Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-04-12
THE CUPIDITY OF WOMEN.
HOW AN OLD MANS DARLING
LEFT HIM IN THE LURCH.

/ Ine house OF Representatives i'm cOnYer
sation to-day recalled little incident thai
has never been in print yet. 1t is about
eX-Representatiye Samuel Bridges. Of
Pennsylvania. Mr.. Bridges has been
twice married. He Is very old man. He
was an old man when his first wife died
He had lived very quietly up in Pennsyl.
yania and had amasSed good sum OF
money. His second wife was Young.
gay and very pretty. She was
also ambitious. She had a desire
to come to Washington from her country
home and shine in society. She put the
idea of running for Congress into her hrs-
bands head. He is very fond of the hand
some partner of his joys, and consented to
become a Congressional candidate. He
was in luck, and was elected. He and
his wife came to the .klittering CAPITAL.
| They plunged right into the social whirl.
She had remarkably fine carriages and
1 horses. She dressed second to none. She
had a splendid time, but got little
tired of her elderly husband. He did
not thread the may or trip the
light fantastic at all equal to the
| young society swelIs, and compared
to the young naval officers (navy revOl-
vers somebody has called them on ac-
count of their proficiency in the terpis-
chorean art why he was simply nowhere.
One young naval officer especially de-
lighted the eye of Mrs. Bridges. Upon
the occasion of the annual Charity Ball
(the ''event of the season. as my friend
Jenkins always writes it, the lady had a
very strong desire to be accompanied
to the gay, the festive scene by her
especial navy revolver. She made an
engagement with that weapon. But what
was to be done with "hubby?' Bridges,
forget to tell you, was of a very
jealous disposition. He accompanied his
young wife everywhere. He resolved
himself into family watch dog. The
wife told her husband on the day of the
festival that write about that che was
going to the ball that evening. Bridges
said ''all right" and Immediately gave
directions for the furnishing UP of his
swallow tail coat. He also directed that
his white kids be benzined and hung on
the clothes line that some of the OdOrs
which are not waited from Araby the
blest might take their departure. You
may have noticed that gloves after being
cleaned with benzine are liable to pecu-
liar freaks of smelling. | have noticed it..
My partner in the giddy Ianciers has
also noticed it. But we di-
gress. Mrs. Bridges told her
husband that there was no necessity for
his going out, and with that horrid cold.
She would go with Mrs. Feather, and he
could stay at home and boil his feet in hot
water and put three or four mustard plas-
ters on his chest. But no, Bridges would
go. lie didn't have any cold, and he did
not need mustard plasters: and he gave
himself four such hearty slaps on his
manly chest that he came near coughing
his head off. What was Mrs. Bridges to
do! She was engaged to go with the navy
revolver, and her husband persisted in es-
cortlng her. After trying in vain to coax
Bridges not to go, she began to think. |
wit in such cases as these
is ever very ready with eXpedients. 1t
was so with Mrs. Bridges. A happy
thought struck her. History does not
record how hard she was struck. Did not
dear old Bridges masticate the hotel hash
with false grinders? Had he tooth in
his head that was not held there by a gold
plate? OF course you have already
guessed what the lady did. She hid the
false teeth-both lower and upper sets.
They could be found nowhere. Bridges
was compelled to stay at home. He swOre
some Oaths, but no one could ever tell
exactly what oaths he used. There is
not much intelligibility of sound when
you have to 90 your bare gums
on our great American cuSS words. The
beautiful Mrs. b. went off with the navy
revolver. She enjoyed the ball immensely.
She told her husband the next morning
how perfectly gorgeous it all was, and,
strange to say, the teeth of Bridges were
found in time for him to eat some break
fast. They were found in his writing
desk 'Just where you left them, YOU
tOrgetful old DEAR" said Mrs. Bridges.
Solicitor RaynOr, of the Treasury De-
partment, is a choleric old gentleman. He
belongs TO the fighting stock of the coun-
try, and would not hesitate to interview a
buZZ-saw in its most active moments if
that particular portion of his ANATOMY
commonly called the dander was up.
Judge Raynor has a room in the Treasury
building looking to the south. 1t is large
and very pleasant. 1t is the most desira-
bic room in the whole building. 1t has
long been the envy of the warrant di-
vision, which is crowded into a narrow
room across the corridor. The chief of
the warrant division desires to turn some
of his clerks into Raynor's room. There
is committee on rooms, which was ap-
pointed some time ago by Secretary Fol
ger. This committee was induced to
recommend what the warrant division
wanted. This fact reached Judge Raynor's
mediately his soul was in arms and
anxious for the tussle. He waited upon
acting Secretary French. RaynOr is EN-
phatlc IN language. He denounced the
proposed invasion of his preserves in
language that they don't use in church.
Il am but one old dman," he said, "but, by
-, L can lick any three men who
want to come into my room and squat. |
leave it to you, French, if it is not -
G 10 do / IL q
- clerks peddling over figures and
jostling my elbow. l won't stand it, by
-" When Raynor begins to talk in
this way he is so very earnest and
gives vent to such emphatic and pointed
ideas-two things which are generally
strangers to official life-that he is very
amusing. French seldom smiles, and
never gets off joke. But he had laugh
at Rayn0r to-day. John c.. New was in
the room enjoying it ALL New has good
deal of humor. Said French, with a slight
smile: 81 am acting Secretary of the
Treasury. L always make it point when
/ have to decide anything that is liable to
cause any feeling in the department to
gently turn it over to somebody else. /
will let New settle this question: Ray
nor turned to New and began to harangue
him, not taking any notice of the fact that
everybody present was laughing, 81 will
tell you what l will do.'' SAID New:
Judge, will give you leave
to keep your room if you can do so, and
will not allow more than two clerks at a
time to attempt an INVASION" ''That's
fair" said Raynor. 'slts all ask. can
whip any two clerks in the department.
BY -, my room is safe under those
conditions" And SO it is. Judge Raw
noy had a difficulty with big newspaper
man about five years ago. The newspa-
Dpr writer nSpd fO prinf nara orbc of :,
disrespectful character about the Judge,
The two came to blows, The Judges
enemy afterwards threatened TO come into
his office and do some nose pulling. For
long time after that when RaynOr came to
his office at nine O'Clock he would unstrap
pistol measuring about three feet, and
with flourish lay it in drawer by his
good right hand. He ought to be in the
War Department.
The question of the duty on cracked
rice is attracting good deal of attention.
Acting Secretary French receives every
day letters and kilograms on the subject.
Some of these letters are from importers
and some from the growers of rice. They
present arguments pro and con as to
whether cracked rice shall be admitted as
rice -four or whether it shall pay the high
er duty fixed upon the article pure and SIM
pie. Many requests are received asking
that nodecision be reached until the send-
ers OF them can appear personally before
the Treasury Department, Mr.. French said
to-day that as it was his intention to
give all sides full hearing the
anal settlement OF the question may be de,
layed for some time yet. Among the COM
municatiOns received in regard to the
pending question is one from Hon. Samuel
j. Randall. He says that he was not pre-
sent at the hearing last Saturday. He
a. ssz., A.,A 4. sTxI,r -