Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-12-21
THE NATIONAL CAPITAL.
VARIOUS TOPICS OF GENERAL
INTEREST.

LNAEHESI.
A Novel Collection of Almanac a NJ
terious Fire Smart Young Man
from BrOoklyn-GarfleId Mementoes-
MIR. Eaton Out of the Speakershfp
Race.
WASHINGTON, Dee. ia man from New
York has recently opened large book store
here, and claims to have on hand everything
in that line that anybody could want. a look
over his establishment, made to satisfy idle
curiosity, satisfies one that the man certainly
has what he claims. / was struck bv one col
lection in a corner of the store 1t was a grand
aggregation of. almanacs. They were all
French almanacs, and bore Paris publishers
marks. With NennOr and other prophets
more or less false, the patent medicine men and
others of that innumerable caravan il MIGHT
be assumed that, as in most other things. the
American continent beats the world in alma
macs. Not so. We must yield the palm
or, to more elegantly express it.
deliver the cake, in that line to the French.
The French have almanacs for everything and
everybody. There is the bankers almanac
the grOcer's the bakers, the butcbpr's the
candlestick makers, the machinist's the doc
tors, the druggists the tailor's, the boys the
glrls, the gentleman's, the lady's and every
b0dys, down to even the ehambermaid's. An
OF these almanacs are different. They contain
jokes as aged, should judge, as the average
Joc99se anItlq9ity 10 3e found in any patent
was truly an interesting collection / asked
the proprietor of the store if there was any de-
mand for ms French almanacs in this city. ''Of
course there Is, he said. ''There are MANY
French people in Washington As nation
they are lovers of almanacs and off-color nov
els. To supply. their custom / keep good
supply of both"
DID THEY DO IT?
The local Ocpurpanoa II,
Is attracting most attention is fire
Saturday night. 1t was not a destructive fire
II broke out in the third story of building on
street, near the Ebbltt House. The rooms
on that floor are occupied by Mr.. r. T. Mer-
rick, one of the principal counsel for the
prosecution in the star route cases. In it
were many important papers connected with
those cases. Mr.. Merrick left his Office shortly
before eight O'Clock. He left nothing
there by which fire could
be originated: About eight O'Clock
the house was discovered TO be on fire, and
smoke rolled out of windows and through the
roof. BY promptness and energy the fire de-
partment put out the flames. The office was
damaged to about $500. But happily none of
the star route papers were DESTROYED Inyes-
tlgatlon has brought the conviction that it was
incendiarism. The most popular answer to
the question, ''Why should there be an At
tempt to burn out Merrick?' is ''because he is
star route prosecutor, and has important
papers bearing on those cases in his office"
The suspicion is tangible and almost a convic-
the belief that they are to be convicted. the
star route people have added another crime to
their calendar in a desperate hope to escape
the law.
Mr.. HAYES PETS.
The pets of the Hayes administration have
not turned out well. Every once and a while
they are brought before the public in some
scandalous manner. During Hayes term they
were constantly appearing in the same light.
Since the days of Ohio Hayes they have
been seen less frequently on the boards. But
we now have another. He is Colonel COrbn,
OF the army. COrbn is one of those men who
don't go to bed resting easily unless his name
in complimentary way, has been printed
twice in the dailies. He is great man for
fairs and monument schemes. Hayes took him
as Captain in the infantry and made him his
military Secretary" The criticism of
the snobbery Of such an Office soon
caused Gis the nt;+ MIlltarE Mht secretary to be
the position of Assistant Adjutant General
and he shOne prominently in Washington.
When Arthur came in COrbin was ordered out
TO Newport Barracks, kentucky. After some
Intellectual kicking on his part he had to go.
He turned up again in Washington as the
booss Of the recent total failure called the
Garfield monument fair. From that cOnnec-
tiOn comes his trouble The watch makers of
Lancaster, Pennsylvania, donated to the fair
four or five gold watches to be voted for Now
these manufacturers charge to the Secretary
of War that the movements in those watches
were sold and cheaper and inferior ones sub
stituted, and they charge that COrbin did it.
voted
now think they see plainly why there was
such unusual delay in their delivery.
THE YOUNG MAN FROM BROoKLYN
The Brooklyn EdQle has sent here to do its
Washington work this winter a young man
about twenty years of age. He is a childlike
and bland yOungster. He has. however. a
good nose for news. He is a nephew of Kin
sella, proprietor of the Eagle, and was
born and reared in England. He has been
long enough in and around New York to know
what O'Clock it is. There is party of news
paper correspondents here who have organ
lZed poker club. They are old hands at the
game, and know how to draw for ''fulls"
''threes of kind and ''straights." They meet
on Saturday nights when their work is done.
and play the festive game Last Saturday night
they assembled in the lobby at Wizards, pre-
paratOry to gathering around the card table
The young man from Brooklyn was with
them. He heard them talking about what
they were about to do, and expressed a
wish to be OF the party. He was young and
innocent. They were not so young. and not
so innocent. They saw no reason why, if the
innocent yOungSter wanted to throw aWaV
his money, they should not gather in some Of
the ducats. They gave sthe innocent young
man a cordial invitation TO be one of their
party. He was of their party. 1t was the
old story of Bret Harte's Chinaman with the
smile that was childlike and bland. In a few
short hours the innocent young man stood
possessed of all the money in the crowd-abOut
800. Two of the players went out and bor-
rOwed. They came back, and in about an
hour the young man from Brooklyn had what
Iney ndQ borrowed. lie went away with Sl35
in winnings "That's the resultb growled
the heaviest loser, ''of sending such men as
Bob Schenck to represent us at England The
blarsted Britisher now beats us at our ma
tional game"
MEMENTOEs.
Four mementoes of the late President Gar
field have just been received in this CITY, They
are walking sticks made of pine and topped
with gold heads. When the body of the dead
President was brought to Washington from
Elberon the coffin in which it was inclosed
was placed in catafalque, covered, of course,
with black. 1t rested on the catafalque while
the remains lay in state in the capitol ro-
tunda Upon the same catafalque was the
coffin when the funeral train went to Cleye-
land. The undertaken who had charge of the
remains broke up the catafalque when
it had done its work and took from it the cen
tire plank of heart pine. From that plank he
and sent one each to several of Garfleld's most
intimate friends in Ohio. Young James Gar
field was also given one The four canes now
in Washington are in the possession of General
CrOcker, District Attorney Corkhill, w. 5.
RO0se, a prominent member of the Christian
CrOggOn, well known local newspaper man.
mot A CANDIDATE"
Ex-senator Eaton, of Connecticut, who
is member elect to the next House of Repre-
sentatiyes. has been in the city several days.
In answer to my question he said: II am not
a candidate for the Speakership. / am not
working for ii, and do not want it," That's
the way he talked. | notice, however, that
since he came here, there are more men speak
ing fayOrably of Eaton for this high office and
that his particular friends are working with
didate, and does not know it, POTOMAC.