The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1876-11-24
one as he desires to have the medal conferred

one as he desires to have the medal conferred
upon.
This is the way in which very young en-
thnsiast describes Gail Hamilton's home and
the writer herself: We went out to tea in the
Ioveliest of dining rooms. The walls, carpets
and window draperies are of warm, rich ma
room. These are relieved by the sde-board,
holdings and wainscotings in black walnut.
highly polished. The table linen, china. silver
ard glassware were of exquisite patterns, and
were marked with her initial D. The library
and hall are dark, rich green velvet in their
carpets, furniture and hangings The upper
nall and chambers are furnished with goldy
WOOD browns She is of elegant hgure-a
blonde; aunte says she has just escaped being
pretty. She wore rapper of white Turkish
toweling, for she was in negligee, trimmed with
blue of the same material. One eye was destroyed
by her brother shooting her with an arrow
This of course is defect"
Louis Blanc became Socialist under pecu-
liar circumstances. He had brilliant prospects
from the Royalists, being himself of an ancient
and honorable family His advancement was
sought through the Duchess di Dina, niece of
the Prince de Beurvant, add his constant COM
panioD. Her one fault was an unconquerable
passion for raillery. When Blanc was presented
to this brilliant young creature, she liked him at
once, but could not refrain from laughing at
his small stature. "Ho Don Cheiibno," she
said, tapping the young man under the chin
with her fan. Her manner stung him, and he
answered insolently that he was not an infant,
md unnI6 har :. c.
his chance was lost, and his sympathies were
turned in other directions. Louis Blanc Is but
little over four feet in height. and looks like
a small boy even now.
Mr.. Algernon Charles Swinbarne is now in
his thirty eighth year, and is the grandson OF
Sir John Swinburne, who died at the age of
ninety-eight. Mr. Swinbnrne's father is an ad-
mirsl in the British service, and his mother is
the daughter of an earl. Though by birth he is
a thorough aristocrat, he is, like Shelly, a radi
cal in theory. In the time of Charles the First
the Swinburnes, who were stout royalsts, were
forced to escape from Cromwelps rule into
France. There the heads of the family died
and there was left only young son, all traces
of whom were for time lost After the Res
toration the heir of the Swinburnes was sought
long aud with infinite pains, and at last was
FONDA lad whose memories of his childhood
were few and fading. But he remembered an
old hall wherein men sat drinking from a silver
bowl which bowl the child watched intently
for the sake Of the cats head which rose to
sight as the punch decreased. The cats head
was the distinguishing device of the Swinburne
arms, and this recollection established the boy
identity The poet takes pleasure in recalling
this story OF his ancestor, and has an album full
of cat-pictures. His face strongly resembles
that of cat, and he is very proud of the fact;
he is never more pleased than when the resem-
blance is mentioned He is q small, slight per-
son, with disproportionately large head COW
cred by bushy mass of auburn hair. His
eyes are large, set widely apart, and tawny in
color. From the mouth up his face is some
what like Shelly's, but his chin is weak and re-
treating.
A writer in the Gartenlaube thus describes
George Sand: "She was thickset, somewhat
bent by age, yet in her movements there was
not the least faltering. She wore her itch hair
little after the Grecian style. Two curled
locks bordered the low forehead almost to the
edge of the eyebrows; under long, full puff,
the ears are almost wholly concealed. 1t was
universally thought that the authoress, since
her typhus fever, had aided Nature by the use
of false hair. At the last toilet there was found
the most beautiful natural ornament of hair,
with few silver threads, and ne one could con-
ceive what strange caprice made the old lady
so careful to keep it secret What struck me
most forcibly in this countenance was the bold
delineation of the lines of the face. The fea-
lures were large-almost too masculine. And
then those eyes! OF the same black as the hair,
they had still much of the inward fire. Mouth
and chin were already disfgured by age; the
latter appeared small and without energy, and
been beautiful. Her complexion, once fair,
was now the yellowish tint of certain Flemish
portraits with which the white neck and aris-
tocratic hand are in bold contrast She smoked
that was the only trace of the storm and
stress period which remained to this extraor-
binary woman who was calm with age. Itwae
less smoking than playing with fire. Soon
she threw aside the half-consumed cigar, and
again wholly woman, took up her knitting
The novelist rather melted to conversation than
conversed, Her remarks were mostly brief, al
most systematically keen and sharp, and
always reached the pith of the matter. Her
physician told me that for months before her
death she had suffered inexpressibly, without
uttering the least complaint to those about her.
In her last sickness of eight days she covered
her face during the most intense anguish as
the Romans used to do when they felt their end
drawing near"