Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1882-02-22
CAPITAL DINNERS.
The President as Diner.Out-The
Line Drawn at SenatOrs-Sena-
tors Who Are in the
Habit Of Giving Dinners-FIOwer, OF
the House, the CkampiOn-David
Davis as a Diner.
]. R. Young,s Letter in One Philadelphia slar.

J. R. Young's Letter in the Philadelphia Star.
The giving of dinner parties is going on
at a tremendous rate, and there is going to
be heap OF indigestion among our congress-
men and public functionaries before Lent
sets in. don't know that there is going TO
be any let-up when Lent comes, but / will
place that time as the limit for the best de-
veloped cases of dyspepsia TO show them
selves. The President, who is a good feeder,
figures prominently in this dinner business.
He is big fellow, and consequently requires
deal of food, and he likes il good, He is
not going to take ham and eggs for breakfast
when be can get nice delicate lamb chops
or liver and bacon when there Is on the table
nice, tender, juicy sirloin steak, say an
inch thick, underdone without being in the
least degree raw. The dinner is simple, hut
oh, how nice for this time of the year; dish
of coslsor,ple, a piece of Potomac shad with
cucu .nber salad, 4 canyas-back duck, accom-
panied by a plate OF choice celery and
small dish OF hominy, terrapin, small
bottle of Pommery Sec, cup Of black coffee
and R ina Victoria cigar. Probably a man
couldn't struggle through life with tuch a
meal say twice week.
1t is usual for the President to accept in
vitatious to dine out. He is at liberty TO re-
fuse an Invitation without leaving any hard
feelings, but an invitation from him must be
accepted admitting of no excuse. i imag-
Inc the reason he has been accepting of so
many invitations to dine out of late is that,
being a widower and his children off at
school, he il fearfully lonely in that big
barn of a White House. he gives dinner
parties, but, having no hostess, he is COM
PEELED to invite only men. Now, If he were
allowed to select men without regard TO their
positions in public life, he could have good
time, but his dinners must be Of a semi
official character, which means he has to
4 IL. 4
people, simply because they hold place or
are prominent in politics.
These old rooster, instead OF sitting down
at the table with the desire and intention of
having a merry time with their good meal,
make themselves heavy and dull by assum-
ing dignity and reserve which they imagine
is required of them by reason of their official
positions, or else they absorb the conversa-
ton and talk about themselves. The Presi-
dent has not obtained the relief he expected
in dining outside of the White House. He
finds the invitations to dine crowding in on
him at such a rate that he will be compelled
to call halt. Just where to draw the line
in his acceptanees Is matter which is
troubling him. He asked a prominent
statesman and society man the other day how
he was going to arrange the matter, He
didn't care to withdraw altogether from
dining out of the White House, and at the
same time he did not care to give off-nse.
The man of statesm anship and society
promptly said: "Draw the line on senator's
This will shut out the horde in the House,
and there are not over fifteen senators who
viii ever ask you or anyone else to dinner"
He has accepted the suggestion, so that here
after he dimes with one in official life be-
low a member Of the Senate.
| have been trying to find out who the ff-
teen senators are who are in the habit of
giving good dinner parties. Old Burnside
was a royal diner, but he is dead, and so
don't count. Don Cameron, Jones, of Ne
vada, and Psndleton, of Ohio, give the most
dinners, and probably the best. Edmunds
Bayard, Allison and Window give dinners
frequently, but they have the number few at
a time. Hale, Sherman, Malone, Davis, of !
Hill, of Colorado; Fair, Miller, of |
and Sawyer complete the fifteen. |
The Southern senators rarely fail TO accept |
an invitation TO dinners, but have never |
heard Of one giving dinner. Malone is |
the exception 20 the rule.
Flower, the man who beat William Wal |
dorf Astor for Congress in New York city |
last fall, is the champion dinner giver this |
winter. He has three a week, and he takes |
good care that the newspapers are acquainted |
with the fact, and furnished with list |
Of the guests. He is a wealthy banker, and |
has an ambition to be the Democratic candi.
date for governor of New York next fall,
and, like Sam Ward, the celebrated lobbyist,
be believes in the idea that the easiest and
surest way to capture man is through his
stomach.
Old David Davis gives a series OF fine
dinners during the winter. The old man has
,ome object in view, for he has always been
put down as close and penurious. When old
anne Mary kept the cake and apple stand in
The Senate corridor, Davis took Ills lunch
here. This used to consist of three apples
ior five cents, glass of milk and five cents
worth of cakes, or two ham sandwiches at
i've cents apiece. / have heard of his growl
ng at Mary, saying that five cents was too
much to charge for three apples, as no apples
we're worth over a cent apiece. Old Davis
ives at the National, sort of shabbv-gen-
eel hotel, but he gives his dinners at Weick-
er's, one OF the swell restaurants OF the city.
Felter, the proprietor of Welcker's, keeps
he Senate restaurant, and the keeper o.
he Senate restaurant is the appointment |
If the vice-president, or, when there is no
rice president, the president pro tan, of the |
senate. So i imagine, as Felter is Davis's
lppointee, he has made it an object for the
I'D man to give his dinner at his swell |
estaurant.