The comet. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1877-1882, 1880-01-24
Letter from Wash 'ngton.
A Chapter on the Smartest
Women in the World.
They Being the observation-disclosures
Keepers of Washington.
FIT FOR DIPLOMATS OF THE FIRST
WATER.
THE AVERAGE CONGRESSMAN.



AS the Tr0jans flew before Achilles. ,
related by Homer in the twcnty-first boo
= of the lliad, some dying toward Troy, som
u toward the river Scamander, he Dursue
!. the latter into the very midst of the swift
IS fowing stream, but as the floods lashe
u about him, the Gods suddenly oppose him
8 he is lifted Oft his feet an d thinks that he
about to be lost in the waters. Homer TIM
speaks of it:
I "Still Mes Achilles, but before his eyes,
sui sWl1t Scamander rolls, whereer h.
g flies,
, Not all his speed escapes the rapid floods,
Inc hrst OF men but not match for Gods. ,
, These lines occurred to me, and strucl
me with considerable force after nv raj,
Oh the clearinghouse keepers of Wash
1ngton. told n friend that was goine
outin search of boarding-house for my
self and family, and that / intended to gel
good board at Il reasonable price: that
had no idea of paying big price merely
because they asked it. A Washington
boarding-houso keeper always asks just as
much ms she thinks you will possibly paw.
1t works this way: A. sees placard ON n
house-and there are ten thousand of them
out when Congress first opens-bearing the
inscription, "Rooms to Rent" or. "Furn-
lshed Rooms and Board" He goes in and
asks the price, with half Indifferent air.
indicating that he is both rich and reckless.
and receives for reply, we will say, sixty
dollars for room and board. In an bour
Is. comes along, looking both poor and De-
nurious, and is priced the same accommo-
datlons at forty dollars. They doubtless
reason that board is worth all they can get
for it, and, consequently, they get all they
can. | knew this; l had been told so before
starting out, and determined to beat them
down i'll regller Jew fashion, if they poked
their long prices ut me- But man proposes
and then plays the wild, just as did. At
ter walking for nearly four days, and hay
ing visited about one hundred boarding
mousse Keepers, without getting up the nee
essary courage to encounter II single one |
OF them, in debating the propriety of bring |
ing their prices down to suit the attenuatcd |
L
pcrate, and determined that | would carry
out my resolution at the next house, re-
CARELESS of all the fluent language that
could be mouthed at me in Il month, In
few minutes was opposite very inviting
sign and very handsome brick house. |
rang the bell and was shown into the pres
1nce of the sweetest looking old woman
Mortal ever bcheld-in Il boarding-house.
am certain that the Dulcenia del Toboso
'ould not have cquaed her, and had the
Knight of the Ruefu Countcnance been
present | should have thought so all the i,
anne, though ii is probable that would :,
AVE said nothing about it in his presence. ,
liked the old lady's looks; | liked her !,
ooms. concluded | would make my :,
ONE right there, provided the price was
ulted to the condition of my excheoler. :,
Madam said /, when got Il chance to :,
up IN word between the silyery flow of 7
Ioquence that had been ioaming out like !,
IL from an open faucet, since my advent =
Ito the room, "Madam," said |. ''what !,
ill be your charge for tlIese Two roums O.
nd board for my family" Again her !,
Neet tones fell on my ear, something after :,
lis fashion: 81 ask seyenty-tiye dollars Il .
onth for the two rooms and twenty dol T.,
rs for board, children half price. made n;
lat calculation quicker than | ever did one =,
fore i'll my life. Seyenty-tive dollars for Il
e rooms; two adults, forty dollars; three -,
lldren, thirty dollars. grand total, one !,
inbred and forty-fve dollars per month. -
lere was but one consoling feature about A.,
The grand old dame evidently took nc L.
r Congressman. She supposed was ~,
aron or Jones, or it may be that owned
large cattle rancho in South America.
he dear creatuLe never once thought that cI
der the left hand pocket of my big new
ercoat beat the heart of Il country editor.
me hundred and forty-tivc dollars K'
NTH" this was the only idea that had
session of my mental faculties for the
yt two minutes | could now realize ~
at Poe meant by saying that his mind l..
ne melancholy burden bore" Mine J
lid not have borne too such melancholy He
t. at the same time, for this one COM =
tely filled it up and ran it over. l had toi
n begun to speculate about the enOr- of
us sized pile of money one hundred and an,
-y-tive dollars would make in one cent do,
res heaped together, when there was mr.,
nentary hush in the dulcCt flow Of od
''' iioiil INT ups vi '''c pc"llchiHS III der
before me, but it was only mOmentary, in
when she went on in the same tenor to hro
TX of the high price of all kinds of edi- omit
!, the coy rooms, the fine furniture and mo,
sweet children she knew that mine ,,.,.;
t be, could not enter word of pro-
against those prices. My resolves had
n to the winds, and stood enchanted I',c
re siren, though one much more an ,,.-.
than were suppOsedtO be those of the w
ian isle. Ask such a woman as that to tid
less than her price; why, | could not J.
done it to save myself from famine, defe
am not sure that l did not 90 out Of T.,
louSe ih''rilurihg something about her Held
being exceedingly moderate. What
| do, you will ask. | quit the chase "all
went to housekeeping. L think am may
y poor trader among my fellows. / I eau
wranglc moderately over the cNorbi- the
charge of ten cents made by five Their
boot black, or jew jew fully as to pr
/ as he expects to be, hut As Achilles me- ne
'the first of men but not match for Code
- 50 do rate myself in the acquire reno
5 mentioned; the peer of men but not re req!
tch for Washington clearinghouse >.
lrs. CircU
i'll venture that said boarding house 90,
RS never figured on the page Of WASH ings.
II history before, but they deserve to the y
nevertheless. will be an unexpected ~ TIi ~
to them, but l expect no reward for was 9
because other historians have been re- quest
n this matter, is no argument why sue !.
spistOlary correspondent should also shoul,
But you must not think that the have
Y Of the boarding house keepers of .:
ington is the history of the boarding The w
keepers of other cities. Such is not him is
Sc. They are as different from those inc Sti
er places, a. are the Italians Of to- az tbc
ON the ancient Latins. The height Of the pl
inhibition when they first set out in nehi
siness, is 10 board a member Of Con- ',o a.,
and when one has been i'm the bust 4. r
ind