Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1882-04-06
Sight Seeing Washington, New
York and Other Places.
WEsrnrssTEs, S. O., March 80, 1882.


EDIToRs KEowEE COURIER Dear Sirs: ]
have just returned from short visit to
Washington, D. O., Now York and portion
OF the East, q running sketoh of which may
be Of interest to some of your readers.
On the morning Of the 9th instant left
Westminster by the 1850 North bound
train, via Richmond, and arrived ut tho d. &
P. r. r. depot, Washington. at l.3O P. M.
the following day. Tho purpose Of the visit
thdre vas to secure patents for certain i'm
provements in gearing for what is generally
known as traction engines or steam wagons
md on automatic steering device for the
same. While attending to these mattors
I was shown the workings of tho various
departments of the Patent Office by Mr. Wm.
Il. Singleton, who was for seven years an
assistant examiner in tho oflico and has been
for tho last seven q Solicitor of Patents.
The patent ofico building is mado Of sand
stone--the extension of white marble. The
externul finish is plain and simple and is
admired for it's majestic grandeur. 1t
measures 40 feet by 275 feet. The interior
is simply grand. 1t contains l9l rooms
self sustaining. Tho model rooms. with
their thousands of models of tho various
machines that have been patented, were
quite interesting to mo, as we'll rs many
othcr things to be seen ia this building
Near the entrance are many relics of interest
such Gs Washington's ten set with it's colored
Chinas tblue predomina,ingy. Franklin's
printing press, &c., &c.
After finishing business in the Patent
Office went forth for look at tho city. Tho
time allotted to mo here wis too short to go
into details, so l had to be content with Il
general survey, going first to tho Capitol, the
center and the center Of attraction. mounted
on an eminence known rs Capitol Hill. I,
being Saturday the Senate and House were
not in session. Flags were unfurled; tho
place looked somewhat deserted, there being
but few persons about tho grounds.
On Sunday accepted on invitation,
courteously extended by Congressman Aiken,
to attend services with him at tho rev and
beautiful church of DR.. llix. The building
is truly charming and comfortable and the
discourse wds able. delivered in behalf of
associated charities of the District of Coum.s
bia-text Mercy" DR.. IIix's appeal to his
people to be meroiful TO the objects of
charity 10 their portion of the field was made
with great force.
On Monday I again visited the Capitol,
this time at the solicitation of Col. Aiken, q
faithful guardian Of the rights and an earnest
worker for tho interests Of his constituents.
lie gave me q brief history of tho workings
of the Congressional body. pointed out mems
bers of influence and noto. talked freely of
things connected with this body and matters
in general, then showed me through different
apartments of tho building, library,
60, after which I bade him adieu,
passed out through the rotunda and
entered stairway, by which, after q
long and laborious climb, l found myself
upon tho dome of tho Capitol, upw ard OF
300 feet from tho ground below. Here had
fine air Drawing view Of the city and it's
surroundings. The Capitol is situated about
the centre Of tho plot Of the city. lying N. L.
of the Potomac, distance of about one milo.
Rather on the South side Of tho city and at
the confluence of Anacostia, or East branch,
widen into beautiful bay of placid water of
about two miles width. making the whole a
quiet water panorama of rare beauty The
plan Of the city at once presents to the eye
of the beholder picture of grandeur. The
distance of the public buildings from each
other, the number Of parks scattered here
and thcro throughout the city. the breadth OF
its streets and avenues suggest COM
Portable situations OF abode for popu-
lation which may in tho future prove
q task to estimate, instead Of as now, the
habitation of about $50, 900 souls. Reckoning
the Capitol as it now stands, its extreme
length North to South il ISL feet, width 324
feet and its white dome towers in tho air 800
feet. Tho old portion of tho building, which
is tho central portion, is made of yellow
sand stone, painted white, and the addition
or wings of white marble. Tho dome is
made Of cast iron, paint ed white with copper
roof, crowned with colossal statue of free
dom in bronze l8 feet high. The whole has
cost the people to construct and maintain to
the present time upward Of 100000. A
beautiful park surrounds tho Capitol from
which radato four avenues and three streets
as the opokes Of d whoel radiato from the
hub, except that tho four avenues extend ms
it we're, through tho hub, making eight
spokes, which, with the three streets, make
eleven, and that they arc not uniform in their
radiation. Tho streets run North aud South
East and West, and out from the Capitol
tho avenues are not concentric, but run at
various angles to the streets and as we'll as
those first mentioned arc named for the