Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-06-01
LITERARY-OFFsCIAL.
"Reminiscences and People At wash
1ngt0n.

ington.
Washington Correspondence Cincinnati Commercial.
81 loaf and invite my SOUL" is a quotation
the origin OF which, believe, lie to be placed at
Washington. the author beng Walt whitman,
vino Is doubtless the most marked figure at
least, In the history Of literary-ofieial life in
this city. Walt Whitman was. during his So
journ in Washington. a great losfer-I mean It
only in his own sense of the woodland the soul
which he invited to accompany him apparently
enjoyed the eompaniOnship. During the few
DAYS of busy idleness which / have recently
spent here / have followed Waits example-a
safe one to follow in this City of the Lost Foot
steps" as cur beloved and laInented poet Long
fellow once called it (for even Longfeliow had
some experience here, not a resident but as
visitor. during the winter of 1SG9-'driven
from pillar TO post aud between the Capitol
and Alexandria in your City of the Lost Foot
steps. he wrote): and | have found my mem-
Ory. if not my soul. joining company with me
On ms aimiess walks II beg you to infer that |
am net en- office-seekerJ. And thus as / have
come to
"sunmoa up remembrance OF things past"
have been led to think Of various literary men
who were here twenty years ago. when first
II was my fate or fortune TO make my Temporary
home in Washington.
maker. of whom it was pleasantly said by his
friends that ne had been paid larger price for
his verses than any other American poet UP to
that time. since for fourteen lines of his acct
dental inspiration he came at once to receive q
salary of Il .4Gn per anuum- But this was
hardly fair. I knew the young man i'm ques-
tion very well. 1--WE were schoolnates) and
although the verses aforesaid, having a Ger
tain personal bearing, were doubtless the re-
mote cause of his appointment of his
ian Ind fh.sfn tI.. hAof
incense ever burnt under - nOse"-vet
at the same time there was political infiu-
ence from another quarter. enough to lar
a Cabinet TO which his appointment was d.
rectly credited Besides did he receive a
sinecure: He was assigned to a desk i'm an i'm
pOrtant bureau. and performed az literary men
have done before and since. good and faithful
services in auditing large and complex money
accounts. That was in the Treasury department
wherein there were half dozen other literary
men of greater nOte:-WiIliam ID. Gallagher
the eldest Ohio valley poet who was one of the
most trustworthy officers ever in the govern
ment service under Corwin. Chase and others
Che is not too old to be of excellent service
stillD; John Pierpont. the poet of Palestine. who
in his green old age wrote as clear and leg-
ible a hand as any book-keeper. and made up
volume after volume of careful and important
records George Wood. author of Peter
Schlemyl i'm America" Modern Pilgrims" ETC.
who long fulfilled important duties in the de-
ed Beauty" a quiet old man possessing valuable
financial and statistical knowledge and talent;
VIM ID OConnOr. and other younger men, whom
just here shall not attempt to recall John
Burroughs entered the same department a little
later.
In the Attorney Generals Office Edmund c.
Stednan, who first Came from New York as a
war correspondent of the New York World Oc-
cupied the desk Of pardon clerk for year or
two. while be wrote "Aliee of Monmouth and
many of his shorter poems In the State de-
'partment Count Gurowski whose published
Diaries contained some severe criticisms on
the conducting of the war and government for
several years. held a position of some kind
forget what. / remember the count vividly,
although / never knew him. He was short,
thick set. with ciose-cut gray hair and whishers.
who glared-or seemed TO giare-upon the
harmless passing world through pair of green
goggles 1 once happened to be i'm rubber
store on Pennsylvania avenue and saw his card
upon table with the inscription: How about
my oyershoes?"
This seemed to convey the man-as one who
knew him told me- He was anxious about his
oyeTsh0eS And why not? There were no
streets or parements in Washington i'm those
days Alexander (the Great Shepherd had not
come; at any rate he had not manifested him.
self; Washington had not been built.
1t is long since those days. '.Some are
married some are dead of the old and Young
people living then. Where are all the above
named Old-time literary men, of whom all but
the last / well knew? Mr. Gallagher is still
carrying in Washington transtOry lOafer like
myself hr. PerpOHt. whose eghtieth birthday
We celebrated by little reception, at which
were read poems and letters from Bryant, Long
fellow, Whittier and others. told me that day
That he did not expect to live another year
seeming 10 have presentiment that he should
not He did, however: and. after RAISING the
eighty-first anniversary of his birthday, went
home TO Medford, Massachusetts,. in 1896 and
died on furl0ueh George Wood was found dead
IN bed II i recolect rightly i'm 1872: he was a
bachelor. er else had been early i'm life widOwer:
and was tenderly faithful to his first and early-
taken love. Dr. Elder / saw on the street the
other day. hale and sound in appearance. but
showing the mark of year, more plainly and I
dare say he II doing good work daily in the de-
Parrment- Lanman did not mention Charles
Lanman, who has held so many offices y is liv-
ing busy life. alternating between his duties
Is secretary OF the japanese embassy painting
and writing. He is a prolific author, and by
the way, he has recently published a volume
under the title Z" RecoilectiOns of Curious Char
acters and Pleasant Places" The publisher ia
David Douglas. Edinburgh, Scotland The
book IS made up of papers, many Of them very
interesting, and containing ual0oked-fOr, out
of-the-Way information. contributed to Har-
per's Magazine and other periodicals during
several years past. The chapters bear such titles
as The Wizard OF Anticosti, Fond RecoIlec-
tons" Peter Pitcilynn." ''Block Island. "
oaiihOh fishing On the Jacques Cartier" &c
The book opens with a chapter entitled Modes
OF American Travels. from which / will quote
the following passage describing day and night
In westward sfage-cOach on the old national
road east of the OHIO river.
First came the gentle tapping at your cham
Der door, long before the break of an autumnal
day. the breakfast by cantiie-light, the friendly
words at parting, the strapping Of your trunk in
the boot. aud then the tumble into the huge
vehicle. with its impatient horses and it's bust
ing driver. With the approach of daylight came
the scrutinizin9 looks and careful words between
the passengers. The turnpike perhaps Is lined
with cultivated farms; aud when the horses are
being watered you have a little chat with a
sturdy yeoman- When you approach a village
the coachrian gives an extra flourish to his whip
and driving directly through its principal street.
comes to halt with a grand flourish before the
tavern. and during the ten or fifteen minutes
occupied 10y the postmaster in changing the mail
you have a chance to become acquainted with a
score or two of the worthy villagers Another
drive, another village. and then comes the din
ner, the superb dinner, sumptuous and hot with
the smiling landlord welding the carving knife.
IKE very prince Of good fellows. To those who
knew them in the olden times, what memories
cluster about the Old stage tavernsl Every vii
1age had one of them with gambrel roof. dor
mer window, capacious stoOp, with
chairs. where loungers congregated and