Evening star., 1926-06-20
BY MARGARET B. DOWNING.

BY MARGARET Il. DOWNING.
The Secretary OF the Treasury is so
widely known as discriminating col
lector of paintings that his skill In de.
tecting q fine tapestry is often over
looked Mr.. Mellon has "A deep at.
tachment for his pictures and tapes
tries. and though he declined TO equip
big mansion as his Washing on
home. he did no. hesitate about cover
ing his walls in the apartment on
Massachusetts avenue with his favor
lie weaves and canVases. To dine with
the director of the national finances is
always a threefold pleaSure-the quiet.
compelling personality of the host.
splendid banquet, and then the prlvi,
lege of enjoying paintings and tapes
tries, the counterpart of which are
generally found only in the older and
best galleries in Europe. Mr.. Mellon
purchased his canva seS before the
laws fol bidding the sale Of such treas
ureS into alien lands The stress OF
the World War let down the bars In
regard TO old pictures such as Mr..
Mellon owns. the British portrait
painters. IKE Reynolds. Gainsborough
and Romney. being generously repre-
Sented in his collection. but more
stringent regulations have been adopt
ed regarding genuine old tapestries,
1t is now all but impossible to buy ana
nave StlDp6u INTO lIllS EpullltN lAOSC
mellow green. yellow and brown Syl-
van scenes which were so commonly
made N the Gobelins and in the Flem-
ish works in the late seventeenth CEN
tury. NJ. Mellon has several of these.
and they are. indeed the most tempt
ing adjunct to his dinners. The late
William +. Draper purchased some
splendid ancient tapestries OF Italy.
very fine and rare and these are now
nf hts H1llODtpT Princess
Margaret Boncomragni. who has
placed tEern temporarily in the care of
the Metropolitan Museum OF Art.
The United States Amba ssador and
Mrs. Henry p. Fletcher will remain in
Rome until about the end Of June,
when. with a large party of friends.
they via so TO Venice for the most
picturesque o: the Summer religious
feasts. that nf the Holy Redeemer,
July IL when the scenes in the after
moons resem.2.e the Queen OF the Adri-
attic in the days of the doges, and
the night scenes on the lagoons
are not 10 be surpassed. This year
there will be unusual splendor,
for practically all Italy will go
10 Venice. and the procession will
wind in ind out of the canals and
into the sea and make special pilgrim
ages to churches off the Lido and all
along the canal. The feast occurs the
second Sunday of July, but for
week Venice is a surging mass of
pageantry and of religious fetes with
music on tie cir almost the entire "a
hours. Like al Americans abroad, Mr..
and Mrs. Fletcher hope to attend the
SesqutEenteRnial before it closes. but
this must cerIG some time after Sep
tember. TN cry chancellery of Europe
is hard pressed this Summer. and the
American embassy in Rome is one of
the busiest in the diplomatic gamut.
The King ot Italy is not much for va
cations, sno IL is often late into July
before he AY1d his family turn their
thoughts 20 Mona, where their Sum-
mer palace is located. Mussolin1 Is
suoh an indefatigable worker that he
keeps the foreign Office of Rome in
seething sActivity, and even Americans
find II difficult to keep step with his
Innovations.
Americans galore are in Paris, many
for the familiar purpose of purchasing
their gala apparel for the year. But,
according to official figures. the num-
ber of American women who go TO
Paris especially TO buy clothes is de-
crea sing. Queens of American society
patronize their home mod.stes more
and more, and for tailor-mades London
riding togs. However, picture gowns
are having a season of favor, and the
fact that the pretty young daughter
of the King and Queen Of Spain has
magnificent gown known as the Jeanne
dare model has created furore for
such costumes among the younger
bellies. But Princess Beatriz's gown
is copyrighted, and. while there may
be variations, nothing exactly like 1t
may be made, at least in France. Ii
shows the Maid of Orleans in her semi
military semi-StaLe costume IN Whlcn
she led the timid French King to his
coronation at Rheims. and II makes
an ideal combination for tall. grace
ful girl like the Spanish infanta. MRS.
Cornelius Vanderbilt nd her daugh-
ter. Miss Grace Vanderbilt, who were
IN Paris for a few weeks in the early
Snrine. had one of these historic pic
tiIre gowns made, both designed from
famous paintings Of grande DANES IN
the court of Louis XIV. Mrs. Wander
bilt's IS a turquoise blue satin and
Miss Vanderbilts of orchid PINK, ana
there is an admirable adaptatlon OF
modern Ideas of shorter and less vo-
luminous skirts with the prevailing
modes of the French beauties. The
Baroness de Cartier, wife Of the Bel
srian Ambassador, always buys her
clothes in Paris. and she, too. has
fallen a. victim to the lure of the pic
ture frock for evening wear.
Mrs. Ernest Thompson Seton, who
has recently been elected president or
The National Society of the League or
American Pen Women. is not only the
wife of an eminent artist, author anG
lecturer but she is also in every sense
renowned in identically the same
fields. and her residence in this city
for at least part of the year IS
matter Of congratulations Mrs. Seton
was Miss Grace Gallatin. granddaugh-
tor of the eminent publicist, Albert
Gallatin. who was Secretary OF the
Treasury. and whose statue is about
10 he erected in the Capital. She IS
native Of Sacramento, Calf, and be-
raD her literary career on the Exam
inar of San Francisco. But she soon
left the West and, selecting Paris as
her field of labor, she began rather
,oodestly as an illustrator and writer
of snecial articles. Her marriage 10
the nopuIar author and naturalist TOOK
mace in June, 1896, and for some
'.ears Mrs. Seton devoted her talents
10 hool1bindng and illustrating, but
rarely turned her pen to actual VIII
ing She founded and was for some
lime president of the Pen and brush
Cgnh Of New York City. Mrs. seton
rendered gallant service to the allied
ra1se after American participation in
tho World War. Her chief work was
to organize and direct for two years
tba Wonoau's Motor Service to remove
The wounded from battlefelds to nos.