Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1876-02-03
THE HERoINBoP AN OLD SCANDAL.
The Woman Over Whom Andrew JackEou's
Cabinet Went 10 Pieces.

Few people know that the once
famous Mrs. Eaton still lives she,
who, as wife of General Jackson's
secretary of war, raised such a COM
motion, nearly half century ago
in Washington society. As pretty
Peggy O'NeiI, the daughter of a
country tavern-keeper at Reedsburg,
she won the heart Of purser in the
navy, Mr.. Tim berlake, and after his
death married Gen. James Eaton.
Society in those days was decidedly
in rosgh, rude state /; and, accord
ing to veracious chronicle, the only
requisites for introduction into the
best circles were ga clean shirt, Il
whole coat ana congressional
friend" Hot disputes characterized
social parties, whore gentlemen
dashed wine in each others faces,
ladies clasped their glasses in the
palm eff their hands, to hide the
quantity of whisky they drank, and
members of Congress, who were
neither gentlemen nor ladies', le-
sorted to fsticuffs in the gold and
and lilac hills, and pistols at the old
Bladensburg cross-roa Is. Not an in
viting picture of the times of our
fathers, but rather necessary to an
understanding of the state of affairs
when this woman was the uncrowned
queen of the nation. After long
but unquiet reign, bitter jealousies
were aroused by her exactions, aud
the mine finally exploded under her
feet, at state dinner, when the wife
Of foreign minister refused 10 sit at
the table with her. and marching
with outraged dignity from the
room, she was followed by q cool
stare through Mrs. Eaton's eye
glasses, and the saliricsl compliment,
What fine carriage Madame -
has"
The breach WAS made the battle
grew hotter the y ives of the Cabi-
net officers refused to visit her. Mrs
Eaton complained to the President ;
he demonstrated with his Cabinet
q fierce quarrel ensued, which re-
suited in the formation of the famous
"kitchen cabinet" in which Amos
Kendall, Frank Blair, and other
politicians, holding minor positions
or none at all, welded an authority
superior to that Of the members of
the Cabinet themselves. Like the
blind Samson, tho downfall of the
queen had come, but she was deter
mined that her enemies should be
buried with her 10 the ruins. Her
fame and influence went down with
the setting sun of Jackson's admin
istrati0n, and as her bitterest enemy,
Van Buren,, came into power, her
days of royal sovereignty were gone
fnrever She had the grit and audac-
ity to visit that gentleman, however,
and deliver to him her opinion of his
conduct, winding up her TRADE by
her fist in his face and
calling him SO sneaking old fox
which nickname chung to him all his
life. After her decline and fall, she
became religious, devoting her large
fortune to charities and her leisure
time to the education Of her adopted
A handsome young
by name
was employed as dancing master in
the family, and again Washington
rang with Mrs. Eaton's name, for
she, woman past 60-after brief
courtship, married dancing master
who had just attained his majority.
[n few years be had squandered
all her property, and at last brought
TO himself everlasting disgrace, and
to her eternal sorrow, by robbing
her of all her jewels aud personal
property of which he coull gain
possession, and el)oing with her
granddaughter So fell the curtain
again on dismal scene in her life ;
and | saw her few evenings ago,
still sprightly woman, with traces
of former beauty in her face framed
by silver hair, and watching with
proud eyes the mimic scene where
her grand-son-whoi is her comfort
and support-was acting we'll his
part" So goes the world.