The National tribune., 1897-11-18


The obstinate Scotchman thought tia
! discretion, under the circumstances, was
the Letter Fart Of valGr, ard that by sur
rendering gracefully he could secure BET
ter bargain.
When the President once more asked
con what terms VIII you surrender YOU
piantation2" MIR. Burns replied, ANY that
your Excellency may choose to ia ne
We find the deed of David Burns con
veying the land t. the Commissioners N
| trust. the first deed recorded in the City
| Of Washington.
One by one The original prorrietors
Daniel Carroll, Motley Young, David Burns
and Samuel Davidson, surrendered then
lands to be laid out as a city, and gave
one-haif OF them TO the Government for
the purpose Of raising funds Tor the cree
! ton of the necessary public buildings.
When the negotiations at last were AT
an end, on the "1St day OF May, Washing
ton wrote to Jefferson from Mount Vernon
TO the effect:
The owners conveyed TO the United
States. on consideration that when the
whole should be surveyed and laId OH as
q city, the original propriet0rs shoulc re
tain every other lot, the remaining lots
to be sold by Government from time Ia fiiIe,
ard the proceeds TO be applied 10 the i'm
proVement Of the place.
The land comprised in the sale was
100 acres For 50 much of the land As
might be appropriated for the use oil the
United States. they were To pay 20 t"bd .
per acre net inclutilng streets. he corner
stone If the new district was laid ny the
Commissioners Apr!! -, 1881, and under
the direction OF Washington, a FIenchman,
Peter Charles LI.nfant, skilled engineer,
was employed to lay out the city. lie was
IA Lieutenant in the French provincial
forces, but when quite young tn" New
World held out many attractions for him,
Il ha.. nf him m n
Revolutionary Army in 1177, and in i71S
he was appointed Captain of Engineers.
He was afterwards wounded al The siege
Of Savannah, and Was then promoted 10
be Major of Engineers, serving near Wash
ington This gave Washington ample OPP
poriunity TO learn that he had III MAJ.
LEnfant "A man of rare art culture and Gf
versatile endow,nents, one that was nm
bued with the civilization Of the CID World,
and " hen Washington made this selection
it was because he knew that he would
utilize his knowledge of the art and archi-
lecture OF European cities.
Ii :; letter dated September ., 1881, the
Commissioners informed Mai. IEnf;Lnt
that they had decided To call the plot the
Territory OF Columbia, and the ederai
City the City Of Washington.
IL is II we'll authenticated fact, that Mai.
L'EniantS plan, Notwithstanding The dIi-
fcrent opinions existing, was the ore adopt
ed in the laying out of the city. II * also
true that he wrote jefferson asking his
advice, thinking from his long experience
abroad, that he might give suggestions
and plans that would be helpful.
Through al this correspondence. and
aside from plans Of many cities which
jefferson had procured abroad, such as
Paris, Marsei!les, Turin, Milan. etc, it Is
very evident that one plan alone stood
uppernlost in his mind. Ii was the old
Babylonial one, excmpliiied in the paral
kilograms and angles Of the city Of Phila-
deiphiafi fit emblem of the square cut,
Quaker element that administered her mu
Dicipal laws, hut not in keeping with the
Cline Of beauty" the Trenchman had. pic
trred in his city of "magnificen, distances
1t concerned, however, to jefferson 8
wishes that he should take as the founGa
ton OF his plan the squares 81 philadel
phia and the topography o. Versailles,
and then introduce the broad transverse
avenues intersecting the streets Of the
city with Il variety of circles, open squares
and triangular reservations.
Mai. LEnfant was oriunatcly I'M
bued with French temperament In two
months after his plan was published he
very probable that his exalted ideas of art
and finance were not in keeping with the
provincial methods Of the Commissioners
The early education of both parties would
tend TO separate rather than combine
methods.
To be continued