The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1872-06-01
THE VIEW

from the dome of the capitol is grind and SUBJ
lime in the extreme. The city isA. d cut in
panoramic grandeur that no PEN describe
Pennsylvania Avenue stretches itS road beauty
away TO the White House, the paI6s south OF it
unfold their destinations with enchsnting beauty.
The Smithsonian Institute, the Boanic Gardens
Howard University, the Navy Yarl, the Arsenal
the Insane Asylum, the various departments of
the government Arlington, Alexandria, George
town, the Potomac in its serperline grandeur
lost among the foliage in the din distance, the
green sward mingled with the cerulean splendors
OF the sky in the far off horizontal, all enchant
one enraptured with the grandeur of the view.
CONGRESS
is one of the freest happiest and most unconven-
tlal bodies of men we have ever seen together. -
1t is composed of 24l members, three of whom
have African blood in their veins The presence
OF these does not seem in the least to disturb the
equilibrium OF those Democrats, who few years
ago claimed THAT a colored man bad no rights
white man was bound to respect" The ball
is resonant with an intermnable buzz Groups
OF members stand in the ailses in the corners of
the hail. on the steps of the speaker stand, and
collect In twos, threes and tours about the seats
OF each other and talk, laugh anddscuss various
matters foreign to the legislation in hand by the
body Seemingly it appears as though it were
such medley Of confusion. Yet the speaker,
Hon. James G. Blaine, OF Maine, a man with
well balanced head, keen eye any an intellectu-
al face cool, collected, alert and ready is entire
y master OF the situation, hears every motion,
recognizes every one who addresses the Speaker
gives the floor only to him whose il is, and with
ear, eye and intellect expedtes business with an
ease, facility decorum and despatch that is clever,
pleasing and surprising. The good, free-and-
easy, schoo-boy sociability of the members is
really refreshing to witness. By the courtesy of
friend in the House we had the privilege of the
floor and we felt sort of sem-inspiration from
the good humored congeniaity that pervaded
the hall.
MT. VERNON,
the home and last resting placStsessazshe Great
Washington, "the Father of bis csGntry," is ia
miles away. To make pilgrimage to this
American Mecca we went thru b the torture o.
twoehoUs' ride down the ,mac in one
horse, incommodious, unel! My, unaccommo-
dating, contracted arTss ,uaent, technically
known in Washington AS "A stssgS1at nd the
additional torture Of a-half houfs backing and
scraping in the mud to get away from the land
ing at Mt. Vernon and a voyage of two and a.
half hours back. Think OF it--one could have
taken the train and ridden 10 Philadelphia, $50
miles in the same time. And for the pleasure of
this torture we were only charged the small sum
Of 81 so However, the trip enlivened as
tar as Alexandra by band of negro minstrels
composed OF two-one with fiddle, the other with
banjo, who played Root Hog or Die, John
Brown" and "Nigger, whar did you come
from" Thirty-seven passengers crowded the
hurricane deck of this Potomac steamer, most of
whom were ladies and whose physiognomies in
Dictated TO US more intelligence and force of char
acter than was possessed by the men on board.
% each side of the river the country looks desc
late aud unthrifty, but evidently more so on the
Maryland than on the Virginia side Along the
crest OF the ridges in Virginia can yet be the
earth works thrown up during the war for, the
protection OF the channel of the Potomac. Alex
andria, the spot where fell the FIRST Martyr"
Col. Ellsworth, is an ancient locking, dilapida-
ted place. - ....-. ~.
Leaving the landing and following for short
distance graveled walk, we come to the
MANSION,
Of Washington 1t is an ancient looking build
ing, The central and main portion of which was
built in l744, by Lawrence Washington, the I'M
Gle of George Washington The two end por-
tions were built by Gen. Washington 10 1884.
There is a large entrance hall and seven comfort
able rooms on the first floor The mansion is in
charge Of Miss E. Cunningham as agent of the
Mt. Vernon Association, who purchased the es-
tate in 1885, for 500 600 TO preserve it from de-
cay. coored man conducted US through the
house. showed US the room where Lafayette slept
when at Mt. Vernon, in 1924, the room where
Gen. Washington died and where Martha Wash
ington died. number of old relics are in diff
ferent parts of the house In The parlor is harp
sicord presented by Washington to his adopted
daughter, and the key OF the Bastile, presented to
Washington by Lafayette.
THE TOMB
is a brick vault with double iron gateway Sc
curey fastened, in which can he seen the two
marble sacrophagi in which the bodies Of Wash
ington and his wife are placed.
The greenhouse has been twice burnt II has
been slightly repaired and now contains small
collection of flowers and plants The flower gar
den is filed mainly with box wood and is sur
rounded with a high brick way. The vegetable
garden is enclosed in the samfway and is only
partially cultivated Ia the lawn in front the
mansion are sycamores and sage palms, the lat
Ter it is said were planted by Washington him
self. An old brick stable and one or two small
houses that were used as quarters and homes for
gardeners and managers number all the build
ings thar adorn the estate. The grounds occu-
pied by the mansion, the gardens and the lawns
about ten acres in extent, are surrounded 10y a
brick wall about four feet in height, the land on
the inside rising TO the top OF the wall.
We do no; regret our pilgrimage to this Amer
lean Mecca, but we prefer to wait until happier
accommodations grace the waters of the ripping
Potomac before we visit the spot again.