New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-07-12

..-,;,s, taken at large, diners Hoh '"o "0O'0
A IN every respect in its composition, as
;n;ts tone and features. -,
This Washington society ought to pc divided
,wo kinds-distinct from each other, and stu
s.,s.mst;nr together. The one would call
- Standing or permanent, composed Of some old
,.nains of responsibilities, which took roo.
h.,. along with the foundations Of the CaPitol
IA sfthe White House; next come those, VINO
=. nailed to their official occupations, and then'
so.cuIators, voracious leeches hanging at the is
snss Of the Treasury, such as bankers agents.
shsyers sad birds OF that feather and hnaliy "hA'
i called in the lingo Of the pace-the lobby men'
Some of this whole genus, count their existence
here already by generations. Inc o.nei 81 80
division is the floating one, parts OF ''Oue
every session on the waves OF the O0nsi.
tide--and disappearing with its eDO' NE W.
-,,,,,ero,s active. mobile as the quicKsaho O'
.hs des,,t blown together from all the directions
AZ the compass, craving after excitement oil any
hind whatever. eager to see new faces, new COATS
new dresses and any thing new whatever-pene-
t,ates Ike tornado every where, and gives 10 the
whole world here, its peculiar character It's
. clearly drawu features. It's hurry burly movement,
can opJ, be resisted by him who has real ballast
IN his own personality Such was the iamehteu
Gay. suchare other public, weil-estaoshed celeb
rites. ANY other assumption is mercilessy over
thrown; and thus the prominent criterion ofso-
,;etv here becomes that Of reat democractic
eouaIity. in which no pseudo aristOcracy can hold
IFS ground less than any other, the argyrocrat, the
,noney-bog parvenu. Grandees, from the great
commercial cities of the East, may descend on
Washington for short visit-men whose tread
shakes the solid base of Wall-st. or Safest. and
resOunds even on the markets Of both Henri
spberes: but here all Of them disappear in the
social tornado very often wholly unnoticed,
ar even trampied under foot. If then, some few
,s,peetabities from the standing division, affect
10 Keep aloof or resist the irresistible current
such persons, inperceptble in number, are
obliged TO shut themselves, oyster-like, il. their
shells.
All the regions Of the Union forward to the Cap
;ta together with the better halves Of the members
ofCongress, cargo Of daughters, nieces, young
marriagable friends, rich and poor widows, &c. &C..
etc. This secures a pretty considerable assort-
ment of fair ones and thus an immense torrent Of
Irritation rolls continually through parlors public
and prrate, in the hotels the galleries Of beth the
Houses of the Congress, the rotunda the Capt.
tol grounds, the avenues, evening parties, pick
hicks, drives, and all other encounters and points
Of meeting, such as studios Of artists, churches,
and SO on. Occasion in general is very easily al
Sorded for the like, on account of the wholly I'M
controlled liberty enjoyed by American girls.
4 ',nlx Cor nn 10 Of
Irritation. Ii is hunting party executed by all
.be interested, the marriagable gentlemen and the
misses and ladies'. Some individuals hunt for
distinction, others for connections, generally all Of
them, however, above all, pursue the great area
mum of society-money. The matchmaking
Mamas or Aunts equal in pertinacity any celebra-
Ted English of the same species still there is here
less cunning, audacity, or impudence. The game
i more open, the parties to it less acrimonious,
and every body can safely peep into the cards.
All is rather harmless, and certain primitive mai
veto spreads over the performances rather child
ish charm. The final aim is, after all, what the
French call the bon motif or matrimony, which
makes tie whole maneuvering, nOfensiye and not
dangerous.
my and Navy, young clerks in Offices, newspaper
correspondents, form the principal pack oil the
heiress hunters. To this ought to be added
squad of Diplomats, high and low, poor creatures
whose hunger is stimulated the more since one OF
them, some time ago, carried away very well
stuffed prize.
Washing ton, as well as Georgetown, possesses
n mostly UhteTS n
Official indigduals-generally pennyless, but not
less eager after matrimonial establishments. All
these various elements make the race very anus
ing for a spectator. In this conflict Of chasing,
catching, abandoning, and snatching up, one can de-
feet zoe inward play of the passions, and finally
/ dfaw this conclusion that if the outward mani
kstaions acquire variety and differ from each other
10 different countries and states of society in
wardly human nature is everywhere alike.
The male hunters, natives strangess, foreigners,
are very often thrown off the track in the feryor
other pursuit. This happens when, at the start
they were not discriminating enough, but began
the race without ascertaining most positively the
worth in dollars and cents Of the chosen one. To
sndout her real yahe is the more difficult, when
the fair prize comes from the distant banks OF the
Mississippi, or from some place far of in the South
@West. 1t happens very often, that such fair
owner Of a few hundred acres Of more or less Gull
hvsted soil, and Of a score or two Of human chat
tells IS here inflated into the proportions Of rich
heiress. Her value is increased by common ru-
nor in proportion as increases her remoteness
NON her birthplace. Reaching Washington she
sset down as worth forty to sixty thousand dol
hs; pushing forward to Saratoga or Newport,
she wegtedby hundreds Of thousands. Wealthy
10 thatfKtent no yisitant here has been with one
e1eePtion-an only daughter, whose father meas
srss his possessions by square miles, owns and
II cCuHfs brr,an he;Des bx b,,pdyaJs onJ Nv