The Washington times., 1915-09-26
JEAN ELIOTcH
LETTER.

this town. now rapidly being devoured
into the ravening NAV Of commercial
expansion. You would begin to realise
some Of the incidental horrors. at least.
Of war u you would visit one Of these
establishments nowadays. don't dare
guess how many people have been added
to the staffs Of the embassies Of the
warning countries; but you can be as
sured that the number Is not sufficient.
The men were Just coming in to begin
another days grind when I appeared
for my appointment. They looked worn
] Ind exhausted. and the young man with
/ whom had some business. apologising
for being late. explained that ne had
worked TIL o'clock the morning be-
Efors. and at that was lucky. experience
Iof the last year had taught him. that
to get away from his desk before 8
q. m. was to steal an extra and unusual
hour with Morpheus:
Even the attendants were plainly tired
oIt: the messenger who. took my card
looked as II he felt the strain Of sharing
the burdens that have fallen largely
on Ill Diplomatic shoulders, however
humble. Under!ings of various degrees
were hurrying about the place with
bundles Of documents: desks. planted in
most astonishing places in drawing
rooms and grand parlors, were piled
with papers. and the piles grew con-
stantly despite feverish efforts Of the
mon In charge t. dispose Of them. The
variety Of business that descends on
the embassies and consulates in q time
like this is unbelievable.
They told me the business had utterly
cutgrown the embassy quarters. I
didn't need to be told. What had once
been the Office section Of the establish
ment had stopped over till the entire
pace was more or less converted into
,impromptu offices.
: The furniture had been largely taken
out; what could not be sent away had
oeen covered with slip-on coverings:
rugs, mattings. tapestries, pictures gen.
erally, had been boxed away in stor-
age. In ono great ball room where I
have danced more than once. at great
assemblages. the gilded legs Of wonder
full furniture pieces-chairs, sofas. di.
vans, and even a grand piano-peeped
out from under the somber coverings,
making the furniture, which was crowd
ed over on one side of the room, look
ike convention of ghosts Of formed
grandeur; while the rest of the space
was occupied by q miscellany Of desks,
ONCE chairs. typewriter stands, book
RACKS and wastebaskets; and-imagino
tho gruesomencss Of it!-down over this
,umole benignly smiled, out Of frames
az dig a. the side Of your bedroom,
tho 1uu-length portraits of the reign.
Ing monarch and his consort; absolute
II the only decorations of any sort left
IN tho place. I could not but wonder
what they were thinking about the
monarch business. as 4 regular voca-
ton. In these times.
- -+-
They ttsn me that the bigger diplc-
naatfc establishments of Washington.
owing, to the access of business the
war has forced upon them. are all get
ting outarown. and that there Is every
reason to expect that this condition
viii coRtinpe after the war; washing.
ton 10 hAver going to be q second-rats
CAPITAL ssain: It will be one of the
grsat crossroads Of the worlds thoughts
and interests and governments, es Just.
now 1t b the greatest meeting point
for the nations. because it is the only
great capital that can still receive Dip
lonats from all the countries. Wo
snail prpbably see several new embassy
ahd legation buildings erected here as
ccon AZ the Impoverished European
countries can spare the funds; I un-
1erstand tnsistent demands have al
ready been made in soxne casAs for bet
ur Quarters.
1t will probably be q long time be-
fore such plans can be carried out:
but they must be sooner or later.
: 80
It would make your heart ache to
see these young men. and others not
so young. at the embassies: working
to the limit Of human endurance. and
many Of them bemoaning that they
cannot be with their regiments at the
front. One man who would be an ir-
reparable loss because he Is a glorious
dancer sazcd out of the window and
forgot himself long enough to admit
that all the men of his family except
himself were in uniform, and that he
had tried to be relieved SO that he
might 60 to the front He had lost
three or four near relatives. and it
seemed to be his firm conviction that
ne must take up his share Of the bur-
den. But the home Affice had refused.
eAopPSu ~ hHO"b SlOuSn ne OsVn't
tell me. that his special expertness in
the line Of work he handles decided
his government that he could not be
spared. He is serving his country a
hundred times better at a desk than
he could IN trench. Yet he longs for
tho trench and fears that a certain
lovely girl on the other side may de-
eide that he's a mollycoddle because
he Is 5000 miles from the shooting. I
wish sine could have seen the look in
his eye as he spoke to me Of his grief
over being out Of the real game"
She wouldn't suspect him of anything
unworthy.
To make sure Of the presence of the
Richardson Clovers. who are now on
their way back to Washington via the
Panama Canal. Mrs. Henry J. Crocker,
of San Francisco. introduced her sec
ond daughter. Kate Eudora Crocker,
very early In the season. There was an
clabaroate afternoon function, followed
by q dinner and dance and. of course,
Mrs Clover and her daughters. Eudora
and Beatrice. were in the receiving line,
together with some of the Crocker rela-
uves. Kate Eudora Crocker Is named
for Mrs. Clover. who was Eudora Mil
= A.~L