THE THREE MOTHERS.
Three"Famous Inns in Merr ,
England.
Mother Bed Gap , Mother Black Cap , an
Mother Shipton.
Superstition Surrounding Them ,
Host people are satisfied with on
mother , and so they should be in tli
course of nature. I have , howevei
writes a London correspondent to Th
Boston Herald , discovered in one poi
tion of London three mothers , and a'
of them mothers of the same offspring
all living at Camdentovm and Kentisc
town , all easily reached by a tram-ca
starting from King's Cross railway sta
tion , which is situated in the norther ]
part of this vast city. The offspring o
these mothers three , is what do yo
suppose ? Briefly , then , since youprol
ably give up the riddle , it is a bar , not ;
legal bar , but a public bar , or , in Eng
lisn abbreviation , "a pub. " The moth
ers are the three , names of inns of th <
past , now degenerated into mere wa ;
side resorts for the expenditure of thi
nimble coins of the realm , which seen
somehow to burn in the pockets of thi
British workman and his spouse. Cu
- rious to learn something of inns , which
as far as I can ascertain , are the onh
called "mother" this "
ones or that ,
made a little tour of investigation as t <
their origin and history , ooth on th <
premises themselves and at that mine o
knowledge , the British museum , whicl
includes the histories of every sort o
English enterprise and of the books anc
literature of all nations. It was possi
ble , however , to glean most of my facb
from the places under consideration
namely , the "Mother Red Cap , " "Moth
er Black Cap , " and 'Mother Shipton'
hosteleries. The people living neai
them have preserved a large amount oJ
biographical lore , and , save that hen
and there a date needs verifying , Cam
dentown and its contiguous Kentish
town are well grounded in nil pertain
ing to their celebrated "Three Moth
ers. " As" far back as 1830 these three
inns were in a flourishing condition.
Mother Red Cap and Mother Shipton
date back to the early seventeenth cen
tury , and , believing vague rumors , even
further back. Mother Black/Cap can
not trace with authority earlier than
1820. With Mother Red Cap it was and
is at rivalry , and its name was doubt
less given in order to be one 'quite op
posite to red.or , likelier still , because
Mother Red Cap was once intended to
have been made a second Tyburn.
Therefore black may have been used in
a derisive spirit. "Orders. " wrote The
Morning Post newspaper in 1776 "have
been given-from'the secretary of state's
office that the criminals capitally con
victed at the Old Bailey shall in future
be executed at the cross-road near the
Mother Red Cap inn , the half way
house to Hampstead , and that no gal
leries , scaffolds or other temporary
stages be built near the place. "
The first home of Charles Dickens in
London was within sight of the Red
Cap when he came here with his par
ents from Chatham in 1821. Itwas
then about the poorest portion of the
London suburbs. The thoughtful little
lad saw about him that sorry poverty
which he so graphically portrayed later
on in his marvelous word paintings. That
his childhood was lonely in consequence
of his having at that period of his life
no suitable companions was perhaps
the best thing which could have hap
pened for the imperceptible develop- '
mcnt of his mental life.
The Mother Red Cap was from earli
est times a terror to travelers. She was
a character in history , sometimes called
"Mother Damnable , " of Kentishtown.
At her house the notorious "Moli Cut-
purse , " the highway feminine marauder
of Oliver Cromwell's day , halted and
lodged. Viragos these two beyond all
doubt. In 1850 the old house was taken
down and a new one built on its sight , ,
the same swinging sign over'the j
'
of a buxom , shrewish-'looking wo-
with a formidable extinguisher-
-shaped hat. The present house is in its
t'turn a successor to the 1850 one , built
.about 1875.-Much of the walls and
riUiae foundations are not only those
conlpl7 ! : ! " lf > terbut the former
domicile. "As many 'Ustorics.are ' . pre
sented of this somewhat mjilucal per-
S sonage as there are days in the week.
; The "venerable dame , witch , or alowife
f- is identified by many writers as the cele
brated Eleanor Humming , of Leather-
head , in Surrey , who lived in the days
of Henry VJIL This old alewife is de
scribed by the poet laureate of bluff
King Hal as being most uncomely of
face , "ugly of cheer , her face all brow-
sy , wondrously wrinkled , her 'ecu
bleared , and she gray-haired. "
In a work on the history of St. Pan
creas is the account of her life which is
most probable , and the one nearest the
traditions still extant in Camdentown.
"She was , " says this record , "some
times called , besides 'Mother Damnable'
and 'Mother Red Cap , ' the 'Shrew of
. ' " She the
Kentishtown. was daughter
of one Jacob Bingham , a brickmaker in
the town and neighborhood. Tiring of
the humble labors of a bricklayer , he
enlisted in the army and went to Scot
land , marrying there a Scotch peddler's
daughter. The result of their union
was"our Mother Red Cap , whom they
named Jinney. At last the father wear
ied of the army and returned to his
bricks , sometimes relieving life's mon
otony by traveling , with his wife and
child , as a peddler. Thus the girl got
into vagabond wavs * , and at 16 had an
intrigue with one Gypsy George , or , as
he was lessfrequently known , George
ne'er-do-well. This
Coulter , an idle - -
man was a deal of bother to the magis
trates , and , truth compels us to record ,
he lived by his wits , which were most
disreputable ones. In his evil deeds he
was seconded by the lawless Jinney.
At last Coulter was caught sheep steal
ing , sent to Newgate , tried at the Old
* Bailey , and hung at Tyburn.
Reckless Jinney did not long wear
the willow. No. 2 in her lawless affec
tions was a drunken fellow named Dar
by. They were constantly quarreling ,
and at last Jinney talked matters over
with her mother. After this Darby was
missed , nor could he be found by the
authorities. At this period both of Jin-
ney's parents were summoned "before
the courts jfor secretly practicing the
black art , compassing thus the death cf
an innocent maiden. Indignation ii
the people rose high , proofs were over
whelming- - theywerebothhanged
Perhaps the enforced violent deaths o ,
parents and lover may have imbitterec
the girl , for Jinney henceforth was
more reckless than ever. A third tern
porary liege lord was one Pitcher , o
whom little was known. It was nol
many months when his body was dis
covered in the oven burnt to a cinder ,
Jinney escaped hanging for this mur
der because an associate "provec
he had often gotten into the oven tc
escape Jin's tongue. " Although ac
quitted , Jinney was "a lone woman,1
for even the lowest of her former com
panions fearedther with a deadly fear ,
She prowled about at nightfall in the
lanes , no one either knowing or caring
how or where she got her food. She
became a hunted , scorned creature ,
more like an. animal of the woods that
a human being. During the common
wealth troubles , a man closely pursued ,
sought icfuge by the back door in Jin-
ney's house , and on his knees he implor
ed a night's shelter. His face was thin
and full of terror. He offered Jinnej
money , of which he had an abundance ,
and shegave him a lodging. For years
thereafter she lived with the man , who
; ave her liberal money gifts , although
ard words , often blows , were heard
from her "cottage. One day he died , and
the customary inquest followed. It was
thought he was poisoned , but , lacking
proof , the stealthy murderess , his para
mour , escaped a second time the clutch
es of the law. She was termed "the
gallows cheated , " .and she had not one
friend in all the world. But she was
not penniless , as she owned her cottage ,
which had been built on waste land by
her father. Years pass in hermit-like
life for the poor creature , whose , foul
tongue blackened all of whom she spoke.
To make matters worse she was report
ed far and wide as a witch , a dabbler in
the black art , in which it was said
her father had trained her. One can
imagine her a veritable Macbeth witch
about the burning caldron. She'told ' for
tunes amThealed strange diseases. If any
calamity occurred , the poor old creature
was jeered and hooted by the mob , who
showed here no mercy , pelting her with
stones , and setting all sorts of traps for
her. At this stage of her mild , fitful
career , she would lean out of her hatch
door , with a weird red cap set upon her
uncanny head. The crowd would jeer
and call her old "Mother Red Cap. "
Her nose was broad and huge , her eye-
brows shaggy and sinister , her brow
deep scarred with wrinkles , and her
sensual mouth with an habitual sullen
expression. On her shoulders she wore
a gray striped frieze , patched in black
dabs , looking like a swarm of black
bats. Suddenly she would allow her
enormous black cat to jump up beside
her , when her mockers Hed dreading
superstitiouslyblackest double enemies ,
To-day , we should call the poor wretch
"a maniac , " but in her days she was a
"witch. " Her death is described in a
time-yellowed pamphlet in the British
followsHundreds of
museum as : men ,
women , and children were witnesses of
the devil entering her house in his
very appearance and state , and that , al
though his return was narrowly watch
ed for , he was" not seen again , and that
Mother Damnable was found dead on
the following morning , sitting before
the fireplace , holding.a crutch over it
with a teapot full of herbs , drugs , and
liquid , part of which being given to the
3atthe hair fell off in two hours , and the
jat soon after died. That the body was
stiffwhen found , and that the underta
ker was obliged to break 'her limbs be
fore he could place them in a coffin ,
md that the justices have put men in
) ossessioa of the house to examine its
: ontents. Such is the closing history of
his strange being , whose name will
sverbe associated with Camdentown ,
ind whose reminiscence will ever be re-
'ivcd by the old wayside house , which ,
milt on the sight of the old beldame's
Cottage , wears h'er head as the sign of
he tavern. "
At the beginning of the current cen-
ury , the Mother Red Cap was a favor-
: e place of resort for weary Londoners
rho longed to breathe fresh air and
Bvel in country quiet in this house , then
landing in the open fields and ap-
roached by green lanes and blossoming
edgerows. Over the way was a dairy ,
sort of "milk fair , " at which visitors
rere served with fresh milk from the
Leaving Mother Red Cap , who was , it
ems , "neither man nor woman , neith-
brute nor human , but ghoul , " to par-
phrase Edgar Allen Poe , less than half
mile brings us to Mother Shipton , no
sss mythical mother than Red Cap. In
aral England , as in rural America ,
lother"Slnpton's prophecies are some-
rhat believed. She is regarded as a
rophet by simple folk. She is also of
ic reign"of bluff King Henry VIH.
'radition ' accords her birthplace as
Inaresborough. and relates that she
sold her soul to the devil , " that she
light be able , while living on earth , to
) recast the future to her seekers after
idden mysteries. Alas ! this idea still
even in aesthetic nineteeeth cen-
iry peoples , only they call that sort of
roniL'fl by high-sounding titles "astrol-
gers" and " clairvoyants. " She was a
ritch , yet she was not destined to share
lie fare of the traditional witch , for she
led in her bed in Yorkshire , near Clif-
an , at a very advanced age. In the
hurchyard of Clifton a memorial stone
et forth :
Here lies she who never lied ,
Whose skill often has heen tried ;
Her prophecies shall still survive
And ever keep her name alive.
iach day of her erratic life was marked
y her foretelling remarkable tales , all
if which involved grave attention. From
he uttermost counties of England she
ras consulted by all grades of society ,
rho flocked to their prophetess , "Moth-
: r Shipton. " To an abbot agent of the
ang , she foretold the suppression of the
oonasteries by Henry VIII. , the sov-
ireign's union with Anne Boleyn ,
Jmithfield's heretic flames , Cardinal
VoJsey's death , and the cruel execution
> f Mary Queen of Scots. In addition
; he told of the coming to the throne of
England of James I. Of this she mut-
ered.
From the cold north
Every evil shall come forth.
Consulted one last time , she uttered a
itrange prophecy , the one above all
) thers mostly quoted in this century :
Che time shall come when seas of blood
shall mingle with a greater flood ;
* _
I
Great noise shall there be heard , great shout
and cries ,
And seas shall .thunder .louder than the skies.
Then shall' three lions fight with three , an
bring
Joy to a people , honor to a king.
Peace shall then be as before ;
Plenty shall everywhere be found ,
And men with swords shall plow the ground.
James was also his predecessor
Queen Elizabeth , was disturbed by thi
strange prophecies of Mother Shipton
For Bess , despite of her masculine in
tellect and iron will , was a very womai
in many essentials. To her Mothe
Shipton foretold :
Before ths good folk of this kingdom be un
* " done ,
Shall Highgate.hlll stand in the midst o
London.
This consummation is rapidly beinj
reached to-day , if not at the time it wai
versed. James , as also Elizabeth , wa
30 moved by the old dame's words tha
he forbade by law additions to Londoi
in the way of building. Down to thi
fire of 1666 , London as a metropolii
was very compact. Mother Shipton' !
sign presents a demure , wizened "dami
on its swinging board , and leads to odd
ghostlike visions. But a truce to her
Entering the inn to look about a bit
the pert barmaid says : "What shall i
be , miss ? " I reply : "Water , clear
filtered water : but here is your sixpence
and let us unite in drinking death t (
superstitution of the black * art and the
potency of 'The Three Mothers. ' "
London as a Social Forest.
London is a large social forest , marked
everywhere by the rich , straggling free-
tlom , unregulated variety , and ' indefin
ite limit which distinguish a'forest from
an artificial garden or a walled orchard.
And , like a great forest also , it has not
a few free green places scattered here
and there , to let in the Iteht and give
currency to the breezes , while the lono
lines of streets which we have mentioned
are like the green walks through a for
est , which enable the woodman to use
his ax freely , and to transport the fruits
of his labor with ease and expedition to
their proper destiny.
The opposite style of this rambling
character of London may be best , seen
in Berlin. The magnificent capital of
Prussia or now , rather , of Germany-
has , more the aspect of a manufacture
than a growth. The streets run rank
and file , like the batalions of a great
army. They are utterly without the
freedom , the picturesqueness , and the
ever-changing diversity which is the
great charm of London of course , we
repeat here , of London taken as a whole.
There are parts and whole districts of
London which are as bald as the most
prosaic lines of streets in Berlin or
Mannheim , and as destitute of any dis
tinctive feature as a feeble curate's first
sermon , in which the skeleton of some
"preacher's help" has been tricked up
into the customary proprieties of the
pulpit. But these long rows of taste
less monotony in London are only parts ,
tvhich in other cities would make the
tvhole , and are , moreover , largely re
lieved either by a grand sweep of the
idjacent parks or by those frequent
jreen squares of open ground which add
i charm to the most prosaic architecture
) f a town , similar to that conferred by
; he bending river on the monotony of a
vide champaign. As to England gen-
srally , the presence of this freshand ,
'ragrant green not in strips only here
md there , but everywhere , in large , in-
; erminable sweeps gives a charm to
he landscape with which neither Italy
tor Germany nor any fairest continen-
al country can vie , so in London the
flory of green trees , vividly fresh amid
he dullness of old bricky courts , and
leneath the pall of a frequently cloudy
ky , brings the memory , so to speak ,
nd a certain afflatus of the country into
lie town just as the arms of the sea on.
he west of the Highlands run with a
raceful willfulness up to the root of
tie bens , bringing the strong breath of
cean along with them. This strange
nd unexpected combination of contrary
tiings fills the eye with changes of a
leasurable surprise. "
A great contribution to this delight- \
il intermixture of town and country.
i formed by what was once the suburbs
I London , but what are now essential
arts of the city ; for it is a rule , with
sw exceptions , that men who do busi-
ess in the city-proper that is > tlie dis-
ict of which St. Paul's is the center ,
ith the Tower and the Strand as the
vo wings reside not in the city , but
Bcamp regularly about 4 or 5 o'clock
ito those comparatively open cireum-
icent districts which are either scpar-
te small towns or open green com-
tons surrounded with villas. Cassdl's
'amity Magazine.
Iron-Clads and .
- Torpedo-Boats.
A Berlin dispatch to The London
tandard says : The now iron-clad
Idenburg , will be of entirely novel
instruction. It is a broadside ship ,
ith 10-inch guns , live on each side , two
uove and three below deck , but the
hole five can be concentrated on the
une point with sufficient force , it is es-
niated , to disable even the strongest
on-clad. The displacement of the
Idenburg is 5,200 tons , and her engines
,900 , horse-power , enabling her to steam
> urteen English miles an hour. The
erman government is apparently not
ell satisfied with the construction of
at Stettin. It has
le torpedo-boats or-
efed new ones in England , and refuses
5 accept six that have been completed.
Ihina also has ordered her three new
on-clads to be built in England and
ot at Stettin. Herr Schwarzkopf , of
ierlin , will on Tuesday next complete
is thousandth torpedo.
You Should Think.
One of the most idiotic practical jokes
idulgcd in by persons carrying light-
reight brains is loading a cigar or pipe
rith powder for some victim to endau-
er his eyesight. It is on a par with
uddenly drawing away a chair upon
rhich somebody is about to sit , then
lughing the party's discomfiture ,
ometimes the laugh is on the wrong
ide of the mouth , when the victim hur-
iedly proceeds to put the joker's eye in
lourning , or .tap him forcibly on the
iroboscis , and serve him right. Harm-
ess jokes are excellent , but anything
hat may disfigure or cripple anybody
or life should not be indulged in. " I
iidn't think" is not a good excuse. You
hould think. Pectfs Sun.
No wind can do him any good wlw stecra for
o port
ITHE IHETEENTHJEKTURY CLUB ,
The Personnel of Some of Its
"Well Known Members.
Its Pounder , Its Platform and Its Object
A Besnme of a Famous Olnb Abont
Which Mnch Has Been Said ,
NEW Tonic , December 80,1885.
The Art rooms at 6 East Twenty-third street
'are very familiar to all picture lovers , but they
have taken on a new character this season by
having been selected for the meetings of the
Nineteenth Century .Club. Exactly what the
Nineteenth Century Club is few outside the
organization seem to know , yet no club or so
ciety has ever existed that has occasioned so
much speculation or individual desire and
heart burning. Come with me to the club
rooms , for the meetings are no longer held in
Mr. Palmer's elegant parlors , and we will see
what the Nineteenth Century Club is like.
It is easy to see at the start that it is not an
exclusively male club. The social air is too
well defined. There is too much refinement ;
just the touch of formality necessary to save
I from undue familiarity , and that subtle charm
of odor from delicate perfumes and flowers
which would Indicate to a blind man the pres
ence of cultivated women. Crossing the first
griUery we ascend the red carpeted stairs which
Feafl to the upper floor. At the top of these ,
and at the entrance to the west gallery , which
is filled with seats facing a platform , members
and guests are received by a committee of
ladies , first of whom is Mrs. Cortlandt Palmer ,
whose willingness to sacrifice for a time the
quiet of her 'beautiful home made the club
possible , and whose grace and courtesy as
hostess , aided by the constant presence and
co-operation of ladies whose names are a social
power , preserve Its character Intact.
One of these , perhaps the one whose influ
ence has been most potently felt , is a slight ,
delicate woman , of great refinement and dis
tinction of appearance and manner. Seeing
simply her air of thorough breeding , one would
not give her credit for the energy she possesses ,
the amount of excellent ivork she has done in
her plays , her bric-a-brac stories and other
works , not to speak of constant efforts in be
half of societies and public and charitable en
terprises. For this is Mrs. Burton N. Harrison ,
author of "A Russian Honeymoon , " "Weeping
Wives , " "Old-fashioned Falrybook , " "W ( >
man's Work In Modern Homes , " "Bric-a-brac
Tales , " illustrated by Walter Crane , "Crow's
Nest , " "A Little Centennial Lady , " and other
plays and stories whose names I do not remem
ber now. Mrs. Harrison comes quite naturally
by her genius for literary work , for her grand
mother , Virginia Randolph , was the kins
woman and pupil of Thomas Jefferson ; early
trained by him at Monticcllo to habits of in
tellectual exercise , and in her day a very well-
known writer on old-fashioned themes of doc
trine and romance. From the book-loving and
literary Fairfaxes of English descent on the
paternal side Mrs. Harrison inherits the same
taste , and her early life in the old Fairfax fam
ily homestead in Virginia , under the careful
guardianship of a mother who was a rare
specimen of intellectual womanhood , was well
adapted to foster and stimulate her last gifts.
Pursuing her literary works in a somewhat de
sultory lashion and merely for the love of it ,
Mrs. Harrison is less known as a writer of books
than as a social leader and the author of a
brilliant little play , based upon a comedy of
Scribe's , which , though written for amateur
production , was performed at the Madison
Square Theatre for nearly a hundred nights.
It is true that quite recently she was made a
member of the Executive Committee of the
Copyright League , but it was probably more
out of gratitude for her strong and successful
effort in getting up the series of "Author's
Readings" last spring than knowledge or recog
nition of her work.
The third of the trio is a lady also well
known In the best social and literary circles ;
more widely known indeed than perhaps any
other woman of her standing , for her work has
been diversified , and her relations intimate
with representative people in society , as well
as art and literature. It is some years ago
since a series of clever "Conversations" on lit
erary and social topics in Anpleton's Journal
attracted the attention of literary circles in
New York. They were signed "M.E. W. S. , "
and it soon became an open secret that the au
thor was Mrs. Sherwood , a well known leader
in society , and a woman of singular breadth of
mind , added to a various experience and culti
vated ; intelligence. Mrs. Sherwood has only
recently returned from an extended visit
abroad , but she was one of the ladies whose
names gave strength to the infant phenomenon ,
represented by the Nineteenth Century Club ,
and every one Is glad to see her back and re
ceive her cordial welcome.
The Rubicon passed and it does not take at
all so long as I have employed in writing about
It we soon find ourselves seated ir the long
gallery among 400 or 500 other waiting and ex
pectant persons of both sexes. They are not
all fashionable or even wealthy people by any
means , but they are largely representative ,
and they generally include visitors of distinc
tion from abroad who mav " happen to be in
New York at the time. Mr. Felix Moscheles ,
the English artist and godson of Mendelssohn ,
nrith his beautiful and charming wife have
been frequent guests since professional en
gagements have kept them in New York City
auring the past two winters. Mr. Edgar
Fawcett and of late Mr. and Mrs. Moncure
Conway are also prominent figures but hush
here comes the President.
COUP.TLAXD PALMER.
The inspiration of this modern and truly re
markable club , for inspiration it was , belonga
entirely to the founder and President , since Its
start , Mr. Cortlaudt Palmer. Apart from
this , however , and previous to its inception , he
was principally known as a man of extremely
radical tendencies , though the inheritor of a
million and a good old name. Looking at him
as he stands , introducing the subject and the
speaker of the evening , in the earnest , easy ,
natural manner habitual with him , one sees a
slight , blonde man , with brown hair parted In
the middle , a reddish brown moustache and
blue gray eyes , whose somewhat limited vision
Is aided by glasses. The description of ex
ternals , which might apply to thousands of
other men in New York and elsewhere , gives
no idea of the singular clearness , sincerity and
refinement of Mr. Palmer's appearence , tem
perament and character. He is himself to
such an extent as to be unique , but like the
author of "Ecce Homo , " he recognizes his kin
ship with everything else that is human. This
is not the genius of the temperament of the
money-maker , and Mr. Palmer is therefore
better known for what he gives than what he
makes , and could not by any possibility be
come a hundred millionaire. In fact It seems
almost a misfortune that he has never known
the necessity for earning money , for his
ability both as writer and speaker would have
won him distinction in almost any field in
which it might have been exerted. As it is , ha
has been foster father to many beautiful but
forlorn hopes and enterprises , born ahead of
their time and therefore cut off before coming
to maturity. Born in Fourteenth street , in
what was then (1S43) the extreme upper and
most fashionable portion of New York City , of
old English ( an English ancestor , Walter Pal
mer , settled in Connecticut about 1650) ) and
Knickerbocker stock ( Suydama ) whence , on
the maternal side , did he receive that fountain
of moral courage , sympathy and universal
charity which are the most striking character
istics of the man and Individualize Mm In the
" " "
- * '
midst of an assemblage of other men dlstfn
guished for goodness and humanity.
In many ways the previous life and envir
onment or Mr. Palmer seem to'have'curiously
prepared him for this work , into which he has
thrown himself with such zeal , of building an
organization upon a broad basis and of the
unique character of the Nineteenth Century
Club. Probably no other man in thii country
held or could have maintained relations coln-
timate with classes so opposite or individuals
so widely divergent in opinions and Ideas. No
man could because no other man would. The
f ct tells the whole story. He was never os
tracized even by his own order on account of
his opinions , because his own toleration was so
large as to include every shade of honest con
viction , and no one could be uncharitable to
wards a man who exercised so.large a charity
towards others. When , therefore , he gathered
a few of his friends together and announced as
a platform for the future club "willingness to
try all things and hold to those that proved
good" it was received with acclamation , and
it may be said the Nineteenth Century itself
so memorable in achievement was crowned
by that act with a glory that it had not before
known that of Unity , in difference and in
degree , the nearest approach ws can make to
the divine life.
Not many of those who crowded Mr. and
Mrs. Palmer's parlors understood the signifi
cance of the step that had been taken of the
structure they were building. Exteriorly , the
assemblage presented a brilliant social specta
cle , for while it was religiously radical , or rad
ically religious free as air in its intellectual ,
theological and scientific flights It was con
servative socially , and employed its lady mem
bers principally as a wall of defense against
the intrusion of objectionable elements. This
would probably not have been Mr. Palmer's
policy. It'is'not in him to shut any one out of
any heaven of his making , but it was sound
and wise policy for all that , and has done much
to Increase the prestige of the Club. Every
one could not be invited or admitted , and the
difficulty Increased the desire till it became a
passion , especially on the part of women tired
of the routine of fashionable life , or who wish
ed to enjoy the mental exercise of these intel
lectual tournaments. For the social atmos
phere , the freedom In expression , the quick
renown which the meetings achieved , and the
fact that they were , and are , the only thing of
their kind , Induced the most distinguished
speakers and writers to give to the Nineteenth
Century for love what they would hardly have
fiven to the outside world for money , and
rought men into the arena to break a free
lance who could not have been induced to do
it under restrictions. It was the finest sight
in the world to see such men as the Kev.
Dr. Rylance , the Rabbi Qotthell , Professor
Adler , T. B. Wakeman , other Reverends , and
a Unitarian , to make , the circle complete , all
differing in brilliant and caustic antitheses ,
all agreeing in the great fundamental princi
ple of ultimate unity. A Persian story illus
trative of this idea closed one of the speeches.
It was of four mendicants of different nation
alities , who meeting on a common road ,
agreed to pool their small stock of coins in
order to obtain a suQlcIentTdinner at the first
Inn at which they might arrive. But each one
had a favorite dish of which he insisted it
should be composed , and the name of which
he gave In his own tongue ; whereupon from
words they came to blows and arrived at their
destination broken and battered , but without
having arrived at any agreement , and clamor
ing each for his own dlsn. And at last when
the dishes were brought thev were found to be
exactly the same , only called by another name.
This has been the drift of the theological dis
cussions , but there have also been others that
were scientific , still others that were purely
literary , but the President is not quite happy ,
not strictly on his native heath , except when
he has an Old School Presbvterian , a Hard
shell Baptist , a Congregational Methodist , an
Agnostic , a Materialist , a Theosophist. a Posi-
tivist and a disciple of the Ethical school all
engaged in discussing some knotty psycho
logic problem , and agreeing at last to disagree.
It is not likelv that converts are ever made
to any form of faith at the Ninteenth Century
Club , but what a school it is for the enlarge
ment of ideas , the training of the faculties ,
and tha development of the different sides 01
standpoints from which a question may be con
sidered , while its work mirrors the brigntest
side of our intellectual life.
PARKE GODWET.
A prominent figure at the Nincteeth Centu/j
Club and one of the gentlemen most intimatelj
associated with Mr. Palmer in its inception
and early work is Mr. Parke Godwin , the vet
eran editor so long connected with the Eiening
Post , and one of the last remaining of that
famous band who participated in the dream oi
Fourier , and believing tnat heaven could bt
reached by a single bound endeavoring to real
ize their earthy Paradise at Brook Farm. Not
did thev fail simply the world was not.ready
for sucu self-abnegation and continued sepa
ration from itor modern monasticism was not
to be expected on tlie part of men and women
so rich in energy and mental gifts. Almost all
the Brook Farm experimentalists became fa
mous afterwards , and , with a few exceptions ,
they did not believe the dreams of their youth ,
although they had discovered their impractica
bility.
Mr. Parke Godwin , hearing the same some
what unusual name , and known for bis early
advocacy of socialistic ideas , is often con
founded with the husband of Mary William T.
Godwin , the English Author , was born in
Cambridgeshire , "England , and died in London
in 1S3G. "He never came to this country. Mr.
Parke Godwin was born in Patergon , NI J. , in
1S1G. He was educated at Princeton studied
law , but perhaps owinj ; to his marriage with
the daughter of Mr. William Cullen Bryant ,
drifted into journalism and became first edi
torial contributor , afterwards managing editoi
of the Evening Post. Mr. Godwin uas always
been ajinan of ideas , interested and laboriiic
for social , political and religious enlargement.
He has written many books distinguished for
thought and ability "and has many of the qual-
Ities"as a leader , but perhaps he is too far in
advance. He cannot work with the instru
ments nor toward the object of the crowd , and
so he has generally found himself with the
fated minority who live and die working foi
but misunderstood bj" their fellows.
Mr. Godwin is now nearing seventy his
massive head is covered with a mane of snow-
white hair , but he is seemingly as energetic in
work , and as active in every cause that ap
peals to his sympathies as ever. Such labor
movements as tend to the elevation of the
workingman , the opening or building up ol
schools and colleges for women , laying a foun
dation of a National School of Music , and ol
American opera , work for the Bartholdi fund
all these and cognate enterprises find a will-
Ing and efficient helper in Mr. Godwin , who
believes in man as part of the mind of God ,
and in the infinite possibilities of thoughts
and reflection , by which he is distinguished.
The picture given is not from a photograph ,
Mr. Godwin never having had one taken , but
from an engraved copy of a portrait painted
some years ago , and which , therefore , does not
convev the serenity which the snow of years
has imparted to the lines of an always strong
and striking face.
One of the vice-presidents of the Nineteenth
Century Club and one of the interesting and
remarkable men of this century is Mr. Andrew
Carnegie , a Scotchman by birth , the town ol
DumferUne having had the honor to be his
place of nativity , but a large-hearted lover of
his kind , a genuine man in every fibre , and a
republican in the broad sense , from the crown
of his head'to the sole of liis boots. Mr. Car
negie was born in 1835 , and is therefore fifty
years old , but he does not look a day over
forty , and combines in an unprecedented de
gree business habits and faculties with grasp o ) I
5-va- . .
ANDREW CARXEGEB. / '
mind , a quick and keen Intelligence , aratt'ex-
traordinary power of appreciation anil sym-
patbv. One can best estimate men and women
oy their relations or proportions to other
human creatures. Of Mr. Carnegie it may be
said there Is only one of him , and every day
experience shows that when there Is only one
of a kind they are not easily replaced. He was
born of humble parentage from a pecuniary
point of view but his father had received a
good education and was a man of unusual in
telligence , even among the canny Scots ; while
his mother , who still lives , and whom he
reverences and treats with the tenderness of a
lover , the worship offered to a saint and the
homage due to a Queen , is a woman of rare
i mental endowments and strength of "character.
Certainly the highest and best that Is In him
must come from her , for mother and son are
the same In the courage and honesty of their
convictions , in insight , in depth and reach of
thought , and in the sympathy with all created
things , which fills the lives who garner it full
of unutterable music and sweetness.
Perhaps it will be thought that tho mother
of Mr. Carnegie should not be mentioned here ,
for her life is now secluded and she Is seldom
seen in any assemblage ; almost the last time
was when she acted as the queenly hostess on
the occasion of a magnificent reception given
at the Windsor Hotel ( his New York home ) by f
Mr. Carnegie to his Intimate personal friend ,
Mr. Matthew Arnold , and the deference
shown the aged lady by the most distinguished
personages , and their recognition * of her ad
mirable character and mental gifts must have
gladdened the heart of the loyal son.
It was In 1&15 that the family removed to
this country , and his first earnings were as a
telegraph messenger at a salary of $2.50 per
week. He now , In connection with his brother ,
controls four of the largest Iron and steel
works In this country , besides owning an Inter
est In many similar enterprises. In order to
Influence public sentiment in Great Britain he
has purchased several newspapers in England
and Scotland , and now has a more or less con
trolling interest in eighteen popular and well
known papers , seven of which are dailies
evening papers and eleven weeklies , with an
average circulation of over 2,000,000 of copies.
With all this genius for taking on care and
multiplying his business responsibilities Mr.
Carnegie does not seem oppressed by them.
He is most genial and courteous of manner , an
effective speaker and fluent writer as may be
seen by a glance at two books he has found
time to write and publish ' "Round the
World" and a "Four-in-Hand" the latter the
record ol a trip made some four years ago with
a party whom he took out on the steamship
Bothnia as his guests , supplementing the jour
ney with a six weeks' coaching trip through-
England and Scotland , and celebrating his
mother's birthday by taking her and the whole
party to his native town in order that he might
lay the foundation stone of a free library
which he presented to Dumferline at a cost of
$25,000 ; he had previously endowed it with
free baths at a cost of the same sum. New
York has been benefitted by the Carnegie La
boratory at a cost of ? 50,000 , and Braddock ,
Pa. , by the presentation of a free library ,
which is not yet completed. Pittsburg was o"f-
fered one but the municipality declined to ac
cept it because it would have to be maintained.
Twenty-five thousand dollars Mr. Carnegie has
expended in scholarships in the Royal College
of Music in London , While his minor benefac
tions are as the sands of the sea. He knows
too well the value of money , however , and has
too just an appreciation of what it can do to
throw it away on useless and worthless objects ;
in one way or another his money is always ex
pended to aid in the intellectual and moral ad-
rancementof the people. He credits to repub
lican institutions all the results of his own
jareer the possibility of taking the boy earn
ing § 2.50 per week and making him as a man
the peer of those "born in the purple. " But
every boy does not become the peer of. the
scholar , the rich man , the philosopher , the re
former , the philanthropist and the true gen-
ilcman , and the boy who becomes all of
these by the force of his own unaided facul
ties possesses the elements of greatness
within himself and would have risen to dis
tinction anywhere.
Since his return to his native land and set
tlement in Brooklyn natural attraction has
draw n Mr. Moncure Conway to the Nineteenth
Century Club and made him one of its familiar
figures. Mr. Conway looks something like
Matthew Arnold , and reminds one of him , but
is face is less rugged has not the deep lines
of Matthew Arnold though it is perhaps as
expressive of the lines of thoughtful work up
on which both lives have been spent. Mr.
Conway is one of those men who make them
selves felt wherever they are. A Virginian by
birth , he graduated from Dickinson College ,
Pa. , and took up the study of the law at a
time w hen the growth of an ooposite public
opinion was stimulating Southern pro-slavery
prejudice to its extrcmest height. A man
must be all that local sentiment demanded of
him or nothing. Mr. Couway took up the
cudgel for freelom and humanity ; he threw
up the law and with it the prospect of a bril
liant future and began to study and preach the
Gospel. He was born in lS32"in ; 1S52 he went
to Harvard and studied theology , accepting
two years later the call to a Unitarian church
in . His anti-slaver '
Washington. - ) sermons ,
however , led to his dfcnifcsal , and after an-
cther trial in Cincinnati , where trouble arose
from the same cause , he took up the work of
professional writer and lecturer. He edited
the Boston Commonwealth and became a.n ac
knowledged power. AVhen he went to" Eng
land in Ifc63 it was for the purpose of Influenc
ing public opinion there through the press and
- > f confronting Southern arguments with the
testimony of an anti-slavery Southerner. But
' *
England'has a fashion of its own of absorbing "
the really able men and women who make
their quality known. Mr. Conway wrote and
lectured and shortly received a call which he
iccepted , to the ministerial office in connec
tion with the South Place Chapel and shortly
jecame a recognised part of the intellectual
ife of the great metropolis. But he has never
ost his interest in or his connection with the
iving issues "at home. " His letters of many
rears to the Cincinnati Commercial were the
nost quoted and famous of any from the great
netropolis , while his house was always open
md must be most gratefully remembered by
housands of Americans who shared the kind
md grateful hospitality which Mr. and Mrs.
Conway were always ready to dispense. Mr.
Conway is a man o'f convictions , and lias the
: ourage of them. He is still in the priuie of
ife , though his mentality has got the best of
iis vital force somew hat , and caused him to
lend forward so as to give him a look of great-
r age than really belongs to him. Already he
s felt as a new force in the field of thought
, nd mental and moral progress , and has more
lemand upon his time than is good for the im-
> ortant literary work in which he Is engaged.
Leaving out all reference to the lectures
rhicb , first and last , represent every phase ol
ctive intellectual life and thought , these are
ew of the figures which would be pointed out
s notable at any meeting of the Nineteenth
Jentury Club , and these and the methods em-
iloyed w ill serve to indicate some of the reas-
ns why it is famous. JEXXIE JUXE.
A rigid mother in Bath , Me. , has succeeded
a having her daughter's beau arrested and
rraigncd for staying too late in her house at
light. The Bath papers cut the affair shore /
y saying that he was released on his promise
D leave town the next day. This will give the
rorld an exalted idea of the Bath daughters ,
3r had it been in any other state the girl
rould have left town herself the next day , if
ary to keep her lover companv. tica York .
Torld. * <
