The times., 1897-08-22

Most people don't know that the only
The world ghthere in Washington, where
there are So many other novelties, curl
osities, and marvels. This subterranean
wonder i s the Congr essional Library
Railway, limited, of course. 1t runs from
the Capitol TO the new beautiful building,
the Library, distance of /, 900 feet. II
is line without curve, but it has Some
grades tnat makes the head swim To
follow them in one direction and the knees
TO feel queer in the climb of the steps
Of the thousands upon thousands who
have gone down to the new building and
no have been told about the underground
line, no visitors have ever been per-
mitted to follow the route. This priv
aege was granted yesterday TO a reporter
and artist for The Times. It's pleasant
senSa ton, and as may be readily inferred
one OF the most picturesque lines Of travel
in the -orld. The scenery, IL true, is
lighted up only by electricity, but it is by
long odds the place to meet distinguished
company en- route. You involuntarily take
off your hat as you see Homer or Aristotle
or Long fellow or Machiavelli pass you i'll
the cars, or ma ybe it will be Bayard Tay.
lor or Marco Polo, who are stiIl the great
travellers they used to be various terms
Of years ago.
cne needs a guide Co the railroad.
Hence you ask for Supt Pillow. He is
the genius W no has literally at his fingers
ends all the buttons and valves and levers
and other devices that make the immense
machinerics OF the building to hum when
be puts them in motion.
1t il absolutely necessary TO have Mr..
Pillow. Going down into the basement
of the Library is like going down into the
catacornbs; or, considering the painted W alls
ard s.ulptured caves, like the underground
apartments Of an East Indian temple.
The ordinary visitor gets his impre ssions
uf the little railroad from what is told him
about il IN the rotunda. At the distrib-
Iting desk in the center of the rotuada one
gets glimpse of the carriages, or hook
carriers, as they ctme and go: all the rest
is mysterious. The carrier comes up eyi-
dently frum the basement. 1t quietly de-
posts its contents, and goes on and on
and ON, and comes back with more books.
or ii jast continues to circulate, like u
satellite around a planet, with just as
much regularity and Consideration for its
eternal appointments The general inn
preston is that this device of the under
ground electric railway was Instituted or
invented for the express purpose of 20
moving about 100000 or more books
from their old places TO their new shelves
across the espIanade.
1t is like calculating the distance OF
Sirius, however, TO follow out this ilu-
sion to the end. 1t takes -four minutes,
they say. for "A round trip on this road.
Well, supposing that they removed the
books one at time, there is the eXpendi-
ture of 5000 600 minutes, or 654 days,
a whole year and six months. 1t is esti-
mated, however, that the present process :,
somewhat primitive, viii land all the pill
grins over in the new library in two
months from now, or by the lst of No
vember.
They are not moving the books under
ground Cn the contrary, the horse and
the mule and the man with the cart, wagon
and push cart are doing this part OF what
VIII be an historical function Another
rather prosaic incident OF the transfer of
the books is the mgainly chute down the
center steps OF the Capitol The most re-