Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-10-02

Written Exclusively for The EceninS STAR
The latest thing in the way of hand
shake" remarked VIM. G. Spotswood of
the adjutant generals Office to a Star re-
porter. lis known as the Klon,' or the cold
shake 1t was originated, l am told, at
Newport where many of the adjutant gen.
erals clerks and especially the ladies',
spend their summer vacations. The klon-
dixie, or the .kloD,' as it is called for
short is easier to give than the high shake,
which has prevailed in society for the past
two seasons. The high shake Is credited
to the Prince of Wales. though it is not
sure that he invented II. The high shake
is an up and down affair. and in that re-
spect is but commonplace, after all The
Klon, however. is built on a different plan
and is a side shake. and has wiggle to 1t.
The more the side motion the more greet
ing there is in it, Those who are perfect
in il have much pleasure in 1t outside the
north, for the Klon is distinctly an Ameri-
can performance"
The transfer of Gen. Thos. Clingman,
who was for many years a senator from
North Carolina, and who participated in
a duelng affair at Bladensburg while he
was in Congress, to an insane asylum, is
sad ending of most remarkable political
career" observed an old citizen to a Star
reporter. Though the published state
ments give his age as eighty-one, l am in
clined to think he was older. Forty years
ago there was no NAH of more prominence
in Washington political life than he. Gen.
Clingman was bachelor, and for many
years a royal entertainer. though of late
years he has been seriously pinched for
money. The late Senator Leland Stanford
of California knew of the shortness in his
financial affairs. and for several years
quietly put Il goodiy sum of money in his
way, though he made him think ne earned
It. For several years Gen. ,Ciingman has
been an inmate of confederate soldiers
home in North Carolina. Gen Clingman
was an enthusiastic believer in the use OF
tobacco. He regarded its use as beneficial
In every respect He also thought it was
ps: nacea for many of the ills and diseases
a book on the tobacco cure in which he
urged the use of tobacco as cure for
many complaints. using il internally and
externally For a number Of years the
I-lhSmdn tobacco cure, a proprietary prep
aTation, was extensively advertised and
sold. particularly in the southern states.
he claimed for tobacco made up as Il lini-
h'ent mat 1t was sure remedy for mus
cuiar rheumatism in man or beast, and
that tobacco poultices would heal I'D old
sores after all other remedies had failed
lie was the personal friend of W. W. Cor
coran. and it was on that account that the
Corcoran Art Gallery"
= * K ).
There is nothing more pleasant to n
public school teacher than occasional visits
from the parents of children" remarked a
weil-known teacher to a Star reporter for
visits from parents are now almost a lost
art. There was a time when they were fire.
qrent, and seldom did ever a parent allow
month to pass without making at least
one visit to the school. 1t is a rare thing
OF late years for parents to make one visit
during the entire school term, and l have
lad hundreds of boys and girls in my
classes during the past ten years and never
saw their parents once. A visit from a
parent Is mutually advantageous A teach
er can pick up points about the character
anu makeup of the child and give a par
eh'' III turn' hints as to how they can best
cooperate 10 advance the chiIds educd-
tion- a visit, however. is one thing. and a
call Is another and an entirely different
thinS- There seem to be some parents.
especially the woman parent, who think il
Is their duty to make weekly or even more
frequent growls in regard TO their chill
dren, ana their calls are by no means
not complain so much about their own
children as they do in regard to the public
school system. They think that il is wrong
at every point, because it is different from
tnat IN vogue when the parents were chill
oren, all the way from twenty to forty
years ago Tney think that the grammar
teach1ng is all wrong and that the 0r,,p
mars used today have been written hv
crazy people or worse. simply because they
are different from those that thny wars
Taught FROM They are also Mortified with
the present system of teaching arithretic
ana spelling. and have complaints in con-
hection with nearly everything else. Those
VINO nave but one child are much worse
man those who have several Now, the
ract is. education has steadily progressed
ana L admit there have been raoicai
changes in teaching. These changes are
improvements. and have been proven co
but IL Is difficult to convince some parents
ana especially those who have been twent y
or thirty years away from their hooks ~
TINS ana the attempts to do SO ONLY enrs 20
them The most common complaint 10 IN
regard TO spelling. In former days, and I'D
10 ten years ago. every syllable in n word
was pronounced when IL was spelled This
Is now done away with and the child
Taught TO spell by sight rather than sound
! adtnlt IL Is an innovation. but it is iusti-
Ned by the facts and experience and 49,
ter spoilers result from It, All the tive &c
IoHeu IN pronouncing each syllable snd
tnen the entire word is saved and the M
pi! Is benefited jus, that much
nut even II parents do occasionally como
with growl / think that teachers wo,,Id
rather have them than have no visits at
all l also think that parents visits are
penenciai to children. for children. as a
rule. like that their parents be known and
they appear to be proud of their visits
II Tor no other reason. / think they should
De reasonably frequent on that account"
y y
vi the thousands who pass over the
Aaueduct bridge every day or otherwise in
view of the islands in the Potomac known
as the Three Sisters. there are few who
regard them as property, though they are
property. private property and valuable. -
observed a leading contractor to a Star re-
porter The three rocks known as the
1hree Sisters belong to the MOORE heirs.
who reside somewhere near Winchester.
va, and belonged to their parents before
Them They have never as yet produced a
cent OF income. though they may some day.
Recently l knew of a party who called on