Evening star., 1926-02-21
Tales of We'll Known Folk
In Social and Official Life
Sketches Given of Distinguished Diplomats and
Statesmen Who Have Figured in Ameri-
can and European History
BY MARGARET B. DOWNING

BY MARGARET Il. DOWNING.
Secretary Kellogg, who is the most
Amiable and least critical of officials
could with good reason complain OF
the shabbiness of the reception room
where he holds conferences with the
ambassadors and other envsys of the ).
nations represented I'm the diplomatic
corps. 1t would be safe wager that
no other great and powerful nation OF
the world has such a poorly equipped
audience chamber as that with which
the Secretary of State has to worry
along. The once glorious and delicate
blue Persian rugs show the tooth of
: time only too plainly, while the ebo
hlZed black furniture is dreary enough
10 dampen the most eXuberant spir.
ATS Everything is neat and orderly
Tor there are excellent houSekeeperS in
charge of the vast State. War and
Navy Building. so called. though the
Navy moved out eight years ago and
the War Department hangs on the
outer edge of the mort Invest corner.
II Is rather amusing to note the shifts
which the great Department of State
has to make To give separate offices
even to such digntarieS as the As
slstant Secretaries. Mr.. Leland iIarri-
son. for instance. is in Il room parti-
It /,
and half of the space thus rescued ie
given to Mr.. Robert f.. ODDS. the legal
head of Secretary kellogg's several
aides. None of the offices of these mon
who represent the power and ma ieSty
OF the Nation abroad is equipped even
as Il moderately successful business
man would have his quarters Those
or the Secretary and his audi nee
Chambers, when he receives the for
nd, r,
resemble the best parlorS of rural
hotels 20 years ago. rather than the
places where the mighty republic of
the west transacts its international
affairs
Mr.. Henry White. whose beautiful
nome in Crescent place is occupied hrlt
too infrequently for the wishes Of n :
many friends. iS the oldest Uf : 'VprIl
retired ambassadors who call Wash
tnSton their home, ut least for a part
or the year. Mr.. White was prepared
Tor a diplomatic career by private tu-
tors IN this country and in France
and entered the service of the State
department in 1883. when Arthur was
president and Theodore Frelinghuy-
sen was Secretary of State. Gradu-
ally mounting upward in his chosen
career from minor attache to first sec
retary and counselor of the American
Embassy in London Mr. White was
promoted from this TO he Ambassador
10 Italy and later to France. when in
1911. he retired from the foreign serv-
Ice after having devoted more than 81
years to untangliHg tha diplomatic
KNOTS IN international affairs Born in
Baltimore and familiar with the beau
" and attractions of the CAPITAL CITY
II Is almost 80 years ago that Mr..
hea nd /, IL,
home is built. He did not, however.
begln operations until about 1905,
"hen. through his efforts tha log
cabin OF Joaquin Miller. the poet of
the SlerraS. which had been located in
a thick tangle Of woods and under
growth. was taken over by the State
society OF California. removed and re-
erected on its present site in Rock
Creek Park. Mr.. White lived the
greater part of the year in Washing
TON until his second marriage, in 1920.
TO Mrs. Emily Vanderbilt Sloane. but
SINCE then he divides his time between
New York City, LenoX and Newport.
lie always comes to his home here in
december and diSpenses a traditional
hospitality To many old friends of the
past half century. This dean of the
American foreign service was born on
March 26. 1880. and he will soon cele-
Y.
DR.. David Jayne Hill. who once was
Amba SSa dor to Germany is the oldest
OF the higher diplomats in the point
OF living in Washington. Dr. Hill re-
signed the presidency of the Univer-
slty Of Rochester and came to Wash.
lngton in 1898 to lecture in the George
Washington University and within u
few months to accept the position Of
\ #
under the late William r. DAY. He
was first assistant under Secretary
Hay and was then promoted to the le-
cation at Bern. lie was Minister 10
The Hague in 1907 and presided at
the first Hague Tribunal. and went
from there to Berlin. where he was
Ambassador. Dr. Hill and his late
wife returned To Washington to make
their home in 1912. Another Ambas-
sador who is in Washington part Of
the year is Mr.. LarZ Anderson. who
after being Minister to Brussels, be-
came Ambassador to Toxic Mr..
Thomas j. O'Brien, some time Ambas-
sador to the Japanese capital, also is
Winter resident. spending several
months each year with his daughter.
Mrs. Henry Getty Chiffon. wife of the
counselor of the British embassy
The; former Ambassador to Italy and
mis-. INltIld1u w NdSlbuTn tlllu are
spending the present Winter in Wash
ingten. Both follow the profession Of
letters and they find Washington
fruitful field. There are scores of the
lesser lights who We're once in. the
diplomatic service, but have found
other VoCationS.
Mrs. Robert Bacon. who was so long
resident of Washington when her
husband was first Secretary of State,
and then on the election of Elihu Root
10 l,e Senator from New York. was
head Of the State Department. has
most reluctantly been compelled to
eive3 up her home at No. ] Park ave
nue. New York City. Fashion long
ago fled from this far-down section
once SO popular. and Office buildings
and tall apartment houses replaced
lovely homes. which had been torn
down. But Mrs. Bacon stuck to her
old home. because Of its associations
and because it was 80 close to the
many activities to which she now de-
votes her time and income. But re-
Gently, and Immediately next to her
great office building has been in the
course of erection and her house has
been utterly blocked for social pur-
poses by the great piles of building
material, while it has become prob
lem even to get in with domestic sup
plies. The noise also has become un-
bearable and the consequence is that
the last householder in this particular
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