People's voice. [volume] (Wellington, Sumner County, Kansas) 1890-1917, 1893-08-04
THE FIGHTING SIXTH.
Work Of the Gallant Corps on
July II, 1864.
Memories of the Days That Tried Mems
Souls - How the National Capital
Escaped from Falling Into the
Hands OF the Confederates.
[speclal Washington letter.

Twenty-Five years ago Seventh
street northwest in this city was a
very unpretentious thoroughfare. The
greater portion of the distance from
the Potomac river to the northern
boundary was unpaved and received
no more attention than an ordinary
country road. The houses on either
side of the street were very few and
far between. The soldiers marched in
mud or dust and very frequently the
heavy cannon wheels were hlb deep
in the mire, so that they could not be
moved. Very little business was tran
sacted upon the street, and the few
houses were one or two-story tumble
down frame shanties. The only sub
stantial structures in the entire dis
lance Of three miles were the post Of
fee and the interior department build
ings. which were then, as they are to-
day, specimens of architecture which
would do credit to any capital city of
any country on the face of the earth.
The old soldiers of the fighting Sixth
corps of the Army of the Potomac who
marched up that street on the night
of the 18th of July, 1864, could not now
recognize the thoroughfare. To-day
the cable cars go rushing along clang-
ing their bells, and the street is lined
with magnificent blocks of brick and
stone business houses. The pavements
are occupied by throngs of men and
women passing to and fro, on business
and pleasure bent.
Let Us take a cable car and ride ous
to the boundary. 1t takes but few
minutes, and at the end of the cable
line we find ourselves still apparently
in the midst of a great city. In 1864
the boundary" was so far away from
the city proper that it was regarded as
an imaginary line away out in the
country" In those days, on either
side of Seventh street were corn-felds,
orchards and pieces of heavily-tim-
bered country.
Leaving the cable car at the bound
airy we can enter palatial coach
propelled by en- overhead trolley wire
carrying that marvellous and almost
miraculous fluid, electricity. Enter.
ing this car we 60 over hills and far
away out upon the heights north Of
the city, to place which indicates the
marvellous progress of the national
capital more than anything else. Two
miles from the boundary, upon the
highest piece of ground in the Dis
trict OF Columbia, we find broad
streets and avenues with asphalt paw
ing and granolithic sidewalks which
are not surpassed by any of the high
ways in the city proper. One hundred
teams of horses and five hundred men
are busy marking off new streets and
avenues in conformity with, and as ex-
tensions of, the streets and avenues of
the city as it was originally planned
by the celebrated French engineer.
If you did not know the spot, or if you
were not reminded of the fact, it
would be impossible to realize that
upon this beautiful place was fought
one of the decisive battles of the late
civil war. Yet this locality was known
during the war of the rebellion as Fort
Stevens, one of the outposts of the de-
lenses of the national capital The
earthworlls of the fort extended for
nearly mile east and west upon the
brow of this hill; and the siege and
field guns were all in position to repel
an assault from the north, although
the garrison of the fort was very
small
At that time Grant and Lee we're
graphing before Richmond. The bat
ties of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania
Court House, Old Tavern, Bethesda
Church, Cold Harbor and other histor-
&c engagements had been fought, and