The Washington critic., 1886-10-09
THE VISITORS GUIDE.
Objects of Interest in and About the
National Capital.
THE GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS.
Parks, Squares, Statues, Gardens and
other Points of Attraction.
THE WAY TO REACH THEM.

THE WAY TO REACH THEM.
Washington is fast becoming the
most attractive city of the country. AS
the Capital of the Nation It presents
more objects of interest to the visitor
than any other on the continent, and
brief directory of its prominent points
will be of service to the vast number of
persons who annually resort to the 30.
litical metropolis. For 1t is estimated
that over three hundred thousand
strangers pay visit every year to this
city to behold the varied objects of in
terest which so thickly stud the his.
toric "Ten Miles Square"
The system of Numbering Houses.
Numbers are displayed oyer the entrances to
all houses, and the decimal system, as
adopted in Philadelphia, is used-one hun
dred numbers being allotted TO each square
or rblock-commencing at FIRST street west,
running west, First street east, running
east, a street north, running north, and A
street south, running south. The odd mum
bers are always on the right.haud side GO
ing from the Capitol. and the even numbers
on the lcfthand side The city Is divided
into four quarters or sections, northeast and
northwest southeast and southwest, the
streets being designated accordingly; those
those running east and west by the letters
of the alphabet, the dividing lines being
North and South Capitol streets, running
on line due north aud south from the Cap.
itol and East Capitol street, and continua.
tion on the same west of the Capitol run
ming due east and west.
The Capitol.
This great building is the central point Of the
original District, and IL the largest cditCo
In the country. Its centre marks the Me-
rdian of Washington. The middle portion
Immediately under the dome, Is the part
first built. II was partially destroyed by the
British In 1874, but was completely restored
by is?7. II incloses the "crypt"-where the
remains of Washington were intended to be
placed, the Library, the Rotunda, the old
Representatives Hall, now the Gallery of
StatuarY, and the old Senate Chamber, now
the Supreme Courtroom. The old Supreme
Courtroom, in the first story. is now occu-
pied by the Law Branch of the Library.
The cornerstone of the Capitol extension
the north and south wings--was laid July 4,
1851, Daniel Webster delivering the Grafton
of the occasion from the balcony of the
Library. The south wing contains the
House of Representatives. and the north
| wing the Senate Chamber. The rotunda dis.
| tlnguished for its historic paintings for the
| famous bronze doors, with their alto
reliefs, and for Brumdi's frescongs. In the
Hall of Statuary are the natural pictures in
| Potomac marble, representing faces of cor-
tain American statesmen-a picturesque
freak of nature. From the little rotunda,
| Immediately north of the great rotunda, the
| staircase to the topof the dome begins its
| winding way. From the top of the dome, or
as far as the visitor can ascend, the view
of the surrounding country Is magnificent.
| The Capitol grounds; which formerly were
hhOmey and formal in appearance aaye
park and are now most exquisitely beauti.
ful. The east base of the Capitol Is S9N
feet above ordinary low tide In the Potomac.
| The total height from east base to the top
Of the temple covering the dome Is 2SS feet
the statue of the Goddess Of Liberty, 1910
feet, making the total height to the crest of
the statue SOFA feet. This crest is 800 feet
| higher than the west gate of the grounds,
and 500 feet above low tide in the Potomac
or 24S feet lower than the apex of the Wash
west. The building is ,5l feet long by 32i
| wide, and covers 81 acres II Is the finest
and largest public building In the world,
han m s II @ the erowth % of
less than u century-a fact which adds to
its beauty and interest. The original Capt.
iol, or centre building, is an imitation,
| Carree at Nismes. The view from the west
portco ut night, when the lamps are lit in
| the public grounds and the lights of the city
| illuminate the darkness Is one OF the most
beautiful and picturesque In the world and
is well worth a journey Of thousand miles
The White House.
| From the west balcony OF the Capitol, looking
| down Pennsylvania avenue, the White
| House Is seen rearing its snowy y-hued walls
| above the dense mass of foliage that EN-
bowers II, like gigantic Gala lily springing
up amid It's enioldlng green blades Were
| II not for the partly intervening Treasury
| building the view Of the White House from
| the Capitol would be full and complete The
White House is the center of Uptown" as
| the Capitol H. the center of Down town.
1t Is beautifully located, the view from the
south windows covering the whole southern
| front of the city, as the view from the north
| up sixteenth street west exhibits the best
part of the Northwest section to the gaze
| The White House is a copy of the palace OF
the Duke of Leinster at Dublin, with the
| addition of n large porch on the north front
| which was added during Andrew Jackson's
administration. The reservation In which
| II stands embraces nearly 81 acres. The
main entrance is on the north reached by
| the Pennsylvania avenue cars. IL is tive
stories high on the north, is built Of white
free.stone 100 feet long by SO wide. IL con
tains on the first floor the famous Green
Red, Blue and East rooms, the State Dining
Room and the great conseryatories The
Blue Room Is the Presidents Official reGcep
tionr room and the hedrawingroom of the ladies
of his family. The East Room, originally
designed for a banquet hall and so used a.
late as 1887, and in the latter part of the
by Mrs President Adams, is the largest anC
most noted room In the building 1t Is 2
feet high, 50 feet long and 10 wide. u Il
| Upstairs are the cabinet room, the privat,
offices. the Presidents office, the librar!
and the family apartments. All thes,
| rooms except lllt ldlltT tTtpptn W NlNlLOTS
| by special permission, at suitable hours.
Lafayette square.
Due north from the White House is Lafayette
Square, the first public reservation In Wash
ington that was improved. IL contains TN
equestrian statue of Andrew jackson, b!
Clark Mills. Many of its trees are old fores
uonarChs, hundreds OF years Old. IL Is II
part u specimen of the old formal landscap,
gardening so fashionable In England twt
hundred years ago, a style that was i'm
ported into this country. Lafayette Square
was one hundred years ago, part Of grave
yard that enclosed the square north, OF
which st. Johns Church Is built, and tn
square east, on which are situated the AT
torney.General' office formerly the Freed
mans Bank) the Surgeon'General's oliic
and Riggs Bank (both In the building for
merly used as the United States Bank
Commodore Decatur's house, corner Eli
teeuth and a-half and II streets, and TN
old club House near , when phiiLiP lii Bartol @
Der of Congress from New York, The las
bodies from this graveyard were not re
moved until 1919.
Ut. Johns T.. II. Church.
st. Johns r. Il. Church, which has been !oftel
called the state Church because more Pfesl
dents have wOrshipped there than az an
other, stands at the corner of II ana SIX
tecnth streets. II was built In 1910 Gnd on
largel in 1880 In II have worshipped Pros
idcnts Madison, Monroe, john Quinc
Adams uhough the latter was II Congrcgl
| tionalisD Martin Van Buron, though he bt
) rison, Tyler, Polk, Taylor. Fillmore (thOug
the latter was a Unitarian) Pierce, Bucl
D anaH and Arthur, Presidents Lincoln
Johnson and Grant have also attended D
vine services here although not steadily. II
) interior reminds ono very torclbly Of IN
old, dim English country Episcopal churches
The Treasury Departments.
The Treasury Department Is east OF the Whit
House and extends the whole length of tl
front between rennsylyania and New l9I
| avenues, II IL bs2 feet long by 300 feet wld
Z, The central east portion is built of ireostOn,
rebuilt I'm 1861, while the other parts woI
| nnrnlunnunl In lShh nnl Lmilt OF mrlnltI