Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1878-01-08
Meekfn's Visit to Alexandria,

lmn letter to the Richmond Sunday TRANSCRIPT.
notes the incidents of what BIO terms bis sol
emu voyage" After giving the Incidents On
bis trip to the A. & F. JUNCTION With the Mid
land Road, few miles from The city, be says.
"See Cemetery containing many slain Van.
KEGS. Where's my handkerchief? Weep2
Thunder DO blow my nose, for this is AL
exaudris. Stop at depot and take omnibus for
hotel, like fool, iostead Of paying boy ten
Cents to carry my vaise. Omnibus remind,
me of razor, for it certainly is rattIer,
Thought Id 20 through the bottom and don't
Weigh but ll9 pounds either. Got out at Man.
sion House. Mr. Greco delighted to perceive
one, but didn't say &c; said Mayor Kemper
had lust called for me. HIN important mao,
Meekins. Wash face, clean shirt, dust ten
dollar Goldenburg suit, and march with sub.
dued pride into dining room. Vain suppression
of vanity, for everybody is don. dinner ex.
cept Mr.. CIaugh,on. Merry old gentleman.
Asked him il be- Was the father of Hon. II. o.
Claughton. well" hs says, II was for iorry
years the most intimate friend that Hiram's
mother had" 'Presunp,ivo evidence good,"I
replied, 10 m5 usual legal tone, land pitched iotc
ny rep,st. though how that which is prcseu,
can lie not oalq past but re past rather gifts"
me.
"Bsef hah coru beef, DELICIOUS aud len
der as LaGbeoued c,nscenca; beet that Rouli
maze Rush BURGESS head swim. Good. dry
man, Burgers, and rassiog honest (some dis
tance) Tor butcher. Sells beet for veal Or
zoe. That beef at he Maosion House mus,
have come fron he calf that was iatted for tn
prodpal SOL; though, 10 tell the rlau truth, |
didn't know the Prod.cyc gil had any son.
Whom did she marry?
symptoms of Myerisu recurring, ate two
pieces of pie, (excelcnt for vertigo, DR.. Cole.
man y rushed up stairs, smoked, looked q;
market house (cheer(ul 10 damp weather, p.p
ped, went cut, got shaved by a barber near
the Gazette Office ibis name is Jacobs, aud he.
is equal almost to Runge,) then mad. d.
Snowden mad by fumblirg in his exchanges
for the Pied 1pt Virgoian (cln't live without
t. sod fsiiog to fad kemper,, (irst mann
Kesciu ,, ADD scc,nd cousin 10 Jeem<;l weut
log d9wo good "rns s,!l b, pcsi1,i,"
may possibly have ,j4,ulated, "twil lay
the dust for the Fair" All my doing, every
bit ii. Hoist umbrella, sine. gone aud 20
out to get fresh air; !if.Ia lamp in
the creascs. Pass MilIer's ciina store, So
Waddy's on the other side Of the street
(many's the lad" they have given NC 10 better
days agooe), 6od Wilmer Il Saymaker have.
sold out to Eichberg (is that 1t p and drop into.
FreDch's. French don't know me, but of all
aud of all. who should see but Rock-you:
know Rock-used to be committee clerk lie,
Richmond looking Us firm aud smooth as I.
chunk Of soaDstone with black moustaohe. /
do believe Rock was glad to sec me-aud |
think be dyes that moustache. rod me Char.
ley Dimitry had just left the store. Sorry not
to see him. They say he is married, and Rock
Gays George Wedderburn has got the prettiest
children 10 the world, although he cant keep
door 10 Congress.
Back to hotel to soothe that corn beef with
a little tea and crackers. After tea Mayor
Kemper and Judge Lowell appear, and toe
three of US, having nothing to do. 60 out to.
hear a fellow (what was bis name2 Begun With
one of tho letters of tho alphabet, am quite
sure) lecture on the Negro. Audience, as
j osh Billings says of hotel towels, 'thin, but
wet. for row it was pouring agais. The fellow
seemed not to mind the thlnness, being 90
doubt accustomed to it, and upon tho whole
erj ,yed his lecture, not 50 much bsc,uss of its
merits as Of the evident erjoymeot it gave to a
party Of three or four on the front benches
Ooe youog gentleman appeared to be overcome
by the lecturers okes, stale enough to me, and
could not STOP laughing. This seemed to d.
the lecturer good and to reconcile him TO ''play.
ing the mouotebank fer siXpeuce," az rhacke.
ray would say.
"Kemper aud Lowell returned with me to
the hotel, and after pleasant chat departed.
mste of General Robert L. Lee, who told me- q.
pleasing incident of the latter's fidelity As an.
10 settling up the Gusts estaia and
then occurred % adventure. Thinking glass
OF beer might help me to sleep, weot across,
the street to get it. and whom should I meet
there but the Identical young gentleman who
had been 80 much amused at the lecture. lie
would take no denial, | must 20 home and
spend the night with him. After feeble re.
sistance | consented for 10 each new Virginia
home [ iud some new delight, some special
charm. And this proved to be 40 old
wainscottsd house. full of pictures, relics and
curios from Japan. with rare old furniture, n
great bay. window looking out upon o love
ly little yard and many portraits, two OF
them Of inestimable value. They hang 10 u
little low pitched parlor and represent two Ia.
dies lin the hues of youth, more beautiful
than any ideal heads that have ever seen. |
say this without extravaganza aud deliberately
Historic names, patriciau faces, they tell of a
different age, higher type Of beauty than our
own time-full as it is CT beauty-can boast
Dies the modern composer produce anything
to the Eoglish glee, which is itself
q Renaissance of the freshness of morning
that had long passed by? No more does pa
ture reproduce the forms of her prime when
lie 10 this new land of the West was full Of
promises that have faded into ''the light OF
common day. or after too brief dawn, thu
hot noon of premature civiz, alton has come
dowo upon us. Too much of art. to little Of
nature obtaos 10 the modern environment, and
that is not favorable to the production of the
highest types, either of men or of WON On. de.
~ any one to look at these portr sits without
feeling some such impression however erro.
neous optimists who worship machinery may
deem it,
My hostess at breakfast next n orning, Viz.
ginis NATION of mature age. was she the original
Of one of the portraits? Yes, and beautiful
'till Her dark eyes, uudimmed by time had
in them colonial fire that could not be mistsk
sn. On whom did they shine in her resplendent
zirlhood, and with what force? But I will FAY
40 more; perhaps have already said too much.
At any rate there was sausage for breakfast,