Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-12-16
FAMOUS HOSTELRY
Arlington Hotel Has Accom-
modated Leading Men.
SP LENDID CUISINE
PRESIDENTS HAVE VERY OFTEN
BEEN ITS GUESTS.
House Was Opened In 1859 by T. Il
Roessle, Who Has Been the
Proprietor Ever Since.
SPLENDID CUISINE

! and the most aristocratic section OF the
capital, hotel OF the highest order. the
reputation Of which Is now worldwide, for
the fame Of the Arlington is only bounded
by the circumference of the globe. Distin-
guished men Of every cline and country
| have been guests between its hospitsble
walls and have partaken of its perfect cui-
| sine. Every President OF the United States
since the administration of General Grant,
| with one exception, has been the guest Of
the genial proprietor. Mr.. T. Z. Roessle,
| until the Arlington has gained the addi-
| tional appellation THE second whits
| House."
The history Of this famous house is one
Of intense interest. It Is reminiscent of the
blending In the same atmosphere of Ameri-
can craftsmanship and the royalty of the
old world. Pagan and Christian, Malay
and Caucasian. OF high rank. have found
generous entertainment beneath its ample
| roof tree. AS has been truthfully said, &c
is fit that In this historic heart of the con-
| tfnent-this rendezvous Of the masterful
men OF the republic-there should be
house of entertainment Of correspondents
magnitude and excellence. Such a house
is the Arlington Hotel. under the superb
management Of Mr.. Roessle.
The doors Of the Arlington were first
opened for business in December, 1869. the
building having been erected by the laB
W. w. Corcoran. About one year befoSx
that suspicious event Mr.. Roessle, while
travelling in Europe, met Mr. Corcoran,
who said to him:
''Roessle, I am building hotel for you
In Washington"
Mr. Roessle did not treat the matter with
much seriousness until some time later,
when he was away up the Nile. He re-
cefved large package Of letters, and
among them was one from his agent In
New York, which stated that for urgent
business reasons his presence was needed
at home. He returned to New York. and
later came to Washington. where he found
the Arlington nearing completion. He as
sumed charge Of the house and opened Il
in 1859. The marked success Of the Arl.
fngton Is due to the splendid management
Of M. Roessle and his ability to discern
at a glance the needs and requirements Of
such an establishment Of the first class.
Mr.. T. e. Roessle was born in Albany. N.
T.. and received his education at the Al.
bany Academy, which was equal In all its
departments to the best colleg OF that
period. 1t was an establishment, OF dignity
as we'll as OF learning and is the alma ma
ter of many men who have been prominent
IN the political life Of this country. Among
these were Roscoe Conkling and former
President Chester A Arthur. both OF whom
were schoolmates with Mr.. RoessIe. Al
early as 1s49 he entered the hotel busi-
ness as proprietor Of the Delevan House
at Albany. So he was not novice by any
means when he opened the Arlington AZ
- nf hatu
Mr.. Roessle served as commissary oficer
on the stan OF Governor Morgan of New
York, and 1t IL q matter Of record that At
one time he was furnishing food supplies
for from 10000 to 5000 state troops. AZ
the time Of his stan appointment Mr.. Roes-
sic was a member Of the famous old Albany
Burgesses Corps. Q military organization
which was second to none in the world al
to Its personnel AS an evidence Of this the
corps numbered 100 muskets at the COM
mencement Of the war. and ninety-five Of
Its members entered other military com
mands for active duty as officers. Every
man in the corps Is a gentleman" was
popular saying In Albany, and many Of
the members afterward held high positions
in the military. naval and civil service Of
the government and in business life. MI
Roessle is now a member Of the Old Guard
Of New York city. one OF the most noted
military organizations IN the world.
The distinguished foreigners who have
been the guests OF Mr.. Roessle at the Ar
lington include the japanese embassy IN
1872 consisting Of 106 persons; the Grand
Duke Alexis and party OF Russia; the EN-
peror Of Brazil and party, Princess Eulalis
Of Spain. the President Of Costa Rica, the
President Of Mexico: King Kaiakaua OF
the Sandwich Islands. Comte de Paris.
Duke de Orleans, Hon. Joseph Chamber
lain. Hon. Charles Hall and Sir John Nc
Donald and party Of England. at different
Chang. viceroy Of China and his retinue;
the Siamese prince royal and party: the
and Lafayette party from
France and every Chinese embassy since
Its establishment in this country.
This wide variety of guests from the no
bility OF the old world necessitated an
equally wide variety Of cooking. This was
true in reference to the repre-
sentativcs Of the f1owery kingdom. To
meet this necessity Mr. Roessle installed
an auxiliary range In his establishment.
and the Arlington enjoys the distinction
Of being the only hotel extant In which
cooks and chefs Of the world have gotten
up menus.
Mr. Roessle has also established for the
of such distinguished par
ties those mentioned, what Is known as
the diplomatic set of rooms" consist
ing Of thirty-six apartments. These rooms
are on the first floor in the new portion
Secretary of State Gresham and Charles
Summer lived and died at the Arlington.
Henry Irving, the great actor. gave a din
ner to the late James G. Blaine when he
was Secretary of State in of its capa-
cious and elegant dining rooms. Sir Charles
Window also gave dinner there 1t Is re-
called that Sir Charles was a surgeon in
the United States army during the civil
war and was only recently knighted by
King Edward.
Another interesting "reminiscences OF the
Arlington refers to the arrival here OF the
first Japanese embassy IN 1872 This party
was sent from Japan and credited by the
mikado directly to Mr.. Roessle. 1t was the
desire of the mikado that they should make
their first public appearance as much like
Americans as possible. As the rlembers
Of the embassy were clad IN the lowing
of Japan upon their arrival Mr..
Roessle found IL necessary to order from q
local tailor $50 dress suits to be fitted and
made within the period OF twenty-four
hours. This feat was accomplished and
he royal Japs appeared in the full regalia
,f fashionable Americans Many other In
.eresting incidents could be related of this
famous house and its popular proprietor
Mr.. Roessle has Travelled extensively
abroad He goes to Europe every year and
has made study of the methods Of all the
pest hotels In the world with the view
If increasing. when possible, the excellent