The sun., 1919-10-26
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20.

Queen OF the BelgianS next
week. Because OF the illness Of the
President and the death of the italian
Ambassador, Count di Cellere, the af-
fair will not be so imposing as had
been intended.
When questions began to pour in
upon the State Department. ii was
Immediately announced that there was
no present intention OF cancelling the
official functions in honor OF the royal
visitors. The Vice President and Mrs.
Marshall are to take the place of the
President and Mrs. Wilson as official
hosts for the nations guests. The
plan Of putting them up at the White
House as the Presidents house guests
has been abandoned and the King and
Queen and their up and coming young
son, with such Of their suite as are
closely attached to their persons, are
to use the Breckenridge Long resi-
dence in Sixteenth street, while some
others of their party will be the guests
Of the Belgian Legation.
They are to arrive on Monday and
win Of course be met at the station
with all the pomp and ceremony that
a republic can devise. The first af-
fair in their honor will be the dinner
given by the Vice president and Mrs.
Marshall that night at the Walsh
home. On Tuesday a dinner will be
held at the Belgian Embassy, with the
Ambassador and the Baroness de Car
tier as hosts. On Wednesday night
the Secretary Of State and Mrs. Lam
sing will entertain at dinner in their
honor. On Thursday the visitors will
60 on their way.
The untoward circumstance of the
Presidents illness seems to have put
an end to any plan for state ball in
the royal Belgians' honor, or big re-
ception, or anything of that sort, so il
is evident that only the cream of the
official world will be able to boast OF
having attended any OF the functions
in their honor. In fact the State De-
partment officials seem to be trying
hard to arrange the lists for the tive
American dinners so that the guests at
the one will not be among those at the
other. or course they have nothing to
do with the Belgian Ambassadors din
ner, but it will probably be largely
diplomatic.
VIII Visit Mount Vernon.
With their evenings thus accounted
for they will do the usual round of
sight seeing-including of course a trip
10 Mount Vernon on the Mayfiower,
when the Secretary of the Navy and
Mrs. Daniels will probably have their
innings, since the Mayflower is part of
the naval establishments. 1t would al
most seem as If the Secretary OF War
and Mrs, Baker would have no oppor-
tIn!ty to play hosts, though they will
of course be at some. if not all, of the
PARTIES. Perhaps on the whole they
VIII be just as we'll pleased, for their
house in Georgetown-a lovely old
Colonial home-is not equipped for big
and brilliant parties.
Perhaps the most important event of
the brief visit will be the trip to the
Capitol, during which King Albert will
address Congress and, perhaps, get
Gown to the business end of his jour-
ney' as distinguished from the purely
social. Cards to the galleries will be
scarce and precious.
The Breckenridge Long house, in
which the royal visitors are to be en-
teFtained, is best known to Washing
ton as the MacVes1h house, since II
was built by the late Mrs. Franklin
MaeVet-sh as gift to her husband du-
ing the beginning OF his term as Sec
Ie'ary OF the Treasury.s The drawing
room and the music room are copied
from Fontainebleau. and the music
room is equipped with a $4,000 pipe
organ. The dining room is a fifteenth
century room done in Flemish oak and
and particularly notable for its Won
oerfully effective indirect lighting.
II was in this house that Balfour
ana the British High Commission were
entertained when they came to Wash
ihgton in the spring Of 1917. The
Longs having at that time just leased
from Mr.. MacVeags. but not having
a yet taken possession, set other
wealthy Washingtonians the example
Oh lending their mansions to Uncle
Dam for the entertainment OF his dis
unguished guests. It is within a
stones throw OF the French and Span
ish embassies and the Cuban and Dan
IN legations, and nearest OF all to the
residence to which the former I'm
peF4al Russian Ambassador and Nine
george Bakhmeteff have withdrawn
SINCE the overthrow Of imperial Rus
sia
Negro Blocked Diplomat.
nut-as often happens in Washing
"h' 1t is directly opposite a tumble
u0"h little old frame house occupied
~ colored people-and II was to smile
o"e uay while the British High Com
MISSION was there to see a shaky
shaooy old horse with a rattletrap ex-
press wagon drawn fairly across the
pat blocking a long line of motors
u"EhS to take their excellencies OF
ne British High Commission while
'ne motley household goods Of tho
aforementioned colored family were be-