Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-06-01

nifcent Washington. The railway has opened
up most attractive vista. Looking southwark,
in the foreground is the belt of verdure
which connects Brookland and the city. Be-
yond and confused in appearance IS a mass OF
roofs and buildings. On the left and in the
middle distance the classic dome of the capitol
stands out clear cut against the summer sky
and away to the southwest the great pyramidal
shaft Of Washington's memorial rears
| its apex, and displays more than half
its altitude above the would-be interven-
| ing tree-tops. Beyond the little scrap Of
! city which is to be seen Is the gray and appar-
| emily motionless streak which divides Mary
land from Virginia. while stretching far away
| into the cloudland are the misty blue hills of
the state which boasts of her proud title-"The
| mother of presidents"
Most of the houses will have ample shade
but the syndicates have gone so far as to plant
shade trees along the edges of what will some
day be sidewalks. The numbered streets will
run precisely as they do in the city, and so will
| the lettered ones. with this difference,
that the alphabet being exhausted
they will commence again and run
| north. These northern streets will be readily
| distinguished from their city namesakes by the
fact that street in Brookland may be Adams
or any other such name as the Commissioners
may decree. b street may be called Buchanan,
and so on through the entire alphabet. There
is but little more of Brookland to SELL The
| great ajOrity of the lots are in the hands of
| those who will improve them.
| The growth of Brookland dates its COM
| mencement from the location of the Catholic
university at that place. The university and
| the real estate will not, however. influence
! each others prosperity to any perceptible
extent but it is certain that the erection of the
big divinity building did much to call atten-
ton to the eligibility of the building sites at
Brookland.
THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY.
That Brookland will, in the course of time,
be thickly populated is almost certain, but
there must be in its future, as in all other
futures. an element of doubt. There can be
no doubt as to the future of that magnificent
specimen of the art of architect and builder
the divinity building of the Catholic uniyer-
slty. Approach from where you please. Look
at 1t from any direction. View it as the first
gray streaks Of dawn are family visible; in the
glare of the MONDAY sun; at eventide, it is
always imposing. Five lofty stories high is the
central portion of the great pile of George
town blue gnelss, and with the wings 1t has
total length of 226 feet. 1t is set on the upper
edge of a long ridge. and it is the most promi-
nent feature in the landscape. There is moth
ing gorgeous in its appearance. The cool blue
tint of the stone is relieved only by the trim
mlngs of Ohio stone at the doors and windows.
characterization Is apparently at discount
everywhere, but the building gains rather than
loses in effect from this fact. Anything that
would aid in removing the appearance of So
ildIty. of masslyeness. would be positive de-
traction. Seven other buildings, equally huge.
will be constructed as soon as possible, and
when, by their erection, the university is COM
plete, the aggregation of structures will be
among the most striking in this or any other
country.
THE TERRA GOTTA COUNTRY.
Real estate between Brookland and Terra
Gotta ceases to be active. 1t is valuable,
though, but not for residence purposes. The
soil is principally clay, including vast beds of
terra Gotta material, and out of that a large
number of people make a satisfactory liveli-
hood. Thousands more might do the same
thing in this locality were the opportunity af-
forded them. Dig anywhere and there is clay.
The supply Is SO enormous that sewer pipe and
stOne-ware for the entire country could be
manufactured here for a generation without
exhausting the great beds of merchantable
earth.
QUEENSTOWN AND TERRA GOTTA.
Queenstown depends entirely upon the peo-
pie at Terra Gotta for its existence and is really
part of the latter place. At Terra Gotta the
manufacture of sewer-pipe and drain-tile -four
ishes. and. although there are but two firms in
the business. they have large and far-reach-
ing trade, which grows faster than the facilities
To the passer-by on the railroad Terra Gotta
appears to be constructed almost entirely of
sewer-pipe and other similar specimens of
what man and machinery can do with clay. for
on both sides of the road the brown cylinders
are piled up mountains high.
OF the two firms here the most ancient is
THE POTOMAC TERRA GOTTA COMPANY,
whose works are on the west side of the rail-
road tracks. Here is big building where the
clay is ground and mixed and moistened where it
is moulded into ali manner of tortuous shapes
and from whence 1t Is conveyed to the kilrs to
be baked. The company has ten kilns at Terra
Gotta and four at Queenstown. The latter are
not in use now, for the company's property
INDEPENDENTLY a brick-yard-was, burned
down i'll March last The capacity of the brick
yard was about $4,000 a day, and when
everything down there has been rebuilt
the output will be much greater than it ever
was IN the past Fire-prooting also made
there and will be again after July l. Three
hundred acres Is the extent of the company's
domain. 1t runs from north of Terra Gotta
down to QueenstOwn; part of the way on both
sides of the track. The regular output OF
sewer pipe at the Terra Gotta works Is about 500
carloads per annum, and II goes all over the
country. The municipal authorities of Provi-
dence, Il. l., say they don't want any other kind
OF pipe. New Haven, Conn, takes some and
the southern trade is large. In addition to
sewer-pipe and tiles the company makes
those terra Gotta electric conduit-boxes
some of which have been laid
beneath the surface of Pennsylvania avenue
About fifty additional carloads have been
ordered for use i'll this city during the present
summer, experiment having shown conclusively
that the baked dirt is the best, the only ma
terial out of which to make a satisfactory long
lived conduit. The company employs about
100 men at the two places, nearly all of them
laborers. The consumption of coal averages
fifty tons a week at the pipe factory.
Hon. John Lynch, jr., Formerly Congress
man from Maine) is i'll charge of affairs for the
company, III which he is a very heavy stock
holder. lie located at Terra Gotta twenty
years ago, when the brickworks were first
erected there, and it is his boast that he, with
his own hands. made the first sewer pipe ever
burned in the District of Columbia. Business
Is continually increasing, and as soon as pos
slbie the present factory will have added to it
an extension 200 by 80 feet. New klns will also
be erected during the fall.
On the east side of the railroad switch
from which runs nearly up to the principal
building is
THE NATIONAL TERRA GOTTA WORKS
owned by Thomas Somerville & Sons. and op-
Grated under the supervision of Mr.. W. H.
Someryille. These works were established
about a year and half ago and are now grow
ing rapidly. At present there are two kilns
III use, but in couple of weeks two others.
now being built, will be fully engaged. Twenty
men are at work i'll the place and Mr.. Somer-
vile is especially proud of the fact that some of
them are the most skilful operatives in the
country. The ordinary amount of sewer pipe