The National tribune., 1902-12-18

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She was called pretty Dolly Madison
in thai day. but standards of beauty must
have changed lot. Dolly had bad
conn., Iexion and poor teeth. She used
snuff to excess, and her hands were al
ways stained up with the dreadful stuff.
She followed the wretehed Southern ems
tom of pewdering and using rouge to the
limit, and it does not seem that a woman
who would do, those things could be very
pretty" There are some big overarcl-
ing trees in the poor, neglected yard,
under which Dolly and her beaux used to
sit,- and clambering over the high yard
walls, every brick of which is as hard as
flint. and came from England, are Maiden
Blush roses and Sweetbrier brambles, lad
ing the air with perfume the long Summer
/ through. The house itself is quaint be-
yond description. 1t is oetagonal, and you
enter from a corner into an oetagonai hall.
around which dozen doors open into
funny little rooms. There are the oldest
little cubby-hole closets IN almost every
room, and the open freplaces have fine
marble mantels. The woodwork is solid
mahogany, over the most Of the house.
Some vandal who lived in it briefly 90
years or SO ago painted it with cheap red
and-white paint, and it is only just lately
that it has been discovered that the ma
hegany in the house is a valuable possess
lsion.
Under the house are very fine wine eel
lars, but they have been empty for many
decades, and the old house. once the scene
of brilliant American Court" being in
litigation, has stood dismantled and lonely,
the fashionable world having fed far from
it, though it was once. the center Of the
social set. Being in the hands of a
keeper, it became dusty, dirty, cobwebby
and eerie enough. 1t was said to be
hanted. Surely there are memories
enough hanging round it to make it a
roost for "hants." 1t was in this house
that the Treaty Of Ghent was signed. 1t
is considered the finest example of pure
Colonial architecture in existence today.
The American Institution Of Architects
will now proceed to restore the old house
Ito its Colonial state, and It win probably
become one of the great show-places Of
Washington
The National Indian Association held
its 23d Anniversary Convention in Wash
Iington last week. There was a splendid
turnout of delegates, and the audiences
filled the Church of the Covenant, where
the sessions we're held. A very fine pro-
gram was presented, many of the speakers
being men and women of National prom
inence. among them being Indian Com.
missioner jones and Miss Estelie Reel,
Superintendent of Indian Schools. One of
the most interesting features of the Con-
ventien was the display Of Industrial work
from Haskell Institute, Lawrence, Kan.
The needlew0rk displayed, which was Ill
done by the pupils, was exquisitely fire,
and the map and nature work was equally
good. Indians are natural artists. They
combine c0lors beautifully, and are careful
las to details. Haskell is now one of the
greatest Indian institutions in the country,
the Industrial work done there being in
demand all over the country. Among the
other displays was the pretty little news
paper, the Indian Leader" which is
printed weekly at Haskell les editor and
manager is Miss Helen ". BAH. a practi.
cal printer, who has been with the school
almost since its foundation. The paper,
which Is set by Indian boys, az part of
their Industrial training, Is practically
lself-supperting now, and In connection with
it Miss Ball has job printing outfit, with
which she gets up all the blanks and other
job work for the institution. Mr., FL. B.
Peairs, the superintendent Of Haskell In
lstitute, is a native-born Kansan, and has
been in the Indian school work at Haskell
since its institution.
| The National Association Of the Red
Cross held its Annual Meeting in Wash
lington last week, and while the Red Bras
sard makes for peace on the field of bat
tie, there seems not to have been much of
that commodity loafng around the Com
ventiOn nali. 1t was ciose-communion
sort Of an affair, and all that gets out is
what the members tell AS no two of
them saw things alike, there is a rich va
| rlqfy nf o,iuiOnc which fo oh
seems that there was a coterie of the
members who believe that Miss Clars
Barton, who has been the head and front
| of the Red Cross Society in this country
for 40 years, is no longer able to handle
| its affairs, and that il she is to retain
the Presidency, it should be as "Presi.
dent Emeritus" or something Of that sort
Anybody who knows Miss Barton
knows also that she isn't the lady to stand
anything of that kind. She will be 1t, OF
she will step aside and let somebody else
take the trouble with the honors Any.
how, Red Cross work while Miss Barton
stays On top of the earth, without Miss
Barton In that work would be an anomaly
as everybody knows that until Miss Bar.
ton introduced it here there was no Red
Cross in the United States. Then she
made losing fight for years to have the
work given a National character by Con
6icsS. VIZ tcdto dSU, luEOuSu INe eI
forts of her Secretary, Gen. VIII Sears
who was then private secretary to Senator
Harris, Of Kansas, Congress Incorporated
the Red Cross Society, and it became al
last National organization.
| The friends Of Miss Barton then set te
work to save" her, from the wing of the
organization that wished. to place at ths
head of the growing society a younger ant
more active person. There were rumor,
of BLACK Flags rather than "Ret
Crosses" in the Convention of year ago
but Miss Bartoa's friends are said to hav,
scooped in the majority at that time.
In some manner, Mrs. Harriet 3. Reed
lof Dorchester. Mass, got into the gam,
this time with new set Of Rules ant
Regulations, or Bylaws, which were cal
! culated to cinch things for Miss Bartor
and her friends 1t is not divulged how
Mrs. Reed happened to have this oppor
} tunity, but that she had it is self-evfdent
! for she precipitated the code and a good
! sized row at one and the same time whel
she presented the Bylaws to the Conyen
] ton for its acceptance. Gen. John w
Foster, ex-Secretary of STATE, mildly sug
gested that the new Bylaws ought to b
: printed and submitted to each member TO
careful consideration before they wer
voted upon, but his objections were swep
i scornfully aside.
. The new Bylaws were then presente
r to the Convention for approval or rejec
. ltiOn, They were adoDted nv q vot. ~ q