The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1889-03-08
ABOUT PEOPLE AND THINGS.

ABOUT PEOPLE AND THINGS.
GENERAL TRACY, the new Secretary of
the Navy, was, to a large extent, the creator
of our internal-revenue system, which has
been copied by many foreign countries.
Miss STUART MOsBY, daughter of the
confederate raider, is the belle of Washing
ton society, and is now devOting herself
to literary work, with fair prospects of
success.
THE youngest college president in the
country is Rev. De Witte Hyde, of Bow
dOin. He was called to the presidency of
the college three or four years after his
graduation from Harvard.
The Maryland Court of Appeals has de-
cided that a wife's will is supreme in one
emergency. A woman with a tumOr gave
her consent to the surgeon to remove it,
and she died. The husband, who forbade
the operation. sued the surgeon, but the
court decided that the wife's consent was
sufficient.
CHARLES E. WEST, LII. D., of Brooklyn,
who, as president of Rutgers Institute, es-
tablished the first collegiate course for
young women in this country. who has been
for siXty-twO years a teacher, and fifty as
an instructor of young women, is abOut to
retire from active service. He is eighty
years of age.
EDITOR GRADY. of the Atlanta Constitu-
ton, is to write a history of the, South,
from its settlement to date. The book will
be a volume of about 900 pages, at least
three of which Will be taken up with a full
description of that New South" of which
Mr.. Grady was the original discoverer and
Is the sole proprietor.
WHEN Frances HOdgson Burnett was a
girl she lived in a log house near Knoxville,
Tenn. At the age of fourteen she taught a
country school. She was always writing
short stories, and when she was sixteen she
tor sent her a check for S35, and requested
her to continue writing. After this the
girl made money rapidly.
MRS. NELLIE BROWN MITCHELL, the col
Ored prima donna, has recently returned
from a trip to the South, where she reports
the people of her race to be making much
greater progress than at the North. Robert
X. Church.. a colored man, owns, she says
one of the finest hotels in Memphis, and he
check Is said to be good for S250,0O0.
JUSTICE MATTHEWS is still unable to at
tend the sittings of the Supreme Court.
Some time ago it was announced that the
Justice would probably resume his seat on
the bench when the court met after it's an
nual February recess, but he has mended
very slowly, N it is not expected now
that he will be able to attend to his Judi
cial duties before next October.
Mrs. WILLIAM WINDOW, during her long
residence i'll Washington, was quite popu-
lar in the society circle of the national cap
ital. She is a lady of high intelligence,
great tact, and those substantial wOmanly
qualities that commend themselves in ev-
cry walk of life. Heroldest daughter, who
Is an accomplished young lady, will, with
her mother, make a valuable addition to
the social life there under General Harri-
sons administration.
THERE seems to be an evil fatality in
Belgian royal matrimonial alliances with
the imperial family of Austria. Twice in
one generation a Belgian Princess has been
married to a Hapsburg, and in each case
the husband has been torn from the wife
by a sudden and horrible death. On the
10th of June, 1867, the Belgian Princess
Charlotte lost her husband. the Emperor
Macmillan, who was executed by the bull
lets of the Mexicans at QueretarO, and the
widow has ever since been hopelessly in
sane. On the 3Oth of January, 1889, the
Belgian Princess Stephanie lost her hus-
band by a fate even more terrible.
ONE of the American girls who was pre-
sented at the Queens d~rawing-room was so
embarrassed that she made quite q faux
pas. She wholly ignored the Queen until
after she had saluted the Princess of Wales,
when she suddenly turned around and as
tonished her Majesty by saying: ''Oh, ]
beg your PARDON, madam" grabbed her
royal hand. kissed it and then hurried along
the line. The Queen, who is a terrible
stickler about matters of etiquette, at first
amused smile of the Princess of Wales, she
burst into a pleasant laugh and sent the
discounted debutante away with a few
kindly words.
II country has now two ex~-Presidents
Hayes and Cleveland, and one ex-Vice-
president, Hannibal Hamlin. but there are
six living queens of the White House. They
are Mrs. Tyler, who reigned as early as
1874, and is yet living in Georgetown: Mrs
Polk, who succeeded her in 1916, and still
lives in the Polk mansion in Nashville;
Mrs. johnson, who, as Harriet Lane, is re.
membered as one of the most accomplished
of our White House mistresses, and is !iv'
ing in Baltimore; Mrs. Grant, who is living
in New York: Mrs. Garfield, who is Twins
at Mentor, o., and Mrs. Cleveland, who
will become one of GOtham's queens of So
cial life. All the widows of ex-Presidents
receive a life annuity of s., ZOO from the gov.
eminent.
IT is said that Queen Victoria is so fond
of fresh air hat she is in the habit of sleep.
ing with open windows even in the dead OF
winter. and that during the daytime heI
apartments at Windsor Castle are SO COLI
that her attendants and visitors are almost
frozen. The Empress Maria Theresa OF
Austria. was more peculiar in this respect
Her apartments were very rarely heated
She exposed herself to draughts without
falling a victim To rheumatism. Her writ
ing-table,. even in winter. was close to the
open window, and the falling snow Otter
drifted into the apartment and fell on the
paper on which she wrote. 1t frequently
happened that the hands of the hair-dressel