Evening star., 1897-05-08
NAMES OF STREETS
Justice Hagner Proposes a Plan to
Columbia Historical Society.
NAMES OF DISTINGUISHED MEN
Confusion of Sound Caused by
lettered Streets.
WASHINGTON AV EN- U E

Justice A. B. Hagner of the Supreme
Court of the District of Columbia read a
paper upon National Nomenclature of
Streets fer the Nations Capital before the
Columbia Historical Society last night. 1t
was ar apprec.ative and interested audi
cree that gathered in the lecture hall of
Columbian University and listened to the
expression of Justice Hagner's ideas upon
this subject. He said in part:
There can be no greater boon to city
than spacious and convenient streets and
avenues. They stand for its arteries and
veins, as the public parks do for Its lungs.
But their value is incomplete unless there
exists an orderly and methodical system
of suitable names. so arranged as to enable
the resident and the stranger within his
gates to ascertain for themselves, and with
out needless trouble or delay, the relative
positions Of the different highways through
which they may be called to pass on busi-
Eess or pleasure. And while designing such
a system for the streets Of the capital OF
the foremost nation of the world, it Is en-
inently proper they should be dignified by
the names of the builders of the nation
and city, and thus continual reminder be
of the capital in which they live.
Mean streets deserve and will generally
receive mean names. Hogarth has immor-
talized Gin Lane and the Seven Dials; but
Cow Lane, Hog Alley. Paddy's Alley and
Black Horse Lane which were the accepted
names of much-used thoroughfares in Bos-
ton at the revolutionary period. Fortu-
nately the city of Washington never fell
heir to such perplexing inheritance Of dis
order, and whatever discomforts and blem-
ishes of this description exist here are the
results of our own negligent administration
of the trust confided to us.
The First Order.
LAS all are aware. 1t was the hand of the
ir comparable Washington that directed the
organization of the city in whose establish
ment he took such constant interest. His
last official act as President, on the Sd OF
March, 1897. was to address communlca-
ton to the commissioners on several i'm
portant matters connected with the public
buildings and streets. AS late as 179l ne
had suppressed his own name In speaking
of what he always called the Federal
City" though the people Of the country had
long before agreed upon more appropriate
appellation. But in September Of that year
Messrs. johnson, Stewart and Carroll, the
first commissioners of the new district. ad-
dressed the following letter to Major l. En-
FAINT, from Georgetown:
Sir: We have agreed that the federal
district shall be called 1.-The Territory of
Columbia" and the federal city THE City
of Washington" the title of the map will
therefore be "a Map of the City of Wash
ington. in the Territory of Columbia
I'VE have also agreed that the streets
shall be named alphabetically one way and
numerically the other, the former divided
into north and south letters, the latter into
east and west numbers, from the Capitol.
Major Ellicott, with proper assistance. will
Immediately take and soon furnish you
with soundings of the Eastern branch, to be
inserted in the map. We expect he will also
furnish you with the direction Of the pro-
posed post road. which we wish to have
noticed in the map @=e
Numbers and Letters.
In accordance with this order, the
streets were laid out. except that street
was omitted from the lettered streets,
doubtless to prevent confusion from the
resemblance of and when written. The
EXTREMIST lettered street. both north and
east of the numbered streets was 31s:,
and the fartnest to the west, 26th.
so far as the numbered nomenclature OF
the streets Is concerned. the system was
excellentNwhen adopted, and cannot be i'm
proved now. But the application of the
alphabetical system to the lettered streets,
although in the right direction, soon de-
veloped Inconvenience which have con-
tinued to increase, and which should now
be corrected without further delay. Blum
ders and absurdities long endured become
SO indurated that correction Is often well
nigh impossible: and the gay eques-
trians Of London will continue to gather
alcng Rotten Row. and the busy crowds
will throng Pail Mall with only hopeless
laugh at the absurdity of the names. For
tunately, in Washington, we are in full
time to make the proper corrections with
out running counter to the inveterate hab-
its Of centuries.
1T is evident the proposed plan of man,
ing the streets. so far as the numbers are
concerned. was adopted from the city of
Philadelphia, which was then the seat of
government. From that city also were de-
rived many Of the existing building regu-
latiCEs for the new capital, first promul-
gated by President Washington in Oc-
tober. 1191. Philadelphia was then by far
the usost important city in the United
States, excelling New York in population,
wealth and refinement; and the regularity
Of it's plan was almost unique.
Sound Alike.
Much Of what shall say may have al
ready occurred to those who have given
any thought to the subject, and the par
ticular suggestions 1 shall make by way
of remedy were presented perhaps ten
years ago in a communication addressed
to The Evening Star. The similarity in
sound of nearly one-third of the names OF
the lettered streets (being eight out OF
tYenty-two) when spoken rapidly causes
constant and serious confusion and mis-
takes-B, c. d, Z, g. P, and v to or.
dinary ears may well be confounded, al
they necessarily are.
Amy one who stands near a telephone
when message Is being transmitted will
probably hear. first the tiresome repeti
tions Of the particular street letter, requir.
ed by the clerk of the sender, then follow
the inevitable inquiries Of the receiver, a.
to whether the sender meant to call E
street or c street, or some other of the
eight whose names sound SO much alike
and lastly. the colloquy Of the clerks at thu
two ends of the line. repeating to eacf
other several letters OF the alphabet before
they have arrived at a satisfactory under
standing on the point.
when one considers that the ANNOYANCE
with which he has thus become acouaintef
Is but one Of a number of similar ceIayi
that constantly happen at that particulal
instrument. and that similar annoyance,
are happening at every instrument all owe
the city. he can begin to understand tn,
extent Of the general Inconvenience. Th.
like troubles result from the similarity O
sound Of the letters NJ, l. and ~ and Of +
and 8. and X and u and W and and Y
But to appreciate fully the bother one mus
also observe what frequently occurs in an,