Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-02-22
PRETTYDOROTHYTO TODD
Story of Her Wooing by James
Madison. :.
PRESENTED BY COL. BURR
Made Some Inquiries Before She
Gave Her Hand.
LETTER OF ADVICE PRESERVED
Mystery Regarding the Writer of
the Epistle-Sage and Affection
ate Counsel OF the Missive.
BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.

BY WILLIAM f. CURTIS.
Written for The Star and the Chicago Record
| Herald.
| When. in August, 1894, James Madison,
member of Congress from the state of
| Virginia, author in great part of the
Constitution of the United States, aged
forty-three years. fell in love with Doro-
thy Payne Todd. aged twenty-five, widow
of young lawyer, a member of the So
ciety of Friends in Philadelphia, and Of
fered her his hand she asked time to con-
slider the proposal. Then, like the wise
| woman that she always was. she made in
quiries as to the private life and personal
character of the statesman, who was al
| ready famous for his political acumen,
his intellectual ability and his literary
culture. The reply to her letter of in
quiry may now be seen at the store of
| Lowdermilk & Co, in this city, where it
was recently offered for sale by the
widow of descendant of the Madison
family
| Dorothy Payne Todd was the daughter
of John Payne, Virginia gentleman. and
Mary Coles. cousin of Patrick Henry.
Her father. having conscientious scruples
in regard to slavery set his negroes free.
sold his plantation near Williamsburg
| and removed to Philadelphia, where he
joined the Society of Friends. Thus Dor
| othy Payne was brought up Quaker,
| and at the age of eighteen married John
| Todd, prosperous young lawyer of the
same faith. The simple ceremony was
performed at the Friends Meeting House
on Pine street, Philadelphia on the sew
enth day of the first month of the year
| 1870. miniature painted soon after her
| marriage shows that she was a beautiful
young woman.
| f,,1
Indeed. Dorothy Payne was considered
one of the most attractive girls in Phila-
delphia, notwithstanding the fact that
she wore the garb of a Quakeress It's
severe simplicity heightened her beauty,
and the gray poke bonnet made her be-
witching face the more fascinating. She
| was great favorite with Lady Wash
| 1ngton and frequent and familiar Wis
| itor at the Presidents house. Her sister
! Lucy. when only fifteen years old-girls
| married young in those days-became the
wife of George Steptoe Washington. a
nephew of the President, and went to live
| at Hardwood, an estate belonging to
George Washington i'm Jefferson county,
Va. not far from Winchester and Har-
pers Ferry.
| Dorothy Payne's child William Temple
| Todd. was born in 1892. in her modest but
comfortable home on 4th street. Philadel-
phia. and few months later her hus-
band. John Todd, died of the yellow fever
| which aged in that city for several weeks
| He left will devising "all my estate,
| real and personal, to the dear wife of my
bosom. first and only woman upon whom
| my all and only affections were placed"
Dorothy Todd was left the little house
| on 4th street, but no other fortune; so she
rented her home and went to live with
her mother. Mrs. Payne. who kept a
| boarding house in the next block and as
| sisted her with the work of the house
/ hntd fho
Aaron Burr, one of the senators from
| New York. who was notorious for his
amours He had been friendly with
| James Madison while a student at Prince
! ton College. and although they differed
on almost every topic. and their habits of
| life were very unlike. their youthful in
| timacy was renewed. and Col. Burr intro
| duced Mr.. Madison into the house of
Mrs. Payne. His first visit was evidently
| matter of formal arrangement, for the
| little widow wrote her friend Mrs. Lee
saying:
Thou must come to me tonight. Aaron
Burr says that the great little Madison
| has asked to be brought to see me this
| evening"
Love at First Sight.
There is nothing to show that Col. Burr
ever paid his attentions to the blooming
| daughter of his landlady. although he
must have been sensible of her attrac-
1
pied elsewhere. But it is very certain
that the great little Madison was badly
smitten at first sight. although he was
forty-twO years old and bore the honOrs
| OF an eminent statesman. He had a ma
| t1onal reDutauOn: was one of the fore
| most men of his time and recognized
| leader of the new House of Representa-
| tives. Washington was President then.
| Adams and Jefferson were leaders of the
two political parties. but Mr.. Madison
4 I'D
| high office and was talked about freely
| as suitable presidential timber
However. his experience with young
women had not been encouraging. Fiji
/ teen wears before he had been Tilted in
| a most cruel manner by Miss Catherine
| Floyd. daughter of Gen. William Floyd,
a wealthy aristocrat of Long Island,
| member of the Continental Congress and
signer of the Declaration of Independ-
ence for the state of New York. But we
must remember that Washington was
| Tilted by three young women and Jeffer-
son by two before they finally married
Mr.. Madison meant business from the
start His attentions became conspicu-
Gus as soon Mrs. Todd discarded her
mourning, and she accepted them COM
PLEASANTLY. Mrs. Washington took an
active interest in the courtship and one
day had serious talk with Dorothy on
the subject. giving her some wholesome
advice. The President favored the match.
but did not butt in" With his charac-
| teriStic good sense he once wrote:
Il never did, nor do believe ever w!ll(
! give advice to young woman who is set
| ting out upon a matrimonial voyage"
| When the Question Was Asked.
In July. 1911. the young Widow Todd.
her baby boy scarcely two years old. and
her sister. Anne Payne. girl of twelve
| left Philadelphia for Hardwood to- visit
Mrs George Steptoe Washington. Mr..
| fol1n
he must have popped the question there
about the middle of August. 1894. for on
or about that date Dorothy Todd wrote
an important letter to Mr.. William w.
Wilkins, a mysterious person of whom we
know nothing except that he enjoyed
| very confidential and affectionate rela-
| tons with the young widow. and his Ian
| guage indicates that he was not a Quaker.
| The original Of his reply may be seen at
| Lowde rmilk's store 1t is addressed to:
| Mrs. Dolly =. Todd,
| "Martinsburg. Va,
"Virginia.