Smyrna times., 1888-07-04
Washington Letter.
WAsH1NGroN, June 8Oth, 1883.

WASHINGTON, June oOGn, 1888.
So many visitors to the Capitol in
quire for the spot where John Quincy
Adams fell in the old Hall of Repre-
sentatives in his fatal illness, that the
Architect of the Capitol has marked
the place with a bronze tablet. The
inscription gives the name and date in
a circular form, upon the tablet, and in
its centre is the word Here"
At last the movement to celebrate
the four hundredth anniversary of the
discovery of America is beginning to
take definite and substantial form.
The House Committee on Foreign af-
fairs has unanimously authorized a
favorable report on the bill providing
for q permanent exposition of the three
Americas at the National Capital in the
year 1892. The feature which ensures
the success of the undertaking is that
authorizing the President to appoint a
governmental board of directors to for
mulate plan for the proposed under
taking, and apprOpriates $23, 900, to be
Immediately available for the expenses
of this board. The committee hold in
their report that in order to make the
enterprise successful the bill should be
passed at the present session of
Congress.
But one International Exposition
was ever held in this country, viz !:
that in Philadelphia in 1876, to COM
memOrate the Centennial of our inde-
pendence as people. The good that
resulted from it is still apparent in
every avenue of trade and commerce.
The exposition now proposed, which is
in honor of an event greater in the
worlds history than even the fOrma-
ton of the United States, is on a much
larger scale, and is expected to be cor
respOndingly more far reaching in its
results.
There is bill before the Senate tC
appropriate $275, 900 for the reconstruc
ion of the Government dam at the
Rock Island Arsenal. Several of the
Western Senators were positive tha
the Government needed a new dam
right away. Senator Edmunds, how
ever, was of the opinion that private
mill owners needed damming a grea
deal more than the Government did
He professed to know thing or two
about dams and so the bill had to b.
laid over until he could get at the true
inwardness Of it.
The resolution of Gen. SpinOla, o
New York, apprOpriating $4,000 fO
the celebration of the twenty-ffth an
niversary of the Gettysburg battle, wa
defeated partly through a speech b!
Mr. Breckenridge, of Arkansas. H
held that it was all right to spen,
money for historical purposes, but no
to celebrate victories or defeats.
A good story comes from Ohio abou
Judge Thurman which shows the ab
solute falsity of the reports concerning
his physical weakness. Ry the way
we might mention that the Judge ha
in some manner acquired the title O
the old Roman. 1t seems that whel
, the news Ofhis nomination was brough
to him he was considerably agitated, S
much so that he took pinch of snuff
j Immediately after he drew out his re
> bandanna and blew a great Eterna
, City Snort which shook the building
, Attendants looked for the bandanni
but not a trace of it could be found. ]
! had liteIally been blown out of exis
tence. There can't be much questio
' about the state of mans health vine
y he can blow a snort like this. Th
f handkerchief was, too, strong, wei
> made bandanna, but it got fooled wbe
: it tackled the old Roman.