Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1867-08-07
LETTER FROM OHIO.

ing been made ye.y much at home during my
brief soiourn in the capital of Ohio, by l daily
pcrusal of the old Gazette. which, one of our
former townamen residing here declares to be
Necessary to his very existence, | think II not
amis: to offer you, in return Tor the great
pleasure you have gwen me, by yonr daily
abstract of geucra news aud home mattcra,
few hasty notes have made concerning things
in the Empire State Of the West.
Passing over my journey hither, which,
though through scenes worth description. are
vet we'll known 10 many OF yonr readers, will
confluence with I sketch OF this city. 1t ID a
place Of considerable size having, am told,
about 81 900 inhabitants, and IS prettlly sltuat-
ed on The Scioto River, said river, however,
being stream OF somewhat less width than -Four
Mile Run, where the W ashlngton road crosses
it. and not deep enough to have anything larger
than canal boats employed in navigating tt
The trade of Columbus should judge from
appearances. is about ten times that OF Alex
andria, and it has quite Il number OF manuiac-
tories, some OF them very large. -
| The streets are laid out at night angles,
| Though many of them do not run all the way
| through the city, and are very wide, and al
| most every square has two broad alleys running
| its centre and crossing each other in the md
| die. The squares are about 400 feet each way,
| and the streets are mostly bordered with trees,
| the finest (Broad) having four rows two on
the sidewalks and two some distance out IN the
carriage way. The great drawback is the dust,
| which is even greater than it used to be IN
| Washington; this is produced by the rapid
grinding up OF the limestone used in paving,
and becomes. | am told, in winter, thin
mud, which renders it impossible to cross the
streets without getting over your shoe tops.
The authorities are endeav0rlng to correct TINS,
so lar at least, as the main business street Is
concerned by laying Nicholson pavement. -
This being sort of affair entirely new to me,
| have watched the process OF laying 1t with
much interest, and as | have no doubt 1t Will
be equally new to your readers, ! VIII enueaV
or to give you description of it in my next.
| The houses are generally built apart, some
what back from the sidewalk, and have neat
ratings in 'front.' protecting shrubbery, some
| of it choice and beautiful. The surrounding
grounds sometimes of considerable extent, are
| elegantly laid off, and adorned with beautiful
| flowers, and the houses being generally built
in cottage, or other fancy styles, and ornamen-
ted with vines, &c, the appearance OF the best
part Of the city is extremely beautiful. One
| thing, however, dctracts greatly from the Gle
gauce of many Of the buildings, and that is
the color of the bricks. They do not appear
to have any Of the fine red bricks which our
builders always use in houses, and the cdllces,
unless painted, (which few are,) are either
a dingy reddish yellow, or still uglier mixed
color the frame houses Of which there arc
many, arc by far the handsomrr.
The principal building IS, OF course, the
State House, Il large and substantial cdIllce OF
! Ohio marble, about the size OF the Capitol at
| Washington, before It's enlargement; IT. Is not
yet finished, believe and Is not, think, i
very handsome, though it is, certainly, i very
| imposing building. The stone OF which IT Is
built is not quite white, and does not bear
very fine polish, and the architecture - rather
too severe and massive for my taste. On it Is
a very large round cnpola, with two rows OF
windows, one above the other, and from the
upper, 4 magnificent view Of the city and all
the surrounding country is obtained.
Besides The usual State Offices, the State
| House contains fine library o! nearly 10000
volumes, open to the public all day; and L
room in which are arranged all the flags car
red ly Ohio regiments uung the late wal,
many Of them, OF course, rddcd with balls
and torn into riblandS hy storms and hard
Usage In the library, saw AMONG the pho
togra ,lia Ut the mrmbcra ut the Legislature
that OF our old friend and tn@n5man Thomas
| n Davy, who represents the county at Mus,
| kingum IN ille lower house In the first hail
you enter, ale tTo large paintings, one repre-
senliug the killing Of Miss McCrae by the In
dianS during the Revolution; The other, Fer
! rvs Victory ON Lake lilie. The IOrmcr did
not strike me N being i work OF much merit,
| but the latter IS certainly real work OF art,
and would culnpare iaynrabIy with the lIni'h