Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-12-09
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his home for tie winter for purely senu-
mental reasons, though he adds, parentheti-
cally that the house is quite satisfactory,
aside from the sentiment that actuated
him when he selected a location on Florida
avenue. Thirty-fve years ago this month
Judge Calderhead a soldier visited
Washington for the first time, and. much
against his will was forced to take up his
residence on Ka1orama Heights in a house
almost on the site of his present residence.
The building to which he was sent was
pest house. and he had the smallpox The
house was a large and at one time hand
some brick. owned by a wealthy and titled
Englishman, who. when the war broke out,
returned TO England, and the taxes having
remained for some years unpaid, the gov
eminent appropriated it for a pest mouse.
Judge Calderhead says he had a serious
battle for life, and two sets OF smallpox
patients occupied the pest house during his
retention there, and of them all he was
the only man TO recover. One other soldier
got able to be about and was to be dis
charged In few days He went out doors
to enjoy the bracing air and the sunshine
OF q late December day, and a few hours
later came to Judge Calderhead and asked
him TO write his will The judge said that
he would write it. but chaffed the youth at
the idea. The soldier responded, Write 1t
quick or it will be too late" The will was
written by Judge Caderhead, the soldier
boy dividing his property, which was con-
in Pennsylvania. At the end he said The
pen, quick" and his signature was but
just placed on the document when he reil
forward over it-dead Those few moments
of fresh air had sown the seeds of pneu-
monia. and he was too weak to Withstand
the attack. Judge Calderhead was dis
charged cured January l: 1864
The p-eponderance of Prince Alberts
in this Congress is a matter Of general
comment lone would almost think
Prince Albert was the uniform Of your
House OF Representatives, don't you
know remarked a young lady Of decid-
edly English accent. as she looked down
on the slow-moving, black-clad figures on
the floor. Even the gentleman from Ar
kansas. Mr.. Terry. who has worn blush
gray. ever since his entrance into the
House, in 1891, startled his confreres by
appearing in a black broadcloth Prince Al
bert suit Of the most elegant cut and fnlsh
Speaker Henderson did not hang his
handsome new silk flag back of his chair.
a. many lovers Of the flag hoped he would
The faded. soiled silk caricature that has
hung back of the Speakers chair for TWEEN
ty-seven years has long been an eyesore to
the veterans in the House. In the last
Congress Judge Broderick of Kansas intro
duced a resolution looking TO the removal
% the old flag and the substitution of
new one. which, the resolution stipulated,
should he real American flag, with
forty-fiye stars properly placed in the blue
field" The present flag could scarcely lie
called an American flag. as II mas only
UhirJy-siX stars, and no national flag ever
had the stars arranged as they appear in
The field The flag with its twin, which is
on the Senate side. was presented TO Con-
Eress in 1872 by some Philadelphia women
y 10 desired TO advertise silk culture pro-
ject- The Senate flag is bright as new, and
has never been displayed since the day it
tod DrIF
Presidents room. neatly rolled up
Mr.. VIM. H. Young, the veteran chief OF
the Western Union telegraph offices at the
Capitol was SICK last Monday and missed
the assembling Of the new Congress 1t
was the first time he had been absent on q
"drst day since 1857. Mr.. Young was
present when the first session of the House
was held in the new building. In those
days there was one telegraph operator in
the Capitol building, and for a long time
Mr.. Young alone was able to handle all
the business. Now there are three Western
Union offices. three Postal offices and
average Of thirty-five operators required to
handle the business, the number being in
creased upon special occasions. In one day.
prior TO the passage of the Spanish war
resolution, LOCO special dispatches were
filed in the Offices at the Capitol over which
Mr. Young presides. in addition to a large
number filed with the Postal company On
press gallery employs as large a force and
does much business as a telegraph office
IL a thriving town.
x x
AN employment which hundreds of poor
Greeks. living in and near New York city,
ind quite profitable at this season of the
year is fern gathering" said a dealer in
feras in New York to the writer yesterday.
Up 70 Ken years ago this industry was ex-
clusively in the hands of a few Frenchmen
but in the fall Of 20 these men happened to
engage The services of four or five Greeks
10 help them collect ferns. Once initiated
Into the secrets of the trade the Greeks de-
c!ded 10 go into business for themselves
with the result that they. and large num-
her OF theIr countrymen, now monopolze
the supply Of ferns sent to the New York
market.
In the autumn before the heavy frosts
come the fern gatherer goes into the woods
With his knife and plenty of cord. The
most prosperous Greeks have as many as
twenty-five men working for them. These
helpers are paid from 81 p to $3.50 for
every 100 ferns they collect. Into West
chester. over into Connecticut and New
Jersey. up along the Palisades on the Hud-