¦Y^LH-WMYJEI^SJIW- BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME OF THE PERKINS FUND 1902. THE CAPITOL AT WASHINGTON — EAST FRONT. A SOUVENIR OF THE AMERICAN CAPITAL. Picturesque WASHINGTON: Pen and Pencil Sketches Of its Scenery, History-, Traditions, Public and Social Life, with Graphic Descriptions of the Capitol and Congress, the White House and the Government Departments, Together with Artistic Views at Mount Vernon, a Map of the City of Washington, and Diagrams of the Halls of Congress. By Joseph West Moore. Providence : J. A. & R. A. Reid, Publishers. 1888. Copyright by J. A. & R. A. Reid. ILLUSTRATIONS by the following artists: S. S. KlLBURN, Frank Myrick, Schell & Hogan, A. B. Shute, F. B. Schell, R. Sayer, A. C Warren, A. L. Bodwell. Engraved by S. S. Kilburk, Boston. 22. B8Z GEORGE WASHINGTON. First President. MARTHA WASHINGTON. Wife of the First President. PREFACE. In the following pages the author has endeavored to narrate clearly and accurately the interesting story of the capital of the American Nation — how it has grown in the less than one hundred years of its existence from an unpromising settlement to be a bright, delightful, and prosperous city ; a capital worthy of the Nation that has become in about the same length of time one of the grandest and most powerful in the world. With the story of the development and present appearance of the city, it has been the purpose to give the fullest and most authentic particulars of all the institutions of the government within its borders, how they were established, how they are now conducted, and numer ous details of national affairs, which it is believed will be of interest and importance to every American. The aim has been to present in simple, attractive form the information that readers would be most likely to desire concerning the city of Washington and the great departments of the government ; to make the volume one of thor ough, competent reference, as well as of pleasant reading. Picturesqtje Washington is therefore offered to the public with the hope that it will prove acceptable to those who know and admire 8 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. the National City, and also to those who are desirous of becoming acquainted with it and its many objects of interest. The illustrations comprise the prominent features of the city and environs, and the government edifices. They have been carefully executed, from special drawings, by a number of the most skillful engravers in the country. In preparing this work the best authorities have been consulted, the writer has visited and thoroughly inspected every place described, and has also received most valuable assistance in gathering informa tion from many high officials of the government. More than fifty years ago an eloquent writer penned these lines : "The Nation has founded a city that bears and will transmit to pos terity the name of Washington and his renown. It is a living, in telligent monument of glory, and will reflect, as it grows in wealth and splendor, the inestimable consequences resulting to the country from his martial qualities and patriotic virtues." p^JA aw^W. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. THE WASHINGTON OF TO-DAY A BEAUTIFUL CITY OF PARKS AND PALACES ITS LOCATION ON THE POTOMAC RIVER THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA -EARLY TRADITIONS AND HISTORICAL STATEMENTS SELECTION OF THE FEDERAL TERRITORY A REMARKABLE PIECE OF POLITICAL HISTORY, PAGES 1 7-25 CHAPTER II. founding the national capital l'enfant's plan of washing ton the original proprietors of the land a lovely heiress, and her wooers removal of the seat of govern ment to the capital city historical sketches the british invasion peculiar manners and customs of the early days gradual development of the city the civil war, Pages 27-4.7 CHAPTER III. GROWTH OF "WASHINGTON SINCE 1870 THE IMPROVEMENTS OF THE BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS A WONDERFUL TRANSFORMATION, CAUSED BY THE EXPENDITURE OF TWENTY MILLIONS CHARAC TERISTICS OF THE QUEENLY POTOMAC CITY ITS GOVERNMENT. POPULATION, AND BUSINESS THE SPACIOUS STREETS AND AVE NUES, FINE PARKS AND SQUARES STATUES TO WAR HEROES LONG BRIDGE THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT, . . . PAGES 49-67 CHAPTER IV. THE CAPITOL ADOPTION OF THE PLAN LAYING OF THE CORNER STONE BY PRESIDENT WASHINGTON THE ARCHITECTS PARTIAL DESTRUCTION OF THE EDIFICE BY BRITISH TROOPS THE OLD CAPITOL THE PRESENT MAJESTIC EDIFICE ITS GREAT DOME, STATUE OF FREEDOM, BRONZE DOOR, AND STATUARY THE EAST ERN AND WESTERN PARKS NAVAL MONUMENT THE BOTANICAL GARDEN VIEW FROM THE CAPITOL DOME, .... PAGES 69-87 IO PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. CHAPTER V. INTERIOR OF THE CAPITOL THE ROTUNDA ITS HISTORICAL PAINT INGS AND CANOPY THE NATIONAL STATUARY HALL STATUES CONTRIBUTED BY THE STATES THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES THE COURT CHAMBER FAMOUS JUSTICES AND INTERESTING COURT CUSTOMS THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS DETAILS OF THE VAST NATIONAL COLLECTION OF BOOKS, PAGES 89-IO5 CHAPTER VI. the congress of the united states its first session in the capital city the old halls of legislation quaint cus toms of by-gone day's - great statesmen and their charac teristics anecdotes amd personalities • the present houses of congress senate and house extensions of the capitol, .... Pages i 07-1 21 CHAPTER VII. CONGRESS CONTINUED — MANNER OF LEGISLATION IN BOTH HOUSES THE ENORMOUS COST OF A SESSION HOW MILLIONS ARE SPENT SENATORIAL SKETCHES A GLANCE AT THE HOUSE OF REPRE SENTATIVES CLAIMANTS AND LOBBYISTS THE CONGRESSIONAL RECORD THE DISTRIBUTION OF PUBLIC DOCUMENTS, PAGES 123-135 CHAPTER VIII. the white house historical sketch description of the building and grounds. the magnificent state apartments life in the presidential mansion the president and his officials state dinners, fetes, and receptions former presidents and their wives sketches and anecdotes, Pages 137-150 CHAPTER IX. THE WHITE HOUSE CONTINUED SKETCHES OF THE PRESIDENTS AND THEIR MANNER OF LINING THE BRILLIANT SOCIAL EVENTS DIS TINGUISHED WOMEN WHO HAVE PRESIDED OVER THE HOUSEHOLD SCENES AND INCIDENTS FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE CENTURY TO THE PRESENT TIME, . . ... . PAGES I^I-l66 CHAPTER X THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE THE SECRETARY OF STATE AND THE OFFICIALS VARIOUS DIVISIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT STATE, CONTENTS. n WAR, AND NAVY BUILDING ANCIENT RECORDS THE DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR SERVICE FOREIGN LEGATIONS AT THE CAPITAL THE ORIENTAL AMBASSADORS DIPLOMATIC FETES, PAGES 167-174 CHAPTER XI. THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT THE IMMENSE STOREHOUSE OF THE GOVERNMENT FUNDS PRINCIPAL SUB-DIVISIONS SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY AND HIS WORK -THE TREASURY "AUTOCRAT" THE MASSIVE MONEY- VAULTS COUNTING MILLIONS OF DOLLARS — SINGULAR FACTS OF THE REDEMPTION DIVISION MANUFACTURING THE NATIONAL CURRENCY THE SECRET SERVICE TREASURY TRANSACTIONS, ' PAGES 175-188 CHAPTER XII. WAR AND NAVY DEPARTMENTS THE VARIOUS DIVISIONS HEAD QUARTERS OF THE ARMY THE MILITARY FORCE ARMY MEDICAL MUSEUM THE WEATHER BUREAU AND ITS MODE OF OPERATION THE SOLDIERS' HOME NAVAL AFFAIRS THE NAVY YARD THE NATIONAL OBSERVATORY, PAGES 1 89-203 CHAPTER XIII. the post-office department organization of the postal ser vice the contract division bidding for the " star " routes the dead-letter office its peculiar work and its workers money-order office postal facts and figures, . . Pages 205-211 CHAPTER XIV. department of the interior the patent-office and museum of models the pension-office its enormous expenditure and business general land office how the public lands are disposed of bureau of indian affairs — ¦ bureau of education, Pages 213—224 CHAPTER XV. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE UNITED STATES COURTS DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE THE MUSEUM AND PLANT -HOUSES THE GROWING AND DISTRIBUTION OF SEEDS EXPERIMENTS IN AGRICULTURE THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION AND ITS WORK NATIONAL MU SEUM THE GREAT COLLECTIONS OF NATURAL AND INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS GOVERNMENT PRINTING-OFFICE, . . PAGES 225-237 12 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. CHAPTER XVI. SKETCHES OF CITY LIFE THE FASHIONABLE QUARTER PALATIAL MANSIONS THE ROUND OF SOCIAL FESTIVITY OFFICIAL AND SOCIETY ETIQUETTE THE GOVERNMENT CLERKS CUSTOMS OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE THE NEGRO POPULATION ODD CHARAC TERS AND WAYS OF LIVING, PAGES 239-250 CHAPTER XVII. CITY INSTITUTIONS CORCORAN GALLERY OF ART THE LOUISE HOME PROMINENT CHURCHES AND SCHOOLS CONVENT OF THE VISI TATION THE PUBLIC MARKETS PLACES OF AMUSEMENT, HOTELS, BENEVOLENT INSTITUTIONS, ETC. MASONIC TEMPLE ODD FEL LOWS' BUILDING THE CEMETERIES GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF CITY' AFFAIRS, . . PAGES ' 25 1-266 CHAPTER XVIII. THE ENVIRONS HOWARD UNIVERSITY' COLUMBIAN UNIVERSITY WAYLAND SEMINARY NATIONAL DEAF-MUTE COLLEGE GOVERN MENT HOSPITAL FOR THE INSANE GEORGETOWN THE COLLEGE OF THE JESUITS GREAT FALLS OF THE POTOMAC CHESAPEAKE AND OHIO CANAL ARLINGTON THE GREAT NATIONAL MILITARY CEMETERY ALEXANDRIA, PAGES 267-277 CHAPTER XIX. X MOUNT VERNON- PRESENT APPEARANCE OF THE VENERATED HOME OF GEORGE WASHINGTON THE GROUNDS AND MANSION WASHING TON'S TOMB THE CHAMBER IN WHICH HE DIED APARTMENTS OF THE MANSION THE FIRST PRESIDENT'S LIFE ON HIS VIRGINIA PLANTATION HOW THE MOUNT VERNON ASSOCIATION ACQUIRED THE HISTORIC PROPERTY, ¦ PAGES 279-295 CHAPTER XX. hints and suggestions to visitors to the national capital a good way to see and enjoy the principal objects of in terest in a short time the hours to visit the capitol, the white house, and the departments general informa tion relating to the city and its customs, . . pages 296-302 Index, . . '. ,05 ILLUSTRATIONS. A Few Moments of Leisure, . ... All Souls' Unitarian Church, ..... Along the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, Along the Wharves at Georgetown, .... Anthony Pollok Mansion, ..... Arlington House, (formerly Residence of Gen. R. E. Lee) Baltimore and Potomac Railroad Depot, Bartholdi Fountain, in the Botanical Garden, Blaine, James G., Mansion, ..... Bureau of Engraving and Printing, Capitol — Chamber of the Supreme Court of the United States, East Front, .... Hall of the House of Representatives, Main Entrance, .... Marble Group on the Portico of the, National Library — Left Division, Main Division, Right Division, President's Room, Retiring-Rohm of the House, Rogers Bronze Door Rotunda, . Senate Chamber, Senate Reception Room Statuary Hall, West Front, Center Market, Group of Hucksters, . Chapel at Oak Hill Cemetery, . College of the Jesuits at Georgetown, Corcoran Gallery of Art, Davie Burns Cottage, Department of Agriculture Building, Department of Justice Building, District Court House, Don Cameron Mansion, duddington house, . Eighth and H Streets, northwest, showing Calvary Baptist Church, English Legation Building Entrance to Long Bridge, page. 67 ;63 166 ^73 24; 269 57 4' 241 '79 97 ?. ill 73 4i 101101 101 119 '31 79 1 1 1 106 "5 85 93 4S 4S 266 275 -53 21 229227 53 249 31 261 501 51 H PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. the United State Farragut Square, showing the Russian Legation Building, Ford's Old Theatre, in which President Lincoln was Shot, Franklin School Building, French Legation Building, Garfield Memorial Church, (Christian Disciples), Garfield Memorial Tablet in the Baltimore & Potomac Railroad Depot, . ..... General Post-Office, German Legation Building, Government Printing-Office, ... G Street, showing Foundry and Epiphany Churches, H and Sixteenth Streets, showing St. John's Church, House in which President Lincoln Died, Howard University, .... Landmark on B Street, northwest. Louise Home, . Masonic Temple, Massachusetts Avenue, showing Church of the Ascension- Metropolitan Methodist Episcopal Church, Mount Vernon — the Home of Washington, Eastern Portico, From the Potomac, Hall at, . Martha Washington's Bed-chamber, Old Tomb at, State Parlor, Tomb of Washington, . Washington's Bed-chamber, National Military Cemetery at Arlington, National Museum, Naval Observatory, Navy Yard, from the Potomac, New Pension Building, Section of Frieze Ornamentation on, Old Capitol, . Patent Office, North Hall — Museum of Models, . South Hall — Museum of Models, Pennsylvania Avenue at Vernon Row, From the Treasury Building, Portrait of Grover Cleveland, President <> Portrait of Mrs. Grover Cleveland, Scene in the Colored Quarter, . Senator Bayard Mansion, Seventh Street, northwest, Signal Office of the Weather Bureau, Smithsonian Institution, . Soldiers' Home, State, War, and Navy Building, St. Dominick's Roman Catholic Church, PAGB. 238 37 302 173 265 61 209 '73 233 203 3545 -77235259 183i74 204281 283278 2932912S6 295 287 290 27123 1 201 191 212223 26 215 219221 '9 6S 39 297 23 '95 299 ¦97 169150 MAP OF THE CITY OF WASHINGTON, . 303 PLAN OF THE ATTIC STORY OF THE CAPITOL, 134 PLAN OF THE BASEMENT STORY OF THE CAPITOL, . 104 PLAN OF THE HALL OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 127 PLAN OF THE PRINCIPAL STORY OF THE CAPITOL, . 88 PLAN OF THE SENATE CHAMBER, 117 If? [fTT"H7 i W Wili f P WJm < p ha § I >. m H =, O cd Z a l CHAPTER I. THE WASHINGTON OF TO-DAY' — A BEAUTIFUL CITY OF PARKS AND PALACES — ITS LOCATION ON THE POTOMAC RIVER — THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA- EARLY TRADITIONS AND HISTORICAL STATEMENTS — SELECTION OF THE FEDERAL TERRITORY — A REMARKABLE PIECE OF POLITICAL HISTORY. STANDING upon the lofty, green-clad hills of Virginia which constitute the historic Arlington estate, a magnificent panorama is unfolded as the eye sweeps northward and eastward over the picturesque region of the District of Columbia. Two hun dred feet below, the beautiful Potomac River, released from the moun tain ranges that have closely restrained its silvery stream for over a hundred miles, quickly expands into a broad sheet of placid water and glides onward to the main, bearing many a richly freighted craft. From the circling heights of the northern part of the District to the river banks on the south, as far as the eye can reach, are ponderous domes and majestic spires, countless turrets and roof-tops, emerald- tinted parks, massive monuments, and all the evidences of a great and prosperous city. Everywhere palatial edifices, embodying the high est architectural genius of the age, meet the gaze, and, grandly tow ering over all, Freedom's effigy can be seen resplendent on the huge white dome of the Nation's Capitol. This is the city of Washington as it appears to-day — a charming city of parks and palaces, and the grand seat of government of " Time's noblest offspring," the United States of America. It is predicted that Washington is to be " the future Queen City of the world." Its natural advantages give it a preeminence over most American cities in picturesqueness. Its site is bordered by a noble river and sheltered by a series of gradually sloping and thickly 18 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. wooded hills. Constructed upon an ample plan, with capacity for a million people, the home of a liberal government whose resources are almost unlimited, a delightful, salubrious place of residence, both winter and summer, now thoroughly imbued with a strong desire for advancement, for rich adornment and luxurious surroundings, and fast gathering into its fold the excellent and desirable in science, art, and literature — the capital of the country, if it continues its Her culean strides on the path of progress for a few years longer, can boldly challenge comparison with any other city in attractiveness and brilliancy. The growthand development of Wa'shington during the past ten years have been wonderful. Nearly all the old land marks have disappeared, and out of a rude, unpaved, dilapidated town has risen a stately city, with most of the resources, the pleas ures, the superiority of a metropolis. Once it was called in derision " the only child of the Nation," but now it has attained to a mag nificent manhood, and is entirely worthy of the pride and admiration of its parents. There is a tradition that George Washington, when a mere youth, surveying the Virginia lands of the opulent Lord Fairfax, and little dreaming of the remarkable career fate had in store for him, pre dicted that some day a great city would be located on the territory now known as the District of Columbia, as the site was so admirably adapted for the purpose. And in later years when, serving under the ill-fated General Braddock, he encamped with the British troops on the hill at present occupied by the National Observatory, it is related that he often sat at the door of his tent and gazed at the undulating plateau on which the city now rests, noted the broad river-front and the environing hills, and with the eye of a practical surveyor and sagacious man, traced out the future abode of thousands. It is not singular, therefore, that when he had reached the summit of human greatness, and had been proclaimed the Father of his Country, he should have exercised his authority to have the National Capital located on the spot he had been familiar with and admired from boy hood. The District of Columbia, known as the Federal Territory, as originally laid out by the first commissioners under the direction of President Washington, embraced one hundred square miles, so located as to include the thrifty towns of Georgetown in Maryland, and Alex andria in Virginia, together with the confluence of the Potomac River and its Eastern Branch, and the adjacent heights. Maryland EARLY HISTORY AND TRADITIONS. J9 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE AT VERNON ROW. and Viiginia ceded to the United States the territory required. In 1846, all that portion of the District lying on the west bank of the Potomac was retroceded by Congress to the State of Virginia, so that the Federal Territory at the present time comprises sixty-four square miles, and is bounded on three sides by the State of Mary* land, having Montgomery County on its north, Prince George County on its east and south, with the Potomac River on its west. The city of Washington occupies all the lower portion of the Dis trict. Georgetown, now known as West Washington, Tennallytown, and Uniontown are the only other places of any importance. Wash ington is situated on the eastern bank of the Potomac, 116J miles above the mouth of the river, and 184I miles from the sea. It is 14 miles in circumference, and covers a little less than 10 square miles. From the southern part of the city, where the Potomac expands to the width of a mile, extends backward an irregular plain having a mean altitude of 40 feet above the river. This plain carries the city up to the very borders of a chain of hills. The greatest length of Washington, is 4J miles ; the greatest breadth, 3| miles. It stretches along the Potomac a distance of 4 miles, and t>\ miles along the Anacostia, or Eastern Branch of the Potomac. The romantic beauty of the location, the heights surrounding the city, from which extended views of the country and the windings of the river can be obtained, 20 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. its attractive environs, all combine to render Washington one of the most picturesque cities in the country. When Captain John Smith sailed up the Potomac in 1608, he found the country inhabited by numerous tribes of Indians, continu ally at war with each other, and savage and ferocious as wild beasts. The Manahoacs were known as a powerful tribe, and their favorite camping-ground was the region now occupied by the city of Wash ington. In the spring the tribe assembled at the Potomac to catch the luscious shad and herring as they "run" in the river, and to hold their yearly councils. Great feasts were made, and the return of the vernal season was celebrated with joyous ceremonies. The tribal councils were held very near the spot where, two centuries afterward, the people of the free United States established their council hall. The Manahoacs were constantly fighting with the Powhatans of Virginia, and their sanguinary conflicts, disease, and the introduction of spirituous liquors among them, rapidly diminished their numbers, until at last they were forced to migrate westward and ally themselves with the Tuscaroras. Where these Indians had their camping-grounds, archaeological treasures in great abundance have been recently found, such as pestles, clubs, stone axes and arrow heads, clay and soapstone pottery, and numerous articles of utility and ornament. Many of the specimens of clay pottery and the orna mental work exhibit considerable skill and taste, and give evidence that the aboriginals of the District had attained some degree of civ ilization. In 1623—5 Henry Fleet, the hardy and adventurous English fur trader, thoroughly explored the Potomac borders. He had many exciting adventures with the wild tribes, and was often in deadly peril. At one time he suffered a long captivity among the Indians, but he fortunately escaped harm and succeeded in obtaining a large amount of information concerning the new southern country. He wrote of the tract around Washington : ' ' This place is without ques tion the most healthful and pleasant in all this country and most con venient for habitation ; the air temperate in summer and not violent in winter. The river aboundeth in all manner of fish, and for deer, buffaloes, bears and turkeys the woods do swarm with them, and the soil is exceedingly fertile." Fleet's enthusiastic description of the country watered by the Potomac was published in England, and may have influenced many of the emigrants to America at that time to direct their steps toward Maryland and Virginia. A company of EARLY HISTORY AND TRADITIONS. 21 Scotch and Irish people from the mother-country made a settlement, about the close of the seventeenth century, within the limits of what is now the District of Columbia. They obtained patents for a large amount of land, divided it into a number of good plantations, and designated their adopted home "New Scotland." For nearly a century this colony lived in rural solitude, enjoying the fruits of their labor. Some of the descendants of' these early settlers were among the original proprietors of the land on which the city of Washington was eventually built. It is told of a member of this colony, by the name of Pope, that he set up his lares and penates on the top of the hill where the Capitol now stands. He called his plantation "Rome," and a little stream that meandered along the base of the hill, "the Tiber," believing that in the course of time a capital city greater than imperial Rome would arise on the spacious plateau where he cultivated his crops.. To his friends and companions he was known as "Pope of Rome." This simple farmer was endowed with prophetic vision. Busy streets THE DAVIE BURNS COTTAGE. 22 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. now entirely cover the Tiber creek, and above its bank is the majes tic legislative building of a vast continental nation, looking down upon a city that in the near future may be even greater than Rome in its proudest days: The laying out of Georgetown was authorized by the Maryland Assembly in 1751, and some time later this attractive suburb of Washington began existence. It soon grew into a town of import ance. During the Revolutionary War it was one of the places of deposit for military stores. The troops of both armies marched through its streets and encamped on its steep hills. A small ferry connected it with the Virginia shore. In Suter's tavern, a favorite resort in those days, the wealthy land-holders of the neighborhood met on business and for merry-makings, and they made its rude walls ring with their jovial songs and stories. Whenever Washing ton came up the river from his Mount Vernon estate he enjoyed the good cheer of this ancient hostelry, and in Suter's he held many of his deliberations with the first commissioners engaged in the laying out of the Federal city. Small settlements were started on the Mary land banks of the Potomac just below Georgetown, and several thriv ing plantations tilled by slaves dotted the site of the future capital. In 1785 Washington made an extended and careful exploration of the upper Potomac, in order to ascertain if the river could be navigated above tide-water at Georgetown. A canoe or pirogue was expertly hollowed out of a large poplar tree, hauled to the river bank and launched, and Washington with several friends, among whom was Governor Johnson, of Maryland, a gallant soldier of the Revolution, started on the important survey. The party sailed for a number of days in their humble bark amid the sublime scenery of the upper Potomac, and made a complete exploration, the result of their work being that a company was finally organized for the improvement of the river, and nearly a million dollars expended in a series of years. During this unique voyage the distinguished party would seek quar ters for the night at the houses of well-to-do planters who lived near the river, and everywhere they were received as highly honored guests, and a most generous hospitality was dispensed. One night they were compelled to lodge at the house of a planter whose accommodations were rather scanty, and Washington, Governor Johnson, and another gentleman were given a room with two small beds. The great chief tain with a smile turned to his companions and said, " Come, gentle men, who will be my bed-fellow?" They both declined the honor, EARLY HISTORY AND TRADITIONS. 23 SEVENTH STREET, NORTHWEST. however, and the Maryland governor, in relating the incident after ward, said, " Greatly as I should have felt honored by such distinction, yet the awe and reverence which I always felt in the presence of that admirable man prevented me from approaching him so nearly." There was a severe contest over the selection of the Federal Ter ritory. In the Congress of the Confederation the question of a per manent seat of government was broached, and propositions to estab lish a " Federal town, a Federal house for Congress and for the Ex ecutive officers," on the banks of the Delaware River near the Lower Falls, and also at Georgetown on the Potomac, were entertained, but did not receive special sanction. The matter was somewhat discussed in the convention held in Philadelphia in 1787, to revise the Federal system of government, but it was not until the second session of the First Congress of the United States under the Constitution, held in New York in the summer of 1790, that it was finally decided. The discussion was long and earnest, and a strong sectional feeling was developed. New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Trenton, Harris- 24 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. burg, and many other places urged their claims upon Congress to be made the capital city, and for a time it seemed as if it would be impossible to make any selection. Maryland and Virginia had offered the necessary territory for the Federal District, but the former state strongly favored its location at the thriving " Baltimore town." Many votes were taken, and finally an act was adopted by Congress which received executive sanction in July, 1790, giving the sole power to President Washington to select a Federal Territory " not exceeding ten miles square on the river Potomac at some space between the mouths of the Eastern Branch and the Conogocheague for the per manent seat of the government of the United States." The new ter ritory was to be ready for the use of the government in 1800, and in the mean time the " Federal town " was to be Philadelphia. The final adoption of the Potomac site for the national territory was brought about by a stroke of policy contrived by Jefferson and Hamilton. In an article upon Congress, Garfield speaks of the matter as follows : "It dampens not a little our enthusiasm for the superior virtues of the fathers to learn that Hamilton's monument of statesmanship, the funding bill, which gave life to the public credit and saved from dishonor the war debts of the states, was for a time hopelessly defeated by the votes of one section of the Union, and was carried at last by a legislative bargain which, in the mildest slang of our day, would be called a ' log-rolling job.' The bill fixing the per manent seat of the government on the banks of the Potomac was the argument which turned the scale and carried the funding bill. The bargain carried them both through." Jefferson was appealed to by Hamilton to give his aid to the scheme for the assumption by the general government of the debts incurred by the states during the Revolutionary War, which amounted to $20,000,000. , The bill had been defeated in the House after an obstinate struggle, and Hamilton was earnestly seeking to have it re considered, believing that the Eastern or creditor states would secede from the Union if their claims were not allowed. Mr. Jefferson says in his Ana: "I proposed to him (Hamilton) to dine with me the next day, and I would invite another friend or two and bring them into conference together, and I thought it impossible that reasonable men consulting together coolly could fail, by some mutual sacrifices of opinion, to form a compromise which was to save the Union. The discussion took place. It was finally agreed, that, whatever import ance had been attached to the rejection of the proposition, the pres- A POLITICAL COMPROMISE. 25 ervation of the Union and of concord among the states was more important, and that therefore it would be better that the vote of re jection should be rescinded, to effect which some members should change their votes. But it was observed that this pill would be peculiarly bitter to the Southern States, and that some concomitant measure should be adopted to sweeten it a little to them. There had been before, propositions to fix the seat of government either at Phil adelphia or at Georgetown on the Potomac ; and it was thought by giving it to Philadelphia for ten years and to Georgetown perma nently afterwards, this might act as an anodyne, and calm in some measure the ferment which might be excited by the other measure alone. So two of the Potomac members agreed to change their votes, and Hamilton undertook to carry the other point. In doing this the influence he had established over the Eastern members effected his side of the engagement, and so the Assumption was passed." Thus it was, that a good dinner and the sagacity of two able men healed a serious breach in the affairs of the Nation, and placed the capital city on the banks of the " River of Swans," as the Indians called the Potomac. The selection of the permanent seat of the government of the United States, so bitterly opposed at the time, particularly by the members of Congress from New York, Pennsylvania, and New Jer sey, and so ardently favored by the members from the Southern States, and by President Washington, has proved with the passage of ^ears a most judicious one. Originally the boundaries of the Fed eral Territory were "located, defined, and limited" as follows : "Be ginning at Jones' Point, being the upper cape of Hunting Creek, in Virginia, and at an angle in the outset of forty-five degrees west of the north, and running in a direct line ten miles for the first line ; then beginning again at the same Jones' Point, and running another direct line at a rio-ht angle with the first, across the Potomac, ten miles for the second line ; then from the termination of the said first and second lines, running two other direct lines, often miles each, the one cross ing the Eastern Branch of the Potomac, and the other the Potomac, and meeting each other in a point." This territory was ten miles square, or one hundred square miles, and comprised sixty-four thou sand acres of fertile lands situated between 38°, 48' and 380, 59' north latitude. CHAPTER II. FOUNDING THE NATIONAL CAPITAL— L'ENFANT'S PLAN OF WASHINGTON— THE ORIGINAL PROPRIETORS OF THE LAND— A LOVELY HEIRESS, AND HER WOO ERS— REMOVAL OF THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT TO THE CAPITAL CITY — HISTORICAL SKETCHES — THE BRITISH INVASION— PECULIAR MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE EARLY DAYS — GRADUAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE CITY — THE CIVIL WAR. WHEN President Washington returned from his tour of the South in the summer of 1791, and the wheels of the famous cream-colored chariot in which he had taken the memorable ride of 1,900 miles rolled up to the western door of the Mount Vernon mansion, he found a visitor awaiting his coming. The visitor was Maj. Pierre Charles L'Enfant, a skillful French engineer, who had been chosen to draw the plan of ' ' the new Federal town." The site of the Federal District had been selected by Washington in the January previous, after long and careful delibera tion, from the 105 miles of territory embraced in the boundary defined by the act of Congress locating the permanent seat of government. The act was amended by request of the President so as to include the city of Alexandria and adjacent country. Three commissioners, Gov. Thomas Johnson and the Hon. Daniel Carroll, of Maryland, and Dr., David Stuart, of Virginia, were appointed to have entire charge of the surveying and laying out of the district, and on April 15, 1791, they had laid the first boundary stone at Jones' Point on the Virginia side of the Potomac, with impressive Masonic ceremony, in the presence of a large assemblage. The commissioners had decided to call the district the "Territory of Columbia," which name it bore for some years; and the new city to be established on the river bank, "the city of Washington," in honor of him who was at that time, and who 28 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. in all time shall be, the "first in the hearts of his countrymen." Satisfactory terms had been arranged with the proprietors of the land lying within the bounds of the proposed city, and an agreement had been signed by the commissioners and the land-holders. All the land used for streets and squares was to be relinquished to the government without cost, and all the land taken for public buildings was to be paid for at the rate of £25 an acre. One-half of the proceeds of all lots offered at public sale was also to go to the original owners, and the remainder was to be expended in the erection of the government edifices. Major L'Enfant was cordially received by Washington, and re mained at Mount Vernon in consultation with him for nearly a week, during which time the plan of the Federal city was thoroughly ma tured. L'Enfant, who was an educated soldier, had come to Amer ica in 1777 from Paris, and had commended himself to Washington by his patriotic zeal while serving as major of engineers during the Revolutionary War, and a warm friendship had sprung up between them. He had designed the insignia of the Society of the Cin cinnati at Washington's special request, and in various ways had demonstrated the possession of marked ability. His plan of the city was very elaborate and magnificent, and it was duly set forth on a finely drawn map. It is believed he partially followed the work of Le Notre in Versailles, the seat of the French government buildings. Broad, transverse streets and avenues, numerous open squares, parks, circles, and triangular reservations were marked on the plan, the places for the public buildings were indicated, and everything was designed upon a spacious scale. Washington desired that " the Capitol" should occupy the centre of the city, and it was accordingly located on the broad plateau in the eastern section, and the Executive Mansion and the other public buildings were located in the western section, more than a mile dis tant. In one of his letters Washington says that this wide separa tion of Congress and the Executive departments was intended to prevent members of Congress from too frequently visiting the vari ous departments. L'Enfant's design meeting the full approval of Washington, and also of Jefferson, then Secretary of State, of whom it was said that " he almost monopolized the artistic taste and knowl edge of the first administration," it was formally adopted, and the young Frenchman was engaged to superintend its execution. He had as assistant, Andrew Ellicott, a bright Pennsylvanian, who with PLAN OF THE FEDERAL CITY. 29 THE VAN NESS MANSION. his brother had established the town of Ellicott Mills, in Maryland. Ellicott was a competent surveyor, and a young man of remarkable intelligence. Later in life he became professor of mathematics at West Point. The streets and squares of the city were chiefly laid out by him, and under his direction the work progressed quite rapidly. Before the erection of any building was allowed an exact survey was made and properly recorded, and all subsequent building operations had to conform to this survey. The states of Maryland and Virginia were greatly interested in the founding of the seat of the national government within their borders, and generously voted a large sum of money as a gift to the United States, to aid in the erection of the public edifices. After ward, when it was necessary to obtain more money to carry on the work, and Congress was strangely dilatory in making an appropria tion, and European bankers had declined to advance funds to the commissioners, the legislature of Maryland promptly authorized a loan of $100,000 in response to the appeal of President Washington. The most prominent proprietors of the land taken for the city were Daniel Carroll, David Burns, Notley Young, and Samuel 30 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. Davidson. The Carroll estate very nearly covered all that part of Washington known as Capitol Hill, and was called Duddington manor. Daniel Carroll was a gentleman of culture and high social standing in Maryland. He had been a delegate to the Philadelphia Convention that framed the Federal Constitution, and a member of the First Congress of the United States. He was a brother of the Rt. Rev. John Carroll, the first Catholic bishop of Baltimore, who founded the great college of the Jesuits, at Georgetown, and was a cousin of Charles Carroll, of Carrollton, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. As the Capitol was to be located adjacent to his estate, he believed that section would become the most desirable part of the city, and immediately demanded exorbitant prices for building-lots. Speculators, possessed with the same idea, bought a number of his acres, largely with " promises to pay " ; and Stephen Girard, the richest man in Philadelphia in those days, even offered Carroll $200,000 for a certain portion of his estate, but the offer was refused, five times the sum being demanded. The high prices for lots on Capitol Hill compelled many who wished land for the erection of houses and stores to settle in the northern and western parts of the city, and the tide of population rapidly turning that way, forever .decided the fate of the eastern quarter. The city developed on its northwestern side, which to-day is the most populous and fashionable section. Carroll's dream of great wealth was never realized. At his death he was in embarrassed circumstances, and his estate for a long time after was encumbered with heavy obligations. Recently a portion - of the Carroll tract, upon which his descendants had paid $16,000 in taxes during the past eighty years, keeping its possession so long in hope of an advantageous sale, was finally disposed of for $3,600. The spacious " Duddington House," erected in the early days of Washington for the residence of the Carroll family, still remains on North Carolina Avenue, southeast, in a good state of preservation. An interesting story is told of this ancient brick mansion. Shortly after the streets of the city were marked out strictly in ac cordance with L'Enfant's plan, Daniel Carroll, who was one of the commissioners, assumed the right to begin the erection of his house in the middle of New Jersey Avenue, near the Capitol grounds. L'Enfant vigorously protested against its location, as it would close the avenue and destroy the symmetry of the general plan of the city ; but his protests not being heeded, he gave orders one morning to FIRST PROPRIETORS OF THE LAND. 3i his assistant to demolish the structure. Carroll hurried to a magis trate, obtained a warrant and stopped the demolition before it had proceeded very far. That night, when L'Enfant returned to the city from Acquia Creek, where he was working busily getting out sand stone for the new Capitol, he was much chagrined to find his orders unfulfilled. He vowed the Ijouse should come down, and, organizing a gang of laborers secretly, he took them quietly up the hill after dark, and set them at work. By sunrise, not a brick of the obnox ious dwelling wras left standing. Carroll was very indignant at this arbitrary act, and made complaint to the President, who ordered the reconstruction of " Duddington House," precisely as it was before, but, very wisely, not in the middle of New Jersey Avenue. This house was the first fine one erected in the city. It is surrounded by a high brick wall, enclosing grounds full of majestic trees, and even now, in its partially dilapidated condition, shows considerable of its former elegance. A very fortunate man was David Burns, another of the original land-holders. His property was situated largely in what is now the THE DUDDINGTON HOUSE. 32 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. fashionable northwest quarter of the city. Burns — "crusty Davie Burns," as he was called — was a very bigoted, choleric Scotchman, fond of controversy, and never known to agree with any one in the slightest particular. He lived in a rude cottage near the river, and cultivated a large plantation extending over the spot where the White House now stands. The demand for his land made him very wealthy, and his only child, Marcia Burns, was known in all the country around as "the beautiful heiress of Washington." For some time Burns was opposed to the projected transfer of land to the govern ment, and the President and the commissioners had several confer ences with him in his cottage to explain the advantages of the plan. On one of these occasions, so the tradition runs, the testy old planter answered one of Washington's arguments by this outburst : "I sup pose, Mr. Washington, you think people are going to take every grist from you as pure grain ; but what would you have been if you hadn't married the rich widow Custis ! " The usually sedate Washington at this audacious remark is said to have actually lost his temper, and left the house in indignation. He afterward spoke of the imperti nent Scotchman as "that obstinate Mr. Burns," and would never meet him again. Miss Burns was placed by her father in a cultivated Baltimore family, where she received an excellent social and literary training. When she returned to Washington after several years' schooling she became the belle of the embryo city, and attracted many admirers. She was lovely in person, and gracious and winning in her manners. Her father could not be induced to leave his old house — a small, rudely-fashioned structure, with only two rooms on the ground floor, and but little better than the cabins of the slaves who tilled his plan tation — and, with all his great wealth, would not change his plain way of living. The girl uttered no complaint, but came from the refined Baltimore home at her father's bidding, and resumed her for mer life with the lonely man. Her mother had died when she was a child, and for years she had been her father's sole intimate companion. Troops of gallants began to seek the favor of the beautiful heir ess. The wooers were generally treated to cutting remarks from Burns, and promptly shown the door. Dashing young members of Congress — gay fortune-seekers who saw in Marcia a splendid prize — picked their way across the marsh to Burns' hut on fine evenings, craftily allowed the old Scotchman to win their gold at cards, and awakened good feeling by generous gifts of mellow usquebaugh, THE VAN NESS MANSION. 33 for which he had a notorious fondness. Gen. John P. Van Ness, a young, well-born, jovial New Yorker, was a frequent visitor. Of an ancient Dutch family prominent in politics and society, a congress man of some brilliancy, with a very handsome face and agreeable deportment, ever full of song and story, he soon succeeded in win ning Marcia's affection and her father's sanction, and they were mar ried. Van Ness became a resident of Washington, living at first with his bride in the old cottage, and afterward in a costly mansion erected on the Burns estate. He became mayor of the city, and was eminent in business and social affairs. Gilbert Stuart painted his portrait, and it was said of him that he was "well fed, well bred, and well read." When David Burns died he left his daughter the sole owner of a great estate, yearly rising in value. On his death-bed he said to her, "Marcia, you have been a good daughter; you'll now be the richest girl in America." The Van Ness mansion was constructed by the celebrated La- trobe, one of the architects of the Capitol, and he expended many thousands of dollars in trying to make it the finest private residence in the country. The grounds were enclosed with a brick wall, trees and flowers planted, and fountains and statuary added adornment. Close to the great house, in the same enclosure, stood the old cottage of David Burns, and Mrs. Van Ness would never permit her father's humble home to be taken down. For a number of years the Van Ness mansion was the resort of the distinguished people of Washington, and presidents and eminent statesmen were entertained within its walls. The last acre of the Burns property passed out of the pos session of the heirs fifteen years ago, and now all that remain to tell the story of the Burns and Van Ness families are a great monumental tomb at Oak Hill Cemetery, and the two houses by the river — father's and daughter's — decaying, neglected ruins. The tomb was erected by Van Ness at a cost of over $30,000, and is constructed in imita tion of the temple of Vesta. The legend is, that on each anniversary of the death of Van Ness. his favorite "troop of six white horses" make a ghostly midnight gallop around the old mansion, and that supernatural sounds are heard within its deserted halls. The third largest land-holder was Notley Young, who held nearly all the land in the centre of the city and on the river front between Seventh and Eleventh streets. Carroll owned the land to the east and Burns to the west of him. He, too, acquired wealth from sales and leases of his property, and erected a substantial residence on 3 34 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. G Street south, overlooking the Potomac. The house was taken down thirty years ago to give room for the extension of the street. Of Samuel Davidson, the fourth largest proprietor, scarcely anything is known. When the time approached for the first public sale of lots by the commissioners, a difficulty arose between them and Major L'Enfant. After the demolition of Carroll's house by L'Enfant, he was not in good favor, and as he refused to allow his maps of Washington to be published as a guide to the purchasers of lots, he was dismissed from the service of the government. L'Enfant claimed that, if his maps were published, speculators would know all about his plan, and would build unsightly edifices on the finest streets. He continued to live in the city, and in his old age became a claimant for compen sation for his services as the original designer of Washington — constantly haunting the committee-rooms of Congress, a poor but rather courtly, feeble old man, attired in a long blue coat closely but toned high on his breast. His claim was never considered, and it was quite the fashion in those days to laugh and sneer at what was called "L'Enfant's extravagant plan." He died in 1825, and was buried by charitable hands on the Digges farm, a short distance from the city. No stone marks his grave. L'Enfant's design has been fully vindicated by time, and to-day the beautiful capital city owes much of its beauty and fascination to the broad streets, the great squares, the parks, the wide, straight avenues, the location of the public buildings, for which he contended with the sublime energy of a liberal, far-sighted man, in an age of restricted views and small things. The first public sale of lots was held by the commissioners at Georgetown, Oct. 17, 1791, and was mainly attended by speculators from the large cities, who were eager to obtain what they considered the best lots, in the belief that Washington was to become the great city of the country. At that time there were less than 60,000 people in New York ; and predictions were freely made that in ten years after Congress begun its sessions in Washington, the national city would have a population of at least 150,000. Even a rumor, indus triously circulated at the sale by enemies of the new capital, that Congress never would remove from Philadelphia, made no impres sion on the confident purchasers of the land. The commissioners executed a number of contracts for the sale of lots in parcels on easy terms, on condition that the buyers should erect " brick houses, two TRANSFER OF THE GOVERNMENT. 35 H AND SIXTEENTH STREETS, SHOWING ST. JOHN'S CHURCH. stories high," on the property within a certain time. These contracts, entered into with enthusiasm, were mostly repudiated afterward, and the brick houses were not built. Many lots were sold, and at good prices, but prior to the removal of the government to the city the actual residents were few, and the "new national settlement" was very insignificant. The formal transfer of the government from Philadelphia to Wash ington took place in October, 1800. That it was indeed the day of small things, is evident when we read that " a single ' packet' sloop brought all the office furniture of the departments, besides seven large boxes and five small ones, containing the ' archives ' of the government." The officials numbered fifty-four persons, including President Adams, the secretaries, and the various clerks. They came to the city by different conveyances, and as they had left pleasant, comfortable quarters in Philadelphia, the crudeness and discomfort of Washington produced a feeling of disgust. Mrs. Adams spoke of Washington as " this wilderness city"; and Secre tary Wolcott in a letter to his wife said, "There are but few houses in any place, and most of them are small, miserable huts, which pre- 36 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. sent an awful contrast to the public buildings. The people are poor, and, as far as I can judge, live like fishes, by eating each other." The best description extant of the city, as it appeared at the time the government took possession, is found in a letter written by Hon. John Cotton Smith, then a member of Congress from Connecticut. He says : " Our approach to the city was accompanied with sensa tions not easily described. One wing of the Capitol only had been erected, which, with the President's house, a mile distant from it, both constructed with white sandstone, were shining objects in dismal contrast with the scene around them. Instead of recognizing the avenues and streets portrayed on the plan of the city, not one was visible, unless we except a road, with two buildings on each side of it, called the New Jersey Avenue. The Pennsylvania Avenue, lead ing, as laid down on paper, from the Capitol to the Presidential man sion, was nearly the whole distance a deep morass covered with elder bushes, which were cut through to the President's house; and near Georgetown a block of houses had been erected which bore the name of the 'six buildings.' There were also two other blocks consisting of two or three dwelling-houses in different directions, and now and then an insulated wooden habitation ; the intervening spaces, and, indeed, the surface of the city generally, being covered with scrub oak bushes on the higher grounds, and on the marshy soil either trees or some sort of shrubbery. The desolate aspect of the place was not a little augmented by a number of unfinished edifices at Greenleaf's Point, and on an eminence a short distance from it, commenced by an individual whose name they bore, but the state of whose funds compelled him to abandon them. There appeared to be but two really comfortable habitations in all respects, within the bounds of the city, one of which belonged to Dudley Carroll and the other to Notley Young. The roads in every direction were muddy and unimproved. A sidewalk was attempted in one instance by a covering formed of the chips hewed for the Capitol. It extended but a little way and was of little value ; for in dry weather the sharp fragments cut our shoes, and in wet weather covered them with white mortar. In short, it was a new settlement." Such was the capital city in which President John Adams, Secre tary of State John Marshall, Secretary of the Treasury Oliver Wol cott, Jr., Secretary of War Samuel Dexter, Secretary of the Navy Benjamin Stoddart, and the other officials of the government took up their abode in the fall of 1800, twenty-four years after the Declaration OPPOSITION TO THE CAPITAL. 37 of Independence. Congress began its session a few weeks later, and many and loud were the complaints of the new capital uttered by all the assembled statesmen. Newspapers in New York, Philadelphia, and New England, and satirists everywhere, cracked many amusing jokes at the expense of the infant city. The Capitol was called "the palace in the wil derness," and Pennsylvania Avenue "the great Serbonian Bog." Georgetown was declared ' ' a city of houses without streets ; Wash ington, a city of streets without houses." Only one favorable thing seems to have been said, and that was, " Washington is the happiest region of flowers, and a garden here might be made to yield some thing for the basket of Flora for nearly three-quarters of the year." FORD S OLD THEATRE, IN WHICH PRESIDENT LINCOLN WAS SHOT. (Nino the Army Mitiicnl Museum.) 38 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. Thomas Moore, just coming into prominence as a poet, visited the city in 1804, and was hospitably entertained. He afterward used his splendid talent to compose this satire of Washington : " In fancy now beneath the twilight gloom, Come, let me lead thee o'er this modern Rome, Where tribunes rule, where dusky Davi bow, And what was Goose Creek is Tiber now. This fam'd metropolis, where fancy sees Squares in morasses, obelisks in trees ; Which traveling fools and gazetteers adorn With shrines unbuilt, and heroes yet unborn." The Abb£ Correa de Serra, the witty Minister from Portugal, bestowed upon Washington the famous title of " the city of magnificent dis tances," referring to the great spaces between the scattered houses. There was considerable talk of removing the capital, and a motion to that effect in Congress was lost by only two votes. A clever Scotch artist made a good deal of fun by drawing a caricature repre senting the congressman who had made the motion of removal, with the Capitol strapped on his back, all ready to start as soon as he should know which way it was to go. But some wanted it to go north, others west, and others south. When we consider the jealousy and opposition displayed toward the city, it is small wonder that it required the fostering hand of several kindly administrations before it appeared likely that Wash ington would remain the permanent seat of the government. During the administrations of Adams, Jefferson, and Madison, the city im proved considerably. Jefferson secured money from Congress for the public buildings, planted poplar trees on Pennsylvania Avenue, and did what he could to make that " Appian Way of the Republic" something better than a " slough of despond." He applied his artistic skill and taste to the work of beautifying the capital. Population increased at the rate of about eight hundred a year ; and when, after the invasion by the British in 1814, the vexed question of removing the capital was settled by Congress appropriating liberal sums to re store the public buildings damaged during the invasion, the city had nothing to hinder its steady growth. The invasion of Washington by the British troops under General Ross, Aug. 24, 1814, was a severe blow to the weak and slowly growing city. It had been apprehended for some weeks that the city would be attacked, and President Madison had taken various pre- THE BRITISH INVASION. 39 A SCENE IN THE COLORED QUARTER. ventive measures, which, however, proved futile. The British fleet, under command of Admiral Cockburn, sailed up Chesapeake Bay, and 4,500 men were landed on the left bank of the Patuxent River on the 2 1 st of August, with orders to march on Washington. The resi dents of the city were warned of the approach of the British, and many of them hastily left their homes and found refuge in Virginia. The invaders marched across Maryland to Bladensburg, five miles from the capital, without hinderance ; but at this place their advance was stopped by a body of raw militia, organized from residents of Maryland and the District, under command of General Winder, and a few hundred seamen with field-pieces under Capt. Joshua Barney, the celebrated privateersman. The American troops numbered about seven thousand, but they were so badly handled that almost at the first fire from the British the militia broke in disorder and could not be rallied again. Barney's sailors stood their ground and fought desperately for nearly three hours, but at last were compelled, from sheer lack of numbers, to abandon their position on the Bladensburg turnpike, and fall back to Georgetown Heights. President Madison and other prominent officials of the government had sought safety at Montgomery Court House, in Maryland. The way to Washington now being open, the British continued their march, and on the evening of August 24, they halted in front of the unfinished Capitol. Orders were given to burn all the public edifices, and in a short time the Capitol, the White House, and the Executive buildings were in flames. The troops dispersed throughout the city, burning and destroying a large amount of private as well as public property. They visited the arsenal on Greenleaf's Point and 40 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. attempted to destroy several large cannon left by the garrison in the haste of their departure, by discharging one against the others. When the piece was fired, some of the wadding fell into a well in which a large quantity of powder was secreted, and a tremendous explosion ensued, killing a number of the British. The records of the War, Treasury, and Navy Departments were nearly all burned, and the records of the State Department were only saved by the energy of several clerks, who packed them into bags and transported them to a secure place in the country. While the public buildings were burning a severe storm began, and the drenching rain fortunately extinguished the fires at the Cap itol and White House, and saved them from total destruction. The enemy left the city late that night, fearing an attack under cover of the darkness, and in a few days the British fleet, which had come as far as Alexandria, sailed down the Potomac. The amount of dam age done by. the invasion was estimated at $1,000,000. About sev enty-five Americans were killed and wounded, and the British suf fered a loss of several hundred men. At this period nearly all the field and domestic labor in and around Washington was performed by slaves. The rich planters employed hundreds of negroes to cultivate their fertile acres, and the relations between the slaves and their masters were very different from what they were in the regions farther south. The slaves were usually treated with kindness, well clothed and fed, and were apparently as happy and contented as human beings could be in bondage. They were very civil and well behaved, and took great pride in ornament ing their little cabins, and many of them had very neat and com fortable homes. They were allowed, on many plantations, good pay for extra labor, and often saved money enough by industry to pur chase their freedom. The culture of tobacco made many of the planters very wealthy, some of them raising one hundred hogsheads yearly of the " Indian weed that from the devil doth proceed," as the quaint old poem has it. The tobacco was largely shipped to Europe. It was brought to the place of shipment in this way : A hole was bored in the heads of the hogshead, and an axle placed in it from end to end. A shaft was attached to the axle like the shaft of a cart, and horses and mules hitched to it. The tobacco was then drawn along the streets, up and down the hills, rolling and bumping over the stones. An ancient register has the following estimate of the yearly ex penses of a slave : " His price about $500, which at 6 per cent., the FAMOUS STATUES. I . The Bartholdi Fountain in the Botanical Garden. 2- Statue of General Scott at the Soldiers' Home. 3. Mills' Statue of General Washington. 4. Marble Group on the Portico of the Capitol. 5. Statue of General Greene. 6. Mills' Statue of General Jackson. 42 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. lawful interest, is $30 ; for risk or accident, $30 ; for a peck of Indian meal per week or 13 bushels per year at 50 cents, $6.50 ; two pounds of salt meat per week, $7.50 ; a barrel of fish per annum, $4 ; fowls, vegetables and milk per annum, $5 ; for clothing, $15 — total for the year, $98 ; or daily expense of 27 cents." The slaves assumed the names of their masters, and many of these old family names are con tinued to-day among the negro population of the city. In April, 1862, slavery was abolished in the District of Columbia. It is interesting to learn the rates of free labor in those days. A shoemaker who could make one good pair of shoes daily was paid $1.50, and in the other trades wages varied from 75 cents to $1.25 a day. Laborers obtained 50 cents a day. A seamstress received $4.50 a month and board; female servants, from $2.00 to $4.00 a month, with the exception of cooks, who were paid from $15 to $20. Coachmen who could handle two and four horses expertly, demanded $10 a month and board. Food was cheap, land easy to obtain, and houses could be built for little money of brick made from the finest clay, abundantly found in the city. Gray and blue granite, the brec cia marble, or " pudding stone," as it was commonly called, and sand stone were also to be had at comparatively little cost for public build ings. The so-called "luxuries of life" were not very plenty, with the exception of " ice and pineapples." Ice could be readily obtained in summer for fifty cents a bushel, and pineapples from the West In dies were sold for twenty-five cents apiece. An English writer in 18 16 gave the following quaint description of the state of female society in Washington : " The women have been accused of sacrificing too much to the empire of fashion, but as we have not been able to verify the truth of this charge, it would be dangerous to decide on so delicate a subject. They are certainly superior women, generally highly gifted in mental as they are adorned with personal endowments. They have hitherto withstood the lamentable ravages which art and luxury have in the great cities produced upon their sex. There is an evil, however, which is deeply lamented. It is natural to love those who are made to love ; and no sooner do the young ladies of Washington arrive at the nubile state than they give their hand to some wooing stranger, or member of Congress, who carries them off" in triumph to his distant home. The young citizens who have been daily contemplating the regular advances of these shoots into perfection, disappointed in their ardent intentions, sigh and exclaim (not without reason) against the corruption of the times, PECULIAR MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 43 against family interests and an unnatural and disheartening prefer ence to foreigners. Washington thus resembles a nursery, whose fine plants are annually transported to a foreign and less congenial soil." The same author says: "In the Territory of Columbia women have no reason to complain of the degradation to which they are ex* posed by the tyrant, man. They go where they please, both before and after marriage, and have no need to have recourse to dissimula tion and cunning for their own repose and that of their husbands. Any particular attention to a lady is readily construed into an inten tion of marriage. At dinner and tea parties the ladies sit together, and seldom mix with the gentlemen, whose conversation naturally turns upon political subjects. Gentlemen wear their hats in a car riage with a lady, as in England. In almost all houses toddy is of fered to guests a few minutes before dinner. In summer, invitations to tea-parties are made verbally, by a servant, the same day the party is given. In winter the invitation is more ceremonious. The parties at the house of the President of the United States unite simplicity with the greatest refinement of manner. The inhabitants are social and hospitable, and respectable strangers, after the slightest introduction, are invited to dinner, tea, balls, and evening parties. Tea-parties have become very expensive, as not only tea, but coffee, negus, cakes, sweetmeats, iced creams, wines and liquors are often presented ; and, in a sultry summer evening, are found too palatable to be refused. In winter there is a succession of family balls, where all this species ot luxury is exhibited." This intelligent Englishman, in speaking of some of the peculiar customs prevailing in Washington at the time of his visit in 1816, says : " Both sexes, whether on horseback or on foot, wear an um brella in all seasons : in summer, to keep off the sunbeams ; in win ter, as a shelter from the rain and snow ; in spring and autumn, to intercept the dews of the evening. Persons of all ranks canter their horses, which movement fatigues the animal, and has an ungraceful appearance. The barber arrives on horseback to perform the opera tion of shaving, and here, as in Europe, he is the organ of all news and scandal. Boarders in boarding-houses, or in taverns, sometimes throw off the coat during, the heat of summer ; and in winter, the shoes, for the purpose of warming the feet at the fire — customs which the climate only can excuse." During the administration of Monroe extensive improvements were made m all parts of the city, and large sums of money expended 44 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. for public works. Several fine residences were erected by high offi cials of the government and wealthy citizens. The sales of gov ernment lots realized nearly $500,000. Public spirit began to be manifested. In a statistical record bearing date of 1821 is this entry r " Eighty-eight buildings were commenced up to June ; a new bridge built, the Center Market enlarged, much progress made in the City Hall, an addition made to the Infirmary, the new theatre finished and the old one rebuilt for assembly rooms ; Unitarian Church erected and a Presbyterian Church completed ; and a fountain of water opened that yields 60 gallons a minute." In 1822 the city contained nearly fifteen thousand people, and taxes were assessed upon property valued at $6,668,726. There were 2,229 dwellings, numerous churches, hotels, and stores, and several large public buildings. In the fall of 1822 a race between two celebrated Virginia horses, " Sir Charles" and " Eclipse," was the leading topic of conversation in Washington for weeks, and ten thousand people assembled at the trotting-park to witness the contest. President Monroe, and the lead ing government officials, were among the spectators. It is said that more than a million dollars were wagered. Planters staked their slaves, and in one case eight hundred negroes changed owners after the race. People of high and of low degree were intensely excited, and a great amount of money was lost by men " who were unable to pay their honest debts to mechanics, grocers, and even washer women." " Eclipse" easily distanced " Sir Charles," and its owner received the stake of $5,000, and in addition made a considerable fortune from his wagers. Another odd scrap of history is worthy of mention. In March, 1823, a great excitement was created in the city by the absconding of the manager of the " Grand National Lottery,'' after refusing to pay the principal prize of $100,000, and several smaller ones. The city corporation, under whose auspices the lottery was carried on, claimed not to be responsible for the default, and those who held the tickets fo'r the prizes had to go without their money. An article in the Na tional Intelligencer about the affair was headed in large letters : " So We Go ! " During the administration of John Quincy Adams, from 1825 to 1829, Washington had a population of nearly twenty thousand, but it was a slow-going, uninteresting city, with very few signs of promise. Its social life, however, was very agreeable. Society at that time was said to have " all the hues of man}-- colored life from the highest GROWTH OF THE CITY, 45 THE HOUSE IN WHICH PRESIDENT LINCOLN DIED. polish of polite France to the rude dignity of untutored nature. Par ties were numerous in the winter months, and were well attended by all who were or wished to be thought fashionable." The popular hotel was the "Indian Queen," on Pennsylvania Avenue, and its great swinging sign, with a highly-colored picture of Pocahontas, was a conspicuous object. The hotel was noted for its good living, and 46 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. many members of Congress resided in it. A large part of the city was occupied by market gardens and brick kilns, plentifully inter spersed with ponds and marshes. There were no public schools ; what were known as " Gadsby's Row" and the " Seven Buildings" were the " architectural palaces," and stray cows and pigs the stat uary that adorned the squares and parks. In the sandstone Capitol with a wooden dome, great statesmen were invoking the Goddess of Liberty ; and at the slave-pen in the centre of the city, unfeeling auc tioneers were selling men, women, and children to the highest bidder. Even in 1840, M. de Bacourt, the French Minister wrote : " As for Washington, it is neither a city, nor a village, nor the country : it is a building-yard placed in a desolate spot, wherein living is unbear able." About this time there was a general renewal of the public buildings, and after 1850 the city began to wear a somewhat brighter, more enterprising appearance. Population increased about two thou sand a year ; many substantial business blocks and private residences were constructed ; more energy was displayed by the residents ; and, although it was still a " city of magnificent distances," many of the unsightly spaces were filled, and the former barren, desolate aspect had changed to something better. When the Civil War began, in 1861, Washington had 62,000 people, and was described as " a big, sprawling city, magnificent in some parts, dilapidated and dirty in others." During the years of the Rebellion the city was an extensive mili tary encampment. Its streets resounded with the march of troops, and all its available buildings were used for military purposes. Every where " war's stern alarums " were heard. Over Long Bridge thou sands of brave men went to battle on the soil of Virginia. Formid able lines of defenses enclosed the capital, and apprehensions of an attack were constantly felt. In July, 1864, General Early made a demonstration on Washington, hoping thereby to induce General Grant to raise the siege of Richmond. He crossed the Potomac with 12,000 men, defeated General Wallace at Rockville, sixteen miles from the city, and marched on Fort Stevens, on the Seventh Street road. The guns of the fort checked his advance until the Sixth Corps from Petersburg arrived, when he was driven back across the Potomac. On the evening of the 10th of April, 1865, Washington was bril liantly illuminated in celebration of the close of the war, and there was great rejoicing among its loyal people. Four nights after, the THE CIVIL WAR. 47 city heard with pallid cheek and bated breath that President Lincoln had been stricken down at Ford's Theatre, on Tenth Street, by the bullet of a cowardly assassin. The rejoicings at the return of peace were changed to bitter lamentations. The colored people were almost wild with grief at the death of the great Emancipator. President Lincoln was removed from the theatre to the Peterson house, nearly opposite, where he died early on the morning of April 15. The theatre was purchased by the government in 1866, and is at present used for the Army Medical Museum and the record and pension division of the Surgeon General's Department. The in terior was entirely reconstructed, and no trace now remains of the scene of the assassination. On the Peterson house a marble tablet has been placed, bearing the record of Lincoln's death. The small bed-room in which the President died suggests little now of the sad scenes of that night. The original furniture has been removed, and the pretty, flaxen-haired children of the present owner of the house use the apartment for a play-room. It is proposed that the govern ment purchase the house and make it a museum for the exhibition of articles belonging to President Lincoln. In May, 1865, the troops under the command of Generals Grant and Sherman marched in grand review through the streets of Wash ington, prior to their disbanding. Two days were taken for the re view, which was witnessed by many thousands of people from all parts of the North and the West. During this final march of ' ' the largest army of volunteers ever organized in the history of the world," the city was full of patriotic enthusiasm. As the various generals with their divisions, all wearing the actual accoutrements of the war — the boys in blue stained with the soil of Virginia and of Georgia, and bearing proudly the tattered banners which had waved on many hard-fought battle-fields — passed up Pennsylvania Avenue, they were the recipients of long-continued and enthusiastic cheers, and were literally covered with garlands. For a few years after the war Washington continued to be a very unattractive city. At this time an English tourist wrote of it : " The whole place looks run up in a night, like the cardboard cities Potem- kin erected to gratify the eyes of his imperial mistress on her tour through Russia ; and it is impossible to remove the impression that, when Congress is over, the place is taken down and packed up till wanted again." THE CENTER MARKET — GROUP OF HUCKSTERS. CHAPTER III. GROWTH OF WASHINGTON SINCE 1870— THE IMPROVEMENTS BY THE BOARD OF PUBLIC WORKS — A WONDERFUL TRANSFORMATION CAUSED BY THE EXPEN DITURE OF TWENTY MILLIONS — CHARACTERISTICS OF THE QUEENLY POTO MAC CITY— ITS GOVERNMENT, POPULATION, AND BUSINESS — THE SPACIOUS STREETS AND AVENUES, FINE PARKS AND SQUARES — STATUES TO WAR HEROES— LONG BRIDGE — THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT. IN the year 1870 Washington was suddenly aroused from its leth argy. After seventy years of existence it had not realized the expectations of its friends, or greatly lessened the opposition of its enemies. It was in a critical condition. Its use by the Fed eral soldiers in the Civil War had made thousands of intelligent North ern men familiar with its discomforts, its shiftlessness, and its entire lack of the desirable qualities that the seat of government of the American Nation should possess. There was nothing hopeful or promising about it. Young cities in the West had grown important and prosperous by their own exertions ; old cities in the East had advanced steadily with the enterprise of the age ; but Washington, with the strong aid of the government, and many years of life, had failed to be a credit, much less an object of pride, to the American people. The project to remove the national capital to St. Louis, vigor ously started by a Western man of rare energy and persistency, gave Washington at this time a great fright. The proposition of removal received the hearty indorsement of the West, and a large delegation in Congress was pledged to its advocacy. Prominent newspapers in New York and elsewhere favored it, and the scheme began to grow rapidly in public estimation. St. Louis was ready to expend millions to obtain the splendid prize, and the other large Western cities came So PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. forward with offers of their influence and money, enthusiastic over the plan to have the capital city located in "the great golden harvest land," as the West is glowingly described. At this juncture a strong man came into leadership, and turned aside the current that was flowing perilously against the city. He thoroughly believed in Washington, and was determined to aggrandize it, and at the same time that he improved and built up the city he proposed to enrich himself. This man was Alexander R. Shepherd, well known afterward to the country by his sobriquet of " Boss Shep herd." General Grant was President, and his friendship for Shep herd was marked and enduring. Congress finally disposed of the question of removing the capital by appropriating $500,000 to begin the erection of the grand State, War, and Navy Building, which has cost $12,000,000; and the city, through the efforts of Shepherd, began at once to assume a better appearance. Shepherd at that time was thirty-eight years old. He had realized a fortune of $100,- 000 from plumbing contracts, and was known as the leading plumber of the District. He had a large political friendship, was an alder man of the old city government, and was noted for his immense energy and invincible determination. In describing Shepherd's career a well-informed writer says : " He and his friends conceived the idea of making a great and beautiful city out of the slovenly and comfortless Southern town which the cap ital of the country then was. They first abolished the old municipal government, and ended once for all the conservative regime of the past. In its place they put a territorial government with a legisla ture, which by means of the universal suffrage in the District, then recently established, they were easily able to control. The territo rial government was merely a cover for the Board of Public Works, and of this board Shepherd was the head. Eighty miles of the three hundred miles of half-made streets and avenues were improved, and nearly all the thickly-settled streets of the city were paved with wood or concrete. A general and very costly system of sewers was begun. The grades of many of the most populous streets were radically changed. Scores of new parks were graded, fenced, and set .with trees and fountains. The old Tiber Canal was filled up, and the greatest nuisance of Washington was thereby shut out of sight. From $15,000,000 to $20,000,000 were swallowed up in this vast un dertaking. Congress appropriated at least $5,000,000 in cash, and $2,000, coo more in cash were raised on improvement bonds, which IMPROVING THE CITY. 51 were put on the market at a very large per cent. The remainder of this great indebtedness took the shape of sewer bonds, floating loans, and other securities. Nearly all of this money was disbursed by Shepherd. It was he who determined to whom all these millions should go. He had his circle of friends among the contractors, and it was charged that he shared in the profits ; but of this charge there was no evidence, and probably it was not true. Shepherd must be credited with an ambition which was much more than a merely self ish one. It cannot be charged against him that he diverted the funds of the District to improve his own property as distinguished from the property of others. The street improvements were almost universal, and his building operations extended to every part of the city. When the Board of Public Works began operations and property rose in value all over the city, his real estate and building enterprises (dating back to 1865) were largely augmented." During ten years Shepherd erected over one thousand buildings, and was the first man to build blocks of dwellings in Washington, after the plan common in Northern cities. His building operations exceeded those of any other man in the United States, and comprised total values of $10,000,000 ; and in land he handled other millions. He secured large amounts of money from Northern capitalists, car ried heavy financial burdens, and exhibited wonderful capacity in ob- ENTRANCE TO LONG BRIDGE. 52 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. taining the credit necessary for his innumerable enterprises. In 1873 he became governor of the District, and ruled its affairs with an im perious hand. He was, in truth, the "Boss" of Washington, and forced the public improvements against all opposition, determined that the city should no longer be a reproach to its people, and a disgrace to the Nation. He was the latter-day L'Enfant, with more brains and more power. In 1876 he became financially embarrassed, and his audacious, extraordinary business and political career came to an end. The queenly Potomac City, secure now from fear of the removal of the capital, owes its grand renovation largely to this man ; and to day in the city he beautified and raised to a prosperous, distinguished position, thousands of hearts go out in gratitude and well wishes toward the exile from home, as he labors in far-off Mexico to repair his shattered fortune — grateful that he compelled them, even by ar bitrary acts and extravagant expenditures, to make Washington the fit place for the seat of government. In ten years from the time the Board of Public Works began its improvements, the city was transformed. The streets were cov ered with an almost noiseless, smooth pavement. Fifty thousand shade-trees had been planted ; the old rows of wooden, barrack-like houses had given place to dwellings of graceful, ornate architecture; blocks of fine business buildings lined Pennsylvania Avenue and the other prominent thoroughfares ; blossoming gardens and luxuriant parks were to be seen on all sides ; the squares and circles were adorned with the statues of heroes, and bordered with cqstly and palatial mansions; splendid school-houses, churches, market build ings, newspaper offices had been erected. The water-works and sewer system were unequaled in the country. Washington had risen fresh and beautiful, like the Uranian Venus, from stagnation and decay. The population of the city in 1880 was 147,293, and with George town added, 159,885. It is believed that since the last government census was taken there has been a large yearly increase in popula tion, and that the city now contains quite 240,000 permanent resi dents. There is also a floating population in the winter months esti mated at 50,000, which is composed in part of congressmen and .employes of Congress and their families, and people of wealth from various portions of the United States, who spend the winter in the city. There is a constant growth in enterprise and public spirit, and year by year the capital increases in prosperity and importance. ELEMENTS OF PROSPERITY. 53 THE DISTRICT COURT HOUSE. The government business in Washington necessitates the dis bursement of a vast amount of money yearly to the residents of the city. All the great departments of the United States government are located there, and the number of persons who perform service in them is estimated at 20,000. The Treasury Department has on its pay-rolls 3,504 persons who do work in Washington ; the Interior Department, 2,949; the War Department, 1,686; the Post-Office Department, 544, and the many other departments, divisions, sub divisions, and offices of the government employ from 100 to 2,500 persons each in transacting the immense business of the states and territories included in the American Republic. Many millions of dol lars are annually paid as compensation to the government employes in Washington, and, in good times or bad, these enormous disburse ments are made with the regularity of clock-work. The government is generally a liberal paymaster, as it is obliged to employ the best talent in all of its difficult and complicated business. Year by year, as the country increases in population and wealth, the affairs of the 54 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. government greatly increase, and additions to the employes in Wash ington have constantly to be made to keep up the work ot the de partments. In some of the important departments, even with the large force employed — with every room in a huge building crowded with clerks attending to their duties with an energy and faithfulness that the people of the country scarce give government employes credit for — the business is often many months behind. The wholesale and retail trade of the city is steady and flourish ing. The vast sums disbursed by the government flow easily and regularly into the currents of trade, and in addition, Washington has within a few years developed a very lucrative traffic with the rich and populous country to the south and west of it, whose people here tofore were accustomed to go to Baltimore for goods. The ample salaries of government employes, the majority of whom receive larger compensation than the same class of workers in any other city, enable them to live well, to purchase many articles of taste and luxury, to enjoy public entertainments, and to gratify their de sires in literature and art. The rates of government pay tend also to increase, by comparison, the wages of those engaged in private business. The popular fallacy that when the session of Congress is over each year, the city becomes dull and depressed, is entirely groundless. Congress now merely adds so much to the continuous busy life of Washington — accelerates trade and society in a certain measure while it remains ; but when Congress is not in session the streets are lively, trade flourishes, amusements are plentiful and well supported, and social events are brilliant and numerous. The old notion that because Washington is the seat of government com mercial interests are out of the question, is rapidly fading- away, as the city has advanced a long way in ten years toward that import ance to which it is entitled as the centre ot a large and flourishing territory, yearly increasing in population. The city is also fortunate in the strong attraction it has for stran gers. Every day hundreds of tourists from all parts of the world visit Washington, to enjoy its sights and objects of interest, which are exceedingly numerous and of great fame ; and every day hun dreds of people from all sections of the United States arrive to trans act business with the various departments of the government. Thus the city is constantly full of visitors who spend their money freely, and consequently add in a large degree to the prosperity of its mer chants. ELEMENTS OF PROSPERITY. 55 The extensive libraries and scientific collections, open to every body, attract to the city many students and those engaged in special researches. The Congressional Library, with 500,000 miscellaneous books ; the complete Medical and Surgical Library, with 50,000 vol umes pertaining to medicine and surgery ; the great Law Library of the government ; the valuable library of the Patent-Office, for the use of inventors ; the libraries of the State, War, and Navy Departments, rich in government records and historical works ; the vast collections of natural history in the Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum, — all present to scholars and professional men and women superior facilities for the prosecution of their studies, and they are largely used by persons from every part of the United States. From the census report devoted to the statistics of manufactures it appears that in the District of Columbia there are at the present time 971 manufacturing establishments employing 7,145 persons, and using an aggregate capital of $5,552,526. Of the employes, 5,495 are males above sixteen years, 1,389 females above fifteen years, and 261 youths and children, who receive annually in wages $3,924,- 612. The value of material annually consumed is $5,365,400, and the value of the annual product is $11,882,316. The manufacturing establishments are mainly devoted to the production of various small wares. There are, however, iron works, brick, marble and granite companies, lithographic, book-binding, bank-note, and other estab lishments of considerable importance. The real and personal property in the District of Columbia is valued at $254,189,536, and is thus classed : Taxable real property, $112,802,101; belonging to United States, $120,589,684 ; belonging to District government, $2,258,872 ; churches, etc., exempt, $6,604,- 634; taxable personal property, $11,934,245. The yearly expenses of the District government are about $4,800,000, of which the United States pays one-half. Three commissioners, appointed by the Presi dent, consisting of two resident civilians and one army officer of the Corps of Engineers, have charge under Congress of the District affairs. They appoint the various officials, and serve three years. Each commissioner receives $5,000 per year. The District had for merly a delegate in Congress, but at the present time has no voice in legislation. It is governed principally by the old laws of Maryland. The Constitution of the United States (Art. I., Sec. 8,) gives Con gress the authority "to exercise exclusive legislation in all cases 56 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. whatsoever over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may by cession of particular states and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States." The legal jurisdiction of the District of Columbia was assumed by Congress Feb. 27, 1801, and on May 3, 1802, the city of Washington was in corporated. At first a mayor was appointed yearly by the President, and a city council was elected by the people. After some years the mayor was chosen by the people. In 1871 the charter of the city was repealed by Congress, and a territorial government established, with a governor and legislature. The present permanent Com missioner's government was established in 1878. From 1874 to J878 there was a provisional government of three commissioners. Washington, in its general plan, has been called a combination of ancient Babylon and modern Philadelphia, with much of the grace and beauty of Versailles. L'Enfant's design has been closely fol lowed, and the result is a broad, spacious city, pleasing in all its parts. Within its boundary are 6,111 acres, and of this amount 3,095 acres are- used for public purposes. There are more than one hundred streets, and twenty-one avenues, the latter named after the states. The avenues extend from one end of the city to the other, and those that lead to principal points are from 130 to 160 feet wide, and have sidewalks from 20 to 38 feet wide. The streets and avenues in general are of greater width than those of any other city in the world. They are mostly paved with concrete or asphalt, and are very smooth and well kept. Carriage-riding through the centre of the city and on the principal streets of residences is delightful, because the smooth, elastic pavements prevent jolting. The heavy traffic is confined as much as possible to certain streets which have stone pavements, which prevents the concreted streets from being rapidly worn out. The streets are laid at right angles from the Capitol, which is located in nearly the centre of the city ; the avenues cross the streets diagonally. North Capitol, South Capitol, and East Capitol streets, and the Mall, which extends from the Capitol grounds west to Fif teenth Street and takes the place of West Capitol 'Street, divide Washington into four cardinal sections. The streets extending north and south of the Capitol are designated by numerals, and are known as First Street east, First Street west, etc. Those extending east and west are lettered, and are known as A Street north, A Street THE PRINCIPAL AVENUES. 57 THE BALTIMORE AND POTOMAC RAILROAD DEPOT. south, etc. The aggregate length of streets is 279 miles ; of ave nues, 65 miles. The wide avenues, with their concrete pavement, the principal ones extending in an almost straight line for several miles, are among the prominent attractions of Washington. On pleasant days they are full of gay equipages, and present a very brilliant appearance. They command extensive prospects, and on many of them the view is un broken as far as the eye can reach. Pennsylvania Avenue is one of the longest in the city, and the most prominent. It is four and one-half miles in length, but its con tinuity is twice broken, once by the White House and Treasury, and again by the Capitol. It begins at Rock Creek, which separates Washington from Georgetown, passes the Washington Circle, the State, War. and Navy Building, the Corcoran Gallery of Art, the White H^use, Lafayette Park, and the Treasury. From Fifteenth Street to the Capitol it extends a mile through the finest business 58 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. section. East of the Capitol it continues to the banks of the Ana costia River. From Rock Creek to the Treasury, at Fifteenth Street, the avenue is 130 feet wide ; from Fifteenth Street to its terminus at the Anacostia it is 160 feet. Many of the leading business establish ments, several prominent hotels, the Center Market, and the news paper offices are located on it, and the theatres are adjacent to it. It is the fashionable thoroughfare, and during most hours of the day it is bright and lively with thousands of pedestrians and carriages. A number of parks are situated on " the avenue," and its broad walks are lined with trees. The longest unbroken avenue is Massachusetts Avenue, which is four and one-half miles in length, and 160 feet wide throughout. On its course through the northwest quarter of the city are many elegant residences, and several squares and circles. It is finely concreted, and is shaded by a variety of trees with expansive foliage. New York, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, and Rhode Island avenues also traverse the northwest quarter, and are 130 feet wide, with the exception of New Hampshire Avenue, which is 120 feet. They are of great length, and admirably laid out. Maryland Ave nue begins at Long Bridge and continues to the Baltimore turnpike ; New Jersey and Delaware avenues intersect each other at the Capitol. They are each 160 feet wide. In addition to the fashionable avenues there are numerous streets extensively built up with costly dwellings of brick and stone, and comparing favorably in elegance with the avenues. Seventh, Ninth, and F streets are thriving business sections, filled with fine buildings. On both sides of Seventh Street, above Pennsylvania Avenue, are continuous blocks of business establishments for over a mile, and there is an enormous daily traffic in this quarter. During the past ten years many thousands of shade-trees, comprising twenty differ ent sorts, selected for their handsome foliage and symmetry, have been planted on the streets and avenues, and their growth will give Washington in a few years a distinction as a sylvan city. The " parking system" is in common use. This system was in troduced to lessen the width of the sidewalks, many of which were much too wide. By it the owner of a house is allowed to enclose, but not to build upon, all the space in front of his house except twenty or thirty feet of the sidewalk. On the majority of the streets the houses stand from forty to fifty feet back from the curbstone, and by the parking system each house has about twenty feet of garden in front THE SQUARES AND CIRCLES. 59 of it. As the system is almost universally taken advantage of, the result is, that in the vernal season Washington is dotted by innumer able gardens filled with lovely southern flowers. When the city was first laid out, President Washington selected certain districts for public purposes. These government reservations are used for the buildings of the United States, and for the squares and circles. The small spaces at the intersection of streets are termed triangular reservations, and most of them are planted with trees and shrubs, and ornamented with fountains. The squares and circles are numerous and exceedingly attractive. Directly opposite the White House, on Pennsylvania Avenue, is La fayette Square, a tract of seven acres laid out as a park, with choice varieties of shade-trees and flowering plants. Here is Clark Mills' famous equestrian statue of Gen. Andrew Jackson, which was erected in 1853 at a cost of $50,000. It was constructed of cannon captured by the gallant soldier in his various battles. It stands on a white marble pedestal, around which are field-pieces and piles of cannon- balls. General Jackson is represented in complete military uniform, mounted on a rearing horse, which is poised high in the air without the aid of rods. The space at the intersection of Massachusetts and Rhode Island avenues, Sixteenth and N streets, is known as Scott Square. It is about one acre in extent, and in its centre is an equestrian statue of Lieut.-Gen. Winfield Scott, which was modeled by H. K. Brown, and cast of cannon taken during the Mexican campaigns. The figure is ten feet high, and the total height of the statue is twenty-nine feet. Five enormous blocks of granite compose the pedestal. The statue was ordered by Congress, and was erected in 1874. ^s cost was about $45,000. General Scott appears in the full uniform of his rank, seated on his favorite war-horse. Farragut Square is on Connecticut Avenue, between I, K, and Seventeenth streets. It covers a little more than an acre, and con tains a small park in which is a colossal bronze statue of Admiral David Glasgow Farragut, which was modeled by Mrs. Vinnie Ream Hoxie, and cast at the Washington Navy Yard of metal taken from Farragut's flag-ship, the " Hartford." Congress appropriated $20,000 for the purpose. The figure is ten feet high, and the granite pedestal on which it stands is twenty feet, and has an ornamental base holding several mortars. Farragut is portrayed in naval uniform, standing 60 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. with one foot resting on a block, telescope in hand, watching the enemy's movements. The statue was unveiled on April 25, 1881. On Vermont Avenue is McPherson Square, which is adorned with a pretty park, in which is an equestrian statue of Maj.-Gen. James B. McPherson, modeled by James T. Robisso. It was erected at a cost of $23,500, by the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, from cannon allotted by Congress. The pedestal is composed of five massive blocks of granite appropriately decorated, and cost $25,000. Con gress appropriated this amount. The figure is fourteen feet high, and the horse twelve feet long. General McPherson is represented sur veying the field of battle. On the south side of Pennsylvania Avenue, between Eighth and Ninth streets, is a bronze statue of Brig. -Gen. John A. Rawlins, Sec retary of War in 1869, which was ordered by Congress, and cost $10,000. It is in a small park containing choice plants, evergreens, and trees. The figure was modeled by J. Bailey, is eight feet high, and weighs 1,400 pounds. It stands on a granite pedestal, twelve feet in height. General Rawlins is represented in uniform as chief- of-staff to General Grant. A -mile directly east of the Capitol is Lincoln Square, formed by the intersection of East Capitol, Eleventh, Twelfth, and Thirteenth streets and Massachusetts, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Tennes see avenues. It is a space of six acres, in the centre of which is a bronze group called " Emancipation," which represents Abraham Lincoln standing at a small pedestal, holding the Proclamation of Emancipation in one hand, while the other is extended in a protect ing manner over the crouching form of a negro with his fetters broken — a slave no longer. It is a notable work, and clearly expressive of the momentous event in American history which it commemorates. The group was designed by Thomas Ball, and cast in Munich. It is twelve feet in height, and stands upon a granite base which rises ten feet. The statue weighs 3,000 pounds, and cost $17,000. When it was unveiled, on April 14, 1876, there were imposing ceremonies, and the Hon. Frederick Douglass was the orator of the occasion. This memorial was erected from contributions received from the freed peo ple of the South, the initial contribution, a five-dollar greenback, com ing from an aged colored woman of Virginia. Northeast of the Capitol, at the intersection of Massachusetts and Maryland avenues, is Greene Square. Here is an equestrian statue of Maj.-Gen. Nathanael Greene, of the Continental Army. It stands in THE SQUARES AND CIRCLES. 6r GARFIELD MEMORIAL TABLET IN THE BALTIMORE & POTOMAC R. R. DEPOT. the centre of a plat of three and one-half acres, and is thirty-three and one-half feet high. It was modeled by H. K. Brown, and erected in 1877 by authority of Congress, and its cost, including the granite pedestal, was $50,000. General Greene is represented as if issuing orders on the battle-field. Between Thirteenth and Fourteenth streets west, and I and K streets north, is Franklin Square and Park, comprising four acres planted with luxuriant trees and shrubs. The grounds are surrounded by elegant dwellings, and are charming in their arrangement and ornamentation. The largest square in the city is Judiciary Square, which contains nineteen acres. It is located between Louisiana Avenue and G Street north, and Fourth and Fifth streets west. It contains the new Pen sion Building, and the District Court House. In front of the Court 62 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. House is a plain marble column, crowned with a full-length statue of Lincoln by Lot Flannery. Washington Circle is at the intersection of Pennsylvania and New Hampshire avenues. In this circle, within a spacious park, is Clark Mills' equestrian statue of Gen. George Washington, which was unveiled in i860. It was ordered by Congress, and cost $50,000. Washington is clad in continental uniform, and is represented as at the battle of Princeton. Thomas Circle is formed by the intersection of Massachusetts and Vermont avenues and Fourteenth Street. Here, on the 19th of No vember, 1879, was unveiled the equestrian statue of Maj.-Gen. George H. Thomas, which was erected by the Society of the Army of the Cumberland at a cost of $50,000. The statue is the work of J. Q^ A. Ward, and was cast from new material. It is sixteen feet high, and the pedestal is also sixteen feet. Congress appropriated $25,000 for the pedestal, which is constructed of Virginia granite, handsomely designed, and bears bronze tablets representing the badge of the So ciety of the Army of the Cumberland. Four bronze lamp-posts, costing $4,000, surround the base. General Thomas is represented in field dress, observing the tide of battle. Dupont Circle is at the intersection of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New Hampshire avenues and P and Nineteenth streets. A statue of Admiral Dupont is to be erected here. Iowa Circle is at the intersection of Vermont and Rhode Island avenues and P and Thirteenth streets. Washington is divided into four distinct sections or quarters. The Northwest quarter has the largest population, and is the most fashionable. In it are the President's House, the Executive Depart ments of the government, the Foreign Legation buildings, the princi pal hotels, the theatres, the largest business establishments, and the majority of the finest residences. The Southwest quarter is extensive and populous, but it is mainly occupied by small places of business and the residences of persons of moderate means. Some of the streets are, however, being taken up for very fine houses, particularly those in the vicinity of the National Museum. The wharves of the river transportation lines are in this quarter. The Northeast quarter is sparsely settled, but it increases yearly THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT. 64 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. in population. On some of the streets there are numerous blocks of fine dwellings, those located near the Capitol being notable for ele gance. The Southeast quarter, with a portion of the Northeast, is called Capitol Hill, as the Capitol stands on the western brow of this exten sive plateau. Although not as fashionable as the Northwest quarter, it yet has a numerous population of people of large means, and many elegant residences, together with blocks of plain, neat houses and places of business. Within a few years it has developed consider ably. Long Bridge extends from the southwestern terminus of Mary land Avenue across the Potomac River to the Virginia shore, and is a mile in length. It was completed in 1835 at a cost of $100,000, and, singular as it may seem, only one-third of the money appropri ated by Congress to build it was expended. It is doubtful if there is another case on record of a public work being constructed for less than the original appropriation. President Jackson formally dedi cated the bridge in the spring of 1836, and, after nearly fifty years of hard service, it is now in a substantial condition. It is an unsightly wooden structure ; one side of it is used by the railroads running south from Washington, and toward the Virginia end is an extensive draw, to admit of the passage of vessels to Georgetown. Before many years it will doubtless give way to the march of improvements, and a bridge better adapted to the needs of the capital will take its place. During the Civil War thousands of Northern soldiers tramped over its dusty road, and a large part of the vast quantities of supplies for the Federal army in the field was transported over it. At present it is largely used by the farmers of Virginia who bring their produce to the Washington markets, and daily hundreds of vehicles and several thousand people cross the old structure. Many years have passed since the corner-stone of the Washing ton Monument was laid with imposing ceremonies on an anniversary of the Nation's Independence Day. This grand memorial to him who was called " the pride of our land and the glory of our race," progressed in an exceedingly tardy manner, but was finished in December, 1884, and dedicated February 22, 1885, the one hundred and fifty-third anniversary of the birth of Washington. The cost of THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT. 65 the monument has been about one million, two hundred thousand dollars. This monument has been called " the world's greatest cenotaph." It is a plain obeliscal shaft, rising to the height of 555 feet from the base of the shaft, and 572 feet above the natural surface of surround ing ground. Around the base a mound of earth has been graded, sloping in all directions to meet the natural surface at distances of 350 to 450 feet from the shaft. The foundation of the shaft is 126 feet square and is thirty-seven feet below the base of the shaft. The shaft, at the base, is fifty-five feet square, and at its top it is about thirty feet square. The lower portion is constructed of blue gneiss, faced with large crystal marble, and the upper portion is of similar marble, with cut granite backing. In the* interior lining are set numerous blocks of stone, presented by the states and cities of the United States, by foreign countries, and by various societies. They are properly inscribed, and are arranged to be plainly seen in ascending the monu ment. An elevator, and also a spiral staircase, is used for the ascent, and the interior of the shaft is illuminated by electricity, as the only openings, except the entrance doors, are small windows at the top. This shaft is the loftiest artificial structure in the world. It rises many feet above the Capitol, and above any of the cathedral spires and monuments in Europe and the East. It is fifteen feet higher than the main tower of the new city hall in Philadelphia, thirty feet higher than the great cathedral at Cologne, and ninety-five feet higher than St. Peter's, at Rome. The prospect from the top is sublime beyond conception. On the west the range of vision is bounded by the Alle ghany Mountains, and on the south it extends to the Chesapeake Bay, and across it to the ocean. The prospect on the north and east comprises the city of Washington, and far beyond over the Dis trict and Maryland Hills. The site of the monument was designated by act of Congress in 1848, and is said to have been originally chosen by President Wash ington. It occupies the government reservation, bounded by Four teenth Street west, and the Potomac River. All of this tract is to be included in the extensive harbor improvements in progress, and it is believed will eventually be a portion of a beautiful park, with drives extending a long distance on the river bank. 5 66 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. The subject of a national memorial to the Father of His Country was early discussed. The Continental Congress, in 1783, adopted a resolution for the erection of a statue "in honor of George Washing ton, the illustrious Commander-in-Chief of the United States Army during the war which vindicated and secured their liberty, sover eignty and independence " ; but the resolution was not carried into effect, as it was understood that Washington did not desire a statue while he was living. After his death one branch of Congress, in 1800, passed an act to erect to his memory " a mausoleum of Ameri can granite and marble in a pyramidal form," but it failed of passage in the other branch. Some years afterward an attempt was made to erect a national monument by private subscriptions after the plan of the Timoleonton of Syracuse, but very little was done toward carrying out this plan, and it was not until 1833 that the monument project as sumed definite form. In September of that year the citizens of Washington had a meeting and formed the " Washington National Monument Society," with Chief Justice John Marshall as president. An appeal was made to the country for subscriptions, and $230,000 were obtained. The corner-stone of the monument was laid on the 4th of July, 1848, in accordance with Masonic rites, the Hon. Robert C. Winthrop delivering an oration on the life and character of Wash ington. The society proceeded with the work of construction until 1854, when it was compelled to suspend operations on account of its inability to obtain money. The monument was left but a little way above its foundation walls until 1878, at which time the government undertook its completion. The work was performed by Col. Thos. Lincoln Casey, under the direction of the joint commission created by Congress, with the Washington Monument Society in an advisory capacity. The city of Washington has passed beyond the possibility of de cadence, and doubtless will have, before many years, a population of half a million people. Sagacious men are of the opinion that event ually the vast and unequaled water-power of the upper Potomac will be utilized for manufacturing purposes, and that the city will then become the centre of a great industrial district, producing goods for the southern and southwestern markets. From a city of malaria and large death rate, it has become, by wise sanitary measures, a salubri ous place of residence, and its death rate, despite a large floating pop- HEALTH OF THE CITY. 67 ulation, is very low, averaging about 17-48 per 1,000. Its climate in winter is usually mild and genial, the spring months are delightful, and the heat in summer rarely exceeds that in the cities several hun dred miles to the northward. There is no reason to believe that it will not always remain the national capital, and as the country in creases in greatness and opulence, this city, the seat of government, is likely to fully share in the general prosperity. A FEW MOMENTS OF LEISURE. s=yBs=a«^-J4S38si PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE, FROM TREASURY BUILDING- CHAPTER IV. THE CAPITOL— ADOPTION OF THE PLAN — LAYING OF THE CORNER-STONE BY PRESIDENT WASHINGTON — THE ARCHITECTS — PARTIAL DESTRUCTION OF THE EDIFICE BY BRITISH TROOPS— THE OLD CAPITOL— THE PRESENT MA JESTIC EDIFICE — ITS GREAT DOME, STATUE OF FREEDOM, BRONZE DOORS AND STATUARY— THE EASTERN AND WESTERN PARKS — NAVAL MONU MENT—THE BOTANICAL GARDEN — VIEW FROM THE CAPITOL DOME. THE commissioners appointed to lay out the capital city were directed to ' ' procure suitable buildings for the accommoda tion of Congress, and of the President, and for the public offices of the government of the United States " ; and, shortly after the city was surveyed, they entered upon this portion of their ¦duties. On L'Enfant's design the "Federal House for Congress" was designated as "the Capitol," and this name, meeting with the approval of President Washington, was adopted. It had been ascer tained that the hill in the eastern section was " the central point ' of the city, and therefore it was decided to erect the Capitol there, with its front toward the east, where a spacious level plateau extended for two miles. It was believed that on this plateau the best houses would be erected. To the westward were swamps and woods, hillocks and creeks, and it was apparent that the eastern section was in every way better adapted for the homes of the cultivated and wealthy people who were expected to settle in the national city. But the city's growth was almost entirely toward the west ; and to-day the Capitol stands with its back to the populous and fashionable part of Washington. It has been humorously said that " the Capitol is like the Irishman's shanty, which had the front door on the back side." It is proposed to reconstruct the western facade and make it similar to the eastern, and doubtless this will be done before many years. 70 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. A premium of $500 and a building-lot was offered by the commis sioners for the best design of the Capitol, and in response to their advertisement sixteen designs were submitted by architects in the prin cipal cities. These designs were carefully examined by Mr. Jeffer son, the Secretary of State, and promptly rejected by him, being mostly beneath serious consideration. Mr. Jefferson had early ex pressed a preference for ' ' the adoption of some of the models of an tiquity, which have had the approbation of thousands of years." In July, 1792, a French architect residing in New York, named Stephen L. Hallet, or Hallate, as it was sometimes written, sent a sketch of a design to the commissioners which met with favor, and he was invited to come to Washington and examine the locality chosen for the Cap itol, in order that he might fully perfect his design, which, in many particulars, was satisfactory. About this time an amateur draughts man, named Dr. William Thornton, an Englishman who had come to the United States after residing for some years in the West Indies, presented a highly colored and elaborated design to Washington and Jefferson, which so greatly pleased them that the President sent a communication to the commissioners requesting the adoption of Thornton's design in place of Hallet's, but suggesting that they " do it with delicacy." It was advised, however, that Hallet be engaged. as supervising architect, as Thornton had no practical knowledge of architecture. Hallet was informed of this request, doubtless "with delicacy,* and immediately began to develop and improve his design. Thorn ton also improved his, and for several weeks these aspirants for the distinguished honor of designing the Capitol of the new and vigor ous American Nation, worked with intense rivalry and bitter feeling. A charge was made by Hallet that Thornton had stolen the major part of his design from his (Hallet's) rough sketches, and had merely drawn out in detail the plans he had thus obtained. This charge was stoutly denied by Thornton, and his denial being satisfactory to the commissioners, they finally accepted his design, and awarded the pre mium to him. Although Hallet demurred at this award, and was greatly aggrieved by it, he was partially appeased by receiving the appointment of supervising architect of the Capitol, with a salary of £400 per year, and began work on the edifice. On the 18th of September, 1793, the corner-stone was laid in the- southeast corner of what was to be the north wing of the Capitol. In an ancient account of this event it is stated that " a grand Masonic,. LAYING THE CORNER-STONE. 7i military and civic procession was formed on the square in front of the President's grounds, from whence it proceeded to the Capitol with martial music and flying colors, attended by an immense concourse of spectators. The ceremony was grand and imposing, and large numbers from various parts of the country attended." On the corner stone was placed a large silver plate, which was inscribed as follows : "This southeast corner-stone of the Capitol of the United States of America in the City of Washington was laid on the 18th day of September, 1793, in the 13th year of American Independence, in the first year of the second term of the Presidency of George Washing ton, whose virtues in the civil administration of his country have been as conspicuous and beneficial as his military valor and prudence have been useful in establishing her liberties, and in the year of Masonry 5793, by the President of the United States in concert with the Grand Lodge of Maryland, several Lodges under its jurisdiction, and Lodge No. 22, from Alexandria, Virginia." President Washington delivered an oration, it is believed, although no record of it can be found, and the Grand Master of the Maryland Masons made an impressive address. After the ceremony "the as semblage retired to an extensive booth, where they enjoyed a barbe cue feast." A few months after the corner-stone had been laid, a serious quar rel began between Architect Hallet and Dr. Thornton, who had been appointed one of the commissioners. Hallet was requested to fur nish the commissioners with his various drawings and designs, but he peremptorily declined, and, in consequence, was dismissed from the public service. George Hadfield, an Englishman, who came highly recommended by Benjamin West, and also by James Hoban, the arch itect of the White House, was appointed in Hallet's place, and re mained until he, too, had a quarrel with the commissioners, and was forced to give up the position. Hoban continued the work, and fin ished the north wing in 1800. In 1803 the construction of the south wing was placed in the hands of Benjamin H. Latrobe, who had come from London, where he had thoroughly studied architecture with Cockrell, one of the leading architects of his day. He arrived in the United States in 1796, and in Norfolk, Va., was introduced to Judge Bushrod Washington, a nephew of the President, who took him to Mount Vernon to form the acquaintance of Washington. Latrobe made a favorable impression 7 2 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. upon the President, and was frequently consulted by him in regard to the public buildings. When he was engaged as the architect of the Capitol, the commissioners gave him full power to construct the south wing, and also to remodel the north wing, which had been very poorly constructed, in accordance with his own plans. He finished the work in 1811, and then connected the wings by a large wooden scaffolding, or bridge, which occupied the place of the present Rotunda. The walls of the wings were constructed of sandstone, quarried on an island in Acquia Creek, a small stream that empties into the Poto mac River about forty miles below Washington ; and the bricks used for the interior work were made in kilns, erected on the Capitol grounds. Congress had occupied the building since 1800, and at the time the British troops invaded the city, on Aug. 24, 1814, the new Capitol looked quite imposing on its hill-top. The British army, commanded jointly by General Ross and Ad miral Cockburn, reached Capitol Hill early in the evening, flushed and excited by their victory at Bladensburg. As General Ross rode toward the Capitol his horse was killed by a shot fired from a house in the vicinity. The shot was apparently aimed at the British general, and it so enraged the troops that, after setting fire to the house con taining the sharpshooter, they marched quickly to the Capitol, and fired several volleys into its windows. A regiment then marched into the hall of the House of Representatives, " the drums and fifes play ing 4 The British Grenadiers,'" and the soldiers were formed around the Speaker's chair. Admiral Cockburn was escorted to the post ot honor, and, seating himself, derisively called the excited assemblage to order. " Shall this harbor of Yankee Democracy be burned ? All for it say aye ! " he shouted. There was a tumultuous cry of affirmation, and then the order was given to fire the building. The pitch-pine boards were torn from the passage-way between the wings, the books and papers of the Library of Congress were pulled from their shelves and scattered over the floor, valuable paintings in a room * adjoining the Senate Chamber were cut from their frames, and the torch applied to the combustible mass. Presently clouds of smoke and columns of fire ascended from the Capitol, and it seemed doomed to destruction. The soldiers discharged army rockets through the roof of each wing, and when the fire was burning furiously, left the building and marched up Pennsylvania Avenue to fire the other pub lic edifices. The wooden passage-way, and the roofs and interiors of the wings were burned, but the walls wrere saved, as the flames were RESTORING THE CAPITOL. 73 MAIN ENTRANCE, CAPITOL. extinguished in time by a severe rain which set in within half an hour after the fire had begun, and continued all the evening. Congress held its first session after the British invasion in Padg ett's Hotel, which occupied the site of the present Post-Office building. The Capitol was ordered rebuilt, and in December, 1816, Congress leased a building which the citizens of Washington had erected near the eastern grounds of the Capitol, and held its sessions in it for sev eral years. This building has always been known as the " Old Cap itol." In it John C. Calhoun died on the 31st of March, 1850; and during the Civil War it was used as a prison for Confederates. Henry Wirz, the keeper of Andersonville prison, was hanged in its yard on Nov. 10, 1865. It is now standing, and is used for business purposes and for residences. At the time the Capitol was burned, Latrobe, its real architect, was in Pittsburg, aiding in the construction of a steamboat for Robert Fulton. He was immediately recalled to Washington, and, after a i H PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. thorough examination, reported that the Capitol could be easily re-- stored, as its foundations and walls were unimpaired. Latrobe was a man of infinite resource. He could speak five modern languages fluently, and was also familiar with Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. He was an inventor, and a discoverer. In the Loudon Hills, in Virginia,. he discovered the beautiful mottled marble, known as "breccia,'' which he used extensively in the interior of the Capitol. He invented what President Madison called "the American order of architecture," using designs of Indian corn, the cotton blossom, and the tobacco-leaf for columns and capitals instead of the acanthus. Until 1817 he labored assiduously to restore anr' improve the Capitol, and to him the credit is due for the old hail of the House of Representatives, now the National Statuary Hall ; the old Senate Chamber, now used by the Supreme Court ; the Law Library Chamber, and the old lob bies. When he resigned, and Charles Bulfinch was engaged as the architect, the understanding was that the Capitol should be completed in accordance with the designs he had made. Bulfinch was a native of Massachusetts. He had constructed the old State House in Boston, and had performed other notable work. For ten years he devoted himself to the Capitol, following Latrobe's plan to a great extent. He completed what were then called the wings, and connected them by the central Rotunda, with a low dome, and also built the main hall of the Library of Congress. In 1827 he reported to Congress that the Capitol was finished, and three years later, resigned the position of architect and returned to Boston. The edifice was declared "majestic," and "perfect in all its adaptations." It covered about one and one-half acres, and was three hundred and fifty-two feet long, and seventy feet high to the top of the balustrade. To the top of the dome it was one hundred and forty-five feet high. Its construction had cost $2,433,814. During the twenty years ensuing, the Capitol was considered suf ficient for the use of the Nation. Robert Mills, a Washington archi tect, was placed in charge of it, and made sundry small improve ments from time to time. In 1850 the necessity for better accommo dations for both Houses of Congress, the number of members having; greatly increased, compelled an enlargement of the building. It was decided to " extend the wings by greater wings, called extensions," which were to be constructed of marble, and connected with the original Capitol by wide corridors. Thomas U. Walter, of Philadel- EXTENSION OF THE CAPITOL. 75 phia, who had built Girard College, was secured as architect, and he retained the position until 1865. He arranged a plan for the exten sions, and immediately began the work of construction. Gen. Mont gomery C. Meigs, the accomplished engineer, was appointed as the superintendent and inspector. On the 4th of July, 1851, the corner-stone of the south or House extension was laid by President Fillmore, assisted by the Grand Lodge of Masons of the District of Columbia, the Grand Master wear ing the regalia worn by President Washington as Master Mason when he laid the corner-stone of the original edifice, nearly fifty-eight years before. An eloquent oration was delivered by Daniel Webster, Sec retary of State, which was listened to by a vast assemblage. Beneath the corner-stone this record was deposited : " On the morning of the first day of the seventy-sixth year of the Independence of the United States of America, in the city of Wash ington, being the 4th day of July, 1851, this stone, designated as the corner-stone of the Extension of the Capitol, according to a plan ap proved by the President, in pursuance of an act of Congress, was laid by Millard Fillmore, President of the United States, assisted by the Grand Master of the Masonic Lodges, in the presence of many members of Congress ; of officers of the Executive and Judiciary De partments, National, State, and District; of officers of the Army and Navy ; the corporate authorities of this, and neighboring cities ; many associations, civil, military, and Masonic ; officers of the Smith sonian Institution, and National Institute ; professors of colleges and teachers of schools of the District of Columbia, with their students and pupils ; and a vast concourse of people from places near and re mote, including a few surviving gentlemen who witnessed the laying of the corner-stone of the Capitol by President Washington, on the 18th day of September, 1793. If, therefore, it shall be hereafter the will of God that this structure shall fall from its base, that its founda tions be upturned, and this deposit brought to the eyes of men, be it known that, on this day, the Union of the United States of America stands firm ; that their Constitution still exists unimpaired, and with all its original usefulness and glory, growing every day stronger and stronger in the affections of the great body of the American people, and attracting more and more the admiration of the world. And all here assembled, whether belonging to public life or to private life, with hearts devoutly thankful to Almighty God for the preservation of the liberty and happiness of the country, unite in sincere and fer- 76 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. vent prayers that this deposit, and the walls and arches, the domes and towers, the columns and entablatures, now to be erected over it, may endure forever ! God save the United States of America ! Daniel Webster, Secretary of State of the United States." The extensions were constructed of white marble, tinged with blue, from quarries at Lee, Mass. ; and the one hundred massive columns around them, each consisting of a single block of marble, were quar ried in Cockeysville, Md. It was proposed to construct a new and grander dome to take the place of " the small wooden thing " that surmounted the Capitol, and the way in which the first appropriation of $100,000 was obtained for the purpose is described thus : " Mr. Walter prepared plans for a com plete extension of the Capitol — new wings, new dome, and anew marble front for the middle or sandstone building, and as he knew very well that Congress would never vote the great sum required in the most economical way, that is in bulk, he first submitted the wings. Next, as Congress was about adjourning at the end of a session, and they were all very merry at a night session — ladies on the floor, and everything lively — the new dome was presented splendidly painted in a picture, and adopted at once." The. money first appropriated was barely sufficient to remove the old dome, which was constructed of wood, brick, and stone, with a sheathing of copper. The new dome required nine years for its construction, and cost $1,250,000. The extensions were finished in November, 1867, and the Capitol then presented the stately appearance it has to-day. Nearly $10,- 000,000 had been expended for its reconstruction, which, with the cost of the original edifice, made the total expenditure a little less than $±3,ooo;ooo. General Meigs, the superintendent, made a report to Congress, in which he said, " I have labored faithfully and diligently to construct this building in such a manner that it would last for ages as a creditable monument of the state of the arts at this time in this country." From 1867 to the present time nothing of consequence has been done to the exterior of the Capitol. Edward Clark, of Philadelphia, is the architect in charge. The interior has been variously adorned, and the grounds greatly improved. Walter's plan included the exten sion of the eastern facade so as to cover the " deep cuts" made by the Senate and House extensions, which would give an unbroken series THE MAIN BUILDING. *7 of columns ; and it is proposed to rebuild the front and the back of the main or original building with marble, to take the place of the sandstone, which requires very careful painting every year to prevent it from crumbling. These changes will doubtless be made, in time. On the brow of a hill which rises ninety feet above the Potomac River is the majestic Capitol, one of the grandest structures in the world. It covers an area of six hundred and fifty-two feet more than three and one-half acres, and the grounds around it comprise forty- six acres. Its total length is seven hundred and fifty-one feet four inches, and its greatest breadth, including the porticoes and the steps, is three hundred and twenty-four feet. It has a principal story, and an attic story, which rest upon a rustic basement. The basement supports an ordonnance of pilasters rising to the top of the two sto ries above, on which is the entablature, and a marble balustrade sur mounts the whole. The basement story is devoted to commhtc.- rooms of Congress, the Law Library, the document and folding rooms, the House post-office, the Senate and House restaurants, and offices. The principal story contains the Rotunda, the National Statuary Hall, the Supreme Court Chamber, the National Library or Library of Congress, and the halls of the Houses of Congress, with various rooms for the members and the officials. The attic story contains committee-rooms . The main building, or original Capitol, is three hundred and fifty- two feet four inches long, and one hundred and twenty-one feet six inches deep. On the eastern facade is a portico one hundred and sixty feet wide (the grand central portico) ; and on the western fagade is a projection of eighty-three feet, which forms a recessed portico of ten coupled columns. The extensions, or north and south wings, occupied by Congress, are connected with the centre building by cor ridors, each forty-four feet long, and fifty-six feet wide. Each wing is one hundred and forty-two feet eight inches in length, and two hundred and thirty-eight feet ten inches in width. The wings have porticoes of twenty-two columns on their eastern facades, and porti coes of ten columns on their ends and western facades. The north wing is occupied by the Senate, and the south wing by the House of Representatives . On the tympanum of the grand central portico, at the main en trance to the Capitol, is a colossal allegorical group representing the. " Genius of America," which was designed by John Qviincy Adams, 78 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. when Secretary of State, after he had rejected various designs sub mitted in competition for a premium. It comprises three figures, the Goddess of Liberty, with Justice and Hope, executed in sandstone by Persico, an Italian sculptor, at a cost of $1,500. At the sides of the entrance doors are niches in which are huge statues of Carrara mar ble, representing War and Peace, also executed by Persico. They cost $12,000. War is portrayed by the figure of Mars, attired as a Roman soldier, with sword and shield ; and Peace by the figure of Ceres, in flowing robes, holding fruits and an olive-branch in her hands. Above the door is a bust of Washington, laurel-crowned, cut in stone by Capellano. On the top of the broad stone steps of the portico are two huge groups in marble, designated as " The Discovery of America," and " Civilization." The first group is the work of Persico, and repre sents Columbus holding the globe aloft " in the hollow of his hand," while an Indian maiden crouches in alarm and amazement at his side. This sculpture is said to give a faithful copy of the armor worn by Columbus when he discovered America. The other group was exe cuted by Horatio Greenough. It represents a desperate encounter between an American pioneer and an Indian. On one side is the wife of the pioneer, holding her babe pressed to her bosom, shrink ing from the contestants, fearful of the result. These groups cost $48,000. The twenty-four massive monolithic columns of sandstone, each thirty feet high, which constitute the portico, were placed in position in 1825. They were quarried on an island in Acquia Creek, and transported to Washington in flat-boats, which were brought to the foot of Capitol Hill by means of the Tiber Creek. Ropes were then attached to the columns, and they were dragged up the hill by long lines of men, and every day many congressmen were to be seen pull ing at the ropes, laughing and shouting like school-boys. On the steps of this grand portico the oath of office has been ad ministered by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to all the Pres idents of the United States, from Andrew Jackson in 1829 to Grover Cleveland in 1885. Before the portico, in the eastern park, 100,000 people can witness the inauguration ceremony. When the President has taken the oath, the guns of the Arsenal, the Navy Yard, and the forts around Washington fire the Presidential salute. The famous Rogers bronze door is placed in the main entrance to the Capitol. On it are designs in high relief representing events in THE ROGERS BRONZE DOOR. 60 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. the life of Columbus, and the discovery of the American continent. The door is nineteen feet high, and nine feet wide, and is folding or double. It is within a bronze casing, on which are emblematic fig ures of conquest and navigation in the four quarters of the globe. It is constructed of solid bronze, and weighs 20,000 pounds. There are nine panels, in which the scenes are arranged in regular order, beginning with the examination of Columbus before the Council of Salamanca, and following with his departure from the Convent of La Rabida to visit the Spanish court. Then are shown the "Audience at the court of Ferdinand and Isabella" ; the " Starting of Columbus from Palos on his first voyage"; the "First landing of the Spaniards at San Salvador"; the "First encounter of the discoverers with the Indians"; the "Triumphal entry of Columbus into Barcelona"; "Columbus in chains," and his " Death scene." Each scene is very clearly and effectively delineated. Between the panels, and on the sides and the top of the door are sixteen small statues of the emi nent contemporaries of Columbus, together with ten projecting heads of the historians of his voyages ; and on the transom arch is a bust of the great navigator, beneath which the American eagle spreads its wings. The door was modeled by Randolph Rogers in Rome, in 1858, and cast in Munich in i860, by F. von Muller. Its cost was $30,000. Broad flights of marble steps lead to the eastern porticoes of the Senate and House extensions. On the tympanum of the Senate portico is a group of figures in marble, executed by Thomas Craw ford, illustrating ' ' American Civilization and the Decadence of the Indian races." Fifty thousand dollars were paid for this work. America is the central figure ; on the left are figures representing War, Commerce, Education, and the Mechanical Arts ; on the right are pioneers, Indians, and an Indian grave. Above the Senate door is a marble group representing History and Justice. A bronze door, modeled by Thomas Crawford, and cast in Chico- pee, Mass., by James T. Ames, was placed at the entrance to the Senate extension in 1868. It was executed at an expense of nearly $57,000, and is a notable specimen of American art. It portrays events in the Revolutionary War, and in the early history of the Re public. The panels contain representations of the "Battle of Bunker Hill and death of General Warren"; the "Battle of Monmouth and rebuke of Gen. Charles Lee, the traitor, 1778"; " Yorktown — the gallantry of Hamilton, 1781"; a "Hessian soldier in death- THE GREAT DOME. 8l struggle with an American"; an allegory of the "Blessings of Peace" ; the " Ovation to Washington at Trenton, 1789" ; the " First Inauguration of President Washington, 1789"; and the " Laying of the Corner-stone of the United States Capitol." The door is the finest example of bronze-work ever cast in the United States, and compares favorably with the Rogers door in design and execution. It is proposed to place a bronze door at the main entrance to the House extension, and also to adorn the portico with marble groups. Designs for a door were made some years ago, but as yet Congress has taken no action in the matter. Rising far above the Capitol is the great dome, an object of im posing beauty, to be seen for miles around. No edifice in the world possesses a dome equal to it in grand, classic symmetry, and in size it is only equaled by the domes of St. Peter's in Rome, St. Paul's in London, and the Hotel des Invalides in Paris. It was designed by Thomas U. Walter, and erected by Charles Fowler. The most beau tiful forms of classical architecture are embodied in it. It is of cast iron, and is a vast sphere nearly 3,576 tons in weight. The builder states that it was constructed on a series of ribs which give support to the large outer plates, which are bolted together. It is nearly all of one metal, and the plates are so arranged that they will expand and con tract " like the folding and unfolding of a lily, all moving together." Any atmospheric change that will move one part will also move all the others — the plates, the bolts, and the other mechanism, and " the Rocky Mountains will budge as quickly " as this ponderous iron struc ture, which is likely to endure for ages. It is prevented from rusting by covering it yearly with white paint in solid coatings. It rises from a colossal peristyle, with tall, fluted columns, above which is a balus trade, and above this an " attic." On its top is a " lantern," fifteen feet in diameter, and fifty feet high, which is crowned by a huge bronze statue of Freedom. This statue stands three hundred and seventy- seven feet eleven inches above the level of the Potomac River. From the base line of the eastern front of the Capitol to the top of the statue it is two hundred and eighty-seven feet eleven inches. Thomas Crawford modeled the figure, which is that of the Goddess of Lib erty, with a " liberty cap " of eagle's feathers, suggested to the sculp tor by Jefferson Davis, when Secretary of War. The figure is nine teen and one-half feet in height, and weighs 14,985 pounds. It was cast at a foundry in Bladensburg, Md., and cost nearly $25,000. 6 82 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. The body of the statue was raised to the lantern on the dome a few days previous to the 2d of December, 1863, and on that day the head was placed on the body with patriotic ceremony. All the forts around Washington fired rapid salutes as the head of the goddess was care fully hoisted over the vast iron sphere, and when it had reached the summit and was securely fastened to the body, flags were dipped on every public building, and in every encampment in and near the city, and a hundred guns on the District and Virginia hills rang out deep- toned salutations to the glorious emblem of liberty. The grounds of the Capitol comprise an open court on the east ern, and a grand terrace on the western side — in all, forty-six acres of park, laid out in an attractive manner, and planted with a great variety of luxuriant trees and a wide range of shrubbery, which afford pleasing contrasts of form and color. The design has been to arrange the grounds for convenience of business with Congress and the Su preme Court, and also to fitly support and present the Capitol to ad vantage. When the government first took possession of the tract it was overgrown with " scrub oaks," and had a soil of stiff clay, dusty in dry, and like mortar in wet weather. For many years it was merely an open common, with roads and paths crossing it in all directions. At the base of the hill, on the west, flowed the Tiber Creek, a little stream with rugged sycamore trees overhanging its banks. In the early spring it was not fordable, and the small bridge was often washed away by freshets. Congressmen in riding to the Capitol were frequently compelled to secure their horses on the farther side, and to pick their way across the swollen stream on fallen trees. Ten years ago the Tiber Creek was utilized for the sewer system of the city, and now forms a natural sewer much larger than the famous sewers of Paris. It runs through the city and empties into the Eastern Branch of the Potomac. Its course is covered by streets, under which the tide ebbs and flows. President Washington planted a number of trees in the park on the north of the Capitol, and one of these, known as the " Washing ton Elm," still remains. It is likely to outlive many more Presidents, as it is well cared for and in a flourishing condition. In 1825 the grounds were laid out for the first time with some attempt at system. Rows of trees, flower-beds, grass-plats, and gravel walks were ar ranged. A few years later, more land was enclosed, and numerous trees planted. In the eastern court two "barbecue groves" were THE STATUE OF WASHINGTON. 83 made, one for the Democrats, and the other for the Whigs, to hold their meetings and jubilations in. The system of landscape gardening now in use was begun soon after the Capitol was reconstructed. Around the building on the western side an architectural terrace is to be con structed, which will greatly add to the ornamentation of the grounds. There are forty-six carriage and foot entrances from the streets on all sides, well paved with concrete and smooth stone, and the entire park is enclosed by low walls, with handsomely ornamented coping, posts, and gateways. Many trees and shrubs from foreign countries are growing vigorously. They are properly described by means of labels attached to them, and visitors are thus enabled to gain accurate knowl edge of the varieties. The park is largely used as a place of public resort in spring and summer, and the government has provided pretty rustic arbors and resting-places, drinking-fountains of pure spring water, and plenty of wide, comfortable seats under lofty trees for the use of all who seek this pleasant, sylvan retreat. In the eastern court, fronting the central portico, is a colossal mar ble statue of Washington, by Horatio Greenough. The statue was executed in Italy, and its cost, including the pedestal and transporta tion, was nearly $45,000. Congress ordered it in 1832, and ten years later it was placed in the centre of the Rotunda of the Capitol. Sub sequently it was removed to its present location. Greenough was a native of Boston, and died near that city in 1852, after a long residence abroad. In writing ofthe statue he said, " It is the birth of my thought, and I have sacrificed to it the flower of my days and the freshness of my strength ; its every lineament has been moistened with the sweat of my toil and the tears of my exile. I would not barter away its asso ciation with my name for the proudest fortune avarice ever dreamed of. " Washington is represented seated in a Roman chair adorned with lions' heads and the acanthus leaf. The figure is nude to the waist, with a mantle draped round the lower part and extending over the right shoulder. The right hand points toward heaven, and the left holds a sheathed sword. On the sides of the chair are allegories of Phoebus- Apollo driving the chariot of the sun, and Hercules strang ling the serpent. On the back is a Latin inscription, which is freely translated, " This statue is for a great example of liberty, nor without liberty will the example endure." The granite pedestal is inscribed with the famous eulogy on Washington, uttered by Gov. Henry Lee, of Virginia : " First in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen." 84 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. At the foot of Capitol Hill, near the main entrance to the western park, is the Naval Monument, or Monument of Peace, executed in Italy by Franklin Simmons. It is inscribed, " In memory of the offi cers, seamen, and marines of the United States Navy, who fell in defence of the Union and liberty of their country, 1861-1865." It is of pure Italian marble, and rises to a height of forty-four feet, and rests on an elaborate granite pedestal, which contains a fountain. It cost $21,000, and the pedestal cost $20,000. At the top are large figures representing America, and History. America is weeping, while History holds a tablet on which she has written, "They died that their country might live." A figure portraying Victory stands below the other figures, holding aloft a wreath of laurel in her right hand, and at her feet are miniature images of Mars and Neptune. On the back ofthe monument is a figure of Peace bearing an olive-branch, and surrounding the figure are models of agricultural implements and products. This fine memorial was erected from funds contributed by members of the navy, and the pedestal from an appropriation by Congress. The National Botanical Garden adjoins the Capitol grounds on the west, and is part of the government reservation, known as the Mall. It was originally an alder swamp, with the Tiber Creek flow ing through it. The first attempt to establish a garden here was made about fifty years ago. It was begun with a small collection of trees and plants carelessly brought together, and of no special value, and it was not until 1850, when the first building was erected, that it began to claim attention. At that time Congress commenced to make an nual appropriations for it, and it was enriched by having placed in it the extensive and valuable botanical collections brought to Washington by the Wilkes Exploring Expedition from southern climes. Nothing now remains of these collections save a Jujube tree. During the past twenty years the rarest and most beautiful plants have been gathered from all parts of the world, and the national garden is at present the equal in many respects of the famous gardens of Europe. Within the enclosure of ten acres are small houses for the growing of plants, and a grand central conservatory three hundred feet in length, with a huge dome — a veritable palace of glass and iron, with large transept halls and octagonal pavilions, filled with the choicest floral pro ductions. It rivals the great conservatory in the Royal Kew Garden in London, or that on the Chatsworth estate of the Duke of Devon- THE BOTANICAL GARDEN. 85 shire, and in its archi tectural design and proportions it is finer than either. In the avenues of the garden is an extensive scien tific collection of trees, consisting of the best American and foreign varieties, and every where about the grounds the most val ued flowers and shrubs are cultivated. North of the main conserva tory is the celebrated Bartholdi fountain, which was exhibited at the Philadelphia Centennial. STATUARY HALL. 86 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. Visitors throng the garden in winter as well as summer, and it is regarded as one of the attractions of Washington. It is often jocosely called the "bouquet garden" for congressmen. During the annual session of Congress as many as two thousand bouquets are sent from it to the wives and fair friends of the statesmen, and when the session is finished, each congressman is entitled to take to his home one large box of choice plants, which privilege is seldom neglected, particularly as the government pays the cost of transporting the ' ' botanical speci mens " anywhere throughout the United States. The garden is under the control of the Library Committee of Congress, and a liberal appro priation is annually made for it. Its superintendent receives a salary of $1,800, and the employes are paid nearly $10,000 per year. Up to the present time, good judges have estimated, the Capitol has had expended upon it not much less than fifty millions of dollars. Its works of art and the interior decorations and improvements have cost millions, and an enormous amount of money has been expended upon the laying out and ornamentation of the grounds. The annual cost of caring for the Capitol is very large. Even to light it and the grounds requires the yearly expenditure of $25,000; and the yearly compensation of its engineers, firemen, laborers, and other employes will aggregate nearly one hundred thousand dollars. The special Capitol police are paid $36,600 per year. There are thirty police men, commanded by a captain and three lieutenants. They preserve order, protect the public property, and give information to visitors. The architect of the Capitol receives a salary of $4,500, and his office is provided with several well-paid employes. The building is open daily from 9 A. m. until 5 p. m., and in the evening whenever Congress has a night-session. Then the lantern on the dome is lighted, and the light can be seen from every part of Washington, shining like a great brilliant star in the heavens. A visit to the Capitol is not complete without ascending the dome and taking the wonderful and charming view from the top of this mighty iron globe. It is a toilsome ascent, and when the balustrade above the peristyle is reached, many people are content to stop at this point, where the view is exceedingly beautiful. But here the dome only really begins, and those who persevere in the ascent, and finally arrive at the summit just below the lantern on which the figure of lib erty rests, will be amply repaid for all their toil. Here is a circular THE SCENE FROM THE DOME. 87 landing with a strong balustrade, from which can be viewed at an ele vation of about three hundred feet, the city of Washington, the Poto mac River, and the hills and valleys of the District of Columbia and the states of Maryland and Virginia for many miles. No words can express the grandeur of this scene. The city is sharply outlined on all sides, each prominent building standing out in high relief. Murmurs of its busy life come faintly to the ear, but on its broad streets, filled with innumerable moving things, no motion is apparent. You know that thousands of changes are being made each moment, but you cannot perceive the slightest movement anywhere, although you can look from end to end of the thoroughfares. To the west, beyond the city, the hills of Georgetown and of Arlington rise blue and misty, with fields beyond fields spreading out to meet the sky. Along the Virginia shore the silver thread of the Potomac can be seen stretching far to the southward in sparkling loveliness, till it is hidden by jutting banks. The green plateau of the Soldiers' Home stands out boldly to the north ward, and seemingly within easy distance is Howard University, on the brow of its high hill. Fertile plains, rising into wooded heights, are to the east and south, and directly downward are the streets and huildings of Capitol Hill, the ships of war in the Navy Yard, and the waters of the Anacostia. It is a sight long to be treasured in the memory, and ever recalled with delight. From the dome one is enabled to obtain a better realization of the solidity of the Capitol than from the ground below. The massive edifice, composed of marble, sandstone, and iron, is spread out directly to the eye, and its huge proportions are clearly revealed in all their strength and grand symmetry. One can see that faithful, honest work has been done in constructing this greatest and most beautiful of American edifices — work that will certainly bear the test of time. Every part of the Capitol has a very substantial appearance, and look ing at it from the elevation afforded by the great iron sphere, no one can fail to be impressed with its solidity. Around the " tholus" or lantern of the dome are placed numerous electric lights, which have a greater elevation than any similar lights in the country. They illuminate the dome at night in a magnificent manner. A large electric light, with a strong reflector, is placed at the base ofthe dome on the western side, and this light each evening casts its powerful rays far up Pennsylvania Avenue. THE PRINCIPAL STORY OF THE CAPITOL. HOUSE WING. 1. Office of the Bpeaker. 2. Office of the Sergeant-aVArras. 3. Engrossing Clerks of the House. i. Journal and Printing Clerks of the House. 6. Office of the Clerk of the House. 7, 8, 9. Members' Retiring-Room. 10. Lobby. 11. Hall Folding-Room. 12. Cloak-Roomft. 13. Committee on Appropriations. 14. Committee on ways and Means, 15. Committee on Military Affairs. 16. File-Room. MAIN IS n LP1 NO. 33. House Document-Room. 31. House Stationery-Room. 35. House Com. on Banking and Currency. 38. House Com. on Banking and Currency. 37. Office of the Clerk of- the Supreme Court. 38. Robing-Room of the Judges of the Su- Wpreme Court. ithdrawing-Room of the Supreme Ct. 40. Officeof the Marshal of the Supreme Ct. The Supreme Court. The Old Hall of the House of Represents. tives. The Congressional Library. SENATE WING. 16. Office of the Secretary of the Senate. 17. Executive Clerk of the Senate. 18. Financial Clerk of the Senate. 19. Chief Clerk of the Senate. 20. Engrossing and Enrolling Clerks of the Senate. 21. Committee on Appropriations. Committee on Enrolled Bills. Cloak-Rooms.The President of the tJnited States' Room The Senators' Withdrawing-Room. The Vice-President's Room. Committee on Finance. Official Reporters of Debates. Reception-Room. Post-Office. Office of the Sergeant-at-Arms of the Senate. Elevator, CHAPTER V. INTERIOR OF THE CAPITOL — THE ROTUNDA — ITS HISTORICAL PAINTINGS AND- CANOPY — THE NATIONAL STATUARY HALL — STATUES CONTRIBUTED BY THE STATES— THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES — THE COURT CHAM BER— FAMOUS JUSTICES AND INTERESTING COURT CUSTOMS — THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS — DETAILS OF THE VAST NATIONAL COLLECTION OF BOOKS. THE Rotunda, which occupies the centre ofthe interior ofthe Capitol, is a grand circular hall, ninety-five feet six inches in diameter, and three hundred feet in circumference. From the floor to the canopy over what is called " the eye of the dome," it is one hundred and eighty feet three inches in height. Looking upward, you see at first the thirty-six long windows of the peristyle of the dome, which admit a flood of light, and then the gigantic iron ribs and frame of the dome itself, gradually curving to the " open eye," which is fifty feet in diameter. The canopy suspended directly over head appears very small, yet it is an immense sheet of metal and plaster, covering an area of 4,664 feet, and is two hundred and five feet four inches in circumference, and sixty-five feet four inches in diameter. From the base to the top it is over twenty feet. On this canopy is an allegorical painting by Constantino Brumidi, designated as " The Apotheosis of Washington." It was executed at a cost of $39,500, and is a remarkable work in many respects. It represents Washington seated in majesty, with the Goddess of Liberty at his right, and Victory at his left hand. Encircling the central group are thirteen female figures, portraying the thirteen original states, holding a banner on which is inscribed, " E Pluribus Unum." Around the border of the canopy are six groups of figures, emblem atic of the Fall of Tyranny, Agriculture, Mechanics, Commerce, the go PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. Marine, and the Arts and Sciences. Each figure is of great size, and most carefully finished. The artistic merit of this painting cannot, of course, be appreciated from the floor, but when one ascends the dome and inspects the canopy from the gallery directly under it, the mas sive figures, the glowing colors, and the exceeding beauty of the de sign can be seen to advantage. From the gallery a downward view of the Rotunda can be obtained, almost startling in its effect. The height and extent of the grand hall will be better realized from this position than from the floor below. The canopy is a perfect " whis pering gallery," fully equal to that in St. Paul's, in London. Per sons conversing from opposite sides of the gallery over which the canopy hangs, can distinctly hear the slightest whisper across the huge concave. Eight oil paintings, each eighteen by twelve feet, are set in panels round the walls of the Rotunda. The first of the series depicts the " Landing of Columbus at San Salvador," and was painted by John Vanderlyn at a cost of $10,000. Then follow " De Soto's Dis covery of the Mississippi," painted by William H. Powell at a cost of $12,000 ; " The Baptism of Pocahontas," by John G. Chapman, and "The Embarkation ofthe Pilgrims from Delft-Haven," by Robert W. Wier, each costing $10,000. The four other paintings are by Col. John Trumbull, a son of Gov. Jonathan Trumbull, of Connecticut, and an aide-de-camp to General Washington during the Revolutionary War. They faithfully repre sent important scenes of the struggle for American independence. Trumbull studied art in Europe after leaving the army, and was engaged for nearly thirty years in gathering material and executing the paintings. Washington gave him several sittings, attired in full uniform as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army, and many other distinguished persons represented in the series were painted from life. The paintings were finished in 1824, Trumbull receiving $32,000 for them. The first painting of the Trumbull series is a representation of the " Signing ofthe Declaration of Independence, July 4th, 1776." This contains life-size figures of the signers, each face being regarded as a correct likeness. John Hancock is represented sitting at a table on which rests the Declaration, and standing near him are Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Sherman, and Livingston, the committee who had reported the draft of the instrument. Disposed in chairs about the room are the members of the Continental Congress. THE ROTUNDA. 9i The second painting depicts the " Surrender of General Burgoyne, "Saratoga, October 17th, 1777." General Gates is represented sur rounded by his officers, receiving the defeated British general and his staff. General Burgoyne tenders his sword, but General Gates de clines to take it, and instead invites him and his companions to enter his tent and partake of refreshments. The third of the series represents the " Surrender of Lord Corn- "wallis at Yorktown, October 19th, 1781 ." It shows the principal Brit ish officers passing before the American and French generals, and the "troops drawn up in line. It is a spirited delineation, and the canvas seems to reflect the glory of the great triumph. The " Resignation of General Washington at Annapolis, Decem ber 23d, 1783," is the subject of the fourth picture. Washington is portrayed as he appeared before Congress to resign his commission as Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army. Many figures are introduced, and Mrs. Washington and her grandchildren are repre sented among the spectators. This painting fitly closes a series dis tinguished for exquisite coloring, accuracy and faithfulness of histor ical details, and strong effects. Above the paintings are arabesque designs executed in low relief, and panels containing medallion heads of Columbus, Sir Walter Raleigh, Cabot, and La Salle. Over the four entrance doors of the Rotunda, in oblong panels, are alto relievos cut in stone, representing " Penn's Treaty with the Indians," by Gevelot; "The Landing of the Pilgrims," and a "Conflict between Daniel Boone and the In dians," by Causici, a pupil of Canova; and "The Preservation of Captain John Smith by Pocahontas," by Capellano. The relievos cost $14,000, and the arabesque designs and heads, $9,500. Within the sunken space about nine feet wide which encircles the Rotunda above the architrave, is a series of frescos in light and shade illustrating the principal epochs of American history. The work was begun by Brumidi, and after his death was continued by Castigini. Each fresco is broad in its effect and of sufficient size to be clearly seen from the floor. The Rotunda has a freestone floor which is supported by brick arches resting upon peristyles of forty Doric columns. These columns form the subterranean chamber called the Crypt, in which it was pro posed to place the body of Washington when the Rotunda was origin ally designed. The plan was to have a galleried opening in the centre of the floor through which the sarcophagus could be seen. Mrs. 92 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. Washington consented to the proposition, but after her death Washing ton's heirs decided that by the terms of his will the body must remain at Mount Vernon. Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, John Quincy Adams, and other distinguished men endeavored for a long time to secure the removal of the body to the Crypt, but as the Washington family were firm in refusal, the project was abandoned in 1832. When the Crypt was first constructed, Congress appointed a keeper of it, and ordered a light to be kept burning continuously within it. This light was not extinguished for over fifty years, and it was not until after the Civil War that the office of " Keeper of the Crypt" was abolished. The National Statuary Hall is entered at the south door from the Rotunda. This beautiful hall was occupied by the House of Representatives until the new legislative hall, in the House exten sion, was completed. It is ninety-five feet long, and sixty feet high. to the top of its magnificently painted dome. It has a colonnade of twenty-six massive columns and pilasters of the variegated Potomac marble called " breccia," and a wide, sweeping arch. It was designed by Latrobe to resemble the ancient Greek theatres, and for its orna mentation he secured the services of a number of prominent Italian artists, among whom were the Franzoni brothers, and Valperti and Causici. After the British troops had partially burned the hall, La trobe reconstructed it in finer proportions, adding the marble columns and works of art. It was declared " so perfect and so grand" that a writer early in the century quaintly said, " Its defects of construction with reference to acoustics, is a happy circumstance for the worthy fellowship of fault-finders, who would otherwise have to hang them selves from the galleries in despair." The congressmen who used it found it was a badly constructed hall for public speaking, as it had very provoking echoes, and at certain points " a whisper scarcely audi ble to the ear into which it was breathed, would resound over the entire hall." But with all its bad acoustic properties, many of the most eloquent and effective speeches ever heard in the halls of Con gress have been delivered in this old legislative chamber, by renowned statesmen, whose names will live forever in the annals of the Republic. Under the arch near the dome is a large plaster figure of Liberty, by Causici, and beneath it is the American eagle with outspread wings, sculptured in stone by Valperti. Over the main entrance is a marble statue of History recording the events of the Nation, while rolling over the globe in a winged car, the wheel of which serves as a clock. This .a ii'iiii ;m^*im:>>M m^i^m*^!^ *..,< vr! 94 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. was executed by Carlo Franzoni, and is known as " Franzoni's His torical Clock." When the House of Representatives removed to its new hall it was suggested by Senator Morrill, of Vermont, then a member of the House, that the old hall should be taken for a National Gallery of Statuary, and that " each state should be permitted to send the effi gies of two of her chosen sons, in marble or in bronze, to be placed permanently here." The suggestion was adopted, and the states were invited to send contributions of statues. The first to respond to the invitation was the State of Rhode Island, which contributed a statue of Roger Williams, her " great Apostle of Religious Freedom," and a statue of Gen. Nathanael Greene, a dis tinguished soldier of the Revolutionary War. Connecticut followed with statues of Gov. Jonathan Trumbull, the last colonial governor of the State, to whom Washington familiarly applied the sobriquet of " Brother Jonathan" ; and Roger Sherman, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. New York sent statues of George Clinton, Vice-President ofthe United States in 1804 ; and Robert R. Livingston, who, as Chancellor of the State of New York, admin istered the oath of office to President Washington. Massachusetts contributed statues of Gov. John Winthrop, of colonial fame, and Samuel Adams, who was called " The Father of the Revolution." Vermont is represented by statues of Col. Ethan Allen and Jacob Collamer ; Maine by a statue of Gov. William King, her first gov ernor ; and Pennsylvania by a statue of Robert Fulton and Muhlen berg, the heroic Revolutionary Minister ; Ohio by a statue of Garfield, and one of Governor Allen. Doubtless before many years all the states will be represented in this silent assembly of" chosen sons." The statues are regarded as fine works of art, and as highly cred itable to the states which have placed them in the care ofthe Nation. They are supplemented by statuary and portraits purchased by the government. Prominent in the collection is a plaster copy of Hou- don's famous statue of Washington, carefully taken from the original in Richmond, Va. Here also is Mrs. Vinnie Ream Hoxie's statue of Lincoln. The Supreme Court of the United States has occupied the old Senate Chamber, north ofthe Rotunda, since December, i860. Pre vious to that time it held its sessions in what is now the Law Library, in the basement story ofthe Capitol. From the second Monday in THE SUPREME COURT. 95 October until the first week in May in each year, with short intermis sions, the court sits to hear cases on appeal, and to decide constitu tional questions. The court consists of a Chief Justice, with a salary of $10,500 per year, and eight Associate Justices with salaries of $10,000. The justices are appointed by the President, and " hold their offices during good behavior." The court officials include a derk and deputy clerk, a marshal, and a reporter. During a portion of the year the justices act as circuit justices in the nine judicial circuits of the United States, each justice being assigned to a particular cir cuit, in which he receives the assistance of the specially appointed circuit and district justices. The Federal courts have jurisdiction of all constitutional questions, and of all offences against the laws of the United States not within the jurisdiction of the state courts. The chamber of the Supreme Court was the first portion of the Capitol that was finished, and in 1800 it was occupied by the Senate. It was reconstructed by Latrobe after the British invasion, and until the winter of 1859, when the Senators left the familiar, classic cham ber for their new hall, " all gold and buff," it was the place where some of the most important contests in the history of American leg islation occurred. The chamber is semi-circular in form, and of pure Grecian design. The ceiling is part of a low dome, the greatest elevation being forty-five feet. The greatest width of the floor is seventy-five feet. Ionic columns of Potomac marble, with white marble capitals, form a screen at the back of the long judicial bench, and around the walls are marble pilasters, and marble busts of deceased Chief Justices. There is a small gallery over the bench, with windows through which the daylight streams. The justices sit with their backs to a large crimson curtain, and in front of them is a curtained bar with a railing. In the central area are mahogany chairs and tables for the use of lawyers and others having business with the honorable court. Outside of the area are rows of comfort able seats, cushioned in red velvet, for spectators. The chamber is a very beautiful example of classical symmetry. Promptly at noon of each day that the court is in session the crier requests all persons in the chamber to rise, and then announces in measured, solemn tone, "The Honorable Chief Justice and the Asso ciate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States." Nine dig nified gentlemen, attired in long silken robes, march in from the " with- drawing-room," and take their places upon the bench with the Chief Justice in the centre. They bow all together very courteously to the g6 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. members of the bar, who return the polite salutation, and then seat themselves in their wide, comfortable chairs. The crier then opens the session in the usual form : " Oy^.s ! Oyes ! Oyes ! All persons having business with the honorable the Supreme Court of the United States are admonished to draw near and give their attention, as the court is now sitting. God save the United States and this honorable court." Usually the decisions of the court are read by one of the justices at the beginning ofthe day's session. Until four o'clock in the after noon the business continues without intermission. The chamber is free from disturbing noise. Cases are argued by the lawyers in a low, conversational tone, save when some legal luminary from the back woods, sent to Washington by admiring clients, tries to make an im pression on the court by means of artful tricks and mannerisms suc cessful with a jury, and declaims at the top of his voice, strides back and forth, and sets out the merits of his cause with emotional and gymnastic effect. But usually the counsel who appear before this high tribunal are gentlemen of skill and discrimination, who know that solid arguments, stated quietly and easily, are all that is necessary here. The thick carpet on the floor entirely prevents the sound of footfalls as people come and go, and a high screen hides the entrance door from the view of the bench and the bar. Gray-haired colored attendants guard the door, and inform visitors in a whisper where to sit. And so all the afternoon the legal stream flows along as placidly as the waters of the Potomac. The chamber gives you a drowsy feeling. You listen to the "lawyers with their endless tongues, "and in following the droning arguments soon feel so inclined to sleep that you wonder how the honorable justices manage to keep their eyes open during the four hours of the sitting. Indeed, members of the court have said that the room was so " full of repose" that they often had to struggle to keep from sleeping while a dull argument was going on. Some of the justices sit very quiet and appear to pay a great deal of attention to the lawyers. Others are nervous and uneasy, and twist about in their chairs constantly. One justice has the habit of getting up and standing behind his chair to rest himself. They turn over the pages ofthe briefs, consult books brought to them by attendants, and now/and then put pertinent questions to the counsel. Sometimes a jus tice, by a few keen remarks, will show the matter under consideration in such a clear light, that the lawyer who is trying to muddle it will CHAMBER OF THE SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES. 98 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. become quite embarrassed, and abruptly close his argument. The jus tices are complaisant in manner, and there is no stiffness, no assump tion of superiority, often seen in very ordinary tribunals. They address the lawyers plt-asantly, and are patient in hearing even the most tiresome discussion. The two senior justices sit at the right and left of the Chief Justice, and the others, are disposed on the bench in the order of their appointment. In their consultation-room the same order is observed at the table around which they sit. The black silk robes worn by the justices are nearly like those used by clergymen of the Episcopal church. They reach to the feet, and have capacious sleeves. Before entering the court chamber the iustices are dressed in their "sheeny gowns," in the robing-room, by colored attendants. In the first part of the century it was customary for the members of the court to wear wigs, and to cover their nether limbs with small-clothes. Lawyers were expected to appear in court in full suits of black, with ruffled shirts, small-clothes, silk hose, and low shoes with silver buckles. It is the court custom now for lawyers to wear black and a frock coat, but occasionally a " business suit" will be seen. There was a great deal of formal ceremony in the court some years ago, most of it, doubtless, taken from the English courts, but it has been gradually abandoned, and now very little is left. The early justices were treated with high respect, not unmingled with a certain amount of awe, and members of the bar seldom attempted to be famil iar with them either on or off the bench, unless they were in intimate social relations. It is related of Henry Clay, who was noted for suavity, that he stopped one day when arguing a case before the court, and advancing to the bench in graceful manner, took a pinch of snuff from the box of a justice, saying, " I perceive that your honor sticks to the Scotch," and then resumed his argument. This excited much astonishment at the time, and Justice Story said, " I do not believe there is a man in the United States who could have done that but Mr. Clay." The first Chief Justice was John Jay, of New York, who was ap pointed when the court was organized, in 17S9, and served until 1795. A portrait of him, painted by Gilbert Stuart, hangs in the robing-room. Following Jay were John Rutledge, of South Carolina, and Oliver Ellsworth, of Connecticut. Then John Marshall, of Virginia, became Chief Justice in i8oi,and remained on the bench for thirty-four years. Chief Justice Marshall has been placed in the front rank of Ameri- EARLY JUSTICES. 99 can magistrates for profound learning, inflexible honesty, and a rare genius for logical argument. He was called " the great Chief Jus tice." He was dignified, but very kind in manner. He was tall and ungainly, and noted for wearing very shabby clothes. In the coldest weather he never wore an overcoat, and was often seen on winter days walking at a rapid pace through the streets of Washington, clad only in his rusty, thin black suit. He was very fond of society, was exceedingly hospitable, and frankly acknowledged he enjoyed the pleasures of the table. He took infinite delight in playing billiards and quoits, and even when over seventy-five years old was always read}', in his leisure moments, to play these games, and whenever he scored good points he would shout with childish glee. In addition to his severe labors as Chief Justice, he found time to write a very excellent life of Washington. During his time one of the associate justices was Bushrod Wash ington, a nephew of President Washington. He was on the bench for thirty-one years, and achieved a fine reputation as a learned and industrious magistrate. He was a small, thin man, of rather insig nificant appearance. Severe study had deprived him of the use of one eve, but it was commonly remarked that "he could see more with one eye " than most men with two. He had a great fondness for Virginia tobacco, and was continually smoking or taking snuff. He was never known to become tired at the most protracted sittings of the court, and once greatly astonished the people of a town where he was holding a circuit court by having a continuous session for six teen hours. The early justices were not allotted to certain circuits, as they are now, but each in turn traveled over the entire country, often meeting with very interesting adventures. Justice Wilson always made the grand tour in a huge lumbering coach and four, with dashing out riders ; Justice Todd, in one year, rode over two thousand miles on horseback in performing his judicial duty. Some of the justices traveled in open phaetons with two horses. From 1835 to the present time there have been four Chief Jus tices — Roger B. Taney, Salmon P. Chase, Morrison R. Waite, and Melville W. Fuller. Taney served twenty-eight years, Chase a little less than ten years, and Chief Justice Waite served fourteen years. The present Chief Justice is Melville W. Fuller, appointed in 1888. There have been forty-four associate justices. Justice Joseph Story was a member of the court for thirty-four years, ioo PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. and quite a number of the justices served more than twenty years. By the law of 1869 a justice may retire with full salary when seventy years old, if he has given ten years of service. The docket of the court is always crowded with cases, most of them involving questions of great importance, and suitors are com pelled to wait generally for two or three years, and sometimes longer, before they can have a hearing. Not more than four or five hundred cases can be disposed of in a year, and as there are usually over one thousand cases on the docket at each term, the unavoidable " law's delay" is very trying to the patience and the purses of liti gants. Several plans of relief have been proposed, but as yet Con gress has considered none of them. The official etiquette of Washington requires that the Chief Jus tice and the associate justices shall pay an official visit to the President and to the Vice-President annually, on the day ofthe opening of the court session. They are also required to call on the President on the first day of January. During the winter the President entertains the court at a ceremonious dinner. A visit to the Library of Congress, or, as it is frequently and per haps more properly called, the National Library, will enable one to better realize King Solomon's saying — •"Of making many books there is no end." In the beautifully decorated library halls, occupy ing the entire central portion of the western front of the Capitol, there are 580,000 books and 180,000 pamphlets. They are in many languages — a vast store of literature, representing the researches and product of the mind in every conceivable field of human knowl edge. The library is now one ofthe five great libraries of the world, and at its present rate of increase will number a million books and pamphlets in about ten years. The halls are crowded to repletion with publications — books in every available space ; closely packed. two deep on the shelves which extend tier after tier through the sto ried rooms ; lying in great heaps on the floors ; loading the railings ofthe galleries — half a million volumes crammed into quarters originally designed for less than half that number. An appropria tion act has been passed to construct a large building adjacent to the Capitol, to cost about $3,000,000, for the use of this inestimable National Library- This new library edifice will be located at the junction of East Capitol and First streets, directly opposite the House of Representatives, and fronting the Eastern Capitol Park. It will measure 460 feet front by 310 feet in depth, and will cover about THE NATIONAL LIBRARY. IOI ^£ THE NATIONAL LIBRARY. three and a half acres, being de signed to store about three mil lion volumes. On the second floor an art gal lery will be provided, 300 feet long by 35 wide, for the ar rangement and exhibition of the extensive collection of works of graphic art which the National Library has accumulated. The western door of the Rotunda leads to the main hall of the library. This hall is 91 feet long, 34 feet wide, and 38 feet high. It is flanked by two others, each about the same size as the main one. They are lighted by windows and crystal roofs, are constructed of iron, with floors of marble, and are entirely fire proof. They are painted in light, delicate colors, and adorned with gold-leaf, and present an elegant appearance. The book-cases are of iron, and iron railings protect the alcoves." Small galleries extend along the stories. It is estimated that the halls contain nearly five miles of book shelving, yet the library increases yearly at such an enormous rate, that these miles of shelving have long since proved insufficient 102 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. to hold the literary collections. In the main hall is the desk of the librarian, at which all applications for books must be made. Tables and chairs are placed in two ofthe halls for readers, and one hall is used almost entirely by the employes engaged in cataloguing publica tions and attending to the copyright business. The library force consists of a librarian, whose title is the " Li brarian of Congress," and twenty-three assistant librarians. The compensation of the librarian is $4,000 per year, and the assistants receive $32,640 in all. Congress annually appropriates about $12,- 000 for the purchase of books of reference not published in the United States, files of newspapers, etc. Only members of Congress, and about forty high officials of the government, have the right to take books away from the library, but all persons over sixteen years of age have the privilege of freely using the collections inside the halls. This great privilege is taken advantage of by thousands of people from all portions of the United States, who desire to investigate certain sub jects, and every day the halls contain several hundred readers. In some cases a person seeking the widest information of a special matter can have spread before him, within a short time, many books and pamphlets bearing on the subject, which have come from Ameri can, English, French, and German presses for over a century — pages dim and yellow with age, or bright and fresh from the publisher's hands. The collections are rich in ancient and rare historical works, in books and pamphlets pertaining to the history of states, counties, and towns, and the files of American and foreign newspapers and magazines are very extensive. There are files ofthe principal news papers printed in New England, New York, Pennsylvania, Mary land, Virginia, and other states, from 1735 to 1800; and from the latter date to the present time the collections of newspapers and peri odicals are unrivaled. Among very rare works are two great volumes written on vellum, issued in the thirteenth century, a copy of Eliot's Indian Bible, and the various volumes written by Cotton and Increase Mather. The departments of miscellaneous literature are very full. Many an old novel, forgotten long ago ; many a poem, many a song or play, dead and buried for two or three score years, can be exhumed from this vast literary storehouse. The aim always has been to collect everything published in the United States that could be obtained, and as much of foreign literature as possible, in order that the library should be complete in the full meaning of the term. THE NATIONAL LIBRARY. IC>3 By law the Librarian of Congress has charge of the copyright business, and all applications for copyrights of books, maps, dramatic or musical compositions, and works of art, have to be made to him. Copyrights are granted for twenty-eight years, and then may be re newed for fourteen years. Some figures of the copyright business may be interesting, as they show the great mental activity ofthe peo ple of the United States. During the year 1886 there were granted 31,241 copyrights, and the government received in fees the sum of $25,421. Ofthe articles copyrighted there were 11,136 books, 6,089 periodicals, 7,514 musical, and 672 dramatic compositions. Two complete copies of each publication copyrighted must be deposited in the Library of Congress to perfect the copyright. Thus the library is enabled to possess copies of all printed matter issued in the country on which a copyright is granted. The library exchanges many of its spare copies of publications with the libraries of foreign governments, obtaining much valuable foreign literature in this way. All the publications and exchanges of the Smithsonian Institution are deposited here. Many donations of books are received from institutions and individuals all over the world, and purchases of thousands of volumes are made. Whenever a famous private library is sold, bids from this library are generally forwarded, and many rare books are purchased. In 1800 Congress established this literary treasure-house with a number of books obtained from London. This was the list : "212 folios, 164 quartos, 581 octavos, 7 duodecimos, and 9 magazines. It was the only library of reference the government then possessed. In 1814 the collection had increased to about 3,000 volumes, which went to feed the fires started by the British troops in the Capitol. The next year Congress purchased President Jefferson's private col lection of about 7,000 books, considered the finest in the country at that time, for $23,950, and this was the nucleus of the present Library of Congress. In 185 1 there were 55,000 volumes on hand, but in December of that year nearly 35,000 were destroyed by a fire in the library hall. The fire also consumed a number of valuable paintings, including Gilbert Stuart's portraits of the first five Presidents. The main hall was soon restored in fire-proof, after designs by Walter, and the two iron extensions added, the work costing $280,500. Congress yearly appropriated large sums of money for the purchase of books. Through the efforts of ex-President Haves, then a mem ber of Congress, and chairman ofthe Committee on the Library, the invaluable historical collections belonging to Peter Force, of Wash- HISTORICAL COLLECTIONS. 105 ington, were purchased for $100,000, and deposited in the library. These collections of books, pamphlets, prints, etc., pertaining to early American history, are of inestimable value. They were accumulated during many years of earnest and enthusiastic antiquarian labor. In 1866 the library of the Smithsonian Institution was added to the Library of Congress. The law department contains nearly 70,000 volumes, and is con sidered very complete. Every volume of American, English, Irish, and Scotch court reports is to be found here, together with the stat utes of all countries, from 1649 to the present time. From 2,500 to 3,500 volumes are added yearly. This collection of works relating to jurisprudence, which is the largest and most valuable in the country, is contained in the base ment story of the Capitol, in what was formerly the chamber of the Supreme Court of the United States. The chamber is directly under neath the present court chamber, and is a notable example of classical architecture. It was designed and constructed by Latrobe, and was occupied for court purposes from the early part of the century until the winter of i860. In the vestibule Latrobe placed his celebrated " cornstalk columns" with capitals of ears of corn, which have been described as the " American order of architecture." There have been many important suits at law heard in the old chamber — suits concerning the disposition of vast properties, and the settlement of complicated questions of rights and privileges, every step of -which has been earnestly contested by lawyers of rare ability and great distinction. Clay and Webster, and numerous other ad vocates of eminence in the history of American jurisprudence, have pleaded here with eloquent tongues and strong arguments — bright lights of the age that has gone. Here the renowned Chief Justice, John Marshall, of Virginia, whose effigy in bronze now adorns the western grounds of the Capitol, presided for many years, and here most of his decisions upon vital constitutional questions were given — decisions which have remained to this day as the law of the land. Here the early justices — men of sound and extensive learning — served long terms. The old chamber, now crowded with volumes of law, is indeed an historic place. The law library is extensively used by lawyers every day, and is also of great service to the justices of the Supreme and District courts in preparing their decisions. Many members ofthe legal pro fession from distant parts of the country frequently visit Washington to consult its rare volumes. THE SENATE CHAMBER. CHAPTER VI. THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES — ITS FIRST SESSION IN THE CAPITAL CITY — THE OLD HALLS OF LEGISLATION — QUAINT CUSTOMS OF BY-GONE DAYS — GREAT STATESMEN AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICS — ANECDOTES AND PERSONALITIES — THE PRESENT HOUSES OF CONGRESS— SENATE AND HOUSE EXTENSIONS OF THE CAPITOL. THE First Congress of the United States, under the Constitu tion, began its session in New York on the 4th of March, 1789. In 1790 Congress removed to Philadelphia, and for ten years thereafter held its sessions in that city. On No vember 17, 1800, the Sixth Congress convened in Washington in the unfinished Capitol, and on the 22d of that month President John Adams appeared before both houses, in joint session in the Senate Chamber, and made the customary "annual speech." Vice-Pres ident Thomas Jefferson presided over the Senate, and the Hon. Theodore Sedgwick, of Massachusetts, was the Speaker of the House of Representatives. When Congress began its sessions in Washington, only the north wing of the Capitol was finished, and that was badly constructed. The Senate Chamber was mostly of wood and plaster, and was not completed in its present substantial, symmetrical manner until after Latrobe had reconstructed the building in 1815-17. The House of Representatives at first was crowded into a room intended for the Senate officials, but a temporary apartment was soon arranged for it in the south wing of the Capitol. This apartment was facetiously called "the oven," and was used until 1804, when the House removed to another apartment and remained there until it took possession in 1808 of its beautiful, classic hall. When the Capitol rose stately 108 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. and capacious after the British conflagration, both Houses of Con gress were amply accommodated in fine halls. Many exciting and important parliamentary battles took place in these old halls of legislation. The momentous political questions of the times — the United States Bank, the Missouri Compromise, the protective tariff, the Mexican War, the annexation of Texas, nullifica tion, the fugitive slave bill, and other issues as grave and significant — were debated by Congress, often with fierce wrangles which aroused high excitement and wrath. There was malevolent sectional feeling, and the harmony of the country was frequently disturbed. Indeed it continually required the greatest efforts of the wisest men to preserve the union of the states, and it was then that the grand statesmen and orators — the glory of American legislation — were developed, and they held the Ship of State firmly and steadily on its course. The Senate for a time sat with closed doors, after the manner of the Continental Congress, but as there was decided objection to this secrecy, the chamber was opened to the public, except during executive sessions. The House of Representatives always transacted its business openly. In the early sessions the Senators discussed the matters before them in a colloquial way, and set speeches were rarely made ; but in the House there was considerable formal speaking. Many of the early congressmen wore powdered wigs, and retained the European fashions in dress which had been in vogue in 1700. Their wigs were curled and powdered every day with great care, and the barber was an important individual. It was thought necessary for the Speaker of the House to have a symbol of authority, and the sergeant-at-arms was directed to procure the mace, which is "a bundle of ebony rods, fastened with silver bands, having at its top a silver globe surmounted bv a silver eagle." When the mace was placed on the Speaker's table it signified that the House was in session and under the authority of the Speaker ; when it was placed under the table, that the House was in committee of the whole. The sergeant-at-arms was required to bear aloft this glittering mace when executing the commands of the Speaker, and in many of the sessions in the old hall he was often compelled to brandish it in the flushed faces of angry debaters, and bid them to "be still." An attempt was made to abolish the mace, but it was vigorously resisted, and failed, and the time-honored symbol is placed to-day at the Speaker's right hand whenever the House is sitting. For some years there was an official pen-maker in each house, COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS. 109 whose duty it was to mend the goose-quills commonly used. Many of the congressmen were exceedingly particular as to the " degree of flexibility and breadth of point" of their quills, and while some would use nothing but "broad nibs," others required the finest of " fine points," and the pen-makers had no easy task in trying to suit the different writers. There were also official sealers, who were en trusted with the sealing of letters and packages with red wax. The " stationery " used in both houses included pen-knives, scissors, razors, pocket-books, kid gloves, bottles of perfumery and bear's grease, and numerous other little articles which the officials would purchase " by request " whenever they went to New York to get their supplies. For a number of sessions " an innocent beverage called swichell, com posed of molasses, ginger, and water," was largely consumed by the Representatives, and it was popularly supposed that among its " inno cent " ingredients were good French brandy and Jamaica rum. It was always charged in the appropriation for stationery under the head of " syrup." Previous to 1816 the compensation of members of Congress was six dollars per day, and when a bill was passed in that year to raise the compensation to $1,500 a session, a sum barely sufficient to pay the expenses of a decent living in Washington, it aroused great excite ment throughout the country. In an ancient record it is stated that " the whole nation was shaken to its centre ; parties were formed and political armies marshaled, and the patriotism of the country was aroused to ebullient indignation at the bare proposition that a member of Congress should dare to take thought for what he should eat and drink, or wherewithal he should be clothed, and the liberties of the country where menaced with destruction when Congress ventured to demand the necessaries of life in payment of its thankless services." So great was the feeling that Congress, at its next session, repealed the obnoxious bill, and made the compensation eight dollars per day. It was customary for the Representatives to wear their hats in the House during the sessions, and it was not until 1828 that the practice was discontinued. Ladies were excluded from the galleries for a time, but at last, after some discussion ofthe " momentous question," they were admitted, and even had seats reserved for them. As many congressmen were inveterate snuff-takers, urns filled with "old Scotch" were placed in each house, and officials were charged with the duty of keeping them filled. Even to this day, in the Senate Chamber there is a large box containing choice snuff, which is freely used by the " most potent, grave, and reverend " Senators. no PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. Duelling was quite common in the early days of Washington, and the Western and Southern congressmen usually had a case of duel ling pistols as an important part of their outfit. In the museum ofthe Patent-Office there is a case of pistols owned by Andrew Jackson while he was in Congress, and the heavy, cruel-looking weapons bear the appearance of having been frequently used. The " code" was a matter of general conversation, and was carefully studied. Truculent congressmen were prompt to resent insulting words spoken in debate, and occasionally pistols would be drawn in the House during a session. Then the sergeant-at-arms would seize the mace and hasten to the contestants, hold the official symbol high over their heads, and command them to take their seats under penalty of being arrested for contempt of the House. Henry Clay and John Randolph once fought a duel. Randolph was always abusive in his remarks about Clay, and in debate one day referred to him in a very insulting manner. He declined to apologize for his words, and Clay sent him a challenge. They fought, but without injury to either. There were many exciting scenes in the House in those " good old days." The debates were full of virulence, and the Speaker fre quently had to exert his authority to the utmost to check the passion ate members. Those who have looked on the House in these " pip ing times of peace," when an animated debate was going on — when all over the great legislative hall there was a furious din and babble ; members rising much excited and uttering sarcastic and exceedingly impertinent remarks, and apparently confusion worse confounded — can form some idea of how the old House appeared while debating the vexed questions in the turbulent times of the first part of the cen tury, when congressmen had a " code of honor" which necessitated the carrying of pistols, and when there were numerous " crested jay- hawks of the mountains " threatening violence to those who spoke the truth too plainly. Many able men gave strength and character to the national legis lation for half a century, and made the old. halls of Congress mem orable. John Quincy Adams, who enjoys the distinction of being the only son of a President of the United States who has ever occupied the Presidential chair himself, began his congressional career in 1803 as a Senator. After his term as President he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1831, and became one of its leading members. He was bold, experienced, and learned, but exceedingly frigid in his THE ROTUNDA. 112 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. manner, and was never on terms of familiarity with any member. The "old man eloquent," as he was styled, was seldom absent from his seat in the House, and day after day was fully prepared to discuss every matter that came up. It was his delight to start a stormy de bate, and then he would throw off his frigidity, and become very ex cited. One who knew him well wrote as follows of his manner of speaking: "He rises abruptly, his face reddens, and in a moment throwing himself into the attitude of a veteran gladiator, he prepares for the attack ; then he becomes full of gesticulation — his body sways to and fro — self-command seems lost. His head is bent forward in his earnestness till it almost touches the desk ; his voice frequently breaks, but he pursues his subject through all its bearings. Nothing daunts him — the House may ring with the cry of ' Order' ; he stands amid the tempest, and like an oak that knows its gnarled and knotted strength, stretches his hand forth and defies the blast." It is related that when he was canvassing his district in Massa chusetts for election to the House, his cold, apathetic way of dealing with influential people often created for him a great deal of unpopu larity. On one occasion he was introduced to a farmer of consider able political influence, who cordially shook his hand and said,. " Mr. Adams, I am very glad to see you. My wife, when she was a girl, lived in your father's family; you were then a little boy, and she has often combed your head." " Well," replied Mr. Adams in a harsh tone, " I suppose she combs yours now." On the 21st of February, 1848, Mr. Adams was stricken with apoplexy while sitting in his seat in the House. He was removed to the Speaker's room, and in about an hour regained consciousness for a few moments. Looking at those around him, he said in a whisper, "This is the last of earth, but I am content." Then he closed his eyes and never spoke again. He died on February 23. John Randolph, the " Lord of Roanoke," as he was generally called, was a member of the House from Virginia before Congress began its sessions in Washington. He served until 1825, and then was a Senator for two years, but afterward returned to the House for one term. It was his boast that he had descended from Pocahontas. He was very tall and thin, and had a small, round head and sallow face. His eyes were black, keen, and expressive, his nose and chin long and sharp, and his hair, which was brushed back and tied in a queue, was as black, straight, and coarse as that of the race from which he claimed descent. On his daily trips to the Capitol he GREAT STATESMEN. "3 always rode a fine, high-blooded horse, whose sleek, plump body was in marked contrast to his own leanness. He was usually dressed in a long surtout coat of drab English broadcloth, buckskin knee-breeches and top-boots. Randolph always attracted great attention in the House, and it is said that " his speeches were reported more fully than any other member of Congress." His powers of sarcasm and invective were remarkable, and as he had " a tongue with a tang," his wrath was avoided as much as possible. He was selfish, exclusive, contempt uous ; he had no popular sympathies, and was never known to ap prove of anything favored by other men. He was full of " quarrel and offence," and spared no one from the copious shower of his epi thets. Garland, his biographer, says, " He was like an Ishmaelite, his hand against every man, and every man's hand against him." In 1806, Henry Clay, the great Kentuckian, began his long career in Congress. He first served in the Senate for one session to fill a vacancy, and again in 1809 he became a Senator for two years. He entered the House of Representatives at a special session on the 4th of November, 181 1, and " on the very day he made his first appear ance on the floor he was elected Speaker by a vote of 75 out of 128 cast — the only instance on record in which the confidence of Con gress has been yielded in so marked a manner to any person on his entrance as a member." He retained the speakership during five Congresses, and was a member of the House for about fourteen years. He was elected to the Senate in 1831, and served until 1842, when he resigned his seat, and retired to private life for seven years. In 1849 he was agam elected as Senator. His last speech in the Senate was delivered on the 1st of December, 1851, and on the 29th of June, 1852, he died in the National Hotel in Washington. His large ex perience in state craft, his preeminent intellectual strength, and his wonderful gift as a popular orator, admirably fitted him to play an important part in the legislative arena. He was of commanding height, and had a pleasant face lighted by sparkling gray eyes. He was courtly in manner, and thoroughly understood the difficult art of being easy at all times and in all places. When he spoke, a winning smile would give effect to his words. Few orators of his day could so enchant an audience, and his speeches in Congress and on the platform were listened to with deep interest, and always made a marked impression. He was the :ecognized leader of the Whig party, and ruled its affairs with an iron hand. 114 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. Clay was sincere and liberal, and ardent in his devotion to the things he considered right and just. He was the champion of the system of protection to American industry, and made many powerful speeches and assiduously labored for it. Sometimes for weeks when he was in the Senate he would take very little part in the proceedings, but would sit quiet in his seat, day after day, eating candy and taking snuff, and jocosely commenting in a low tone on the speeches of others. He relished a good joke, and nothing pleased him better than a bright repartee, even if it was against himself. When he was ready to engage in debate he would spring to his feet and hold his auditors fascinated by his eloquent language and graceful delivery. Daniel Webster entered the House of Representatives in 1813, as a Representative from New Hampshire, his native state, and served until 1817. About this time he took up his residence in Boston, and thereafter Massachusetts claimed him as her foremost orator and statesman. He was elected to the House in 1823, and to the Senate in 1827. He continued as a Senator until 1841, and then went into President Harrison's Cabinet as Secretary of State, which position he held until May 9, 1843. In 1845 he was again chosen to the Senate, serving until 1850. He had a massive form, and his large, finely developed head was covered with hair " as black as the raven's wing." His face was full of character, and his eyes were deep set, large, and melancholy in expression. He was always carefully dressed, and, as a writer has said, " in the old Whig colors of blue and buff." For years he was a leader in the- great debates, and his speeches gave him national fame and influence. Visitors to the Senate Chamber would eagerly watch his movements, and lis ten to his words with rapt interest. Whenever it was announced that he intended to speak upon any question the crowd to hear him would fill every part of the chamber, and hundreds would be unable to gain admission. ..His speeches were always prepared with great care,, and he would never permit them to be published until he had thoroughly revised them. Many of his eloquent sentences were com posed after days and even weeks of study. He had a good deal of humor, which now and then would be displayed in the Senate, although generally he was very dignified while engaged in his legis lative duties. Quite often in his private hours he would be gloomy and despond ent about his political career. At one time when he was feeling de pressed a friend said to him that he should not feel so, as his fame was made. GREAT STATESMEN. THE SENATE RECEPTION-ROOM. "Fame," replied Mr. Webster; "and much for fame I Let me give you a striking illustration of this fact. I was traveling in a railroad car a short time ago, and it so happened that I was located by the side of a very old man. I soon found that this old man was from my native town in New Hampshire. I asked him if he was acquainted with the Webster family up there. He answered that he and old Mr. Webster, in his life-time, were great friends. He then went on to speak of the chil dren. He said Ezekiel was the most eminent lawyer in New Hamp shire, and his sisters, calling each by her christian name, were mar ried to most excellent men. I then inquired if there was not another member of the family. He said he thought not. Was there not 116 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. one, I asked him, by the name of Daniel ? Here the old man put on his thinking-cap for a few moments, and then replied : '0,1 recol lect now. There was one by the name of Daniel, but he went down to Boston, and I have not heard of him since.'" Thomas Hart Benton, of Missouri, entered the Senate in 1821, and served for twenty-nine years and seven months continuously — the longest continuous service ever given. He was not a pleasing speaker, being noted for long, bombastic speeches, delivered in a loud, imperious manner. In debate he was passionate, and would often "launch thunderbolts of hatred, jealousy, and rage7' at the heads of those who opposed him. His stalwart body was always at tired in a long, double-breasted frock-coat of antique fashion, and as he walked to and fro on the floor of the Senate, he would assume a martial bearing, and his eyes would flash with arrogance. Although a man of marked ability, his displeasing manner and lack of tact and grace in speech prevented him from obtaining popularity. One of the group of great statesmen was John C. Calhoun, of South Carolina, who began his congressional career in 181 1, as a member of the House of Representatives, serving for six years in that. body. He was elected Vice-President in 1825, when John Quincy Adams was President, and in 1831 went into the Senate, where he remained for twelve years. He took a leading position, and was fully the peer of the remarkable men who composed the Senate of his day. In 1843 he became Secretary of State, but returned to the Senate in 1845, and served until his death in 1850. He was tall and slender, and had a sombre face, on which a smile was rarely seen. As an orator he was logical and forcible, and in all the prominent debates his voice was often heard. Very ambitious, with his " whole mind and soul given to politics," he yet would never descend to trickery or baseness to accomplish his purpose, and he has gone into history as one of the purest of public men. Martin Van Buren, who was President in 1837, was for some time in the Senate. He was a wily politician — shrewd, capable, and ingenious. He was rather under medium height, and had a high forehead and comely features. He was exceedingly courteous, and made as much study of " deportment" as Mr. Turveydrop, and he is said to have diligently practiced all his graceful attitudes before a. large mirror in his room. Then there were Silas Wright, the influential Democrat, who in variably carried conviction by his sound logic ; Henry A. Wise, who SOUTHERN LOBBY ©J /? PLAN OF THE SENATE CHAMBER. Ii8 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. could startle the House by a perfect hurricane of passionate words ; Edward Everett, noted for his captivating speech and great learning ; Charles Sumner, polished and graceful as an orator, sincere and saga cious as a statesman ; John Forsyth, a superb debater, and remarkable for his accomplishments; Tristam Burges, called " the man of the iron heart" — strong and brave, whose keen wit and eloquent tongue made even the " Lord of Roanoke" tremble ; David Crockett, from the mountains of Tennessee, always ready with his rifle to shoot for prizes, and noted for quaint, common-sense speeches ; George Mc- Duffie, Thomas Corwin, Lewis Cass, and innumerable others of great ability and marked individuality. The present hall of the House of Representatives was occupied on the 16th of December, 1857, and the present Senate Chamber on the 4th of January, 1859. The north wing ofthe Capitol is known as the Senate extension. The principal story contains the Senate Chamber, the Senate post- office, the office of the sergeant-at-arms, the reception-room, the Senators' with drawing-room, the rooms of the President and Vice- President of the United States, theoffice of the secretary of the Senate, and the offices of the Senate clerks and official reporters. Around the Senate Chamber is a grand corridor adorned with marble columns and pilasters. The wing is constructed entirely of marble and iron, and is very magnificent. At the back of the Senate Chamber is the Senators' lobby, and opening from it is the withdrawing-room, or, as it is generally called, " the marble room," as it is made entirely of marble. Senators use it for consultation. The President's room is on one side of it, and the Vice-President's room on the other. Medallion portraits of Wash ington and the members of his first Cabinet cover the walls of the President's room, and it is sumptuously decorated. Here the Presi dent comes on the last day of the session of Congress, to sign the bills passed by both houses. When the Senate is not sitting the various rooms can be inspected, and the floor of the Senate Chamber is also open to the public. The Senate Chamber is one hundred and twelve feet in length, eighty-two feet in width, and thirty feet high. The ceiling is com posed of large iron girders and cross-pieces, in which are panels of glass containing painted emblems representing the Union, Progress, the Army and Navy, and the Mechanical Arts. At night hundreds THE SENATE CHAMBER. 119 of gas-jets, arranged back of the ceiling, throw a flood of softened light into all portions of the chamber. The walls are painted in ex quisite tints and decorated in gold, and have buff panels. Arranged on the floor in concentric semicircles are mahogany desks and chairs for the Senators. On a dais is the chair of the President of the Senate, and in front of it is a broad mahogany desk. To the right of the president's chair is the chair of the sergeant-at-arms, and to the left that of the assistant door-keeper. In front of the president's desk are the desks ofthe Senate clerks and the tables of the official reporters. Galleries- with seats for 1,000 persons extend around the chamber. Above the president's chair is a gallery for reporters ofthe press, and THE PRESIDENT'S ROOM. 120 PICTURESQUE WASHINGTON. directly opposite is one for the diplomatic corps. The others are for the public. Two grand staircases of highly polished marble lead to the Sen ate galleries from the public corridor. The eastern staircase is con structed of variegated Tennessee marble, with white marble steps. A stained glass skylight set in a paneled iron frame is placed over head. From the main floor a broad flight of sixteen steps leads to the first landing ; thence the ascent is by a double flight of eighteen steps. In a niche at the foot of the staircase is a marble statue of Benjamin Franklin, by Hiram Powers, executed at a cost of $10,000. On the wall above the first landing is a large painting of " Perry's Victory on Lake Erie," Sept. 10, 1813. It was painted by W. H. Powell, and cost $25,000. Commodore Perry is represented in a boat, making the perilous transfer of the flag from the disabled "Law rence " to the " Niagara," during a tremendous cannonading. The western staircase is constructed entirely of white marble, and is similar in design to the eastern. At the foot is a marble statue of John Hancock, by Horatio Stone, which cost $5,550. Over the main landing is a painting of " The Storming of Chapultepec" by Gen eral Scott's troops, Sept. 13, 1847. It was painted by James Walker, from sketches taken on the battle-field, the artist receiving $6,000 for the work. The staircases, with their massive pillars and balustrades, are very beautiful. The south wing of the Capitol, or the House extension, is similar in design and construction to the Senate extension. It has a grand corridor or lobby, and a vestibule with fluted columns. In the princi pal story is the great hall of the House of Representatives, and sur rounding it are the Speaker's room, the retiring-room, the office of the sergeant-at-arms, the offices of the House clerks, and committee- rooms. The retiring-room is large and richly furnished, and the other rooms are of good size and elegant in their ornamentation and furniture. Opening from the rear of the legislative hall is the mem bers' lobby, which is finely decorated and hung with portraits of past Speakers of the House. The hall of the House of Representatives is one of the largest and finest legislative halls in the world. It is one hundred and thirty-nine feet in length, ninety-three feet in width, and thirty-six feet high. The chairs and desks of the Representatives and Delegates are arranged on the floor in concentric semicircles. The chair of the Speaker is' THE HALL OF THE HOUSE. 121 placed on a platform three feet from the floor, and in front of it is a large marble table, and in front of that are marble desks for the House clerks and official reporters. At the right of the Speaker's chair is a stand on which the mace is placed when the House is in session, and close by is the chair of the sergeant-at-arms ; on the left is the chair of the assistant door-keeper. A portrait of Washington, by Vanderlyn, hangs on one side of the Speaker's chair, and a portrait of Lafayette, by Ary Sheffer, on the other. Two paintings by Bier- stadt, for which he received $20,000, are set in panels near the south doors. They represent the " Settlement of California," and the " Dis covery of the Hudson River." A fresco by Brumidi, of "Washington at Yorktown," adorns a panel. Over the main entrance door is a large clock, supported by figures of an Indian and a pioneer, and sur mounted by an eagle. The ceiling is similar in construction to that in the Senate Chamber. It is profusely gilded and ornamented, and the panels are filled with panes of painted glass bearing the arms of the states and other emblems. Back ofthe ceiling are 1,500 gas-jets, which at night illuminate the hall in a very brilliant manner. The galleries will seat nearly two thousand people, and they are often filled during the progress of an important debate. The press gallery, back of the Speaker's chair, has accommodation for sixty reporters. Two galleries are reserved for the diplomatic corps and the leading officials of the government ; the others are open to the public. The eastern and western grand staircases, leading from the corri dor of the House to the galleries, are exactly like those in the Senate extension. At the foot of the eastern staircase is a marble statue of Thomas Jefferson, by Hiram Powers, executed in Italy at a cost of $10,000. On the wall of the landing is Francis B. Carpenter's famous painting of " President Lincoln signing the Proclamation of Emancipation," which was purchased of the artist for $25,000, by Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Thompson, and presented to the United States in 1878. While making studies for the work Mr. Carpenter resided in the White House as the guest of President Lincoln. At the foot of the western staircase is a bronze bust of a friendly chief of the Chippewa Indians, called Bee-She-Kee, the Buffalo. The wall of the landing is embellished with an immense chromo-silica, by Emanuel Leutze, representing an emigrant train crossing the Rocky Mountains. It is bold in drawing and brilliant in color. Leutze re ceived $20,000 for the work. ¦M i'WI ^ > < aw Mo oK a a HhO