Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1880-05-05

resemblance to what the palace OF YER
sailles was when only a hunting chateau,
before Louis XIV. expended upon it the
revenues of kingdom.
There are extensive structures built for
experimental gardening, known AS plant
louses, designed by Mr.. Saunders, super
ntcndent of the gardens, etc. The main
,uilding is three hundred and twenty feet
long aud thirty feet wide, with projecting
entire wings one hundred and fifty feet
ong.
Besides the gardens there is here an ag-
'iculturnl museum of great interest. a
portion of the lace tree, native of the
West Inlie<, deserves special notice from
Is close resemblance to the common net
Lace. The tree is of lofty growth. with
ovate entire smooth leaves and white
DIVERS. 1t is remarkable for the tenacity
IF the fibres of its inner bark and the
eadiness with which the inner bark may
70 separated after mtceraiion in water
nto layers resembling lace. A governor
If jamaica is said to have presented
Charles III. Il cravat frill and ruf1les made
# it. There are also admirable casts of
,lmost every variety Of fruit. The depart
ment was established May l5, 1862
The Smithsonian institution is built of
red freestone, and has numerous towers,
emindng one of the old Scotch kings,
Hollywood. The length of the building,
rom east to west, is four hundred and
forty-sevon feet; the breadth of the centre,
including carriage porch, is one hundred
and sixty feet. 1t was designed by James
Renwick of New York. The style is Nor.
century. The corner stone was laid in
lS47. and it was competed in 1856, cost =
ing S4j0,OO0 The grounds were laid out
by Andrew Jackson Downing, Il landscape
gardener of great reputation, who died
while prosecuting the work. There is Il
beautiful vase erected here to his memory.
In the grounds there are every known
variety of yew tree.
The institution is the bequest of an
English gentleman, James SmithSon. lie
was skillful chemist, mineralogist and
geologiSt, and was the author of valuable
trealises on various subjects. He was born
in London and graduated at Oxford in 1856.
The bequest was To found at Washing
ton, under the name of the Smithsonian
institution. an establishment for the in
crease and diffusion of knowledge among
men," The original bequest was S5l5, l69.
In 1886 congress accepted it. The accu,
mulated interest, etc., was sufficient to pay
for the erection of the building.
The national museum deposited here in.
cludes the collections of all the exploring
expeditions of the United States, besides
all other sorts of curiosities, and would
require weeks to examine carefully. The
institution publishes and distributes orig
inal works on general and special science,
and is engaged in extensive meteorologic-
al Investigations.
Washington monument is an incomplete
white marble obelsk, situated on q bluff
on the Potomac river. 1t is the spot where
General Washington indicated his choice
for the erection OF n statue which The con-
tinental congress had voled in honor of
his services. The Washington monument
association was formed in 1885. Its object
was to erect monument to the memory
of our great first president The accepted
design was the idea of Robert Mils-a
shaft from rotunda to the height of six
hundred feet-designed to be the highest
structure ever reared by man, excepting
the Tower of Babel; and like that unfor-
tunate, ambitious work, it seems likely TO
remain unfinished. The corner stone was
laid July 4, l848. Ex,President John G..
Adams was to have delivered the address,
but the old man with the scythc" inter-
vened, and Robert Winthrop of Massa-
chusetts, speaker of the House of Repre-
| sentatives, was selected to perform that
duty.
The amount collected was $230,000.
The funds were exhausted before the late
civil war was eliminated, and although
efforts have again and again been made to
resume its cons tructon, they have not
been successful. 1t is now proposed that
the shaft shall reach only four hundred
and oighty-five feet, one hundred and
seventy.four of which are completed.
In the Lapidariun,, i. G.. II collection of
ornamental blocks of marble. etc, pre-
sented by nations, states, societies of differ
ent kinds, ETC., are eighty-three memorial
stones, with various inscriptions and de-
signs chiseled upon them, intended to be
placed in the interior of the monument,
arranged for inspection within . building
on the premises Besides, forty memorial
stones are already inserted within the
structure.
The patent office building, in which
much of the work connected with the de
partment of the interior is performed
covers two squares. 1t measures four
hundred and ten feet from east to west,
and two hundred and seventy i've feet from
north to south. 1t is Doric in architec
ture, and in the original plan of the city
the ground on which it stands was reserv
ed for the building of grand nationa
church. The present structure was COM
menced in 1887. The south front, built o
} freestone painted white, was the earlies
built. 1t was designed by William F
} Elliot, and executed by Robert Mills. The
building was completed in 1864.
The new portions are built of Maryland
! marble on the street extensions, and gran
lie on the interior quadrangle. The build
, ing contains one hundred and ninety-onc
} rooms, and cost s27O0,OOo. Four halls Oh
the second floor compass the whole exten
: of the vast building, and have on exhbi