The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1873-04-26
NUMBER 80.
Mr.. Greeley's Clothes.

twitted with his slovenness of person,
ana many people were made to believe
that he incurred the risk of being sold
for Il bag OF ancient rags whenever he
passed into Ann Street. The fit and
quality Of his clothes were not what
Grammoht or D'Orsay would have re-
commended; but he was always scru-
pulously neat Beethoven himself
having no greater passion for the bath.
His linen was ever immaculate; his
boots, though often coarse, we'll
BACKED; his face carefully shaven,
and his hands as dainty kept as those
of Il fine woman. His cravat had q
tendency, it is true, to assume the
shape of a hangman's knot, and his
trowsers were often suggestive of re-
quired continuance; buG that he was
really slovenly was palpably false.
The idle tales that he disarranged his
toilet before the looking glass, and
carefully squeezed his pantaloons into
the leg of his boot ere he appeared in
the street, were purposely told to an
noy him, and strange to say they had
the effect intended. He was sensitive
on the subject Of his dress, and seldom
received advice thereupon witllbecom~
ing equanimity. Oddly enough, he.
believed himself very wellattired
person, and that few men in his sta
ton went better clad. SartOrial COM
ments were wont to draw from him
sharp and stinging replies.
When q city editor of the Tribune
ou.f, ,rrns,t1,1 t1<, .,f Iii,
neck-tie, Mr.. Greeley answered. "You
don't like my dress, and l don't like
your department. If you have any i'm
provements to make, please begin at
home."
James Watson Webb, while editor
of the Courier Enquirer, was fond of
criticising the costume Of his neigh
Dor, who referring to tile fact that Mr..
Webb had been sentenced to the
State-prison and pardoned, for fight
ing IL duel with Thomas +. Marshall,
made this extinguishing rejoinder:
i" Assuredly no costume in which the
editor of the Tribune has severappeared
would create such sensation in
Broadway as that Jas. Watson Webb
would have worn but for the clemency
of Governor Seward"
To another journalist, noted for his
untidiness, and his ridicule of Mr..
Greeley, the latter responded. "If
our friend Of the -, who wears
mourning for his departed veracity
under his finger nails, will agree to
surprise his system with Il bath, we
may attempt q clean discussion with
him"
The illustrious editor was simply
c3reless OF his attire, though fastid
iously neat. He was always 40 busy
that, when he rose in the morning, lie
put on the first thing he found, and
sometimes he did not put it more than
half on. His clothes never seemed t"
fit him, or, rather, he never seemed
to fit his clothes. The wonder with
many OF his acquaintance was where
he bought them, or whether they did
not grow, SO unique often where their
cut and patterns. Clothes, / repeat,
were Il tender theme with him; and
he displayed the highest breeding by
never alluding to what he wore. It
is supposed he got his garments ready
made Il have been told his wife was
in the habit Of purchasing them), and,
to save time. he took the first articles
offered. He was the only New Yorker
of note who repeatedly appeared in
the street III the morning III Il dress
coat. But lie made ample atonement
for this by representing up town at
formal dinners in a paletot, or some
peculiar garment that deticd identifi-
cation. Whatever may be thought of
Mr.. Greeley's quaint raiment, he was
excellently dressed according to the
Brummel canon, because after being
with and listening to him one could
not remember what he had on. He
could talk away his clothes in the
briefest space.-Harper's Magazine for
April.
H1GH WATER CoMING.-Our parish
readers (says the W. Il. Il. Sugar
Pianter) mustbe aware by this time
that IL heavy flood is now coming down
the river. Fortunately, the river has
fallen some five or six feet from the
rise of three weeks ago, or the danger
would be tloubly increased. We may
have the water as high as it has been
in the last twenty years. Old planters
| who are familiar with the cccentrici-
ties of old father Mississippi, look
with awe upon the rapidly rising
waters aud fear the worst. We believe
our levees to be in good order and
strong enough ro resist all the pressure
that may be brought against them,
but the main fear is that they are not
high enough. Should the fear be real
lied, farewell to crops in south Louis
lana this year. The Memphis appeal,
Of the 18th inst, says:
The water here in the next two
weeks will be nearly as high as the
food Of 1871. Now the river lacks
but three feet of being as high as it
was several weeks since, and is but
five and half feet below high water
mark of 1871. Below here the dam
age resulting from the coming flood
will be considerable. Few, if any, Of