The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1907-10-17
(From Portland Oregoniap)

(From Portland Oregoniap)
Mrs. Tom Thumb is today perhaps
the most widely known woman in the
world When Queen Victoria was alive
she was probably the best known wo-
race the present Empress of emma
may be known to more human beings
than any other woman, but except IN
educated circles, which number only
mere fraction Of the human race, the
Great Yellow Woman is practically un-
known outside of her own country.
The same may be said of Sarah Bern
world rulers, such as Mrs. Roosevelt
the Czarina of Russia and others are
a comparatively few even in their own
nation know of them as individuals,
as their famous husbands are known.
They shine by reflected glory, so to
speak But the name tom Thumb
which. by the way. was given by queen
Victoria herself. / as become almost
living English phrase for something
that is small, a miniature, just as the
word Jumbo" has deserved a place III
the English dictionary for anything
that is huge. Go anywhere in the
English speaking world and use the
term tom Thumb" and every one,
high and low, will know whom you
mean. And for the past week Mrs.
Tom Thumb has been in Portland.
Mrs. Tom Thumb" as she is still
known to the public and has been for
nearly so years, in private life is the
Countess Magri, wife Of Count Magri
of Italy. a dignified educated gentle
man about the size of his famous wife.
Her maiden name was Miss Lavinia
Warren. -"
Friday evening l spent two very
pleasant hours in the Portland grill
room with Mrs. Tom Thumb, her hus
band and her present manager, Mr.. l.
c. Speer. Her brother-in-law Baron
Magri no larger than herself being
somewhat advanced in years, preferred
his bed to a midnight luncheon and
was sound asleep while we four slipped
souterne and ate oysters and chicken
sandwiches and listened to Herr Iind's
at huge cigars, while Mrs. Tom Thumb
chatted of numerous famous people she
had known, most of whom are now
dead, and told me some thing of her
remarkable life.
When one first meets the little wo-
man one is a triffe i'll at ease, as the
contrast between six feet and less than
three is novel, to say the least, but
this feeling soon wears off and after q
time i was surprised to find that
had forgotten all about her size in
listening to one of the most remarka-
BILE women it has been my good for.
tune to meet. Although small in body
in fact the smallest living intelligent
human being on earth, Mrs. Tom
Thumb has a mind SO keen and bright
as almost any feminine mind one will
find in years of newspaper work. Her
fund of information received at first
hand is seemingly inexhaustible. Fri
day evening, for instance, she sat there
at the table chatting as easily about
her lifelong friend, Queen Victoria.
as any gentle old lady would become
reminiscent about another, for the
great Queen and Mrs. Tom Thumb
were just old ladies together, the lso-
lation that the world had thrust on
each of them bringing them closer to-
gether than if either one had been an
ordinary human being.
While the count talked with Herr
Lind in French and with Mr.. Speer in
English. although italian is his native
tongue, Mrs. Tom Thumb said:
Il am Sc years old the last day of
this month, and l have been before
the public nearly 40 years. l travelled
four years before l met Mr.. Barnur.
1 was in the old South all the time,
and they were so good to me that it
seemed ideal. Then the war broke OUT
and I thought that we would never get
North again. But we did, and l went
to my home in Massachusetts, where
l was born, by the way, Mr.. Barnum
had been trying to get me to go with
him, that is, my sister Minnie and L.
but we had heard that he was a very
hard man and all that. so we We're
afraid of him and avoided him. He
sent several agents to see us, but it
was no use. Finally. one day at home,
while 1 was ironing (and I just love
to iron,) word came from Mr.. Bar
num- His agent was there and I