Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-12-26

How She Democratic Old MAN Of che
Mountain Lives.



These are moral reflections not bearing
upon the fact that Uncle Sammy Tilden
is preparing to astonish society this year
with the grandeur, frequency and char
acter Of the entertainments he will offer
in his reconstructed home on Gramercy
Park. He has bought the house next
door to the familiar grsy-stone mansion,
and made it one with the old place from
which he directed the campaign of '76.
In doing this he has exercised his own
inclinations as to arrangements, and
brought to bear the results of his studies
on the important problem of house
drainage and ventilation. His great
stone house on the Hudson, above Yon--
kers, which bears the distinctive name
of GreystOne, is a marvel of interior con-
venience and sanitary construction. On
every drain pipe there are three traps,
all operated by the same machinery and
said to be very effective. The fact that
plumber, machinist and an assistant
are kept busy there all the time makes it
pleasant for these three worthless, al
though it deprives the man who hasn't
got ''bar'l" from enjoying the applied
values of Mr. Tildens domestic com
forts. Mr.. Tilden, however, is very
proud of this house. and his visitors
there find in its careful inspection the
first day of their stay provided for. It
is said there is no surer way of reaching
Mr.. Tilden's good graces than by taking
an argumentative interest in his house
and its drain pipes. and no surer way of
being put in disfavor than by criticising
his immense collection of engravings.
With the exception of the
vast collection of plates owned
by -, of Philadelphia, Mr.. Tilden's
is the largest in this country, aud it in
cludes some of the most choice and rare
ones. He likes them, and maintains
with great force of expression when op-
posed ever so little in the statement that
there is nothing in the least meretricious
in them, and Mr.. IS is a ''iob" and
''hand-me.dOwn lot in comparison. His
house, however, now that it is complet-
ed in its additions, is probably about the
best adapted for large social gatherings
of any private house in New York. His
household consists only of himself and
secretary, with four servants, and they
are all quartered on the third or top floor
of the building, which they reach by an
elevator. Elevators are becoming quite
common in private houses now, and it
is only thirteen years ago since Stewart
introduced them into New York by
putting them into his new store on Broad
way and Ninth street Freight hoists
were, OF course. earlier but the luxury
of the human lift has reached boarding
houses now, and the table walters run
them up with a windlass. But this is
diverging. All the parts of Mr.. Tiden's
house, except the top floor, are therefore
open to his guests, and the splendor of
the furniture, the interest of the pictures
upon the walls and the treasures of his
vast library are only items in the good
measure of entertainment he can offer.
1t is pretty well understood that Mrs.
John Bigelow will preside at these gath
erlngs, and society's cream will not be
mingled with any of its skimmed-milk
at any of them.
MIR. Tilden does not ride out so fre-
quently as he used to on horseback, and
the spare figure once so familiar on the
equestrian paths of Central Park is
family seen sometimes through the half
closed window of cab as the sage of
Greystone is bumped over the rough
pavement of the city, from Wall street
TO his city residence, VI fun tho la44ar.
place to the Grand Central depot, as be
hurries off to see how the drain-pipes at
Greystone are working.