New national era. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1870-1874, 1873-02-06
The White House.


4. Commercial SAYS:
The public who 90 t. the White House t,
see the Pre- sident, or to transact any bust
hess, or Ia attend ievces, receptions, &c
visit only the public" rart of the building
which, TO all appearances, j. suitable for il.
uses, although OF late years it has been iouu,
inadequate to accommodate the crowds thai
thTong 1t during New Year receptions an,
/ the levees.
The East Room is a handsome one in every
way. Its proportions are good and the deco.
rations modest and BETTING. The Blue,
Green, and Red Rooms are also attractive
and tastefully adorned The State prnviuo
Room is suitable for the purpose of official
entertainments. The Public Reception Room
is disgrace, and less fitted for . waiting
room than the parlor Of any well-to-tlo me-
ohanic in Cincinnati. II ia simply public
office, containing two or three desks, few
| rheumatic chairs. and q measly carpet-a
room, indeed, where no refined lady could
wait half hour withou. feeling of humiia-
ton. The room in which the President re-
celves his visitors, the Library and the offices
for clerks. which are very much crowded. are
the remainder of the public or semi-public
apartments. They could, with repairs, be
made to answer in n suitable manner for
several wears.
EXTERIOR OF WHITE HOUSE
As to the exterior Of the White House. i
is not offensive to the pride of Americans,
IL is graceful and dignified in its architecture
and BELTS the modest prctensions of our form
OF Government. The change in the direction
OF pennsylvania avenue on which it is To-
Gated, many years ago, had the effect Of
making the rear of the building the front. In
pnpda fha 81, Isl Al
made the south side the front. But as both
sides are now attractive, no special fault can
be found, except there is now but one en-
trance, except the servants door in the base
ment, and through this all have to pass. ex-
pressmcn, foreign Ministers, the Cabinet.
Senators, clerks, telegraph boys, and the
Presidents family. The fact that there is
but one entrance is not so Objectionable for
the reasons stated as that, is case of New
Year receptions, the only manner of egress
from the building when the entrance is
jammed with people is through window to
which staging is attached ard bridge made
to the sidewalk.
CRAMPED FOR ELnow.Rooll
II is not, however, for the accommodation
Of the public that new Executive Mansion
is demanded, so much as to furnish decent
accommodations for the President and his
family. The present are simply and abso-
iutely shame and disgrace.
In the first place, the White House is more
than eighty years old, and is almost destitute
OF modern convenenccs and improvements
so necessary to comfort. General Babcock
says there are several hundred private resi-
dences in Washington whose occupants pos
sesA by far greater facilities for comfort and
convenience than the President of the United
States. The building is two stories high and
basement. The only room on the first
story which the family of the President can
occupy is small room used as the family
dining-room. Therefore, the President of
the United States and his family live in
apartments on the second floor of an ordinary
house, no better quarters, if General Bah
cock properly describes them, than NAV be
rented by bachelor in dozens of boarding.
houses in any city. TO bring it to the com
prchensiOn of all, / may say, with entire ac-
curacy, that for all purposes the President is
no better of for accommodations than though
he lived in a nine-roomed house without
modern improvements. The east end Of the
upper floor Of the building is without drain or
waste-pipes. The livery and sleeping rooms
on this story are eight in number, and are
without closets or clothes presses. One of
these is the library already mentioned. By
sitting-room, the President of the United
States has one ''spare" room-that is all.
That is to say, that if all the Presidents
children were at home. he could not accom-
modatc two guests He can only get along
by dlreIting room to purpose for which it
is not intended. Besides, these rooms are
the worst arranged and most inconvenent
possible to imagine, and are almost destitute
of the ordinary sccuson which a gentlemen
would desire for himself and family.
The only bathing-rooms are two, div itlcl
by simple board partition, and situated in
the servants hall at the head of the servants
stairway, perhaps the mos. inconvenient
place possible to have them; and vet, from
the construction OF the house, the only avail
able one.
While some of the rooms are large, yet the
arrangement Of the windows is such that they
will not admit of being subdivided, except at
great disadvantage to the rooms, or the com.
plete destruction of the outside appearance
of the building, which would result from a
change of windows. There is not a Foreign
Minister in Washington who has not more
comfortable quarters than the President.
Every Cabinet officer, except Boutwell,,
lives in better house than General Grant I;
half the members of the Senate and House
live better. Even the clerks in the Depart
ments have better accommodation than he.
Is not this humliating confession to every
American at home or abroad?
ROTTEN THROUGH AND THROUGH.
Giving some particulars AZ to tho condition
of the White House, General Babcock in his
| report says that the building, on account of
| its age, requires constant repairs many of
| the floor and roof timbers are in state OF
decay, and the strength Of the best is seri-
Ously impaired by age. There is hardly a
ceiling which has not cracked, and in tho
majority Of cases the full extent Of its width
or length. Many of them must Of necessity
be taken down during the coming season to
| prevent their falling from their gradually ap-
| preciating weakness. One large ceiling fell
| last year, but fortunately when the room was
unoccupied. Over the larger rooms of the
| first story the ceilings have settled several
| inches from the weight Of the partitions in
| the story above, which are very heavy and
stand directly over the rooms below, without
| corresponding partitions on the first floor.
| The basement is wholly below the level OF
the ground on the north side, and is neces-
sarily very damp and unhealthy; yet it is
| the only portion of the building originally in.
tended for the kitchen, laundry, Offices, and
sleeping apartments of the servants, or avail
able for that purpose. Since the spring OF
1869 three persons employed in the Execu-
tive Mansion have died OF pulmonary disease.
1 no doubt accelerated If NOT induced by their