Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1876-06-07
A REMAssRADLE WOMAN.


Many persons have. heard the story,
but as told now by a Washington cor
respondent it will interest nearly ev-
crybody. Few people know that the
once famous Mrs. Eaton still lives
she who as wife Of General Jackson's
Secretary of War, raised such COM
motion nearly half century ago in
Washington society. As pretty Peg
gy O'Neil, the daughter of q country
tavern keeper at Bladensburg, she
won the heart Of purser in the ma
| w, Mr.. Timberlake, and after his
death married General James Eaton.
Society in those days was decidedly
in rough, rude state; and, accord
ing to veracious chronicler, the on
ly requisites for Introduction into the
best circles were "a clean shirt,
whole coat, and Congressional
friend" Hot disputes characterized
social parties, where gentlemen dash
ed wine in each others faces, ladies
clasped their glasses in the palms of
their hands to hide the quantity of
whisky they drank, and members of
Congress-, who were neither gentle
men nor ladies, resorted to fisticuffs
in the gold and lilac halls, and pistols
at the old Bladensburg cross roads.
Not an inviting picture of the times
of our forefathers, but rather neces-
sary to an understanding of the state
of affairs when this woman was the
uncrowned queen of the nation. Aft
err a long but unquiet reign, bitter
jealousies were aroused by her exac-
tons, and the mine finally exploded
under her feet, at state dinner, when
the wife of foreign minister rcfus-
cd to sit at the table with her, march,
ing with outraged dignity from the
room, she was followed by a cool
stare through Mrs. Eaton's cye-glass-
es, and the satirical compliment,
,,"What a fine carriage Mrs. has p
The breach was made; the battle
grew hotter; the wives of the Cabi-
net officers refused to visit her. Mrs.
Eaton complained to the President ;
he demonstrated with his Cabinet; a
fierce quarrel ensued, which resulted
in the famous Kitchen Cabinet" in
which Amos Kendall, Frank Blair,
ST., and other politicians, holding mi
nor positions or none at all, welded
an authority superior to that of men,
bcrs of the Cabinet themselves. Like
the blind Sampson, the downfall Of
the queen had come, but she was de-
termincd that her enemies should be
!, buried in the ruins with her. Her
fame and influence went down with
the setting sun of JacksOn's admins
tration, and as her bitterest enemy,
!, Van Buren,, came into power, her
| days of sovereignty were gone for
ever. She had the grit and audacity
: to visit that gentleman, however, and
5 deliver to him her opioion of his
: conduct. winding up her TRADE by
shaking her fist in his face, and cal.
t ling him "a sneaking old fox" which
nickname chung to him all his life.
/ After her decline and fall she became
f religious, devoting her large fortune
, to charities and her leisure time to the
+ education of her adopted grandchil.
t dren. A handsome young foreigner
+ -Buchignani by name-was employ
| cd as dancing master in the family
) and again Washington rang with Mrs
J. Eaton's name, for shea woman past
/. sixty-after brief courtship married
, a dancing master who had just at
, tanned his majority. In few years
: he had squandered all her property
0 and at last brought to himself ever
D lasting disgrace, and to her eternal
t sorrow, by robbing her of all hel
+ jewels and personal property Of
+ which he could gain possession, and
4 elopiHg with her granddaughter
So fell the curtain again on disma
c scene in her life: and saw her few
evenings ago still sprightly woman
S with traces of former beauty in thu
z face framed by silver hair, aud watch
t ing with proud eyes the mimic scene
: whore her grandsOn-who is hel
= comfort and support-swas actin:
: well his part So runs the worl(