The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-03-13

1919 ~ - v Il
was to wear. | don't believe any
lady ever came to the White House
SO poorly equipped for social occa-
sions as |, but all the same, | was just
as happy as any woman could be to
have the matter settled as it was"
1t was during Hayes's regime that
the custom of dividing the state re-
ceptions among the "classes" was in
troduced, and great deal of criti-
cism ensued. But time has justified
the innovation, for, unless the Execu-
tive Mansion were greatly enlarged,
it would be impossible to receive
verybody at once in the old demo
cratic way. There is nothing truer
than that conventionalities are never
invented or set up as barriers until
test case comes along and makes
them imperative. Mrs. Hayes had a
vigorous mind, and she was thorough
ly consistent. There was no back
sliding in her Methodism. She al
ways had the courage of her convic-
tions.
The one thing in the White House
today oftenest asked for the privilege
of seeing, the doorkeepers say, is
Mrs. Hayes's portrait, hanging full
length in the Green parlor with Mrs.
Polk, Mrs. Tyler and Mrs Caroline
Harrison, the wife of ex-President
Harrison.
Mrs. Garfield.
Mrs. Garfield was as we'll fitted bv
education to perform the duties of
mistress of the White House as any
of her predecessors, had she not gone
there broken in health, if not spirits;
which aggravated the tragedy of her
husbands life, and made it the home
of the saddest woman that ever
crossed the threshold. When Mrs.
Harrison was mistress of the mansion
Mrs. Garfield recrossed the threshold
for the first time since those last sad
days. Mrs. Garfield was secured
from pecuniary anxiety by the liberal
contributions of the Generals many
warm personal friends, and she is
passing her days serenely at Mentor,
the farmland home in Ohio.
Mrs. Grover Cleveland.
The popular mistress just leaving
the White House for the second
time has maintained her popularity
during this last administration as
when she came into the mansion a
blushing bride; and the memory of
her reign will always be held as one of
the most brilliant of all. Mrs. Cleve-
land was married in the White House
and one of her children was born in
it, and the other two christened there,
the baby, little Marion, submitting to
that solemn ceremony only few days
ago, in the East Room, surrounded by
all the members of the Cabinet fam
lilies.
Mrs. Benjamin Harrison.
The first Mrs. Benjamin Ha rrison,
who came into the Executive Mansion
as mistress, between Mrs. Cleveland's
two reigns, left her impress upon the
house, making it more home in all
its appointments than it had ever
been before. She entered broken in
health, but she brought with her an
instinct for good housekeeping and
home making, and although she had
noactual duties to perform she looked
after the ways of the household in
manner to bring about several most
improvements in the kit
chens and in domestic furnishings.
The kitchen was tiled and put in per-
feet sanitary condition, and the fine
table linen and napery that she in
troduced, with additions to the table
ware, were much needed and added
materially to the comfort of the es-
Enlistment.
Mrs. Harrison delegated all of her
social duties, outside of the purely
official functions, to her lovely
daughter, Mrs. Mary Mckee. But
she was destined to sorrow and waste
away with disease, even in these
happy surroundings, and on late
October day her sweet spirit took its
fight. Mrs. Harrison had a nimble
wit. One who knew her well says of
her that she saw the ludicrous side
of circumstances very quickly, and
consequently found much to amuse
her in the kaleidoscope characters
about her that passed in review dur
ing her residence in the White
House.
Mrs. William Mckinley
On Thursday, March 4, at high
noon, Mrs. Cleveland will have, meta
phorically at least, turned over the
KEYS of the domestic department of