The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1877-08-14
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.

WASHINGTON, d. c., August Sth, 1871
At the National Capital may be seen the
two extremes of society, the tip and the
toe of humanity, as sharply outlined as
anywhere under the sun. It is like the
liquid the milxmen bring us, part cream,
part milk, and part water. The small
part, the cream, is just now mostly out OF
town, rusticating in the country, luxuria-
ting at the sea side. The milk is scattered
about somewhat, visiting country cousins,
trying to keep cool by indulging in fire.
ouent excursions down the river, and stay
ing assiduously indoors with closed blinds
and drawn curtains, regaling itself with
iee-cream and lemonade. But the water,
oh, the water There is no comfort for it.
IT can have neither fresh air nor pure
surroundings, nor GOODNESS nor cleanli-
ness. There are many very poor people in
the District of Columbia. They seem to
flock here with the feeling that there is
safety and protection and provision in con-
tact with the seat of Government. Surely
Uncle Sam will not let his own children
die of want on his threshold And, as is
always the case in large cities, where pow
erty prevails sickness comes. The mortali-
ty here has been smaller this season than is
usual, but many and many little one has
closed it's eyes for want of proper care and
food and medicine We can't be sorry
when the children of poor or dissipated
.,o.o,,+. l;o Tbou ora haitian off daa6 apd
the good Father sees it and in pity takes
them away. The colored people are less
unhealthy than other foreigners here, and
this fact is attributed to their free use of
whitewash They are perhaps no more
cleanly, but they use whitewash instead of
water, covering up and effectually killing
the filth about their premises by its fire.
auent application. Just across the Poto-
mac from Washington, huddled close among
the hills is tiny settlement known as
"Freedman's Village" There are per-
haps score of houses the sight of which
carries one "back to ole Virginy" as moth
ing have seen for many years has DONE
They are regular cabins, part of them of
logs, with thatched roofs, whitewashed
wallis dog or two and garden patch in
connection with each, and the traditional
bare headed, rollicking darl1ey boys rolling
about the ground or perched upon the top
rail of the fences that surround the more
pretentious Of the cottages" Here it is
in those irregular little patches of cultiva-
ton that Dinah raises the "yarbs' that
we see and buy in the market places, and
from this vicinity comes the MOSES and
ferns, autumn leaves and wild flowers that
the old women and little boys tug about
the streets and sell for cents a bunch
Another reminder of the old ante-Lincoln
days is met at Arlington Heights in that
part of the National Cemetery which is set
apart as the burial place of the colored peo-
pie who died and were killed in this vicin-
ity during the war. The graves are ranged
in long straight rows, each marked by
wooden slab, on which is painted in black
letters simply the calling name the master
had dubbed his slave, and the date of
death as "Dan," or "Sallie," or "Jake,"
or "Sambo," with no last name and no
age. Many hundreds are buried here.
M. M. w.