As I Remember
arrayed for the evening in the garb of a Quakeress, and it is to her
that Mr. Haviland alludes in his reference to the "smooth meekness of
yon Quaker's face."
At the commencement of the Civil War, Senator Gwin was arrested on a
charge of disloyalty and imprisoned until 1863. He then went to Paris,
where he became interested in a scheme for the colonization by
Southerners of the State of Sonora in Mexico, in consequence of which he
was sometimes facetiously called the "Duke of Sonora." While thus
engaged, he was invited to meet the Emperor, Napoleon III., in private
audience, and succeeded in enlisting his sympathies. It is said that,
upon the request of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, he formulated a
plan for the colony which, after receiving the Emperor's approval, was
submitted to Maximilian. The latter was then in Paris and requested Mr.
Gwin's attendance at the Tuileries where, after diligent inquiry, the
scheme received the approbation of Maximilian. Two weeks after the
departure of the latter for Mexico, Mr. Gwin left for the same country,
carrying with him an autograph letter of Napoleon III. to Marshal
Bazaine. The scheme, however, received no encouragement from the latter,
and Maximilian failed to give him any satisfactory assurances of his
support. Returning to France in 1865, he secured an audience with the
Emperor, to whom he exposed the condition of affairs in Mexico. Napoleon
urged him to return to that country immediately with a peremptory order
to Marshal Bazaine to supply a military force adequate to accomplish the
project. This request was complied with but Mr. Gwin, after meeting with
no success, demanded an escort to accompany him out of the country. This
was promptly furnished, and he returned to his home in California.
It seems fitting in this connection to speak of a brilliant ball in
Washington in 1824. Although, of course, I do not remember it, I have
heard of it all my life and have gathered here and there certain facts
of interest concerning it, some of which are not easily accessible. I
refer to the ball given by Mrs. John Quincy Adams, whose husband was
then Secretary of State under Monroe. Mrs. Adams' maiden name was Louisa
Catharine Johnson and she was a daughter of Joshua Johnson, who served
as our first United States Consul at London, and a niece of Thomas
Johnson of Maryland. She gave receptions in Washington on Tuesday
evenings which were attended by many of the most distinguished men and
women of the day. This period, in fact, is generally regarded as,
perhaps, the most brilliant era in Washington society. A generous
hospitality was dispensed by such men as Madison, Monroe, Adams,
Calhoun, Wirt, Rush, Southard, General Winfield Scott and General
Alexander Macomb. The British _Charge d'affaires_ at this time was Henry
Unwin Addington. The Russian Minister was the Baron de Tuyll; while
France, Spain and Portugal were represented by gentlemen of
distinguished manners and rare accomplishments. The illustrious John
Marshall was Chief Justice, with Joseph Story, Bushrod Washington, Smith
Thompson and other eminent jurists by his side. In Congress were such
men as Henry Clay, William Gaston, Rufus King, Daniel Webster, Andrew
Jackson, Thomas H. Benton, William Jones Lowndes, John Jordan Crittenden
and Harrison Gray Otis; while the Navy was represented by Stephen
Decatur, David Porter, John Rodgers, Lewis Warrington, Charles Stewart,
Charles Morris and others, some of whom made their permanent home at the
Capital.
The ball given by the Secretary of State and Mrs. Adams was in honor of
General Andrew Jackson, and was not only an expression of the pleasant
personal relations existing between John Quincy Adams and Jackson only
shortly before the former defeated the latter for the Presidency, but
also a pleasing picture of Washington society at that time. General
Jackson was naturally the hero of the occasion, and there was a throng
of guests not only from Washington but also from Baltimore, Richmond and
other cities. A current newspaper of the day published a metrical
description of the event, written by John T. Agg:
MRS. ADAMS' BALL.
Wend you with the world to-night?
Brown and fair and wise and witty,
Eyes that float in seas of light,
Laughing mouths and dimples pretty,
Belles and matrons, maids and madams,
All are gone to Mrs. Adams';
There the mist of the future, the gloom of the past,
All melt into light at the warm glance of pleasure,
And the only regret is lest melting too fast,
Mammas should move off in the midst of a measure.
Wend you with the world to-night?
Sixty gray, and giddy twenty,
Flirts that court and prudes that slight,
State coquettes and spinsters plenty;
Mrs. Sullivan is there
With all the charm that nature lent her;
Gay McKim with city air,
And winning Gales and Vandeventer;
Forsyth, with her group of graces;
Both the Crowninshields in blue;
The Pierces, with their heavenly faces,
And eyes like suns that dazzle through;
Belles and matrons, maids and madams,
All are gone to Mrs. Adams'!
Wend you with the world to-night?
East and West and South and North,
Form a constellation bright,
And pour a splendid brilliance forth.
See the tide of fashion flowing,
'Tis the noon of beauty's reign,
Webster, Hamiltons are going,
Eastern Floyd and Southern Hayne;
Western Thomas, gayly smiling,
Borland, nature's protege,
Young De Wolfe, all hearts beguiling,
Morgan, Benton, Brown and Lee;
Belles and matrons, maids and madams,'
All are gone to Mrs. Adams'!
Wend you with the world to-night?
Where blue eyes are brightly glancing,
While to measures of delight
Fairy feet are deftly dancing;
Where the young Euphrosyne
Reigns the mistress of the scene,
Chasing gloom, and courting glee,
With the merry tambourine;
Many a form of fairy birth,
Many a Hebe, yet unwon,
Wirt, a gem of purest worth,
Lively, laughing Pleasanton;
Vails and Tayloe will be there,
Gay Monroe so debonair,
Hellen, pleasure's harbinger,
Ramsay, Cottringers and Kerr;
Belles and matrons, maids and madams,
All are gone to Mrs. Adams'!
Wend you with the world to-night?
Juno in her court presides,
Mirth and melody invite,
Fashion points, and pleasure guides;
Haste away then, seize the hour,
Shun the thorn and pluck the flower.
Youth, in all its spring-time blooming,
Age the guise of youth assuming,
Wit through all its circles gleaming,
Glittering wealth and beauty beaming;
Belles and matrons, maids and madams,
All are gone to Mrs. Adams'!
The "Mrs. Sullivan" referred to was Sarah Bowdoin Winthrop, the wife of
George Sullivan of Boston, son of Governor James Sullivan of
Massachusetts; while "Winning Gales" was the wife of Joseph Gales,
editor of _The National Intelligencer_. "Forsyth" was the wife of
Senator John Forsyth of Georgia, who subsequently served as Secretary of
State during Jackson's administration; and "the Crowninshields in blue"
were daughters of Benjamin W. Crowninshield, Secretary of the Navy under
Madison and Monroe. "The Pierces, with their heavenly faces," were
handsome Boston women who in after life became converts to the Roman
Catholic faith and entered convents. The "Vails" were Eugene and Aaron
Vail, who were proteges of Senator William H. Crawford, of Georgia. They
married sisters, daughters of Laurent Salles, a wealthy Frenchman living
in New York. Aaron Vail accompanied Martin Van Buren to England as
Secretary of Legation and for a season, after Van Buren's recall, acted
as _Charge d'affaires_. "Tayloe" was Benjamin Ogle Tayloe, the
distinguished Washingtonian. "Ramsay" was General George Douglas Ramsay,
the father of Rear Admiral Francis M. Ramsay, U.S.N.; and "Hellen" was
Mrs. Adams's niece, who subsequently became her daughter-in-law through
her marriage to her son, John Adams. President Monroe attended this ball
and both he and John Quincy Adams were somewhat criticised for their
plain attire, which was in such striking contrast with the elaborate
costumes and decorations worn by the foreign guests.
In his boyhood Mr. Gouverneur formed an intimacy with George H. Derby,
better known in literary circles under the _nom de plume_ of "John
Phoenix." He is well remembered by students of American humor as a
contemporary and rival of Artemus Ward. He was a member of a prominent
Boston family, and of the class of 1846 at West Point. He was a gallant
soldier, having been wounded during the Mexican War at Cerro Gordo, and
was promoted for his bravery in that battle. Scarcely anyone was immune
from his practical jokes, but, fortunately for his peace of mind, Mr.
Gouverneur was acquainted with an incident of his life which, if known,
would make him a butt of ridicule; and he accordingly felt perfectly
safe in his companionship and well enjoyed his humorous exploits. One
day Derby and Mr. Gouverneur were sauntering through the streets of
Washington when the keen eye of the humorist was attracted by a sign
over a store door which read, "Ladies' Depository"--the old-fashioned
method of designating what would now be called a "Woman's Exchange."
Turning to his companion, Derby remarked: "I have a little business to
transact in this shop and I want you to go inside with me." They entered
and were met by a smiling female to whom Derby remarked: "My wife will
be here to-morrow morning. I am so pleased to have discovered this
depository. I hope that you will take good care of her. Expect her at
eleven. Good-morning."
In the early '50's Adjutant General Roger Jones determined to adopt a
new uniform for the U.S. Army, and Derby was thus afforded a conspicuous
opportunity to exercise his wit. He was an excellent draughtsman and set
to work and produced a design. He proposed changing the entire system of
modern tactics by the aid of an iron hook to be attached to the seat of
each soldier's trousers, this hook to be used by the three arms of the
service--cavalry, infantry and artillery. He illustrated it by a series
of well-executed designs, and quoted high medical authority to prove its
advantages from a sanitary point of view. He argued that the heavy
knapsack induced a stooping position and a contraction of the chest but,
hung on a hook by a strap over the shoulders, it would brace the body
and back and expand the chest. The cavalrymen were to be rendered more
secure in their seats when hooked to a ring in the saddle. All
commissioned officers were to carry a light twenty-foot pole, with a
ring attached to the end, to be used during an engagement in drawing
stragglers back into the ranks. He made a drawing of a tremendous battle
during which the Generals and Colonels were thus occupied, and in many
other ways expatiated upon the value of the hook. When Jefferson Davis,
the Secretary of War, saw Derby's designs and read his recommendations,
he felt that his dignity was wounded and the service insulted, and he
immediately issued an order that Derby be court-martialed. William L.
Marcy, then Secretary of State, was told of the transaction and of the
cloud hanging over Derby. He looked over the drawings and saw a
regiment, their backs towards him and drawn up in line, with knapsacks,
blankets and everything appertaining to camp life attached to each
soldier by a hook. Marcy, who saw the humorous side at once, said to
Davis: "It's no use to court-martial this man. The matter will be made
public and the laugh will be upon us. Besides, a man who has the
inventive genius that he has displayed, as well as the faculty of