The Sunday herald and weekly national intelligencer., 1891-02-08
CALLING ON THE CABINET.
Continued from Ninth Page.)

to spend once the amount they receive. l
know Of others who would drop Cabinet recep-
tions to-day IL they could, and of still Others
who say they like them. The returning the
calls is quite an item of trouble and expense.
HOW CALLS ARE RETURNED.
Let me tell you how they do it. 1t used to be
that all calls were returned in person, and the
time was when the Presdent's wife was ex-
pected to return all calls made upon her. Mrs.
Fairchild, who received as many as eight thou
sand calls on one day, tried to return all of
them. She found it impossible, however, for
many of the cards had no numbers upon them,
and upon looking for the names in the directory
they could not be found. Mrs. Senator Sher-
man once told me that in attempting to return
a call made upon her while her husband was
Secretary Of the Treasury she found her car
riage stopped In front of meat-shop, and upon
going up the side entrance to the second story
she found the lady who had called upon her
kept millinery establishment, whose chief
constituents seemed to be colored people.
Many Of the Cabinet ladies now return their
calls by merely sending cards, and some are
even returned by sending the cards through the
mail. This, however, is the refinement of red
tape snobbshness, and the sending around of
the cards by a messenger is bad enough, aud
perhaps the best way would be not to return
the calls at all.
MRS. VICE PRESIDENT MoRToN's RECEPTION.
ter of choice 80 far as officials are concerned
The Senator'S wives and the wives OF the mem
bers of the House of Representatives would
feel very much insulted il their calls were not
returned, and the Cabinet Ministers might find
some of their pet schemes opposed in Congress
through the ill-feeling caused by such blunder
on the part of their wives. We have, in fact, a
"Merry War" here every year over who shall call
first, and the rank Of the Vice President, the
-T11cff nf hn Sy1nr Nntypf Hoh hsvaf
Ministers, and of the Congressman is by no
means settled one. Mrs. Vice President Nor
ton receives on the same day the Cabinet
Ministers, and after leaving Mrs Rusks we
called upon Mrs. Morton. 1t was about 5
O'Clock when we entered the immense, many
sided brick mansion which constitutes the Vice
Presidents home, and we found that the Vice
President was in the recepton-room at the
time we were presented to Mrs. Morton. What
a fine-looking couple they are! Mr.. Morton is
straight, tall, and we'll formed. He has big
head thatched with short, wavv, iron-gray hair
which comes down upon his forehead in a sort
of Roscoe Conkling curl, and his face, smooth
shaven, looks as though it might have stepped
Colonial days which you find on the walls of
the Rotunda of the Capitol This face always
wears a smile, and the Vice President is con-
sidered the prince of entertainers. Mrs. Morton
is tall and fine looking and she is one of
the best dressed women in Washington. She
had valuable training in reception-giving
while her husband was Minister to France, dur
ing which time, it is said, he spent more than
twice his salary in dinners and receptions.
The Morton house here is elegantly furnished,
and the room in which Mrs. Morton stands dur
ing her receptions is opposite the great hallway.
Its walls are hung with fine paintings and low
| bookcases run around the floor. Just over
| Mrs. Morton hangs portrait of the Vice Presi-
| dent, which the great artist, Bonnat, took from
| life. Elegant rugs cover the floors, and as you
| stand beside her you have vista of a series of
parlors, which open by folding doors into the
| dent paid over one hundred thousand dollars
for this house, and he bought it from Bell, the
| telephone inventor, and this dining-room, which
| he added, is said to have cost almost as much
as his entire salary during his Vice Presidential
| term. 1t is the finest dining-room in Washing
| ton, and the dinners given in it surpass those
of the White House. Miss GRUNDY, JR.