As I Remember
travel, where it states that he was representing Great Britain at the
court of Leopold I. in Belgium. He died in the fall of 1896. His younger
brother lived in London where, for a period, he acted as a sort of
major-domo in society, and but few entertainments were considered
complete without him.
CHAPTER X
DIPLOMATIC CORPS AND OTHER CELEBRITIES
I have already spoken of the Count de Sartiges, who so ably represented
the French Government in the United States. He had not been very long in
this country when he married Miss Anna Thorndike of Boston, and while
residing in Washington they dispensed a lavish hospitality. Just before
he came to this country, the Count spent several years in Persia, which
was then regarded as an out-of-the-way post of duty. I recall quite an
amusing incident which occurred at an entertainment given by the
Countess de Sartiges to which I was accompanied by George Newell,
brother-in-law of William L. Marcy. Mr. Newell had not been in
Washington long enough to, become acquainted with all the members of the
Diplomatic Corps, and, crossing the room to where I stood, he inquired:
"Who is the Aborigine who has been sitting next to me?" I looked in the
direction indicated and recognized the well-known person of General Juan
Nepomuceno Almonte, the Mexican Minister, whose features strongly
portrayed the Indian type. Some matrimonial alliances in Mexico at this
time, by the way, were more or less complicated; for example, General
Almonte's wife was his own niece.
The first Secretary of the French Legation was Baron Geoffrey Boilleau,
who remained in this country for several years. While stationed in
Washington, he married Susan Benton, a daughter of Thomas H. Benton,
U.S. Senator from Missouri and a political autocrat in his own State,
another of whose daughters, Jessie Ann, was the wife of General John C.
Fremont. At a later day, both Boilleau and Fremont became involved in
difficulties of a serious character in consequence of which the former,
while Minister to Ecuador, was recalled to France, where, as I am
informed, he was convicted and confined for a period in the
_Conciergerie_. I am not fully acquainted with the exact details of the
charges upon which he was tried, but they had their origin in the
negotiation of certain bonds of the proposed Memphis and El Paso
Railroad. In my opinion, however, no one who knew Baron Boilleau well
ever doubted his integrity. He was a man of decidedly literary tastes
and, like many persons of that character, possessed but meager knowledge
of business. It seems that General Fremont had obtained from the
Legislature of Texas a grant of state lands in the interests of the
railroad just referred to, which was to be a portion of a projected
transcontinental line from Norfolk, Virginia, to San Diego and San
Francisco. It has been stated that "the French agents employed to place
the land-grant bonds of this road on the market made the false
declaration that they were guaranteed by the United States. In 1869 the
Senate passed a bill giving Fremont's road the right of way through the
territories, an attempt to defeat it by fixing on him the onus of the
misstatement in Paris having been unsuccessful. In 1873 he was
prosecuted by the French government for fraud in connection with this
misstatement. He did not appear in person, and was sentenced by default
to fine and imprisonment, no judgment being given on the merits of the
case."
Prince Louis de Bearn, Secretary of the French Legation, was a gentleman
of most pleasing personality. He was a strikingly handsome bachelor at
the time I knew him and was much seen in the gay world. He was never
called "Prince" in those days, but "Count"; but in a letter now before
me, written in 1904 by his son, who was recently an attache of the
French Embassy in Washington, he claims that both his father and
grandfather were Princes by right of birth. He also states that the
title was borne by his family before the Revolution of 1789. During his
official life in Washington, Prince de Bearn married Miss Beatrice
Winans, daughter of Ross Winans of Baltimore. Chevalier John George
Hulsemann, the Austrian Minister, was a convivial old bachelor and was
much esteemed at the Capital for his genial qualities. He lived on F
Street, below Pennsylvania Avenue, and was stationed in Washington for
many years.
Chevalier Giuseppe Bertinatti, the Italian Minister, commenced his
diplomatic career in Washington as a bachelor. He did not occupy a house
of his own, but lodged at the establishment of Mrs. Ulrich, which was
the headquarters of many foreigners. Fifty years ago and more, the
members of the Diplomatic Corps, with few exceptions, lived either in
modest residences or in boarding houses, in striking contrast with many
of the imposing mansions now occupied by the official representatives of
foreign lands. His mission was a diplomatic success and while at the
capital he married Mrs. Eugenie Bass, a handsome widow from Mississippi,
and soon departed upon another mission, taking his American bride with
him. Soon after the announcement of his prospective marriage, Count
Bertinatti issued invitations to a large dinner given in honor of his
_fiancee_. When the gala day arrived, Mrs. Bass, though quite
indisposed, was persuaded to be present at the dinner, but, feeling
decidedly ill, she retired from the table and in a short time became
much nauseated. When this state of affairs was explained to General
George Douglas Ramsay, one of the guests of the evening, his quick sally
was, "a Bass relief!"
Baron Frederick Charles Joseph von Gerolt, whom I knew very well and who
represented King William of Prussia, is still affectionately recalled by
his few survivors who cling to early associations. His departure from
Washington with his family was more deeply regretted than that of some
other foreign residents whom I remember, as they had made many friends
and had lived in Washington so long that they were regarded almost as
permanent residents. The Misses Bertha and Dorothea von Gerolt were
graceful dancers and were very popular. Dorothea married into the
Diplomatic Corps and accompanied her husband to Greece. I have heard
that Bertha became deeply attached to the Chevalier A. P. C. Van
Karnabeek, secretary of the Netherlands Legation, but that, owing to
religious considerations, her parents frowned upon the alliance. She
accordingly determined to enter upon a cloistered life and went to the
Georgetown convent where she became a nun, and was known until the day
of her death in 1890 as "Sister Angela." Baron von Gerolt was an
intellectual man and, prior to his career in the United States, his name
was much associated with Baron Alexander von Humboldt; but as neither he
nor Madame von Gerolt were proficient English scholars when they first
arrived they naturally depended upon others for instruction. I can vouch
for the truth of the statement that upon one occasion they were advised
by members of his own legation to greet those whom they met with the
words, "I'm damned glad to see you."
Mr. Alfred Bergmans, Secretary of the Belgian Legation, married Lily
Macalister, a Philadelphia heiress, who, in her widowhood, returned to
this country and made Washington her home. Madame Bergmans was a devotee
to society and was particularly fond of dancing. She was a _petite
blonde_, and, even after it ceased to be fashion, she wore her light
hair down her back in many ringlets. When George M. Robeson, President
Grant's Secretary of the Navy, saw her for the first time one evening
while she was dancing, he exclaimed, "That is the tripping of the light
fantastic toe." She married quite late in life J. Scott Laughton, who
was considerably her junior, but did not long survive the alliance.
Many members of the Diplomatic Corps of this period married American
women. Baron Guido von Grabow, one of the secretaries of the Prussian
Legation whom I knew very well, married Mrs. Edward Boyce, whose maiden
name was Nina Wood. She was a granddaughter of President Zachary Taylor
and was well known and beloved by old Washingtonians. Her marriage to
Baron von Grabow offers strong encouragement to persistent suitors. He
was deeply in love with her prior to her first marriage, but she
rejected him for Edward Boyce, who was a member of a prominent
Georgetown family. Mr. Boyce lived only a few years, and her subsequent
married life with Baron von Grabow was long and happy.
Alexandre Gau, _Chancelier_ of the Prussian Legation, married my younger
sister, Margaret, who was regarded as a remarkable beauty as well as an
accomplished linguist and pianist. Her wedding took place in our G
Street home in the same room where five months later her funeral
services were held. Mr. Gau did not long survive her and was interred by
her side in my father's old burial plot in Jamaica, Long Island.
Don Calderon de la Barca, the Spanish Minister to the United States,
together with his wife, who was Miss Fanny Inglis, and her sister, Miss
Lydia Inglis, were presiding social spirits in Washington for many
years. The latter married a Mr. McLeod, and, becoming financially
embarrassed, established on Staten Island a school for girls which was
ably conducted. These sisters were members of a Scotch family of
distinguished lineage. One of Mrs. McLeod's pupils was Mary E. Croghan,
a prominent heiress from Pittsburgh. She was still attending school on
Staten Island when Captain Edward W. H. Schenley of the Royal Navy, a
Scotch relative of Mrs. McLeod, came to America to visit her. In
inviting him to be her guest she felt that, as he was an elderly man,
he would prove to be quite immune to the attractions of mere school
girls. I met Captain Schenley about this same time in New York, and his
"make up" was of such a remarkable character that it was a favorite _on
dit_ that, when he was dressed for standing, a sitting posture was quite
an impossibility. Young Miss Croghan must have discovered fascinations
in this Scotchman as she eloped with him from Mrs. McLeod's school and
after a brief period accompanied him to England, where she spent the
remainder of her life. Mrs. McLeod was severely criticised by her
patrons for carelessness, and her school was somewhat injured by Miss
Croghan's matrimonial adventure.
Don Leopoldo Augusto De Cueto was another Spanish Minister, whom I
regarded as an agreeable acquaintance. During his _regime_ filibustering
against Spanish possessions, and especially Cuba, was a favorite pastime
of American citizens and rendered the position of the Spanish Minister
in Washington one of delicacy and difficulty. Residing in Washington
during De Cueto's tenure of office was a Cuban named Ambrosio Jose
Gonzales, who, in the Civil War, became Inspector General of Artillery
in the Confederate Army, under General Beauregard. As he was well versed
in music and had a remarkable voice, he frequently, upon request, sang
selections from the popular operas then in vogue. Among the songs
frequently heard in drawing-rooms was "Suoni la Tromba," from Bellini's
opera "I Puritani di Scozia," which had been interdicted by the Spanish
Government. One evening when De Cueto was spending an informal evening
with my sisters and myself at our G Street home, Mr. Gonzales happened
to call and was asked to sing. He seated himself at the piano and for
sometime sang various airs for us. Finally, not knowing that "Suoni la
Tromba" was under the Spanish ban, I asked him to sing it. During the
song De Cueto was politely attentive, and at its conclusion had the
politeness to applaud it. Imagine, however, my surprise when I heard a
few days later, through a mutual friend, that Gonzales had boasted that
he sang the song in De Cueto's presence, proudly adding that he had