St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1908-11-21

vel soon alleT
she became mistress of the famous
old mansion.
The inception of the collection was
almost by accident. While Gen. Theo-
dore A. Bingham, now police commits
sioner of Greater New York, was SUI
perintendent of public buildings and
grounds at Washington, position
which entails supervision of the White
House, he found that there was com
paratively little of the china or the
plate left which had been used
through the administrations of the va
rious chief executives.
Before his appointment as superin-
tendent he had served as military aide
to our American embassies at both
Berlin and Rome, and while there had
noted the veneration and care be-
slowed upon the royal residences and
their belongings. 1t did not take him
long to discover the painful lack in
that regard in the presidents house.
Meeting the writer of this article one
day in the early summer of 1901, he
asked her why she did not write a
STORY" on the presidential china in
the White House and awaken inter
est in it that would lead to it's preser-
walton.
IF somebody does not do that pref
ty soon," he added, energetically,
there won't be any left to preserve. ;"
Mrs. Roosevelt has always taken the
greatest interest in everything per-
tanning to American history, and she
saw that it lay within her power to
preserve at least specimens of the
historic ware. She designed two cabi-
| nets and had them placed in the low
er east corridor of the mansion, where
| they could be inspected by all visitors,
and then asked the writer to come
to the White House and select the
pieces of china which should be placed
! in the cabinets
While this work was being done
| the new state dining set which Mrs
| Roosevelt had ordered for the White
pieces chosen from it, eight shelves
were filled with china which was used
during the administrations of Lincoln
Grant, Hayes, Arthur, Harrison, Cleve
land, Mckinley and Roosevelt
shelf to each administration
The china selected by Mrs. Roose
welt for the state dining set could not
be in better taste. 1t is Wedgwood
and is decorated in a simple Colonial
pattern in gold, with the diverse OF
the great seal enameled in colors or
each dish. There are over 1906
pieces in the set, and to accompany il
she ordered 144 pieces of glassware
| A dinner platter dinner, breakfast
tea and soup plates, with tea cuI
and coffee cup and the saucers, were
selected from this set for the collec
ton.
Neither Mrs. Mckinley nor Mrs
Cleveland ordered much china for the
executive mansion, but plates and cups
and saucers of their selection were
placed in the cabinets. The plates sc
lected by Mrs. Cleveland were exquis
tie Wedgwood and Minturn patterns
and one of the odd flag design bonbo1
dishes, used first at the Cleveland
state dinners, was also included OF
the Cleveland shelf.
Mrs. Harrison was very artistic il
her taste, as well as patriotic, ant
she greatly desired to have the gold
enrod adopted as the national flower
When she found that she would havt
to order some new china she designed
the decoration for it, combining til,
goldenrod and leaf with the Indian
corn and stalk. On each piece thi
design, with the coat-of-arms Of TIL
United States and a rim of colder
stars, was emblazoned. In addition sh
selected many
pieces of cut &C., -
glass, and they Vg 70 IEHIIaTse III
also bear the EsES4r1 n
coat-of-arms.