The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-09-27
NEW YORK TOPICS
aoss1p AND CURRENT COMMENT
FROM THE METROPOLIS.

Christmas, a Year AgO-Misled by
CrueI-Minded Joker, They
leaked for "DischarGe Envel-
oues." but Got Something Quite
inherent Instead-WilIiam b.
uornbIower, in Many Respects the
Most Interesting of the Democrats
who Are Supporting Low for Re-
aIaction-ThOugh Fifty-twO, He Is
Boy in Appearance, Manner,
Face and Figure.
New York, Sept. 26.-Seth Low may
he as disagreeable personally as Will
liam Travers Jerome said in the re-
,,arkable letter he sent to one of his
friends last week telling why the May
or should not be named to succeed
himself, and it must be admitted that,
somehow or other, he has gained re-
markable reputation for general cold
heartedness.
Some of the employees at the City
Hall who were "agin' him. prior to
last New Years, changed their minds
last Christmas time, however.
A certain City Hall man began the
circulation of the story about a week
before the holiday that the Mayor
had become very much dissatisfied with
the work of a lot of the employees es-
pecially the scrubwomen. So mean a
man was he, according to the joker,
that he proposed making their Christ
mas as much the reverse of a merry
ill., .,oI,o an
VelOpe on the day before which should
contain d notice of discharge. 1t was
amazing to see how the bad news
spread about the building and also
how the lazy and incompetent ones at
tempted to brace up" in the desper-
ate hope that the might ward off the
threatened wrath to come.
A week of greater suspense than the
one just preceding the holiday has
never been passed by the City Hall
employees, and several of the women
were heard to say they wished to
goodness that the week was over and
done with it," Finally the oath rolled
around. At about IL in the morning
one of the Mayors clerks increased
the growing uneasiness almost to the
panic pitch by conf1dentially inform
ing. half a dozen of the more timid,
with a sinister look, that they were
certain to get their envelopes, all
right, before the day was over" Down
to that time they were few who had
not been worrying, but this announce
ment made the most confident of them
all a little uneasy.
Promptly at the clerk started out
with a little satchel of bright yellow
envelopes, one of which he gave to
every employe in the place. The con-
sternation that ensued was little short
of pitiful. Some of the women almost
had Mysteries until one Chem, de-
ternined to know the worst, opened
her envelope. When she saw the con-
tents, a crisp IS bill, she nearly faint
ed for joy, and as every employe of
the laborers' grade received a dupli-
cate of the bill, the Mayors stock
about the City Hall went up at once
about 1000 per cent.
William B. Hornblower is one of the
most interesting of all the straight out
Democrats in this town who has in
dorsed the mayoralty candidacy of Mr..
Low. Mr.. Hornblower lis a lawyer of
national reputation and SURPRISING
skill But for the intervention of Da-
vid B. Hill he would have been made
Judge of the United States Supreme
Court in the mid-'nineties when Pres
ident Cleveland named him for. the
place. The Senate was agreeable to
his confirmation at first, but Hill said
No" and Hornblower VAST turned
down. 14,~ n
The most. striking personal eharac-
teristic of Mr.. Hornblower is his phys
ical appearance. His stature is very
loW-there are many 12-year-old
younsters who are taller-and his fig
ure is so immature as to suggest that
OF schoolboy not yet in his teens. His
feet are distinctly tiny and his hand
no bigger than a very small woman's.
His face is quite in keeping with his
lack of hight, his narrow shoulders and
his diminutive extremit1es, save that
it is beginning to show wrinkles and
that short side whiskers adorn the
chubby cheeks. His features seem
uniformed, his voice is light, his eyes
are of a baby blue, and his facial ex-
preston is childlike and bland. His
hair is still a youthful auburn, but
there the juvenile appearance stops,
for his head is so rapidly growing bald
that when you see him with his hat off
you can readily believe him 81, which
actually is his age.
But despite his lack of size and his
generally youthful appearance, any one
who looks for a lack of masculinity in
Mr.. Hornblower is sure of a great dis
appointment. His round and generally
beaming face can become the very ex-
ponent of grim sternness if occasion
demands. His boyish voice can tune it.
self to notes of icy severity if he
wishes it. The wonderful brain that is
contained in the bald head which sur
mounts his little body can perform
great stunts in the way Of cold, clear
logical exposition of the law. There is
not judge on any metropolitan bench
who would treat one of his arguments
lightly, nor is there a lawyer in the big
town, no matter how high his stand
ing, who would go into a case against
him feeling sure of victory.
Mr.. Hornblower has a son 81, and
his law practice is worth at least $4,000
year. pes
Almost every sort of person thinks
ne can write a book nowadays, and the
result is a flood of new volumes, some
of which are worth a good deal less
than the ink consumed in the making
thereof, let alone the paper on which
they are printed. There are some, how
ever made up of "reminiscences of
prominent persons, that are very good
reading" The trouble is that lot of
people who could write such books, if
they would, persistently refrain from
getting them out.
Such an one is Mrs. de Battle now
playing the star part in "Mrs. Deer
lngs Divorce" at one of the local
theaters, under the name OF Mrs. Lam
try. Her career since the young Irish
yachtsman, Edward Langtry, storm
bound on the Island of Jersey, first
met her at the rectory of her father,
the Rev. Mr.. lie Breton, has been so
varied, and she has known so many