Mary Baldwin College - Bluestocking Yearbook (Staunton, VA)

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The Amjusta Siininarij Annual. 15 hlic was a I»(iv, wore extrt ' iiu ' ly talkative. Tlii ' v would sav, ' ' I.iltlc iMarso will ho a statesman like his pa, somo of those days. I olly ' s faniily wore tired of hotel life, and in the s|u-in they took a pretty furnished house near the British Legation. I ' oily had some pots now, and one of tlie most heloved was a little alli- gator which had heen l»ronght to lier from Florida. It was lost once for several days. One afternoon a very stylish young man, a Secretary of the Legation, came to call. He sat down on the divan, but suddenly said Oh I and jumped up in such a hurry that his single eyeglass fell out of his eye. The dear alligator had been hiding under a cushion and had bitten the caller, much to Polly ' s delight. Two or three years went by and Polly had grown self-conscious and, sad to say, conceited. ' Her faniily went to the Church of the Covenant, ( ne morning they saw a friend from their own town, and Polly ' s father invited him to lunch, telling him Polly would show the way, as he himself had an engagement and would be detained in getting there. As Polly and the gentleman went down the church steps he said, I have had neuralgia and must tie up my head. So over a high silk hat, which had been bought in lionor of the visit to the city, he tied a large white knitted muttter. Poll} had to walk up the most fashionable avenue of AVashington, meeting every one she knew, seeing people turn and stare at her queer-looking companion, nudge each other and smile broadly, until her own door was reached and the ordeal was over, When she told her father about it he said she should have been proud to walk with so good a man, no matter how he was dressed, but Polly always suspected her father remembered that engage- ment after he saw the white muffler sticking out of his friend ' s coat pocket. It was decided that Polly was too lai-ge, now, to I ' un wild anv longer, and she was to be sent to Europe to learn French and German and to study music. Her elder sister was to go for the pleasure of the trip and to take care of Polly. Such bustling, hurrying and sewing Polly had never seen. If she stayed at home she had to do errands or try on clothes, so she ran awav. The servants who were sent to bring her home would sometimes find her hanging on behind street cars ; stealing ice out of the back of ice-wagons, or skating down a hill. Sometimes they

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14 T}ie Augusta Seminary Annual. appeai ' ed imicli ohlei- tliaii ClHiidiair oi- Chattertoii ; li is dark hair, worn a little long, was cui-ly at the ends, and he had on a verj low tnrned-down collar. His voice Avas extremely pleasant and he spoke unlike any one else — very low, hut very distinctly. Polly thought at once, I will call my doll Barrett, and then he will be named for Lawrence Bari ' ett and Wilson Barrett, too. The next great event in Polly ' s life was a trip to Baltimore to see Edwin Booth, Lawrence Barrett and Madame Modjeska in Hamlet. She was going to see that great actor who would not come to Washington because he had been hissed off the stage there soon after Lincoln was killed. The Washington people would gladly welcome him now, Init he would not come. The eventful day arrived at last; they were sitting in the Baltimore theatre and the curtain rose. Polly was disappointed at first, and said, Oh I I don ' t like him at all ; why he is too old ; but soon she was on her feet, wild with interest. She had to l e pulled down, and was finally told that if she stood np again she would be taken away. Years afterwards, when she was a big blas6 Polly, she thought with happiness of tliat wonderful afternoon. That winter at the Riggs House were a quiet Senator and his wife, who always stopped Polly for a little chat Avhen they met her in the halls or on the staircase. They were friendly with every one, but friends with no one. Even in the hotel a home- like atmosphere seemed to surround them. The wife did not spend all her time calling and going to teas and receptions as the other ladies did. On Sundays a tall, white-haired old man always dined with them. This quiet couple were Mr. and Mrs. Hanison, afterwards the President and the first lady of the land. The old man was Mrs. Harrison ' s father. Dr. Scott. Polly was remembered in her own town because she rode a w hite pony ; people in AVashington remembered her because she was always dressed in white, Li her white broadcloth coat, which came down to her heels, her little white silk mittens and her white cap, she was always taken for a saucy little boy. When her father and brothers went calling on New Year ' s Day she went as a matter of course, and felt very much injured if they made her wait for them in the carriage. She always comforted herself by questioning the drivers about their li(jrses, and they, thinking

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16 The Aiogusta Seminary Annual. voul(l not iiiid lier at all, for she would run up on the roof of the house and hide behind the chimneys. That was always her refuge, for no one could go up the ladder as fast as she could, and once there, she was safe. At last all was ready, and the train which bore Polly away from home steamed out of the station. The bright, wondering eyes were bright no longer as Polly thought of the long years in a foreign country that lay before her. She seemed to know she was leaving her careless, happy childhood behind. As she lost sight of the broad streets, green trees and lovely parks of Wash- ington she remembered a scene of her childhood days. In the east room of the White House, standing by one of the windows that look toward the Potomac, were three persons — an elderly woman, quietly dressed, and with a very sad face ; a dis- tinguished looking, white-haired man and a little child. The lady ' s hand lay on the child ' s head, and the gentleman said, Polly, I want you to know your kinswoman, Mrs. Fremont, Her father was the great statesman, Thomas H. Benton, and she was his little companion as you are mine. INIrs. Fremont said, My dear, I love to look at you ; you remind me of myself. I am poor and old and sad now, but I, too, was once young and gay. May you always be as happv as vou are now. ' M. B. Through Raging Seas. AFTER a most delightful tri]) to the World ' s Fair, Xiagara and Xew York, our party started Saturday, August 26th, on the steamer City of Birmingham for Savannah, Georgia. Our voyage, as far as Cape Hatteras, was most pleasant and un- eventful, but while rounding the Cape the wind and sea became fearful. Though a little frightened, we for a time regarded it as the usual roughness at that point ; but the storm continued to in- crease in fury until, at daylight on Monday, a grand and most fearful sight met our eyes, as for a few moments we raised our heads and looked from the windows. The vessel was tossed about