As I Remember
recalled to me the personal appearance of General Washington. His
facetious rejoinder was: "Was ever the Father of his Country so
defamed?" I met at this entertainment for the first time Charles Sumner,
who had but recently taken his seat in the U.S. Senate and of whom I
shall speak hereafter. Caleb Cushing was also there, and Cornelia Marcy,
the beautiful daughter of William L. Marcy, was one of the belles of the
ball. I have stated that General Scott did not generally attend evening
entertainments; in his own way, however, he took great interest in all
social events, and upon my return from parties, sometimes at a very late
hour, I have often found him awaiting my account of what had transpired.
I have spoken of General Houston's appearance. I now wish to refer to
his fine sense of honor. He was married on the 22d of January, 1829, to
Miss Eliza Allen, daughter of Colonel John Allen, from near Gallatin,
the county town of Sumner county in Tennessee, and separated from her
directly after the marriage ceremony under, as is said, the most painful
circumstances. The wedding guests had departed and General Houston and
his bride were sitting alone by the fire, when he suddenly discovered
that she was weeping. He asked the cause of her tears and was told by
her that she had never loved him and never could, but had married him
solely to please her father. "I love Doctor Douglas," she added, "but I
will try my best and be a dutiful wife to you." "Miss," said Governor
Houston, even waiving the fact that he had just married her, "no white
woman shall be my slave; good-night." It is said that he mounted his
horse and rode to Nashville where he resigned at once his office as
Governor and departed for the Cherokee country, where and elsewhere his
subsequent career is well known. Having procured a divorce from his
wife, he married Margaret Moffette in the spring of 1840.
During the same winter I attended a party given by Mrs. Clement C. Hill,
as a "house-warming," at her residence on H Street. Many years later
George Bancroft, the historian, occupied this residence and it is still
called the "Bancroft house." Mr. Hill was a member of a prominent
Maryland family which owned large estates in Prince George County, and
his wife was recognized as one of the social leaders in Washington.
Another ball which I recall, which I attended in company with the
Scotts, was given by Colonel and Mrs. William G. Freeman at their
residence on F Street, near Thirteenth Street, the former of whom was at
one time Chief of Staff to General Scott. I well remember that General
Scott accompanied his daughter and me and that he wore at the time the
full-dress uniform of his high rank. As he measured six feet four in his
stocking-feet, the imposing nature of his appearance cannot well be
described. Mrs. Freeman, whose maiden name was Margaret Coleman, was one
of the joint owners of the Cornwall coal mines in Pennsylvania. Her
sister, Miss Sarah Coleman, shared her house for many years, and old
Washingtonians remember her as the "Lady Bountiful" whose whole life was
devoted to good works. Colonel and Mrs. Freeman's two daughters, Miss
Isabel Freeman and Mrs. Benjamin F. Buckingham, still reside in
Washington.
The first guest whom I recall at this ball was the sprightly Mary Louisa
Adams. She made her home with her grandfather, John Quincy Adams, who
lived in one of the two white houses on F Street, between Thirteenth
and Fourteenth Streets, now called the "Adams house." She was the
venerable ex-President's principal heir, and subsequently married her
relative, William Clarkson Johnson of Utica. George B. McClellan was
also a guest at this entertainment as one of the young beaux. His
presence made an indelible impression upon my memory as I was dancing a
cotillion with him when, to my nervous horror, the pictures in the
ballroom began to spin and I made myself conspicuous by nearly fainting.
I did not, however, lose consciousness like the heroines of the old
tragedies, and was conducted to a retired seat where, at the request of
General Scott, I was attended by Dr. Richard Henry Coolidge, Surgeon in
the Army, who was also a guest. General Scott's admiration for this
distinguished gentleman, personally as well as professionally, was very
great. I have often heard the General say that Dr. Coolidge not only
prescribed for the physical condition of his patients but also by the
example of his Christian character elevated their moral tone. He
concluded his eulogy with the words: "Dr. Coolidge walks humbly before
his God." His widow, Mrs. Harriet Morris Coolidge, daughter of Commodore
Charles Morris, U.S.N., one of the distinguished heroes of the War of
1812, is still living in Washington. I occasionally see her in her
pleasant home on L Street where she welcomes a large circle of friends,
giving one amid her pleasant surroundings a pleasing picture of a serene
old age.
During my many visits to the Scott household after the Mexican War, I
always occupied a comfortable brass camp bedstead which had formerly
belonged to the Mexican General, Santa Anna. It seems that just after
the battle of Cerro Gordo this warrior made a hasty flight, leaving
behind him his camp furniture and even, it is said, his wooden leg. This
bedstead was captured as a trophy of war, and finally came into General
Scott's possession. The memory of this man's brutal deeds, however,
never disturbed my midnight repose. Texas history tells the story of the
Alamo and of the six brave men there put to death by his orders,
suggesting in a certain degree the atrocities of the Duke of Cumberland
of which I have already spoken. Santa Anna, however, had Indian blood in
his veins--an extenuating circumstance that cannot be offered in defense
of the "Butcher of Culloden."
There was always more or less gossip afloat concerning the alleged
strained relations existing between General and Mrs. Scott, owing
largely to the fact that the conditions attending and surrounding their
respective lives were fundamentally different and often misunderstood.
General Scott was a born commander while _Madame la General_ from her
earliest life had had the world at her feet. Such a combination
naturally resulted in an occasional discordant note, which unfortunately
was usually sounded in public. Their private life, however, was serene,
and they were invariably loyal to each other's interests. When Mrs.
Scott, for example, learned that James Lyon of Richmond, an intimate
friend of the General and herself and a trustee for certain of her
property, had, although a Whig, voted against her husband when a
presidential candidate, she at once revoked his trusteeship. At another
time she wrote some attractive lines which she feelingly dedicated to
her husband.
I recall an amusing incident related by General Scott just after a
journey to Virginia that well illustrates the exigencies that awaited
persons traveling in those days in carriages. For a brief period before
the inauguration of President Harrison, General Scott was in Richmond,
and in due time, as he thought, started for the station to catch a train
for Washington to be present when the President-elect should take his
oath of office. He missed the train, however, and immediately secured a
carriage to convey him to Washington, as his presence there was
imperative; but after a hard day's journey the horses could go no
further, and he was obliged to seek shelter for the night. Stopping at a
house near the roadside and inquiring whether he could be accommodated,
he was told that there was but one vacant room and that it had been
engaged some days in advance by a German butcher, accompanied by his
wife and daughter. This party meanwhile arrived and upon being informed
of General Scott's predicament generously offered to share the room with
him. It was arranged that the women should occupy one of the beds and
General Scott and the butcher the other. The women, after retiring
early, gave the signal, "All right," when the men took possession of the
second bed. After some pretty fast traveling the next morning, General
Scott reached his destination. While he was relating this laughable
experience to us some years later, I inquired whether he had enjoyed a
comfortable rest. "No," was his emphatic response, "the butcher snored
the whole night." During this visit to Richmond, General Scott was
invited by an old friend to accompany her and her two sisters to a Roman
Catholic church to hear some fine music. Upon arriving at the door they
were met by the sexton, who, somewhat flurried by seeing General Scott,
announced in stentorian tones the advent of the strangers--"three cheers
(chairs) for the Protestant ladies."
While I am relating Scott anecdotes, I must not omit to speak of an
amusing experience the old General was fond of relating which occurred
while he was traveling in the West. In his official capacity he was a
sojourner for a short period in Cincinnati, and, upon leaving that now
prosperous city, he directed that P.P.C. cards be sent to all persons
who had called upon him. It seems that the social _convenances_ had not
yet dawned upon this city, now the abode of arts and sciences, as the
town wiseacre, learned in many things as well as social lore, was
called upon for an elucidation of the three mysterious letters.
Apparently he was not as able an exponent as was Daniel at Balshazzar's
feast, who so readily deciphered "the handwriting on the wall." He
construed the letters to signify _pour prendre cafe_, an invitation
which was gladly accepted, much to General Scott's astonishment, who
decided then and there to confine himself in future to plain English.
The charming old resident society predominated in those days in the
District of Columbia, and wealth was not a controlling influence in
social life. The condition of society was, therefore, different from
that of to-day, when apparently the
... strongest castle, tower or town,
The golden bullet beateth down.
The old Washingtonians are now sometimes designated as "cave dwellers,"
and, generally speaking, the public bows to the golden calf. The term
"old Washingtonians," as now used, applies to residents descended from
the original settlers of Maryland and Virginia, as well as to
Presidential families and the representatives of Army and Navy officers
of earlier days. Their social code is, in some respects, entirely
different and distinct from that of any other city, and was formed many
decades ago by the ancestors of the "cave dwellers," who were so
peculiarly versed in the varied requirements and adornments of social
life that to-day no radical innovations are acceptable to their
descendants.
Speaking of the Army and Navy, I am reminded of an amusing anecdote
which has been generally circulated regarding the wife of a wealthy
manufacturer from a small western town who, after building a handsome
home in the heart of a fashionable section of the city, announced that
her visiting list was growing so large that she must in some way reduce
it and that she had decided to "draw it" on the Army and Navy. It seems
almost needless to say that this remark created much unfavorable
comment, as Washington is especially proud of the Army and Navy officers
she has nurtured.
Among the families who were socially prominent at the National Capital
when I first knew it, were the Seatons, Gales, Lees, Freemans, Carrolls,
Turnbulls, Hagners, Tayloes, Ramsays, Millers, Hills, Gouverneurs,
Maynadiers, Grahams, Woodhulls, Jesups, Watsons, Nicholsons,
Warringtons, Aberts, Worthingtons, Randolphs, Wilkes, Wainwrights, Roger