The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1899-12-09
MISS JOSEPHINE DRExEL.
Heiress to Million, It Is Said, Will
Give Life TO Church

Aelress to Million, 1t Is Said, Will
Give Life to Church.
Correspondence Intermountain Catholic)
New York, Dec. Miss Josephine
Drexel is to retire into a convent, her
friends say. They speak of this regret
fully, because the thought of a young
woman's abandonment of fashionable
society's festivals implies an idea of
sacrifice, in their view.
To her that abandonment made conf
plete, would be a joy. She is the daugh-
ter of the late Joseph w. DreXel. Her
income is $4,000 a year now. Her leg
acy is estimated at 10000, 000 She is
10 years old, beautiful, learned, an ac-
complished musician. She plays the
harp, the piano, the guitar. She studied
harmony from excellent teachers.
She does not like fashionable society's
vanities. She lives in the perpetual
admiration of the yttanieS of the Virgin
Mary, the Golden Legend, the marvel
Gus of the spouses of Jesus Christ, who
wore gowns of martyrdom. Rather than
all the poems she prefers the howerY
sermons in which the sons of ST. Fran
els exalt poverty, candor and innocence.
Her religious devotion is intense. Two
years ago, when her mother gave at
Delmonico's a sumptuous ball in her
honor, and Mr.. and Mrs. Anthony j.
Drexel transformed, for her, Horticul-
tural hall, in Philadelphia, into a fairy
palace, hopes were expressed that she
might conciliate her piety with the
manners of the world. But they were
vain hopes. s'
She had no ambition to be drawing
room sovereign. Three hunder and
fifty persons were at the ball at Del
monico's. She wore a pale green MORE
velvet gown, trimmed with. Bruges lace
and pink roses. Her sister, Mrs. John
Vinton Dahlgren, in light blue satin,
embroidered with silver, took great
pains to make her enjoy the converse
ton of the cleVerest young men. She
was charmingly affable, but she was
not charmed.
In Philadelphia's Horticultural hall,
wehere the favors of the cOtillon were
handled riding whips, jeweled
purses, muffs and boas of carnations
and the decorations roses, azesias. lilies
of the valley and orchids in profusion,
the zeal of every one tosmake her love
life in merriment astonished her.
Miss Drexel has not often accepted
invitations to receptions here. She has
evaded the necessity of declining them
by visits abroad to her eldest sister.
She has, when fashion was at its height
in the city or at the Seashore, always
preferred to be in the company of her
aunt. who is, in religion, Mother Cath
crime In the latter's convent MISS
Drexel finds her happiness.
She was educated as Roman Catho-
lie. Her father was a communicate OF
the Church of the TRANSPORTATION in
East Twenty ninth street; her mother
was converted from the Protestant
Episcopal church into the Roman Cath
Ole at the time of her marriage to Mr..
DreXel He was the son of the founder
of the banking house that became ia
nous as DreXel, Hayes & Co, and
later as Drexel, Morgan & Co.
Miss Josephine Drexel's two sisters
are Roman Catholics. They are married
to sons of the late Admiral Dahlgren.
They are. like her, we'll acquainted with
the poetic legends Of their faith, and
tell them enchantingly. Miss Drexel
has the most charming manner imagin-
able of reciting to children the tales of
the Thebald and the achievements of
heroines like Joan of Arc.
Miss DreXel moderniZes the phrases
that are retained Of Joan. They are
pearls and jewels of the purest French
language. She modernizes them for the
childfen's sake. She says odd words
on young lips are odd" She has the
temperament of the gentlest religious
teachers.