an:

If you should find yourself destitute of amusement this evening,
while the belles are at church, I beg you to come and listen to some
of my lamentations.

Yours sincerely, S. DECATUR.

My dear Mr. Corcoran:

I am happy to say that I can take you under my wing today, on the
way to heaven, and I pray you to call for me at ten o'clock.

Yours sincerely, S. DECATUR.

Union Hotel, Monday morning.

My dear Mr. Corcoran:

The Iturbides have deferred their visit until Wednesday evening and
I hope you will be able to come and meet them, with your sister and
Colonel Thomas.

Yours sincerely, S. DECATUR.

If you have a moment to spare this evening I pray you to come and
tell me how your brother's family are after this dreadful alarm.[A]

[Footnote A: The destruction of Mr. J. Corcoran's dwelling by fire.]

As we know, it was of no avail, for he seems to have remained "fancy
free" until he met and married Louise Morris.

About 1828 Mrs. Decatur became a convert to the Roman Catholic Church
through her close acquaintance with the Carroll family, it is thought.
The latter part of her life was spent in a frame house on the brow of a
hill about one hundred yards from Georgetown College, which she rented
from Miss Hobbs. Here she died about 1860.

Among the souvenirs of the college is the portrait of Commodore Decatur
by Gilbert Stuart, his ivory chess-board and men, and his jeweled
toothpick box. The grave of Mrs. Decatur was discovered some time ago in
the cemetery of Georgetown College. It had been overgrown and neglected
and forgotten.

So had this part of Georgetown, until Admiral and Mrs. Spencer Wood
bought 2808 and brought it back to its pristine glory. This house was
built by John Stoddert Haw, nephew of Benjamin Stoddert, one of the
founders of Christ Church, of which many of his descendants are still
pillars. When the Woods lived here, there was at the back of the house a
very lovely, unusual green garden, which gave a feeling of restfulness
not always produced by a riot of glorious colors, opening off a paved
area under a wide porch, like so many houses used to have.

The old house at 2806 is now the home of Mr. and Mrs. John Walker. He is
the curator of the National Gallery of Art. Thomas Beall of George sold
the land to John M. Gannt in 1804, who may have built this lovely house.
It was purchased by Elisha Williams in 1810; also owned