Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1883-03-01
Washington MagnifiCenCe.
From the Brooklyn Eagle.1

tFrOm the Brooklyn Eagle.
1t has been only eighty-one years
since Jefferson rode up to the Capitol,
and hitching his horse alongside of
others, for the hitching posts were
abundantly provided for the farmers
horses, and the horses were there in
numbers on that memorable day, went
into the building to take his oath of Of
flee as President of the United States.
At that time the village of Washing
ton was occupied by the few officials
who boarded around with the citizens
and who remained there only during
their term of office. To have associat-
ed with Washington the idea of per-
manent home would have been ridi-
culed as the height OF absurdity. The
Government officials were from all
parts of the country, and none but
those of the highest rank thought of
taking their families with them. AS
place of residence Washington was
wholly unattractive, and it was so far
from the large citiss that few persons
went there on any other than business
errands.
When the seat of Government was re-
moved from Philadelphia the gamblers
were loud in their denunciations of
Washington, who had advocated the
measure. They accused him in pretty
much the same terms used now toward
men in public stations who fail to meet
the expectations of all, of being mer-
cenary and selfish, and of trying to en-
hance the value of his property on the
other side of the river by his gift Of
land to the Government.
But the idea of the fathers of the Re
public was to remove the Capital from
the large cities, to divorce it from all
the great trade centers, and to make it
a primitive place where only patriotic
officials would 30 to attend to their
business, and then leave it until called
again on the same business.
How wide would these patriarchs
have opened their eyes if they had
happened to be in Washington last
week in time for the marriage of the
daughter of ex-Secretary of State
Blaine! How they would have trem
bled for the safety of the Government
against that one insidiOus enemy
against which they waged such relent-
less war-the tendency to centraliza-
ton! What would have been Jefftr-
sons dismay, for instance, on behold
ing the gorgeous palaces of the officials
and ex-officials of the Government?
Where could he have found, had he
looked for it, the simplicity of living
and pilgrim-like aspect that character
lied men and homes in his day? Alas,
nowhere. The Capital is now fast
growing city, great in power and ex-
clusively occupied by those in office,
those who have been in office and
those who hope to be in office. In re-
ality these three are one class and
Washington is their home. They have
no State affiliations or associations;
they belong to Washington and are
exclusive and narrow to the extent of
caring for no higher pride of citizen
ship than that pertaining to their
rank as Washingtonians. The ex-
preston one frequently hears from
the people there is "Oh, Washington is
not a business place; it is the Capital
Of the country" So it is, but not in
The Republican sense it once was.
Those who have long lived in Wash
ngton are not contented elsewhere,
and the growing aversion of ex-officials
% return to their former homes and
business is remarked continually. Mr..
Blaine, for instance, is Maine man,
aud his home is there. In other days