St. Paul daily globe., 1889-06-17


were obliged to force, and which brings
as good return as the queen of flowers,
the rose. But think of putting yellow
marigOlds IN a yellow bowl, and then
say who dictates in chrOmaticS.
OUR LEGATION IN PARIS.
Some Account of Former Members
MIR. Reid's New and Gorgeous
Home.
Mrs. Crawford's Paris Letter to London Truth.
The new United States minister has
taken, at rental of G4,000 year, the
Comtesse de Grammont's house in the
Avenue Hoche. The residence has two
earriage-way entrances. presents all i'm
posing air, is spacious, and Americans
expect that it will be the the
ater Of sociable entertainments
of nature to increase respect
for the Stars and Stripes. In the early
days OF the Republican party, to which
States legation used to be really the
center, and a most delightful center,
too. of American society. There were
unpleasant intrigues being carried on
at the TullerieS against Jonathan. The
United States minister, Dayton, could
not gather around him the leading men
in opposition to the empire: but Consul
afterwards Minister) Bigelow thought
it patriotic duty to throw his house
open to them.
Mrs. Bigelow had nothing short of
genius for promoting sOciability. AS
consuleSs she was very pretty, very un-
affected, arch, original, and never LEI
Frenchmen gather at one end OF her
drawing room and French ladies congre-
gate at the other, but was constantly
shuff1ing her guests up. There was no
display, unless in the dresses OF some
of the ladies, and the only expense gone
to was in praviding tea. AS minis
tress her drawing room was less great
success, because it was filled with pre-
tentiOus official people, who gave them
selves airs. The big official parsonage
is too apt in this country to be POM
pously alive to his own Importance.
unless when he is in demi-monde So
ciety, or perhaps at the opera house in
the foyer du corps de ballet. Gen. and
Mrs. Dix ana their daughter Kitty
were hospitable, but they had no
the sweet, unaSSuming cOrdiality of the
Daytons. The Washburnes came here
to save money, and succeeded. Gen.
Noyes was minister at the time when
to keep out of scrapes, he thought 1t
we'll to be good deal in North Africa.
The struggle was going on then
between MacMahOn and his ducal
friend On one side and Thiers and Gam
beta on the other, and the general felt
with the latter if he stayed much in
Paris. He was not rich enough to ell
tertain beyond the limit of his salary,
and his moral courage, he used to say,
was not equal to the tea-and-turnout
mode of treating guests. This was
pity. as he had high spirits, and his
wife was a nice woman. People who
can afford to feed themselves at home
would not have asked for more than
tea-and-turn out.
The Mortons were wealthy, hospitable.
and gave very smart parties, but they
were perhaps too much in the s'high
life" part of financial International So
ciety. Mrs. Morton was atfable, very
beautiful, and. of course, not insensible
in this social zone. Her one defect as
hostess was not to know how to shuttle
her cards. Like-to-like is bad rule
when one is trying to have pleasant
dinners and interesting parties, most
people of any intelligence preferring to
60 out in the evening for a change.
States ministries, is lady of good nell
tai pOise and of intellectual culture.
She was much in her girlhood in Calf
fornia but has the good Boston-cum-
New York manner. Still young, she
has an air of native refinement, is free
from all trace of self-assertive habit,
and will take up her position
with quiet, unobtrusive dignity. There
is distinction in her manner and mode
of Dress Her figure is slender, not tall,
and. being symmetrical and graceful,
is what the French call mignonne. So
far. Mrs. Reid (being in mourning has
dressed in black. She pins the lace
strings of her bonnet with an enamel
brooch representing cluster of violets,
on which brilliants stand for
dew drops. Mr.. Reid has quiet
geniality and is also unassuming. He
is an able newspaper editor, Though
not yet, should fancy, on the shady
for strays and waits. and for the infant
population of the close streets of New
York. His first work, outside of poll
tics and newspaper editing, was to send
male waits out West, where situa-
tions were obtained for them as
farm helps. His next work, which
still goes on, was the Gre
alton of an open-air fund to board and
lodge children of poor people in farm
houses in salubrious localities. The
total number of children sent for sew
eral consecutive seasons from New
York twhere in summer the heat is, day
and night, often that of an oven) would
appear SO prodigious that do not dare
to give it. Chicago has now taken up
the idea. By the bye, did Mrs. Jeune
follow the example of Mr.. Reid, or did
Mr.. Reid take pattern from Mrs. Jeune?