mond_ in the Philadelphia Navy Yard, and
there I repeatedly met him and his fascinating wife. He remained there,
however, for less than a year, when he was placed in command of the
ill-fated _Maine_, and about ten months before she was destroyed was
ordered to Washington as Chief of the Bureau of Navigation with the
rank, first of Commodore and then of Rear Admiral. He served as such
with marked efficiency during the Spanish-American War, and several
years later commanded the flagship of the European Squadron. He retired
in 1903 on his own application and died five years later, deeply
regretted by a large circle of official and personal friends. Mrs.
Crowninshield is so well and favorably known to the public as an
authoress that it would be impossible for me to add any leaves to the
laurels she now wears; but I cannot refrain from paying a tribute to her
remarkable loyalty as a friend and expressing my admiration for those
uncommon traits of character which, with her commanding presence, have
made her so deeply respected and so greatly admired.

The first loan-exhibition given in Washington that I now recall was near
the close of Grant's administration, and was for the benefit of the
Church of the Incarnation. It was in an old house on the corner of
Fifteenth and H Streets, since torn down to make way for the George
Washington University. As much interest was shown in the enterprise and
many of the old Washington families sent valuable relics, a large sum of
money was realized. Among the contributors were William W. Corcoran,
Miss Olive Risley Seward, Senator John P. Jones of Nevada, and Seth
Ledyard Phelps, the latter of whom was at the time one of the District
Commissioners and owned a large number of Chinese curios gathered by him
during his life in the East. I, too, was glad to aid so worthy a cause
and sent some of my most cherished possessions. Before the exhibition
was formally opened, I attended a private view of the collection given
in honor of William W. Corcoran and Horatio King. Of Mr. Corcoran I have
elsewhere spoken; with Mr. King I was also well acquainted. In 1839,
while a young man, he was appointed to a position in the Post Office
Department and eleven years later was connected with its foreign service
in which he originated and perfected postal arrangements of great
importance to the country. His promotion was rapid and he finally became
Postmaster General under President Buchanan, a position which he