Evening star., 1901-07-13

LINK ABOUT tnenls The ldea seems to be,
L don't travel; why should your"
Women Who Want Letters.
AT this moment there was shown in
woman with letter. Had the ambassador
been in his office she likely would have been
asked In to him, because Gen. Porter is
punctilious to a degree in such matters.
There have been American ambassadors
capable of ignoring letters and calmly going
their own way, far as the State Depart
ment and the rights of man permit. /
member such a one to whom woman from
St Louis came with letters from three
United States senator's and one governor.
They We're to be her passports into the best
society of the colony, as she told al the pen
sion. The ambassador would take her up
and pass her on. Therefore, because she
had full confidence in her three letters, she
simply sent them around to the embassy
without first having attached a string to
them. One week she waited. Two weeks
she waited. She waited the whole season
in vain What could she do? There was
never a response from the ambassador-and
her precious letters were gone.
There are letters and letters. The pres
ent woman'S letters were from the gov
ernor of her state and her county school
superintendent and requested only that
there be procured for her unusual privileges
to visit inspect and study the primary
school system of Paris. The first secretary
filled up a copper-plate letter form and
handed it to her
Passports and other Papers.
"Now, with regard to simple passports, it
is different" / said. Has one right to a
passport? Are YOU obliged to issue a pass
port to any citizen who makes affidavit of
his identity and presents evidence of it,
Yes, unless We have reason to doubt his
statements. The issuing of passports con-
tinued Mr.. Nignaud, lis the only service for
which this embassy makes any charge, and
2 hot. iE Nv ,,,t, ha M n
ing to the United States. All other papers
are issued free of charge. 1t is a rule
made twenty-five years ago. This embassy
has had a great deal of trouble about birth
certificates, for example. An American llV-
ing in Paris wants to marry. The French
government requires three papers of him
his birth certificate, a certificate that the
publication of banns is not required by the
laws of his particular state and the written
consent of both his and his brides father
and mother.
The embassy used to issue papers in
lieu of these originals which many Ameri-
cans find themselves almost powerless to
obtain. 1t was gratuitOuS service. Ihen
an American consul began issuing such pa
pers. His was not service gratis, ana
after a time there came word from the
State Department.: What are these papers?
1t is not the function of a diplomatic or
consular officer of the United States gov
ernment to state, over his Official sigma
ture, what is the law in any of the states
point. That is the business of lawyer.
Stop issuing these papers,
I'VE replied that they We're really neces-
sary for the convenience of the colony, and
that the French authorities would not ac-
cept any certificate issued by an American
lawyer If it had not the seal of the en-
baSsy. 1t was then agreed that these pa
pers could be obtained from lawyers and
that the embassy would certify not that
the statements of law or fact contained in
them are true. but that the lawyers issuing
them are competent to declare what Is the
law and custom of this or that particular
state
How many people come here in the
course Of a day. l asked.
Callers From Every State.
II should say the average would be fifteen
to twenty. To attend to their multitude
nous wants there is, first, the ambassador.
General Horace Porter then myself first
Spencer Eddy, second secretary,
and A. B. Blanchard. third secretary, with
Augustus Biesel, clerk.
Our visitors come from every state Of
the Union" continued the first secretary.
"All bring letters from senators, governors
or institutions. They want tickets to admit
them to the chamber of deputies. That Is
a real burden, because We have none. The
chamber of deputies was made for a small
assembly during the empire. and they have
not room now for their own people. and
cannot issue tickets freely. Every time we
want a ticket ! have to writ to the min
lister of foreign affairs to explain that 1t is
for prominent American. He writes to
the president of the chamber, and finally
the ticket gets from me to the prominent
citizen. Just now all are applying for
tickets to witness the great annual review
of the army. There are 15O applications
registered already. I fear we cannot sat
isfy them all. Then, also. they come to
borrow money, and are astonished not to
get it. What is the ambassador here for?
Matters of Etiquette.
Others want to see high people want to
be presented to the president of the re-
public, to the ministers, to be asked to re-
ceptions, dinners and balls. These enter
tainments are official: yes, but they are
official only for the officials. According to
French taste and habit 1t Is a singular re-
quest to make of a minister to issue a
ticket of invitation to some private person
he does not know. Nine Carnot made it
very stiff and would not issue an invita-
ton to any one she did not know: and the
tradition still has force in government
circles. 1t Is delicate matter
Il assure you 1t is a delicate question in
the American colony ! replied. ''It takes
this form: The American ambassador is in
the habit of giving great and splendid pub
lie receptions on New Year day the Fourth
Of July and Thanksgiving day. The notice
Is Is published IN the Paris papers, printed in
English. Everybody goes, and everybody
is happy. Yet for many women it is not
happiness enough. Later on, say after
New Year or at the beginning Of the au-
tumn, they will read In the society col
umns of those papers the simple mention
in two lines that Mrs. Porter has resumed
her Mondays Then the newcomers espe-
cially begin asking: Does it mean that we
are to call% or, more timidly not. as
you interpret 1t. Does that mean that we
may cai?' MIR. Vignaud, simple as the
question may seem, its answer will relieve
many troubled breast. Who may ca1l?'
rter2
con Mrs. Porter's Monday afternoons"
why. any one whom Mrs Porter
knows"
oh
You are speaking Of women, are YOU
not? The ambassador does not expect to
see any man who has not previously called
on him at the embassy. Let him register
In the visitors book and leave a card, at
least"
"And ladies?'
when there is woman with her hus-
band both should first leave cards on Mrs
Porter. Women alone should do so posi-
lively. They usually find Mrs. Porters
card returned to them within the proper
time. There is a book kept for such mat
ters. and they are attended to very scru-
pulously."
Then man may present himself at