Los Angeles herald., 1908-03-03
OF WORLD INTEREST
CLOSE OF THE SOCIAL SEASON
BY FREDERIC J. HAsklN

too frequent potations IN the wine that
flowed freely in the cause of peace.
There were some warm times in the
White House in Jackson's time. Be-
cause he championed the gay Peggy
O'Neal, then Mrs. Eaton, wife of Jack
sons secretary of war, he brought
down the wrath of the cabinet ladies',
and not being able to manage these
as he managed all other people, jack
son suffered distress of spirit until his
cabinet was wellnigh disrupted and
he had sent his niece, Mrs. Doneson,
the then mistress of the White House,
back to Tennessee in tears. Mrs. Fill
more, once a clever schoolmistress.
eager for additional intellectual pabu-
lum, was the one who first had books
selected for White House library.
She held Friday evening levees, DESPITE
weak ankle. and divided her home-
loving heart with the public who clam
ored for receptions:
Poor Mrs Lincoln. who came ar n
trying season, won the disapproval of
society by spending much of her time
shopping in New York when the other
women of the north were scraping lint
and rolling bandages for the soldiers
at the front, and while she cut out the
state dinners for economical reasons,
$50 u SAStbb 1Au1UUU RECEPTION l1dL
prougnt down even greater censure on
her head. 1t was too difficult O place
and too parlous a time for even the
most finished hostess to find success
perched on her banner, and the lines
We're hard for the little country woman
from the west. Mrs. Hayes, fond OF
young girls, entertained bevies of them
at dinners and had them constantly
as house guests. Mrs. Cleveland began
her remarkably successful regime with
q ball. one of the last large ones i'm
the White House, and Mrs. McKinley.
frail and delicate, was able to give lit
tie time to social events, but i'm the
time she sat in her room patiently
combating pain. she knit hundreds
Of pairs OF slippers for the poor.
With the growth of population and
the increased interest of the country
In its social life, many changes had
to be made in the official life of The
capital. Only one day in the year may
the world and his wife go unbidden to
White House reception, and that is
New Years day. on four other DAYS
there are evening receptions, by invi-
tation. for the diplomatic corps, the
JUDICIARY the army and navy, and the
members of congress. Even were the
crowds smaller these branches could
not be mixed now as in the long ago,
for class distinction has grown up in
this, presumably, most democratic
court of the world. These form four
separate and distinct social circles.
and the Gave Dwellers," or old
Georgetown and Washington residents
form another, while the band of new
and very rich that has captured the
capital In the past decade or so, per-
meates the several strata in proportion
to the distances that they as "climb-
erS' have gone
The law OF, precedence, as rigorous
as in the older European courts. once
caused some high judicial lights to
start home in high dudgeon from a
judiciary reception because blunder-
ing officer sent some diplomats in
ahead of them. Not long ago an officer
of the navy asked to be excused from
attending banquet to which he had
been asked on the grounds that there
he would have to meet some congress-
men on terms Of equality, thing that
did not comport with his ideas of his
own dignity. And congress could put
him down and out with a measure or
two! Once daughter of a judge
calmly changed the cards at lunch
con given a lady of the diplomatic
corps, so that she and not the honoree
sat at the hostess right!
washington is said to be the most
cosmopolitan, yet the most provincial
of all eastern cities. The White House
dances of 1926 are gone, the first in
augural ball. held by the Washington
dancing assembly at Longs hotel on
Capitol hill on March 4, 1S09 and the
Garfield inaugural ball at the National
museum, have been followed by more
pretentious ones at the pension build
ing. Hamilton's suggestion that the
president return no visits and that he
attend no dinners save those of an
official nature. has been generally fol-
lowed until today. Tudor hall, the
Highlands and the quaint homes OF
Cherry alley no longer attract the gay
social crowds. washington is becom-
ing the home of the wealthy. Massa-
chusetts avenue between Dupont cir
Gle and Sheridan circle is a second
edition of upper Fifth avenue. The
Belmonts, Letters. Washes, Ryans and
Boardmans have made homes here,
and the Vanderbilts make 1t more
than temporary abiding place. But
Lenten resorts are claiming these as
we'll as the official society set, the
Pavilion of Rest stands open and the
10Sth Shrove Tuesday has ended the
winters social season in washington.
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