Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1882-03-01
Why President Arthur At
tends the Shabbiest Church
in Washington.

tends the Shabbiest Church
in Washington.
| 1t has been n matter of sumo sur
prise, says Washington cores
pendent, that oift Of the multitude
Of Episcopal churches with which
Washington Is blessed, the president
should have chosefi tie Oldest and
shabbiest Of them all as his regular
place Of worship. Every Sunday
morning he may BE seen, on foot
and unattended, like the humblest
citizen, crossing the evergreen La
fayette square, with It's bronze gen
eral in the middle, that lies
between the executive mansion and
st. Johns, wherein he quietly takes
his place in the old pew that Madi-
son occupied nearly seventy years
ago. Several of the earlier presi-
dents since Madison's time attended
this moss grown sanctuary, but fell
behind the times a quarter Of CEN
fury ago, and has long been neglect
ed by modern greatness. For Pres
dent Arthur, st. Johns has more as
sociations than those i,ttrely his
toric, and, like Longfellow's black
smith, I've heafs above the music of
the choir a dearcr voice "singing in
Paradise. -" Long ago the lady who
would now, had she lived, be the
first in the land--Miss Ella Hern.
don-was volunteer member
of st. Johns choir; and it is
said that her sweet soprano voice,
s3of remarkable compass and Clear
ness, filing the moldy old place
with melody, first attracted the at
tention of an unassuming law
dorchester Arthur by name
who CHANGED 80 lie spending the
! Sunday at tic capital and idly
strayed into st. Johns. Depone,it
sayeth, however, he did not become
acquainted with her at that time
not till some years later, when her
father lay at the bottom CT the sea
and the broken family had sought
another home. The gallant Capt.
Herndon was naval officer, and al
the time Of his residence in Wash.
ington was stationed at the national
: observatory. He is best known by
!, the record he made in THE Mexican
& war, and as commander of the Unit.
! ed States expedition that explored
the valley of of the Amazon Sub
sequently he commanded the i'll.
fated steamship Central America
which, in 1857, went down between
Havana and New York with ovel
, four hundred passengers and mcrs
than s2,0OO,0Q0 In gold on board
i About one-third Of the passenger
: were saved, including all the woiner
and children, but the faithful cap
! tain stood at his post to the last; ant
! with his ship went down to the un
, known depths. 1t was when he,
young life was Swallowed by thi
great sorrow that Ella Herndon me
her future husband in New Yorl
: City, where she was living with he
+. widowed mother. Theirs was
. genuine overwhelmingly rar
in the calculating wisdom Of thes
: days-with which many romanti
!. incidents were connected. That tn
= husband is faithful to her memoir,
a is pro,eii by the fresh flowers hi
!, own hands every day wreath aroun
the portrait which hangs in til
), "cerulean chamber Of the whit
. house, where his eyes can rest upon
= last at night and first in the morn
g ing. She is said to haye been lad
\ of lovely character and rare affair
!. ments, tall and willowy in tigur
i with face that was more propose
: !, sing than actually beautiful accort
!. ing to rule. ehe was fond Of soci
&c ty, had much Of that charming Ia
!, that stands women in better stea
= than genius, and would in eyel
10 way have grnccd her husbands pr
). sent position
81 Pioneer Hardship.