Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1877-02-10
/. \. & wv. B. GlILlHBl. EBI71RS
Charlestown, JeGTorson Co., ~. va.
OyFrcK IN "JxyrEssoN BUILDiya."
Saturday, February 10, 1877.
CAPITAL UNDERTONES.
WASHINGTON. January 90. lef7.


: There has come to me through a source per
;;fectly reliable a very romantic though lengthy
.jstory anent one Of our thoroughbred fashiona.
sble families which may, perhaps, find an sp-
5inropiiate lcak-h In these Whispered papers
). The facts were not impaired conGdentially, ex-
Excepting 10 so far as names become involved
aaudtheir publication. therefore, will violate NJ
5imposod secrecy. And | would premise yet
sfurthcr BY remafking that wha. follows par
slakes of a character something removed from
,idle church door rand hehind-the- blinds gossip
.Selse il would not have received ny initial at
.Atcntion, nor have been suffered to form a topi,
;lor newspaper correspondence. As noted a.
tsboye, the names on neither side can be men.
Etioned.
Some three years ago there came 10 Wash
eiugton from the grca. West family Of five
ISmcmbers IN oil, viz:-the husband and wife
Ga daughter and two sons They rented a neal
fslt,lo house In the arls;ocratic West end. and
Il lived here during esoh succeeding "season u
sl,3The head Of the modest, yet tn every way
5 s'rcasonably comfortable, establishment occu-
,pied position Of dignity and financial worth
s in government department. lie was at his
t>desk promptly every morning Mt Che opening
lof Office hours, and generally Il" lcf; CiT work u
Snn hour after the clerical force had closed
stheir days labor. This man-allhoush It may
:iseem highly mprobablc-became in time the
sdoflicial nainstny Of the especial bureau it,
(which he was employed, and the sole adjus'ei
E5of rs duties. Naturally quich in his conccp-
4 ;ltiors-whch, somehow or other, always
s proved unerrinGly true-he had become, in q
E,short time after entrance therein, complete
Fnastcr over the routine work Of his Office, and
the additional excellent business trait Of being
e!a rapid penman facilitated his accomplishment
,of great amount Of work 10 very little time.
i{RecognNing ut once, or at least in very short
Iiwhile, this seeming natural aptitude for work
Isin the (os yeti new appointce, his room mates
Ssin cilice had early discovered it to be fact
si.hat they were themselves doing too mucl
4.iwork-" running down, as it were, in govern
s'mert harness and now that this western
igrconey had come into the traces, cnl seemed
.3,o like work to such degree as to gobbe up
every piece he could lag his hands on, and
Then. like Oliver Twist, to cry ont, " Please,
I3Sir, ! wnnt some more P-why Of course these
lgehtlcmen whom overwofk had 50 mitch wof-
.iried were then very well disposed to let Mr
F. have oil the work he wanted-and
-4morc. too. Only this latter omplaintappeaf-
.scd scarcely likely ever 20 be made. The aiure-
said over-drl4en clerks To the Bureau Of
and - would struggle into their room at va
! liious moments between nine and eleven, q. N g.,
} iand find a batch Of copying or other work a.
5.ua!tinc manipulation IN their Division. The
.jlen penman and disciple Of Oliver Twist
.swould be seen ~ bis desk already more thar
sihnlf through bis first allotment of this batch
sfrNe c0nsumptve-by-rcasCn Cn-of-t00-much-mcu-
9tal.appl!cati0n attaches would merely wink ~
Eeach other and lay, each, tie foro-fngef %: hi-
-.ri .ht hand o. the side ci bic nosc-havng in-
.'dulgcd 10 which LisLiy Intellectual feat--'lca
geni'CTc-
.wou.d dispose some sheets q legal cap. some
Rpages of copying. aai writing material before
aihcm and-cockIug their delicate g on tit
-,lesks begin to rcad. Sul. QUO worthy friend
fSuaull write on. consuming. in tine. b's cwr
.fshare of work AID Afterwards 20 iu search ot
lmofe. The scfirtufai saying Was never 81 CO.
.curaiely and c0nfirlou-'y verified IT, sors
sf1r wofk-ani always found it Thus, - te-
.-rees. tie batch BOXED % the especial bu-
,,reau would pass through ilo same mi.. 'Prcli-
'ded over by this one public servant aal
L7merco ,hcrefrom-fni,hed. Z would IL IA
I. iken from this Divisi0r-ali transcribed ~ CO.
sfpyingI 10 tie one hand yet none noticed tbe
h,isci. and 40 entire bureau, q some - mea
,.receivcd the credit ior one mans labor
i. But this cne man was not so green as bic iel-
Flows rated him 20 be. lis insaiiate appetite
k3for occupation during ofice-hours was in part
"a forced appetite-tbc result Of n pfefetcrml-
LnAtion aud night here we fnd striking IN
Eastance Of the unerringly true character Of his
ssconceptons, before spoken Of. lie had, with
Ia general knowledge Of the a." Sinking pro
'pensities Of most Of Uncle Sans sefvants, cor
tlceyed the idea Of encouraging this propensity
Fdid be find it nourisbing among his official
S,connanions. He started out with the thought
.tto nourish this falling in others, to teach them
ti5,to lean yet heavily and more heavily upon him
isito surrender yet slowly but surely the work,
s5inq Of the Office routine into his hands, TO alb
sssent themselves successfully and at times with
l9the full knowledge that he would be on hand
Hand see things through at all hazlrd--I say
s,our friend conceived this plan, in all its rami-
ssfcations. aj iRitio, so that the time nigh
sscome when he would become the mainstay, the
.slever Of an entire bureau. lie laid his bats
I 1.-THE fools bit thinking 10 the conceit Of theil
tthearts 10 be, themselves, the biters and ib'
Of the present tromance--where'
erof all this has been very prosy but necessar!
him eutrenched in the position