New-York tribune., 1867-02-25


shine upon you a moment and thon disappear you
are impressed by so many personalities that you shall
not meet again. that You pinch yourself to see II you
arc awake But to return to the receptions from
which, methinks Imust have wandered. Mr. Speaker
COlfax receives Thursdays, from half past eight TO
eleven Three large rooms are open on ue
first floor and the large dlnmg-roOh
down stairs is cleared for dancing Yet
when you reach the house-surey, you think-a
solid phaanx of American citizens has possession OF
every inch of room. BY dint of taking advantage Oh
the departures you cork-screw your way from the
sidewalk to the dressing room in 20 minutes. linen
in the wake of refluent of guests you lapse
down stairs again. and the tide takes you INTO the
Presence. familiar presence, with eyes Dlue anu
sunny as a baby's. smile with whole good heare
behind it, and artessness so entire that IL seems
the highest art This face all the country knows for
it il is scattered in card are lame
throughout the length and breadth of the land.
An admirable officer in the House-candid judicial,
rapid clear he has yet such odd bonhOmme then why
don't we have an English word which means just
that r. such genius of good nature that one wonders
how that larger boy ever chosen Speaker unless
indeed the doubt explains the fact
In this drawing-roOm you shall everybody.
Foreign Minister'S Senators, Members, officers,
beauties dowdies Office-seekers literary celebrities
and hosts of those charming people who are the AIR
cushions of society. Well-bred, pleasing persons
without an angle, who touch you like down, and
whom you are thankful TO rest upon after the ex-
hausting brilliancy of the many-hued talking ma
jOrity.
do perceive here divided duty. We all want to
know how these men whom honor, and these
women whom we envy leading charmed, per
fumed existence, look, and what they do, and
whether they are made of our clay, or of roster
substance. All of which is natural and laudable.
On the other side, these people whom we set
here as our trusted oraces and our best product OF
society, may object to point moral and adorn tale.
"Why should we belong to the newspapers y perhaps
they sigh, after cruelty of Jenkins. " Because
we are here must we lose all privacy and silence :"
All patient folk sufferance is the badge of all your
tribe i weigh your wish against the longing of the
many who shall never see Washington but in their
dreams, and the majority wins as it should
Here-let the crowd give way little-here is a
cannon ball of man, as hard direct, AZ harmless
to the touch as terrible power almost dusky and
round as his prototype-gallant Phil Sheridan. Snch
little fellow hardly than five feet one would
say-such d-faced, tanned, swartby ugly fellow
that he is the last in the world TO he strung on
rosary of heroes and told off by fair ladies among
their beads of tknights Yet there s fire IN the
round black eyes dash in the nerves, eager hands
will and energy in the heavy brows and set mouth
And what answers he when one says 81 am glad to
shake hands with soldier whom the nation honors;
a man might well have spent much longer life To
have won Gen. Sheridan's reputation = The modest.
true soul replies in this fashion: Z" am afraid that
'Sheridan's Ride'-the poem, | mean land he
called it pome) made my reputation more than
ANYTHING | have done at all. and ! shall
Ill. 4 hat
American people will not continue TO believe in
heroes who do not have the heroic stuff in them.
have got 10 prove my title, you know BY which
wisdom, little Phil. you like to prove IT, Now
comes the one man who without one romantic i'm
pulse one angle on which to hang enthusiasm one
electric and kindling spark of genius possesses the
hearts OF the people, and is hero through the
grandeur of success. Phil. Sheridan Kearney. Gar
field, winthrop, Dshlgren would have seemed heroic
after failure Not so this quiet small, reticent,
! resolute fellow. Gen. Grants face, iminoble
heavy expressioness lighted by no quick changes OF
| the eyes, by no movement of the shut, thin hps,
looks what it is-the face of the only man III
America. perhaps who could make the cal
culation of the multitude of lives neoes-
sary TO blot out a multitude of other lives, and
could work out the bloody sum to its accurate.
terrible result Never was such free-maSOnry among
features The square, straight brow knows the
meaning Of che wary unchanging eyes and will not
tell it, The eyes watch the heavy unquyerng nosTils;
the nOstIils command the locked mouth when the
mouth opens the strong chin keeps the secret OF pa
tent brain and tyTannOus will In undrcsS UNIFORM
| white glOved. and smooth of hair General Grant s
the most followed and the least conspicuous person in
/ the room Mrs Grant who wears black velvet in
which her beautiful shoulders and arms show to ad-
vantage, is Il sunny, sweet woman; too unaSsuming
10 be mark for criticism: too simple and kindly 10
make the mistakes which invite it.
lNow you know. TRIBUNE, that if all these Dons of
high degree were not present at this particular party
! they we're at sOme other or they might have been
And have the high authority of the n. A. for group
ings of this sort For did not Leutze paint the Amer
| Jean Flag in Washington Crossing the Delaware"
and barley put poor Cooper in Washington Irving
and his Eriends"i
| A swarthy, Spanishooking man, perSistently
polite in painful English is Scnor Romero the Mex
lean Minister aud there are so many others of the
Legations that they become in memory only kaleid
| 0scOpe Of decorations and foreign names. And now
| the crowd is so great that if can distinguish
| only the earrings or the -whiskers of his
next neghbOr, and il becomes the unselfish and
weary wight 10 make room for the stl-arriving
guests and betake himself to the next party. or TO
! his peaceful cot. And so pleasant goOd-nightS are
, said and we come away FROM delightfully."- uncere-
mOnious and amusing scene.
! And now have not left myself room to tell how
the gT1ndest toilets of the made for Gen
| Grants reception. How every ticket eagerly
| sought and how unfortunate people who could not
get one needed not that trifng ceremonial, but
! went without all the same. How when yOur car
riage stopped you looked forth and thought
you were in the midst of the Army of the Potomac,
until you found that these hundreds only people
waiting like yourself to get into the house. How the
sidewalk covered with three solid rods of guests