Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-12-06
ONE OF NATURES QUEENS
MRS. WHITNEY AS GOOD AS
SHE Is WEALTHY,

WASHINGTON, Dec. 4,--No administra-
tion ever introduced a more popular lady
into Washington society than Mrs. Whit
ney, wife of the Secretary OF the Navy.
Mrs. Whitney 10 one of the few social
queens who are as good as they look. She
Is every inch true woman, and has a
heart which knows no beat save one OF
Kindness. No better demonstration of the
truth OF the assertion could be asked than
that presented by the loyalty with which
she stands by Mrs. Amos Lawrence Hop
kins, with whom the fates are at present
dealing most unkindly. Mrs. Hopkins
is the wife OF the Vice President of the
Missouri Pacific railroad, from whom she
is asking the courts to grant her divorce.
Mrs. Hopkins only enjoyed five weeks of
conJugal happiness. Even in the honey
moon her husband was constantly drill
ing her. Before her marriage she was a
Miss Dunlap, OF Chicago, and her hus-
band labored under the delusion that she
was too much OF Westerner
In her manner to fttIngly
| grace the drawing rooms of the
wealthy New York circles in which he
moved. II she spoke trifile louder than
usual he corrected her, no matter how
public the place. If she placed her knife
or tork in position which did not suit
his cranky nations he chIded her. While
he was all affection before the marriage
everything she did afterward seemed to
displease him. In truth she was In every
| respect as well bred as he, but nature
had made him a chronic grum bier. He
| took her to his home and introduced her
| to his family. She found they were full
| of the charms of the late Mrs. Hopkins,
her predecessor. In the garden, not
many feet from her window, was the
tombstone of tine late Mrs. Hopkins. 1t
was the shrine OF the family, who dwelt
on the virtues OF the first wife and the
| probable fraIlties OF the second. IL
haunted the second wife, and at last. cut
off from sympathy by feeling herself alone
| and dlslked, she cried that she wished
| she were dead. Thereupon Mr.. Hopkins
lett the house hastily and returned TO
| New York. The breach had opened and
never closed again. Efforts are being
made to patch up reconciliation, but
there is hardly one chance in hundred
| that it will succeed. The counsel
ON both sides have met and deliberated,
but the husband is defiant.
! There is only one cause OF divorce in Nv
| York. and that cause has been alleged by
his wife, and he says he will bring cOun-
Ter charges. They will Of course be false.
out the misery Of woman so wellbred,
under such circumstances, but necessa
| rIly make her very unhappy. 1t is under
| stood that Secretary aud Mrs Whitney,
with whose family she mas been quite In
innate, are giving her social encourage
ment In her contest for liberty. The
| friendship between the two ladies' began
| in Paris three years ago. They travelled
| together for three months in Europe,
and the intimacy was kept up in this
country, Mrs. Hopkins being the guest
of the Whitneys both In Washington,
Lenox and New YORK, and the prODahIli-
ties are that she will again be their guest
this winter. Mrs. Whitney probably in
herits ber generous inclinations. AL
though the male portion of the Payne
family count their riches among the mill
ions, they are not half as crusty and
stingy as most milliOnaires. Their
princely gifts TO the Whitneys ought to
count for something. First, Mrs. Whit
ney's father set the bali rolling by pre-
senLing them with the palatial mansion
in which they reside when in New YORK.
After his wile's father had made him a
present Of this house in New York Mr..
Whitney complained that he could not
keep it up, as 1t took more money than he
could earn TO pay the taxes, keep servants
and sustain the place. ThereupOn Col.
Oliver Payne, Mrs. Whitney's brother,
who was a bachelor, gave his sister
W NO W uOu5tkttplDR anu utID
her to maintain her top-lotty position in
Washington official circles. This lavish
generosity is not unappreciated by the
recipients, and as one evidence OF the
fact they recently paid $40, 900 Tor q bed
stead for the room reserved in the New
York house for Col. Oliver Payne's ex-
elusive use. That it is magnificent
piece of furniture can easily be imagined.
Col. Payne's visit TO the WhItneys in this
TO IA 4 m -
occasion for lavish entertain ments.
PAY OF CoNGREssMEN.
II Congressman Bill Scott, OF Pennsyi-
vania, would give his wife what 10 due
him as back pay for his Congressional
services, she would have very comf0r-
table little bit OF pin money. Congress-
man Scott is one oil the lucky eighteen or
twenty members whose income from other
sources enables them to live without
touching the stipend incident to their OIL
cIai position. Congressman scott mas not
drawn a dollar OF MS salary for the pres
ent Congress from the Sergeant-at- Arms,
and there Is over $500 TO his credit in the
Ufiice of that Official, including mileage,
etc. The majority OF the members, now
ever, draw tneIr money regularly, and In
several instances there are some who
nave overdrawn. This Is done at the
risk of the Sergeant-at-Arms, and the
money advanced lB bndJ uepObltu
with him TO the credit OF those who
have not drawn for several months,
Mr.. Scout and few others like him
usually leave their salary uRtouched un-
I'll the cad OF the session, and when they
10 call Tor IL IL IL worth having. The con-
tingent VINO call for their money quarterly
or semi-annually ~ also quite respec-
table one, numerically speaking. The
Representative from the South, as rule,
occupy p most unfortunate position on
the salary question. Nine-tentbs OF them
draw every cent that is due them and
before salary day rolls around again
are almost invariably in a hopeless state
OF insolvency. Frequently they put up
due bills with some OF the shark brokers
around town and yet their money before
they have earned II. Usually. however,
they get the Serseant-at-Arms TO arrange
the matter for them. The borrower in
such cases executes his receipts on the
Uniied States Treasurer for the month
that, II he lives, he would be entitled TO
compen sation as Congressman, aud
makes them payable for the consecutive
months covering the time for which bis
wages are advanced. Then he is required
by his benefactor, or broker, to take out
a asnort-tlme life insurance policy, 30 that
II he should In the meantime be overtaken
by the dread destroyer before the last re-
ceipt natures, the usurer 10 made sale by
the insurance company. The lender
in also protected by the fact
that any balance due deceased