82 WITH MR. CHAMBERLAIN IN THE 



The reporter had not been long in conversation 

 with the two aforesaid gentlemen when Mr. Cham- 

 berlain entered from the room across the corridor. 

 He was chasing up some information, which he had 

 Mr. Maycock search for in a book of reference. 

 Immediately the reporter noticed that something 

 had happened to Mr. Chamberlain since his arrival 

 in Washington. What was it ? He had discarded 

 that single eyeglass, which had become by long 

 association an almost inseparable part of his indi- 

 viduality, and instead of the single eyeglass he had a 

 modest and useful-looking pair of glasses riding on 

 the bridge of his good British nose. It has been 

 said somewhere and accepted by a great many people, 

 who don't know anything about it, that Mr. Cham- 

 berlain resembles Edwin Booth. He bears just as 

 strong a resemblance to Fred Douglas or James G. 

 Blaine or any other man. Mr. Booth is handsome. 

 So is Mr. Chamberlain. There this resemblance 

 ends. 



Mr. Chamberlain and his friends are fond of ven- 

 tilation. Although it was a cool afternoon for 

 Washington, they kept the door and all the windows 

 open and pronounced disparaging ejaculations about 

 the blasted heat which was coming in the shape of 

 hot air from the furnace. Casting a glance at the 

 register on the wall which was committing all the 

 offence, Mr. Chamberlain said : *' I don't regard 

 that as an improvement on our bright fireside." 

 Mr. Chamberlain may discard the single eyeglass, 

 but he intends to cling to the old English fireside. 



