two days after mr. buchanan's inauguration, the nominations for the cabinet were sent to the senate. the venerable lewis cass, with many years of honorable service behind him, was secretary of state,—selected, the "old-line whigs" said, because the president meant really to be secretary of state himself, and he wished an amiable first assistant. moreover, he liked to say "old lewis cass," as though he were himself so much younger. hon. howell cobb of georgia had the treasury department. he was a man of political ability, "frank and genial," sagacious and conservative, "qualities fitting him well to dominate his associates." mr. floyd, who "belonged to the first families of virginia," was the secretary of war. mr. toucey of connecticut was secretary of the navy, mr. jacob thompson of mississippi, secretary of the interior, mr. brown of tennessee, postmaster-general, and judge jeremiah black, attorney-general,—three from the north, four from the south. the new cabinet, people said, was far inferior in capacity to the retiring one.
the new president was a bachelor. despite his years and his cold, reserved manner, his fidelity to 39 the memory of beautiful miss coleman, to whom he had been affianced in his youth, invested him with the interest which attaches to romance. this was enhanced by his devotion to his niece, miss harriet lane. in her affection he found the only solace of his lonely life. for her sake he condescended to unbend in public; and to brighten the atmosphere around her, he sometimes became quite a jaunty old bachelor. she was his confidante in all matters political and personal. a stately etiquette ruled between the two. she was always addressed as "miss harriet," and to her he was "the president"—never "uncle buchanan," except on the rare occasions when she considered it worth her while to coax him in order to carry a point.
washington was never gayer than during this administration, more memorable than any other except washington's and lincoln's. the mighty giants of the house and senate were there, the men who must be held largely responsible for that most unnecessary, cruel, and wicked war—the war between the northern and southern states of america. washington was the storm centre, charged with the electric forces so soon to burst in fury upon the country.
but before we enter upon these troubled times, we will live over again some of the happy, care-forgetting months of our life in washington.
my husband who had succeeded mr. ritchie as one of the editors of the richmond enquirer was now a member of congress. he had accomplished his mission to greece to the satisfaction of his government 40 and to his own pleasure and profit. with a good courier and a generous country at his back, he had traversed europe, had seen venice rise from the sea, had revelled in the grandeur that was—and is—rome, had beheld the mosques and minarets of the byzantine city from the waters of the golden horn, had looked into the inscrutable eyes of the sphinx, and had finally taken up his abode under the shadow of the acropolis. there he had met the "maid of athens," now stout, middle-aged mrs. black, so the poor american minister, who was young and romantic,—in order to understand the passionate entreaty of byron to return the wandering heart of him or else take the rest of him,—was constrained to think of the poem, and look the while at a dark-eyed greek beauty named "elpis"—at least this was the explanation made to me of his frequent allusions in his letters to the latter. there, too, he had charmed queen mathilde with a description of the night-blooming cereus of this country and had stricken the court of king otho dumb with amazement by outrageous american boasting.
"kindly tell us, your excellency," inquired the king at a state banquet, "what subject most interests your country at the present moment."
"the problem, may it please your majesty, of how we shall govern our superfluous territory and invest our superfluous treasure."
this may not have pleased his majesty, but it certainly astounded him. little greece was, at the moment, hemmed in by organized bands of brigands and sorely pressed for the means of existence. 41
our envoy had the honor, too, of attending, with madame le vert, the ball at the h?tel de ville, and of witnessing the opening quadrille, danced by victoria and albert, louis napoleon and his sister mathilde, the empress being ill. both queen and princess seemed young and happy, both attired in white satin flounced with point lace, and wearing a prince's ransom in jewels.
the weather was fearfully hot, and the royal party danced but once. the queen did not step a stately measure, dancing "high and disposedly";—but she entered into the spirit of the hour heartily, and, although the mother of eight children, danced with the glee of a young girl, growing withal very red in the face like any ordinary mortal.
at one of the gala days of the exposition in paris, a very large woman attracted much attention. she was neither young nor handsome, but had a comfortable, well-to-do air of content. a profusion of light curls clustered around her rotund face. these ringlets were all that was left of the beauty of the countess guiccioli! alas, there was no "elpis" at hand for consolation. all these things and more would have appeared in a charming volume but for the secession of south carolina, as will be seen later on in my story.
i never regretted the loss of this beautiful opportunity in my life. my mother had been nursed back to bless me and mine a few years longer. moreover, i found myself enriched. i had pictures, ravishing pictures, raphael's "belle jardiniere," a priceless raffaello morghen's proof impression of the "madonna 42 della seggiola," guido's "aurora" with its glorious women—the most glorious being (if she would only turn around) the one with her back to the world. i had many others, titian, domenichino, murillo, leonardo da vinci. i had amber from constantinople, curios and antiques from egypt, corals and cameos from naples and florence, silks from broussa (afterward swallowed up by an earthquake), silks and velvets from lyons, laces from brussels, perfumes from the land of araby the blest,—things mightily consoling to a woman in her early twenties.
we found a large house on new york avenue and filled it with good virginia servants. admonished by experience, we secured horses and a careful coachman.
we had come to stay! my husband represented the old district of his kinsman, john randolph of roanoke, and his constituents were devoted to him. they would never supplant him with another. of that we might be sure. god granting life and health, we were going to be happy young people.
the market in washington was abundantly supplied with the finest game and fish from the eastern shore of maryland and virginia, and the waters of the potomac. brant, ruddy duck, canvasback duck, sora, oysters, and terrapin were within the reach of any housekeeper. oysters, to be opened at a moment's notice, were planted on the cellar floors, and fed with salt water, and the cellars, as far as the mistress was concerned, were protected from invasion by the large terrapins kept 43 there—a most efficient police force, crawling about with their outstretched necks and wicked eyes.
such dainties demanded expert cooking. we found in our house a portly family servant, "aunt susan," who had been left as caretaker with permission to remain or not as the new tenant should please, or as she herself should please. i fell in love with her on sight and found her willing to engage with me.
"can you cook, aunt susan?" i imprudently inquired.
"no'm, i don't call myself a cook, but i know a hogfish from a yellow-bellied perch, and a canvasback duck from a redhead. i could cook oysters to suit my own white folks."
we had brought with us a number of servants who had lived with us in virginia. they were free. we never owned slaves; this one free family had served us always.
a serious difficulty immediately arose in the kitchen. susan felt her dignity insulted. she had supposed i would bring "gentlefolks' servants from the eastern sho'." she had not "counted on free niggers to put on airs an' boss her in her own kitchen."
my virginia servants protested absolute humility and innocence. but that was not all. a french woman, adele rivière, was sewing in the nursery, and an englishman, george boyd, was coachman. susan wanted "only one mistress," she had "not counted on working for furriners. by the time she had pleased that frenchwoman and englishman and 44 them free niggers" she "wouldn't have enough sperrit left to wipe her foot on the door-mat."
a compromise was effected, however. susan was to be queen on her own premises; and if she must occasionally "put on airs" herself and "boss" somebody, why she might always "boss" me.
"i think," said my friend agnes, "you have very neatly arranged to have as much trouble as possible. the question of caste will crop up every hour of the day. if the worst comes to the worst, let them all go except susan! harriet martineau gives fine advice, for an old maid: 'never nag your servants—but if occasion demands, come down upon them like the day of judgment.'"
"i stand by susan," i assured her, "whatever she does. i am dreadfully opposed to capital punishment, but if anybody kills a cook, he needn't bring his case to our office."
susan had offended, by her assumption of superiority, all the members of my household except myself, to whom she was most kind and respectful. the boy james had been brought by his aunts, who promised to train him for my service. he soon developed an ingenuity in teasing the cook amounting to inspiration. matters between them reached a crisis one morning. i was reading my paper in the office adjoining the breakfast-room when i heard susan's raucous voice: "what do you mean coming in this kitchen hollerin' out 'susan, susan'? whar's your manners?"
"i loant 'em to de cook dis mornin', susan—leastways miss moss! i always disremembers yo' entitlements." 45
"well, you just get out of this kitchen! i can send breakfast up on the dumb waiter. you stay in your own place."
"i kin make myse'f skase, miss moss, but dat ain't de pint. cose de dumb waiter can't talk, an' i has to speak about clean plates an'—"
"get out o' here, i tell you. clean, indeed! and your face not washed this morning! an' you all pizened up with scent like—"
"lawd, miss moss! don't say what i'se like! an' what i gwine fling water in my face for? i ain' no house afire."
in a few minutes susan, her ample figure endowed with a fresh white apron, and her bandanna turban tied to a nicety, presented herself, dropped a courtesy, and said with perfect politeness:—
"honey, i hate to worry you, but i'm afraid the time has come when you must choose between me and the free nigger. i think too much of myself to mind his impudence, but everything smells and tastes of his strong scents—which i know will never suit you nor the master. i, for one, can't stand 'em."
"then james must leave at once," said i, firmly. "he knows the perfume is forbidden, and i have myself heard his disrespectful language to you."
but james had no idea of leaving washington and returning to the position of knife-cleaner in the petersburg hotel, whence i had taken him. he experienced a total change of heart. he surrendered in magnificent style. i was too skilful a general not to press my advantage. then and there i confiscated 46 his entire stock of spurious attar of rose. it could not be buried, because the court was paved; it could not be emptied in the waste-water pipes, lest we remember it forever; but i opened the doors of susan's kitchen range, and laid it, a burnt-offering to her offended dignity, upon the glowing coals. i then went calmly in to my coffee, which had a distinctly oriental flavor that morning.
things went smoothly after this. the prevailing spirit of secession found its way only as far as the nursery, when pretty adele rivière entered a convent (with but one expressed regret, that the bonnets were so unbecoming), and a dear little genius, annie powers, took her place,—coming regularly for fifty cents a day, and making me independent of the elusive dressmakers who lorded and queened it over my unhappy friends.
and just here i feel constrained to apologize to my friend who has, at this moment, this page before him, for recording so many trifling incidents; but in painting a faithful picture of any time, the little lights and shadows cannot be left out. nothing is unimportant. even
"to the god that maketh all
there is no great—there is no small,"
words which i quote with no fear of being deemed irreverent; since the couplet has been discovered by a sojourner in the orient to have been a petty larceny of emerson's from the book of a brahmin, and is not a quotation from the pen of inspiration, as we understand inspiration.
