Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-10-17
THE TALL WHITE SHAFT
Some Interesting Stories About the Wash
ington Monument.
1t Is Seen Forty Miles Away-Birds
-ExpansiOn of the Shaft.

Visitors to The Star office, as they &C
out of the front door about 10 o'clock il
the morning, will observe in these sunny
days what seems to be bright star, at
least an electric light, tipping the apex CT
the Washington monument. The phenome
non has been especially noticeable in the
last few bright days following the pro-
tracted and depressing period of cloudy
weather. Scores of people may be seer
almost any morning looking up at the tor
of the monument and wondering v hat it is
there that produces such brilliant ef-
fulgence.
1t is simply the reflection of the morning
sun upon the smoothly-poiished facet OF
the aluminium tip which surmounrs the
cleaning white shaft at that hour. The
angle of incidence and the angle of refrac-
ton are such as to bring to the eye of the
prosperous and enterprising advertiser ir
The Star. after he has left his copy early
In the day, and just as he passes out of the
front door of the office, sight that Is
unique for its brilliance and its peculiari-
ties. 1t lasts no longer than fifteen min
utes.
The distance at which the monument is
visible has always been I matter of de-
batable interest with Washington people
Not a train approaches the city, nor a boat
speeds up or down the Potomac, but carries
group of people anxious to See at just
marble against the sky as they DEPART OF
first find it as they return.
Probably the greatest distance at which
the monument is seen is from the summit
of the Blue Ridge at Smokers Gap, a dis
tance of about forty-three miles in an Air
line. The elevation there is 1900 feet above
the Potomac The mountaineers years ago
with their keen eyes. trained to long anC
sharp sisht In the mountains, detected the
white spot cleaning on tine horizon, an6
they can always quickly determine its
place on the horizon line. But to CITY folks
however, the location of the white shaft is
TOT an easy matter. Thousands of Wash.
mgton people every summer invade that
region as summer boartiers to s,,hsjst mr.
Iresh milk and fried chicken and incident
any IN their excursions up on the mountain
~ ger sisht or the monument On clear
Gays IL is distinctly visible cspeciaIly to
those who are familiar with it's Drecise
location But 1t Is more easily seen at sun
SET IMAM at any other hour as the sharr
1 rh1ee OF the suns rays brings out the
white surface of the marble The NOM
tam people are only too glad to Dojnt ont
tne monument to their visitors. and us,a1l,.
!eii them the Secret by which they car,
az locate It, This is by finding
Nrst on the horizon line the slight elevatinr
OF contour presented by Munson's Hi
Ihen, slightly to the left perh,ns ono do
gree. there 1t is. The point from wbict
Pia,rn monument ~ was first seen from the Blue
fioSe Is the mountain farm of Mr.. I.onis
r shoemaker of this city. and tho Mo-. Is
called Monument View IL
one OF the most singular stories thar
met oe '1,a about the Washington monu-
Iheht Is hardly credible vet II can he
Vouched for as perfectly true. Tbera .ra
hundreds CT ladies in Washington who
wear upon their hats the plumage or tba
Hf ts SKIN OF a bird which has lost its
me nylng against the tall mass of ma rhle
IN the dimness of twilight or daybreak
Every morning one of the watchnen who
spends the night in the monument fms
hooa us oase quite a number of birds who
nave lost their lives in this way. This
mortality is not limited to any one snecins
put includes nearly all the birds known In
TINS region Strange to say, few English
tbs Tvs rose their lives by flying against
Ine monument, but the beautiful GOLDEN
hncnes, cedar birds, starlings. tanapers
sroSoeaks and many others of bright MIN,
mas mage ana great rarity have been found
e. "atG1Lnan taxes these birds up town
10 taxidermst, who stuffs and mounts
the rarer specimens, which are sold for a
good round price to collectors and the
SKINS OF those less rare are prepared for
the Hlihner- Hardly morning comes that
there are less than a score of dead birds
about the base of the shaft.
another queer thing to know about the
monument is that its height and width
vary 1T IS taller in summer than in win
ter, and In the latter season its width on
the south side Is about an inch greater
imam on the north, east or west side This
Is due to expansion under the heat of the
roy lhiS phenomenon was deter
mined by Capt. Greene during the erection
OF the shaft Plumb lines were suspend-
ed at each corner of the marble wall. and
the plumb hobs or piummets were sus-
pended in pots Of glycerine and moIasses.
Across the top of each pot was laid a
nnely graduated steel bar and three times
day an army engineer took OFF, the reg
istration thus made of the expansion of tn.
walls. 1t was held that the plummets
moved precisely with the points at which
the plumb lines were attached to the top of
the shaft, and the glycerine held them
firmly without vibration or oscillation. so
that the officer could note any change of
position. All these registrations, twice a
day every day of the year, were recorded
In book during the seven years that were
occupied in building the monument.