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SKETCHES OF WASHINGTON SOCIETY

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Chapter I. At Secretary Barrettes

“It is a great pity that Norton has no principle. It is the one thing lacking in his character. His principles, so far as he has any, are correct. His life, in his domestic and business relations, is faultless. He is a moral man, in all the usual relations of life, in the highest sense of the word. He is devoted to his family, and his wife and children are devoted to him. He goes to church, is charitable and kind, and yet while he has certain principles, paradoxical as it may seem, he has no principle in political affairs. If he had principle he would be a great man, a great statesman — perhaps the greatest io Around the Throne.

in his country, certainly the greatest in his party. But he is utterly lacking in this one requisite to real greatness, and as it is, he is a mere politician, in the worst sense of the word at that. It really is a great pity, for the country is very much in need of such a statesman as he would be if he did not lack this one essential to greatness.”

Secretary Whiting, as he said these words, glanced across the room to where Senator Norton, about whom he was talking, was standing engaged in conversation with their hostess.

“Look at Norton,” he continued. “His face is remarkable. It reminds me of a celebrated picture of St. Dominic, which I saw some years ago in the old palace of the Escurial, in Spain. No one knows who painted the portrait, but there it hangs in that gloomy old palace erected by Philip II, who held his court there in the last years of his evil and superstitious life. I have often thought since I became acquainted with Norton that there must be some connection between him and the Guzmans, of which family St. Dominic was a member. There is

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ii the same shaped head, the same large but not unhandsome mouth, the same inscrutable expression and the same cold smile. My wife has often remarked the resemblance to the portrait of the great inquisitor, and said she felt when talking to Senator Norton that it would not surprise her in the least to hear him call into the room a few black-robed agents of the inquisition, and order them to take her to a dungeon or the stake to be burned for heresy, although he is a good Presbyterian, like herself. He seems to me a peculiar combination of good and evil, and yet there is a fascination about him which I am unable to resist. When we meet he says very little, and yet when he goes away I am not able to recall that I have received any positive information from him on any subject, while he has generally persuaded me to promise all he wished, and has made me say many things I ought to have left unsaid. But it is time for us to take leave of our hostess. Most of the guests seem to have gone, and I suppose Mrs. Whiting and your sister are waiting for us in the hall.”

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The reception was over, and the two gentlemen were almost the last to say good night to Mrs. Barrett, the wife of the distinguished Cabinet Minister, at whose house it was held. As they were taking leave, that lady said :

“Secretary Whiting, you were telling Governor Vail your opinion of Senator Norton. You should be more careful, for I am sure that he understood what you said, and was not pleased. I hope you have not made an enemy of him, for the Administration has no friends to spare in the Senate at the present time, and he is too powerful a man to offend when so much depends on his co-operation.”

“Why do you think he understood what I said, which I must confess was about him ? He was the entire width of the room away from us.”

“There is something strange about that man,” said Mrs. Barrett. “I believe he has learned to understand what people say by the motion of the lips, as many deaf people do, you know. In fact, I am sure of it, for he understood something I said about him once, when I knew he could not hear my voice, and other people say that he has this faculty. Although he was with me when you and Governor Vail were discussing him, he was watching you intently and not paying the least attention to what I was saying. I hope what you said was not very bad.”

“No; so far from being bad, it was in the main complimentary; although I am sorry he understood me, if he did, as you seem to believe. But I see Mrs. Whiting is growing impatient, so we must say good night. I should like very much to hear further what you have to say on this subject, but Governor Vail is obliged to leave Washington early in the morning, and he and I have many business matters of importance to talk over before we go to bed, so good night.” The two gentlemen then joined Mrs. Whiting and Miss Vail in the hall, after which they entered their carriage and were driven rapidly to Secretary Whiting’s residence, several squares distant.

Mrs. Barrett was not mistaken in her belief that Senator Norton had understood what Sec-

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retary Whiting was saying about him to Governor Vail. Early in life he had been afflicted with partial deafness, and at that time had learned to interpret what people said by the motions and movements of their lips. After he had recovered the complete use of his hearing he had found this faculty most useful to him. His eyes were unusually sharp, and he had no difficulty whatever in making out what people were saying even when they were so far off that not the faintest sound of their voices reached him. At one time, when he was a delegate to a large political convention, he saw the chairman holding a conference with one of his factional opponents during the discussion of an important question, when itwas particularly necessary for him to know just how the presiding officer looked at the matter, and he was thus able to change his tactics and turn what would otherwise have been a disastrous defeat into a semblance of victory for his side. On other occasions he had found this knowledge of great use, and often his opponents had wondered how he had learned their plans, frequently accusing him of having spies in their councils, when he had really discovered the facts by watching the motions of their lips when they were holding whispered conferences in his sight, but without his hearing. For more than a year he had been extremely anxious to find out just what Secretary Whiting thought of him, but up to the present time that extremely suave and gracious statesman had baffled all his efforts.

Until he understood in what estimation he himself was held by any one with whom he came in contact, he never formed a fixed opinion (if any of his opinions could be called fixed) about that person. Secretary Whiting had been to him an unknown, and he had Telt covertly hostile to him when the President had chosen him for the important Cabinet portfolio against his advice, as well as against the advice of all the leaders of the party, who had urged his Excellency to choose some prominent man for the position. But the President had a strong mind of his own, and had persisted in making up his Cabinet almost entirely of comparatively unknown and untried men, notwithstanding the vehement protest of the Senators of his party, who foretold all sorts of calamities to the organization as the result of his obstinacy and self-will. Of these unknown and untried men, Secretary Whiting had very soon easily demonstrated the fact that no blunder had been committed when he was chosen, for he had not been in Washington a week after the inauguration before even the most competent Senators were compelled to admit that he was a true leader of men, and that a new statesman had been discovered in the modest but able and shrewd gentleman who had never before held a public office, and who had never had even the slightest experience in practical politics. In fact, he had surprised even his most intimate friends by the ease with which he adapted himself to his new surroundings and the ability with which he grasped the details of the management of one of the most important departments of the Federal Government.

He was one of the few men whom Senator Norton had met in his long career at Washington whom he could not understand, or, to use his own expression to his wife, who was his only confidant, “Whiting is one of the two men here whom I cannot size up ; the other man is the President himself.” The Secretary had been extremely gracious to the Senator. He had gratified the hungry instincts for spoils of his numerous henchmen who had flocked to Washington after the inauguration, eager to secure places in the Federal service under the new administration, until it had become a well-known fact that Senator Norton had secured more places in that department than any other member of the upper house of Congress. But in all this time, while he had granted favor after favor, he had never in any way asked for anything in return, or given his confidence to the man who was looked upon as the leader of his party in the body where he had occupied a seat for so long. Latterly he had declined several requests made by the Senator, and that gentleman had been more than ever anxious to learn what the Secretary really thought of him, and that night accident had given him, in part, the information he desired. He was partly pleased, and yet he determined to wait for further developments before coming to any conclusion. He knew that the President thoroughly distrusted him, although during the first few months of his administration he had been one of his closest and most confidential advisers. He feared that Secretary Whiting might have said more than he understood, consequently the more he thought about it, the more doubtful he became, and as he leaned back in his carriage on his way home, his preoccupation attracted the attention of his wife, who said :

“Something has disturbed you, and you are worrying about it. Tell me what it is ?”

“No,” the Senator replied, “I am not exactly disturbed, but only puzzled,” and he told her what he was thinking about. She said : “I cannot understand why that should worry you, for I know you are worried by your manner. Secretary Whiting is only one of the passing figures in your career, like so many other Cabinet ministers whom you have known since you first came to Washington. You can remain here all your life, while he is here today and tomorrow is gone, like those whom we have known who preceded him. Why, therefore, should you care what he thinks of you, any more than you cared for the opinion, whether favorable, hostile or indifferent, of his predecessors. He is but a part of the passing show that has changed from year to year during your long public career at Washington. He is more agreeable and has better manners than the others, but I can see no other difference between him and them. Why, therefore, I ask, should you care what he may think of you ?"

“I do care more than I imagined. He is the only man whom I have met here in all these years who has really impressed me with the fact that his good opinion and real friendship would be of value. I do not care what the President may think of me, for he and I are diametrically opposed in our views on almost every subject, and I know that he thinks that I am no more than a selfish, scheming, time-serving political trickster, for in fact he almost told me so to my face the other day, and he has not hesitated to say that such is his opinion of me to other peo-

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pie. But Whiting is another sort of a man — in fact, I never met a man in whose good graces I so wished to stand as I do in his. But I feel that he has very much the same opinion of me as has the President. I shall try to find out as soon as possible, for in view of certain plans for the future which I am considering, it is absolutely necessary for me to know without much further delay. But here we are at home,” and as he said this, the carriage stopped at his door.

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CHAPTER II. at justice Mortimer's.

The season at Washington was at its height, and as the guests sat down at the table in the dining-room of the hospitable house of Justice and Mrs. Mortimer, where a large dinner was being given, preparatory to the ball at the Russian Embassy, the conversation turned almost exclusively to the unusual gayety of the winter, which had far exceeded anything within the memory of the oldest inhabitant present, who in this case happened to be Mrs. Storman, whose husband had been in public life at the Capital, first as a member of the House of Representatives before the Civil War and later as Senator and Cabinet Minister. At this time he was one of the Senators from his State, and while Mrs. Storman had been with him all through his public career, her vivacity and youthful appearance in no wise indicated her age, which was

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rapidly approaching the Scriptural three score and ten. Several ladies present, who were at least ten years her junior, looked older than she. A calm and placid disposition, together with a happy home and devoted husband and children, were often mentioned by her as the chief reasons for her almost youthful appearance, for she was not sensitive in the slightest degree about her age, but frequently alluded to it when people looked at her in surprise as she told of matters concerning society at Washington before the war, that period the mention of which is now such a certain indication that the speaker, if telling personal recollections, is rapidly leaving the middle period of life behind.

The conversation about the unusual brilliancy of the social season had begun in the drawing room before the guests were all assembled, and was resumed as soon as they were seated at the table. The hostess, who was comparatively new to the Capital, addressed a question to Mrs. Storman on the subject.

“Washington is not at all as it used to be, and I must confess this winter has been a little too much for me,” was the reply. “I have been here now every season for over forty years, have gone everywhere during that time, and you are right in believing that this exceeds in gayety anything in the past. In fact, I find it impossible to accept even half the invitations I receive and at the same time attend to those matters which my position renders it imperative that I should, in addition to the large number of elaborate and really important social functions of the present, the most notable feature is the increased luxury in the manner in which entertainments of all sorts are given. Until about ten years ago extravagance and luxury were frowned upon by the modest and quiet people who were the social leaders. Now, the great influx of very wealthy people, who have taken up their residence here either from official reasons or because this is a very desirable place in which to pass the gay season, has made things different, and the whole system of entertaining is changed, and lavish expenditure is the rule rather than the exception, as in former days.”

Mrs. Storman’s remarks were the last which were addressed to the guests generally, and, as there were twenty-four people seated at the table, the conversation was confined to small groups of those who were neighbors, each separate group of three or four talking on different subjects, in some instances resulting in tete-atetes between those who were seated side by side.

The party was made up of the usual sort of people met at all such social functions in Washington. They were Secretary and Mrs. Whiting, Secretary and Mrs. Barrett, the Vice- President and his wife, Senator and Mrs. Storman, Senator and Mrs. Norton, the Speaker and wife, the Secretary of one of the leading foreign embassies, two Associate Judges of the Supreme Court with their wives, a member of the House from one of the Western States, the two daughters of the host and hostess, and two gentlemen who were visitors at the Capital, and, being friends of the family, had been invited to the dinner. One of these latter was a writer, and as this was his first visit to Washington he was anxious to see and hear everything, in order to utilize the result of his observations in a book on the social aspects of life at the center of our national politics. Mr. Warham, for that was his name, was seated next to the elder Miss Mortimer, who was noted not only for her beauty and wit, but also for the cynical and sarcastic comments which she was in the habit of making in regard to anybody and everybody with whom she came in contact. His vis-a-vis was Mrs. Branch, the wife of the Speaker of the House, who was credited with having one of the sharpest and most unsparing tongues in the town. In fact, no two women were more feared and hated in Washington than these accomplished ladies, and their epigrams and caustic bon mots in regard to persons and things were quoted on all sides, for they spared no one, from the President and his wife down to the most obscure member of the House. Mrs. Branch especially was noted for her sharp epigrams, and in more than one instance her shafts of sarcasm and biting ridicule had settled the fate of measures before

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Congress and the departments more quickly than all the arguments of the statesmen. She was a slight, frail-looking woman about forty years old, and her mild brown eyes and quiet demeanor indicated an entirely different sort of person from what she really was. Every one, especially the members of the Government, treated her with the greatest deference, and the ladies in the official circle, while they feared and hated her, were extremely careful not to give the slightest indication of their real feelings toward her when in her presence.

“I suppose the President’s wife is the leader of society,” said Mr. Warham. “As the mistress of the White House she would hold that position as a matter of course, but you see I am an entire stranger in Washington, and I must confess that I have heretofore taken so little interest in such matters that I really ask in order to be enlightened on the subject.”

The Vice-President’s lady, who happened to hear this remark, tossed her head slightly, and looked as if she would like to give the information desired. It was well known that she thought she ought to be the social leader, and it was a matter of common talk that between herself and the lady of the White House there was a decided feeling of suppressed hostility, which was expected at any time to break out in open social warfare. Indeed, it was said that it took all the skill and influence of the distinguished statesmen, their husbands, to prevent an open rupture, and the consequent establishment of rival social headquarters in the Presidential and Vice-Presidential mansions.

“Officially, yes, the President’s wife is the leader here,” said Miss Mortimer, with a cynical smile.

“In order to be a social leader, you must have knowledge of society and be able to lead,” said Mrs. Branch in a low, soft tone.

“Not in Washington,” said Miss Mortimer. “Official position is all that is supposed to be necessary.”

“The President’s wife is a dear, good woman,” said Mrs. Branch. “They do say that she intends to resume the Sunday afternoon prayer-meetings which were held in the East

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Room during the administration of Mrs. Hayes, ever so many years ago, and those who do not attend them will receive no favors at her hands.”

Mr. Warham looked up in surprise. “Decidedly,” he thought to himself, “the Speaker’s wife is a more interesting person than I imagined. I must cultivate her acquaintance further.”

“Mrs. Storman, you remember Mrs. Hayes,” said Miss Mortimer. “Is it really true that prayer-meetings were held in the East Room when she was at the White House ?”

“Such was the report at the time,” replied Mrs. Storman. “Mrs. Hayes was a very devout woman, and if she had wanted to hold a prayer-meeting in the rotunda of the Capitol, nothing but the interference of the police could have prevented her doing so. I remember very distinctly the surprise she caused at the first diplomatic dinner she gave by requesting the oldest member of the Corps to ask the blessing when they were seated at the table. It is very likely that she did have prayer-meetings in the

East Room, according to the report at the time, although I never attended any of them. She considered me a very worldly woman, however, and was not likely to have asked me to be present^

“ I understand that the President opens the Cabinet meetings with a fervent prayer. Is the story true, Mr. Secretary?” said Mrs. Branch to Secretary Whiting.

The gentleman addressed laughed heartily as he contradicted the report. He said : “You must not believe all the stories you hear about the President. He is a most excellent man, and his wife is one of the very best women I ever met.”

“I have no doubt of it,” said the Speaker’s wife, who never lost an opportunity to have a fling at the lady of the White House, while the Speaker was not at all backward in saying equally cutting things about the President, against whom he had been the leading candidate for the party nomination. “She has diffused an atmosphere of such intense sanctity around her that it makes sinners like me un-

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comfortable when we are near her. Her presence and the holiness she casts out are expected to have a very purifying effect on Washington society before the close of the administration.”

“I heard someone call her the President’s backbone,” said Miss Mortimer. “It was said that she had to stiffen him up when any important decision was to be made.”

“I am surprised to hear that he has any backbone,” said one of the gentlemen across the table. “Reports do not credit him with the possession of such an article in his anatomy.”

“Secretary Whiting, is it really true that the President asked for the resignation of the Postmaster-General a short time since because that gentleman does not go to church? I heard so on excellent authority,” said Mrs. Branch sweetly, but with a sarcastic intonation.

Secretary Whiting laughed good-naturedly, but signs of irritation were manifest in his voice when he replied :

“Really, those of you who are not friendly to the President seem at all times ready to believe anything and everything absurd, and, pardon me for using such a harsh word, ill-natured, that may be circulated about him and his family. I know him perhaps better than anyone, and I am convinced that with all his peculiarities, he is conscientious in trying to do his duty. As for his wife, she is certainly one of the best women I ever knew, and while she may not have enjoyed the social advantages that these ladies have who have lived for so long in Washington, she is rapidly acquiring the necessary experience to carry out creditably the duties of her high position, and before the close of the Administration will surprise all her critics.”

The rebuke implied in the spirited defense of the President and his wife made by Secretary Whiting had the effect of putting a stop to the general conversation, which was beginning to interest Mr. Warham, and from that time to the conclusion of the dinner the names of the residents of the White House were not mentioned by anyone at the table.

“I met Senator Walton’s wife at a dinner last night,” he said to Miss Mortimer. “I was

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much surprised; she is so very different from the first Mrs. Walton, whom I knew several years ago. Who was she before her marriage ? I do not recall that I ever heard.”

Miss Mortimer smiled and glanced across the table at Mrs. Branch, who said :

“What did you think of her, Mr. Warham? Tell me, and then I will tell you all about her, for Miss Mortimer seems unwilling to do so.”

“Well, to be frank with you,” said Mr. Warham, “I never was more astonished in my life than when I was introduced to her. I have known Walton for ever so long, and his first wife was one of the most refined, high-bred women I ever knew. The Mrs. Walton I met last night, however, looked just like a cook or housemaid dressed in her mistress’ clothes, and acted precisely as I should have expected a cook to do under such circumstances.”

“That is exactly what she was. Senator Walton married his cook, and now expects everybody to receive her just as they did his first wife,” said Mrs. Branch.

“Do you know I really feel sorry for her,”

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said Miss Mortimer. “She is an excellent woman in her way, and I am sure would greatly prefer to remain at home to going out to dinners and other places, where she feels so out of place. But Senator Walton is determined that all those who profess to be his friends shall recognize her, and treat his wife as an equal in every respect. He, therefore, insists on her going wherever he goes. We expected them here tonight, but at the last hour they sent excuses. She confided to me once, at a reception at the British Embassy, that she was in misery and did not know what to do next. I remained with her throughout the evening, and her gratitude was so great that she almost shed tears when we parted, and Senator Walton took both my hands in his and thanked me in the most feeling way. To tell the truth, I really enjoyed the time with Mrs. Walton more than I should had I passed it in the usual way. Her comments on the people were very amusing and her shrewd way of speaking about them was very refreshing, after listening to the kind of talk one is accustomed to hear in such places.”

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Mr. Warham and Mrs. Branch both heard Miss Mortimer with much surprise. They were accustomed to consider her a cynical, bright society woman, and neither had ever suspected her of so much real kindness of heart as her action toward Mrs. Walton indicated. They were about to express their surprise in words, when the hostess arose from the table, the dinner having been concluded, and indicated to her guests that it was time for them to get ready to go to the ball at the Russian Embassy, an event which was looked upon as the real culmination of the social season. As they arose from the table Mr. Warham found time to let Miss Mortimer understand what he thought, as he said, “Your action was very noble and I greatly honor you for it. It has given me an entirely new view of your character.”

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Chapter III. At The Russian Embassy The Ball

The distinguished diplomat, Prince Cantakoff, stood with the Princess, his wife, at one side of the grand drawing room of the Embassy, receiving the guests, most of whom had already arrived when those who had dined with Judge and Mrs. Mortimer entered, and were duly announced by the official of the household whose duty it was to perform that ceremony. Mr. Warham, who had never met his host and hostess before, came in with Miss Mortimer, and, as they were the last of the party, Miss Mortimer introduced Mr. Warham, who was received with great cordiality by both the distinguished personages. They were about to pass on, when Prince Cantakoff said :

“Mr. Warham, permit me to thank you again for the excellent and remarkably just article you have written regarding my country and its government. It is so rare for anything favorable to Russia to be published in this country that we are bound to take notice of such matters when truth and justice, and not prejudice, are manifest in the work of the writer. It may interest you to know that the article in question has been translated and will be published in the leading papers of St. Petersburg when it reaches there, if that has not already been done.”

Miss Mortimer looked up in surprise, and said :

“I was not aware that Mr. Warham had written anything concerning Russia. Please tell me about it.” The Prince said :

“Some weeks ago a leading paper published a series of articles on Russia, which for bitterness of vituperation and falsity of statement excelled anything I ever read. Immediately thereafter a reply was published, presenting the truth in a calm and dignified style, which carried conviction on its face. I was so much pleased, as well as surprised, that I at once sent one of my secretaries to learn, if possible, the