Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1882-02-18
cor THE WRONG \
The Little Mistake the senator
fF0m New Hampshire Made.
washington Cor. Chicago r.ms..l


A fairly good joke on Senator Blair
has started the rounds here and prom
Uses to have a irst-rate un. He was
invited a few evenings since to dine
with Vice President Davisat Wecker's,
but did not put in an appearance, a
fact hat occasioned some surprise
among those who saw his chair remain
vacant through the entire evening,
The Vice President Of this admins
tration is not the unimportant factor,
politically or socially, that Vice Pres
idents have been in some other admin
istrations, and Judge Davis wears his
honors with a dignity and dispenses
hospitality with a generosity that
commands respect and compels admi-
ration. To be hidden to his table is
to be especially favored, and one would
about as soon think of declining an
invitation to a state dinner as of
neglecting the Judges hospitality if
honored with the offer Of it.
On the evening in question the
President was among the guests, and
two or three members and ex-mem-
bers of the Cabinet, a couple of JUS
tees Of the Supreme Court, q number
of Senators and one or two civilians
made up the party. Senator Blair
was not present, although he thought
he was, and did not discover his mis-
take until he had eaten another din.
ner, and left himself with such ex-
cuse to offer as no man ever offered
for a similar blunder before. The
Senator lives on Capitol Hill, while
Wecker's is on Fifteenth street, more
than a mile and a half away. The
distance and the time seem to have
both been mis~calculated, for he ar
rived late, and in his haste to make up
lost time ran straight into the wrong
dinner, or, perhaps more properly, ran
the wrong dinner straight into him.
The Vice Presidents tables were
spread in the grand hall on the main
floor Of the establishment, but the
Senator had dined there before in the
upper rooms, and presumably sup
posed that all great men did the same.
So, without asking, he pushed on up
stairs. Here it so happened hat
Captain Eads was dining a party Of
friends, among whom were some ladies,
and as the Senator knew most Of those
present he supposed he was right. See
ing that a mistake had been made
somewhere and not knowing the pre-
else nature of it, the Captain thought
to smooth it over and make things
pleasant as possible all round by play
ing it through. Accordingly, while
the Senator removed his coat and hat
in an adjoining room the host and
head waiter made a place for him al
the table, and provided it with full
equipment, including the customary
card with the Senator'S name thereon
Having supposed he was all right be.
forG when he saw the vacant seat ant
this card on the plate before it, hi
knew he was all right now, and fell tt
with a will. Course after course dis.
appeared. The feast Of reason anC
the flow of soul went on, while th,
grand party down stairs wondered VIII!
the Senator from New Hampshir,
was not with them, and the gsy com
pauy up stairs was equally puzzled tt
know why he was. But the Senate.
himself was delightfully."- unconsciou
that anything was wrong. He evel
failed to observe hat the most he ex
pected to greet was hot at the head o
the table, and when the feast wa
finally finished, the wise and indus
trious Chairman Of the Senate Com
mittee on Education and Labor hat
not learned that he was in the wronl
box, or that his toll had not been re
warded by the harvest prepared for it
; When he did finally make the discov
cry, and how he explained matters t,
the host, who had expected but haC
not received, and the one who had no
expected but had received him, Ian
not Informed.