Evening star., 1897-07-31
oL.Y.s cH.LLENGE TO onoArE.
A story Of Lively Occasion M the
White Suiphur.

From the HarGisonhurg. Va, Spirit.
In the long-ago ante-bellam days. when
southern aIistosracy made its summer
| Headquarters at the noted Virginia springs.
where the planters came up from the Caro-
linas. Kentucky. Georgia and Mississippi
in their carriages. with great baggage
trains and retinue of servants. and when
they came the LIST Of June and stayed until
frost fell, those were gay old times at the
mountain resorts, when life was worth the
pain of living.
Beginning with the first register in 1906
and coming on down 10 lS,p one finds
succession of historical names. There
the Sumpters. the Pickenscs and the Hamp-
tons Of the Carolinas; the Clays and Mar
shalls and Crittendens OF Kentucky: Cor
win and Ewing and Trimble of Ohio: the
Choates and Wcbsters and Pierces of New
England: Dickinson. Marcy and Dallas of
the middle states: Cass and Douglass and
Benton frc'n the then far west: the Floyds,
Cabells, pr estons and a galaxy of bright
names from Virginia: the CAROLS from
Maryland. and a host of others whose
| names have rendered American history H.
lustrious. Here these old notah,s came in
| their shad-bellied coats and sidebn I'D col
| lars, and a proper. dignificd time they lad
| of ii as they mingled their sulphur water
and mint julsps together and talked poll
tics. 1t was away back in 1897. when there
must have been SOmeth hing in the p'iEd Cf
Importance to the whig party. on a musty
| old page OF the hotel register of that year
in that fine. almost feminine handwriting
that is familiar To all. We find this insc.'iD-
ton: H Clay, Kentucky" while arnnut,
the next days arrivals are Rufus Choate
Massachusetts: Thomas Corwin. Ohio; vii
liam c. Rives, Virginia. and Milard FIJI
more. New York.
Those were the days when the making of
1ulep was an art We'll as a domestic
accomplishment. The night before Mr
Clay's departure from the springs ne gave
banquet in his cottage TO his friends.
fortunately, there is still a iivinS eye-wit-
ness to that entertainment ano if Ills de-
scription can lie relied upon. il was a gala
event that transcends all modern blowouts
Old Uncle Jimmie Patterson the yener-
able gatekeecper. who has been an attacne
OF the White Sulphur from time imme-
mortal was the floor servant on the row
in which the Clay cottage was located. and
helped to serve the banquet. He SAYS hat
the department of the host and the guests
was emineEtly proper until About ih. hour
OF midnight, but from that time Of the
night until morning dawned there was a
hlgh OLD time on the premises. whan the
cloth had been removed and the I'owha an
pipes were brought in--the degener Ite prac-
tice OF cigar and cigarette was not in vogue
in those days-some one called for music
and messenger was sent for "A uegco cd-
dler, who soon appeared with lis sh-
icned instrument. The cid fiddler started I'm
with Money Musk" and then played
sugar in the Gourd,' but when H.. tnii,b b.d
up mississippi Sawyer" Mr. CLAY stepped
into the middle of he floor and gave them
Kentucky breakdown. This was a fair
Challenge TO Mr. Choate, who followed " ith
a New England pigeon-wing. When the
old negro struck the chord of ''Old Elr-
g1nia Never Tire .he courtly Rivts after
ward minister to France felt tina; the repu-
tation of the old dominion was at stake
and. shedding his coat. executed the double
shuttle with a skill that would make a
Minstrel man envious. And thus The fun
grew iast and furious until the gray dawn
peeped over the mountain tops.