The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-08-13
SOCIETY IN WASHINGTON
sY CoNsTANC E CARRUTHEps

Washington, August 12.-tspecial) The sound of the hammer. the swash of ths paint brush and the hiss of the vacuum cleaner are the most common sounds now
 in the fashionable sections of Washing ton. -,
 For this is the time when the houses of the great, the near great and the would-be-great are put in condition for the season which will begin along in No- vember. And unless all signs fail it IS going to be a great season. New houses are being brought to completion Ball rooms added to houses; bathrooms added to houses where daughters are to be pre- scented or debutantes and their elders III general are to be feted Dining rooms arc enlarged in homes where there is dispo- sition to keep pace with the ever-widen-
 ing world of society, in which dinner giv- ing becomes every season more general.
 The White House. among others, has it's annual renovation. There is con- stant coming and going of those whose homes are in the hands of architects and of others seeking suitable establishments for the winter. Mrs. Copley Thaw, who Is to join Washington's winter colony, was among the number brought to the city on such a mission this summer. The new Secretary of War and Mrs. Stimsou spent some long June days house hunt ing. with a real estate agent pilot Washingtons summertime activities are,
 in truth, an evidence of the city's growth As autumn approaches many household goods are installed in new niches and the season opens in a setting that grows every year more elaborate.
 The former ambassador to France and Mrs. Henry White are about finishing d house that has the charm of looking as if it had stood on the hill north of the city since the cornerstone of the capitol was laid. At the same time newcomer buys the home of the late Chief Justice Fuller. the old Carroll property in F.. Street, not many blocks from the river bank, in the region of ivy-grown gardens that conceal their beauty, if not their sweetness, behind century-old brick walls. It is some years since the supreme court justices had their homes grouped to- gether within easy walking distance of the court, though some, like Justice Har- Ian. keeps up the practice of walking. notwithstanding the distance from home is a good two miles,
 Among the newcomers in the court there has been diversity in the selection of To- cality. Justice and Mrs. Hughes are building such a house as they could not find already built, in Sixteenth street. Justice and Mrs Lamar will settle in the autumn in their recently purchased house in New Hampshire avenue. and Justice and Mrs. Lurton will be again next win ter neighbors of Justice and Mrs. Holmes in I street. Hs A
 Framed by the White House on the south. and with the homes of the Vice President and Mrs. sherman, the Secre- tary of the Treasury and Mrs. Mac f to Of v,I Stimson, the Attorney General and Mrs Wickersham, the Secretary of the Navy and Mrs. Meyer the French and Brazilian embassies. and Netherlands legation the houses of many secretaries and attaches of embassies and legations and the homes of members of both houses lining in length, there Is little doubt, however that fair portion of the social life of tho third winter of the Taft administration will have it's center in Sixteenth street
 Among those who are expected to set the pace for entertaining among the ,in- official set is Mrs. John Hays Hammond. wife of the special ambassador to the coronation of King George Mrs Ham mond is peculiarly we'll equipped for the work of a great hostess. Not only is she possessed of unlimited wealth but she has that natural aptitude for enter taning peculiar to theshigh bred southern woman. l. Mrs, Hammond was born in Vicksburg, Miss, of Virginia colonial stock, and her people were among the pioneers of Mississippi. Her father, Judge J. J. M. Harris was a lawyer in Vicks- burg of high repute. and was one of the auditors in Richmond under the ad- ministration of Jefferson Davis. Her un- cle was Brigadier General Nat Harris whose portrait hangs in the gallery in Richmond devoted to southern generals.