Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1892-07-08

her to 90 to Ireland to purchase saddle
horses for his own use. This journey
was undertaken in the spring of 1867,
and in June of that year Miss Morgan
returned to Florence with string OF
Irish huntress mares. The king was so
pleased with the success OF her UNDER
taking that he presented her with dia-
mond star, pendent from which was
double-cased hunting watch bearing in
briliants the initials "V. En-, his mono
gram. She remained two years more in
Italy, and always understood from her
conversation that during her stay she
had constant employment in the kings
service.
In 1869 she decided to come to New
York, and having procured letters to
some of the prominent editors. she land
ed here twenty-three years ago this
month. Mr.. Raymond had recently died
and Mr.. Greeley gave her little encour-
agement, but after short time she OBJ
tanned an introduction to Manton Marble,
the editor of the World, from Leonard
Jerome, and was connected with the rep
otoi ial staff of that paper for a few
months. Soon alter she entered the SER
vice of the New York Times, OF which
she has written the stock and cattle re-
ports for many years. In all weather
she USED to tramp for the whole of the
morning through the stock-yards and
make herself familiar besides with the
arrival of horses for sale or export. Ev-
cry dog show claimed her presence as an
intelligent friend of the "friend of man.
and she knew all about races the world
over. She once gave me without par
tice of previous preparation the names
of all the winners of the Derby since
1854, and | presume she could have CIV
en- me their pedigree.
About ten years ago she began to build
house upon some property which she
had bought near Livingston, Staten
Island She was her own architect and
she had certain ideas about security from
robbers and from fire that she wished
to embodv in the dwelling. She did not
live at the place, but made her home at a
sub-station of Metuchen on the Penn
svlvania railroad, and acted as station
agent, with the help of another woman
as clerk. The Staten Island house is worth
describing and | give the following ac-
count of it, which was published in the
Times:
s"The house is now barely finished al
though it was begun six or eight years
ago. 1t is situated on the outskirts OF
Livingston, and for some time it has
been pointed out to visitors to Staten
Island as one of the curiosties of that
section.
"The house is three-story structure
of brick, with an extension. The main
building consists of only one room on
each floor, with huge chimney running
up through its centre, having fireplace
on two sides. The lower or drawing
room floor is finished with California red
wood, laid in panels of beautiful design
Various kinds of inlaid wood cover
the ceiling. walls, and floor of the second
story. llt lilllu otOi '''N' " ''''''
sard roof, is finished in ash, and fitted
out with mirrors and tiled mantlepiecs.
"The dining room on the main floor of
the extension has walls covered entirely
with sea-shells, as is also the ceiling.
They are of all possible varieties, and
have been decorated and painted in many
shades. Windows of stained glass make
part of the partition between the dining
room and the bath room, the latter being
about twelve feet square, and containing
a plunge bath and a couch of marble of
the kind used in Russian baths, as well
as the usual appurtenances of bath
room in private house. The kitchen
is on slightly lower level than the
dining room and bath room, IN the rear
of the extension, and the cellar is both
roomy and as we'll built as any other
part of the house. The structure
throughout is fire-proof. There is an
iron stairway running from the main
floor to the top floor by continuous
ascent, and iron beams and tire-proof
material are uscu tNtl w iitlt III 'hS
house. Iron gratings bar all the win
dows of the lower floor.
"Miss Morgan found, soon after she
began to build the house, that she had
. made number of mistakes, but she stuck
pluckily to the task, and it was Just
about completed when she died. Her
sister, the artist, had been occupying
, the house and working there at decoration
for several years. large stock OF
furniture had also been accumulated,
having been gathered by Miss Morgan
from time to time iduring the construc'
ton of the house and shipped there fol
safe keeping until she should be ready to
use it. 1t included some very fine
inlaid work in wood and some excellent
paintings and sculpture"