, when special taxes are imposed on some
industries, and revenue stamps are required on official
papers, bonds, checks, medicines, etc., the money rolls into
Uncle Sam's tills in a mighty and ever-increasing flood,
until such taxes are repealed.

The Commissioner of Customs superintends the collec-
tion of customs duties, the receipts from which amount to
over $200,000,000 a year. This bureau also employs many
special agents who keep a watchful eye, not only upon
government servants in various customs districts, but also
upon that large class of people — many of them of the
highest standing — who undervalue their importations or
endeavor to smuggle valuables in their trunks when

IMPORTANT TREASURY INDUSTRIES. 269

" returning from a summer vacation in Europe." Constant
vigilance is required to prevent the operations of pro-
fessional smugglers who haunt the Mexican and Canadian
borders and who, with their confederates, form an adroit
and dangerous class of defrauders of the government.

Under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury the
government also provides for the safety of navigation. A
Commissioner of Navigation makes it his business to keep
informed of the condition of the merchant marine and to
advise steps for its development. Marine Hospitals where
sick seamen are received and cared for are managed by the
Supervising Surgeon General, and a Supervising Inspector
General of Steamboat Service endeavors through his
agencies to minimize the loss of life from accident.

The Coast and Geodetic Survey occupies an old mansion
near the Capitol, and is also under the direction of the Sec-
retary of the Treasury. Its duties are to make a survey of
our entire coast line for a distance of twenty leagues from
shore, and of all harbors ; to locate all shoals and other
dangers to navigation, and to chart all soundings for the use
of navigators. It makes large maps which are printed by
the government and exhibit the exact nature of the entire
coast. The geodetic part of the work is confined to making
an accurate survey of land lines across the continent, mainly
with a view of determining the exact size and shape of the
earth.

In the windowless basement room, originally built for a
coal vault, in the building occupied by the Coast Survey, is
mounted the most delicate pair of scales in the United
States, which cost the government $1,500. They are part
of the equipment of the Treasury Department's Bureau of
Weights and Measures, which is attached to the Coast
Survey, though why this should be so nobody has ever
adequately explained.

So delicate are these scales that they will weigh accu-

270 DELICATE AND SENSITIVE SCALES.

rately a ten-millionth part of a gram. They are so sensitive
that the warmth given off by the body of a person approach-
ing them near enough to open the glass case or to shift the
weights would expand the balance arms, and produce an ap-
preciable error in the results. Therefore they have been so
constructed that they may be operated at a distance of
twenty feet. Three long brass rods extend from the base
of the case containing the scales, and at the extremity of
each is a wheel, and by turning these wheels the weights
may be shifted from one pan to another, or any other neces-
sary operations conducted. The readings are made through
a small telescope mounted where the operator stands. On
one side of the room the temperature is different from the
other side, and whenever the instrument is used it has been
found necessary to surround it with large sheets of asbestos
paper. Corrections have to be made for the temperature,
humidity, and density of the air. With each weighing there
must be a reading of the thermometer, barometer, and hy-
drometer, and corrections to correspond to the conditions
existing at the time.

Incredible as it may seem, the difference of an inch or
two from the center of the earth, thousands of miles away,
causes an appreciable variation in the weight of the objects.
This is illustrated by placing two equal weights side by side
in each pan, when the beam shows no variation. But place
one of the weights on top of the other in one pan, leaving
the other pair side by side in the other pan, and the balance
will be disturbed. The weights used in this experiment are
scarcely two inches in height, so that the difference in dis-
tance from the earth's center, considered in comparison to
the distance itself, is infinitesimal.

The standard from which measures of length and mass
are derived are stored in the same building. The standard
of mass is a cylindrical-shaped piece of whitish metal about
the size of a tennis ball. The standard of length is a bar of

STANDARDS OF LENGTH AND MASS. 271

the same silver-like metal about three feet long and a little
less than an inch square. Each face is deeply grooved, and
in one of the grooves at each end is a polished spot on which
three delicate hair lines are marked. The middle one of
these lines determines the end of the bar. The bar is a
standard meter, and the cylindrical weight is the standard
kilogramme. The material from which they are made is a
mixture of platinum and iridium, the latter being added to
give additional hardness to the metal which above all others
is recognized as the most durable. The value of the metal
alone in this standard meter is $1,500, but it has a much
greater value from the labor expended in making it per-
fectly accurate.

The kilogramme and meter standards are the result of
fifteen years' labor by a joint congress of scientists, sup-
ported by seventeen of the leading civilized nations. The
International Metric Convention was organized in 1875, and
on June 2, 1890, the President of the United States broke
the seal of the standard kilogramme and meter which fell
to the share of this country, and in the presence of the Sec-
retary of the Treasury and a number of invited guests,
assembled in the Cabinet room of the Executive Mansion,
declared them officially adopted.

These originals have been used but once since. This
was when a very accurate copy was made from each for
practical use by the government bureau in regulating the
standard weights and measures of the country. The origi-
nal kilogramme was then placed under two glass bell jars,
which were locked and sealed. No human hand has touched
the kilogramme since it left the makers in Paris ; what little
handling has been necessary has been done with a pair of
special forceps covered with soft chamois skin. This is to
prevent increase of weight by the adhesion of minute quan-
tities of foreign substances, or decrease of weight by an
abrasion. ..

272 ODD USES FOR OFFICIAL STANDARDS.

The standard meter is kept in a case of wood lined with
velvet, and protected on the outside by a heavy iron cylinder
with a screw cap. It is removed only on special occasions.
- Although there has been no adequate legislation on the
subject, the government attempts in a hap-hazard sort of
way to supply the states with accurate standards of the
ordinary pound, bushel, and gallon used in every -day com-
mercial transactions. Each state is supposed to have a full
set of the government prototypes, and to have an official
sealer of weights and measures with a corps of inspectors
under him ; and then each municipality or township is sup-
posed to have its duly-appointed authorities who have their
working copies of the standard measures, and see that
tradesmen do not employ false scales in dealing out their
wares to the people.

That is the theory of it ; the way it works out in practice
is very different. The carefully worked-out standards which
are furnished by the government are usually stored in cel-
lars or unused vaults and their very existence forgotten.
■ In one of the Eastern states it was discovered recently that
the gold-plated half -bushel standard measure was being used
to feed the horse belonging to the Assistant Chief of the
Fire Department; the standard pound weight was busy
holding a door open; the gallon measure found its sphere
of usefulness as a cuspidor, and the smaller prototypes all
had jobs as paper weights. In another state the custodian
bored a hole in the standard of liquid measure and fitted it
with a spigot in order to facilitate the measuring operations.

The advent of electricity and the general advancement
of science has brought new work to the Bureau of Weights
and Measures. It has also emphasized the need of adequate
legislation under the constitutional power to provide the
country with uniform standards. All over the land people
are paying for electric light ; and yet they have no standard
by which to measure it or to gauge the size of their bills ex-

NEED OF ACCURATE STANDARDS. 273

cept the dictum of the company which furnishes it. There
is no legal standard of measure, and the ohm, which is bor-
rowed from Germany, may be a big or a little. ohm as it
suits the company to make it. There is no standard candle
power, and there is no way for a customer to know whether
his lamp is of a certain brilliance or not.

There is almost no occupation where the need of accurate
standards of some kind is not felt. For example, it is said
that it is almost impossible to get an accurate clinical ther-
mometer. A physician happens to have a high registering
instrument, and all the patients he is called upon to examine
show an alarming temperature. A surveyor has an inaccu-
rate tape, and years later the error results in a lawsuit and
great loss. Not long ago a discrepancy amounting to $50,-
000 between a bill of lading and the goods delivered was
traced to a defective hydrometer used to gauge alcoholic
spirits.

The last industry we shall mention that comes under the
fostering care of the Treasury Department is the Light
House Board, of which the Secretary of the Treasury is ex-
otficio President. It supervises the work of providing suit-
able buoys and lights, the coast being divided for this purpose
into districts with a naval officer and army engineer assigned
to each. Uncle Sam has over 1,200 lighthouses, each in
charge of paid keepers ; he has fifty lightships ever tossed
about in their lonely positions on the restless sea ; he main-
tains nearly 2,000 post lights, and over 1,000 men to attend
to them. Besides these he has sprinkled the coast with bell
buoys and whistling buoys, and he has nearly 400 fog horns
operated by clockwork or by steam.

CHAPTER XV.

THE UNITED STATES SECRET SERVICE — HOW COUNTER-
FEITERS, DEFAULTERS, AND THIEVES ARE CAUGHT
- SOME REMARKABLE DETECTIVE EXPERIENCES.

A Secret Fund for Secret Purposes — Uncle Sam's Detective Bureau — Its
Methods and Mysteries — Expert Sleuth-hounds — Eyes That Are Every-
where — Counterfeiters and Their Secret Workshops — A Skillful and
Dangerous Class of Criminals — Where They Come From — The Mu-
seum of Crime in the Secret Service Rooms — Some Marvelous Coun-
terfeits— Running Down a "Gang" — Wide-Spread Nets for Coun-
terfeiters, Defaulters, and Thieves — Catching Old and Wary Offenders
— 'Ingenious Methods — An Adroit Counterfeiter and His Shabby
Hand-bag — A Mysterious Bundle — A Surprised Detective —What
the Hand-bag Contained — How Great Frauds Are Unearthed — How
Suspicious Persons Are Shadowed — A Wonderful Story of Detective
Skill — Deceiving the Treasury Officials — Detective Experiences.

VER since governments were formed, a secret
service has played an important part in their
affairs, and it has been regarded as a necessity
in times of peace as well as in times of war.
General "Washington had such a service in the Revo-
lution. Even Moses sent his spies into the promised
land, and Joshua "sent out of Shittim two men to spy
secretly."

Shortly after the establishment of the government, Con-
gress appropriated $30,000 for the use of the President in
maintaining a watch upon foreign agents and for similar pur-
poses, and this sum is now annually drawn from the Treas-
ury simply upon the certificate of the Secretary of State,
no voucher of any kind being required. Nothing is known

(274)

BEGINNING OF THE SECRET SERVICE. 2?-r>

outside of the State Department of how this money is spent,
though doubtless there are many thrilling stories in the long
history of this secret fund that will never be written. But
this fund, appropriated for the sole use of the Department of
State, forms no part of and has no connection with what is
commonly known as the United States Secret Service, which
by common misapprehension is supposed to do all the detec-
tive work of the government. As a matter of fact the Secret
Service is established and maintained for the exclusive pur-
pose of following up and capturing counterfeiters, and it
forms a division by itself under the general direction of the
Secretary of the Treasury.

The present organization really had its beginning in the
early days of the Civil War, when Washington was a hot-
bed of Confederate spies, through whom Southern officials
were kept advised of what was going on in the national
Capital. Indeed, Southern generals were frequently better
posted on coming events than were Northern generals.
Even when General Butler was obliged to resort to the
scheme of buying a hand organ and monkey to get one of
his officers who understood Italian into Washington, the
Southern generals were in close touch with many men and
more women who secretly sympathized with the South, and
who took advantage of high social position to become fully
informed of the plans and secrets of the government. The
demand for Union detectives for war purposes was soon fol-
lowed by a demand for men to enforce honesty in the collec-
tion of the direct taxation imposed to raise money to carry
on the war ; and as soon as the government began to issue
its bills of credit another demand quickly arose for men to
detect and put a stop to their imitations by counterfeiters.
The result was the establishment of a large Detective Bureau
as an annex to the office of the Secretary of the Treasury,
and its chief, who ranked as a colonel, was given such wide
jurisdiction that his authority was exercised over all the de-

276 HOW THE DETECTIVE SERVICE IS ORGANIZED.

partments of the government. He called into his service an
army of men whose antecedents were not known, and soon
had a force of more or less questionable characters which is
said to have numbered 2,000. The chief was practically a
law unto himself, and among his subordinates corruption
was rampant. So notorious were the abuses that crept into
the Service that men who would never have thought of en-
gaging in illegitimate enterprises went into the business oi
illicit distilling, bounty jumping, smuggling, counterfeiting,
and other lawless practices.

After the war the spirit of reform gradually changed
the character of government detective work, and laws were
passed that practically placed the prevention of violations
of the internal revenue laws in the hands of the Internal
Revenue authorities, and customs violations under the Cus-
toms authorities, while the business of looking after coun-
terfeiters was placed in the hands of the Secretary of the
Treasury through a division known ever afterward as the
United States Secret Service. By good management and
efficient work this Service gradually developed into its pres-
ent prominence ; and while its assistance may be obtained
by other departments of the government at any time, it is
organized purely by virtue of a law appropriating money
for the detection and arrest of counterfeiters.

The $100,000 which is thus annually appropriated for the
use of the Secret Service must be used exclusively for this
purpose, with the exception of $2,000 which, by a recent
enactment, is set aside for the investigation of claims for
"reimbursement of expenses incident to the last sickness
and burial of deceased pensioners." While this duty was
placed in the hands of the Secret Service, it is such a small
fraction of its work that it hardly rises to the dignity of an
exception. It has no authority nor appropriation for the
pursuit of defrauders known as " moonshiners " or " smug-
glers." Special agents in the Internal Revenue Bureau are

SPECIAL WORK OF THE SECRET SERVICE.

employed to detect and arrest the first, and similar agents
in the Customs Bureau to capture the second.

Either of these bureaus, however, may call upon the
Secret Service for help in undertakings that demand the
highest detective skill, and for this the Service has become
famous. Such calls are regularly made, but in all such
cases the bureau requesting the service must pay the bills.
If the Secretary of War wishes a force of detectives, as he
did at the outbreak of our war with Spain, he can call
on the Chief of the Secret Service, in which case the men
assigned to the work must be paid by the War Depart-
ment. The Secret Service Bureau makes no report except
upon its own work as a division of the Treasury in detect-
ing counterfeiters of notes and coins, and in arresting
persons having in their possession materials for making
bogus money.

Notwithstanding all the precautions taken by the govern-
ment to make counterfeiting both difficult and dangerous, it
costs Uncle Sam nearly $100,000 a year to maintain a corps
of sharp detectives to keep counterfeits out of circulation
and to keep such offenders in jail or under surveillance.
There will alway be people ready to defraud the govern-
ment at every opportunity, and the temptation to make and
pass counterfeit money, even though all such offenders are
sure to be captured sooner or later, is often too great to be
resisted. The arrests for such offenses average about 700 a
year and are made in every state of the Union. Over one-
half of these arrests are for manufacturing, dealing1 in, and
passing counterfeit coins, it being much easier to counterfeit
silver coins than paper money ; for silver itself is so cheap -
that bogus coins can be made nearly of standard weight and
fineness, and still yield a fair profit. If silver passed more
freely than it does, this form of counterfeiting would be
dangerous; but fortunately not enough of such counterfeits
can be placed in circulation to make the business pay.

278 WHERE COUNTERFEITERS COME FROM.

Of the 679 arrests made by the Secret Service in one
year, 469 were of this coin-counterfeiting class; 116 were
for manufaaturing and passing counterfeit paper money,
and fifty-one were for altering government notes. The other
offenses were of such a nature as lightening gold coins by
clipping or drilling them, or counterfeiting foreign securities.
The amount of counterfeit money captured was about $75,-
000. Cartloads of plates, dies, moulds, and miscellaneous
appliances were captured and destroyed before the rogues
had an opportunity to use them to any extent.

Of the counterfeits that make their appearance during
the year, not more than two or three are usually dangerous,
and of these verv few are circulated before the offenders
are caught. The amount of capital invested every year by
counterfeiters in getting ready for their illegal operations
amounts to far more than is ever made out of it ; and yet in
spite of discouragements, and of the fact that the chances
are one hundred to one that such an enterprise cannot suc-
ceed, a new crop of self-deluded victims is constantly making
its appearance. They come from various walks in life, from
the street-corner loafer who forms a " gang " and makes
money that is easily detected, to the accomplished villain
who invests large capital, secures skilled accomplices, and
sometimes turns out notes which are passed as genuine after
close scrutiny by experts of the [Redemption Bureau.

The Secret Service has its offices in the Treasury Build
ing, and in outward appearances they are very much like
other government offices ; though if we could look behind
the polished file cases we should find many a secret as
curious as any in the annals of crime, and the records would
reveal the wide-spread nets that have here been woven
about unsuspecting criminals. Formerly one of the rooms
was given up to the exhibition of some of the curious
counterfeits and ingenious counterfeiting tools that have
been captured, but the collection outgrew its quarters and it

INGENIOUS COUNTERFEITERS AND IMITATORS. 279

was finally thought best to close the museum. It was
believed by some that these curiosities of crime might have
a bad effect upon the minds of weak individuals who came
to gaze upon them. Still, a few rare specimens of the
counterfeiters' art remain in the various rooms.

Here may be seen a one-hundred-dollar certificate made
with a pen and with such consummate skill that it passed
through the sub-treasury. It looks like a genuine note, but
under a glass it is a most obvious counterfeit. On the walls
hang some oil paintings, one, for example, of three barrels
packed to overflowing with crisp government notes of
various denominations. Twenty-dollar bills fall gracefully
over the edges of the barrels, and bills of much larger
denominations peep from the packages sticking up from the
center. The figures and the engraving on these bills are
painted in facsimile with the most painstaking care by an
artist who was a genius and who received a good round
price for this product of his skill ; but one day the saloon
keeper who had the picture hung in his gilded drinking
palace beheld it ruthlessly seized by a man who turned out
to be a Secret Service detective. Protests were useless ; so
were bribes; for the law expressly stipulates that no one
shall have in his possession imitations of United States
notes, even if they are in the form of a valuable painting.
Many such pictures are seized every year. Occasionally
new advertising schemes appear, involving the imitation of
some of Uncle Sam's monied obligations, but the innocent
perpetrators soon discover that they are violating a law
that cannot be evaded.

The precise character of the operations of the Secret
Service and the methods by which it works are naturally
concealed from the public. It alone knows how thoroughly
it has honeycombed the country with agents who often
follow their intended victims for months before they strike.
While the service is divided into certain districts with a

280 MYSTERIOUS METHODS OF THE SECRET SERVICE.

head of the detective force in each district, its men are con-
stantly on the move. Its eyes are everywhere. The visitor
is strangely impressed by the fact that he is in the presence
of a force whose operations are going on in a silent manner,
whose ends are accomplished by patient watching and wait-
ing. The mystery that pervades these rooms is in odd con-
trast to the openness of all the other institutions of this
democratic government. The detectives of the force are as
ignorant as the public of the full workings of the office, and
they only know that certain specified duties are theirs.
Sometimes they are entirely ignorant as to whether other
officers are detailed in their district, and it has often hap-
pened that one Secret Service employee has arrested
another, leaving it to be supposed that the ever-watchful
chief follows up his own men and that he takes no chances
with a man whom he does not thoroughly know.

It is not easy to get good detectives who at the same
time can be thoroughly trusted, and it is sometimes
even necessary to enlist the services of a thief to catch a
thief, but the arrest is generally placed in better hands.
When the Service secures a detective at once sharp and
trustworthy he generally becomes one of the permanent
force, which is now sufficiently large to enable the chief to
place in the field at any desired place a Corps of the most
capable "sleuth-hounds." The work requires a peculiar
talent. It has its fascinations and its dangers. The detec-
tive must not only be keen but brave. He often takes his
life in his hands, but he has a pistol in his pocket.

The successful manufacture of counterfeit coins or notes
necessarily requires a combination of men ; and the Secret
Service usually assumes, when a new counterfeit appears,
that there is a "gang" concerned in the plot. A counter-
feiting gang is usually composed of one or more persons
who provide capital for the purchase of presses and an
engraver's outfit, and of an engraver and a printer, each of

KEEPING AN EYE ON ROGUES. 281

whom must be a first-class specialist in his line. But excep-
tional cases occur, as, for instance, that of Peter McCarty
and his wife, who were arrested a few years ago in St.
Louis. McCarty possessed such unusual manual dexterity
that he was enabled to carry on his counterfeiting opera-
tions for a long time without any other accomplice than
his wife, who simply "pushed" or circulated the notes.
Such cases baffle the detectives for a time.

The Chief of the Secret Service naturally makes it a
business to keep informed of the antecedents and connec-
tions of men who have ever fallen under the suspicion of
counterfeiting, and by keeping them under constant sur-
veillance he can very often locate the guilty party simply
by the character of the counterfeit that appears. Nothing
can be taken for granted, however, and even if satisfied of
the identity of the rascals, months are sometimes spent
in weaving a web around them so as to catch them with
sufficient evidence of their guilt. In a notable case not long
ago the detectives wrere sure who the guilty parties were
long before they had any evidence against them. An old
offender named Brockway, living in New York, was believed
to be interested in circulating new and dangerous counter-
feits of a hundred-dollar bill. He was closely watched, and
his occasional meetings with another man, whose name
proved to be Doyle, led to an investigation of that person's
movements. One day Doyle purchased a ticket for Chi-
cago; a Secret Service man who was directly behind him
did likewise. They were fellow travelers. Doyle did not
leave the train and the detective's eyes did not leave Doyle,
who was a very unconcerned and agreeable traveler, with
no luggage but a small shabby hand-bag. When Doyle
jumped from the train at Chicago, he was surprised to find
himself arrested by his fellow traveler, who in searching the
rusty hand-bag found none of the counterfeits he was look-
ing for, but to his great surprise found instead, wrapped in

282 UNEARTHING GREAT FRAUDS.

an old shirt, a package of counterfeit United States bonds
to the value of $210,000 !

It turned out that Doyle had made a previous visit to
Chicago, where he had floated several of these counterfeit
bonds successfully, the brokers being completely deceived
by the expert character of the engraving and the agreeable
personality of Doyle, who was now intending to float a
much larger sum and retire with his accomplices into the
safety of obscurity. He would very likely have succeeded,
though no bonds of the denomination seized had ever been
issued. It transpired upon fuller investigation that the
engraver of this gang had been an employee of a private
corporation that had once printed United States notes and
bonds, though this is believed to be the only instance where
advantage was ever taken of skill once employed by the
government. The plate for the bonds was found buried on
Long Island, and the whole outfit of the gang was captured.

It often happens that the agents of the Secret Service
will, when in search of the perpetrators of one counterfeit,
unearth a greater fraud ; and it also frequently happens
that the members of a gang are entirely new in the annals
of the Service and are thus enabled to work their schemes
without the disadvantage of having been under previous
suspicion. Such a case came to light in 1899, and is not
only one of the most remarkable cases in the records of the
Service but well illustrates some of its effective methods.
In the brains, capital, and skill employed in the scheme, it
was unique. It involved men of high standing in their com-
munities ; it involved a plan for placing $10,000,000 of coun-
terfeit silver certificates in circulation, — a plan which was
absolutely perfect in all its details and failed only because
of the cupidity of one of the engravers, who foolishly
passed a few of the bills before the time was ripe. It
involved also an extensive fraud in internal revenue stamps,
the government being swindled out of $150,000 before the

THE FADED CARMINE SEAL. 283

offenders were captured. Never had there been a swindling
scheme of such gigantic proportions, or such promise of
success.

The plans of the swindlers were proceeding quietly and
perfectly and without any suspicion on the part of the gov-
ernment till early in 1898, when the Sub-Treasury in New
York called the attention of the department to what was
suspected to be a counterfeit of the "Monroe head" one-
hundred-dollar silver certificates. The engraving was per-
fect. The cashier at New York had been led to suspect the
notes only because the carmine seal seemed to have a faded
appearance, whereas the ink made and used by the govern-
ment always holds its color. The suspected bills were sub-
mitted to experts in the Redemption Bureau in the Treas-
ury and were declared to be genuine ; indeed some of them
had been already redeemed. They had passed the banks
and sub-treasuries without raising a suspicion, and there
was nothing to indicate that they were counterfeits except
the possible fading of the seal. The Secret Service agents
were entirely in the dark, for there was absolutely no clue
to the perpetrators of the crime. To guard against the fur-
ther circulation of so dangerous a counterfeit the whole
issue of these notes, amounting to about $26,000,000, was
called in to be exchanged for bills of other denominations.
It is extremely rare that government experts fail to detect a
counterfeit at once, for while it may be perfect enough to
pass the inspection of casual observers, its spurious character
will betray itself to the trained eyes of one who knows.
But here were bills of the denomination of one hundred dol-
lars which even the skilled experts in the Treasury had pro-
nounced genuine, and no one had the least suspicion where
they came from or how many might be in circulation.

But the Secret Service soon discovered a ray of light.
By a painstaking process the counterfeited notes were
traced to Philadelphia, and a suspicious connection was

284 SPREADING THE NET FOR CONSPIRATORS.

found between Taylor & Bredell, a firm of engravers having
an extensive plant at Ninth and Filbert streets, and W. M.
Jacobs & Co. and W. L. Kendig, extensive cigar manufac-
turers of Lancaster, Pa. About the time that Chief Wilkie
of the Secret Service had made this discovery and had
found out that the cigar manufacturers had been using
counterfeit revenue stamps since 1896, and that the deputy
collector of internal revenue in the district in which the fac-
tory was situated was in the pay of the counterfeiters, the
Collector began to suspect that something was wrong, and
a warrant was issued for the arrest of both Kendig: and
Jacobs ; but as this would have destroyed the net that the
Secret Service was weaving about the conspirators, the
action was stopped at "Washington through the representa-
tions of Chief Wilkie, and the whole matter wras placed in
his hands. He knew that he was on the track of no ordi-
nary counterfeiters. They were men of brains and means.
They were also men of good reputations. They had United
States revenue officers in their pay. Never before did the
Secret Service more fully realize that it must have in its
employ only men whom it could absolutely trust, and as the
sequel proved it had "good men and true" in this emer-
gency.

The problem now was to catch the conspirators with
sufficient evidence to lead to their conviction. Detectives
must shadow them night and day without once arousing
their suspicion, and must spring like a tiger when the time
was ripe. The business of the Philadelphia engravers was
carried on in four rooms, and the sharp detectives who
visited the place " on business " noted that the boy in charge
of the front office never passed beyond the second room.
When called, one of the proprietors usually came from the
inner rooms and only after some delay. The outer office
was locked by a Yale lock, and it was discovered that the
office boy carried one of the keys. In course of time and

SKILLFUL DETECTIVE WORK. 287

apparently in an informal manner, one of the detectives
became acquainted and eventually quite " chummy " with
the office boy. Meeting him on the street one night, the
detective saluted him as usual, and after he had passed
" happened to think," so he told the boy, that a friend of
his, a theatrical manager, was looking for a few smart boys
to take part in an opera. The boy was interested at once.
How much would they pay ? The detective named the sal-
ary, which was more than the boy was then earning, and
the result was that the lad, brimming over with delight at
such a fine chance, agreed to come to his friend's hotel that
very evening, so that the manager could look him over and
see if he would do. At the appointed time the boy
promptly appeared. The " manager " (of the Secret Serv-
ice) scrutinized him carefully and said he must see him in
costume, whereupon he brought out a gorgeous suit with
flaming red tights. The boy was more delighted than ever,
lie was taken to an adjoining room where he quickly slip-
ped off his working clothes and soon made his appearance
in the main room dressed in his opera costume. While
Icing critically inspected by the manager, a detective slip-
ped into the other room, took a bunch of keys from the
boy"s discarded clothes, and slipped down stairs to a lock-
smith who was in waiting. A duplicate was quickly made
and the bunch of keys returned to the old clothes long
before the lad had ceased to admire his form in a lanre
mirror with which the room had been provided. Finally
the manager thought he might do, but he would give him a
definite answer in a few days when his opera plans were
more complete. Meantime the lad was to say nothing
about it, and with this injunction he reluctantly resumed
his working clothes and went on his way, happy in his
newly-found friends and his bright prospects.

There were many other steps yet to be taken, quite as
elaborate as this which so well illustrates the methods of the

288 SPRINGING THE TRAP.

skilled and patient detective. Meantime all the suspected
parties were closely shadowed, and in one way or another
their carefully-concealed plans became known to the Serv-
ice. One dark night when the shadowed engravers were
reported to be safely at home and abed, the pickets of the
Secret Service were placed for any emergency and the
closely-guarded engraving establishment was quietly en-
tered and its contents carefully noted. A watch was con-
stantly maintained on all the suspected parties, and in due
time all were arrested under circumstances which left them
no alternative but to plead guilty. This took place fourteen
months after the pursuit began. Not one escaped, and all
the plates, paper, etc., were captured.

In commenting upon this successful work the Secretary
of the Treasury said : — " That the vigilance of the Secret
Service affords a protection of the highest value to our cur-
rency is a matter which admits of no possible doubt. It is
gratifying to realize that no scheme, however formidable,
for counterfeiting the money of the country has long suc-
ceeded in escaping detection of officers of this Service."
This high praise is entirely deserved. It would be a good
thing for every counterfeiter to study the records of the
Secret Service before he decides to become rich in trying to
imitate Uncle Sam's money. There are ways of cheating
the government with impunity, but this is not one of them.

CHAPTER XVI.

THE WAR DEPARTMENT — HOW AN ARMY IS RAISED,

EQUIPPED, AND MAINTAINED — WHERE THE

BONES OF LINCOLN'S ASSASSINS LIE.

In the Office of the Secretary of War — Pins and Tags on the Chess Board
of War — Keeping Track of Our Soldier Boys — Soldiers Made of Wax

— "Conquer or Die" — Trophies of War — Huge Boxes Labeled
Like Coffins — Stored Behind Iron-Grated Doors — Curious Relics
From Santiago and the Philippines — Handsome but Harmless Guns

— Where and How the Record of Every Soldier Is Kept — Taking
Care of the Sick and Wounded — Watching Other Nations — The
Signal Service — A Dapper Man in a Blue Uniform — Watching for
Raw Recruits — Passing the Surgeon's Examination — A Soldier's
Life — A Surprised Lot of Red-Coats — Where the Bones of Lincoln's
Assassins Lie — Dishonored Graves.

NCE, during the stirring days of civil strife, the
tramp of soldiers and the rattle of drums were
familiar sounds in the every-day life of the
Capital, and even now there are occasional
reminders in its busy streets of the pageantry of war.
The sound of clattering hoofs may frequently be
heard in the distance, and in a moment a troop of Uncle
Sam's cavalry sweeps by, off, perhaps, to some remote
military post or garrison. From the headquarters of the
"War Department in the great granite building just west of
the White House has gone out an order. Every movement
of the soldiers who carry our flag is recorded there. As we
enter the office of the Secretary of War, we see hanging
from the walls, or standing upon easels close to his chair,
large maps into which at numerous points pins are stuck
16 (289)

290 MOVES ON THE CHESSBOARD OP WAR.

and from their heads dangle minute tags. Each tag stands
for a regiment, tells what regiment it is, who is in command,
and the date when last reported. Every day as dispatches
come in, pins and tags are moved about, and thus the Secre-
tary knows at a glance where and how his infantry, artil-
lery, and cavalry are located in our own or foreign lands.
If an enemy is in the field, he has tags for him, and thus on
these maps he can observe the movement of great armies on
the chess board of war thousands of miles away.

On the walls of the Secretary's office are portraits of all
the Secretaries of War from Henry Knox to the present,
with the single exception of Jefferson Davis. There are
also notable paintings of Grant, Sherman, and Sheridan,
their frames draped with the Stars and Stripes.

Across the hall are the offices of the General in com-
mand of the army, while in the corridors in large glass
cases, looking very precise and solemn, are wax figures of
soldiers, life size, exhibiting the uniforms of various ranks,
not only in the army of to-day but in the army of the
Revolution and of the Civil War. One represents the dress
of Washington's Life Guard, a service formed in 1776,
presenting a brilliant appearance compared with the more
somber hues of modern uniforms. The wax faces of these
silent figures have a determined look well suited to their
motto, which was, " Conquer or die." '

By an act passed in 1814, captured flags and other
trophies of war were given into the custody of the Secretary
of War. The War of the Rebellion greatly increased this
number, and for years these soiled and tattered banners
were objects of great interest. The number of captured
Confederate flags was large, and these faded, torn, bullet-
ridden trophies were conspicuously displayed, and many
Confederate veterans who had bravely followed them with
fiercely-beating hearts in the fury of battle, and tens of
thousands of Union Veterans who had as bravely fought

BATTLE FLAGS AND TROPHIES. 291

against them, came to look upon these blood-stained flags
again and recall the grim memories of other days.

But as the ravages of time began to tell even more
severely upon the flags than had the fierce battles in which
they had once been proudly carried, public sentiment de-
creed that they should no longer aid in keeping alive
sectional feeling by being displayed to the gaze of the
curious. They are now packed in many huge boxes behind
iron-grated doors in the sub-cellar of the building, labeled
like so many coffins. Here unseen, in the darkness, these
trophies of the great Civil War are folded away, never
again to be unfurled. Once in two or three years the boxes
are opened and the flags are treated with ammonia, but
they are now very tender and can be handled only with the
greatest care.

Mounted in front of the building are curious-looking
cannons and mortars surrendered at Yorktown and at the
Convention of Saratoga, but the oldest specimens of all are,
curiously enough, some of the cannons captured in more
recent years in the old fortresses of Santiago Harbor and
at Manila. Some of these great copper smooth-bore
cannon, most elaborately ornamented, had lain on the
parapets of Morro Castle for 300 years, and while they look
very fierce, they were almost as harmless at Morro as they
are here with their enormous mouths open towards Penn-
sylvania Avenue.

The duties of the Secretary of War were defined by law
immediately after the adoption of the Constitution, Wash-
ington selecting his favorite general, Henry Knox, for the
post, which, it might be supposed, the new government,
established by virtue of the hardships and bravery of the
army in the field, would consider one of great importance.
But it is one of the anomalies in our history that the early
patriots failed to recognize the services of the army, which
"was treated with great injustice. Men and officers who had

292 OBJECTIONS TO A STANDING ARMY.

given their time and property for the independence and
welfare of the nation were turned out of service without
pay or recognition of any kind.

But there was a fictitious fear of a standing army,
largely born of the hatred of monarchical institutions. It
was a fear which in less than a generation nearly brought
the country to disaster. So far as the army was concerned
in the War of 1812, there is little to relate with pride.
Officers blundered, men misbehaved ; there were failures
everywhere leading to the destruction of the Capitol and
other public buildings of the new government, and there
was hardly a redeeming feature until Jackson with a com-
mand of volunteers defeated the English veterans at New
Orleans. After this war the dominant party still hated any-
thing like a standing army. When the War with Mexico
broke out it numbered but 10,000 men, and the battles
were mainly fought by volunteers who possessed splendid
fighting qualities because many of them were trained to
frontier life. Hostilities over, the army was again reduced
to 12,000, and just before the War of the Kebellion it
became so divided by sectional interests that it was hardly
a factor. By enlisting volunteers the Union force was re-
organized and increased to 186,000 in 1861 ; to 637,000 in
1862 ; to 910,000 in 1863 and finally to more than 1,000,000
in 1865. It required a year after this enlistment to fit these
men for the field. When the Civil War closed the regular
army was fixed at 25,000, where it remained until our war
with Spain, when it was increased to 65,000 temporarily,
and the fighting force was augmented by volunteers. In
February, 1901, Congress enacted a law providing for a
re-organization of the army on modern military lines, with a
maximum force of 100,000 men and a minimum of about
63,000.

The regular army of to-day can be put in motion
equipped ready for war service in less than six hours,

WHERE "RED-TAPE" IS A NECESSITY. 29b

through the administration of the Secretary of War and
his bureaus, each of which has an army officer at its head
with the rank of a brigadier-general. Their elegant offices
occupy the western portion of the State, War, and Navy
Building. These bureaus, which are often decried as being
notorious examples of official red-tape, have nevertheless
been the growth of necessity and of experience. The Adju-
tant-General's department is charged with the correspond-
ence of the army, the issue of orders, the records, and the
recruiting. In his office is filed the exact status of everv
enlisted man or officer, and the records are as complete for
the millions of men enlisted during the Civil War as for the
army of to-day. To keep such extensive records requires a
large force of clerks, and the work is now done in the
old Ford's Theater building, where the visitor has but to
give the name of any one who once fought for Uncle Sam,
and down comes a file which gives the complete story of his
service.

The Quartermaster-General's department is charged
with supplying the army with clothing, forage, transpor-
tation, and, in fact, everything except what is eaten by the
men or required in case of their illness. It must provide
quarters for the men, stables for the horses, and wagons or
carts or steamboats for transportation. Were this depart-
ment not thoroughly organized and efficient in the highest
degree, the whole army would speedily be demoralized.

The Subsistence department is in charge of the Commis-
sary-General, whose duties, while not so complicated as
those of the Quartermaster-General, are fully as important.
" An army moves on its belly," is a saying which the offi-
cers of the army have had impressed upon them by experi-
ence in many a campaign. The magnitude of the opera
tions which this department is sometimes called upon to per-
form is indicated by the fact that during the Civil War it
disbursed $362,000,000 for supplies. In our war with Spain

294 MEDICAL AND ORDNANCE DEPARTMENTS.

it was called upon to provide an immense amount of rations
upon short notice and in the height of the summer season in
a tropical climate.

The Medical department is in charge of the Surgeon-
General and must take care of the sick and wounded and
do what is possible to prevent unsanitary conditions in
camp. Their duties in the field are discharged through the
Hospital Corps, which consists of non-commissioned officers
or hospital stewards, and privates recruited from other
branches of the service, and from men who have served not
less than one year. At every post in the army there are at
least one hospital steward and three privates who are
instructed in their special duties both theoretically and
practically, and drilled in the use of litters and ambulances
with the same precision and attention to detail that marks
other military exercises.

The Engineer's office, at the head of which is the Chief
Engineer of the army, must plan and superintend the con-
struction of all fortifications and bridges, besides making
maps of the field of war. The Engineer Corps is thoroughly
instructed in sapping, mining, pontooning, and in all other
details of engineering for military purposes. In time of
peace they make surveys of our great western country, and
construct many public works.

The Ordnance department is in charge of the Chief of
Ordnance, and has charge of all matters relating to the
manufacture, purchase, and issue of arms and munitions
of war. The arsenals of construction and storage are
located at various convenient points in the country. The
Chief of Ordnance has a staff of officers at Washington
mainly employed on construction work, and has also an
Ordnance Board of three members that has charge of
experiments at the government proving-grounds at Sandy
Hook, New York, where guns of all kinds are tested. At
the proving-grounds the various inventions presented by

HOW RECRUITS ARE OBTAINED. 295

civilians from any part "of the country are tested. The
inventor, usually through his member of Congress, ap-
proaches the Secretary of War with his new or improved
contrivance, which may bo a gun, a balloon, a shell, a fuse,
or anything pertaining to arms or ammunition, and his
request is referred to the Ordnance department. Unless
the device is palpably absurd or utterly impractical, the
inventor may be given the opportunity of a test in presence
of members of the Ordnance Board.

The Signal Corps superintends the work of constructing
and using field telegraph lines in times of war. The signals
of the flag — or " wig-wag," as the soldiers call it, — between
different stations, are made by representing the dots and
dashes of the Morse telegraph alphabet ; but much of the
military signaling is made up of a cipher code which not
only abbreviates messages but conceals their meaning from
an observing enemy.

Uncle Sam depends upon voluntary recruits for his
soldiers. There is no compulsory service. The time of
service is only five years. In many of the principal cities of
the country will be found a United States recruiting office,
above the door of which may be seen a small American
flag. Usually standing in front of the office may be seen a
dapper, well-dressed man in a blue uniform with shining
brass buttons, stripes on his trousers, and chevrons on a
well-fitting blouse. This is the recruiting sergeant. He is
ready to give full information to intending recruits, and can
paint in glowing colors the glory of serving in Uncle Sam's
regular army. When a candidate is found he is critically
examined by an army surgeon, and if found physically
sound he is received as a recruit, dressed in the fatigue
uniform of a soldier, and despatched to a rendezvous where,
with others, he is taught his duty and drilled to a fair state
of soldierly perfection. In time he is assigned to a regi-
ment and despatched to his post. In time of war he may

296 WHERE LINCOLN S ASSASSINS WERE EXECUTE!'

be hurried to the field, where he has an opportunity to dis-
tinguish himself and an equally good chance of being killed.
In time of peace his life is by no means a hard one. He is
furnished with good clothing, good plain food, means of
amusement, fair pay, and a chance for promotion. He may
even be improved physically, and his views are sure to be
greatly broadened.

"When the city of Washington was laid out, the long
finger of land which separates the Potomac from its eastern
branch was known as Turkey Buzzard Point. It contained a
small settlement known as Carrolsville, and at the extremity
of the point was a slight fortification. Shortly after the
government moved to Washington this peninsula was re-
served for military purposes, and such it remains in spite of
many vicissitudes and incidents of historic interest. When
the British captured the city in 1814, their casualties were
mainly confined to this locality, for some of the soldiers
carelessly dropped a "port-fire" into an old dry well, in
which, as it happened, a great quantity of powder had been
hidden, and the result was a remarkably sudden and im-
promptu volcano which blew a large number of red-coats
into the air and the next world. The reservation was con-
tinued as an arsenal, and it is commonly called " The
Arsenal " to this day, though it is now only a military post.
In 1826 the northern portion was walled off as a district
penitentiary, and it was here that the conspirators con-
victed of the assassination of President Lincoln were
confined, here that four of them were executed and buried.

Efforts have been made by lecturers and writers to sur-
round with great mystery the exact spot where the bodies
of the assassins were interred, and some still claim that their
bones are moldering in secret places in the Arsenal grounds.
Although such stories have no foundation in fact, the fiction
is periodically revived. The body of John Wilkes Booth,
the assassin, and of some of his fellow conspirators were

WHERE THE ASSASSINS WERE BURIED. 29?

removed years ago and under the following circumstances.
Disagreements arose between the Republican Party and
President Andrew Johnson over the policy adopted by the
latter, and Congress, then Republican by a large majority,
preferred articles of impeachment against him and spent
much time in an unsuccessful effort to convict him. During
these long, eventful months President Johnson, no doubt in
a spirit of reckless resentment toward his political foes more
than of clemency toward the criminals, pardoned a great
many who had been convicted for various treasonable
offenses. His bitter feelings reached a climax during the
last few days of his administration wrhen he astonished the
world by pardoning Spangler and Arnold, two of the con-
spirators in the assassination, wmo were then confined on
the Dry Tortugas.

About the same time the family of John Wilkes Booth
obtained an order from President Johnson for the surrender
of the assassin's body to them. John T. Ford, owner of
Ford's Theater, where Lincoln was assassinated, who had
suffered much on account of his supposed complicity in the
assassination, but had succeeded in vindicating himself
without breaking his friendship with the Booths, aided
materially in bringing about the interview between the
assassin's brother, Edwin Booth, the distinguished tragedian,
and President Johnson, which resulted in the President
issuing the following order :

War Department,
Washington, Feb. 15, 1869, 3 p. m.

To Brigadier- General Ramsey, Commanding at Arsenal:

The President directs that you give over the body of John Wilke9
Booth to the bearer, Mr. John H. Weaver, sexton of Christ's Church,
Baltimore, to be by him taken in charge for proper reinterment.
Please report the execution of this order.

(Signed.) E. D. TOWNSEND,

Assistant Adjutant-General.

298 REMOVAL OF ASSASSIN BOOTH S REMAINS.

Edwin Booth was then playing an engagement in Balti-
more. He had never visited Washington, nor could he be
induced to play at any of the theaters at the Capital after
his brother's mad act. On an appointed day he came
quietly to Washington to carry out his natural desire to
recover his brother's body, and privately inter it beside his
kindred in the burial lot of the family in Greenmount
Cemetery, Baltimore. He waited, unrecognized, in the
front room of the undertaking establishment of Harvey
& Marr, then on F Street, while Mr. John H. Weaver,
a Baltimore undertaker who had performed professional
services for the Booth family many times previously, and
Mr. R. F. Harvey, of the firm of Harvey & Marr, went
to the Arsenal with President Johnson's order for the body.
Several friends also went to the Arsenal, but by another
route in order not to attract attention. The officer in
charge obeyed the President's order promptly, and ordered
a detail of soldiers to assist in exhuming and transferring
the body to the wagon provided by Mr. Harvey, to whose
establishment it was taken through an alley in the rear.
Though the box containing the body had been four years in
the ground, it was not much decayed, and the lettering
upon it was easily read. It was opened and the body fully
identified. After Edwin Booth was thoroughly satisfied
that he had possession of his brother's body, it was placed
in a plain coffin, still wrapped in a blanket. The body was
quietly taken to Baltimore, Edwin returning on the same
train. So carefully was the transfer made, and so discreet
was every one entrusted with the matter, that even the
alert newspaper reporters failed to get a hint of the removal
of the body until some time afterwards.*

*Note. — In volume 25 of the Greenmount Cemetery records, Balti-
more, may be found the original permit, numbered 16821 and dated
February 18, 1869, issued to J. H. Weaver, undertaker, to inter in lots
9 and 10, Dogwood, the body of J. W. Booth.

AN INFAMOUS BRUTE IN HUMAN FORM. 299

Some time after this President Johnson issued an order
to surrender the remains of Henry Wirz, the brutal and in-
famous keeper of Andersonville prison, to his friend Louis
Schade. They were exh.uned from the ground floor of
Warehouse No. 2, of the Arsenal, and interred at Mount
Olivet cemetery, in the District of Columbia, the 3d of
March, 1869.

Public feeling at that time was so strong against every
one connected with the assassination of the beloved Lincoln,
that Mr. Johnson was execrated for these acts, and had they
been known at the time there might have been violent
opposition to the execution of his order to deliver Booth's
body to his family. Time has, however, softened the bitter-
ness and cooled the passions of the people, and to-day there
would probably be no opposition to surrendering the lifeless
body of even so great a criminal as John Wilkes Booth
to those dear to him by ties of nature, after he had paid the
penalty of his crime with his own life.

The site of the old Arsenal and the penitentiary is
to-day one of the prettiest army posts in the country. The
green parade grounds slope down to the Potomac, the
banks being fringed with an avenue of stately trees, while
on the extreme point is the officers' quadrangle and near
by the barracks, in which an artillery regiment is stationed.
Here one can see any day, at the proper time, a battery
drilling: with the vim and terrific dash that characterizes
Uncle Sam's soldiers, a ceremonious guard mount, or a
showy dress parade.

CHAPTER XVII.

IN THE NAVY DEPARTMENT— CARING FOR " JACK" AFLOAT

AND ASHORE — THE UNITED STATES NAVAL

OBSERVATORY — RELICS WITH

STRANGE HISTORIES.

Heroic Deeds Recalled — Duties of the Secretary of the Navy — Disap-
pearance of Wooden Warships — Training Jack for His New Duties

— Providing for His Comfort Afloat — Old Time Man-of -Wars-Men —
A Happy Lot of Boys — How the "Man Behind the Gun " Is Edu-
cated in Naval Warfare — Collecting Information for Sailors — Bottle
Papers and Their use — A Valuable Equatorial Telescope — The Won-
derful Clock by Which All Other Timepieces Are Set —The United
States Navy Yard — The Naval Museum — Objects of Great Historic
Interest — " Long Tom " and Its Story — Relics with Strange Histories

— The Marine Corps — A Body of Gallant Fighters — Instances of
Their Bravery — The Marine Barracks and the Marine Band.

,0 pages of our history are so thrilling as those
which relate the exploits of our sailor boys.
Many a name stands out in a glowing halo of
heroism, from Paul Jones to George Dewey, and
"Jack" has figured in numberless thrilling deeds,
the mere mention of which sets the blood tingling
through the veins. "We may neglect the landmarks of brave,
patriotic action, but the old timbers of some of our fighting
ships of other days are carefully and tenderly preserved.
Sentiment, a deep, living, patriotic sentiment clusters about
the old hulks that have passed through historic ordeals of
shot and shell and are still afloat. What a train of heroic
deeds is recalled by the old Constitution, built in 1797, and
now resting quietly in its honorable old age. How man}^

(300)

RECALLING A MEMORABLE NAVAL BATTLE. 301

tongues now silent have sung that once popular song closing
with the somewhat convivial verse : —

"Come, fill your glasses full, and we'll drink 'To Captain Hull ['
And so merrily we'll push about the brandy O 1
John Bull may toast his fill ! let the world say what it will,
But the Yankee boy for fighting is the dandy O ! "

Who that has read the story will ever forget the picture
of Farragut, lashed to the rigging of the Hartford as she
led the gallant ships that wrought destruction in Mobile
Bay?

" Gun bellows forth to gun, and pain

Rings out her wild delirious scream t
Redoubling thunders shake the main ;

Loud crashing falls the shot-rent beam.
The timbers with the broadsides strain ;

The slippery decks send up a steam
From hot and living blood, and high

And shrill is heard the death-pang cry."

But however sentimental we may become over the navy,
the administration of the Navy department is seldom more
than a dry, matter-of-fact business proceeding. Neither the
Secretary of the Navy nor his alter ego, the Assistant Secre-
tary, is ever a naval man. They are men experienced in
general affairs, while the technical part of the management
is in the hands of the chiefs of the different bureaus. The
heads of these bureaus are naval men appointed by the
President from certain grades and having the rank of Com-
modore while acting. They together form a sort of board
or naval cabinet of experts, and when their opinions, either
on technical or practical matters differ, the Secretary, a lay-
man, decides. The relation of these heads to the Secretarv
is more democratic than the relation of the heads of bureaus
in the War Department to its executive head.

By law, " the Secretary of the Navy shall execute such
orders as he shall receive from the President relative to the
procurement of n;iv;il stores and materials, and the construe-

302 DISAPPEARANCE OF WOODEN HULLS.

tion, armament, equipment and employment of vessels of
war, as well as all other matters connected with the naval
establishment." In practice, orders emanate from the differ-
ent bureaus and are approved by the Secretary, and, if
necessary, by the President. The business of the depart-
ment is distributed among the bureaus in such manner as
the Secretary may deem expedient and, while working as a
whole, the natural province of one often encroaches more or
less on that of another.

The Bureau of Yards and Docks constructs all the docks,
and yet does not dock ships ; that is for the Construction
Bureau. The Bureau of Navigation publishes all the orders
of the Secretary, has the care of the Naval Academy and
technical schools, controls the receiving ships, establishes
codes and signals, issues orders for vessels afloat and receives
all reports. The Bureau of Equipment and Recruiting pro-
vides for the equipment of ships except in ordnance. It de-
votes its time largely to procuring rope and rigging, galley
and cooking utensils, coal and anchors. Although called a
recruiting bureau it does not recruit, for the furnishing of
crews is assigned to the Bureau of Navigation. The ar-
rangement is changed from time to time by order of differ-
ent secretaries, and the chiefs are therefore less liable to
drop into ruts than are army officials.

The old wooden hulks have nearly all disappeared, and
with the change in ships, has come a change in the life and
training of the sailor so great that one of the Jackies of our
Civil War would be dumbfounded now at the manifold
duties required. Everything has come down to a scientific
and mechanical basis. Jack must now thoroughly under-
stand the mechanism of revolving cannon and the delicate
sight and breech apparatus of heavy guns with their
hydraulic mountings. Many of the men must be specially
trained for the peculiar kind of work falling to their share
in the general arrangement of modern scientific appliances

WHAT A MODERN WAR SHIP REQUIRES. 803

necessary to insure the efficiency of the ship us an instru-
ment of warfare, and to provide for the comfort and welfare
of the large detachments serving upon her.

Our large battleships each require crews of over 500 men,
and they must include expert electricians to keep in order
the various electrical contrivances ; many machinists for the
complicated engines and heating apparatus, and even apothe-
caries, painters, carpenters, etc. Jack, moreover, must be
well fed and clothed, and to the paymaster and his assistants
falls the duty of caring for and issuing the various supplies.
Clothing1 and so-called "small stores" are issued to him
monthly under the requisitions of the officers of the differ-
ent divisions into which the ship's company is divided. He
must have underwear, shoes, mattresses, rain-clothes, tobacco,
knives, razors and straps, soap, forks, spoons, plates, and a
great variety of articles of which the ship must carry a large
stock provided under the arrangements of the bureaus at
Washington.

But old Jack is troubled a good deal by this practical spirit
of modern times. It makes his quarters far more comfortable,
but he will tell you solemnly that he prefers the old wooden
ships. Jack likes to see the sails set and the masts bend un-
der them. He cares nothing for speed. What he wants is
a good ocean breeze whistling through the rigging. He
somewhat distrusts these armored ships also. He used to
know that if a sail or a yard were shot away it could be re-
stored under fire, and if a ball struck the hull it made a hole
that possibly could be mended. But he does not like to
think of a hole in the steel shell of the modern battleship.

But the old sailors are rapidly dropping away, and Uncle
Sam. has taken the precaution to provide for the enlistment
and training of new ones skilled in all that the working of
modern ships requires. For this purpose Avas established
the Naval Training Station at Coaster's Harbor Island near
Newport, Rhode Island, one of the old double-deck frigates

304 TRAINING NAVAL APPRENTICES.

being remodeled to accommodate about 500 apprentices.
There they sleep in hammocks, keep the ship clean, and
gradually become accustomed to nautical life. Any boy
between the ages of fourteen and eighteen can enlist, pro-
vided his parents are willing ; but he must be of good repu-
tation, in perfect physical condition, and able to read and
write. He must agree to serve in the United States navy
until he is twenty -one years of age, and until that time is
given his board, clothing, and a good education. His pay
depends entirely upon his own exertions, ranging from nine
dollars a month to forty. On reaching the age of twenty-
one, the young sailor is free to leave the navy and pursue
any vocation he chooses, or he may re-enlist at once if so
inclined. Of course it is the design of the government to
instruct these boys and stimulate their fondness for naval
life so that they will re-enlist and become efficient seamen
on crack modern war vessels.

There are three departments of instruction : seamanship,
gunnery, and English. The boys are always interested in
the lessons in gunnery and soon acquire a good knowledge
of magazines, projectiles, fuses, torpedoes, and so on. Most
of them show aptitude in learning a sailor's duties aboard
ship. They delight in being in the tops, and become as
nimble as squirrels in climbing the rigging. They take
naturally to boats and swimming ; and a boy who has once
slept in a hammock with a rollicking lot of boys in the ham-
mocks about him never again feels quite at home in a bed.
Some of these lads come from tenement-house districts in
cities, and from street gamins they generally develop into
reliable, energetic men. They are generally a happy lot of
boys. They work hard, study hard, eat heartily, and sleep
soundly. They are not allowed to smoke cigarettes, and
profanity of every description is strictly forbidden, some-
thing which strikes old sailors as a very queer proceeding.
Above all, the necessity of prompt and implicit obedience

"THE MAN BEHIND THE GUN." 305

to orders is impressed upon them. The punishment for dis-
obedience is the severest that can be inflicted, for it is noth-
ing less than dismissal from the service. When one is thus
dismissed the entire battalion of apprentices is drawn up in
line and the order for dismissal is read amid impressive
silence, while the culprit, hanging his head in shame, is
marched down the whole length of the line to the music of
" The Rogue's March."

When one year on the training school is completed the
apprentice is transferred to a regular man-of-war, where his
education is continued until he becomes thoroughly ac-
quainted with a modern ship and its armament. After re-
enlistment at the age of twenty-one he is sent to the
Washington Navy Yard, where he receives six months'
training in gunnery, and he then graduates into the service
as a seaman-gunner with better pay. It is thus that Uncle
Sam now gets his " man behind the guns." The men who
astonished the world with the precision of their shooting at
Manila and Santiago were not picked up in a recruiting-
office and expected to fire a complicated modern cannon at
once. They were taken as boys, educated for eight or ten
years, trained in every branch of naval warfare, inspired
with a love of the flag, and developed with the most pains-
taking care.

While Uncle Sam is producing the man behind the gun
at his apprentices' school, he is educating young men to be-
come first-class officers at the United States Naval Academy
at Annapolis, which had its origin, not in any specific ap-
propriation of Congress, but in Navy Department orders in
1845, whereby the midshipmen not at sea were assembled at
the old military post at Annapolis and instructed. In 1851
the school became firmly established with an appropriation,
and now the government spares no reasonable expense to
educate promising boys for good service in the navy, the

staff of instructors numbering over seventy. The law pro-
U

306 INSTRUCTION THAT NEVER CEASES.

vides for the appointment of one naval cadet from each
Congressional district as vacancies occur, and ten at large
by the President. The embryo officer must not only study
the theory of the construction of guns and of gunnery, but
he must practice at the target in a seaway until he is expert.
He must become expert also as a navigator. Throughout
his whole course he is under constant instruction in those
principles which fit him to command those over whom he is
placed. When a class is graduated the cadets are assigned
in the order of their standing to the existing vacancies in
the lowest grades of the line of the Navy and Marine Corps
and Corps of Engineers.

The government also maintains a Naval War College
and a torpedo station on islands in Newport Harbor, and
officers of any grade below that of commodore may be or-
dered there for instruction in naval tactics and war prob-
lems generally. Ample and thorough as are these provisions
for bringing up young men to handle its magnificent fight-
ing ships, their instruction never ceases so long as they are
in the service. Sometimes when one of the squadrons is
lying at anchor, the cadet whose duty it is to watch for
signals, suddenly sees a signal raised on the flag ship : " 137
— Get under way." One by one the ships of the squadron
form behind the flag ship, whose signals indicate a practice
drill. As they steam away towards the ocean they perform
all sorts of evolutions with a precision and an accuracy
which amaze a landsman, but the commander knows that
on the perfection of this drill depends much in a real battle.
His ships must learn how to act on his signals quickly and
accurately. Thus the Navy Department has become a great
educational institution. The men must be brought up in the
service and never cease to study and practice.

The Navy Department neglects nothing which in its
opinion will provide for the safety as well as the comfort
and efficiency of the naval force. Attached to one of the

CURIOUS FACTS, AND "BOTTLE PAPERS." 307

Bureaus is the Ilydrographic office. This has proved of
great advantage to mariners of all descriptions and all
nationalities. The Ilydrographic office takes up the work
where the Weather Bureau leaves off, and for the benefit of
the navigator collects regularly and systematically all infor-
mation as to conditions at sea and publishes them in its pilot
charts. To the division of Marine Meteorology in this office
come regular reports from more than 3,000 vessels of every
nation. There is not a flag afloat from 'whose representa-
tives records are not received. To all vessels, forms and
envelopes are furnished free of charge, and on them are
recorded, as they are at 12 o'clock each day, the direc-
tion and the force of the winds, the figures shown by
barometer and thermometer, the date and place of running
into and leaving fog; the locality of icebergs; every wreck,
every buoy adrift, and anything afloat that might injure
vessels.

A curious system of studying the ocean currents is also
instituted by supplying to masters of vessels what are called
"bottle papers." These are really invitations in six lan-
guages to the masters of vessels to occasionally fill put the
blanks, give the name of vessel, date, and location, and then
put the paper in a bottle and cast it overboard. There are
also blanks for the finder to fill, showing; clearlv when and
where the bottle was picked up. Day after day these vari-
ous reports come in and are given to a staff of workers
called nautical experts, corresponding with the forecasters
in the Weather Bureau. On the last day of every month
they issue a chart on which is shown all the information
received during the month. The prevailing winds to be
expected are indicated, the various sailing routes best
adapted to the coming month mapped out, and every float-
ing wreck or large iceberg is charted where it was last
observed. Every month about 4,000 of these charts are
printed and sent to branch offices and to individuals. It is

308 A WONDERFUL TRANSMITTING CLOCK.

one of Uncle Sam's enterprises which receives little public
notice, but it is highly appreciated by all sailors.

Men-of-war must be supplied with accurate chronome-
ters, compasses, and other instruments, and these are tested
at the Naval Observatory, which is under the direction of
the Bureau of Navigation. The Observatory stands on the
heights north of Georgetown, and is supplied with a valua-
ble twenty-six-inch equatorial telescope and with many
forms of special apparatus, and its work holds a high place
among institutions of its class. While its first official object
is the collection of information for the use of mariners, its
experts carry on purely scientific work the value of which
is widely recognized.

Mr. E. M. Sweet thus describes the transmitting
clock :

" The transmitting clock at the Naval Observatory is the absolute
monarch of American timekeepers. Every day in the year except Sun-
day, by one pendulum-stroke it speaks directly and instantaneously to
every city and considerable town between the peaks of the Rockies and
the pines of Maine, saying to them that on the seventy-fifth meridian it is
now high noon to the fraction of a second. A duplicate mechanism, sta-
tioned at the Branch Naval Observatory on Mare Island, performs a simi-
lar service for the people of the Pacific slope. And by this one clock at
the National Capital (together with its duplicate on the Pacific) is set nearly
every timepiece in the United States and Cuba, most of those in Mexico,
and many on the border of Canada.

" Five minutes before twelve a thirty-six-inch black globe over the
State, War, and Navy Building at Washington is raised by a small rope and
windlass to the top of the flagstaff. Here it remains until the Observatory
clock pendulum reaches the sixtieth stroke after 11:59 a. m., which stroke
closes an electric circuit and instantly drops the ball twenty-five feet to the
base of the pole. Time-balls are located also at the chief water ports, pri-
marily for the benefit of navigators.

" But there are other ways in which this vice-regent of Father Time
makes known his decrees to men. A number of clocks — from three to
three thousand — in nearly every city and large town are wired together
into a local family, and, by means of a switch-key at the telegraph office,
are put into direct contact with the parent clock at the National Capital.
So that the instant the electric touch is given from Washington every clock

HOW MODERN NAVAL GUNS ARK MADE. 309

in the circuit — whether it be at Boston, Minneapolis, or New Orleans —
begins a new day in perfect accord with its mechanical deity."

The Washington Navy Yard was established when the
government was moved to AVashington, and for more than
half a century the largest and best men-of-war owned by
the United States were constructed in its ship houses. With
the advent of armored vessels of greater dimensions, how-
ever, conditions were so changed that, though two spacious
ship houses remain, the work of this Navy Yard consists
almost entirely of the manufacture of guns and ammunition
and the storage of equipments. In the gun shop, which is
filled with the most powerful modern machinery, are fin-
ished the immense rifles as well as smaller rapid-fire
guns used on modern war ships. The great masses of iron
enter the shop in the rough, each consisting of a central
steel tube, a steel jacket and steel hoops. The jacket cylin-
der is bored, the tube is trimmed down to fit the jacket
when heated, and then the jacket is trimmed to fit the
hoops, the work requiring great nicety of calculation on the
part of the engineers. As the jacket cools it fits upon the
tube as compactly as if they were of one piece, and in the
same way the hoops become a part of the jacket. After
this process the guns, sometimes weighing sixty tons, are
carried by a great traveling crane to a lathe, which bores
out the barrel and chamber, and then to the rifling lathe, a
ponderous machine which noiselessly and irresistibly cuts
the grooves of the rifling inch by inch through the long
barrel.

The largest guns made here are those of 13-inch caliber,
about forty feet in length and weighing sixty-five tons.
They carry a projectile weighing 1,100 pounds a distance
of thirteen miles. The Navy Department has devoted its
best energies and skill to the production of these immense
rifles, unsurpassed by any guns in the world, and also to the

310 "LONG TOMS HISTORY.

perfection of projectiles which are manufactured in adjoin-
ing shops.

Entering the Naval Museum, which is shaded by a wil-
low grown from a slip taken from one of the trees over the
tomb of Napoleon at St. Helena, we find ourselves sur-
rounded with quaint forms of ordnance, and a multitude of
relics of historic interest. Among them is the stern post of
the original Kearsage still containing a shell received from
the Alabama. Near the office of the commandant of the
yard are mounted a large number of cannons captured at
various times by the navy, many of which have curious his-
tories. Here for example is a queer specimen known as
" Long Tom/' a 42-pounder cast in France in 1786 and cap-
tured from the French frigate Noche by the British in 1798,
and later sold to the United States. Placed on one of our
frigates it was struck by a shot and condemned, but was
sold to Haiti, then at war with France. Afterwards it
had various owners, and in 1814 formed the main reliance
of the privateer General Armstrong^ which, by pluckily
fighting three British war ships in the Azores, so crippled
them that they were unable to reach New Orleans in time
to help the land forces against Jackson. The privateer was
afterwards sunk to prevent her capture by the British, but
the Portuguese authorities at the Azores so admired the
little ship's action that they presented " Long Tom " to the
United States as a trophy. So after its many vicissitudes it
rests here among other trophies and relics with strange his-
tories.

Not far from the Navy Yard are the headquarters of
the United States Marine Corps, an organization older than
the navy. While the records of the army and navy are
well known to every student of our country's history, this
corps which has done so much for the honor of the nation
is, strangely enough, seldom mentioned. It has fought in
all our wars and made a distinguished record for valor

PROUD RECORD OF OUR GALLANT MARINES. 311

wherever engaged. In our operations in China much was
said of the valor of our army, but little notice was taken of
the gallant defense made in the foreign legations by a body
of Marines which reached Pekin early, and practically saved
them from destruction.

The Marines were the first troops to the front in the
Mexican War; the first in the Seminole War; they were
the only force available to put down the John Brown insur-
rection ; they stood their ground as did no one else at Bull
Kun ; they were in the thickest of the fights under Dahl-
gren, Dupont, and Porter from 18<H to 1864; Farragut
praised them in glowing language for the action at Mobile
Bay ; they were the first to land in Cuba, and made an
heroic defense at Guantanamo ; they were the first to go
into action at Taku in later troubles in China, and no troops
called forth such hearty praise from the foreign officials
there. Later the little guard of fifty marines bore almost
alone the stress and storm through the long days of the
siege of the legations ; and yet in our naval histories they
are hardly mentioned.

There are few places in "Washington so well worth a
visit as the Marine Barracks where these gallant sea soldiers
live when not on duty ; and as the corps excels in war, its
band of musicians, made up of members of the corps, excels
in music. Always stationed at Washington, the Marine
Band has become famous for its excellence whether in its
daily concerts at the Barracks, in front of the Capitol, at
the White House, or at the President's receptions and state
dinners.

CHAPTER XVIII.

A DAY IN THE POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT — THE STORY OF
A LETTER — SOME CURIOUS FACTS AND INTER-
ESTING EXPERIENCES — RURAL FREE
DELIVERY AND HOWlT WORKS.

The Greatest Business Organization in the World — Looking After 80,000
Post-Offices — The Travels of a Letter — The Making of a Postage
Stamp — Using 4,000,000,000 Stamps a Year — A Key That Will Un-
lock Hundreds of Thousands of Mail Bag Locks — Keeping Track of
Tens of Thousands of Mail Bags — Why They Never Accumulate —
Testing the Ability of Clerks — Remembering 6,000 Post-Offices —
" Star Routes " and What They Are — The Smallest Contract the Gov-
ernment Ever Made — Carrying the Mails for One Cent a Year — The
"Axeman" — Chopping off the Heads of Postmasters — Free Rural
Delivery — Opposition of Country Postmasters — Looking for a
" Choicy " Place — A Boon to Farmers — How Rural Routes are Es-
tablished — Rural Delivery Wagons.

HE Post-Office Department of the United States is
the greatest business organization in the world.
It employs more men, spends more money,
brings in more revenue, handles more pieces,
uses more agencies, reaches more houses, involves
more details, and touches more interests than any
other human organization, public or private, govern-
mental or corporate. Its agents embrace more than one-
half of the government's civil army of a half a million
souls. Every minute in the day fifteen thousand messages
are intrusted to its hands. It is the ready and faithful
servitor of every interest of society, large or small, near or
remote.

(813)

POSTAL FACILITIES IN FRANKLIN'S DAY. 313

Yet, at the beginning of the government, the Postmas-
ter-General was not regarded as a person of very great im-
portance. "Washington considered the office of too little
consequence to entitle its holder to a place in his Cabinet.
The books of Pickering, his Postmaster-General, showed an
aggregate in money transactions of about $250,000 a year,
while the department now spends considerably more than
that every day. No other one thing so adequately displays
the contrast between that and the present time. Nothing
else shows more clearly the development of a century.

In Colonial days postmasters received a percentage of
the receipts of their offices, and as they usually had the
privilege of the official frank, many went into the business
of publishing newspapers. Benjamin Franklin, when post-
master at Philadelphia, found the office of great advantage
in circulating his journal. In 1753 he became Postmaster-
General in association with "William Hunter and they were
together allowed £600 a year, if they could make so much ;
in 1754 they ran £900 into debt in a praiseworthy endeavor
to improve the service so " that answers might be obtained
to letters between Philadelphia and Boston in three weeks
which used to require six weeks." Franklin was removed
from his office by the British Ministry, but in 1775 the Con-
gress of the Confederation, having practically assumed the
sovereignty of the colonies, adopted a postal system and ap-
pointed him to the head of it with the title of Postmaster-
General, and a salary of $1,000 a year.

One of the treasures of the Post-Office Department is
the original ledger of Franklin, embracing all his accounts
as Postmaster-General, of all the post-offices of the United
States for the years of 1776-77-78. These are all recorded
in the handwriting of Franklin, and do not cover 120 pages.
The growth in the postal service may be partly measured by
the fact that when the philosopher was at the head of the
Post-Office Department, there were eighty post-offices in the

314 PAYING POSTAGE WITH FARM PRODUCE.

Confederation ; there are now over 75,000 post-offices in the
United States, and the number is rapidly increasing.

The department was organized under the constitution
and more firmly established in 1794, but none of the Presi-
dents till Jackson thought of inviting the Postmaster-Gen-
eral into the Cabinet. The rates of postage when the office
was organized was six cents for one letter sheet for thirty
miles ; eight cents for sixty miles, ten cents for a hundred
miles and so on up to twenty-five cents for distances over
450 miles. Neither stamps nor envelopes were used, the
paper being folded and sealed with wafers or wax, but if the
sender paid the postage the postmaster marked " Paid " on
the sheet ; if not, it was collected when the letter was deliv-
ered. In Utah as late as 1870, the editor has known of post-
age being paid with eggs, vegetables, and fruits, the post- .
master buying the produce to enable the sender to prepay
the postage. These rates soon yielded a surplus, but the
government, however much it needed the money, adopted
the generous policy of using all postal revenues for the im-
provement of the service and the reduction of the rates of
postage. This policy has been maintained from the begin-
ning. It is a system which must not simply be always in
the lead of the times, but it must be administered with such
efficiency that, while offering more and more accommoda-
tions, it shall be less and less of a tax.

The new city Post-Office building now used by the Post-
Office Department on the south side of Pennsylvania avenue
was completed and occupied in 1899. The site cost $650,000
and the building itself $3,325,000. The interior of the first
floor is very handsomely finished in various marbles and
massive oak and mahogany woodwork. The nine upper
floors are occupied by the general business of the depart-
ment. It is here that the greatest business in the world is
carried on, and provision has been made for its continued
expansion; for in a quarter of a century, or since 1875, .the

KEEPING THE MAIL TRAINS MOVING. 315

number of post-offices in the country has increased three-
fold, the gross revenue and expenses four-fold, and the num-
ber of stamps issued seven-fold.

Obviously a business of such stupendous magnitude re-
quires for its smooth and effective operation a perfect organ-
ization. It is a business that must be transacted with a rush
and yet with the utmost accuracy. The mail bags must not
only be kept open to the latest possible minute but they
must be delivered at their destinations within the shortest
possible time. Interference with the mails is disastrous.
The force is just sufficient to handle it all in its uninter-
rupted course and if, through interference at any locality,
an accumulation of mail is suddenly thrown upon the de-
partment, it disarranges the whole service. For this reason
the laws against the interruption of the mails are very
severe, and the government is occasionally justified, in case
of a railroad strike, in using its armed force to keep the mail
trains moving.

The business is divided into four great bureaus, each pre-
sided over by an Assistant Postmaster-General. The First
Assistant Postmaster-General has the practical administra-
tion of the post-offices and a supervision of an annual ex-
penditure amounting to about $50,000,000. The Second
Assistant provides for the transportation of the mails at an
annual cost of about $40,000,000. The Third Assistant is
the financial overseer, and the Fourth has charge of the ap-
pointment of the fourth-class postmasters, now numbering
over 73,000. The Postmaster-General himself has the direc-
tion of the whole department, appoints all officers and em-
ployees of the department except the four assistants who are
appointed by the President; he appoints all postmasters
whose compensation does not exceed $1,000 a year. To
each of the four great divisions are assigned various subdi-
visions, the assignment resting with the Postmaster-General.
2,000 persons are employed in the new Post-Office building.

316 EFFICIENT WORK OF WOMEN.

As in the other departments, many women are employed,
all doing their work promptly, efficiently, and faithfully.
Civil Service examinations have not prevented them from
obtaining and holding their clerkships, for when such exami-
nations are held the percentage of women candidates for
positions or promotions always exceeds that of the men.
Miss Sara Carr Upton, one of the most accomplished women
in Washington, was for seventeen years a clerk and trans-
lator in the Foreign Mails Division, resigning only because
of impaired eyesight. Mrs. Wilcox, born in the White
House while her father, Major Donelson, was Secretary to
President Jackson, was a translator in the Foreign Mails
Division for more than a quarter of a century. The widow
of General Pickett has held a position in the Post-Office De-
partment most of the time since the battle of Gettysburg,
where her husband lost his life. Miss H. H. Webber, a New
Englander, was for a long time at the head of the Return-
ing Division in the Dead-Letter Office. These employees,
through their intelligence, faithfulness, and expertness, won
their promotion to the highest-salaried, most responsible
positions obtainable by women clerks in the department.

Even a brief explanation of all the details of such a busi-
ness machine would require a volume. It is sufficient to
say that it is all involved in the successful handling of every
letter you drop into the box. Every letter on its travels is
guided by the operations of the various divisions of this
complex office. Before the postman rings your bell and
delivers in a stamped envelope a message from miles away,
Uncle Sam's men in gray uniforms have walked many
miles, horses have galloped, locomotives have puffed, cars
have rolled and mail bags have been locked and unlocked
and tossed about, all at a cost of two cents to the sender of
the message and all through the management of affairs at
Washington. Americans are so accustomed to having
everything placed in their hands that they accept such

ENGRAVING AND PRINTING THE STAMPS. 31?

benefactions with complacency and never think of these
wonderful achievements of the government. Of the many
hands touching our letters, of the many watchful eyes that
care for them, we know next to nothing.

First of all, the letter must be stamped, yet it is a
notable fact that no stamps were used till 1847, and until
very lately they were printed by private parties. Now
Uncle Sam prints them all at the Bureau of Engraving and
Printing, which we have already visited, but we shall need
to return for a moment to note some of the processes pecu-
liar to manufacturing over 4,000,000,000 of stamps a year.
The work of engraving differs little from that of engraving
the plates from which paper dollars are printed, but the
printing is now largely done by steam, instead of by hand-
presses. These turn out sheets of 400 stamps each at a rate
of 100,000 an hour ; to supply 4,000,000,000 of stamps a
year the government must print about 15,000,000 every
working day.

After being printed, the sheets must be dried and pressed
out, gummed, dried and pressed again, perforated and cut
apart, trimmed, and carefully counted. In the early days of
postage stamps and for several years after they came into
use, two serious difficulties presented themselves, the gum-
ming and the separating. For a time a thick mucilage
was used, making the sheets curly and inconvenient, and it
was necessary to cut the stamps apart with a pair of scissors.
Imagine a postmaster of to-day supplying his customers by
the scissors method! Fortunately a clever Frenchman
invented the plan of punching a series of small holes be-
tween the stamps, and his invention was quickly introduced
into this country. The process of gumming is now entirely
mechanical. Extending sixty feet through a long room are
a series of wooden boxes heated by steam, and through the
boxes pass endless chains. The sheets are fed face down-
ward into these boxes and pass under a roller which allows

318 GUMMING AND PERFORATING POSTAGE STAMPS.

just enough gum to escape to coat the sheet thinly and
evenly. It is then caught on an endless chain by two auto-
matic clamps and carried into a long, heated box, and in
a short time it appears at the other end perfectly dried and
ready to be perforated. The gum, which is made of a
dextrine product, is mixed in vats close by.

The perforating is swiftly done by odd little machines in
another room. Each machine is tended by two women,
wearing fantastic caps of paper to shade their eyes from the
strong light, as the sheets must be fed into the machines
with absolute accuracy in order that the perforations shall
come in the right place. Each sheet has registered lines
printed in the margin, and they must be adjusted exactly
under a black thread which passes over the feeding table.
A quick whir of the wheels puts a neat line of pin holes
lengthwise between the stamps and cuts the sheet in half at
the same time. The next machine perforates the sheet
crosswise and again cuts it in two, so that each is now
divided into the "regulation" size of one hundred stamps
each. These are tied into packages ready for delivery to
the Post-Offlce Department, which pays the Bureau of En-
graving and Printing five cents a thousand for the stamps.

"With one of these 4,000,000,000 of stamps placed on
your sealed envelope, your letter is entitled to a safe journey
whatever its destination. With the marvelous enterprise
which has extended the advantages of the post-office in
every direction, you will not have far to go to start your
letter on its journey. The department furnishes to post-
masters all necessary canceling stamps and inks; it also
furnishes the twine with which to tie up the letters in
assorted bundles ; and the amount used may be judged from
the fact that, buying at wholesale prices, the government
pays about $100,000 a year for enough to go around.

In the large cities each post-office is provided with an
elaborate arrangement of boxes all labeled so that mail for

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TRAVELING POST-OFFICES. 321

any place for miles around finds its appropriate pigeon-hole,
and mail for each of the railway routes is similarly sorted.
The railway postal service is the artery of the whole sys-
tem, and though it has been in operation less than forty
years it now covers over 200,000 miles. When the mail of
the country became so great that the delay in sorting it
in city and town offices became an important item in the
economy of time, this system of traveling post-offices was
devised, and now Uncle Sam has about 4,000 such cars for
his exclusive use. Usually a run is planned to occupy a day,
and two sets of men are employed, one for the day service
and one for the night. At the end of such a run the car
is taken by a new set for another run of twenty-four hours.
The "New York and Chicago" section, for example, will
be divided into three runs. The twenty men who start out
from New York assort the mail all the way to Syracuse,
where a new set of twenty takes charge of it as far as
Cleveland ; there another set goes on with it to Chicago.

For convenience the service of the whole country is
divided into divisions, all under the charge of a General
Superintendent at AVashington, and each division has a
superintendent of its own. On runs of average importance
the whole car is devoted to the work. In one end is a space
for storing the sacks filled with mail, and near by are the
doors, one each side, through which the mails are received
and delivered. In the opposite end of the car are the letter
cases, where all letters are sorted as the train speeds on its
way. Each car is furnished with canceling stamps and ink,
in fact, is a traveling post-office. The mail between New
York and Chicago has become so great that a train of five
cars devoted exclusively to the service is run daily, the first
car being used for letters and the other four for news-
papers.

A helper in each car locks and unlocks all pouches and
takes on and puts off mail at all stations. This must be

3->2 CARING FOR MAIL LOCKS AND MAIL BAGS.

done without the stopping of the train. While passengers
cannot get on and off without having the train stopped, the
mail must, even if the train is running sixty miles an hour,
and for this purpose was devised the ingenious iron arm,
called a crane, which swings outward and, while the train is
at full speed, catches and brings in a pouch, sometimes
landing it in the car with a crash. The department receives
some $3,000 each year in loose coins shaken out of weak
envelopes in this way.

Every mail lock is the exact counterpart of every other
one of the many hundreds of thousands, and the key in any
post-office, whether it be the smallest cross-road settlement
or the great office of New York, will lock and unlock every
one of them. Every key is numbered, and a record of every
one is kept in the department and its whereabouts can be
told at any time. Once in five or six years all the locks are
changed as a measure of safety, and new ones of a different
pattern are sent out and the old ones called in.

How does it happen, }7ou may ask, that every post-office
has always a supply of bags? It would not happen unless
the government provided a system by which the distribu-
tion according to needs is always guaranteed, for the great
trend of mail matter is always from the east to the west,
and unless something were done thousands upon thousands
of bags would accumulate in western offices, while the east-
ern supply would be exhausted. So at all great commercial
and railway centers there are provided collecting offices to
which all surplus bags are constantly being sent, and from
which they are transported east. At each of these larger
centers also is a repairing factory, in which women with
specially-constructed sewing machines are constantly mend-
ing the rents, and skilled workmen are repairing the leather-
work or the locks. Washington is the great headquarters
for bags, and the proper official here must keep an accurate
account of the distribution all over the country.

WHAT A POSTAL CLERK MUST KNOW. 323

On any mail car the letters for large cities are quickly
disposed of; those for the different states and territories
are made up into packages to be sent on their respective
ways to be more fully sorted before reaching their
destination. The run of every postal clerk connects always
with the runs of others, and he must have in his mind the
location of every one of the hundreds of post-offices in all
this great area and know just which way to send a letter so
that it will reach its destination in the shortest possible
time. This would be no small task if it could be learned all
at once, but time tables, stage routes, and post-offices are
always changing, and he must keep up with all changes.
Every postal clerk must have clearly in his mind all the
way from 2,000 to 0,000 offices and routes. The superin-
tendent of the division in which a railway post-office is
situated must keep fully informed of all the offices, and he
instructs his men about them and sees that they properly
perform their duties. Twice a week generally he issues a
printed Imlletin of several pages giving information of
changes that have been made and fresh instructions for
work emanating from Washington, which much resembles
a Chinese puzzle.

Once in three or four months everv clerk is examined
by the superintendent or someone authorized by the depart-
ment, to learn how well he has mastered his duties in
keeping pace with ever-changing conditions. These exam-
inations are made by States, and the examiner has a case of
pigeon-holes labeled like the cars in that division. The
clerk is given a package of cards each having the name
of some one of the offices, and the examiner stands by
observing his work and noting how many errors are made.
A written report of every examination is made out, giving
the percentage of each clerk and the time he occupied
in the sorting, and this is forwarded to Washington, so that

the department knows always the relative efficiency of all

324 KEEPING AN EYE ON POSTAL CLERKS.

its clerks. A good clerk will throw into bags from fifteen
to twenty papers a minute, and a letter clerk will sort from
thirty to forty letters in the same time, the difference being
due to the fact that letters come in " face-up," while papers
are dumped promiscuously from a bag.

All letters going to any office or any division of the
railway service are tied in a bundle on the face of which
is plainly printed the destination of the package. Every
postal clerk using one of these slips is obliged to write
his name on it and the day it was used. "When some other
clerk opens the package, if he finds in it any letters put
there by mistake and thus delayed, he at once writes upon
the back of the slip a list of the errors and sends it to the
office of the superintendent of division, where an account
is kept for every man ; he is debited with all the errors
reported against him and credited with all that he reports
against any one else, and at the end of each month every
clerk as well as the department receives a summary of his
record.

If your letter is addressed to someone in a foreign land
it passes to a steamship post-office, for the working of the
railway post-office has proved so satisfactory that a few
years ago American mail clerks were placed on the import-
ant steamers running between New York and English and
German ports. Large staterooms are fitted up with racks
of pigeon-holes and bag holders. Here clerks selected from
the best material in the railway service work from eight to
ten hours a day during a voyage. On the German ships
the American " sea post-clerk " has charge on the eastward
voyage, and the German " Keichs-Post-Secretaer " when
coming this way. In spite of the fact that the Germans
have a more high-sounding name and are dressed in elabor-
ate uniforms with gold braid, and carry a small sword, the
American clerks are the most efficient. Under the careful
system of examination and inspection in our Post-Office

FAITHFUL GRAY-COATED LETTER CARRIERS. 325

Department the percentage of errors has steadily dimin-
ished, till now, taking the whole service for a single year,
there is not more than one error to every 11,000 pieces
handled.

Uncle Sam employs about 15,000 faithful gray-coated
letter carriers in cities, at an expense of about $15,000,000 a
year. Of course a large portion of mail goes into very
thinly-settled districts without means of rapid communica-
tion. For such transportation we have what are called
"Star Routes"; they are simply mail routes upon which
the mails are carried by riders, stages, wagons or other
similar means, and such service is let out by contract.
Under the statute these contracts were designated as
" celerity, certainty, and security " contracts, those con-
ditions being the essentials for successful bids. In writing
the record of such contracts they are abbreviated by repeti-
tions of the letter x, thus (x x x) or " stars," and so came to
be spoken of as the star bids and star routes. There are
now about 225,000 of these in operation, and one-quarter of
them are let every year for four years. They vary in
length from a fraction of a mile to several hundred miles,
the longest one being the route from Juneau, Alaska, over
the passes and down the Yukon to Tanana, a distance of
1,618 miles. There is another almost as long from the
mouth of the Yukon up to Tanana, and it is on these routes
that all the mail for the Klondike and other mining settle-
ments is carried.

Although some of these routes cost Uncle Sam a great
deal more than he receives from them in revenue, others do
not. and some of the bids are, for various reasons, so low as
to seem almost ridiculous. Perhaps the most remarkable
case came to the attention of the Postmaster-General in 1900
when checks were being mailed to these contractors. It was
discovered that the contractor who carries the mail between
Dodgeville, Wisconsin, and Mineral Point, a distance of

326 LIVELY COMPETITION FOR A ONE CENT ROUTE.

nine miles, had not received a check for the three previous
quarters and hence it became necessary to include the
amount for a whole year's work in his check. The amount
was exactly one cent — the contract price. Inasmuch as
our currency does not boast of quarter-cent pieces, the con-
tractor could not well collect his money oftener than once a
year. He has been offered as high as twenty dollars by
curiosity seekers for his check, but like ex-President Cleve-
land, who once received a check for one cent to make up a
deficiency in his salary due to an oversight, this contractor
keeps his check, though in another year if he fulfills his
contract, he will receive another.

Both Dodgeville and Mineral Point have railroads, but
there is none between the two towns, and as the trip by rail
is so expensive and round about, both mail and passengers
are driven across country. Whoever holds the contract for
carrying the mails feels that he is certain of all the passen-
ger and baggage traffic, and for this reason the transfer of
the mail is deemed a valuable privilege. When the Dodge-
ville star route came up for bids the liveliest kind of compe-
tition ensued, and the fight was even carried to Washington,
as the politicians wished to use the mail carrier as a factor
in getting votes. The competitors knew they would have
to drop to a low price, although the last contractor had been
receiving $40 a year. The three lowest bids were $1.50,
thirty-nine cents, and one cent, the latter being the present
contractor. He got it. But he makes about $600 a year
carrying passengers and baggage, and he is a factor in poli-
tics, so he believes he is well paid.

The post-offices of the country form a great altruistic
system. The stronger help the weaker. The great post-
office at New York is run at a profit to the government of
nearly $10,000,000 a year, while the great majority of the
post-offices do not begin to pay their expenses. In over
3,000 post-offices in the country the yearly receipts are less

WIRE-PULLINU POK PLACES. 32?

than ten dollars; in 10,000 it is between ten dollars and
thirty dollars; and in over 40,000 it is less than two hun-
dred dollars a year. In these small or fourth-class offices,
where the receipts are less than fifty dollars a quarter, the
postmaster takes the whole and the government gets noth-
ing; between this figure and up to one hundred dollars a
quarter, the postmaster takes sixty per cent. ; between this
and $200 he takes fifty per cent., and over the excess above
that figure, he takes forty per cent, till he receives $250.

But while in fully two-thirds of the offices the gross re-
ceipts are less than $200 a year, there is always the greatest
scramble for the places and the most determined political
wire-pulling over the appointments. This business, which
is in charge of the Fourth Assistant Postmaster-General,
who is sometimes called the " axeman," is parceled out to
some fifteen clerks, who receive each application, put it in a
jacket, and file it away. All communications of Congress-
men or local politicians are filed with it, and when the time
comes to appoint, the Postmaster-General has but to press
a button and all the papers relating to the smallest office in
the country can be laid before him, and he can see what sort
of a fight it is, for there is always more or less rivalry.

With the growth of the free rural delivery system many
of these small offices will disappear. Although rural de-
livery is as yet established in but a few places, the opposi-
tion of the little postmasters has been aroused. The follow-
ing are sample letters received recently at the Port-Office

Department :

Ohio 19

I am postmaster at this place, and they are going to have rural free
delivery come within one-eighth of a mile of this office and take away all
iis business. To take the office away takes part of my living away from
nit . I have a wife and two children. I have only been in the employ-
ment of the government a little over a year. I beg you for some kind of
nn appointment. I am not " choicy "— any place in the mail service of the
United States. Respectfully,

Postmaster.

328 f RURAL FREE DELIVERY.

.•• . 1 LTj. i . • • • ■ . l". • • • ■■■

There has been established a rural free delivery service at ,

a small town three miles distant, and they have extended the route within
one mile of my office on the south and west. By doing this they take
from me over fifty persons who formerly rented boxes at my office. There-
fore it is a discrimination against this office. Is there any remedy for the
above-mentioned encroachment ?

Respectfully,

Postmaster.

But free rural delivery wagons have come to stay, and
therefore the little crossroads post-office will have to go in
time. It is an interesting fact that two different Postmaster-
Generals declined to make the experiment of rural delivery,
on the ground that it would cost $20,000,000 to introduce it,
and yet it has been extensively instituted for less than half
a million, and routes are beginning to pay for themselves
soon after being put in operation. This is something which
the little fourth-class post-offices never did.

The present Post-Office authorities believe that rural de-
livery may in the end save a great amount of money, so that
the letter rate may be reduced to one cent. Requests for
the rural delivery are now multiplying like an endless chain,
for farmers have heard that where the system has been
established the value of land has risen from two to five dol-
lars an acre. The system is being established as rapidly as
inspectors can lay out and provide for the best routes. It
is a great accommodation to the farmer to be spared a drive
of from five to ten miles over country roads to get his mail,
and he writes more letters and takes more papers and maga-
zines when he finds that all he has to do is to go to a box
on his front yard fence and post or receive mail. One en-
thusiastic farmer in Missouri, in praising the Post-Office
authorities, said that in fifteen years he had driven 12,000
miles to and from the post-office to get the mail which now
came to his door.

"When an order is issued for the establishment of a rural

ITINERANT POST-OFFICES. 329

route the postmaster is advised of its character, and in-
formed that the carriers are under his control, and that
their pay will be $400 a year. The carriers in many places
have special wagons, fitted up with pigeon-holes. They sell
stamps, register letters and parcels ; in fact, do all the work
of the smaller offices. All the boxes along the route are of
galvanized iron, arranged with a signal, so that the carrier
knows if there is anything to collect and the householder if
anything has been delivered. Some of the routes are in
localities famous for blizzards in winter, and the carriers
need to prepare accordingly ; but they rarely fail to make
their trips over the roughest roads. On some of the experi-
mental routes girl carriers have been employed, and they
are reported to be as unflagging in their devotion to the
service as the men. So pronounced has been the success of
the routes already established that it will not be long before
Uncle Sam's itinerant post-offices will be familiar sights
upon the long country roads of every state in the Union.

CHAPTER XIX.

THE DEAD-LETTER OFFICE — ITS MARVELS AND MYSTERIES

— OPENING AND INSPECTING THE "DEAD" MAIL-

SOME CURIOUS AND TOUCHING REVELATIONS
— THE DEAD - LETTER MUSEUM.

What Is a Dead Letter ? — '« Stickers " and " Nixies " — 8,000,000 of Dead
Letters and Packages a Year — Opening the " Dead " Mail — Guarding
the Secrets of Careless Letter Writers — Returning $50,000 in Money
and $1,200,000 in Checks Every Year —What Becomes of the Valuables
Found in Letters — The Fate of Letters That Cannot Be Returned —
Deciphering Illegible Scrawls — Common Mistakes — Unusual Errors

— Some Odd Directions — " English As She Is Wrote " — Some Queer
Requests — 60,000 Missent Photographs Every Year — A Huge Book
of Photographs — Identifying the Faces of Loved Ones — Tear-
Blinded Mothers — The Dead-Letter Museum — Odd Things Found
in the Mails — Snakes and Horned Toads — The Lost Ring and Its
Singular Recovery — A Baby Elephant — Tokens of Love and Re-
membrance— Dead-Letter Auction Sales.

VERY year hundreds of thousands of misdirected
;lffj> letters, or letters having no address at all, or so
illegibly written as to be undecipherable except
by an expert, or letters that are unclaimed, pass
through the hands of postal clerks. Some of these
superscriptions are so bad that it is a wonder how
any of them ever reach their destination. Addresses
scrawled in this fashion are known to the postal fra-
ternity as " stickers " ; and if they are absolutely unread-
able even to intelligent and experienced post-office clerks
they are called " nixies." When expert clerks in the largest
post-offices in the United States are unable to decipher the

(830)

BRINGING ''DEAD" LETTERS TO LIFE. 331

address, they are sent to the Dead-Letter Office at Washing-
ton as a last resort. Thus in this and other ways every year
nearly 8,000,000 pieces of mail matter are received at this
Post-Offico morgue, though only a small portion of them
prove to be absolutely dead, for in the hands of the Dead-
Letter Office experts many apparently hopeless cases are
brought to life and delivered to their owners.

The headquarters of the Dead-Letter Office on the third
floor of the department building afford adequate facilities
for the ever-growing requirements of this interesting branch
of government work ; for while Uncle Sam's people gener-
ally write better than they once could, they seem to be as
careless as ever. It requires the services of some of the
brightest, keenest-witted officials of the Post-Office Depart-
ment to rectify their errors, and prevent, if possible, unfor-
tunate and even disastrous losses arising from haste and
inaccuracy in addressing a letter.

The mail matter which finds its way here is of different
kinds : — that which is properly addressed but has no post-
age ; that which has insufficient, wrong, or illegible direc-
tions ; that which has no direction whatever ; that which
was properly sent but never called for, and articles the
transmission of which in the mails is forbidden. Mail
matter falling within these classes arrives at the Dead-
Letter Office at the average rate of over 20,000 pieces a
day, and here every piece must pass at least three sets of
clerks, and anything containing articles of money value is
examined by at least three more.

As the dead mail is dumped out, one would suppose that
the bags contained farm produce or merchandise, rather
than heart-messages and treasures gone astray. The
pieces are carefully counted and a record made of the
letters and packages, the former being tied into bundles of
one hundred each. They then pass to a second force of
clerks Avhose duty it is to violate the sanctity of the seal ;

332 GUAEDING MISSENT MONEY.

but the officials and clerks of the Dead-Letter Office have a
proper regard for any legitimate secrets of the people. This
opening process is done by men armed with a keen knife,
with one stroke of which the envelope is cut lengthwise, and
at the next instant the contents are being examined. These
men are of tried honesty, for a large amount of money is
found in these letters every day. The most expert openers
average about 3,000 letters a day each, and the work is so
severe upon the steel knives, that though an inch wide when
new, in a few months' time the cutting of the envelopes
wears them away to the thinnest possible blade.

Should a letter be found containing money, even a single
cent, or a stamp — or a postal order, bank notes, drafts,
checks, or any legal tender, the opener notes the kind and
value of the " find " on the envelope and also in a record
book, which at the close of the day, with the letters, is given
to the chief of the division, who examines and verifies the
reports and accounts of the several clerks. The letters and
money then pass to the chief of the so-called Money Branch
who again verifies the record and gives a receipt.

Only the clerks employed in this branch have access to it,
and the large iron safes, vaults, and ledgers give its quarters
the air of a counting-room. Each clerk gives a receipt for
the amount entrusted to him, and it is his business, whenever
it is possible, to forward, or to return the letter with its con-
tents to the sender in care of the postmaster, who is respons-
ible for its safe delivery and who must return a receipt for
it to the department. Every possible protection is thus
thrown around it. Whenever the money cannot be for-
warded or returned to the sender, on account of the writer's
failure to give his name or his post-office address, it is held
in the Dead-Letter Office for one year in the anticipation
that it may be applied for. If not, the money is turned into
the United States Treasury, and may be reclaimed within
four years.

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CORRECTING THE ERRORS OF THE CARELESS. 335

The carelessness of a great many people in sending
money is almost incredible. Many letters are received con-
taining large amounts, without a scrap of writing to indicate
whence they came or whither they should go. Over 80,000
letters and parcels are received here every year bearing no
address whatever, and among them have been found letters
known to enclose drafts to the amount of $2,500 each. Yet
it is but a small portion of the money received for which the
office fails to find owners. It now returns to its owners
every year about $50,000 in money and about $1,200,000 in
checks, while the amount for which no owners can be found
does not usually amount to as much as $20,000 a year.
Thus, thanks to the painstaking care of Uncle Sam, careless
people lose very little in this way.

A fair sample of letters of this kind was that posted at
Boston not long ago and addressed simply : — " Dr. Wash-
burn, Roberts College." . Opened, it was found to contain a
check for $1,000. The experts at the Dead-Letter Office
who "make it a business to know" manv things which are
not commonly known, knew that Dr. Washburn was presi-
dent of Robert College in Constantinople, Turkey, and the
letter with enclosure was forwarded to him so that he re-
ceived it in sixteen days after it was posted. A son may
send to his aged mother ten dollars of his hard-earned sav-
ings and the letter never reaches her, because, perhaps, in
the long interval between communications she has moved
elsewhere, or for some reason cannot be found. He has
omitted in his letter to give his own post-office address, but
perhaps that may be obtained from the postmark on the en-
velope, and if so the letter is returned to him. Such are
only general cases. They present, however, a great variety.

Dead letters that contain neither money nor valuables
are given one last chance before they are consigned to the
wuste-basket. A force of clerks do their utmost to deliver
them, and they are each expected to work through about 300

;«6

THE PERPLEXING "NIXIE."

letters a day. Even letters that contain nothing valuable
are returned, if possible, to their writers. If they cannot be,
they are thrown into the waste-basket. This waste paper is
not burned, but sold — and affords the government a consid-
erable revenue. With all his extravagances, this is but one
of numerous ways by which Uncle Sam manages to turn an
economical penny out of the carelessness and misfortunes of
his numerous nephews and nieces.

-^^

FACSIMILE OP A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT ELIZABETH, N. J.

The oddest and most interesting class of dead letters are
those which are misdirected or are illegible — those which
the postal clerks call " nixies." They number over 2,000
daily, and the clerks whose business it is to unravel unintel-
ligible directions and undecipherable scrawls have by expe-
rience become so expert that a large majority of them are
forwarded. Many enigmas are at once apparent to them,
as when, for example, a letter may be addressed " 20 Des-

DECIPHERING THE UNDECIPHERABLE.

337

brosses Street, New Jersey," meaning, of course, " New
York." But the chief trouble comes from foreigners who
do not understand " English as she is wrote," and conse-
quently spell largely by sound. Thus an Italian writes
44 Avergrasson" for Havre-de-Grace; a Hungarian spells
New Jersey " Schaszerscie." "Senoch, Dickalp Co., 111."
was written for Somonauk, De Kalb Co., 111.

^^A^t^^C^-'

FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED TO IIKNRY MAJNACKI, JERSEY

CITY. N. J.

To the inexperienced person it would appear almost
impossible to decipher some of the letters which find their
way to the Dead-Letter Office from the larger cities Avhere
there is a growing foreign colony. But this class of letters
is the simplest that officials have to deal with, and in many
instances it is not even necessary to examine the contents of
the letter to ascertain its proper destination.

The above is a good specimen of a " nixie." apparently a

338 BLUNDERS OF THE ABSENT-MINDED.

hopeless tangle of meaningless lines, yet it was deciphered
and safely delivered.

A not unusual error arises from a certain vague associa-
tion of ideas, as when a letter addressed " Rat Trap, Miss.,"
should have read " Fox Trap, Miss."

On one occasion the Postmaster-General received a letter
from a woman living in the south of England, requesting,
him to find her brother who had left the old country thir-
teen years before — during which time his relatives had
received no news from him — and deliver a letter which she
enclosed addressed thus : — "Mr. Tames Gunn, Power- Loom
Shuttle Maker, Mass., America " H was turned over to the
experts in the Dead-Letter Office and Mr. Gunn was found
at No. 4 Barrington St., Lowell, Mass. It was a curious
sequel to this that a few months afterward another letter
came to the Dead-Letter Office addressed to "Mr. James
Gunn, No. 4 Barrington St., America."

These experts have a remarkable knowledge of the post-
offices of the country, and even the streets of many cities,
and a ready facility in interpreting certain scrawls while
having in mind the nativity of the person who made them,
as judged from the post-office mark. Sometimes the true
address can only be guessed, and in such cases the clerk
attaches to the letter a little printed slip bearing the follow-
ing request :

Post-Office Department, Dead-Letter Office,

Washington, D. C, 19 — .

Postmaster : — Upon the delivery of this letter please
obtain the envelope, if agreeable to the party addressed
and return it to the Dead-Letter Office. If the letter can-
not be delivered you will, at the expiration of seven days,
stamp the letter with your postmarking stamp, and return
it and this circular to the Dead-Letter Office, with your
next return of unmailable letters, duly numbered and en-
tered on the list, Form No. 1522.

"When an empty envelope thus returns, it is proof of the

TWO VERY UNPROMISING SPECIMENS.

339

FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT 5>7 FEItRY ST., N..WAUK,

N. J.

'••X.^S^Ss^

Qttfiv&t Jr/Z/M^y

» f

C&ozjjrX^^

'&&&* J^J^

FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED TO BOX 85, CARTERET, N. J.

340 KEEN WIT AND JUDGMENT OF THE EXPERTS.

correctness of the surmise. An envelope thus recalled was
addressed to "Mr. Brown, Oil Corn, Miss." There is no
such office in Mississippi or elsewhere, but the expert knew
that there was an Alcorn University, a negro institution,
located at Jackson, Mississippi. The corrected or sur-
mised address was written on the slip and the letter for-
warded. The return of the empty envelope later showed
that the surmise was correct.

FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT 22 CHARLOTTE ST.,

HARTFORD, CT.

In dealing with many of these dead letters the experts
are called upon to exercise the keenest judgment and fami1
iarity with- people and places in all parts of the country.
It is the policy of the Post-Office Department to preserve as
far as possible the sanctity of the mails, and therefore the
experts avoid putting the letters "under the knife" only
as a last resort. Their wits are sharpened to cut the knots

AN " INSUFFICIENT ADDRESS.

341

i >f the problem. For instance, a letter was recently sent to
the Dead-Letter Office addressed simply, in very poor hand-
writing : —

new york Chicago boston st. lowis.

This letter was received at the Dead-Letter Office
stamped across its face : " Insufficient Address." The

FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED AT 2:29 JACKSON ST., HOBO-
KEN, N. J.

experts in the Dead-Letter Office knew by experience that
there is a large business firm having branch offices in all
these cities, and that this firm is a large advertiser and
receives thousands of letters from the rural districts. With-
out opening the letter it was concluded that it was intended
for this firm and was accordingly sent to them at Chicago,
and it proved to be the letter's correct destination.

Another odd class of letters are those which have onlv

342 TRAVELS OF MISDIRECTED LETTERS.

initials to guide the clerk, as for instance, "UPS Ohio,"
which was correctly interpreted Upper Sandusky, Ohio ;
another, "ISNS" means the Iowa State Normal School.
Occasionally a letter is received before which the experts
acknowledge themselves vanquished as, for example, an
address like this : —

" For my son out "West. He drives red oxen and the
railroad goes bi thar."

" "All -lefteralsenTeviSeiDSry for the sole purpose of puzzling
or annoying experts of the Dead-Letter Office are classed as
freak letters and receive no attention.

Sometimes an attempted witticism like this is perpe-
trated :

" Sylvester Brown, a red-faced scrub,
To whom this letter wants to go,
Is chopping cord wood for his grub,
In Silver City, Idaho."

A letter mailed in Russia addressed " Marshall Sons &
Co., Limited, Gainsborough," reached the United States
and was forwarded to Gainesboro, Tenn., that being the
largest office in the United States by that name. Being
undeliverable at Gainesboro, Tenn., it was sent to the
Dead-Letter Office in bad order, and thence sent to the
Postmaster-General, London, England, for delivery at
Gainsborough, England, with a special communication, and
a receipt acknowledging its delivery was returned. This
letter contained a draft for $40,000.

A letter mailed in New York, N. Y., and addressed
to Charles Arnold, Austria, failed of delivery to the ad-
dressee and was returned as unclaimed from the country of
destination. It was opened and found to contain a Bank of
England note for £100 and a letter signed simply wTith the
initials " "W. S. J." The letter, with its inclosure, was sub-
sequently forwarded to the postmaster at New York, N.Y.,
and by him delivered to the sender.

REMARKABLE WORK OF AN EXPERT.

34:}

An instance of skill in the treatment of improperly-
addressed mail matter may be seen from the following
facsimile of the envelope of a letter sent to the Dead- Letter
Office as undeliverable. The address was supplied and the
letter subsequently delivered unopened to the addressee.

-tsif .

FACSIMILE OF A DEAD LETTER DELIVERED UNOPENED, TO THE
REV. F. H. FARRAR, CLEVELAND, N. Y.

All mail matter from foreign countries to the United
States which for any cause cannot be delivered is handled
in the Foreign Division of the office, which also receives
matter sent from the United States to foreign countries and
found undeliverable there. Records are kept of registered
letters, of parcels, of applications made for missing matter
of foreign origin, of everything of value delivered, and
finally of all mail matter returned from foreign countries.
To what is called the Minor Division are confined manu-
scripts, nhotographs, and miscellaneous papers of minor

344 SEEKING THE FACES OF THE LOVED AND LOST.

value. About 60,000 photographs are received by this
division every year and two-thirds of them are usually
restored to their owners.

During the Civil War, tens of thousands of photographs
were sent astray. The husband, the father, the brother,
the son, under whose name they came — alas ! when they
reached his regiment he slept perchance in some heaped-up
trench, in an unknown grave, or lay among the unburied
dead — far beyond the reach of loving mementos and
messages from the loved ones at home, so they were
returned to this receptacle of unclaimed postal communi-
cations. An immense book was kept which contained
thousands of photographs that had been sent by soldiers to
dear friends at home. The chances of war are sufficient to
account for their going astray and for their return to the
Dead-Letter Office. "With a tender hand, the government
gathered these pictures of its lost and unknown sons and
garnered them here, for the sake of the living. Friends
came from far and near to turn over the pages of this book,
in the hope of identifying the faces of loved ones who
perished in the war, and many a tear-blinded woman has
sought and found them here at last.

The opening of " dead" mail is not very agreeable work,
though nearly every package contains a surprise of some
kind. Everything imaginable is intrusted to Uncle Sam,
from the daintiest fancy work and most costly jewelry to
soiled undergarments and worn-out tooth-brushes. Every
year an auction of all articles for which owners cannot be
found, is held, and the sale nets a good round sum which is
turned into the Treasury.

A few of the oddest or choicest specimens are retained
for the Department Museum, in which may be found a most
remarkable collection of "everything under the sun." In
this accumulation of stranded treasures are patchwork
quilts, under and outer garments; hats, caps, bonnets;

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A MOTLEY AND MYSTERIOUS COLLECTION. 34?

shoes and stockings ; embroideries, baby-wardrobes, watches,
and jewels of every description. Books have come to the
Dead-Letter Office by the thousand, and room is provided
for only two or three very old and valuable specimens here :
a New Testament in Chinese, a life of Ignatius Loyola
printed in Venice in 1711, and others that date back to
the seventeenth century. Near by is the Lord's Prayer in
fifty-four languages, and a certificate of character, over
a hundred years old, written for an apprentice by his
master. "Why should they have appeared among the lost?
That is one of the mysteries of the Dead-Letter Office.
Many of these treasures were precious keepsakes from those
who fondly sent them — under very unintelligible super-
scriptions — to sweethearts whom they never reached.
Some are tokens from far-off lands bevond the seas, but
fated never to find the ones they sought.

Here are two miniatures painted on ivory, apparently of
father and son, which were found in a letter from Boston
without any address, and all efforts to find the owners were
unavailing. Here is a crucifix of gold and carnelian from
Atlanta which no one claimed. Here are rings set with
diamonds and sapphires, in close proximity to great snakes
which were received alive and are now preserved in jars of
alcohol. Other preserved specimens of the animal kingdom
consist of star fish, horned toads, and an alligator about
three feet long.

With singular incongruity, and yet with a tasteful dis-
play, are arranged wedding cake, packages of arsenic and
strychnine, bowie knives, and false teeth, some of which
have been worn and some of which have not ; an old Eng-
lish hatbox that looks as if it had circumnavigated the
globe; coffeepots, washboards, barbed wire, revolvers, salad
oil, brandy and perfumes, dolls, brownies, and idols ; dyna-
mite bombs and musical instruments ; human skulls and
firecrackers ; insect killers and consumption cures ; daggers

348 CURIOS OF THE DEAD-LETTER OFFICE.

and valentines; deeds, wills, pension papers; doorplates,
fans, and innumerable articles, illustrating the variety of
matter sent through the mails daily, but which never
reaches its destination.

Occasionally, after keeping such articles for a time, an
owner appears. A young lady once sent a ring to a friend
by mail — a peculiar moss agate which she highly valued.
It was never delivered, and its fate remained a mystery for
several years. Subsequently when visiting a distant state
she was greatly surprised one morning to find opposite her
at the breakfast table a stranger wearing her long-lost ring.
The ring was so unique that she had no doubt of its
identity. Upon inquiry she found that it had been pur-
chased at one of the " Dead-Letter Auction Sales " at
Washington.

Once among the curiosities was a cloth "baby elephant"
with one of his sides gorgeously embroidered with the Stars
and Stripes and the other flaunting the English colors, the
two linked by a golden chain. For years it remained
simply a museum feature, but it once was begged as an
attraction for a church fair. It so happened that a lady
from New Hampshire was visiting Washington at the time
and went to the fair. To the surprise of her friends she
recognized Jumbo as her own property. Ten years before
she had made him and sent him to England, as she sup-
posed, to her daughter who had married a man named Link
— hence the design of the English and American flags
linked together.

At Christmas time thousands and thousands of mis-
directed and unclaimed gifts find their way into the Dead-
Letter Office — so many little tokens of love or remem-
brance which fail to carry their message. Imaginative
minds may weave curious romances around almost any one
of these lost articles.

CHAPTER XX.

A DAY IN THE PATENT-OFFICE — A PALACE OF AMERICAN

INVENTIVE GENIUS AND SKILL -CRAZY INVENTORS-

FREAKS AND THEIR PATENTS.

The Department of the Interior and Its Functions — The Patent-Office —
Issuing One Hundred Patents a Day — Abraham Lincoln's Patent —
How To Secure a Patent — Patent Attorneys and How They Obtain Big
Fees — Hesitating To Accept a Million Dollars — What Is a Patent?—
A Minister Who Discovered "Perpetual Motion" —Preposterous Let-
ters and Odd Inventions — A Dead Baby Used as a "Model" — A
Patent for Fishing Worms out of the Human Stomach — A Patent for
Exterminating Lions and Tigers by the Use of Catmint — Killing Grass-
Hoppers with Artillery — Crazy Inventors — Freaks and Thfir Patents —
A Patent for a Cow-Tail Holder — Eccentric Letters — Amusing Speci-
mens of Correspondence — A Cat and Rat Scarer — Great Fortunes
from Little Inventions.

ARCH 3, 1849, Congress passed an act to estab-
lish the Home Department, and enacted that
said new executive branch of the Government
of the United States should be called the Depart-
ment of the Interior, that the head of said depart-
ment should be called Secretary of the Interior, and
that the Secretary should be placed upon the same plane
with other Cabinet officers.

The Department of the Interior covers a multitude of
governmental functions having nothing in common, except
that they fall within {'the interior" of a great and diversified
eountry. Its main duties are the supervision of the General
Land Office; of the Patent-Office; of the Pension Bureau;
of the Bureau of Indian Affairs ; of the Bureau of Education ;

(349)

350 A DEPARTMENT ALWAYS EXPANDING.

of the Bureau of Kailroads ; of the Census ; of the Geological
Survey ; of the Architect of the Capitol ; of the Yellowstone
National Park; and always of a variety of lesser and often
ephemeral affairs, like the Hot Springs Reservation of Arkan-
sas, the Nicaragua Canal, and almost any kind of a commission
which Congress may from time to time establish for getting
things off its hands. In fact the Department of the Interior is
supposed to be capable of absorbing anything which can not
be naturally absorbed elsewhere, and the Secretary of the
Interior is sometimes facetiously dubbed the Jack-of-all-
Trades of the Cabinet.

The office of the Secretary of the Interior is in the build-
ing which is popularly known as the Patent-Office. The
Bureau of Patents is the largest branch of the Department
of the Interior, and is so important that it is almost a sepa-
rate department, as, indeed, it ought to be; for this is the
bureau of the government which more than any other is
always expanding. It is intrusted with the duty of grant-
ing letters-patent, securing to the inventor or discoverer,
for the term of seventeen years, the exclusive use of the
article patented. A " patented " article is one for which
" letters-patent " have been issued by the government to
the inventor. They are called " letters " because they are
open messages, addressed to the public, and "patent"
because they are supposed to be known by all.

Patents are not, as some persons suppose, monopolies,
but are protections granted to individuals as rewards for,
and incentives to, discoveries and inventions of all kinds per-
taining to science and the useful arts.

The federal government was not many days old when
Jefferson made plans for a Patent-Office. Having inspired
the act of 1790 which established it, he made it a part of the
Department of State of which he was the head, taking so
much pride in its operation that he practically did the work
himself. After personally examining each application, it

"pot- and pearl-ashes, candles, and meal," 351

was his custom to call in Henry Knox of Massachusetts, the
Secretary of "War, and Edmund Randolph of Virginia, the
Attorney-General in "Washington's cabinet, who, with the
Secretary of State, were by law constituted a tribunal to
pass upon such applications. These three distinguished pa-
triots examined them critically, scrutinizing each portion of
the specification and claims carefully and rigorously; for
Jefferson's idea was that patents should not be granted for
devices or processes because they were new, simply, but
because they were useful.

The result of this ruling was that very few applications
passed the severe ordeal, and but three were granted the
first year — the first for " making pot- and pearl-ashes " ; the
second for "manufacturing candles"; and the third for
" manufacturing flour and meal." We may imagine with
what grave concern men who could write the Declaration of
Independence and play important parts in the establishment
of a government under that constitution which was in part
the work of their hands, scrutinized, as affairs of state, new
processes for making pot- and pearl-ashes, candles, and meal.
Certainly they did not foresee the possibilities of a system
under which, in a hundred years, about 500 patents would
be issued every week in the year.

The rigorous test to which Jefferson submitted applica-
tions aroused more and more opposition with each unsuc-
cessful inventor, and in 1793 the law was somewhat liberal-
ized in spite of his protests that it would tend to the creation
of monopolies. But the affairs of the office were managed
after his ideas for many years, very few patents being
granted. Some of these were genuine curiosities, judging
from such an entry as this in the report of the Patent-Office
for 1802: "Machine for Raising AVater (! ! ! a perpetual
motion ! ! I )" "Whether this parenthetical array of exclama-
tion points was inserted by the hand of Jefferson, or of Mad-
ison, then Secretary of State, the curious will never know.

352 AN EXCITED AND INDIGNANT DOCTOR.

In 1810 the office was removed from its little desk with
a few humble pigeon-holes at the State Department to a
building of its own, previously known as Blodgett's hotel,
and it was provided with a head called the " Keeper of the
Patents." This individual was no other than our old friend
Dr. Thornton, he who many years before had submitted an
original sketch of a plan for the Capitol which had "capti-
vated the eyes and judgment " of Jefferson. Jefferson now
placed him in charge of the work pertaining to patents. To
Thornton the patent business was a hobby, and his ideas
corresponded exactly with Jefferson's. His wife was one of
the ornaments of the society of the new Capital city. She
was a teacher in Philadelphia when he married her. After
her death it became known that her father was the famous
Dr. Dodd, executed in London for forging a Bank of Eng
land note — a fact mercifully concealed from her by her
mother, who had taken refuge in America under an assumed
name. When, in the war of 1812, the British, who had
entered "Washington, trained their cannon on the Patent-
Office, Thornton, it is said, threw himself before the guns
and shouted :

" Are you Englishmen, or Goths, or Yandals ? This is
the Patent-Office, a depository of the ingenuity and inven-
tions of the American nation, in which the whole civilized
world is interested. "Would you destroy it % Then let the
charge pass through my body ! "

A severe thunder storm opportunely helping Dr. Thornton
out, the building was spared ; so was the doctor, who was the
autocrat of the office till his death in 1827, soon after which
it was found that the accounts were in great confusion and
there was an unexplained absence of drawings and models.
The results of the Congressional investigation which fol-
lowed indicated that the doctor's chief fault was in carrying
the office too much in his head ; and, as it turned out, it
would have made little difference had everything been intel-

THE LOSS OF PRICELESS MODELS. 353

ligible and in order, for, though the British had spared it, a
fire completely wiped it out in 1830. Thus practically little
is known of the exact nature of most of these early patents
except the titles given them in the reports to Congress of
the Secretary of State, though some of the drawings and
models were restored through correspondence with inventors.
About seven thousand models were lost, and many of them
would be worth their weight in gold to-day as relics. One
of the losses was a volume of drawings, elegantly executed
by Robert Fulton's own hands, delineating the machinery he
employed, and containing three pictures of his steamboat
making its triumphant voyage on the Hudson.

This calamity fully awakened Congress to the necessity
of adequately and safely housing the Patent-Office ; and the
lawful fees for issuing patents having accumulated into a
considerable fund, Congress added an appropriation, and di-
rected that the whole amount should be invested in a new
building to be called the Patent-Office.

From that double fund arose one of the most august
buildings in Washington. Occupying an entire public
square, it may be approached from four opposite directions,
and on each side you lift your eyes to four majestic porticoes
towering before you. They are supported by double rows
of Doric columns, eighteen feet in circumference, and thirty
feet high. The entire building is of pure Doric architecture,
strong, simple, and yet magnificent. Its southern front is
modeled after that of the Parthenon at Athens.

It was supposed that this imposing edifice would be ade-
quate for all purposes for many years, but, a new and more
systematic patent law having been passed in 1830, the
growth of the business became so rapid that the models
were quickly crowding out everything else, and the Seventh
street wing was built and occupied in 1852. This was at
once followed by the erection of the corresponding Ninth
street wing, and the quadrangle was completed by the Q

354 WHERE RECORDS OP PATENTS ARE STORED.

street extension in 1867, the whole expense up to that time
being $3,000,000. Alterations since then have cost $2,000,000
more. How different the Patent-Office is from a modern
office building may be judged from the fact that, covering
nearly three acres, it is but three stories high ; with a thou-
sand people working under its roof, it has but a single ele-
vator for the accommodation of the employees and extensive
business of the whole department.

Not many years ago, when entering the building, the
visitor found himself in a magnificent hall. Here were
many models of famous inventions, and various objects of
great historic interest, including priceless relics of Washing-
ton, Jackson, and many others, which have since been re-
moved to the National Museum. The great halls have been
partitioned off into offices where the ever-growing army of
officials and clerks work, while in the wide corridors extend-
ing around the four sides of the building, where once,
secured in glass cases, were exquisite miniature models of
almost every description — pianos, sewing machines, plows,
bedsteads, engines, locomotives, guns, and cannons — can
now be seen but a poor remnant of this vast collection.
In their places are racks and pigeon-holes filled with copies
of patents and other papers. Everywhere there is the ap-
pearance of an overflow, a deluge of files. In some of the
main divisions extend long canons of towering file racks, all
stuffed with edge-worn papers. Patents, patents every-
where, and all on paper. Each division, having its own par-
ticular duties, has its own files of patents, while in the file
room, each in its properly-endorsed cover, is the history in a
nutshell of every one of the 650,000 and more patents which
have been granted, with the exception of some of the older
ones which were destroyed.

Among the treasures of the building is the greatest
technical library in the world — a library of nearly 100,000
volumes, many of them exceedingly rare and valuable.

WHEN AND HOW PATENTS ARE ISSUED. 355

The Patent-Office has never been an expense to the govern-
ment. It is the only self-supporting bureau, and annually
turns in a large sum to the treasury from its excess of
receipts over expenditures. Its revenues are derived largely
from patent fees, and sales of copies of patents or files. The
Official Gazette, a bulky pamphlet published weekly and
furnishing the claims of patents with a figure from the
drawings, is invaluable to inventors and all interested in
patents and in manufacture. Patents are issued every
Tuesday and, simultaneously with the announcement of the
patents granted, appears the Gazette and 150 copies of a
description of each patent, to be added to the archives and
to the stock for sale.

As the work of the department grew, the demand for
more room increased. The models were carried from time to
time cross the street and stored in the attic of the old Post-
Office Department building; and when, several years ago,
the issue of patents had grown to upwards of a hundred
a day, and it was apparent that it would be impossible to
find a place for the models within the city limits, the patent
law was changed and a model is now no longer an essential
of an application for a patent. Instead, it is required that
sufficient drawings shall be furnished to illustrate clearly
and adequately each feature in the article for which a
patent is claimed. Some intricate patents are accompanied
with from ten to twenty and even thirty pages of elaborate
drawings. Every original patent is photo-lithographed
and duplicate copies can be obtained for five cents each.
The vast and constantly-increasing number of printed
copies are k spt by classes and sub-classes, and the inventor
has but to give the number of a patent he wishes to
examine, and an illustrated description of it can be
furnished him at once. A force of clerks is constantly busy
filling such orders, which come from all over the world.

In 1877, the great building, popularly supposed to be

356 A MODEL MADE BY ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

fire proof, again suffered from a conflagration, and although
only the west wing was consumed, 87,000 models and
nearly 600,000 drawings were destroyed, for they were then
kept largely in that wing in four grand halls opening into
each other and affording a promenade of about one-fourth
of a mile. The only models saved were a few still kept
in the Hall of Models on the main floor, and those stored
across the street in the old Post-0 ffi.ce building. Many of
the historical relics and curiosities have been removed to
the National Museum.

Among the models there preserved, is one roughly
executed, representing the frame-work of the hull of a
"Western steamboat. Beneath the keel is a false bottom,
provided with bellows and air-bags. The ticket upon it
bears the memorandum, " Model of sinking and raising boats
by bellows below. A. Lincoln, May 30, 1849."

By means of this arrangement, Mr. Lincoln hoped to
solve the difficulty of passing boats over sand-bars in the
Western rivers. The success of his scheme would have
made him independently wealthy, but it failed, and, twelve
years later, he became President of the United States.
During the interval, the model lay forgotten in the Patent-
Office, but, after his inauguration, Mr. Lincoln got one
of the employees to find it for him.

The issue of patents now numbers nearly 500 a week,
and is continually on the increase. Clearly, American
ingenuity, far from being exhausted, is ever developing. In
theory or in law, anyone can take out a patent upon any-
thing new and useful ; in practice he may if it is simply
new, for the question of utility is seldom raised. Thousands
of patents prove to be of no practical use whatever, but it is
always difficult to judge of the possibilities in this direction ;
for while a patent may fall flat when issued, it may in the
course of events, suddenly become of great value.

While it is difficult to judge of what may eventually

FIRST STEPS IN SECURING A PATENT. 357

become useful, it is no easy matter to determine whether an
invention is actually a novelty. The inventor who either
stumbles upon or develops something which is new to him,
is inclined to think that he has made a discovery. He
wants a patent and he expects to become rich. If he has
had no previous experience, the chances are that he has no
knowledge of the devious path his application must pursue.
He can receive from the Patent-Office, for the asking, the
official book of instructions telling him how to prepare his
application, the size of his drawings, the particular card-
board to be used, the method of stating the nature of his
invention, the specifications and the claims, the latter con-
stituting the vital part of a patent ; but, if he is wise, he will
place his case in the hands of an attorney, and if wiser still
he will place it in the hands of a good one, for there are
attorneys and attorneys. Some will lead him on only to
get his fee ; others will tell him honestly whether his idea
is of any value, though if they tell him it is worthless, he
will probably go to another ready to tell him that it really
is a great thing.

In any case, the first step is a preliminary search
through the patents in that particular class or sub-class
in which a record of such patents ought to be found. Such
a search may lead into several classes, but in any event it is
superficial. It may be found that the device is partly new
and partly old, in which case the claims must be modified
to include only the new, or by the introduction of some
additional device to escape something already patented.

The drawings are made according to the modified claims
and the applications filed, the office giving it a service
number so that it may be taken up in regular course. It is
then turned over to the examiner in the proper division.
Having been delving in this particular line of invention for
years, not only keeping informed of patents in this country
but of those abroad, reading trade papers and scientific

358 STEALING INTO THE PATENT-OFFICE.

literature wherein ideas are suggested but never patented,
these examiners, and their assistants in the various sub-
classes, are supposed to find every evidence of prior inven-
tion or suggestion either as a whole or in its minutest parts.
It may be found, for example, that some little detail in the
proposed device has been patented on a machine in no way
akin to the one in hand. Some little thing in a washing
machine patent might spoil a new idea for a sewing
machine, or a loom, or a corn-sheller. "Whatever the exam-
iner finds in the way of priority, either clear or question-
able, is cited as reference against the application and turned
ove?1 to the board finally passing upon it. The inventor
may find to his sorrow that the idea on which he has based
his fond expectations has withered away to a thing of little
value.

Every inventor supposes that he has a fortune in every
conception that he puts into wood and iron. Stealing
tremblingly and furtively up the steps of the Patent-Office,
with his model concealed under his coat, lest some sharper
shall see it and rob him of his darling idea, he hopes
to come down those steps with the precious parchment that
shall insure him a present competency and enrich his
children. If in the first flush of his triumph he were offered a
million dollars, he would hesitate about touching it without
sleeping over the proposition for a night. No commission
could satisfy him, and no ordinary price would take the place
of the hope of unlimited wealth which has lightened his
toil.

Yet, with so many diffculties to be overcome, the govern-
ment is now granting nearly one hundred patents a day.
It should be said that it is not essential that every particu-
lar part in a device should be new ; a new combination of
old parts is a patentable novelty. Furthermore, nearly
all patents are improvements. A man can patent an
improvement on another's invention, as has been done over

DREAMS AND DELUSIONS OF INVENTORS. 359

and over again. " Interferences," where two inventors
have made applications for practically the same thing, are
always to be dealt with, and they are eventually decided by
the Commissioner on the evidence as to who actually had
the idea first. The inventor is also protected under what is
called the caveat system, whereby on a payment of a small
fee he may file a description of a proposed invention
and secure its protection for a period enabling him to
perfect it.

Patent laAV and practice are unsurpassed for perplexing
intricacy, and taking this into account, together with the
fact that he must evade nearly 700,000 patents in this coun-
try and as many more abroad, the inventor can never be
quite sure what the result of his application will be. The
work of }rears may result in nothing, while he sorrowfully
beholds a woman making a fortune out of a patent on a
paper bag, and a man becoming a millionaire out of a
patent granted for attaching a little ball to an elastic string.

In no other position in the world than that of Commis-
sioner of Patents, probably, could a man discover how many
crazy people there are outside of the lunatic asylum. The
born inventor is always a dreamer. For the sake of his dar-
ling thought, he is willing to sacrifice himself, his wife, and
children, everything but the "machine" growing in his
brain and quickening under his eager hand. How often
they fail ! How often the precious idea, developed into
form, is only a mistake — a failure !

Sometimes this is sad — quite as often it is funny. The
procession which started, far back in the ages, with its
machine of "Perpetual Motion," long ago reached the
doors of the American Patent-Office. The persons found
in that procession are sometimes astonishing. A well-
known doctor of divinity, not suspected of studying any
machinery but that of the moral law, appeared one day in

the office of the Commissioner.
20

360 DISAPPOINTED PATENT SEEKERS.

" I know I've got it ! " he said.

" What, sir ? "

" Perpetual motion, sir. Look ! " and he set down a
little machine. " If the floor were not in the way, if the
earth were not in the way, that weight would never stop,
and my machine would go on forever. I know this is origi-
nal with me — that it never dawned before upon any other
human mind."

So enthusiastic was the doctor, it was with difficulty he
could be restrained from depositing the Patent-Office fee
and leaving his experiment to be patented. The Commis-
sioner quietly sent to the library for a book — a history of
attempts to create perpetual motion. Opening at a certain
page, he pointed out to the astonished would-be inventor
where his own machine had been attempted, and failed,
more than a hundred years before. The reverend doctor
took the book home, read, digested, and meditated thereon
— to bring it back and lay it down before the Commis-
sioner in silence.

It would take a large volume to record all the prepos-
terous letters and inventions received at the Patent-Office.
A man once sent a letter describing a new process of em-
balming which he had originated. It was accompanied
by a dead baby — " the model " — which he requested
should be placed in one of the glass cases of the Exhibition-
Room. He considered himself deeply injured when his
request was refused. Among the most remarkable inven-
tions is a machine to force a hen to lay eggs, and a silver
worm-hook, which, it was claimed, when baited with a
seductive pill, would remove worms from the human
stomach.

The Commissioner once received the following commu-
nication from the Legation of the United States in Paris :

" Sik : — A very large number of inventions and discov-
eries are submitted to this Legation, with the request that

SOME ODD APPLICATIONS FOR PATENTS. 361

we shall transmit them to Washington. Most of them are,
as you may suppose, worthless. We have had, for instance,
serious plans proposed for the extermination of all the lions
and tigers in the United States by the use of catmint, the
modus operandi being to dig an immense pit, and fill it with
this herb. The well-known love of the feline race for cat-
mint will naturally induce the lions and tigers to jump into
the pit and roll themselves upon it ; Avhereupon concealed
hunters are to appear and slaughter the ferocious animals.

" Another plan is for the destruction of grasshoppers
upon the plains by the use of artillery ; it being perfectly
well known that concussion kills insects.

" A third is for the capture of a besieged city by the use
of a bomb which, upon exploding, shall emit so foul a smell
that the besieged will rush headlong from the walls, and
fall an easy prey to the besiegers."

The President of the United States receives many letters
of like character, which are by him transmitted to the
Bureau of Patents. The following are verbatim copies
(including orthography) of letters which represent thou-
sands more of equal intelligence received at this depart-
ment of the government.

" Sir it is with pleasure I take this opportunity Of writ-
ing to You I Am well at Present Hoping those few lines
will find you enjoying Good health And prosperity I am
doing all I can for you in this locality and I hope and
expect you will be our next President Of the United States
I would like to have an Office of Siveliseing the Indians
What Salary will you give me per Annum please Write to
me and let me no in fact I am in need of A little money at
present Will you please send me 600 or 1000 dolors to

Sumthing Aught to be done for the poor Indean

And I beleave that I can sivelise them. If you will give me
200 or 300 per month it will doo."

" Hon Friend — Solicitor of Patents I have invented a
secret form of writing expressly for the use of our gov in
time of warfare the publick demands it, It is different from
any other invention known to the publick in this or any
gov. It consists simply of the English alphabet and can be
changed to any form that the safety of our gov. demands it
no higherglyphicks are employed but it is practical and safe

362 A MAN OF MANY IDEAS.

I propose to sell it to our gov for the sum of one million
dollars I will meet any committee appointed to investigate
the matter. If you will give me your influence in Congress
and aid in bringing a sale of the invention about to our gov
or any other I will reward you with the sum of ten thou-
sand dollars ($10,000) It is no illusion or a whim of the
brain but is what I represent it to be scientific practicable
and safe, Wishing to hear from you on the subject I
remain "

Only recently a man in Michigan acknowledged receipt
of information sent by the bureau at his request, in the fol-
lowing letter : —

" Honoueable Sir : I am much gratified for the kind
information you sent me. But when i peruised it i found i
could not proceed on account of my Sircumstances. I am
here as an exile far from home and without money though i

own a farm of 220 eacres of land in Co. Michigan,

but had to fly like the lark from the field of wheat for fear
of my life by a frantic scolding wife. I Sought Peace and
found it thanks be to providence.

" I have a great many ideas of improvements in many a
buisnes especialy in fire Scapes from high buildings which
is grately kneeded, though i am no machanic i can instruct
many a man in his buisnes.

" But money makes the mare go which leaves my mare
to totter fall and die it is said and is true their is manny a
Socratus in the hands of a Plow and many a Uleses herding
Sheep."

Occasionally a freakish idea may have value; but the
absurd devices of crazy inventors who have filed applica-
tions for wonderful inventions are legion. A milkman
conceived the idea of a cow-tail holder, and there appears
in the archives of the Patent-Office, a patent with drawings
showing a clamp like a clothespin for fastening the ani-
mal's tail to its leg or to the milking-stool. But though
the inventor secured his patent he found that there were
dozens of patents for cow-tail holders, and that there was
no demand for cow-tail holders, anyway. Another man
who evidently had an uneasy bed-fellow, invented a clamp

EXTRAORDINARY AND USELESS INVENTIONS. 363

and spring attachment for fastening the bedclothes to
the bedstead. A "combination inkstand, pistol case, and
alarm " ; a fan attachment for rocking-chairs, the rocking
motion revolving the fan; an automatic egg-boiler, with
mechanism so adjusted as to raise the eggs out of the water
at the expiration of the proper time ; a wire device to be
attached to hens' legs to keep them from scratching ; and
thousands of other comical inventions are classified and
housed in this great granite building.

Some extraordinary cranks turn up at the Patent-Office.
They hail from all parts of the country. Their errand is
often proclaimed in their unkempt appearance, in their
secretive and confidential manner, and above all in their
great and mysterious inventions. The Patent-Office
becomes to them either their bosom confidant and inspi-
ration or their deadly enemy, according to the verdict on
their new ideas. Should they invent a new and useful
manner of shooing flies, or scaring cats and rats, it is
bound, in their opinion, to be of vital importance to the
universe and redound to the everlasting glory and fortune
of the inventor.

Some time ago, a man long past middle life, wearing a
Father Time beard and huge spectacles, a high, broad-
brimmed hut, and a long black clerical coat, entered the
office, and addressing himself to the first official he met
earnestly said : " Sir, I have made one of the most remark-
able discoveries that has ever been made : I have invented a
tobacco-quid protector, sir, by which tobacco may be kept
in the mouth without spitting, sir, and by which the quid
may be preserved for any length of time Avithout spoiling,
sir. Saves money, saves health, saves morals." Where-
upon he produced a box made of pine wood and shaped like
an oyster shell. He desired drawings to be made of it, and
the facts published, and was indignant and disgusted
because his request was not granted.

364 A CAT-SCARER AND "LEGAL DECISIONS."

A man from Green Bay, Wisconsin, one day tip-toed
in very quietly and confidentially, and laying his sun-
browned hat on top of one of the desks, clasped his hands
and said : " I am from Bay City, and I have made a most
valuable discovery." His " discovery " consisted of a clock
alarm arranged in a huge wooden frame. From a cross
beam at the top a rope dangled, to which a heavy iron
weight was attached and so arranged as to be easily de-
tached and fall into a tin pan placed below. The whole
device was designed to make a great noise for the purpose
of scaring cats away from pans of milk.

Another applicant, who was evidently addicted to grati-
fying his taste for strong drink surreptitiously, wanted a
patent for a novel liquor flask, and strange to say, his
device was actually patented. It consisted in making the
outer covering of the flask in the form of a book, marked
" Legal Decisions." The book was large enough to cover
the bottle, including the neck and stopper. The book had a
concealed hole beneath the bottom of the flask, so that the
flask could be pushed upward and the neck would project
through another concealed hole at the top.

It is estimated that about one invention in twenty -five
repays the cost of taking out a patent. Yet inventors as a
class are sanguine men, and no knowledge of the enormous
percentage of chances against them will deter them from
multiplying ingenious devices. Every one expects a fortune
from his particular piece of mechanism. Every one has
heard not only of the enormous sums realized from the
great inventions of the last half-century, but also of the
large returns yielded by things apparently trifling which
have struck the public fancy or met the public need.

The toy called the return-ball, a small ball attached to
an elastic string, is said to have produced a profit of $50,000
a year ; and the rubber tip on lead-pencils has yielded a
competence to the inventor. More than $1,000,000 has

GREAT FORTUNES FROM SMALL INVENTIONS. 365

been earned by the gimlet-pointed screw, the inventor
of which was so poor that he trudged on foot from Phila-
delphia to Washington to get his patent ; the roller-skate
has yielded $1,000,000 after the patentee spent $125,000 in
England fighting infringements ; the dancing Jim Crow
is set down for $75,000, and the copper tip for children's
shoes at $2,000,000; the spring window-shade roller pays
$100,000 a year, and the needle-threader $10,000 a year
From the drive-well $3,000,000 have been realized ; the
stylographic pen is credited with $100,000 a year; and
the egg-beater, and the rubber stamp, with large sums.
These are only a few examples among hundreds that migh.
be cited. No wonder inventors are hopeful when they
reflect that comfort for life and fortunes for their children
may come from a single fortunate idea.

CHAPTEE XXI.

THE PENSION BUREAU — CLAIMANTS AND THEIR PETITIONS
— SNARES AND PIT-FALLS FOR THE UNWARY.

A Vast Deluge of Pension Papers — Caring For a Million Pensioners —
Disbursing $132,000,000 a Year — The "Alarm Act " — Pension Laws
and Regulations — "Who Are Entitled to Pensions — Method of Pro-
cedure— How Claims Are Filed and Examined — Guarding the Rolls
Against Fraud — Medical Examinations — Disgruntled Applicants —
Suspicious Cases and "Irregular" Claims — "Widows" — Doctors
Who Disagree — An Indignant Captain — Living on " Corn-bread and
Sour Milk " — Why Decisions Are Delayed — Special Examinations —
Guarding Against Swindlers, Imposters, and Frauds — Claim Agents
and Their Ways — Forging Evidence and Affidavits — Pension Attor-
neys and Their Tricks — "Swapping" Papers — Mean and Petty
Swindlers — Whom To Avoid — Pawning Pension Certificates — The
Disabled Veteran's Best Friend — His Real Enemies — General Harri-
son's Views.

I EXT to the Patent-Office, the Pension Bureau is
the most important branch in the Department of
the Interior. The expansion of its business dur-
ing the past few years compelled the erection of
special building of large proportions to accommo-
date the deluge of pension papers and the army of
1,800 busy men and women through whose hands they must
pass. Most of its interior consists of an immense court broken
by two rows of columns, which sustain the central part of the
great roof of glass, while encircling galleries lead to the
numerous offices on every side. Inside, therefore, the build-
ing has the appearance of more space than contents. The
size of the court may be judged from the fact that fully

(366)

MORE THAN A MILLION PENSIONERS. 36?

20,000 people crowd into it upon the occasion of the inaug-
ural balls which are now held there, — a purpose not in the
mind of the designer of the structure, but a fortunate acci-
dent that made a permanent and unequaled place for func-
tions that have become attractive features of every inaug-
uration.

The building is not a work of art. "When General Sher-
idan was looking it over, and his guide proudly told him
that the structure was perfectly fire proof, he exclaimed :
" What a pity ! " Neither is it an expensive building as com-
pared with others devoted to government purposes, plenty
of room and suitable conveniences being the objects desired.
There is one distinctively artistic thing about it, however,
— the ornamental terra-cotta frieze over the first-story win-
dows, portraying a spirited procession of soldiers, infantry,
cavalry, and artillery ; and many a veteran feels his pulse
quicken as he beholds the details of the frieze, reviving
never-to-be-forgotten scenes in the great Civil War.

The Pension Roll of 1901 carries over a million pen-
sioners, involving an expenditure of over $132,000,000. A
month after the Declaration of Independence, the Congress
of the Confederation passed an act promising pensions to
those disabled in the war, cases being adjudged by the State
legislatures and pensions paid by the states, which were
afterwards reimbursed by the Federal government. In 1818
a law was passed pensioning indigent men who had served
in the Revolution, but the applications became so numerous
that Congress quickly passed the " alarm act, " requiring all
pensioners on the roll to furnish a schedule of the amount
of property then in their possession. Pensioners were
dropped who owned as small an amount as 150 dollars
worth of property.

During the development of the Pension Bureau so many
pension laws have been enacted that pension legislation has
become an extremely difficult thing to master. It may be

368 INTRACACIES OF PENSION LAWS.

divided into four general classes : — (1) That on account of
the old wars prior to 1861 ; (2) the so-called general laws
since 1861 ; (3) the act of June 27, 1890 ; (4) that on account
of the War with Spain. The last survivor of the Eevolution
died over thirty years ago, but in 1900 there still remained
on the pension roll four widows and seven daughters of Kev-
olutionary soldiers, the average age of the latter exceeding
that of the widows. Only one soldier of the War of 1812
was living in 1900, but the rolls still contained the names of
over 1,700 widows of pensioned soldiers of that war. The
survivors of the Mexican War in 1900 numbered 8,352 and
widows 8,151. As the pensioned soldiers, widows, daughters,
and minors on account of the Civil War number nearly a
million, it will be seen that the pension business on account
of previous wars is of relatively small importance.

Under the so-called general laws passed since 1861, any
soldier, sailor, or marine, disabled by reason of wound re-
ceived or disease contracted in the service of the United
States, and in the line of duty, may be pensioned for such
disability during its continuance, and in case of his death
from the above causes, his widow, or his child or children
under 16 years of age, become entitled to a pension ; while,
if he left no widow or minor, his dependent father, mother,
or orphan sisters and brothers become entitled in the order
named. This is but a general statement of the effect of a
series of laws which have had many provisos and intricacies
added from time to time.

Under this act the number of survivors entitled to pen-
sions became well exhausted in 1890, and Congress was
strongly importuned to make provision for the growing
army of survivors, who, though in no way disabled during
service, were becoming for various reasons incapacitated and
dependent largely as a result of the service.

The result was the law of 1890 under which any soldier,
sailor, or marine who served ninety days or more in the mili-

GUARDING AGAINST FRAUDULENT CLAIMS. 3G0

tary or naval service, was honorably discharged, and who
became a sufferer from disabilities of a permanent character,
not the result of vicious habits, thus rendering him unable
to earn his support, should be entitled to a pension of not
less than six dollars and not more than twelve dollars a
month. Widows are entitled to like pension, provided they
had not remarried before the passage of the act, or if left
without means except their daily labor. Army nurses who
were enrolled in the service and served six months and have
become unable to earn a support are also pensioned. Be-
sides these, Congress yearly passes a large number of private
pension bills for those who for various reasons cannot be
included under the liberal pension laws. Such pensions are
granted by special act, and are not adjudicated by the Pen-
sion Bureau.

The pension rates for certain disabilities are specified by
law in a general way and are more particularly fixed by the
Commissioner of Pensions. They range from two dollars
for the loss of any one of the smaller toes to a total dis-
ability calling for one hundred dollars a month. In fixing
the rate of pensions, the aggregate of the rates for particular
disabilities is taken as the pension rate, and under the law
any one who is pensionable at all shall receive at least six
dollars a month.

Upon these general features a most complicated and
careful procedure has been built up for the examination of
claims, which is often much more painful to the impatient
veteran than his disabilities, but which is absolutely essential
to guard the rolls against fraud. The organization of the
bureau consists of a' commissioner, two deputy commission-
ers, a chief clerk and his assistant, a medical referee and
assistant, a law clerk, a board of review and thirteen divisions,
each with a chief. "When a claim is filed it is stamped in the
Mail Division, the date being important because, if a pension
is granted, under recent laws, it dates from the time it was

370 WHEN DOCTORS DISAGREE.

filed. The Mail Division handles on the average 200,000
applications a year, and the number of letters written exceeds
2,000,000 a year.

All claims based upon service prior to 1861, and all navy
claims, are sent to different divisions in accordance with
their character. The first step taken is to determine whether
the allegations of the claim are sufficient, if sustained, to
warrant a pension under the law, and if they are, a call is
made upon the "War Department for the soldier's record, all
such records being carefully systematized and kept in the old
Ford's Theater building. Upon the receipt and examination
of this record the claimant's attorney is notified of any neces-
sary evidence to complete the claim, while the claimant is
ordered for medical examination, the date of every step in
the procedure being endorsed upon the "jacket," the envelope
in which all papers relating to the claim are kept.

The medical examination forms the basis of the whole
system. It is performed by boards of examining surgeons
in various parts of the country, under the supervision of the
medical referee, the claimant usually being ordered before
the nearest one. The object of the examination is to obtain
a complete description of the disabilities for which pensions
are claimed, whether mentioned by the claimant or not, and
the pathological relationship to prior diseases or injuries
must be closely inquired into, and the conclusions of the
board must be fully recorded. It often happens that a disa-
bility is alleged which does not exist at all, and also that a
different disability from that alleged is proven, much to the
claimant's surprise. The compensation of medical examiners
is small, and thus, while many may be skilled enough in
medicine, they may devote only a superficial attention to
the pension business, getting through with it as quickly as
possible, so as to obtain the fee. Their work is often a
source of great uncertainty to the officials at Washington,
and when unsatisfactory, test examinations may follow.

A CASE OF PROGRESSIVE DISABILITY. 371

A recent example will illustrate this. A pensioner who
claimed several disabilities was ordered before a medical
board which found no ratable disability at all. To be sure
that no injustice was being done, he was ordered before a
different board, which found disabilities and rated them at
eight dollars per month. The discrepancy was so great that
he was ordered before a third board, which found and care-
fully described disabilities which it rated at seventeen dol-
lars a month. As this only added to the uncertainty, he
was ordered before a fourth board, which found disabilities
which it rated at twenty -four dollars a month. Same man,
same conditions, same instructions, and all within a few
days! The physicians were each and all reputable practi-
tioners, and all of the boards were under the classified serv-
ice of the bureau. Each board, which consisted of three
members, found unanimously. This disagreement of doctors
is so common an occurrence that the bureau long since des-
paired of obtaining the same ratings for the same disabilities.
In all, nearly 5,000 physicians are employed for this work
throughout the country.

"When the evidence is complete the examiner prepares it
for submission to the Board of Eeview, whose sole function
is to treat cases judicially upon the papers as submitted.
After a time, if the claim is allowed, a proper record is
made, the last requisite filled, the pension is granted, and
the much-indorsed "jacket" with its contents passes to its
resting-place in one of the many great receptacles provided
for the thousands of " cases " allowed and disallowed. Only
about one-half of the claims presented pass successfully
through the intricate mill of the Pension Bureau.

The pension officials do not sit upon beds of roses — or, if
they do, they are full of thorns. So various and minute are
the provisions of law applicable to the cases under their
consideration, and so numerous are the rulings of the bureau,
that each claim demands the most exhaustive examination,

372 AN ANGRY LETTER — A PATHETIC LETTER.

the keenest discrimination, and the wisest judgment, to
reach a final just conclusion.

Indignant letters are often received from disappointed
claimants. Some years ago a Captain B. of Havre-de-Grace,
Maryland, a claimant for pension under the act of 1871, for
services in the War of 1812, had his claim rejected, it appear-
ing that he had served less than sixty days as required by
that act ; whereupon the Captain grew wrathful and wrote
as follows :

" N. B. — Any man that will say that I was not a Pri-
vate soldier in Capt. Paca Smith's company before the
attack of the British on the City of Baltimore, and dur-
ing the attack on said city in Sept. 1814, and after the
British dropped down to Cape Henry, I say he is a das-
tard, a liar, and a coward, and no gentleman, or any man
that will say that I got my Land-Warrant from the Hon.
Geo. O. "Whiting, for 160 acres of Land, for 14 days'
services in Capt. Paca Smith's company, is the same, as
stated above, and I hold myself responsible for the contents
of this letter ; and if their dignity should be touched, a note

of honor directed to Capt. Wm. B , Havre-de-Grace,

Harford Co., Md., shall be punctually attended to.

"Wm. B ."

Once upon a time an aged claimant for a pension, who
served in the War of 1812, wrote the following touching
letter to the bureau : " Oh ! can it be true that I am going
to get $100 % That news is too good ! I'm so hungry, and
I love coffee so, but I can't get any! All I have to eat is
cornbread and sour milk. I can't believe that I am to get
so much money, but I pray God it may be true."

The Special Examination Division is one to which only
cases requiring special examinations are referred. Special
examiners are stationed at various points in the country,
and are usually graduates from the clerical force of the bu-
reau, and therefore well acquainted with the law and modes
of procedure. They investigate the different agencies and
look out for violations of the pension laws as well as frauds

SWINDLING AND THIEVING CLAIM AGENTS. 373

in the prosecution of claims. It is often found that widows
continue to draw pensions in violation of the law after remar-
riage, and in many cases every year it is found that the
pensions of deceased soldiers are being regularly drawn by
impostors. Evidence of forged endorsements is commonly
found, and various frauds which are more often the work
of claim agents than of claimants come to light.

The claim agent is a necessary evil. The average vet-
eran, while he may know all about his disabilities, is as
ignorant as a babe of that great and complex fabric of legis-
lation called the pension laws. Many a poor fellow who
lost his leg or arm, or carries a bullet in him, received in
his country's battles, knows all about the minus members,
the battles, and the bullet, and not an atom about " the
provisions of the law," or the intricacies of official red-tape.
Because his knowledge is of so one-sided a character, he
finds it no easy matter to get the governmental reward for
that buried leg or arm ; and by the time all *' the require-
ments of the law " have been slowly beaten into his brains,
the greater portion of his pension is pocketed by the claim
agent who showed him how to get it.

Not one veteran in a thousand could prepare his own
case so that it would meet the requirements of the Pension
Bureau, and the interminable correspondence which would
arise in the effort to prepare the case in legal and regular
form would be painful to both the veteran and the officials.
The result is, unfortunately, that a pension attorney is essen-
tial to a fair degree of success. If all attorneys were honest
and took up only such cases as came to them legitimately
and considered only such cases as were deserving, there
would be no difficulty.

There is absolutely no bar to the admission of any man
or woman of any color to practice as a claim agent, who
can furnish a certificate from a Judge of the United States
or Territorial courts that he or she " is of good moral char-

374 DISHONEST PENSION ATTORNEYS.

acter and of good repute and competent to assist claimants
in the prosecution of their claims." The agent may know
little of law or of anything else; he may be a man who
would shun fraudulent methods in ordinary business, but he
seems to fall easily into the habit of thinking that anything
to get a claim through the Pension Office is justifiable.
Every year the bureau discovers that "some leading man
in his community," or a "man of first-class reputation," is
fabricating papers, and changing affidavits, and the swindler
generally sets up as a defense that his clients were justly
entitled to pensions according to the altered papers.

In 1897 it was discovered that a notary public and pen-
sion attorney of Providence, Rhode Island, having a large
practice, was in the habit of keeping the certificates of
clients in his office and of executing the quarterly vouchers
for the pensioner. When a pensioner died he continued to
execute the vouchers and drew the money for himself upon
a dozen different cases. The government had paid out
$20,000 on such forgeries before they were detected.

In 1899 a well-organized gang of pension swindlers was
discovered by special examiners in one of the Southern
cities. It was their practice to forge whatever papers were
necessary to make out a proper claim, to select the name of
a soldier upon which to base a claim for a widow's pension
from the stones in soldiers' cemeteries, and to "swap"
papers purporting to be affidavits. One member acted as
notary and signed and sealed papers without swearing or
seeing witnesses. Others signed to papers any name they
were told to sign. It was found that over one hundred
claims thus pending were without any foundation whatever.
The leader of this gang was a pension attorney who had
been disbarred for forgery.

Some attempt has been made to purge the roster of at-
torneys, and the number entitled to practice before the
bureau has been reduced from some 60,000 to about 20,000.

THE REAL FRIEND OF PENSION CLAIMANTS. 375

They are always on the lookout for new pension legislation.
After the law of 1890 was passed, opening the way for
many veterans to prove disabilities which could not be
proven under the general laws, claims poured in at the rate
of a thousand a day. Pension attorneys grew rich. Soldiers
were appealed to to fill out their applications, and the agents
received a ten-dollar fee on each claim filed. It was impos-
sible for the bureau to keep the work up to date, and many
meritorious claims under the general law had to wait.
Most of the pensions now granted to veterans of the Civil
War are under the new law, which does not materially
increase the expenditure, because the rates are less and
the old pensioners are dying off.

It can not be wondered at that the processes within the
bureau are slow and careful when the business is hedged
about with so many dangers. While the agent may be
necessary to the claimant, the bureau is much more his sin-
cere friend. The real enemy of the deserving veteran is the
unscrupulous attorney who takes up the time of the bureau
by necessitating special examination of his suspicious cases.

The work of the Pension Bureau is conscientious and
thorough, and the criticism which has been heaped upon it
on the one hand by the veterans who could not prove their
rights to pensions, and on the other by people who regard
only the size of the pension roll without any thought of the
obligations of the government to survivors of the war, is
wholly undeserved. As the late ex-President Harrison once
said: "There are two views of the pension question — one
from the ' Little Hound Top' at Gettysburg, looking over a
field sown thickly with the dead, and around upon bloody,
blackened, and maimed men, cheering the shot-torn banner
of their country; the other from an office desk on a busy
street, or from an endowed chair in a university, looking
only upon a statistical table."

CHAPTER XXII.

THE CENSUS BUREAU — COUNTING THE NOSES OP

EIGHTY MILLION PEOPLE — HOW AND

WHY IT IS DONE.

Why the Census Is Taken Every Ten Years — Some Pointed Questions
— Tribulations of Enumerators — "None of Your Business" — Be-
ginning of the Process — The Scramble for Positions — Pulling
Wires To Secure Office — How the Census -Is Taken — Starting
50,000 Canvassers in One Day — Disagreeable Experiences — Meeting
Shotguns and Savage Dogs — "What Is Your Age?" — Irate
Females — How the Question Is Answered by Certain Persons —
"Sweet Sixteen " -=- " Fibbing " a Little — Keeping Tabs on the
Enumerators — Enormous Amount of Detail — The Punching Ma-
chine — Cost of the Census of 1900 — The Land Office and Its
Work — Settlers and Homeseekers — The Geological Survey — Its
Interesting Work — The Indian Bureau — How Poor " Lo " Is Cared
For — Indian Delegations in Washington — The Bureau of Educa
tion.

!T was ordained at the beginning of the consti-
tutional government that Uncle Sam should
count every man, woman, and child every ten
years, for population is made the basis of repre-
sentation in the House of Representatives, the num-
ber of members from each state being in proportion
to the population found at each decennial count. Like
almost everything else connected with the government, the
taking of this census has developed from a small affair to an
undertaking of mighty proportions, partly because of the
immense growth of the country in area andv in population,
but more especially because the census was gradually made

(376)

OUR INQUISITIVE UNCLE SAM. c 77

to embrace a multitude of inquiries concerning the wealth,
health, infirmities, occupations, and education of the people.

Every person is not simply counted, but Uncle Sam
insists upon asking every man how he is and what he does,
how much he earns and how much he owes, how old he is
and where he was born, whether he can read and write, and
whether he is sound in mind and body, and a great many
other things to which now and then a person retorts angrily
to the census taker that " it is none of Uncle Sam's business."
But Uncle Sam has a way of demonstrating to such people
that it is his business, and he generally succeeds in obtain-
ing answers to his questions, even if they are not always
"the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth."

So extensive has become the work that one census is
hardly completed before it is time to prepare for the next ;
thus the Census Bureau has practically become a permanent
one, and a building was erected for its purposes in 1899. It
is a two-story structure with a vaulted skylight over the
center, which is one mammoth room, where the clerks sit at
small desks so arranged that one general superintendent can
overlook the force of hundreds of men and women.

For two years before the enumerators are set to work,
the census is the talk of a large portion of the people of
Washington. There is always a small army of men and
women in the city who have failed to secure positions in
other departments, and as a last resort they make strenuous
effort to obtain employment in the Census Bureau. The
unemployed sons and daughters of regular office-holders
join the throng in large numbers, putting in their applica-
tions as residents of states from which their fathers orim-
nally came. Senators and Representatives are allotted a cer-
tain number of appointments, and there is always fierce
competition to secure a place on a member's allotment. In-
fluential constituents of members are appealed to, and the
Congressional mail rises to great proportions.

378 AN ARMY OF WOULD-BE APPOINTEES.

The head of the bureau is a Superintendent of the Cen-
sus, who is appointed by the President, and who generally
installs a few of the more important officers in their places
early in the year before the census is taken. Their time is
occupied in preparing the schedules for the enumerators and
in filing applications for appointment. When the time comes
for appointments, examinations are held, their character
being fixed by the census officials, for the bureau is inde-
pendent of the Civil Service Commission. The applicants are
summoned for examination in detachments, and every day
brings an army of would-be appointees with anxious faces
and palpitating hearts. About one-half usually fail to pass
the rigid test, and thus there is another increase in the aggre-
gate of blasted hopes, one of the few things which Uncle
Sam never attempts to enumerate. Not all who pass secure
appointments, but by the time the reports begin to arrive at
the bureau, it is usually equipped with a force of over 2,500
people, many of them young and middle-aged women.

The work of taking the census must be begun on the
same day all over the country and completed, so far as
enumeration goes, within a few weeks. To do this, it is
essential to divide the whole country into about 300 districts,
each with a supervisor, and these districts are sub-divided
into much smaller districts, each of which is given to an
enumerator, or canvasser. Thus on the same day Uncle Sam
starts out over 50,000 of these canvassers, each with a sched-
ule of questions he is to ask at every house, and each is paid
according to the number of names he obtains. In thickly-
settled districts, an enumerator usually has from 3,500 to
4,000 names, while in sparsely-settled parts of the country
an enumerator will have all he can do within the required
time to pick up a hundred names.

The schedule contains spaces for questions as to the num-
ber of families in each house, the number of persons in each
family, their names, relationship, age, color, sex, birthplace,

"WHAT IS YOUR AGE?" 37!'

vocations, whether any are attendants at school, if of school
age, and whether they speak English and can read and
write. The enumerator must also find out who are paupers
and who are pensioners; also whether a house is owned or
rented, mortgaged or not, and if so for how much ; and
there are also a great number of special questions relating
especially to farms, and factories, and business offices.
When the enumerators have completed their work to the
satisfaction of the supervisor of their districts, the schedules
are sent to Washington.

Although there is little difficulty in finding 50,000 men
ready to become enumerators, the task is not always delight-
ful or profitable. Doors are slammed in their faces, and
sometimes they have been pursued by irate mountain-
eers armed with shotguns. Many consider them fit game
for savage watchdogs. People who are not disposed to tell
the truth about themselves when under oath, could hardly
be expected to make reputations for veracity before a
census enumerator. Furthermore, people who flatter them-
selves that they have a strict regard for the truth, are
not above a little "fibbing" along certain lines. It is a
curious fact that the number of females between the ages of
fifteen and nineteen is always out of proportion to the num-
ber at other ages. Girls below fifteen are apt to " stretch it"
a little, and those above nineteen have an inclination in the
other direction. Often the enumerator resides in the neigh-
borhood, and there will always be a few young ladies who
are sensitive about their age, and who have a fear that the
enumerator will reveal it if they tell the exact truth. In
the case of young men the number of those who are shown
to be twenty-one is far in excess of what it should be, in
proportion to those above and under that age.

The statisticians in the Census Bureau at Washington
generally find a certain ratio running through all returns,
and it is from a comparison with these that they judge

380 AN AMAZING LITTLE MACHINE.

somewhat of the accuracy of the enumerators' work. For
example, they find that in any district the proportion of
deaths to the number of people will present few variations,
and when a marked variation is noticed they notify the
enumerator of the fact before paying him. If he insists
upon the correctness of his count, it is set down as an excep-
tion, though if an inaccuracy is very apparent the super-
visor may be required to make another enumeration. The
schedules are generally all in and the enumerators paid
within four months from the time the count was begun.

But this is the simplest part of the work. When the
schedules from the 50,000 and more enumerators arrive
they must be counted, not simply for their number but for
the number of those who are male, female, black, white,
married, single, and so on, all through the long series of
answered questions. They must be counted and tabulated
for each district, for each town, for each county, and for
each state, and it must be done within three months, for
Congress meets in December and will, on the basis of the
population shown, rearrange the congressional districts.
Now if 2,000 men and women were set to work counting on
these schedules by hand, they could not possibly complete
them by the time another census had to be taken. So
mechanical genius has devised means for counting and
adding up all the various features of the schedules.

In the large room which is really the court of the census
building covered by skylights, during the hot summer
months following the enumeration are hundreds of women,
each sitting at her little table and working with amazing
rapidity at what is known as a punching machine. As we
enter we look upon an army of women working as if their
lives depended upon it ; but, as a matter of fact, nothing de-
pends upon it but an increase in salary. The bureau
wishes to establish a reputation for completing the work in
the shortest possible time, and those who can punch 600

women's work in taking the census. 381

cards a day will have seventy-five dollars a month instead
of sixty. So these women work at break-neck speed, know-
ing the while that the sooner they complete their task the
sooner they will bo out of employment. But they must
comply with the requirements of the superintendents or
give way to the hundreds who would gladly take their
places. During some of the hot summer days of 1900, as
•many as twenty girls fainted at their tables, for the fierce
sun beating upon the glass roof above them made the tem-
perature of the great room painfully oppressive.

The punching machines have a diagram made up of
small irregular spaces, each containing in regular order cer-
tain figures or letters, or combinations of figures or letters,
some 300 in all. This diagram is just the size of the card to
be punched, and each letter or figure is a symbol for some
fact, like male or female, black or white, English-speaking
or not, etc. In one of the spaces not two inches square are
grouped the capitals of the alphabet, and in another the
small letters. By using various combinations of these capi-
tals and lower-case letters every known occupation of men
can be "punched" ; for example, Gl stands for accountants,
Cn for almshouse keepers, etc., the index of these symbols
making a closely-printed book of nearly forty pages, which
the machine operator must master.

Slipping a card under the machine she looks at her
schedule, and brings the small lever bearing the punch over
the hitter or figures in the diagram indicating- the facts to

o o o

be recorded. The cards are about three inches by six and
all are numbered. The punch makes a hole about the size
of a small pea, and by the time a single schedule is finished
a card will have from fifteen to twenty holes in it. In
other words, that number of punches must be made in about
600 cards a day. If any girl is tempted to slight her task
she quickly recovers from it, for a force of clerks each
night goes over the work to see that it is done correctly

382 EIGHTY MILLIONS UNDER THE AMERICAN FLAG.

The cards are then fed into an adding machine so con-
structed that it registers in the proper place for every hole
in the card. For example, when all the cards from the City
of New York have been run through, the register will
reveal at a glance what the population is, how many are
males and how many females, how many speak English and
how many do not, and so on through the long catechism of
the enumerator.

As soon as tabulations begin to be made, the results are
turned over to expert statisticians who map out lines for
special investigations, and the printing department of the
bureau begins the publication of bulletins giving the results
of the count as it progresses. The bureau employs several
special agents for gathering specific statistics concerning
manufactures and finance, and their returns are handled
after the returns of the enumerators are out of the way.
At the end of three years it is possible to publish a com-
pendium of the census. At the same time the complete
work, usually consisting of twenty or more large volumes
all devoted to tables, is in course of publication. The cost
of taking the census of 1900 was about $10,000,000.

There are in the United States, as counted by the twelfth
census, 76,295,220 people. But this does not include the
total under the American flag. To it should be added
953,213 of the population of Porto Rico, counted by the
War Department, and about 7,000,000 as a conservative esti-
mate of the population in the Philippine Islands.

At the end of the nineteenth century, therefore, the
United States included over 81,000,000 people, while at the
beginning it had about 5,250,000. Between 1800 and 1900
it has increased fifteen fold, and it is now, after the Chinese,
British, and Russian Empires, the most populous country in
the world.

No single law of growth will enable us to forecast the
population of the United States 100 years hence with any

DEVELOPING THE RESOURCES OF THE WEST. :}S:}

confidence in the results. But it is believed that we shall
have in the year 2000 A. D. a population of at least 200,-
000,000.

No departmental office in the government has, in the
past forty years, been so directly concerned in the develop-
ment of the vast reserves of the West as the General Land
Office.

All attempts to pass a suitable homestead law were baf-
fled till 1862. From that date to the present, millions of
acres have been divided into farms which have developed
into the great agricultural regions of the West. Under this
law actual settlers are given 160 acres where the land is
rated at $1.25 an acre, and eighty acres where rated at $2.50.
The settler is required to make affidavit that the land is
entered for his own use as a homestead, and the patent does
not issue to him till he has resided upon and cultivated the
land for five years. Soldiers and sailors have this period re-
duced by the time they served in the army or navy, but
must reside on the land at least one year.

Intending homestead seekers make entry for lands at
some one of the land offices in the West. These entries are
sent to the General Land Office, and each one is assigned to
an experienced clerk, who examines all the proof submitted.
If it is found that the entryman has made a substantial com-
pliance with the law in good faith, the case is marked
" approved " and sent to the Recorder's division of the office
for patenting. Here the patent is written up and recorded,
and in time transmitted to the entryman.

The discovery of gold in California, and later of other
minerals in other new states and territories, required a
special provision differing from those relating to agricultural
lands. But this was not made till I860, and during the long
period when discoveries of mineral wealth were made in the
West there was little regulation by law. Prospectors roamed
over the hills and dug out wealth wherever thev could find

384 WORK OF THE GEOLOGICAL SURVEY.

it without any title to the land from the United States. The
miners made their own laws and in general got along very-
well, and their regulations were so fair that when Congress
came to legislate, it recognized the claims taken up under
them ; but the claims on a mining lode or vein were limited
to 1,500 feet in length along the vein or lode, and 300 feet
in width.

The sj^stem of rectangular land surveys was adopted as
early as 1785, and it is the established policy that all lands
must be surveyed by the government before sale. Formerly
this was done by surveyors hired for the purpose, but some
years ago the surveyors were organized into a regular bureau
called the Geological Survey. It occupies extensive offices
in a rented building, and, with its rare collection of pictures
of famous Western scenery, is one of the most interesting
bureaus of the Department of the Interior. Every summer,
parties of expert surveyors from this office leave Washington
equipped for a season's work in various sections of the West,
now chiefly in the Rocky Mountains.

Each party makes it a business to thoroughly survey a
certain section of the country. They fix their camps and
from them operate in all directions, traversing difficult
trails and laying them down on paper, and either sketching
or photographing the hills and vallej^s from different points
of view. Each surveyor is provided not only with his instru-
ments, but with a mule, to which he sometimes becomes
much attached, as the companion of his lonely wanderings.
Returning to Washington in the fall, the various parties work
up their surveys into permanent form, and thus Uncle Sam
is able from his archives to tell you the physical qualities of
most of the great mountains of the West, and to show a
large collection of beautiful colored photographs of these
regions.

As the public lands have become the private property of
the constantly-advancing army of settlers, the Indians have

INDIANS IN THE STREETS OF WASHINGTON. 385

" read their doom in the setting sun." What to do with
them has ever been a troublesome question to the govern-
ment. It has tried to be good to bad Indians, but has quite
often been bad to good ones. It has tried to help them to
help themselves, but too often the government agents have
" helped themselves " to much that should have gone to the
Indians, who have unfortunately taken more kindly to our
rum than to our educational methods. But the question is
almost settled ; there are only about 250,000 red men left
within the United States, and they are separated into small
groups.

An Indian delegation is a frequent sight on the streets of
Washington. They arrive dressed in their best buckskin
trousers and their brightest feathers, and, in a picturesque
group, solemnly take their way to the Indian Bureau in the
Interior Department, where, through their interpreter, they
lay their troubles or their plans before the Commissioner.
They are leading men from their reservations, and they
return to their tribes as they came, without a smile upon
their stolid features.

Of the other bureaus of the Interior Department the
most important is the Bureau of Education. It was estab-
lished in 1867 to collect and publish statistics showing the
condition and progress of education in the various states and
territories, and to diffuse such information as shall promote
education everywhere. This bureau is a storehouse of a vast
amount of literature showing the experience of teachers, and
is a place of common exchange of ideas between the teachers
of our own country and those of foreign lands. It seeks to
measure yearly the advance or decline of the educational
spirit, and it provides a source of valuable information to
Congress when the latter feels disposed to encourage the
education of the people through better public schools.

CHAPTER XXIII.

A DAY IN THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE — THE
FARMER'S FRIEND AND CO-WORKER — FREE DIS-
TRIBUTION OF CHOICE AND PURE SEEDS
— HOW THEY MAY BE HAD
FOR THE ASKING.

The Farmer's Real Friend — The Bureau of Agriculture — What It Has
Done and Is Now Doing for Farmers — Investigating Diseases of Do-
mestic Live Stock — How It Promotes Dairy Interests — Experiment
Stations — Valuable Free Publications for Farmers — Interesting Facts
About Mosquitoes — How To Kill Insect Pests — Facts for Fruit
Growers — Examining 15,000 Birds' Stomachs — Vindicating the Much-
Maligned Crow — Controlling the Spread of Weeds — Poisonous Plants
— Adulterated Seeds — Seeds of New and Choice Varieties — Testing
the Purity of Seeds — Free Distribution of Seeds — How the Finest
and Purest Seeds May Be Had for Nothing — Great Opposition of
Private Seedsmen — Diseases of Plants — Something About Grasses —
The Agricultural Museum.

HATEVER attention the government paid to
the great agricultural interests of the country-
previous to 1862 emanated from the Patent-
Office, where the commissioners distributed,
free of charge, such seeds as they could on a yearly
appropriation of $1,000. In 1862 a Department of
Agriculture was organized, but it was regarded as an inde-
pendent bureau merely, and there was no thought of making
the Commissioner of Agriculture a member of the Cabinet.
It was the action of the German government that raised
the Commissioner to the dignity of a member of the Presi-
dent's official family.

(386)

THE INSPECTION OF EXPORTS. 387

During the '80's Germany adopted the policy of exclud-
ing American imports so far as possible, for the German
people were always buying more of the United States,
especially in the way of meats, than we were buying of
Germany, with the result that the latter country was com-
pelled to pay us annually a large amount of gold at the very
time it was straining its credit to buy the precious metal to
establish a gold standard. A great hue and cry arose in
Germany against American meat, on the ground that it was
diseased, and regulations were adopted which practically
excluded it. The only way for Uncle Sam to meet this
underhanded discrimination was to institute a rigid inspec-
tion of all meats exported, and to retaliate, if Germany per-
sisted in the fictitious objection, by excluding from this
country some of her products. To provide for such inspec-
tion of exports, it was necessary to perfect an extensive
organization for the purpose, and it was placed in the hands
of the Commissioner of Agriculture, who, by a law passed
in lssi), was made the Secretary of a Department and in-
vited into the President's councils. Since that time it has
become one of the most active and beneficial departments of
the government.

The offices of the Secretary of Agriculture are in a com-
modious building enjoying the advantage of being the best
situated of any government building in Washington. It
looks over spacious terraced gardens which in the season
are a blaze of color. About the extensive grounds can be
found nearly every plant indigenous to our country, from
the luxuriant vegetations of the tropics to the dwarfed and
hardy foliage of our Northern borders. Near by are spa-
cious conservatories containing horticultural specimens from
all over the world, and the collection of palms is unequaled.
In the grounds back of the building are various other build-
ings devoted to special divisions of the department and to
experimental laboratories.

388 EXPERIMENTAL WORK OF THE BUREAU.

The department is divided into two bureaus and fifteen
divisions, each devoted to some special line of scientific or
experimental work related to agricultural interests. The
Bureau of Animal Industry makes investigations as to the
conditions of pleuro-pneumonia and other dangerous com-
municable diseases of live stock, superintends the measures
for their extirpation, and reports on the conditions and means
of improving all the animal industries of the country. It
has charge of the inspection of meat or live stock for ex-
port, of the inspection of vessels for the export of cattle,
and of the quarantine stations of imported neat cattle. The
bureau is divided into five divisions — Inspection, Patholog-
ical, Biochemic, Dairy, and Miscellaneous, each in charge of
specialists. Its agents conduct their inspection in about
fifty different cities and in 150 abattoirs, and in a single
year the ante-mortem inspections of animals number about
60,000,000. The dairy division of this bureau, which occu
pies a special building on the grounds of the department,
labors constantly to promote the dairy interests of the
country by introducing advanced methods. The annual
value of the dairy products of the country is now over
$500,000,000.

The Division of Statistics collects information as to the
condition, prospects, and harvest of the principal crops, and
of the number, condition, and value of the farm animals,
through 100,000 volunteer correspondents in all the counties
of agricultural importance in the. country, and through state
agents, each of whom is assisted by local correspondents.
It obtains similar information from European countries
through consular and agricultural authorities, and it collects
and tabulates a great variety of statistics regarding all
branches of agriculture. Its monthly crap reports are
looked forward to in every market in the world. The bureau
makes a special point of keeping the producers informed
for their protection against combination and extortion.

SOILS, FERTILIZERS, MICROBES, AND BUGS. 389

The office of Experiment Stations in this division repre-
sents the department in its relations to the experiment sta-
tions now in operation in all the states and territories, and
publishes accounts of agricultural investigations at home and
abroad. The most important of its many publications, the
Experiment Station Record, is issued in volumes of twelve
numbers eaoh. It also issues over a million copies of the
Farmers' Bulletin every year.

The Division of Chemistry makes investigation of the
methods proposed for the analysis of soils, fertilizers, and
agricultural products, and such analyses as pertain to the in-
terests of agriculture. Much of the activity of this division
in recent years has been directed to a study of the adultera-
tion of foods and to vegetable nutrition. It is through this
division that Uncle Sam is trying to learn the "tricks" of
the microbes which supply nitrogen nutrition. There is a
class of microbes that draws nitrogen from the air and
works it into nitrates for plants in the soil, but this benefi-
cial variety is not allowed to carry on its work undisturbed.
In fact, the ways of humanity seem to prevail even among
micro-organisms, for there is another class of microbes
which decomposes the nitrates and returns it to the air be-
fore the plants can get it. Uncle Sam proposes to find out
and tell the farmers how they can care for the useful mi-
crobes and at the same time make it unpleasant for the un-
desirable ones.

But what Uncle Sam has been able to accomplish along
these lines is as yet small compared with his success in the
drastic treatment of imported bugs, through the Division of
Entomology. Others may have antedated him in making
smokeless powder for killing men, but he has reason to flat-
ter himself that he has told the farmers how kerosene emul-
sions and hydrocyanic acid gas will kill foreign insect pests.
One of these foreign bugs can create more commotion in
the country than a shipload of Chinamen.

390 IMPORTING INSECTS TO FERLILIZE FIGS.

Late in the '70's a new insect made its appearance in
California from some foreign clime, and under the name of
the San Jose scale became a deadly enemy of the fruit
growers. Two innocent nursery men carried a few speci-
mens East in some nursery stock, and in less than three
vears there was a literature of several hundred volumes on
the pest. It became the exciting cause of national conven-
tions of farmers and fruit growers, was the subject of legis-
lation in eighteen states, and several bills were laid before
Congress. But Uncle Sam learned all about its life history
and how to cut it short. Of late the division has been in-
vestigating the ability of mosquitoes to carry disease, and
has been greatly assisted by some rare and bloodthirsty
specimens from Alaska. A bulletin recently issued conveys
the reassuring intelligence that while there are 250 species
of mosquitoes, only thirty are found in the United States.
It also explains that the reason why mosquitoes are mak-
ing their appearance in mountain regions is that they are
carried inland on the cars from shore resorts and marshy
places near the coast, and as there is no way of stopping
this unauthorized traffic it informs us that the best thing to
do is to burn pyrethrum powder in the house.

The work of the entomologists is not merely scientific
amusement, but produces marked economic results, an ex-
ample of which is shown in the prospects of fig culture in
the United States. There have been a large number of
Smyrna fig trees in California that never matured fruit be-
cause the flowers were never fertilized. Uncle Sam's ento-
mologist knew of a very small insect with a very long name,
which, in the Mediterranean countries, fertilizes this fig, and
he suggested the importation of a few specimens. The for-
eigners were accordingly brought over and set to work in
the California orchards. They multiplied rapidly and many
of the figs have matured. The growers have been taught the
habits of these insects through the Agricultural Department,

BIRDS ON TRIAL — VERDICT, "NOT GUILTY." 3lJl

and this may in time add millions of dollars to the produc-
tive capacity of the country. Hundreds of specimens of
curious insects are brought to the entomological division,
where they are skillfully mounted and arranged in the
museum. Very queer-looking things most of them are, but
Uncle Sam's entomologists can tell you where they origi-
nally came from, what they eat, and how long they live if
nothing is done to cut short their existence.

The ways and means for doing this are made an especial
study, to a large extent through the Division of Biological
Survey, which maps the natural life zones of the country
and determines what species are useful to the farmers and
what are not. Birds are great eaters of insects, and thus to
cut short the existence of injurious varieties it becomes im-
portant to find out the favorite insect diets of different spe-
cies of birds. In this work Uncle Sam has examined about
15,000 birds' stomachs. Parties from the Biological Survey
spend the summer season in various sections of the country,
and bring back a winter's supply of stomachs for examina-
tion. It is the study of birds from the standpoint of dollars
and cents, and the result has been the overthrow of many
popular notions.

Every species of bird goes before the Biological Survey
like a suspect before the court. The evidence is examined
with great care. In the case of the crow, for instance,
Uncle Sam examined a thousand stomachs before he ven-
tured a decision. The charges of pulling up sprouting corn,
of injuring corn in the milk, and of destroying fruit and the
eggs of poultry, were all sustained ; but it was also found —
on rebuttal as it were — that the corn in the milk formed
only three per cent, of the total food, that most of the corn
destroyed was waste grain, that the destruction of fruit and
eggs was trivial, while many noxious insects and mice were
eaten ; and the final verdict was in favor of the crow, as he

seemed to do more good than harm. Of fiftv birds thus far
22

392 TESTING THE PURITY OF GARDEN SEEDS.

critically examined, only one has been condemned. This
was the English sparrow, which is, as everybody knows, an
unmitigated and ever-increasing nuisance.

The Division of Forestry investigates methods and trees
for planting in the treeless sections of the country, giving
practical assistance to farmers and lumbermen in handling
forest lands; it also studies all forest questions. As the
matter now stands the General Land Office is charged with
the administration and protection of the forest reserves, and
the United States Geological Survey maps and describes
them; but all the trained foresters in Uncle Sam's service
are in the Division of Forestry, the work of which is as-
signed to four sections, — working plans; economic tree
planting ; special investigations, and office work.

The investigation of botanical agricultural problems, in-
cluding the purity and value of seeds; methods of controll-
ing the spread of weeds ; the dangers and effects of poison-
ous plants, their antidotes; and the native plant resources
of the country, is the work of the Division of Botany. One
of its most interesting and important operations is the test-
ing of seeds, for which Uncle Sam has provided extensive
laboratory and greenhouse facilities. When a purity test
of seeds is made the sample is first poured into a bowl and
thoroughly mixed. A small portion is then weighed and
spread upon a sheet of white paper. Here it is examined
under magnifying glasses and all foreign matter removed
and placed on one side and weighed. The percentage of each
kind of impurity is thus determined. It is thus often found
that what passes as garden seed is sometimes largely made
up of seeds of weeds.

The free distribution of seeds, which is one of the most
popular of Uncle Sam's queer enterprises, is conducted by
another office — the Division of Seeds. They are purchased
and distributed in allotments to senators, representatives, and
Agricultural Experiment Stations, the annual appropriation

FREE DISTRIBUTION OF RARE SEEDS AND PLANTS. 393

for the purpose being about $130,000. The original inten-
tion of Congress in providing for this distribution undoubt-
edly was to do for the producers work they could not do for
themselves — to search the various localities of the Old
"World for seeds and plants and distribute them in the
United States to the several regions where they would be
most likely to thrive ; but for a long time the prevailing
practice was mainly to distribute American seeds which had
been tested for purity. Of late, however, a large propor-
tion of the appropriation is spent in importing rare seeds
and plants, and making special investigations as to the local-
ities in this country best adapted for their growth.

As might be supposed, this branch of agricultural work
is not looked upon with favor by the private seedsmen, who
are constantly urging the government to discontinue it. But
the farmers, and indeed a great many people who are not
farmers but have only a small back yard in the city, take
too kindlv to this gratuitous distribution to allow of its
discontinuance. Besides, it is one of the perquisites of mem-
bers of Congress, who are always interested in the rural
vote; and when they wish to keep on good terms with a
farmer all they have to do is to send his name over to the
Division of Seeds with a request that he be sent a lot of
seeds of some kind best adapted to his purposes. The farmer
receives the package franked to him by his congressman,
whom he immediately concludes must be a pretty good fel-
low after all. There is no question that the seeds sent out
are of the purest and best quality, but to the Congressman
their value lies not so much in their purity as in their vote-
winning capacity. A special building is required for the
packing of the seeds after testing by the Division of Botany,
and they are shipped in immense quantities all over the
country, about $75,000 worth being sent annually on the
allotment of Congressmen.

Plants, like people, have their diseases, and through the

394 FREE AGRICULTURAL PUBLICATIONS.

Division of Vegetable Physiology and Pathology, Uncle Sam
endeavors to discover what they are and what remedies can
be administered to the plants for them. These same plant-
doctors also investigate plant-breeding. In 1895 the Division
of Agrostology was established to investigate the natural his-
tory and distribution of various grasses, and in one part of
the grounds of the department can be seen a series of small
squares devoted to the growth of rare grasses. An herba-
rium contains a collection of about 35,000 mounted speci-
mens of different grasses. The Division of Pomology col-
lects and distributes information as to the fruit interests of
the United States and foreign countries ; the Division of
Soils makes extensive investigations into the nature and
treatment of different soils ; and the Division of Gardens
and Grounds has charge of the ornamentation of the part
surrounding the department building, and the care of the
conservatories and propagating grounds.

The publications of the Department of Agriculture have
a circulation that would turn the average newspaper and
magazine publisher green with envy. This is managed by
t*he Division of Publications, which occupies a large build-
ing in the back of the grounds, and which is alwa}^s packed
full of printed matter, with here and there just enough
room for the young men and women who are kept busy
directing the wrappers and preparing the publications for
the mail. These publications are all printed at the govern-
ment printing office, which can always depend upon a sup-
ply of " copy" from the Department of Agriculture when it
runs low from other sources. The different divisions
together issue about 1,000 different publications during a
year, aggregating something over 25,000 pages, and the
total number of copies distributed exceeds 7,000,000 a year.
Of the 2,500,000 of the Farmer^ Bulletins printed, the sen-
ators and representatives take nearly one-half. These pam-
phlets afford the best means of disseminating the results of

AN INSTRUCTIVE AND VARIED EXHIBIT. 395

the department's investigations. These as well as the more
seientilic and technical publications are highly prized by the
agricultural libraries in the various states.

The library of the department contains about 70,000
volumes, most of them of a strictly-agricultural character.
Under proper regulations the books are free for reference
to the public. One of the many buildings devoted to the
work of the department is occupied by the Agricultural
Museum, which possesses many unique features. Long cases
contain thousands of delicious-looking fruits, which upon
closer examination prove to be wonderfully-accurate wax
models. The damage wrought by many kinds of insects
upon trees and plants is fully illustrated, while there is an
instructive exhibit of mounted birds, squirrels, and other ani-
mals in their natural surroundings, showing various stages in
their development and life history, especially in their rela-
tion to agriculture. The processes of silk culture, the
growth of hemp, and many other industries of like nature
are fully and entertainingly shown.

While in this chapter we have investigated some of the
many lines of work in this the youngest of the government
departments, we have left unnoticed the Weather Bureau,
one of the most important activities of the Bureau of Agri-
culture, affecting not only the farmer but Uncle Sam's people
generally. To that interesting subject we must devote a
special chapter.

CHAPTER XXIY.

THE WEATHER BUREAU — FORECASTING THE WEATHER
— WONDERFUL INSTRUMENTS, KITES, AND
WEATHER MAPS.

Forecasting the Weather — Old Theories of Storms — The Path of Storms
— " Old Probabilities " at Home — General Principles of Storms — In
the Forecasting-Room — A Curious Map and Its Little Tags —
" Weather Sharps" at Work — How Weather Observations Are Made
— Fair and Warmer" and "Partly Cloudy" — Noting the Direction
of the Wind — Where Storms Are First Noticed — General Move-
ment of Storms — Traveling 600 Miles a Day — "High" Pressure
and " Low " Pressure — Winter Storms — Where They Originate —
Where Hurricanes Are Bred — Hot Waves and Cold Waves — Import-
ing Weather from Canada — Where Storms Disappear — Perplexing
Problems for the Forecaster — Predicting Dangerous Storms — Warn-
ings of Danger — Emergency Warnings — A Visit to the Instrument-
Room — Interesting Experiments with Kites.

,E~W persons have any exact knowledge of what
the Weather Bureau does, or how it does it, but
nearly every one is interested in the daily report
of its important and extensive work, which is
usually quite brief and occupies an inconspicuous
though regular place in the daily papers.
The value of accurate scientific knowledge on a subject
which affects, vitally, the vast agricultural and commercial
interests of the world, as well as the physical health and
spiritual happiness of mankind, cannot be overestimated.
Think of the millions of anxious faces that have turned sky-
ward since the earth began, to see "if it looks like rain."
Think of the interrupted plans, of injured crops, of wrecks

(396)

ONE OF FRANKLIN'S DISCOVERIES. 397

that strew the coast, of disaster and death — of all that
might have been prevented, in a measure at least, by some
forewarning of the weather indications.

The Weather Bureau of the United States is the greatest
institution of its kind in the world. While meteorology is
as old as Egypt, practical meteorology is still in its swad-
dling clothes, for it required more than the thermometer of
Galileo, and the barometer of Torricelli to make it useful in
forecasting the weather. About the middle of the eight-
eenth century, Benjamin Franklin made observations of
storms, and was surprised to find that a northeast storm,
instead of running off in a southwesterly direction as it
would be expected to do, actually moved in the direction
from which it seemed to come. From this he formed a
theory, which, thoguh very important, was soon forgotten,
that certain storms had a rotary motion and moved in
a northeasterly direction. Jefferson, also, was fond of
observing the weather ; and he recorded the reading of a
thermometer four times a day, not omitting July 4, 1776,
which, by his record, was a cold day for the season, the
maximum temperature being 76 at 1 p. m.

The first Government daily weather map was con-
structed in 1853, by Prof. Henry, of the Smithsonian Insti-
tution. While giving no forecasts, he used his large map to
demonstrate to a skeptical Congress the feasibility of organ-
izing a Government weather service. It was not till 1870
that the skepticism of Congress was overcome and a resolu-
tion passed providing for a Government telegraph weather
service, which was entrusted to the Signal Corps of the War
Department. There it remained, constantly but slowly
developing in efficiency, till 1891 when it was transferred to
the Agricultural Department.

So clearly has the work of the bureau demonstrated ifs
advantages for the farmer, the navigator, and the public in
general, that Congress has made fair provision for its main-

398 HOW THE WEATHER IS FORECASTED.

tenance, and its present buildings were specially designed
for its work. The main building presents a fine appearance,
and its character is revealed at once by the signal flags
which flutter above it, the whirling anemometers, and a
superstructure for other curious instruments for measuring
the precipitation, and so on, all of which devices are con-
nected by wire with the most perfect registering instru-
ments that can be designed. In this building are the offices
of the bureau in which the expert work of forecasting the
weather is done. The bureau costs over $1,000,000 a year.

The wide scope of the system of observation which cen-
ters here, is revealed by a glance at the immense map of the
United States which hangs on one of the walls of the office
of the Chief of the bureau. The surface of this big map is
dotted with over 200 little tags, each indicating a weather
station and containing data as to its working force. There
are many similar weather stations throughout Canada and
Mexico, having a system of exchanging reports with the
Washington Bureau, as well as several stations in the West
Indies, — that inveterate breeder of hurricanes.

The whole weather system covers an area extending
2,000 miles north and south, and 3,000 miles east and west.
Each of these stations is fully equipped with the necessary
instruments, not only for keeping a constant and permanent
record of all weather changes but for taking special obser-
vations at any time. All are situated on telegraphic cir-
cuits, centering in the Washington Bureau. The telegraphic
weather reports have the right of way over all other tele-
graphic business. Twice a day, precisely at 8 o'clock a. m.
and 8 o'clock p. m. of Eastern time, the " weather sharps "
in these two hundred and more stations, all do precisely the
same thing — examine their barometers, thermometers,
anemometers, etc., and they at once telegraph to Washing-
ton the details in their respective localities as to atmo-
spheric pressure, temperature, wind velocity, and direction,

MESSAGES FROM THE WEATHER STATIONS. 39'J

cloud conditions, and rainfall, if any. Then follows an
interesting scene in the long forecasting-room of the bureau
at Washington.

On high desks at one end of this well-appointed room
are arranged a series of skeleton maps of the United States,
each weather station being designated thereon by a little
circle about the size of a pea. One of these maps — the one
of chief value to the forecaster — is arranged to receive all
the data; another shows the change in temperature, the
maximum and minimum at each station with changes from
the day before and changes from the normal ; another
shows changes in the barometer; another indicates the
character, quantity, and movement of the clouds ; and still
another shows the dry-bulb and wet-bulb temperatures with
differences betwreen the two. It should be explained that
the wet-bulb thermometer is covered with a moist surface,
and the evaporation from this, if the air is not saturated
with moisture, is more rapid than from the dry-bulb, in pro-
portion to the relative amount of water in the air ; the
difference of temperature between the readings of these two
instruments therefore suffices to compute the relative
humidity of the atmosphere.

As the telegraphic returns come in, at each of the maps
stands one of the forecasting force, pencil in hand. Near
by stands the reader of the messages which to the uninitiated
mean absolutely nothing. In order to save time and tele-
graph bills, the bureau has invented a simple though very
effective cipher, whereby, through an arrangement of vowels
and consonants, all the elaborate data of a weather-message
is compressed into a sentence of a few words. For example,
a message may read like this :

"Paul nomen gessle enough surer ceiling?

This tells the temperature, high and low, the barometer,
the wind direction and velocity, and other details about the

400 "WEATHER SHARPS AT THEIR WORK. ■

weather conditions at St. Paul station. As this message is
read, the forecasters at their maps instantly refer to the state
of Minnesota, and, in the St. Paul circle and about it, jot
down the various figures.

Meantime, in an adjoining corner of the room, another
interesting process is in progress. Three printers stand at
their cases, which, instead of holding types, hold certain ster-
eotyped words and phrases which the weather bureau is
always using, like "fair and warmer," "partly cloudy,"
"rain," "snow," and soon, besides grouped figures which are
in constant use. Thus, as fast as the messages are read, the
printers are putting into type important data from them for
a reference table which is to occupy one corner of the com-
pleted weather map of the entire country for this hour.

All reports having been read, the experts at the maps
have under their trained eyes a complete synoptic panorama
of the wind and weather of the greater part of North America.
By noting the barometric returns, they observe great areas
of high and low pressure of the atmosphere, and reference to
the maps of preceding observations enables them at once to
note the changes in these areas winding through the states-
To define these areas the expert draws solid snake-like
lines — called isobars — between the high and low areas.
Similar lines called isotherms define the areas of differing
temperature, and separate lines are drawn for each change
of a tenth of an inch in the barometer and ten degrees in the
thermometer. The direction of the wind at each station is
indicated by an arrow flying with the wind. The state of
the weather — whether clear, partly cloudy, cloudy, raining
or snowing — is indicated by the strength of the shading in
the little circles representing the various stations ; and thus,
to the trained eye, and even to the eye of the novice, there
appear on the maps great areas of clouds, of sunshine, of
rain or snow and by comparison with previous maps it can
be seen whither these storms are moving and how fast.

THE LAWS OP STORMS. 401

Thus, within a few minutes after the clocks in the Eastern
time belt are striking the hour of eight, the weather of a
great continent lies under the eyes of the forecasters at
Washington.

These curious-looking maps would be of little value, how-
ever, in making forecasts without long experience in tracing
the effects of such conditions, and repeatedly establishing
the relation between them. A general knowledge of meteor-
ological phenomena is essential. It is known that storms
have a circular area, and generally advance in an easterly
direction, bearing a low barometric pressure with them.
Storms are first noticed in the upper regions of the atmo-
sphere, and in front of them the air is warm and humid, and,
in the rear, cool and dry. The general storm movement in
the United States is similar to a series of atmospheric waves
of which the crests are designated as " Highs " on the maps
and the depressions as " Lows." These waves have an aver-
age easterly movement of about 600 miles per day.

As a rule the more general storms of the country can be
detected during their inception in high altitudes of the far
West and studied as the}^ come down to sea level in the
Mississippi valley and progress towards the Atlantic. The
great winter storms originating somewhere near our new pos-
sessions, the Philippines, are detected when they reach the
Pacific coast, whence, over the Rockies, they sweep across
the country in three or four days and off over the Atlantic,
to be heard from three or four days later in Europe. The
great high pressure areas which constitute our cold waves are
largely imported from the northwestern provinces of Canada,
but, contrary to popular belief, they do not bring the cold
air of Canada with them. Their frigidity is entirely a result
of their motion; they are high-pressure eddies, and their
vortical motion as they travel along is constantly bringing
down the cold air from above.

These are some of the general principles in which the

402 GUARDING AGAINST MARINE DISASTERS.

expert forecaster is rooted and grounded ; but he has also
learned that the weather is too slippery an article to abide
always by general principles. Storms often insist on having
a striking individuality of their own, and the forecaster has
learned to take into consideration special conditions which
seem to account for these freaks. Forces not indicated on
the surface will sometimes appear and the storm pursue a
path divergent from the normal for the location and the
season. This complicates the problem always, for the fore-
caster is expected to tell in what general direction a storm
will move. It will not add to his reputation as a weather
prophet to predict bad weather for a certain locality if the
storm whirls off to another locality for which he has pre-
dicted fair weather. The barometric depression is always
spread over a larger surface than the storm that accompanies
it. The real problem in making local predictions is : Given
the data on his map with indications of a storm approaching
in a certain direction, with a knowledge of the special condi-
tions attending it, to determine, not simply the probable
area over which it will move, but the precise localities which
will be reached, and which of them will escape. It is no
wonder that mistakes are made in local predictions; the
miracle is that they are so often correct.

But, after all, the real value of the Weather Bureau lies
more in its predictions of really dangerous storms several
hours in advance, predictions nearly always correct, than in
foretelling the precise weather for specific localities under
moderate conditions, in which the bureau is often wrong.
Of the many West Indian hurricanes which have swept up
the Atlantic coast in recent years not one has reached a
single seaport without danger warnings having been sent
well in advance of the storm, and the result has been a great
decrease in marine disasters. Marine property owners have
estimated that one of these storms in the absence of danger
signals would leave not less than 3,000,000 dollars worth

HOW WEATHER NEWS IS DISSEMINATED. 403

of wreckage in its path. On two occasions a census
was taken immediately after the passage of severe hurri-
canes to determine the value of property held in port by
danger warnings of the bureau, and in one case the figure
was placed at $34,000,000, and in another at $38,000,000.

The Weather Bureau employs persons at various points
on the great river systems of the country, and particularly
about the headwaters, in reporting any marked variation in
the water level. The government is thus enabled to send
timely warning of a threatened rise in the great rivers below
headwaters, whereby much property has been saved, espe-
cially on the Mississippi system.

Formerly the local forecasts were made by the observer
in his district from the reports taken off the wire on his cir-
cuit on their way to Washington. It was for a time supposed
that the local observer would be better able to forecast the
weather in his own vicinity than the Washington office.
After an extensive trial, however, it was found that the
Washington forecasts verified four or five per cent, better
than the local forecasts, and the latter were accordingly dis-
continued, all being now prepared at Washington.

The bureau has its own plant for printing, and in less
than two hours after the receipt of reports presses are busy
striking off the maps with which the public is familiar.
Obviously, to be of value, these maps must be distributed
within a few hours after the observation. Hence plants for the
prompt publication of maps identical with those produced at
headquarters, are located at good distributing points in
various sections of the country. No such center of distribu-
tion can have an effective radius of much more than 300
miles. The distribution of the morning forecast begins in
less than two hours after the observations are made, first by
telegraph and telephone to about 1,000 centers of distribu
tion, thence by telephone, mail, and railway service to more
than 75,000 addresses, the greater part being delivered in

404 INGENIOUS AND DELICATE INSTRUMENTS.

the forenoon, and none later than 6 p. m. The forecasts are
also telegraphed to about 1,000 additional places, to be com-
municated to the public by flags and sound signals.

There is also a system of distribution by which more than
8,000 stations are furnished with reports by telegraph at
government expense, and, as occasion may justify, with the
" emergency warnings " of hurricanes, cold waves, freshets,
frosts, or local storms of unusual severity. With such a
widespread and effective system there is scarcely a commu-
nity in the United States which does not receive the benefit
of the forecasts promptly, even if they are far beyond the
reach of the daily paper. The maps are made only from
the morning forecasts, which appear in the evening papers.
The evening forecasts appear in the morning papers.

One of the most interesting rooms in the bureau office is
that devoted to the instruments. Here on a long table are
remarkable and extremely delicate self-registering instru-
ments, each registering a peculiar line indicating a certain
meteorological condition. All are in connection with appar-
atus outside, and indicate their measurement through com-
binations of clockwork and the electric current. One of
these instruments registers on a sheet of paper no larger
than a page of this book the pressure, temperature, humidity,
wind velocity, and the condition of the sky for every moment
of the twenty-four hours. The slightest change is indicated
by a change in the tracing pens. A similar instrument is
for use on kites, being exceedingly compact, most of its
parts being made of aluminum, so that its weight, case and
all, does not exceed two pounds. One of the bureau's enor-
mous kites will always be found decorating the ceiling of
the instrument-room. They are constructed with great
nicety after the approved pattern.

Experimental work with kites was begun in 1898, in the
hopes of discovering in the conditions of the upper regions
of the atmosphere principles whereby forecasts may be more

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TIDINGS FROM THE REALMS OF AIR. 407

accurately made, and for a longer period in advance. The
scientists of the Weather Bureau realize that with the pres-
ent appliances for forecasting, the limits for further develop-
ment are narrow. New discoveries must be made and new
realms invaded before the present character of the forecasts
can be much improved.

It was in the hope of new discoveries that the bureau
perfected instruments to be carried by kites into the upper
regions of air. In some of its experiments, which are usual-
ly conducted at Fort Meyer across the Potomac, a single
kite has ascended to 8,000 feet, and several kites in series
have risen to 14,000 feet; and the records of the delicate
meteorographs carried to these high altitudes have suggested
important possibilities which may result in new wonders
any day. Among other things which these experiments
have shown is that in our summer season we live in an ex-
tremely thin stratum of warm air. In the hottest day the
thermometer on a kite indicates that it is delightfully cool
1,000 feet above us. Moreover, the changes in wind and
temperature always begin at high levels sooner than on the
surface of the earth, and it is one of the practical dreams of
the weather experts to some day have kites at important
stations, so as always to be in touch with the upper regions
of the atmosphere.

CHAPTER XXY.

IN THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE — THE PRESIDENT'S LAW-
YER—THE SUPREME COURT AND ITS" BLACK-
ROBED DIGNITARIES — THE HEAVEN
OF LEGAL AMBITION.

The Majesty of the Law — The Department of Justice— Duties of the
Attorney-General — The President's Lawyer — Claims Involving Mil-
lions of Dollars — The Highest Legal Tribunal of the Nation — The
Supreme Court-Room — Giants of the Past — The Battle Ground of
Clay, Webster, and Calhoun — Wise and Silent Judges — Where
Silence and Dignity Reign — The Technical "Bench" — Illustrious
Names — Why the Bust of Chief-Justice Taney Was Long Excluded
from the Supreme Court-Room — The Famous Dred Scott Decision —
Its Far-Reaching Effect — A Sad Figure — Death Comes to His Relief
— Sumner's Relentless Opposition — Black-Robed Dignitaries — Cere-
monious Opening of the Court — An Antique Little Speech — Gowns
or Wigs? — Jefferson's Comical Protest — The Robing and Consulta-
tion-Rooms— Salaries of the Justices — A Great Law Library — Sug-
gestions of a Tragedy.

[UNJSTING through everything pertaining to the
government is the inevitable network of Law.
In every department the executive head acts
strictly by Law ; the work of every division is
mapped out to conform to the Law ; soldiers are re-
cruited, sailors are instructed, patents and pensions are
granted, money is printed, birds are dissected, and seeds are
distributed by Law. On the desk of every official of im-
portance lies a digest of the Law, and he works with one
eye ever upon it. If you suggest that in any particular case
the end can be accomplished much sooner and better in a cer-

(408)

THE J'KUSIDENT'S LAWYER. 400

tain way, he opens his book and points to the Law which
says it must be done so and so, and that settles the process
even if it never settles the case. The Law is the warp and
woof of everything, and naturally the Department of Jus-
tice has operated from the first.

The Supreme Court was provided for in the Constitution,
but the same' act which established and defined the jurisdic-
tion of the courts of the United States provided for an
Attorney-General, who from the first became a member of
the President's Cabinet. But while thus ranking fourth in
that official body, his duties were few during the first years
of the government ; he attended to his private practice, and
it was not till 1814 that he was required by law to reside at
Washington, and not till 1870 that the Department of Jus-
tice in its present form was established, with the Attorney-
General as its chief officer.

His duties are best summed up by saying that he is the
President's lawyer. The President is charged with execut-
ing all laws, and the Attorney-General gives his advice and
opinion, when asked, either to the President or to the head
of any executive department, lie represents the govern-
ment where questions of land or rents are concerned, and
determines the validity of titles to real estate purchased by
the government. Either House of Congress may call upon
him for information on any matter within the scope of his
office. While it is always understood that neither the Pres-
ident nor his Secretaries are necessarily guided by his opin-
ions, in practice they are. It is a settled rule that he has no
right to give an opinion in any other cases than those in
which the statutes make it his duty to give it. He is as
much controlled as anyone by the laws he interprets.

His official force consists of a Solicitor-General who is
next in rank, and in his absence the acting head of the de-
partment ; four Assistant Attorney-Generals and ten assis-
tant attorneys, all having their offices in the Department of
23

410 THE HIGHEST TRIBUNAL OP THE NATION.

Justice building. In addition, there are the following officers
who, though belonging to the Department of Justice, serve
also in other departments : — A Solicitor and Assistant-
Solicitor of the Treasury, a Solicitor of Internal Revenue,
a Solicitor of the State Department, an Assistant Attorney-
General of the Post-Office Department, and one for the
Interior Department.

Much of the work of the department is before the Court
of Claims, which was instituted in 1855 to hear and deter-
mine claims against the government and to report the facts
to Congress. In 1863 this court was authorized to render
final judgment with right of appeal to the Supreme Court.
It has five judges, and there are always pending before it
claims involving millions of dollars. In all these cases the
government is represented by the Attorney-General.

The Department of Justice is but a section of the execu-
tive branch of the government, but the Judiciary ranks with
the President and with Congress as one of the great branches
of the government, and unlike them it is removed as far as
men can be from the influence of human and political pas-
sions and prejudices.

The Supreme Court is the highest legal tribunal of the
nation. After the completion of the Senate wing of the
Capitol, the old Senate Chamber was converted into the
present Supreme Court-room ; one of the few rooms in the
Capitol wherein harmony and beauty meet and mingle.
Here Clay, Webster, and Calhoun, and other giants of the
past, once held high conclave. Defiance and defeat, battle
and triumph, argument and oratory, wisdom and folly once
held here their court. It is now the chamber of peace.
Tangled questions concerning life, liberty, and the pursuit of
personal happiness are still argued within these walls, but
never in tones that would drown the sound of a dropping
pin. Every thought is weighedj every word measured, that
is uttered here. The Judges who sit in silence to listen and

IN THE CHAMBER OF JUDGMENT. 411

decide have outlived the tumult of youth and the summer of
manhood's fiercer battles. They have earned fruition ; they
have won their gowns — which they can wear until they
reach the age of 70, when they become eligible for retire-
ment, a wise provision for their comfort after the infirmity
of age unfits them for the weighty responsibilities of this
high tribunal.

In the court-room itself we seem to have reached an
atmosphere where it is always afternoon. The door swings
to and fro noiselessly at the gentle touch of the usher's
hand. With soundless tread the spectators move to their
cushioned seats ranged against the inner wall over the rich,
well-padded, crimson carpet which covers the tiled floor of
this august chamber. A single lawyer arguing some consti-
tutional question drones on within the railed inclosure of the
court ; or a single judge in measured tones mumbles over
the pages of his learned decision in some case long drawn
out. Unless you are deeply interested in it you will not
stay long. The atmosphere is too soporific ; one wearies of
the oppressive silence and absolute decorum.

The chamber itself is semi-circular, with windows crim-
son-curtained. It has a domed ceiling studded with stuccoed
mouldings and skylights. The technical "Bench" of the
Supreme Court is a row of leather-backed arm-chairs ranged
in a row on a low dais. The chair of the Chief Justice is
in the center; those of the eight Associate Justices are
on each side. Over the chair of the Chief Justice a crilt
eagle perches upon a golden rod. Over this eagle and
parallel with the bench below, runs a shallow gallery, from
\\iiich many fine ladies of successive administrations have
looked down on the Solons below. At intervals around the
walls are brackets on which are placed marble busts of
former Chief Justices: John Jay of New York, 1789-1795;
John Rutledge of South Carolina, 1795-1796; Oliver Ells-
worth of Connecticut, 1796-1800; John Marshall of Vir-

412 taney's infamous decision.

ginia, 1801-1835 ; Roger B. Taney of Maryland, 1836-1864 ;
Salmon P. Chase of Ohio, 1864-1873 ; Morrison K. Waite of
Ohio, 1874-1888. Chief Justice Taney's bust for years was
left out in the cold on a pedestal within a recess of one of
the windows of the Senate wing. It was voted in the Sen-
ate that it should there wait a certain number of expiatory
years until in the fulness of time it should be sufficiently
absolved to enter the historic heaven of its brethren.

Roger Brooke Taney was a prominent Maryland lawyer
and an active democratic politician, and was Attorney-Gen-
eral in Jackson's administration. In 1835 Jackson, who was
extremely friendly to Taney, nominated him as an Associate-
Justice of the Supreme Court, but his nomination was op-
posed by the Senate. On the death of Chief Justice Mar-
shall, in the same year, Taney was confirmed, but by a very
small majority of votes. For twenty-eight years he sat in
the Chief Justice's chair and proved himself to be a jurist of
learning and ability. Indeed, it has been asserted that he
would rank next to the great jurist Marshall in the pages of
history but for his decision, in 1857, in the " Dred Scott
Case," a decision that shocked the humanity of the civilized
world.

Dred Scott was a negro slave then living in Missouri,
and was owned by an army officer. On one occasion his
owner had taken him into a Free State, which act, it was
claimed, entitled the slave to his liberty. Subsequently
Scott was taken back to Missouri, and he thereupon sued
for his freedom. The case created intense interest, was
desperately fought in the lower courts, and finally carried
up to the Supreme Court, then presided over by Taney, who
was himself a slaveholder. In his decision, which was ad-
verse to Scott, Taney declared that persons of African
blood were not regarded by the Constitution as anything
but mere property ; that they had no status as citizens, and
could not be sued in any court; that prior to the Declara-

THE MAX WHo HASTENED THE CIVIL WAR. 413

tion of Independence, negroes were regarded as " so far in-
ferior that they had no rights a white man was bound to
respect." After this cruel decision the Abolition party
orew with amazing rapidity, and three years later the Civil
War followed.

" There was no sadder figure to be seen in Washington
during the years of the Civil War than that of the aged
Chief Justice. His form was bent by the weight of years,
and his thin, nervous, and deeply-furrowed face was shaded
by long, gray locks, and lighted up by large, melancholy
eyes that looked wearily out from under shaggy brows,
which gave him a weird, wizard-like expression. He had
outlived his epoch, and was shunned and hated by the men
of the new time of storm and struggle for the principles of
freedom and nationality. He died poor, and two of his
daughters supported themselves for years by working in the
Treasury Department. After his death, and during the
years that his bust was excluded from its place among the
Chief Justices on the wall of the Court-room, Charles Sum-
ner watched every appropriation bill to prevent an item
being included to authorize its purchase. When Sumner
died, there was no further opposition to paying for it and
giving it its proper place."

During the session of the Supreme Court, the hour of
meeting is at noon. Precisely at that hour a procession of
black-silk-robed dignitaries may be seen wending their way
from the robing-room to the Supreme Court-room. They
are preceded by the Marshal, who, entering by a side-door,
leads directly to the Judge's stand, and, pausing before the
desk, exclaims:

" The Honorable the Chief Justice and Associate Justices
of the Supreme Court of the United States."

With these words all present rise and stand to receive
the Justices filing in. Each Justice passes to his chair.
The Judges bow to the law vers: the lawvers bow to the

414 DIGNITY AND ORDER OF THE SUPREME COURT.

Judges ; then all sit down. The Crier then opens the Court
with these words :

" Oyez ! Oyez ! Oyez ! All persons having business with
the Honorable the Supreme Court of the United States are
admonished to draw near and give their attendance, as the
Court is now sitting. God save the United States and this
Honorable Court."

At the close of this antique little speech, the Chief Jus-
tice motions to the lawyer whose case is to be argued, and
that gentleman rises, advances to the front, and begins his
argument.

The chairs of the Judges are all placed in the order of
their date of appointment. On either side of the Chief Jus-
tice sit the senior Associate Justices, while the last appointed
sit at the farther ends of each row. In the robing-room,
their robes and coats and hats hang in the same order. In
the consultation-room, where the Justices meet on Saturdays
to consult together over important cases presented, their
chairs around the table are arranged in the same order, the
Chief Justice presiding at the head. Both rooms command
beautiful views from their windows of the city, the Potomac,
and the hills of Virginia. In the robing-room, the Justices
exhange their civic dress for the high robes of office.

The selection of a court-dress agitated the minds of pub-
lic men when the first Justices of the court had been named
by Washington. Sentiment was divided ; and whether the
Justices should wear gowns, and, if so, whether they should
be those of the scholar, the Roman senator, or the priest,
and also whether they should wear the wig of the English
Judges, became burning questions. Jefferson protested
against any unnecessary court-dress, and especially against
wearing a wig. He said : " For Heaven's sake, discard the
monstrous wig, which makes the English Judges look like
rats peeping through bunches of oakum." Hamilton advo-
cated both wig and gown. Finally, after much debate, the

HOW THE JUDGES HOLD THEIR OFFICE. 415

gown alone was adopted, as tending " to preserve in the
Court-room that decorum and sense of solemnity which
should always characterize the place of Judgment." The
gowns are made of black silk or satin, and are almost iden-
tical with the silk robe of an Episcopal clergyman. The
gown worn by Justice McLean still hangs upon its hook as
when he hung it there for the last time — years and years
ago.

Nine Justices now compose the Supreme Court, all ap-
pointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate.
The Chief Justice presides in court, and receives a salary of
$lo,500 per annum. Melville Weston Fuller, of Illinois, ap-
pointed in 1888 to succeed Chief Justice Waite, is the pres-
ent incumbent of the office. The Associate Justices receive
$10,000 each per annum. The Constitution distinctly says
that the Justices of the Supreme Court, as well as all the
Judges of the lower United States courts, " shall hold their
offices during good behavior." But it is commonly under-
stood that they shall hold them for life unless removed
from office by impeachment. But inasmuch as old age
does incapacitate, and a judge might hold on to his office
after he was unable to perform his duties, Congress passed
a law providing that any justice or judge who has served
ten years and has reached the age of 70, may voluntarily re-
tire, and in that event shall receive the full salary of his
office during the remainder of his life.

The consultation-room is across the hall from the Law
Library, whose books are in constant demand by the law-
yers and Judges of the Supreme Court. The Law Library
consists of 85,000 volumes. It contains every volume of
English, Irish, and Scotch reports, besides the American;
an immense collection of case law, a complete collection of
the statutes of all civilized countries since 1649, filling one
hundred quarto volumes. It includes the first edition of
Blackstone's Commentaries, an original edition of the report

416 THE BEST LAW LIBRARY IN THE WORLD.

of the trial of Cagliostro, Rohan, and La Motte, for the theft
of Marie Antoinette's diamond necklace — that luckless
bauble which fanned to such fury the fatal flames of the
Revolution. The nucleus of this Library, conceded to be
the finest in the world, was the Jefferson collection of a
little more than 600 volumes.

The quarters of the Law Library are in the basement-
room of the Capitol, a beautiful room, of which the arches
of the ceiling rest upon immense Doric columns. The span-
drels of the arches are filled in with solid masonry — blocks
of sandstone, strong enough to support the whole Capitol,
fill the space between the arches. There is the suggestion
of tragedy in their strength, when we are told that the arch
above fell once, burying and killing beneath it its designer,
Mr. Lenthal. The plan of his arch in proportion to its
height was pronounced unsafe by all who examined the
drawing. He insisted that it was sufficiently, strong, and to
prove his faith in his theory he tore away the scaffolding
before the ceiling was dry. It fell, and he was taken out
hours after, dead and mangled, from its fallen ruins.

CHAPTER XXVI.

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS — ONE OP THE COSTLIEST AND
MOST BEAUTIFUL BUILDINGS IN THE WORLD —
ITS MAGNIFICENT MURAL PAINTINGS
AND WONDERFUL MOSAICS..

A Library for the People — Costly Books and Priceless Treasures of Art
Free to All — A Marvelously Beautiful Building — How It Was
Planned — Its Great Cost — Approaches to the Building — The Mam-
moth Bronze Doors — Entering Into Another World — A Stroll Through
Beautiful Marble Halls and Corridors — Marvels in Mosaic — How the
Mosaic Ceilings Were Constructed — The Mural Paintings and Wall
Decorations — A Fairy Scene by Night — Countless Electric Lights —
Famous Mosaic of Minerva — A Marvelous Achievement — The Lan-
tern at the Top of the Dome — Architectural Splendors — Ingenious
Apparatus for Carrying Books — How the Library Is Connected With
the Capitol — An Underground Tunnel — The Alcoves — Forty-five
Miles of Strips of Steel.

T the threshold of one century rose the Capitol,
slowly unfolding in its majesty and grandeur,
growing as the nation grew, out of weakness,
often painfully, into strength, till at last its
mighty dome was lifted against the sky, the sym-
bol of a great and a united people. At the thresh-
old of another century rose another building, unfoldin
quickly, easily, and in beauty, like a lily —

" — blossoming in stone —
A vision, a delight, and a desire —
The builder's perfect and centennial flower."

The new Library of Congress is a monument of a nation

(417)

418 MONUMENTS OF A NATION S GREATNESS.

which, has emerged from the darkness of doubts and dangers
into the fall glory of conscious power*. Every stone in the
Capitol was the promise of a nation yet to be ; every stone
in the Library of Congress is the symbol of fulfillment. It
is peculiarly fitting that the two great structures should
stand near each other ; that in the sunlight, from the time
it breaks over the eastern hills till it lingers faintly in the
west, the gleam of the great white dome and the glistening
of the gilded one should mingle in a single setting of foliage.
Together they are emblematic of the people. They belong
to the people. It is the people's Capitol, and it is the people's
Library, though originally designed simply as a Library of
Congress. It is more freely open to the people of the whole
country than are any of the great libraries of the world.
They may not take away its books and its treasures of art,
but they may come from any town or hamlet in the Union,
simply ask for them, and they will be placed before them.
They could have no better place in which to read or to study
these treasures of art and literature than this, the largest
and costliest library building in the world.

When visiting the Capitol and wandering through
its massive corridors and statelv chambers, our atten-
tion is divided between the building and its associa-
tions. Within its many great rooms we inevitably think of
the scenes witnessed in them, rather than of the rooms
themselves, their decorations, or their furnishings. Upper-
most in the mind always is not the building, marvelous as it
is, but what has been done, what is done, within its vener-
able walls. It is so in the White House, in the Treasury,
and in all the public buildings — save only this one. We
look upon the Library building without a thought at first of
its treasures ; and then, if we are so fortunate as to have the
opportunity of examining them, we forget for the time the
beautiful building. What it is, is one thing; what it holds,
another. But always what it is, comes first. No one should

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A MODEL OF HONEST CONSTRUCTION. 421

look within without looking through this magnificent build-
ing and its priceless treasures of literature and art.

In his report for 1872, Mr. Ainsworth R. Spofford urged
upon Congress the absolute necessity for a separate building
for the accommodation of the vast number of valuable
books which had from time to time accumulated in the
small quarters assigned the Library of Congress in the Capi-
tol. Fourteen years subsequently the first decided action
was taken. Eleven years more had expired before the grand
structure was completed.

Long disputes arose over the site ; but it was at last
decided to purchase three city blocks, containing about ten
acres, just east of the Capitol grounds. The year 1886 was
occupied in appraising and taking possession of this tract,
for which the government paid $585,000, on which stood
some seventy houses, and another year passed in clear-
ing the ground. Plans had already been adopted, but in
1888 a timid and somewhat economical Congress became
alarmed over the cost and magnitude of the proposed struc-
ture, and by another act limited its cost to $4,000,000. At
the same time it placed the work under the sole charge of
the Chief of Engineers of the Army.

Another year was consumed in the endeavor to reduce
the initial plans so that the building might fall within the
diminished appropriation. But meantime another plan was
submitted to another Congress, modifying the architectural
features and increasing the size, beauty, and expense of the
proposed building, though providing for its completion
within eight years. This proved to be acceptable to a more
generous and progressive Congress, which by a new law raised
the limit of cost to about $6,500,000. The building Avas
completed in 1897, within the time set by Congress, and at a
cost of $6,347,000, exclusive of the cost of the land. The
building thus stands as a model, not simply of careful and
conscientious artistic work, but of honest construction.

422 ORNAMENTS OF THE WINDOW KEY-STONES.

When approaching the new building, one is not deeply
impressed with the exterior. It might be otherwise if the
Capitol were not so near. The new edifice seems at first to
lack the indefinable artistic spirit of the Capitol. It is 470
feet long and 340 feet deep, but only three stories high, and
its large dome appears very modest beside the lofty dome
of the Capitol, which it was never intended to rival. The
walls are constructed entirely of granite, so close-grained
and light in tone that in the sunshine it is as brilliant as
marble. Left in the rough in the basement story, it is much
more finely dressed in the story above, and in the third
brought down to a perfectly -smooth surface.

The key-stones of the window arches in the first story
are sculptured with a series of heads illustrating the chief
ethnological types of mankind, the first instance of a com-
prehensive attempt of this kind in a public building. The
idea was carried out by the Department of Ethnology in the
National Museum, which contains an unsurpassed collection
of carefully-prepared models of different types of men. In
preparing these, each head was subjected to a strict test of
measurement, the distance between the eyes and between
the cheek bones being the most valuable criterion of racial
differences ; but as the architect required the heads to be of
uniform size, each face had to be more or less in line with
the block it ornamented. This difficulty was met by using
or not using the distinctive head-dress, whichever best met
the conditions, and in one case, that of the Plains Indian,
whose feathers could not well be discarded, the difficulty
was overcome by laying them down flat upon his head,
giving "poor Lo" a mild and almost dejected look, which,
after all, may be quite in accordance with his present feel-
ings. There are thirty-three of these heads in all, each
about a foot and a half in height and chiseled with the
greatest attention to detail. Even the tattooing appears in
the Maori type.

THE TEMPLE OF AMERICAN ART. 4^5

The main entrance pavilion occupies a third of the tota..
front of the building and its approaches are extensive and
imposing. In front of the granite steps which ascend from
each side to the central landing, is an elaborate fountain
ornamented with large bronze figures representing the court
of Neptune in a grotto of the sea. Placid turtles and frogs
and writhing serpents are spurting glistening jets of water
upon spirited sea-horses, with fair Nereids astride, while
high in the center upon a massive rock sits his imperturb-
able majesty, the Ruler of the Deep.

The posts of the granite railing of the steps to the
entrance landing bear aloft clusters of electric lamps that at
night give the massive structure the air of an enchanted
palace. About the entrance are many sculptured details —
large female figures representing Literature, Science, and
Art, and busts of men eminent in these fields ; children
reclining upon sloping pediments that are ornamented with
massive garlands of fruits and flowers. All demonstrate
the readiness with which the intractable granite yields to
the touch of the master-hand, for in the sculpture and in all
the decorations within and without this great buildine the
best artists in the United States were employed. Here
their genius has been given undying form in many a detail
— so many, that their individual values are not fully appre-
ciated and still less adequately described.

In the early days of the Capitol, American art had no
representatives. Imported Italians wrought there, and
often failed to catch the spirit of national life. Often they
failed to harmonize with each other. But in the Library,
famous sculptors and painters of America have togeth;**
blended the best expressions of their genius under a single
plan and with a common artistic purpose, and they have
mule it, what no other building in the country is, a Temple
of American Art.

We are hardly prepared for the vision that bursts upon

424

HOW THE LIBRARY IMPRESSES VISITORS.

us when we have passed the mammoth bronze doors, cov-
ered with designs of rich sculptural ornament in relief. It
is like entering into another world to step inside. Stand
here any day for a few minutes, beside the blue-coated offi-
cial who warns people to check their umbrellas and their
canes — not because there is any danger of losing them, but
because some proud American might like to punch the mar-

MAIN ENTRANCE

FIRST STORY PLAN, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.

ble, the mosaic, and the mural paintings, to ascertain if they
are real or only a dream ; listen to the expressions of
strangers as they enter, and note their invariable exclama-
tions of surprise and delight ; then see them wandering on
in dumb amazement, as with uplifted eyes they seek to com-
prehend the beauty and the grandeur that pervade the place.

BEAUTY AND HARMONY OF THE INTERIOR. 425

Here indeed and in reality is a " poem in marble." At
once it dawns upon us why this is the most beautiful build-
ing in the United States. It is not because of its exterior,
but because of its interior ; the unique arrangement and
ornamentation of marble piers and columns ; ceilings in
white and gold and arcades in mosaic of mellow tones ; gal-
leries of massive white marble from between whose shining
columns come visions of mural paintings and ornamental
stucco ; vistas of long corridors with marble floors ; Avails
and ceilings of mosaic art, on which are mingled colors of
ivory and gold, across which fall at regular intervals floods
of light; massive stairways of purest marble delicately
carved ; hundreds of artistic details over which famous
artists wrought, each a melody and yet blended into grand
and perfect harmony.

The greatest care has been taken to eliminate every jar-
ring element. It has been said that in no other building in
the country has so much pains been taken to make the
designs of the floor consistent with those of the architecture
and the general decorative scheme. This phase appears
throughout the building wherever marble or mosaic are
used.

The mosaic arches constitute one of the marvels of this
marvelous building. Names of distinguished men of litera-
ture, art, and science are used in the ornamentation. Most
people form the impression that this mosaic must have been
laid " bottom side up " before the arches were constructed
and wonder how the workmen could have fitted each piece
so exactly. The real process, though quite as interesting,
was very different. The artist first drew the designs, full
size and in the exact colors desired, in sections which were
transferred to very thick paper. These sections were then
one by one covered by a thin coating of glue, and on them
the workmen laid each little stone in its proper place,
smooth side down. The section completed, it was taken to

426 IDEAL PICTURES OF EVERY-DAY LIFE.

the vaulted ceiling, previously covered with cement, and
was rolled and pounded in as smoothly as possible. The
paper was afterwards soaked off. Thus these wide mosaic
ceilings with their rich and various ornamentations grew,
section by section, into beautiful patterns, leaving no trace
of where a section began or ended.

The paintings in the large tympanums at the ends of the
various corridors, and the smaller ones along the sides above
the marble panels, were not executed, as some have sup-
posed, by artists standing upon scaffolding or step-ladders,
but were painted in the quiet of their studios upon canvas
which was afterwards firmly and smoothly affixed to the
walls by a composition of white lead. By many ingenious
devices such as these the best art of America was brought
into its proper place in various parts of the building.

In the Library, idealism reigns supreme. Free rein has
been given to the fancies of the artists, and this is well illus-
trated in the mural paintings of the entrance corridors.
Those on the north side illustrate The Family. They show
people living in idyllic simplicity, yet possessing the arts
and habits of refined cultivation. This idealism is summed
up in the large painting, where the head of the family is
returning after a day spent in hunting with primitive weap-
ons. His aged mother, her hands clasped over a rough
staff, is sitting on a still rougher rock, and the gray-bearded
father lays aside a scroll that he has been reading and
which seems somewhat out of place in such surroundings.
The wife, with the face of a Roman matron, baby in arms,
is welcoming the returning sire, the little daughter clings to
his robe, while a graceful maiden with a countenance beam-
ing with intelligence, is leaning against one of the trees.
All are dressed in the garb of the halcyon days of Greece
or Rome, yet the whole scene is amid trees and rocks with a
view beyond into primeval forests and over rugged moun-
tains.

EXQUISITE MURAL PAINTINGS. 42'J

The paintings in the smaller tympanums illustrate differ-
ent phases of a well-ordered, simple, and happy life. They
embody such ideas as poets like to sing about and artists
love to paint. " Recreation " shows two girls in a forest
glade, one playing on a pipe and the other on a tambourine.
In " Study " a girl is instructing her pupil with the aid of a
book and compasses and tablet ; in " Labor " two youths
are at work in a field. In " Religion " a young man and a
girl are devoutly kneeling before a blazing altar composed
of two rough stones. There is a charm in this idealism
which defies criticism and pleases every eye.

The general subject of the mural paintings in the corre-
sponding corridor on the south is Lyric Poetry, and they
have an exquisite charm for those who can recall the lines
they represent, though they arc a little bewildering to the
average constituent of Senators and Members in yonder
Capitol. A thorough patriot, he is proud of the American
eagle — -the bird of Freedom — and as he beholds in one of
these paintings a naked boy riding on the back of the glori-
ous bird, it strikes him as queer, even after he is told that it
refers to the lines in Tennyson's " Palace of Art."

" Flushed Ganymede, his rosy thigh
Half buried in the Eagle's down,
Sole as a flying star shot through the sky
Above the pillared town."

The names of the great lyric poets are neatly set in the
mosaic of this corridor, as the names of the great educators
of the world are used in the corridor on the north. In a
similar manner, in various parts of the building appear hun-
dreds of names of men who were famous in various lines of
literature, art, and invention. In the decoration of the east
corridor, the names are all of Americans, some eminent in
the arts and sciences, and others in the leading professions,

these being represented in the mosaic by various trophies.
24

428 BEAUTY OF THE STAIRCASE HALL.

From the east corridor, marble arcades lead to the Ro-
tunda or reading-room. The mural paintings over the en-
trance illustrate various phases of government in an artistic
symbolism worthy of long study. The figures have a
nobility and strength which give to the conceptions in the
pictures admirable clearness and force.

In our little journey thus far we have walked about the
four sides of the entrance pavilion, and these beautiful cor-
ridors are only the anterooms to the lofty staircase hall in
the center. Inlaid in the marble "floor are patterns of brass,
the one in the center being a large rayed disk or conven-
tional sun, on which are indicated the points of the compass.
From this as a center proceeds a scale pattern of alternately
red and yellow Italian marbles, terminating in dark red
French marble, in which are other brass inlays representing
the twelve signs of the zodiac. In the white marble tower-
ing above us on every side are wonderfully-sculptured de-
tails, the most conspicuous being the figures of the staircases.
These, in massive marble of purest white, rise along the
northern and southern sides. Upon each of the heavy
newel-posts is a bronze female figure upholding twenty feet
above us a torch of clusters of electric lamps.

When the golden sunlight streams in from above, through
the six skylight designs in blues and yellows, bringing into
bright relief the sculptured figures, and shading off into the
recesses of the upper and lower corridors on every side, the
scene is enchanting ; but there is another scene which sur-
passes it, coming when, in the dusk of evening, a button is
touched, and countless electric lights together leap forth in
splendor, and flood every nook and corner with brilliant yet
mellow light.

Ascending one of the grand staircases, we stand in the
corridors of the second floor, decorated like others with a
profusion of details, all of which combine to produce an ex-
quisite general effect. Each corridor has a distinct accent

DECORATIONS OF THE CORRIDORS.

429

of color and design. Among the more interesting and ap-
propriate decorations is the series of " Printers' Marks " used
by the old printers, and by many modern publishers, on the
title pages of their books. The earliest is that of Fust and
SchoelTer, employed for the first time in 1457. They are
fifty-six in number and run through all the corridors.

SECOND STORY" PLAN, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.

From the broad passage-way on the east, with its bright
colors, its garlands and ribbons, its symbolic medallions and
trophies, rises a marble stairway, dividing half way up to the
right and left. Directly in front on the wall at the landing
is one of the most striking; decorations of the building' —
Tedder's mosaic of Minerva. It is a marvelous achieve-
ment of color and design produced by thousands of minute

430 "JL VISION IN POLISHED STONE."

pieces of colored marble. At a little distance it has the ap-
pearance of a finely-executed painting in oils. So great is
the inquisitiveness of the average American, so overpower-
ing the temptation to touch it and make sure that it is really
mosaic, that, notwithstanding the heavy railing about it,
and a sign bearing a clearly-stated request not to touch it,
the government has to pay a blue-coated official to stand
constantly at the foot of the steps, with a warning ever
ready to fall from his lips.

Reaching the top of the stairs, we pass at once out upon
the gallery, which affords a spacious and uninterrupted view
of the great reading-room, the central and most important
portion of the building, and as such, marked by a magnifi-
cence of decoration and architecture surpassing every other
part of the edifice. Here is an octagonal room, one hun-
dred feet in diameter and reaching from the main floor 160
feet to the apex of the dome. Paneled with the rarest of
colored marbles in great profusion and in massive propor-
tions, it reveals everywhere in the sculpture and paintings
the harmony of the great architectural design which is car-
ried down to the smallest of the countless details. Eight
immense piers support the heavy arches around the room,
and between them are marble screens, arcaded in two
stories, thus dividing the octagon into eight deep alcoves.
Above these are the galleries, forming a continuous prome-
nade from which the spacious interior may be viewed from
all sides. The light streams in from great semi-circular
windows set in the eight massive arches that support the
dome. The lantern is thirty-five feet in height and has
eight windows.

On the mosaic floor of this lofty rotunda are three cir-
cles of double desks of polished mahogany, providing seats
for over 200 readers, while from every alternate side of the
octagon are exits into the alcoves and into the large interior
portions of the building containing the book-stacks. The

THE PUBLIC READING ROOM IN THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.

The central and most important part of the building. It is marked by a magnificence of
decoration and splendor of architecture surpassing every other part of the edifice. It is pan-
eled with the rarest of colored marbles in great profusion and massive proportions. The room
is 100 feet in diameter and 160 feet from the main floor to the apex of the dome. Seats are pro-
vided for over two hundred readers.

ARTISTIC HARMONY IN FORM AND COLOR. 433

lighting is so arranged that at the press of a button it
flashes from hundreds of lamps, set in rosettes in the screens
of the alcoves and in rows at the base and at the top of the
dome. The whole vast apartment is thus flooded with
mellow light, and no shadows are anywhere cast.

If one wonders how, amid all these decorative details
and various marbles, there can arise such a perfect harmony
in color, he has but to study the evidences of the care with
which the architects have designed. From the red and
yellow marbles at the base, to the pure white, the bright
greens and the violets of the paintings of the upper dome,
there is no discordant note.

As one stands enraptured with the beauty of the whole,
he has no thought of the masterpieces of art in the details
about him. The great symbolical statues surmounting the
piers are unnoticed, while the bronze statues, modeled by
the best sculptors in the land and placed upon the heavy
marble rail of the gallery, fail for the moment to attract the
attention they deserve. These sixteen bronze statues are of
men famous in the different forms of thought symbolized in
the statues above the piers. On one side of the statue of
Religion, for instance, is the bronze figure of Moses, on the
other side, that of St. Paul ; beside the statue of Poetry are
Homer and Shakespeare.

We must break from the spell into which we are thrown
by such architectural splendors, to look for a moment to the
more practical matter of the provision made for readers and
students. In the center of the floor is a great distributing
desk, surrounded by a circular counter for the attendants
delivering and receiving books. In a high station on the
east side of this desk sits the Superintendent, who is thus in
touch with all that is going on in the vast room. On the
other side is a cabinet containing the terminus of the book-
carrying apparatus connecting with the stacks. Along an-
other side is a row of twenty-four pneumatic tubes, connect-

434 INGENIOUS BOOK-CARRYING MECHANISM.

ing with every floor of each of the stacks, while one goes to
the Librarian's room and another to the Capitol. Thus the
half-dozen attendants at the desk are within easy reach of
nearly 1,000,000 books, and are equally accessible to the poss-
ibly 200 readers in the room, besides those demanding books
at the Capitol, nearly a quarter of a mile away.

You may fill out your card for a book, quietly settle
yourself in one of the elegant chairs at the circular desks,
and shortly the book will appear. If it is a work of fiction
you desire, a certain pneumatic tube whisks your card away
to the proper floor of the proper stack ; if some work of
history, it goes in another direction. The attendants at the
desk do not simply know the location of the book you call
for, but if you are desirous of reading up some subject and
have no idea as to what particular book you wish, they can
tell you. It is their business to know.

The book-carrying apparatus is a marvel of ingenuity.
It is in two parts, each separately operated, one connecting
with the great north stack, the other with that in the south.
Each section consists of a pair of endless chains kept con-
stantly in motion by an electric dynamo, at the rate of
about a hundred feet a minute. These chains run from the
terminal cabinet in the reading-room down to the basement,
thence on a level to the stacks, and thence directly up a
small well to the top floor, where they turn and descend.
They carry eighteen trays at regular intervals, each capable
of containing a large book or a number of small ones, and
each so constructed with brass teeth, operating with corre-
sponding teeth in the apparatus at the receiving or distrib-
uting stations, that they take in or deliver a book, as the
case may be.

When an attendant in the stacks, taking the card you
filled out, and which was sent to him through the pneumatic
tubes, has found the book you wish, he places it upon a slide
which he sets so that it will operate with the first tray that

AN UNDERGROUND BOOK TUNNEL. 435

arrives. Being caught up by this tray, it is carried on till
it reaches the padded basket at the delivery desk, and into
this it is dropped with hardly a sound to break the stillness
of the vast room. When the book is to be returned, the
attendant at the distributing desk sets a little lever on a dial
at the number of the stack in which the book belongs, and
when the tray approaches the proper floor, the slide is auto-
matically pushed out to receive the load. Thus every day
and every evening, hundreds of books are noiselessly travel-
ing to and fro, north and south, up and down, from stack to
reader and from reader to stack.

But convenient as is this mechanical contrivance for con-
necting the various portions of the vast building, it is of
much greater importance in connecting the Library with
the Capitol; for when Congress is in session, members are
constantly drawing books for immediate use in debate and
in committee work. It was this fact which so long delayed
Congress in consenting to housing the Library in a separate
building. The Capitol and the Library, Avhich are nearly a
quarter of a mile apart, are connected by a tunnel with one
terminus immediately beneath the distributing desk in the
Library and the other in the Capitol, about midway between
the Senate and the House. The tunnel is of brick, six feet
high and four feet wide, and through this an endless cable,
similar to those already described, but larger, continuously
runs, the speed in this case being 600 feet a minute. -By
this means a book is delivered at the Capitol within three
minutes after it has left the Library.

Within the tunnel, also, are the necessary pneumatic
tubes and telephone wires for the exchange of messages. It
is stated that a Congressman or Senator can obtain a volume
now in less time than he could when the books were in their
old quarters in the Capitol. If in the midst of a speech it
occurs to a Senator that he needs a certain book or the file
of a certain newspaper, he has but to call a page, whisper

436 FORTY-FIVE MILES OF SHELVING.

his wish, and before he has delivered many more sentences,
the page returns with the book or file.

"When passing from the Rotunda to the book-stacks one
goes from the region of art to a region in which practical
considerations chiefly obtain. It is no longer a question of
beauty but of solidity, compactness, security, convenience,
light, and ventilation. The chief requirement to be met
here was such an arrangement as would hold the greatest
number of books in the smallest possible space, each volume
to be perfectly accessible and every shelf to be well lighted,
day or night. Of the three stacks, those of the north and
south are the largest, each having a length of one hundred
and twelve feet, a width of forty-five feet, and a height of
sixty-three feet. They are divided into nine stories of tiers,
each seven feet high, so that every book can be reached or
its title read from one of the floors. The whole construc-
tion is of iron and steel, except the flooring, which runs
down the central corridors and into each of the shelves, and
which consists of slabs of marble laid in iron frame work,
with a little space between it and the stack. Thus for the
purposes of heat, light, and ventilation the nine stories are
practically one.

The book-shelves are composed of strips of steel, the
total number in the three stacks being 69,100 shelves.
They can be adjusted to any height, and being of uniform
size any shelf is available anywhere. There are no rough
edges to wear the books. The strips are rounded and as
highly polished as glass. These amount to 231,680 running
feet, or about forty-five miles, which will accommodate 2,-
085,120 volumes of books, reckoning nine to the foot. The
capacity of the additional shelving, which may be placed in
the first and second stories of the northeast and south
fronts, is about 2,500,000 volumes, and the ultimate capacity
of the building for books, without encroaching on the pavil-
ions, reading-rooms, museum halls, or other parts of the west

SOLVING THE LIGHTING PROBLEM. 437

front, or any part of the basement story or cellar, is there-
fore upward of 4,500,000 volumes, or nearly one hundred
miles of shelving.

The problem of lighting this immense storehouse of
books presented some difficulties, which were, however, suc-
cessfully solved. The inner walls are honeycombed with
windows opening into the courts, and are so located between
the cases and at the ends of passage-ways as to diffuse light
into two tiers at once. Upper and lower shelves are as well
lighted as those in the center. The windows are of polished
plate-glass, and are permanently sealed, so that no dust or
moisture can penetrate. The walls of the inner courts are
constructed of light-colored enameled brick, making admira-
ble reflectors, and the marble floors within are pure white.
Evenings, until ten o'clock, the light is furnished by an
abundance of electric lamps in every passage-way and re-
cess. Books must have air, but dust must be excluded, and
thus there is a ventilating arrangement whereby air is con-
stantly taken from the courts through filters of cotton cloth.
In winter the stacks are heated bv warm air ascending
through the spaces between the cases and the flooring, and
passing out through ventilating flues.

No apartments of the building are more lavishly and
sumptuously furnished and decorated than the reading-rooms
of the House and of the Senate. They have an air of mag-
nificence with their dark and massive wood furnishings, and
their ceilings paneled and finished in gold and colors of
somber character.

The effect of the decorations in the Senate room is more
restful than in the House apartment, thus according with
the distinctive differences between the two houses. As a
matter of fact these rooms are used very little by members
of either house. If they are making studies of any subject,
they more frequently order the desired books sent to their
residences, where they may use them in seclusion. They,

438 THE librarian's office.

like the President or heads of departments, are privileged
to draw from the Library to any extent. Some members of
Congress, however, make large use of these Library reading-
rooms for more extended research.

One room on this floor we should not fail to enter, even
at the risk of disturbing for a moment the scholarly gentle-
man at the massive oak desk in the center — the Librarian
of Congress. The room is divided into two apartments by
a broad and open arch, leaving the office proper on one side
and a smaller and more private office on the other. The
fittings are of massive oak ; the gallery has a groined ceil-
ing, and over the main office is a shallow dome with beauti-
ful stucco decorations, showing Grecian girls and garlands.
The color-scheme is chiefly green, softened by the light
which pours in from the northwest court. It is a sanctum
at once refined and magnificent.

The Library service requires a force of 341 persons ; the
Library proper 185; copyist division 45; disbursement and
care of buildings and grounds 111.

. We need not leave the beautiful building without satis-
fying the cravings of the inner man. An elevator takes us
from any floor to the " attic " of the central pavilion, where
there is a cafe befitting the elegance of the edifice, and a
bill of fare that will satisfy the most exacting appetite.
Here we can sit and refresh ourselves and marvel at the
glory and beauty our eyes have seen, and the priceless liter-
ary treasures of which we have had but a glance in passing.

CHAPTER XXVII.

THE LIBRARY OP CONGRESS CONTINUED — AMONG ITS
BOOKS AND PRICELESS TREASURES.

Early Struggles of the Library — Starting with 1,000 Books and Nino
Maps — Thomas Jefferson's Contribution — Destroyed by Fire — A
Famous Librarian — Marvelous Growth of the Library — Nearly a
Million Volumes — Some Priceless Old Books — A Unique Collection
of Political Handbills — Some Remarkable Volumes and Still More
Remarkable Illustrations — The "Breeches Bible" — The "Bug
Bible "—Eliot's Indian Bible — A Book Which No One Can Read Val-
ued at 11,500 — Valuable Manuscripts and Papers of Early Presidents
— A Collection of 300,000 Pieces of Music — The Music-Room — The
Periodical Reading Room — The Map-Room — A Wonderful Collec-
tion of Maps and Atlases — A Tour Through the Basement — Read-
ing-Room for the Blind — A Unique Institution — The Intellectual
Center of the Nation — A Wonderful Storehouse of Knowledge Free
to All.

EEBLE, indeed, was the beginning of the Library
of Congress, that great institution which now so
thoroughly represents the intellectual achieve-
ments of the American people, and to a large
extent of the people of the whole world. It was
established in 1800, or at about the time that the
government left Philadelphia and came to "the city in the
woods " to abide. "While Congress was still sitting in the
Quaker city, it appropriated $5,000 for books, but, just as
happens now, whenever the government endeavors to take a
step in advance, strict constructionists of the Constitution
strongly opposed such an enterprise — because, forsooth,
that document said nothing about libraries. Jefferson.

(439)

440 THE LIBRARY BURNED BY THE BRITISH.

however, though the leader of the party from which the
opposition chiefly came, strongly favored the idea, but he
preferred to call it " the Library of the United States."

Ag the beginning the Library was shelved in the Cap-
itol. The first catalogue was issued in April, 1802, from
which it appears that it contained 1,064 volumes and nine
maps. This slender acquisition, grown to 3,000 volumes
in 1814, served as convenient kindlings for the flames with
which the British destroyed the Capitol in that year,
though most of the books were subsequently replaced. A
few weeks after this disaster, a letter was read in the Sen-
ate from Thomas Jefferson, who was then living in retire-
ment at Monticello and laboring under some financial diffi-
culties. He offered the government the largest portion of
his library, and Congress purchased of him 6,760 volumes
for $23,950. This collection had been the delight of Jeffer-
son's life, and, long before, he had written of it as " the best
chosen collection of its size, probably, in America." Some
members of Congress had their suspicions about Jefferson's
tastes, however, and they sought to have a provision made
for the rejection of books " of an atheistical, irreligious, and
immoral tendency," but these objections did not prevail.

With Jefferson's books as a nucleus, the Library of Con-
gress began to make substantial gains, and in 1850 it con-
tained about 55,000 volumes. But on December 24, 1851, a
fire broke out in the rooms in which the books were
shelved, and before it could be extinguished had consumed
about 35,000 volumes, or about three-fourths of the collec-
tion. Congress liberally appropriated money to replace the
books so far as possible, and, from that time, the growth of
the Library has been unchecked. Its real growth, however,
began with the administration of Ainsworth R. Spofford,
who was appointed Librarian by President Lincoln in De-
cember, 1864, and who for nearly thirty-seven years was
Librarian of Congress. His accomplishments amounted to

INSIDE THE MAIN ENTRANCE TO THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.

No one is prepared for the vision that bursts upon him when he has passed through the
mammoth bronze doors. It is like entering into another world. Visitors gaze in dumb amaze-
ment, as with uplifted eyes they seek to comprehend the beauty and the grandeur that pervade
the place. The massive stairway is of white marble delicately carved.

THE LIVING INDEX TO THE COLLECTION. 44:}

a genius, not only for increasing the size of the Library, but
for developing its efficiency. He has been credited with
absorbing, by some mysterious mental process, the contents
of every book in order to aid the inquiries of Congress and
the public, and he has been, and still is, the best catalogue
and index of what the mammoth collection contains.

In the gallery of the Smithsonian Institution, upon a
simple plaster column, may be seen the bust of a man who
in one way rendered a very important service to the nation.
It is that of Peter Force, who did more than any one Amer-
ican to rescue from oblivion the early documentary history
of the United States. He was born in 1790, became a prom-
inent printer in New York, and settled in Washington as a
printer in 1812. In 1820 he began the publication of an
annual volume of national statistics. In 1833 the govern-
ment entered into a contract with Mr. Force to prepare and
publish a "Documentary History of the American Colo-
nies." Nine volumes subsequently appeared under the title
of " American Archives." In preparing this work, Mr.
Force amassed a collection of books, manuscripts, periodi-
cals, pamphlets, and papers relating to American History,
unequaled by any private collection then in the world. At
the request of the Joint Library Committee of the Thirty-
ninth Congress, Mr. Spofford entered into a thorough exam-
ination of the Force Library. He presented to Congress
a classified report of its treasures, which resulted in the pur-
chase of the entire collection through the Joint Library
( Jommittee for the sum of $100,000, the same amount which
had been offered by the New York Historical Society.

Under Mr. Spofford's fostering care and by moderate
appropriations for securing the best works in every field of
intellectual activity, the Library grew with great rapidity,
so that in less than fifteen years after his appointment the
capacity of its quarters in the Capitol became greatly over-
taxed. Many of the volumes were packed away where they

444 SPACE FOR FOUR MILLION VOLUMES.

were practically inaccessible, either to members of Congress
or to students. Then came the agitation for a new build-
ing, which finally resulted in the present beautiful and emi-
nently-practical structure and provided space for a growth
to at least 4,000,000 volumes.

The number of volumes in the Library has already
nearly reached the million mark. There are besides half a
million of pamphlets, nearly half a million separate pieces of
music, over 30,000 maps, and more than 300,000 engravings,
photographs, etchings, and pictorial illustrations in general.

A large number of scientific publications are issued each
year by the Smithsonian Institution and these it distributes
throughout the world, receiving in exchange a great body
of scientific literature which practically comprehends most
works of value issued by the various scientific societies of
Christendom. This splendid collection of material is regu-
larly deposited in the Library of Congress and forms one of
the best scientific libraries in the world. Many contribu-
tions of foreign literature are also secured through the vari-
ous departments of the government. Occasionally valuable
private collections find their ultimate home here.

Being, in a sense, a national Library, it has been one of
the foremost aims of the management to secure all books,
pamphlets, maps, and periodicals relating to our own country
— everything illustrating the discovery, settlement, history,
biography, and natural resources of the continent. In addi-
tion to the many valuable books secured by the purchase of
the Force Library, most of the earlier and very rare works
have been picked up in Europe and in auction sales of books
at home and abroad. The whole includes manv of the
earliest-printed books and papers from American presses.

It would be difficult to estimate the value of this collec-
tion of "Americana," for it contains many fugitive fragments
which, though lightly esteemed in their day, have become
almost priceless with age and rarity. One such feature, for

CAMPAIGN HANDBILLS OF OLDEN TIME. 445

example, is composed of a large number of old engravings,
cartoons, and handbills, showing the peculiar or characteris-
tic qualities of our long-forgotten political campaigns. Being
the ephemeral products of their day, they were rarely saved,
but those which have been rescued and deposited here afford
a glimpse of the real political life of olden days, not to be
gained from the pages of our written histories.

In the popular mind the forms and features of the Presi-
dents of earlier decades take on a sort of majesty with time,
but we are disillusioned when we look upon some of the re-
markable caricatures of the campaigns of Jackson, and of
the "log-cabin" campaign of William Henry Harrison.
Crude and coarse was the political art of those days, but
there was a ruggedness in its humor that still lingers in the
more refined examples of these later times. This collection
includes various contemporary engravings of the Presidents
from Washington down, and many old handbills, calls for
political meetings, earnest appeals to the "citizens" to turn
out and do something to save the country from destruction.
It requires but a glance at these old relics to convince us
that modern politics is no new thing.

In the collection of rare and early books pertaining to
America are found, not simply those printed in this country,
and the files of early American newspapers, like that pub-
lished by Franklin, but some exceedingly-quaint and curious
works published in England and Spain during the period of
settlement. Many of these antiques can be seen in the exhi-
bition cases under glass. Yellow with age, and never things
of beauty from a modern printer's point of view, are these
works with their remarkable title-pages and still more re-
markable illustrations. Here are scores of small volumes,
purporting in their titles to describe the condition of various
colonies, and particularly of the religious disturbances which
seemed to be affecting them. Older still are some of the
works describing the early settlement of some of the West

446 PRICELESS LITERARY TREASURES.

Indian Islands, and containing grewsome pictures of Caribbee
Indians roasting Spanish arras and legs over the fire, or
calmly gnawing the flesh from the bones of their victims.

In various ways many books of great rarity and age, in
no way relating to America, have come into the possession
of the government. Here is a copy of the first edition of
Paradise Lost ; copies of the first, second, third, and fourth
folio editions of Shakespeare's plays, and a large array of
early editions of the Bible. One of these is the famous
"Breeches Bible"; another a copy of the so-called "Bug
Bible," in which the more stately rendering of the psalmist :
" Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night," is trans-
lated "af rayed of anye bugges by nyghte."

Among the treasures acquired through the Force Library
is a perfect copy of the first Bible printed in this country —
Eliot's Indian Bible — a copy of which once sold for $1,500,
although it is a book which no one can read. It is in a
tongue utterly dead and which was famous for long words.
It required thirty-four letters in a single word to render a
phrase in the gospel of Mark. We can imagine the type-
setters of that day following the strange, long-drawn-out
words, and Eliot reading and revising the proofs in consulta-
tion with one of his Indian preachers. Cotton Mather says
that Eliot wrote the whole translation with one quill, which
leads us to believe that Cotton Mather was not always so
truthful as George Washington — or else it was a miracu-
lous quill.

One of the Bibles on exhibition is a copy of the Yulgate, in
two great folio volumes, a Latin manuscript of the thirteenth
century, written on vellum, with 150 large illuminations and
1,200 miniatures. It is a curious work of art, over which
some old monk must have spent his life. A long scroll con-
taining the entire Koran, in beautiful Arabic writing of
the fourteenth century, is another of the many priceless
treasures.

VALUABLE DOCUMENTS AND RECORDS. 44?

The Library furnishes an appropriate repository for old
manuscripts of eminent men of America, and while Congress
has made no special provision for securing such treasures by
purchase, in various ways many have come into the possession
of the Library. They include some manuscript papers of
four of the early Presidents. Among them also are the
originals of the articles of association of the First Continen-
tal Congress, many of the orders and letters of John Paul
Jones, many letters and papers in the handwriting of Frank,
lin, Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Monroe, and of the gen-
erals of the Revolutionary "War. Among the older manu-
scripts are the original records of the Virginia Company in
early colonial days, and of several old Indian treaties. One
of the most curious relics is a manuscript volume of the
drawings of the United States Lottery of 1779, instituted to
raise funds to carry on the War of Independence.

In addition to its great collection of books, the Library
has acquired a rich accumulation of works of the fine arts,
many of them very costly and valuable. A multitude of
these are arranged in cases, and form a most instructive ex-
hibit of the progress of the arts of design. Here can be
found, not only the best etchings of our own artists, but
etchings and drawings of foreign artists. Adjoining the art
department are the music-rooms, containing over 300,000
pieces of music. All nations are represented. From the
Turkish minister has been secured an old Turkish cradle-
song seldom heard outside the harem. Other ministers at
Washington have presented folk-songs and native ballads
which have never before been known outside of their own
countries. Here too are Hindoo and Armenian airs and
Hawaiian songs in the melodious Kanaka language.

All operas, symphonies, and other musical productions,
from stately oratorios to " rag-time " two-steps come here to
be copyrighted and are here filed away. One advantage of
the musical department is that copies of new compositions

448 IN TOUCH WITH ALL THE WORLD.

can usually be seea here earlier than in the music stores, and
can be tried in the music-room of the Library, a large and
lofty apartment, in which are placed a grand piano and other
musical instruments, for the use of the musical public under
proper regulations. As a rule none but musicians are admitted
to the department. Bat as nearly every one is willing to claim
that he has more or less music in his soul, admittance is not
difficult, and you may happen to drop in at a time when a
real artist is trying some new composition.

The periodical reading-room is a vast apartment run-
ning the entire length of the building on the south. Here,
upon polished oak racks, classified by states or countries, are
fibs of the leading daily papers of the country and many of
tb.3 leading journals of the world. Easy chairs and tables
are placed between the racks, and, no matter from what
part of the country you come, you may sit here by the win-
dow and read the local news. Farther on is a longer series
of racks containing hundreds of the weeklies, monthlies, and
quarterlies of this country, and the leading magazines and
reviews of the world. The long array is thoroughly classi-
fied. If you wish to read the religious, the philosophical,
the medical, the military, the theosophic, the financial mag-
azines, trade journals, or reviews of any branch of human
activity, you have but to walk to the proper rack, select the
magazine or review you wish, seat yourself in a comfortable
arm-chair, and read. If you tire of one, there are hundreds
of others. From nine o'clock in the morning till ten in the
evening the Library is open to the public. No department
of this great storehouse of knowledge more clearly shows
that it is " the library of the people." Nowhere else in all
the world is the periodical literature spread out so com-
pletely and so freely as in this magnificent reading-hall.

In another wing of the building is the hall of maps and
charts, containing a collection of maps which is not sur-
passed in the world, all arranged in cases and so classified,

IN THE COPYRIGHT DEPARTMENT. 451

both as to time and place, as to make reference convenient
and easy. You may go to this place and study the geo-
graphical details of almost every spot on the earth that has
ever been surveyed. Here also are maps in various lan-
guages, including great Chinese maps, and an enormous na-
tive map of Japan held in an immense bamboo frame. The
lettering is all in large Japanese characters, and while
revealing the artistic precision of the Japanese, it presents
a queer appearance to the American. The Library has a
complete collection of the great atlases of the "world, as
well as of most early books of travel and discovery. Thus
the student can trace the development of human conceptions
of the earth's surface from the earliest days.

The basement is reached by marble stairways from
the main entrance hall. One would naturally expect
to find here a cheapening in the design and finish, and a
resort to imitations of the rich and costly materials of the
upper floors. But everything is real — there is no imitation
here. The walls are wainscoted in marble, and all from Amer-
ican quarries, on this, the ground floor, and show the sub-
stantial character of the whole structure. It is absolutely
fire-proof, not because of any ingenious construction, but
because of the very nature of the material used.

This basement, which is really the ground floor, and
which is well lighted, besides providing room for the exten-
sion of the Library, furnishes ample quarters for the Copy-
right Department, which employs a large clerical force and
possesses extensive archives. To the Registrar of Copyrights
are made all applications for the copyright protection of
publications of every character — books, periodicals, music,
photographs, etc. Hundreds of such applications are
examined and passed every day. It has become the custom
of many of the large newspapers to copyright every issue
of their paper, as it compels others using their articles of
news or information to give credit for them. Copyrights

452 THE INTELLECTUAL CENTER OF THE NATION.

are granted for twenty-eight years, with the privilege of
extension for fourteen years more.

One room, in the basement is devoted to a reading-room
for the blind, one of the most interesting features of the Li-
brary. Here almost any day one may see blind people
slowly passing their fingers over the raised letters of stand-
ard works of literature. The number of such works is, of
course, limited, but additions are constantly being made.
The volumes also are necessarily bulky, the Bible making
several large volumes. But this room affords advantages to
poor blind people which otherwise are not readily secured.
Daily during the season readings are given, often by promi-
nent authors who are visiting or resident in "Washington,
and are quite willing to read to an audience of people who
listen with the most earnest attention, albeit with closed
eyes. These entertainments are often varied with music.

The Library of Congress is unique among the institutions
of the government. It is the intellectual center of the
nation. In time, with the continuous growth of the Library
in all its various departments, it is certain to make the Capi-
tal city the literary and artistic center of the countoy.
~No where else can be found such a storehouse of knowledge
open to the people. Here students of history can find the
chronicles of every period in any language ; artists can
study the models and history of art of every age and clime ;
the architect and engineer can find the designs of the great
buildings and public works of every country ; the musician
can find the music of every tongue ; here, more complete
than anywhere else, can be found by those who seek them
religious commentaries and homilies, works of medicine and
surgery, poetry and drama, biography and memoir, essay
and criticism, metaphysics and ethics, genealogy and her-
aldry, law and finance, in short, the printed record of the
achievements of the Old World and the New in every line
of intellectual activity and human progress.

CHAPTER XXVIII.

THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT— THE MOST IMPOSING MON-
UMENT EVER ERECTED IN HONOR OP ONE MAN
— THE CORCORAN GALLERY OF ART.

The Greatest Monument in the World — It Bears No Inscription and Needs
None — Piercing the Sky — A Sublime Picture — First Steps to Erect
a Monument to the Memory of Washington — A Request that the Re-
mains of Washington Be Interred in the Capitol — The Request Re
fused — How the Money Was Raised for a Monument — Vexatious
Delays — Its Completion and Cost — The Highest Structure of Stone
in the World — Its Dimensions and Height — Struck by Lightning —
The Ascent to the Top in an Elevator — What It Costs Uncle Sam To
Carry Visitors Up and Down — The Corcoran Gallery of Art — A
Beautiful Building — Its Treasures of Art — Its Galleries of Paintings
— Its Famous Bronzes — A Wonderful Collection — Its Great Value.

jASHINGTON is a city of monuments erected to
the memory of the nation's great men of the
the past, and foremost among them stands the
Washington Monument, towering in majestic
simplicity, dignity, and grandeur, so well illustrating
a nation's conception of the Father of Plis Country.
Towering nearly 600 feet above the waters of the Potomac
which flows close by, the great white shaft is seen for miles
around, marking the city's site, and on its top the first rays
of morning fall and the last tinge of sunset lingers. It bears
no inscription to the memory of Washington. It needs none.
It could stand for no one else.

Sometimes it is half hidden in heavy hanging clouds
which envelop and conceal its top, and sometimes its base
lies hidden in the mists, while the sun glitters upon its apex.

(453)

454 MAJESTIC SIMPLICITY OF THE MONUMENT.

But it never presents a sublimer picture than when its grand
proportions stand out against a sky of purest azure, flecked
here and there by fleecy white clouds. One never tires of
beholding it. It loses nothing by familiarity. Though we
may pass it day after day, it never becomes commonplace.
Every time one looks at it its grandeur seems more
impressive.

The first steps for a monument to "Washington were taken
by the Continental Congress in 1783, when it was resolved
that an equestrian statue should be erected at the place
where the residence of Congress should finally be estab-
lished. On December 19, 1799, the day after his mortal
remains had been committed to the little tomb at Mount
Vernon, a committee of both Houses of Congress was ap-
pointed " to report measures suitable to the occasion and ex-
pression of the profound sorrow with which Congress is
penetrated on the loss of a citizen first in war, first in peace,
and first in the hearts of his countrymen." A few days
later Congress resolved that a marble monument be erected
by the United States in the Capitol, and that the family
be requested to permit his body to be deposited under it.
To this Martha "Washington consented.

But Congress became absorbed in other matters, nothing
further was done about the proposed monument, and the
wife followed the husband into the little tomb at Mount
Yernon. Occasionally the subject of a monument was dis-
cussed, but without results. In 1832 Congress made applica-
tion to the proprietors of Mount Yernon for the transfer of
the remains of Washington to the Capitol in conformity
with the resolution of over thirty years before, but
Yirginia protested and John A. Washington declined.
Congress having again dropped the matter, the people of the
Capital city took it up and in 1833, at a public meeting,
the Washington National Monument Society was formed
with Chief Justice John Marshall, then in his seventy-eighth

THE MONUMENT DEDICATED. 455

year, as president. Artists were invited to submit designs
which should "harmoniously blend durability, simplicity,
and grandeur."

The design originally accepted was submitted by Robert
Mills. It provided for an obelisk rising GOO feet from the
center. Funds were solicited, but the money came in slowly.
The site was selected in 1848, and the corner-stone was laid
on Independence Day that year, the plan meantime having
been modified so as to provide for an obelisk 500 feet high.
The work then went on until 1854, when the shaft had
reached to a height of 156 feet. Then the funds of the
society gave out. The cost thus far had been $300,000.
Congress was asked to appropriate $200,000, but there were
too many political complications then to permit that troubled
body to attend to the matter.

Then came the Civil War and nothing more could be
done. The society presented memorials to Congress and
asked for subscriptions from the people, but it was not till
1ST0 that Congress appropriated $'200,000 for continuing the
work. It also assumed the responsibility for its completion.
A commission was appointed and found that the foundation
was insufficient to sustain the shaft proposed, and thus about
$100,000 were at first spent in enlarging and deepening the
foundations, a rather difficult work as the part already built
had to be undermined. On the sixth of December, 1884,
the capstone, which completed the shaft, was set, and on
February 12, 1885, it was dedicated — "the most imposing,
costly, and appropriate monument ever erected in the honor
of one man." The total cost has been about $2,000,000.

The square of about forty acres, in the center of which
the monument stands, was approved by Washington him-
self. The total height of the shaft above ground is 555 feet
and six inches, thus making it the highest structure of stone
in the world. The foundations, which bear a weight of over
•",000 tons, are 147 feet square and thirty -seven feet deep.

456 THE HIGHEST STRUCTURE OF STONE IN THE WORLD.

At the base the shaft is fifty -five feet square and the walls
are fifteen feet thick, but it gradually tapers till, where the
pyramidal top begins, it is only thirty-five feet square and
the walls are eighteen inches thick. The inside of the walls,
as far as constructed before the government took hold of the
matter, is of blue granite roughly laid, but from this point
the granite is laid in courses to correspond with the outer
courses of marble. The blocks were all cut and dressed in
the most careful manner and the work has been declared to
be the best piece of masonry in the world. By a plumb
line suspended from the top inside, not three-eighths of an
inch deflection has been noticed. Lightning has struck the
apex many times, but so solid and massive is the shaft that
it has thus far defied the elements.

An immense iron frame work supports the machinery of
the elevator, while winding about it are the stairs of fifty
flights containing eighteen steps each, 900 in all. The stair-
case is wide and of easy ascent. Every fifty feet there is a
platform which extends to the elevator, so that visitors can
get on or off the elevator at many different places. Twenty
minutes are required to walk to the top, while the elevator
will carry you up in seven minutes. The interior of the ele-
vator is lighted by electricity, as there are no openings in
the shaft except the entrance door and small windows at
the top. It costs the government about $20,000 a year to
take visitors up and down. The lookout platform is a large
chamber with an area of over 1,000 square feet and there
are two windows on each face of the monument. It is
so high that we seem to have cut loose from the world, and
the city below appears like a model in miniature.

In the rubble-stone masonry in the lower interior walls
are set a number of memorial stones, sent to the Washington
Monument Society by States, corporations, and foreign gov-
ernments to be inserted in the monument ; but in the upper
walls no such stones were set, as they would have weakened

SUGGESTIVE xMEMORIAL STONES. 45?

the shaft. Many of them are elaborately carved and cost a
great deal of money. They are of marble, fine gran-
ite, and brown stone, and among them is one block of pure
copper. There are stones from America's battle-fields, and
from the classic temples of the old world ; some are rich in
historic associations, others are the expression of the friendly
interest of older nations. The little republic, Switzerland,
sent to the younger, greater republic a block of sandstone,
eloquent in its suggestions of the long struggle for liberty.
The inscription reads :

" This block of stone is from the original chapel built to
William Tell in 133S on Lake Lucerne, Switzerland, at the
spot where he escaped from Gessler."

The keystone that binds the interior ribs of stone that sup-
port the marble facing of the pyramidal cap of the obelisk
weighs nearly five tons. On the cap was placed a tip or
point of aluminum, a composition metal which resembles
p Wished silver, selected because of its lightness and freedom
from oxidation, and because it will always remain bright.
The tip is nine inches in height and weighs six and one-
quarter pounds. On it are inscribed the words Laus Deo.

Many prominent residents of "Washington have never
been to the top of the monument or even within it, but
strangers rarely fail to avail themselves of the opportunity.
In 1900 there were over 165,000 visitors.

The Corcoran Gallery of Art is an enduring monument
to the philanthropy of the late William Wilson Corcoran.
He laid the foundation of an immense fortune during the
Mexican War, and early decided to devote a portion of his
wealth to the welfare of his fellow-men. His charities, ex-
ceeding altogether $5,000,000, have a leading place in many
of the institutions of the city. The Gallery of Art was
begun in 1859, but the Civil War interrupted its progress,
and it was not until 1869 that Mr. Corcoran deeded it to the
trustees for " the perpetual establishment and encourage-

458 ART TREASURES OF THE CORCORAN GALLERY.

ment of Painting, Sculpture, and the Fine Arts generally,"
with the condition that on two days of the week, at least,
it should be open to visitors without any pecuniary charge.
The present magnificent building was not completed and
occupied until 1897. It is constructed of Georgia marble,
and its solid white walls are broken only by open panels
used for ventilating the galleries.

Broad marble steps lead from the entrance into the main
atrium, which is 170 feet long and fifty feet wide. Forty
fluted columns of stone support the ceiling, through which
pours a flood of light upon the many beautiful white marble
figures and the numerous busts which line the walls. Large
rooms opening from this main atrium also contain casts of
the more noted works of ancient sculpture, while others are
devoted to original marbles, bronzes, and artistic curios.

In an adjoining room is a large collection of famous
bronzes. Close by is a remarkable collection of works of
Japanese art and of reproductions of unique metallic objects
of art preserved in European museums.

From the western side of this atrium rises a white marble
staircase, fifteen feet in width, leading to the second-story
atrium, the ceiling of which, like that below, is supported by
columns of stone. The walls of the room and of the gal-
leries opening from it are devoted to a collection of paintings
which in value and excellence is surpassed only by few. In
all there are some 250 large paintings belonging to the insti-
tution, while there are a number which have been loaned
from private collections and which cost thousands of dollars.
Altogether the building contains over 4,000 works of art, all
of real merit, for no space is sacrificed to anything but costly
originals or reproductions of famous originals. The Cor-
coran donations amount to $1,600,000, while $350,000 more
have been paid by the trustees for paintings and, as many
valuable works have been given in private bequests, the
whole value of the collection is over $2,000,000.

CHAPTER XXIX.

THE CIVIL SERVICE AND ITS MYSTERIES — HOW GOVERN-
MENT POSITIONS ARE OBTAINED — WOMEN IN THE
DEPARTMENTS — WOMAN'S INFLUENCE
AT THE CAPITOL.

What Is the Civil Service ? — How Heads of Bureaus Are Appointed —
The " Spoils " System — Difficulty of Obtaining a Government Posi-
tion— The Importance of Having a "Political Pull" — Attraction of
Good Pay and Short Hours — Doing as Little as Possible — How To
Obtain a Government Position — The Chances of Getting It — Influ-
ence of Local Politicians — The Government Blue Book — Complex
Rules and Mysterious Injunctions — Taking an Examination — A
Mysterious Marking Process — What Is "An Eligible " 1 — Bitter Dis-
appointments and Shattered Hopes — Position Brokers — Mr. Parasite
in Office — Abject Political Beggars — Arrogant Office-Holders — An
Ignoble Side of Human Nature — Faithful, Courteous, and Earnest
Office-Holders — Marvelous Growth of the Civil Army.

^p^wf s & world abounding in imperfect men and women
it is needless to expect a perfect Civil Service.
Almost every line of human activity offers
abundant opportunities for the display of human
frailties, and nowhere, probably, are more offered
than in the bestowal of that vast patronage arising
from the fact that Uncle Sam requires the help of thousands
of human hands to do the work which he plans. There
were abuses enough in the old days under " the spoils sys-
tem," inaugurated by Jackson to satisfy the clamor of the
unruly mob which poured into Washington after him. Yet
these abuses did not cease with the passage of the Civil
Service Act of 1883.

(461)

462 DIVISIONS OF THE CIVIL SERVICE.

Kenned theorists in their editorial sanctums and en-
dowed college chairs, know exactly how the Civil Service
could be reformed. How can it be otherwise than perfect,
they argue, if every appointment depends upon examination
as to qualifications, and promotion is conditional upon effi-
ciency in the performance of duties ? But it is otherwise,
although the majority of people seem to have the impression
that inasmuch as a Civil Service Law and a Civil Service
Commission exist, the reform is fully accomplished.

The Civil Service may be divided into three general
divisions. First, there are the heads of bureaus and divi-
sions, with a considerable number of immediate subordinates
who always were, and still are, appointed by the President
or heads of departments. They come in with an adminis-
tration, and, as a rule, go out with it. No one questions the
justice of this, because, under the Constitution, the President
is directly responsible for his administration, and to force
upon him important executive agents out of sympathy with
his policy might lead to disaster, or give him the opportunity
of shifting the responsibility, if matters did not go well.

Second, there are those — not a large number compara-
tively— occupying positions of importance, whose services
could not, without disadvantage, be dispensed with. When
the head of a department enters upon his duties he is, until
he has mastered the practical operations of the governmental
machine, more or less dependent upon a certain small class
of office-holders who, from long experience and study, have
mastered the ordinary modes of procedure.

Third, there is that largest class, composed of all the
clerks, copyists, stenographers, and laborers. Under the old
" spoils " system, a large proportion of these were almost
certain to be removed whenever a new administration came
upon the scene. Many of these people perform duties of
such a routine character that it is possible at any time to
replace one with another without the least jar upon the

THE IMPORTANCE OF A POLITICAL PULL. 463

wheels of the government. About 100,000 of this class are
now under what is known as the classified service ; that is,
in the elaborate system of the Civil Service Commission,
their positions are classified under different branches — just
as so many bugs in the Smithsonian Institution are classified
under genus and species.

One of the evils attending the enforced exodus of many
people every four years was that the just suffered too often
with the unjust, and it is certain that government positions
of this lower grade did not offer the inducements to men
and women of good character and ability which are now
offered, through a reasonable, although sometimes delusive
expectation of permanency.

If you, our readers, should aspire to a government posi-
tion, we will tell you how to get, or try to get one ; premis-
ing that if you should be successful and should be so
unfortunate as not to leave it shortly, voluntarily or other-
wise, you will never be anything else but a plodding
clerk, and in time will become one of the army of hopeless,
incurable inmates of a government institution.

A Civil Service examination is something like vaccina-
tion. You " take " the latter, and may have small-pox and
may not ; probably not. You take the former and may get
a government position and may not ; probably not. The
chances are about 999 to one that you will not, unless you
have good endorsers or "backers," as they are called at
the Capital. You must, therefore, secure the endorsement of
your Senators, Congressmen, and those leading men in your
locality whom your Senators and Congressmen recognize as
influential at election times. If you know of a man who
can control a hundred or more votes at a congressional elec-
tion, get his name. No matter what his position, if he can
marshal a few votes, his name is worth more than that of a
man of world-wide reputation who can command no vote
but his own. Certain endorsements must go in with your

464 TAKING THE EXAMINATION.

application to the Civil Service Commission, but it is
only a matter of form. Give them the names of well-knowp
men who have no political influence. Send the endorse-
ments of those who command votes to your Congressmen.
With them it isn't a matter of form, but of business.

The average person who desires a government position
has no particular choice except that he prefers one attended
with a good salary. There is a so-called Blue Book, which
now consists of two enormous volumes, enumerating all of
the many government positions and the salary or fees
attached to each. You may pore over these volumes,
select any position you think you would like, and try
for it. In the old days you might have " fired at random "
and in several different directions ; but now you must make
application for some particular position in which, you are
distinctly told, there is no vacancy; though there may be
one — some time.

The various positions are enumerated by class in a Man-
ual which the commission will send to you upon request.
Folded into this Manual is the clearest thing about it — a
large schedule of the times and places for holding examina-
tions for the current }Tear. At one of these particular times
and places you must take a particular examination for a par-
ticular position, and this examination will cost you nothing.
You are not permitted to double your chances by being ex-
amined for another position at any stage of the proceedings.

If, you are so fortunate as to be able to present your
application papers according to the elaborate rules, regula-
tions, and provisos, you will receive a card which entitles
you to admission to the next examination in your section of
the country. You are ushered into this ordeal very much as
if on trial for your life, and the probabilities are that, after
undergoing an undue [strain of the nervous system for two
days of six hours each, you will come out of it with the
feeling that the evidence is all against you.

AN INTRICATE "MARKING" PROCESS. 405

Nevertheless the verdict does uot come like a thunder-
clap. You are distinctly warned in the Manual not to ex-
pect a notification as to whether you passed or not within
four months. This delay is because the process of marking-
is so intricate and so occult that the ultimate result can only
come with time, and lots of it. The rule is:

" Mark every faulty answer according to its value on a
scale of 100, as herein specially directed, and deduct the
sum of the error marks of each answer from 100. The dif-
ference between the sum of the error marks of each answer
and 100 will be the mark of the answer."

The transparency of this is completely destroyed by a
vast number of special or supplementary regulations, more
or less definite — not simply for fixing the gravity of errors,
but for providing a large supply of possible errors over and
above any that flesh is ordinarily heir to.

In arithmetic, for instance, 10 is deducted, according to
rules, for " irrelevant work not canceled," the examiners, of
course, being the judges of the irrelevancy, and they are
human beings ; 10 more is deducted " for complex statement,
right results being produced"; there is another deduction
for " failure to indicate the answer to a problem by the let-
ters 'Ans.' " But the complications do not cease here. These
examinations in "Writing, Spelling, Arithmetic, and so forth,
are called in Civil Service parlance " basic." They have three
grades, and one of these grades is common to a bewildering
variety of other examinations termed " auxiliary." These lat
ter are supposed to be given with special reference to the
position you have applied for, which, for the sake of con-
venience, we will suppose to be that of an elevator conductor.
We will assume that you have had long experience in that
line, and possess a perfect knowledge of requirements, and
would be a most desirable man for the place.

In your auxiliary examination for this position, as for
others, certain acquirements have certain "weights" in

i66 WHAT IT IS TO BE "ELIGIBLE."

determining your ultimate mark. This is really something
of an occult process, though given the flavor of pure mathe-
matics by the general rule of the commission, which is as
follows :

" Multiply the average obtained on each subject by the
relative weight of that subject ; add the products ; divide the
sum of the products by the sum of the relative weights."

In your examination for an elevator conductor, Spelling,
Arithmetic, Letter Writing, Penmanship, and Copying from
Plain Copy, each have an arbitrary "weight" of 16, or 80
altogether, while experience has a weight of 20. Thus you
might know more about running an elevator than all of the
Civil Service Commissioners and examiners together, but
fail to pass this examination for a conductor. And the
applicant who sat next to you and who never saw an elevator
in his life might receive a high mark. He might receive the
appointment, moreover, not because he really surpassed you in
Spelling, Arithmetic, etc., but because in the opinion of
some examiner he had less " irrelevant work not canceled "
and less " complex statements, right results being produced,"
and so on. Other things that you could by no means antici.
pate may influence the result.

But, if as a result of this mysterious marking process,
you should emerge with an ultimate mark above 70, you
would then be what is called " an eligible," and in about
four months after the examination would be notified of the
fact. " Eligibles " are simply those people whose names may
be submitted to the appointive power in any particular
department, in case there is a vacancy to be filled. If the
appointive officer calls for eligibles, he is under no obliga-
tions whatsoever to appoint the one having the highest
mark, which he knows is no index of real qualifications, under
the circumstances. Now, as ever, the political endorsement
determines results, and unless your Senator or Congressman
insists upon your appointment you are likely to remain an

WOMBN WORKERS IN THE DEPARTMENTS. -iO?

eligible for the period of one year. Then you cease to be
even that unless you take another examination.

"Washington is full of eligibles, and they are scattered all
over the country. They take their examinations regularly
as the time comes around, and are always eligible but
are never appointed. They call on senators and representa-
tives, receive promises, and go on for a month or two with
increased expectations. Every time the postman rings they
fly to the door expecting an envelope bearing a departmental
mark. But it never conies. They may have passed splendid
examinations, but they have not the " political pull."

One of the results of these highly-complex proceedings
has been the institution of a class of people who stand, or
seek to stand, in the position of attorney to applicants for
government positions. At best they can only suggest-
to you how to become an " eligible." So-called Civil Serv-
ice Schools have cropped up everywhere, and the only-
reason for their existence is that, even to citizens having
education, honesty, energy, ability, and experience well
fitted to make them good public servants, the processes of
the system are opaque and delusive.

About one-fourth of the government employees are
women. In passing through various departments, we have
seen them busily at work and have noted how wonderfully
well adapted to much of the government work are the nim-
ble fingers and quick brains of women. Some have charged
the government with injustice because the scale of wages to
women is not so high as to men, but, as a matter of fact, if
this be a sin, Uncle Sam is less a sinner than private corpo-
rations. Nowhere can women receive the wages Uncle
Sam pays them. Stenographers that could not possibly
receive over $8 a week in private offices are paid from $15
to $18 by the government. Some of the skilled counters or
linguists receive handsome salaries, though $1,800 is the

highest paid.
26

468 THE ARMY OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.

It was Milton who used the words "a fawning parasite,"
but it applies to many an official of to-day at "Washington,
who having secured some position in the service feels toler-
ably secure. Such a one quickly forgets that he was once a
political beggar, that he pulled every wire, flattered, and
cajoled, crawled in the dust, as it were, to get appointed.
The sense of gratitude, rarely strong in any man, is with
continued office sure to die out.

But the somewhat more secure tenure of government
office resulting from the present Civil Service system does
not make such creatures of all men. There is a great differ-
ence in men, to start with. Most of the classified officials
are courteous, obliging, faithful, and earnest men who escape
the corroding influence of their surroundings. But there
will always be a generous supply of weak souls. It is the
most abject political beggar who usually becomes the most
arrogant office-holder.

The growth of the civil army has been marvelous. The
first issue of the Blue Book in 1792 shows that there were
only 134 employees of the government in all the depart-
ments. In 1841 there were only sixty-four employees in the
Treasury Department, and the Pension Office was run by
four clerks and one messenger, but now in these depart-
ments alone the employees number thousands. The gov-
ernment now gives employment to more than 20,000 per-
sons in Washington, to whom is paid over $23,000,000 a
year. This growth is sure to continue. Every Congress
finds some new work for the government to do, as the
federal government gradually increases and concentrates its
power at Washington.

CHAPTER XXX.

OFFICE-SEEKERS AND OFFICE-SEEKING IN WASHINGTON —

THEIR DIFFICULTIES AND DANGERS — HOW

PLACE AND POWER ARE WON.

Those to Whom Washington Is a Whited Sepulcher and a Sham — An
Omnivorous Crowd of Place- and Fortune-Hunters — "Still They
Come"— Chronic and Ubiquitous Office-Seekers — Slim Chances of
the Average Applicant — Beguiled by Anticipation — " Placed on File
and Favorably Considered" — Awakening From a Delusion — " No
Vacancies as Yet" — Making Applicants "Feel Good" — Facing Want
and Destitution — Dejected and Despairing Office-Seekers — Their
Last Hope — Fresh Victims Every Year — A Pathetic Incident —
Women in Quest for Office — Remarkable Story of a Young Lady
Applicant — Lincoln's Aversion to Office-Seekers — An Interesting
Story — A Humorous Incident — A Visit From a Long-Haired Back-
woodsman — " I'd Like To See the Gineral."

EW visitors to Washington, "on pleasure bent,"
could ever be persuaded that this beautiful city
with its magnificent buildings, its splendid ave-
nues, and beautiful public grounds, has proven
be to many only a whited sepulcher and a sham !
Probably there is no other spot in the world less
suited to fulfill the wants and expectations of the omnivo-
rous crowd of place- and fortune-hunters that annually flocks
to our national Capital, and yet the constant cry is, " Still
they come ! "

In this motley throng may be found the inevitable
claimant, the pension applicant, the literary itinerant, the
broken gentleman of fortune, the professional blackleg,
third-rate lawyers, and last but not least, the chronic and

(469)

470 THE DELUDED OFFICE-SEEKER.

ubiquitous office-seeker. All these and many moro — repre
sentatives of nearly every walk in life — periodically invade
the city in droves, undismayed by the fate of those who
have preceded them. Before the advent of "civil service
reform," Washington, at the best, was a poor place for an
office-seeker; but, under the present conditions, restricted
and handicapped by favoritism and red tape, and practically
debarred by the uncertainties of competitive examination,
the chances of the average aspirant are one in a thousand.

To a novice seeking governmental employment, Wash-
ington at the start wears a rosy-hued tint. He is charmed
by variety and beguiled by anticipation. His examination,
under the rules of the "civil service," has been adjudged
satisfactory, his application "placed on file and favorably
considered," and the overjoyed novice, believing his appoint-
ment and installation only a question of time, contentedly
strolls around the city, and in his elation imagines Wash-
ington to be a perfect Elysium ! It sometimes takes weeks
to awaken him from his delusion. A couple of months
glide by and the mercury in his mental thermometer has
steadily declined to zero ; his lean pocketbook shows unmis-
takable signs of depletion; and in response to his anxious
inquiry the stereotyped reply from the Rotation Bureau,
" No vacancies as yet," wearies him by the monotony of its
frequency and no longer lulls him into fancied security, for
he is just beginning to understand that there are hundreds
of other applicants besides himself, and that the chief of the
bureau is a suave fellow who likes to make every one " feel
good."

His hopes of obtaining a "position " are every day grow-
ing less, and anxious forebodings succeed his late sanguine
anticipations. He would gladly shake off from his feet the
dust of this disappointing city, but he' has improvidently ex-
pended all his money and is fairly stranded in this modern
Sodom! Sometimes he has recourse to the pawn shops —

DISAPPOINTMENT AND DESPAIR. 471

but this precarious source of revenue is soou exhausted, and
want and destitution stare him in the face! The session of
Congress closes, his Congressman hurries home, and the
summer breezes softly stir the foliage in the Capitol grounds
where our half-starved office-seeker wanders, dejected and
despairing. His only hope, now, lies in the approach of a
new session of Congress, but that is too far away to be a
solace to him. He even curses the unlucky hour that
tempted him to leave home in quest of that elusive " office."
This is no fancy sketch, for year after year the same scene
is enacted ; with dreary monotony fresh victims are added
to the list of disappointed office-seekers who heedlessly, like
the moth, destroy themselves in the incandescent flame.

Only a short time ago a little incident, trifling in itself,
but yet pregnant with meaning, occurred one afternoon in
front of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad depot. A hearse
drove up and deposited on the platform a rough wooden
box containing the coffined remains of one who was appar-
ently a stranger in Washington. Accompanying it was a
small battered trunk and an umbrella. There was some-
thing very touching and pathetic in this simple funeral cor-
tege. It told a silent but impressive tale of blasted hopes
and a lonely death far from home of a disappointed office-
seeker.

Young, educated, refined women, who, in their eager
quest for employment, have ventured into Washington, in-
sufficiently provided with money, have encountered chilling
disappointments and deep mortification.

During President Cleveland's administration, a young
lady from a large city in the West came to Washington in
search of office; she brought with her an octavo volume
containing hundreds of recommendations from the leading
citizens and the entire municipality of her native city. She
had voluminous written testimonials from the most distin-
guished clergymen, urging her appointment. She had the

472 'fFEW DIE AND NONE RESIGN."

names of all the prominent business men, and the recom-
mendation of the Governor of the State.

It was a remarkable and overwhelming exhibit of the
strength and number of her friends. It demonstrated un-
questionably her popularity and worth, yet she could not
procure the smallest and most insignificant position in the
gift of the government, and was finally compelled to bor-
row money of her Congressman to return home.

It used to be a common phrase that no one need apply
for office; since "few die and none resign." This saying
was illustrated by a little incident that happened during
President Buchanan's administration. A clerk in the Quar-
termaster-General's department, while on a leave of absence,
fell ill, and it was officially reported that he could not live.
Straightway fifty applications for the impending vacancy
were filed in the Quartermaster-General's office. The young
man not only perversely got well, and thus disappointed the
hopes of the fifty aspirants, but held on to his office for
over forty years afterward.

It is not commonly known that for many years residents
and natives of Washington have enjoyed a priority in the
matter of distribution of office ; notwithstanding the mis-
leading statistical reports on the subject, more than three-
fourths of the governmental employees at our national Cap-
ital, though ostensibly booked as coming from the States,
are genuine, hone fide residents of the District of Columbia.

Office-seekers are by no means confined to that class who
are in search of ordinary clerical work ; there are a corre-
sponding number of applicants for distinguished positions in
the gift of the President or national Legislature, and ambi-
tious aspirants often pursue President and Congress with
the same degree of pertinacity that marks the contest for
places of lesser note.

The collector of the port of Boston, General McNeil,
who was a Democrat and an appointee of President Polk,

PATHETIC STORi" OF GENERAL MCNEIL. 473

though in the last stages of consumption, risked a journey
from Boston to Washington in the depth of winter expressly
to secure a continuance of bis office. The Whigs were de-
capitating their political opponents in every direction and an
effort had been made to remove General McNeil.

When he appeared before the President, wasted almost
to a shadow, and modestly asked for his family's sake, the
privilege of retaining his office, the President was greatly
affected.

"My dear General," he replied, feelingly, "you need not
have gone to the trouble and inconvenience of taking this
long journey in your delicate condition of health ; I have
not the slightest intention of making any change in the
Boston collectorship, nor shall I, while you continue to re-
main there."

General McXeil returned to his hotel, gratified and
touched by the cordial assurances of the President.

The next morning he was found ill in bed, scarcely able
to breathe, and before a physician could be summoned he
was dead.

President Lincoln had a marked dislike for office-seekers.
Often his first salutation to a visitor was, " Well, sir, I am
glad to know that you have not come after an office." One
day a delegation of leading Republicans from one of the
States called upon him to secure the appointment of a cer-
tain Colonel M as collector of the port. Lincoln re-
ceived them very graciously, and kept up such a running fire
of questions relative to the political situation that the dele-
gation got no chance to introduce the all-important subject.
At last the chairman, growing desperate, blurted out :

" Mr. President, we have come here to-day to present to
your favorable consideration, as a candidate for the collec-
torship of our city, the name of our honored and distin-
guished townsman, Colonel M . He is preeminently

qualified for the position — not only for his administrative

474 HUMOROUS PHASES OF OFFICE-SEEKING.

ability, but his invincible loyalty and attachment to Repub-
lican principles. No honors, sir, could be showered on him
that could elevate him higher in the estimation of his fellow- .
men."

Mr. Lincoln listened attentively to this panegyrical ref-
erence to their favorite, and then addressed the astonished
deputation as follows :

" Gentlemen, it gives me much gratification to hear the*

praise bestowed upon Colonel M . Such a man needs

no office ; it can confer on him no additional advantage, or
add prestige to his well-earned fame. You are right, Mr.
Chairman, ' no honors could be showered upon him that would
elevate him higher in the estimation of his fellow-men.' To
appoint so good and excellent a gentleman to a paltry place
like this would be an act of injustice to him. I shall reserve
the office for some poor politician who needs it."

And thus saying Mr. Lincoln politely dismissed the dele-
gation.

Office-seeking has its humorous phases as well as its dark,
silhouette shadows.

A young man, evidently a stranger in Washington, burst
into the General Land Office one day in a state of great ex-
citement.

" Say," he shouted to one of the clerks, " I hear there's a
vacancy in this bureau — has any one applied for it yet % "

" None that I am aware of," was the clerk's suave reply.

" Then put me down as the first applicant ; ' First come,
first served,' you know."

The clerk gravely informed him that he would have to
go before the Civil Service board for competitive examina-
tion.

The young man hurried off under great excitement, fully
convinced that his early application had secured the desired
appointment.

"When General Cass was Secretary of State under James

THE BACKWOODSMAN'S QUERY. 4 ', 5

Buchanan he was noted for his dignity and exelusiveness. It
was very seldom lie granted an interview to any one unless
he had matters to discuss of great political weight.

Towards the close of a rather busv afternoon, a stalwart
backwoodsman with a long, flowing gray beard presented
himself before the chief clerk.

" I'd like to see the gineral."

" The Secretary is too much engaged to receive anyone,"
said the chief clerk. " Please state your business to me."

" I haint got no biz'ness," was the blunt reply. " I jis'
come to ax him a question."

General Cass overheard him, and opening the door that
led into his private office he abruptly accosted his visitor.
" Here I am, my man, now what is the question ? "

" Wall, gineral," said the old backwoodsman, " as I hap-
pened to be in Washington, I thought I'd call on you. Last
fall you made a stump speech in my district and you said, as
niffh as I kin recollect, ' the office should seek the man and
not the man the office.' Didn't you say that ? "

" Yes," responded Cass, approvingly. " I made use of
some such language, I believe."

" And the fellows cheered and hollered, didn't thev ? "

" I think they did," rejoined the interested and now smil-
ing Secretary.

"Wall, gineral," pursued the backwoodsman, "as I hap-
pened to be in Washington and knowing you've been after
office every hour in your life — an' you've got a fat one now
— the question I wanted to ax you was, ' why don't you
practice what you preach ? ' "

CHAPTER XXXI.

INSIDE THE GOVERNMENT PRINTING-OFFICE — THE STORY

OF A " PUB. DOC."— PRINTING SPEECHES THAT

WERE NEVER SPOKEN.

Uncle Sam's " Print-Shop " — Using Twenty Tons of Printing-ink a
Year — Utilizing the Skins of 50,000 Sheep To Bind Books — Making
a Book While You Wait — The Celebrated "Pub. Doc." — What
Becomes of Them — Sending Out "Pub. Docs." to All the World —
The Convenience of a "Frank" — The Omnipresent "Doc." — All
Kinds of "Docs." — A Storehouse of Valuable Facts — The Con-
gressional Record — Ready-Made Speeches — What "Leave To Print
"Means — Printing Speeches that Were Never Spoken — Hoodwink-
ing Dear Constituents — Scattering Fine Speeches Broadcast — "See
What a Great Man Am I " — Speeches Written "by Somebody Else "
— Printing-Office Secrets — Some Interesting Facts.

|^ O one in the world is so profuse a user of printer's
ink as Uncle Sam ; it takes twenty tons of it to
enable him to print what he has to say every
year, and he spreads it over 8,000 tons of paper.
There is considerable room for doubt, especially in
the minds of discriminating people, as to whether a
great deal of what Uncle Sam is made to say is really worth
the paper it is printed on; but the official opinion holds that
it is, and, moreover, that it is worth binding into permanent
form. Thus some 50,000 sheep have to surrender their skins
every year to cover his books. Besides this he demands the
sacrifice of some 13,000 goats for skins for his Turkish mo-
rocco, and the imitation Russia leather he uses every year
would cover at least two acres of ground. He requires

(476)

MAKING A BOOK IN' A SINGLE NIGHT. 4,','

linen, canvas, muslin, glue, and gold leaf in proportion, and
so enormous and efficient is his great establishment, the Gov-
ernment Printing-Office, that he can set the type, print,
illustrate, and bind a good-sized book, almost while you
wait.

One or two examples will serve to portray the working
of the marvelous facilities of the Government Printing-
Office. In the spring of lsj>S great excitement followed
the blowing up of the Maine in Havana Harbor. Congress
was impatient to declare war, but was prevailed upon to
await the report of the naval Court of Inquiry and the
message of the President accompanying it. On March 28th
these were ready for the printer, and on account of the pecu-
liar conditions of the situation it was desired that Congress
should have them the next day. At three o'clock in the
afternoon of the 28th the originals for twenty-four full-page
illustrations and for one lithograph in colors were sent to
the Government Printing-Office and the force was at once
set to work to have these illustrations made. The manu-
script arrived at 6 p. m. and was immediately parceled out
to hundreds of compositors, and when all in type it made
298 large pages — a good-sized book.

Complete printed and illustrated copies bound in paper
covers were laid on the desks of the Senators and Repre-
sentatives two hours before Congress assembled the next
morning. All through the night busy fingers were setting-
up the type, making up the pages and stereotyping them ;
fast presses were dropping the printed and folded sheets at
every tick of the watch ; other busy hands were gathering
them, stitching them and pasting on the covers, while others
were sending complete books away in the mails.

But this feat was completely eclipsed in the publication
of the testimony taken in the West Point Military Academy
hazing case. This testimony, with the report of the com-
mittee making the investigation, was presented to the House

478 AN ARMY OF WORKERS.

of ^Representatives on Saturday, Feb. 9th, 1901, and during
the afternoon it was sent to the public printer. Work was
begun on it at once, and on Monday morning, a little over
thirty-six hours from the time it had been received, it was
delivered, printed and bound, at the Capitol. The work
completed and delivered made exactly 2,002 pages, but in
addition to this a couple of hundred pages were set up ready
to submit for approval before being paged and stitched.
Meanwhile the usual work of the office was going on as if
nothing unusual was occurring ; the stream of Congressional
Records, Bureau Reports, and public documents generally
was in no way clogged.

The Government Printing-Office is run at an aggregate
cost of $4,000,000 a year, and three-fourths of this expense
is paid out in wages to its employees. It is the size of this
army of workers under one roof and under one manage-
ment that makes it the most remarkable feature of the gov-
ernment industries at Washington.

The original building devoted to government printing
was erected in 1856 far beyond the outskirts of the city. It
has been gradually enlarged from time to time, and the old
building as it now stands is not only well within the city but
covers about an acre, exclusive of adjoining branches, and
affords floor space of about four acres. But for a long time
the ever-increasing pressure of government work has over-
taxed the accommodations of the building, and thus, after
many shifts and makeshifts, the government has provided
for the erection of a great structure on adjoining lots. This,
when completed, will afford a floor space of over nine acres
in addition to that already provided by the old building. It
will cost $2,000,000 and will be one of the largest and most
substantial public buildings in Washington.

The number of employees averages about 3,500, but,
pending the completion of the new building, they are not
under one roof. It has been found more convenient, and in

A MIGHTY FLOOD OF "PUB. DOCS." JiM

some respects necessary, to have branches in some of the
executive departments.

Each division is in charge of a foreman or superintend-
ent, and the arrangement is such that, if there is a sudden
demand for work in one room, help may be summoned from
rooms where work is for the time slack or not pressing.
Thus some night, when the " matter" for the Congressional
Record rises to large proportions, compositors are drawn
from the main composing-room.

The " Pub. Doc." always demands attention. There is
nothing so plenty in Washington, not even Congressmen or
civil service eligibles. They are everywhere and in every
shape. If Congress does nothing else, it is sure to provide a
flood of " Pub. Docs." There are " Ex. Docs.," " Sen. Docs.,"
and " Mis. Docs." but they are all " Pub. Docs." The latter
is the genus, the former some of the species. They multiply
faster than ever did the Children of Israel in Egypt. Piles
on piles of huge pamphlets cumber and crowd the lodging
of the average Congressman. The new member always
takes kindly to them at first; they give him, he is inclined
to think, an air of importance. He even reads them for a
time.

After a while thev begin to cram everv available nook
" up stairs, down stairs, and in my ladies' chamber." They
prove greedy receptacles of dust which defies extermination.
His wife may appeal to him to give them away or send them
i<> constituents, but he need not take the trouble to do the
latter, for all that is necessary is to send the names of his
dear constituents to the superintendent of the u Pub. Docs."
and the pamphlets are franked to them without any more
ado. The government pays for doing this tedious work.
But, even so, the " Pub. Doc." rooms are always over-
flowing. They line the walls and racks from floor to floor,
and are falling down and running over everything every-
where. Most of them have no covers, but thousands and

480 A VAST COLLECTION OF FACTS.

thousands are clad " in purple and fine linen " — law sheep
and morocco.

Undoubtedly the average " Pub. Doc." is a weariness to
the flesh and the spirit. They cover almost every conceiv-
able subject that is of no possible interest to the average
mortal. A commission is appointed to select wool for use
in Custom houses ; Congress asks the Secretary of the
Interior if he has given any one permission to hold Sunday
concerts in the Pension building ; the President is asked for
correspondence regarding the capture of a captain of a coast
schooner by natives of Honduras ; special agents have been
sent to report upon the condition of the Seal Islands; a
member from Texas desires information as to a fish hatchery
in Texas ; and so on and on every day, and these reports
and answers with collateral matter eventually turn up as so
many more " Pub. Docs."

Tet they have to be. Government is not a glittering
generality. Precise information of its minutest ramifica-
tions is required for the intelligent action of committees,
and these documents provide a vast storehouse of historical
and political and scientific facts. If a question comes up, it is
the business of some Congressman to look carefully into it.
To do this he has but to consult the index of " Pub. Docs."
and secure such as he needs. Moreover, there are " Pub.
Docs." of the greatest value. The reports of some of the
bureaus are highly prized by the best libraries and the
leading scholars of the world. The government annually
secures a vast amount of information which no individual
could otherwise obtain.

The " Pub. Doc." first appears at the Government Print-
ing-Office as a huge pile of manuscript, often accompanied
with drawings, large maps, or photographs. Formerly such
manuscript was written in many varieties of handwriting,
much of it illegible except to expert compositors. But in
these days of the typewriter the printer is relieved of the

ANOTHER PHASE OF WOMAN'S WORK. 481

necessity of solving difficult enigmas as ho goes along. The
manuscript is in the composing-room divided into small,
k% takes," which are distributed in a long rack containing
hundreds of pigeon-holes, each numbered for a certain com-
positor. So many hands are employed and so small are the
" takes " that the largest " Pub. Doc." is usually in type in a
few minutes, and each printer empties his " stick " in the
proper place upon the long brass "galleys." These, as they
are ready, are placed under the proof -presses, and proofs
with the copy sent to the proofreaders.

There are altogether 130 presses in the Government
Printing-Office, the average output of which is 1,000,000
impressions per day of eight hours. Some of the presses
are marvels of mechanical genius. One is capable of print-
ing cards on both sides from a web of Bristol board at the
rate of 65,000 per hour. Each envelope press averages
about 10,000 printed envelopes an hour. A " Pub. Doc." is
usually "reeled off" at the rate of about 10,000 per hour, in
forms of thirty-two pages each.

The " folding-room " always presents a busy scene. Here
sit nearly 600 women, young and old, folding sheets of paper
of various sizes from morning till night. Large maps
several feet square must be folded with great nicety, so that
they can be gathered into a book and sewed with it. The
operations of binding are similar to those everywhere except
as to the scale, the extensiveness of which may be judged
from the fact that this department consumes in its work
every year 37,000 pounds of glue, 4,000 packs of gold leaf,
7,000 pounds of thread, 900,000 pounds of binding-board,
and the various leathers already mentioned.

Such is the history of " Pub. Docs." of every description.
Through this greatest workshop of the government is ever
running a stream of pamphlets and books. As fast as they
are completed they are taken away to the various depart-
ments from which they originated as manuscript. Thence

482 MEMBERS WHO " WITHOLD THEIR REMARKS.

they go out into the world, part of them to find a comfortable
abode on library shelves, but most of them to meet with the
neglect which is often enough deserved.

The evolution of the Congressional Record, while similar
to the above process in general principles, presents some
interesting variations. The Record is a daily publication
while Congress is in session ; but whereas the managers of
great newspapers can plan the size of their issue some time
in advance, the Government Printing-Office never knows till
a couple of hours before the Record goes to press how large
it will be. Its size depends largely upon how much talking
is done in the Senate and House, but not altogether upon
this, for members have the privilege of " withholding their
remarks " occasionally, especially when they wish to revise
them or polish them in places. Those speeches which are
withheld may drop into the printing-office at any time.
Then, too, members have a privilege which is known as
" leave to print," which means that they can insert in the
Record speeches which they never made, never could make,
and which often are written for them by somebody else.

The main body of the Record is supplied by the Senate
and House reporters. Each house has a corps of proficient
stenographers, who operate under a perfect system wherehy
they " take turns " during debate. In exciting moments in
the House, when members are jumping up and interjecting
remarks from various places in the big chamber, these sten-
ographers are stationed at convenient points and take what-
ever remarks are for the time made within their jurisdiction.
"Whenever necessary two reporters take the same debate so
that it may be verified when written out. The force is suffi-
cient to permit a portion to typewrite their notes, while
others are continuing with the debate. There is one official
who has charge of all matter foi the Record, and the vari-
ous notes are put in shape in his office, making one verbatim
report of the whole proceedings.

HOW THE CONGRESSIONAL RECORD IS PRINTED. •!«:>

The rule of the Government Printing-Office is that copy
for the Congressional Record must be in before midnight,
;md always a greater portion of it can be, especially the
copy of prepared speeches, for it should be said that when
a Senator or Representative has a prepared speech, it is
handed to the stenographers, and they make only such
changes as occur within the delivery, like interruptions
which may lead the speaker away from his manuscript.
Usually, therefore, there are certain portions of the proceed-
ings which can be placed in the printing-office early at night,
and these are in type before the final copy arrives.

Between midnight and 4 o'clock it must not only be all
put in type but read and re-read three or four times for
errors, blocked into pages, stereotyped, and made ready
for the presses. Often a member requests. a proof in the
interval, and this must be sent him, marked with the time
within which it must be returned. As the type is set it is
laid out in galleys running in regular order, and as fast as
read, the "make-up" men prepare the pages, each of which is
stereotyped. Sixteen of these pages are locked on each of
two cylinders, so that when the press is started it prints,
from a continuous roll of paper, forms of thirty-two pages
each, cuts, folds, and delivers them counted in a case at one
side at the rate of 20,000 an hour. The Record varies from
twenty to 150 pages at an issue.

As soon as gathered and stitched, the issue goes to
the mailing- and delivery-room, where over a hundred
girls wrap it in covers which have been mechanically ad-
dressed to the various parties all over the country to
whom members of Congress have asked to have it sent.
Each, member is allowed a certain number, and, as it costs
him nothing and is apt to please the dear constituent, he
usually fills out his quota.

CHAPTER XXXII.

THE NATIONAL MUSEUM — A WONDERFUL COLLECTION OP

CURIOSITIES AND RELICS — THE ARMY MEDICAL

MUSEUM— INTERESTING SPECIMENS OP

THE RESULTS OF "WAR, DISEASE,

AND HUMAN SKILL."

The Most Wonderful Collection of Curiosities and Relics in the World —
Over 4,000,000 Interesting Specimens — Curious Story of How the
Museum Was Started — Priceless Relics of Washington — Franklin's
Printing-Press — Lincoln's Cravat and Threadbare Office Coat — Gen-
eral Grant's Presents — Relics From the Maine — A Wonderful
Collection of Skeletons — Proving Man's Descent From Monkeys —
The Army Medical Museum — A Grewsome Place — All that Remains
Above Ground of the Assassin of Lincoln — A Collection of Skulls —
Some "Interesting Cases" — The Spleen of Guiteau, the Assassin
of Garfield — How Specimens Are Collected and Exchanged — Getting
Back " Something Equally as Good " — What the X-Ray Photographs
Show.

'ATE in the '30's Commodore Elliott, then of the
Mediterranean squadron of the United States
Kavy, returned to this country bringing with
him an ancient sarcophagus that had contained
the mortal remains of some Roman hero at Carthage.
It was evidently a pretentious sarcophagus in its day,
and had been tolerably well preserved from the ravages of
time and of the vandals. Its massive stone was handsomelv
carved. The Commodore was a great admirer of Jackson,
who had just delivered his farewell to the government and
had retired to " The Hermitage " ; and to him Elliott pre-
sented this relic of Roman greatness with the expectation

(484)

CURIOUS BEGINNING OF THE COLLECTION. 185

that the fiery general would allow his remains to be depos-
ited in it.

But Jackson preferred something more modern, conven-
ient, and American. So the great stone was deposited in
the basement of the Patent-Office and curiously enough be-
came the beginning of the National Museum, now the
largest collection of curiosities and relics in the world, a
collection numbering over 4,000,000 specimens of various
kinds gathered from every part of the world and represent-
ing every age. The old sarcophagus now stands in the
beautiful grounds in front of the building containing this
remarkable collection, and shows few evidences of the
twenty or more centuries that have rolled over it. It is
sometimes mistaken for a monument to some dead states-
man or benefactor of the government, but no mortal
remains lie within or under it.

Begun in this small way, the museum remained for
many years a small and heterogeneous collection stored
within a few dusty cases in the basement of the Patent-
( >ffice ; but in time it received substantial additions from
the great exploring expeditions of Wilkes in the Pacific and
of Perry in Japan. In 1846, Congress took steps for a
more creditable arrangement by transferring to the Smith-
sonian Institution, then being organized, the custody of the
collection, though the actual transfer was not made till
1858. Here, under more direct encouragement, the collee
tion grew rapidly through gifts from foreign nations, and
through the services of consuls and other government
agents in foreign lands. Under the law it was made "the
authorized place of deposit for all objects of art, archreol
ogy, ethnology, natural history, mineralogy, geology, etc."
The operations of the government surveys, and the gifts
resulting from various World's Fairs, so swelled the col-
lection that a special building had to be provided in 1881

Every day brings in new specimens, so that now the

486 RELICS ILLUSTRATIVE OF AMERICAN HISTORY.

government is in possession of many more curiosities than
are exhibited, which for want of room are packed away safe
from the prying eyes and despoiling hands of the curious.
It is the dream of those interested in this enterprise to have
the government provide an immense building somewhere
within the city and thus establish a standing exhibition of
marvelous value and variety. The anthropological collec-
tions now in possession of the government, illustrating the
development and progress of man and his works, if properly
placed on exhibition, would occupy the entire space of the
present museum building which twenty years ago was
deemed adequate for all purposes.

The museum is in charge of the Assistant Secretary of
the Smithsonian Institution but, unlike the latter, it is sup-
ported by government appropriations. The collections in
both are practically one, though the exhibition-rooms in the
Smithsonian are almost entirely given up to certain features
of natural history. The main floor of the museum building
is divided into seventeen halls which connect with each
other by wide archways, and altogether they furnish nearly
one hundred thousand square feet of space.

By the north or main doorway we enter a long hall
devoted to a large collection of personal relics illustrative of
different periods of American history. Priceless relics of
"Washington, many of which have been purchased from his
heirs, fill many large cases. Displayed in one are his dress
suit and dress uniform, the latter a great blue coat with
trimmings of buff, and suspended with it are the curiously-
contrived knee breeches. "We can imagine that when the
suit was new and before the moths began to ravage it, the
Father of His Country must have presented a striking
figure in it ; but here it hangs limp and forlorn, though its
great brass buttons are as bright as ever. "We can imagine
them glittering as "Washington stood, the admired center of
the gorgeously-clad groups at state receptions, or as his dig-

INTERESTING MEMORIALS OK GREAT MEN. 4Si

nitied figure moved gracefully through the stately measures
of the minuet.

Telling a sterner story are the various effects of "Wash-
ington's camp life, including his camp chest, with its quaint
knives and forks, bottles and pewter plates, and the broiler
bearing the marks of many a camp lire. In the case de-
voted to Jefferson relics we see the favorite chair of the
sage of Monticello, with its well-worn upholstered head-rest.
From a much more remote past comes the hand printing-
press owned by Benjamin Franklin when a journeyman
printer, a mechanism which seems ridiculously crude, but
it shows the signs of many an impression, and its rough,
timbered sides are thickly plastered with age-dried ink.

In the case devoted to Lincoln are many interesting fea-
tures, but perhaps none appeal to us more than the cravat
which so often encircled his long neck, and the office coat
which held his tall, slender figure ; for years to come its
threadbare buttons will tell their story of the patient toil
and steady application of the beloved President to the
affairs of his country during the most stupendous crisis in
its history.

The most brilliant collection in this hall is formed of the
swords, testimonials, and presents of various kinds given to
General Grant during the Civil War and in his trip around
the world.

Other cases are devoted to memorials of men whose
achievements marked epochs in the history or development
of the country, such as Morse, who solved the problem of
the telegraph, and Field, the father of the Atlantic Cable.
Here, too, are many late additions, like relics from the
Maine, and many curious mementoes of the war in Cuba
and Porto Rico and the Philippines.

In the Rotunda, towering above the basin of a fountain,
stands the original plaster model of Crawford's Goddess of
Liberty surmounting the dome of the Capitol, while about

488 A VAST COLLECTION OF CURIOUS SPECIMENS.

the walls are many large and costly objects of interest.
From this center you may pass through great halls in any
direction and walk for hours amid countless " specimens " —
pottery and porcelain from every country in the world;
models of boats and vessels from Fitch's first steamboat to
the great modern steamer; Indian canoes and Oriental
junks; and hundreds of articles showing the various indus-
trial arts of the world and the life of the people of every
clime and in every state of barbarism and civilization.

Here are skeletons of existing and extinct animals ; min-
erals, and ores, and fossils of every description ; costumes
and textile fabrics of every sort ; figures, life-size, of Hindoos,
Persians, Chinese, Japanese, Indians, and savages, all
dressed in their characteristic garb and illustrating by their
groups various peculiarities of their industrial or social life.
Here, too, are wonderful baskets made of grass and roots;
weapons from the most primitive to the most deadly, and
musical instruments from the tam-tam of the South Sea
Islands to the costliest piano.

All these collections are arranged with a view to making
them instructive. For example, in the hall devoted to skele-
tons, and which is fairly overrun with bones, we may see
mounted skeletons of various species of monkeys up to the
chimpanzee, the ourang-outang, and gorilla, and beside the
latter, skeletons of a native Australian, an American Indian,
and the " homo sapiens." This is intended to show how our
bones differ in characteristic ways from those of the monkeys,
and even from man in lower stages of civilization. Our
superiority is, after all, largely a matter of " brain cavity,"
if you may believe these experts. You may pass from this
engrossing study to a hall containing half a million speci-
mens of mollusks with very little evidence of brain cavity,
but wonderful in the various forms they take, surpassing in
texture the finest works of art. In another hall are half a
million fossil invertebrates, and plants which in remote ages

THE ARMY MEDICAL MUSEUM. 489

were petrified in the rocks — pages from the geologic history
of a million or more years ago.

In the spaces devoted to means of transportation you
may see the oldest locomotive in America — a loose-jointed
piece of mechanism, which looks as though it would fly to
pieces if an attempt were made to run it. Close by is an
old Mexican ox-cart without a piece of iron or a nail in it.
The wheels are hewn from tree-trunks, and weigh over 200
pounds each. It is in strange contrast to the beautifully-
ornamented Japanese palanquin near by.

Perhaps the most remarkable collection in the building-
is that illustrative of the American Indian. Life-sized
groups represent various features of the domestic economy
of the red man, while his utensils, implements of peace and
war, and objects of worship abound on every side.

These are but a few of the very large number of varieties
of this wonderful display. They indicate how wide is the
range and how completely each branch is illustrated. "What-
ever be the subject one is interested in, he will here find
arranged before him the very objects of his interest; and
when one stops to think that the government has packed
away as many more, and that it is constantly receiving
numerous additions, we can but wonder what the museum
will become years hence.

Close by the National Museum stands the large and
handsome brick building now occupied by the Army Medi-
cal Museum, a grewsome place which, however much it may
excite our interest and wonder, leaves a decidedly-unpleas-
ant impression on the nerves of sensitive people. It may be
a heaven of delight for physicians and surgeons, but the un-
scientific shrink from the close observation of such an exten-
sive display in wax and preserved flesh of the effects of the
ravages of various diseases and of gun-shot wounds.

Probably one of the least-disquieting features of the
place is a regiment of human skeletons, a large number of

490 EXHIBITS OF FATALITIES OF WAR.

them drawn up in single file and extending the whole length
of a gallery in the long hall. Grinning with frightful una-
nimity, they appear, because of the way in which they are
thickly suspended and arranged, to be hurrying southward
in a dancing lock-step. Some of these are skeletons of once
fierce Indians, or South Sea Islanders ; others are of well-
behaved Americans, and still others are of criminals of the
worst kind ; but they all look alike nowr, as they seem to
dance along without respect to former condition or color.

The Army Medical Museum is one of the results of the
Civil War. In obedience to an order from the War Depart-
ment, issued in 1862, thousands of pathological specimens,
showing the results of gun-shots and amputations, quickly
accumulated at Washington, and soon after the assassination
of Lincoln, Ford's Theater wras purchased by the government,
refitted, and dedicated to this growing collection, together
with the Record and Pension Division of the War Depart-
ment. The collection increased so rapidly that soon a
demand for a safer and more commodious building arose,
and in 1887 the present building was erected, ample to con-
tain not simply the museum, but the immense medical library,
now the most complete collection of medical and surgical
literature in the world. This library has been gathered
since the Civil War, but now numbers over 200,000 volumes,
and includes some of the rarest books in the world, dating
back to the very beginning of printing. Physicians and scien-
tific societies have greatly interested themselves in the growth
of this institution, and have generously contributed both lit-
erature and specimens.

Of late years, or since the Civil War, the growth has
been less in the direction of exhibits of fatalities of war than
of the various diseases that human flesh is heir to, and a
particularly-exhaustive exhibit of microscopic cell develop-
ment, both in health and disease. If you are scientific, these
will interest you more than the enlarged spleen of Guiteau,

GHASTLY SPECIMENS OF THE MEDICAL COLLECTION. 491

the assassin of President Garfield, or the colorless fragments
of the spinal column of John Wilkes Booth. If you are
scientific, also, you will linger with breathless interest over
the long array of tumors, evidences of tuberculosis, of lep-
rosy, and so on ; but if not scientific, you will have a curious
feeling that your entire scalp is about to nse in revolt, and
you will go away with a vague fear that you may have
caught the diseases of the whole collection, and ought to
hurry to the nearest doctor.

Guiteau's spleen looks very much like any of the other
spleens arranged in glass jars; but you will be told that it
is a little larger than it ought to be, not because of Guiteau's
mental peculiarities, but because he was for a long time kept
in a jail which held more malaria than prisoners. This is
the only Guiteau specimen retained. The rest of his mortal
remains that were considered worth preserving have been
distributed ; for a sort of altruistic spirit of exchange exists
between the managers of the museum and medical people
and societies all over the world, by which they give and re-
ceive presents in skeletons, wax tumors, and bottled human
organs. For example, the person who presented the museum
with a bottled baby, born with but one eye and that in the
middle of its forehead, and hence officially labeled " Cyclops,"
might reasonably expect in return an "interesting specimen"
— something " equally as good."

To the unscientific mind doubtless the most interesting
and the least disagreeable specimens are those which have
been in the museum for a long time and show the wonderful
effects of rifle bullets and shrapnel fragments after entering
the human body. Here are skulls pierced by arrow heads
without being fractured, and others that have been broken
by tiny bullets, that, after entering, plowed their way along
in eccentric furrows. This is now more fully illustrated by
a series of X-ray photographs.

Those who have seen General Sickles slowlv making his

492 AN INTERESTING SPECIMEN WITH A HISTORY.

way on crutches can not fail to be interested in his leg, or
rather, a strong white bone which was once a part of his
anatomy, and which bears the following official description :

" The right tibia and fibula comminuted in three shafts by a round
shell. Major-General D. E. S., United States Volunteers, Gettysburg,
July 2, 1863, amputated in the lower third of the thigh by Surgeon T.
Sim, United States . Volunteers, on the field. Stump healed rapidly, and
subject was able to ride in carriage July 16 ; completely healed, so that
he mounted his horse, in September, 1863. Contributed by subject."

If the General in all these years ever found his memories
of Gettysburg growing less vivid, he could at any time come
to the Museum, and by observing the remains of the limb
he parted with so many years ago, have them revived.

The specimens with an interesting history from a popu-
lar point of view are much less conspicuous now than a few
years ago, as the medical history is alone supposed to be of
value. Most of the descriptive labels have been removed.
Thus some of the old specimens have little to show their
connection with the events of the Civil "War. Apparently
insignificant among over 25,000 other specimens of various
kinds may be seen three human vertebras mounted on a
stand, and beside it a glass vial with a thin line of white
matter floating in alcohol.

There is nothing to show whose vertebras these were,
and even when official catalogues were printed they con-
tained no information upon such unscientific points. The\r
simply recorded in dry technical language that one of these
three verterbaa was entered by a carbine ball and fractured
longitudinally and separated from the spinal process. The
missile passed directly through the canal, with a slight in-
clination downward and to the rear, emerging through the
left bases of the fourth and fifth lamina?, which were com-
minuted, and from which fragments were embedded in the
muscles of the neck. The bullet in its course avoided the
large cervical vessels. The description closes with the uniii-

A..OMZ1NU IjEATH OF LINCOLN'S ASSASSIN. 493

fceresting statement: " From a case where death occurred in
a few hours after injury, April 20, 1865."

Of the small vial we are told that it shows a portion of
t he spinal cord from the cervical region, transversely perfo-
rated from right to left by a carbine bullet, which fractured
the laminae of the fourth and fifth vertebrae. This also
closes with the remark that it is " from a case where death
occurred a few hours after injury, April 26, 1865."

This is all very dry and technical, but to those who know
all the facts there arises before the mind an exciting scene
that occurred many years ago about a blazing barn across
the Potomac and not many miles from Washington. The
flames lit up the recesses of the great barn till every cobweb
was luminous, and back of a barricade of hay, bathed in the
weird illumination, stood a man with set teeth and gleaming
eyes. A moment later he grasped his carbine and pushed
for the door to face his enemies; but just then a sergeant,
without orders, fired through a crevice and shot him in the
neck. lie was taken out, laid on the grass, and died four
hours later. This is the case " where death occurred a few
hours after injury," — the case of John "Wilkes Booth, the
murderer of Lincoln.

In the eyes of the medical experts a "case" consists
only of pathological peculiarities. These three vertebrae
might have belonged to any one else and be just as "inter-
esting" from the fact that the bullet took a certain course
and the wound resulted in death in a few hours. It has
been said that the fatal wounds of the assassin Booth and his
victim were strikingly alike, "but the trifling difference
made an immeasurable difference in the sufferings of the
two. Mr. Lincoln was unconscious of all pain, while his
assassin suffered as exquisite agony as if he had been broken
on a wheel."

It will not be inappropriate at this place to speak of the
Lincoln Museum — a miscellaneous collection of relics dis-

494 RELICS OP THE MARTYR PRESIDENT.

played in the old house opposite Ford's Theater to which
the wounded Lincoln was carried and in which he died. It
is a plain four-stor}7- brick house with a high stoop marked
by a marble tablet. O. H. Oldroyd began to make this col-
lection in 1860, and after the assassination purchased the
house and fitted it for a permanent collection of them. It
was entirely a private enterprise and remains so, a small ad-
mission fee being charged.

Among the relics are a stand made from logs of the
house in which Lincoln lived from 1832 to 1836; the family
Bible in which Lincoln wrote his name . in boyhood ; the
chair he occupied at the theater on the night he was shot ;
a bill of the play, and many funeral sermons, and portraits.
Still the most interesting thing about it all is the little room
in which the great President died, a room which John
Wilkes Booth had himself occupied not long before ; for at
that time the house was a boarding-place for people of the
theatrical profession. The house will always stand as it is
because of its associations, and some day the government
will doubtless take it into its own hands and add to its
value as a museum.

The proscenium pillar next to which Mr. Lincoln sat
when assassinated has been preserved in its place in the
Ford Theater building, in spite of the fact that the building-
has twice been remodeled. It survived the disaster of 1893,
when the building collapsed, and killed and injured many
clerks employed in the Record Division of the "War Depart-
ment.

CHAPTER XXXIII.

THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION — STRANGE STORY OF ITS

FOUNDER— ITS WONDERFUL TREASURES — THE

NATIONAL ZOO AND THE FISH

COMMISSION.

The Strange Story of James Smithson — A Most Singular Bequest — Mak-
ing Good Use of His Money — His Will — " The Best Blood of Eng-
land Flows in My Veins " — Plans of the Institution — Inside the
Building — Its Intent and Object — Diffusion of Knowledge Among
Men — Facilitating the Study of Natural History — Stimulating
Talents for Original Investigations — A Wonderful Exhibit of Stuffed
Birds — Insects of Every Size and Color — A Marvelous Collection of
Birds' Eggs — The Delight of " Mr. Scientist" —What We " Think "
We See — Weighing a Ray of Light — Doing Many Marvelous
Things — The National Zoo — Among the Wild Animals — A Visit
to the Fish Commission — Some Curious Specimens of the Finny
Tribe — One of the Most Entertaining Exhibits in Washington.

1 1 E Smithsonian Institution had a unique begin-
ning, showing that a government may not be
without sincere friends among those who at the
time are regarded as natural enemies. James
Smithson was an Englishman, a natural son of the
third Duke of Northumberland and Mrs. Elizabeth
Macie, a niece of Charles, Duke of Somerset. He was
educated at Oxford and some time later took the name of
Smithson. Of a scientific turn of mind, he wrote several
treatises, which, however, attracted no great attention. Not
having any fixed home, lie appears to have lived at various
places in lodgings, dying at last in Genoa in 1829.

In 1835 President Jackson announced that this English-

(4i».-,)

496 A STRANGE STORY.

man, who so far as is known never visited America nor had
friends here, had left all his property " to found at Washing-
ton, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an
establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge
among men." Why he did not prefer to establish such an
institution in his own country does not clearly appear. He
had doubtless watched with interest the growth of the young
republic, and, having no other use for his fortune, which,
owing to his simple and retired life, had rapidly accumu-
lated, he conceived the idea of bestowing it upon the gov-
ernment of the United States to further the increase of.
educational advantages, which at that time were more
needed on this continent than in Europe.

Some have thought that the nature of his parentage is
important, not only as explaining why he changed his name
from Macie to Smithson, but why he conceived the idea of
establishing an institution in this country to perpetuate his
borrowed name. He once wrote : " The best blood of Eng-
land flows in my veins ; on my father's side I am a North-
umberland, on my mothers side I am related to kings. But
this avails me not. My name shall live in the memory of
man when the titles of Northumberland and the Percys are
extinct and forgotten."

It would appear from this that he deliberately cast about
for a means to make good this assertion and, if so, he cer-
tainly took a wise course.

The legacy became available in 1888, and was brought
over in English sovereigns which, when recoined, netted a
little over $508,000. The only unfortunate thing about the
bequest was that Smithson did not specify the nature and
precise objects of the proposed institution, for Congress im-
mediately fell into a serious disagreement as to the methods
by which the objects of the testator could be accomplished.
One proposed a university of the highest possible grade ;
another an observatory "with the biggest spyglass in the

MOW THE INSTITUTION WAS KSTAbLISHKD. 497

world ; " another tho cultivation of seeds and plants for dis-
tribution ; another an institution for experimentation in
physical science especially pertaining to the natural resources
of the country ; another an establishment for rearing sheep,
horses, and silkworms. There were, besides, strong argu-
ments against accepting the trust at all, the strict construc-
tionists of the Constitution, as usual, finding no warrant for
such a thing.

At last the trust was accepted, and in 1846 a law was
passed organizing the institution, the government assuming
to pay 0 per cent, on the fund semi-annually for its uses. A
board of regents was established and the accumulation of
interest devoted to the erection of a building, the site for
which, consisting of fifty acres, was given by the govern-
ment from the abundance of unoccupied and unpromising
laud within the city.

But while James Smithson provided the money, the in-
stitution was really founded by Joseph Henry, who was ap-
pointed its first secretary. In entering upon his duties he
drew up for the regents a scheme for the operation of the insti-
tution that was adopted and that has since been maintained.
Its leading principles are that, inasmuch as the testators de-
sign was to increase and diffuse knowledge " among men,"
its work should not be local or even national, nor should it
devote its resources and energies to anything which could
be done as well by any other institution.

In accordance with these principles, its great library has
been incorporated with the Library of Congress, its art
treasures transferred to the Corcoran Gallery of Art, its
meteorological observations to the Weather Bureau, and its
herbarium to the Department of Agriculture. Besides, it
has originated and still retains control of several govern-
mental enterprises which are nevertheless provided for by
Congress, such as the National Museum, the Bureau of Eth-
nology, and the Xational Zoological Park. It has thus been

498 HOW KNOWLEDGE IS DIFFUSED.

the fountain head of many of the profitable functions of the
government.

Having incidentally originated and developed these
branches of scientific pursuit, the Smithsonian now largely
devotes its energies and means to scientific experiments and
to the issue of several publications. Papers presented for
publication are submitted to competent committees for ex-
amination, first, as to their being real additions to the exist-
ing knowledge, and second, as to whether they are worthy of
the institution. The design is to stimulate men who have
talents for original investigations by offering to publish to
the world an account of their discoveries. The author is
presented with a few copies of the work, but beyond this
receives no remuneration.

The " diffusion of knowledge " is specially promoted by
a system for the interchange of American and foreign scien-
tific thought and achievement. This work, which has at-
tained great proportions, is in charge of the Bureau of Inter-
national Exchanges, and through it the publications of the
national government as well as those of the institution are
regularly exchanged. Thousands of works, embracing the
details of the latest inventions and discoveries, are brought
to this country in this way, while, in turn, a knowledge of
our achievements is diffused abroad. Over 2,000 foreign
societies are now in correspondence with the institution.

The building is situated near the center of the grounds
originally granted to the institution. The specimens now on
exhibition in its main halls are but a fraction of those which
the institution has collected. A large proportion of them
are in the National Museum, and the Smithsonian has re-
served for itself only a portion of the collections pertaining
to Natural History, with a few miscellaneous specimens of
ethnological significance. The main exhibit is one of the
choicest collections of stuffed birds in the world. Case after
case through one of its great halls is filled with birds of all

NATURE'S EXQUISITE HANDIWORK. 4!*!*

feathers, mounted so skillfully that they exhibit not only
the characteristic poses of the birds but in many cases their
habits in life. They vary in size from the smallest humming
bird to the largest ostrich, and art has never yet imitated
the marvelous variety and beauty of the colors and shades
of color displayed by the plumage of these specimens from
every clime.

Another large hall is devoted to insects collected from an
equally-wide area and presenting as great a diversity in size
and color. In one case, for example, we may behold the
many varieties of the butterfly. Nothing can surpass the
delicate markings and texture of the wings of some of these
specimens. Here also is a marvelous collection of birds'
eggs varying in size all the way from a homeopathic pellet
to a football. The collection of shells, of sponges, of coral,
and other curious organisms of the sea is enormous.

So many are the objects of lustrous beauty that we find
ourselves constantly revising our opinion of the resources of
Dame Nature, and we are amazed at the exquisite skill with
which she works to secure the most delightful shades of
color even in tiny little mollusks. " Mr. Scientist," however,
smiles and says all this apparent color is only a difference in
molecular motion, and the colors that we see, " or, rather,
think we see," are only such components of light as are not
absorbed by the organic molecules. Mr. Scientist stands
ready to take all the romance out of our ideas wherever we
stop to admire, but he experiences a delight of a different
kind in his observations of the " mechanism " of nature.

It is only when we step from the exhibition halls to the

offices and laboratories of the institution that we see it as it

is — a great working establishment in the interest of science.

If you have a theory on which you believe you can base an

important discovery, you will be welcome here, if it is of

value. The institution will assist you in your researches,

guard your interests, and publish your discoverv, if it proves
28

500 REVEALING THE SECRETS OF THE SUN.

to be such, so that it may at once reach the whole scientific
world. It is what its benefactor wished, an establishment
for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.

The scientific experts of the institution are constantly
making some of the most remarkable experiments and
devising instruments of the most intricate design and delicate
machinery. Every sunshiny day men are endeavoring to
wring from the rays of the sun their secrets, to discover how
they differ, and how they affect the earth. One of the most
remarkable instruments of all is a so-called bolometer, a
device for determining the nature of the invisible rays of the
sun, that is, those which do not reveal themselves as light.
In the observatory is located a great mirror so controlled by
clockwork that it always turns itself squarely to the sun.
It reflects a sunbeam directly into a long metal tube which
contains a lens, and this throws a slender ray into a building
where is a delicate apparatus for separating it into all of its
component parts, and which is designed to record the differ-
ing temperatures of the invisible rays below the red or
above the violet of the spectrum.

This instrument is perhaps the most remarkable thing of
its kind ever designed. It consists of a tiny balance, the
beam of which is a thread of spun glass finer than the finest
hair. In the middle of the beam is a concave glass mirror
not larger than a common pin-head, and yet absolutely per-
fect in form. It weighs two and one-half milligrammes —
just about as much as the leg of a fly — and the whole affair
is suspended from a fiber of quartz crystal two feet long and
so slender as to be almost invisible. The beam is so arranged
by the aid of electric contrivances, too complicated to be
briefly described, that it is inclined one way or the other by
the slightest difference in temperature of a sun ray falling
on the mirror. This mirror throws a small dot of light on a
wall graduated like a thermometer, so that by watching this
dot the variations in heat of invisible rays are determined.

ATTRACTIONS OF THE NATIONAL ZOO. .501

Tho institution hopes some day to know so much about
these invisible rays as to be able to predict weather condi-
tions a year in advance, and do a great many other things
equally marvelous.

In the course of its work the Smithsonian early collected
many live animals and birds. As the government had made
no provision for such specimens, it became necessary to con-
fine them, not always with the most reassuring security, in
grounds back of the institution building. Special pains were
taken to secure good specimens of certain American animals
that were threatened with extinction, and, in course of time,
people living near the institution observed from their win-
dows an ever-increasing herd of buffaloes and other wild
beasts. Finally Congress was prevailed upon to do some-
thing for this growing menagerie in the midst of the city,
and 167 acres of land were purchased on Rock Creek, a little
above Georgetown. While maintaining as one of the chief
objects of the "Zoo" thus provided for, the preservation of
American animals threatened with extinction, the scope was
enlarged so as to foster the collection of live animals from all
climes for exhibition purposes.

The great park, consisting of rolling uplands broken by
deep ravines, is beautifully adapted to its purpose. On cul-
tivated portions are placed the various houses and enclosures
for animals requiring protection in the winter season, while
the hardier classes are quartered out of doors the year round
in spacious wire-guarded enclosures about the ravines and
hillsides. Herds of happy and healthy bison, elk, and deer
occupy great paddocks, providing them with extensive pas-
tures. Standing upon one of the elevated portions of the
grounds, you may look down through the trees upon a herd
of buffaloes grazing peacefully in the lowlands, while in the
ravine upon the other side along the creek is a colony of
beavers, burrowing in the banks, constructing dams and
houses and cutting down trees in their ingenious and work-

502 SUPPLYING FOOD FISHES FOR A NATION.

man-like fashion. The bear dens are unsurpassed by those
of any zoo, the rude caves being blasted out of cliffs, thus
forming natural retreats for the different varieties.

The collection is growing rapidly through the instrumen-
tality of various government agencies. Consuls in all parts
of the world, and our army officers in far-off lands, are
invited to secure live animals of rare types and send them to
this country at the expense of the government. In time,
with such advantages, the National Zoo will become the
largest institution of its kind in the country and perhaps in
the world. Being on the outskirts of the city, it is a favorite
resort for children, and there is always some queer bird or
animal stranger for them to pelt with goodies " to see him
eat." Every bright Sunday the animals' quarters are sur-
rounded by a delighted crowd of visitors.

The Fish Commission, established in 1861, occupies the
old ante-bellum arsenal on Sixth street. While an inde-
pendent organization, it is nevertheless largely an offshoot
of the Smithsonian Institution. Its general work, as pro-
vided for by law, is to study the habits of fish and especially
food fishes, and to devise measures for maintaining the sup-
ply. In pursuit of this object, hatcheries have been estab-
lished in various parts of the country, and every year mil-
lions of the fry of the most valuable food fishes are placed
in the rivers of the country best fitted for their existence.

One of these hatcheries is maintained in "Washington,
and if you visit the building at the right time you may
observe the process in a series of tanks arranged in the base-
ment of the building, and will note how, under good condi-
tions, it requires little room for the hatching of many mil-
lions of fish, any one of which, when full grown, might give
an angler all the sport he desired. It is safe to say that
many of the salmon, shad, and other food fishes we eat were
born at Washington, or in some of the other hatcheries.

Naturally, after the fish are born, the next problem is

FREAKS OK THE FINN'S TKIBE. 503

how to convey theui to the stream or lake best suited to their
requirements. As this may be hundreds of miles distant, the
commission provides specially-fitted cars, which can some-
times be seen side-tracked near its building. The arrange-
ment of the cars is complete, and the infant fish not only
travels with plenty of companions, but he is well attended,
and his meals are furnished. He can disport himself in
water to his heart's content and suffer none of the incon-
veniences of travel. The arrangement of the tanks is such
that they can be supplied with fresh water, and when the
cars reach their destination the fish are turned loose to take
their chances among other fish and among the fishermen.

Among the most entertaining exhibits are the glass tanks
of different kinds of live fish. These tanks are located
along the walls of a sort of artificial grotto in the basement
of the building, and are constantly supplied with running-
water and lighted from hidden windows above. Here we
may study the habits of fish in their natural element, and
note the perfect and graceful movement of their fins, and
the exquisite coloring of their scales. Among those that
attract by their beauty are mingled many that are curious,
and even grotesque. Such is the flounder, which lies so flat
in the sand as to be unnoticed until, after much flopping and
floundering, — whence his name — he rises and darts about
with great celerity. Here, too, one may watch the little
sea-horse, most fantastic of marine creatures. At rest, he
clings with his curving tail, ape-like, to the seaweeds and
mosses of the tank, but when the fancy takes him for a
swim he moves about erect, with as many antics as a playful
pony, and most obsequious bowings of his crested head as
he meets others of his kind, all equally polite and amusing.

CHAPTEK XXXIY.

FOREIGN LEGATIONS AND THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS— THE
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OP FOREIGN REP-
RESENTATIVES IN WASHINGTON.

The Exposed Side of Diplomatic Life — Looking "Pleasant7' — Social
Status of Foreign Representatives — Daily Routine — Spies Upon
Our Government — Social Lions — Aspiring to Diplomatic Honors
— Glimpses of Foreign Home Life — Peculiar Dress and Queer
Customs — Oddities in House Furnishings and Decorations — Social
Etiquette — Who Pays the First Visit— Official Calls — The Ladies
of the Diplomatic Corps — Why the President Never Crosses the
Threshold of a Foreign Legation — Breaches of Etiquette — Topics
That Are Never Discussed — Tactless Ministers — Giving Meddling
Ambassadors Their Passports — Some Notable Examples — The Fate
of Foreign Representatives Who Criticise or Abuse the President.

^fifMpK HE popular impression is that the life of a foreign
diplomat at Washington is one of ease and
pleasure. A natural inference from the society
columns in newspapers, which are constantly
furnishing glowing accounts of social events, is that
a foreign representative has no mission save that of
looking handsome, wearing gorgeous raiment, and feasting
sumptuously every day, having no more care than a butter-
fly and no serious responsibilities to disturb his equanimity.
This impression is heightened by the fact that in the sum-
mer season the diplomatic legations, with hardly an excep-
tion, are closed or left in charge of subordinates, while the
ministers and ambassadors with their families enjoy them-
selves at fashionable seaside resorts, or visit their homes in
their native land.

(504)

A DUTY TO BE AGREEABLE. 505

But this is only the exposed side of diplomatic life. It is
one of the duties of a foreign diplomat in Washington, as it
is one of the duties of our representatives abroad, to employ
diplomacy and to be generally agreeable. So doing, he
can better exercise the functions of a legitimate spy upon
our operations as a government and a people. But the dip-
lomat's real duties are largely of a strictly-private nature,
and are generally known only to himself and his govern-
ment. Thus our general information as to diplomatic
actions and behavior is largely confined to the society col-
umns of newspapers, and it may be added that to old and
practiced diplomats there is nothing so tedious as the
requirements of their social routine. To them it is usually
a bore. They are not apt to accept invitations unless they
feel that it is advisable for State reasons, or is required by
etiquette ; and thus the hostess who secures them at her
social events is supposed to be highly honored. As to
whether she is honored or not depends altogether upon the
character of the diplomat.

The daily routine of each legation makes as peremptory
a demand upon time as the routine of any department of
the government. Each has its archives which are faithfully
maintained ; each is apt to have instructions from its gov-
ernment requiring constant attention, more often through
correspondence but occasionally through a personal inter-
view with the Secretary of State ; each stands in a sort of
paternal relation to the various foreign consuls at different
commercial centers, and through them often executes the
general orders of the home government. Each is attended
by various attaches, the number dependent upon the char-
acter of the legation, who have special duties to perform.
In the exercise of these duties, attaches are instructed in the
principles of diplomacy, and in time they aspire to the dig
nity of some diplomatic post.

As a rule, diplomats are men who have resided in many

506 A GLIMPSE OF BEAUTIFUL HOMES.

countries and have studied their characteristic differences.
By knowing the peculiarities of various governments they
can better appreciate the peculiarities of those to which
they may be sent. Having seen so much from such advan-
tageous positions, they are delightful talkers, if they wish to
be, and usually are well educated and brilliant men.

There is no minister in the diplomatic service who has so
wide a field of duty as the Chinese Minister. He is not
only accredited at Washington and at Mexico, and at Spain
and Portugal, but fully one-half of the Central and South
American governments are under his care, so far as they
relate to China. But his headquarters are at Washington,
and the " Chinese Embassy " is one of the most beautiful
houses in the city. Its fine granite exterior furnishes no
indication of the Orientalism within, unless perchance as
you pass you may happen to see a Chinaman taking a little
exercise by walking back and forth on the great stone
piazza. Or you may chance to see the minister himself,
with his fine raiment, his mandarin's hat, his pig-tail, and a
twinkle in his eyes.

While the exterior of the Chinese mission is so thor-
oughly American its interior abounds in Oriental surround-
ings. Beautiful Chinese hangings and curious works of art
are among the decorations, though the Chinese and Western
civilizations are strangely mingled. The embassy has never
had a house of its own but has always rented, and doubtless
for this reason its appearance partakes so largely of conven-
tional furnishings. Occasional entertainments are held at
the Chinese legation during the winter, and these social
events are looked forward to with pleasant anticipation by
Washington society, because they are invariably unique and
enjoyable.

In point of size and elegance the British legation stands
easily at the head. It is a large mansion elegantly furnished
in English style. When alterations and repairs are made

ETIQUETTE OF THE EMBASSIES. 507

the architect of the British Foreign Office comes over to
design and supervise them.

Probably one of the most delightful and interesting em-
bassies is that of Japan, but as that nation has of late
become fully in touch with 'the ways of Western civilization,
the legation is less conspicuous for its oddities than for that
refined artistic sense which is characteristic of the Japanese.

The Russian and French legations are usually among
the gayest of the social season, while those of the South
American Republics are among the most charming.

The social etiquette of the city is largely conditioned by
the presence of the Diplomatic Corps, which consists of six
ambassadors and twenty-five ministers plenipotentiary.
They are ranked strictly in the order of their seniority of
commission, and arrival in Washington. The British Am-
bassador at present holds the position of dean of the corps,
having been the first of the ambassadors appointed. Up to
the time of the coming of ambassadors, as distinguished
from ministers plenipotentiary, it was the custom of the for-
eign ministers, from the necessity of making themselves
known, to pay the first visit to the representatives of the
nation ; but otherwise all persons, official or otherwise, pay
the first call to the embassies. The ladies of the Diplomatic
Corps have no special day on which to receive callers, each
household making its own rules in this respect.

As the President and his wife may or not make calls, it
is entirely at their option whether or not they accept invita-
tions ; but it is not proper for either the President or his
wife to cross the threshold of any foreign legation, although
other members of their family may do so. This is one of
the rules which is supposed to conserve the dignity of the
office of President, and also remove him from the dangers
of too free contact with the representatives of scheming for-
eign powers. The President's dinners and receptions to the
Diplomatic Corps, while the most brilliant events of the

508 DISMISSING OBNOXIOUS MINISTERS.

season, are purely perfunctory and formal, and it is a breach
of etiquette to touch in conversation upon subjects of inter-
national affairs or even of national politics.

The foreign minister is supposed to have nothing what-
ever to do with our national politics. It is a serious matter
for him even to appear to influence opinion, even if he does
not intend to do so. It was for such an alleged offense as
this that a British minister was once given his passports.
Lord Sackville "West wrote an imprudent letter to a corres-
pondent, criticising the administration, and President Cleve-
land at once handed him his passports.

All governments reserve the right to dismiss foreign
ministers who may have rendered themselves obnoxious in
any way. The first instance in which this right was exer-
cised was in the administration of Washington. The
French Minister, Genet, was given his passport but refused
to leave the country, remaining here to be used by the
political enemies of "Washington until recalled at "Washing-
ton's request by the French government.

Almost the first act of General Taylor on becoming
President was to direct Mr. Clayton, the Secretary of State,
to send Mr. Poussin, the French Minister, his passports for
infringement of courtesy in his correspondence. He also
directed him to inform the minister of foreign affairs of
France, who had criticised some act of the government, that
the President had neither asked nor desired his opinion on
the matter. The most recent case was that of the Spanish
Minister De Lome, who sometime prior to the outbreak of
our war with Spain wrote a letter to a Cuban friend,
grossly criticising and abusing President McKinley. The
letter in some way falling into the hands of the govern-
ment, De Lome was promptly dismissed ; but instead of
returning to Spain he simply crossed the border into Can-
ada, where for a time he maintained an information bureau
for his government.

CHAPTER XXXT.

THE NEWS BUREAUS OF WASHINGTON— KEEPING AN EYE

ON OTHER NATIONS — HOW NEWS IS INSTANTLY

OBTAINED FROM ANF TRANSMITTED TO

ANY PART 01 THE WORLD.

The Washington Headquarters of a Hundred Newspaper Bureaus — Keen
Newspaper Men — How the News Is Gathered — Transmitting It to
All the World — The Ceaseless Click of the Telegraph — Operations
Far Beneath the Surface — The Best-Posted Men in Washington —
"Newspaper Sense" — How the Wires for News Are Laid — Antici-
pating Future Events — Secret Sources of Information — " Cover-
ing" Anything and Anybody — Receiving News "Tips" — Running
Down Rumors— Officials Who "Leak" — How Great Secrets Are
Unconsciously Divulged — Putting This and That Together —
Reporters' Tactics — Keeping an Eye on the State Department —
Scenting News — " Work Is Easy When Times Are Newsy " — Study-
ing the Weak and Strong Points of Public Men — At the Mercy of
Newspapers.

ASSING along the streets immediately east of the
Treasury building, a glance at the windows
and doorways on either side reveals numerous
signs indicating that the great daily newspapers
the country meet and touch here. It is preemi-
itly the vortex into which is ever being swept all the
news of the government, and from here it is sent out all
over the country, every hour of the day and for a greater
part of the night. Into this teeming center run many wires.
Here in the still hours of the night may be heard the cease-
less click of the telegraph, the constant pattering of many
feet, and the almost continuous rolling of cabs. Here, both
with thoroughness and dispatch is shaped the news, the gos-

(500)

510 HOW THE NEWS IS GATHERED.

sip, and the discussions of "Washington affairs that are read
at tens of thousands of breakfast-tables on the following
morning, and here every day is also collected a similar grist
for the evening papers.

The ordinary individual, accustomed to "Washington life,
may see little but a monotonous routine — the meeting and
adjournment of Congress, long and dry debates, successive
roll-calls, the never-ending grinding of the departmental mills.
All this is quite as monotonous to a "Washington news corre-
spondent as to any one else. What inevitably happens
every day is of little or no importance to him. As a rule
his field of operations is beneath the surface of things. He
must know the hidden motives underlying action, and the
purposes and desires of members of Congress and important
administrative officials, as far as possible, and be able to
forecast with some accuracy, and at least in an interesting
manner, what is likely to be the result of any unsettled con-
dition of things or the conclusion of any disputed question.

A good journalistic correspondent is the best-posted man
in "Washington. Administrations and Congresses come and
go, but he is here always. A new President may have much
to learn, the heads of departments may be green at first —
and a large part of Congress is ever thus — but the corre-
spondent is never green. He could not be a newspaper cor-
respondent if he were. He must not only have the " news-
paper sense," but now-a-days he must have a carefully-
constructed and well-equipped machine for collecting infor-
mation. He must have his established connections with
important sources of news either in official or social life.
But he cares nothing for society except as a means to an
end. He has neither time nor inclination to enter into the
social whirl, but he must so lay his wires that any stray sug-
gestion dropped amid social surroundings will find its way
into his information department. Such information may
not be of the slightest use to him at present, but the possi-

A NEWSPAPER CORRESPONDENTS BUSY DAY. oil

bility of its forming a connecting link in some important
development later on may make it of the utmost value.

That part of the gallery in the Senate chamber directly
back of and above the presiding officer's chair, is the press
gallery, and a similar one is in like manner located in the
House, but seldom more than one or two young men can
ever be seen in either of them. Even when debates are warm
and matters of great public interest are up for consideration,
and all other galleries are crowded, the press gallery is
generally deserted except for these one or two young men.
Xone of the Washington correspondents are there. The
two young men represent simply press associations, and
report that part of debates which they believe to be of spe-
cial interest ; and their reports are available to all corre-
spondents and to all newspapers which are members of the
associations. Knowing that this service will furnish all that
is needed of Congressional debates, no correspondent thinks
of wasting his time over them.

We may best observe how he actually spends his time by
going to his office and following him for a day. Each large
newspaper maintains a bureau depending in size upon the
standing of the journal. Smaller papers may have only a
single representative, but the correspondents of larger pa-
pers have a considerable working force under them. Going
to one of these bureaus about 9 o'clock in the morning, we
find an extensive series of rooms, generally well carpeted
and generously furnished with tables and desks. In the
larger office sits the correspondent. He has looked over the
morning paper and noted any suggestions of news which
may be investigated by the young men of his force, wrho
under his direction " cover " certain departments of the gov-
ernment, but who may " cover " anything and anybody if
the emergency arises. They post the correspondent upon
what they think may happen in their particular fields
within the next few hours.

512 "PUMPING" AND "LEAKING/

The reporter for the State Department may have re-
ceived a tip that certain diplomatic correspondence is to be
given out, or he may have learned that a foreign minister
has received a communication from his government and is
to convey it to the State Department before night. The
reporter for the Treasury Department has received a tip
that the Secretary of the Treasury is about to call in bonds,
or that the Secret Service is deep in a new counterfeiting
plot which it is trying to keep secret.

Another reporter possibly had a chat with a Congress-
man the night bafore, and had deftly drawn from him a
rather important piece of information which the Congress-
man had no idea of giving away. He probably was uncon-
scious that he did so, but the suave reporter knew, as
regarding certain rumors, that one or the other must be
true, and he knew by the way the Congressman answered a
cleverly-put question exactly which was true. It was not
necessary for him to press the matter further and thus give
the Congressman the mortification of knowing that he had
" leaked," as the correspondents express it.

A government official " leaks " when he unconsciously or
otherwise drops a secret which he is supposed to hold and
guard, and when there has been a leak somewhere a corre-
spondent knows that it will generally be an easy matter to
get the whole story. As a matter of business he has become
familiar with the peculiarities of the men concerned, their
conflicting opinions and cross purposes, and he is enough of
an adept in his art to feel confident that when the man has
made a statement in his own favor and detrimental to the
position of an opponent, he has only to see the opponent to
obtain another " leak." Thus little by little the whole story
comes out, and possibly not one of the Congressmen or offi-
cials thinks that he contributed in any way to it. Each
thinks that his opponent is responsible for the disclosure,
but the correspondent has only put the "leaks" together.

PLANNING THE DAYS WORK. 513

Tims with his subordinates about him the correspondent,
or chief of the bureau, lays out the preliminary work of the
day, knowing full well that anything he has planned may
have to yield to some sudden development from an unex-
pected quarter, requiring him and his men to hurry all over
the city in search of various officials. To each bureau also
come all the public documents, and these are examined
every day by different members of the staff for hints as to
possible articles. Very often a useful piece of information
turns up in a dry consular report, or one of the scientific
bureaus makes a discovery which may be written up in a
popular manner for the Sunday issue, for which many
articles of greater or less interest, but not exactly of a newsy
character, are constantly reserved.

The correspondent and his subordinates must always keep
in mind the local interests of the journal they represent.
While matters of general interest must not be neglected,
any action of the federal government in any of its depart-
ments relating to that particular city and state is of special
importance. A friendly acquaintance with the Senators and
Congressmen from that state is therefore essential, and as
these officials are well aware that the prominence or favor-
able mention which the correspondent has it in his power
to give them in the home journal is important to their politi-
cal interests, they are seldom anything but cordial to the
correspondent.

Having planned the operations of the day, as far as they
can be planned, the chief of the bureau generally goes to
the Capitol shortly before Congress meets. Back of the
press gallery is the correspondent's waiting-room, in which
are tables and all other conveniences for those who may de-
sire to write. Here every Congressional day about noon can
always be found a gathering of smartly-dressed and alert-
looking correspondents, rivals, but always on good terms,
and if need be they can work together.

014 TACTICS OF* THE WILY REPORTER.

For example, while they are waiting, the Senate may go
into executive session, a session about which the world is
supposed to know nothing. When it is over the correspond-
ents make it their special business to find out all about it,
especially if it were a session of considerable interest. Each
knows the Senators with whom he can most confidently
talk, and all Senators who are "leaky" are generally known.
The correspondents may consider it necessary to throw-
Senators off their guard by approaching them upon some
other subject, but at the proper time bringing them around
to the real point and in such a manner as to take them by
surprise. Often the subject of the session may be something
about which some Senator feels deeply, and he can not dis-
guise it. The secret proceedings may have been such that
he would really prefer them to be made public. Further-
more, every Senator knows that if he were brought up for
divulging the secret, the correspondents would never give
him awa}''.

Thus by adopting certain tactics towards those Senators
who wish the world might know about the session, and by
adopting other tactics towards those who are praying that
the secret may not leak out, the correspondents, after com-
paring notes, are able to determine with accuracy and suf-
ficiency its exact nature and details. The Senators all ex-
pect to see an account of it in the morning papers, although
none of them are conscious of having revealed it.

But correspondents do not always need to seek sources
of information. To a greater or less extent they are always
seeking them. A Congressman has said or done something
wThich he wishes his constituents to know about. Through
his influence, the Appropriations Committee may have been
persuaded to raise the appropriation for improving some
creek in his district. It is not a subject of thrilling interest,
but the correspondent is sure to treat it generously if on his
part the Congressman will make it a point to keep him in-

"TIPS," AND SOURCES OF INFORMATION. 51a

formed of what is going on relating to other and more inter-
esting topics. Thus every correspondent gradually con-
structs a web of influences, so that nothing of importance
will happen without a " tip " reaching him.

When in the evening he has returned to his bureau and
is comfortably seated in his office chair, he will expect, if
his pipes are well laid, to be called up by Senators and Con-
gressmen who volunteer information as a courtesy and in
return for favors. His subordinates return from their spe-
cial fields of duty with their gleanings and are busy at then-
desks, while dispatch after dispatch is laid on the corre-
spondent's desk. Special wires connect his bureau with his
journal. The latter always makes an arrangement with
telegraph companies so that dispatches shall never be
blocked. Thus from a hundred newspaper bureaus within
the two blocks adjoining the Treasury is being flashed in
every direction every day and night the news of the Capital
city, and important news from foreign countries.

The correspondent himself generally writes a sort of
editorial account of the trend of events. If a tariff discus-
sion is raging, he discusses the chances of passage, the con-
flicting interests, the possibilities of amendment, always
from the point of view of his paper. Being on the
spot, he is supposed to be better acquainted with the
possibilities regarding any legislation than outsiders; but
even if he is, he does not forget the policy of his journal.
His discussion of events does not always reveal his per-
sonal opinions. That is another matter and does not con-
cern his paper so long as he knows how wisely to reflect
its editor's opinions.

Often the most important foreign news reaches this

country by the wray of Washington. Important dispatches

come to the State Department, and while regarded as secret,

the keen newspaper men at once note the indications of

something important, and proceed to run it down. More
29

516 DAYS OF INTENSE EXCITEMENT.

often, however, foreign matters which are of particular in-
terest in Washington Come from the cables at New York,
and the newspaper men are the first bearers of intelligence
to the officials.

An illustration of this was in the report of the blowing
up of the Maine in Havana harbor. The disaster occurred
a little before midnight, and as soon as a brief dispatch an-
nouncing the disaster reached New York it was hurried to
Washington. In a hundred bureaus the work of the day
Was just being closed up. The last dispatches were being
put on the wire, but the moment the news of the disaster
reached the Correspondents the scene changed to one of
bustling activity. Cabs were called, newspaper men were
hurrying in them in various directions, bells were rung, the
Secretary of the Navy and other important officials were
called out of bed, the news was carried to the White House,
and officials and correspondents waited breathlessly for the
official dispatches. The air was surcharged with excitement
everywhere and for days. This is what the correspondent
likes. Work is easy when times are " newsy." He can, if
necessary, make news which is tolerably interesting, but- his
delight is in handling in an interesting manner news that is
a spontaneous product.

From the nature of things newspaper correspondents
become thoroughly acquainted with all the peculiarities in
the characters of public men. They know how to play
upon their weakness, if necessary, but they also have an
established rule that the private character of public men
is not a legitimate subject for discussion. By Violating
this rule they could ruin the reputation of many a man,
but they would also- lose their own standing as corre-
spondents. They consider as fit subjects for criticism only
public acts of public officers. Public men know that their
private secrets are in their hands, but they know also that
they are safe, and this does not tend to diminish the num-

A BANQUET OF "THE GRIDIRON CLUB. " 517

ber of favors they are willing to show to correspondents
in the way of news.

Although rivals in the field of news, the correspondents
constitute a body of men animated by a common purpose
and infused with a certain esprit de corps, which is strongly
manifested in the Gridiron Club, one of the famous institu-
tions of the Capital. There is no public man who does not
relish and hasten to accept an invitation to one of its din-
ners. The President himself can hardly be deemed an ex-
ception to this, for presidents and their cabinets have sat at
its tables. The gravest statesmen accept invitations to the
banquets of the club, knowing full well that public men and
public policies are to be handled without gloves ; but they
also know that it is entirely in a spirit of fun, and that by
an inexorable standing rule nothing concerning the " post-
prandial capers" shall be printed or even mentioned outside.
It is a place in which public men can " rub it in " to their
fellows as deeply as they desire, knowing that it contributes
to the enjoyment of everybody present and goes no farther.
At the annual dinner in 1892 President Harrison and his
Cabinet sat at the club's table, and the President spoke with
as much ease as he would have spoken in his own parlor.

To-day no Washington correspondent has a national
reputation. Few outside of Washington can tell who they
are. They are as keen and active as the men of the old
class, they know better what is going on, yet they are but
parts of the great newspaper machine. It makes no differ-
ence to the public or to the editors what opinions they form
of current events. The telegraphic details are so complete
that the editors can form opinions for themselves, and the
present tendency is for the editors simply to print the news
and allow the people to form their own opinions. The per-
sonality of the Washington correspondent does not appear,
but he is, nevertheless, exercising a potent influence by the
manner in which he describes the happenings at the Capital.

CHAPTER XXXVI.

WASHINGTON STREET LIFE — SOUTHERNERS, WESTERNERS

AND NEW ENGLANDERS — LIFE AMONG THE

COLORED PEOPLE — INTERESTING

SIGHTS AND SCENES.

CITY without factories, without tenement houses,
without many foreign-born citizens ; a city with-
out a mayor or aldermen, and in which no one
votes ; a government city without a city govern-
ment; a city of streets without a curve and most
of them without names, streets which, running
their many miles of smooth asphalt, are a paradise for bi-
cyclists and far better for pedestrians than its brick side-
walks ; a city of Americans who come from every state in
the Union, and yet a city in which the servants, coachmen,
drivers, and many of the business men, even policemen, are
Afro- Americans ; a city in which the most famous men in
the country are such familiar figures that they attract little

(518)

THE PASSING THRONG. 519

attention; a city in which the President can walk without
creating the least excitement and yet be recognized by
everybody ; — a city unique in all these respects and in many
others, is Washington.

The people who throng its streets impress one very dif-
ferently from those seen on the streets of other cities.
There is but little of that evident mixture of all classes, the
very poor and the very rich, for however different may
be their circumstances, in their outward appearance such
diversities are not specially marked.

Fully two-thirds of the nearly 300,000 people of Wash-
ington are living upon assured incomes from the govern-
ment. To those who read the exaggerated reports of the
easy work and big salaries of employees of the government,
it seems that they are to be envied their positions. There
may have been a time in the history of the country
when incapable and unscrupulous men, through influence of
their party chiefs, occupied more of these positions than
they should. But since the establishment of the Civil Ser-
vice this is not the case. There are few to-day who do not
earn every cent they receive, and who, manage as econom-
ically as they will, find it difficult to do more than provide
a home and a living for their families.

Of the 80,000 negroes in the city quite a large proportion
also derive their income from the government, and a large
part of the remainder derive theirs from those who serve
the government. Thus, in the last analysis, the government
is providing for nearly all the people. The exceptions are
the visitors who are always in evidence and always mingling
with the passing throng. These are usually the well-to-do,
though their dress and bearing often suggest intimate ac-
quaintance with rural life. When all these classes are
mingling in the streets the general effect is one of a holiday
pleasure parade.

The proprietors of small stores, and those who keep

520 TYPES FROM ALL POINTS OP THE COMPASS.

boarding' houses,: hotels, saloons, livery stables, and so on,
prove no great exception to the rule. Small - stores line
many streets. Many of them are owned by Southern peo-
ple, who have a constitutional objection to becoming excited
over trade. In recent years hustling men from the North
have entered into competition with them, and show an
activity and a rivalry which is out of tune with the
general harmony of things. Such influences as these are
undoubtedly transforming the business life of Washington
so that it shows less and less of those peculiar character-
istics which for so many years made it a distinctively
Southern city. .

. The Southern women maintain their strong hold upon
the boarding houses, whose numbers are legion. Many of
them are cultured women of proud extraction, daughters or
descendants, of old families ruined by the Civil War, and
charming conversation prevails at their tables. On the
streets Southern men are distinguished more readily than
the men from other sections. Broad-brimmed felt hats are
their distinctive badge, and if they aspire to greater con-
spicuousness they also affect Prince Albert coats, though
often a little slouchy and somewhat worn. They add their
share to the spicy flavor of Washington life.

But the predominating type is that of the Westerner.
He affects nothing, but is usually just an earnest, self-con-
tained person, quite apt to have a sharp eye and a long
beard or heavy moustache. There is a natural swing and a
dash to the Western element which promises to become the
dominating characteristic of the nation. Their great states
now make up most of the Union, and thus in official and
social life the Western men and the Western women are be-
coming controlling influences. The New Yorker who. has
become accustomed: to the doctrine that his habitat is the
center of everything, finds himself here an inconsiderable
element, and the New Englander discovers, sometimes with

THE OMNIPRESENT NEGRO. . 521

dismay, that the tide of national life sweeps on utterly re-
gardless of Boston. Yet the claims of each in contributing
to the greatness of the nation are fully recognized.

But no matter where or when the scene may be in
Washington, the ubiquitous negro colors it, Whether the
humblest white man wishes to move his trunk from one
boarding house to another, or whether the President wishes
a state dinner, the darky is indispensable. If you call on
the President you first encounter a well-dressed and intelli-
gent-looking colored man who has been on duty in the
White House since Lincoln's time. If you call upon any of
the officials at the departments, a polite colored man re-
ceives your card and looks at it carefully before he takes it
in. It is so everywhere.

The colored population may be divided generally into
two classes. The first is made up of the elegant and ambi-
tious who call themselves "colored people," though some
are quite white; and the other of the lazy, happy, easy-
going work-folk and loafers, " out at elbow, loose all over,
and content whenever the sun shines on them."

Washington has a genteel colored society of its own.
But no matter to what degree of affluence, education, or
culture a colored man may rise, neither he nor his family
have any social relations with white people. Some of these
men and women have so little trace of African descent in
their blood that they would readily pass as white people in
any Northern city ; but in the South generally they are as
clearly ostracised as if they were coal-black. Nowhere but
in Washington is this educated, well-to-do, light-colored
class so numerous that it can form a society in distinction
from the shiftless negroes. Even here the better class does
not hold itself exclusive of the less fortunate, except in
purely social relations, and exactly. as the exclusive . society
set. of white people of any large ctty. would maintain itself
towards the class not in " society."

522 COLORED SOCIETY, SCHOOLS AND CHURCHES.

The colored people in "Washington have their editors,
their university with its colored professors, so excellent in
many of its departments that it is attended by white stu-
dents ; they have their great schools with colored teachers
in every district; they have their doctors, dentists, clubs,
saloons, summer resorts, river steamers, and churches.
There are in this class people who are living on their in-
comes, people who have acquired wealth either here or else-
where; if elsewhere they have come here to enjoy the
pleasures of colored society such as is found nowhere else.
They receive no social recognition from the whites, but with
a society of their own that does not matter.

This class can best be seen of a Sunday at one of their
two or three churches. It should be understood that it is
small compared with the " common negro," and while there
are many colored churches in the city with enormous mem-
berships and an unwavering attendance, the upper-set
churches do not number over three, and the membership is
not large. The quality, however, is unmistakable. The
people dress, look, and behave precisely like well-bred white
people, only their color shades from almost white to dusky
black. Well-dressed men with fashionably-trimmed beards,
and stylish women with lorgnettes occupy the pews. Some
of these women, just a shade off the white, are among the
handsomest in the city.

At the church doors elegantly-dressed young colored men
wait on the sidewalks for sweethearts, or drive up in car-
riages and traps. There is an air of refinement in this
church, which is often tastefully decked with flowers, fur-
nished with the softest of carpets, attended by polite ushers,
and presided over by a clergyman who is generally a gradu-
ate from one of the great universities, and whose eloquence
has nothing in common with the ranting, rambling talk
which can be heard in some of the colored churches a few
blocks away.

MUSIC IN THE AIR. 523

But whether attending one of these refined colored
churches or one of the much more numerous of the other
class, one will always find good music. There is a natural
richness of quality in negro voices, a harmonious blending
which is melodious to the ears and which at one time made
the " Jubilee Singers " so popular.

In every walk of life the negro is a musician at heart.
The tatterdemalion, happy-go-lucky negro is always singing
when not laughing or whistling. Should you come across a
hundred negroes opening a trench in the city streets, you
may be sure that half a dozen good quartettes could be
chosen from among them whose voices would delight you.
There is a clear permeating richness even in the voice of the
negro huckster ; it fills the street and pours in at the win-
dows. Nearer and nearer it comes, and finally a slouchy-
looking negro appears, seated high up on a wagon full of
watermelons, singing :

" Red to de rine, and de rine red too,
Better buy a watermillion while I's gwine thro'."

At night the streets, especially adjacent to colored settle-
ments, are full of laughter, singing, and whistling. There is
a bird-like clearness and versatility in a negro's whistling,
and he can pour out any of the popular airs of the day with
astonishing variations. You can no more deprive a negro of
his whistle than of his laughter or the hue of his skin.

While the colored population is gradually being collected
into settlements of their own in various portions of the city,
as yet the negro and the white man frequently live side by
side. Some of the finest mansions of the wealthy are less
than a block from negro shanties, and this is one explanation
of the wealth of so many colored families. They have
made money in real estate in spite of themselves. Forty
years ago a large part of the fashionable Northwest was oc-
cupied by tumble-down shanties of negro owners, but, when

524 THE EASTER EGG-ROLLING.

the era of public improvements came, the land became more
and more valuable, and gradually the shanties gave way to
fine mansions. Still on many streets the mansion and the
shanty yet stand side by side.

A certain portion of the lowest class of negroes is
always making trouble. "Bad niggers" abound. They
constitute the business of the police courts and a large pro-
portion of the inmates of the jail and penitentiary. But
there is a steady improvement under the influence of the
schools and the churches, and especially under better family
regulations. Up to a few years ago the civil law required
nothing of them so far as marriage was concerned. Now
the marriage license is required, and family life is upon a
surer basis. Thus, little by little, the race problem is being
worked out, and the negro does not lack encouragement
so long as he makes no effort to "run things."

It is useless to deny the fact that the white people of the
District of Columbia do not wish a political franchise. They
would much prefer that Congress should govern the District,
even if it is not always with justice. They decline to sub-
ject themselves to the dangers of the vote of so large a col-
ored element in municipal elections. It does not take long
for the Northerner who settles here to become used to this
way of thinking.

The streets of "Washington with their smooth asphalt
pavements, their overhanging foliage and pretty little
squares make a paradise for children. On bright afternoons
the squares are full of nurses and their little charges, who
toddle about the shady walks and tumble over the grass.
Their great annual fete is Easter Monday, when occurs the
" egg-rolling" on the "White House grounds. Such an army
of children of all sorts and conditions and of various shades
of color can never be seen elsewhere. It is one of the
unique spectacles of the Capital, when the south grounds of
the President's house are wholly given over to the laughing,

AT THE GREAT CENTRAL MARKET. 525

romping little folks, — hundreds of daintily-dressed white
children and laughing pickaninnies mixed up together.

On certain mornings and afternoons of the week the
market basket is omnipresent. Women with market baskets
fill the street cars and the sidewalks ; elegant carriages with
market baskets at the feet of fair occupants roll along the
avenues ; negroes carrying huge baskets follow portly
women who are the keepers of boarding houses, and the
Mecca of all is the great Central Market on Pennsylvania
Avenue. This market is one of the most interesting sights
of the Capital. The immense building covers two squares.
Long passage-ways lined with stalls intersect each other and
are densely packed with men and women carrying baskets.
Turkeys, chickens, beef and mutton, rabbits and game, birds,
oysters and turtles, masses of butter and cheese, cakes, pies,
candies, flowers, everything in its season to make the table
complete, cover the counters and dangle overhead. Fish
from the Chesapeake, the Potomac, and the Maryland
streams fill the stalls of one long passage-way, while pickles
and preserves rise in huge pyramids from various points.

People of all walks of life jostle each other in the pas-
sage-ways. Senators' wives, and boarding house keepers,
negro "mammies" and maids go about with their baskets
from stall to stall ; while chickens and cabbages, celery and
sausages, and every other conceivable edible fill their baskets
and fall over the edges. Every sunshiny day men whose
names are known and honored throughout the world may
be seen trudging toward the market in the dignified pursuit
of exercise and dinner. Here, of old, were seen the forms
of illustrious statesmen and heroes now departed, and scores
of men and women whose names are household words.
Chief Justice Marshall, Daniel Webster, and President Wil-
liam Henry Harrison, Attorney-General Holt, William
Walter Phelps, and scores of other famous men were wont
to come here in person to do their marketing.

526 THE MARKET-BASKET PROCESSION.

But the picturesqueuess of the scene is not confined to
the stalls inside. Here in the early morning hours, in the
open-air market behind it, along the railings of the Smith-
sonian grounds, the gaunt farmers of the Virginia and Mary-
land hills stand beside their ramshackle wagons, or hover
over little fires to keep warm, and quaint old darkies offer
for sale old-fashioned flowers and " yarbs," live chickens,
fresh-laid eggs, and vegetables or fruit from their tiny subur-
ban fields, while smoking cob pipes and crooning wordless
melodies, just as they used to do in the da}^s " befo' de wa\"

It may seem strange to some that people so universally
take their baskets with them when marketing. They might
save themselves so much trouble by having their purchases
delivered. But the conditions are such that the baskets are
a necessity. In the first place a large portion of the people
never think of making purchases for a meal till a perilously
short time before it is to be served. There is one quality
about people of Southern extraction which is conducive to
their long lives, — they never cross bridges till they come to
them. The result is a general crush of marketing at certain
hours of the day, and it would be a commercial impossibility
for marketmen to provide a delivery system sufficient to
cope with the problem of delivering purchases in time for
preparation.

Furthermore, the Southern merchant is never given to
putting himself out by delivering things promptly or when
he says he will. When they say noon in New York
it generally means a little before ; when they say noon in
Washington it always means from one to four hours later.
It is a general habit which all the people have, and which
Northerners or Westerners who settle here usually contract
sooner or later. This is the real secret of the omnipresent
market basket at certain hours of the day. After all there
can be no doubt that the housekeeper obtains her edibles
fresher than she could without the basket, and cheaper, be-
cause she buys them herself and carries them home herself.

CHAPTER XXXVII.

BEAUTIFUL AND SACRED ARLINGTON — ITS ROMANCE AND

ITS HISTORY — THE SILENT CITY OF THE NATION'S

DEAD — THE SOLDIER'S HOME.

Where Peace and Silence Reign — "The Bivouac of the Dead" — The
Story of Arlington — The Graves of Nearly 17,000 Soldiers — How
George Washington Managed the Property — How General Robert E.
Lee Inherited the Estate — The Gathering Clouds of Civil War — A
Sad Parting — Leaving Arlington Forever — Approach of the Union
Troops — Flight of Mrs. Lee and Her Children — Her Pathetic Return
to the Old Home After the War — The Graves of Distinguished
Officers — The Tomb to the Unknown Dead — One Grave for Over
2,000 Unknown Soldiers— A Touching Inscription — The Graves of
600 Soldiers of the Spanish- American War — Where the Dead of the
Battleship Maine Are Buried — Memorial Day at Arlington — Where
Forty Soldiers Lie Alone — A Touching Incident — Thinking of the
Dim Past — The Tomb of General Logan.

^ET us leave the City of the Living, a city wherein
the passions of political and social ambition are

ever at strife ; wherein, even amid so many
beautiful sights and so many revelations of a
nation's greatness, rivalries, jealousies, and iniquities
rudely jar the feelings as everywhere in life ; let us
leave the statesmen talking — always talking — at the Cap-
itol, the thousands of busy men and women at their work,
the thousands who are seeking place, preferment, favors,
legislation ; let us cross the Potomac and enter Arlington,
the silent City of the Nation's Dead. Over the great white
buildings we are leaving behind float the Stars and Stripes,
and high above the dense foliage of the trees in yonder
cemetery waves as proudly the same glorious banner. Back

(527)

528 THE RESTING-PLACE OF HEROES.

in the City of the Living, doubtless, there are heroes who
may never be known, but under this flag waving protect-
ingly above Arlington are heroes all. They fought for
those floating colors. They died " that government of the
people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from
the earth."

Entering the cemetery through either one of several
beautiful memorial gates, we follow a shady and winding
roadway under the interlacing branches of mighty oaks.
Here lie the remains of nearly 17,000 soldiers who died that
the Nation might live. Except for the gentle fluttering of
leaves and the singing of birds, the silence of death fills
these grounds. On one side stand massive monuments to
the illustrious dead, famous oflicers of our wars, while on
the other, stretching away over the level ground, sprinkled
with sunshine filtered through the foliage, are thousands of
headstones, each marking a grave in which a soldier sleeps.

The stones are set in rows, uniform in distance one from
the other, arrayed in order and marshaled as battalions for
review. They bear no inscriptions — only numbers and
names — but one story is the story of all, and it is told as
we pass along the walks on the borders of which are iron
tablets bearing lines selected from Col. Theodore O'Hara's
eloquent poem : — " The Bivouac of the Dead.1'

" The muffled drum's sad roll has beat

The soldier's last tattoo ;
No more on Life's parade shall meet

That brave and fallen few.
On Fame's eternal camping-ground

Their silent tents are spread,
And Glory guards, with solemn round,

The bivouac of the dead.

" No rumor of the foe's advance
Now swells upon the wind ;
No troubled thought at midnight haunts
Of loved ones left behind ;

"THE BIVOUAC OF THE DEAD." 531

No vision of the morrow's strife

The warrior's dream alarms ;
No braying horn nor screaming fife

At dawn shall call to arms.

" The neighing troop, the flashing blade,

The bugle's stirring blast,
The charge, the dreadful cannonade,

The din and shout are past ;
Nor war's wild note, nor glory's peal,

Shall thrill with fierce delight
Those breasts that never more may feel

The rapture of the fight.

" Sons of the Dark and Bloody Ground,

Ye must not slumber there,
Where stranger steps and tongues resound

Along the heedless air.
Your own proud land's heroic soil

Shall be your fitter grave ;
She claims from War his richest spoil —

The ashes of her brave.

" Thus 'neath their parent turf they rest,

Far from the gory field,
Borne to a Spartan mother's breast

On many a bloody shield ;
The sunshine of their native sky

Smiles sadly on them here,
And kindred eyes and hearts watch by

The heroes' sepulcher.

" Rest on, embalmed and sainted dead,

Dear as the blood ye gave,
No impious footsteps here shall tread

The herbage of your grave ;
Nor shall your glory be forgot

While Fame her record keeps,
Or Honor points the hallowed spot

Where Valor proudly sleeps."

Arlington, as an ante-helium estate, was in a peculiarly-
intimate manner identified with the history of the founding

532 HISTORY AND ROMANCE OF ARLINGTON.

of the Union, and. after the Civil War it was fittingly
chosen as one of the great national burial-places of those
who died for the preservation of that Union. The family
of John Custis, who purchased this property early in the
eighteenth century, was one of the first in the colony of
Yirginia. He was very wealthy for those days, proud
withal, and much vexed when his high-spirited son, Daniel
Parke Custis, persisted in falling in love with Martha Dan-
dridge of Williamsburg, instead of with an heiress whom
he desired him to marry. But Martha met the elder Custis
at a social gathering and so captivated him that he offered
no further objections. "When the old gentleman died, this
son and his wife came into possession of the Arlington
estate, and there the husband soon died, leaving it to
Martha, a young widow with two children.

In due time the rich and handsome widow re-entered
society and became acquainted with a young colonial Colo-
nel who lived with his mother at Mount Vernon farther
down the river, and whose name was George "Washington.
He wooed and won Martha Custis, and, with her two
children, they went to live at Mount Yernon, but managed
also the Arlington property. One of the children, Martha
Parke Custis, died, but the son, John Parke Custis, grew to
manhood and inherited the Arlington estate. He died in
1781, after serving upon his stepfather's staff during the
latter portion of the Revolution, and his two infant children
were adopted by "Washington and by him were deeply
loved. Elinor, or "Nelly," Custis, who grew up with an
inheritance of her grandmother's beauty, married Major
Lewis, a Yirginian, and her brother, George Washington
Parke Custis, upon reaching his majority, inherited Arling-
ton and began the erection of the mansion that for over a
century has stood on the Yirginia bank of the river. Mr.
Custis married Mary Lee Fitzhugh, one of the Randolphs,
and of four children only one survived, a daughter Mary.

THE GATHERING CLOUDS <>K CIVIL WAK. ooo

The Custis family lived at their stately mansion for many
vears, improving and beautifying it and entertaining hand-
somely, until the death of Mr. Custis, the last male of his
family, in 1857.

" From early boyhood Robert E. Lee was a welcome
visitor to this happy home, and together he and Mary Custis
grew to maturity. They were distantly related, and seem
to have been singularly suited to one another. Among their
other youthful pastimes was the planting of the noble ave-
nue of trees to the right of Arlington. Robert became a
cadet at West Point, and as time passed on their attachment
to one another deepened.

"They were married in 1831, two years after he had
graduated at West Point, the ceremony being performed in
the room to the right of the hall of the mansion.

" Here they lived for thirty years. Their children were
all born here, and Colonel Lee's life of active military
duties alternated with periods of quiet retirement at home.

" The gathering clouds of Civil War made it necessary
for him to decide upon his course, and, after long and sad
deliberation, he declared that his duty lay with his native
State. So, resigning his commission as colonel of the First
Regiment of Cavalry in the United States Army, on April
20, 1861, he was appointed Major-General and Commander
of the Confederate forces of Virginia four days later, and
left his wife and children at Arlington to take command of
his new troops."

He went to become the great military leader of the
Rebellion, and doubtless he expected some day to return, for
he took away none of the furniture and few of the great
number of priceless relics of Washington. The government
seized everything of historical value, and most of such arti-
cles are now to be seen in the National Museum. When the
Federal troops took possession they converted the mansion
into a headquarters and the grounds into a camp, and the

534 HOW ARLINGTON BECAME A NATIONAL CEMETERY.

level plateaus and grassy slopes of Arlington were devoted
to the purposes of a military cemetery.

"Upon the approach of the Union troops." says Mr.
Bengough, "Mrs. Lee was compelled to leave at last the
home made sacred by all the tender associations of life.
The home of her ancestors, made glorious by the memory
of Washington, the fair spot where she first looked out upon
the world, the scene of her childhood's happy days, of her
early love and marriage, the birthplace of all her children
and their home through their years of growth to maturity,
the treasury of all the rich collection of relics of "Washington
and her parents ; all were torn away from her, and forever.
Once only, some years afterwards, when enfeebled by illness,
she came back to visit the old home, but the transformation
affected her so that she could not stay, but asked that they
should let her ' get a drink of water from the spring,' and
then take her away. She had always said that she could
not die in peace away from Arlington, and in her last hours
in the valley of the shadow she fancied herself back again,
with her little children, wandering amid the scenes so fondly
loved of old."

The Federal authorities took possession of Arlington for
military uses, and held it under that eminent title until Jan-
uary 11, 1864, when it was put up at public sale for unpaid
taxes ($92.07) and was bought by the government for
$26,800. Mrs. Robert E. Lee, the life tenant, died in 1873.
Four years later, her eldest child, George Washington Custis
Lee, who inherited the title to the estate, brought a suit in
ejectment and successfully contested the legality of the title
of the government under the tax sale ; but was barred in the
Supreme Court. In recognition, however, of his equitable
claim, Congress appropriated (March 3, 1883) the sum of
$150,000 for the purchase of the estate, and Mr. Lee con-
veyed by deed to the United States all his rights therein.
Such is the history and the romance of Arlington.

MONUMENT TO THE UNKNOWN DEAD.

535

The view from the porch of the old mansion is one of the
fairest. A half-mile away and two hundred feet below Hows
the placid Potomac, and beyond lies Washington. If you
would catch the beauties of the scene at their best, stand
here of a quiet evening, while yet the river is shimmering in
the sunset, and above the soft mists rise the great dome of
the Capitol and the massive white shaft of the monument.
If, as tradition says, Washington one day selected this nook
in the valley of the Potomac for the seat of the future Capi-
tal of the nation, we may well suppose that it may have been

BENEATH THIS STONE

REPOSE THE BONES OF TWO THOUSAND ONE HUNDRED ANJ) ELEVEN UNKNOWN SOLDIERS

GATHERED AFTER THE WAR

FROM THE FIELDS OF BULL RUN, AND THE ROUTE TO THE RAPPAHANNOCK.

THEIR REMAINS COULD NOT BE IDENTIFIED, BUT THEIR NAMES AND DEATHS ARE

RECORDED IN THE ARCHIVES OF THEIR COUNTRY; AND ITS GRATEFUL CITIZENS

HONOR THEM AS OF THEIR NOBLE ARMY OF MARTYRS. MAY THEY REST IN PEACE!

SEPTEMBER. A. D. 1866.

FACE OF MONUMENT TO THE UNKNOWN DEAL) OF TUE CIVIL WAR.

at a time when he stood upon this plateau above the river
and whispered his love into the ears of Martha Custis. It is
in such hours, when the heart is young, and hope and ambi-
tion are strong, that inspiration comes.

Near the Temple of Fame, on whose colmnns are
engraved the names of distinguished American soldiers,
stands the massive granite sarcophagus sacred to the
memory of the unknown dead of the Civil War. The bones
of over 2,000 unknown soldiers, gathered after the war
from the battle-fields of Bull Pun and thence to the
Rappahannock, lie here in one grave. The simple story is
told in the letters chiseled on the granite face of the
monument.

536 THE DEAD PROM DISTANT BATTLE-FIELDS.

On the brow of the bluff near the old mansion are buried
many officers of distinction. A great memorial stone marks
the resting-place of General Sheridan, and others as conspicu-
ous indicate the graves of Admirals Porter, Rogers, and
Ammen, and Generals Rawlins, Crook, Doubleday, Meigs,
Ricketts, Lawton, Henry, and others.

Stones worn with age mark the graves of eleven Revolu-
tionary officers. In accordance with a privilege given to the
wives and daughters of soldiers buried at Arlington, many
a woman's grave is here beside that of the husband or the
father.

In a new section of the cemetery, half a mile to the
south of the officers' burial-field, are the graves of 600 sol-
diers who were killed or died of disease in Cuba and Porto
Rico during the war with Spain, and whose remains were
brought by a grateful country from the distant battle-fields
and camps and reinterred with military honors at Arlington,
Congress having appropriated $300,000 for this purpose.

"It is fitting that in behalf of the Nation," said
President McKinley in his Executive Order relating to
the reinterment of these soldiers, "tributes of honor be
paid to the memories of the noble men who lost their
lives in their country's service, during the late war with
Spain. It is the more fitting, inasmuch as, in consonance
with the spirit of our free institutions and in obedience
to the most exalted promptings of patriotism, those who
were sent to other shores to do battle for their country's
honor under their country's flag went freely from every
quarter of our beloved land. Each soldier, each sailor,
parting from home ties and putting behind him private
interests in the presence of the stern emergency of un-
sought war with an alien foe, was an individual type of
that devotion of the citizens of the state which makes
our Nation strong in unity and in action."

The memorial to the victims of the Maine is a giant

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THE DEAD <»K THE BATTLESHIP "MAINE. 539

anehor. It is an anchor with a history, though much of
that history is not known. The anchor is of ancient style
and rough workmanship, having been wrought b}'' hand
from a huge piece of iron It lias an enormous wooden
cross-bar, honeycombed by time and the elements. This
cross-bar, even when the anchor is lying at an angle, reaches
over six feet in the air, and, silhouetted against the sky, can
be seen from the river. The whole has been painted a dead
black to preserve it from further decay.

The anchor rests upon a large concrete base in the natu-
ral position of such a device when reposing on the land, and
the whole is said to weigh more than two tons.

On a huge tablet riveted to the center of the cross-bar is
inscribed :

U. S. S. MAINE.

Blown Up February Fifteenth, 1898.

Here Lie the Remains of One Hundred and Sixtt-three Men of

"Tiie Maine's" Crew Brought From Havana, Cuba,

Reinterred at Arlington, December Twenty-eighth, 1899.

The anchor, however, is not the only object that marks
the graves of Captain Sigsbee's men. At each side of this
huge iron memorial there has been erected a brick pier and
upon each of these is placed a Spanish mortar. These mor-
tars were taken by the Americans of Dewey's fleet at Cavite
Arsenal, Manila.

In one part of tlie grounds there is a sylvan temple, an
amphitheater formed by turfed embankments and shaded
with trellises of vines. Here every year when Arlington
has taken on its springtime beauty, the Memorial Day
services are held, and under the softest of skies and in
serenest airs the graves of our dead heroes are decorated
with flowers.

Arlington is glorious that day. No words could be
more eloquent than those which are spoken ; no music so
tender nor more full of precious memories, nor sweeter with

540 BEAUTIFUL AND HOLY ARLINGTON.

suggestions of peace and rest, than that sung under those
patriarchal trees and that canopy of living green. And no
sight could be more touching than when gray-haired vet-
erans reverently lay wreaths and scatter the flowers of May
upon the graves of the loyal dead who sleep their eternal
sleep in this historic ground.

Not far away, there is a little cemetery where forty
soldiers lie alone. They fell in defense of Washington
during Early's raid in July, 1864. One of these was the
son of a poor widow. She had given three to her country,
and this one was the last. Living far in northern Vermont,
she never saw the graves of her three soldier -sons, whom
she gave up, one b}T one, as they came to man's estate, and
who went forth from her home to return no more.

To this little graveyard on a Memorial Day one woman
went alone with her children, carrying forty wreaths of
loveliest flowers, and laid one on every grave. Forty
mothers' sons slept under the green turf ; and one mother,
in her large love, remembered and consecrated them all.
She chose these because, with so many others in the larger
cemeteries to be decorated, she feared the forty, in their
isolation, might be forgotten.

Look again on Arlington through the soft spring atmo-
sphere. How beautiful it is ! how sad it is ! how holy ! Again
the tender spring grasses have crept over its thousands of
hallowed graves. The innocents, the violets of the woods,
are blooming over the heads of our brave. Awe-inspiring
silence reigns through this domain of the dead. There is a
hush in the air, and a hush in the heart, as we walk through
it, reading its names, pausing by the graves of its "un-
known," and thinking of the dim past. Far as the sight
reaches stretch the low green mounds that mark the last
resting-places of the heroic dead. The beauty of their
sleeping-place, the reverent care for it everywhere revealed,
tells how dear to the Nation's heart is the dust of its heroes,

AT THE SOLDIER'S HOME. 541

how sacred the spot where they lie. Let us not forget tho
still higher love which we owe them ; let us attest it by a
deeper devotion to the principles for which they died.

Standing on the bluff at Arlington and looking across
the river and beyond the city, we see rising above the trees
the white tower of the Soldier's Home. Journeying thither,
we find ourselves again in the forest, with flowers blooming
and ivy climbing over walls and bridges, and squirrels scam-
pering along the winding roadways which lead to the great
white buildings. Here and there about the velvety lawns
are old, battle-scarred veterans basking in the sun, smoking
their pipes and fighting their battles over again. About the
manv acres, more than a hundred of which are in culti-
ration, are many places where one can stand and look out
over a wide panorama of country, the river, the woodlands,
the city itself.

This home was established in 1851 by the efforts of Gen-
eral Scott out of certain funds received from confiscated
property during the War with Mexico, as a retreat for vet-
erans of the Mexican War and for men of the regular army
who may be disabled, or who, by twenty years of honorable
service and the payment of twelve and one-half cents a
month during service, acquire the right of residence here
for the remainder of their lives. The veterans thus have a
sense of self-support, and if they have no other income,
those who are able to do anything receive forty cents per
day for working about the buildings on the farm and the
grounds. There are usually about 800 soldiers here living
under a proper discipline, wearing the uniform of the army.
More than 250 of this number are bed-ridden invalids in the
large hospital of the home, where they receive every atten-
tion, and the care of Regular Army surgeons and the Hos-
pital Corps.

In the rear of the home on a wooded slope lies another
of the National Military Cemeteries, entered through an

542 THE TOMB OF GENERAL JOHN A. LOGAN.

arch upon whose pillars are inscribed the names of great
Union commanders of the Civil "War. In this cemetery rest
the mortal remains of about 5,000 Union and 300 Confede-
rate soldiers. A broad avenue runs along the north side of
the enclosure, leaving a space between the fence and the
avenue where a number of officers and their wives are
buried — General and Mrs. Brice, General Hunt and General
Kelton, Lieutenant Hunt of the Greeley expedition, and
others. On the opposite side stands the beautiful stone
chapel of pure Norman architecture, in which repose the
remains of General John A. Logan, the greatest volunteer
commander of the Civil "War. To it many pilgrimages are
made by citizens of Washington and the legions of vis-
itors. There are many drives through the grounds of the
Soldier's Home, over smooth roadways cut through the
natural forest, ever and anon bringing us to some open
height from which may be seen a charmingly-picturesque
landscape, and always the beautiful city of Washington.

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

A DAY AT MOUNT VERNON— AMID THE SCENES OP

GEORGE AND MARTHA WASHINGTON'S HOME

LIFE— THEIR LAST RESTING-PLACE.

The Old Mansion at Mount Vernon — Its Story — How It Was Saved for
the Nation — The Married Life of George and Martha Washington —
His Life as a Farmer — His Daily Routine — His Large Force of
Workmen and Slaves — Out of Butter — Washington's Devotion to
His Wife — Ordering Her Clothes — A Runaway Cook — Looking for
a Housekeeper— " Four Dollars at Christmas with Which To Be
Drunk Four Days and Four Nights " — His Final Illness and Death —
The Bed on Which He Died — Dastardly Attempt To Rob His Grave

— Death of Mrs. Washington — The Attic Room in Which She Died

— What Was Found in the Old Vault — Removing the Remains to
the New Vault — Opening the Coffins— The New Tomb — A Tour
Through the Mansion.

^IFTEEN miles farther down the Potomac, partly
hidden among the trees which almost everywhere
line the Virginia shore, is Mount Vernon, the
home of Washington. The mansion is older and
much less pretentious than that at Arlington. It
is of wood, cut and painted to resemble stone, and is
surmounted by an antique weather-vane. Its venerable and
venerated roof sheltered Washington and all he held most
dear, from youth to age, and here, during his life, the great
and good of many lands always found an open hand and
generous cheer. Here, amid the scenes he so well loved,
his mortal remains were laid to rest, and a little later those
of his wife were laid by his side.

To compare with the many elegant memorials in stone

( 543 )

544 THE TWO TOMBS AT MOUNT VERNON.

which mark the graves of thousands of heroes at Arlington,
there are but two tombs, one very old, decayed, moss-
covered, ivy-grown and empty ; two or three marble shafts
sacred to the memory of members of the Washington family ;
and the very simple brick structure built in the side of an
embankment. The front has trimmings of marble, the
entrance being protected by an open iron grill. Back of
this grill is the vestibule of the tomb ; within which stand
two sarcophagi of time-stained marble. Back of this vesti-
bule is the vault in which years ago were deposited the
bodies of George and Martha Washington, as also those of
two or three other members of the family. Solid marble
slabs close the entrance, the keys of which were thrown into
the Potomac river when the tomb was closed.

Until the last decade the only way Mount Yernon could
be reached by visitors was by conveyance from Alexandria,
or by the little steamer which still plies between Washing-
ton and this hallowed spot. Every summer's day a motley
crowd composed of the young and old, the refined and
vulgar, the grave and gay, fathers and mothers with children
and lunch baskets, and pretty girls with dignified duennas,
boarded the steamer for a day's outing at Mount Yernon.
The wharf at which the steamer landed is the one that
Washington built and from which the flour, tobacco, and
corn, the chief productions of the Mount Yernon estate,
were shipped in vessels for England or the British West
Indies.

But a trolley line now runs from the center of Washing-
ton to the north gate at Mount Yernon, reaching the mansion
in an hour. The cars cross the famous Long Bridge over
the Potomac, and speed on their way through woods and
over fields fraught with memories of the Civil War ; through
Alexandria and past Christ Church, where Washington at-
tended, and many other scenes once familiar to him when
living the life of a plain Yirginia planter. By and by a

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HOW MOUNT VERNON RECEIVED ITS NAME. 547

white fence, with a background of huge trees, comes into
view. It marks the northern boundary line of the old
Mount Vernon estate, through a part of which the electric
cars now run. The surrounding country has not changed
materially since Washington's day, and it does not require a
vivid imagination to picture his commanding figure on his
customary daily round of inspection. The grounds are now
closed at 4 o'clock each day, with the exception of Sunday,
when they are not opened to the public at all.

Washington came into possession of the Mount Vernon
estate by the will of his half-brother, Lawrence Washington,
who inherited it from his father. Lawrence Washington
was an officer of the English navy, and had served under
Admiral Vernon against Spain. Because of his admiration
of his old commander he called his estate, whereon he built
a modest mansion, Mount Vernon, and from that the whole
domain received its title.

Lawrence Washington died in 1752, and George, at the
age of twenty, had the care of his estate as chief executor,
Lawrence's little daughter Jane being the only immediate
heir. Her death left the entire estate to George, pursuant to
the provisions of her father's will. It was his home from
1754 until his death in 1799.

In the spring of 1859, after he had achieved his colonial
military fame, George Washington brought to Mount Ver-
non, from the home of her widowhood, his bride, Martha
Custis. At seventeen she had married Daniel Parke Custis,
one of the wealthiest planters of the Colony, a man more
than twenty years her senior, by whom she had four chil-
dren, two of whom were living. A year's widowhood had
not decreased her charms when the gallant and susceptible
young soldier met her.

And yet the old mansion in which so much of their long
married life was spent, around which cluster so many patri-
otic and hallowed associations, and the grounds wherein the

5-1:8 HOW THE ESTATE WAS PURCHASED.

mortal remains of Washington and his wife were laid to
rest, were utterly neglected for years, and the old house
nearly went to irretrievable decay before its value as a
national Mecca occurred to the people. In 1855, John
Augustine Washington, then owner, being unable to main-
tain the estate, offered it for sale. Even then Congress
could not be prevailed upon to purchase and restore the old
manor. At this critical juncture, Miss Ann Pamela Cun-
ningham of South Carolina, undertook the apparently-hope-
less effort of raising the sum of $200,000 necessary to pur-
chase the mansion and a part of the estate. With courage
that never faltered she earnestly devoted herself to this self-
imposed task, and contributions were solicited from every
quarter.

In 1858 the Mount Yernon Ladies' Association was or-
ganized, with Miss Cunningham as Regent. Vice-Regents
representing twelve states were also elected and efforts to
raise the needed money were increased. Edward Everett
gave the proceeds of his lecture on Washington, and of some
of his writings, and in this way contributed $69,000 as his
personal contribution to the funds of the association. Wash-
ington Irving gave $500. Thousands of school children
gave each five cents. The latter part of 1859 the full sum
was raised, and in 1860, two hundred acres of the estate,
including the tomb, the mansion and its surrounding build-
ings, became the property of the association. Since that
time the association has added to its purchase, and now
controls 237 acres of the original estate. A fund was pro-
vided for its permanent care and maintenance. The asso-
ciation has refitted the mansion with furnishings of colonial
times, including many articles which originally belonged to
Washington and once had their place within his home.

Much of the forty years of Washington's married life
was spent at Mount Vernon. It was his home for forty-six
years, just one-half of which was given to his country's serv-

Washington's home life. 549

ice. He never left it even for a brief period without regret-
In the winter of 17S3 he wrote to Lafayette : " I am become
a private citizen on the banks of the Potomac ; and under
the shadow of my own vine and my own fig-tree, free from
the bustle of a camp and the busy scenes of public life. .
I have not only retired from all public employments,
but I am retiring within myself. . . . Envious of none,
I am determined to be pleased with all ; and this, my dear
friend, being the order of my march, I will move gently
down the stream of time until I sleep with my fathers."

The life of Washington is very closely interwoven with
every portion of Mount Vernon ; and it is here, in the seclu-
sion and environment of his own home, that we can see, as
no where else, the domestic side of his character.

.Agriculture was "Washington's favorite pursuit. He
found great pleasure in farming, and late in life said, " The
life of a husbandman of all others is the most delectable,"
and " has ever been the most favorite amusement of my
life." A visitor to Mount Vernon in 1785 states that his
host's "greatest pride is to be thought the first farmer in
America." His strong affection for Mount Vernon made
him happy and contented while there, and uneasy when
away from it. When leaving Mount Vernon for New York
in 1789, for his first inauguration as President, he regret-
fully bade "adieu to Mount Vernon, to private life, and to
domestic felicity." From the first his personal attention to
the farm was seriously interrupted. From 1754 till 1759 he
was most of the time on the frontier ; for nearly nine years
his Revolutionary service separated him from the property;
and during (he two terms of his presidency he had only
brief and infrequent visits.

After he had written his farewell to his officers and re-
signed his commission in the armv, he fondlv dreamed of
spending his remaining years in uninterrupted peace on the
shores of the Potomac. This desire for the retirement of

550 WASHINGTON AS A LAND-OWNER.

home life was conspicuous in Washington's character. His
return to Mount Yernon after the disbanding of the Conti-
nental army, proved only a brief respite from patriotic
service ; but during that time he devoted himself to the ag-
ricultural development of his farm and the interior improve-
ment of his house. He enlarged the mansion in 1760 and
again in 1785.

When the estate passed into his hands it consisted of
2,500 acres ; but he was a persistent purchaser of land
adjoining his own, and eventually the 2,500 acres increased
to over 8,000, of which over 3,200 were under cultivation
during the latter part of his life. He was ambitious to bring
the farm to the highest pitch of cultivation. He was a dili-
gent student of agricultural literature, and was constantly
trying new experiments to improve his crops and stock.

Yet the Mount Yernon farm rarely produced a net
income. He owned thousands of scattered acres elsewhere,
for Washington was a sanguine speculator, not only in farm
lands but in city lots and lottery schemes and raffles, and he
became more or less land-poor. In 1763 he confided to a
friend that the needs of his plantation " and other matters
. . . swallowed up before I well knew where I was, all the
moneys I got by marriage, nay more, brought me in debt."

Notwithstanding all this, Washington was a successful
business man, and his wealth steadily increased. When he
died, his property, exclusive of his wife's and the Mount
Yernon estate, was estimated at $530,000, and it was said of
him by a contemporary, " General Washington is, perhaps,
the largest landholder in America."

The management of such an extensive estate as Mount
Yernon required a large force of workmen. A grist-mill, a
blacksmith-shop, a wood-burner to keep the shop and the
mansion supplied with charcoal, masons, carpenters, a shoe-
maker, and gardeners were kept busy on the place. At one
time a still was in operation from which a good income was

WASHINGTON THE FARMER. 551

obtained. The coopers on the place made the barrels in
which the farm produce was packed, and Washington's
schooner carried much of it to market.

In 1774 Washington paid tithes on 135 slaves; besides
which must be included the " dower slaves" of his wife. A
contemporary, describing Mount Vernon in the same year,
speaks of his having 300 negroes.

In 1793 there were fifty-four draft horses on the estate,
and 317 head of cattle. A large dairy was operated which,
somehow, did not fill Washington's expectations, for he had
occasion to say, " It is hoped, and will be expected, that
more effectual measures will be pursued to make butter
another year; for it is almost beyond belief that from 101
cows actually reported on a late enumeration of the cattle,
I am obliged to buy butter for the use of my family."

At this time 031: sheep grazed in the rich pastures of
Mount Vernon, and " many " hogs, but " as these were pretty
much at large in the woodland," he said, " the number is
uncertain." He loved horses and dogs, was an ardent sports-
man, and enjoyed a fox hunt over the hills and across the
fields of his own and adjoining estates.

Martha Washington's personality was partially obscured
by the fame of her illustrious husband, and she was content
to bask in its sunshine. His marriage to her was a good
one from the worldly point of view, for her share of the
Custis property equaled " 15,000 acres of land, a good part
of it adjoining the city of Williamsburg ; several lots in the
said city ; between 200 and 300 negroes ; and about £8,000
or £10,000 upon bond," estimated at the time as about
£20,000 in all, which was further increased on the death
of "Patsy" Custis in 1773 by a half of her fortune, which
added £10,000 to the sum.

Washington was devoted to his wife's children, John
Parke and Martha Parke Custis, whom he called "Jack "
and " Patsy," and who at the date of his marriage were

552 GLIMPSES OF DOMESTIC LIFE.

respectively six and four years of age. Mrs. Washington
was an anxious and worrying mother. Once when she had
left one of the children at Mount Yernon while she was on
a visit to friends, she wrote to her sister :

" I carried my little patt with me and left Jackey at
home for a trial to see how well I could stay without' him
though we were gon but wone fortnight I was quite impatient
to get home. If I at aney time heard the doggs barke or a
noise out, I thought thair was a person sent for me. 1
often fancied he was sick or some accident had happened to
him so that I think it is impossible for me to leave him as
long as Mr. Washington must stay when he comes."

Martha Washington was not an educated woman, and
her letters of form, which required better orthography
than she was mistress of, Washington drafted for her, pen-
weary though he was. He frequently saved her the trouble
of ordering her own clothing, for he wrote to his London
agent for "A Salmon-colored Tabby of the enclosed pattern,
with satin flowers, to be made in a sack," " 1 Cap, Handker-
chief, Tucker and Ruffles, to be made of Brussels lace or
point, proper to wear with the above negligee, to cost £20,"
" 1 pair black, and 1 pair white Satin Shoes, of the smallest,"
and " 1 black mask." Again he writes his London agent,
" Mrs. Washington sends home a green sack to get cleaned,
or fresh dyed of the same color ; made up into a handsome
sack again, would be her choice ; but if the cloth won't
afford that, then to be thrown into a genteel Night Gown."

Nevertheless Mrs. Washington performed her duties
well, for she combined, " in an uncommon degree, great dig-
nity of manner with most pleasing affability." Though ob-
stinate and quick-tempered, she is described as " a sociable,
pretty kind of woman," " matronly and with perfect good
breeding."

Washington had to face the usual vexatious domestic
problems. " The running off of my cook," he says, " has
been a most inconvenient thing to this family, and what

OLD-TIME HOSPITALITY. 553

rendered it more disagreeable, is that I had resolved never
to become the Master of another slave by purchase, but this
resolution I fear I must break. I have endeavored to hire,
black or white, but am not yet supplied."

The care of the Mount Vernon household evidently
proved too much for Martha "Washington's ability, and a
housekeeper was engaged. "When one who had filled the
position was on the point of leaving, Washington wrote to
his agent to find another without the least delay, emphasiz-
ing the importance of haste because the vacancy would
"throw a great additional weight on Mrs. "Washington."
On another occasion he wrote that his wife's " distresses for
want of a good housekeeper are such as to render the wages
demanded by Mrs. Forbes (though unusually high) of no
consideration." To a housekeeper he promised "a warm,
decent, and comfortable room to herself, to lodge in, and
will eat of the victuals of our Table, but not set at it, or at
any time with lis, be her appearance what it may ; for if
this was once admitted no line satisfactory to either party
perhaps could be drawn thereafter."

The hospitality dispensed at Mount Vernon was almost
baronial in its lavishness, and it was often imposed upon.
The old custom of keeping " open house " prevailed, and
attracted hosts of friends traveling north and south, and the
mansion was often taxed to its fullest capacity. At times,
"Washington was a little embarrassed by calls from those
who had no claim whatever upon him. He notes : " A gen-
tleman calling himself the Count de Cheiza D'Artigan,
Officer of the French Guards, came here to dinner; but,
bringing no letters of introduction, nor any authentic testi-
monials of his being either, I was at a loss how to receive or
treat him, — he staid to dinner and the evening," and the
next day departed in "Washington's carriage to Alexandria.
"A farmer came here to see my drill plow," he says, " and

staid all night." At another time he records that a woman
31

554 Daily life at mount vernon.

whose " name was unknown to me, dined here." He spoke
of his home as a " well-resorted tavern," and recorded in his
diary, " Dined with Mrs. Washington, which I believe is the
first instance of it since my retirement from public life."

"Washington kept a daily record of all expenses, even
going so far as to jot down everything that was provided
for his table. He gave personal oversight to all that was
going on at Mount Yernon, and no detail was too small to
engage his attention. It was his custom to put all agree-
ments in writing, and some of them, found among his papers,
are amusingly interesting, as, for example, his agreement
with Philip Barter, a gardener, who bound himself to keep
sober and not to drink except on stated occasions, to which
Washington assented in an agreement which stipulated that
Barter should have

" Four dollars at Christmas, with which to be drunk four
days and four nights ; two dollars at Easter, to effect
the same purpose; two dollars at Whitsuntide, to be
drunk for two days; a dram in the morning, and a drink of
grog at dinner, at noon. For the true and faithful perform-
ance of all these things, the parties have hereunto set their
hands, this twenty-third day of April, Anno Domini, 1787."

The contract was signed and witnessed with all formality.

Washington has left on record a description of the routine
of his daily life at Mount Vernon : " I begin my diurnal
course with the sun ... if my hirelings are not in their
places by that time, I send them messages of sorrow for
their indisposition; having put these wheels in motion, I
examine the state of things further; the more they are
probed the deeper I find the wounds which my buildings
have sustained by an absence and neglect of eight years ; by
the time I have accomplished these matters breakfast (a lit-
tle after seven o'clock) is ready; this being over, I mount
my horse and ride around my farms, which employs me
until it is time to dress for dinner. . . . The usual time for

Washington's last illness. 557

sitting at the table, a walk, and tea bring me within the
dawn of candlelight; previous to which, if not prevented by
company, I resolve that as soon as the glimmering taper
supplies the place of the great luminary I will retire to my
writing-table and acknowledge the letters I have received ;
when the lights are brought I feel tired and disinclined to
engage in this work, conceiving that the next night will do
as well. The next night comes, and with it the same causes
for postponement, and so on. Having given you the history
of a day, it will serve for a year."

A visitor to Mount Vernon at this time is authority for
the statement that the master " often works with his men
himself — strips off his coat and labors like a common man.
The General has a great turn for mechanics. It's astonish-
ing with what niceness he directs everything in the building
way, condescending even to measure the things himself, that
all may be perfectly uniform."

Washington's final illness dates from December 12, 1799.
On that day he contracted a severe cold while riding about
his plantation in " rain, hail, and snow." When he came in
late in the afternoon it was observed that his clothes were
wet, but he said his "great coat had kept him dry; but his
neck appeared to be wet and the snow was hanging on his
hair." The next day he was worse, " and complained of
having a sore throat," but he " made light of it, as he would
never take anything to carry off a cold, always observing,
' let it go as it came.' " On the following morning he could
" swallow nothing," " appeared to be distressed, convulsed,
and almost suffocated."

The treatment of his last illness by the doctors was bar-
barous, even when judged by the standard of medical skill
of that time. Although he had been bled once already,
they prescribed " two pretty copious bleedings," and finally
a third, " when about thirty-two ounces of blood were
drawn," or the equivalent of a quart.

558 RESIGNED TO DEATH.

Shortly after this last bleeding Washington seemed to
have resigned himself, for he gave some directions concern-
ing his will, and said, referring to his approaching death,
" as it was the debt which we must all pay, he looked to the
event with perfect resignation." He suffered great pain and
distress, and said to the doctor, " I die hard, but I am not
afraid to go." A little later he said, " I feel myself going.
I thank you for your attention; you had better not take
any more trouble about me, but let me go off quietly." He
expired without a struggle, December 14, 1799. His last
words were, " 'Tis well."

The remains of Washington, and later those of his wife,
were placed in metal coffins and deposited in the old vault at
Mount Yernon. In 1837 the remains of both were intrusted
to the final keeping of two marble coffins, hewn each from a
single block of marble, made and presented by Mr. John
Struthers of Philadelphia, which were then deposited in the
new vault where they now lie. This vault was erected
many years ago, in pursuance of instructions given in the
following clause in Washington's will : " The family vault at
Mount Yernon requiring repairs, and being improperly situ-
ated besides, I desire that a new one, of brick, and upon a
larger scale, may be built at the foot of what is called the
Yineyard Inclosure; on the ground which is marked out,
in which my remains, and those of my deceased relatives
(now in the old vault) and such others of my family as may
choose to be entombed there, may be deposited."

The old vault referred to was upon the brow of a decliv-
ity, in full view of the Potomac river, about 300 yards south
of the mansion. Time and neglect had wrought its ruin.
The doorway was gone, and the cavity was partly filled
with rubbish. Therein the remains of Washington had lain
undisturbed for over thirty years, when an attempt was
made by some vandal to carry them away. The insecure old
vault was entered, and a skull and some bones were taken ;

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REMOVAL OF WASHINGTON'S REMAINS. 5tjJ

but these comprised no part of the remains of the illustrious
dead. The robber was detected, and the bones were recov-
ered. The new vault was then immediately built, and all
the family remains were placed in it.

Mr. William Strickland, who designed the lid of Wash-
ington's coffin, and accompanied Mr. Struthers when the
remains of the patriot were placed in it in 1S37, has left a
most interesting account of that event. The vault was first
entered by Mr. Strickland, accompanied by Major Lewis (the
last survivor of the first executors of the will of Washington),
and his son. On entering the vault they found everything
in confusion. Decayed fragments of coffins were scattered
about, and bones of various parts of the human body were
seen promiscuously thrown together. The coffins of Wash-
ington and his wife were in the deepest recess of the vault.
They were of lead, inclosed in wooden cases. When the
new sarcophagi arrived, the old coffin of Washington was
brought forth. When the decayed wooden case was re-
moved, the leaden lid was perceived to be sunken and frac-
tured. In the bottom of the wooden case was found the
silver coffin-plate, in the form of a shield, which was placed
upon the leaden coffin when Washington was first entombed.

"At the request of Major Lewis," says Mr. Strickland,
" the fractured part of the lid was turned over on the lower
part, exposing to view a head and breast of large dimen-
sions, which appeared, by the dim light of the candles, to
have suffered but little from the effects of time. The eye-
sockets were large and deep, and the breadth across the
temples, together with the forehead, appeared of unusual
size. There was no appearance of grave-clothes. The chest
was broad, the color was dark, and had the appearance of
dried flesh and skin adhering closely to the bones. We saw
no hair, nor was there any offensive odor from the body.
The leaden lid was restored to its place ; the body, raised by
six men, was carried and laid in the marble coffin, and the

562 THE NEW TOMB.

cover being put on and set in cement, it was sealed from
our sight on Saturday, the seventh day of October, 1837."
The remains of Martha Washington were at the same time
removed from the old coffin to the new marble sarcophagus
and were laid beside those of her husband in the new tomb.
The new tomb is a severely-plain but spacious vault
built of brick, with an arched roof. It is now overgrown
with shrubbery and vines. Its iron door opens into a vesti-
bule, also built of brick. Over the vault door, upon a stone
panel, are cut the words : " I am the Resurrection and the
Life; he that belie veth in Me, though he were dead, yet
shall he live." The vault is twelve feet in height. The
gateway is flanked by brick pilasters surmounted by a stone
coping which covers a gothic arch. Over this arch is a
white marble tablet inscribed :

Within this Inclosure

Rest

The Remains of

GEN. GEORGE WASHINGTON.

In the ante-chamber are seen the two marble sarcophagi.
The one on the right bears on its face the name of Wash-
ington, with chiseled coat-of-arms of the United States
and a draped flag. One of the talons of the eagle in the
coat-of-arms is missing ; it was broken off by a vandal dur-
ing the Civil War. The other sarcophagus is inscribed :

MARTHA,

Consort of Washington.

Died May 22, 1801,

Aged 71 years.

The date of the year is an error; it should have read 1802.
No matter how often one has visited Mount Yernon it is
always attractive. An indescribable interest possesses one
as he wanders through halls and rooms where walked, slept,
ate, and drank the great central figure in the stirring events
from which our nationality was evolved.

THE
ff NEW YORK
[[PUBLIC LIBRARY

V\As

t-cunci

THE INTERIOR OF THE MANSION. 5G5

Though tlio Mount Vernon house was a mansion in ita
day, its rooms can bear no comparison with those of modern
houses which make no great pretensions. Modern life ex-
acts more comforts than the 18th century could supply to
its living-rooms.

The furniture now on exhibition at Mount Yernon, some
of which was used by the family, — and a good deal more of
it was not — is neither beautiful nor comfortable. There is
an air of comfort about the huge old m ihogany bedsteads,
but the steps beside them are suggestive of stumbles in the
dark and damaged toes. It must have required careful cal-
culation to mount into one of those mountainous feather
beds after extinguishing the candle. It is noticeable that
the bed in which Washington breathed his last, and which
is shown in the room in which ho died, is lower than some
of the others, particularly the one in Nellie Custis' chamber.
It is some distance from the dressing-table to the bed, and
possibly after a few unfortunate experiences in scaling the
downy heights Washington had the posts shortened.

The room in which Washington died, naturally attracts
the most attention. It was never again occupied after his
death. It was closed and all in it kept sacred to his memory.
The bed now in this room is the one on which he died. His
military trunk, a few camp equipments, two chair cushions
worked by Mrs. Washington, and a small, plain mahogany
corner toilet-stand, are all that remain of the original fur-
niture.

With all the comfortable rooms in the second story at
the disposal of his widow, her choice after his death was
given to one under the roof, hot in summer and cold in
winter, where the single small window looked out upon the
burial-place of her departed husband. It is a mere garret.
One little attic window gives a meager glimpse of the lovely
landscape below, and even in its best estate the room must
have been inconvenient and dreary. Few modern " Bridgets "

566 THE LITTLE ATTIC WINDOW.

would be content to occupy for a week such a room as this
in which Martha Washington passed the lonely months of
her widowhood until she died. Why did she take this room
instead of the many others on the floor below ? The reason
reveals another phase of that simple romance in the life of
Washington and his wife. This little attic window was the
only one commanding a view of the old tomb in which her
husband's remains had been laid, and thus during the two
and a half years that she survived him, the lonely mourner,
tenderly cared for by her devoted servants, sat much of the
time by this little window :

*' Gazing through the morning light,

At noon-tide looking fondly down —
Peering forth in somber night —

Or when the leaves are green or brown ;
Or when the snow soft shrouds the mound,
Where lies the sleeper under ground."

" Looking and longing over there, with faith
That in some golden hour, his spirit, robed
In drapery of light, and winged with love,
Should come to her with blessings in his eyes,
And sweetly feed, with old-time rapturous smiles,
Her famished soul."

Standing by this window and thinking of Martha Wash-
ington's devotion, we can better appreciate the words she
used in that reply to President Adams when he expressed
to her the Avish of Congress that Washington's remains
might rest in the Capitol — words which are quoted in a
previous chapter.

The banquet hall was planned by Washington and built
by him in 1785. The large equestrian portrait, "Washing-
ton before Yorktown," was painted by Rembrandt Peale.
The first time Washington sat for his portrait, he wrote to
a friend, " Inclination having yielded to importunity, I am
now, contrary to all expectation, under the hands of Mr.
Peale ; but in so grave — so sullen a mood — and now and

ELEANOR CUSTIS' WEDDING GIFT. 507

then under the influence of Morpheus, when some critical
strokes are making, that I fancy the skill of this Gentleman's
Pencil will be put to it, in describing to the World what
manner of man I am."

One who is not a vandal at heart cannot gaze upon the
carved mantelpiece of Carrara marble in the banquet hall
without anathematizing the whole race of relic hunters.
This exquisite work has been mutilated in the most outra-
geous way by people who undoubtedly would resent the
charge that they are worse than thieves.

In the music-room of the mansion stands the quaint old
harpsichord which General Washington presented as a wed-
ding gift to his adopted daughter, the beautiful Eleanor
Custis. It was made in London, at a cost of $1000, and old
ocean tossed it over to delight the heart of the belle of
Mount Vernon. Its broken and discolored keys once
thrilled to the touch of beauty, and made the old halls of
Mount Vernon ring with mirth and music.

In the family sitting-room, which commands a pictur-
esque view of the lawn and the river, Martha Washington
passed many long hours while her husband was away mak-
ing history, although she often visited him in camp. She
did not take kindly to the restraints of official life. Writ-
ing to a friend, she says, " Mrs. Sins will give jon a better
account of the fashions than I can — I live a very dull life
hear and know nothing that passes in the town — I never
goe to any public place — indeed I think I am more like a
State prisoner than anything else ; there is certain bounds
set for me which I must not depart from — and as I cannot
doe as I like, I am obstinate and stay at home a great
deal."

The mansion, although covering a large area, possesses
no architectural beauty, and the interior is far from being
well arranged. The rooms of the General and Mrs. Wash-
ington were in the south end ; these were reached by a side

5QB THE GARDEN AND BOWLING GREEN.

hall on the east. To gain the sleeping-rooms on the north,
over the state parlor, one had to pass through the rooms
opening from the main hall, which must have been some-
what embarrassing when the house was full of company.
The kitchen, with its huge fireplace, its crane and turnspits
still in place, is on the west side, thirty feet or more from
the main building, from which all the dishes for the dining-
room had to be carried through a covered colonnade.

The grounds on the west side of the house are level and
stretch away to the road, while, scattered about, in regular
order, are the many outbuildings which suggest the old
plantation with its army of servants and slaves. The west
lawn, Washington was wont to call his " bowling green."
The curved course which incloses it is over half a mile in
circumference, and in the old days many a gay party gal-
loped over it. Magnificent trees line it. It is said that all
of them were selected and many planted by Washington.

The vegetable garden is on the right as one faces the
mansion; the flower garden is on the left. The latter
abounds with old-fashioned flowers arranged in beds laid
out in formal style and bordered with box according to the
fashion of Washington's day, and still maintained just as he
left them. This garden makes a delightful strolling- place.
Here was Martha Washington's rose garden, and in summer
the roses still bloom. It was the custom of the family to
ask distinguished guests to plant something as a keepsake,
and many of these mementos still flourish. Here is the
famous Mary Washington rose, which is said to have been
named by Washington for his mother, slips from which are
sold to visitors. We may wander about these grounds for
hours and ever find material for sentiment and reflection.

Few changes are now perceptible at Mount Vernon from
year to year. It is under the watchful eyes of an efficient
superintendent, employed by the Mount Vernon Ladies'
Association, and every sign of decay is obliterated as soon

STATELY SENTINEL TREES. 569

as it appears. The natural beauties of the historic place, of
course, increase. The trees which Washington planted rear
their heads with added girth and height. The four that
guard the west entrance have stood more than a century.
Two are poplar and two ash, each a perfect specimen of its
kind. The trees about the old place have a fascination for
many visitors. Washington planted them, tended them,
watched them grow. In the shade of many still standing
he was wont to walk. In the deer park, which occupies the
slope of the river bank facing the east front of the mansion,
deer feed as in the old days, and fawns scurry about. This
park was restored a few years ago and stocked. An iron
fence separates it from the grounds proper.

After all, the best recollections that one carries away
from Mount Vernon do not come from the interior of the
house but from the exterior and surroundings. In the
rooms are very many articles that, while furnishing them
and making them look very quaint and even homelike,
neither Washington nor his wife ever saw. They are either
reproductions or colonial relics gathered from various
places. But on the veranda we may find and enjoy the real
beauty of Mount Vernon — its environment and prospect.

Here Washington looked down the gentle slope to the
wide Potomac, flecked with white sails and pleasure boats.
He stood as we stand upon these old weather-worn tiles
with which the portico is paved, and which were imported
by him from England in 1786 ; here his eyes could feast, as
can ours, on the fairest of landscapes. As we leave this his-
toric spot we feel that it is not in the city which bears his
name, not in the great towering monument dedicated to his
memory, but here at Mount Vernon, amid carefully -pre-
served scenes of his home life, that we come nearest to the
personality of Washington's character, and are enabled to
see him as he was : the patriot and statesman " who knew
no glory but his country's good "

CHAPTEK XXXIX.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF

THE WHITE HOUSE -FAIR AND STATELY WOMEN

WHO REIGNED IN THE EXECUTIVE

MANSION IN EARLY DAYS.

ITTING in the lovely Blue Eoom of the White
House, the breezes from the Potomac floating
through the closed blinds and lace curtains, and
drifting over the mounds of flowers which, rising-
high above the great vases, fill all the air with fra-
grance, I evoke from the past a company of fair and
stately women who have dwelt under this roof, or influenced
the lives and happiness of men who have ruled the nation.
First, Martha Washington. To be sure, she never reigned
in the White House ; but who can recall the wives of the
Presidents without seeing, first of them all, the serenely-
beautiful woman whose pictured face is so familiar to us ?

(570)

X
Pi

■x

A LADY OF THE OLDEN TIME. 5*3 1

In herself, Martha Washington was in no wise a remark-
able woman. Personally, she was a fair representative of
the average American matron of the eighteenth century.
Whatever may be the right of American women to boast of
superior educational advantages to-day, in the time of Martha
Washington and Abigail Adams such advantages were few,
though eagerly desired. Girls were shut out from the
Boston High School because they had flocked to it in such
numbers in pursuit of knowledge. While her brother went
to Yale or Harvard, the girl of New England, if taught at
all, was taught at home. New England had little right to
boast over Virginia in that day. The daughters of the cav-
aliers were oftener taught to dance and to play the spinet
than the daughters of the Puritans ; but neither could spell,
nor many more than barely read.

Had Martha Washington enjoyed the highest privileges
for mental development she would never have been known
to the world as an intellectual woman, or as a woman who,
by any impulse of her unassisted nature, would ever have
risen above the commonplace. This thrifty and industrious
housewife usually had knitting-needles in her hands, and she
thought she had achieved a feat to be proud of when she saved
the ravelings of old black silk stockings and worn-out chair-
covers and wove them into a dress for herself. She could
spin and weave, but she could not spell. She basked in the
warmth and cheer of her bountiful home, the manifold cares
and burdens of which, to the smallest detail, were borne by
her illustrious husband.

Martha Washington's strongest claim to veneration is as
the wife of Washington. In that position, her homely vir-
tues and moral rectitude show to unclouded advantage.
Personally, her most marked characteristics were her strong
natural sense of propriety and fitness, and her high moral
qualities. During the Revolution her patriotism kept pace
with that of her husband. The trials of the years that fol-

572 MRS. WASHINGTON AT VALLEY FORGE.

lowed are matters of history : the severed household, the
burden of cares and fears, and the brave-hearted woman
gladly exchanging, whenever possible, the comfort and
security of home for the discomforts and dangers of the
camp, and bringing cheer to her husband and comfort to the
ill-fed and ill-clad soldiers.

Amid the sufferings of Valley Forge, one of her helpers
writes : " I never in my life knew a woman so busy from
early morning till late at night as was Lady Washington,
providing comforts for the sick soldiers. Every day, except
Sundays, the wives of the officers in camp, and sometimes
other women, were invited to Mr. Potts's to assist her in
knitting socks, patching garments and making shirts for the
poor soldiers when material could be procured. Every fair
day she might be seen, with basket in hand, and with a
single attendant, going among the huts seeking the keenest
and most needy sufferers, and giving all the comfort to them
in her power."

"Washington wrote many and long letters to his wife
which were full of ardent affection, but " Lady " Washing-
ton thought so much of these that she destroyed them be-
fore she died, no doubt because they were so largely devoted
to a free discussion of public affairs. Only one letter es-
caped, — the one in which he announced his appointment as
commander-in-chief of the colonial army. He begins the
letter " My Dearest," and closes it with the statement that
he is "with unfeigned regard" her "very affectionate
George Washington." He uses several times in the letter
his pet name for his wife, which was " my dear Patsy," and
says he has made a will with which he doubts not she will
be pleased. During the forty years of his married life " he
wore," says his adopted son, George Washington Parke
Custis, " suspended from his neck by a gold chain and rest,
ing on his bosom, the miniature portrait of his wife."

Though her pictures represent her as a handsome woman,

LIFE AT MOUNT VERNON 573

the current history of the times says that as she matured
she grew stout, and became a robust and not particularly
handsome old lady. More than likely, too, she had a temper
of her own, for she confesses to " being tried beyond endur-
ance" by the careless ways of one of Washington's nieces.
It is on record that when the big French hound, a present
from Lafayette, carried off the ham which should have
graced the dinner-table, she clearly voiced her opinion of
dogs in general and "Vulcan" in particular; and a guest
who slept at Mount Vernon has testified to overhearing her
giving the General what is frequently called a " curtain-
lecture" in such animated tones that her voice penetrated
through the thin partitions which separated the rooms. The
traveler adds that General Washington listened in silence,
and, when the lecture was finished, merely said, "Now,
good sleep to you, my dear." After this nothing more was
heard.

After their retirement to Mount Vernon, while all the
outer affairs of the estate, to their minutest detail, were
superintended by General Washington, in addition to the
mighty burdens of state which he bore, Mrs. Washington
superintended her handmaidens and spinning-wheels. Looms
were constantly plying at Mount Vernon, and General
Washington wore, at his first inauguration, a full suit of fine
cloth woven in his own house. At a ball given in New
Jersey in honor of herself, Martha Washington appeared in
a " simple russet gown," with a white handkerchief about
her neck. To the state receptions of New York and Phila-
delphia she carried the same stately simplicit3r.

A lady of the olden time, a daughter of Virginia, her
ideas of court forms and etiquette had all been received
from the mother country. Hers was the difficult task to
harmonize aristocratic exclusiveness with republican plain-
ness. She was never to forget that she was the wife of the
President of a Republic, — and also never to forget that she

574 DIGNITY OF EARLY SOCIAL CUSTOMS.

was to command the respect of the old monarchies who
were ready to despise everything poor and crude in the
efforts of the new government to maintain itself in poverty,
difficulty, and inexperience. Thus the social receptions of
the first President of the United States at New York, were
held under the most rigorous and exclusive rules. They
were open only to persons of privileged rank and degree,
and they could not enter unless attired in full dress. The
receptions of Mrs. "Washington merely reproduced, on a
smaller plan, the customs and ceremonies of foreign courts.

In the second year of Washington's administration the
government was removed to Philadelphia, there to remain
for the next ten years. The household furniture of the
"Washingtons was moved thither by slow and weary pro-
cesses by land and water, the President, in addition to his
public cares, superintending personally the preparation and
embarkation of every article himself. Mrs. Washington
was sick at the time, but the following year, the house of
Robert Morris having been taken by the corporation for the
President's house, Mrs. Washington again opened her draw-
ing-rooms from seven to ten p. m. Sensible woman ! No
haggard and faded beauties dancing all night, faded and old
before their time, owed their wasted lives and powers to her.
In Philadelphia and New York, when the clock's hands
pointed to ten, she arose with affable dignity, and, bowing
to all, retired, leaving her guests to do likewise. With this
action, it was unnecessary to repeat the announcement which
she made at the first reception held by her in New York :
" General Washington retires at ten o'clock, and I usually
precede him. Good night."

At these receptions, Mrs. Washington sat. The guests
were grouped in a circle, round which the President passed,
speaking politely to each one, but never shaking hands. It
was reserved to a later generation to grasp and crush that
poor member till it has to be poulticed after official greet-

LAST DAYS UK MRS. WASHINGTON. 575

ings. It was the habit of Mrs. "Washington to return the
calls of those who were privileged to pay her visits. Of
these ceremonious visits, a New York lady who, as a child,
remembered her, wrote : " It was Mrs. Washington's custom
to return visits on the third day. She was always accom-
panied by the President's secretary, and preceded by a
footman, who knocked at the hostess's door and announced
Mrs. "Washington's arrival. When she drove out, her serv-
ants wore liveries of white and scarlet or white and
orange."

An English gentleman, who breakfasted with the Presi-
dent's family in 1794, says :

" I was struck with awe and veneration when I recollected that I was
now in the presence of the great Washington, the noble and wise benefac-
tor of the world. . . . Mrs. Washington herself made tea and coffee
for us. On the table were two small plates of sliced tongue and dry toast,
bread and butter ; but no broiled fish, as is the custom here. She struck
me as being somewhat older than the President, though I understand botli
were born the same year. She was extremely simple in her dress, and
wore a very plain cap, with her gray hair turned up under it."

It is as the wife of Washington, through sentiments
called out by the greatness of his character and the love
which she bore him, that the moral capacity of Martha
Washington's nature ever approaches greatness.

In the little attic room at Mount Vernon, in which she
died, Martha Washington, as a woman, comes nearest to us.
Here one can realize how utterly done with earth, its
pangs and glory, was the soul who shut herself within its
narrow walls, there to take on immortality. The rooms of
Washington below, in one of which he died, a thrifty me-
chanic of the present day would think too small and shabby
for him. And when the great soul went forth to the
unknown, as a human presence to inhabit it never more, the
wife also went forth, and never again crossed its threshold.
Here, in this little room, scarcely more than a closet, sur-

376 THE YOUTH OF JOHN ADAMS.

rounded only by the simplest necessities of existence, Mar-
tha "Washington lived out the lonely days of her desolate
widowhood.

In her portraits Mrs. Washington looks out from the
ruffled cap of her maturer years, genuine, true, and whole-
some, counted worthy to be her husband's closest confi-
dante ; a woman who found in the limits of home her hap-
piest horizon, a kindly gracious lady, companion and best
earthly comfort of one of the world's greatest men.

In February, 1797, John Adams was elected President
of the United States, to succeed President Washington.
His wife, Abigail Adams, was the first wife of a President
who ever presided at the White House.

John Adams was born in that portion of the old town of
Braintree, Mass., which now is known as Quincy. He was
the eldest son of a farmer of limited means. Like many
who have become famous in the history of our country,
young John began his practical life by teaching school, and
while so engaged took up the study of law. He had
thought of becoming a clergyman, but witnessing certain
church quarrels in his native town, he was, to quote his own
words, " terrified out of it." He would have been glad to
enter the army, had he possessed the influence to secure a
commission. That being out of the question, the law
seemed his only course, and he applied himself with such
energy to it that he soon built up a practice which, as he
considered, justified him in marrying, and, accordingly, in
1764, he united himself with Abigail Smith, the daughter of
a clergyman of Weymouth.

Previous to this, Adams' love affairs evidently were
numerous. In 1764, the year in which he was married, he
writes in his diary : " I was of an amorous disposition, and
very early, from ten to eleven years of age, was very fond
of the societv of females. I shall draw no characters nor
give any enumeration of my youthful flames. It would be

to S w

one of America's noblest women. 575)

considered as no compliment to the dead or the living. This
I will say : they were all modest and virtuous girls, and
always maintained their character through life. No virgin
or matron ever had cause to blush at the sight of or regret
her acquaintance with me. . . . These reflections, to me
consolatory beyond expression, I am able to make with
truth and sincerity ; and I presume I am indebted for this
blessing to my education."

His marriage, which, at the time it took place, promised
to bring young Adams considerable worldly advantage, his
wife's family connections being much more prominent and
prosperous than his own, proved in every way to be most
fortunate, for Abigail Adams was one of the most remark-
able women of the Revolutionary period.

In exaltation of spirit, and full realization of the great
responsibilities before them, she received the fact of her hus-
band's elevation to the presidency. As devout as Deborah,
her utterances at this time were equally marked by compre-
hensiveness of view, devotion, and self-forgetfulness. No
visions of personal finery, of fashionable entertainments and
show, gleam through the grand utterances of this majestic
woman. And yet no pictures of the White House, no
sketches of the social life of her time, begin to be as graphic
and frequent, as those of Abigail Adams. Nothing has
been more quoted than her sketch of the White House as
she found it. She wrote :

" The house is upon a grand and superb scale, requiring
about thirty servants to attend and keep the apartments in
proper order, and perform the ordinary business of the
house and stables; an establishment very well proportioned
to the President's salary. The lighting of the apartments,
from the kitchen to parlours and chambers, is a tax indeed ;
and the fires we are obliged to keep to secure us from daily
agues is another very cheering comfort. To assist us in this
great castle, and render less attendance necessary, bells are

580 LIFE IN THE WHITE HOUSE IN 1800.

wholly wanting, not one single one being hung through the
whole house, and promises are all you can obtain. This is
so great an inconvenience, that I know not what to do, or
how to do.

"The ladies from Georgetown and in the city have
many of them visited me. Yesterday I returned fifteen
visits, — but such a place as Georgetown appears, — why, our
Milton is beautiful. But no comparisons ; — if they will put
me up some bells, and let me have wood enough to keep
fires, I design to be pleased. I could content myself almost
anywhere three months ; but, surrounded with forests, can
you believe that wood is not to be had, because people can-
not be found to cut and cart it! Briesler1 entered into a
contract with a man to supply him with wood. A small
part, a few cords only, has he been able to get. Most of
that was expended to dry the walls of the house before we
came in, and yesterday the man told him it was impossible
for him to procure it to be cut and carted. He has had
recourse to coals ; but we cannot get grates made and set.
We have, indeed, come into a new country.

" You must keep all this to yourself, and, when asked
how I like it, say that I write you the situation is beautiful,
which is true. The house is made habitable, but there is
not a single apartment finished, and all withinside, except
the plastering, has been done since Briesler came. We have
not the least fence, yard, or other convenience, without, and
the great unfinished audience-room8 I make a drying-room
of, to hang up the clothes in. The principal stairs are not
up, and will not be this winter."

Abigail Adams is an illustrious example of the grandeur
of human character. She proved in herself how potent an
individual may be, and that individual a woman, in spite of
caste, of sex, or the restrictions of human law or condition.

1 Mrs. Adams' man-servant.

5 The East Room of the White House.

A CHARACTER HEROIC AND SPOTLESS. 581

She never went to school in her life. In a letter written in
1817, the year before her death, speaking of her own defi-
ciencies, she says : " My early education did not partake of
the abundant opportunities which the present days offer,
and which even our common country schools now afford.
1 never was sent to any school. I was always sick. Female
education, in the best families, went no further than writ-
ing and arithmetic ; in some few and rare instances, music
and dancing."

She was less than a year the mistress of the President's
house, yet she has lived ever since in memory a grand
model to all who succeed her. The daughter of a country
clergyman, the wife of a patriotic and ambitious man,
whether she gathered her children about her or sent them
forth across stormy seas, while she left herself desolate ;
whether she stood the wife of the Republican Minister
before the haughty Queen Charlotte in the stateliest and
proudest court of Europe ; whether she presided in the
President's house in the new Capital in the wilderness, or
wrote to statesmen or grandchildren in -her own house in
Quincy, she was always, in prosperity or sorrow, in youth
and in age, in life and in death, the regnant woman, devout,
wise, patriotic, proud, humble, and loving.

Her pictures of the social life of her time are among the
most lively and graphic on record, while in her letters to
her son, to her husband, to Jefferson, and other statesmen,
we find some of the grandest utterances of the Revolution-
ary period. Cut off by her sex from active participation in
the struggles and triumphs of the men of her time, not one
of them would have died more gladly and grandly than
she, for liberty; denied the power of manhood, she made
the most of the privileges of womanhood. She instilled
into the souls of her children great ideas ; she inspired her
husband by the hourly sight of a grand example ; she gave,
through them, her life-long service to the State, and she

582 THE WIFE OF THOMAS JEFFEBSON.

gave to ner country and to posterity her spotless and heroic
memory.

In her portrait, Stuart portrays her in a dainty and deli-
cate lace cap, which softened without veiling her august
features. The exquisite lace ruff about the throat, the lace
shawl upon the shoulders, all indicate the finest of feminine
tastes, while the broad brow, wide eyes, keenly-cut nose,
firm chin, and slightly-imperious mouth proclaim the proud
and powerful intellect, and the high head the commanding
moral nature of the woman.

In 1801 John Adams was succeeded by his old friend and
rival Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United
States. The wife of Jefferson, who before her marriage to
him was Mrs. Martha Skelton, the widowed daughter of a
prominent lawyer of Williamsburg, Va., never reigned in
the White House. She died in her youth, and was thus de-
nied the honors that later in life came to her gifted husband.
His love for her was the passion of his life, and her death
was to him an irreparable loss. He never outlived his grief.
His eldest daughter, Martha Jefferson Randolph, many
years afterward, recorded her recollections of her mother's
death and her father's sorrow. She said :

" He nursed my poor mother in turn with Aunt Carr
and her own sister, sitting up with her and administering
her medicines and drink to the last. For four months that
she lingered, he was never out of calling ; when not at her
bedside he was writing in a small room which opened imme-
diately at the head of her bed. A moment before the clos-
ing scene he was led from the room almost in a state of in-
sensibility by his sister, Mrs. Carr, who, with great difficulty,
got him into his library, where he fainted, and remained so
long insensible that they feared he never would revive. The
scene that followed I did not witness, but the violence of his
emotion, when almost by stealth I entered his room at
night, to this day I dare not trust myself to describe.

Jefferson's lovely daughters. 383

" He kept bis room three weeks, and I was never a mo-
ment from his side. He walked almost incessantly night
and day, only lying down occasionally, when nature was
completely exhausted, on a pallet that had been brought in
during his long fainting fit. My aunts remained constantly
with him for some weeks, I do not remember how many.
When at last he left his room, he rode out, and from that
time he was incessantly on horseback, rambling about the
mountain, in the least frequented roads, and just as often
through the woods. In those melancholy rambles I was his
constant companion, a solitary witness to many a violent
burst of brief, the remembrance of which has consecrated
particular stones of that lost home beyond the power of
time to obliterate."

Ever after, Jefferson lived in his children, his grandchil-
dren, his books, and the affairs of State. He had two
daughters, the only two of his children who survived to ma-
ture life. One of these, Maria, who in childhood went to
Paris in the care of Mrs. Adams, and who was remark-
able for her beauty and the loveliness of her nature, died in
early womanhood. She was indifferent to her own beauty,
and almost resented the admiration which it called forth,
exclaiming, " You praise me for that because you cannot
praise me for better things !"

She set an extraordinary value upon talent, believing
that the possession of it alone could make her the worthy
companion of her father. She was most tenderly loved by
him, and at the time of her early death, he wrote to his
friend, Governor Page : " Others may lose of their abund-
ance; but I, of my want, have lost even the half of that
f had. My evening prospects now hang on the slender
thread of a single life." This "single" life was that of
Martha Jefferson Randolph. She lived to be not only the
comforter but the intellectual companion of her father.

Had Martha Jefferson been less womanly and domestic,

584 A PRESIDENT WHO BLACKED HIS OWN BOOTS.

she might have made herself famous as a belle, a wit, or a
scholar. Married at seventeen, the mother of twelve chil-
dren, seven of whom were daughters, the fine quality of her
intellect, and the nobility of her soul, were all merged into a
life spent in their guidance, and in devotion and service to
her husband and father. The mother of five children at the
time of her father's Inauguration as President of the United
States, separated from "Washington by a long and fatiguing
journey, which could only be performed by coach and horse
travel, Mrs. Randolph never made but two visits to the
President's house during his two terms of office. Her son,
James Madison Randolph, was born in the "White House.

Jefferson began his Presidency with a certain ostentation
of democracy. One of the first declarations of his admin-
istration was, " Levees are done away." Remembering1 what
importance was attached to these assemblies by Washington
and Adams, and what grand court occasions the}T were
made, we can imagine the disapprobation with which this
mandate was received by the belles of societ}T. A party of
these gathered in force, and, all gaily attired, proceeded to
the President's house. On his return from a horseback ride
he was informed that a large number of ladies were in the
"levee-room" waiting for him. Covered with dust, spurs
on, and whip in hand, he proceeded to the drawing-room.
Shade of "Washington ! He told them he was glad to see
them, and asked them to remain. "We may fancy with how
much delight these belles and beauties received his polite
salutations. Thev never came again.

A Virginian accustomed to the service of slaves, as the
President of the United States Jefferson blacked his own
boots. A foreign functionary, a stickler for etiquette, paid
him a visit of ceremony one morning, and found him en-
gaged in this humble employment. Jefferson apologized,
saying, that being a plain man, he did not like to trouble
his servants. The foreign grandee departed, declaring that

OFFENDING A PERFUMED LITTLE POET. 585

no government could long survive whose head was his own
shoe-black. He was fond of the violin. When his paternal
home was burned he asked, "Are all the books destroyed?"
" Yes, massa," was the reply, " dey is ; but we saved de
fiddle."

During his Presidency Jefferson aroused the ire of
Thomas Moore, then without fame, save in his own country.
The President, from his altitude of six feet two-and-a-half
inches, looked down on the curled and perfumed little poet,
and spoke a word and passed on. This indignity Moore
never pardoned, and he went back to lampoon, not only
America, but the President. One of his attacks came into
the hands of Martha Jefferson, who, deeply indignant,
placed it before her father. He broke into an amused laugh.
Years afterwards, when Moore's "Irish Melodies" appeared,
Jefferson, looking them over, exclaimed, " Why, this is the
little man who satirized me so ! Why, he is a poet, after
all." And from that moment Moore had a place beside
Burns in Jefferson's library.

John Randolph, her father's political foe, said of Martha
Jefferson, " She is the sweetest creature in Virginia," and
John Randolph believed that nothing " sweet " or even en-
durable existed outside of Virginia. In adversity and sor-
row, in poverty and trial, in age as in youth, the steadfast
sweetness of character and elevation of nature which made
Martha Jefferson remarkable in prosperity, shone forth
with transcendent luster when all external accessories had
tied. The daughter of a man called a free-thinker, she all
her life was sweetly, simply, devoutly religious. In her let-
ters to her daughter, " Septimia," she draws us nearer to
her tender heart in its heavenly love and charity. This
daughter, to his latest breath, was to Jefferson the soul of
his soul. After his retirement she not only entertained his
guests, and ministered to his personal comforts, but shared
intellectually all his thoughts and studies.

CHAPTER XL.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — THE MOST BRIL-
LIANT SOCIAL QUEEN WHO EVER REIGNED
IN THE EXECUTIVE MANSION.

A Famous Social Queen — Gallants in Small-Clothes and Queues — An
Indignant Barber — " Little Jim Madison " — " Dolly " Madison's Gifts
and Graces — " The Most Popular Person in the United States" — Her
Social Nature and Exquisite Tact — Her Bountiful Table — Ridiculed
by a Foreign Minister — Mrs. Madison's Happy Reply — Her Wonder-
ful Memory of Persons and Incidents — The Adventure of a Rustic
Youth — Thrusting a Cup of Coffee into His Pocket — Her Heroism
in the Hour of Danger — Fleeing from the White House — Mrs.
Madison's Snuff -Box— " This Is for Rough Work " and " This Is My
Polisher" — Two Plain Old Ladies from the West — Unusual Honors
by Congress — Her Last Days — Her Death and Burial — Singular
Mistakes on Her Monument.

jHEN" Mrs. Dorothy Madison, the wife of James
Madison, the fourth President of the United
States, became the first lady of the land, she
inaugurated a new era of social life in "Wash-
ington. The beneficence and brilliancy of her
reign in the White House was never approached
before her time, and has never been equaled since.

These were the days when elder-bushes fringed Pennsyl-
vania Avenue, and ladies whose chariots stuck in the mud
were cautiously rescued by gallants in sheer ruffles and
small-clothes and queues. These queues, which had to be so
elaborately dressed and powdered, made the barbers all
Federalists in Jefferson's administration, as the Democrats

(586)

IX THE DAYS <>K DOLLY \l A MSo.V 5$9

wore short hair. ( >ne barber, who was very indignant at
Madison's nomination, suddenly burst out while shaving a
Senator :

"What Presidents we might have, sir! Look at Daggett.
of Connecticut and Stockton of Xew .Jersey, with queues as
big as your wrist, and powdered every day. like real gentle-
men as they are! But this little -Jim Madison, with a <jnene
no larger than a pipe-stem ! Sir, it is enough to make a man
foreswear his country."

Washington Irving, in a letter written from Washington,
dated January 13, 1811, gives the following entertaining
description of both Mr. and Mrs. Madison :

" Mrs. Madison is a fine, portly, buxom dame, who has a
smile and a pleasant word for everybody. Her sisters, Mrs.
Cutts and Mrs. Washington, are like the two Merry Wives
of Windsor; but as to Jemmy Madison — Ah ! poor Jemmy !
— he is but a withered little apple-John."

It is a rare combination of gifts and graces which pro-
duces the pre-eminent social queen, in any era or in any
sphere. Mrs. Madison seemed to possess them all. During
the administration of her husband she was openly declared
to be "the most popular person in the United States"; and
now, after the lapse of generations, after hosts of women,
bright, beautiful, and admired, have lived, reigned, died, and
are forgotten, "Dolly Madison" seems to abide, a still
living and beloved presence. The house in Washington in
which her old age was spent, and from which she passed to
heaven, is often pointed out to the stranger as her abode.
Her words and deeds are constantly recalled as authority,
unquestioned and benign.

When she began her reign in Washington, steamboats
were the wonder of the world ; railroads and the practical
use of electricity undreamed of; turnpike roads scarcely
begun ; the stagecoach slow, inconvenient, and cumbersome.
The daughter of one Senator, who wished to enjoy the

590 MRS. MADISON AS PEACEMAKER.

delights of the new Capital, came 500 miles on horseback by
her father's side. The wife of a Member rode 1,500 miles on
horseback, passed through several Indian settlements, and
spent nights without seeing a house in which she could lodge.
Under such difficulties did lovely women come to Washing-
ton, and out of such material was blended the society of that
conspicuous era.

"When Mrs. Madison entered the President's house, the
strife between the political parties was at its highest.
Washington, above all party, had yet declared himself the
advocate of the unity and force of the central power. Jef-
ferson had been the President of the opposition, who wished
the supremacy of the masses to overrule that of the higher
classes. On these contending factions Mrs. Madison shed
equally the balm of her benign nature. Not because she
was without opinions, but because she was without malignity
or rancor of spirit. Born and reared a "Friend," she
brought the troubled elements of political society together in
the bonds of peace. She possessed, in preeminent degree,
the power of intuitive adaptation to individuals, however
diversified in character, and the exquisite tact in dealing
with them, which always characterizes the true social queen.
She loved human beings and delighted in their fellowship.
She never forgot an old friend, and never neglected the
opportunity of making a new one.

She banished from her drawing-room the stately forms
and ceremonials which had made the receptions of Mrs.
Washington and Mrs. Adams very elegant but very formal
affairs. She was always hospitable, and a table bountifully
loaded was her delight and pride. The abundance and size
of her dishes were objects of ridicule to a Foreign Minister,
even when she entertained as the wife of Secretary of State,
he declaring that her entertainments were more like " a har-
vest-home supper than the entertainment of a Cabinet Min-
ister.'" Mrs. Madison replied to the criticism with her usual

PLAIN BUT BOUNTIFUL FARE. 591

good-nature and good sense, — that the profusion of her
table was the result of the prosperity of her country, and
she must therefore continue to prefer Virginia liberality to
European elegance.

A guest who shared the hospitalities of this bountiful
table wrote: " The round of beef of which the soup is made
is called ' bouilli.' It had in the dish spices, and something
of the sweet herb and earlie kind, and a rich gravy. It is
very much boiled and is still very good. We had a dish
with what appeared to be cabbage, much boiled, then cut in
Ions strings and somewhat mashed : in the middle a large
ham, with the cabbage around. It looked like our country
dishes of bacon and cabbage, with the cabbage mashed up
after being boiled till sodden and turned dark. The dessert
good : much as usual, except two dishes which appeared like
apple-pie in the form of the half of a mush-melon, the flat
side down, top creased deep, and the color a dark brown."

In those days state dinners were a tax on the purse of
those who gave them. The White House wagon was gotten
out early in the morning to go to Georgetown to market,
and the day's provisions often cost as much as fifty dollars.
Even the President's salary was scarcely adequate to meet
the expense of official entertaining, as Jefferson soon found,
to the delight of his enemies. "He always thought,'' said
a cynical contemporary, "$25,000 a great salary when Mr.
Adams had it. Now he will think $12,.">o<) enough. Monti-
cello is not far away; he can easily send home his clothes to
be washed and mended ; his servants he owns, and his vege-
tables he can bring from his estate."

Mrs. Madison never forgot the name of any person to
whom she had been introduced, nor any incident connected
with any person whom she knew. Able to summon these at
an instant's notice, she instinctively made each individual
who entered her presence feel that he or she was an object
of especial interest, Nor was this mere society manners.

592 AN EMBARRASSED RUSTIC.

Genial and warm-hearted, it was her happiness to make
everybody feel as much at ease as possible. This gentle
kindness the unknown and lowly shared equally with the
highest in worldly station.

At one of her receptions her attention was called to a rus-
tic youth whose back was set against the wall. Here he
stood as if nailed to it, till he ventured to stretch forth
his hand and take a proffered cup of coffee. Mrs. Madi-
son, according to her wont, wishing to relieve his embar-
rassment, and put him at his ease, walked up and spoke
to him. The youth, astonished and overpowered, dropped
the saucer, and unconsciously thrust the cup into his breeches
pocket. "The crowd is so great, no one can avoid being
jostled," said the gentle woman. " The servant will bring
you another cup of coffee. Pray, how did you leave your
excellent mother? I had once the honor of knowing her,
but I have not seen her for some years." Thus she talked,
till she made him feel that she was his friend, as well as
his mother's. In time, he found it possible to dislodge
the coffee cup from his pocket, and to converse with the
Juno-like lady in a crimson turban as if she were an old
acquaintance.

Mrs. Madison delighted in wearing conspicuous colors,
the very opposite of the silver grays of a demure Quak-
eress. At the Inauguration ball, Avhen Jefferson, the out-
going President, came to receive Madison, his successor,
Mrs. Madison wore a rich robe of buff velvet, and a Paris
turban with a bird of paradise plume, with pearls on her
neck and arms. A chronicler of the event says that she
"looked and moved a queen." Jefferson was all life and
animation, while the new President looked ci,re-wora and
pale. "Can you wonder at it?" said Jefferson. "My
shoulders have just been freed from a heavy burden — his
just laden with it."

Mrs. Madison filled every hour of prosperity with the

MRS. madison's heroism. 593

rare sunshine of her nature. Tn the hour of trial she was
not foun<l wanting, and in the face of danger she rose t.<>
the dignity of heroism. Her gallant stay in the White]
House, while her husband had gone to hold a couneil of
war at the battle of Bladensburg, is a proud fact of our his-
tory. The following well-known letter to her sister, proves
how brave a woman was this heroine of the President's

house :

Tuesday, August 23, 1814.

" Dear Sister : — My husband left me yesterday to join
General Winder. He enquired anxiously whether I had the
courage or firmness to remain in the President's house until
his return, on the morrow, or succeeding day, and on my
assurance that I had no fear but for him and the success of
our army, he left me, beseeching me to take care of myself
and of the Cabinet papers, public and private.

" I have since received two dispatches from him, written
with a pencil ; the last is alarming, because he desires that I
should be ready at a moment's warning, to enter my car-
riage and leave the city ; that the enemy seemed stronger
than had been reported, and that it might happen that thev
would reach the city with intention to destroy it. . . .
I am accordingly ready; I have pressed as many Cabinet
papers into trunks as to fill one carriage; our private prop-
erty must be sacrificed, as it is impossible to procure wagons
for its transportation. I am determined not to go myself,
until I see Mr. Madison safe, and he can accompany me-
ns I hear of much hostility toward him. . . . Disaffec-
tion stalks around us. My friends and acquaintances are all
gone, even Colonel C. with his hundred men, who were
stationed as a guard in this enclosure. . . . French John
(a faithful domestic) with his usual activity and resolution
offers to spike the cannon at the gate, and lay a train of
powder which would blow up the British, should they enter'
the house. To the last proposition, I positively objected.

594 SAVING THE PORTRAIT OF WASHINGTON.

without being able, however, to make him understand,. why
all advantages in war may not be taken.

"Wednesday morning, twelve o'clock. — Since sunrise, I
have been turning my spy-glass in every direction and
watching with unwearied anxiety, hoping to discover the
approach of my dear husband and his friends; but, alas, I
can descry only groups of military wandering in all direc-
tions, as if there was a lack of arms, or of spirits, to fight
for their own firesides.

"Three o'clock. — Will you believe it, my sister, we have
had a battle, or a skirmish, near Bladensburg, and I am still
here within sound of the cannon ! Mr. Madison comes not ;
may God protect him! Two messengers, covered with dust,
come to bid me fly; but I wait for him ... At this
late hour a wagon has been procured ; I have filled it with
the plate and most valuable portable articles belonging to
the house ; whether it will reach its destination, the Bank of
Maryland, or fall into the hands of British soldiery, events
must determine. Our kind friend, Mr. Carroll, has come to
hasten my departure, and is in a very bad humor with me
because I insist on waiting until the large picture of General
"Washington is secured; and it requires to be unscrewed
from the wall. This process was found too tedious for these
perilous moments; I have ordered the frame to be broken
and the canvass taken out ; it is done, and the precious por-
trait placed in the hands of two gentlemen of New York for
safe-keeping. And now, dear sister, I must leave this house
or the retreating army will make me a prisoner in it, by fill-
ing up the road I am directed to take. When I shall again
write to you, or where I shall be to-morrow, I cannot tell ! "

On their return to Washington the President and Mrs.
Madison occupied what is known as the Octagon House on
New York Avenue, between 17th and 18th streets, north-
west, the palatial home of Mr. Tayloe, while the White

BRILLIANT SOCIAL FUNCTIONS. 595

House was being repaired. Here they entertained the hem
of New Orleans, General Andrew Jackson, and wife, and
many other notables who visited "Washington and werei
entitled to such honor at their hands. The Treaty of
Ghent was signed, December, 1814, in the circular room
on the second floor over the entrance hall, which was used
as the President's office during their occupation of this
house.

The receptions given in the East Room, in the winter of
1810, after the rebuilding and refurnishing of the Executive
Mansion, are said to have been the most resplendent ever
witnessed in Washington up to that time. At these congre-
gated the Justices of the Supreme Court in their gowns, the
Diplomatic Corps in glittering regalia, the Peace Commis-
sioners and the officers of the late war in full dress. Mrs.
Madison, in gorgeous robes and turban and bird of paradise
plumes, presided with queenly grace upon these and all
other occasions.

At one of these banquets Mrs. Madison offered Mr. Clay
a pinch of snuff from her own elegant box, taking one her-
self. She then put her hand in her pocket, and taking out
a bandanna, applied it to her nose and said : " Mr. Clay, this
is for rough work, and this," touching the few remaining
grains of snuff with a filmy square of lace, " is my polisher."
This anecdote is an emphatic comment on the change of
customs, even in the most polished society. If the wife of
the President, to-day, were to perpetrate such an act at one
of her receptions, not even the fact that it stands recorded
against the graceful, gracious, and glorious Dolly Madison
would save her from the taunt of being "underbred" and
suggestive of the land of "snuff dippers."

Another story of Mrs. Madison illustrates the real kind-
ness of her heart. Two plain old ladies from the West, halt-
ing in Washington for a single night, yet most anxious to
behold the President's famous and popular wife before their

596 TRIALS OF MRS. MADISON'S LATER YEARS.

ch arture, meeting an old gentleman on the street, timidly
asked him to show them the way to the President's house.
Happening to be an acquaintance of Mrs. Madison, he con-
ducted them to the White House. The President's family
were at breakfast, but Mrs. Madison good-naturedly came
out to them, wearing a dark gray dress with a white apron,
and a linen handkerchief pinned around her neck. Not
overcome by her plumage, and set at ease by her welcome,
when they rose to depart one said : " P'rhaps }^ou wouldn't
mind if I jest kissed you, to tell my gals about."

Mrs. Madison, not to be outdone, kissed each of her
guests, who beamed through their spectacles with joy and
delight, and then departed.

Poverty compelled Martha Jefferson to part with Monti-
cello after her father's death, and the same cruel foe forced
Mrs. Madison to sell Montpelier in her widowhood.

A special message of President Jackson to Congress,
concerning the contents of a letter from Mrs. Madison, offer-
ing to the government her husband's manuscript record of
the debates in Congress of the convention during the years
1782-1787, was the means of its being purchased, as a work
of national interest, for the sum of $30,000. In a subsequent
act Congress gave to Mrs. Madison the honorary privilege
of copyright in foreign countries. And to further relieve
her embarrassments, brought on her through the reckless
dissipation and prodigality of the son of her first marriage,
Payne Todd, Congress purchased other manuscripts of her
husband, paying her $20,000 more. The degree of venera-
tion in which she was held may be judged by the fact that
Congress conferred upon her the franking privilege, and
unanimously voted her a seat upon the Senate floor when-
ever she honored it with her presence.

Without experience in the management of her estate and
financial affairs, and constantly harassed by the demands of
her son's creditors, she sacrificed her beloved Montpelier,

MRS. MADISON S FAMOUS TURBANS. 597

hoping to extricate him and save him from a life of dissipa-
tion. Finding, however, that it was a fruitless sacrifice and
that she had nothing left but the hallowed memories of her
happy life with Mr. Madison, she became much depressed.
Her friends besought her to return to Washington, where
she would find congenial companionship and be spared the
pain of witnessing the inevitable change at Montpelier.

Through her sister's (Mrs. Cutts) family, she secured the
Cutts mansion on the corner of Lafayette Square and II
street, now the Cosmos Club House. Here she spent the
last twelve years of her life. No eminent man retired from
service of the State ever had more public recognition and
honor bestowed upon him by the government he had served
than did this popular and ever-beloved woman. Here, on
New Year's day and the Fourth of July, she held public re-
ceptions, the dignitaries of the nation, after paying their
respects to the President, passing directly to the abode of
the venerable widow of the Fourth President of the United
States to pay their respects to her. In her drawing-room
political foes met on equal ground and, for the time, public
and private animosities were forgotten or ignored.

kv Never," says " Uncle Paul," her colored servant, who
had lived with her from boyhood, " never was a more grace-
fuller lady in a drawing-room. We always had our Wed-
nesday-evening receptions in the old Madison House, and
we had them in style." Mrs. Madison's turbans were as
famous in Washington as her snuff -box. It is said that she
expended $1,000 a year in turbans. She wore them as long
as she lived.- long after they had ceased to be fashionable.
"These turbans were made of the finest materials and trim-
med to match her various dresses." Uncle Paul tells of one
of her dresses of purple velvet with a long train trimmed
with wide gold-lace and a pair of gold shoes. With a white
satin dress, she wore a turban spangled with silver, and
silver shoes. She sent to Paris for all her •••rand cost nines.

598 LIVING IN MEMORIES OF THE PAST.

Her tea-parties and her "loo" parties were dwelt upon with
approving accents by her admiring contemporaries.

She died at her home, on Lafayette Square, Washington,
Thursday, July 12, 1849, holding her mental faculties unim-
paired to the last. In her later days, while suffering from
great debility, she took extreme delight in having old letters
read to her ; letters whose associations were so remote that
they were unknown to all others, but which brought back
her own beloved past. She delighted, also, in listening to
the reading of the Bible — and it was while hearing a por-
tion of the gospel of St. John that she passed in peace into
her last sleep.

"With reverent ceremonies and deep grief the body was
laid to rest in the Washington cemetery, but some years
later it was removed to its most fitting resting-place by the
side of her husband at Montpelier. There in the Madison
burying-ground may be seen, side by side, two monuments,
— one a granite shaft marked simply " MADISON " ; the
other a smaller obelisk of white marble on which is carved :

MEMORY

Dolley Payne

wife of

James Madison

born

May 20, 1768

died
July 8, 1849.

It will be noticed that there is a superfluous " e " in the
name " Dolley," and by a singular mistake, which finds its
counterpart in the error in the inscription on Martha Wash-
ington's tomb, the wrong date is set down as the day of her
death. It should be July 12.

CHAPTER XLL

THE PRESIDENTS, TIIEIK WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE CONTINUED — SOME WOMEN OF
NOTE — MEMORABLE SCENES AND ENTER-
TAINMENTS AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

A Serene and Aristocratic Woman — Entertaining With Great Elegance —
Interesting Incident in Mrs. Monroe's Foreign Life — Visiting Madame
Lafayette in Prison — Changing ihe Mind of Blood-Thirsty Tyrants —
Sharing the Dungeon of Her Husband — An Opinion Plainly Ex-
pressed— An Evening at the White House — Creating a Sensation at a
Presidential Reception — An Amusing but Untruthful Picture — Dis-
graceful Condition of the White House Surroundings — Using the
Great East Room for a Children's Play-Room — Mrs. John Quincy
Adams — Long and Lonely Journeys — Life in Russia — The Ladies'
Costumes — Old-Time Beaux and Belles — "Smiling for the Presi-
dency"— An Ascendant Star — A President Who Masked His Feel
ings — "My Wife Combed Your Head " — Calling on an "Iceberg."

L>^7W%IIK faint outline which we catch of Mrs. Monroe,
wife of James Monroe, the fifth President of the
United States, is that of a serene and aristocratic
woman, too well bred ever to be visibly moved
by anything — at least in public. She was Elizabeth
Kortright, of New York — the daughter of a retired
British officer, a belle who was ridiculed by her gay friends
for having refused more brilliant adorers to accept a plain
Member of Congress.

Durins: Mr. Monroe's ministry to Paris, she was called
"la belle Am&ricaine" and entertained the most stately
society of the old regime with great elegance. The only in-
dividual act which has survived her career as the wife of the

(599;

GOO VISITING MADAME LAFAYETTE IN PRISON.

American Minister to France, is her visit to Madame La-
fayette in prison. The indignities heaped upon this grand
and truly great woman, were hard to be borne- by an Ameri-
can, to whom the very name of Lafayette was endeared.
The carriage of the American Minister appeared at the jail.
Mrs. Monroe was at last conducted to the cell of the ema-
ciated, suffering prisoner. The Marchioness, beholding the
sympathetic face of a woman, sank at her feet, too weak to
utter her iov. That very afternoon she was to have been
beheaded. Instead of the messenger commanding her to
prepare for the guillotine, she beheld a woman and a friend !
From the first moment of its existence the American Re-
public had prestige in France. Thus the visit of the Ameri-
can ambassadress had power even to change the purpose of
blood-thirsty tyrants. Madame Lafayette was liberated the
next morning, and she gladly accepted her own freedom,
that she might go and share the dungeon of her husband.

With the same quiet splendor of spirit and bearing,
Mrs. Monroe reigned in the unfinished White House. She
mingled very little in the society of Washington, and
secluded herself from the public gaze, except when the duties
of her position compelled her to appear. She loved silence,
obscurity, peace, not bustle, confusion, or glare. Yet, even
in her courtly reign, "the dear people1' were many and
strong enough to arise and push on to their rights in the
" people's house."

James Fenimore Cooper has left on record a letter pur-
porting to describe a state dinner and reception during Mr.
Monroe's time, and any one who has survived a latter-day
jam at the White House will say it is precisely what a
Presidential reception was in the stately Monroe day. Says
Mr. Cooper :

" The evening at the White House, or drawing-room, as
it is sometimes pleasantly called, is in fact, a collection of all
classes of people who choose to go to the trouble and ex-

A RECEPTION IN MONROES TIME. 601

pense of appearing in dresses suited to an evening party. I
am not sure that even dress is very much regarded, for I
certainly saw a good many there in boots. . . . Squeezing
through a crowd, we achieved a passage to a part of the
room where Mrs. Monroe was standing, surrounded by a
bevy of female friends. After making our bow here, we
sought the President. The latter had posted himself at the
top of the room, where he remained most of the evening,
shaking hands with all who approached. Near him stood
the Secretaries and a great number of the most distinguished
men of the nation. Besides these, one meets here a great
variety of people in other conditions of life. I have known
a cartman to leave his horse in the street, and go into the
reception-room, to shake hands with the President. He
offended the good taste of all present, because it was not
thought decent that a laborer should come in a dirty dress
on such an occasion; but while he made a mistake in this
[(articular, he proved how well he understood the difference
between government and society.''

It is very doubtful, however, if a cartman would have
found it possible to have paid his respects to the first Chief
Magistrate of the Nation in such a plight. Such a visitor at
the White House, to-day, would make a sensation. In spite
of the ""cartman," we read that at Mrs. Monroe's drawing;-
rooms "elegance of dress was absolutely required."' On one
occasion, Mr. Monroe refused admission to a near relative,
who happened not to have a suit of small-clothes and silk
hose in which to present himself at a public reception. He
was driven to the necessity of borrowing.

Society at Washington during the administration of
Monroe was essentially Southern. Virginia, proud of her
Presidents, sent forth her brightest flowers to adorn the
court circle. The wealth of the sugar and cotton planters,
and of the vast wheat-fields of the agricultural States.

602 AN UNINVITING EXECUTIVE MANSION.

enabled Southern Senators and Representatives to keep
their carriages and liveried servants, and to maintain great
state. Dinners and suppers with rich wines and the delica-
cies of the season had their persuasive influence over the
minds as well as the appetites of the entertained. A few of
the richer Members from the North vied with Southern
Members in their style of living and entertainments ; but so
inconsiderable was their number, that they furnished only
exceptions to the rule.

When the Monroes entered the White House, it had been
partly rebuilt from its burning in 1814, but it could boast of
few comforts and no elegance. The ruins of the former
building lay in heaps about the mansion ; the grounds were
not fenced, and the street was in such a condition that it
was an hourly sight to see four-horse wagons "stalled" be-
fore the house. In the first years of the administration the
great East Room was the play-room of Mrs. Monroe's
daughters.

Maria Hester, youngest daughter of President Monroe,
was married during her father's terra to Samuel L. Gouver-
neur, who was a nephew of Mrs. Monroe. This occasion
was attended with much pomp and ceremom^. Mrs. Hay,
the eldest daughter, and Mrs. Gouverneur, assisted in dis-
pensing the hospitalities of the White House and exercised
a favorable influence on Washington societv. The court
circle in Monroe's administration maintained the aristocratic
spirit and elevated tone which had characterized the previ-
ous administrations. Its superiority was universally ac-
knowledged.

Maria Monroe was one day in her father's office, during
his Presidency, when William H. Crawford, Secretary of
the Treasury, came in, urging something on Mr. Monroe
which he wanted time to consider. Crawford insisted with
vehemence on its being done at once ; saying, at length, " I
will not leave this room until my request is granted." "You

AN INDIGNANT AND BELLIGERANT PRESIDENT. 603

will not!" exclaimed the President, starting up and seizing
the poker; "you will now leave the room or you will be
thrust out." Crawford was not long in making his exit.

After laying down the burden of State cares, Monroe
retired to his home, Oak Hill, Virginia. lie had the society
of his beloved wife in this pleasant retreat for only a few
years. Here she died in September, 1830, and her grave was
made under the shade of a large pine tree in the garden.
Her daughter, Maria, was laid beside her in 1850.

After the death of his wife the widower went on a visit
to Xew York. Here in his failing health he was watched
with filial solicitude and tenderness. As a private citizen he
emerged from all his successive public trusts with poverty as
the emblem of his purity and the badge of all his public hon-
ors. In the death of his devoted wife he realized that his
cup of earthly sorrow was full to the brim. She had adorned
every public position with enviable graces of person and
mind. She had nobly participated in all his troubles, and
with her loss all the hopes of his declining years faded rap-
idly. He died in New York City in 1831, aged 73.

The portrait which Leslie gives us of Louisa Catherine
Johnson, the wife of John Quincy Adams, son of the second
President of the United States, reminds us in outline and
costume of the Empress Josephine and the Court of the first
Napoleon.

She wears the scanty robe of the period, its sparse out-
line revealing the slender elegance of the figure, the low
waist and short sleeve's trimmed with lace and edged with
pearls. One long glove is drawn nearly to the elbow, the
other is held in the hand, which droops carelessly over the
back of a chair. There is a necklace around the throat.
Thrown across one shoulder and over her lap is a mantle of
exquisite lace. The close bands of the hair, edged with a
few graceful curls, and fastened high at the back with a cor-
onet comb, reveal the classic outline of the small head; the

604 REMARKABLE JOURNEYS OF MRS. ADAMS.

face is oval, the features delicate and vivacious; the eyes
beautiful in their clear, spiritual gaze. This is the portrait
of a President's wife, whose early advantages of society and
culture far transcended those of almost any other woman of
her time.

The daughter of Joshua Johnson, of Maryland, she was
born, educated, and married in London. As a bride she
went to the court of Berlin, to which her husband was
appointed American Minister on the accession of his father
to the Presidency. In 1801 she went to Boston, to dwell
with her husband's people, but very soon came to "Washing-
ton as the wife of a Senator. On the accession of Madison,
leaving her two elder children with their grandparents, she
took a third, not two years of age, and embarked with her
husband for Russia, whither he went as United States
Minister.

Nothing could be more graphic than the diary which she
kept on this three-months voyage. Summer merged into
winter before the little wave-and-wind-beaten bark touched
that inhospitable shore. The first American Minister to
Russia, Mr. Adams lived in St. Petersburg for six years,
"poor, studious, ambitious, and secluded." Happily for
him, his wife possessed mental and spiritual resources which
lifted her above all dependence on conventional attention
from the world, and made her in every respect the meet
companion of a scholar and patriot.

In the wake of furious war, through storm and snow-
drifts, through a country ravaged by passion and strife, she
traveled alone, with her little child, from St. Petersburg to
Paris, whither she went to meet her husband. Here she
witnessed the storm of delight which greeted Napoleon on
his return from Elba. Mr. Adams was appointed Minister
to the Court of St. James, and after a separation of six
years Mrs. Adams was reunited to her children.

In 1817, Mr. Monroe, on his accession to the Presidency.

THE FAMOUS HAT.L TQ GENERAL JAQKSON. 003

immediately appointed John Quincy Adams Secretary of
State, and Mrs. Adams returned with him to Washington.
For eight years she was the elegant successor of Mrs. Madi
son, who filled the same position with so much distinction.
No one was excluded from her house on account of political
hostility — all sectional bitterness and party strife were ban-
ished from her drawing-rooms.

As the wife of the Secretary of State, Mrs. Adams gave
a magnificent ball, the fame of which still lives in history.
It was given January 8, 1824, in commemoration of General
Jackson's victory at New Orleans. At this celebrated enter-
tainment the belles appeared in the full dress of the period,
when the dress waist ended just under the arms, and its
depth, front and back, was not over three or four inches.
The skirts, narrow and plain, were terminated by a flounce
just resting on the floor. The gloves reached to the elbow,
and were of such fine kid that they were often imported in
the shell of an English walnut. Slippers and silk stockings
of the color of the dress were worn, with gay ribbons crossed
and tied over the instep. The hair was combed high, fast-
ened with a tortoise-shell comb — the married ladies wearing
ostrich feathers and turbans. While the belles were thus
attired, their beaux were decked in blue coats, with gilt but-
tons, white or buff waistcoats, white neckties and high
"chokers," silk stockings, and pumps.

At this ball Daniel Webster, Clay, and Calhoun were
conspicuous in this dress. General Jackson, with Mrs.
Adams on his arm, made the central figure of the assembly.
Mrs. Adams wore " a suit of steel." The dress was composed
of steel-coloiwl llama-cloth ; her ornaments for head, throat,
and arms were all of cut steel, producing a dazzling effect.
General Jackson's entire devotion to her during the evening
was the subject of comment. After the manner of to-day,
it was declared that he was "smiling for the Presidency."
lie was the lion of the evening. All the houses of the first

(JOG FRIGID MANNER OF MR. ADAMS,

ward were illuminated in his honor. Bonfires made the
streets light as day, and the " sovereign people " shouted his
name and fame. That night fixed his presidential star in
the ascendancy.

Through fiery opposition, John Quincy Adams was
elected President. From the time she became mistress of
the President's house, failing health inclined Mrs. Adams to
seek seclusion, but she still continued to preside at public re-
ceptions. Her vivacity and pleasing manner did much to
warm the chill caused by Mr. Adams' apathy or apparent
coldness. Those who knew him declared that he had the
warmest heart and the deepest sympathies, but he had an
unfortunate Avay of hiding them. It is told that when he
was candidate for the Presidency, his friends persuaded him
to go to a cattle-show. Among the persons who ventured
to address him was a respectable farmer, who impulsively
exclaimed : " Mr. Adams, I am very glad to see you. My
wife, when she was a gal, lived in your father's family ; you
were then a little boy, and she has often combed your
head."

"Well," said Mr. Adams, in a harsh voice, "I suppose
she combs yours now."

The poor farmer slunk back discomfited. If he gave
John Quincy Adams his vote he was more magnanimous
than the average citizen of to-day would be to so rude a
candidate.

A gentleman who was soliciting contributions to a
worthy object among officers of high rank in the govern
ment found little encouragement. He was recommended to
call on Mr. Adams. " On that iceberg! " he exclaimed, " it
would be folly." However, he finally went to see Mr.
Adams. He looked over the paper, took out his pocket-
book, and handed the young man, in silence, two notes of
twenty dollars each.

A writer of her time speaks of Mrs. Adams' "enchant-

A DISTINGUISHED GUEST. 607

ing, elegant, and intellectual regime," declaring that it should
give tone to the whole country. Her fine culture, intellec-
tual tastes, and charming social qualities, combined to attract
about her a circle of distinguished women.

Mrs. Adams was the "lady of the White House" when,
in 1825, Lafayette visited the United States, and, at the invi-
tation of the President, spent the last weeks of his stay at
the Executive Mansion, from which, on the seventh of Sep-
tember, he bade his pathetic farewell to the land of his
adoption.

John Adams, second son of John Quincy and Mrs.
Adams, married his cousin, February, 1828, in the Blue
Room. Four bridesmaids were in attendance, and a round
of festivities followed the wedding.

Mrs. Adams died May 14-, 1852, and was buried beside
her husband in the family burying-ground at Quincy,
Massachusetts.

CHAPTEE XLIL

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
THE WHITE HOUSE CONTINUED — PRESIDENTS' WIVES

.WHO NEVER ENTERED THE EXECUTIVE
' ■_ ■ \ MANSION.

President Andrew Jackson and Mrs. Rachel Robards — The Story of Jack-
son's Courtship — An Innocent Mistake — Jackson's Resentful Dispo-
sition— His Morbid Sensitiveness About His Wife's Reputation —
"Do You Dare, Villain, To Mention Her Sacred Name ? " — His Duel
with Governor Sevier — A Tragical Experience — Kills Charles Dick-
inson in a Duel — Mrs. Jackson's Piety — Tier Influence Over Her
Husband — His Profanity and Quick Temper — Her Unwillingness To
Preside at the White House — An Arrow that Pierced Her Heart —
He Enters the White House a Widower — Faithful to Her Memory —
Children Born in the White House — The Story of a Baby Curl —
"Try Him in Irish, Jimmy" — An Astonished Minister — The Wife
of President Van Buren — The Wife of President William Henry
Harrison.

i~^NDREW JACKSON was the presidential suc-
cessor of John Quincy Adams. His wife, who
_, was Mrs. Rachel Robards when Jackson first
met her, was the daughter of Col. John Donel-
son of Virginia, one of the pioneers of Tennessee,
after whom was named Fort Donelson, captured
by General Grant the second year of She Civil War. Mrs.
Jackson never entered the President's house, for she had
passed from earth before her husband became the Chief
Magistrate of the Nation. Yet it is doubtful if the wife of
any other President ever exerted so powerful and positive
an influence over an administration in life as did Mrs. Jack-
son after death. Born and reared on the frontiers of civili-

(608)

* TIIK WOMAN WHO RULED ANDREW JACKSON. I ;<)'.»

aation, her educational advantages had been but scanty, and
she never mastered more than the simplest rudiments of
knowledge. Yet, looking on her pictured face, it is easy to
fathom and define the power which, through life and
bcvond the grave, held in sweet abevance the master- will of
her husband. It was a power purely womanly — the affec-
tional force of a woman of exalted moral nature and deep
affections. It was impossible that such a woman should use
arts to win love, and equally impossible that she should not
be loved. Men would love her instinctively, through the
best and highest in their natures.

Andrew Jackson, or " Andy," as he was commonly
called, was twenty-four when he married Mrs. Robards.
She and her first husband were boarding with her mother,
Mrs. Donelson, then a widow, when Jackson became a
boarder under the same roof. Mrs. Robards' husband, sus-
picious and morose, was needlessly jealous of her, and made
her very unhappy. Jackson was fond of her society,
though he in no manner passed the boundaries of the most
conventional decorum. Her husband believed, or pretended
to believe, that Jackson was his wife's lover, and applied to
the legislature for an act preliminary to divorce. Jackson
and Mrs. Robards supposed the act itself a divorce, and they
were married two years before the divorce was allowed.

This innocent mistake (they were married again as soon
;is it was discovered) was the source of endless annoyance
and sorrow to them both. To the day of Jackson's death
he was so sensitive and fiery on the subject that, if any man
hinted at any impropriety in their relations, he at once
called the slanderer to account. Indeed, he was little less
than a monomaniac in regard to his wife. Several .of his
most savage conflicts grew directly or indirectly out of
what he believed to be reflections on her fair fame. If
ever a man was madly in love that man was Andrew Jack-
son, lie fancied his wife to be a goddess, an angel, a saint,

010 A GENEROUS FRIEND AND DEADLY FOE.

and he wanted to kill anybody who dared express any other
opinion. His resentful disposition kept him alert for the
slightest insinuation against her.

Much of Jackson's early life in Tennessee was spent in
fighting the Indians and his private enemies, of whom he
alwa}7s had a host. He was one of the most irascible and
pugnacious of mortals, and his ire, aroused by the slightest
cause, was deadly. Possessed of many generous and noble
qualities, he was often in his resentments no better than a
madman. When he was one of the judges of the supreme
court of Tennessee, John Sevier was governor. They had
quarreled, and Jackson had challenged the governor, who
had declined the challenge. Still on bad terms, they met
one day in the streets of Knoxville, and after exchanging a
few words, Sevier made some slighting allusion to Mrs.
Jackson. Her husband roared out, " Do you dare, villain,
to mention her sacred name ? " Drawing a pistol, he fired
at the governor, who returned the shot. They fired again,
ineffectually, and then bystanders interfered. Not long
after, they encountered one another on horseback on the
road, each accompanied by a friend. Again they shot at
one another, and murder would have followed, had not
some travelers, who had chanced to come up, separated the
combatants. Jackson had the reputation of being a dead
shot ; but he frequently missed his man, owing to his being
unnerved by the excitement of the occasion.

One of the most tragical of his experiences was his duel,
some years before, with Charles Dickinson, who had com-
mitted the unpardonable sin of commenting freely on Mrs.
Jackson. They had had several disagreements, and Jack-
son finally spoke of Dickinson in so violent a manner that
his language was repeated, as the General wished it should
be, to the man himself. Thereupon Dickinson, who was
about to start for New Orleans, wrote Jackson a letter,
denouncing him as a liar and a coward. On his return,

jackson's duel with dickinson. i;ii

Jackson challenged him, and they met on the banks of the
Red River in Logan county, Kentucky, early in the morn-
ing of May 30, 1806. Dickinson got first fire, breaking a
rib, and making a serious wound in the breast of his oppo-
nent, who showed no sign of having been hit. lie had felt
sure of killing his antagonist, and exclaimed, " Great God !
have I missed him ? "

Jackson, then taking deliberate aim, pulled the trigger,
but the weapon did not explode. It stopped at half-cock.
He cocked it fully, and again calmly and carefully leveling
it, fired. The bullet passed through Dickinson's body, just
above the hips ; he fell, and died that night after suffering
terrible agony. Jackson never recovered from the hurt,
and never expressed the least remorse for what many per-
sons pronounced a cold-blooded murder. There is no doubt
that he had made up his mind to kill Dickinson. Any man
who had spoken discreditably of Mrs. Jackson had, in his
opinion, forfeited the right to live.

Rachel Jackson was a woman of deep personal piety,
and she longed for nothing so much as the time when
her husband would be done with political honors, as
he had assured her that then, and not till then, could
he " be a Christian." The following anecdote illustrates
the profound influence she held over the moral nature of
her husband.

An intimate friend of Mrs. Jackson was on a visit to
the Hermitage. Mrs. Jackson talked to him of religion and
said the General was disposed to be religious ; that she
believed he would join the church were it not for the com-
ing presidential election, but his head was now full of poli-
tics. While they were conversing, the General came in
with a newspaper in his hand, to which he referred as
denouncing his mother a^ a camp follower. " This is too
bad ! " he exclaimed, rising into a passion and swearing

terribly. His wife approached him, and looking him in
* 34 Vl °

612 slander's poisoned arrow

the face, simply said, " Mr. Jackson ! " He was subdued in
an. instant, and did not utter another oath.

In the same presidential contest this gentle being did
not herself escape calumny. When her husband was
elected President of the United States, she said : " For Mr.
Jackson's sake, I am glad ; for my own, I never wished it."
To an intimate friend she said in all sincerity : " I assure
you I would rather be a door-keeper in the house of my
God than to dwell in that palace in Washington." Dearer
to her heart was the Hermitage, with the little chapel built
by her husband for her own especial use, than all the pros-
pective pomp of the President's house.

She was a mother to every servant on the estate, and
being anxious to make everyone comfortable during her
anticipated absence in Washington, she made numerous
journeys to Nashville, to purchase, for those left behind,
their winter supplies. Worn out after a day's shopping, she
went to the parlor of the Nashville Inn to rest. While she
waited there for the family coach which was to convey her
to the Hermitage, she heard her own name spoken in the
adjoining room: She was compelled to hear, while she sat
there, pale and smitten, the false and cruel calumnies
against herself which had so recklessly been used during the
campaign to defeat her husband, and which he had zealously
excluded from her sight in the newspapers. Here the poi-
soned arrow came back from the misfortune of her youth,
when she married a man intellectually and morally her
inferior, and it entered her gentle heart too deep to be with-
drawn. She returned to the Hermitage, and was soon after
seized with a spasmodic affection of the heart, which termi-
nated in death.

In Parton's " Life of Andrew Jackson," we find this
account of Mrs. Jackson's last days. The detail of the facts,
he states, were given him by " Hannah," her faithful serv-
ant, in whose arms she died after an illness of seven days,

AGONIZING DEATH OF MKS. JACKSON. 613

during which time everything was done that skilled and
Loving hands could do, but without avail.

"It was a Wednesday morning, December 17. All was
going on as usual at the Hermitage. The General was in
the fields, at some distance from the house, and Mrs. Jack-
son, apparently in tolerable health, was occupied in her
household duties. Old Hannah asked her to come into the
kitchen to give her opinion upon some article of food that
was in course of preparation. She performed the duty
required of her, and returned to her usual sitting-room, fol-
lowed by Hannah. Suddenly she uttered a horrible shriek,
placed her hands upon her heart, sunk into a chair, strug-
gling for breath, and fell forward into Hannah's arms.
There were only servants in the house, many of whom ran
frantically in, uttering the loud lamentations with which
Africans are wont to give vent to their feelings. The
stricken lady was placed upon her bed, and while messen-
gers hurried away for assistance, Hannah employed the only
remedies she knew to relieve the anguish of her mistress.

" No relief. She writhed in agony. She fought for
breath. The General came in, alarmed beyond description.
The doctor arrived. Mrs. A. J. Donelson hurried in from
her house near by. The Hermitage was soon filled with
near relatives, friends, and servants. With short intervals
of partial relief, Mrs. Jackson continued to suffer all that a
woman could suffer for the space of sixty hours; during
which time her husband never left her bed-side for ten min-
utes. On Friday evening she was much better, was almost
free from pain, and breathed with far less difficulty. The
first use, and indeed, the only use she made of her recovered
speech was to protest to the General that she was quite
well, and to implore him to go to another room and sleep,
and by no means to allow her indisposition to prevent his
attending the banquet on the 23d. She told him that the
day of the banquet would be a very fatiguing one, and he

614 THE SAINT OF THE PRESIDENT'S HOME.

must not permit his strength to be reduced by want of
sleep.

" Still the General would not leave her. He distrusted
this sudden relief. He feared it was the relief of torpor or
exhaustion, and the more as the remedies prescribed by Dr.
Hogg, the attending physician, had not produced their
designed effect. Saturday and Sunday passed, and still she
lay free from serious pain, but weak and listless ; the Gen-
eral still her watchful, constant, almost sleepless attendant.

" On Monday evening, the evening before the 23d, her
disease appeared to take a decided turn for the better ; and
she then so earnestly entreated the General to prepare for
the fatigues of the morrow^ by having a night of undisturbed
sleep, that he consented at last to go into an adjoining room
and lie down upon a sofa. The doctor was still in the house.
Hannah and George were to sit up with their mistress.

"At 9 o'clock the General bade her good-night, went into
the next room and took off his coat, preparatory to lying
down. He had been gone about five minutes. Mrs. Jackson
was then, for the first time, removed from her bed that it
might be rearranged for the night. While sitting in a chair
supported in the arms of Hannah, she uttered a long, loud
inarticulate cry, which was immediately followed by a rat-
tling noise in the throat. Her head fell forward upon Han-
nah's shoulder. She never spoke nor breathed again."

The grief of her husband amounted to agony. His
anguish seemed too intense to be endured, but he lived to
worship her memory and defend her name for many years.

"With the wound of his loss fresh and bleeding, President
Jackson entered upon his high office. Thus in death Rachel
Jackson became the tutelary saint of the President's house-
Wherever he went he wore her miniature. No matter wrhat
had been the duties or pleasures of the day, when the man
came back to himself, and to his lonely room, her Bible and
her picture took the place of the beloved face and tender

I'oKTKAlT OF MKS. JACKSON. HUi

■>

presence which had been the one charm and love of his
heroic life.

No other portrait of a. President's wife looks down upon
posterity with so winsome and innocent a gaze as that of
Rachel Jackson. A cap of soft lace surmounts the dark
curls which cluster about her forehead and fall like a veil
over her shoulders. The full lace ruffle around her neck is not
fastened with even a brooch, and, save the long pendants in
her ears, she wears no ornaments. Her throat is massive,
her lips full and sweet in expression, her brow broad and
rounded, her eye-brows arching above a pair of large, liquid,
gazelle-like eyes, whose soft, womanly outlook is sure to win
and to disarm the beholder. This remarkable loveliness of
spirit and person was the source of fatal sorrow to Rachel
Jackson. It won her reverence, amounting almost to adora-
tion, but it made her also the victim of jealousy, envy, and
malice. These made the shadows over her whole life, not-
withstanding the wealth of love showered upon her.

Probably into no other administration of the government,
from its first to the present, has personal feeling had so
much to do with official appointments as in the offices emp-
tied and filled by Andrew Jackson. He had only to suspect
that a man had failed to espouse the cause of the beloved
Rachel, and his unlucky official head immediately came off.
It was told him that Mr. Watterson, the Librarian of Con-
gress, had told or listened to something to the detriment of
Mrs. Jackson, and Mr. Watterson was immediately deposed.
Though she was avenged at times in acts of personal
injustice, in her own pure tones she spoke through him
in all the higher acts of his administration. Thus it was in
spirit that Rachel Jackson lived and reigned at the White
House.

Emily Donelson, wife of Andrew Jackson Donelson, Mrs
Jackson's nephew and adopted son, with Mrs. Andrew Jack-
son, Jr., the wife of another adopted son, shared together the

616 BEAUTIFUL EMILY DONELSON.

social honors of the White House during the administration
of President Jackson. The delicate question of precedence
between them was thus settled by him. He said to Mrs.
Jackson: "You, my dear, are mistress of the Hermitage,
and Emily is hostess of the White House."

Emily Donelson was of remarkable beauty. Her man-
ners were of singular fascination, and she dressed with
exquisite taste. The dress she wore at the first inaugura-
tion is still preserved. It is of amber satin brocaded with
bouquets of rose-leaves and violets, trimmed with white lace
and pearls. It was a present from General Jackson, and
even at that day, before the "society column" became a
prominent feature of the newspapers, was described in every
paper of the Union. General Jackson always called her
"my daughter." She was the child of Mrs. Jackson's
brother, and married to her cousin. She was quick at rep-
artee, and possessed the rare gift of being able to listen
gracefully. A foreign Minister once said : " Madame, you
dance with the grace of a Parisian. I can hardly realize
that you were educated in Tennessee."

" Count, you forget," was the spirited reply, " that grace
is a cosmopolite, and, like a wild flower, is found oftener in
the woods than in the streets of a city."

Her four children were born in the White House. But
in the midst of its honors, in the flower of her youth, " the
lovely Emily " went out from its portals to die. She sought
the softer airs of "Tulip Grove," her home in Tennessee,
where she died of consumption, December, 1836.

It. is related that when the corner-stone of the Treasury
building was laid, Andrew Jackson was asked to supply
some special memento, and he complied by clipping a lock
from the head of baby Mary Donelson. When little Mary
was christened, both Houses of Congress were invited, and
the ceremony took place in the East Koom, the President
holding her in his arms ; Martin Yan Buren stood god-

A FAMILY GROUP AT THE WHITE HOUSE. 617

father, while Cora Livingston, daughter of the Secretary of
State, and the belle and beauty of the administration, offi-
ciated as godmother. Years after there came to Washing-
ton a widowed and saddened woman, who was glad to
accept a clerkship in the great department whose corner-
stone holds her sunny baby curl. She did her work there
nobly, educating her family through her own earnings as
clerk.

A lady gives the following picture of an evening scene
at the White House, in the early part of Jackson's adminis-
tration :

" The large parlor was scantily furnished ; there was
light from the chandelier, and a blazing fire in the grate;
four or five ladies sewing around it; Mrs. Donelson, Mrs.
Andrew Jackson, Jr., Mrs. Edward Livingston. Five or six
children were playing about, regardless of documents or
work-baskets. At the farther end of the room sat the Pres-
ident, in his arm-chair, wearing a long loose coat, and smok-
ing a long reed pipe, with a bowl of red clay — combining
the dignity of the patriarch, monarch, and Indian chief.
Just behind, was Edward Livingston, the Secretary of State,
reading a dispatch from the French Minister for Foreign
Affairs. The ladies glance admiringly, now and then, at
the President, who listens, waving his pipe toward the chil-
dren, when they become too boisterous."

During Jackson's administration a new Minister arrived
from Lisbon, and the Secretary of State appointed for him
a day to be presented to the President. The hour was set,
and the Secretary expected the Minister to call at the State
Department ; but the Portuguese had misunderstood the
Secretary's French, and he proceeded alone to the "White
House. He rang the bell, and the door was opened by the
Irish porter, Jimmy O'NeiL " Je suis'yenwvdir M-onsieu/'
le President" said the Minister. u What the deuce does he
menu ! '.' muttered Jimmy. "He says President, though, so

(318 A DISMAYED FOREIGN MINISTER.

I suppose he wants to see the Gineral." " Ouiy out" said
the Portuguese, bowing.

Jimmy ushered him into the Green Room, where the
General was smoking his corn-cob pipe with great compos-
ure. The Minister made his bow to the President, and ad-
dressed him in French, of which the General did not under-
stand a word. " What does the fellow say, Jimmy ? " said
he. " I dunno, sir ; but I think he's a furriner." " Try
him in Irish, Jimmy," said Old Hickory. Jimmy gave him
a touch of the genuine Milesian, but the Minister only
shrugged his shoulders with the usual " Plait il f " " Och !
exclaimed Jimmy, " he can't go the Irish, sir. He's Frinch,
to be sure ! " " Send for the French cook, and let him try
if he can find out what the gentleman wants." The cook
was hurried from the kitchen, sleeves rolled up, apron on,
and a huge carving-knife in his hand. The Minister seeing
this formidable apparition, and doubting he was in the pres-
ence of the Head of the Nation, feared some treachery, and
made for the door, before which Jimmy planted himself to
keep him in. When the cook, by the General's order, asked
who he was, and what he wanted, and he gave a subdued
answer, the President discovered his character. At this
juncture the Secretary came in, and the Minister was pre-
sented in due form. It is said General Jackson always re-
sented allusion to this incident.

One of Jackson's best traits was his inherent and unva-
rying respect for women, toward whom he ever conducted
himself with chivalrous delicacy, not to be expected in
a man of such antecedents, and of so impetuous and
turbulent a disposition. While he was detested by many, he
was popular with the masses. Many of the acts for which
he once was savagely denounced have come to be generally
approved. He was narrow, ignorant, overflowing with pas-
sion and prejudice ; but honest, single-minded, and, accord-
ing to his light, a true and conscientious patriot.

MRS. VAN BUREN AND MRS. HARRISON. 619

Hannah Hoes, the wife of President Martin Van Buren,
died in her youth, long before he had grown to high polit-
ical honors. She had been dead seventeen years when, as
the eighth President of the United States, he entered the
White House. During his administration its social honors
were dispensed by his daughter-in-law, Mrs. Abram Van
llnren, born Angelica Singleton, of South Carolina, who
entered upon her duties and pleasures as a bride. She Avas of
illustrious lineage, possessed of finely-cultivated powers, and
is said to have rt borne the fatigue of a three-hours levee
with a patience and pleasantry inexhaustible." Doubtless
she shared some of the help which bore Mr. Monroe triumph-
antly through a similar scene.

" Are you not completely worn out ? " inquired a friend.

" Oh, no ! " replied President Monroe. "A little flattery
will support a man through great fatigue."

Anna Sj^mmes, the wife of President William Henry
Harrison, a lady of strong intelligence and deep piety, never
came to the White House. Her delicate health forbade her
to leave home at the time her husband made his presi-
dential journey to Washington. In a little more than a
month he was borne back to her, released by death. She
survived, almost to the age of ninety, to bid sons and grand-
sons Godspeed when they went forth to fight for their coun-
try— as she had bidden her gallant husband the same, when'
he left her amid her flock of little ones, in the days of her
youth, for the same cause. From time to time sons and
grandsons came from the field of battle to receive her bless-
ing anew. She said to one : " Go, my son. Your country
needs your services. I do not. I feel that my prayers in
your behalf will be heard, and that you will return in
safety." And the grandson did come back to receive her
final blessing, after many hard-fought battles.

CHAPTER XLIII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF

THE WHITE HOUSE CONTINUED — SOME BRIDES OF

THE WHITE HOUSE — A PRESIDENT'S WIFE

WHO PRAYED FOR HIS DEFEAT.

The Courtship of President John Tyler — Engaged for Five Years — Kiss-
ing His Sweetheart's Hand for the First Time — An Old-Time Lover —
Death of Mrs. Tyler in the White House — The Young and Beautiful
Mrs. Robert Tyler — A Former Actress — From the Footlights to the
Executive Mansion — "Can This be I?" — "Actually Living in the
White House !" — Recalling Her Theatrical Career — President Tyler's
Second Bride — His Son's Account of the Courtship — The Wife of
President Polk — Polk's Courtship — Mrs. Polk's Great Popularity —
Acting as Private Secretary to Her Husband — " Sarah Knows Where
It Is" — The Wife of General Zachary Taylor — Her Devotion to Her
Husband — An Unwilling Mistress of the White House — Praying for
Her Husband's Defeat — "Betty Bliss"

:RS. LETITIA CHRISTIAN TYLER, wife of
President John Tyler, was another sensitive,
saintly soul, whose children rose up and called
her blessed. General Tyler, son of President
Tyler, says of his father's courtship : " His courtship
was much more formal than that of to-day. He was
seldom alone with her before their marriage, and he has
told me that he never mustered up courage enough to kiss
nis sweetheart's hand until three weeks before their wed-
ding, though he was engaged for nearly five years. He
asked her parents' consent before proposing to her, and
when he visited her at the home of Colonel Christian, her
father, on his large plantation, he was entertained in the
parlors where the whole family were assembled together.

(620)

"A PERFECT GENTLEWOMAN. 6/Jl

As was the custom then among the better class of Virginian
families, the lover never thought of going out riding in tho
same carriage with his affianced, but rode along on horse-
back at the side of the carriage, which always contained one
or more ladies in addition to his sweetheart to add decorum
to the occasion."

Mrs. Tyler died in the White House, September 10, 1842.
Her daughter-in-law, Mrs. Robert Tyler, writing of the
event, says:

"Nothing can exceed the loneliness of this large and
gloomy mansion, hung with black, its walls echoing only
sighs and groans. My poor husband suffered dreadfully
when he was told his mother's eyes were constantly turned
to the door watching for him. He had left Washington to
bring me and the children, at her request. She had every
thing about her to awaken love. She was beautiful to the
eye, even in her illness; her complexion was clear as an in-
fant's, her figure perfect, and her hands and feet were the
most delicate I ever saw. She was refined and gentle in
every thing that she said and did; and, above all, a pure
and spotless Christian. She was my heath ideal of a perfect
gentlewoman.

" The devotion of father and sons to her was most affect-
ing. I don't think I ever saw her enter a room that all
three did not spring up to lead her to a chair, to arrange
her footstool, and caress and pet her."

The social duties of the White House now devolved upon
Mrs. Robert Tyler. She was young, beautiful, and viva-
cious, the daughter of Cooper, the tragedian, and Eliza
Fairlie, whose marriage was one of the sensations of their
day. She had been brought up by her parents with the
greatest care, and had been on the stage for a short time,
acting with her father when his financial affairs were at
their worst. From Washington, young Mrs. Tyler wrote to
her sister:

622 A LIVELY LETTER OF MRS. ROBERT TYLER.

" What wonderful changes take place, my dearest M !

Here am I, nee Priscilla Cooper (fnes retrousse? you will
perhaps think), actually living in and, what is more, presid-
ing at the White House! I look at myself, like the

little old woman, and exclaim, ' Can this be I ? ' I have not
had one moment to myself since my arrival, and the most
extraordinary thing is that I feel as if I had been used to
living here always, and receive the Cabinet Ministers, the
Diplomatic Corps, the heads of the army and navy, etc., etc.,
with a faculty which astonishes me. ' Some achieve great-
ness, some are born to it.' I am plainly born to it. I really
do possess a degree of modest assurance that surprises me
more than it does any one else. I am complimented on
every side ; my hidden virtues are coming out. I am con-
sidered ' charmante'* by the Frenchmen, 'lovely' by the
Americans, and ' really quite nice, you know,' by the Eng-
lish. . . .

" I have had some lovely dresses made, which fit me to
perfection, — one a pearl-colored silk that will set you crazy.
. . . I occupy poor General Harrison's room. . . .
The nice comfortable bedroom, with its handsome furniture
and curtains, its luxurious arm-chairs, and all its belongings,
I enjoy, I believe, more than anything in the establishment.
The pleasantest part of my life is when I can shut myself
up here with my precious baby. . . .

"The greatest trouble I anticipate is paying visits.
There was a doubt at first whether I must visit in person or
send cards; but I asked Mrs. Madison's advice upon the
subject, and she says, return all my visits by all means.
Mrs. Bache says so, too. So three days in the week I am to
spend three hours a day driving from one street to another
in this city of magnificent distances. ... I see so many
great men and so constantly that I cannot appreciate the
blessing! The fact is, when you meet them in every-day
life you forget they are great men at all, and just find them

A TOUCHING MEMORY OF OTHER DAYS. 6^3

the most charming companions in the world, talking the
most delightful nonsense, especially the almost awful-look-
ing Mr. Webster, who entertains me with the most charming
gossip."

In her sprightly letters she frequently alludes to the
change in her own position, showing that in the midst of
her enjoyment of life at the White House she forgot noth-
ing in the past. Writing on one occasion of a ball, she said :
"As I declined dancing, I had the pleasure of talking to
many grave Senators, and among the rest had a long con-
versation with Mr. Southard. As we stood at the end of
the room, which is the old theater transformed into a ball-
room, he said, ' On this very spot where we stand I saw the
best acting that I ever witnessed.'

" Though my heart told me to whom he alluded, I could
not help asking him ' what was the play, and who the actor? '
'The play was Macbeth; the performer, Mr. Cooper." I
could not restrain the tears which sprung to my eyes as I
heard my dear father so enthusiastically spoken of. I looked
around, and thought that not only had papa's footsteps trod
those boards. I looked dowm at the velvet dress of Mrs.
Tyler, and thought of the one I wore there six years before
as Lady Randolph, when we struggled through a miserable
engagement of a few rainy nights! "

Mrs. Robert Tyler presided at the White House till June,
l8-i4, when President Tyler married again.

President Tyler and his first wife were of nearly the
same age, he being only eight months her senior. Their
wedding took place on his twenty-third birthday, and their
married life of twTenty-nino years was a most happy one.
His second marriage took place two years after the death of
his first wife. President Tyler was then fifty-four. The
bride was a girl hardly out of her teens. Her name was
Miss Julia Gardiner, and she was the daughter of a wealthy
gentleman of Gardiner's Island, New York.

624 THE REIGN OF THE SECOND MRS. TYLER.

General Tyler, President Tyler's son, says that in the
second winter after his mother's death Mr. Gardiner and his
two daughters came to Washington on their return from
Europe. They visited the White House one evening, and he,
as private secretary, took their cards and introduced them
to the family. A short time after they called upon his sis-
ter, who was then presiding at the White House, and she
returned their call, discovering that the girls were very
beautiful and accomplished and also of excellent family.
At the opening of the following season they were again in
Washington, and renewed their attentions to the President
and his family. The President, becoming infatuated with
Miss Julia and she reciprocating his affections, they became
engaged and were married in June, 1844.

The February previous, Commodore Stockton gave a
party on board his flagship, the Princeton, then lying in
the Potomac, to which President Tyler and the chief officers
of State were invited. A gun, fired in salute, exploded,
killing several prominent men, among whom was Miss Gar-
diner's father. It was on account of this affliction that the
marriage was celebrated very quietly at the Church of the
Ascension in New York City.

Mrs. Tyler was a beautiful, well-educated woman, of
graceful, dignified appearance. Her reign in the White
House was characterized more by stateliness than cordiality.
The brief eight months of her residence in the Executive
Mansion passed without incident of importance. But doubt-
less the realization of her ambition to be the mistress of the
President's house was not all that she had fancied, and many
were the wounds she received from the disappointed and un-
sympathetic members of the President's family, who felt
that she, being a ISTew Yorker, was not one of them. Her
youth, beauty, and culture were sufficient grounds for criti-
cisms in which the family and others freely indulged.

After the expiration of President Tyler's term they went

AN' KX-PKKBIDENT'S STRANGE POSITION. 625

to Richmond to live. The prejudice against Mrs. Tyler on
account of her Northern birth was more manifest there than
it had been in Washington, merchants, shopkeepers, and all
classes resenting her orders to have things sent to "Mrs.
President Tyler." Ex-President Tyler was a devoted hus-
band, however, and for seventeen years they lived in perfect
domestic felicity, several children having been born to them
during that time

In 1801 Mr. Tyler was a member of the Peace Conven-
tion, held in Washington, in the futile hope of arranging the
difficulties between the seceded states and the National gov-
ernment. The convention being without result, he cast his
fortunes with the Confederacy, and presented the unprece-
dented spectacle of a former Chief Magistrate in open rebel-
lion against the government of which he had once been the
head. He died on January IT, 1802, at Richmond, Virginia,
while a member of the Confederate Congress.

After the death of Mr. Tyler and the close of the rebel-
lion, Mrs. Tyler spent much of her time with her mother at
the Gardiner home on Long Island, going back and forth to
Richmond. Her youngest daughter, Miss Pearl Tyler, was
very beautiful. She was educated at the Georgetown Con-
vent. During the administration of President Arthur, Mrs.
Tyler was in Washington much of her time, being frequently
entertained at the White House and in other official and
private houses.

Mrs. James K. Polk, wife of the eleventh President of the
United States, was one of the most intellectual women who
ever presided in the White House. Strictly educated in a
Moravian Institute, her attainments were more than ordinary,
her understanding stronger than that of average women.

When Polk met her she was a belle of Tennessee, and
there is a tradition that he was advised by General Jackson
to marry her. Jackson, who was a good friend of young Polk,
thought his attentions among the ladies were entirely too

026 THE QUEENLY MRS. POLK.

promiscuous. He urged him to select one of the number of
his sweethearts, so the story goes, telling him at the same
time that among them all he could not find a sweeter woman
or a better wife than Sallie Childress. Polk took Jackson's
advice, proposed, and was accepted. At the age of twenty
she came to Washington as his wife, he being then a member
of Congress from Tennessee.

Many years of her youth and prime were spent at the
Capital, and, as she had no children, she had more than ordi-
nary opportunity to devote herself exclusively to the service
of her husband. He was Speaker of the House before he
became President of the United States, and in every position
she was called upon to fill Mrs. Polk commanded respect and
admiration on her own behalf, aside from the honor always
paid to the person holding high station. Many poems in the
public prints were addressed to her, — one, while she was
the wife of a Member of Congress, by Judge Story.

When her husband became the President, Mrs. Polk was
deemed the supreme ornament of the White House, and the
public journals of the land broke forth into gratulation that
the domestic life of the Nation's house was to be represented
by one who honored American womanhood. Mrs. Polk was
tall, slender, and stately, with much dignity of bearing, and
a manner said to resemble that of Mrs. Madison. The state-
liness of her presence was conspicuous, and so impressed an
English lady that she declared that "not one of the three
queens whom she had seen could compare with the truly
feminine, yet distinguished presence of Mrs. Polk."

Mrs. Polk was her husband's private secretary, and,
probably, the only lady of the White House who ever filled
that office. She took charge of his papers, he trusting en-
tirely to her memory and method of their safe keeping. If
he wanted a document, long before labeled and " pigeon-
holed," he said : " Sarah knows where it is ; " and it was
" Sarah's" ever-readv hand that laid it before his eves.

RETIREMENT TO PRIVATE LIFE. G21

Mrs. Polk was considered a very handsome woman.
Her hair and eyes were wry black, ami she had the com-
plexion of a Spanish donna. Without being technically
"literary," she was fond of study and of intellectual pur-
suits, and possessed a decided talent for conversation. In
her youth she became a member of the Presbyterian church,
and through a Long life her character was eminently that of
a sincere Christian. Always devout, her piety in later years
became almost fanaticism ; but even in the prime of her
beauty and power she never gave her presence or approval
to the dissipation, the insidiously-corrupting influence of
what is termed "gay life in Washington."

After his retirement from public life at the expiration of
his administration, Mr. and Mrs. Polk removed to Nashville,
Tenn., where for some time the ex-President was absorbed in
the embellishment of a fine property, which was his home
for the remainder of his life, and is now known as Polk
Place, in the very heart of the city. The grounds occupy a
whole square ; the stately mansion in the center was some-
thing regal for those days, and is so yet, barring the decay
of time.

The large rooms and broad hall have many souvenirs on
their walls which were presented to Mr. Polk during his
public life. On the second floor is Mr. Polk's study, just as
he left it, the loving wife refusing during her lifetime to
allow anything in it to be touched by any but her own
hands. Her devotion to her husband led Mrs. Polk to insist
that he should be laid to rest in their own grounds. Choos-
ing a corner of the east front, she caused to be erected an
elaborate tomb of native marble. It is in the form of a
temple, with Doric columns supporting a dome-like roof.
Three sides are covered with inscriptions, in Mrs. Polk's own
words, recording the principal events of his life and his
character as citizen and statesman.

Mrs. Polk survived her husband for many years, receiv-

35 ' '

628 REVERED BY THE WHOLE NATION.

ing always the most distinguished consideration. All noted
visitors were taken to pay their respects to her ; the legisla-
ture, the courts, and other bodies convening in Nashville
invariably paid their respects to this revered woman. During
the rebellion, in common with all people in the South,
Mrs. Polk lost much by the depreciation of her property ;
but the protection of her home and herself was a pleasure
alike to all Union and Confederate soldiers. The great com-
manders of either army who entered Nashville hastened to
do her honor. The aged historian, George Bancroft, who
had been a member of Mr. Polk's cabinet, journeyed to
Nashville just before his death to visit Mrs. Polk and ex-
press his continued regard for her husband and herself.

Mrs. Polk filled her position as the wife of a public man
with rare acceptability, winning from the whole Nation love
and admiration. Dying in a ripe old age, honored and be-
loved by all who knew her, she was laid by reverent hands
beside her beloved husband beneath the little temple she had
erected to his memory.

Mrs. Taylor, the wife of General Zachary Taylor, the
twelfth President of the United States, was one of those
modest, retiring women of whose heroism fame keeps no
record. Her life, in its self-abnegation and wifely devotion,
under every stress of privation and danger, on the Indian's
trail, amid fever-breeding swamps, and on the edge of the
battle-field, was more heroic than that ever dreamed of by
Martha "Washington — or continuously lived by any Presi-
dential lady of the Revolution.

When General Taylor received the official announcement
that he was elected President of the United States, he said :
" For more than a quarter of a century my house has been
the tent, and my home the battle-field." This utterance was
simply true, and through all these years, this precarious
house and home were shared by his devoted wife. He was
one of the hardest-worked of army officers. Intervals of

THE DEVOTED WIFE OF A SOLDIER. 629

official repose at West Point and Washington never came to
this young k' Indian lighter." His life was literally spent in
the savage wilderness; but whether in the swamps of
Florida, on the plains of Mexico, or on the desolate border
of the frontier, the young wife, who was Miss Margaret
Smith, of Calvert County, Maryland, persistently followed,
loved, and helped him. Thus all her children were born,
and kept with her till old enough to live without her care ;
then, for their own sakes, she gave them up, and sent them
back to "the settlements" for the education indispensable
to their future lives — but, whatever the cost, she stayed
with her husband.

The devotion to duty, and the cheerfulness under priva-
tion of this tender woman — the wife of their chief — pene-
trated the whole of his pioneer army. The thought of her
made every man more contented and uncomplaining. Her
entire married life had been spent thus ; but when her hus-
band took command against the treacherous Seminoles, in
the Florida war ; when the newspapers heralded the new-
made discovery that the wife of Colonel Taylor had estab-
lished herself at Tampa Bay, it was considered unpardon-
ably reckless that she should thus risk her life, when the
odds of success seemed all against her husband. Nothing
could move her from her post. As ever, she superintended
the cooking of his food ; she ministered to the sick and
wounded ; she upheld the morale of the little army by the
steadfastness of her own self-possession and hope, through
all the long and terrible struggle.

Tinie passed, and the brave colonel of the border became
the conquering hero from Mexico, bearing triumphantly
back to peace the victories of Palo Alto, Monterey, and
Buena Vista inscribed upon his banners. The obscure
" Indian fighter " was at once the hero and idol of the
Nation. The long day of battle and glory was ended at
last, the wife thought — and now she, the General, and their

630 A RELUCTANT LADY OF THE WHITE HOUSE.

children, in a four-roomed home, were to be kept together
at last, in peace unbroken.

It is not difficult to imagine what a home so hardly-
earned, so nobly won, was to such a woman. Nor is it hard
to realize that when the peace of that home was almost im-
mediately disturbed by a nomination of its head to the
Presidency of the Nation, the woman's heart at last rebelled.
The wife thought no new honor could add to the luster of
her husband's renown. She declared that the life-long habits
of her husband would make him miserable under the re-
straints of metropolitan life and the duties of a civil posi-
tion. From the first she deplored the nomination of General
Taylor to the Presidency as a misfortune, and sorrowfully
said : " It is a plot to deprive me of his society, and to
shorten his life by unnecessary care and responsibility."

When, at last, she came to the White House as its mis-
tress, she shunned the great reception-rooms and received
her visitors in private apartments. She tried, as far as pos-
sible, to establish her daily life on the routine of the small
cottage at Baton Rouge, and she essayed personally to min-
ister to her husband's comforts, as of old, till her simple
habits were ridiculed and made a cause of reproach by the
" opposition."

The reigning lady of the White House, at this time, was
General and Mrs. Taylor's youngest daughter, Elizabeth, or
as she was familiarly and admiringly called, " Betty Bliss."
She entered the White House at the age of twenty-two, as
a bride, having married Major Bliss, who served faithfully
under Iier father as Adjutant-General. Perhaps no other
President was ever inaugurated with such overwhelming
enthusiasm as General Taylor — and the reception given
his youngest child, who greatly resembled him, and who, at
that time, was the youngest lady who had ever presided at
the White House, was almost as overpowering.

The vision that remains of her loveliness shows us a

DEATH OF PRESIDENT TAYLOB. 631

bright and beaming creature, dressed simply in white, with
flowers in her hair. She possessed beauty, good sense, and
quiet humor. As a hostess she was at ease, and received
with affable grace; but an inclination for retirement marked
her as well as her mother. Formal receptions and official
dinners were not to their taste. Nevertheless, these are a
part of the inevitable penalty paid by all who have received
the Nation's highest honor. Society, in its way, exacts as
much of the ladies of the White House as party politics do
of the men who administer state affairs in it. A lack of
entertainment caused part of the universal discontent,
already voiced against the soldier-President, whose heroic
ways were naturally not the ways of policy or diplomacy.

The second winter of President Taylor's term the ladies
of his family seemed to have assumed more prominently
and publicly the social duties of their high position. A re-
ception at the President's house March 4, 1850, was of
remarkable brilliancy. Clay, Calhoun, Webster, Benton,
and Cass, with many beautiful and cultured women, then
added their splendor to society in Washington. The augu-
ries of a brilliant year were not fulfilled. To the intense
ffrief of bis family, President Taylor died at the White
House, July 9, 1850. When it was known that he must die
Mrs. Taylor became insensible, and the agonized cries of his
children reached the surrounding streets.

Dreadful to the eyes of the bereaved wife were the pomp
and show with which her hero was buried.

After he became President, General Ta}ior said that
'•his wife prayed every night for months that Henry Clay
might be elected President in his place." She survived her
husband two years, and to her last hour never mentioned
the White House in Washington except in its relation to the
death of her husband.

CHAPTER XLIV.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OP

THE WHITE HOUSE CONTINUED — FROM THE VILLAGE

SCHOOL TO THE EXECUTIVE MANSION.

Mrs. Abigail Fillmore — How She First Met Her Husband, Afterward
President Fillmore — A Clothier's Apprentice — An Engagement of
Five Years — Building a Humble House with His Own Hands —

— Working and Struggling Together — Entering the White House as
Mistress — Mrs. Fillmore's Death — The Memory of a Loving Wife —

— The Wife of President Franklin Pierce — Entering the White House
Under the Shadow of Death — A Shocking Accident — Grief-Stricken

• Parents — Death of Mrs. Pierce — Last Days of President Pierce —
The Mistake of a Life-Time — James Buchanan's Administration —
The Brilliant Harriet Lane — Why Buchanan Never Married — Miss
Lane's Reign at the White House — Entertaining the Prince of Wales
at the White House — Buchanan's Last Days — Miss Lane's Marriage.

'RS. ABIGAIL FILLMORE, wife of Millard Fill-
more, the thirteenth President of the United
States, succeeded Mrs. Zachary Taylor as mis-
tress of the "White House. She was a woman
of superior intellect, who in a different sphere had
proved herself an equally-devoted wife. Abigail
Powers was the daughter of a Baptist clergyman, and her
girlhood was spent in Western New York, when it was a
frontier and a wilderness. Yearning for intellectual cult-
ure, with all the drawbacks of poverty and scanty opportu-
nity, she obtained sufficient knowledge to become a school-
teacher. It was while following this avocation that she
first met her future husband, then a clothier's apprentice, a
youth of less than twenty years, himself, during the winter
months, a teacher of the village school.

(632)

STRUGGLING FROM POVERTY TO EMINENCE. 633

The engagement lasted for five years, and during the
last three years Fillmore was so poor that he could not go
to see her, being unable to pay the expenses of the journey
of 150 miles. They were married in 1820. He built with
his own hands the house in which they first lived, and dur-
ing the early years of their married life Mrs. Fillmore acted
as housekeeper and maid-of-all-work, teaching school at the
same time. In this little house the wife bore full half of
the burden of life, and the husband, with the weight of care
lifted from him by willing and loving hands, rose rapidly in
the profession of law, and in less than two years was chosen
a member of the State Legislature. Thus, side by side, they
worked and struggled from poverty to eminence.

Strong in intellect and will, her delights were all femi-
nine. Her tasks accomplished, she lived in books and
music, flowers and children. At her death, her husband
said : " For twenty-seven years, my entire married life, I
was always greeted with a happy smile." She entered the
White House a matron of commanding person and beautiful
countenance. Her complexion was extremely fair, her eyes
blue and smiling; and her head was crowned with a wealth
of light brown curling hair. A personal friend of Mrs. Fill-
more, writing from Buffalo, says :

"When Mr. Fillmore entered the White House, he found
it entirely destitute of books. Mrs. Fillmore was in the
habit of spending her leisure moments in reading, I might
almost say, in studying. She was accustomed to be sur-
rounded with books of reference, maps, and all the other
requirements of a well-furnished library, and she found it
difficult to content herself in a house devoid of such attrac-
tions. To meet this want, Mr. Fillmore asked and received
an appropriation from Congress, and selected a library, de-
voting to that purpose a large and pleasant room in the
second story of the White House. Here Mrs. Fillmore sur-
rounded herself with her little home comforts; here her

6J-i THE WIFE OF PRESIDENT FILLMORE.

daughter had her own piano, harp, and guitar, and here
Mrs. Fillmore received the informal visits of the friends she
loved, and, for her, the real pleasure and enjoyments of the
White House were in this room.

"Mrs. Fillmore was proud of her husband's success in
life, and desirous that no reasonable expectation of the pub-
lic should be disappointed. She never absented herself from
the public receptions, dinners, or levees, when it was possi-
ble to be present ; but her delicate health frequently ren-
dered them very painful. She sometimes kept her bed all
day to favor a weak ankle, that she might be able to endure
the fatigue of the two hours she would be obliged to stand
at the Friday evening receptions.

" Mrs. Fillmore was destined never to see again her old
home in Buffalo. She contracted a cold on the day of Mr.
Pierce's Inauguration, which resulted in pneumonia, of
which she died, at Willard's Hotel, Washington, March
30th, 1853. What she was in the memory of her husband,
may be judged by the fact that he carefully preserved
every line that she ever wrote him, and was heard to say
that he " could never destroy even the little notes that she
sent him on business, to his office."

The child of this truly-wedded pair, Mary Abigail Fill-
more, was the rarest and most exquisite President's daugh-
ter that ever shed sunshine in the White House. She sur-
vived her mother but a year, dying of cholera, at the age of
twenty-two, yet her memory was a benison to all young
American women, especially to those surrounded by the
allurements of society and high station. She was not only
the mistress of many accomplishments, but possessed a thor-
oughly practical education. She was graduated from the
State Normal School of New York, as a teacher, and taught
in the higher departments of one of the public schools in
Buffalo. She was a French, German, and Spanish scholar;
was proficient in music ; and an amateur sculptor.

ftstor, Lenox ana i
Foundations.

AN EXAMPLE TO AMERICAN UIRLS. C')7

She was a woman of the rarest type in whom were
blended, in perfect proportion, masculine judgment and fem-
inine tenderness, hi her were combined intellectual force,
vivacity of temperament, genuine sensibility, and deep ten-
derness of heart. She used her opportunities, as the Presi-
dent's daughter, to minister to others. She clung to all her
old friends, without any regard to their position in life; her
time and talents were devoted to their happiness. After
the death of her mother, she went to the desolate home of
her father and brother, and emulating the mother's exam-
ple, relieved her father of all household care. Her domestic
and social qualities equaled her intellectual power. She
gathered all her early friends about her; she consecrated
herself to the happiness of her father and brother; she
Idled their home with sunshine. With scarcely an hour's
warning the final summons came. "Blessing she was, God
made her so," and in her passed away one of the rarest of
young American Women.

The wife of Franklin Pierce, wife of the fourteenth
President of the United States, was Miss Jane M. Apple ton
of Hampton, New Hampshire, daughter of Rev. Dr. Apple-
ton, President of Bowdoin College. She entered the White
House under the shadow of ill-health and sore bereavement.
The mother of three children, none survived her, and the
death of. the last, under the most distressing circumstances,
left her mother's heart forever desolate. Just previous to
the Inauguration of Mr. Pierce as President, while the fam-
ily were on their return to Concord from Boston, the axle
of one of the passenger cars broke, and the cars were pre-
cipitated down a steep embankment. Mr. Pierce was sit-
ting beside his wife, and in the seat opposite them sat their
son, who but a moment before was amusing them with his
conversation.

There was an unsteady movement of the train, then a
crash and a bounding motion as the cars were thrown over

638 THE BEAUTIFUL LIFE OF MRS. PIERCE.

and down the hill. Mr. Pierce, though much bruised, suc-
ceeded in extricating his wife from the ruins, and bearing
her to a place of safety, returned to search for his boy. He
soon found his lifeless body, his head crushed under a beam.
No mind can imagine the agony of these bereaved parents,
or pen portray their grief. On the threshold of the realiza-
tion of every ambition, to have their only child snatched
away in such a tragic manner turned all joy into the keen-
est sorrow, and made the awaiting honors irksome.

Mrs. Pierce was a woman of remarkable sensitiveness of
organism, delicacy of health, and spiritual nature ; a de-
voted wife and mother. She instinctively shrank from
observation, and nothing could be more painful to her in
average life than the public gaze. She found her joy in the
quiet sphere of domestic life, and there, through her wise
counsels, pure tastes, and devoted life, she exerted a power-
ful influence. Her life, as far as she could make it so, was
one of retirement. She rarely participated in gay amuse-
ments, and never enjoyed what is called fashionable society.
Her natural endowments were of a high order. She inher-
ited a judgment singularly clear and a taste almost unerr-
ing. The cast of her beauty was so dream-like ; her
temper was so little mingled with the common character-
istics of woman ; and had so little of caprice, so little of
vanity, so utter an absence of all jealousy and all anger ; it
was so made up of tenderness and devotion, and yet so
imaginative and spiritual in its fondness, that it was difficult
to associate her with earthly sentiment and affairs.

It was but natural that such a being should be the life-
long object of a husband's adoring devotion. ISTor is it
strange that the husband of such a wife, reflecting in his
outer life the urbanity, gentleness, and courtesy which
marked his home intercourse, in addition to his own per-
sonal gifts, should have been, what Franklin Pierce was
declared to be, at the time of his election and before be

A WOMAN OF EXQUISITE NATURE. 63!)

openly avowed his sympathy with the South, the most pop-
ular man, personally, who was ever President of the United
States.

Notwithstanding her ill health, her shrinking tempera-
ment, and personal bereavement, Mrs. Pierce forced herself
to meet the public demands of her exalted station, and punc-
tiliously presided at receptions and state dinners, at any cost
to herself. No woman, by inherent nature, could have been
less adapted to the full blaze of official life than she, yet she
met its demands with honor, and departed from the White
House revered by all who had ever caught a glimpse of her
exquisite nature. She died December, 1863, in Andover,
Massachusetts, and now rests, with her husband and children,
in the cemetery at Concord, New Hampshire.

At the expiration of his term as President, Mr. Pierce
made a protracted European tour, and returned to New
Hampshire about the beginning of the Civil War. During
the progress of that great struggle he declared in a public
speech his entire sympathy with the South. He passed into
retirement, which practically became oblivion, and died at
Concord, October 8, 1869.

James Buchanan, the fifteenth President of the United
States, succeeded Mr. Pierce. During his administration the
White House seemed to revive the social magnificence of old
days. Harriet Lane brought again into its drawing-rooms
the splendor of courts, and more than repeated the elegance
and brilliancy of fashion which marked the administration
of President John Quincy Adams.

James Buchanan is the only bachelor among the Presi-
dents before President Cleveland ; and it was village gossip
that made him so. He was a prosperous young lawyer of
Lancaster, Pennsylvania, when he became engaged to a
beauty and an heiress, Miss Annie C. Coleman, of that city.
Her father approved of the engagement, and the course of
true love ran smooth until some unfounded stories caused

640 JAMES BUCHANAN'S EARLY LOVE.

Miss Coleman to write a note to her lover asking him to
release her from the engagement. She gave no reason,
and Buchanan could only reply that if she wished it so he
must submit. This occurred in the summer of 1S19, when
Buchanan was twenty-eight vears old and Miss Coleman
was twenty-three. Before Christmas came Miss Coleman
died in Philadelphia, where she was visiting, and Buchanan
wrote a most touching obituary of her, which was published
in one of the Lancaster newspapers. The only letter of his
remaining to show his connection with her is one written to
her father, saying "that he had loved her more infinitely
than any other human being could love ; and, though he might
sustain the shock of her death, happiness had fled from him
forever." He wished to look once more upon her before her
interment, and begged to be allowed to follow her remains
to the grave as a mourner.

It was his grief over his sweetheart's death that caused
Buchanan to rush into the excitement of political life, and
had it not been for her he might have been known only as a
great lawyer. At his death Miss Coleman's love-letters were
found sealed up among his papers, in their place of deposit
in iSTew York, with the direction upon them, in Buchanan's
own handwriting, that they were to be destroyed without
being read. This injunction was obeyed, and the package
was burned without breaking the seal.

Harriet Lane was the adopted daughter of President
Buchanan, and was " lady of the White House " during his
administration. She was one of those blondes whom Oliver
Wendell Holmes so delighted to portray. " Her head and
features were cast in noble mold, and her form which, at
rest, had something of the massive majesty of a marble pil-
lar, in motion was instinct alike with power and grace."
Grace, light, and majesty seemed to make her atmosphere.
Every motion was instinct with life, health, and intelligence.
Her superb physique gave the i;npression of intense, har

BEAUTY AND POPULARITY OF MISS LANE. 641

monioua vitality. Her, eyes, of deep violet, shed a constant.
steady light, yet they could Hash with rebuke, kindle with
humor, or. soften in tenderness. Her mouth was her most
peculiarly-beautiful feature, capable of expressing infinite
1 minor or absolute sweetness, while her classic head was
crowned with masses of golden hair.

As a child she was a fun-loving, warm-hearted romp.
"When eleven years of age she was tall as a woman ; never-
theless Mr. Buchanan, one day looking from his window,
saw Harriet with flushed cheek and hat awry, trundling a
wheelbarrow full of wood through the principal street of
Lancaster. He rushed out to learn the cause of such an un-
seemly sight, when she answered in confusion " that she was
on her way to old black Aunt Tabitha with a load of woo 1,
because it was so cold." A few years later this impulsive
child, having been graduated with high honor from the
Georgetown Convent, was shining at the Court of St. James,
at which her uncle was American Minister. Queen Victoria,
upon whom her surpassing brightness and loveliness seemed
to make a deep impression, decided that her rank should be
the same as that of wife of a United States Minister. Thus
the youthful American girl became one of the leading ladies
of the Diplomatic Corps of Saint James.

On the continent and in Paris she was everywhere
greeted as a girl-queen, and in England her popularity was
immense. On the day when Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Tenny-
son received the degree of Doctor of Civil Laws at the Uni-
versity of Oxford, her appearance was greeted by loud
cheers from students, who arose en masse to receive her.
From this dazzling career abroad she came back to her
native land to preside over the White House. She became
the supreme lady of the gayest administration which up to
that time had marked the government of the United States.
Societies, ships of war, neckties even, were named after her.
Men, gifted and great, from foreign lands and of her own

642 MISS LANE AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

country, sought her hand in marriage. Such cumulated
pleasures and honors probably were never heaped upon any
other one young woman of the United States.

At the "White House receptions, and on all state occa-
sions, the sight of this stately beauty, standing beside her
distinguished-looking, gray -haired uncle, made a unique and
delightful contrast which thousands nocked to see. Her
duties were more onerous than had fallen to the share of
any lady of the White House for many years ; the long dip-
lomatic service of Mr. Buchanan abroad involving him in
many obligations to entertain distinguished strangers pri-
vately, aside from his hospitalities as President of the United
States. During his administration the Prince of Wales was
entertained at the White House. He presented his portrait
to Mr. Buchanan and a set of engravings to Miss Lane, as
" a slight mark of his grateful recollection of the hospitable
reception and agreeable visit at the White House."

Probably no administration was so unpopular as James
Buchanan's. Odious throughout the North on account of
what was declared to be his treacherous yielding to the
demands of the South, it was, towards its close, bitterly con-
demned by the South, which accused Buchanan of perfidy
to them in sustaining the unconstitutional agreements of the
North. He shared the fate of most men who in the time of
fierce dissension between two great parties try, in a vacillat-
ing way, to avoid offending either, and end by antagonizing
both.

During the last troubled months of Mr. Buchanan's
administration he seemed concerned only with the coming of
the 4th of March, 1861, when his responsibility would end.
He died in Wheatland, Pennsylvania, in 1868. He always
spoke with warmth and gratitude of Miss Lane's patriotism
and good sense. Neither he nor her country ever suffered
from any conversational lapse of hers, which, in a day so
rife with passion and prejudice, is saying much.

CHAPTER XLV.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OP

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — MRS. ABRAHAM

LINCOLN — THE WHITE HOUSE DURING

THE CIVIL WAR.

The First Love of Abraham Lincoln —.His Grief at Her Loss — His Second
Love — Engaged to Miss Mary Todd, His Third Love — Wooed by-
Douglas and Lincoln — The Wedding Deferred — Lincoln's Marriage

— Character of Mrs. Lincoln— Fulfillment of a Life-Long Ambition —
The Mutterings of Civil War — Newspaper Gossip and Criticism of
Mrs. Lincoln — Noble Work of Women During the Dark Days of the
Civil War — Mrs. Lincoln's Neglect of Her Opportunity to Endear
Herself to the Nation — The Dead and Dying in Washington — Death
of Willie Lincoln — Wild Anguish of His Mother — The President
Assassinated — Intense Excitement in Washington — A Nation in Mourn-
ing— Mrs. Lincoln's Mind Unbalanced — Removes from Washington

— Petitions Congress for a Pension — Unfavorable Report of the Com-
mittee — The Pension Granted — Death of Mrs. Lincoln.

BRAHAM LINCOLN'S first love was a golden-
haired blonde, who had cherry lips, a clear, blue
eye, a neat figure, an unassuming manner, and
more than ordinary intellectual ability. Her
name was Anne Rutledge. She was the daughter
of a tavern-keeper in Salem, Illinois. Mr. Lincoln
met her when he was about twenty-three, and, after a ro-
mantic courtship, became engaged to her. She died before
they could be married, and Lincoln was so much affected by
her death that her friends feared he would become insane.
He was carefully watched, as he became very violent during
storms and in damp, gloomy weather. At such times he
would rave, exclaiming: "I can never be reconciled to have

(643)

644 LOVE AFFAIRS OF A FAMOUS MAN.

the snow, rain, and storms beat upon her grave ! " At this
time he began to quote, it is said, the poem which is so
identified with him, beginning —

" Oh, why should the spirit of mortal be proud ?"

Years afterwards, when he had become famous, he was
asked by an old friend as to the story of his love for Anne
Rutledge, and he said, " I loved her dearly. She was a
handsome girl, and would have made a good and loving-
wife."

Lincoln's next love was a tall, fine-looking woman, named
Mary Owens, with whom he became acquainted about a
year after Anne Rutledge died. Upon her rejection of him,
he wrote a letter to his friend Mrs. O. H. Browning, saying
that he had been inveigled into paying his addresses to Miss
Owens, but, on being refused, he found he cared more for
her than he had thought, and proposed again. In this letter
he says :

" I most emphatically in this instance have made a fool
of myself. I have come to the conclusion never more to
think of marrying, and for this reason, — that I can never
be satisfied with any one who would be fool enough to have
me."

Still, it was not long after this that he was engaged to
Miss Mary Todd, a rosy, sprightly brunette, of Lexington,
Kentucky, who was visiting at Springfield, where Lincoln
was then a member of the Illinois Legislature. Both Lin-
coln and Stephen A. Douglas proposed to her. She refused
Douglas and accepted Lincoln. Lincoln feared that the
match would not be a happy one, and Ward Lamon, his
biographer, states that he failed to be present at the time
first set for the ceremony, though the guests were assembled
and the wedding-feast prepared. He became suddenly ill,
and it was more than a year before the marriage was con-
summated. It finally took place in Springfield, and the
couple began their married life by boarding at the Globe

MRS. LINCOLN S GIRLHOOD. <;4;">

Hotel, at four dollars ;i week. Lincoln was thirty-three
years old at this time, and Mary Todd was twenty-one.

Unfortunately for Mary Todd, she lost her mother when
she was very young, and was brought up by an aunt who
in no respects disciplined her niece, but allowed her natur-
ally-willful disposition and violent temper to have full scope.
She was much petted by her friends, and having more
money than most of her young associates, she was indulged
beyond reason in all her whims and wishes. As a result,
her ill-temper became ungovernable, and well-nigh destroyed
her otherwise noble nature. There was no doubt of her
love for her husband, but their dispositions being so entirely
dissimilar she was constantly finding cause for excitement
and unhappiness over some trivial difference of taste or in-
clination.

She was so willful that she could not bear to be thwarted
in anything. A delay in Mr. Lincoln's appearance at a
meal on time — no matter how important his business en-
gagement— was enough to throw her into a violent passion.
He was so patient and indulgent that she frequently became
exasperated at his very amiability.

Her ambition knew no bounds, and consequently when

Mr. Lincoln was nominated for the Presidency she was in

ecstasy, believing that it was the legitimate fulfillment of

her horoscope that she should be " the first lady of the land."

The gathering storm on the National horizon had no effect

upon her jubilant spirits. She doubtless thought out many

plans for making impressions on the social world long before

the election. Consequently, when that was over and they

set out for Washington for Mr. Lincoln's Inauguration, her

anticipations were very different from those of her great

and thoughtful husband, who was oppressed with anxiety

for the future of his country. He fully realized the grave

responsibilities confronting him as soon as he should assume

the position of Chief Magistrate. The lines deepened in his
36

646 FAILING TO MEET HER OPPORTUNITY.

already furrowed face as the time drew near for him to take
up the burdens which Mr. Buchanan had allowed to accu-
mulate in the last few months of his administration.

The necessary incognito in which Mr. Lincoln journeyed
from his home to the Capital, and the solicitude others felt
even then for his personal safety, made no impression upon
his exulting wife, who, with her sisters and children about
her, was in radiant spirits. In her self-satisfaction, regard-
less of the mutterings of war that swelled to distinctness
with every hour, she would have made their journey with
all the pomp of a triumphal procession.

The campaign had been a bitter one, and the opposition
had not hesitated to assail Mrs. Lincoln, accusing her of all
sorts of foibles, and incapacity for the position of Mistress
of the White House, attributing to her illiteracy, vulgarity
of taste, and describing her as wanting in the qualities of
noble womanhood. This was great injustice, as she was not
deficient in education or intellectual ability, or of generosity
of heart, if she could have been divorced from personal
vanity and a temper that was really a species of madness.
But for this, no one would have had a keener appreciation
of the horror of imminent civil war, or realized more fully
what it meant to the wives, mothers, daughters, and sisters
all over the land, who must give up husbands, sons, and
fathers to fight the battles of their outraged country ; and
who must take up the duties the men laid down, and pa-
tiently labor and anxiously wait and watch till the conflict
was over.

To all this must be added the labor of scraping linen,
rolling bandages, volunteer work as hospital nurses, and pre-
paring for" the bitter trials that' follow the carnage of war.
But for the idiosyncrasies of Mrs. Lincoln's mind she Would
have been among the first to respond to the cries for help.
She would have been with the noble women who stood at the
landings on the Potomac nd the depots of the city to receive

Lincoln's heavy cakes and sorrows. 04?

the thousands of wounded, sick, and dying soldiers and
sailors who in a few brief months after the inauguration
were brought to Washington for attention and care. The
sound of rumbling ambulances and the cries of sufferers
that filled the streets as they were being borne to the hos-
pitals hastily established in homes, churches, and school-
houses, would have stirred her soul to its depths. The deli-
cacies and luxuries of the Executive Mansion would have
been diverted to the use of these ill-fated defenders of the
great republic, and there would have been no criticism of
the wife of the nation's Chief Magistrate.

Mr. Lincoln's great heart was full of anguish over the
magnitude of the suffering and sacrifice of his people.
Bowed down with the weight of anxiety and sympathy, his
heavy eyes seemed to retreat farther into their sockets, and
the lines in his care-worn face grew deeper and deeper. Watch-
ing the enemy in front and in the rear ; filling positions with
the right men ; guarding the Treasury from the unscrupu-
lous robbers who were ready to take advantage of war's
necessities ; directing the organization of a vast army of raw
recruits, providing for their immediate armament and mo-
bilization, and afterwards directing its movements ; listening
to the appeals and complaints of all conditions of men and
women at home and abroad ; protecting the interests of the
United States in foreign lands, with everything untried, and
not even knowing that he could trust his Cabinet implicitly,
Mr. Lincoln had little time for the trivialities of household
or social matters, or even to remonstrate with Mrs. Lincoln
upon her eccentricities.

Her bitterest enemy could but pity her when a succes-
sion of unparalleled calamities came upon her and com-
pletely unsettled her reason. Then the whole world realized
what Mr. Lincoln knew for many years, that his wife was
semi-insane, and appreciated more than ever what he had
endured in silence.

648 IN THE DARK DAYS OF WAR.

It will ever oe the regret of all loyal women that Mrs.
Lincoln failed to rise to the height of her magnificent oppor-
tunities. It was her misfortune that at the time when the
need of her country was the greatest for the highest, holi-
est ministration of women, she should be so engrossed in
trivialities that her name is not to be found on the list
of such noble souls as Mary A. Livermore, Dorothea Dix,
Clara Barton, Mary J. Safford, Mother Bickerdike, Mrs.
Hoge, Mrs. Governor Harvey, Johanna Turner, and a host of
others, whose service to their country was as fruitful of good
results as that of the whole corps of physicians and surgeons.
Loftiness of soul, consecrated purpose, broad and profound
sympathy, self-sacrificing endeavor — all these, unhappily,
were wanting in the character of the Mistress of the "White
House.

We may imagine her disappointment when we remem-
ber that after all her vanities and devotion to dress she had
very little opportunity for social enjoyment and display.
During the first two years of Mr. Lincoln's administration
there were very few social functions in the White House or
elsewhere, it being wisely decided that such gayeties were
incompatible with the seriousness of a civil war, when any
festivity might be interrupted by the booming of cannon
and the appalling sounds of a bloody battle.

They had been in the White House two years when
Willie Lincoln, a child lovely and beloved, died, and his
little body, after being laid out in the Green Room, was
borne away to Springfield, Illinois, for interment. Mrs.
Lincoln abandoned herself to the wildest manifestations of
sorrow, refusing to be comforted by the many who hastened
to proffer their services and consolation. She shut herself
in with her grief, and demanded of God why He had
afflicted her. But her sorrow did not bring her nearer in
sympathy to the thousands of mothers weeping in those
dark hours because their sons were not. It did not lead her

THE DAWN OP PEACE. 65 J

in time to minister to those bereft, to whom in the train of
Death came poverty and bitter privation.

For weeks and months she kept her room, and never
again entered the chamber in which her little son died, nor
the one where he was laid out ; in fact, for the succeeding
two years, though gradually the war clouds were passing
away, there was scarcely more gayety at the White House
than there had been in the two previous years.

Mr. Lincoln's grief was equally intense, but his cour-
ageous heart put aside his own sorrows to better bear those
of his country and share those of the many who had lost
their all. As it is darkest before dawn, so the smoke of
battle, near the close of the great conflict, was densest just
before the dawn of peace. To this was added the excite-
ment and disquietude of the Presidential election of 1864,
the first after the promulgation of the Emancipation Proc-
lamation. Mr. Lincoln knew no cessation from his labors
and boundless concern, until the cannon's roar announced
his victories at the polls and in the field, happily followed
soon after by messengers announcing the surrender at Appo-
matox and a universal peace.

With these glad tidings his soul rebounded, and he began
to listen to the entreaties of his friends that he would allow
himself some rest and recreation. Taking Mrs. Lincoln to
drive, the afternoon before his assassination, in the course of
their conversation, " Mary," he said, " we have had a hard
time of it since we came to Washington, but the war is over
and with God's blessing we may hope for four years of
peace and happiness, and then go back to Illinois to pass the
rest of our lives in quiet."

It was the 14th of April, 1865, aud that night he accom-
panied Mrs. Lincoln, Major Kathbone, and Miss Harris,
daughter of Senator Harris, to Ford's Theater, to see Laura
Keene in the popular play of " Our American Cousin." No
one had ever seen him so cheerful, or his tell-tale face so free

652 THE TRAGEDY OF LINCOLN'S DEATH.

from painful expression. During the performance of the
second act, while the party was absorbed in watching: the
play, John Wilkes Booth crept in behind the scenes through
a door which opened into an alley where a fleet horse was
tied, upon which he was to make his escape. It is a curious
fact that he caught his spurs in the flag that had been draped
over the entrance to the President's box, and stumbled, but
in an instant Was on his feet, and before the inmates in the
box could stay his hand he had placed his pistol almost against
the back of the President's head and had fired the fatal shot
which entered at the base of the brain. Mr. Lincoln fell
unconscious, and Major Eathbone seized the assassin, who
struck him with a dagger, inflicting a frightful wound.

Extricating himself from Major Rathbone's grasp, Booth
jumped upon the stage, and brandishing the bloody dagger,
cried out "Sic semper tyrannis; the South is avenged!"
Then he darted out through the door to his horse and fled
before the horrified actors and people in the theater recov-
ered from the awful shock sufficiently to jnake any attempt
to Capture him, though many recognized him and cried
" John Wilkes Booth," as he was well known in Washing-
ton. ."...:.

No pen could portray the wild anguish of Mrs. Lincoln,
or the scene which followed the realization of what had
happened. Strong men were unnerved; citizens, officers,
and soldiers were running hither and thither, not knowing
what they were doing of saying. Finally the rapidly-sink-
ing form of Mr, Lincoln was carried into the private house
of Mr. Peterson, opposite. More dead than alive, his poor,
stricken wife was carried to his side, for nothing would
induce her to leave him. His devoted son, Robert T. Lin-
coln, hastened to his dying father and distracted mother, '.

Legions of grief-stricken men and women crowded the
streets all that fearful night, crying and praying for Mr.
Lincoln's recovery.. Alas! he knew not of their agony:

A SORROW- STRICKEN NATION. 653

consciousness had departed the moment he was struck by
the assassin, though the poor body did not yield to the icy
grasp of death until twenty-two minutes after seven the
next morning. Soon after this it was tenderly carried to
the Executive Mansion, where it was laid in state in the
East Room. From morning till night through the melan-
choly days intervening between the 15th and 21st, a con-
stant stream of sorrowing people, of high and low degree,
passed in line through this historic room, pausing a
moment beside his bier to look upon his placid face,
which "seemed yet to express the Christlike sentiments
which he had uttered from the colonnade of the Capitol
in his last inaugural."

During all this time, and for weeks and months after-
ward, poor Mrs. Lincoln lay on her bed praying for death,
and requiring all the skill of eminent physicians and the
thoughtful and tender care of nurses and friends to save her
from violent insanity. Nor was this strange. The shock of
her husband's tragic and untimely death might have un-
balanced the mind of a woman of stronger, loftier nature.
It was her misfortune that she had so armed public
sympathy against her, by years of seeming indifference
to the sorrows of others, that when her own hour of
supreme anguish came, there were few to comfort her,
and many to assail. She knew nothing of what was going
on in the Executive Mansion, or of the wonderful funeral
procession which bore her husband's remains over a
circuitous route to their last resting-place in Oak Ridge
Cemetery at Springfield, Illinois.

Mrs. Lincoln's mind was not the only one affected bv
this unparalleled tragedy. Major Rathbone never recovered
from the effects of that awful scene. A few years after-
wards,'while .temporarily insane, he killed his wifeand him-
self, -at. his/post. in the* Diplomatic Service whither he had
been sent with the hope that ho might recover from the

(554 MRS. LINCOLN'S PETITION.

morbid condition from which he had suffered ever since Mr.
Lincoln's assassination.

In January, 1869, while traveling in Europe, Mrs. Lin-
coln wrote the following letter to the Vice-President of the
United States, asking for a pension :

To the Honorable Vice-President of the United States :

Sir — I herewith most respectfully present to the Honorable Senate of
the United States an application for a pension. I am a widow of a Presi-
dent of the United States, whose life was sacrificed in his country's service.
That sad calamity has very greatly impaired my health, and by the advice
of my physicians I have come over to Germany to try the mineral waters,
and during the winters to go to Italy. But my financial means do not per-
mit me to take advantage of the urgent advice given me, nor can I live in
a style becoming the widow of the Chief Magistrate of a great nation,
although I live as economically as I can. In consideration of the great
services my deeply-lamented husband has rendered to the United States,
and of the fearful loss I have sustained by his untimely death, his martyr-
dom, I may say — I respectfully submit to your honorable body this peti-
tion. Hoping that a yearly pension may be granted me, so that I may
have less pecuniary care, I remain most respectfully,

Mrs. A. Lincoln.

Frankfort, Germany.

The bill was introduced and was referred to the Com-
mittee on Pensions. The chairman of that committee made
a report in which the committee said, in substance, that they
were unable to perceive that Mrs. Lincoln, as the widow of
the late President, or in any other character, was entitled to
a pension under the letter and spirit of any existing law.
The report ended with these words : " Under all these cir-
cumstances the committee have no alternative but to report
against the passage of the general resolutions." Subse-
quently, largely through the efforts of Charles Sumner in
the Senate and the Illinois delegation in Congress, she was
given a yearly pension of $3,000, which was afterwards
increased to $5,000, this amount being now paid to all wid-
ows of Presidents.

A BROKEN-HEARTED WOMAN. 665

Speaking of the effect upon Mrs. Lincoln of the terrible
tragedy that robbed her of a kind and patient husband and
the nation of a great and wise President, Arnold, in his
" Life of Lincoln," says :

" She so far lost the control of her mind that she dwelt
constantly on the incidents of the last day of her husband's
life, and she lost the ability, by any effort of her will, to think
of other and less painful things.

"As time passed she partly recovered, and her friends
hoped that change of scene and new faces would bring her
back to a more sound and healthful mental condition. But
the death of her son Thomas, to whom she was fondly
attached, made her still worse. . . . She was peculiar
and eccentric and had various hallucinations." She was
removed to the home of her elder sister, in Springfield,
Illinois, where she lingered until her death, which took
place on July 1G, 1882.

" Mrs. Lincoln has been treated harshly — nay, most cru-
elly abused and misrepresented by a portion of the press.
That love of scandal and of personality, unfortunately too
general, induced reporters to hang around her doors, to dog
her steps, to chronicle and exaggerate her impulsive words,
her indiscretions, and her eccentricities. There is nothing
in American history so unmanly, so devoid of every chival-
ric impulse, as the treatment of this poor, broken-hearted
woman, whose reason was shattered by the great tragedy of
her life."

It is to be hoped that no loyal American will ever per-
petuate the sensational and shameless criticisms of Mrs. Lin-
coln, that at the time were only too eagerly accepted. Her
husband's motto of " Malice toward none, with Charity for
all," should shield the memory of the mother of his ohildren.
especially since she would willingly have harmed no one.
and his goodness and greatness redeemed a race and 9aved a
nation from anarchy and ruin.

CHAPTER XLYI.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF
- -THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — SOME BRAVE
AND HUMBLE MISTRESSES OF THE
; ;^_ EXECUTIVE MANSION.

— Two Years of Exile — Hunted From Place to Place — Secretly
Burying the Dead — A Night of Horrors — Re-united to Her Husband

— Entering the White House Broken in Health and Spirits — "My
Dears, I Am an Invalid " — The Reign of Martha Patterson, President
Johnson's Oldest Daughter— " We Are Plain People " — Filthy Con-
dition of the White House After the War — Wrestling with Rags and
Ruin — Noble and Self-denying Women — Noble Characters of John
son's Wife and Daughters — The Record of Their Spotless Fame.

FTER the assassination of Abraham Lincoln,
Andrew Johnson, then Vice-President, became
the seventeenth President of the United States.
His father, who died when he was a child, had
been a constable, a sexton, and a porter, and fol-
lowed these humble occupations for many years at
the Jittle town of Greenville, Tennessee. As a boy, Andrew
Johnson was a ragged urchin, a street Arab, until he was
ten years old, supported by the manual labor of his mother,
who j belonged to that most unfortunate class known in the
Soutb-.as" poor whites," He. could not even read, then ;
indeed he did. not learn the alphabet until some time after.

(656)

THE TEACHER OP ANDREW JOHNSON. 657

At eighteen, the village school-teacher, Eliza McC&rdle.
a girl of superior intelligence and considerable education
became his instructor and taught him to write. He married
her, and she continued to teach him while he worked at
the humble trade of a tailor. She read to him while
he worked, and taught him in the evening arithmetic,
geography, and history. He gained influence over mechan-
ics and manual laborers, and by the time he was of age, had
taken great interest in politics, to which he adhered through
life. After filling several small offices, he was chosen to
the lower House of the Legislature, and in 1843 was sent by
the democrats to Congress, and finally was elected to the
United States Senate.

While performing his duties as Senator in Washington
his family were shut up in the mountains of East Tennessee,
where the ravages of Civil War were most dreadful. For
more than two years he was unable to set eyes on either
wife or children. With other Unionists of East Tennessee,
these brave, loyal women, with dependent children, were
being " hunted from point to point, driven to seek refuge
in the wilderness, forced to subsist on coarse and insufficient
food, and more than once called to bury with secret and
stolen sepulture those whom they loved/'

While quietly attending to her household duties, Mrs.
Johnson received the following abrupt summons :

" Headquarters Department op East Tennessee,

"Ofpice Provost Marshal, April 24th, 1862.

"Mrs. Andrew Johnson, Greenville,

" Dear Madam : — By Major-General E. Kirby Smith I am directed to
respectfully require that you and your family pass beyond the Confederate
States line (through Nashville, if you please) in thirty-six hours from this
date.

" Passports will be granted you at this office.
" Very respectfully,

" W. M. Churchwell,
"Colonel and Provost Marshal."

,U/>S TRIALS OF A BAND OF REFUGEES.

.The condition of her health, and her unsettled affairs,
made it impossible for her to comply with this command.
To add to her distress, rumors reached her from time to
time of the murder of Mr. Johnson. She knew not what
to do, and begged the authorities for more time to decide on
her plans. She remained in Greenville during the summer,
hoping daily to hear from her husband. No word came.
In September, she asked permission of the authorities to
cross the lines, accompanied by her children. Beaching
Murfreesboro, exhausted and weary from the long trip, the
little band were told that they could not pass through the
lines. The Confederate troops occupied the town, and no
accommodations were to be had.

Wandering from one house to another, in the night-time,
the hungry and weary refugees in their extremity entreated
a woman to let them share her home, and a grudging consent
was given with the understanding that in the morning they
would depart. The next day they returned to Tullahoma,
only to receive a telegram to retrace their steps, as arrange-
ments had been made for their journey through to Nash-
ville. Night again found the little band at Murfreesboro.
No effort was made to secure lodgings, none caring to
repeat the experiences of the previous night. An eating-
house near by was vacant, and in this the tired party sought
refuge. Without fire or sufficient food, or any kind of beds
or seats, they passed the night, which would have been a
night of horror but for the motherly foresight of Mrs. John-
son. She had provided herself with candles and matches
before starting, and the stale remains of a lunch satisfied
the hunger of the little grandchildren.

During this trying journey the little band was subject to
the commands of the military rulers, liable to be arrested
for the slightest offense, and oftentimes insulted by the rab-
ble. Nashville was reached at last and the family were
reunited. Few who were not actual participators in the

THE "PLAIN PEOPLE FROM TENNESSEE." 659

Civil "War can form an estimate of the trials of this noble
woman. Invalid as she was, she yet endured heroically
exposure and anxiety, and passed through the extended
lines of hostile armies, never uttering a hasty word, or by
her looks betraying in the least degree her harrowed feel-
ings. She was remembered by friend and foe as a lady
of benign countenance and sweet and winning manners.

President Johnson's wife came to "Washington broken
in health and spirits by the suffering and bereavements
through which she had passed. She was never seen but on
one public occasion at the "White House, that of a party
given to her grandchildren. At that time she was seated
and did not rise when the children or other guests were
presented, but simply said, " My dears, I am an invalid,"
and her sad, pale face and sunken eyes proved the expres-
sion. But an observer would say, contemplating her, " A
noble woman, God's best gift to man." It was that woman
who taught the future President how to write, and con-
tinued to teach him after she became his wife ; and in all
their early years she was his assistant, counselor, and guide.

During her husband's administration, the heavy duties
and honors of the "White House were performed by her
oldest daughter, Martha Patterson, the wife of Senator Pat-
terson of Tennessee. The President's youngest daughter,
Mrs. Stover, entered the White House a widow, recently
bereaved of her husband, who fell a soldier in the Union
cause. Martha Patterson's utterance, soon after entering
the "White House, was a key to her character, yet scarcely a
promise of her own distinguished management of the Presi-
dent's house. She said : " "We are plain people from the
mountains of Tennessee, called here for a short time by a
national calamity. I trust too much will not be expected of
us." But from Martha Patterson much was received, and
that of the most unobtrusive and noble service.

The family of the new President arrived in June. The

660 JEENOVATIKG. THE. WHITE HOUSE. ": T

house looked anything but inviting. : Soldiers had wandered
unchallenged .through ;the; parlors. Guards had slept upon
the sofas and carpets till they were ruined, and the immense
crowds who, during the preceding years of war, filled the
President's house continually had worn out the already-
ancient furniture. No sign of neatness or comfort greeted
their appearance, but evidences of neglect and decay every-
where-met their eyes. To put aside all ceremony and: work
incessantly, was the portion of Mrs. Patterson from the
beginning. It was her practice to rise very early, don a
calico dress and spotless apron, and attend to the household
duties early. . . .'. , ■ . .'.'.'.... ■:.:. .

6 At the first reception of President Johnson, held Janu-
ary 1, 186.6, the White House had not been renovated.
Though dingy and destitute of ornament Martha Patterson
had, by dint of covering its old carpets with pure linen,
hiding its stains with fresh flowers, and admitting her beau-
tiful children freely to the rooms, given it an aspect of
purity, beauty, and cheer, to which it had long been a
stranger. In the spring, Congress appropriated $30,000 to
the renovation of the "White House. After consulting vari-
ous firms, Mrs. Patterson found that it would take the whole
amount to furnish the parlors. Feeling a personal respon-
sibility to the government for the expenditure of the money,
she determined not to exceed the appropriation. She made
herself its agent, and superintended the purchases for the
dismantled house herself. Instead of seeking pleasure. by
the sea, or ease in her own mountain home, the hot summer
waxed and waned only to leave the brave woman where it
found her, wrestling with fragments and ruins that were to
be reset, repolished, " made over as good as new." For her-
self ? No, for her country ; and all this in addition to caring
for .husband, children, and invalid mother. A mistaken
economy and an unwise assumption of duties that did not
belong to her.

THE REIGN OK MARTHA PATTERSON. 66]

As the result of this ceaseless industry and self-denial,
the President's house was thoroughly renovated from cellar
to attic and put in perfect order. When it was opened for
the winter season, the change was marvelous, even to the
dullest eyes; but very few knew that the fresh, bright ap-
pearance of the historic house was all due to the energy,
industry, taste, and tact of one woman, the President's
daughter. The warm comfort of the dining-room, the ex-
quisite tints of the Blue Room, the restful neutral hues
meeting and blending in carpets and furniture, were evi-
dence of the pure taste of Martha Patterson.

The dress of the ladies of the White House was equally
remarkable. All who went expecting to see the "plain
people from Tennessee " overloaded with new ornaments
were disappointed. Instead, they saw beside the President
a young, golden-haired woman, dressed in full mourning, —
the sad badge still worn for the gallant husband slain in
war, — and a slender woman with a single white flower in
her dark hair, airy laces about the throat above a high cor-
sage; a robe of soft, rich tints, and a shawl of lace veiling
the slender figure. It was like a picture in half-tints, sooth-
ing to the sight; yet the dark hair, broad brow, and large
eyes were full of silent force and reserved power. The
chaste elegance of the attire of these "plain people from
Tennessee" was never surpassed by that of any ladies of
the White House.

The state dinners given by President Johnson were con-
ducted on a generous, almost princely scale, and reflected
lasting honor upon Mrs. Patterson, to whom was committed
the entire care and arrangement of every social entertain-
ment. Simple and democratic in her own personal tastes,
she had a high sense of what was due to the position, and
to the people, from the family of the President of a great
nation. This sense of duty and justice led her to spare no
pains in her management of official entertainnients, and the

<j(>2 WOMEN RESPECTED AND BELOVED.

same high qualities made her keep the White House parlors
and conservatories open and ready for the crowds of people
who daily visited them, at any cost to her own comfort.

During the impeachment trial of her father, unflinch-
ingly Mrs. Patterson bent every energy to entertain as
usual, as became her position, wearing always a patient,
suffering look. Through the long weeks of the trial she
listened to every request, saw every caller, and served every
petitioner (and only those who have filled this position know
how arduous is this duty), hiding from all eyes the anxious
weight of care oppressing herself. That her health failed
after the acquittal, astonished no one who had seen her
struggling to keep up before.

But no matter what the accusations against Andrew
Johnson, they died into silence without touching his family.
If corruption crossed the outer portals of the White House,
the whole land knew that they never penetrated into the
pure recesses of the President's home. Whatever Andrew
Johnson was or was not, no partisan foe was bitter or false
enough to throw a shadow of reproach against the noble
characters of his wife and daughters. There was no insinu-
ation, no charge against them. No family ever left Wash-
ington more respected by the powerful, more lamented by
the poor. From the Nation's House, which they had re-
deemed and honored, they went back empty-handed to their
own dismantled home in Tennessee, followed by the esteem
and affection of all who knew them. The White House
holds the record of their spotless fame.

The last twenty years of Martha Patterson's life were
spent quietly in her old home in Greenville, Tenn. Bereft
of her husband, for many years, she devoted herself to her
two children and to charitable work among the poor.
Here on July 10, 1901, she died, almost in sight of the spot
on which once stood the little one-room log cabin in which
she was born.

CHAPTER XLVII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OP

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — GENERAL GRANTS

COURTSHIP — MRS. GRANT'S REIGN AT

THE WHITE HOUSE.

The Youth of Ulysses S. Grant — His Standing at West Point — Intimacy
With the Dent Family — Meets His Future Wife — Finding Out
" What Was the Matter " — A Half- Drowned Lover — Engagement to
Miss Dent — A Bride at a Western Army Post — Assuming New Re
sponsibilities — At the Beginning of the Civil War — Mrs. Grant as
the Wife of a Gallant Soldier — Her Ceaseless Anxieties — Inspiring
and Encouraging Her Husband — Comforting the Bereaved and Minis-
tering to the Sick — Triumphant Return of General Grant — His Elec-
tion to the Presidency — Remembering Old Friends — The Grant Chil-
dren and Their Playmates at the White House — Marriage of Nellie
Grant — Making a Home of the "Executive Mansion" — Royal
Guests — Simple and Happy Family Life — The Journey Around the
World — Return to the Old Home — General Grant's Reverses and
Physical Suffering — Mrs. Grant in Later Years.

XDREW JOHNSON was succeeded by Ulvsses S.
Grant, twice President of the United States.
But for the Civil War, and the opportunities it
gave him of displaying his military genius, it is
entirely probable that his merit would never have
been recognized and he might have passed his life in
obscurity. If any one had predicted, on the election of
Lincoln, that Grant would become one of the greatest mili-
tary commanders of the world, and President of the United
States, he would have been utterly disbelieved. No one
suspected that he was in any way remarkable until he had

q~ ( 663 )

G04 RECREATIONS OP A YOUNG SOLDIER.

demonstrated his ability by his deeds. He received the
rudiments of education at a common school, entered West
Point as a cadet at seventeen, and was graduated four years
later, standing twenty -first in a class of thirty-nine, which is
not a flattering record.

One of Grant's classmates at West Point, in the last year
of the course, was F. T. Dent, whose family resided about
five miles west of Jefferson Barracks, St. Louis. After his
graduation Grant was ordered to report for duty at Jeffer-
son Barracks. He soon found time to call at the home of his
old classmate, where he met Miss Julia Dent, his classmate's
sister, a boarding-school girl of seventeen. "As I found the
family congenial," he says, "my visits became frequent."
The following spring Miss Dent returned from boarding-
school. "After that," says the General, " I do not know but
my visits became more frequent ; they certainly did become
more enjoyable. We would often take walks, or go on
horseback to visit the neighbors, until I became quite well
acquainted in that vicinity. Sometimes one of the brothers
would accompany us, sometimes one of the younger sisters.
If the 4th Infantry had remained at Jefferson Barracks it is
possible, even probable, that this life might have continued
for some years without my finding out that there was any-
thing serious the matter with me ; but in the following May
a circumstance occurred which developed my sentiment so
palpably that there was no mistaking it."

The circumstance he alludes to was the departure of his
regiment, the 4th Infantry, for Louisiana. Just before this
time he had obtained leave of absence for twenty days *o go
to Ohio to visit his parents. He says : " I now discovered
that I was exceedingly anxious to get back to Jefferson Bar-
racks, and I understood the reason without explanation
from any one." At the end of the twenty days he reported
for duty and asked for a few days additional leave before
starting for his regiment, which was readily granted. He

(iENEKAL GRANTS LOVE STORY. 660

immediately procured a horse and started for the home of
the Dent family. Between Jefferson Barracks and Miss
Dent's home was a creek which, owing to recent heavy
rains, was full to overflowing and the current was rapid.
A fter a moment's hesitation he decided to ford the stream,
and in an instant his horse was swimming and Grant was
being carried down rapidly by the swift current.

To quote his own words : " I headed the horse towards
the other bank and soon reached it, wet through and with-
out other clothes on that side of the stream. I went on,
however, to my destination, and borrowed a dry suit from
tnv -future — brother-in-law. We were not of the same
size, but the clothes answered every purpose until I got
more of my own. Before I returned I mustered up courage
to make known, in the most awkward manner imaginable,
the discovery I had made on learning that the 4th Infantrv
had been ordered away from Jefferson Barracks. The young
lady afterwards admitted that she, too, although until then
she had never looked upon me other than as a visitor whose
company was agreeable to her, had experienced a depression
of spirits she could not account for when the regiment left.

" Before separating it was definitely understood that at a
convenient time we would join our fortunes, and not let the
removal of a regiment trouble us. This was in May, 1844.
It was the 22d of August, 1848, before the fulfillment of
this agreement. My duties kept me on the frontier, . . . and
afterwards I was absent through the war with Mexico. . . .
During that time there was a constant correspondence be-
tween Miss Dent and myself, but we only met once in the
period of four years and three months. In May, 1845,1
procured a leave for twenty days, visited St. Louis, and
obtained the consent of her parents for the union, which
had not been asked for before."

A Western military station offered none of the attractions
that these same posts extend to the brides who marry into

606, STRUGGLES OF EARLY YEARS.

the army to-day, but Julia Dent had no hesitancy in giving
up the luxuries of her father's home, and the place she held
in the social world in her native citv, for the discomforts and
inconveniences of a lieutenant's quarters at an army post.
She was inexperienced in the responsibilities of housekeep-
ing and the management of servants, because the turbaned
"mammies" and maids of slavery days had watched over
her tenderly all her life, but she loved her husband and for
his sake willingly assumed all these domestic duties. For
years they struggled against varying fortunes, she with pa-
tience, pride, and devotion performing her part right nobly.
During these years four children came to bless them and to
inspire them to greater exertion and sacrifice. The role of
wife and mother was never more faithfully performed than
by Mrs. Grant, whether fortune smiled or frowned.

At the age of thirty-two Lieutenant Grant resigned his
commission in the army, and worked on a farm belonging
to his father-in-law, near St. Louis. He was a real estate
agent in that city, then a clerk to his father, then a leather
merchant at Galena, Illinois. When the great Civil "War
began, and the "West was aroused to a realization of the fact
that a conflict was inevitable, among the first to tender his
services to the Governor of Illinois, to aid in the organiza-
tion of the troops, was Lieut. U. S. Grant, late of the IT. S.
Army. Military tacticians were very scarce in the West be-
cause of the years of peace which had preceded the Rebellion.
Lieutenant Grant proved so efficient as drill master of the
Volunteers that Governor Yates immediately commissioned
him colonel of the Twenty-first Illinois. Colonel Grant
assumed command of his regiment and started to the front,
leaving- Mrs. Grant to care for the home and children until
peace should dawn upon a reunited country.

Bravely she bade him go, and without repining assumed
her double duties, relieving him from all embarrassment
about their separation by her cheerful submission to what

ANXIOUS DAYS IN WAR-TIME. G61!

seemed his patriotic duty. Through the four long years of
warfare Mrs. Grant never for a moment hindered General
Grant in his career by her importunities to be allowed to
join him or for him to return to his family. On the con-
trary, she constantly encouraged him and relieved him from
nil anxiety by assuring him that all was well at home.

Xo woman ever suffered more keenlv through solicitude
for her husband's welfare, or because of his absence, but she
never shrank from her duty. I saw her in Cairo before the
army moved up the Tennessee to capture Forts Henry and
Donelson ; saw her again before the Shiloh and Corinth
campaign, and know what she suffered during those event-
ful months. During the Vicksburg campaign, when day
after day the telegraph announced the casualties of the
siege and almost every house was one of mourning, Mrs.
< J rant spent her time in trying to comfort the bereaved, and
to buoy up the spirits of those whose husbands, fathers, and
brothers were in the field, never taxing any one with her
own anxieties and fears for her husband's safety. Busy
with the care of her young family and in helping the un-
fortunate about her, she resolutely strove to forget the haz-
ard of every hour.

For the two long years of General Grant's stupendous
operations in Virginia, after the fall of Vicksburg and his
transfer from the "West to the East, Mrs. Grant still watched
and waited for the end, meanwhile sending messages of good
cheer to her husband, ministering to the sick and wounded,
and in every way possible assisting the families of the sol-
diers. The bereavements and distress of her friends, through
the inevitable disasters of war, were almost personal griefs
to her, so sincerely did she sympathize with them.

Finally, when the war clouds had passed, and General
Grant returned, he found his faithful wife still waiting and
watching over their loved ones. Her happiness in all that
lie had achieved was only clouded by the thought that so

668 A VERITABLE LADY BOUNTlEUL.

many of her friends were clothed in habiliments of mourning
and were unable to participate in the general rejoicing over
the termination of the war. The universal acclaim of the
people and the abundance of honors heaped upon General
Grant and his family made no difference in Mrs. Grant.
She was the same thoughtful, generous, devoted wife and
mother, whose loyalty to family and friends made her
equally beloved with her husband by the whole nation.

After General Grant's election to the Presidency, and
their installation in the White House, she was still the same
unpretentious, sincere friend of the unfortunate. Among
the first invited guests to the Executive Mansion were the
associates whom she had known in earlier days. Nothing
was too much to do or to command for these friends who
had been her comforters before fortune had smiled upon
her. Many sought her aid and sympathy, and were never
turned away impatiently — she at least made an appeal for
them. Every member of President Grant's Cabinet had sto-
ries to tell of Mrs. Grant's tender heart and her interest in
the unfortunate. Not only at Christmas time, when the
asylums and charitable associations of Washington received
donations from her, and with the members of her own fam-
ily, her friends and their children were most generously
remembered, but all the year round, she was a veritable
" Lady Bountiful."

In one thing it must be admitted that Mrs. Grant was
most lenient. She could never discipline either her servants
or her children, her kind heart always suggesting some ex-
cuse for misdemeanors or neglect of duty. She was never
so happy as when planning some entertainment or indulgence
for her children and the multitude of friends they had. The
basement of the White House was utilized for the boisterous
games of the boys who were always with her young sons,
while the daughter had full sway on the upper floor with her
girl companions.

NELLIE GRANTS BRILLIANT WEDDING. 009

During President Grant's second term he and Mrs. Grant
yielded with reluctance to the importunities of Mr. Algernon
Sartoris, and consented to his marriage to their only daugh-
ter. It was a bitter trial, for she was to accompany him to
England, with the expectation of making that country her
permanent home. Their daughter's happiness was para-
mount to all else with them, and though they did not
approve of her choice, when they found she could not be
persuaded out of it, they allowed her to have everything as
she wished it should be.

Undoubtedly Nellie Grant's was the most elaborate wed-
ding that ever took place in the White House. Social affairs
in "Washington were never more brilliant than at that time.
The city was full of officers of the Army and the Navy who
had won distinction during the Civil War. The Diplomatic
Corps was never composed of more distinguished men,
many of whom, as also numberless citizens, wrere wealthy and
entertained lavishlv and constantly. Nellie was so young
and so much beloved that, while her friends were unwilling1
te part with her, every one was ready to pay her the most
delightful attentions and to lavish upon her the costliest of
gifts.

The wedding took place on the morning of the 22d of
May. 1874,— a glorious spring day, when the soft air was
laden with the perfume of blossoming magnolias and catal-
pas. Everything seemed to speak of new life and happiness.
The White House had been elaborately decorated, and a
profusion of orange blossoms from the South filled the beau-
tiful rooms with their fragrance. The guests were a brilliant
and distinguished company. Soon after the impressive cer-
emony, Mr. and Mrs. Sartoris departed from the White
House upon the first stage of their journey toward their
English home.

Soon after, their eldest son. Colonel Grant, was married
to the beautiful Miss Honore of Chicago, and she came to

670 HOME COMFORT AND HOSPITALITY.

fill the place of daughter to the President and Mrs. Grant,
bestowing a daughter's affection during the most trying
ordeals of their lives.

. Life at the White House under the administration of
President Grant was a purely domestic one. It was the re-
mark of all who had known its past that the White House
never looked more home-like. It took on this aspect under
the reign of Martha Patterson. Afterward, pictures and
ornaments were added, one by one, till all its oldtime stiff-
ness seemed to merge into a look of solid comfort. Its roof
might leak occasionally — and it certainly was built before
the day of " modern conveniences " — it might be altogether
inadequate to be the house of the President of a great Na-
tion; nevertheless, that Nation had no occasion to be
ashamed of its order or adornment during President Grant's
administration. The house was greatly improved by Mrs.
Grant's suggestions. Many plants and flowers were added
to the conservatories, and were used with much taste in the
adornment of the rooms.

President and Mrs. Grant entertained more distinguished
people and scions of royalty than any other occupants of
the White House. Among them were the Duke of Edin-
burgh, the Grand Duke Alexis of Russia ; King Kalakaua ;
and the first Japanese and Chinese ministers after the sign-
ing of the Burlingame treaty. I was present at the state
dinners and receptions tendered these celebrities, and have
since sat at the tables of royal t}7 more than once, and I can
aver they in no wise surpassed in bounty, elegance, and good
taste the entertainments of President and Mrs. Grant.

While neither the President nor Mrs. Grant could ever
have been considered fine conversationalists, no one partook
of their hospitality who was not charmed by them both be-
cause of their sincere and unpretentious cordiality. General
Grant was full of quiet humor, and particularly enjoyed a
joke at Mrs. Grant's expense, her frankness and pronounced

DIGNITY AND SELF-CONTROL <>F MRS. GRANT. 671

opinions frequently giving him opportunity to turn what
might sometimes have proved embarrassing, particularly
when those opinions were in contravention to those of a
guest. Mrs. Grant never remembered individual character-
istics or histories. Her kindly nature would never permit
her purposely to wound any one, but she often failed to re-
meinber those personal circumstances, tastes, or opinions
which make it dangerous, sometimes, to express oneself too
frankly. The absolute harmony of their domestic lives was
ideal. The boasted domestic bliss of our ancestors in the
early days of the Republic furnishes no history of a happier
or more united pair.

The latter part of General Grant's second terra was full
of sorrow, and yet no one could have imagined Mrs. Grant's
distress over the vituperation poured out upon her husband,
so careful was she not to gratify his enemies by betraying
her unhappiness. In their wonderful journey around the
world no woman could have borne herself with greater
dignity and self-possession than did Mrs. Grant on all occa-
sions, many of them most unusual, her kind heart and un-
affected manner then, as ever, winning hosts of friends.

I had the pleasure of being one of the party who went
to Galena to meet them in their old home in that city on
their return from abroad, and can never forget that occa-
sion, when, as if the wheel of Time had been turned back,
we were again under their hospitable roof, with all the
changes and scenes of the intervening years lingering only
in memory like dreams of the past. Their friends of yore
had replaced everything, as nearly as possible, as it was
twenty years before; manv of their old neighbors sat round
the dinner table that night, and but for the touches of the
finger of Time no one could have believed the fifth of a
century had rolled away since their last home-coming.
Both the General and Mrs. Grant were very merry that
night, telling without restraint of the incidents and experi-

672 YEARS OF SORROW AND SUFFERING.

ences of their travels around the globe. After a short stay
in Galena they went on to Chicago, where such a reception
awaited them as had never before been extended to anyone.

The six years next ensuing were years of trouble, suffer-
ing, and anxiety. General Grant's connection with the firm
of Grant & Ward was most unfortunate. His ignorance of
the character of the business of the firm in which he was a
partner, shows his unreserved and trusting faith in men, and
of his somewhat defective judgment concerning them. After
the collapse of the firm, in which Grant was the victim of
his partner's rascalities, universal sympathy was extended
to him on account of his financial adversities. Despite the
mistakes of which he was bitterly accused in public life, and
out of it, the fact was never lost sight of that the Nation
owed him a debt of gratitude which it never could repay.

Much of the criticism of him was unjust. His well-
known generosity of nature led him to place cordial confi-
dence in those who traded on his good name and deceived
him.

A bill was introduced in the Senate in 1884 placing ex-
President Grant on the retired list of the army, with the
rank and full pa}7 of general, and it was passed by a unani-
mous vote. A bill to grant him a pension of $5,000 a year
was withdrawn at his own request.

In the summer of 1884 General Grant became seriously
ill from a cancerous affection of the throat. " Nothing in
his career," says General Horace Porter, " was more heroic
than the literary labor he now performed. Hovering be-
tween life and death, suffering almost constant agony, and
some of the time speechless from disease, he struggled
through his daily task and laid down his pen only four days
before his death." This literary labor was the preparation
of his "Memoirs," by the publication of which he hoped to
retrieve the pecuniary losses he had suffered through the
treachery of supposed friends.

MRS. (JRANT IN llliU \V 1 1»( >\V HOOD. 673

•

During his illness the people everywhere responded with
pathetic interest to the accounts of his great suffering, which
he endured with patience and manly fortitude. He died
at Mount McGregor, N. Y., July 22, 1885, and was buried
at Riverside Park, New York City, where a magnificent
tomb marks his last resting-place.

In all those long, weary months of suffering, Mrs. Grant
kept the vigil that only the most devoted love could keep,
courageously restraining her anguish through fear of its
effect upon her husband. xVs soon as she could rally after
his death she interested herself in her children and her
grandchildren, and to this day devotes all her time to them
and to the alleviation of the burdens of her kindred and
friends. She divides her income between her children and
dependent relatives with lavish generosity, but in such ab-
solute silence that few people know anything about it except
the recipients. She is ambitious for every one of her chil-
dren and children's children. The marriage of General
Frederick Grant's daughter to Prince Catacuzene of Russia
she considered a compliment to the Russian Prince far in
excess of any honor the Prince could confer on a grand-
daughter of General Grant. This granddaughter bears her
name and is a great favorite with her.

Her home in Washington is not pretentious, but beauti-
ful in its appointments, and rich in the great number of
valuable souvenirs which were given to her illustrious hus-
band. There may she happily spend the closing years of a
life that has ever been abundant in. good deeds, and suo-ires-
tive of all that is worthy of emulation. Of her husband it
has been well said: " Lincoln gave us Emancipation, and we
bow before the majesty of that deed. Grant gave us Peace
and Financial Integrity. As blessings of civilization, they
will live with a glory as undying as that of the Proclama-
tion which gave freedom to the slave."

CHAPTER XLVIII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — THE REFINING

REIGN OF MRS. RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.

— Her Personal Appearance and Traits of Character — Her Dignified
and Charming Presence — Banishing Wine from the President's Table

— Her Love of Flowers — Magnificent Dinners and Receptions — A
Superb State Dinner to Royalty — How the Question of the Use of
Wine at the White House Was Decided — Leaving the White House —
Returning to Their Modest Home — Death of Mrs. Hayes — President
McKinley's Estimate of Ex-President Hayes — His Death.

^Twf T is no disparagement to any one of the noble
i\wi women who have filled the position of mistress
aLw of the White House to say that, all in all, Lucy
Webb Hayes stands at the head of the list as
having been by birth, education, experience, ac-
quirements, and disposition the best-equipped for this
high place. On the maternal side she came from the best
Puritan blood of New England, while her father was of
sturdy North Carolina stock. They were people of means,
education, and refinement. Her mother, a woman of
remarkable ability, being left a widow when her children
were young, decided to remove from Chillicothe to Dela-
ware, Ohio, so as to give them the advantages of an educa-
tion at the Wesleyan University.

(674)

EARLY LIFE OF MR. AND MRS. HAYES. 675

Lucy Ware "Webb shared with her brothers the privi-
leges of that institution, studying under the same professors.
She prepared for the Wesley an Female College at Cin-
cinnati, entering that college at the same time her brothers
began their collegiate course. Her natural talents were
of the highest order, combined with most conscientious
principles; and when she was graduated in 1852, she had
won not only first honors for her scholarly attainments, but
the love and admiration of the faculty and her associates.

Her vivacity of spirits and winning ways made her a
universal favorite. During a vacation she visited Delaware
Sulphur Springs, where she met Rutherford B. Hayes, then
a rising young lawyer of Cincinnati, though a native of
Delaware. From that moment Mr. Hayes became her
suitor, and two years after their first meeting they were
married, December, 1852. It was the kind of marriage that
is said to be made in Heaven.

For some years they led a quiet domestic life, Mrs.
Haves being foremost in all good works in the community
where they resided, while Mr. Hayes was gradually winning
his way to positions of honor and responsibility.

When the Civil War broke out Mr. Hayes was appointed
Major of the 23d Regiment, Ohio Volunteers, then in com-
mand of Colonel, afterwards General, Rosecrans. In July,
1801, the regiment was ordered into West Virginia. On
the 14th of September, 1862, in the battle of South Mount-
ain, Major Hayes distinguished himself by leading a charge,
in which, though severely wounded, he held his position at
the head of his men until he was carried from the field. In
October he was appointed Colonel of the regiment. He
aided materially in checking Morgan's raid. He also dis-
tinguished himself at the battles at Winchester, performing-
feats of extraordinary bravery.

At the battle of Cedar Creek, in October, 1864, the con-
duct of Colonel Hayes attracted so much attention that his

676 IN FIELD, CAMP, AND HOSPITAL.

commander, General Crook, took him by the hand, saying,
" Colonel, from this day you will be a Brigadier-GeneraL"
His commission arrived soon afterward, and on the 13th of
March, 1865, he received the rank of Brevet- Major " for
gallant and distinguished services during the campaign of
1864 in West Virginia, and particularly at the battles of
Fisher's Hill, and Cedar Creek, Va." During his service he
was wounded four times.

When General Hayes was in the field in 1861 he was
nominated as a candidate for Congress. A friend wrote to
him, suggesting that he should ask a furlough for the pur-
pose of canvassing the District. His reply was : " An
officer fit for dut}r, who at this crisis would abandon his
post to electioneer for a seat in Congress, ought to be
scalped ! "

Mrs. Hayes spent two winters in camp in Yirginia with
her husband. She also served in the hospital for soldiers in
Frederick City, Maryland. The regard of General Hayes'
regiment for her amounted almost to adoration. It contin-
ued as long as she lived, and while there is a survivor of the
23d Ohio her memory will be cherished and venerated. It
was in recognition of her services to sick and wounded sol-
diers that she was elected an honorary member of the Soci-
ety of the Army of West Virginia.

The 20th of December, 1877, the President and Mrs.
Hayes celebrated in the White House the twenty -fifth anni-
versary of their marriage, and notwithstanding their an-
nouncement that no presents would be accepted, the surviv-
ing officers of the 23d Ohio Volunteers sent Mrs. Hayes a
large silver plate, beautifully mounted on velvet, with the
following inscription exquisitely engraved thereon :

"To Thee, ' Mother of ours,' from the 23d O. V. I.

" To Thee, our Mother, on thy silver troth, we bring this token of our
love. Thy boys give greeting unto thee with burning hearts. Take the
hoarded treasures of thy speech, kiud words, gentle when a gentle word

CHARMING PERSONALITY OF MRS. HAYES. 67<

was worth the surgery of an hundred schools to heal sick thought and

make our bruises whole. Take it, our mother ; 'tis but some small part oi
thy rare beauty we give back to thee, and while love speaks in silver, from
our hearts we'll bribe Old Father Time to spare his gift."

Above the inscription was ;i sketch of the log hut erected
as Colonel Hayes' headquarters in the valley of the Kana-
wha during the winter of 1863 and L864, and above it the
tattered and torn battle-flags of the regiment.

She had so endeared herself to every member bv her
ministrations to them in the hospital and in the camp that
it is not surprising that in every campaign in which General
Haves was a candidate, these veterans were fullv enlisted to
secure his success. He was elected to Congress before peace
was declared; became Governor of Ohio in 1869, and was
elected President of the United States in 1876.

In every position Mrs. Hayes brought the same quick
intelligence, charming manners, and tactful happy spirit;
never manifesting the least weariness, irritability, or nerv-
ousness. Always the same cheerful, winsome woman, she
seemed the embodiment of health and happiness.

Mrs. Hayes was very fond of young people, and often
entertained youthful guests, to whom she gave every atten-
tion. One of the most elaborate entertainments ever given
in the White House was a luncheon given by her to fifty
young ladies in honor of a bevy of girls who were her
guests. Her vivacious spirits on such occasions were capti-
vating, making the young people forget that she was a
matron, and bringing out all the brightness that was in
t hem.

Mrs. Haves was a beautiful woman, of medium height
and full figure, with luxuriant and lustrous black hair,
which she always wore combed smoothlv down below the
ears and braided or rolled in a coil at the back and fastened.
up with a shell comb. Her brow was low and unfurrowe I
by care. When she smiled she displayed fine teeth of

078 TAKING A STAND FOR TEMPERANCE.

pearly whiteness. Her large black eyes were full of expres-
sion and sparkled brightly when she was animated. The
perfect simplicity of her manner, the elegance and severity
of style in her dress, bespoke her the lady at all times. As
mistress of the Ohio Executive Mansion and of the Execu-
sive Mansion of the Capital of the Nation, she was always
the same self-poised, attractive woman, unruffled by any sit
uation, ever kind and amiable.

She loved elderly people and children, two classes some-
times overlooked by women in high places. No one who
ever approached her received a rebuff. She listened pa-
tiently to all tales of woe, and gave her petitioner her sym-
pathy and gracious smile if she could do no more. She
acted always from a conscientious conviction of right and
justice ; never discussed her plans, or gave unsought her
advice or opinions, and was devoutly religious, but never
narrow-minded or intolerant.

She was much criticised by a certain class of fault-finders
because of her temperance proclivities, and was accredited
with banishing wine from the President's table. Neither
she nor the President ever made any explanation to any one
as to who suggested the change from the custom followed
by other Presidents of placing wines before their guests.
It was simply in accordance with their principles, and no
one had any right to criticise. There were many attempts
to ridicule this departure from a time-honored custom, Mr.
Schurz, a member of Mr. Hayes' Cabinet, facetiously assert-
ing that the sherbet preceding the game course at a dinner
in the White House " was the life-saving station of these
functions." Others attributed the decision to the parsimony
of the President.

The true reason was that Mrs. Hayes could not consist-
ently, with her deep convictions on the subject of temper-
ance, consent to placing wine before her guests in the Exec-
utive Mansion, any more than she could at her own private

A BOTANIST AND FLOWER LOVER. 079

table. The President sharing her opinions, they did 'what
they believed to be right, and suffered nothing from the ad-
verse criticisms; on the contrary, all good people blessed'
them for exerting their influence in favor of temperance.

Mrs. Hayes, through her passionate love of flowers and
her knowledge of botany, accomplished more in enlarging
the conservatories, securing competent gardeners, and ob-
taining rare additions to the floral and foliage collections,
than any other lady who ever reigned in the White House.
Through her intelligent oversight the beauty and value of
the conservatories were greatly increased. It was at her
suggestion that the billiard-room, which was formerly be-
t ween the conservatory and the state dining-room, was
made an extension of the conservatory, and by this means
guests of to-day enjoy a beautiful vista of arching palms
and blooming flowers while sitting at a state dinner or
luncheon.

Mrs. Hayes also inaugurated the abundant use of flowers
and growing plants in the decorations of the White House
for all social occasions. This innovation having been
adopted by her successors, the demand upon the conserva-
tories of the White House, Botanical Gardens, and Agricul-
tural Department, is now so great that but for the skillful
management of the chiefs of these departments they could
not possibly furnish a sufficient supply.

The dinners and receptions given by President and Mrs.
Hayes were magnificent, characterized by good taste and
regal hospitality. There have never been more delightful
receptions in the Executive Mansion than the informal ones
that were held every Saturday afternoon. Mrs. Hayes
always invited some lady of the many official families to as-
sist her in receiving the guests. There was never a crowd ;
every one donned their best calling costumes ; the house
was always filled with flowers and plants; and there was

much more real enjoyment than at an evening "crush."
38

080 CORDIALITY TO GUESTS.

with the discomfort of crowded rooms, and the heat of hun-
dreds of burning gas-jets. Mrs. Hayes seemed as happy as
any of her guests. Never disguising her gratification at her
position, and never guilty of vanity or affectation, she suc-
ceeded in making every one feel welcome.

She once said to me : " Why should not the people come
to see the White House ? It is theirs, and they have a right
to be cordially received by those whom they have elected to
reside in it for four years."

Very soon after their occupancy of the White House,
they gave a superb state dinner to the visiting Grand Dukes
Alexis and Constantine of Russia, which had not been sur-
passed by any similar function in that stately dining-room.
Mrs. Hayes superintended the table and house decorations
on this occasion, knowing that anything falling below the
standard of previous entertainments of this kind would be
severely criticised. The question of the use of wine was left
to the Secretary of State, Mr. Evarts, as it was purely an
official affair. The President and Mrs. Hayes gracefully
conformed to Mr. Evarts' decision, and the master of cere-
monies provided the best wine that could be procured for
this international occasion.

Miss Cook, a niece of Mrs. Hayes, was quietly mar-
ried to the gallant General Hastings in the White House.
The wedding could not have been more simple in the bride's
own home in Fremont, Ohio. Immediately after the cere-
mony General and Mrs. Hastings left Washington for their
new home in Bermuda.

When the time came for Mr. and Mrs. Hayes to leave
the White House, the genuine love and admiration which
every one entertained for her found expression in elaborate
entertainments, and lavish gifts of flowers and more durable
remembrances. Tearful eyes followed her on her departure,
and no one has ever spoken of this charming mistress of the
White House except in terms of the highest praise.

RETIREMENT TO PRIVATE LIFE. 683

They returned to their modest home in Fremont, Ohio,
and took up life's duties with the same enthusiasm as if they
had not laid down those of national importance. Jf either
missed the adulation of the people and the fawning of so-
ciety's devotees, they made no sign. When the National
Encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic was
held in Colnmbus, Ohio, the ex-President and Mrs. Hayes
came to Columbus and remained during the encampment.
At a reception given in the State Capitol I witnessed the
devotion of the G rand Army men to Mrs. Hayes, and her
gracious manner toward them recalled vividly her queenly
bearing when receiving guests in the Executive Mansion in
Washington.

Though a woman of remarkable health and youthful
vigor she died suddenly at her home in Fremont, Ohio, June
25, L889.

After the presidential campaign of 187<>, a great outcry
was made that Haves had not been honestlv elected, and he
was roundly abused for two years. But, though bitterly
assailed by political enemies, he preserved a firm, dignified
demeanor, and conducted his administration to a creditable
close. His enemies ridiculed him as unfit for the position ;
but the facts show nothing of the kind. His lofty purpose
was never questioned. He was not a great or a brilliant
man — feAV of our Presidents have been — but he was honest,
modest, and conscientious in the discharge of the duties of
his high office, and was fully entitled to the esteem which he
won and retained.

President McKinley once said of him, " No ex-President
ever passed the period of his retirement from the executive
chair to the grave with more dignity, self-respect, or public
usefulness. "

He died in Fremont, Ohio, of paralysis of the heart,
.January 17, 18!W.

CHAPTER XLIX.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES 01

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — GARFIELD'S

AND ARTHUR'S ADMINISTRATIONS.

President James A. Garfield and His Wife — From a Log Cabin to the
White House — His First Ambition — First Meeting with Miss Ru-
dolph— Pupils in the Same School — Their Engagement — Garfield's
Enviable War Record — Advancing Step by Step to Fame — His Mar
riage and Election to the Presidency — His Tribute to His Devoted
Wife — His Assassination — Brave Fight for Life — Weary Weeks of
Torture — His Death and Burial — James G. Blaine's Remarkable
Eulog3r — Mrs. Garfield's Devotion and Christian Fortitude — A Brave
and Silent Watcher — Intense Grief — Leaving the White House For
ever — President Chester A. Arthur — Charming Personality of His
Wife — His Sister as Mistress of the White House — Elegant Enter-
tainments and Receptions — Lavish Hospitality — A Memorable Occa
sion.

rRS. JAMES A. GARFIELD'S reign in the
White House was so brief, and so overshadowed
by the awful tragedy which caused the pro-
tracted suffering and untimely death of her
husband, that one can form little idea of what it
might have been under happier auspices. It can well
be said of both President and Mrs. Garfield that they were
true representatives of the people. Their innate abilities and
tastes had led them into channels of education and culture,
and both had literally worked their way from humble life
to an enviable position among educated and refined people
before their marriage.

He was born in Orange township, Cuyahoga county,
Ohio, November 19, 1831. His father, a native of Worces-

(684)

THE BOYHOOD OP GARFIELD. 685

ber, New York, had removed to northeastern Ohio and
made what he considered a home in the primeval forest, cut
ting down the trees and building a log cabin for his family.
In that uninviting place four children were born, James be-
ing the youngest, and participated with their parents in the
desperate struggle for existence, inevitable in such a region.
Everything was of the rudest. The cabin was without win-
dows or doors — holes serving for the purpose — and two or
three acres of cleared land furnishing the grain, and the
woods the game on which they subsisted. In such an abode
the future President cut wood, dug up stumps, watched
cattle, and tilled land until his twelfth year. The father
died before James was two years old, and he might have
starved except for his elder brother and his mother — a de-
scendant of the famous Ballon family — who labored night
and day to keep the wolf from the door. A relative who
lived in the neighborhood pitied their poverty and aided
them to the extent of his limited ability.

James does not seem to have been different from other
boys. He showed no precocious talents, or, in fact, talents
of any sort until he had reached his teens. His first ambi-
tion was to be the captain of a canal boat; but he never got
any further than to drive a mule on the tow-path on the Ohio
canal. He was fond of reading, and, as he went to Cleve-
land frequently to sell wood or buy provisions, he had op-
portunities to get books. His mother first inspired him with
a desire for education ; then the district schoolmaster gave
him a helping hand, but it was not until he was sixteen that
he decided that he would be an educated man, and win an
honorable position. Supporting himself by manual labor,
and practicing the sternest kind of self-denial, he was en-
abled to attend an academy in the adjoining township of
Chester. While there the struggling, ambitious lad met the
young woman who was destined to become his wife. She was
Lucretia Rudolph daughter of a well-to-do farmer.

086 AN ASPIRING AND CONGENIAL PAIR.

Lucretia Rudolph, and young Garfield were pupils at the
same school. She was " a quiet, thoughtful girl of singu
iarly sweet and refined nature, fond of study and reading,
and possessing a warm heart, and a mind capable of steady
growth.-' From the seminary Garfield went to Hiram Col-
lege, where, in his second term he acted as a tutor, Lucretia
Rudolph being one of his pupils. After she had finished
her course at Hiram she went to Cleveland to teach in one
of the public schools. They were engaged before parting,
plighting their troth until they should be able to unite their
destinies " for better, for worse."

Garfield entered Williams College, at "Williamstown,
Mass., where he was graduated in 1856, at the age of twent}'--
five, having won the highest honor within the gift of the
institution. He was at once elected teacher of Latin and
Greek in the college at Hiram, at the end of a year becom-
ing its President. His influence there was most inspiring ;
students flocked to it from near and far, and Hiram became
one of the best educational institutions in that section of the
country. It was during his presidency that he and Miss
Rudolph were married, November 11, 1858.

From that day Mrs. Garfield performed her duties as the
wife of an ambitious man with no little tact and valuable
assistance to him in the acquisition of whatever he desired.
She was an efficient helpmate in all things, following him in
his studies, and sharing his labors. She also encouraged and
assisted his pupils in many ways, enabling them to solve
many a difficult problem of the curriculum. At this time
Garfield began the study of law ; was admitted to the bar,
and in 1859 was elected to the State Senate. He was serv-
ing in that body when hostilities between the North and
South began, and it was he who sprang to his feet when the
President's call for 75,000 men was read, and moved, amid
tumultuous applause, that 20,000 troops and 3,000,000 of
money should be voted as the quota of the State.

ADVANCING TO THE HIGHEST HONORS. 681

In 1861 Mr. Garfield, in command of the 42d Regiment

Ohio Volunteers, left bis family for service in the field. Mrs.
Garfield took care of their little daughter, cherished his
aged mother, and carefully economized, so that she could put
his savings into a home that they might call their own ; and
though it cost only $800.00, it is doubtful if any other they
ever had gave them greater pleasure.

Here General Garfield found his loved ones, including
his aged mother, when he returned at the close of the war
with a splendid record for gallant conduct and the shoulder-
straps of a Brevet Brigadier-General.

As he advanced step by step through the House of Rep-
resentatives to the Presidency, Mrs. Garfield kept pace with
her husband, rearing their four children with admirable suc-
cess, preparing her sons for college and her only daughter
for higher school work. Their modest home in Washing-ton
was the center of a literary circle that has never been sur-
passed in the capital. Their tastes were congenial, and
President Garfield has left on record some beautiful tributes
to his devoted wife. Upon his elevation to the Presidency
she assumed the duties of mistress of the White House in
the same unpretentious, sincere, and unaffected manner that
had always characterized her life at the capital.

President Garfield was inaugurated March 4, 1881,
after one of the most bitter presidential campaigns that
ever occurred in this country. The populace had literally
invaded President Garfield's home, destroying every vestige
of shrubbery and other movable objects around his house
by the species of vandalism called relic-collecting. So out-
rageous had been their depredations that little Irwin
McDowell Garfield, the youngest of the children, anxiously
inquired of his father if he thought they would earn-
away all the palings of the garden fence and the corn
from the field near the house.

The tax upon Mrs. Garfield during the campaign and the

688 THE ASSASSINATION OF GARFIELD.

intervening months between the election and inauguration
was so great that early in the next June she was taken ill,
and for many da}^s she hovered between life and death. As
soon as she could be moved she was taken to Elberon, New
Jersey, for the benefit of the sea air, and the quiet impossi-
ble to obtain in the White House, where hordes of office-
seekers were constantly pressing their claims on the President.
She improved rapidly, and was preparing to join President
Garfield on the way to Williams College, where he was to
address the graduating class.

On the morning of July 2d he started on his journey.
He was passing through the waiting-room of the Baltimore
& Potomac depot — now the Pennsylvania railroad station —
leaning on the arm of Mr. Blaine, when the assassin Guiteau,
a disappointed oifice-seeker and dangerous crank, fired at
him with a pistol. The first ball passed through his coat
sleeve; the second entered the back, fractured a rib, and
lodged deep in the body. The wounded President was ten-
derly carried back to the White House, where for more than
ten weeks he lingered between life and death, bearing his
suffering with fortitude and cheerfulness. A dav of national
supplication was set apart and sacredly observed, and, as if
in answer to the people's prayers, his condition seemed to
improve. But when midsummer came the President failed
perceptibly, and he was removed to Elberon, Sept. 6, 1881.
He bore the journey well, and for awhile, under the inspira-
tion of the invigorating sea-breezes, seemed to be gaining.
But on the 15th of September symptoms of blood poisoning
appeared. He lingered till the 19th, when, after a few
hours of unconsciousness, he died peacefully. A special train
carried the body to Washington through a country draped
with emblems of mourning, past crowds of reverent specta-
tors, to lie in state in the rotunda of the Capitol for two
days.

On the 21th, in a long train, crowded with the most

AT THE HEIGHT OF EAKTHLV HAPPINESS. 689

illustrious of Ins countrymen, which in its passage day or
night was never out of the silent watch of mourning citizens
who stood in city, field, and forest to see it pass, Garfield's
remains were borne to Cleveland and placed in a beautiful
cemetery which overlooks the waters of Lake Erie. An im-
posing monument marks his resting place.

The services held at the Capitol were never surpassed in
solemnity, except on February 22, 1882, when, in the Hall
of Representatives, James G. Blaine delivered an eloquent
memorial address in the presence of President Arthur, his
( ';ibinet, Senators, Members of Congress, and the heads of all
departments of the Government. In this he said :

"On the morning of Saturday, July 2, the President was
a contented and happy man — not in an ordinary degree,
but joyfully, almost boyishly happy. On his way to the
railroad station, to which he drove slowly, in conscious
enjoyment of the beautiful morning, with an unwonted
sense of leisure and a keen anticipation of pleasure, his talk
was all in the grateful and gratulatory vein. He felt that
after four months of trial his administration was stronjr in its
grasp of affairs, strong in popular favor and destined to
grow stronger; that grave difficulties confronting him at his
inauguration had been safely passed; that trouble lay behind
him and not before him; that he was soon to meet the wife
whom he loved, now recovering from an illness which had
but lately disquieted and at times almost unnerved him ; that
he was going to his Alma Mater to renew the most cherished
associations of his young manhood, and to exchange greet-
ings with those whose deepening interest had followed every
step of his upward progress from the day he entered upon
his college course until he had attained the loftiest elevation
in the gift of his countrymen.

" Surely, if happiness can ever come from the honors or
triumphs of this world, on that quiet July morning James
A. Garfield may well have been a happy man. No forebod

690 HEROISM IN WEEKS OF AGONY.

ing of evil haunted him ; no slightest premonition of danger
clouded his sky. His terrible fate was upon him in an
instant. One moment he stood erect, strong, confident in
the years stretching peacefully out before him. The next
he lay wounded, bleeding, helpless, doomed to weary weeks
of torture, to silence, and the grave.

" Great in life, he was surpassingly great in death. For
no cause, in the very frenzy of wantonness and wickedness,
by the red hand of murder, he was thrust from the full tide
of this world's interest, from its hopes, its aspirations, its vic-
tories, into the visible presence of death — and he did not
quail. Not alone for the one short moment in which,
stunned and dazed, he could give up life, hardly aware of its
. relinquishment, but through days of deadly langour, through
weeks of agony, that was not less agony because silently
borne, with clear sight and calm courage, he looked into his
open grave.

" As the end drew near, his early craving for the sea
returned. The stately mansion of power had been to him
the wearisome hospital of pain ; and he begged to be taken
from its prison walls, from its oppressive, stifling air, from
its homelessness and its hopelessness. Gently, silently, the
love of a great people bore the pale sufferer to the longed-for
healing of the sea, to live or to die, as God should will, within
sight of its heaving billows, within sound of its manifold
voices. "With wan, fevered face, tenderly lifted to the cool-
ing breeze, he looked out wistfully upon the ocean's chang-
ing wonders, — on its far sails, whitening in the morning-
light ; on its restless waves, rolling shoreward to break and
die beneath the noonday sun ; on the red clouds of evening,
arching low to the horizon ; on the serene and shining path-
way of the stars. Let us think that his dying eyes read a
mystic meaning which only the rapt and parting soul ma}'
know. Let us believe that in the silence of the receding
world he heard the great waves breaking on a farther shore,

SUCCESSION OF VICE PRESIDENT ARTHI i:. GO]

and felt already upon his wasted brow the breath of the
eternal morning."

The world remembers the story of Mrs. Garfield's hurried
return to the side of her stricken husband, her untiring devo-
tion to him through the weary weeks that followed, and his
solicitude for her in his conscious moments. Bravely and
silently she watched every movement of the physicians in
their efforts to save his life, and was heroically calm when
they decided to take him to Elberon as a last resort. Her
grief was intense when his last hours came, but the agoniz-
ing scenes which followed were borne with Christian forti-
tude. When all was over she returned to the White House,
of which she can have onlv melancholy'' memories, and
directed the removal of her personal effects to her home in
■\rentor, Ohio.

All the world must admire her womanly deportment in
her widowhood. The motherly and loving care she always
bestowed on her family marks her as one of whom all
American women should be proud.

Chester A. Arthur, the twenty-first President of the
United States, was the fourth Vice-President who became
President by the death of the Chief Magistrate, and two of
the deaths, strange to say, were by assassination in a land
that has an instinctive horror of assassins.

Arthur was the son of a Baptist clergyman from the
North of Ireland, who had settled in eastern Canada, from
whence he removed just across the border, an event that
gave his eldest boy a geographical chance to be President
of the United States. He was born at the hamlet of Fair-
field, Franklin County, Vermont, in a log cabin ; was one
of five children, whom his father, at this time preaching
for $350 a year to a poor congregation in an old barn, could
hardly afford to have. But families were not then regarded
financially, nor were they the dispensable luxuries that they
are now. The poor clergyman was obliged to eke out his

G92 MRS. ARTHUR'S CHARMING PERSONALITY.

necessary expenses b}r manual labor in field or shop, and
even when his circumstances improved was but an itinerant,
preacher continually perplexed with making both ends
meet. Young Arthurs education was acquired in the rude
schoolhouse of the rural districts of the time. He was only
eighteen when he was graduated at Union College, Schenec-
tady. After teaching a while in his native State, he was
admitted to the bar at twenty-eight and settled in New
York city. For seven years he was collector of the port of
New York, and was removed by President Hayes, who
thought the office was too much used as a political power in
the State. He then resumed the practice of law, entered
actively into political life, and was so engaged when nomi-
nated to the Vice-Presidency.

When President Garfield died, Mr. Arthur bore himself
with great delicacy and discretion, and so acted to the end
of his administration. His views were broad and states-
manlike, his bearing dignified, his policy enlightened.

Judging from the reputation of Mrs. Chester A. Arthur,
society and the country lost much by her death in 1880, a
short time before the nomination of her husband to the
Vice-Presidency. Her lovely face, charming personality,
and magnificent voice would have been a benediction to her
husband, and especially after his ascendancy to the Presi-
dency. She was fascinating in her manners and a general
favorite in society. A native of the South, she had all the
vivacity and enthusiasm of the impulsive temperaments and
affectionate natures of Southern women. President Arthur
kept her picture on a table near his bed, and, like President
Jackson, the portrait of his beloved wife was the last thing
he saw before sleeping and the first thing to greet his ejres
on awakening. Every morning, by the President's order, a
vase of fresh flowers was placed beside the picture. One
can imagine how he missed in the trying hours of his life
one so lovable, and who held his heart captive evermore.

A HAPPY AND ATTRACTIVE HOME. 693

Mrs. Arthur was the daughter of Capt. William L.
Jlerndon, who while a lieutenant in the United States Navy
explored the valley of the Amazon, lie perished at sea
while commanding the steamer Central America, which
went down in the Gulf of Mexico with 426 persons on
hoard. In recognition of his heroism at that time Congress
voted a gold medal to his widow.

President Arthur's fine taste was based upon principles
of generosity and ideas of lavish hospitality. No adminis-
tration has ever approached the perfection and liberality of
his entertainments. The fitness of things was innate with
him, and he allowed nothing to be done cheaply or in a nar-
row, ungenerous way. He made radical innovations in the
style of entertaining at the White House, and under his di-
rections the decorations of the sober old mansion were
greatly improved. On the reassembling of Congress, De-
cember, 1885, they found that a transformation scene had
taken place in the White House. There was no trace of the
ruin that had been wrought by the inevitable tread of
thousands of persons deeply solicitous for the dying Garfield.
The White House wras bright and cheerful.

The President was a man of charming presence. His
sister, Mrs. John McElroy ; her two daughters; his won
little daughter Nellie, and his son Alan, composed the
White House family. The ushers and attendants seemed to
have laid aside their melancholy expressions and to have
assumed an air of smiling and obliging cordiality. The
cloud which had hung with so depressing an effect during
President Garfield's long illness had lifted, greatly to the
relief of every one.

Mrs. McElroy, while one of the most quiet and gentle of
women, entered upon her duties with such a desire to
please, if possible, the unreasonable public that she was not
long in winning their love and admiration. Her whole life
had been spent under serene skies and so hallowed by sur-

694 mrs. Mcelroy at the white house.

roundings of a happy religious character that at first she
half dreaded the ordeal through which one must pass who
is at all at the bidding of the insatiable public. She feared
the jealousies of the people, the rivalries in society and poli-
tics ; but her own lovable nature made her an adept in
diplomacy. Her pride in her brother, her attractive person-
ality and winning manners disarmed criticism and made her
one of the most efficient and beloved of the ladies of the
White House.

President Arthur was a polished man of society, and
noted as a giver of elegant dinners. He must have con-
trasted sometimes the sumptuousness of these days with the
Spartan plainness of the days of his boyhood. He was so
disposed to have guests in the White House that Mrs.
McElroy had something to do continually, and she per-
formed her arduous duties conscientiously and with rare
grace. Although she was a novice in the ways of the world
and public life, no one would have guessed it who witnessed
the consummate skill with which she received and presided
over the White House. She was passionately fond of young
people, and at every reception in the afternoon or evening
she had a bevy of young women, who might be said to have
rivaled the magnificent flowers in their radiant beauty and
attractiveness. Many individuals who had almost passed
into the shades of oblivion because the conspicuous figures
who had given them prominence were no more, were
brought from their retreats by President Arthur and Mrs.
McElroy and made to feel that they were not forgotten.
He remembered who people were and what was their due in
the dispensing of social recognition. Mrs. John Tyler, Mrs.
Harriet Lane Johnston, Mrs. Grant, and other members of
the families of celebrated Americans, were often seen among
the guests at the most distinguished functions given during
Arthur's administration.

Mrs. McElroy introduced an agreeable feature of an

THE

NEW YORK

PUBLIC LIBRARY

Astor, Lenox

Foundations.

THE CLOSE OF ARTHUR'S ADMINISTRATION. 697

afternoon and evening reception by having tea served up-
stairs in the corridor to the ladies who assisted in receiving,
and many others who were quietly told to remain for this
social aftermath. President Arthur sent many flowers to
the ladies of official families, invalids, and on wedding and
funeral occasions, which courtesy it was said that his
thoughtful sister suggested.

Mrs. McElroy's last reception, which occurred on Satur-
day afternoon preceding the 4th of March which closed her
brother's administration, was almost if not quite equal to
the farewell reception of Mrs. Hayes. The house was
superbly decorated ; Mrs. McElroy was beautifully gowned;
her daughters and Miss Arthur in soft, delicate shades of
the finest nun's veiling, looked like ladies of noble birth ;
twenty-five or thirty young women from the official fami-
lies in Washington completed the picture of the memorable
occasion, saddened by the thought that it was the last social
event of President Arthur's uneventful but successful
administration.

lie retired to his home in New York in 1885, upon the
inauguration of Cleveland. He went out of office with hon-
ors that, when he entered it, were not his, and no one can
say that he was not an able man, who fulfilled the duties of
his high office with dignity, firmness, and faithfulness. He
died November 18, 1880.

CHAPTER L.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OP

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — A YOUTHFUL

BRIDE AS MISTRESS OF THE WHITE

HOUSE.

A Bachelor President — Managing Mammas with Marriageable Daughters
— Brief Reign of the President's Sister — An Intellectual and Self-Re-
liant Woman — The President's Engagement to Miss Frances Folsom
— A Well-Guarded Family Secret — The President Meets His Fiancee
at New York — Preparations for the Wedding — Miss Folsom's Ap-
pearance— Preparing to Receive Herat the White House — Arrival of
the Eventful Day — The President's Unconventional Invitation to His
Wedding — The Wedding Procession and the Ceremony — A Beautiful
Bride — Mrs. Cleveland's Popular Reign — Winning Universal Admi-
ration— Her Return to the White House — Why She Lost Interest in
Social Functions — Retirement to Private Life — A Growing Family —
A Quiet Home and Domestic Bliss.

TEPHEN GROYER CLEVELAND, or as he

always officially signed his name, Grover
Cleveland, succeeded Chester A. Arthur, and be-
came the twenty-second President of the United
States. Immediately after his election every one be-
gan to wonder who would preside as mistress of the
White House ; for it was well known that he was a bachelor
long past the age when men are apt to marry. Managing
mammas with marriageable daughters began to plan for
opportunity to meet the President-elect, unconscious of the
fact that he had at the time settled the question in his own
mind by inviting his talented sister, Miss Rose Elizabeth
Cleveland, to perform the social duties of the Executive

(698)

THE ABLE AND CULTURED .MISS CLEVELAND. 699

Mansion until he was ready to install his bride, already
chosen.

Miss Cleveland was a clever, well-educated, well-in-
formed woman, who had already had much experience in
life, having entered upon her career as teacher and author,
and lecturer to college classes when quite young. She
brought to the White House all the dignity and intelligence
necessary for a successful fulfillment of the duties of the
important position of first lady of the land, and while she
did not inspire the admiration which her successor and sister-
in-law did later, no one ever criticised Miss Cleveland for
lack of genuine ability and a natural disposition to please.
If her mannerisms were those of a teacher and independent
woman, she was nevertheless cordial, easy, and agreeable.
Intellectual people found her attractive, and she was well
versed on important questions of the day. She made others
comfortable by her perfect simplicity and absolute freedom
from affectation. Always ready to entertain, or do any-
thing required of her as mistress of the White House, the
requisite official functions were given with punctilious care ;
and every person entitled to social courtesies from the
President or his family duly received them.

For more than twelve months she conscientiously dis-
charged every duty and obligation devolving upon her ; but
when the time came to receive her brother's fiancee, to
arrange for their marriage in the White House, and to relin-
quish her position as its mistress, Miss Cleveland displayed
true nobility of character. If she felt at all sensitive be-
cause another was about to take her exalted place as the
first lady of the land, and supplant her in her brother's
affection, she never in the slightest degree betrayed it. The
White House was exquisitely decorated, the suite the bridal
couple were to occupy was newly fitted up, and everything
that loving thought could suggest for their happiness was
done. She entertained Mrs. and Miss Folsom rovallv,

700 THE GIRLHOOD OF FRANCES FOLSOM.

personally superintended everything necessary to make the
wedding all that could be desired, and assisted in the prepa-
ration for the departure of the bride and groom for the
place where they were to spend their honeymoon. Soon
after their return Miss Cleveland departed for her home at
Holland Patent, New York, so that the bride might without
embarrassment assume her rightful place as mistress of the
White House.

Doubtless Miss Cleveland resumed her accustomed work
with much pleasure, for it was beyond question more
agreeable to her than the conventionalities of official social
life. She had no taste for the foibles of fashionable society,
or ambition to be a society leader in the common accept-
ance of the term. As much as she appreciated the dignity
of her position, and her brother's advancement to the high-
est honor in the people's gift, she was too independent to
cater to the whims of the frivolous or yield to all the sense-
less and insatiable demands made upon the lady of the White
House.

All conjectures as to whom President Cleveland was
paying his addresses were silenced in May, 1886, when Mrs.
and Miss Folsom, of Buffalo, landed in New York from the
steamer Noordland from Antwerp, after a short sojourn
abroad, where, it had been whispered, Miss Folsom had been
making preparations for her marriage to the President.

In 1875, her father, then residing in Buffalo, was thrown
from his carriage and killed almost instantly. His intimate
friend, Grover Cleveland, immediately took upon himself
the care of his affairs, becoming the legal guardian of his
only child. The little girl — Frances — was born July 21,
1 864, Her childhood was passed in much the same way as
that of the average American girl. Her primary education
was carefully conducted, and, after her father's death, was
continued in the high schools of Medina and Buffalo. From
the latter she was admitted to the Sophomore class at Wells

A CAREFULLY GUARDED FAMILY SECRET. 101

College, Aurora, N. Y., graduating in June, 1885, with the
approbation and affection of teachers and pupils alike.

Meantime Mr. Cleveland had risen from Governor of
New York to be President of the United States. His strong
interest in the young girl was well known. During the sec-
ond year of her college life flowers came regularly from the
conservatories of the gubernatorial mansion in Albany, and
on the day of her valedictory a superb floral gift of white
flowers was sent by the President from the White House
conservatories.

Soon after the marriage, Mrs. Lucy C. Lillie wrote an
interesting account of the ceremony,* from which I quote :
" Miss Rose Elizabeth Cleveland, the sister of the President,
invited Mrs. and Miss Folsom to visit the Executive Mansion
in the winter of 1886. Miss Cleveland presented the charm-
ing young lady who assisted her at certain receptions
as ' my little school girl,' but it was a family secret, wisely
kept as such in order to avoid publicity, that the President
and Miss Folsom were engaged. So carefully was this
guarded from the public that within three weeks of the
marriage some of the bride-elect's most intimate friends were
not aware of the engagement.

" Early in the spring of 18SC> Miss Folsom and her mother
went abroad for a short trip. Although many of the pass-
engers on the steamer that brought them home suspected
the true state of affairs, all were too delicate to make any
direct inquiry, and the young lady appeared as usual, affable
and uniformly agreeable.

'•When the steamer arrived they were met by Colonel
Lamont, then Secretary to the President, and conducted to
the Gilsev House. Here the President arrived soon after.
His visit to New York was ostensibly to assist in the exercises
of Memorial Day, but it had become generally known that
he was to be married, and, for the first time in our history,

* Ltppincott'e Magazine, .Inly, 188"

702 A president's wedding.

arrangements were made for the marriage of a President to
be celebrated in the Executive Mansion itself.

"Miss Eose Cleveland, as hostess of the "White House,
made every preparation to receive Miss Folsom and her
mother on the day of the wedding. In the early morning
she met the ladies and their party at the Washington station,
which was thronged with people anxious to see their Presi-
dent's bride. "What they beheld was a tall, slenderly-built,
and beautiful girl, with a manner of extreme simplicity and
dignity.

" The Blue Room was prepared for the bride's reception.
During the eventful day the President continued as usual to
attend to public affairs, with only occasional interruptions
from those engaged in preparing for the wedding-ceremon}7,
or for a brief time of recreation with the family circle when
he and Miss Folsom together addressed certain boxes of
wedding-cake to be sent with their autographs to her parti-
cular friends. So informal had they desired the wedding to
be that the President himself wrote certain invitations, the
following of which may be taken as a specimen :

' Executive Mansion, May 29, 1886.

'"My Dear Mr. :

" ' I am to be married on Wednesday evening, at seven o'ck>ck, at the
White House, to Miss Folsom. It will be a very quiet affair, and I will be
extremely gratified at your attendance on the occasion.

' Yours sincerely,

'Grover Cleveland.'"

" At six o'clock on the afternoon of June 2, a detach-
ment of police entered the "White House grounds, to clear
the portion of the premises directly south of the mansion,
and soon afterward the members of the Marine Band were
admitted to the vestibule. By seven the invited guests
arrived, entering the Blue Room on the first floor, the
southern end of which was completely banked with flowers.
The wedding procession started from the west end of the

A CHARMING BRIDE AT THE WHITE HOUSE. 703

corridor on the upper floor. The President came down the
staircase, his bride loaning on his arm, the members of the
family following. The strains of the Wedding March ush-
ered them into the Blue Room, whore at five minutes past
seven o'clock the ceremony was performed. The observ-
ances which followed were such as would characterize any
home wedding. A supper or collation was served, and an
hour later the bride and groom started for their honeymoon
at Deer Park, Maryland. Thev had sought seclusion, but
at the same time they did not shun visits from intimate
friends, and they could not escape the ubiquitous reporter.
On her return to the White House Mrs. Cleveland immedi-
ately inaugurated the hospitalities which she afterwards so
pleasantly dispensed, by a ball at which she wore her wed-
ding-garments of white silk with the necklace of diamonds
which was her husband's gift.

" A competent housekeeper regulated the affairs of the
hicnage, but the bride took an active interest in all that was
going on. . . . At this time the first impression she created
was of a girlish figure, tall and willowy, with a well-shaped
and well-poised head, soft brown hair, brilliant eyes under
finelv-marked brows, and a mouth and chin absolutelv fault-
less. The character of the face, if girlish, was intelligent
and thoughtful. Although the dimples came readily, the
smile was exceedingly sweet, and seemed a fitting accom-
paniment to her well-modulated voice. There was not a
trace of affectation in her manner, but a self-possession Which
was remarkable in one so young, unless we accept the con-
clusion that it was instinctive."

Notwithstanding the disparity of their ages, it seemed
certain that President Cleveland could not have made a wiser
choice. Mrs. Cleveland was well equipped by nature and
acquirements for the exalted position she had attained at
twenty-two. Her whole lift1 had been spent in earnest
study and the acquisition of knowledge and accomplish

704 A WOMAN UNI VERS ALLY ADMIRED,

merits; It is doubtful if any of. her successor's will ever fill

the position with more popular acclaim than did the youth-
ful bride of Grover Cleveland.

From the moment of her arrival at the White House she
was recognized as one who was destined to win golden opin-
ions. Imposing in appearance, beautiful in face, gracious in
manners, she captivated all whom she met. For two years
she continued to win her way to universal admiration,
every one regretting her departure from the White House
at the close of President Cleveland's first term.

As the wife of citizen Cleveland she was equally ad-
mired ; as a mother she has been an example of noble
womanhood. Four years after they left the White House,
on Mr. Cleveland's second election to the Presidency, they
returned to Washington, this time with the addition of all
the necessary paraphernalia of a nursery, the little daughter
Ruth having come in the meantime to gladden their home.
Mrs. Cleveland quietly slipped into her old place, scarcely
realizing that four years had intervened since she had
reigned in the White House, and that meanwhile sad scenes
had been enacted in the historic old mansion.

President Cleveland secured a country residence, as he
was wont to do during his first term, and much of their
time in the early spring and fall was spent in the country,
affording all of them an opportunity for rest impossible at
the White House. There was much less disposition to
entertain during President Cleveland's second term, and
Mrs. Cleveland had become so much engrossed in her domes-
tic cares and motherly duties that she manifested less inter-
est in social functions. Her second daughter was born
during their occupancy of the White House, another reason
for her increased interest in family affairs in preference to
those of the public, to whom, however, she was always cor-
dial and considerate.

Since their retirement to private life and their establish

HOME LIFE IN QUIET PRINCETON. 706

ment of a permanent home in Princeton, New Jersey, they
seem to be supremely happy and to pursue the even tenor
of domestic life much as other people, as if they had no
regrets for the prominence and excitement in which they
began their matrimonial journey together. Mrs. Cleveland
is still much beloved by those by whom she is surrounded.
The birth of a third daughter and a son has added to their
domestic bliss, and doubtless she finds more perfect happi-
ness in her quiet home at classic Princeton than she did in
the "White House, where almost every hour of her life was
subject to intrusion.

CHAPTER LI.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — THE REIGN AND

DEATH OF PRESIDENT AND MRS. BENJAMIN

HARRISON.

Boyhood Days of Benjamin Harrison — His Life on His Father's Farm —
The Influence of His Mother's Example — He Becomes "Enamored
of an Interesting Young Lady" — His Early Marriage — Working for
$2.50 a Day — Setting up Housekeeping in a House of Three Rooms
— Helping His Wife with Her Household Duties — A Rising Young
Lawyer — Enlists in the Civil War — His Enviable War Record — Be
comes Brigadier-General — Elected President of the United States —
His Wife a True Helpmate — A Devoted Wife and Mother — Reno-
vating the White House From Cellar to Garret — Burning of the
Home of the Secretary of the Navy — Tragic Death of His Wife and
Daughter — How the Tragedy Affected Mrs. Harrison — Her Illness
and Death — The President's Marriage to Mrs. Dimmick — His Illness
and Death — Affecting Scenes at His Bedside.

ENJAMIN HARRISON succeeded Grover Cleve^
land and became twenty-third President of the
United States. He had been tried and proved

1\ in public life, and during the latter part of his

term of six vears as United States Senator he was
regarded as a strong presidential possibility.
He was born at North Bend, Ohio, August 20, 1833. His
father, John Scott Harrison, was a son of General William
Henry Harrison, who became President in March, 1841, and
died a month later. Not the least significant feature in
Benjamin Harrison's biography is his descent from men
who were conspicuous for distinguished public service. No

(706)

BENJAMIN HARRISON'S BOYHOOD. 707

tun lily is more closely connected than his with the best tra-
ditions of our race, and the story of his life reveals sturdy
patriotism, unimpeached integrity, and high ideals regard-
ing the duties ol public office.

His grandfather, the President, died a poor man. His
father was a hard-working farmer who passed as well-to-do,
but despite his industry and his thrift his acres melted away
in his later years, and the title to bis farm passed into other
hands long before his death. Yet he made his limited
means suffice to furnish his children with more than a com-
mon school education.

Benjamin's early years were spent on his father's farm,
and how his early days were passed has been told by the
late ex-Congressman Butterworth, who, writing to a friend
on the subject, said :

" He was born just over across the hills where you and I
first saw the light. Ben Harrison's experiences were just
like ours. He was a farmer's boy, lived in a little farm-
house, had to hustle out of bed between 4 and 5 o'clock in
the morning the year round to feed stock, get ready to drop
corn or potatoes, or rake hay by the time the sun wras up.
He knew how to feed the pigs, how to teach a calf to drink
milk out of a bucket; could harness a horse in the dark, and
do all the things we, as farmers' boys, knew how to do.
He used to go to the mill on a sack of wheat or corn and
balance it over the horse's back by getting on one end of it,
holding on to the horse's mane while he was going up hill,
and feeling anxious about the result. He had the usual
number of stone bruises and stubbed toes, and the average
number of nails in his foot that fell to the portion of the
rest of us. Ho knew how to get up, feed, milk, and then
study his lessons by a little tallow dip. Then he walked
his two miles to school and got there in time to play ' bull-
pen ' for half an hour before books."

He was fond of spending his evening's in the large family

708 HELPFUL AND INSPIRING INFLUENCES.

sitting-room, which also served as a dining-room. At one
side of this apartment was a wide open fireplace, where, in
the winter, the blazing logs rendered almost unnecessary
the additional light of the home-made tallow dips. His
mother always sat before this fire during the evening Avith
her knitting All of the children treated her with the
greatest respect. She was a devout Presbyterian. Every
evening1 when the hour for her retirement came she would
fold her knitting, and, going to one side of the room, would
kneel in silent prayer. This little ceremony made a great
impression upon her little son Benjamin, and the influence
of that mother's example was exemplified in after years,
when, as President of the United States, he had morning
prayers regularly at the Executive Mansion. Nor was any
accusation of insincerity ever made against him. The prac-
tice was in keeping with his faithful church attendance and
with the tenor of his whole life.

Young Harrison learned enough at the country school
to enter Farmers' College, near Cincinnati, going from there
to Miami University, at Oxford, Ohio, from which he was
graduated when eighteen years of age. Mr. W-. P. Fish-
back, his law partner for seven years, is authority for the
statement that young Harrison left Farmers' College because
he had become " enamored of an interesting young lady
whose father, Dr. Scott, had established a school for young
ladies at Oxford.'' The young lady was Miss Caroline La-
vinia Scott. He won her affections, and departed from Ox-
ford full of hope and ambition. Loyal to her lover, the
young lady devoted herself assiduously to her studies and a
thorough preparation for the duties of life as the wife of
young Harrison, to whom she had plighted her troth.

While at Miami he joined the Presbyterian Church dur-
ing a religious revival in that town, and he never afterward
wavered in his allegiance to the church or failed to perform
the duties which devolved upon him through this step.

EAKL1 UAKK1AUE AN1> \ul THFUL SI Kl GULES. ?Ui>

From the University he entered as a student a law office
in Cincinnati. He was an impatient lover, and before he
had finished his studies he made Caroline L. Scott his wife,
on October 20, 1853.

His early marriage, with scarcely visible means of sup-
port, was evidence of his self-confidence; but he soon
felt the necessity of at once branching out for himself. Hd
selected Indianapolis as his future home. He had inherited
from an aunt a lot in Cincinnati, upon which he was able to
borrow $800. This was all the capital he had when he and
his bride went to Indianapolis, in March, 1854. He knew
there John A. Eea, who was clerk of the United States Dis-
trict Court. He found deskroom in his friend's office, and
there hung out his shingle. As he was financially unable to
set up a home of his own, he found a boarding house for
himself and wife. He succeeded in securing an appoint-
ment as crier of the Federal Court, and for performing the
duties of this comparatively humble position he received
s±50 a day. In later years Mr. Harrison often reverted to
this as the first money he had ever earned in his profession.

In 1854 the birth of Harrison's eldest son, Russell, made
it necessary for him to go to housekeeping, and he hired a
modest residence in the eastern part of Indianapolis. It
was a one-story wooden building, containing three rooms, a
bedroom, dining-room, and kitchen. Outside there was a
shed where Mrs. Harrison could do her cooking in summer.
They kept no servant. The young husband helped his wife
all he could. Before going to his office in the morning he
sawed all the wood she would need for the day. When he
came home for his noonday dinner he would fill a water
bucket and attend to other work about the house. Mrs.
Harrison's domestic qualities were her strongest character-
istic, and in after years, when she was exalted to the position
of " first lady of the land," her housewifely traits never de-
serted her. The strictest economy and most scrupulous

710 THE TRIUMPH OF PATRIOTISM.

neatness prevailed throughout their humble home, and her
exquisite taste made it attractive. Money was scarce with
the Harrisons at this time. The struggling couple had one
particular friend, a druggist named Robert Browning.
"When Harrison happened to be in a particularly tight place
he not infrequently borrowed five dollars from this druggist
for household expenses. These favors were not forgotten
in later years.

In his business the rising young lawyer exhibited tremen-
dous capacity for work, and his practice rapidly increased.
It was at this time, when he was just beginning to earn a
fair living, that the nation was electrified by the uprising
of the South and the opening of the Civil War.

For a time Harrison, thinking of his wife and children
dependent upon his efforts, refrained from activity. But the
situation in the summer of 1862 became critical. President
Lincoln had issued a second proclamation calling for volun-
unteers, and Gov. Morton was finding difficulty in filling the
quota due from Indiana. One day, when the gloom of the
public was darkest, Harrison and a friend called upon Gov.
Morton. The business of their call being concluded, the
Governor invited his visitors into his private office. There
Morton remarked that he was much discouraged. He
pointed to some stonecutters at work across the street upon
material for a building, and said : " There is an example.
People are following their private business and letting the
war take care of itself."

Harrison's patriotism was bred in the bone. To his sen-
sitive conscience the Governor's remark seemed to be ad-
dressed to himself. He felt that he was indeed attending to
his private business while his country needed his services.
He said : " Governor, if I can be of any service, I will go."
The fateful words were spoken. " Raise a regiment in this
congressional district and you can command it," the Gov
ernor replied.

GENERAL HARRISON'S WAR RECORD. 711

From this interview Harrison walked directly to his
office, hung the Stars and Stripes out of his window, and
began recruiting Company A, which was the nucleus of
the Seventieth Regiment of Indiana Volunteers.

To recount in detail the military services of Col. Harri-
son would involve a recitation of no inconsiderable part of
the history of the Civil War. He was in many battles.
Perhaps the best known of them was that of Resaca. Here
he especially distinguished himself in a heroic charge upon
the works of the enemy, involving a hand-to-hand conflict
and the capture of a redoubt essential to the Union position.
This fight earned Harrison the pet name of "Little Ben," by
which he was ever after known among his soldiers.

It was after the battle of Peach Tree Creek, where Har-
rison had again shown conspicuous bravery, that Hooker
rode up to him and said : " I'll make you a brigadier-general
for this fight! " His promotion soon followed, and his com-
mission as brevet brigadier-general is signed by Abraham
Lincoln and countersigned by Edwin M. Stanton. It states
that it was given " for ability and manifest energy and
gallantry in the command of the brigade."

At the close of the war Harrison returned to his Indian-
apolis home and resumed his law practice. He wras in debt,
but his salary as reporter of the Supreme Court, and the
returns from his business as a member of the new law firm
of Porter, Harrison & Fishback, formed in 1865, soon re-
lieved his immediate embarrassment. It may be said that
from this time forward his career was one of financial suc-
cess as well as of political advancement. His election to the
United States Senate soon followed, and during his term of
six years as Senator his reputation as a sound, progressive,
and enlightened statesman, and a ready, finished, and pow-
erful debater was firmly established.

During; her husband's service in the Senate, Mrs. Harri-
son made herself universally popular by her never-failing,

712 THRIFTY MANAGEMENT AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

unaffected cordiality and obliging disposition toward their
innumerable callers, whether they called socially or to per-
suade her to contribute to charitable objects. She took a
very active part in efforts for the amelioration of the con-
dition of the poor and unfortunate.

Meantime her husband's fame increased, and in June,
1888, he was nominated for President of the United States.
His triumphal election followed a spirited political cam-
paign. His administration during the four years follow-
ing was universally conceded by political friends and foes
alike to have been one of the most honorable in the history
of the country. There were no foreign entanglements dur-
ing his term, no glories from war, but the arts of peace tri-
umphed as never before.

The elevation of her husband to the highest position
within the gift of the nation made no change in Mrs. Harri-
son. She was still the same devoted daughter, wife, and
mother, the same careful, conscientious housewife. Although
criticised by the press for her excessive domestic proclivities,
she was not deterred in her self-assumed task of a thorough
renovation of the White House from cellar to garret.
She discarded the accumulations of years, and secured
cleanliness, order, and system. Neatness and thrift took
the place of carelessness and destruction. This seriously in-
terfered with the indifference and extravagance of the old
servants of the Executive Mansion. High life below stairs
ended with her advent, to the indignation of the worthies of
those regions, who resented the idea that the mistress of the
White House was privileged to extend her jurisdiction into
the domain of the kitchen. It is perhaps true that Mrs.
Harrison gave unnecessary personal attention to the details
of this department, but she could not help feeling responsi-
ble for the domestic management of the White House; nor
could she be indifferent to the household affairs of the home
over which she presided.

HOME LIFE OV THE HARRISONS. 713

Soon after General Harrison's inauguration Mrs. Harri-
son's sister, Mrs. Lord, who kept house for their aged father,
who was then an employee of the Interior Department, w;is
taken ill, and for months Mrs. Harrison's daily visits and
devotion to her afflicted sister won the admiration of all.
Death finally ended Mrs. Lord's suffering, and Mrs. Harri-
son at once closed the house, took her father and Mrs. Lord's
widowed daughter, Mrs. Mary Scott Lord Dimmick, to live at
the White House with her. Many remember the tender,
loving care bestowed upon her father, then 90 years of age,
and her niece, Mrs. Dimmick, who was afterward to become
the second wife of the President.

It would have been impossible for Mrs. Harrison to have
discharged the many social duties devolving on her but for
the assistance of her truly devoted daughter, Mary Harrison
McKee, and the wife of her beloved son Russell, who were
untiring in their efforts to relieve their mother from the bur-
dens of her multiplied cares and duties. Both Mrs. McKee
and Mrs. Harrison, Jr., had children, and the world has not
forgotten how thoroughly absorbed both the President and
Mrs. Harrison were in these children.

I remember an occasion when the President and Mrs.
Harrison had been dining with Vice-President and Mrs.
Morton. The dinner was followed by a large reception
which kept them late, and both were very tired. When
they reached home they found Marthena, Russell's little
daughter, very ill with a high fever. Mrs. Harrison took
off her evening gown, donned a wrapper, and insisted upon
everybody retiring. Assuming entire charge of the little
patient, she followed the doctor's instructions, and nursed the
child till morning, when the fever developed into measles,
with the result that Mrs. Harrison and her little grand-
daughter were quarantined for weeks.

On the morning of Feb. 3, 1890, Washington was aroused
to the highest pitch of excitement by the burning of the

7U A TRAGEDY AND ITS SAD EFFECT.

home of Benjamin F. Tracy, Secretary of the Navy. The
fire had evidently been burning between the floors and
walls hours before it was discovered, and the family, little
knowing the danger that surrounded them, slept soundly.
When they finally awoke they found themselves cut off
from each other and all means of escape, and to save their
lives some of them jumped from the windows. After the
flames had been sufficiently extinguished the bodies of Mrs.
Tracy, Miss Tracy, and a French maid were found dead
in their beds, burned beyond recognition.

President Harrison was among the first to arrive at the
house after the alarm, and took Mr. Tracy and Mrs. Wilmer-
ding to the White House, giving directions that the remains.
of mother and daughter be brought there also. Mrs. Harri
son received her stricken friends with genuine sympathy.,
doing all in her power to minister to their physical and
mental suffering. The coffined remains of the ill-fated ladies
were placed side by side in the center of the East Room,
and here the funeral services were held.

Mrs. Harrison's sympathies had been so severely taxed
by this shocking tragedy that it was some time before she
rallied, though she persistently replied to anxious inquirers
that she was all right, only a little fatigued. She was desi-
.rous that all social functions expected at the White House
should be given ; and ordered that she should be advised of
the presence in Washington of distinguished visitors who
were entitled to courtesies. In the spring of 1892, Mrs.
Harrison had an acute attack of " La Grippe," terminating
in alarming symptoms of lung trouble, causing deep solici-
tude on the part of her family and friends. In the early
summer they took her to Loon Lake, in the Adirondacks.
But she was not benefited by the change, and was brought
home early in October in the last stages of consumption.
She never left her room again after her return. In the
early morning of Cbtober 21, 1892. this noble, self-denying

DEATH AND .MOURNING AT THE WHITE HOUSE. flo

woman fell asleep to wake no more, after eight months of
patient suffering borne with Christian resignation and forti-
tude, in the same room where President Garfield, cruelly
wounded, had lain so long. Her funeral was very simple.
The family, the Supreme Court, the Cabinet, and a small
chosen number from among her hosts of friends assembled
around the casket in the East Room on Thursday morning,
October 27th, to look for the last time upon her gentle face.
The casket was completely covered with orchids and roses,
her favorite flowers. After the close of the services her
remains were taken by special train to her old home in
Indianapolis.

In November following, Mrs. Harrison's father, the Rev.
John W. II. Scott, died ; his funeral was held in the White
House. He was 93 years old but had performed his duties
as clerk in the Pension office until after Mr. Harrison's elec-
tion to the Presidency.

To those who loved Mrs. Harrison, there is something
inexpressibly sad about her life and death in the White
House. To her tender, loving nature, the continual succes-
sion of sorrows was overwhelming, and in the light of sub-
sequent events it seems the world knew little of all that she
suffered so keenly. In the many high positions attained by
President Harrison, his devoted wife filled her place beside
him with conspicuous credit. He was never embarrassed on
account of anything she did, left undone, or said ; her
amiable disposition and the great kindness of her heart
prompted all her acts. She made no mistakes requiring
finesse to correct. She was unspoiled by her husband's
steady promotion. Even when he reached the pinnacle of
fame she was always the same unpretentious, gracious
woman, a devoted wife, and loving mother, who ever exerted
her benign influence for the advancement of all good works.

In a retrospective glance at the social side of President
Harrison's administration one cannot but feel that far more
40

71G A LOVING AND LOVABLE WOMAN.

of sadness than gladness occurred beneath the roof of the
White House during those four years. The emblems of
mourning were seen very frequently, and regular social
entertainments were all too often turned into melancholy
occasions by untoward happenings.

It has frequently been remarked that there were more
deaths in the families of President Harrison's cabinet and in
his own than had ever occurred during the term of any
other President. Mrs. Lord, Mrs. Harrison's sister ; Mrs.
Harrison ; her father, Dr. Scott ; Secretary Windom ; Mrs.
Coppinger, Secretary Blaine's daughter ; Walker Blaine ;
Mrs. and Miss Tracy, wife and daughter of Secretary Tracy,
having died during the four years intervening between
March 4, 1889, and March 4, 1893.

In the death of Mrs. Harrison the President lost a
devoted wife and a faithful companion who for many years
had, in no small degree, contributed to whatever of personal
popularity the President had; for her lovable and gracious
qualities offset the President's well known reserve, a reserve
often called frigidity by many who found him difficult to
approach. If his reticence and apparent unapproachable-
ness were not liked by those who encountered them, if he was
stigmatized as an " iceberg," the thinking part of the coun-
try apparently thought none the less of him for it. His de-
meanor might be characterized as distant when he Avas
accosted by strangers or even by acquaintances. What was
signified by his attitude in social intercourse has been well
indicated by Mr. Fishback. He says :

" He has been unjustly censured for his apparent lack of
sociability. Probably it would have seemed better to some
if General Harrison had sacrificed a little more to the
graces, but it remains to be seen if the country is not to be
congratulated upon having a Chief Executive with the great
virtues emphasized, even if there should be a lack of that
able-bodied joviality which invites the approaches of the

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EX-PRESIDENT HARRISON'S SECOND MARRIAGE. 710

back-slapping- Toms, Dicks, and Harrys who make a market
of their assumed familiarity with men high in office. Gen
eral Harrison had personal dignity and self-respect, which
upon occasion could repel unwelcome intrusion.1''

Like every man who has occupied the presidential office,
General Harrison aspired to a second term, and in 181*2 he
was again nominated as the national standard bearer of the
Republican Party. He was defeated in the following elec
tion by G rover Cleveland, who was again elected President.

On April 6, 1896, ex-President Harrison married Mrs.
Mary Scott Lord Dimmick, a niece of his first wife. She had
been a widow for more than a dozen years when Gen. Harri-
son became President, her husband having died three months
after marriage. As already stated, she went with her
grandfather to the White House after her mother's death,
and lived there nearly as long as the Harrison family occu-
pied it. She acted as Mrs. Harrison's secretary and was a
frequent companion of the President on his long walks,
exercise to which Mrs. Harrison in the last years of her life
was not equal. Gen. Harrison was married to Mrs. Dim-
mick in St. Thomas's Protestant Episcopal Church on Fifth
Avenue in New York city before a small party of friends.
Neither his son Russell, nor his daughter, Mrs. McKee, was
present. Gen. Harrison took his wife at once to his Indian-
apolis home. A girl was born to him in the following year.

The second marriage, while apparently one of extreme
happiness to Gen. Harrison, was not agreeable to the chil-
dren of his first wife, and estranged the members of his
family.

After his retirement from the presidency, Gen. Harri-
son's income from his law practice averaged at least $150,
000 a year. He solved in a dignified manner the old prob-
lem of "What shall we do with our ex- Presidents '." 1 1 is
retirement from public life did not mean idleness with him.
Upon the contrary, he became one of the busiest men

720 DEATH OF EX-PRESIDENT HARRISON.

among all his busy fellow-citizens. He would undertake
only select law cases and he could command his own fees.

Ex-President Harrison died of acute pneumonia at In-
dianapolis, March 13, 1901, surrounded by the immediate
members of his family and the physicians who had been
constantly in attendance on him. Mrs. Harrison knelt at
the right side of the bed, her husband's right hand grasped
in hers, while Dr. Jameson held the left hand of the djang
man, counting the feeble pulse beats. In a few moments
after the friends had been summoned to the room the end
came, Dr. Jameson announcing the sad fact. The great
silence that fell on the sorrowing watchers by the bedside
was broken by the voice of Rev. Dr. Haines, pastor of the
First Presbyterian Church which Gen. Harrison had
attended for many years, raised in prayer, supplicating con-
solation for the bereaved wife and family.

Neither Russell B. Harrison nor Mrs. McKee were pres-
ent when their father died, although both were hurrying on
their way to his bedside as fast as steam could carry them.
Elizabeth, President Harrison's little daughter, had been
taken from the sick room by her nurse before the end came.

One of the most pathetic incidents of his illness occurred
just before he became unconscious. The General's little
daughter, Elizabeth, was brought into the sick room for a
few moments to see her father, and offered him a small
apple pie which she herself had made. .He smiled, but the
effort to speak was too much, and he could do nothing
more to express his appreciation.

Benjamin Harrison was one of the greatest and noblest
presidents, and his place of honor among the makers of
American history is assured.

CHAPTER LII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OP

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED — PRESIDENT AND

MRS. McKINLEY'S REIGN — HIS ASSASSINATION.

The House in Which William McKinley, Jr., was Bora — His Work for
the Family Woodpile — How He Obtained an Education — Striding
"Across Lots" to Teach School — Enlisting as a Private Soldier in
the Civil War — His Conspicuous Gallantry and Rapid Promotion —
Begins the Study of Law — His First Case in Court — The Bowdegged
Man Who Lost His Case for Damages — Marriage and Early Home
Life -Elected President of the United States — Mrs. McKinley at the
White House — Hands That Were Never Idle — Assassinalion of the
President — His Last Days on Earth — His Patience, Fortitude, and
Resignation — His Last Words — His Death and Burial — Beloved By
All — Devotion of Mrs. McKinley — A Grief Stricken World — Arrest,
Conviction, and Execution of the Murderer.

f^OR the first time in the history of our country ji
President was given ti second term without suc-
ceeding himself, when ex-President Grover Cleve-
land defeated Benjamin Harrison in the presi-
dential contest of 1892. In the following March,
President and Mrs. Cleveland for the second time took
up their residence in the Executive Mansion. An account
of their reign has been given in a previous chapter and
covers both terms. President Cleveland was succeeded by
William McKinley, Jr., who was elected in 1896, and
entered the White House in March, 1897, as twenty-fourth
President of the United States.

In the early forties President McKinley's father was
managing an iron furnace near Niles, Ohio, a settlement oi

(721)

732 A boy's energy and ambition.

very few inhabitants then, and it was there, in a long, two-
story dwelling, that, on January 29, 1843, William McKin-
ley, Jr., was born. The building served the double purpose
of a country store, with dwellings above. It is still stand-
ing, and just over the vine-clad entrance to the second story
is the part of the house where the future President first saw
the light of dav. He was the seventh of nine children.
The McKinleys were regarded by their neighbors as possess-
ing superior intelligence, and were respected accordingly.

The boys were always provided with something to do
for the comfort and support of the family. Wood was the
fuel of those days, and the thriftiness of a family was often
judged by the extent and appearance of its woodpile. Both
William and his brother Abner remember their work for
the family woodpile, each doing a certain share; and it is
said that while William always did his part as quickly and
as skillfully as he could, some of the others would get their
share done for them when the desire for play was too strong
to be resisted.

His father soon realized that with a large family of intel-
ligent boys and girls growing up about him, better educa-
tional facilities were required, and in 1852, or when William
was nine years old, the family moved to Poland, Ohio, where
young William attended an academic school. The story is
told of a strife between him and another pupil, who
roomed across the street from the McKinleys, as to which
should first show a light to begin the early morning study,
and exhibit the greatest endurance by being the last to ex-
tinguish it at night.

He pursued his academic education at Poland until he
was seventeen years of age. By this time he had secured a
better education than most boys possess at his age, largely
by his own study and reading, while his association with the
Methodist minister of Poland had broadened and strength-
ened his ideas.

TWO FUTURE PRESIDENTS IN ONE REGIMENT. 72'S

Later, he entered Allegheny College, at Meadville, Pa.,
but his devotion to his studies and lack of exercise had ex-
panded his mind at the expense of his body, and ill health
compelled him to return to his home. He now engaged as
a school teacher in a small district about two and one-half
miles from Poland, and the old inhabitants of that section
still recall the sight of young McKinley striding "across
lots " to and from the old schoolhouse, which still stands.

Just before the beginning of that winter, while he was
teaching, Abraham Lincoln was elected President. Bu-
chanan, in the few remaining months of his official term,
betrayed his utter inefficiency. Congress was endeavoring
to adjust the grave difficulties that threatened to end in the
dissolution of the Union, but without avail, and the dreaded
Civil War could no longer be averted.

Shortly after the President's call for three-years volun-
teers the young men of Poland gathered at the old Sparrow
house in that place, all of them raw and undisciplined
youths who had never shouldered a musket, but were en-
thusiastic and determined in the defense of the Union. A
company, which was known as the Poland Guards, was
formed, a captain and a first lieutenant were elected, and
the company marched down the old street wildly cheered
by the inhabitants of the little place. The company
marched to Youngstown accompanied by half the men,
women, and children of Poland, including young McKinley.
The next day he enlisted as a private in the Twenty-third
regiment, Ohio volunteers, of which Rutherford B. Hayes,
afterwards President of the United States, was major.

Speaking one day to a friend of his in the governor's
office at Columbus concerning his enlistment, Governor
McKinley said, "1 always look back with pleasure upon
those fourteen months in which 1 served in the ranks.
They taught mo a great deal. I was but a school-boy when
I went into the army, and the first year was a formative

724 PROMOTION FOR CONSPICUOUS BRAVERY.

period in my life, during which. I learned much of men and
facts. I have always been glad that I entered the service
as a private, and served those months in that capacity."

McKinley's regiment participated in nearly all the early
engagements in West Yirginia. He attracted the attention
of his superior officers by his grasp of details and his careful
management of the little things entrusted to his care.
Their keen eyes detected in him executive ability of high
order, which promised to be of great service to the regiment,
and on the 15th of April, 1862, he was promoted to commis-
sary-sergeant.

His regiment was hotly engaged in the battle of An-
tietam, where his courage won for him still further promo-
tion. "When the story of his conspicuous gallantry on that
bloody field reached Col Eutherford B. Hayes — who mean-
time had returned to Ohio to recover from his wounds — he
called upon Governor Tod, and told him of McKinley's
bravery.

" Let McKinley be promoted from sergeant to lieuten-
ant," said the war governor of Ohio.

He was made first lieutenant in 1863, was promoted to a
captaincy in 1861, and acted as aid-de-camp on General
Sheridan's staff. He was always fearless in the discharge
of his duties however dangerous or severe. One month be-
fore President Lincoln was assassinated McKinley received
a document which is still one of his most cherished posses-
sions, his commission as brevet major of United States Vol-
unteers. It reads :

" For gallant and meritorious services at the battles of
Opequan, Cedar Creek, and Fisher's Hill."

And it is signed "Abraham Lincoln."

Major McKinley was mustered out of service in July,
1865. On his return to Poland it was a serious question
what business he should follow. It is said that a proposition
to remain in the army and continue his military career did

mckinley's first case in court. 72?

not meet with tho approval of bis father. However this may
be, it is certain that the attractions of army life were over-
come, and be decided to enter the legal profession. II is old
appetite for study returned, and he began the study of law
with a man who was esteemed for his high character, Judge
Charles E. Glidden, whose office was in Youngstown. He
entered upon bis law course with all the earnestness that
characterized his school-boy days, and became again an ex-
cessive burner of the proverbial " midnight oil ". Once or
twice a week he would go to Youngstown to recite to Judge
Glidden or his partner. Even then be was known to the
people of Poland and its vicinity as a good speaker, and
was looked upon as a young man with a bright future
before him.

In another year he entered the Ohio Law School at
Albany. There he completed his course, and gained admit-
tance to the bar in 1807, two years after his return from
the war. Bidding adieu to his old friends and comrades
in Poland, he went to Canton, Ohio, and there the briefless
young lawyer, engaging a small office in the rear of an old
building, waited for clients, and studied.

Occupying a well-equipped office on the front of the same
building was Judge Balden, then one of the most prominent
advocates in Stark county. He had been a circuit judge,
and was a man of influence and high social position. He
was attracted by the personality of McKinley and thought
the young lawyer was a man who deserved assistance. The
latter was not seeking any, however. But one day the judge
came into McKinley's office, complaining of feeling unwell,
and wishing to go home, and said :

" Here are the papers in a case coming up to-morrow.
Now, I want you to try it — I shall not be able to attend
to it."

McKinley had never tried a case in court, excepting one
•m* two of little or no consequence in the justice's court.

728 A SHREWD LAWYER AND ELOQUENT PLEADER.

The papers in the case were voluminous ; moreover, it was
a very doubtful case. Indeed, Judge Belden had very little
hope of it.

"Why, I can't try that case, Judge," said McKinley;
"it's all new to me; there is not time to prepare it; and
you know I've never tried an important case yet."

"Well, begin on this one, then," replied the judge; and
McKinley agreed to do so, nothing being said, however,
about a fee for his services. He went to his office and
sat up all night, going through every detail of the case,
and the next day he went into court and won it.

Meeting him soon afterward, Judge Belden said : " So
you won the case," and putting his hand in his pocket, he
handed McKinley twenty-five dollars.
. " Oh, I can't take that," said McKinley ; " it's too much
for one day's work."

"Don't worry about that," said the judge, good-naturedly,
"I got a hundred dollars as a retainer."

From that moment Judge Belden and his friends knew
that McKinley was a man of ability, and very soon the
judge made him a partner. He moved out of the little rear
office where he had spent his briefless days, and continued
his practice with Judge Belden with increasing success until
the latter died in 1870.

McKinley soon won a reputation as a shrewd lawyer and
a successful pleader. In one case, not long after entering into
partnership with Judge Belden, he found himself pitted
against one of the most brilliant lawyers of the Ohio bar.
The case was a suit for damages for malpractice, the com-
plainant charging that a surgeon had set his broken leg in
such a way as to make him bow-legged. McKinley appeared
for the surgeon. The opposing counsel brought his mis-
shapen client into court, put him on the stand, had his
broken leg bared, and it was held up conspicuously in
evidence. A bad looking leg in shape it certainly was.

GIRLHOOD OF [DA SAXTON MCKINLEY. 729

Things looked serious for the surgeon and for McKinley's
case. But meanwhile Mclvinley had his keen eyes fixed on
the other leg, and when the witness was turned over to him
for cross-examination he demanded that this too be bared.
The plaintiff's counsel made a vigorous objection, but the
court overruled it. Much to the plaintiff's attorney's confu-
sion, the merriment of the jurors, and the collapse of the
complainant's case, the other leg was more bowed than the
one set by the surgeon.

" My client seems to have done better for this man than
did nature herself," said McKinley, "and I move that the
suit be dismissed with a recommendation to have the plain-
tiff's right leg broken and set by my client, the surgeon."

McKinley was soon elected prosecuting attorney for
Stark county, and served in that capacity for two years.
From the time of his first campaign for election to this
office he had been active in politics. He was in great
demand as a political speaker, and soon made himself a
power among the people of that section.

When McKinley was fighting for the Union there was a
young lady in Canton, Miss Ida Saxton, of excellent family,
handsome features, and lively and attractive disposition,
who was pursuing her studies, and devoting some of her
leisure time to scraping lint and making bandages to be sent
to the front for wounded soldiers, as thousands of other
young ladies did in those days of anxiety and dread. She
was born and reared in Canton. Her grandfather, John Sax-
ton, founded the Canton Repository in March, 1815, a paper
that is still published. His son, James A. Saxton, the father
of Ida Saxton, became a banker and a capitalist, and was
prominent in local affairs. His wife was one of the loveliest
of women, with a beautiful face and sunny disposition.
Ida Saxton was born June 8, 1817. She inherited her
mother's bright and cheerful disposition, which has aided
in making her life, — though having far more than its

730 -ADVANCING TO HIGHEST HONORS.

share of physical suffering, — one of constant usefulness
to others.

Ida Saxton was graduated from a seminary in Media,
Perm., at the age of sixteen. Even at this time she was
seriously threatened with ill health, and her ambition often
carried her further than her physical strength warranted.
Though with prospects of inheriting a fortune, her father
believed in giving his daughter the advantages of a practical
business training, and to this end she was taken into the
employ of the bank with which he was connected, and for
three years held the position of assistant to him.

After her father's death she spent a season of travel
abroad, and on her return home William McKinley, who had
just been elected prosecuting attorney of Stark county,
wooed and won her, and they were married January 25,
1871. After boarding for a time, they began housekeeping
in Canton in a modest and pretty home, where, in 1871,
their first child, a daughter, was born. She lived to be onl^
three years of age. A second child, also a daughter, died in
infancy. Just before the birth of the second child, Mrs. Mc-
Kinley experienced the great sorrow of her life in the death
of her beloved mother. Mrs. Mclffinley's actual invalidism
dates from this period, when, within a few months, she lost
her two children and her mother.

Major McKinley was elected to Congress at the age of
thirty-four. As a Congressman he led a quiet and studious
life, paying little regard to social functions at "Washington.
During his first term he gained the reputation of an indus-
trious, well-informed, and plodding Congressman, and at the
same time a reputation for affability and courtesy that
made him extremely popular.

He was returned to Congress for another term. He had
already become an acknowledged leader in the House in
debates upon economic and financial questions. He was
defeated for a third term in Congress in 1890, but wras

THE NATION'S CONFIDENCE IN McKINLEV. 731

elected governor of Ohio in the following year. His open-
ing speech in the gubernatorial campaign that followed
was made at Niles, his birthplace, from the little porch over
the doorway to the house in which he was born forty-eight
years before.

He was nominated for president June 16, 1896, at the
Republican convention in the city of St. Louis, and was
elected in the ensuing campaign.

In our war with Spain that occurred during his first
term, and the numerous complications growing out of it, the
nation had profound respect for President McKinley's judg-
ment and the utmost confidence in his devotion to the
national honor. History will certainly call that a striking
moment in our national life when Congress gave to him
$50,000,000 and a vote of confidence such as no President
ever had received, without a minute's hesitation or a dissent-
ing voice, or exacting a promise in return. For the first time
since the Civil War, Congress was united as one man in a
common cause, for the honor of a common flag — every man
voting, and all on one side, ready and eager to go on record.

"Within less than four months of warfare the conflict
ended — a conflict which drove Spain from the last of her
once great possessions in the eastern world, which estab-
lished the United States as a world power of the first
magnitude, enlarged its territory in both hemispheres,
and opened to the American people new opportunities
and new and grave responsibilities.

President McKinley, whose patient diplomacy deferred
wrar till it could be deferred no longer, whose courage car-
ried it through to a successful issue, and whose gentle firm-
ness at its close secured a peace with a rich legacy for our
future, proved himself one of the great American statesmen
of this generation, and amply justified the trust which the
American people had placed in his hands. He was renom-
inated in 1900, and re-elected to the Presidency in the cam-

732 mrs. Mckinley's beautiful character.

paign that followed. He entered upon his second term as
President, March 4, 1901.

Few public men have spoken on such a variety of topics
in the course of their careers as President McKinley. His
principal speeches were prepared with great care. He
delivered memorable eulogies on Lincoln, Grant, Garfield,
and Logan, which exhibit his keen insight into human
nature and his high appreciation of noble qualities. The
record of his public life is an open book. His bitterest po-
litical opponent never sought to cast reflections upon his
integrity. No friend of his was ever compelled to make an
apology for anything in his conduct as a man in private or
public life.

Very much has been said and written of Mrs. President
McKinley, and yet the half of her gentleness and beautiful
character has never been told. Her most charming char-,
acteristics were her perfect sincerity, utter forgetfulness
of self, and great thoughtfulness for others. As mistress of
the White House scarcely a day passed that she did not do
a kindness for some one. Many a grievously afflicted per-
son— sometimes an utter stranger to her — received a token
of her sympathy and good wishes, if nothing more than a
bunch of flowers or a tender message. Always bright and
cheerful, she never alluded to the affliction that held her
captive for so many years. Her refined face, sunny disposi-
tion, and sweet smile reflected the spirit of gentleness and
resignation that bodily suffering had wrought.

Her busy fingers were constantly at work for charity.
Before she left the White House she had finished more than
three thousand five hundred pairs of knitted slippers for
ladies and children, all of which had been given to friends
or for charity and invalids. Many of these slippers were
sold for large sums at church and charity fairs. She spent
hours in the distribution of flowers among her friends to
grace happy occasions, or to cheer the unhappy or unfor-

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president Mckinley's devotion to his wife. 735

fcunate. She could never turn away from an appeal for
help; and, but for the watchfulness of those in attendance
at the Executive Mansion, there would have been a constant
throng about her, awaiting her bounty.

As a mother, Mrs. McKinley was devoted to her little
ones. The memory of them was ever present, and their pic-
tures were ever before her. She talked about them with so
much motherly love and tenderness that one couid scarcely
believe that a score of years had come and gone since they
were taken from her.

Mrs. McKinley's adoration of her husband was well
known. In her estimation he was perfect, and she dis-
coursed upon his good qualities with all the fervor of a girl
in her teens over her lover. She appreciated the unex-
ampled thoughtfulness that often prompted him to leave
cabinet meetings or other important councils, if they were
at all protracted, to seek her for a moment and see that she
was provided with every comfort. No sacrifice was too
oreat for him to make for her. In all his busv hours she
was never forgotten. It was said of him when he was a
Congressman that he could always be found either at the
Capitol, in his office, or with his wife.

President McKinley left Washington on the evening of
July 5, 1901, to spend the remainder of the summer in his
old home, at Canton, Ohio, where rest and quiet, it was
hoped, would be of great benefit to Mrs. McKinley. He
had accepted an invitation to be present at the Pan-Ameri-
can Exposition in Buffalo, " President's Day " being fixed for
the fifth of September. That day was to him one long
ovation, the assembled thousands greeting him with affec-
tionate enthusiasm.

On the afternoon of September 6th, the President, while
holding a public reception in the Temple of Music, on the
Exposition grounds, was mortally wounded by an assassin.
The presidential party had on that afternoon returned from

736 ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT McKINLEY.

a visit to Niagara Falls, and the President had proceeded
at once to the Exposition. The fatigue of the moraine
j >urney prevented Mrs. McKinley from accompanying him,
and she returned to the home of Mr. John G. Milburn, Pres-
ident of the Pan-American Exposition, whose guests they
were. Throngs of people crowded the grounds to see the
President enter, and, if possible, to clasp his hand at the
public reception.

Shortly after 4 p. m. one of the throng that surged past
the presidential party approached as if to greet the Presi-
dent. It was noticed that the man's right hand was
wrapped in a handkerchief, but no one suspected that the
concealed hand held a revolver. Mr. McKinley smiled and
extended his hand to the stranger in friendly greeting, when
suddenly the sharp crack of a revolver rang out above the
hum of voices and the shuffling of thousands of feet. There
was an instant of almost complete silence. The President
stood still, a look of perplexity and bewilderment on his
face. His lips pressed each other in a rigid line. His
shoulders straightened as those of a military commander.
He threw his head back, and as he brought his right
hand up to his chest he grew deathly pale. The
wounded President reeled and staggered into the arms of
his private Secretary, George B. Cortelyou, and was led to
a chair, where he removed his hat and bowed his head in
his hands. By this time the crowd, at first dazed and be-
wildered, realizing the awful import of the scene, surged
forward with hoarse shouts and cries. Only the Presi-
dent remained calm, and begged those near him not to be
alarmed.

" But you are wounded," cried the secretary ; " let me

examine."

" No, I think not," answered the President. "lam not
badly hurt, I assure you."

The President opened his waistcoat and thrust his hand

ARREST OF THE ASSASSIN. ?:57

into the opening in his shirt bosom, and after moving1 his
lingers there a moment, replied: "This pains me greatly."
lie slowly drew forth his hand. The fingers were covered
with blood. He gazed at his hand an instant, a most pite-
ous expression stole over his face, and he stared blankly
before him.

His outer garments were now hastily loosened and the
worst fears were confirmed. The assassin had fired two
shots at close range. One bullet had struck the President
on the breast bone, glancing and not penetrating ; the second
bullet had penetrated the abdomen and passed through the
stomach. The President was at once placed on a stretcher
and removed to the Emergency Hospital, on the Exposition
grounds, the best surgeons available having been hastily
summoned. He was placed upon an operating table, and a
thorough examination was made. The surgeons informed
him that an immediate operation was necessary. To this
the President, who was in full possession of his faculties,
replied with great calmness, "Gentlemen, do what in your
judgment you think best." He was immediately placed
under the influence of ether, an incision was made in the
abdomen, and the wounds in the stomach were closed. The
bullet could not be found. After the operation, which lasted
an hour and a half, the President, still under the influence
of the anaesthetic, was removed in an ambulance to the house
of Mr. Milburn.

It would be impossible to describe adequately the excit-
ing scene that followed the shooting. No sooner had the
shots been fired than several men threw themselves for-
ward as with one impulse upon the assassin. In an instant
he was borne to the ground, his weapon was wrenched from
his grasp, and strong arms pinioned him down. He was
hurried into a little room, from which he was immediately
removed to the police station house. His name was Leon F.
Czolgosz, a young man of Polish extraction, whose home
41

738 HOW THE PRESIDENT WAS ASSASSINATED.

was in Cleveland, where his father, mother, and brothers
;.ved. He was an avowed Anarchist, and boasted that in
saooting the President he had only done his duty.

Czolgosz was born in Detroit and was twenty-eight years
of age. He received some education in the common schools
of that city. He read all the Socialistic literature that he
could lay his hands on, and finally he became fairly well
known in Chicago, Cleveland, and Detroit, not only as a
Socialist, but as an Anarchist of the most venomous type.

Learning that President McKinley was to visit the Pan-
American Exposition, and was to remain for several days,
he started for Buffalo on his murderous mission. He had
followed the President for two days, knew when he would
enter the Exposition grounds, and waited for his appearance.
He was among the first of the great throng to enter the
Temple of Music, and immediately took his position in line
to shake hands with the President. When Mr. McKinley
cordially extended his hand in greeting the assassin extended
his left hand, aimed the revolver at the President's breast
with his right hand, and fired. The murder was planned
with all the diabolical ingenuity of which anarchy and nihil-
ism are capable, and the assassin carried out his plan as per-
fectly as did his prototype, Judas.

Mrs. McKinley, who had been resting in her room at
Mr. Milburn's, did not know what had happened until three
hours had elapsed. She had begun to be anxious, as the
President was expected to return at about six o'clock. Mrs.
McKinley did not suspect assassination, but she naturally
feared that some accident had befallen her husband. Minute
precautions had been taken to shield her from all knowledge
of the tragic occurrence, but now the terrible tidings could
be withheld no longer. She must be told, for the President
tvas even then being borne to the house. It was feared the
shock would prostrate her, but, greatly to the relief of those
about her, she bore it with surpi^ising courage, and when the

THE DYING PRESIDENT. 739

President was brought in she was able to be taken to his
room.

A few weeks before, Mr. McKinley had watched over
her through a serious illness, and it was her turn now. She
realized then, if never before, that the deepest anguish is the
portion of the one who sits in sorrowful vigil. The Presi-
dent seemed troubled when she was not permitted to come
into his room, and the physicians soon saw that it would be
best for both that she should see him at least once a day.

The public was kept informed of the President's condi-
tion by daily bulletins issued by the attending physicians,
and for several days after the tragedy his condition was so
favorably reported that confident predictions were made of
his recovery. Indeed, five days after the shooting the physi-
cians declared that he was practically out of danger and
would probably recover.

Following closely upon that reassuring announcement
came the startling statement, on the night of September 12,
that the President was worse. He had complained of weari-
ness, and had frequently exclaimed, " I am so tired." Mr.
McKinley's relatives were notified, and they hastened to
the house.

The next morning at 6 o'clock, while the windows of his
room were opened for a short time, the President turned his
head and glanced out. The sky was overcast with clouds,
and he remarked that it wras not quite so bright as the day
before. When the nurses were closing the windows to
exclude the light, he gently protested, saying, " I want to
see the trees. They are so beautiful." He was fully con-
scious then, and seemed grateful for the chance to see the
sky and trees.

The President gradually failed during the day. That
evening he asked to see Mrs. McKinley. She was led into
the death chamber, and the strong face of the President
lighted up as she bent over him. There Mrs. McKinley took

740 DEATH OF" PRESIDENT McKtNLEY.

her last farewell of her dying husband, who for years had
given her his tenderest care. She took his hands in both
her own, gazed fondly, tearlessly, at the changing features,
then smoothed back the hair from his brow, half arose,
placed both arms around his neck, held them so for an
instant, then arose and turned, and was led from the cham-
ber as one in a dream. On returning to her room she gave
way to bitter sobs and heartbreaking lamentations. Friends
did their utmost to console her, but their efforts were una-
vailing. Her grief was absorbing and intense.

The President's condition grew steadily worse, and it
was apparent that the end was near at hand. In his last
period of consciousness he repeated the words of the beauti-
ful hymn, "Nearer, my God, to Thee," and his last audible,
conscious words, as taken down by one of the attending
physicians at the bedside, were : " Good-bye, all, good-bye.
It is God's way. His will be done." Hovering on the bor-
der line between life and death, waiting only for the fulfill-
ment of the time allotted him by his Maker, his mind wan-
dered to his home and the days when he was a boy. With
each brief period of returning consciousness his thoughts
reverted to her for whose comfort he had always striven.
All else was forgotten, and she alone filled his thoughts.

Just as he had lived, with words of kindness and gentle-
ness for all on his lips, without bitterness toward any human
being in his heart, serenely, painlessly, President McKinley
ended his earthly life at 2.15 a.m. on September 14, 1901.
He passed away peacefully. It was as though he had fallen
asleep. Only the sobs of the mourners broke the silence of
the chamber of death. Mrs. McKinley bore her burden of
grief with a Christian fortitude and calmness that surprised
her friends.

The remains of the martyr President were borne in im-
pressive state from Buffalo to Washington and taken to the
White House, from which he and his wife had gone forth

mrs. Mckinley's sad return to the white house. 741

only a few weeks previous full of happy thoughts and
anticipations. There, in the historic East Room, sombre
with its drawn shades and dim burning lights, the heavy
black casket resting in the center of the room, under the
great crystal chandelier, the guard of honor watched over
the dead body of the lamented President. Thenceforward
the White House had a new sacredness in American eyes.

That night Mrs. McKinley rested in her old room in the
Executive Mansion from which she was so soon to depart to
make place for a new mistress of the White House. On the
next morning the dead body of the President was rever-
ently taken to the rotunda of the Capitol, where the state
funeral was held, and on Wednesday the remains were
escorted to Canton, Ohio, where interment took place
September 19, 1901. This was the twentieth anniversary
of the death of President Garfield.

Swift punishment awaited the assassin. He was
promptly tried, and on September 26th, just twenty days
after he fired the fatal shots, he was condemned to death
and was executed in the state prison at Auburn, N. Y.,
October 29, 1901.

As a wise, just, pure-hearted statesman, William Mc-
Kinley achieved imperishable fame. In the Chief Magis-
trate the man was never lost. Modest, equable, benign,
patient, and magnanimous, he won esteem and inspired
love. Of all our Presidents, he was the most popular for
his human qualities, and no man could better deserve the
regard of his countrymen. Posterity will acclaim him one
of the greatest Presidents of our Republic, and in the
hearts of Americans McKinley will be enshrined with the
lamented Lincoln.

CHAPTEE LIII.

THE PRESIDENTS, THEIR WIVES, AND FAMOUS LADIES OF

THE WHITE HOUSE, CONTINUED —PRESIDENT AND MRS

ROOSEVELT ENTER THE WHITE HOUSE.

Theodore Roosevelt Becomes President of the United States — The Story
of His Life — His Rapid Rise to Fame — His Ability and Honesty in
Public Office — Why He Became the Most Thoroughly Hated Man in
New York — Selected by President McKinley for Assistant Secretary
of the Navy — What the "Old Timers" Thought of the Appointment

— The Liveliest Official in Washington — His Life on a Western
Ranch — Getting Acquainted with Cowboys — Raising the Regiment
of "Rough Riders" — "I'm Kinder Holler" — His Personal Bravery
on the Battlefield — A Popular Hero — Elected Governor of New York

— Elected Vice-President of the United States — Assuming the Great
Office of President of the United States — Mrs. Roosevelt and Her
Six Children — An Ideal Wife and Mother — Superintending Her Own
Household — Children at the White House.

W$k Y the death of President McKinley, Theodore
Roosevelt, then Yice-President, became the
twenty-fifth President of the United States.
The title, the honors, and the burdens of
the highest office of the greatest nation in the
world came to him unexpectedly and prematurely.
For years Theodore Roosevelt has had the potentialities
of a President of the United States in him, and thousands
have turned instinctively to him as the man who, early in
the twentieth century, would be made the Chief Executive.
The candor and rugged honesty of his political life made
him formidable to certain selfish corporate influences,
and his personal popularity stood in the way of the ambi-
tions of powerful individuals in the Republican party,

(742)

THE STORY OF THEODORE ROOSEVELT'S LIFE. 743

Very largely for these reasons the vice-presidential nomina-
tion was forced upon him against his will and the desires of
his best friends. He was regarded as a dangerous presi-
dential possibility, and designing politicians were anxious to
get him out of the way.

By the irony of fate he now becomes president through
a tragedy which made him heir to much of popular affection
for his predecessor. Thus were the machinations of his
enemies and rivals brought to naught; and thus did the
nation gain an Executive vigorous in body and mind, finely
educated, notable as a writer of American history, exacting
yet sympathetic in administrative labors, intensely Ameri-
can in policy, yet without a trace of racial narrowness,
unequivocal in his religious convictions yet tolerant of men
of all faiths, a champion of civil service reform, municipal
reform, and all altruistic movements.

President Roosevelt was born in New York City October
27, 1858. His early education was obtained in private and
preparatory schools. He entered Harvard College in 1875,
and was graduated in 1880. After a trip to Europe for
much needed rest, he returned to New York in 1881, and
began the study of law, but soon abandoned it and became
interested in politics. He has described his entry into the
political field thus: "I have always believed that every
man should join a political organization and should attend
the primaries ; that he should not be content to be merely
governed, but should do his part of that work. So after
leaving college I went to the local political headquarters,
attended all the meetings and took my part in whatever
came up."

In the fall of 1881 he was elected to the New York
Assembly, and was twice re-elected, serving in the Legisla-
tures of 1882, 1883, and 188-4. He began his career in the
Assembly without prestige and with the opposition of a
powerful political ring. But he fought it down, mastering

744 Roosevelt's rapid rise to fame and position.

one opponent after another until he was recognized as a
leader, and won his way to the very front rank of Assembly
influence. He was highly popular with his associates,
irrespective of party.

Four years membership in the Eighth Regiment of the
New York State National Guard, to which Roosevelt be-
longed from 1884 to 1888, and in which he was for a time a
captain, furnished at least a basis for his subsequent
brilliant military career.

Mr. Roosevelt's rapid rise from ward to national politics
was the natural result of his brilliant Legislative work. He
was appointed a member of the United States Civil Service
Commission by President Harrison in 1889. His ability
and honesty in conducting the affairs of that office greatly
strengthened his hold on the public, and he was regarded
the best member of the Civil Service Commission the
United States ever had.

In 1895 he accepted the office of Police Commissioner
of New York. His administration of this office was charac-
terized by the same uncompromising honesty that is the
most prominent note in his character. He set about to
enforce the laws as he found them in the statutes, and this
brought into the legal net many delinquents who had never
anticipated being discovered or punished. In a very few
weeks he was the most thoroughly hated man in all the
city. His was the dominating personality in a board that
did more to dethrone evil and clear out the worst part
of the slums of New York and introduce honest adminis-
tration of affairs, than any other board has ever done. The
saloon element that had suffered most said they would get
rid of Roosevelt by fair means or foul. No greater com-
pliment could have been paid to him.

Such was the man whom President McKinley selected
for Assistant Secretary of the Navy in April, 1897. He
accepted the position and went to work on the instant

ASTONISHING THE " OLD TIMERS". 745

Before the "old timers" in the department realized the
change, the Assistant Secretary, but a few days in office,
began to astonish them by his comprehensive mastery of
detail. Presently it was perceived that he was about the
liveliest man in that part of Washington. He was every-
where at once, and he could be found at almost any hour
where the complications were thickest and the problems
most serious.

The conservative members of the Service immediately
concluded that Roosevelt would upset the Navy Depart-
ment. His first duty on coming into office was to investi-
gate the efficiency of the navy. He aroused the bureaus of
the Department from lethargy, provided shot and shell for
naval vessels, and enforced ceaseless practice and drill with
the ships of the navy. From the time he entered the office
he seemed to realize that war with Spain was inevitable.
His energy and quick mastery of detail contributed much
to the successful administration of the department and the
preparing of the navy for the most brilliant feats in naval
warfare in the history of the world. To him more than to
any other person was due the readiness of the navy to strike
when our war with Spain began.

When war was finally declared, Mr. Roosevelt could not
sit sti.U behind a desk. He submitted his resignation as
Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and proposed to the Presi-
dent to raise a mounted regiment to be composed of men
who knew how to ride and shoot. His offer was accepted.

Mr. Roosevelt had been one of the first of the Eastern
men of culture to enter upon the cattle business in the far
West, with the serious purpose of making money, and for
years he spent so much of his summers as could be spared
from other business to live among the rough riders of the
plains, eating with them, sleeping with them, hunting with
them, and sharing in the roughest of their sports and in
trials of endurance, strength, and skill.

<< TJATTnTT nTTsTro^ JJ

746 RAISING THE REGIMENT OF "ROUGH RIDERS

He told his hired cowboys that he intended to be one of
them. As he was a college graduate and wore glasses, they
set him down for a typical " tenderfoot " at first, but were
soon undeceived. His great personal popularity among
them was won by his ability to more than hold his own
with them. With cowboys he was a cowboy, and the
ranchmen claimed him for their very own. He endured all
the hardships of that life, branded his own cattle, rounded
up his own herds, and never expected anything more than
he found at hand. He learned to know cowboys as fearless
riders and courageous men, strong to bear the hardships of
warfare. From such men the famous regiment of Rough
Riders was chiefly recruited.

At Roosevelt's suggestion Dr. Leonard A. Wood, an
army surgeon, was appointed Colonel of the regiment, with
Roosevelt as Lieutenant-Colonel. He became Colonel on
the promotion of Wood to be a brigadier-general. At the
very start Roosevelt moulded this band of independent,
high-spirited ranchers, cow-punchers, and athletes into regi.
mental shape with no uncertain hand. In one of his first
speeches to them he said : " You've got to perform without
flinching whatever duty is assigned you, regardless of the
difficulty or danger attending it. No matter what comes,
you must not squeal." These words of Roosevelt became
almost a religion with his men. " To do anything without
flinching and not to squeal" was their aim, and to hear the
Colonel say " Good " was reward enough. He was on
thoroughly good terms with his men, many of whom he
knew by name.

When it came to discipline Colonel Roosevelt never let
his kindness of heart degenerate into anything like laxity.
It is related of him that one day in camp, before Santiago,
one of his troopers objected to the performance of some
menial work which was unpleasant, but necessary. Colonel
Roosevelt, who had striven to impress every man while the

FILLING UP A "HOLLER". 747

command was being recruited that no picnic was ahead of
them, and that there would be many unpleasant and dis-
tasteful duties to perform, was vexed that the lesson had
been so imperfectly learned, or, if learned, so quickly for-
gotten, and he became angry when the man got obstinate.
He gave him a lecture that made his ears ring.

When he had finished the trooper said : " All right, Col-
onel ; HI do it." Then he paused for a minute. "Colonel,"
he went on, "haven't you got a few beans to spare? I'm
kinder holler." The commander of the Rough Riders had
been scowling savagely, but at the appeal for beans the
scowl vanished. " Til see," he said. " Come over here."
The trooper followed to where Colonel Roosevelt's belong-
ings were lying. The Colonel found a small can three-
quarters full. " Here," he said, emptying out half of them,
" take 'em and fill up your ' holler,' but you bury that dead
horse at once or there'll be trouble in this camp, and you'll
be in it."

In Cuba the Rough Riders saw active service, and Roose-
velt distinguished himself again and again by personal
bravery and efficiency in the management of his command,
always leading his men into the thickest of the battle. His
conduct at the jungle fight of Los Guasimas, and in the
bloody charge up San Juan Hill, made him easily the lead-
ing popular hero of the Spanish War in Cuba. When he
returned to the United States with his regiment in August,
1898, he was already talked of as the next governor of New
York. But his regiment, which he had " breathed with and
eaten with for three months," was still on his hands, and he
had no time for anything but that. Not until he became a
plain citizen would he talk of politics. The demand for his
nomination as the Republican candidate for Governor of
New York was so great that he could not resist it, though
he neither sought nor desired it. He was elected Governor
in the ensuing election.

748 OBEYING AN IMPERATIVE CALL.

As Governor it was felt that the State would have as an
executive a man of such high integrity that every office-
holder in Albany would understand that his accounts must
be absolutely correct, that there Avould be no stealing, and
that there would be no jobbery attempted in the legislature.
It was also felt that the standard of official efficiency would
be raised ; that inefficient public servants would be retired
and replaced with men of undoubted capacity. He exhib-
ited the most desirable qualities of an executive officer, and
his administration was of absolute moral purity. Its integ-
rity was recognized by every political party.

When the Republican National Convention of 1900 met
in Philadelphia, the demand for the nomination of Governor
Roosevelt for Yice-President of the United States was irre-
sistible. He did not seek and did not want the nomination.
At his party's imperative call, however, he relinquished the
desire he had to be re-elected Governor of New York, and
accepted the position on the national Republican ticket with
William McKinley.

That President Roosevelt is in reality a man of many
sides is shown by the fact that in the midst of his intensely
active life he has found time to do a large amount of lit-
erary work. He is the first man of letters to occupy the
presidential chair since Thomas Jefferson. He has written
man}^ books, some of them notable, and contributed many
articles to the press. His writings are marked by rich
descriptive power, and his historical works by accuracy,
breadth, and fairness. In his books are recorded his best
thoughts on public policy, legislation, and ideal government.

Throughout his public career, which in a few years has
been crowded with more stirring events than usually fall to
the lot of one man in a lifetime, President Roosevelt has
been first and always a family man. His children not only
love him, but make him their playmate and companion
whenever he is with them, which is every moment that his

THE KEYNOTE OP ROOSEVELT'S POPULARITY. 740

public duties will admit. He is never so happy as when he
is sitting quietly in his home with his wife and children.
Home is to him the most sacred place on earth, and he
never allows his family circle to be disturbed by the many
cares which fall upon him as a servant of his country.

President Koosevelt has always been a vigorous speaker,
with opinions of his own, and upon subjects of national im-
portance he never hesitates to say what he believes. His
views arc constant and unchanging, as his manner of stating
them is as straight as a sword-thrust. In one of his public
addresses he said: "No nation, no matter how glorious its
history, can exist unless it practices — practices, mind you,
not merely preaches — civic honesty, civic decency, civic
righteousness. No nation can permanently prosper unless
the decalogue and the golden rule are its guides in public as
in private life."

Above all things he is a man. This is the keynote to
his popularity. " For myself," he said, " I'd work as quick
beside 'Pat' Dugan as with the last descendants of the Pa-
troon. It literally makes no difference to me, so long as the
work is good and the man is in earnest. I would have
young men work! I'd try to develop and work out an ideal
of mine, the theory of the duty of the leisure classes to the
community. I have tried to do it by example, and it is
what I have preached — first and foremost, to be American
heart and soul, and to go with any person, heedless of any-
thing but that person's qualifications."

Young in years, but old in experience, and with qualities
of character which won the cowboy on the plains and the
Harvard undergraduate with equal potency, he came to the
presidency at the earliest age on record, with the faith of
the young men of the country going out to him as it never
had to any other president.

His faith in American institutions and the future of his
country is unlimited and inspiring. "With a remarkable ca-

750 THE WIFE OF PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT.

pacity for work and a constitution equal to any strain, he
will always be found laboring for his country's good. A
citizen of exalted personal character, a type of all the
homely virtues, of irreproachable private life, an ardent
patriot, a keen student of men and affairs, a statesman of
large experience in executive tasks, and of wide acquaint-
ance with the people, the history and the institutions of the
United States, he will give the American people an able,
honest, and clean administration. He stands before the
country picturesque and unique, a daring leader of men and
affairs. He entered the White House with the heritage of
the example of one of the most eminent and successful ad-
ministrations of our history, and he assumed the great office
of President of the United States with a sustaining assur-
ance of the confidence and support of his fellow country-
men.

Mrs. Koosevelt, who is now the first lady in the land,
is the second wife of the President. She comes from a long
line of ancestors high in social position, and as a young girl
she was a great favorite in society not only in this country
but abroad. Thoroughly well posted in the requirements
and duties of social etiquette, the formality that must needs
rule in the White House will yet be much, mitigated by the
indescribable charm of the home life which will dominate
everything.

The attractive personality of Mrs. Roosevelt made her
especially popular as the wife of the Governor of New
York. She has never been in any sense a " public woman "
even when as the wife of the Governor social and public
functions made great demands upon her. She avoids promi-
nent identification with any movement, and dislikes ostenta-
tious display. Shrinking from undue publicity, hers is one
of those rare personalities which are bound to assert them-
selves under any and all circumstances. Yet as the social
leader of the country Mrs. Eoosevelt is fully equipped.

MISS ALICE ROOSEVELT, THE I'KESIDEXT'S ELDEST DAl'i'.UTER.

Erom her latest photograph, approved by President and Mrs.

Roosevelt. Engraved exp essly for this hook.

MRS. ROOSEVELT AS A WIFE AND MOTHER. 751

Few women of the present day are more cultured or accom-
plished. Indeed, she might be taken as the type of the
American woman ; for, though essentially feminine and
dainty in appearance, she has yet enough fondness for out-
door life and sports to be in entire sympathy with her
husband. She is also the personification of the good
American wife and mother. No matter how busy and how
full her life may be, certain hours are devoted exclusively
to her children, who receive probably the tenderest care
and attention that a mother has ever lavished upon children
in their position in life. Yet she superintends her own
household, and is a business woman when business interests
claim her attention.

. The first wife of President Koosevelt was Miss Alice Lee
of Boston. After only a year of married life the young
wife died, leaving a baby girl, Miss Alice, who has recently
entered society.

The present Mrs. Koosevelt was Miss Edith Kermit
Carew, and Mr. Eoosevelt married her in London in 1886.
She was born in New York, where her girlhood was passed
and where she attended school.

Mrs. Eoosevelt's life while wife of the Governor of New
York State indicates that while not craving public notoriety
she will neglect none of the social duties which tradition
assigns to the mistress of the White House. She has a
genius for hospitality, and has, in addition, the unusual gift
of being able to remember the faces of persons she has met
but once or twice. She is of medium height and graceful
figure, and has a charm of manner that attracts all who
meet her. She dresses simply, but always in perfect taste.

President and Mrs. Roosevelt are the youngest couple
who have ever occupied the White House, and they, with
their children, will unquestionably transform it in many
ways. They have six children, ranging in age according to
the order in which they are here named : Alice, Theodore,

752 THE ROOSEVELT CHILDREN IN THE WHITE HOUSE.

Kermit, Ethel, Archibald, and Quentin. Thus the stately
rooms of the White House again resound to the voices of
children. "With the single exception of President Mc-
Kinley's administration the Executive Mansion has for the
past forty years never been without the charms of child-
hood life. All the presidents did not have young children,
but where these were lacking there were grandchildren to
take their places.

The home life of the White House during Roosevelt's
administration promises to be an interesting and very
happy one. The people of the United States will love
Mrs. Roosevelt as they admire the rugged courage, un-
compromising honesty, and indomitable persistency of her
husband — the President.

SEP 6 - 1955

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