The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1866-01-30
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, ID. C.,
Jan. &c, 1866.

Jan. 20, 1000. }
FRIEND DANFoRTH-W ashington, to
stranger, presents some agreeable anu IN
structive features, not the least among them
is the patent office. The model rooms which
are filled with all sorts of ingenious inven-
tons, are thronged during ofhce hours with
groups Of curious men, women and children,
examining but scarcely understanding the
MANY miniature models on exhibition ana
even the thoughtful children of Auburn
might find many things in the great national
TOW shop which, like Mr.. Barnum's aquarla,
would '.amuse and instruct them" The
model rooms are also repositories tor sundry
revolutionary relics, and modeTn curioslties'
which are presumed to be the property OF the
nation. / say presumed, because 1t requires
n degree of presumption to believe that the
Washington relics boldly labelled Taken
from Arlington In 1862" are anything but
private property and family heirlooms. 1t is
we'll. perhaps, that they are taken and depos'
tied. if only temporarily, where these rellcs
were at least safe from the depredaslons OF
those who summarily "eonfscated" all port
able property presumed 20 belong TO- rebels,
and who filled their houses with spoils in the
way of pictures, plate, pianos, books from IL
braries, and even the strippings from bureaus
and wardrobes,-and moreover the Arlington
relics add considerably to the collection OF
old clothes and crockery, once owned oy
Washington, and presented from tune 70
time to the government by descendants o.
his family.
Near the Washington relic cases, which
contain, besides his commission and the or
iginal "Declaration of Independence lana
from the last all the signatures have nearly,
some of them quite, faded out1 stands on d
nedestal the beautiful statue of Washington,
which the artist made for the state OF Louis
sana. 1t stood before the late war liz eias
sic temple erected st cost of i0,eOo,on the
state house grounds at Baton Rouge IL mas
passed into History how that state house, the
finest snecimen of architecture ia louisiana,
was DESTROYED how the large and valuable
library was sacked and scattered, and how
this statue was dragged from us pedestal.
boxed up, and concealed for months, ana Il
nally sent to Washington. l suppose 1t De-
longs TO the state Of Louisiana to day but
when we affect TO remodel, repeal and ''re-
construct" state statutes, we need not be
over modest about doing as we Will with their
statues.
Nevertheless, we may look with a sort of
pleasure upon this deposit OF tbs Powers
statue in the patent Office. 1t refutes, to an
extent, the generally received opinion that
General Butler, al. L. d." never handed
over "snything" which he ''conhscated" or
s'conyeyed" in Louisiana TO the government :;
and, so tar as it goes, 1t is kind OF satlstac-
ton to Gen. Butler, 81. l.. D." and when
we consider that Butler actually did hand
over to the government this single spoil of
war, the statue, to my mind, becomes alto
gether the greatest curiosity in the patent
office, If not IN Washington.
With Gen. Butler still in my mind, the
autograph hunter feels All itching al hs fn-
gers ends, when he $685. In nearby case,
suudry treaties signed by Bouaparte, as FIRST
Consul in 1904, and by Taileyrand by Louis
18th in 1922 by Louis Philippe in 1881 !;
by George 4rh as Prince Regent IN 1914: by
Francis lsr, Of Austria; by Alexander Of
Russia By Charles John tBernadJttel Of
Sweden and by other potentates and powers
down to Tommy" and the rest OF the Japan
Csc mbassy. There is also goodly collec-
ton of shawls, genuine cashneres, given by
the Imauu of Muskat to President Var
Buren, gorgeous Japanese saddle and
trappings. with a multitude of other traps,
swords, and curious specimens of arms and
clothing. The cases, which may be properly
be called the general military department,
are much patronized by SIGHT seeing old and
young ladies, who mourn over the moth.
eaten shawls, the faded silks. and wonder
they are not put to some better use.
A real relic hunter will view with smell
fungous rapture the old printing presswhich
Franklin went to see In the office of Mr. Watt
IN Wild street, Lincoln's Inn Fields, when he
was in London. as the agent of Msssaohu
sets, in 1868. On that occasion ne remark
ed to the assembled jours: "Forty years ago
| worked on that press" He then made a
much more interesting remark to the afore.
said ioars, "eome, my friends, we will drink
together" and forthwith o small boy was
dispatched for a "gallon of porter" and
Franklin and the lours drank ''sucoess to
printing" l don't know whether it was the
"press," or the "porter." or the 'toast,"-
but wonderful success has attended printing
since Franklin last laid his hand on that
press. Ii never seemed to me that Franklin
was one of the kind of men to be easily as
tonished, but 1 fancy that if he could COM
pare the press which he worked upon with so
much pride, with the gigantic Hoe eight cyl
inder on which the Herald, Times and tn
Dune is printed to-day, he would think there
was as wide difference between the two as
there 10 between an old fashion cooking stove
ana the latest built locomotive. If his rap
ture in 1868 called for gallon of porter,
nothing short of q vat of Barclay Perkins
"eutire" would do day.
The general observer, passing throug b the
model rooms, may glance at or examine in
detail, any or all Of the a., 900 models exhib
ited-models of everything which the psalm
iss calls ssthe devices of men, FROM a bal
loon inhator to d sausage stufer. there are
toy models of steam engines, ships. bridges,
agricultural niplemeuts--everythlng that Is
made in wood, metal. iron or Indian rubber
"a travelling railroad restaurant and cooking
car, which suggests the idea of completion
of railway comforts by the addition to every
train of travelling undersaker's shop, and q
multitude of other models of the amusing and
instructive order. Ii is not with these, how
ever, that we have to do to-dsy. We are IN
nursu;t of Information. under no difficulties