r "V ° N^ "V \> C\\\,^C(, ///I o '-•^ (1~ ♦ o ^^V V^^\/ ^o^'-^^^-V V-^^"^^' ^'^^ o ^ » * • ' > d?- * o „ o ^ CS^ O ^, A^ 'V .'^* ^^ "-^ "^^4«* .^' "^. --tip ^^ % A^ /. .0 ^"•v, '^ i^. 0' V ^"^ 'wm-- /'x •.^^« *^^'^"- wm'\/\''-9,-\^'" 4 o -^^••^••y v-^\*^'^ %--^^'\o' % HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. WASHINGTON: PAST AND PRESENT. HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON ITS NOTED MEN AND WOMEN 'Yr\MJ. MARY Si-'^ LOCKWOOD 'I FULLY ILLUSTRA TED NEW YORK BELFORD COMPANY, PUBLISHERS 18-22 East i8th Street [Publishers of Belford^s Magazine\ .L7q COPYRIGHT, 1889. MARY S. LOCKWOOD. Ansn'ia. \ ^■s^ CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. THE FIRST SETTLERS. Captain John Smith— The History of the Red Man in the Rotunda— The Century of the New Nation's Birth— Proclamation of President Washington — Selection of a Site for the Capital— Major L'Enfant's Plan !•! CHAPTER II, THE COTTAGE OF DAVID BURNS. The Compact— Oldest Home in Washington— Tom Moore's Room— Marcia Burns— The Van Ness Mansion— Ann Elbertine Van Ness — Arthur Middleton. . . 21 CHAPTER III. DUDDINGTON MANOR. Mr. Pope's Patent— Daniel Carroll— Charles Carroll— Duddington Manor— Thomas Low— Married Miss Custis— The Bill for a United States Bank 28 CHAPTER IV. HISTORIC HOMES OF LA FAYETTE SQUARE. The White House— John Adams, President— The new Capitol— John Cotton Smith's letter— The six Buildings— President Adams' Address— The President's House- Washington at the laying of the Corner-stone— Abigail Adams as Wife and Mother .2 CHAPTER V. THE WHITE HOUSE DURING THE JEFFERSON AND MADISON ADMINISTRATIONS. The Wife and Daughter of President Jefferson— Marie's Marriage to Mr. Randolph —Mary's to Mr. Eppes— The first child born in the White House— Hamilton and Burr- Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson die July 4, 1826— The Capital a Wilder- ness—Madison declares War— The British enter Washington — Mrs. Madison at her Best— Saves Washington's Portrait and the State Papers— The White House in Ashes co CHAPTER VI. ADMINISTRATIONS OF JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. The White House rebuilt— Mr. Monroe inaugurated President— The " Monroe Doctrine"— Henry Clay, the Magnificent— John C. Calhoun, Secretary of War -Thomas Benton as Senator— John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State— John McLane, Postmaster-General — William Wirt, Attorney-General — John Quincy Adams elected President — "Mrs. Adams' Ball "—The House elects the Presi- dent— Inaugurated President, March 4, 1825— La Fayette's Farewell Visit. . . 60 CHAPTER VIL THE WHITE HOUSE DURING PRESIDENT JACKSON's ADMINISTRATION. Jackson's Inauguration — Jackson's Cabinet— "To the Victors belong the Spoils" — The Mrs. Eaton Imbroglio— Four Children born in the White House— Gen- eral Jackson, Godfather. ^g 6 CONTENTS. CHAPTER VIII. THE WHITE HOUSE DURING THE ADMINISTRATIONS OF MARTIN VAN BUREN AND WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. Martin Van Buren's Inauguration — The Court of " Martin the First " — General Harrison nominated at Baltimore — Origin of the "Log Cabin" and "Hard Cider" Epithets— The "Log Cabins" Victorious— General Harrison inaugu- rated President 85 CHAPTER IX. JOHN TYLER IN THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. Successor to General Harrison — President Tyler a charming Host — The British Minister — Authors of the Sketch Book and Pickwick Papers present — Mrs. Letitia Tyler's Death— Mrs. Letitia Semple, Lady of the White House — Presi- dent Tyler marries Miss Gardiner — President Tyler retires to Virginia. . . 04 CHAPTER X. THE WHITE HOUSE DURING THE ADMINISTRATIONS OF JAMES K. POLK AND ZACHARY TAYLOR. Mexican War — Polk surrounded by Great Men — Death of John Quincy Adams — The last Levee of President Polk— Mrs. Polk's Portrait— " Old Rough and Ready" — Admission of California— Mr. Clay's " Compromise Bill" — Death of the President . 104 CHAPTER XI. MILLARD FILLMORE, FRANKLIN PIERCE AND JAMES BUCHANAN IN THE WHITE HOUSE. Millard Fillmore sworn in as President — Signs the Fugitive Slave Bill — Address of Daniel Webster — Henry Clay's Death — Inauguration of Franklin Pierce — The Shadowy Days of President Buchanan's Administration — Lovely Harriet Lane — Visit of the Prince of Wales— Letter from Queen Victoria — Buchanan's Administration ends in Confusion and Dismay. 112 CHAPTER XII. ABRAHAM LINCOLN, ANDREW JOHNSON, AND ULYSSES GRANT, PRESIDENTS. A Man tried as by Fire— His Second Inaugural— The Nation's Calamity— Mrs. Lin- coln's Ambition— Death of the beautiful Boy, Willie— Andrew Johnson— Madame Le Vert— General Ulysses Grant, President -General Grant's Cabinet- Inaugural Ball— Kitchen Cabinet— President and Mrs. Grant— General Babcock —Second Inaugural— Nellie Grant's Wedding— General Grant's reluctant Con- sent— A Sorrowing Nation 121 CHAPTER XIII. RUTHERFORD B. HAYES, JAMES A. GARFIELD, CHESTER A. ARTHUR, AND GROVER CLEVELAND, PRESIDENTS. Exciting Canvass— Electoral Commission— Mrs. Lucy Webb Hayes— Mr. and Mrs. Hayes leave the White House— Mr. Garfield's Inaugural— The President's Mother— Thurman and Hamlin— General Winfield Scott Hancock— Gallant Phil Sheridan— The first President's Mother in the White House— Mr. Garfield's Cabinet— The Oath of Office taken upon the Death of the President— Mr. Arthur's Wife— The President's last official Act ; General Grant put on the Retired List— President Arthur died in Lexington Avenue, New York— Mr. Cleveland inaugurat-d President — Thomas Francis Bayard— Daniel Manning— Mrs. Manning —Mr. William C. Kndicott— Augustus H. Garland— William Freeman Vilas— William C. Whitney— Secretary Lamar— President Cleveland's Marriage— Rose Ellzabctli Cleveland— Frances Folsom— Mrs. Cleveland's Popularity 135 CONTENTS. 7 CHAPTER XIV. BENJAMIN HARRISON, PRESIDENT. Mrs. Harrison found a City fair to look upon— The President— James G. Blaine, Secretary of State — William Windom, Secretary of the Treasury— Redfield Proctor, Secretary of War— Benjamin Tracy. Secretary of the Navy— John Wanamaker, Postmaster-General — John W. Noble, Secretary of the Interior — William Henry Harrison Miller, Attorney-General— Jeremiah M. Rusk, Secre- tary of Agriculture — President Harrison, as he is to his People \Af^ CHAPTER XV. THE HOMES OF LA FAYETTE SQUARE ; GENERAL SICKLES, COMMODORE DE- CATUR, DOLLY MADISON, OGLE TAYLOE, WILLIAM H. SEWARD. The White House the first built on the Square — St. John's Church— Decatur's Life— Edward Livingrston— Cora Livingston— Charles Vaughan — Baron Hyde de Neuville and the King Brothers— Succeeded by William Appleton of Boston — Gen. Edward F. Beale— The Dan Sickles Home— Smith Thompson, South- ard, and Woodbury— Schuyler Colfa.x- Home of Dolly Madison— Headquar- ters of General McCIellan— President William Henry Harrison's last Visit- Shooting of Philip Barton Key— Commodore Rodgers— William H. Seward —General and Mrs. Belknap— James G. Blaine— La Fayette Square. . . • I ■;'? CHAPTER XVI. THE HOMES OF CHARLES SUMNER, W. W. CORCORAN AND REVERDY JOHNSON. Sumner's Classic Home— Ben. Perley Poore, his Clerk— The Home of Corcoran— Sir Frederic Bruce— Home of John Slidell— Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy — Home of Reverdy Johnson. -16? CHAPTER XVn. THE HOMES OF DANIEL WEBSTER, GEORGE BANCROFT, JOHN HAY, THOMAS RITCHIE, MONTGOMERY BLAIR, AND ADMIRAL PORTER. Last Home of Webster— Grace Fletcher— Calhoun's Death— Nomination of General Scott— Mr. Webster's Death— George Bancroft— John Hay's Home— The National T^-ibune — The Slidell House— The Blair Mansion— John T. Mason— The Home of Thomas Ewing— Marriage of General W. T. Sherman— "Tom " Corwin in President Fillmore's Cabinet— Montgomerv Blair— Sir Frederic Bruce — Lord Napier — Lord Lyons— Admiral David D. Porter 173 CHAPTER XVin. THE HOMES BEYOND THE POTOMAC — MOUNT VERNON, ABINGDON, ARLINGTON. The Tomb of Washington — Washington's " Birthnight "—Washington's last Minuet —Count de Rochambeau visits Mount Vernon— Ale.xandria and Christ Church — General Washington's Pew— The Legend of the beautiful Stranger— Andrew- Jackson's Sunday Home— General Washington's Room— Washington's high tariff Bill— Nellie Custis— May Randolph Custis— Robert Lee— Washington Relics. 191 CHAPTER XIX. BRADDOCK'S rock, OBSERVATORY HILL, AND ST. ANN'S INFANT ASYLUM. General Braddock— The Old Braddock House— Observatory Hill— Graveyard Hill —Windmill Hijl— " Camp Hill "—St. Ann's Infant Asylum— Home of General Charles Gratiot— Count Charles de Montholon— The Residence of Henry Stephen Fox 208 CHAPTER XX. THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS AND HOMES OF THE FOREIGN LEGATIONS. The Dean of the Diplomatic Corps— Mr. Stephen Preston— Minister Genet — Anthony Merry— The Home of the British Legation— Sir Edward Thornton- Minister Vaughan— Minister Fo.\— Minister Pakenham— Sir Philip Crampton —Lord Elgin— Lord Napier— Lord Lyons— Sir Frederic Bruce— Lionel Sack- ville-West— Sir Julian Pauncefote— The Chinese Minister— Mr. Charles de 8 CONTENTS. Struve— Baron Roman Rosen— Mr. Alexander McGregor— The German Lega- tion's Home— The Japanese Legation — The Mexican Legation's Home — Senor Matias Romero — The Coreans. 214 CHAPTER XXI. AN HISTORIC RECEPTION — LA FAYETTE's LAST VISIT TO WASHINGTON. La Fayette returns to America — La Fayette at the White House — Banquet at Gadsby's Hotel — La Fayette in Georgetown — At Arlington Heights — Visits Mount Vernon — Yorktown, Richmond, Monticello and Montpelier — Bids America Farewell. 230 CHAPTER XXII. CALVERT MANOR, KALORAMA, THE SEVEN BUILDINGS, AND OLD CARROLL ROW. Calvert Manor — Old Bladensburg — Henry Clay's Room — The Missouri Com- promise Bill — Kalorama — Home of Joel Barlow — Robert Fulton — Tom Paine a Visitor at Kalorama — Barlow again sent Abroad — Mr. Barlow dies on the way Back — The Seven Buildings — Elbridge Gerry — Governor Thomas Johnson —The Forrest Family — Past glories of the Seven Buildings — Old Carroll Row— A new Library Building — Duff Green Row— " Nick Queen's" — Home of Guiseppe'Franzoni — Old Capitol Prison — Annie Royal's Printing House — Wirz and Belle Boyd 240 CHAPTER XXIII. HOMES OF LITERARY WOMEN — LITERARY CLUBS. Capitol Hill— The Home of Mary Clemmer— Grace Greenwood— Home of "Olivia" — Prospect Cottage — A glimpse of Arlington — Ainsworth R. Spofford — The Women's National Press Association — The Journalists' Guild — Frances Hodgson Burnett _ 259 CHAPTER XXIV. HOMES OF F. T. FRELINGHUYSEN, LEVI P. MORTON AND SALMON P. CHASE. The Frelinghuysen House — Arthur's Administration — William E. Whitney — John Wanamaker — The Morton House — J. Lothrop Motley — James A. Gartield break- fasts with Mr. Morton — Senator Hale in this House— Home of Salmon P. Chase — Beautiful Edgewood 268 CHAPTER XXV. GEORGETOWN HEIGHTS — THE CHANGES OF A HUNDRED YEARS — THE HOL- LAND HOUSE OF WASHINGTON. The Beale Family— Celtic Bell— The Peters Family— The Tudor Estate— The Linthicum Mansion — The Russian Minister — General Forrest at Rosedale^ Don Angel de Iturbide — "Pretty Prospect "—The Home of President Cleve- land — "Oak View" — Holland House — Gales and Seaton — Fugitive Slave Bill — Frederika Bremer— Harriet Martineau— The Battle of Bull Run — Miss Dix— An Historic Parlor— Theodosia Burr. 276 CHAPTER XXVI. THE STRATHMORE ARMS. Here lived Vice-President Wheeler— Senator Edmunds — Judge Harlan— Senator Ingalls— James B. Blount— M. C. Butler, of South Carolina— Charles T. O'Far- rell, of Virginia— Senators Frye and Tom Reed— Senator McDill and Ex-Gov- ernor Carpenter — Isaac Von Schaick — L. B. Caswell — R. M. La Follette — W. A. Haugen— A. S. Giffard and John Lind— William H. Wade— William E. Mason — Olive Logan Sikes — The Home of General John A. Logan — George S. Boutwell — Reuben E. Fenton— Senator Hale— Judge Thomas Hood— Rev. Dr. Scott— Mrs. Scott Lord— Mrs. Dimmick— Mrs. Lieutenant Parker— Oliver J[ohn- son— C. C. Coffin (Carleton) — Bronson Howard — George Kennan — Fleming — Dunnell— McBride — Pepper— Andrews— Carpenter — Frank Palmer— Miss Jen- nings—Harriet Taylor Upton 289 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Engraved Expressly for This Work. Frontispiece Home of Edward Everett Octagon House duddington manor Van Ness House Capitol Botanical Garden Vista White House, South Front Family Sitting Room — Upper Corridor East Room Inner Corridor La Fayette Park Vista Conservatory Ford's Theatre House in Which President Lincoln Died Theatre Box Lincoln Monument Peace Monument Franzoni Clock Decatur House Dan Sickles' House Home OF Dolly Madison Ogle Tayloe Mansion Seward House Rookery, Agricultural Grounds Entrance to Smithsonian Grounds Home of W. W. Corcoran Charles Sumner's House Reverdy Johnson's House St. John's Church Jackson Monument, La Fayette Square Botanical Garden Vista I o LIST OF ILL US TRA TIONS. Home of George Bancroft Home of Daniel Webster Home of Admiral Porter Blair Mansion North Front of Treasury Bartholdi Fountain McPherson Statue East View of Mount Vernon Arlington Mansion Tomb of Washington South Gate, Arlington Avenue Monument to the Linknow and Tomb of Fame Equestrian Statue of Washington Old Christ Church, Alexandria English Legation Russian Legation Home of Romero, Mexican Legation German Legation Stewart Castle, Chinese Legation Franklin Park Fountain Botanical Conservatory Calvert Manor Old Slave Tower Fireplace in Clay's Room An Ancient Wardrobe An Old-fashioned Stairway A Moulding of the Staircase Octagon Barn Home of Mary Clemmer Maple Square, Home of " Olivia Grace Greenwood's Home Prospect Cottage, Home of E. D E. N. Southworth Home of Frances Hodgson Burnett Mary Clemmer's Library Grotto Spring The Strathmore Arms Calumet Place, Home of Mrs. John A. Logan Home of Mrs. Johnson Linthicum Place Tudor Place Statue of General Scott Statue of General Thomas Thomas Circle PREFACE. In gathering the materials for this book, it has been the writer's aim to collect authentic data of facts, and changes that have come over the face of this fair city since the day that Cap- tain John Smith sailed up the Potomac, through the Colonial days ; from the imaginary city, well-planned on paper, to the mag- nificent city of to-day. For the descriptions of the homes, and sketches of the men and women who have lived in them, those who made the laws of State, society and dress, old journals, family letters, and papers have been consulted, and reference had to various sources that would give authentic information for the work in hand. Something of the glory of vanished generations is herein recorded, which, with the passing of time, might have faded away and been forgotten ; yet enough remains to fill many volumes more. But the leading spirits of this day and generation have herein been accorded a place and a habitation in history. M. S. L- DEDICATION. To My Brother, Rodney B. Smith : When you read this page of dedication and see to whom it is inscribed, your first thought will be of the days so long ago, when hand in hand, we climbed the hills and spanned the meadow brooks, because we were " nest- deserted birds grown chill through something wanting " in our home. Of all that such a recollection implies, of saddest and sweetest to both of us, we could not speak, one to the other, without voices faltering. It is enough that each doth know the other's thought. The boyish arm that round me clung in those sad days, has stronger grown as years have passed, in manly might, softening or enhancing the bitter or the good that each has known. To you I give this inscription, knowing my heart will be satisfied ; for between me and the public I shall have, at least, one gen- erous reader. HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. CHAPTER I. THE FIRST SETTLERS. Captain John Smith— The Red Man's Wigwam— The Camping Ground of the Braves — When the Council-Fires were built — The History of the Red Man in the Rotunda — Fleet came over from England — Pioneers of Scotch and Irish — Settling of the Colonies — The Century of the new Nation's Birth — The Continental Congress— The Itineracy of the Congress of the Confed- eration — Controversy over the Location of the National Capital — Curious Bit of History— A Pabulum to a Stock-jobbing Herd— Proclamation of President Washington — Selection of a Site for the Capital — Three Com- missioners appointed — The Widow's Mite — " Obstinate Davy Burns " — The Engineer of the Capital— Major L'Enfant's Plan— Babylon and Phila- delphia — L'Enfant's Insubordination— His Services at an End— Andrew Ellicott reaps the Harvest. When Captain John Smith, in 1608, sailed up the Potomac, the curling smoke from the red men's wigwams welcomed him. The Powtomacks, the Manahoacs and the Anacostians had become powerful tribes ; and here where Washington stands in all its glory, was the camping ground of these brave men of the forest. When the yearly councils of the chiefs were called, it was on the banks of the beautiful Potomac that their council fires were built. The grand assemblies that have convened since, through all the decades that have come and passed away, were enacted then, in miniature, by these pioneer red men. In their war and green-corn dances, with paint and plumage, beads and tassels, they celebrated their festive seasons. There were times when the war-cry was forgotten and peace reigned among the tribes. 13 14 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Then they built their bark canoes, caught their fish, shot their game and trapped their beaver ; while the women gathered the wild rice, planted the cornfields and stripped the yellow husks. But many of these tribes were hostile ; the Manahoacs and Pow- hatans hated each other and any small offence would lead them to conflict. Constant fighting, disease, and intemperance, which latter vice they learned from the white men, depleted and weakened the tribes, until they were forced to emigrate westward and join forces with the Tuscaroras. The Anacostians and the Powtomacs faded away, but left a record of their tribes in the rivers that bear their names. When Captain John Smith first stepped foot upon this goodly land, the days were not ripe for the new civilization, and he turned his bark down the Potomac. The years came and went. The sound of the woodman's axe was not heard. The red men of the forest held possession of the land for another decade ere the new nation was born. When the architects of the Capitol placed the four oblong panels in alto-relievo over the doors of the Rotunda, they engraved upon the walls of the Capitol the history of the red man better than they knew. On the east is the landing of the Pilgrims, and the natives offering them bread in the form of an ear of corn. On the west is a panel containing a group of five figures, representing Pocahontas' interposition for the life of Captain John Smith. Over the northern entrance William Penn is represented, under the spreading elms, in the act of presenting his treaty. The elder chief is carrying in his hand the calumet, or pipe of peace ; while over the southern door Daniel Boone has just discharged his rifle and the dead Indian lies at his feet. Thus the history of the red man is most graphically portrayed. One hundred and sixty years before Maryland and Virginia were settled, a man by the name of Fleet came over from Eng- land and established fur-trading posts along the shores of the Potomac. The glowing accounts that he sent back, of the beau- tiful country he was in, no doubt induced the early Scotch and Irish pioneers to emigrate here. THE FIRST SETTLERS. I 5 In the fullness of time, there came a day for the settling of the Colonies. It was the century in which the great Queen Elizabeth died; a century in which King James gave us the English trans- lation of the Bible ; a century that produced a Cromwell, a William III., a Louis XIV. \ a century in which Milton dreamed of Paradise Lost and Shakespeare sang his songs immortal ; a century that gave a new world to the nations of the earth. During the Revolution, the Continental Congress was little else than an itineracy, holding its sessions in four different states and eight cities. New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Lancaster, York, Princeton, Annapolis and Trenton. After the independence of the Colonies was established, some of the disbanded troops from Lancaster came, clamoring at the doors of Congress, then sitting in Philadelphia, for money due them. Congress was powerless, and called upon the Metropolitan police to quell the mob. They were unwilling, or unable to do so. Congress therefore adjourned to Princeton, New Jersey. This awakened the people to the importance of the selection of a capi- tal. It could not be established in any municipal city where the Government had not jurisdiction. For the next four years the Congress of the Confederation was exercised over this subject; but as no official record of the debates has been preserved, it is only through the tenor of the resolutions adopted that we can glean an insight into the methods, -or appre- ciate the trouble that attended a solution of the vexed question. These years of controversy over the location of the national capital brought to the front the foremost men of the times. Mr. Jefferson has recorded in his Ana, a curious bit of history that touched the spring which gave the final action upon the adop- tion of the Potomac site for the national capital. According to Mr. Jefferson's statement, the session of 1790 was one of dissension and bitterness, marked by an obstinate scheme of Alexander Hamilton's to assume the state debts, amounting to twenty million of dollars. An amendment had been offered to the pending act covering this amount, which was rejected by the House. At this time Jefferson was Secretary of State, and Ham- ilton, Secretary of the Treasury. Hamilton was nervous and excited, and urged Jefferson to aid 1 6 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. in its reconsideration. Tlie North favored assumption, and the South opposed it, Jefferson and Hamilton met on the streets and arm in arm, walked back and forth before the President's house for half an hour. Jefferson says that, " Hamilton was in despair. He painted pathetically the temper into which the Legislature had been wrought, the disgust of those called the " creditor States," the danger of the secession of its members and the separation of the States. He said that the members of the administration ought to act in concert; that the President was the centre on which all administrative questions finally rested ; that all of us should rally around him, and support by joint effort, measures approved by him ; that an appeal from me to the judgment and discretion of my friends might effect a change in the vote, and the machinery of government, now suspended, might be set in motion. I told him that I was really a stranger to the whole subject, not having yet in- formed myself of the system adopted. That if its rejection endan- gered dissolution of the Union at this incipient stage, I should deem it the most unfortunate of all consequences ; to avert which, all partial and temporary evils should be yielded. I proposed to him to dine with me the next day, and I would invite another friend or two, and bring them into conference together; and I thought it impossible that reasonable men, consulting together coolly, could fail, by some mutual sacrifices of opinion, to form a compromise that would save the Union. The discussion took place. It was finally agreed, that whatever importance had been attached to the rejection of this proposition, the preservation of the Union and 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 observed that this pill would be peculiarly bitter to the Southern States ; and that some concomitant measures should be adopted to sweeten it a little to them. " There had been propositions 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 afterwards, this might, as an anodyne, calm in some degree the ferment which might be excited by the THE FIRST SETTLERS. 17 other measure alone. So two of the Potomac members, White and Lee, agreed to change their votes, and Hamilton undertook to carry the other point. In doing this the influence he had established over the Eastern members, and the agency of Robert Morris, with those of the Middle States, effected his side of the engagement ; and so the assumption was passed — twenty millions of stock divided among favored States, and thrown in, as a pabu- lum, to the stock-jobbing herd, and the permanent capital fixed on the Potomac." Up to this time Mr. Jefferson's statement has been accepted as a part of the history of the times. We have shown how the vote was obtained. After this, in the year 1791, the 30th day of March, fifteen years after the Independence of the United States, followed the amendatory proclamation of President Washington. After all the controversy, it is a very significant fact, that Con- gress fixed absolutely no definite place for the site of the capital city. It gave to the President of the United States power to choose any site on the river Potomac, between the mouth of the eastern branch (Anacostia) to the mouth of the Conococheague — in fact he could make his choice within a distance of about a hun- dred miles, following the river windings from the present site of Washington, to where the Conococheague joins the Potomac at Williamsport, Washington County, about seven miles from Hagers- town. Under this act, the President had it in his power to have fixed the capital one hundred miles up the river. A contemporaneous letter of Oliver Wolcott's says, " In 1800 we are to go to the Indian place with the long name, on the Poto- mac," — meaning Conococheague. The result shows that the rare judgment of General Washing- ton was peculiarly illustrated in the selection of the site of the Metropolitan city, which will continue to bear his name as long as the nation lives. Many anxious hours of his busy life were given to the subject of the location of the capital of the nation, that he believed was destined to rival any the world had ever known. His was a spirit above the paltry speculations that have some- times claimed that the proximity of Mount Vernon and its broad 1 8 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. acres was the loadstone that influenced his decision. Pause but one moment upon any of the heights that crown the city on all sides, and you will discover that nature in her most lavish moments could not have contributed more generously to the beauty of any spot. East, west, north and south of the city the country rolls away to mountain, or sea, presenting a picturesque landscape, here and there divided by the river as it winds its way to the ocean. It needed no sordid motive to impress the grandeur of the view upon Washington and his associates, in fixing definitely the spot upon which the Capitol should rise toward that heaven which had blessed its projectors in their efforts to build the temple of liberty. The God that ruled over the destinies of our forefathers was not a Zeus, hurling thunderbolts, but a Thor wielding a ham- mer. They did not float on the wings of Fate with the Greek god over them ; but they hammered away, the Norse god giving them courage, until all obstacles were overcome. Theirs was a courage that looked into the dull, dark future and smiled — a courage before which we pause with reverence and admiration. The great specific work of this civilization was first to separate the individual from the masses and exalt him into a personality. Freedom gave Washington the opportunity, and civilization stimu- lated him ; we find him, in every emergency, armed with Thor's hammer, and the nation was welded and rounded, and the work was pronounced good. The crowning point of the nation's birth was reached when a permanent Nation Home was provided for, and Washington was given the power to issue his amendatory proclamation : " Now therefoV-e, for the purpose of amending and completing the location of the ten miles square, in conformity with the said amendatory act of Congress, I do hereby declare and make known that the whole of the said territory shall be located and included within the four lines following: " Beginning at Jones Point, being the upper part of Hunting Creek, in Virginia, at an angle of forty-five degrees west of north, and running in a direct line ten miles for the first line: — Then beginning again at the same Jones Point, and running another direct line at right angles to the first across the Potomac, THE FIRST SETTLERS. 19 ten miles for the second line, running two other direct lines of ten miles each. The one crossmg the eastern branch 'aforesaid, and the other the Potomac, and meeting each other in a point. " And I do accordingly direct the commissioners named under the authority of the said first mentioned act of Congress, the 30th day of March, 1791, fifteen years after the Independence of the United States, the said site thus agreed upon, to proceed forth- with to have the said four lines run, and by proper metes and bounds, defined and limited, and therefore 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 Government of the United States." The three commissioners appointed by Washington for the sur- veying, and laying out of the Federal City, were Thomas Jefferson, Daniel Carroll, of Maryland, and Daniel Stuart, of Virginia. It would seem to have been a very easy matter for the commission, after Maryland and Virginia had ceded this right, backed by Congress and the President, to have accomplished their task ; but from the outset, they found themselves hedged in by the ob- stinacy of some of the landholders. The farms of Daniel Carroll, of Duddington Manor, Motley Young, David Burns and Samuel Davidson covered the ground where the city now stands. Negotiations were at last entered into with all but the obstinate Scotchman, David Burns. With him the commissioners failed, and Washington was told that he alone could bring him to terms. The Davy Burns farm lay south of where the President's house now stands, and extended as far east as the present site of the Patent Office. The farm contained six-hundred acres. By an in- strument dated July 5, 1681, a patent was granted to one William Langworthy of the six-hundred acres, then called the "Widow's Mite," which had been taken up by his father. Washington made his way to the Burns farm, getting Uncle Davy to sit down on a rustic seat, under a clump of trees that are still the shelter and shade of the Burns mansion. He used all his powers of persua- sion to bring about the sale. But " obstinate Mr. Burns," as Washington often called him in his correspondence, yielded not a jot. The story goes that upon one of these occasions, when 20 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Washington was trying to convince him of the great advantage it would be to him, Uncle Davy testily replied : " I suppose you think people here are going to take every grist that comes from you as pure grain, but what would you have been if you hadn't married the Widow Custis ? " At last, after frequent interviews, Washington lost his patience. He gave Mr. Burns to understand that he had b'een authorized to select the location of the national capital and said : " I have selected your farm as a part of it, and the Government will take it. I trust you will, under the circumstances, enter into an amicable agreement." The obstinate Scotchman thought that discretion under the cir- cumstances, was the better part of valor, and that by surrendering gracefully he could secure a better bargain. When the President once more asked : " On what terms will you surrender your plantation?" Mr. Burns replied: " Any that your Excellency may choose to name." We find the deed of David Burns conveying the land to the commissioners in trust, the first deed recorded in the city of Wash- ington. One by one, the original proprietors, Daniel Carroll, Motley Young, David Burns and Samuel Davidson surrendered their lands, to be laid out as a city, and gave one half of them to the Government, for the purpose of raising funds for the erection of the necessary public buildings. When the negotiations, at last were at an end, on the thirty- first day of May, Washington wrote to Jefferson from Mount Ver- non to this effect : " The owners conveyed to the United States, on consideration that when the whole should be surveyed and laid off as a city, the original proprietors should retain every other lot, the re- maining lots to be sold by Government from time to time, and the proceeds to be applied to the improvement of the place." The land comprised in the sale was 7,100 acres. For so much of the land as might be appropriated for the use of the United States, they were to pay twenty-five pounds (sixty-six and two thirds dollars) per acre, not including streets. The corner stone of the new district was laid by the commissioners April 15, 1791, THE FIRST SETTLERS. . 2 1 and under the direction of Washington, a Frenchman, Peter Charles L'Enfant, a skilled engineer, was employed to lay out the city. He was a lieutenant in the French provincial forces, but when quite young the New World held out many attractions for him, and we hear of him as an engineer in the Revolutionary army in 1777 ; and in 1778 he was appointed captain of engi- neers. He was afterwards wounded at the siege of Savannah, and was then promoted to be major of engineers, serving near Washing- ton. This gave Washington ample opportunity to learn that he had in Major L'Enfant a man of rare art culture and of versatile endowments, one that was imbued with the civilization of the Old World, and when Washington made this selection it was because he knew that he would utilize his knowledge of the art and architecture of European cities. In a letter dated September 9, 1791, the commissioners in- formed Major L'Enfant that they had decided to call the plot the Territory of Columbia, and the Federal city the city of Wash- ington. It is a well authenticated fact, that Major L'Enfant's plan, notwithstanding the different opinions existing, was the one adopted in the laying out of the city. It is also true, that he wrote Jefferson, asking his advice, thinking from his long experi- ence abroad, that he might give suggestions and plans that would be helpful. Through all this correspondence, and aside from plans of many cities which Jefferson had procured abroad, such as Paris, Mar- seilles, Turin, Milan, etc., it is very evident that one plan alone stood uppermost in his mind. It was the old Babylonial one, exem- plified in the parallelograms and angles of the city of Philadelphia — fit emblem of the square-cut, Quaker element that administered her municipal laws, but not in keeping with the " line of beauty " the Frenchman had pictured in his city of" magnificent distances." It conformed however to Jefferson's wishes that he should take as the foundation of his plan, the squares of Philadelphia, and the topography of Versailles, and then introduce the broad transverse avenues intersecting the streets of the city, with a variety of circles, open squares and triangular reservations. 22 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Major L'Enfant was unfortunately imbued with a French tem- perament. In two months after his plan was published he was dismissed from the service. It is very probable that his exalted ideas of art and finance were not in keeping with the provincial methods of the commissioners. The early education of both par- ties would tend to separate, rather than combine methods. L'Enfant was grand, elegant, magnificent in all his conceptions, and when Daniel Carroll began building Duddington house in the centre of one of his grand avenues (New Jersey), and he saw that it would lead to the breaking up of his great plan, he first admon- ished him that it could not be, and when he saw that this was not heeded, he did not hesitate to send parties in the night to raze the house to the ground, much to the disgust of the commission- ers, and especially of Daniel Carroll. Duddington house was rebuilt by the Government. It was at about this time that Washington wrote to Jefiferson : "It is much to be regretted that men who possess talents which fit them for peculiar purposes, should almost invariably be under the influence of an untrained disposition. I have thought 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 any one who has come within my knowledge in this country, or any other." In a letter from Jefiferson, dated March 6, 1792, his dismissal was thus announced : " It having been found impracticable to employ Major L'Enfant about the Federal city in that subordina- tion which was lawful and proper, he is notified that his services are at an end." Andrew Ellicott was the man chosen to finish the laying out of the city, after the original plan of Major L'Enfant. CHAPTER II. THE COTTAGE OF DAVID BURNS. The Compact — Oldest Home in Washington — Scotch Ancestry — Meetings of the old Neighbors — Tom Moore's Room — Marcia Burns — The Fairest Belle in all the Realm — Married J. P. Van Ness — The Van Ness Mansion — Latrobe the Architect — Ann Elbertine Van Ness — Arthur Middleton — Associations of the Olden Time — Citizens' Testimony — Estate owned by Thomas Green — A Lager-Beer Garden. When Washington made the contract with Mr. Burns, he agreed to have the lines of the streets so run as not to disturb the cottage of the latter. This agreement was faithfully carried out by the Government, and the oldest home to-day in Washington is the " Burns cottage." Mr. Burns' estate came to him through a long Scotch ancestry, and if he held on to his broad acres with obstinate tenacity, it was his right; for, ere Isaac Barre called the colonists "Sons of Lib- erty," ere William Pitt thundered in Parliament, " if the Amer- icans had submitted to the ' Stamp Act ' they deserved to be slaves," — ere Washington was made Commander-in-chief, or Bos- ton had had her Tea Party, the thumb-latch of the door to this old cottage was smoothed and battered by the hands of sturdy Scotch- men. The graceful aspens, the whispering maples, and sturdy oaks that now bend and hover over the low roof, then gave shel- ter and shade to the sons and daughters of the yeomanry, while playing their " Merry-go-round " with little Marcia Burns. Those long winter evenings brought many a merry meeting of the old neighbors. They would sit before the crackling fire in the old fireplace, with its hanging crane and singing firewood, and while the flames were making wierd pictures upon the back-log, they talked of the old homes and mother country, and cherished recollections of Bonnie Doon. 23 24 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Such was the hfe under this roof in the old Colonial days, when the master was plain Farmer Burns. But when the sale of the broad acres had brought him wealth, there was a change in all this. The places of the plain farmers who came, in surtout and doublet, to drink their round of apple jack, were taken by men famous in the world's history. George Washington, Thomas Jef- ferson, Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr were frequent visitors. The Calverts, the Carrolls were his intimate neighbors. Tom Moore was an honored guest. The little room off the large room, on the ground floor, is pointed out as Tom Moore's room. Quite possibly it was in this room that he wrote his poetry about Americans ; and from here he penned to Thomas Hume, the lines : " In fancy now beneath the twilight gloom, Come, let me lead thee o'er this modern Rome, Where tribunes rule, where dusky Davi bow And what was Goose Creek once, is Tiber now! This famed metropolis where Fancy sees Squares in morasses, obelisks in trees ; Which travelling fools and gazetters adorn With shrines unbuilt, and heroes yet unborn, Though naught but wood, and , they see, Where streets should run, and sages ought to be. So here I pause, — and now my Hume ! we part ; But oh ! full oft in magic dreams of heart Thus let us meet, and mingle converse dear , By Thames at home, or, by Potowmac here ! O'er lakes and marsh, through fevers and through fog, 'Midst bears and Yankees, democrats and frogs, Thy foot shall follow me ; thy heart and eyes With me shall wonder, and with me despise." Could such a cottage stand through the centuries and not have its chapter of romance to bequeath tender legacies to the after time? Whisperings have brought to us the name of one whose graces made this old home beautiful. The fairest belle in all the realm was Marcia Burns. It was a rich inheritance indeed, to this child of nature, to be surrounded with fields of waving grass, and trees, and singing birds, and the broad acres, to give her the sense that she was born to a noble THE COTTAGE OF DAVID BURNS. 2$ principality. It was one that brought many suitors to her home ; . but of them all, John P. Van Ness was the lucky man. He was a member of Congress from New York. We read of him, that he was "well-fed, well-bred and well-read," elegant, popular and handsome enough to win his way to any maiden's heart. Marcia Burns married Mr. Van Ness at twenty years of age, and being the only living heir, inherited the whole of her father's vast estate. For several years after their marriage they continued to live in the cottage in which she was born, a plain, unpre- tentious home ; yet in the day it was built it had no rivals, and was known as the Burns Mansion — a low, one-story house with a garret, four rooms in all. In all its appointments it bears the most primitive stamp. In 1820, when their only child returned from school at Phila- delphia, a new mansion was ready for occupancy. It stands in the same grounds that surround the cottage, and was the most magnificent of all the houses in the place. No historic house to-day in Washington compares with it in elegant pretentiousness. Latrobe, whose master-hand is seen in the Capitol, was the archi- tect. This house was built at a cost of $60,000, half a century ago. The old cottage was still the object of tender care, and was looked upon with the utmost veneration. The Italian mantels that adorned the new home, with their sculptured Loves and Graces, had no more charm for Mrs, Van Ness (Marcia Burns), than the old fireplace in the cottage, sacred to old associations, where love had always had a home, and the hearth-fires needed no vestal watch to keep them burning. The finish of costly woods, the doors ornamented with Spanish Azidejos, meant no more to her than the old cottage door that had forages swung upon its rude hinges. It was into the new home that Ann Elbertine Van Ness was brought. Like her mother, she was lovely in character, form and feature. Miss Van Ness was soon after married to Arthur Middleton, of South Carolina, but in less than two years from the time that the Van Ness mansion had echoed with the merry laughter and happy voice of girlhood's glee, the young life, which bad always brought joy into the home, had gone out forever; the young wife and mother was carried to the grave with her baby in her arms. 26 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. With Marcia Van Ness there was but one abiding thought from this time — how best to acknowledge her love of God. The experi- ences of life had done their work. Conviction swept like a mighty river into every recess of her nature, and she was borne on to higher sentiments of love and adoration, self-denial and self- abnegation. At the grave of her beloved child, she made her offering of the City Orphan Asylum of Washington. Bereft of her own, she adopted motherless children and gave to them, unstinted, a mother's love, pity and tenderness. The old cottage was made her sanctum, and there she would spend hours in medi- tation. The atmosphere of the old home where she was born, where her parents had lived and died, was filled with pleasant memories. The rustling of the leaves, the very song of the cricket on the hearth brought back associations of the olden time, ere she had drunk of the bitter waters of Marah, on the highway of human experience. But there came a day when Marcia Burns needed all the grace that is promised to the faithful. Her last sickness was long and full of suffering, but peacefully she watched and waited, thinking more of the loved ones around her than her own suffering. She passed away September 9, 1832, aged fifty years. At the time she died, Mr. Van Ness was mayor of Washington. She was buried with public honors, the citizens placing upon her casket a plate with this inscription : " The citizens of Washington, in testimony of their veneration for departed worth, dedicate this plate to the memory of Marcia Van Ness, the excellent consort of J. P. Van Ness. If piety, charity, high principle and exalted worth could have averted the shafts of Fate, she would still have remained among us, a bright example of every virtue. The hand of death has removed her to a purer and happier state of existence, and while we lament her loss let us endeavor to emulate her virtues." General Van Ness lived to be seventy-five years of age. He entertained royally. Every year Congress was his guest. It is said that the Government did not live up to its contract, but sold lots to private individuals around the Mall. He sued the Government, but lost his suit. There is a legend that six headless horses still gallop around the Van Ness mansion on the anniversary of his death, thus class- THE COTTAGE OF DAVID BURNS. 2/ ing it among the haunted houses of Washington, in the vocabulary of the superstitious. During the Civil War, the estate was owned by a Virginian named Thomas Green, who zealously cared for the cottage of sacred memories. It is now owned by the heirs of ex-Governor Swan, of Maryland, and leased— shades of the mighty, how fallen ! — for a lager-beer garden. It would seem that instead of six headless horses, the spirit of Marcia Burns would come back and cry out against such vandalism. The houses and the grounds are fast going to decay. The stars of Bethlehem grow flowerless amidst the grass, the tangled shrubs and underbrush impede the progress of the visitor, the winding walks are hedged in by overgrowth, the sunset rays pierce through fluttering leaves and rest upon the old cottage roof, glorifying it into something of the aspect it bore, when Washing- ton looked upon it and shared its old-time hospitality. CHAPTER III. DUDDINGTON MANOR Extracts from old Land-patents — Scotch and Irish Emigrants — New Scotland — Mr. Pope's Patent — Prophetic Vision — Called it Rome — A Nation moulded — Daniel Carroll — Social Standing — Charles Carroll, Signer of the Decla- ration of Independence — Carroll's Visions of a City — A Speculative Move- ment — Duddington Manor — The Trouble with L'Enfant — A Visit to the Manor — The Home swept away — A Relic of other Days — Thomas Low — An Historic Character — Married Miss Custis — The Bill for a United States Bank — Misfortune followed — A Bad Memory — A Change of Name. By extracts from old land-patents dating back to June 5, 1663, we find that one of the patentees was Francis Pope. A company of Scotch and Irish emigrated to this country about that time, and made a settlement on the land that is included in the District of Columbia. They divided their lands into farms, and gave the name of New Scotland to their home. They lived in their quiet, unobtrusive way, reaping and enjoying the fruits of their labor for nearly a century; and it was with some of their descendants that negotia- tions were made for the land on which the city of Washington now stands. Mr, Pope's patent included Capitol Hill, and with almost pro- phetic vision he saw a city rise, which in the future would be the capital of the nation, and which would rival imperial Rome. He called it Rome, and was named, therefore, " Pope of Rome." Goose Creek, that skirted the foot of the hill bore, from that time, the classic name of Tiber. The years passed by ; a great nation was being moulded, changes came, families were scattered and new ones took their places ; in time, Daniel Carroll was in possession of *' Scotland Yard," afterward known as Duddington Manor. 28 D UDDING TON MANOR. 29 Daniel Carroll was a man of culture and refinerHent. His social standing was in Iceeping with tlie " old Maryland line." He was a brother of the Rt. Rev. John Carroll, the first Catholic bishop of Baltimore, the man who laid the foundation stone on which has been built, in solid masonry, the Catholic Church of Maryland, and the founder of the Jesuit College at Georgetown. Charles Carroll, of Carrollton, Maryland, a signer of the Decla- ration of Independence, was his cousin. Daniel Carroll was a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention that framed the Consti- tution, and a member of the first Congress of the United States. After the selection of the site for the Capitol Mr. Carroll had visions of a city on the hill ; he consequently put an exorbitant price upon his land. An opinion has prevailed that, as the Capitol fronts toward the east, Washington and his associates looked for the growth of the city eastward. There are reasons why this might not have been in their minds. It must be remem- bered that the corner-stone of the White House was laid October i3> ^792, and that of the Capitol SeptemlDer 18, 1793, The beginning was toward the west, and in the building of cities river fronts are not usually deserted. A speculative movement was inaugurated and Mr. Carroll sold many of his broad acres with " promises of payment." Stephen Girard made an offer of two hundred thousand dollars for a certain part of the plantation. This was a princely offer, but an inflated price was asked, not only by Mr. Carroll, but by others who had made purchases for speculative purposes. The result was the city lots upon the hill were left on the owners' hands and Mr. Carroll never realized the great wealth he antici- pated, and when he came to die, his estate was much embar- rassed. The Carroll mansion, known as Duddington Manor, was erected late in the last century. The one that made the trouble with L'Enfant remained the residence of some of the members of the Carroll family until the summer of 1886. The house was erected not far from the site of the one that was begun in the centre of New Jersey Avenue, and was the first fine house built in the city. A short walk from the Capitol brings you to the place. 30 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON, We entered these grounds from the south side not long since. The sun had ceased making shadows over Arlington Heights. We clambered up the rude steps that had been made in the earth, and, by clutching the underbrush, scrambled to the top of the hill, where we found, instead of velvet lawns and fertile meadows, a primeval forest. The old trees are there under which Carroll and L'Enfant may have had their quarrel. We passed on, and found a fascination in its very wildness. We reached the gravelled walk that led to the place where the old house stood ; but alas ! the old landmark had passed away, and like its builder, can be pictured only in memory. While standing there visions of departed days filled the mind. The gathering darkness added to the delusion, and we fancied the place peopled again by men of the old re'gime, with their powdered wigs, knee-breeches, buff waistcoats, ruffled shirts, and cocked-hats, bustling about, ordering the slaves hither and thither with old-time imperiousness. We again recall a visit made to the Manor when we were shown through the vacant rooms, that gave with every footfall echoes of the past ; when we followed our dusky leader into the old kitchen, whose brick floor was worn thin with the footsteps of all the years, and were told that thirty years had passed since either of the sisters, the last of the family and the ruling mistresses of the house, had entered it. We see again the signs of neglect and decay that have crept over the old home, and its presiding geniuses. But the fulness of time has come, and the home of the CarroUs has been swept away. We found on the place an old colored man eighty years of age, who was born there and had been a slave. With tottering steps he was making his way across the grounds, and in answer to our inquiries said : " Yes, dey's all done gone. Massa gone. Missus gone, chilluns gone." Then with an indescribable chuckle he added, " Ole Joe's shackles done gone, too. God bress Massa Lincum ! De ole house done gone too, now I spec ole Joe go. Dey say a sintacus buy dis place, whateber dem is." As the old man limped off in the darkness, we felt that he would soon follow those whom he so much revered, and who made this DUDDINGTON MANOR. 3 1 house so beautiful. Even this patient old guardian could not stay the hand of change that was so rapidly removing every trace of the old palatial mansion. ******* A little farther on we came to a row of two-story buildings, built by Thomas Low, of brick brought from England. Their antiquity is their only claim to a place in this sketch. Thomas Low was an historic character in Washington. At the time Warren Hastings was Governor-General in India, Low was his friend and amassed a large fortune. He brought to this country five hundred thousand dollars in gold. He soon became a friend of Washington, who induced him to invest largely in this city of anticipations. He married Miss Custis, sister of George W. Parke Custis and grand-daughter of Mrs. Washington. He built a row of houses on New Jersey Avenue, one block south of the Capitol, They were originally first-class boarding- houses, and many of the dignitaries of the land were entertained beneath their roofs ; Louis Phillippe, Thomas Jefferson, the Adamses, Monroe and many others. They are now used as Government buildings. It was here that the bill was drawn up, with Alexander Hamilton as guide and adviser, to establish the United States Bank, The row which Mr. Low built near Duddington Place was called the " ten house row." The high price set upon property operated also against Mr. Low's investment. His buildings were left solitary and unoccu- pied for a long time, in fact till long after he had passed away, with his day and generation. Like his benefactor, Hastings, misfortune attended him to the grave. His wife parted from him; his fortune wasted away, and he spent his melancholy days in little enjoyment. He was a man of peculiar temperament and faulty memory. It is said of him that he would forget his own name when enquiring for letters at the post-office. He once locked his wife in a room through thoughtlessness, and came to tov/n, keeping her in durance vile until he returned at night. As you ascend Capitol Hill, you see upon the right the name of George Law, in flaming letters on one of these historic buildings. 32 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: Whether his own faulty memory changed his name to Law, or whether the reasons that kept him from returning to his native land made it a matter of convenience, doth not appear ; but by the oldest inhabitant, he is more often called Law than by his real name, Low. THE OCTAGON HOUSE. On your way from the Burns home on Seventeenth Street, you turn into New York Avenue at the corner of Eighteenth Street, and come to the Octagon house. This house was built about one hundred years ago by Col. John Tayloe, a man of large fortune and one of the representa- tive men of the time. He owned a large estate at Mt. Airy, Virginia, and divided his time between that home and the Octagon house. His income was princely. His slave roll was five hundred, and among them he had artisans of every class and calling — miners, ship-builders and carpenters. Without going outside of his own domain he wrought iron, felled the forests, worked the fields and built ships. The Octagon house stands to-day a hallowed monument to departed chivalry. It was in this house President Madison and his wife lived after the White House was burned by the British in 1814. The octagon room over the hall-way is the one in which the treaty of peace was drawn. In this house, surrounded by all that was brilliant ; by scholars, statesmen, heroes of the war, citizens and strangers, Mrs. Madison, the centre of attraction, held the elegant " Drawing Rooms " which have made her noted. The responsive echoes from barren walls and banquet halls deserted, bring back faint glimpses of the brilliant scenes then enacted ; but memories still haunt the great rooms and fill every alcove, niche and staircase with historic recollections — some that we would like to forget. For, when we pass out of these echoing halls into the grounds, and look upon the long line of crumbling slave-pens and the old auction-block, that has done satanic duty through the years, telling their tale of misery and woe, we know that human life and human liberty were made a sacrifice ; that men, women and children were here sold to the highest bidders. D UDDING TON MANOR. ■ 33 When wit and mirth, beauty and grace, music and dancing made the old halls ring with gladness, sorrow sat upon the threshold. The story goes, that the spirits of the slaves whom death released from their chains, visit the old home and announce their coming by the rifiging of bells. At least the Octagon house has the reputation of being haunted. THE HOME OF HON. EDWARD EVERETT. On the south-east corner of Eighteenth and G Streets, stands a plain, three-story brick building, with a long L. Many people have occupied this house who, in different ways, have become noted. This house was built and occupied by Mr. Everett, when he was Secretary of State under the administration of Millard Fillmore. We cannot, here, give a sketch of this brilliant man's career up to the time that he occupied a seat in the national House of Representatives, which was from 1824 to 1834. In 1835 he was made Governor of Massachusetts, a position he filled four years. He then went to Europe, and while residing in Florence with his family, was appointed Minister to England, Upon his return to the United States, he was elected president of Harvard College. When Daniel Webster died, the vacancy made in the Cabinet was filled by President Fillmore by the appointment of Mr. Everett. He had been strongly attached to Mr. Webster and had always made him his confidential friend. It seemed a fitting compliment that he should be the one appointed to fill the place made vacant by the death of his friend. After the close of this administration he represented the old Commonwealth State as senator. But these were the days when sectional strife was entering the wedge to civil discord. To a man of Mr. Ev^erett's transcendent patriotism it weighed upon him like a nightmare. He saw the end from the beginning. His anxiety for his country was so great, that it made fearful inroads upon his health, and ere his senatorial term was half over he resigned and returned to private life. But a man so full of energy and force must needs be occupied. He therefore prepared a lecture upon Washington, which he delivered in all the leading cities of the Union. By his eloquence 3 34 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. he secured one hundred thousand dollars toward the fund to purchase Mount Vernon from the Washington family ; and thus it is that to-day the people of the United States owe it, in large part, to Edward Everett that Mount Vernon is the property of the people. In i860, he was nominated by the Union party as their candi- date for the Vice-Presidency. John Bell, of Tennessee, was the candidate for President. A little later on he was using his influence, by speeches, pen and means to support, protect and defend the liberties of his country. He was the beau-ideal of what the American statesman should be. The next person occupying this house was Jefferson Davis, then Secretary of War in the Cabinet of President Pierce. He had been married twice. His first wife was the daughter of ex-President Zachary Taylor. She married him against the wishes of her father, who, for 'years, never exchanged a word with her husband. After her death, Mr. Davis married Miss Howell, of New Jersey. It was after this marriage that he occupied this house. He continued to live in it while Secretary of State. When he was again elected to the Senate he lived on I Street, between Seventeenth and Eighteenth, northwest. And now we come to a name that we hardly know whether to give the honor of an abiding-place, or not. A man who cannot be honest or true to friend or foe, deserves no recognition from his fellow-men. But this man had filled high official places of trust and profit, both in the service of the United States, and in the Davis Cabinet. That he proved himself recreant to both, every child who reads knows ; that he would have devastated cities with Greek fire, and carried into their midst the seeds of pestilence, is also well known. After depleting the treasury of his friends and his foes, he turned his back on his native land and went down into Egypt to retain his ill-gotten gains ; but, even there, it was " pricks in his eyes and thorns in his sides." A few years later, the flags are at half-mast on the public buildings, " Who is dead ? " is asked. " Jacob Thompson, ex-Secretary of the Interior Department, under James Buchanan." The house has since been the residence of Capt. Henry A. Wise, a distinguished officer of the United States Navy, who DUDDINGTON MANOR. 35 married a daughter of Edward Everett. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1819. In 1862 he became Commander in the Navy and assistant Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance and Hydrography. He died in Naples, Italy, in 1869. His wife survived him until 1881. She was noted for her benevolence. The poor of Wash- ington lost in her, a benefactor and friend. The house was afterward rented to the Medical Department of the Navy for a naval dispensary. Surg.-Gen. Philip S. Wales took special pride in this, as it was established under his administra- tion of the bureau of medicine and surgery in this department. But to-day, only memories of the departed people the house. The doors turn not on their hinges, and the sunlight, through cracks and crevices, makes only shadows on the wall ; the foot- fall on the floor brings back but echoes of the days gone by, and memories of those who have left behind them records of noble, or ill-spent lives. THE WIRT MANSION. A few rods to the east of the home of Edward Everett, between Seventeenth and Eighteenth Streets, on the south side, stands the old mansion once owned and occupied by Hon. William Wirt. Here this eminent jurist lived the twelve years that he was Attorney-General, a position which he held during the administra- tions of James Monroe and John Quincy Adams. This house is rich in incident and stories of the past, both before and after it came into the possession of Mr. Wirt. The first authentic record that we have of it, is that it was formerly owned by Tobias Lear. Colonel Lear was a distinguished officer in the Revolutionary war, and, at one time, was the private secretary of Washington, by whom he was always treated with the greatest consideration and regard. For many years he attended to the details of Wash- ington's private affairs, and was liberally remembered by him in his will. He was afterward appointed Consul-General to San Domingo, and then was sent to Algiers, as commissioner, to conclude peace with Tripoli. This was accomplished in 1805, in a manner not pleasing to General Eaton, who, with Hamet Caramelli, the de- posed Bey, had gained important advantages over the reigning Bey. 36 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Mr. Lear's conduct was approved by the Government, though highly censured by many of the people. One morning in the fall of 1816, while residing in the mansion, he was found in tiie summer- liouse of the grounds, in the rear of the house, with his brains blown out and a pistol in his grasp. In 18 17, this property was purchased by William Wirt from Benjamin Lear, the son of Tobias Lear. Mr. Lear was owner of the old gray-stone warehouse on the Potomac, at the western extremity of G Street, close to the river. This warehouse was built about 1798, and was the first substantial warehouse built in the city. When the Government was moved in 1800, all the official furniture and archives were landed at this wharf and stored in this building. At that time only the Navy and War departments were com- pleted ; all the boxes, etc., that belonged to those particular departments were carried there, and everything belonging to the other departments "was transferred to hired houses opposite the " Six Buildings " on Pennsylvania Avenue,, between Twenty-first and Twenty-second Streets. At that time there were so few wagons in the city that it was difBcult to procure a sufficient num- ber to move the public property. Mrs. Adams speaks of the same inconvenience in getting fire-wood to keep the White House warm. Mr. Wirt was born in Bladensburg, Maryland, in 1772, of Swiss and German parentage. He was educated in Montgomery county, Maryland; read law, and commenced practising in 1792, in Culpepper Court House. In 1795, he married Miss Lucy Gil- more of Virginia, and settled near Charlottesville. His wife lived but five years. In 1799, he was chosen clerk of the House of Delegates, and was afterwards appointed chancellor of the east- ern shore of Virginia ; the year 1802 found him practising law in Norfolk and engaged in literary work. During this time he pub- lished in the Virginia Argus, his " Letter to a British Spy." Later there appeared in the Richmond Enquirer, a series of papers from his pen, under the title of " Rainbow." He was retained to assist in the prosecution of Aaron Burr for treason. He was Attorney-General of the United States from 1817 to 1829. It was during these years that he lived in the G Street mansion. When this house was purchased it was three stories high, with DUDDINGTON MANOR. 3; attic and back buildings. The grounds extended from the corner of Eighteenth and G, down to F Street, and passed by and included all the ground on F Street in which Michler Row now stands, coming north to G Street, where Clark's, formerly Cruit's, large stable now stands. Mr. Wirt's stables were filled with fine horses and carriages. There was a beautiful flower garden on the east of the house, which you approached through a veranda, Mrs. Wirt was a con- noisseur in the flower kingdom, and it was while living in this house that she wrote her " Flora's Dictionary." This was the first book published containing emblems of flowers with appropri- ate selections from the poets ; it had also an appendix containing the botanical history of each flower, and suggesting why the flower was chosen to represent the emblem. Mr. Wirt made large additions to the place ; a spacious dining- room was built, which was often used for dancing parties. This was, at that time, the largest room for private entertainments in Washington. We can readily people these rooms again in memory. As a matter of course, the judges of the Supreme Court, of which Judge Marshall was chief, were frequent visitors. The members of the Cabinet under the administrations of James Monroe and John Quincy Adams, were all men of distinguished ability. There was William H. Crawford, of Georgia; Richard Rush, of Pennsylvania, Secretary of the Treasury ; John C. Cal- houn, Secretary of War; Smith Thompson, of New York, and Samuel Southard, Secretary of the Navy, and Henry Clay, of Kentucky, Secretary of State. These were some of the men who made up a galaxy of really great men who adorned society in those days, and made a brilliant and charmed circle oftentimes in the Wirt mansion. Mr. Wirt was twice married. At the time of his first wife's death he was about thirty years of age. It is said of him that he was a most companionable, genial, warm-hearted man, highly engaging and prepossessing in manner. He was strikingly ele- gant and commanding in appearance. At Pen Park, Albemarle County, where he married Miss Gil- more, he placed this tablet over the grave of her who first brought him to this spot: 38 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Here lies Mildred, Daughter of George and Lucy Gilmore, Wife of William Wirt. She was born Aug. 15, 1772 ; Married May 25, 1795; Died Sept. 17, 1799. Come round her tomb each object of desire, Each purer frame inflamed with purer fire ; Be all that's good, that cheers and softens life, The tender sister, daughter, friend and wife, — And when your virtues you have counted o'er, Then view this marble, and be vain no more. His second wife was not won without many apprehensions on the part of the paterfamilias. The lover, at this period of his life, had no promises of a fortune, or even a living competency to strengthen his claim, and so it came that Colonel Gamble, for reasons best known to himself, when the momentous question was proposed, thought best to put the gay young man on probation. During this interval, his biographer says. Colonel Gamble had occasion to visit his future son-in-law's office at sunrise one sum- mer morning. It, unluckily, happened that Mr. Wirt had the night before brought some young friends there, and they had had a merry time, which had so beguiled the hours that even at sun- rise they had not departed. The colonel opened the door, little expecting to find any one at that hour; his eyes fell upon a strange group. There stood Mr. Wirt with the poker in his right hand, the sheet-iron blower fastened upon his left arm, which was thrust through the handle ; on his head was a tin wash basin, and as to the rest of his dress — it was hot weather, and the hero of this grotesque scene had dismissed as much of his wardrobe as comfort might be supposed to demand, substituting a light wrap- per that greatly added to the theatrical effect. There he stood in his whimsical caparison, reciting with an abundance of stage gesticulations, Falstaff's onset upon the thieves. His back was toward the door, and the opening of it drew all eyes. We may imagine the queer look of the anxious probationer as Colonel Gamble, with a grave and mannerly silence, bowed and withdrew, closing the door behind him without the exchange of a word. DUDDINGTON MANOR. 39 It is quite possible some escapade of this kind gave credence to another story told of Mr. Wirt. The story runs that, after the death of his first wife, while residing in Richmond, Virginia, he sometimes indulged in sprees. At one time, after a night of con- viviality, and while still under the influence of wine, he lay asleep under a tree in the most public thoroughfare of the city. The young lady to whom we have already referred, chanced that way, and seeing him in this condition and wishing to shield him from the public gaze, took out her handkerchief and laid it over his face. When Mr. Wirt awakened from his sleep of intoxication and removed the handkerchief, he saw it bore the initials E. M. G. It is difficult to say which feeling predominated, chagrin that she should have found him there, or joy at the flicker of hope to his aspirations this action on the young lady's part gave to him. It has been said, as far as the handkerchief story goes, that Miss Gamble declared it lacked one important element, which was truth. As for his convivial spirit, the Falstaff night, at least, points a moral and adorns a tale. Mrs. Southworth, in her novel, " Self-Made, or Out of the Depths," repeats this story of her hero, Ishmael, who is regarded as the prototype of Mr. Wirt. About this time in Mr. Wirt's life, the promotion to the chancel- lorship came in most opportunely to sustain the pretensions of the lover. But after his marriage and the expenses of a household came upon him, we find this extract from a letter written to a friend : '' This honor of being a chancellor is an empty thing, stomachally speaking ; that is, a man may be full of honor, and his stomach may be empty ; or in other words, honor will not go to market and buy a peck of potatoes. This is the only rub that clogs the wheels of my bliss. But it is in my power to remove even this rub, and in the event of my death to leave my wife and my children independent of the frowns or smiles of the world." He resigned the chancellorship, and the success he made in life is known to the world. He was a man greatly beloved for his social virtues ; but each year the illustrious are passing away with the fading memories of contemporary friends. When General Jackson was mad6 ^President, Mr. Wirt rented his mansion to Governor Branch, of North Carolina, Secretary of the Navy, during his first term ; afterward to the Hon. Lewis 40 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: McLane, Secretary of the Treasury. Mr. McLane had served as Senator from the State of Delaware. He was also Minister to England, and afterwards became a resident of Baltimore, where he was for many years President of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company. Mr. Wirt sold this property to the branch bank of the United States, which was then in the building now in use by Riggs & Co. The bank sold the property to Major Andrews of the army, after which it was purchased by the late Dr. Thomas Lawson, Surgeon- General of the army. Dr. Lawson was a bachelor; he lived here for a time, but afterward rented the house to the French minister, Count de Sartiges, who became noted for the hospitalities dis- pensed during his long residence in Washington. The next person to occupy this house was the Hon. Aaron Brown, Postmaster-General under President Buchanan. His res- idence here was very brief ; he had held the office but little more than a year when he died. While he resided here his wife and stepdaughters, the Misses Saunders, gave very elegant entertain- ments. The mansion was next used as a fashionable boarding-school, instituted by Mrs. Smith. In addition to the usual exercises, she established a riding-school on the grounds, where young ladies were instructed in horsemanship. The Prince of Wales when on a visit to this country, was enter- tained here at lunch by Mrs. Smith. When Dr. Lawson died, this, with other valuable property, was willed to his children ; their mother was his colored housekeeper. The property was sold by them for an asylum for the orphans of the army and navy. It has since been used as an office by the Signal Corps. This house, to-day, stands a silent witness of the "have beens," filled with mournful echoes of the past. A few squares to the west of this are two double, three-story brick houses, one at the corner of Twenty-Sixth and K Streets; the other and older, near what is known as the lower K Street bridge. They are large and commodious buildings that at once strike the looker-on as houses whose histories reach back into the D UDDING TON MANOR. 4 1 shadowy past. They were built about the year 1728, by Col. John Peters of Georgetown, whose son, Thomas Peters, married Martha Custis, a sister of Washington Parke Custis, of Arlington. His mother was the beautiful Eleanor Calvert, of Mount Airy, Prince George County, Maryland, the daughter of Benedict Cal- vert and grand-daughter of the sixth Lord Baltimore, who had mar- ried John Custis, the son of Lady Washington by liei first marriage. Martha Washington, as is well known, on the death of her sou John Custis, took these children and brouglu ihem up as her own. Mr. Hines, an old resident, in his recollections of Washington city, relates an incident appropriate to these houses : "General Washington had ridden up from Alexandria, and crossed the ferry to Georgetown, where he was received by the students of Georgetown College and citizens, armed and organized for the occasion, who saluted him with a volley of cheers. General Washington was greatly pleased, and so expressed himself, at the soldierly appearance of the boys, who wore red waist belts. They then formed a procession and escorted the general over the bridge to Peters' house, and formed in line opposite the spot where, for so many years, stood the old dilapidated brewery." CHAPTER IV. HISTORIC HOMES OF LAFAYETTE SQUARE. The White House — Home of the Sixth Congress — John Adams, President — Ofificials number fifty-four — Architect of the Capitol — The peerless Latrobe — The new Capitol — John Cotton Smith's letter — One wing of the Capitol erected — Pennsylvania Avenue on paper — Covered with Alder Bushes — The six Buildings — Only two comfortable habitations — An improvised Sidewalk — President Adams' Address — Meagre Accommodations for Congress — The President's House — Washington at the laying of the Cor- ner-stone — He never lived in it — Mrs. Adams found everything in con- fusion — Letter to her Sister — Lost on their Way — The house upon a grand Scale — Woods everywhere and no wood to burn — In a new Country — Four Miles to return Calls — Dries Clothes in the East Room — The first Levee — Anecdotes of Rev. Mr. Smith — Abigail Adams as Wife and Mother — Her Letter to her Husband. In 1800, on November 17th, twenty-four years after the Decla- ration of Independence, the Sixth Congress took up its abode in the capital city. John Adams was President ; Thomas Jefferson, Vice-President ; Oliver Wolcott, Secretary of the Treasury ; Samuel Dexter, Secretary of War ; and Benjamin Stoddard, Secretary of the Navy. The Government officials numbered fifty-four persons, including the President, Secretaries, and various clerks. Congress had appropriated money, and the friends of the Dis- trict of Columbia had borrowed funds to push forward as rapidly as possible, the Capitol building. Mr. Hallet was the first archi- tect of the Capitol, and was succeeded by Mr. Hadfield and Mr. Hoban ; but a few years after, the magic touch of the peerless Latrobe made it a habitable and imposing building. Philadelphia was a far more attractive city in all respects, and the members of Congress who attended the first session held in Washington, were unhappy over the discomforts that beset them. 42 HISTORIC HOMES OF LAFA YETTE SQUARE. 43 They wrote most dismally of the condition of everything. Their letters give graphic descriptions of the new Capitol, and, in fact, give the only picture we have of the city at that time. The following letter by John Cotton Smith, member of Con- gress from Connecticut, portrays vividly the cheerless state of affairs at that time. " Our approach to the city was accompanied with sensations not easily described. One wing of the Capitol only had been erected, which, with the President's house, a mile distant from it, both constructed of 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, with two buildings on each side of it, called New Jersey Avenue. " Pennsylvania Avenue, leading, as laid down on paper, from the Capitol to the Presidential mansion, was, nearly the whole distance, a deep morass covered with alder bushes, which were cut through the width of the intended avenue during the 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, consisting of two or three dwelling houses, in different directions, and, now and then, an isolated wooden habitation, the intervening spaces, and indeed the surface of the city generally, being covered with scrub oak bushes on the higher grounds, and on the marshy soil either with trees or some sort of shrubbery. Nor was the desolate aspect of the place a little augmented by a number of unfinished edifices at Greenleaf's Point, on an eminence a short distance from it, commenced by an individual whose name they bore, but the state of whose funds compelled him to abandon them, not only unfinished, but in a ruined condition, " There appeared to be but two really comfortable habitations within the bounds of the city, one of which belonged to Dudley Carroll, Esq., and the other to Motley Young. "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 pavement cut our shoes, and in wet weather covered them with white mortar. In short, it was a new settlement." On the 2 2d of November, with the Houses of Congress in joint session, Thomas Jefferson presiding, President Adams made 44 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. the annual address, from which period it was considered that the national capital was christened ; and that, for all time, it would remain in the city of Washington. The accommodations of the District at that time were so meagre, that it was with great difficulty that members of Congress obtained any of the conveniences that they had enjoj^ed in New York and Philadelphia. The friends of the District expected speedy growth for the city, and that the public buildings would arise like Aladdin's palace; but the sequel has shown that not until the re'gime of that age had passed away, did Washington become the joride of tlie na- tion. Among the houses projected by the builders of this great Cap- itol was the President's residence, now familiarly known all over the world as the " White House." Washington, himself, officiated at the Masonic laying of the corner-stone, but never lived in it; yet under his eye the structure rose in form and comeliness, and he had the satisfaction of walking through it with his wife, a few weeks before his death. It is a grand edifice, fashioned after the palace of the Duke of Leinster in Dublin, by the famous architect, Hoban. It is most delightfully situated, on the twenty acre reservation known as the President's Grounds, fronting on Pennsylvania Avenue, and run- ning back to the Potomac River very near the Davy Burns Cot- tage. In fact, it is a part of the disputed fields and possessions of that tenacious old Scotchman. The grounds are now beauti- fully cultivated. The house is built in the Grecian style of archi- tecture, having, on the north side, a grand portico supported by Ionic columns, and a semi-circular colonnade on the south. Spa- cious corridors, grand salons, lofty ceilings, state and private dining-rooms, library and living-rooms, do credit to the ability of Hoban, and should be the admiration of every American. When President and Mrs. Adams arrived here, in 1800, they found everything connected with the establishment in a deplor- able condition, which she has described so minutely in a letter to her daughter, that it is given here to show some of the difficulties that surrounded them. HISTORIC HOMES OF LA FA YETTE SQUARE. 45 "Washington, November 21, 1800. "My Dear Child: — " I arrived here on Sunday last, and without meeting with any accident v/orth mentioning, except losing ourselves when we left Baltimore, and going eight or nine miles on the Frederick road, by v;hich ::icans v/c were obliged to go the other eight through woods, v/hcrc v/c v/andered two hours without finding a guide, or a pr,('^; fortunately, a straggling black came up with us, and we cn^agcc? hii.i as a guide to extricate us from our difficulty. But woods ere all you see from Baltimore until you reach the city, which \z only so in name. " Here and there is a small cot without a glass window, inter- spersed among the forests, through which you travel miles without seeing any human being. In the city there are buildings enough if they were compact and finished, to accommodate Congress and those attached to it ; but as they are, and scattered as they are, I sec no great comfort in them. The river which runs up to Alexandria, is in full view from my window, and I see the vessels as they pass and repass. The house is upon a grand and superb scale, requiring about thirty servants to attend and keep the apart- ments in proper order, and perform the ordinary business of the home and stables ; an establishment very well proportioned to the Presidential salary. "The lighting of the apartments, from the kitchen to the parlors and chambers, is a tax indeed ; and the fires we are obliged to keep to secure us from daily agues is another very cheering com- fort. " To assist us in this great castle, and render less attendance necessary, bells are wholly wanting ; not one single one being hung through the whole house, and promises are all you can ob- tain. This is so great an inconvenience that I do not know what to do, or how to do. "The ladies in 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 com- parisons. 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 anywhere for three months ; but surrounded by forests, would you believe that wood is not to be had, because people can- not be found to cut and cart it? Breisler 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 to procure it cut and carted for him. He has recourse to coals, but we cannot get grates made and set. We have, indeed, come into a new country. 46 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. "You must keep this all to yourself, and when asked how I like it, say that I write you that the situation is beautiful, which is true. " The house is made habitable, but there is not a single apart- ment finished ; and all inside, except the plastering, has been done since Breisler came. We have not the least fence, yard, or other convenience without, and the great unfinished audience-room I make a drying-room of, to hang up the clothes in. The prin- cipal stairs are not yet up, and will not be this winter. Six cham- bers are made comfortable. Two are occupied by the President and Mr. Shaw, two lower rooms, one for a common parlor, one for a levee-room. Upstairs, there is the oval room, which is designed for the drawing-room, and has the crimson furniture in it. It is very handsome now, but when completed it will be beautiful. " If the twelve years in which this place has been considered as the future seat of Government, had been improved, as they would have been, if in New England, very many of the inconveniences would have been removed. " It is a beautiful spot, capable of every improvement, and the more I view it, the more I am delighted with it. " Since I sat down to write, I have been called down to a ser- vant from Mount Vernon, with a billet from Major Custis, and a haunch of venison, and a kind congratulatory letter from Mrs. Lewis, upon my arrival in the city, with Mrs. Washington's love, inviting me to Mount Vernon. When health permitting, I will go before leaving this place. " Two articles we are much distressed for ; the one is bells, but the more important is wood, yet you cannot see wood for trees. No arrangement has been made, but by promises never performed, to supply the new-comers with fuel. Of promises Breisler has received his full share. " He has procured several cords of wood, but six or seven of that was kindly burnt up to dry the walls of the house, which ought to have been done by the commissioners ; but which, if left to them, would have remained undone to this day. Congress poured in ; but, shiver! shiver! no wood-cutters, nor carters to be had at any rate. " We are now indebted to a Philadelphia wagon for bringing us, through the first clerk in the Treasurer's office, one cord and a half of wood, which is all we have for this house, where twelve fires are constantly required, and we are told the roads will soon be so bad that it cannot be drawn. " Breisler procured two hundred bushels of coal, or we must have suffered. This is the situation of almost every person. The pub- lic officers have sent to Philadelphia for wood-cutters and wagons. The vessel which had my clothes and other materials, has not . HISTORIC HOMES OF LA FA YETTE SQUARE. 4; arrived. The ladies are impatient for a drawing-room. I have no looking-glasses but dwarfs for this house ; not a twentieth part lamps enough to light it. Many things were stolen, many were broken by the removal. Amongst the number my tea china is more than half missing. Georgetown affords nothing. My rooms are very pleasant and warm, whilst the doors of the halls are closed. " You can scarce believe that here in this wilderness I should find myself so occupied as I do. My visitors, some of them, come three and four miles ; the return of one of them is the work of a day. Most of these ladies reside in Georgetown, or in scattered parts of the city, at two and three miles distant." Mrs. Adams had an opportunity to display her remarkable executive ability and consummate tact, to get the mansion in condition to hold the first levee, January ist, 1801. The oval room on the second floor was connected with a draw- ing-room, and the sparse furniture so deftly arranged, that none but the initiated knew of the planning and anxious hours spent over the affair. Washington having been driven to the establishment of levees while President, when the seat of Government was in New York City, they were continued in Philadelphia and could not be dis- pensed with in the new capital, notwithstanding the impractica- bility of such ceremonious affairs, with the President's house unfinished and everything in chaos. Mrs. Adams was the daughter of a New England minister, and as the wife of Mr. Adams, when he was struggling up the ladder of prosperity and fame, had been thoroughly disciplined in expe- riences ; hence we find her successfully conducting the levees, presiding at dinners, and on all occasions of ceremony required by the imperative rules of etiquette then in vogue, returning calls, receiving visitors, and at the same time fully conversant with the affairs of state which absorbed her conscientious husband. It is not astonishing that such a parentage should have produced a son, who succeeded his father as chief magistrate of the nation. Her talent and refinement were innate. She never attended school, nor had any of the opportunities that the young people of modern times enjoy. Mary, her elder sister, married Richard Cranch, an English- 48 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. man, who had settled near their home, and who was subsequently made Judge of the Court of Common Pleas in Massachusetts. He was father to the late William Cranch, of Washington, who presided so long and with such dignity, over the Circuit Court of the District of Columbia. There is a story that when the eldest daughter was married, Mr. Smith preached a sermon to his people from the text : " And Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken from her." Two years after, his second daughter, Abigail, was about to marry John Adams, then a lawyer in good practice. Some of the parishioners manifested disapprobation ; for the profession of the law, for a long time in the colonial history of Massachusetts, was hardly thought to be an honest calling ; besides the family of Mr. Adams was not thought to be on an equal footing with that of the minister. His father was a small farmer near Bainbridge, hence the match was not considered good enough for the minister's daughter. It was said that Mr. Smith once asked Abigail : " Who is this young Adams, and what does he expect to do ? " She replied : " I know who he is. I do not know what he is going to do, but I do know who it is that is going with him, wherever he goes." It is quite probable that the objections of his parishioners reached Mr. Smith's ears, for it is said that soon after the mar- riage took place, he replied to them, in a sermon from the text, Luke vii. ■^2> '• " ^'^'^ Joh" came neither eating bread, nor drinking wine, and yet ye say he hath a devil." But nothing daunted, Abigail Adams went on from the day of her marriage to the day of her death, with well balanced judg- ment and cheerfulness of soul, brightening her husband's pathway. It matters not where we find her, whether at her own fireside with her family around her, at Quincy ; or when called upon to separate from husband and son, to let them cross the seas, leaving the hearth-stone desolate ; or sitting upon Penn's Hill listening to the roar of cannon ; or in her letters to Jefferson and other statesmen ; or standing before George the Third and the haughty Queen Charlotte, as representative of the first Republican Court ; or presiding in the President's House as First Lady of this HISTORIC HOMES OF LAFAYETTE SQUARE. 49 glorious Republic, Abigail Adams was always the tender mother, the inspiration of her husband, the grand example, the regnant woman. Her letter to her husband, on learning of his election to the Presidency, is a model of deep piety and wifely devotion. "You have this day to declare yourself head of a nation. And now, O Lord, my God, thou hast made thy servant ruler over the people, give unto him an understanding heart, that he may know how to go out and come in before this great people : that he may discern between good and bad ! ' For who is able to judge this, thy so great a people,' were the words of a royal sovereign, and not less applicable to him who is invested with the Chief Majestry of a nation, though he wears not a crown and the robes of royalty. My thought and meditations are with you, though personally absent, and my petitions to heaven are that the things that make for you peace may not be hidden from your eyes. My feelings are not those of ostentation upon the occasion. They are solemnized by a sense of the obligations, the important trusts and numerous duties connected with it. " That you may be enabled to discharge them with honor to yourself, with justice and impartiality to your country, and with satisfaction to this great people, shall be the daily prayer of " Yours, "A. A." Both Mr. and Mrs. Adams, though very quiet in their tastes, conformed to the customs of the times, both in dress and in style of entertainment. The President appeared always at state dinners and levees in a richly embroidered coat, silk stockings, huge silver buckles on his shoes, and powdered wig. Their career in the Executive Mansion was characterized by many brilliant entertainments and genuine hospitality. 4 CHAPTER V. THE WHITE HO-USE DURING THE JEFFERSON AND MADISON ADMIN- ISTRATIONS. The Wife and Daughter of President Jefferson — Their Life in Europe — Mrs. Adams and Mary in London — Letter of Mrs. Adams to Mrs. Cranch — Her Fondness for Mary — Mary's Grief at parting — A beautiful Girl — Mr. Jefferson leaves Europe — Marie's Marriage to Mr. Randolph — Mary's to Mr. Eppes — Everything crude in the White House — Jeffersonian Simplic- ity — A horseback Ride to the Capitol — Jack Eppes' Sixteen hundred dollar Four-in-hand — Slush King and Mud Monarch — Knee-breeches, buckled Shoes, ruffled Wristbands — Priest and Democrat — Jefferson's Aversion to Pomp — French influence — " Levees done away " — " Overland Travel" — The first Child born in the White House — Mrs. Madison assists Mr. Jefferson — Jefferson's Canon of Etiquette — Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson estranged — Hamilton and Burr — Mrs. Adams writes Mr. Jefferson — Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson die July 4, 1S26 — The Capital a Wilderness — Party Strife ran high — Oil on the troubled Sea of Politics — The " Piping Times of Peace " only hovered over the Nation — Napo- leon's Friendship a Pretence — A stroke at America's Commerce — Ready to shatter his own Household — Personal Ambition — Josephine broken- hearted — Napoleon at Elba — Louis XVIH. on the Tiirone — Free Trade and Sailors' Rights — Madison declares War — The British enter Wash- ington — Mrs. Madison at her Best — Her great Triumph — Her Letter to her Sister — Ready to flee — Saves Washington's Portrait and the State Papers — She leaves the House — Escapes to Virginia — The Dinner-party a Canard — The White House in Ashes — The "Octagon" their Home — French Treaty signed there — Grand Levee in 1816 — Retires from Public Life — Sleeps at Montpelier. Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States, entered the White House March 4, 1801. His wife had died nineteen years before, leaving two daughters who grew to woman- hood. During Mr. Jefferson's stay in Europe these daughters were with him. Marie went with him in 1784, and resided in a convent during her father's stay. In 1787, Mary, who was but SO TUE WHITE HOUSE. 5 i eight years of age, reached London in care of a maid. Mrs. Adams received her, and thus writes of her to her sister, Mrs. Cranch, at home : " I have had with me for a fortnight, a little daughter of Mr. Jefferson's, who arrived here with a young negro girl servant, from Virginia. Mr. Jefferson wrote me some months ago that he expected them, and desired me to receive them. I did so and was amply rewarded for my trouble. A finer child of her age I never saw ; so mature an understanding, so womanly a behavior, and so much sensibility united, are rarely to be met with. " I grew so fond of her and she was so attached to me, that when Mr. Jefferson sent for her, they were obliged to force the little creature away. " She is but eight years old. She would sit sometimes and describe to me the parting with her aunt, who brought her up, the obligations she was under to her, and the love she had for her little cousins, till the tears would run streams down her cheeks : and how I had been her friend, and she loved me ; her people would break her heart by making her go again. She clung around me, so that I could not help shedding tears at parting with her. She was the favorite of everyone in the house. I regret that such fine spirits must be spent in the walls of a con- vent. She is a beautiful girl, too." Mr. Jefferson left Europe with his daughters in 1789. Marie married Thomas Maine Randolph, Jr., and Mary married ]\Ir. Eppes, of Virginia. When Mr, Jefferson was inaugurated President of tTie United States, Marie was living at her husband's country home near Monticello. Mary was happily situated at Monticello. We have seen how crude everything was, connected with the White House, during Mr. Adams' administration ; and how sorely taxed was Mrs. Adams, with her superior tact and economic experience, to sustain the official grandeur expected in the Presi- dent's house. It could hardly be expected that Mr. Jefferson, as the candidate of the Anti-federalists and without a wife, could effect much change in the domestic, or social administration of the Executive Mansion. Much has been written and more been rung upon the ears of the public of " Jeffersonian Simplicity." We read of his mount- ing his horse and riding to the Capitol to take the oath and 52 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. deliver his inaugural address ; but we hear very little of Jack Eppes having been sent to Virginia to purchase a four-in-hand, for which he paid sixteen hundred dollars, not reaching the Capi- tol in time for the ceremony ; and of the dilemma for a time to know how Mr. Jefferson was to get to the Capitol, for in the spring. Slush was king, and Mud monarch on Pennsylvania Avenue. We hear, too, of his simplicity in dress, appearing in " blue coat, brass buttons, blue pantaloons and coarse shoes tied with leather shoestrings," rather than the knee-breeches and big buckled low- cut shoes then in vogue ; but we have pictures of him in knee- breeches, buckled shoes, ruffled wristbands, etc., and if " apparel oft proclaims the man," his pictures represent one of quite a different type from the one first described. The public has also been informed that when the Federalists fell from power the age of politeness passed away. Peter Parley Goodrich lamented the decline of the good old custom of young- sters giving respectful salutations to their elders in passing. " It was at this period," he tells us, "that the well-executed bow subsided first into a vulgar nod, half-ashamed and half-impudent, and then, like the pendulum of a clock, totally ceased." He adds, " When Jefferson came in, rudeness and irreverence were deemed the true mode for democrats," a statement which he illus- trates by one of his anecdotes. " How are you, priest ? " said a rough fellow to a clergyman. " How are you, democrat ? " was the clergyman's retort, " How do you know I am a democrat? " asked the man. " How do you know I am a priest ? " asked the clergy- man. " I know you to be a priest by your dress," answered the man. " I know you to be a democrat by your address," replied the parson. Parton says he is afraid it is true, and he fears much of the superior breeding of the gentlemen of the "old school," of which we are so frequently reminded, was a thing of bows and ceremo- nies which expressed the homage claimed by rank, instead of that friendly consideration due from man to man. Mr. Jefferson had spent so much time with Mr. and Mrs. THE WHITE HOUSE. 53 Adams during their incumbency of the Executive Mansion, both in Philadelphia and after their occupancy of the White House, that he had little to learn in the line of etiquette, or domestic administration, when called to succeed Mr. Adams as President. His political hobby of equality, however, led him to express great aversion for the " Republican Court," and the pomp attending the copy of royalty in matters of state and social intercourse. How much credit or discredit is due France for the moulding of Jefferson's character, will always remain an enigma. That his long residence there was historically important, all will agree. That he brought back with him a policy which at once entered into the formation of the character of this new nation, is well known. How much this influence has affected the body politic of this nation will never be known ; or what the difference would have been if, in the distribution of offices in 1784, Congress had sent Jefferson to London, instead of Paris, and appointed John Adams to Paris, instead of London. As soon as Mr. Jefferson was in the White House, he announced that " Levees are done away." Everybody was wel- come and his desire was that every one Should feel at home. The President's house was the seat of hospitality. Mrs. Randolph and Mrs. Eppes alternated in the honors of pre- siding; but with their own large families, and the difficulties attending a journey from Monticello to Washington, in those days of " over-land " travelling by one's own conveyance, or the slow coaches, or on horseback, made it a matter of great effort for them to be in constant attendance. Mrs. Randolph was unable to make more than two visits during her father's terms. On one of these, her son was born, James Madison Randolph being the first child born in the White House. She was a lovely woman with rare accomplishments. Fortunately for Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Madison was his Secretary of State, and Mrs. Madison and her sister, Miss Payne (after- wards Mrs. Cutts) were ever ready to assist Mr. Jefferson in mat- ters of etiquette and entertainment. The many little notes addressed to Mrs. Madison by Mr. Jef- ferson, show how much he depended upon her " to take care of female friends expected," and other social matters. 54 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. As much as Mr, Jefferson desired to ignore the question of cere- mony, he was obliged to pay attention to official affairs of this kind, and therefore, we have to-day a canon of etiquette formu- lated by him. It was a very democratic arrangement of matters of state, socially, and one the family of the President to-day could hardly fulfil. One feature was the time on which calls at the Executive Mansion should be returned. Many additions in the way of furnishing were made to the White House during Jefferson's administrations, because, while professionally very unpretentious, Mr. Jefferson had dallied long enough at the French Court in the profligate age of Napoleon, to acquire a taste for the elegancies of Parisian society, and he therefore gradually drifted into much more pretentious surround- ings toward the close of his life in the White House than he promised in the beginning. The affairs of state did not always sit lightly. Partisan feeling ran high. Mr. Adams and Mr, Jefferson had become estranged personally and politically ; but it is to be believed that the men foremost in the country's service, had the country's good at heart, however much they might differ as to the means to be employed to bring it about. The code dicello had taken away the great Hamilton. Aaron Burr, after killing this matchless statesman, was tried for treason. Death entered the family circle and bore away the President's daughter Mary, who, though at the White House but little, was much to her father. It was on the occasion of her death that Mrs. Adams wrote him the touching letter herewith appended : " QuiNCV, May 20, 1804. *' Had you been no other than the private inhabitant of Monti- cello, I should ere this time have addressed you in that sympathy which a recent event has awakened in my bosom ; but reasons of various kinds withheld my pen, until the powerful feeling of my heart burst through the restraint, and called upon me to shed the tear of sorrow over the departed remains of your beloved and deserving daughter ; an event which I sincerely mourn. "The attachment which I formed for her when you committed her to my care upon her arrival in a foreign land, under circum- stances peculiarly interesting, has remained with me to this day ; THE WHITE HOUSE. 55 and the account of her death, which I read in a late paper, recalled to my recollection the tender scene of her separation from me, when with the strongest sensibility, she clung round my neck, and wet my bosom with her tears, saying : ' Oh ! now I have learned to love you, why will they take me away from you ? ' " It has been some time since I conceived that any event in this life could call forth feelings of natural sympathy. But I know how closely entwined round a parent's heart are those cords which bind the paternal to the filial bosom, and when snapped asunder, how agonizing the pangs. I have tasted of the bitter cup and bow with reverence and submission before the great Dis- penser of it, without whose permission and overruling providence, not a sparrow falls to the ground. " That you may derive comfort and consolation, in this day of your sorrow and affliction, from that only source calculated to heal the wounded heart, and a firm belief in the being, perfection and attributes of God, is the sincere wish of her, who once took pleasure in subscribing herself your friend, " Abigail Adams." Perhaps this letter was the beginning of the restoration of the pleasant relations between Mr. Adams and Mr. Jefferson, which never ought to have been interrupted by partisan bitterness. There came a time in later years when a stronger tie was draw- ing them together. They were getting to be among the last of the surviving signers of the Declaration of Independence. Jeffer- son feelingly alludes to it in a letter written to Mr. Adams ; and there is something particularly touching in the fact that after years of devoted love and labor for their country, ruling the land and moulding the nation, they should at last pass beyond, into the presence of the Ruler of all nations, on the same day, almost the same hour, the anniversary — July 4, 1826 — of the glorious inde- pendence of their beloved country. ■5v "Jf tP -TT -?f -n* T" Mr. Madison was Secretary of State for Mr. Jefferson eight years. The capital was almost a wilderness. The White House was separated from the Capitol by a marsh, and was surrounded by the debris of unfinished buildings. Thick woods, with openings here and there where a house could be seen, formed the setting of this palatial home. Venerable oaks spread their branches over 56 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. the house and were a sort of relief to the unenclosed, barren field in which the Executive Mansion was built. It was a place in which Mrs. Madison felt quite as much at ease, while Mr. Jefferson was President, as when she became its presiding genius. She entered the Presidential Mansion at a time when party strife was at its highest. While she held opinions of her own, grounded on what she believed to be the right, she extended the same privilege to every one ; and all were alike welcome in the home of the President. From out of her great and generous heart, she poured the oil of gladness upon the troubled sea of politics, and contending fac- tions were harmonized. Men of varied politics met at her table, and public strife and bitterness were for a time forgotten. But the " piping time of peace " only hovered over the nation ; the clouds of the war of 1812 were gathering in the horizon of national affairs. Notwithstanding Jefferson's and Madison's sym- pathy with France, one of the strong party measures on which they were elected, France, or Napoleon, did not hesitate to strike at America's commerce when it served him to do so. Yet we could hardly expect such a man to respect national friendship, when he was found ready to shatter his own household to further the ends of personal ambition. The same year that saw Dolly Madison, the Lady of the White House, witnessed the Empress Josephine's departure from the home of Napoleon, and a few months later his marriage to Marie Louise. The eye that watched the march of destiny saw, from the hour that Josephine turned her back upon the palace, broken-hearted, to wend her way to Malmaison, Napoleon's star begin to wane ; and before Mr. Madison's administration was ended. Napoleon Bonaparte was at St. Helena, and Louis XVHI. on the throne. In the meantime the American people, smarting under the insults of Great Britain, had adopted the war-cry of " Free trade and sailors' rights," and were ready to fight. On the ninth of June, 1812, the urbane, peace-loving Madison, as President of the United States, declared war against Great Britain, and, as is well known, in course of time, the British entered Washington. It was through these trying hours that Mrs. Madison was seen at her best. Her heroism during the battle THE WHITE HOUSE, 57 of Bladensburgh, and the advance of the enemy into the city is one of her greatest triumphs. The familiar letter to her sister at Mount Vernon, written during the hours of suspense, tells us what heroism was necessary to carry her through the ordeal : "Tuesday, August 23, 1814. " Dear Sister : — "My husband left me yesterday to join General Winder. He enquired anxiously whether I had the courage to remain in the President's house until his return on the morrow, or succeeding day, and on my assuring him 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 carriage and leave the city; that the enemy seem stronger than has been reported, and that it might happen that they would enter 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 property 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, as I hear much hostility towards him. " Dissatisfaction stalks around us. My friends and acquaint- ances are all gone, even Colonel C. with his hundred men who are stationed as 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 object, without being able, however, to make him understand why all advantages in war may not be taken." Wednesday Morning, 12 o'clock. " Since sunrise I have been turning my spy-glass in every direc- tion, and watching with unwearied anxiety, hoping to discover the approach of my dear husband and friends, but alas ! I can descry only groups of military wandering in all directions, as if there was a lack of arms or spirit to fight for their own firesides." " Three o'clock. "Will you believe it, my dear sister, we have had a battle, or skirmish near Bladensburgh, and I am still here' within sound of the cannon? Mr. Madison comes not. May God protect him! 58 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Two messengers, covered with dust, came to bid me fly, but I wait for him. At this late hour a wagon has been procured. I have filled it with 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 the British soldiers, events must determine. Our 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 Wash- ington is secured, and it requires to be unscrewed from the wall. This process was found too tedious for these precarious moments. I have ordered the frame to be broken and the canvas taken out; it is done, and the precious portrait placed in the hands of two gentlemen of New York for safe keeping. " And now, dear sister, I must leave this house, or the retreat- ing army will make me a prisoner in it, by filling up the road I am directed to take. " When I shall again write you, or where I shall be to-morrow I cannot tell." Their escape across the Potomac into Virginia, the pillaging and burning of the Capitol and the White House are facts famil- iar to all. The story that Mrs. Madison had issued cards for a dinner party, not expecting the enemy would reach the city that night — that preparations for the dinner were going on, and that the Brit- ish soldiers found, when they marched into the White House, a beautiful dinner spread with covers for thirty guests, is only equalled by the one that she cut the canvas of General Washing- ton's portrait out with a carving knife. Her own letter refutes that ; and as to the dinner, an old and trusty servant who closed the house, says, " Such was the excitement that day that no cook- ing was done, scarcely even for the family," which is altogether the most probable. When they returned to the capital, it was to find the White House in ashes, and the smoke still rising from the heaps of blackened ruins. Many offers of houses were made. Mrs. Madison arrived first and went to her sister, Mrs. Cutts, to await the return of the President, who, after looking about, rented the house on the cor- ner of New York Avenue and Eighteenth Street, called the *' Octagon," and owned by Colonel Tayloe, where they lived that winter, and where the treaty of peace was signed. THE WHITE HOUSE. rg Late in the afternoon of February 14, 1815, there came thundering down Pennsylvania Avenue a coach and four foaming steeds, in which was Mr. Henry Carroll, the bearer of the treaty of peace between the American and British commanders. *'The carriage was followed by cheers and congratulations, as it sped on toward the office of the Secretary of State, James Monroe ; and then to the President's, where the treaty was signed, in the octagon room upstairs, Mr. Madison afterwards rented the house on the northwest cor- ner of Pennsylvania Avenue and Nineteenth Street, where they resided until the President's house was rebuilt. Mr. Gobright, in his " Men and Things in Washington " says : "An old citizen has informed me that the 'levee 'of Mr. Madison, in February, 18 16, was remembered for years as the most brilliant ever held up to that date in the Executive Mansion." At this congregated the justices of the Supreme Court, pres- ent in their gowns, at the head of whom was Chief-Justice Mar- shall. The Peace Commissioners to Ghent, Gallatin, Bayard, Clay, and Russell were in the company. Mr. Adams was absent. The heroes of the war of 1812, generals with their aids, in full dress. Federalists and Republicans of both Houses of Congress, citizens and strangers were thrown together as friends, to be thank- ful for the present and to look forward with delight to a o-reat future. The most notable feature was the magnificent display of the Diplomatic Corps. It was on this occasion that Mr. Bagat, the French Minister, made the remark, so familiar to all, that Mrs. Madison "looked every inch a queen." Mr. Madison was about sixty-six years of age when he retired from public life to Montpelier, to return to Washington no more. Mrs. Madison, however, after Mr. Madison's death, came to Washington and lived for years in a house on the corner of H Street and Lafayette Square. Both sleep the sleep that knows no waking at Montpelier, in West Virginia ; while the world continues to think of him as an honest, just man, and of her as without a rival in the queenly graces and kindness of heart, which made her pre-eminently the most popular woman who has ever presided over the White House. CHAPTER VI. ADMINISTRATIONS OF JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. The White House rebuilt — Mr. Monroe inaugurated President — An age of heroic Devotion — Mr. Monroe as Senator — Minister to France — Secretary of Slate — America a Child among Nations — Mr. Monroe pledged his own Credit for his Country — Married Elizabeth Kortright — Her influence made its Impress on the Age — She visits Madame La Fayette in Prison — The tviro most influential Men in the World — Poor Marie Antoinette — The White House when Mrs. Monroe entered it — The East Room a Play- room — A brilliant Levee — Henry Clay's " Compromise Bill " — The " Mon. roe Doctrine " — Surrounded by intellectual Giants — John Marshall a social Favorite — Henry Clay, the Magnificent — John C. Calhoun, Secre- tary of War — Thomas Benton as Senator — John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State — John McLane, Postmaster-General — William Wirt, Attorney- General — John Quincy Adams elected President — The White House refurnished — Married Louisa Catherine Johnson — Minister to Berlin, Russia, and the Court of St. James — Secretary of .State under Monroe — Social Affairs demand a Cabinet Meeting — No Conclusion arrived at — Letter to the President of the United States and the Members of the Senate — Mr. Adams sustains his position — " Mrs. Adams' Ball " — An Event in History — A red-letter Day for Jackson — The Secretary's House — Party Influence — A Year of Contention and Strife — Mr. Ticknor calls on John Adams — New York Politics — The House elects the President — Inaugurated President March 4, 1825 — Chief-Justice Marshall delivered the Oath — Mrs. Adams the presiding Genius of the White House — La Fayette's Farewell Visit — His Triumph — Mr. Adams a Model of courtly Refinement. Congress ordered the White House to be rebuilt in 1815. In 1818 it was ready once more for occupancy. It was more beauti- ful than ever. From 1817 to 1825 was undoubtedly the period of the best society in Washington. Mr. Monroe was inaugurated President March 5, 18 17. Thus far the Presidents had been men who had passed through the fiery ordeal of a revolution for prin- ciple ; men who had pledged their lives, their fortunes, and their 60 JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 6 1 sacred honor to maintain and give success to the cause for which so much blood and treasure had been spent. Mr. Monroe could hardly have been other than the man he was, after having been reared in such an age, surrounded by such men and governed by such circumstances. It was an age of heroic devotion, of manly self-sacrifice. In 1776, Monroe had just graduated from college, and immediately joined the army as a cadet. From 1790 to 1794 he was United States senator. He was appointed the latter part of the year, Minister to France, and afterwards to the Court of St. James. He was Madison's Secre- tary of State during part of his administration. When he was Minister to France and England, this country was but a child among nations ; and when the older nations of the earth were shaken to the foundations by the disturbing causes of the French Revolution, it required a man of peculiar genius to sustain America's rights, dignity and honor abroad. He also took command of the Ship of State just before she was plunged into peril. It is well known that when the treasury was exhausted, and the national credit was so low that it was impossi- ble to raise funds for the defence of New Orleans, Monroe with patriotic devotion pledged his own credit to raise the necessary means. From the time he graduated from college he was in public life, and is always spoken of as " one of the purest public servants " that ever lived. He was polished in manners, punctilious in all the relations of life, and always dressed with care ; usually appear- ing in dark blue coat, buff vest, doeskin breeches, top-boots, a military cocked-hat of the fashion of the Revolution, with a bow of black ribbon worn as a cockade, and he is now sometimes called "the last of the cocked-hats." He married Elizabeth Kortright of New York, Her friends thought she made a great mistake in refusing many brilliant offers for a plain member of Congress. It is the era in which men and women live that often gives them opportunities to stamp their influence on the public. Mrs. Monroe lived at a time the most eventful in the history of nations, and whatever of good report we find in her record worthy 62 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: of emulation, made its impress not only on the age in which she lived, but on all subsequent ages. The lives of many of the grand women whose patience, forti- tude and courage would have graced many a Roman character, have almost passed from memory with the century that witnessed their heroism. But the women of the nineteenth century cannot afford to be ignorant of the history, privations and experiences of these women whose lives were beautiful in their simplicity and earnestness. The pioneers of liberty were sustained by their wisdom. There was a moral principle in the field, to which the women of the country had trained the populace to do homage. During Mr. Monroe's ministry to Paris, Mrs. Monroe made her visit to Madame La Fayette in prison. The Marquis de La Fay- ette was adored by the Americans, and the indignities heaped upon his wife could not be silently accepted, by either our minis- ter or his wife. Mr. Monroe decided to risk displeasure by send- ing his wife to see Madame La Fayette. The carriage of the American Minister appeared at the jail ; the keeper advanced to know the object of her visit. Mrs. Monroe, putting on the dignity of which she was capable, made known her business. Her request was complied with. But a few minutes elapsed ere the jailer returned bringing Madame La Fayette, attended by a guard. The Marchioness sank at her feet, unable to manifest her joy from weakness. That afternoon she was to have been beheaded, and had been expecting all day the summons to prepare for execution. Instead of a visit from the executioner, we can judge of her surprise and joy to see a woman — a friend — the wife of the American Embassador. This unexpected visit changed the plans of the officials, and to the surprise of all, she was liberated the next morning. It is well known that she sent her son, George Washington, to America, to the care of General George Washington, procured American passports, went to Vienna, and had an interview with the Empress. She reached the prison of her husband, and signed her consent " to share his captivity in all its details." The two most influential men in the world at that time, George Washington and JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 63 Napoleon Bonaparte, interested themselves in the prisoners' behalf, and they were released, after an imprisonment of five years for him, and twenty-two months for Madame La Fayette. But poor Marie Antoinette had no American Embassador to intercede for her while languishing in prison. The aid afforded to the American Colonies, of which she was an enthusiastic advo- cate, added to the financial embarrassment in which France -found itself, caused her to write, April 9, 1787, "Dearly enough do we pay to-day, for our rejoicing and enthusiasm over the American war." Paris was then considered the centre of all enjoyment. Mrs. Monroe entertained with great elegance, and her entertainments given after she entered the White House, were marked by the same quiet splendor. Mrs. Monroe was an elegant and accom- plished woman, and if she copied from foreign courts, her charm- ing dignity of manner, and warmth of heart, peculiarly fitted her for her exalted station. The White House, when they entered it, was meagrely fur- nished. The furniture was not of a kind befitting the house of the President, and the de'bris from the old building lay in heaps over the grounds. In the early part of the administration their children occupied the East Room as a play-room. The country being at peace once more, the government ordered a silver service of plate, and the stately furniture which adorned the East Room was purchased in Paris. Each piece was ornamented with the royal crown of Louis XVIH. ; this was removed, and the American eagle took its place before it was sent from Paris. One cannot look at this furniture without recalling the long roll of names of men and women, who stand out grandly in our coun- try's history, and whose memories are associated with this stately room ; its chairs, its tables, its ottomans occupying the same places as when they were there in living presence. The winter of 1825, it is said, was one of the most brilliant ever known in Washington. It was the winter of the exciting election in the House of Representatives, when Adams, Crawford and Jackson were candidates for President. Marquis de La Fayette was here, as the guest of Congress. Congress had voted him ^200,000 for his services in the Revolutionary war. 64 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. On New Year's Day, a levee was given of unusual brilliancy. Among the guests were Marquis de La Fayette, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, John C. Calhoun, William H. Crawford, Mr. Hayne, of South Carolina, Harrison Grey Otis, of Boston — the Chesterfield of the North — Stephen Van Rensselaer, Mr. Edward Livingston, of Louisiana, and a host of others with their wives and daughters, residents of Washington during that memorable winter. It is said that no subsequent period of Washington society has surpassed its galaxy of talent, beauty and accomplishments. Among the important events of Mr, Monroe's administration was the passage of Henry Clay's " Missouri Compromise Bill," by which slavery was permitted in Missouri, but forever prohibited elsewhere, north of the parallel of 36° 30' ; and President Mon- roe's memorable message of December 2, 1823, in which he advocated the policy of neither entangling ourselves in the broils of Europe, nor suffering powers of the Old World to interfere with the affairs of the New, generally known as the " Monroe Doctrine." On this occasion, Mr. Monroe declared that any attempt on the part of any European power to " extend their system to any por- tion of this hemisphere would be regarded by the United States as dangerous to our peace and safety, and would accordingly be opposed." Mr. Monroe was surrounded by men, who, De Tocqueville said, " would have been intellectual giants in any period of the world," like John Marshall, Chief-Justice of the United States. In person John Marshall was ungraceful, tall, emaciated, his muscles relaxed, joints so loosely connected as not only to dis- qualify him, apparently, for any vigorous exertion of body, but to destroy everything like harmony in his movements. In spite of all this he was a great social favorite ; his influence is known to have been foremost in Congress, with the administration. In a word, he was a statesman, a jurist and a Christian. Henry Clay was Speaker of the House. His tall, towering form, his sweeping gestures, his magnetic voice were powerful and convincing beyond description. John C. Calhoun, at one time Monroe's Secretary of War, was a man of splendid physique. He was tall, well proportioned, his movements graceful, handsome in form and feature, and frank JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 65 and courteous in manner. His large, dark, brilliant eyes strongly impressed all who encountered them. When addressing the Senate, he stood firm and erect, accompanying his delivery with angular gesticulations. Upon every subject he was original and analytical, depending upon his argument to carry his points. Known to be the father of nullification, yet Daniel Webster could say of him, " I have not in public, or in private life known a more assiduous person in discharge of his duty ; firm in his purposes, patriotic and honest, as I am sure he was, in the principles he espoused, and in the measures he defended, I do not believe that, aside from his large regard for that species of distinction that conducted him to eminent stations for the benefit of the Republic, he had a selfish motive, or a selfish feeling." Thomas H. Benton was a senator at this time ; the first sen- ator from the State of Missouri. All the departments of Government were represented by men of renowned personal character. Mr. Tompkins was Vice-Presi- dent ; John Quincy Adams, Secretary of State ; William H. Craw- ford, Secretary of the Treasury ; John C. Calhoun, Secretary of War ; Smith Thompson, Secretary of the Navy ; John McLane, Postmaster-General ; William Wirt, Attorney-General. When John Quincy Adams was elected President of the United States, Congress appropriated $14,000 to refurnish the White House. The East Room was furnished in " magnificent manner. Mr. Adams married Louisa Catherine Johnson, the daughter of Joshua Johnson, of Maryland. She was born, educated, and mar- ried in London. Her advantages were far superior to those enjoyed by most women of her time. After John Adams was President, John Quincy was Minister to Berlin four years. Mrs. Adams proved herself fully competent to act her part in the social and political circle in which circumstances had placed her. On Mr. Adams' return to America, he was elected United States senator. In those days Washington was quite the opposite of the Washington of to-day. Then ladies thought it quite a privation to leave the gayeties of larger cities to be kept here for some eight months. But Mrs. Adams found it very congenial to her, as many of her relatives were living here. When Mr. Madison was President, Mrs. Adams sailed with S 66 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. her husband to Russia, where he went as United States Minister. It was no holiday trip, a hundred years ago, to cross the Atlantic. When the country called Mr. Adams to this position, Mrs. Adams, nothing daunted, left her two eldest children in America and tak- ing the youngest, not two years old, sailed from Boston, in August, and arrived in St. Petersburg, the last of October. Their six years stay in Russia was an era of intense interest. In the history of the world, perhaps, there were never such won- drous scenes enacted. Napoleon seemed to have the destinies of the Old World in his grasp. The war between England and America broke out in the meantime, and communication was entirely cut ofif. British ships cruised about our ports to capture vessels, and hostile cannon thundered in the capital of our coun- try. Mr. Adams' biographer says : " He lived in St. Petersburg, poor, studious and secluded, on the narrow basis of the parchment of his commission, respected for learning and talent, but little given to the costly entertainments of an opulent and ostentatious circle," Mrs. Adams grew weary of her cheerless abode in that far northern city of architectural splendor. The entertainment of Russian nobles and oriental extravagance had no attraction for Mr, and Mrs. Adams while their country was in danger. Mr, Adams met the American embassadors in Ghent, leaving Mrs, Adams to follow him to Paris, Spring came at last, and she set out with her boy, following in the wake of a furious war, through a country where passion and strife were rampant ; but her courageous spirit carried her through, reaching Paris in time to witness the enthusiastic delight which greeted the return of Napoleon from Elba, and the flight of the Bourbons. Mrs. Adams, soon after reaching London, in May, 1815, found her husband appointed Minister to St. James, and after a separa- tion of six years she was reunited to her children. In 18 1 7, when Mr. Monroe succeeded Mr. Madison as Presi- dent, he appointed John Quincy Adams Secretary of State, He immediately embarked with his family for the United States. They arrived in Washington September 20, 1817. For eight JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 6y years Mrs. Adams occupied the place Mrs. Madison had so charmingly filled for the same length of time. No sectional bitternesses were taken into Mrs. Adams' drawing- rooms ; but the ever-present and never-settled question of social precedence assumed such proportions at the time Mr. Adams was Secretary of State, that it became necessary to discuss it in Cabi- net meetings. History gives us many instances where affairs of state have become gravely involved in these seemingly petty affairs of society, and this Republic has not been exempt from these entanglements, as the following extract from Mr. Adams' diary will show : ^^ January ^th, 1818. — At the office I had visits from Mr. Gail- lard, the president pro tcm. of the Senate, and his colleague, Judge Smith, and had conversation with them on various subjects. Mr. Gaillard finally asked me if there had been any new system of etiquette established with regard to visiting ; to which I replied, * Certainly none to my knowledge.' I was, myself, determined to make no question of etiquette with any one ; but I have been neg- ligent in paying visits, for absolute want of time. They said there had been a rule adopted by senators as long ago as when Aaron Burr was a member of that body, and drawn by him, that the sen- ators should visit only the President of the United States, and Mr. King had lately referred them to a book in which it was recorded. I told them it was the first information I had ever received of the existence of such a rule. " I have been five years a member of the Senate, and at the commencement of every session had invariably paid the first visit to all the heads of the departments, excepting Mr. Gallatin, who never having returned my first visit, I never afterwards visited him excepting upon business at his office ; and I understood that he had never paid, or returned any visits while he was Secretary of the Treasury. " I had always supposed the universal practice to be that the senators paid the first visit to the heads of the departments, though since I have arrived here I have heard the practice was different. " I was ready to conform to any arrangements that might be proper, but I supposed the rule that senators would visit only the President did not extend to a requisition that the heads of depart- ments should first visit them. We parted in perfect good humor on the subject." On the 22d, he notes : "My wife received this morning, a note from Mrs. Monroe, requesting that she would call upon her this 68 HISTORIC HOMES IN^ WASHINGTON. day, at one or two o'clock, and she went. It was to inform her that the ladies had taken offence at her not paying them the first visit, " All ladies arriving here as strangers, it seems, expect to be visited by the heads of departments, and even by the President's wife. Mrs. Madison subjected herself to this torture, which she felt very severely, but from which, having begun the practice, she never found an opportunity of receding. " Mrs. Monroe neither pays, nor returns visits. My wife returns all visits, but adopts the principle of not visiting first any strangers who arrive, and this is what the ladies have taken in dudgeon. " My wife informed Mrs. Monroe that she should adhere to her principle, but on any question of etiquette she did not exact of any lady that she should visit her." The 2oth of December, a Cabinet meeting was held to discuss the important question of etiquette in visiting. After two hours discussion of the subject, they came to no other conclusion than that each one should follow his own course. Mr. Adams proposed a rule to separate entirely the official character from the practice of personal visiting, to pay no visits but for the sake of friendship, or acquaintance, and then without inquiring which was first, or which last, and that their wives should practise the same. Mr. Adams, finding himself liable to be misunderstood in his action relative to this singular subject, took the trouble the day following the Cabinet meeting, to write to the President and Vice- President letters which illustrate the social history of Washington at this period. The following is the letter to the President : "To the President of the United States. "Washington, December 25, 1819. " Sir :— "The meeting held yesterday, having terminated without any arrangement relative to the subject upon which it had, according to your desire, been convened, and it being understood that it left the members of your administration free to pursue that course of conduct dictated by the sense of propriety, respectively, to avoid being misunderstood in regard to that which I have hitherto pur- sued, and to manifest my wish to pursue any other which you will please to direct, or advise, I have thought it necessaiy to submit the following observations to vour candor and intelligence. It JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 69 has, I understood from you, been indirectly made a complaint to you, as a neglect of duty on the part of some of the members of your administration, or at least of the Secretary of State, that he omits paying, at every session of Congress, a first visit of form to every member of the Senate of the United States ; and that his wife is equally negligent of her supposed duty, in omitting to pay similar visits to the ladies of every member of either House wlio visit the city during the session. " The fact of omission, both as regards my wife and myself, is acknowledged ; and as you had the kindness to propose having any explanation of the motives our conduct made known to those, who, to our very great regret, appear to be dissatisfied with it,, the following statement is made to give that explanation. " I must premise that having been five years a member of the Senate, and having, during four of the five years been accom- panied by my wife, I never received a first visit from any one of the heads of departments, nor did my wife ever receive a first visit from any of those ladies. " We invariably paid the first visit and at that time always understood it to be the established usage. I do not mean to say that every senator then paid the first visit to the heads of depart- ments, but that the senators neither exacted, nor expected a visit from them. Visiting in form was considered as not forming a part either of social, or official duty. I never then heard a sug- gestion that it was due in courtesy from a head of department, to pay a first visit to all senators ; or from his wife to visit the wife of any member of Congress. " When I came here two years ago, I supposed the usual rules of visiting to remain as I had known them ten years before. " Entertaining the profoundest respect for the Senate as a body, and a high regard for every individual member of it, I am yet not aware of any usage which required formaf visits from me, as a member of the administration, to them as senators. " The Senate of the United States, independent of its impor- tance and dignity, is of all the associations of men upon the earth, that to which I am bound by every, and the most sacred and inviolable ties of personal gratitude. i " In a career of five and twenty years, and through five succes- sive administrations, scarcely a year has passed but has been marked in the annals of my life by manifestations of the signal confidence of that body. Unworthy, indeed, should I be of such confidence if I had a heart insensible of these obligations; base indeed, should I feel myself, if inflated by the dignity of the stations to which their continual uninterrupted and frequently re- peated kindnesses have contributed to raise me, I were capable of withholding from them, collectively or individually, one particle >JO HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. of the reverence and honor due from me to them. But I was not conscious that this mode of showing my respect to them was either due, or usual, and when the first intimation was given me that there was such an expectation entertained by the senators in general, I quickly learnt from other quarters, that if complied with it would give great offence to the members of the House of Representatives, unless also extended to them. " To pay visits of ceremony to every member of Congress every session, would not only be a very useless waste of time, but not very compatible with the discharge of the real and important duties of the Department, always peculiarly oppressive during the session of Congress. Neither did the introduction of such a system of mere formality appear to me altogether congenial to the Republican simplicity of our institutions. " To avoid all invidious discriminations I have paid no first visits to any member of the House of Congress as such, but 1 have returned the visits of all who are pleased to visit me ; con- sidering it as perfectly optional between every member of either House and whether any interchange of visits should take place between us or not. " The rule which I have thought best to adhere to for myself, has been pursued by my wife with my approbation. She has never considered it incumbent upon her to first visit ladies coming to this place, strangers to her. She would draw no line of dis- crimination of strangers whom she should, and strangers whom she should not visit. To visit all, with the constantly increasing resort of strangers here, would have been impossible. To have visited only the ladies of members of Congress, would have been a distinction offensive to many other ladies of equal respectability. It would have applied to the married daughters of the President. The only principle of Mrs. Adams has been to avoid invidious distinctions ; and the only way of avoiding them is to visit no lady as a stranger. She first visits her acquaintances, according to the rules of private life ; and receives, or returns visits of all ladies, strangers, who pay visits to her. We are aware that this practice has given offence to some members of Congress and their ladies, and we very sincerely regret the result. We think, however, that the principle properly understood, cannot be offensive. " To visit all strangers, or none, seems to be the only alterna- tive to do justice to all. " Above all we wish it understood that while we are happy to receive any respectable stranger who pleases to call upon us, we have no claim or pretension to claim it of any one. " It only remains for me to add, that after this frank exposition of what we have done, and of our only motive for the course we JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. Ji have pursued, I am entirely disposed to conform to any other which you may have the goodness to advise. " With respect, etc." The following day the President called at the office of the Secretary of State, returning the letter Mr, Adams had left with him. He said the observation it contained had undoubtedly great weight, and as it principally concerned the members of the Senate, he thought it would be best to give a similar explanation to the Vice-President, and ask him to communicate it to the members of the Senate who had taken exception to Mr. Adams' not paying them the first visit ; asking as a favor that Mr. Adams would omit the allusion to his daughter, Mrs. Hay. Mr. Adams did so, but adds in his note, " though Mrs. Hay, herself, has been one of the principal causes of raising this senseless war of etiquette visiting." A letter was sent to the Vice-President, embodying nearly the same language as the one to the President. The Vice-President, Mr. Tompkins, called on Mr. Adams, and the affairs of visiting etiquette came up. Mr. Tompkins said the principle upon which they rested their claim to a first visit, was, that the Senate being, by their concurrence to appointments, a component part of the supreme executive, therefore senators ought to be first visited by heads of departments. Mr. Adams said he thought the conclu- sion was not logical, and if it was it would require that senators at home should visit every member of the Legislature, by which they were chosen ; a practice which certainly existed nowhere. If that line of argument is used it would place the State senator above the United States senator, and the constituency above the State senator. The matter was not settled in the days of Adams and Monroe. Mr. Adams gave his undivided attention to the duties pertaining- to his ofiice, leaving to Mrs. Adams the arduous task of receiving and entertaining the hosts of visitors who crowded the capital — diplomats, public men, those who came on business, or pleasure, were always made welcome ; and probably there was not a home in Washington where society found such an agreeable resort as at Mrs. Adams.' 72 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. The ball given by her January 8, 1824, in honor of Andrew Jackson and the anniversary of his victory at New Orleans, was one of the most brilliant affairs ever given at that time in Wash- ington. It is one of the events that will live in history; it was heralded in newspapers and commemorated in song. Old Washingtonians do not forget the rhyme in which John Ogg celebrated this event in the Washington Republican^ Jan- uary 8, 1824, beginning thus : " Wend you with the world to-night ? Brown and fair and wise and witty, Eyes that float in seas oflight, Laughing mouths and dimples pretty, Belles and matrons, maids and madams, — All are gone to Mrs. Adams." Among the guests were Daniel Webster, Henry Clay, and John C. Calhoun, and if the picture extant of this grand celebration is correct, they did it honor by appearing in full-dress costumes — blue coats, gilt buttons, white, or buff waistcoats, white neckties, high chokers, silk stockings and pumps. This event was a happy one for Jackson. It soon afterward followed that John C. Calhoun's name was withdrawn from the Presidential ticket, and Andrew Jackson's placed instead, John Quincy Adams, his host, was running in opposition to him. The house in which Mr. Adams lived and where this famous ball was given, was on F Street opposite the Ebbitt House. Until within a year it has remained there unchanged. Upon its site has been erected a magnificent structure, christened the " Adams Building," a fitting monument to this great name. Charles Francis Adams writes of his mother that during the eight years in which Mrs. Adams presided in the house of Secretary of State, no exclusions were made in her invitations, .merely on account of any real, or imaginary political hostility ; nor, though keenly alive to the reputation of her husband, was any disposition manifested to do more than amuse or enliven society. In this the success was permitted to be complete, as all will remember who were then in the habit of frequenting her dwelling. But in proportion as the great contest for the Presidency, in which Mr. Adams was involved, approached, the violence of JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 73 partisan warfare began to manifest its usual bad effects. Mrs. .Adams decided to adopt habits of greater seclusion. Most human affairs have their good and their bad sides, and politics is not an exception. The election of the heads of Govern- ment determines the general policy of the state, and the class of men who shall be appointed to the various offices under the control of the administration. Those who feel a strong interest in that policy, which their judgment tells them is for the welfare of the country ; those who desire to promote special measures ; and those who are anxious to obtain and hold office are those who are always found ready to work for such interests. They divide into parties according to their views, and exert themselves to the utmost to bring about the desired result. This party influence is useful and beneficial if properly used, in causing discussion, examination and thought; stimulating the peo- ple to a careful study of their institutions and the principles of government, and the effects which certain measures may have on the public welfare. In a free government where the people wield the power, the result of all this discussion and thought is to imbue the general mind with ideas of high statesmanship. This is the better side of politics. The dark side is that too often it awakens an undue degree of passion and prejudice. Men berate and misrepresent each other. The same disposition which actuates the friends of a candidate also actuates his enemies. They seek to destroy each other's influence, while no doubt, all are in earnest in seeking the good of their country. They do not stop at public actions, but enter the sanctity of the home. Because of this, Mrs. Andrew Jackson was led to say : " I assure you that I would rather be a door-keeper in the house of my God, than to live in that palace in Washington." For this there is no remedy but in the intelligence and good sense of the people themselves. When men learn to be careful and just in judgments of men and measures, politics will have taken a higher plane. The year preceding Mr. Adams' election was one of contention and strife, and unfortunately neither candi- date was elected. At this time Mr. George Ticknor, of Boston, presented a for- 74 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: eign gentleman to ex-President John Adams. They were to avoid tallcing upon politics, on account of Mr. Adams' feebleness, but when they started to go Mr. Adams asked Mr. Ticknor about the Presidential election in the House. Mr. Ticknor very adroitly remarked, " It is understood to depend upon the vote of New York." Mr. Adams arose and exclaimed, " Then God help us ! As boy and man, I have known New York for seventy years, and her politics have always been among the devil's incomprehensi- bilities." How much his Satanic majesty reveals of New York politics, in these latter days, remains one of the enigmas. On February 9, 1825, the formal opening of the electoral pack- ets took place. Neither of the candidates had received a majority of electoral votes. The House of Representatives then proceeded to elect from the three highest candidates, Jackson, Adams and Crawford. The roll of the House was called by States. The vote of each State was deposited in a box and placed on the table. The tellers were Daniel Webster and John Randolph, who proceeded to open the boxes and count the ballots. Mr. Webster announced the election of Mr. Adams. On the 4th of March, 1825, he was inaugurated President, occu^ pying the chair his father had occupied twenty-eight years before. Chief-Justice Marshall administered the oath. After the inauguration the multitude rushed to the White House to congratulate the President. In the evening the usual inaugural ball was given. Mr. Monroe gave a levee after the electoral count, in honor of the event; of which Mr. Goodrich writes : "In the course of the evening Mr. Adams and General Jackson uncon- sciously approached each other. General Jackson had a hand- some lady on his arm ; the two looked at each other for a moment, and then General Jackson moved forward, stretched out his long arm, and said : " How do you do, Mr. Adams ? I give you my left hand, for my right, you see, is devoted to the fair. I hope you are well, sir." Mr. Adams, with accustomed dignity, replied : "Very well, sir. I hope General Jackson is well." Only four hours had elapsed since both were struggling for the highest place to which human ambition can aspire. They met as victor and vanquished ; but their deportment toward each other was a JAMES MONROE AND JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. 75 rebuke to that littleness of party which can see no merit in a rival, or that has no rejoicings in common with a victorious competitor. Mrs. Adams was the presiding genius of the White House in 1825, and La Fayette, by Mr. and Mrs. Adams' invitation, spent the last week of his stay here in the Executive Mansion. It was from the President's house, September 7th, that he bade the land of his adoption a pathetic farewell. More than half a century has passed since the last sentence of his farewell address was uttered. No true child of America can recall it and the scenes that followed, without feelings of the deep- est emotion. As the last words Avere spoken, he advanced and took President Adams in his arms, while tears poured down his venerable cheeks. Advancing a few paces, he was overcome by his feelings, and again returned, and, falling on the neck of Mr. Adams, exclaimed in broken accents, " God bless you ! " There was many a manly cheek wet with tears as they pressed forward to take for the last time, that hand which was so generously extended for our aid, and which was ever ready to be raised in our defence. The expression which beamed in the face of this exalted man was of the finest and most touching kind. The hero was lost in the father and friend, and dignity melted into subdued affection ; and the friend of Washington seemed to linger with a mournful delight among the sons of his adopted country. As he entered the barouche, accompanied by the Secretaries of State, of the Treasury, of the Navy, and passed out of the capital he had helped to save, the peals of artillery, the music of military bands, the large concourse of people produced feelings of indescribable emotion in the heart of La Fayette. This was his triumph for hav- ing given his money, his services, and almost his life for the lib- erty of the sons of men. Mr. Adams was, undoubtedly, the most learned man who had yet occupied the Presidential chair. In dress and manner he was a model of courtly refinement. Mrs. Adams' elegant and intel- lectual re'gime was felt throughout the length and breadth of the land. Whatever stately court the other Presidents' wives had drawn around them, there had never been any superior to Mrs. Adams' in elegance, taste, purity, refinement and worth. CHAPTER VII. THE WHITE HOUSE DURING PRESIDENT JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. Jackson's Inauguration — John Quincy Adams' polished Manners — Refinement in the White House — Much Apprehension by the White House Coteries — An Impregnable Support — A Military Hero — A Throng at the Capital — An Elegant Banquet and High Carnival — Mrs. Donaldson, Hostess — Jack- son's Cabinet — " To the Victor belong the Spoils " — A Letter of Protest — Bitter Controversies — The Mrs. Eaton Imbroglio — Jackson's Obstinacy— A life-long Friend — An Eventful Career — An Ignominious Death — A Page for " Mrs. Grundy" — A spirited Answer to a Foreign Minister — No Com- plaints made of Hospitality — Jackson tired of Social Ceremonies — A select Ball — No more Exclusives — The President excluded from his own Table — Hotel Registers watched — The Magician's Work — Full-fledged Autocrats — Mrs. Donaldson leaves Washington — The "lovely Emily " passes from Earth — Four Children born in the White House — General Jackson God- father — A Clerk in the Treasury Department — A Lock of Hair — Jackson's Gift to be placed in the Corner-stone of the Treasury Department — His Devotion to the Memory of his Wife — A valued Miniature. In 1824, in the contest for the Presidency that was finally set- tled by the election of John Quincy Adams by the House of Rep- resentatives, Jackson received ninety-nine electoral votes. The clamor against his " backwoods manners," uncivilized character and military spirit caused his defeat. But the ascendency he had gained in the hearts of the people by his military achievements, made him invincible in the Presidential election of 1828, and he was inaugurated March 4, 1829. John Quincy Adams, with his polished manners, classical educa- tion, and long experience in European schools when a boy, and at foreign courts during his father's and his own diplomatic service, was better fitted for this high position than any President who had preceded him. His administration had been characterized by great refinement in the White House ; Mrs. Adams presiding over 76 THE WHITE HOUSE. 77 the social part with grace and elegance. Hence it is not surpris- ing that Jackson's ascendency was looked upon with many fore- bodings by the coterie that surrounded the White House, and the denizens of the national capital. In his courage and executive ability in the administration of national affairs they had all confidence. They knew that in his eyes, " right was might " ; that the laws would be executed ; that the rights of every American citizen would be respected over the world, and that evil doers and revolutionists would be punished. But whether he would give that consideration which is due in the observance of the smaller proprieties of society, obligatory upon the Chief Executive of the nation, was a question that gave them much apprehension. Mrs. Jackson having died just before the inauguration, her wonderful influence over his turbulent spirit was gone — a spirit that never knew restraint except from the loving hand of her whom he mourned. No one knew better, or felt more keenly these forebodings, than Jackson himself. Circumstances had given him a reputation un- just to his tender heart and refined nature. But he was of and from the people, and backed by this impregnable support, he en- tered upon his duties. Like Washington, he was a military hero, and the enthusiasm attending his inauguration knew no bounds. Innumerable visitors flocked to the capital. Every imaginary means of transportation was taxed to its utmost. After the inauguration he was escorted to the White House, followed by the populace, who, defying all control, rushed into the house, filling every inch of space. The elegant banquet spread in the East Room in his honor, was soon a scene of the wildest confusion. In the carnival that ensued, china and glass were broken, wine was spilled, and order was turned into chaos. In their mad endeavor to see the new President, men with muddy boots climbed upon the furniture, and much of it was soiled, broken, and utterly ruined. Jackson knew that he must establish something more in keep- ing with the dignity of his position ; hence he at once installed the accomplished Mrs. Donaldson, a niece of Mrs. Jackson, as host- ess of the White House. He appointed Mr. Van Buren, Secretary 7 8 HIS TORIC HOMES HV WASHING TON. of State ; Samuel D. Ingham, of Pennsylvania, Secretary of the Treasury; John H. Eaton, Secretary of War; John Branch, of North Carolina, Secretary of the Navy ; and William F. Barry, of Kentucky, Postmaster-General. With the exception of Mr. Van Buren, the Cabinet was in no sense a strong one. Socially, Mrs. Donaldson was not reinforced more strongly by the ladies of the Cabinet than the President by the Cabinet Councillors. Calhoun, as Vice-President, was very near him, but only to criticise and irritate, and in no wise to aid him to a successful administration. In establishing the maxim, " to the victor belong the spoils," Jackson had much opposition from the friends nearest and dear- est to him. Major Lewis was of that number, and in urging his opposition he wrote the following letter : " I embrace this occasion to enter my solemn protest against it, not on account of my office, but because I hold it to be fraught with the greatest mischief to the country. If it ever should be carried out, in extensio, the days of this Republic will, in my opinion, have been numbered; for whenever the impression shall have become general that the Government is only valuable on account of its offices, the great and paramount interests of the country will be lost sight of, and the Government, itself, will be ultimately destroyed. This, at least, is the honest conviction of my mind with regard to the novel doctrine of rotation in office." But with characteristic determination Jackson carried out his policy of removal, wherever he desired to serve a friend or pun- ish an enemy. Many and bitter were the political controversies and battles of his administration ; not unfrequently with the political giants of that day, of whom there was a large percentage in the Senate, led by Calhoun, Clay, Webster, Benton and others; until finally the social question became so entangled in the political contro- versy that the Cabinet was disrupted. Mr. Van Buren more firmly entrenched himself in the regard of Mr. Jackson by espousing his side of the controversy ; and the breach between Mr. Calhoun and the President became wider through Calhoun's opposition. THE WHITE HOUSE. 79 Jackson was as tenacious of his friendships as he was of his principles and his religion. The wife of his Secretary of War, Mrs. Eaton, having been rather unfortunate in her antecedents and early associations, there was the greatest opposition to her presence and position. She was slighted on every hand by leading ladies and gentlemen of the administration and of the Diplomatic Corps. Friends importuned President Jackson to remove Mr. Eaton, and thereby eliminate Mrs. Eaton from the Executive circle ; but he would listen to none of them, and, it is claimed, threatened to depose Mrs. Donaldson as hostess of the Executive Mansion, should she join the clamoring persecutors of this really unfortunate woman. He knew that she was upright and had in no sense forfeited her right to courteous treatment, and he would not desert her, or add to her trials by placing her and her husband at the mercy of her tormentors by removing Mr. Eaton from the War Department. Mr. Eaton was a lifelong friend of Jackson, and nothing would induce the latter to wound his friend. Mrs. Eaton was a person of fascinating manners and rare personal attractions, bright and vivacious in conversation, and a great favorite with the President. While nothing could be alleged against her personal character, she could not be forgiven her antecedents. Her career was an eventful one. The misfortunes that followed her from the day of the death of her illustrious benefactor are almost incredible, and, were they written without embellishment, would be called a romance. She died in this city a few years ago, alone, in great poverty and desolation, after seeing all her glory and friends depart. For years, persons who attended the Metropolitan church here, saw each Sunday, a little old lady with no trace of beauty left in her pinched and wrinkled face, clad in shabby-genteel garments, slip quietly into a seat on the side aisle, near the altar, listen attentively to the sermon, and as quietly withdraw at its close. Few knew that this was Mrs. Eaton, who was once the most conspicuous woman in President Jackson's official circle. Mrs. Donaldson was a woman of remarkable beauty ; dark auburn hair, brown eyes, fair complexion, lips and brow exquis- itely moulded, and a slender, symmetrical figure. Her picture 80 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Strongly resembles that of Mary, Queen of Scots. Her wardrobe was very elegant. The dress she wore at the inaugural ball is still preserved and, even in this day of extravagance, would be greatly admired. It is an amber-colored satin, brocaded with bouquets of rosebuds and violets, and richly trimmed with white lace and pearls. Though Mrs. Grundy was given little space in the newspapers of that day, this dress was graphically described. It was presented to Mrs. Donaldson by the President-elect, who loved his niece as his own child, always calling her " my daughter," as a term of endearment. Her vivacity and quick repartee delighted him. On one occasion a foreign Minister, desiring to compliment her, said, " Madam, you dance with the grace of a Parisian. I can hardly realize you were educated in Tennessee." " Count, you forget that grace is a cosmopolite, and like a flower, is found oftener in the woods than in the streets of a city," was the spirited reply. At dinners, dancing parties, receptions and on all occasions — and there were many in those days of genuine hospitality — Mrs. Donaldson presided gracefully, greetmg all with much cordiality of manner. At the close of Jackson's first term no complaints were heard of boorishness, or inhospitable administration ; hence when the fates decreed a second term of the Jackson regime, there were, no regrets or unkind prophecies of shortcomings in the courte- sies of the White House. Jackson, however, was determined to relieve himself of much of the irksome detail of entertainments. The long drawn out din- ing of officials, including the members of both Houses of Con- gress, was trying to his patience. The promiscuous levees were intolerable to him. After entering upon his second term, he invited the ladies of the Cabinet to a consultation on matters of etiquette, where he explained that he wished to be relieved from the odious ordeal of affairs of ceremony. It was resolved that the President should give a grand ball in the Executive Mansion, the night before Christmas, 1835, to which he could invite persons entitled to such consideration, and thereby avoid the promiscuous crowd of a public levee. The guests assembled at nine. The ball was in the East Room. THE WHITE HOUSE. "8 1 The supper was served in the West Room at eleven o'clock, and the company dispersed by half-past twelve ; but those who were not included in the list of guests were much dissatisfied, and the following from a contemporary papeY, shows how impossible it was to adjust social affairs then, when the city was comparatively in its infancy and the population small. " A little set of exclusives is now formed under the immediate patronage of the President, who has set himself to the grand object of separating the true and acknowledged fashion and rank of the community, from contact with those who are not exactly of the right sort. The social institutions of Washington have too long, in his estimation, borne a resemblance to the political insti- tutions of the country, and admitted respectable persons from every part of the country, without a very rigid scrutiny into their pretensions as people of fashion. " The system is now to be changed. The scale established by the President is peculiarly arbitrary. For instance, clerks with three thousand dollars salary are invited, those of two thousand are excluded. " On Friday the public New Year levee is to be held, and to that the Irish laborers, etc., are to be admitted in their shirt sleeves, as heretofore. Andrew the First will give an exclusive ball and supper once a fortnight, hereafter, till the weather is too hot for dancing," Again: "The President has determined. to give no more exclu- sives. The last one was a shocking exhibition. The members of Congress brought ladies; and numbers came from every part of the city and vicinity without invitation and pushed their way in. Sixteen hundred persons were computed to be present, and of course, the rooms were crowded to suffocation." The President handed Mrs. Forsyth to the supper-room, but the mob rushed past him and excluded him from the table. "Well," said he,, very properly offended, "this is the first time that I was ever shut out from my own table, and it shall be the last." It is acknowledged that the social brilliancy of General Jack- son's administration equalled, if it did not surpass, any that had preceded him. There was as polished and refined society to be found in Washington then, as to-day, and it was accessible to all who wished to enter it. Undoubtedly there is not a city in the 6 82 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. United States where true worth is recognized as quickly as in Washington, or where more consideration is given to innate refine- ment and talent. Many families depend upon the Government for support, giving an equivalent in services rendered. The only difference is one of income, which governs the manner of style of living. Society is made up of those in official life, foreigners of rank, citizens of wealth, men of letters, and women of culture and refinement, who give tone and polish to the body social. General Jackson, following the example of his predecessors, except Jefferson, held his levees periodically, and all who wished to pay their respects to the President, could do so on these occa- sions. The members of the Cabinet, heads of Departments, foreign Ministers and other dignitaries gave dinners and evening parties, during the session, to strangers of note, and as these were multi- plied, or lessened, the mercury marked the brilliancy of the sea- son on the social barometer. Hotel registers were carefully watched. No strangers of note missed an invitation. All lions of the day were in demand. Members of Congress were eagerly sought. All these were concomitant parts of a fashionable party. Some of them, we must admit, were diamonds in the rough, coming from the rural districts, in all their simplicity and rusticity, with undisguised astonishment that an entry into a house must be preceded by a " ticket with your name onto it ; " but Aladdin and his magician's lamp works no greater transfor- mations, than this entry into fashionable society, where the dlite of the land preside ; and the new-comer gradually throws aside the order of the novice, and in time becomes a full-fledged aristocrat. The Secretaries gave the usual round of soirees, which com- menced at nine or ten o'clock, the host and hostess standing in the drawing-room to receive the company. Dancing, cards and conversation were the amusements of the evening. Light refresh- ments were served through the apartments, and at eleven o'clock a supper was partaken of by the guests ; at three they began to disperse, and at four the banquet hall was deserted. In the spring of 1836 Mrs. Donaldson's health was so impaired THE WHITE HOUSE. 83 that she left Washington and returned to Tennessee, little think- ing, as she passed out of the White House, that she was parting with all its honors and pleasures for the last time. She rapidly failed in strength, and in December, 1836, the spirit of "the lovely Emily " passed from earth. During the following session the President's house was closed in respect to her memory. Her four children were born in the White House, President Jackson acting as godfather to two of them, Mr. Van Buren to another, and General Polk to the youngest. One of these children is now Mrs. Eliza Wilcox, a clerk in the Treasury Department, having been a widow for many years, dependent upon her own exertions for the support of herself and family. From her baby head Jackson cut a lock of hair, which he sent to the Committee to be placed in the corner stone of the Treasury building, as the most valued treasure he had to deposit ; little thinking that in the changes that time brings, this "precious baby" would ever join the throng that goes in and out of the great building in the weary round of the treadmill life of d Government clerk. Jackson's devotion to the memory of his wife was most pathetic, and betrays a tenderness as beautiful as the courage that made him immortal. She had been his joy for forty eventful years, passing through vituperation, poverty, and the trials that ever attend men of mark. It seemed a cruel fate that removed her just as he was entering upon his triumphs. It is said that he wore her miniature always, and at night it was placed upon a little table at his bedside, lean- ing against her Bible, that the smile preserved by the artist in the loved face might greet him on awakening. And as we look upon the picture of this saintly woman, we are not surprised that it was the inspiration of that grand old hero. The face is oval, the features delicate, the eyes are large and beautiful in their clear and spirited gaze; the dark curls which cluster round the finely formed head are half revealed and half concealed by a cap of soft lace falling veil-like over her shoulders ; a double ruff of lace encircles a delicate throat; the brow is broad and the mouth is wreathed in a smile that gives the face a lovely expression. We can imagine that to steal away from the throng that beset him, this old man often had his solace in gazing upon 84 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. this inanimate portrait of her whom he idolized in life and revered in death. During Jackson's regime the White House had but few addi- tions in the way of elegant furnishings, or expensive luxuries. That was left for the more elaborate taste of his successor, Martin Van Buren. CHAPTER VIII. THE WHITE HOUSE DURING THE ADMINISTRATIONS OF MARTIN VAN BUREN AND WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON. Martin Van Buren's Inauguration — Diplomats and Senators — Address to the People — A Disciple of Jefferson — A Defeat of Confirmation — Made Vice- President — A bad Adviser — Financial Crash — Suspensions the Order of the Day — Refined and extravagant Taste — Public Opinion exasperated — " Gold Spoon " Speech in Congress — An honest Countryman — " Old Tip a mighty early Riser " — His Administration a social Failure — A Visit from Mrs. Madison — The Tone of Society changed — The Court of " Martin the First " — A striking Contrast — Dance in the Shower of Gold — A Bride at the White House — The President at Church — His Excellency's Carriage compared with those of Louis Philippe and Queen Victoria — The last Page of Fifty Years of Congress — A grand Fete by the Russian Minister, Bo- disco — General Harrison nominated at Baltimore — Jeer of the Baltimore Republicans — Origin of the "Log Cabin" and " Hard Cider " Epithets — • A Word spoken in an evil Hour — A notable Mass Meeting — A topical Song — Mr. Harrison's electoral Vote — The Federal Party merged into the Whig Party — The " Log Cabins " Victorious — General Harrison inaugu- rated President — A national Calamity — Annie Symmes, Wife of the Presi- dent — Born in New Jersey — A Remarkable Woman — To the Manner born — A Word of her Grandsons — Officers and Soldiers of the Union Army — Her Death and Resting Place. The inauguration of Martin Van Buren, the successor of Gen- eral Jackson, March^4, 1837, has been so graphically described by N. P. Willis, that we may be pardoned for giving it in extenso. ** The Republican procession, consisting of the Presidents and their families, escorted by a small volunteer corps, arrived soon after twelve. The General and Mr. Van Buren were in the " Constitution phaeton," drawn by four grays, and as it entered the gate they both rode uncovered. Descending from the carriage to the foot of the steps, a passage was made for them through the dense crowd, and the tall white head of the old chieftain, still 85 86 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: uncovered, went steadily up through the agitated mass, marked by its peculiarity from all around it. The crowd of diplomatists and senators in the rear of the columns made way, and the ex-Presi- dent and Mr. Van Buren advanced with uncovered heads. " A murmur of feeling came up from the moving mass below, as the infirm old man, just emerged from a sick chamber, which his physicians had thought he would never leave, bowed to the people. Mr. Van Buren then advanced, and with a voice remarkably dis- tinct, and with great dignity, read his address to the people. "The air was elastic and the day still, and it is supposed that nearly twenty thousand people heard him from his elevated posi- tion distinctly. I stood, myself, on the outer limit of the crowd, and though I lost occasionally a sentence from the interruption near by, his words came clearly articulated to my ear." Mr. Van Buren was a disciple of Jefferson, imbibing his doc- trines and political principles, entering into politics when only eighteen years of age; being a State senator in 1812, subse- quently Attorney-General, Governor of the State of New York, and United States senator. He was Secretary of State under Jackson, who also appointed him Minister to St. James, but Mr. Calhoun defeated his confirmation. He was, however, made Vice-President when Jackson was elected for the second term, and to Mr. Van Buren's influence were many of Jackson's mis- takes attributed. The country was verging on a financial crash from various causes, and in a brief time after the brilliant inauguration, it came near destroying the credit and business interests of the whole nation. Suspensions were the rule, and solvency the exception. Nothing daunted, Mr. Van Buren still insisted upon the pay- ment of all public moneys in gold and silver ; and indulged his refined and extravagant taste in the repairs and additions to the White House. This exasperated public opinion and Congress to such an extent, that we find a Mr. Tyler of Pennsylvania, in July 1840, making a speech of several days before Congress, portray- ing the evil times that had fallen upon the nation. All the extravagancies of the administration were held up to view. It was called the gold and silver administration because of the gold spoons, silver knives and forks, and cut glass used at the White House. Said Mr. Tyler : THE WHITE HOUSE. 8/ " What will the plain Republican farmer say when he discovers that our economical reformers have expended ^13,000 of the people's cash for looking-glasses, lamps and candlesticks ? What would the frugal Hoosier think were he to behold a Democratic peacock in full Court costume, strutting by the hour before golden framed mirrors nine feet high and four and a half feet wide ? Why, sir, were Mr. Van Buren to dash into the palace on the back of his Roanoke race-horse, he could gaze at and admire the hoofs of his charger and his crown at the same instant of time, in one of those splendid mirrors ! " Mr. Chairman, there is much truth and sound philosophy in poor Richard's advice, ' Early to bed and early to rise makes you healthy, wealthy and wise,' but it is clear that our new economists have little faith in early rising, else they would not have laid out seven thousand dollars of the people's money in lamps and candle- sticks, " The Court fashion of sleeping out the day and waking out the night results in keeping the palace door closed, save to persons entitled to the entree, until ten o'clock a. m. "It was but a few days ago that an honest countryman, on his way to the fishing landing after breakfast, having some curiosity to behold the magnificent East Room with its gorgeous drapery and brilliant mirrrors, rang the bell at the great entrance door of the palace. Forthwith the spruce English porter in attendance came to the door, and seeing only a plain person on foot there, slammed the door in his face, saying: 'You had better come at seven o'clock. The President's rooms are not open until ten o'clock in the morning.' Whereupon the plain farmer turned on his heel, with this cutting remark, ' I am thinking the Presi- dent's house will be open before day the 4th of March, to every- body, for old Tip is a mighty early riser, and was never caught napping. He will not allow supes to be insolent to free men." ' But with all this attack upon Mr. Van Buren's extravagance, the Executive Mansion was not the scene of much gayety. Mrs. Van Buren had died many years before he attained to political honors, and had it not been for some of the distinguished ladies of society, his administration would have been a social failure. In October, 1837, Mrs. Madison returned to live in this city, after an absence of twenty-three years. A visitor has left this pen picture of her : " I took her to be sixty or seventy years old. The same smile played upon her features, and the same look of benevolence and good nature beamed in her countenance. She had lost the 88 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. stately and Minerva-like motion which once distinguished her in the house of the President, where she moved with the grace and dignity of a queen ; but her manner of receiving was gracious and kind, and her deportment was quiet and collected. She received all visitors with the same attention and kindly greeting. " She reuKuUed that a new generation seemed to have sprung up. ' What a difference,' she said, ' it makes in society. Here are young men and women who were not born when I was here last, whose names are familiar to me, but whose faces are unknown. I seem suddenly to have awakened after a dream of twenty years, to find myself surrounded by strangers.' " ' Ah, Madam,' remarked one of the ladies, ' the city is no longer what it was when you were the mistress of the White House. Your successors have been sickly, tame, spiritless and indifferent. The mansion you made so charming and attractive, is now almost inaccessible. The present incumbent has no female relative to preside over it, and seems so much absorbed in party politics that he will scarcely open the house to those who wish to see it. The very tone of society has been affected by these changes. At one time such was the bitterness of party feel- ing that no visits were exchanged between those belonging to the administration and those in opposition. Almost all the old citi- zens are now excluded from office, and brawlers, broken mer- chants, disbanded officers and idle young men have been put in their places. But society is beginning to improve, and the fashionable of all parties mingle more harmoniously. Foreigners, now, as in your day, are ail the go. A poor attache, a gambling embassador, a beggarly German baron, or a nominal French count is preferred to the most substantial and accomplished citi- zen among the young women at this Court.' " Mrs. Madison smiled at this picture, and spoke with much feel- ing of the former condition and appearance of the city. The following spring the days dragged by. The curtain of dulness had fallen upon the gay world. The court of " Martin the First " was pronounced remarkable for its stupidity. The White House had been opened but twice during the winter, and the Cabinet ofificers had closed their doors and shrunk into the privacy of home life, in striking contrast to the brilliant fetes given by the former Cabinet. Private individuals had well sustained the social responsibititics of the Government, and had dispensed hospital- ities with a lavish hand, but it had become an irksome task. We can readily see, when dulness hung like a pall over society, THE WHITE HOUSE. 89 why Congress adjourned to see the great enchantress, Fanny Ellsler. We read in Hunter's " Souvenir of the New National Theatre," that on Monday, July 6, 1840, " The city was electrified by that graceful goddess, Fanny Ellsler, the most famous dancer on the globe. She literally turned the heads of the audience by the loveliness of her undraped limbs, and magnetized them by her exquisite grace of motion. The audience seemed to have been changed by her Circean power into shouting lunatics, and the New National Theatre was the scene of wild and extravagant action. Men and women vied with each other in cheering. Gentlemen hurled up their watch chains and rings on the stage, and the fair sex stripped their arms of their bracelets and followed suit, until the stage floor gleamed with the jewels at the feet of the adorable Ellsler, who stood a veritable Danae in this shower of gold." November, 1838, Major Van Buren, the President's oldest son, married Angelina Singleton, of South Carolina. Her first appear- ance at the White House was at the New Year's levee, when she was supported by the ladies of the Cabinet in receiving with the President. From a letter written by a gentleman who once saw President Van Buren at St. John's Church, we make the following extract : " Over his shoulders hung a very blue Spanish cloak. On his appearance up drove a splendid carriage drawn by two beautiful blooded horses. The carriage' of his Excellency was the most superb thing I have yet seen. It was of dark olive hue, with ornaments elegantly dispersed, shining as bright as burnished gold. When I was in Paris I saw Louis Philippe drive out fre- quently to Versailles and back to the Tuileries. When I was in London I saw the Queen as frequently drive out from Bucking- ham Palace around Hyde Park. When I was at Windsor I also saw the same royal personage drive from the castle to the chapel. I have seen all these, but I must say that the carriage and the horses, the ordinary equipage of the Chief Democrat of this loco-foco equality, is far more elegant, superb and splendid than that of either of the other great and royal personages. The ser- vant dashed up the steps, banged to the door, jumped up behind, and away rolled the head of the Republican party, with an air and style that can equal and surpass that of any crowned head of Europe." On the third of March, 1839, the last page was written of fifty years of Congress — a half century under the present constitution. 90 HISTORIC HOMES IiV WASHINGTON: The day was signally commemorated by a grand fete given by the Russian Minister, Bodisco, who lived very elegantly in George- town ; and Martin Van Buren vacated the Executive Mansion, to be succeeded by General Harrison, As soon as the news had gone abroad that the Baltimore con- vention had nominated General Harrison, the Baltimore Repub- licans treated the nomination with the most contemptuous ridicule, and jeeringly observed that if the Whigs would just give General Harrison a barrel of hard cider and settle upon him a pension of two thousand dollars a year, "my word for it, he will sit the remainder of his days in his log cabin by the side of the sea-coal fire and study mental philosophy." This was a word spoken in an evil hour. It roused all the " Log Cabins " in the country. At the ever-memorable mass meeting held in Canton, May 5, at which twenty thousand people were present, there was a processsion representing every State, with log cabins mounted on trucks, accompanied by barrels of hard cider, from which everybody was welcome to drink. This meeting was attended by Daniel Webster, Henry Clay, John J. Crittenden, Thomas Corwin, Millard Fillmore, John P. Kennedy, Henry A. Wise and other eminent Whig leaders. Among the speakers, John V. L. McMahon also addressed the meeting, and on rising to his feet, used the expression that will never be oblit- erated from politics : " I call the nation to order ; " and later on, said : " Every mountain sent its rill, every valley its stream, and lo ! the avalanche of the people is here." From that time until the election in November, every city, town and hamlet kept up the highest pitch of excitement and enthusiasm by mass meetings, barbecues, log cabins, hard cider songs and processions. A topical song, sung in New York, we remember, ran after this order : " Oh ! if this state should go for Tip, Oh ! what would Matty do ? He'd rent his house in Washington, For Tippecanoe and Tyler, too ; And with them we'll beat little '^'an : Van is a used-up man, Van is a used-up man." THE WHITE HOUSE. 91 The result of all this effort was the discomfiture of the party in power. Mr. Van Buren received only sixty electoral votes, while General Harrison had two hundred and thirty-four. We have hinted at some of the extravagancies of Van Buren's administra- tion, and the refurnishing of the White House. It was said by old chroniclers that " General Jackson filled the palace with the vulgar fumes of smoke from an old long pipe. Mr. Van Buren, at an expense of seven thousand dollars, cleaned the apartments, whitewashed the smoky ceilings and filled it with preciseness and cold pedantry ; that General Harrison would change the vulgarity of the one and the pretensions of the other. He would make those gorgeous halls reverberate with merry peals of laughter, refined repartee, excruciating anecdotes and good cheer." In 1836 General Harrison was first nominated for the Presi- dency. There were three candidates of the old Federal party in the field, which resulted in their own defeat, and Martin Van Buren was elected. In 1840 the Federal party had merged into the Whig party. After a campaign of most intense excitement, the long processions ceased their marching, the mottoed banners were laid aside, the log cabins had served their purpose, and the old Chieftain of North Bend was elected President, and John Tyler Vice-President. General Harrison arrived in Washington in February and was received with great enthusiasm. The morning of the 4th of March was ushered in by a salute of twenty-six guns. As on all inaugural occasions, the city was filled with strangers. The procession that accompanied General Harrison to the Capitol was a counterpart of many that had been seen throughout the campaign. The General was mounted on a white charger, escorted by officers and soldiers who had fought under his com- mand. Log cabins and canoes were once more brought into requisition and distributed along the line. The pageant was very imposing; the waving of handkerchiefs and the huzzas of the multitude gave tokens of a kindly welcome to the old hero. He entered upon the duties of his high office with as bright anticipations, as honest purposes and with as much of the confi- dence of the American people as any man who had occupied the position since Washington. But, almost before the glad tidings 92 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. of the inauguration had reached the hamlets and log cabins of his supporters, the President had contracted a cold, followed by- pneumonia, from which he rapidly sank, until on April 4, just one month from the inaugural day, he breathed his last. This great national calamity fell upon the people with startling suddenness. The last words of the President were: "I wish you to understand and remember the principles that govern me and carry them out. I ask no more." The wife of President Harrison, nee Annie Symmes, was born in New Jersey, near Morristown, in the year of American Inde- pendence. Her father, Hon. John B. Symmes, was a colonel in the Continental Army. Her mother died soon after her birth. Her father had the care of her until she was four years of age ; he then disguised himself in a British officer's uniform and took her to Rhode Island to her grandmother. He did not see her again until after the evacuation of New York in 1783. She was educated at Mrs. Isabella Graham's school in New York. At the age of nineteen she bade adieu to her grandparents and moved to Ohio in 1794. Her father was Associate Judge of the Supreme Court of the Northwestern Territory, and was much from home holding court. During her father's absence Annie would spend a part of her time with her older sister, who was living in Lexington, Ky. It was on one of these visits that she first met Captain Harrison, of the United States Army, then in command of Fort Washington, where the city of Cincinnati now stands. In less than a year they were married, little dreaming that he would become the most pop- ular general of his time, and, still less, that he would some day be President of the United States. W? read of Mrs. Harrison that she was very handsome, with a face bright and full of animation. A friend, who was a school- mate, writes to her in 1840 : " I suppose that I should not recog- nize anything of your present countenance, for your early days have made such an impression on my mind, that I cannot realize any countenance for you, but that of your youth, with which nature had been so profusely liberal." General Harrison's duties, requiring his frequent absence from home, left Mrs. Harrison in care of a large family. There were no schools in that newly settled country, and she always employed THE WHITE HOUSE. 03 a private tutor. She often opened her house to her neighbor's children, for she dispensed a generous hospitality. She was called to go through many trials that tested her char- acter and chastened her heart. One after another, her children were taken from her. She lost four sons and three dauo-hters, all of them settled in life. It was while passing through these trials that she wrote to her pastor : "And now what shall I say to these things : 'be still and know that I am God ? ' You will not fail to pray for me and my dear sons and daughters who are left, for I have no wish for them— my children and grandchildren— than to see them the humble followers of the Lord Jesus." Her health, delicate for years, was even more precarious the spring her husband made his journey to Washington. Her friends urged her to remain in Ohio until settled weather. While busy in her preparations to join him, the news came to her of his death. Had he lived, Mrs. Harrison, much as it was against her taste, would have discharged all the duties incumbent upon her with delicacy, courtesy and self-possession, for she was "to the manner born," and she was one of the sturdy women of the times, who did not look back when duty called. Mrs. Harrison lived to be nearly ninety years old. Many of her grandsons were officers and soldiers in the Union Army. She was always rich in blessings for these boys, and they asked for her prayers not in vain. To one she said : " Oh, no, my son, go ! Your country needs your service, I do not. Go and discharge your duty faithfully and fearlessly. I feel that my prayers in your behalf will be heard, and that you will return in safety." The grandson did return to his grandmother after several hard fought battles. On the evening of the 25th of February, 1864, she died, and was buried beside her husband at North Bend, and there after life's fitful dream has passed, they together sleep on the banks of the beautiful Ohio. CHAPTER IX. JOHN TYLER IN THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. Successor to General Harrison — Golden Allurements — Goes over to the Enemy — The "Thirty Pieces of Silver" — Political Death— Stepped three times into high Places through Luck — Mrs. Robert Tyler — A beautiful Woman — Trouble in paying Visits — Asks Mrs. Madison's Advice — Her Impressions of intellectual Giants — Her first State Dinner — Mr. Webster's Compliment — President Tyler a charming Host — The British Minister — Not an Adonis — The Levees at the White House — The Assemblies — Mrs. Robert Tyler's Description of an Assembly — Mr. Southard's Compliment to Mr. Cooper — The Velvet Dress of Mrs. Tyler compared with " Lady Randolph's" — Marriage of the Youngest Daughter — Music introduced in the Park — Description of a Levee — Authors of the S/cctc/i Book and Pick- wick Papers present — Charles Dickens' just and unjust Criticisms — The • distinguished Ambassador to Spain — The Player's Daughter — The silver Cord of Friendship — The land of the Troubadour — Mrs. Letitia Tyler's Death— Robert Tyler moves to Philadelphia — Mrs. Letitia Semple, Lady of the White House — President Tyler marries Miss Gardiner — A scouted Proposition — " Why don't you come yourself, John .> " — Mrs. Tyler's Pic- ture in the Green Room — President Tyler retires to Virginia — Enlists in the Confederate Cause — Death saves him from Service. As the legitimate successor, John Tyler was sworn in as Pres- ident immediately after the death of Harrison, but he was of a very different mind. The succession and its golden allurements, completely absorbed him. The unbiassed reader of events must own that however men may differ in their version of this administration. President Tyler accepted the platform and policy of the Whig party, when he allowed his name to be second on the ticket ; and no man, great or small, has ever yet been the representative of a party, and gone in exact contradiction to his instructions, without being consigned to a political death. Mr. Tyler now stepped for the third time into a place of high 94 JOHN TYLER IN THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. 95 public trust l)y reason of the death of the incumbent. He was made Governor of Virginia by the death of the Executive ; he was made a senator by the death of a senator-elect ; and death made him President of the United States. Accidents, sometimes in a mysterious fashion, carry men to lofty pinnacles of fortune ; the breeze gets hold of them and car- ries them up to high places. It is the unexpected that happens, and without irreverence, we call it accident. Wealth, honor, place, distinction, the highest places of earth, are as a rule won by the nobleness of effort. But whatever actuated and governed the President's public life, it was largely atoned for in his domestic relations. Mrs. Robert Tyler and Miss Tyler accompanied the President to the White House. The President's wife was in very delicate health, and did not arrive in Washington until the weather became settled. Mrs. Robert Tyler is described as a very beautitul woman, ele- gant and accomplished, and admirably fitted to fill the high station of Lady of the White House, which the President had invited her to accept. Mrs. Tyler, from childhood, had been surrounded by the very best society in New York. She met Mr. Robert Tyler in Richmond, and within a year was married. She was a ready let- ter writer, and her correspondence gives a graphic description of her life in the White House. She writes in 1841 : *'What wonderful changes take place, my dearest M. Here am I, ne'e Priscilla Cooper, actually living and •what is more, presiding in the White House. I look at myself like the little old woman and exclaim, 'Can this be 1?' I have not had one moment to myself since my arrival, and the most extraor- dinary thing is, I feel as if I had been used to living here always. I received the Cabinet Ministers, the Diplomatic Corps, the heads of the Army and Navy, etc., etc., with a facility which astonishes me. ' Some achieve greatness, and some are born to it.' I occupy poor General Harrison's room. I have no superstitious feeling on the subject and it is as pleasant as possible ; the nice comfortable bedroom, with its handsome furniture and curtains, its luxuriant arm-chairs, and all its belongings I enjo\', I believe, more than anything else in the establishment. The greatest trouble I anticipate is in paying visits ; there was a doubt at first, whether I must visit in person, or send cards. " I asked Mrs. Madison's advice upon the subject and she says 96 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. return all my visits by all means. So three days in the Week, I am to spend three hours a day, in driving from one street to another, in this city of " Magnificent Distances." The victim of this sacrifice is to be attired in a white chip bonnet, trimmed with moss-rose buds, from Lawson's in New York. " I could spend my time here charmingly, were it not for the duties of my situation. I see so many great men, and so con- stantly, that I cannot appreciate the blessing. I know you will think I ought to give you my impressions of these intellectual giants, instead of talking of dresses, bonnets, etc. The fact is when you meet them in every-day life, you forget that they are great men at all, and just find them the most charming companions in the world, talking the most delightful nonsense, especially Mr. Web- ster, who entertains me with the most charming gossip. "Washington, 1841. "My first state dinner is over; oh! such a long one, our first dinner in the state dining-room. I was the only lady at table. What with the long table, the flowers, and bright and brilliant dresses and orders of " Dips," not dip candles, 1 felt dreadfully confused. Mr. Webster says I acquitted myself admirably. I tried to be as cheerful as possible, though I felt miserable all the time, as my baby was crying, and I received message after mes- sage to come to the nursery. *' I think father is a charming host. He received his guests with so much courtesy and simplicity of manner, and I do not think his power of conversation was surpassed, or even equalled by those around him. " The British Minister, Mr. Fox, is frightful to behold ; he has the reputation of great ability." The levees at the President's House were alternated by the assemblies, which were held in the old theatre situated on the corner of Eleventh and D Streets, where a cheap theatre now stands. This theatre was built in 1804, but was burned down and after- wards rebuilt by the elder Carusi in 1822, who reconstructed it and named it the City Assembly Rooms. At these rooms were gathered the fashionable and the gay of Washington society. These were the most brilliant entertainments of the day. Mrs. Robert Tyler in 1842, gives in glowing colors the picture of one of these gatherings : JOHN TYLER IN THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. 97 " I went to the Assembly last night, matronizing five young ladies all dressed in rose color, all so lovely too — Clementina Pleasanton, and Belle Stevenson, the prettiest of all. Belle has the most perfect figure and face I ever saw, and Miss Pleasanton has a style,/^ ne sais qiioi, about her that makes her the most attractive of the two. "The ball was a brilliant one, admirably lighted, and not crowded, the ladies all well dressed and showing to advantage. I spent a delightful evening. As I declined dancing I had the pleasure of talking to many grave senators, and among the rest, had a long conversation with Mr. Southard." (Samuel J. South- ard was Secretary of the Navy during John Q. Adams' administra- tion.) As we stood at the end of the room, which is the old theatre transferred into a ball-room, he said : ' On the very spot where we stand, I saw the best acting I ever witnessed. I came into the theatre and took my seat by John Q. Adams. There were never two more delighted people. Mr. Adams said he had seen the same play abroad, in France and England, John Kemble and the great Talma in the past, Kean, Cook, and Macready, but he had never seen it so admirably acted as then. I entirely agreed with him in his admiration, though I was not so capable of judging by com- parison as he.' " Mr. Southard here paused. Though my heart told me to whom he was alluding, I could not help asking him, ' What was the play and who was the actor ? ' " ' The play Avas ' Macbeth,' and the performer, Mr. Cooper.' " I could not restrain the tears that sprang to my eyes, as I heard my dear father so enthusiastically spoken of. I looked around, and thought, not only had papa's footsteps trod these boards, — I looked down 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! " Elizabeth, the third daughter of Letitia Tyler, was married in the East Room of the White House, January 31, 1842, to Mr. William Waller, of Virginia. The wedding, which was at first intended to be a quiet afifair, was honored by the presence of many distinguished guests. The night following the wedding a grand reception was given It is said that one of the bridesmaids expressed surprise to Mr. Daniel Webster at Lizzie Tyler's accepting a quiet Virginia home in exchange for all the honors of position in Washington. " Ah ! " said he, " love rules the court, the camp, the grove ; for love is heaven, and heaven is love." 7 98 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. The President's wife was down-stairs on the occasion of her daughter's marriage, for the first time after entering the White House. It was during Tyler's administration that music was introduced in the park south of the mansion. Invitations by card to the President's house were considered as strictly private. The public press was not allowed to indulge in descriptions of persons present. In going over the files of the Madisonian, we find this modest description of a levee, which stands out as the lone star of society news of that day — the Alpha and Omega of all such indulgences. The Madisonian^ Washington, Monday, March I'jth, 1842. THE LAST LEVEE OF THE SEASON. " The levee held by the President, on Tuesday last, was a bril- liant affair, and gave satisfactory evidence of the esteem in which the high functionary is held in social circles. " Among the visitors of peculiar note were the distinguished authors of the 'Sketch Book' and ' Pickwick Papers.' In addi- tion to whom, almost all the ministers to foreign powers to our Government were in attendance in full court dress. " The rooms were filled to overflowing with the talent and beauty of the metropolis ; Senators and Members of Congress without distinction of party, served to give interest and add ani- mation to the scene. "It seems to us that these levees, as at present conducted, are peculiarly adapted to the genius of our republican institutions, inasmuch as all who please, may attend without infringement of etiquette. We almost regret their termination for the season, but look forward with pleasure to the period when they will be renewed." Charles Dickens, in his " American Notes," tells us of this levee, and also of his call upon President Tyler. His just, and the unjust criticisms which he lived to regret, are pictured in all the inelegance of which he was capable. " My first visit to this house was on the morning after my arrival, when I was carried thither by an official gentleman who was so kind as to charge himself with my presentation to the Pres- ident. We entered a very large hall, and having twice or thrice rung a bell which nobody answered, walked without further cere- [OHN TYLER IN THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. 99 mony, through the 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 show- ing the premises ; others were lounging on the chairs and sofas, others in a perfect state of exhaustion, and from listlessness were yawning drearily. " The greater portion of this assemblage were rather asserting their supremacy than doing anything else ; as they had no particu- lar business there that any one knew of. "A few were closely eying the movables as if to make quite sure that the President, who was far from popular, had not made way with any of the furniture, or sold the pictures for his private benefit. " After glancing at these loungers, who were scattered over a pretty drawing-room, opening upon a terrace which commanded a beautiful prospect of the river and the adjacent country, and who were sauntering to and fro about a larger state-room called the Eastern drawing-room, we went up stairs into another chamber, where were certain visitors waiting for audience. At sight of my conductor, a black, in plain clothes and yellow slippers, who was gliding noiselessly about and whispering messages in the ears of the more impatient, made a sign of recognition and glided off to announce him. " We had previously looked into another chamber, filled with a great bare wooden desk, or counter, whereon lay files of news- papers to which sundry gentlemen were referring. " But there was no such means as beguiling the time in this apartment, which was as unpromising and tiresome as any waiting room in any of our public establishments, or any physician's wait- ing-room, during his hours of consultation at home, "There were some fifteen or twenty persons in the room; one, a tall, wiry, muscular old man from the West, sunburnt and swarthy, with a brown white hat on his knee and a giant umbrella resting between his legs, who sat bolt upright in his chair, frown- ing steadily at the carpet, and twitching the hard lines about his mouth, as if he had made up his mind 'to fix' the President on what he had to say and wouldn't bate him a grain. " Another, a Kentucky farmer, six feet in height, with his hat on and his hands under his coat-tails, who leaned against the wall and kicked the floor with his heel as though he had Time's head under his shoe and were literally ' killing ' him. A third, an oval- faced, bilious looking man, with sleek black hair cropped close, and whiskers and beard shaved down to blue dots, who sucked the head of a thick stick, and, from time to time, took it out of his mouth to see how it was getting on. A fourth did nothing but lOO HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: whistle. A fifth did nothing but spit, and, indeed, all these gen- tlemen were so very persevering and energetic in this latter partic- ular, and bestowed their favors so abundantly on the carpet that I take it for granted the Presidential housemaids have high wages, or, to speak more genteelly, an ample amount of ' compensation,' which is the American word for salary in the case of all public servants. " We had not waited many minutes before the black messenger returned and conducted us into another room of smaller dimen- sions, where at a business-like table covered with papers, sat the President himself. He looked somewhat worn and anxious, and well might he, being at war with everybody ; but the expression of his face was mild and pleasant, and his manner was remarkably unaffected, gentlemanly and agreeable. I thought that in his whole carriage and demeanor he became his station singularly Avell. " Being advised that the sensible 'etiquette of the Republican Court admitted of a traveller, like myself, declining, without any impropriety, an invitation to dinner, which did not reach me until I had concluded my arrangements for leaving Washington, some days before that to which I referred, I only returned to this house once. It was on the occasion of one of those general assemblies which are held on certain nights, between the hours of nine and twelve o'clock, and are called rather oddly, levees. "I went with my wife about ten. There was a pretty dense crowd of carriages and people in the court-yard, and as far as I could make out, there were no very clear regulations for the taking up, or setting down of company. There were certainly no police- men to soothe startled horses, either sawing upon their bridles, or flourishing truncheons in their eyes; and I am ready to make oath that no inoffensive persons were knocked violently on the head, or poked acutely on their backs, or stomachs, or brought to a standstill by any such gentle means, and then taken into custody for not moving on. But there was no confusion and no disorder. Our carriage reached the porch in its turn without any blustering, swearing, shouting, backing, or other disturbance, and we dis- mounted with as much ease and comfort as though we had been escorted by the whole Metropolitan force from A to Z inclusive. " The suite of rooms on the ground floor was lighted up, and a military band was playing in the hall. In the smaller drawing- room, the centre of a circle of company, were the President, his daughter-in-law, who acted as the lady of the mansion, and a very interesting, graceful and accomplished lady, too. " One gentleman who stood among this group, appeared to take upon himself the function of a master of the ceremonies. I saw no other officers, or attendants, and none were needed. JOHN TYLER IN THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. lOI " The great drawing-room which I have already mentioned, and the other chambers on the ground floor, were crowded to excess. The company was not, in our sense of the term, select, for it com- prehended persons of very many grades and classes, nor was there any great display of costly attire : indeed, some of the cos- tumes may have been, for aught I know, grotesque enough. *' But the decorum and propriety of behavior which prevailed were "unbroken by any rude, or disagreeable incident, and every man, even among the miscellaneous crowd in the hall who were admitted without any tickets, or orders to look on, appeared to feel that he was part of the institution and was responsible for 'preserving a becoming character and appearing to the best advantage. " That these visitors, too, whatever their station, were not without some refinement of taste and appreciation of intellectual gifts, and gratitude to those men who, by the peaceful exercise of great abilities, shed new charms and associations upon the homes of their countrymen, and elevate their character in other lands, was most earnestly testified by the reception of Washington Irving, my dear friend, who had recently been appointed Minister at the Court of Spain, and who was among them that night in his new character, for the first and last time, before going abroad, " I sincerely believe that in all the madness of American poli- tics, few public men would have been so earnestly, devotedly and affectionately caressed as this most charming writer; and I have seldom respected a public assembly more than I did this eager throng, when I saw them turning with one mind from noisy ora- tors and officers of state, and flocking with a generous, honest impulse round the man of quiet pursuits, proud of his promotion as reflecting back upon their country ; and grateful to him with their whole hearts for the store of graceful fancies he had poured out among them. Long may he dispense such treasures with unsparing hand and long may they remember him as worthily." A New York paper says of this occasion : " When it was I known that there would be a levee, and that Irving and Dickens would both be there, the rush was tremendous. It was as much as the police officers could do to keep the passages open. Even the circle usually left open around the Chief Magistrate, was nar- rowed to almost nothing by the pressure. It was computed that the East Room alone contained upwards of three thousand persons, "All eyes were turned toward that part of the room occupied by Washington Irving and the lady who presided on this occasion with surpassing courteousness and grace — Mrs. Robert Tyler. "Irving, now 'grown more fat than bard beseems,' is still distinguished by that glow of genius and humor in his eye and 102 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: smile, and utterance which made him the adored of the New York world of fashion. " Washington Irving is at the Executive Mansion, now not as Washington Irving, but as the Embassador to Spain. " Who is that lady receiving such homage from the new Embas- sador ? She is a player's daughter, but a President's daughter, also, and is welcoming from her elevation her mother's friend of bygone years — the Embassador now created by her father." And so it came through the silver cord of friendship that the genius of the " Alhambra," the " Sketch Book," and " Rip Van Winkle," visited again the sunny land of the troubadour ; the land of poetry and song, where he had gathered many pearls of thought ; the land of the past, living on her faded glories and imagining that she is one of the grand old knights of other days. Mrs. Robert Tyler continued in the role of honor until after Mrs. Letitia Tyler's death, which occurred September lo, 1842. This was the second time death winged a fatal shaft at the palace of the President. Mr. Robert Tyler, at this time, made business arrangements in Philadelphia, and Mrs. Letitia Semple, the second daughter of the President, assumed the duties of Lady of the White House, which she filled until May, 1844. On the 26th of June, 1844, President Tyler was married to Miss Julia Gardiner. Miss Gardiner was the daughter of a wealthy gentleman of Gardiner's Island, New York. Mr. Gardiner and daughter were on board the ill-fated Princeton, and Mr. Gardiner was one of the five killed. Miss Gardiner entered society when very young, and it seems that Governors, Senators and Judges were suitors for her hand ; yet she remained heart-whole and fancy-free until she met Presi- dent Tyler. She was charming in conversation, entrancing old and young by her winsome manner. The President's suit was successful. It was his proposition to have the nuptials celebrated in the White House, but it was not considered for a moment by Miss Gardiner. She felt that the pantomimes of royalty had no place in a democratic government. When the President arrived in New York on June 25th, numer- ous and varied were the current rumors. The next day the JOHN TYLER IN THE PRESIDENT'S HOUSE. 103 mystery was over. Miss Gardiner and President Tyler were mar- ried in the Church of the Ascension, in Fifth Avenue, New York, in the presence of a limited number of friends. From this time until the expiration of President Tyler's admin- istration, Mrs. Tyler presided at the White House. Visitors to the Executive Mansion to-day will see, hanging in the Green Room, a beautiful portrait of Mrs. Tyler. During General Grant's administration she returned to Washington, and has since spent more or less time at the capital; and while the years that have passed over her head have borne away her youth, still the same dignified bearing makes her the observed of all observers wherever she appears. President Tyler retired from public life at the close of his administration, and returned to his home in Virginia. For seven- teen years he lived in retirement, until the war of the Rebellion, when he enlisted in the cause of the Confederacy against the Government ; but death saved him from active service. He died in 1862. CHAPTER X. THE WHITE HOUSE DURING THE ADMINISTRATIONS OF JAMES K. POLK AND ZACHARY TAYLOR. Fourteen Years in Congress — Anxious Days and wearisome Nights — A lead- ing Point — Mexican War — Oregon Shibboleth — Mrs, Polk a Woman of rare Excellence — Anecdote of Henry Clay — Polk surrounded by great Men — Letter of Daniel Webster to Daniel S. Dickinson — A characteristic Answer — Impressive Scene on the Floor of the House — Death of John Quincy Adams — His last Words — The last Levee of President Polk — Retires into Obscurity — Mrs. Polk's Portrait — Ex-Presidents' Widows' Bounty — The Unexpected that Happens — General Popularity — From whence it came — The New England Wing — " Old Rough and Ready " — " My House is my Tent and my Home the Battle-field " — Admission of California — Mr. Clay's " Compromise Bill " — The President's fatal Ill- ness — " Betty Bliss " — Beautiful Women and Brilliant Men in Washing- ton—Death of the President— Mrs. Taylor returns to Kentucky— New Scenes and new Actors. James K. Polk was elected the eleventh President of the United States. He had represented his people fourteen years in Congress; in 1836 he was Speaker of the House of Representa- tives. His studious habits and his manly bearing had peculiarly fitted him for the positions he had filled, but the office of Presi- dent brought him little happiness. Undoubtedly Mr. Polk had the great interests of the country at heart ; but many of the foremost statesmen of the land differed with the President in his views — and the policy he wished carried out, and the vital questions of the day were not settled in accord- ance with his wishes. Anxious days and wearisome nights were his inheritance. The slavery question entered into this election as a leading issue. The Republic of Texas asked admission into the Union. Many of the people objected, as it was certain to be a slave State ; 104 THE WHITE HOUSE. 10$ while others favored it. Strict party lines were drawn ; the Dem- ocrats favoring, the Whigs opposing. Texas was annexed by sending a small force down to the Rio Grande, and this policy involved the nation in a war which was never designed. It was expected that the Mexicans would hur- riedly sue for peace. But instead, a war ensued that made mili- tary reputations for the Whig generals. The President's Oregon shibboleth of "fifty-four forty, or fight," had to be retracted ; while his desire for centralization of power for internal improvements, must needs give place to state rights, or slavery would be disturbed ; and to this end he gave his influence. But his days were full of care and he wore an anxious look. Happily for him, his wife was a woman of rare excellence ; a wise and affectionate counsellor, cheerful and agreeable, possessed of the happy art of infusing cheerfulness into those around her. Among the many public men who held Mrs. Polk in high esteem, was Henry Clay. On one occasion, when in her presence, Mr. Clay turned to her and said, in those winning tones so peculiar to him : " Madam, I must say that in my travels, wherever I have been, and in all companies and among all parties, I have heard but one opinion of you. All agree in commending in highest terms your excellent administration of the affairs of the White House. But," continued he, looking toward her husband, '* as for that young man there, I cannot say as much. There is some little difference of opinion in regard to the policy of his course." "Indeed," said Mrs. Polk, " I am glad to hear that my admin- istration is so popular, and in return for your compliment, I will say that if the country should elect you next fall, I know of no one whose election would please me more than that of Henry Clay. I will assure you of one thing, if you do have occasion to occupy the White House on the fourth of March next, it will be surrendered to you in perfect order from garret to cellar." " Thank you, thank you," exclaimed Mr. Clay. Mr, Polk was surrounded b}'^ men who originated great and salutary public measures, that not only commanded the respect I06 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. and gratitude of the nation, but cast around him a high-toned, healthy moral influence. Among these were Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Daniel S. Dickinson, Lewis Cass, John C. Calhoun, John Quincy Adams and William H. Seward. One writer says : " I saw Calhoun in Washington in the spring of 1846, calm amidst the strife and hurry of political warfare. I saw Henry Clay in May following, in Kentucky, serene in the mild majesty of private life ; Clay and Calhoun, the master spirits of America ! Clay's very name is a spell. No sooner is it heard than all mankind rise up to praise it." During this administration the tall and stately form of Daniel S. Dickinson was first seen upon the floor of the Senate. From this time he occupied a front rank among the greatest of those who have labored for the unsullied preservation of the Constitu- tion, in the halls of Congress; and even of his brilliant compeers in the forum, nearly all of whom have passed to a sacred inheri- tance, few ever attained such unqualified power over popular assemblies and individuals. His unwearied devotion to the highest interests of the nation, and the earnest inspiration of his brain had very much to do with breaking and quelling certain insurrections at the North, and plac- ing before the people the true condition of the country during the rebellion. He was one to whom our country might safely turn for the protection of her flag, her constitution and her honor in any hour of peril which might await her. It will be remembered by many that Mr. Webster, though opposed to Mr. Dickinson upon most of the great issues of the country, from 1830 to 1850 (these gentlemen being leaders of opposite parties) tendered to his Democratic colleague upon his retiring from the Senate, the following complimentary letter : "Washington, September 27, 1850. "My Dear Sir :— " Our companionship in the Senate is dissolved. After this long and important session you are about to return to your home and I shall try to find leisure to visit mine. I hope we may meet each other again two months hence, for the discharge of our duties in our respective stations in the Government. But life is uncertain THE WHITE HOUSE. \oj and I have not felt willing to take leave of you without placing in your hands a note containing a few words which I wish to say to you, " In the earlier part of our acquaintance, my dear sir, occur- rences took place which I remember with constantly increasing regret and pain ; because the more I have known you, the greater has been my esteem for your character, and my respect for your talents. But it is your noble, able, manly and patriotic conduct in support of the great measures of this session which has entirely won my heart and receives my highest regard. I hope you may live long to serve your country, but I do not think you are ever likely to see a crisis in which you may be able to do so much either for your distinction, or for the people's good. " You have stood where others have fallen ; you have advanced with firm and manly step where others have wavered, faltered and fallen back ; and for one, I desire to thank you and to commend your conduct out of the fulness of my honest heart. " This letter needs no reply : it is, I am aware, of very little value, but I have thought you might be willing to receive it, and perhaps, to leave it where it would be seen by those who come after you. " I pray you, when you reach your own threshold, to remember me most kindly to your wife and daughter, and I remain, my dear sir, "Your friend and obedient servant, ' Daniel Webster." To this kind, friendl}^, commendatory letter, Mr. Dickinson made the following equally kind and friendly response : " BiNGHAMTON, Octobcf 5, 185O. " My Dear Sir :— " I perused and re-perused the beautiful note you placed in my hand, as I was about leaving Washington, with deeper emotion than I have ever experienced, except under some domestic vicissi- tudes. " Since I learned the noble and generous qualities of your nature, the unfortunate occurrence in our earlier acquaintance, to which you refer, has caused me many moments of painful regret, and your confiding communication has furnished a powerful illus- tration of the truth that, ' to err is human, to forgive divine.' " Numerous and valuable are the testimonials of confidence and regard which a somewhat extended acquaintance and lengthened public service have gathered around me ; but among them all, there is none to which my heart clings so fondly as this. I08 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. I have presented it to my family and friends, as the proudest passage in the history of an eventful life, and shall transmit it to my posterity as a sacred and cherished memento of friend- ship. " I thank Heaven that it has fallen to my lot to be associated with yourself and others, to resist the mad current which threat- ened to overwhelm us, and the recollection that my course upon a question so momentous has received the approbation of the most distinguished of American statesmen, has more than satisfied my ambition. " Believe me, my dear sir, that of all the patriots who came for- ward, in an evil day, for their country, there was no voice so poten- tial as your own. Others could buffet the dark and angry waves, but it was your strong arm that could will them back from the holy citadel. " May the beneficent Being who holds the destiny of men and nations, long spare you to the public service, and may your vision never rest upon the disjointed fragments of a convulsed and ruined confederacy. " I pray you to extend to Mrs. Webster the kind remembrances of myself and family, and believe me " Sincerely yours, " D. S. Dickinson." The venerable John Q. Adams had been stricken down at his home in Quincy, by paralysis, on account of which he was unable to take his seat when Congress convened. On the 13th day of February, 1846, Mr. Hunt, of New York, was making a speech in support of the Wilmot Proviso bill, when the venerable form of ex-President Adams appeared in the door of the House, and at once attracted all eyes. Mr. Hunt suspended his speech. Mr. Mosely of New York, and Mr. Holmes of South Carolina, advanced to meet Mr. Adams, and, each taking him by the arm, led him to the seat he had for many years occupied. Members gathered around the venerable man with congratulations on his return. After a short pause, much affected by the cordiality of his reception by the House, he rose and in his feeble voice briefly tendered his heartfelt thanks. ^ Washington in the winter of 1846, was gay with parties and balls, until the death and funeral of this great and good ex-Presi- dent, which occurred in February, Public business was sus- THE WHITE HOUSE. 109 pended, flags were at half-mast and a general gloom pervaded the city. He was stricken down in his seat in the House and was re- moved to the Speaker's room. He lingered two days. His wife, who for fifty years had shared with him his hopes, his fears, his joys, hung over him during these last painful hours. His last words are said to have been : " If this is the last of earth, I am content." During the closing weeks of President Polk's administration, he gave a dinner party to the President elect, General Zachary Taylor, followed by a brilliant levee in the evening. At this, friends, acquaintances and dignitaries assembled to pay their last respects to the President and his wife. Mr. Polk's administration was characterized by no signal bril- liancy, politically, or socially ; and he returned to Tennessee to relapse, like all ex-officials, even ex-Chief Magistrates, into the humdrum, routine of private life. Mrs. Polk has been the recipient of much distinguished consid- eration. Her portrait hangs in the Green Room at the White House, and represents her as the modest, handsome woman she was. During the late Rebellion she received the protection of both armies ; and from the bounty of five thousand dollars per annum, given to the widows of ex-Presidents, she lived comfortably and well. ^ ^ ?lr TT ^ TT It is the unexpected that we often find happening in politics. In a Government, like ours, where the popular will selects its candi- dates for the highest office within its gift, as often from those who suddenly come into popularity as from those who have by honest integrity worked their way to fame, step by step. Presi- dential honors do not always fall to those born to the wearing of them. For brilliant military achievements in the Indian and Mexican wars. General Taylor had become so popular that his election to the Presidency in 1848, was a foregone conclusion, notwithstand- ing the divisions in the Whig party, and the prejudice existing against him as a slaveholder. The New England wing of his party, headed by Mr. Webster, no HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. strenuously opposed him on that ground ; and because of his want of refinement and experience in national affairs, called him " an ignorant frontier colonel." His cognomen, "Old Rough and Ready," told the story of his popularity. He had no desire for the position, and his characteristic reply, when he received the official announcement, was : " For more than a quarter of a century my house has been the tent and my home the battle-field." The platform he announced as the only one he was willing to stand upon was : " I have no private purposes to accomplish, no party projects to build up, no enemies to punish, nothing to serve but my country." He had done so well in the field that the majority of the peo- ple felt sure of his administrative ability, notwithstanding his pro- slavery principles. In the bitter controversy over the admission of California, as an additional free State, which would give a majority of one to the anti-slaveholding States, President Taylor stood squarely by the people in their right to form state constitu- tions to suit themselves, and believed that they should be admitted into the Union, with, or without slavery, as their constitutions might prescribe. Upon a threat of revolt, he declared that if that standard were raised, he would himself take the field to suppress it, at the head of an army of volunteers, and should not, for that purpose, deem it necessary to call upon a single soldier from the North. This patriotic position had a very quieting effect upon the turbulent spirits behind these revolutionary movements. Mr, Clay came forward with a compromise measure for the settlement of all differ- ences growing out of the slavery question. This served as oil on the troubled waters, as did his Missouri Compromise bill of 1821. From this memorable discussion came the Fugitive Slave law, and bills admitting California to the Union, organizing the territories of New Mexico and Utah without restriction as to slavery, and pro- hibiting the slave trade in the District of Columbia. While the excitement was running high and the discussions on Mr. Clay's proposition were at the highest pitch, both in Congress and among the people, the President was stricken with a fever that terminated fatally after an illness of five days. THE WHITE HOUSE. i j j _ So brief was his life in the White House that, Hke General Har- rison, he made little impression on the social world, and little change in the appointments of the Executive Mansion, leaving the glory won in the field as his legacy to his family and country. It was during this administration that the secession party in the South first manifested itself outside South Carolina. Few receptions were given at the Executive Mansion; but " Betty Bliss," daughter of the President, reigned as lady of the White House, where she entertained her friends with affable grace. Mrs. Taylor received her friends in private apartments, for which she was criticised by the opposition. The beautiful, cultured women, who were then dwelling in Wash- ington, with the brilliant men in Congress, added splendor to soci- ety, and the second winter of President Taylor's administration augured a year of remarkable brilliancy ; but the death of the President, which occurred July 9th, threw a pall over the city and the White House was again in mourning. After Mrs. Taylor retired from the White House, accompanied by her daughter and her daughter's husband, Major Bliss, they found a home in Kentucky for a time. She then removed to Pas- cagoula, Louisiana, where two years later, August, 1852, she died. Major Bliss died suddenly soon after, and " Betty Bliss," as she will always be known to her countrymen, sought the seclusion of private life. When we think of the bright young bride of twenty-two, who brought sunshine and happiness into this home of the Presidents, we can scarcely picture what the artist, Time, has wrought— a woman stricken in years, with silvered hair, walks the winding paths alone, while new scenes and new actors are before the national footlights. CHAPTER XI. MILLARD FILLMORE, FRANKLIN PIERCE AND JAMES BUCHANAN IN THE WHITE HOUSE. Millard Fillmore sworn in as President — Meager Opportunities of his Youth — His Indefatigable Industry — Rapid Ascendency — Master of official Eti- quette — A Woman of rare Attainments — Abigail Fillmore — Where she met Mr. Fillmore — When married — She was a Teacher while he studied Law — A Member of the State Legislature — A Struggle with Poverty — No Dream of the White House — They worked hand in hand — Enter the White House — The first Library in the White House — The Family Room — Mr. Fillmore's Devotion to his Wife — Signs the Fugitive Slave Bill — His only unpopular Measure — Extension of the Capitol — Address of Daniel Web- ster — Henry Clay's Death — Pen Picture of Mary Abigail Fillmore — A rare Type of Woman — Death of Mrs. Fillmore — Closing Scenes of an ex- piring Congress — A bad Debtor — The Fortieth Congress a Thing of the Past — Inauguration of Franklin Pierce — His Nomination a Surprise — A lucky Star attended him — Inauguarted with Pomp and Ceremony — Mrs. Pierce carried the burden of a great Sorrow — With Dignity and Grace she met the Demands of the White House — A Passive President — Leaves an unfortunate Legacy to his Successor — The Shadowy Days of President Buchanan's Administration — A Rift in the Clouds — Lovely Harriet Lane — Miss Lane an Orphan — Adopted by her Uncle — At the Court of St. James — Greatly admired in Europe — Miss Lane as a Country Girl — The White House with Miss Lane at its Head — A Reflection — President Bu- chanan harassed and troubled — Miss Lane unmoved and steadfast — Visit of the Prince of Wales — Letter from Queen Victoria — A Peace Conven- tion — A dismembered Cabinet — Buchanan's Administration ends in Con- fusion and Dismay. Millard Fillmore, Vice-President of the United States, was sworn in as President the loth of July, 1848, after the death of Zachary Taylor, which occurred the day previous. Notwithstanding the meagre opportunities of his youth, by inde- fatigable industry and close application to study, he had acquired a good education. In the various positions to which he had been XX2 WniTE HOUSE. 113 exalted, in his rapid rise to the highest place within the gift of the people, he had become master of ofificial etiquette and its require- ments, and hence had assumed' the duties of Chief Magistrate, prepared for its grave responsibilities and perplexities. Mrs. Taylor's place in the White House was filled by a woman of rare attainments. Abigail Fillmore was one of the representa- tive women of the day, of high intellectual culture, backed by a fund of original common sense. She was the daughter of a clergyman who died while she was in her infancy. Her maiden name was Abigail Powers. She was born at Bemis Heights, Saratoga County, New York, March, 1798. When she was nine years old her mother moved into Cayuga County. Abigail was studious and industrious. She fully appreciated the needs of her mother's family, left with scanty means. She rose by her ambition, making rapid progress in knowledge, and. began teaching at an early age. It was here, in this district school, that she met the lad, Millard Fillmore, who was an apprentice to the carding and cloth-dress- ing business which brought a few months schooling, yearly, as a recompense. The unfortunate choice of an occupation for the boy, made by the father, galled and fettered him, but Miss Powers rendered him efficient help. I well remember, when a child, hearing a neighbor of ours relate the interesting story of their lives. He was a pupil also in this district school and was a witness to the helping hand she held out to the aspiring lad.' While they were teacher and pupil the midnight oil often found them delving into the hidden recesses of knowledge. In due time they were married, moved to Aurora, New York, and set up housekeeping in a small house — Mr. Fillmore being its architect and carpenter. She at once resumed her teaching with her housekeeping, while her husband practised his profession of law, untrammelled by household needs, for his wife supplied all domestic demands. Two years later he was elected a member of the State Legisla- ture. In these first years of struggle with poverty and increasing cares, they never faltered, no duty was a burden. Thus, hand 8 I 14 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: in hand, they worked together and arose from obscurity to eminence. In this little cottage, in a country village, her moral and affec- tionate nature broadened. But no dream of the White House entered there, and when it came as a part of her life, she would have preferred the seclusion of her own home, which was far dearer to her than all the glitter and adulation that awaited them. She entered the White House with the same self-possession for which she had been conspicuous in her humble home. In stature she was above the medium height ; her form was symmetrical, with complexion delicately fair, laughing blue eyes, bright auburn curling hair, and a fascinating and dignified manner. The first great want that met Mrs. Fillmore when she entered the White House, was that of books, for not one was found there- in. This, to one of her tastes and habits, was a great depriva- tion. Mr. Fillmore asked for an appropriation by Congress which was granted. The library at the White House was thus inaugurated. We are told, that in this room Mrs. Fillmore surrounded herself with little home comforts. Here, her daughter had her piano, harp and guitar. They received the informal visits of the friends they loved ; and, for them, the real enjoyment and pleasure of the White House was within this room. She was always present at public receptions and state dinners, when her health would permit, and, probably, at no time during the administration was she so happy as on the 3d of March, 1853, when the official term was ended. A journey had been planned through the Southern States, but a few days previous to the day set for their departure, she was taken suddenly ill and died at Willard's hotel in March, 1853. It is said of Mr. Fillmore's devotion to his wife, that he care- fully preserved every line she ever wrote to him, and that he could never destroy even the little notes she sent him on business to his office. Mr. Fillmore lost the support of a very large proportion of his party, in the Northern States, by signing the Fugitive Slave law. That can truthfully be said to be the only unpopular measure of his administration. His purity as a public man is unquestionable. THE WHITE HOUSE. 115 It is a pity that the ghost of a second term will lure men on to favor measures of policy rather than principle ; but it so often proves to be the death knell of their political careers that the safety of the country is not jeopardized. During his administration Congress made an appropriation for the extension of the Capitol, according to a plan offered by the President. This plan was given in 1851. Two wings were to be added to the previous edifice, connected by corridors. The corner-stone was laid July 4th, by the President's own hands, with imposing ceremonies. The great assembly was addressed by Daniel Webster. The President was assisted in lay- ing the corner-stone by the Grand Master of the Masonic Lodge of Alexandria, who wore the same regalia and used the gavel which Washington had used fifty-eight years before, in laying the corner-stone of the original edifice. There can be seen also, in the rooms of Washington Lodge, Alexandria, the candlesticks that were carried in the procession. It was during President Fillmore's administration that the great Henry Clay breathed his last, June 29, 1852. He died at the National hotel where he had long made his home. By his death the country lost one of its most eminent citizens and statesmen, and probably its greatest genuis. The history of this country could not be written without weaving into it the story of Henry Clay's services as a statesman, for they are inseparably connected with it. The true historian will find ample material to fill pages of American history with the thoughts and actions of this man. The record will pass from generation to generation, as a portion of our national inheritance, incapable of being destroyed, as long as genius has an admirer, or liberty a friend. Mary Clemmer, with graceful touch, has left this pen picture of the daughter of the President, Mary Abigail Fillmore. "She was the rarest and most exquisite President's daughter that ever shed sunshine in the White House. She survived her mother but one year, dying of cholera at the age of twenty-two ; yet her memory is a benison to all young American women, espe- cially to those surrounded by the allurements of society and high station. 1 1 6 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. " She was not only the mistress of man)' accomplishments, but possessed a thoroughly practical education. She was trained at home, at Mrs. Sedgwick's school in Lenox, Massachusetts, and was graduated at the State Normal school, New York, as a teacher, and taught in the public schools in Buffalo. She was a French, German and Spanish scholar, was a proficient in music, and an amateur sculptor, " She was the rarest type of woman, in whom was blended, in perfect proportion, masculine judgment and feminine tenderness. In her was combined intellectual force, vivacity of temperament, genuine sensibility and deep tenderness of heart. Words cannot tell what such a nature and such an intelligence would be if called to preside over the social life of the nation's house. She used her opportunities as the President's daughter, to minister to others. She clung to all her old friends without any regard to their posi- tion in life. Her time and talents were devoted to their happiness. She was constantly thinking of some little surprise, some gift, some journey, some pleasure by which she could contribute to the happiness of others. " After the death of her mother she went to the desolate home of her father and brother, and emulating the example of that mother, relieved her father of all household care. Her domestic and so- cial qualities equalled her intellectual powers. She gathered all her early friends about her; she consecrated herself to the hap- piness of her father and brother ; she filled her home with sun- shine. 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 night of the third of March, 1853, found the capital in an up- roar with bands of music, thunder of guns, and the heavens bright with fireworks. The closing hours of Congress brought the same rush, push, and confusion worse confounded, that too often distin- guished the capital upon these occasions. Sleepers and loungers upon the couches and in the anterooms, were hauled in, in time to vote when a bill was up. Through the blue tobacco atmosphere. Congressmen could be discerned, here and there, who had held their positions for hours in hopes of recog- nition. The hands of the clock pointed to twelve, the gavel fell, and with it the hopes of many. The Fortieth Congress was a thing of the past. The President was busy signing bills until the small hours. On the morning of the fourth, the city was alive with prep- arations for the inauguration of President Pierce. THE WHITE HOUSE. 117 The nomination of Franklin Pierce for the Presidency was as much a surprise to him as to the leaders of his party. In the ri- valry between such political aspirants as James Buchanan, Lewis Cass, William L. Marcy and Stephen A. Douglas, the nomination of so unaggressive a politician as Franklin Pierce had not been anticipated, or thought of, by either of them. At the convention held in Baltimore, June 12, 1852, on the forty-ninth ballot, Franklin Pierce was made the nominee. Party discipline was at its height in those days, and at the elec- tion in November he received the vote of every State but four. His life had been a busy one ; entering into politics, he was elected to the Legislature when twenty-five years old, and elected Speaker two years afterwards. He was sent to Congress in 1833, and to the United States Senate in 1837, barely eligible to that position. The same lucky star attended him through the Mexican war, and now crowned him with the Presidency. In all these posi- tions he had discharged his duty with much credit to himself and his country ; but he was not a great man, notwithstanding his phenomenal success. His inauguration was attended with much pomp and ceremony, on account of the military glory won in the Mexican war. With marshals and music, cheers and handkerchiefs, ministers in court glitter, congressmen and civilians, the new President was inaugurated. The night was brilliant with balls and merry-making. Mrs. Pierce entered the White House bearing the burden of a great sorrow. Just previous to her husband's election she had witnessed her only child, a bright boy of twelve, crushed to death in a railroad accident. Under this bereavement and in delicate health, she entered the White House ; but during her residence there, her grief did not in- terfere with her duties socially, or officially. She met the de- mands of the White House with grace and dignity. There was innate repose and gentleness in her manner. When she left she was revered and loved by all who had ever come under the influ- ence of her gentle, and exquisite nature. So passive and timid was President Pierce, politically, that he left the Presidential chair without having advocated a single meas- ure, or done aught to solve the vexed problems that were rapidly 1 1 8 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. approaching solution, leaving to his unfortunate successor, James Buchanan, a legacy of inextricable troubles. In going back to the shadowy days that hung over this Republic during the administration of President Buchanan, we cannot touch upon a page of its history without bringing a pang to the heart of every true patriot. But there was a rift in the clouds even then, for Harriet Lane was the presiding genuis of the White House; and never since the days of Mrs. John Quincy Adams had the Ex- ecutive Mansion been presided over with such elegance and grace. It was a position which Miss Lane sustained with credit to her- self and honor to her country. She became an orphan at an early age and was adopted by her uncle, James Buchanan. From the time she grew to womanhood their fortunes were united ; all the honors bestowed upon James Buchanan were reflected upon the niece, and additional lustre was given to both by the grace and virtue for which Miss Lane was pre-eminently distinguished. When Mr. Buchanan was made Minister to the Court of St. James, by President Pierce, Miss Lane accompanied him and dis- pensed the hospitalities of the ministerial mansion. She was greatly admired in European court circles ; and by her dignity of demeanor and surpassing loveliness, won the admiration and re- spect of Queen Victoria and the heart of many an Englishman. When Harriet Lane was a simple country girl in the quiet town of Lancaster, little did she dream of the future in store for her. When, as a child, she wandered at will over the hills and meadow lands of her childhood's home, she little thought and much less anticipated a day when she would be the companion of monarchs, or the presiding genius over the household of the man chosen to be the head of this great nation. Yet all this came to pass in the course of events, and the Republican government was not compromised when the Lancaster maiden became the cyno- sure for every eye, as mistress of the White House. A story is told of her generous nature, that when quite a lass she one day shocked the staid propriety of her uncle, who discovered her trudging through the streets of Lancaster with a wheelbarrow loaded with wood and coal, which she was taking to an old woman THE WHITE HOUSE. 119 at the edge of the village, who, she had learned, was in want ; and notwithstanding her uncle's "Alas ! alas ! what shall I do with that child ? " he was more proud than angry that it was in her heart to do it. She was a blonde, her eyes deep violet, her hair golden, her features classic and beautiful in expression ; she had a command- ing form, and every movement was grace. The White House in all its appointments and decorations, was individualized to a degree never surpassed. To descant upon the motives of men and weigh their characters, as developed in those days, is foreign to our purpose. It is not for us to compare the course pursued by one party with that of the other. Posterity will draw the line between them. The virtues which have ennobled our country, and the errors which have disgraced it will stand out in bold relief upon that scroll, when the pen of history traces the images of the past, in their glory and in their infamy. In all the troublesome days that came into President Bu- chanan's administration, when he was harassed on all sides, when his official life was beset by foes without and foes within. Miss Lane held herself aloof from all animosities and with true womanly dignity maintained her position. When the land was filled with passion and discord, she was faith- ful to the nation ; and when the hour came to lay aside the honors of the White House, she left it carrying with her her country's respect and love. The closing months of President's Buchanan's administration were made conspicuous in sundry ways. The Prince of Wales was entertained at the White House as a private gentleman, but in a manner grateful to Queen Victoria, as the following extract from her letter to the President will show. " Windsor Castle, November ig, i860. " My Good Friend : — "Your letter of the 6th instant has afforded me the greatest pleasure, containing, as it does, such kind expressions with regard to my son, and assuring me that the character and object of his visit to you and the United States has been fully appreciated. He cannot sufficiently praise the great cordiality with which he has 120 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. been everywhere greeted, in your country, and the friendly manner with which you have received him. And, whilst as a mother, I am most grateful for the kindness shown him, I feel impelled, at the same time, to express how deeply I have been touched by the many demonstrations of affection personally toward myself, which his presence has called forth. "I fully reciprocate toward your nation the feelings thus made uppermost, and look upon them as forming an important link to connect two nations of kindred origin and character, whose mutual esteem and friendship must always have so material an influence upon their respective development and prosperity." A peace convention assembled in Washington, February 4, 1861, at which ex-President John Tyler was chosen chairman. After a session of three weeks, th-ey laid before Congress a series of proposed amendments to the Constitution, all of which Congress rejected, and another amendment was recommended by the House. During all this controversy the Cabinet of Mr. Buchanan was perplexed and disturbed on the subject of reinforcing the forts in Charleston harbor, which ended in a dismembered Cabinet, and in this confusion the administration of James Buchanan ended. CHAPTER XTI. ABRAHAM LINCOLN, ANDREW JOHNSON, AND ULYSSES GRANT, PRES- IDENTS. Step by Step Abraham Lincoln walked before the People — A- Man tried as by Fire — Four Years of Battle and Strife — Lived by the Golden Rule — A noble Humanity — The Author of trite and good Sayings — A blessed Omen — A plot that miscarried — His Second Inaugural — The President's Levee — The Nation's Calamity — An imperishable Grief — Out from the Eclipse came Acclamations of Praise — His Domestic Life — A golden Maxim — Mrs. Lincoln's Ambition — The Impressions she made — Death of the beautiful Boy, Willie — The crowning Grief of all — Let the World pity, not condemn — Andrew Johnson — Inaugurated President — The Machinery of State moves steadily on — A brilliant Winter follows — Mrs. Johnson an Invalid — Mrs. Patterson and Mrs. Stover preside over the White House — The White House presented a forlorn Appearance — The first Levee — An Appropriation — The pure Taste of Martha Patterson — President Johnson's State Dinner — The City thronged with notable People — Madame LeVert — No Criticisms on Andrew Johnson's Household — A loving Benediction — General Ulysses Grant President — At the Capitol — The People waiting to see what Buchanan would and what Mr. Lincoln would do — Enthusi- asm of March 4, 1S69 — Ceremonies of the Inauguration — Brilliant Proces- sion — Spectacle in Senate Galleries — Mrs. Colfax and Mrs. Waite watch Proceedings from the Gallery — Mrs. Grant accompanied by her Son — Close of the Fortieth Congress — The Hero of the Day — Reading of the Inaugural Address — General Grant's Cabinet — Inaugural Ball — The best laid Plans of Mice and Men gang aft a-gley — The Agonies of that Ball — Poor Horace Greeley — Barmecide Feast — Kitchen Cabinet — President and Mrs. Grant — General Babcock — Halcyon Days of Peace — Second Inau- gural and the Bitter Cold — Nellie Grant's Wedding — General Grant's reluctant Consent — New Year's Day in Washington — Official Opening Day — The World's great General — A sorrowing Nation. Step by step Abraham Lincoln walked before the people, their true representative. If he was ever slow in movement it was because the pulse of the people beat slow. He quickened his 122 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Step to theirs. He was unequivocally a public man, and in his daily routine the pulse of his heart was the indicator of the heart throbs of twenty millions, and when he talked it was the articula- tion of the thought of all these. If ever a man was tried as by fire it was Abraham Lincoln. Slander, ridicule and resistance did their best, but an extraordi- nary fortune attended him. Lord Bacon says : " Manifest virtues procure reputation, occult ones fortune ; " but he was carried on into the whirlwind of war, and when he had taken the helm of the old Ship of State, the pilot found himself in the midst of a tornado. During the four years of battle and strife, his endurance was unbounded, his courage undaunted. By his humanity and large- ness of soul, by his benevolence and justice, he meted out to others as he would have them give to him. He was the grand, heroic figure, the centre of all hope, and towards him were turned the eyes and hearts of all those who loved their country. His great, tolerant nature made him accessible to all, and many a broken-hearted mother and sister can attest his good nature ; and that down-trodden race that was thrown on his compassion is a living testimony to the touching tenderness with which he treated its people. No man is the author of a greater number of clever and witty sayings. His speeches and messages are filled with common sense and deep foresight. They are humane in tone and lofty in expression. When he said : " Every man has a right to be equal with every other man," he translated the Declaration of Indepen- dence anew. His speech at Gettysburg has no equal in modern language. His second inaugural will go down into the ages as a master- piece of thought. No statesman ever uttered words stamped with the seal of so deep a wisdom and so true a simplicity. We shall never forget the impressions of that scene. The rain had poured incessantly, the sun had been hidden all the morning behind a heavy sky, and just as the tall, slim form of Mr. Lincoln appeared in the east door of the Capitol, leaning on the arm of Chief-Justice Chase, the sun broke through the clouds, lighting up the pale, sad face of the President. " Blessed omen ! " cried PRESIDENTS LINCOLN, JOHNSON, AND GRANT. 123 a hundred voices. The multitude caught the enthusiasm, and cheer after cheer rang through the air, while the band played " Hail to the Chief." After Mr. Chase had repeated the oath, Mr. Lincoln stepped forward and, in a clear, stentorian voice delivered his address ; and when this passage was uttered, — "With malice towards none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation's wounds, to care for those who shall have borne the battle and for their widows and orphans ; and with all this, let us strive after a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations," every voice was hushed, and from every patriotic heart the prayer went forth, " God bless our President." It is well known that a plot was rife for the assassination of Abraham Lincoln that day, but for reasons known to those in the secret, the plan miscarried. Mr. Henry Elliott Johnston, of Balti- more (who afterward married Harriet Lane), gave friendly advice to a party in which we were numbered, not to venture upon the grand stand during the inaugural ceremonies ; that he had written Miss Lane, who was in Washington, that he knew the plan was ripe for Mr. Lincoln's assassination, and unless some unforeseen force interrupted, there would be bloody work that day. A small matter changed that plan; but the demon only lay dormant, biding the time when the nefarious scheme could be carried out. The inaugural ceremonies over, the next grand feature of the day was the President's levee. The crowd entered the White House grounds at the west gate, on Pennsylvania Avenue. It took two hours to reach the portico of the house. It looked as though all the world was going to see the President. Once having passed the portals, we were ushered into the Blue Room where the reception was in progress, and as we took the hand of the Presi- dent, and for the last time looked into that sad face ; the expres- sion from those deep, dark blue eyes with their far-away look, will never be blotted from memory. We passed on to Mrs. Lincoln and the others receiving, through the Green Room and the Red Room, into the famous East Room, making way for the surging masses that followed. Hours passed and still they came ; diplo- 124 HISTORIC HOMES IN Washington: mats, officers of the army and navy, soldiers and civilians, each one eager to pay homage to the great man, who was carrying the burdens of twenty millions of people. At last the doors were closed, the multitude had melted away, quiet reigned in Washington ; strife, grief, fears and red battle- fields were for the time forgotten. Abraham Lincoln was Presi- dent of this glorious Republic, for the second time, and the people still had hope. The world knows what followed. He lived to see Lee's army surrender, to conquer public opinion in England, France, and his own loved country. He lived long enough to enact the greatest beneficence that man ever made to fellow-.man, the abolition of slavery. Perhaps the country needed an imperishable grief to touch its inmost feelings. Abraham Lincoln fell a martyr to the cause for which he fought. As the fearful tidings travelled over mountain and sea, into every palace and hamlet of the land, a deep darkness settled upon the minds of all good men. Old as history is, and manifold as are its tragedies, never has a death caused more pain, more anxiety, or greater regret. But from the shadow of this uncalculated eclipse came acclamations of praise for the life he had lived and the good he had accomplished. We have not touched upon the domestic life in the White House. It was filled with lights and shadows. The golden maxim of President Lincoln : " With malice toward none, with charity for all," had not grown bright with use by the people, for if it had, the air would not have been filled with criticism of the President and his family. We look back upon the ignorance of a gullible public, as beyond comprehension in the nineteenth century, so readily accepted were the exaggerated stories con- cerning the ignorance and illiteracy of the President and his wife. Had they lived in the Fiji Islands they could not have known less of the truth. Mrs. Lincoln's education was above the average standard, and she was a well-born, cultured woman. Her levees -were brilliant, and the multitude that assembled there were received in an ele- gant and dignified manner. PRESIDENTS LINCOLN, JOHNSON AND GRANT. 1 25 The impression she made upon strangers can be understood by an extract from a letter written by a distinguished foreigner : " She performed her part of the honors in response to the ovation paid to her, as well as to her husband, with that propriety which consistently blends all the graces with a reserved dignity, and is much more becoming the wife of a Republican President, than any attempt to ape the haughty manner of European courts." The death of her beautiful boy, Willie, and the crowning grief of all, the untimely and horrible taking off of her husband, was the last stroke ; the shattered brain thenceforth gave but echoes of lost harmonies. ANDREW JOHNSON. Abraham Lincoln was assassinated April 14, and Andrew Johnson assumed the authority, which, by the Constitution, devolved upon him. Had the conspiracy been carried out, which it had taken months to so carefully plan, there would have been no head of the Government left, and yet the Republic would have lived. A nation that could so successfully carry on such a war, would have gone peacefully to work to re-establish order with the pliant adaptability to circumstances and the respect for law, which so eminently characterize the native born American, The machinery of the slate worked as well and as steadily in its accustomed grooves as ever, and the foundations of the Republic were not shaken. The gloom which overspread Washington after President Lin- coln's assassination and the mourning of its people, Avas followed by a sudden reaction. But few months had passed before gayety resumed its former sway at the national capital. The winter of 1866 was never surpassed in brilliant entertainments. The long years of war had hung like a pall over society. When the cloud lifted and peace again reigned over the land, all hearts were filled with new hopes and aspirations, and joy and merry-making became the order of the day. Mrs. Johnson was an invalid, and the honors and duties of the ' 1 2 6 HIS TORIC HOMES IN WASHING TON. White House were performed by her daughters, Mrs. Patterson, wife of Senator Patterson, of Tennessee, and Mrs. Stover, a widow. The White House presented a forlorn appearance when they entered it. The four years of war had left their mark everywhere. Soldiers had had unlimited sway through all the lower rooms; guards had made the rooms into lodging apartments, until carpets and sofas were ruined. Add to this the immense throng of people who continually crowded the President's house, and it is no wonder that the furniture was literally worn out. The first levee was held January i, 1866. There had been no appropriation from Congress to put the house in becoming order; but, here and there, were touches of improvement that plainly told of woman's handiwork ; order had been brought out of chaos. Clean linen covered the floor of the East Room ; flowers were in abundance ; children added an additional tint to the kaleidoscope ; cleanliness and good cheer made the change as apparent as it was marvellous. Mrs. Patterson was dressed in a black velvet dress, a shawl of white thread lace falling over her shoulders, and point lace collar. Her hair was adorned with a single white japonica. She was sim- ple and unaffected in her manner. The younger sister, Mrs. Stover, who was in mourning for her husband, who had died in the Union army, wore a heavy black silk with no ornaments. During the spring an appropriation of thirty thousand dollars was made by Congress to refurnish the Executive Mansion. Faithfully and conscientiously did Mrs. Patterson spend the sum- mer superintending the renovation of the house. The pure taste of Martha Patterson was fully exemplified in the delicate and graceful blending of colors in all the rooms, of furni- ture, carpets, hangings and wall decorations. The old home of the Presidents blossomed again like the rose, and the plain people from Tennessee were its presiding geniuses. The state dinners given by President Johnson were never sur- passed in elegance or style. The honor and dignity due the nation lost nothing in the hands of these people of Democratic simplicity. They fully understood what was required of the Presi- dent of the United States, and were equal to any emergency. PRESIDENTS LINCOLN, JOHNSON, AND GRANT. 12/ Society at large was launched into an atmosphere of gayety. Besides the receptions, Wednesdays and Fridays, by the ladies of the White House, exclusive of the President's levees, the mem- bers of the Cabinet and officials generally, held weekly receptions. General and Mrs. Grant, at their home in Georgetown, gave brilliant receptions. The French minister, the Marquis de Montholon, occupied the house of Mr, Corcoran, and when the piping times of peace again brought joy into every household, even the foreign embassador rejoiced as well. The city was thronged with the most notable people from the West and North, and it was difficult for all to find an evening disengaged. It had been many years since Washington had had a winter of such gayety. In was in the winter of 1866 that Madame LeVert, with her daughters, came to Washington. It was said of her that she often attended a half dozen receptions in the day and three or four parties at night. Whatever criticism was made upon Andrew Johnson as Presi- dent, the household, like Caesar's wife, was above suspicion, A purer atmosphere never existed in the White House than during this administration. The noble women of his family went back to their homes with names untarnished ; and in loving benediction, the people said : "Ye have served us well." March the third, 1869, found quite as many people in Washing- ton as conjointly witnessed and participated in the grand review of the troops of Grant and Sherman in 1865. Eight years before, the people, in almost breathless silence, waited to see what Bu- chanan would not, and what Mr. Lincoln would do. At the review the people had grown quiet in an enthusiasm which began with the fall of Richmond and ended with the surrender of Johnston. But no breathless silence reigned in Washington, March the third, 1869 ; neither was there any lack of enthusiasm at the capital. The streets, the hotels, the halls of Congress, the corridors of the Capitol were alive with humanity. The ceremonies of the inauguration of General Grant, in the main, were the same as of all the Presidents that had gone before ; but the scene from the Capitol, as the brilliant proces- sion wound up the avenue, was one of the most beautiful ever witnessed in this country. 128 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. Pennsylvania Avenue, on either side, was literally filled with people, moving up and down like a restless sea, throwing up hats and waving handkerchiefs in wildest confusion. The advancing column was in striking contrast, with its gay flags, silver trappings and bright uniforms. Every niche, portico and window was filled ; and not an architectural projection on the east front of the Capitol but held a larger, or smaller specimen of humanity. Even the monuments, trees and fences were black with anxious lookers-on. The soft landscape, the city spread out in the valley below, the winding Potomac beyond, the sea of upturned faces, the glitter of muskets and the red decorations of the artillery, formed a picture beautiful to look upon and one never to be for- gotten. The galleries in the Senate chamber presented a most brilliant spectacle. Seats had been reserved on the right of the diplomatic gallery for the wives of the President elect and of the Vice-President elect and their friends. • Mrs. Colfax made her appearance in a toilet of cuir-colored silk, white bonnet and green gloves. Beside her sat Mrs. and Miss Mathews, Mr. Colfax's mother and sister, and Mrs. Wade, who watched the proceedings below. Mrs. Grant, modestly attired in black, entered and took the seat assigned her, accom- panied by her son in cadet uniform. With intense interest they witnessed the Vice-President take the oath. The hours of the Fortieth Congress drew to a close, and when the hands pointed to twelve the door opened, and the hero of the day, clad in a neatly fitting black dress suit, entered unceremo- niously and took the seat quietly pointed out to liim, seemingly utterly oblivious of the prying gaze of the thousands around him. He sustained himself with dignity, sinking the individual in the statesman. He knew the requirements of the hour and fulfilled them. The Eastern portico of the Capitol was occupied by the high officials. General Grant read his inaugural address, and took the oath of office making him President of the United States. His Cabinet was as follows : Hamilton Fish, of New York, Secre- tary of State ; George S. Boutwell, Massachusetts, Secretary of the Treasury ; John A. Rawlins, of Illinois, Secretary of War ; George M. Robeson, of New Jersey, Secretary of the Navy; Jacob D. PRESIDENTS LINCOLN, JOHNSON, AND GRANT. 1 29 Cox, Secretary of the Interior ; J. A. J. Creswell, of Maryland, Postmaster-General ; Eben R. Hoar, of Massachusetts, Attorney- General ; all men of culture, energetic action and extended influ- ence. The inauguration of a new President must, to be quite complete, be ushered in with the pomp and parade of a ball. The memory of the oldest inhabitant runneth not back to the day when a new administration was begun without this time-hallowed custom, yet they say there is always something the matter with every inau- gural ball. The newly completed north wing of the Treasury was procured for this one. Its broad corridors and spacious rooms gave promise of space beyond need. The fluted granite pillars, that had lain in their wooden cofiins along- Pennsylvania Avenue for years, were in their places, with their heads pointing toward heaven. On this occasion the Fifteenth Street entrance was the one used for the guests. From one of the leading journals of the day we quote this description of the brilliant scene presented within and without the building. " Radiant with color, glowing with light, brilliant like tropical flowers, or the plumage of humming birds, and ever shifting and varying like a many-hued and constantly changing kaleidoscope. Fair faces, lovely forms, penetrant perfumes, distinguished men, renowned in war, statesmanship, letters, and the other activities of life, some clothed in martial uniforms, others wearing the orders and insignia of the Diplomatic Corps. Great waves of music pul- sated along the corridors, and all went merry as a marriage bell." This is what the ball might have been, but, alas ! "The best laid plans of mice and men gang aft a-gley." Had the reporter waited until anticipation had come to full fruition, his story would have been something like this, taken from the pen of an artist on the spot : " The agonies of that ball can never be written. There are mortals dead in their graves because of it. There are mortals who still curse and swear and sigh at the thought of it. There are diamonds and pearls and precious garments that are lost to their owners because of it. The scenes in those cloak and hat rooms can never be forgotten by those who witnessed them. The col- 9 130 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. ored messengers, called from their posts in the Treasury to do duty in these rooms, received hats and wraps with perfect felicity, and tucked them in loop-holes as it happened. But to give them back, each to the owner was impossible," Picture it ! Six or more thousand people clamoring for their clothes. In the end they were all tumbled out " promiscuous " on the floor. Then came the siege. A few seized their own, but many snatched other people's garments — anything, something to protect them from the pitiless morning wind which came down with the bite of death. Delicate women, too sensitive to take the property of others, crouched in corners and wept on window ledges ; and there the daylight found them. Carriages also had fled out of the scourging blast, and men and women who emerged from the marble halls with very little to wear, found they must walk to their habitations. One gentleman walked to Capitol Hill, nearly two miles, in dancing pumps, and bare headed ; another performed the same exploit, wrapped in a lady's sontag. Poor Horace Greeley, after expending his wrath on the stairs, and cursing Washington anew as a place that should be immedi- ately blotted out of the universe, strode to the hotel hatless. What was said of the Israelites of old might be said of the unfortunate attendants of this unfortunate ball. " Hungry and weary, their souls fainted within them." And the dancing w^as on a par with the Barmecide Feast. The home of sixteen Presidents now became the home of Ulysses S. Grant. Every administration, from that of John Adams down, has brought its own individualism under this roof; and when you pass from one historic room to another, each one is a present reality, since the day that Abigail Adams dried her clothes in the East Room, or Dolly Madison packed off the state papers and the por- trait of Washington, ere the British torch left but blackened walls ; or the days when the *' Kitchen Cabinet " made the acquaintance of the Southern Portico Stairway, or Harriet Lane brought again into its drawing-rooms the splendor of courts, and entertained the son of a queen. And where is the child of America who will forget the lonely man, sorrowful at heart, who bore the nation's burdens, and in his lonely midnight walks to the War Department, PRESIDENTS LINCOLN, JOHNSOJV, AND GRANT. 131 with the stars for his guide and the rustling leaves overhead for company, getting the latest news from the front, often returning sadder than when he went ; or the Green Room, where he last gazed upon the beautiful form and features of his fair boy, Willie, the pride of his heart — here the body, covered with flowers, rested for burial — and, saddest of all, this grand, noble soul going out of these portals and not returning ? All this we remember. President and Mrs. Grant were no exception to the rule. Theirs was an individualism whose atmosphere was purely domes- tic. In the social life of the White House we find a home. Mrs. Grant's morning receptions were very popular. Perhaps the pleasantest feature of these receptions was the presence of the President. The informality and entire ease with which they were carried on was their charm. General Babcock, with that graceful suavity so much his own, gave your name to the President ; he, in turn, passed it to Mrs. Grant, and she to the next lady receiving, and so on down the line. There was no awkward suspense in finding out whom you had the honor of addressing. If it were Mrs. Hamilton Fish, or Mrs. Sherman, or Mrs. Belknap, you knew it, and were at once at your ease. But, according to the present custom, at times, you pass a line half the length of the room, as if it were a line of sentinels passing judgment for a competitive drill. The halcyon days of peace brought into the White House the ineffable charm of genuine sociability. Even the nation's parlor, the grand old East Room, put on a home look, as much as to say, " The latch-string is out to all my children The fatted calf has been killed ; return thou prodigal son." A soft Turkish carpet, a present from the Sultan of Turkey, covered the floor. Heavy lace curtains draped the windows, over which hung heavy brocatelle, surmounted by gilt cornices. The walls and ceilings were frescoed, chairs and sofas were cushioned in keeping with the draperies. The three large crystal chandeliers shed the radiance of myriads of miniature suns. Eight large mir- rors decorated the room, and the portraits of Washington, Lincoln, John Adams, Martin Van Buren, Polk and Tyler hung on the walls. Clocks and bronzes made up the ornaments. And into this room Uncle Sam's children were welcomed. 132 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON: Four years pass by and the second inaugural of the hero of Appomattox returns. It is a repetition of the first, with some extras thrown in. There is the same moving mass of people, the same glitter of helmets, flash of bayonets, waving plumes, playing of bands, gaudy firemen, burnished engines, soldiers, sailors and everybody else, full of enthusiasm, ready to celebrate the second inaugural of their great Captain. Despite the bitter cold that stung and paralyzed the young bloods of West Point, or tingled the veins of the midshipmen from Annapolis, and the sweep and howl of old Boreas, dancing with this man's hat, and running off with that woman's veil, rend- ing the gorgeous banners into tatters, filling the air with blinding dust, the inauguration went on and Ulysses S. Grant became President for another four years. The most notable occasion during the administration was the wedding of Nellie Grant. Other weddings have been celebrated in the White House — Marie Monroe, daughter of President and Mrs. Monroe, and Lizzie, daughter of President Tyler. But Nellie Grant was an only daughter, and nothing was left undone by her parents to make this one of the most brilliant marriage ceremonies ever celebrated in the home of the Presidents. She was married. May 21st, 1874, to Algernon Sartoris, the son of Edward Sartoris, of Hampshire, England, His mother was Ade- laide Kemble, daughter of Charles Kemble, and sister of Fanny Kemble. Mr. Sartoris was twenty-three years old and Nellie Grant nineteen. Two hundred guests were invited to the wedding ; officials and their families, the army, and navy, and diplomats. General Grant reluctantly gave consent to his daughter's mar- riage with a foreigner, and he requested that they would live in this country. The sudden death of Mr. Sartoris' brother changed all these plans. His becoming heir apparent to his father's estate made it inevitable that Nellie should live abroad. The General never became reconciled to her living out of the country. A man who never faltered or wanted courage when danger was nigh, could not stand the test when the tender ties of his domestic life were broken. His son Fred married Miss Honore, of Chicago, who, in part, PRESIDENTS LINCOLN, JOHNSON, AND GRANT, 1 33 filled the vacant place, but the General never forgot, whether health bounded through his veins or disease made its mark upon him, that his daughter was three thousand miles away. In the last years of President Grant's administration the Execu- tive Mansion never presented a better appearance. The East Room had been made more beautiful than ever in all its features. The old furniture had been replaced by new. The Blue Room had also been retouched, both as to its walls and furniture, and was really one of the handsomest drawing-rooms in the country. Among the memorable days of this administration was New Year's Day. All New Year's days in Washington have distin- guishing features of their own. They hold the first position, inas- much as the ladies, for a portion of the day, are out by hundreds, if the skies smile. They call upon the President, the members of the Cabinet and the Diplomatic Corps, who are " At Home," and when the weather is fine the approaches to the White House pre- sent a gay appearance. After two o'clock the ladies are " At Home," and the observ- ances of the day are contmued, according to the time-honored custom of New Amsterdam. It is the official " Opening Day ; " the day of general meeting of men and women, officials and strangers at the White House ; a day which gives exhilaration to the social atmosphere. After General Grant had successfully conducted and brought to a victorious conclusion the late war between the opposing sec- tions of the country; after he had judiciously and wisely directed the executive branches of this Government eight years, and re- established peace with the world, he had a strong hold upon the hearts of this nation, and they were ready to manifest it upon every occasion. When he decided to take rest and recreation in visiting the different nations of the globe, his country bade him God-speed. His journey was one continued ovation ; but General Grant, in no degree accepted any of those demonstrations as per- sonal, but as given to the representative of one of the grandest countries on the face of the earth. Yet it is a well-known fact that he was looked upon as one of the greatest generals the world has ever known, and to him, as such, due homage was given. This is a garrulous world, and there are those who say that I ->4 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. General Grant lacked this or that qualification, that he was not a general, that he was not a statesman. But deeds ring through the hearts of all mankind, and when the great hero lay dead, a grate- ful nation bowed and bared its head in sorrow. CHAPTER XIII. RUTHERFORD B. HAYES, JAMES A. GARFIELD, CHESTER A. ARTHUR, AND GROVER CLEVELAND, PRESIDENTS. Exciting Canvass — Its disputed Results — Electoral Commission — A pure Administration — Mrs. Lucy Webb Hayes — Peerless among Women — A chosen Counsellor — Her Crown of Glory — Criticisms far from the Truth — Lavish Expenditure of Money — Brilliant Entertainments — The White House honored — An historical Painting — Mr. and Mrs. Hayes leave the White House — Mr. Garfield's Inaugural — The Day not Propitious — A grand Procession — A distinguished Throng present — The Center of At- traction — A Sweet-faced old Lady — The President's Mother — A running Conversation — Two Veteran Senators — Thurman and Hamlin — The his- torical Bandanna — Wafts a Senatorial Good-bye — Noblest Roman of them all — General Winfield Scott Hancock — Gallant Phil Sheridan — Takes the Oath of Office — Adjournment of the Forty-sixth Congress — Turning back the Hands of Time — Time still goes on — The Inaugural Address — A graceful Act — The first President's Mother in the White House — Mr. Gar- field's Cabinet — The Shadow in our Nation's Life — Columbia's Eyes dimmed — The Oath of Office taken upon the Death of the President — A Critical Position Sustained with Manly Courage — His first Official Duty — A Day of Humiliation and Mourning — Adverse Prejudice — Broad and expansive Methods — Distrust supplanted by Confidence — United Action — Conservative Administration — The White House a Social Centre — The President's Sister, Mrs. McElroy — Mr. Arthur's Wife — A Woman of Rare Accomplishments — Her Portrait — A Touching Testimonial — The Presi- dent's last official Act ; General Grant put on the Retired List— His Health Shattered — Died in Lexington Avenue, New York — President Arthur's honored Name — True, to his Party — Accident gave him Rank — Honored Reputation he Won — The twenty-second President — Grover Cleveland a Man of strong Individuality— His Private Secretary— Mr. Cleveland inaugurated President — The Presidential Succession — Repeal of the old Law— The Members of the Cabinet in Line— President Cleve- land's Premier — Thomas Francis Bayard — Daniel Manning — His Suc- cessor—The First Lady of the Cabinet— Mrs. Manning— Mr. William C. Endicott — Puritan Stock— The Attorney-General— Augustus H. Garland 135 136 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. — William Freeman Vilas — The Secretary of the Navy — William C. Whitney — The Ladies of the Cabinet — Secretary Lamar — President Cleveland's Marriage — Rose Elizabeth Cleveland — Frances Folsom — Mrs. Cleveland's Popularity — The Home of the Presidents. The exciting political canvass of 1876 is still fresh in the minds of the people. Its disputed results, the final adjustment of the electoral commissioners, giving the one majority to Mr. Hayes over Mr. Tilden, are also well remembered facts. Mr. Hayes gathered around him men of the highest integrity, and when years have softened the enmities engendered, justice will say, "never was there a purer administration than that of Rutherford B. Hayes," Of all the ladies of the White House, from the days of Abigail Adams down, none excelled Mrs. Lucy Webb Hayes in innate refinement, broad culture and moral courage. The grandeur of human character had, in her, a worthy example. Abigail Adams was a representative woman of the days of the Revolution. She left to her country an unblemished name. Dolly Madison inaugurated the golden reign of the White House. Mrs. Hayes fell upon times equally distinctive in many ways. She revived the stately graces of other days in the White House. She welcomed all, Americans, foreigners, friends and foes, with an ease and elegance of manner that charmed all who came into her presence. She was the chosen counsellor of her husband in the affairs of State, a devout Methodist ; in a word, a Christian woman. In times when animosities have spurred others to do ungracious things and to boast of what they had done, her sweet forgiving spirit made answer but in tears. The position she took upon the use of wine in the White House will always be to her a crown of glory. She saw through the forms and shams of life, and her views differed materially from any others ; but her decisions were from conviction wrought of grave and serious thought. Ungracious as were the comments made upon her course, no American woman has created for herself, under public and trying conditions, so little criticism, and so much admiration and respect as Lucy Webb Hayes. FOUR PRESIDENTS. 1 37 There was in her character a combination of intellectual force, buoyancy of spirit and deep tenderness of heart. In her portrait, which hangs in the White House, the gift of the temperance women, she shows a striking, brilliant face, with intellectual, spiritual brow, a soft, tender expression of eyes and mouth ; the thick brown hair is brought smoothly down her face, and is simply coiled at the back. We are glad that the White House is so honored, and that there will be handed down to posterity the lineaments of this noble woman who dared to do according to her convictions. While I write, swift-winged messengers tell us that Lucy Webb Hayes has passed through the dark valley into the golden sun- set of peace. What a sense of regret and loss will this mes- sage carry into every home that knows her name ! Gracious woman, sincere Christian, devoted friend ! she has passed into the vale of shadows, covered with the mantle of a sor- rowing nation, crowned with the love of her people. The fourth of March President and Mrs. Hayes joined the pro- cession of families which the people have chosen to represent them, as the years have waxed and waned in the nation's home- stead, and walked out of it leaving memories which linger and fill every nook and corner. Mrs. Hayes left an atmosphere emanating from the rare sun- shine of her nature, as a sweet benediction for the one who was to follow in the path she had trod for four years — a varied path of lights and shades. James A. Garfield was elected the twentieth President of the United States, and Chester A. Arthur, Vice-President. The morning of March 4, 1881, was not a propitious one for an inaugural ceremony, for the day opened dark and gloomy, amid snow and slush. The procession moved, for neither fair nor foul weather can prevent the new administration from being ushered in. Pennsylvania Avenue was lined with a multitude of people, disappointed and crestfallen with the provision the "weather clerk" had made, and more anxious than ever that inaugural day should be changed. Despite the weather it was a grand and im- posing procession. President Hayes and President-elect Gar- field rode in an open barouche drawn by four horses. 138 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. The Senate chamber and galleries had rapidly filled with a dis- tinguished throng. The center of attraction was in the front seat in the gallery opposite the Vice-President's desk, where sat the mother of the President-elect with his wife and Mrs. Hayes. The sweet-faced old lady who sat at the head of the seat drew, the attention of the whole audience. Next to her was Mrs. Hayes, and at her right Mrs. Garfield. A running conversa- tion was kept up among the three, in which old Mrs. Garfield, by her quaint and witty remarks, often provoked the others to laughter. The senators were seated on the left side of the chamber. Among them were John Sherman, Roscoe Conkling, Don Cam- eron, John A. Logan, David Davis, all earnest lookers-on. Two veteran senators sat near whose days in the Senate were num- bered when the hands of the clock reached twelve — Thurman and Hamlin. Hamlin sat with head bowed, a silent spectator of events, while the clock ticked away the remaining moments of his senatorial career, Thurman sought solace in his snuff-box and, with due reverence, took his parting pinch of senatorial snuff. The historical bandanna was once more thrown to the breeze, as if wafting a senatorial good-bye to the hallg that had so often echoed to the voice of the *'' noblest Roman oi them •all," Gen, Winfield S. Hancock, the democratic candfdate for the Presidency, came in, arm in arm with James G. Blaine. Gallant Phil Sheridan was heartily applauded when he walked in and took his seat beside General Hancock. The Diplomatic Corps, the judges of the Supreme Court and the Cabinet appeared, soon followed by the President and the Presi- dent-elect. Vice-President Arthur came last, and was presented to the Senate by Vice-President Wheeler. His appearance was dignified. His short speech was given in the quiet, manly, elegant way he had of doing all things. He took the oath of office, and exactly at twelve o'clock the forty-sixth Congress was adjourned sine die, the Senate clock having been turned back five minutes to accomplish it. Mr. Basset has been often called upon to perform this act during his forty years of service, but we notice that the turning back of the hands of time has not pre- vented his entering the season of the "sere and yellow leaf." FOUR PRESIDENTS. 139 From the brown-haired page he has become the white-headed veteran, for time still goes on. The centre of interest was at once transferred to the east front of the Capitol, where Mr. Garfield read his address, which was delivered with eloquence and in a forcible manner. At its close, Chief-Justice Waite administered the oath. After the congratula- tions of President Hayes and the Chief Justice, Mr. Garfield turned around and took his aged mother by the hand and kissed her, an act that made a great impression upon the audience ; and many a heart rejoiced with her, who had watched her son from boyhood and poverty to manhood and the highest elevation in the gift of Americans. Mr. Garfield next kissed his wife, then shook the hand of Mrs. Hayes and of all the others who came within his reach. In the mean time the elements were more kind. The sun was shining brightly when the cavalcade returned, and the festivities ended with a magnificent display of fireworks and the inaugural ball in the Museum building. Mrs. Eliza Garfield was the first President's mother who lived in the White House. This is no place to follow the intricate thread of politics. Amid all the differences of opinion. President Garfield managed with success to appoint a Cabinet not antagonistic to any following. James G. Blaine, of Maine, was Secretary of State ; William Windom, of Minnesota, Secretary of the Treasury ; Robert T. Lin- coln, of Illinois, Secretary of War; William H. Hunt, of Louisiana, Secretary of the Navy ; S. J. Kirkwood, of Iowa, Secretary of the Interior ; Wayne McVeigh, of Pennsylvania, Attorney-General ; Thomas L. James, of New York, Postmaster-General. We turn the leaf of history which takes us into the valley and the shadow of our nation's life. We would forget that such things have been, but the spectre will not down. All the associations connected with President Garfield's brief administration and life in the White House and its terrible end- ing, are still as fresh in the public mind as on that fateful morn- ing when the fearful news ran through the streets of Washington, " the President is shot." He had barely grasped the reins of government when the assassin's hand laid him low, a man whose I40 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. name is unworthy a place in history to be handed down to pos- terity, one which should fade from the memory of mankind and never pass the lips of mortal. The world knows the end, and the world misses James A. Gar- field. He occupied a place for which the people thought him fitted, and his administration gave promise of good results. A nobler service awaited him, but, in the transition, Columbia's eyes were dimmed and her heart was left desolate. Chester A, Arthur took the oath of ofhce immediately upon the death of President Garfield. The friends nearest to him know how his sensitive nature shrank from the great responsibility. They know too, that during the days when the President's life hung in the balance, when the hopes of a vast and sensitive populace were swayed by every bulletin from the sick chamber, the Vice-President was battling with an illness brought upon him by over-anxiety, from which there was no abatement save on the days when brighter reports came from the President. No President was ever called upon to take the guidance of the Ship of State under such trying circumstances ; but President Arthur was not the man to falter when the hour of duty came. With manly courage and dignified presence he gathered up the reins that had been dropped, and guided the affairs of state with skill and discretion. His first official duty was to issue a proclamation appointing the day of General Garfield's funeral, a day of humiliation and mourning. President Arthur took the office under a cloud of distrust, dislike, and prejudice; but his methods of appointment and of policy were broad and expansive, and calculated for the good of all, without regard to obligations of a partisan character. Dis- trust was soon supplanted by confidence, and dissensions by united action ; order was brought out of confusion, and the country was blessed by a pure and conservative administra- tion. During the time that he presided as Chief Magistrate of the nation, the White House was the social centre of the capital. President Arthur never forgot his personal dignity and that he represented a Republic which was an object of interested FOUR PRESIDENTS. 141 scrutiny to the whole civilized world. His taste was for the graceful things of life, and he did much with the aid of his sister, Mrs. John E. McElroy, to raise the tone of official society at Washington. Mr. Arthur was married in 1859, to Ellen Lewis Herndon, a daughter of Captain Herndon, who perished on the ill-fated Cetitral America. Mrs. Arthur, whose rare accomplishments endeared her to many, died suddenly in 18S0, leaving two chil- dren, Nellie and Allen. Her portrait, encased in a chaste Venetian frame, was always kept on a table in his private cham- ber, and each morning a vase of fresh flowers was placed beside it, a loving benediction from a wounded heart that never healed. President Arthur's last official act gave to his administration a notable end. He sent to the Senate a message bearing date March 4, 1885, nominating Ulysses S. Grant general on the retired list of the army, with full pay. The nomination was confirmed in open session amid the applause of the crowded galleries. He left the White House with his health shattered, and died at his home on Lexington Avenue, New York, in November 1886. Four Republican Presidents, who had filled the office with honor, had gone to their rest. Two of these died a violent death and were mourned by the whole world. A third, who was so honored in his death as to be followed to his last resting place by an army of citizens and soldiers, so lived as to receive honors throughout the civilized world such as no other man has re- ceived. President Arthur, whose honored name is added to this roll, stands alone as being the one especial Vice-President in the history of the Republic, who, having succeeded to the Presidency, did not disappoint those by whom he was elected ; but, like every other, he failed to secure an election to the office he had filled. Accident gave him rank, but honored reputation he won, and his countrymen will say of him that he served them with rare fidelity. The twenty-fourth quadrennial change of the political forces 142 HISTORIC HOMES IN WASHINGTON. of the United States brought to the Presidential chair a man comparatively unknown in national affairs, a man whose chief strength was in his individuality. The county of Erie in the state of New York, made him its sheriff. The municipality of Buffalo made him its mayor. The commonwealth of New York made him its Governor, and the United States made him their President. His friends honor him for his fearlessness of purpose, his integrity and indomitable courage. His sagacity and far-sighted- ness were made manifest in the choice he made of the men who were to surround and advise with him. His private secretary, Daniel Scott Lamont, was a man whose integrity and loyalty have never been questioned. He held a position during the four years of Mr. Cleveland's administration very near to the person of the President. He was a man of quick perceptions, was prompt in action, and a safe adviser. It is said that since Tobias Lear was secretary to George Washington, no other man was so completely a part of the official and unofficial life of the President as Daniel Lamont. Grover Cleveland was inaugurated President, March 4, 1885. It was during this administration in 1886, that an enactment of Congress was passed regulating the Presidential succes- sion, by precedence, of the members of the Cabinet. This rule repealed the old law by which the President //' . ". ^ii'iii'M' -" . c,"^ ^^. £^^/ .- -^ ..^P^. J^ v^ -^^.^ C' tf /Ti ^ ^ i"^ ♦*■*; <*. ^^-^^^ "^^ :> V ^ -S '^ x"^ * ..-■ o " " ^ <* -^ ■° ^''J-aL*. °- 'o V -^^^^ .v^. .-^►' V-"^-^--/ %;-?«^'y^ V-<^-'\- ^'-^^-^ \' -n.0^ S> , " o . ^