Evening Star Newspaper, November 17, 1929, Page 103

and ‘the shining eyes like antique jewels set in Parian statue stone.’ ““There were silks of every possible hue, and thus a rich variety of colors in the picture. ‘There was, too, every possible species of toilet— dainty head dresses, delicate bonnets and what- ever can make the sex beautiful and lead every- body else into temptation. “But beautiful as they were they were not dwarfs. How many wished they were! How many regretted their ‘superb abundance!’ “Around the chancel, up and down the aisles, here, there and everywhere throughout the church there were policemen, with their caps on, and order reigned in the matrimonial Warsaw. “So we quietly took our comfortable seat and listened to the magnificent organ and Morgan, who, between them, gave the overtures to ‘Wil- lam Tell’ and ‘Oberon,” a ‘Tannhawvser,’ and from ‘Robert the Devil,’ the air ‘Robert Toi que Jaime.’ “As it became quiet in the church it be- came every minute more and more like a fairy festival. The music ‘groaning like a god in pain,’ the whole body of the church filled with beautifully dressed women, and shed over all a luxury of golden light -streaming in through the windows ‘diamonded with panes of quaint device’ All these made it seem less like a matter of every-day nonsense than like the action of some old romantic story. “There were several false alarms before the bridal party arrived. Then in came the great Phineas and several of the relatives of the happy pair, and took seats; and in a few mo- ments more the stir and the buzz of voices near to the door told the real arrival. “Commodore Nutt and Minnie Warren (the bride’s sister) led the way, and the bride and bridegroom came after. “Everybody was on the cushions at once, and eager to sec, though none could do so save the few who sat along by the middle aisle. But the murmur of voices and little exclamations and laughs followed the party, and marked their very slow progress up the aisle, until they reached the open space and ascended the steps of the little dais prepared for them in front of the chancel rail. “Then the nonchalant Nutt handed his lady to the opposite side, Thumb and the bride stepped between, and there was the bridal party. “Now, Nutt, for size, is such a man as might be made after supper of a cheese paring. He is a full head shorter than Tom Thumb, but is self-possessed and easy to the most perfect extent. Tom Thumb is also considerably stouter than Nutt. He, a veteran in the show business, was also, of course, quite at his ease. “Lavinia is a little lady of very fair Ppropor- tions, decidedly of the plump style of beauty, with a well rounded arm and full bust, and all the appearance of amiable embonpoint. Her countenance is animated and agreeable; com- plexion decidedly brunette, black hair, very dark eyes, rounded forehead and dimpled cheeks and chin. “Her little sister is, to our heretical taste, the prettier of the two.” “Altogether they made, after all, a dainty little group. “It was the great moment of the great show; the ladies were in such extreme ecstasies that there was perfect silence, and the Rev. Willey came forward and read the marriage rit>. Thumb and Lavinia responded clearly and affirmatively at the proper places, and in due’ time a very tall and very slim gentleman in very black clothes, the very essence of respec- tability, ascended the steps of the dais with the measured tread of the commander in ‘Don Juan,” though he did not make so much noise about it, and gave the bride away. “Then they knelt for prayer, and the rich sunlight fell through the painted windows upon them— “‘And threw warm gules upon the bride’s fair breast, As down she knelt for Heaven's grace and boon; Rose bloom fell on her hands together prest, And on her silver cross soft amethyst, And on her hair a glory like a saint.” “Upon the conclusion of the ceremony Dr. ‘Taylor, the rector of Grace Church, pronounced the benediction. Bishop Potter was not pres- ent. The Potter was afraid to mold into one these two little bits of the porcelain of human clay.” To this union there was one child which % died in infancy. Thumb died on July 15, 1883, after what was said to have been a happy married life of 20 years, and his death was recorded in The Star the next day as follows: “Death of Gen. Tom Thumb—Charles Heywood Stratton, better known to the public as Gen. Tom Thumb—died at his residence in Middleboro, Mass., yesterday morning of apoplexy. The deceased was born in Bridgeport, Conn., January 4, 1838. At the age of 14 he entered the service of P. T. Barnum and has been before the public ever since. He leaves a widow, who has been on the stage with him since their marriage in 1863. She was the pretty and conspicuous, petite Lavinia Warren, sister of the equally pretty and still smaller Minnie Warren, whom the late Commodore Nutt married. Tom Thumb acquired a for- tune, but he was afterward said to have lost a great part of it.” Tom Thumb made a mint of money, but he enjoyed too much a game of chance, and he was especially fond of poker. This may have been the reason why he died leaving a limited amount of sssets to support his wife, who, per- haps in order to make a living, later married an Italian dwarf named “Count Primo Magri,” and continued in the show business. Of all the midgets who appeared in Odd Fel- lows’ Hall during the writer's childhood, he re- calls with the greatest pleasure Minnie War- " ren, Mrs. Tom Thumb's sister, who always ap- peared with her husband, Commodore Nutt, Though having the high voice peculiar to the midget, yet it was fairly sweet and lacked much of the squeakiness so noticeable among the lilliputians. Beautiful in form and figure she seemed almost divine, as she appeared upon the stage and went through with her part, which always included singing. Dear little C.. NOVEMBER 17, 1929. THE SUNDAY @ STAR, WASHINGTON, D. 9 Minnie Warren, wife of Commodore Nutt and sister of Mrs. Tom Thumb. Minnie Warren, what a sweet little creature she was; there was never a boy who went to see her who would not have adopted her in his family if he could have done so. ODD FELLOWS' HALL was begun in 1845, and there is no doubt of it, because John Sess- ford in his annals for that year says: “The Odd Fellows' Society have erecied Seventh street, between D and E streets, a Jofty and ex- tensive hall, three stories high: The lower story-is divided into two stories, 90 feet deep: the second story is for assemblies, etc, full depth, with side rooms detached; and the up- per story for the use of the society.” The National Intelligencer of Friday, May avenue, from the terrace of the Capitol and other elevated positions. “The splendid regalia of the various lodges, glittering resplendently while the procession was in motion; the handsome banners and beautiful emblems, profusely ornamented with gold figures and letters; the orderly and regu- lar marching of the members; the smiling and elegantly dressed orphans in a large car, taste- fully decorated with wreaths and flowers, and drawn by four white horses—all these com- bined to impart a loveliness and moral gran- deur to the scene which no pen can adequately portray. And then, in addition to all its other attractions, there were nine bands of music along the line, all of which performed admi- P. T. Barnum. From an old engraving. 29, 1846, gives an excellent write-up of its dedication which took place on the preceding Monday with elaborate ceremony. Here is the account in part: “ODD PELLOWS' PROCESSION AND DEDICATION. “It is due to this highly respectable and nu- merous fraternity that a more detailed account should be published of the great pageant and ceremonies which took place in this city last Monday, when the new and splendid Hall of Odd Fellowship lately erected on Seventh street was dedicated with appropriate and in- teresting ceremonies, which riveted the atten- tion and elicited the admiration of a mighty concourse of spectators, who were brought hither from various States and cities where the order exists and exerts a beneficial in- fluence. “It is ascertained that there were not less than a thousand Odd Fellows in the procession, which, when formed into line, was about three- quarters of a mile in length. The appearance of it was exceedingly grand and imposing, as viewed from the side windows on Pennsylvania rably and added much to the enlivening of the scene. . “The procession was composed of the follow- ing lodges: Central, No. 1; Washington, No. 6; Eastern, No. 7; Harmony, No. 9; Columbia, No. 10; Union, No. 11; Friendship, No. 12; Beacon, No. 15; Metropolis, No. 16; Excelsior, No. 17, and Columbia and Magenenu Encamp- ments, all of this city; Covenant Lodge, No. 13; Mechanics, No. 18, and Mount Pisgah Encamp- ment of Georgetown; Potomac Lodge, No. 8; Mount Vernon, No. 14, and Marley Encamp- ment, Alexandria, and there were also several encampments and lodges from Richmond and from Baltimore, those from each place being accompanied with a fine band of music. We regret that we could not ascertain the names of these visiting lodges. Their very respectable members and good appearance was a source of much pride and gratification to their brethren of this city. “BE!DE distinguished members from several of the States, there were present Mr. Thomas Wildey, the respected founder of the order in the United States, and James L. Ridgely, the estcemed corresponding secretary of the Grand Lodge of the United States. “The procession was arranged in a number of appropriate divisions, and formed under the directicn of Cranstoun Laurie, the grand mar- shal, assisted by his aides, William M. Ran- dolph and John Waters; and Assistant Grand Marshals Stettinius, Wiliam Bond, William Rock, John A. Blake and A. G. Herold. “When the procession reached the corner of Seventh street and New York avenue, as they approached the hall, the reverse order in which the line had passed through the city was changed, so that the several bodies reached the hall in the following order: “The orphans in a splendid car. “The Marine Band. “The committees on ceremonies. “The banners of the several lodges. “The orators and chaplains. “Past Grand Sire Wildey and officers of the Grand Lodge of the United States. “The Grand Lcdge of the District of Columbia. “The several encampments. “The visiting lodges from Baltimore and Richmond. “The lodges of this District.” “Here the procession assumed a most grand and imposing appearance, and was so viewed and regarded by an immense multitude of spectators, who had assembled along the streets by which it moved and in front of the hall to hear the addresses from the temporary rostrum. ‘The ceremonies here commenced with an ode to Odd Fellowship, which was sung in fine style by the Harmoneons who, we understand, courtee ously volunteered their services to the order. A portion of the Scriptures was then read by the Rev. Dr. Muller. The Rev. S. K. Cox of the Methodist Protestant Church followed with prayer. The Harmoneons then sang an ode. An introductory address, highly appropriate and impressive, was afterwards delivered by V. G. Walter Lenox. The Marine Band then per- formed an excellent piece of music, The Hon. William F. Giles of Baltimore followed with an eloquent and powerful oration, after which the services were closed with an appropriate prayer by the Rev. Mr. Sprole of the Presbyterian Church.” ONE of the attractions which had a long run at old Odd Fellows' Hall, that many will never forget, was the celebrated Carpenter, the mesmerist, who would hypnotize his subjects into doing all sorts of queer things when once under his spell. One of his principal subjects, whom he would make take off his shoes and socks, jump cver chairs and do everything ludicrous and ridiculous he was told to do, was a preacher’s son here named Brown. As the writer recalls it, his name was Harry Browa. But whether it was Jim, Bill or Harry makes little difference. It so happened that this particular Mr. Brown was a frequent visitor at the Proctor home to see one of the Proctor girls, in whom he confided the fact that the whole thing was a fake pure and simple, and that he received compensation for his part of the performance. Of course, the writer does not intend to convey the impression that hypnotism itself is a fake; he would prefer to leave that to the scientist to discuss. But with Brown and Carpenter, Barnum's idea of humbugging the public was, according to Brown's story, worked to the tullest extent., Many will also recall Odd Fellows’ Hall for the many nice dances they attended there, when they would dance the Virginia reel with the ease and grace of a 2-year-old, as well as the schottische, the pclka, the lancers and the quad- rille, perhaps to the strains of Esputa’s cele- brated orchestra. But, alas! Progress is a great maker of land- marks as well as a great destroyer of them, and the time came a few years ago when it was deemed wise to replace this once magnifi- cent building with one more in keeping with the present time, and hence grew the present building on the same spot as the .old ome, though, as Hamlet might say: “But no more like the old one” (sentimentally) “than I to Speaking of P. T. Barnum's enterprise, while the writer was looking through the old news- paper files, he came across this advertisement in The Star of April 8, 1875: “The World's Greatest Object-Teacher’s Culminating Triumph, at Washington On Sixth Street Lot For one week Commencing Monday, April 12, P. T. Barnum’s Great Traveling World’s Fair. P. T. Barnum'’s Metropolitan Museum. P. T. Barnum's Colossal Caravan, P. T. Barnum’s Monster Menagerie. P. T. Barnum’s Steam-operated Polytechnic Institute. Twenty Great Shows in One, including Separate Stupendous Inter-Continental Amphitheatre, with Can Castello’s International Hippodrome, and the Terrific Wild Brazilian Bareback Rider, Lowande’s Imperial Brazilian Circus. Two Eighth World Wonder Exhibitions Daily. A single ticket, only 50 cents, Admitting to each and every department. Children under 9 years, half price. Doors open at 1 and 7 p.m. Grand Animal and Arenic Entries one hour later.” My friend Washington Tcpham tells me that the “Sixth Street Lot” here referred to was between Q and R and Sixth and Marion strects northwest. Beginning in 1876 the Ninth and S streets lot was used as the circus lot and continued to be used as such for a number of years, or until it was decided to build up the block with houses as we see it tcday.