The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1882-06-17
Washington f;etser.
Irregular cOrrespo pdsece. }
WASHINGTON, ID. g., June 13,

| WASHINGTON, ID. e., June 10, 1882
| 10 has cost millions 10 make Washington
beautiful, to make smooth hes streets, to adsrn
her many parks, to ill her oyen squares Win
fountains and statuary; but no American. in
the bes,sr sense of the " ord, asn look on this
city wIsAOut feeling OF pride N the beauty OF
the csp,oal Of his country The trees, moss Of
which haze been planted within the last eigh,
years, ans now sufficiently largs to shade the
streets and reljeye the sidewalk ssfrom that in
tense head snsa has heretofore made Washing.
ton intOlerDble during the 81 INNER mOnths,-
From a aaravansarl Of government cler4ss,
lobbyists, and every species Of adyenturep
which composed the Washington VI the years
Immediately following the war, the capital
has grown ~ be large city of beautiful rsa.
dences. Rstred Army and Navy Cfticers sno.
cessful business men, men Of prominence in
Literature, IN science, and in art, trCm all psrts
of the country have recognized the desirabtir
! ty of Washington as winter residence, and,
after having spent y season or two in tho no
tells, are now Building beautiful Desldeneas
The capital certainly ssIpasses any city inthe
world of itR population In tasteful bsuses with
modern Convenences. Besides the palakal
mansions hat have been built by tbs Blainss,
the Camerpnsr The Fndletons, the RObesons
and Others, of pIlneely fortune, very nsnys1lid
and comfortable homes of lesser preteneion
now OCCUPY the places where negro shanties
marred ten and even FIVE years ago. Eus,
there are many good houses that have an, OK.
lstence anteda,ing The WAT, and some OF these.
rich IN historic ASSOCIATION, attract. The skfsn-
ton of the visitor with an lnteres.,thas the
mere trumRhs Of modern architecture c1nnOt
pbn ooNn>tol hy
pondeat and ia winch your letters hav9 been
written durias the last year we're SCoupssd BY
Alex Stephens and Robert Toonbs IN n time
that now sesMs like ancient history
IL tho places Of government clerks whs
compose SO important a part of .ha pops1latios
of Washington. were made secare and inde
pendent Oh political mutation, the city woult
gam large increase in its Substantial pOpu
laaion. As il is now, large proportion
these clerks are mere transient ,ssldeass sfraiC
- buy homes for the reason that they teel how
uncertain Is their tenure OF Office under TIT
rule that ito the victors belong the spOils" o
office. A great many clerks, however, hav
; comfortable houses OF them own. The saviRg
from their salaries are net very large, bu
some Of them have managed to buy or built
homes that are models cf modest comfort ant
tot " i'holi til" Irr - .S'' .tefu, nrcf lecture
areiialI. l,ct. iies III sasr city ,acre an ha
might be called civil service employee colon
les. where blocks Of small cosy houses hav
been built just suited to the size Of the pars
! Of the average government clerk. The re
, Enumeration of the clerks in the governlnen
!, offices varies from $50 to $4,000 per annum
y The latter amount is given only TO those VIII
= occupy important positions or who have ex
perience in the complicated routine Of ofiic'
work. The average American citizen doe
not, perhaps, know that this Government il
all the details Oi its stupendous bureaucracy i
Z managed by the eighteen hundred dolla
!. clerks, but it Is 80. These clerks prepare tn
documents which chiefs OF bareau and cabl
, net officers sign, often without knowing wha
they contain and without the ability to under
} stand them until explained by the chief clerk