News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1892-02-25
Washington Letter.

WASHINGTON, Feb. 10, 1892.
Official receptions have always
been popular. The oldest inhabi-
tant tells of ancient White House re-
captions, which required many hours
of standing or riding to get within
sight of the entrance. On a late Oc-
casion the line of callers extended
out TO the distant avenue and many
rods along the sidewalk to 18th
street, and around the corner away
down beside the Treasury. When
the weary waiter in line tediously
approaching the entrance step by
step, crowds into the ante-room his
real trouble begins. Closely besieged
on all sides he can only move as the
crowd moves him and what the
crowd may do is an anxious prob
lem. He will be pressed and punched
and jammed and rotated. Now he
hangs against some bony or fieshy
reef of a shoulder or is stranded upon
a bosom or thrust against some
mighty abdomen or perchance crowd
| ed against q door casing. Some
times he is lifted from his feet and
sometimes Overborne and crowded
down upon a humber companion in
misery, but always moving, always
ground, sqneeZed, triturated, fiat
tened, rolled and polished like the
captive rocks which a glazier pushes
to the sea, or like a helpless vessel
caught in a north pole ice pack. At
the last presidential reception orna-
ments were torn from gowns, and
lace, and diamonds and pins thrown
under foot, while fans, handkerchief,
ribbons and such like were scattered
about in sufficient quantity < to stock
a small millinery store, as one
of our dailies expressed it. One army
officer even lost an epaulet. A two
hundred and fifty dollar diamond pin
remains unclaimed. Six thousand
people cannot get in where there is
standing room for twenty-five hun
dred Certainly the old time White
House needs charging as Mrs. Harri-
son proposes. 1t did very well for
Dolly Madison who some times hung
her washing in the east room as ira
dition says, but the President ofsixty
millions needs a larger house and
larger reception rooms.
At a state dinner recently given the
rooms of the White House were rich
ly and profusely decorated with foil
age plants, palms, azalias, orchids,
smilaX, hyacinths and ferns, all dis
posed, in banks, pyramids, clusters,
baskets, and festoons and supple
mented by an abundance of prim-
roses, lilies, ionquils, tulips and roses
all in tropical luXuriance. All civil
lied nations were represented among
1 the guests. The gentlemen were pro-
vided with boutonnieres of q rare
flower and upon theladies plates We're
placed bows OF heliotrope-pink satin.
| On the ribbon was the name of the
wearer in gold and an engraved view
of the White House and grounds.
Your lady readers will be pleased to
learn that Mrs. Harrison's gown was
of dark heliotrCpe brocade embroid-
cred on a border of gold and slashed
at the right side over a petticoat of
white satin brocade; diamond orna-
ments.' Madame Romero rose pink
satin brOcade with festOons of corn
cOlOred satin across the lower portion
of the skirt caught with ostrich tips
Mrs. Blaine's gown was black satin
brocade, with sleeves of brussels net |
and trimmings of black ostrich tips. |
Madame GuZman wore black velvet |
with clusters of ostrich tips on a low |
neck bodice; Madame Montt, garnet |
velvet, with gray brocade and dia- |
monds; Mrs. Frye a black velvet |
court train, with petticoat of pink
brocade: Mrs. Henderson a yellow
brocade with ostrich tips and dia-
monds; Mrs Sherman white satin
brocade; Mrs. Holman black silk and |
brocade; Mrs Blout white crepe Mrs. |
Ye Cha Yum, peach blow brOcade
The death of Princess Alice Itur-
bide has been recently announced
] Her father once was Mexican Emper-
or and subsequently banished to
Italy and afterwards executed in his
native land that he had ruled He is
now styled by Mexican historians
1.-The Liberator and a national feast
has been established in his honor,
and for the repose of his soul masses
are yearly celebrated. After his exc
cution his family came to the United
States and a son while attending
Georgetown college became acquaint-
ed with a daughter of John Green of
this District and married her. When
Macmillan and Carlotta ruled Mexi- |
co, Alice consented to their adoption
of her child Augustus, but soon re-
penting tried to undo the deed. By
mingled strategy and force she was
driven from Mexico and from her boy
But in a short time Carlotta herself
was constrained to leave Mexico and |
ID Paris the two women met, Alice |
Iturbide having followed the Empress
to beg for her boy. But Carlotta re-
fused. Each urged that as the other |
was young she might be consoled by |
another boy. Carlotta denied the |
mother and was herself coldly repuls-
ed by Napoleon and driven from
France. She went to Rome-an in |
sane Empress. Macmillan was soon
after expelled from his imperial throne |
by the purpose of Grant, the most |
conspicuous sight of which was the !
presence of Sheridan and his army |
corps in Texas, and Princess Alice |
lturbide nee Alice Green, got her boy
at last. She it is that has lust died. |
Her son now a resident of this city is
named as a possible inheritor of the
throne of the Montezumas. How
stranger than fiction is history. !
Economy. As anticipated the
House of Representatives is going to
cut down appropriations having al
ready commenced with the West
Point appropriation. Every BODY
likes economy-fer the other fellow.
But are there not some appropriate
fields for reduction that Holman
ought not to overlook and about
which we may all agree? There are
for example funeral holidays, iunket-
lngs and eulOgies. These eulogies in
four instances last year cost for print
ing alone thirty-five thousand dol
lars. And why should the people
pay nine thousand each, to say moth
ing of the time spent for eulogizing ,
dead congressman? The monoto- .
nously fulsome funeral oratory has no !
value for the dead and little, for the ,
living. The printing of eulogies is a
single item. The whole printing bill !
shows many superfuities The print ,
ing of thousands of bills proposed in !
lnnnpaCc &c .