Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1882-06-15

Madison the Capital City or WiscOn-
sin sividly Described by an Inter
Ocean correspondent.
Cor. Inter Ocean.


muddy streets and heavy rainclouds
her strikes and strife, her never endip,
: days of toll and ever active, nois,,
sreets--to leave all these behind ani
awake next morning in clean, quie
Madison, with bright skies. beautiful
groves and mirror lakes is to realize ,
dream of transition from the world O
ceasless toll and strife 10 sweet elysiun
of peace-not that peace which onl,
comes with death, but that which is tn,
result of PROSPERITY coupled with intelli
gence and virture, when all mankind ant
all nature are in harmony and like per
feet of mechanism moving without ia
or friction. One looks out upon tn,
beautiful picture here presented ant
wonders if he is not yet in dreamland
and when he hears on every side tn,
names Tonyawatha, Scutanobequan
Monona, Yahara, Wabesa, Keeonsa
Winagra, and others that have come
down from the Indians, he almost ex
poets TO meet the brave Hiawatha anC
the lovely Minnehaha and long lines O
braves who have long since departed
for the happy hunting-grounds of an
other world.
VIEW FROM THE DOME
The whole city and the surrounding
country is beautiful picture, and the
view from the dome of the capitol is
we'll worth the labor of climbing the
narrow iron stairways that lead there
to. The capitol itself is the central fig
ure in the picture as it stands in a
park Of about fifteen acres, which is
laid out in walks and shaded by a for
est of elms and NAPLES. The building
itself is a handsome one of Madison
limestone trimmed with Berea sand
stone. It is in the shape of a Greek
cross with its four wings pointing to
the four cardinal points of the COM
pass. The total length is 22S feet, and
the total width 226 feet. The east and
west wings are circular, with very wide
porches and massive Corinthian col
umns, and the north and south wings
are square, with towers at each cor
ner. During this summer these latter
wings will be extended by additions
| 7Ox120 feet to give more room to the
State Historical Society and the SUI
preme coHrt. The height of the building
to the top of the iron dome is 225 feet.
From the top OF this dome the view is
very fine and the eye takes in map
Of country for twenty miles around
AS you look down on the city laid out
with such regularity, the shaded streets,
the stately mansions, and beautiful cot
tages, surrounded by groves, the lakes
on either side
PICTURESQUE LITTLE BAYS,
which seem to be alive with boats, the
hills beyond, and then in turn other
lakes patches of emerald and silver
cleaning in the bright sunlight--there
is an impression that the whole is a
grand park laid out by master artist
and arranged only for pleasure. Look
down upon the city and you see it is
built upon high neck of land between
two broad stretches of water. In the
widest part this isthmus is not more than
q mile from one lake to the other, and in
the center, where the Capitol stands, il
is considerable less. The Capitol stands
aiagonally to the town and the park
that encloses it. The four wings point
to the four corners of the park, and
the broad gravel walks from the build.
ing to these corners are then extended
in wide, shaded avenues, until they
reach the lake shore, where they fol
low the waters edge, and are delightful
summer drives These four principal
streets running through the city diagon-
ally to everything else make the place
| look like large Maltese cross, The
narrower streets are designated by the
continuous and unbroken line of foil
age, and the houses are to be seen even
from this high lookout only in part as
they look out skyward from their forest
surroundings.
| Along the bluffs on either shore in
the center of the isthmus may be point
ed out
A SCORE OF FINE RESIDENCES
among them the home of the Hon. w.
f. Villas, the silver.tongued orator;
the house built by Ole Bull several
years ago, and recently bought by Gov
ernor Rusk, who will move into it
in few weeks; the residence of DR..
William Jacobs, proprietor Of the Park
Hotel and many others as prominent
| w lltlt tilC NoihCStS Will tItt
main land on each side it slopes down
to a broad prairie where are beginning
to spread out large manufactures
Looking beyond this little city to the
northwest stretches Lake Mendoza,
twelve miles long and six miles wide.
To the north across the lake, and four
miles distant, may be seen the State
Asylum for the insane, and to the
right. Maple Point, beautiful resort
On the southeast is Lake Monona, fur
ther on Lake Waubesa and then Lake
Kegonsa, each about five miles long
and three miles wide. These four lakes
are connected by the Little Yahara, or
Catfish Creek, too small for the little
steamers 20 pass through. This creek
finally empties the waters of these
lakes into the Rock River. To the east
across Lake Monona may be seen the
beautiful summer hotel Tonyawatha,
and to the southwest Lakeside, the
grounds of the Monona Lake Assem-
bly,. Looking on the south vest YOU
see Lake Wingra, or dead Lake, which
is said TO have 40 visible outlet for its
abundance of spring water, and on the