Marine Band of Musicians occupied the outer Hall.
Many hundreds of persons, ladies and gentlemen,
attended. It was what would be called in the
Society of Washington a very fashionable levee.
Foreign Ministers, -- their families and suites;
Judges, Members of both Houses of Congress, and
many citizens and strangers were of the company
present. I stood and shook hands with them for
near three hours. Towards the close of the evening
I passed through the crowded rooms with the ven-
erable Mrs. Madison on my arm. It was near
twelve o'clock when the company retired."

Six months later both the chief actors on
this social scene were laid in their graves.
This is the last glimpse we catch of Mrs.
Madison at any public function, and most
appropriately does it close. She entered
Washington official society on the arm of
Jefferson, and left it on the arm of Polk, her
life, meanwhile, public and semi-public, hav-
ing spanned nearly half a century, and covered
the administrations of nine presidents.

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