The Book of Washington by Robert Shackleton

Author:Robert Shackleton [Shackleton, Robert]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Geschichte
Publisher: Jazzybee Verlag
Published: 2017-05-25T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter XIV - The dominance of titles

WASHINGTON, now pre-eminently the American city of titles, was almost from the beginning a city of American titles — a very different thing. This was noted, in particular, by that extremely observant and widely traveled architect, Latrobe, who wrote cheerfully, a hundred years ago, that he noticed that America was like Poland, for everybody in Poland had a title! Only, as he commented, instead of there being counts here as in Poland, there was a crowding of captains, majors, colonels, generals. And this he found to be especially the case in Washington.

It seems incredible, but one of the books of memories of long-ago Washington — by Mrs. Gouverneur, Monroe 's daughter and a White House bride — tells of a visit to Washington in the early 40 's by the first James Gordon Bennett and his newly-made wife, just as there was to be a great charity ball, a social event of high order. Among the patronesses were Dolly Madison, Mrs. Tayloe and Mrs. Gouverneur herself. And when Bennett asked for tickets, the request was granted only with the definite promise on his part that he would not describe the ball in his newspaper. Two days later, however, an extended account, with names in full, appeared in the New York Herald, greatly to the indignation of the managers of the ball. For here is the difference that has come about. At that time, so Mrs. Gouverneur wrote, it was expected that a woman 's name should appear in the public prints but twice: first, upon the occasion of her marriage, and second and last upon the occasion of her death.

How startled the women of those days would now be with long columns of news of society in every issue of every newspaper and with several pages on Sunday! Not only with an intense ambition on the part of society women that their names appear, but also that their portraits be given, and especially in the elaborate picture supplements.

But the women of those days, even when in their aged and declining years, were not without publicity, although it was secured in a quiet way. For instance, it was well known at the time and has been remembered ever since that when Mrs. Madison, who so objected to Bennett's method, was formally called upon by the tall and impressive General Winfield Scott in the last years of her long life, he always wore his full uniform and made a solemn function out of what might have been a simple neighborly affair.

The Scotts were both Virginians and had a home in Elizabeth, New Jersey, besides, but settled themselves in Washington about 1850 in a house on H Street between 13th and 14th. It was one of the ''Chain Houses" so-called, built by Count de Menon and had a fence bordering it made of festooned chains. In another chain house, next door, lived another wonderful old lady of old Washington — the venerable Mrs. Alexander Hamilton, and here

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