New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-12-14
THE AMERICAN CAPITAL.
ITS GROWTH AND NEEDED IMPROVEMENTS


PRETTY OF GOVERNMENT ACTION IN CLEAN
ING up AND EMBELLIsHlNG THE
CITY 49, SOME PROPOSED M
T1oxAL INSTITUTIONS.
Washington, Dec. 13.-Washington. Ill Spi'e VI
the latcness Of the season. is still ha'hcd Ill '"'
glowing light Of an Indian summer It's sNi'o "I'
blucr and the sunshine warmer than many W'"'.
resorts in Europe. II has much ne"e' oi''"""
than any Of the sheltered hooks along the hi>o''"
Here there is better average OF s'lshi'' "
warmth The progress made by washington |"
the last two years is most remarkao'' '"'
struction of new hotels and the enlargement VI
those already established give to Washington '"iot
the accommodations for the public tnal 'Ai''Vu
here two wears ago. and still hear talk Oh new
buildings Of this kind. Even these ehalScu
facilities are strained TO the utmost u"IinN '"c
season IN accommodate the evcr-increasihg 'iu' vi
travellers coming here for the winter '"c wy
itself is building ont in various d1ecuo"' ""'
there remain of course, great tracts Ill '"' "'''
of the best building portion that NV' a"
tonchcd by the Improvements III sii'o " Wv
great growth and changes, the Capl'al u 'o-', NV
more than upon the threshold oil us oeihs' ~ -
,s ret incompletc The bridges across the ro'o-
mac. marking the approaches from 'he virginia
side would he disgrace 10 ''o S'"'ii-
est provincial town. The management Vi the
Capital itself is not upon H'ls' """
ErInd onorcb system. You have here combina-
ton of magnificent progress ana F''E economy
7 have no doubt that Congress is 10 some extent
~ blame for this but Washington has not yet
fully escaped from the influence of the people
who rulcd il when its streets were mud and the
majority of its houses novels. These are the
oeople who have pcrsstently stood In tie road OF
every Improvement and have howlcd the words
folly" and "cAtravaganCc" at every cntcrprls-
ing capitalist who has invested his money here
through confidence in the future of the city.
You hear these people still dccrying the future
Of Washington They say that the real estate
market has touched It's limit. and that there must
he a marked decrease in values soon. ! have
heard this talk in Washington for the last fifteen
years IL was never louder expressed than when
the first improvements were made in the nelGhDor-
hood of the British Legation, when land sold IN
that region for 10 cents foot; within The period
Of less than fifteen years the land In that portion
Of the city has advanced 10 $40 n foot Just
at prcscn, there is great craze in Washington
for suburban properties. One cynical critic Sald
10 me Yesterday that the real estate people had
laid out CITY lots for Washington up 10 the very
limits of the District itself; but in spite of the
Washington is finding purchasers, and pretty
houses arc 10 he found running through from
Fonrtccnth-st Road 10 Tcnallytown, where Pres-
dent Cleveland set the example and ed the way
for many others. The reason. perhaps, for all
this advance in the direction of the country Is
the increase Of value of property within the city
limits vet in the region Of the northwest part or
Washington alone, between the Treasury as one
extreme and the boundary the other there Is
to-day unmprOved land enough for homes 1of
at least half million Of people
The enormous stretches of Washington and the
width Of its streets are further increased in effect
by the tearing down Of the iron fences around all
of the parks. While this has added 10 the gen
eral openness and lghtness, the parks themselves
have lost q little through the clearing away oil
these projections. They do not appear 10 DE rs
carefully kept as before, and their edges, pclhg
100 easily invaded hy the public. have ragged
look 4 low line of coping with slight chain
running around would protect the outskirts WIN
out making the parks any less open than they arc
now. One can see coming up ont Of oil this
stretch of town-park, village and country-a
MAGNIFICENT city without IFS equal anywhere. \
great city is not made in day. The growth OF
Washington has been as rapid circumstances
permitted What il needs row more than any
thing else is the strong hand Of the Government
10 clear mp al once several parts of the town Tor
whose neglect the Government Is reNponSlhc-
For instance, there should De at least three great
bridges between Washington and the Virginia SIDE
The money for them should be put INTO one ap-
propriation bill and the work done within Inc
ncvt five wears There IS not a person whose
opinion is worth anything who could object for
moment to such an improvement of the 'aPit'L
Tho Potomac Flats improvement has been drag
cling on now for several years under an economical
system Of appropriations AS the WORK mas I" Ne
done having already been ordered, there Is notln-
but waste in prolonging the work over long
period.
p,, tho most essential thing 10 hc done in
Washington on the part OF the Government Is J."
.loar nm tLe town south Of Pcnnsl lvania-avr.
With few exceptions, outside m me railroad
STATIONS the Washington Market and the site
civen nm 10 the city posolice, this vast space
* occupied by rookeries, bowels and disreputahle
,uar,ers % all classes This tract night in the
centre of the city. coming MP 10 the Treasury
and White IIous.. grounds. is blot upon the
Capi,aI which nothing but National enterprise
can remove The railroad stations should all he
mt together in some other place convenient 10
the public-a great union station Is one OF tAf
necessities Of the Capital. This clearing away Of
the CITY south Of the avenue has already the sup
nor, of many Of the most liberal men in Con-
press This part of the city should be devoted
entirely 10 public buildings. parks and
roadways. This would give magnificent ei-
feet for the central part OF the clty, and
would al the sane time result iii economy lhrrc
would be land enough there for all the public
buildings necessary 10 Ec constructed for wears
10 come They would be- built N Tie sane neigh
borhood and perhaps upon harmonious Ines oI
% holm MIA
parts Of thc town III eccentric ana h"p'dN"u
STYLES. and always in connection with or opposition
10 some tremendous real estate intrigue
Tho establishment Of great National Park 81
Rock Creek Valley is one ot the Improvements
made by the National Government VINO" j. ]"
tho ,iobt direction. There are from time 70 time