The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-08-17

uowaRer of Korea was not the mother OF
the king, but she was the wife of one of the
predecessors OF the man who now
reigns over Korea, She had the
selecting Of the king. and she picked
out this young fellow when he was q boy.
During the present reign she has occupied
palace within the same walls as that OF
the king, and her palace has been very
near the kings. She has lived within the
palace for over seventy years, and she now
dies at the age Of SO. She was probably the
most venerafed and the most loved OF the
women of Korea, and have just received
letter from General Dye. who went out
there to re-organize the Korean army,
describing the excitement that pre-
walls as 10 her decease. For the
past three weeks the doleful blasts
of the Korean trumpets have been
sounded around the palace in anticipation
of the sad event that has since come to
pass. The streets are now filling with
mourners and the whole nation will go into
sackcloth. On the day after her death her
body was pu; into the coffin and there is
fixed ceremony for this event. The body
OF common woman goes into the coffin
three days after she dies, that OF royalty
five days after. and OF one OF the imperial,
family on the seventh day after death. The
body OF the queen dowager will not be
inferred, / understand, until five months
from now, and in the meantime business is
suspended and the 100000 people in
Korea are supposed to be weeping. If the
old rule prevails, every man in the country
will put on hat as big as an umbrella.
will hide his face behind fan and will
dress in yellow sackcloth.
Colonel Dinsnore, our former minister
to Korea, is now ON his way home and he
is expected at Washington shortly. He is
one OF the brightest young men who has
ever had a place in the diplomatic service
and he will probably be given another mis-
sion as soon as the Democrats
come into power. He was APP
pointed to Korea at the instance
of Attorney General Carl, and ne is one of
the closest friends of the king of Korea
Judge Denny. who has for years been the
adviser of the king of Korea. at salary of
$4,000 q year, is also coming back to
America and we have had diplomats by the
dozen in Washington during the last two
weeks. Consul-General Bonham, who has
represented this country at Calcutta for the
past four years. has been spending some
time here with his wife and
daughter, and he will shortly 60 on to
Salem. Or, where he lives. He
was, am told, very popular In Calcutta,
and he entertained very nicely there. His
daughter is quite an accomplished young
lady, and she has blossomed from girlhood
into womanhood during her stay in India.
understand that ex-Minister Strauss. of
Turkey, viii spend part of the next season
in Washington. Ii he does his wife will be
sure to create a sensation. She is one OF
the most beautiful women in America.
She dresses elegantly, talks WELL and
speaks several languages. She created
quite a sensation when Mr.. Strauss was
our minister TO Turkey. and the wealth of
her husband enabled him to make his en-
tertainments equal to those of the minis
tiers who had large allowances for this pur-
pose.
Some of the funniest things in Washing
ton happen IN the herdics and street cars.
Every one rides in them and you may be
sandwiched between a justice of the
supreme court and a darkey iaborer, or
you may find a servant girl on one side of
you and senator's wife on the other. In
such cases you have to be careful what you
say, for there is certain to be some one in
the car who knows every one you are talk
ingsabout. and strangers often make fools
of themselves by their remarks. You can
not talk about public men. for their secre-
taries may be sitting beside you, and the
public men themselves may be sitting in
tire other side of the Car If you do not
know them. The diplomats are OCCASION
ally seen in the cars, and in riding to the
White house the other day saw one of
them do a very mean thing. The car was
passing the National hotel and the rain
was pouring down with all its summer
strength. The car was full, and this
diplomat had his seat at the end of the
car. Just at this point lady
stopped it. She was well dressed, and
she had diamonds in her ears. She jumped
on the steps of the car, put down her
umbrella and started to enter, when this
diplomat put his arm across the door and
said: 'Do you not see, madam, that thees
car Is full. You cannot get in, madam. 1t
ees against the rule" and he then yelled
to the driver: "Drivair. why do you stop
thees car? You know it ees FULL BY this
time the lady was so frightened that she
jumped off the car and went back to the
pavement before there was a chance for the
other men in the car TO offer her a seat.
This foreigner had been in Washington but
short time, and he did not know the rules
OF the car lines. He was looked upon as a
boor, and the story tackled to his name is
now going the rounds.
One of the mesnest men in Washington
is worth all the way from two hundred to
five hundred thousand dollars, and | see
him adding to his pile every day in one of
these red fiye-capt WASHINGTON hardics
which goes past his $4,000 residence and
ably takes a seat near the fare box, buys
package OF tickets of six for quarter,
and when anyone passes him up FIVE cents
to put into the box, he puts the nickel in
his pocket and puts one of these tickets.
which have cost him four and one-sixth
cents, into the box. On rainy days he
must make at least as much as six or
seven cents a ride. and as his income is
probably not over twenty or thirty thou
sand dollars year. the poor man ought to
ha We IL
The Washington climate is changing and
II is now the most healthy city in the coun-
try. The filling up of the Potomac flats
has gone on until now there is great is
land covered with grass lying between
Washington and Virginia. This will
eventually be laid out as park, and it will
contain some OF the NEST beautiful drives
of the United States. The trees have made
difference in the air here. We have a
parking commission which attends to
them. and congress appropriates so much
every year for tree planting The result is
that there are 100 coo shade trees running
along each side of the many miles of streets