Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-05-26
lots wash skirts special prices,

run here, and don't wonder that the town
thought the man crazy who rode down the
east steps of the Capitol on one OF them
The bicycle for women was undreamed of.
and the women in fieshings who gave eX-
hiI,itions on the tall wheels in the variety
theaters were thought to be extremely
daring.
The big raft of "cunuels' and ma jahs'
and guvnuhs, who used to infest the Wash
ington hotels have almost entirely Gisap-
peared. The city is easily twice better off
in the matter of hospitals than it was then.
l used to the policemen of Washington
at that time walking about with their
blouses open. and without much of an air
of spick-and-spanness to their appearance.
The police force here now seems 10 be
composed of as neat-lookfng lot of men as
those making up any force in the country.
Just think over the comparatively limited
list of frst-class hotels we had in Wash
ington in 1883. and compare the list with
a list of tip-top Washington hostelries of
today. Sixteen years ago the pension office
occupied the building which is now the RAJ
leigh Hotel. Now we have one of
the most barbarous buildings on the face
of the globe wherewith to house the pen
sion office. Sixteen years ago we needed
whole set of municipal buildings here in
Washington. and we are still needing them.
Buildings and Fashions.
"A proper building wherewith to shelter
the Medical Museum collection wasn't
thought Of Sixteen years ago We thought
we were bowling swells when we arrayed
ourselves in skin-tight trousers, dinky lit
tie short coats and peanut derbies, and the
ladies the Washington street cars. in
stead of exhibiting the symphonic poems in
costumes with which they now regale our
vision. were wearing beaded jersies. Six
teen years ago there was talk of erecting
a separate building for the use of the Su-
preme Court of the United States and there
is still talk about it.
Sixteen years ago. when you wanted to
go 10 Alexandria. you either took the ferry
or the steam cars. There are other ways
of getting there now besides walking. Six
teen years ago we used to nearly always
have some one Of the old-time ships-of-war
tied up at the Washington navy yard
They're too big to get up this way now,
the ships-of-war. Sixteen years ago the
tOp-nOtch men assigned from Washington
to represent us at foreign courts were SIM
ply ministers pienipotentiary, and, such,
they had to take back seat for slews Of
little ambassadors from Dahomey, Peru
and so on. Now our ambassadors don't
take back seats for anybody's representa-
tives. This, by the way, is only a little
| aside but it's change, isn't it?
Effect of Civil Service
| Civil service reform was just beginning
| as a system at that time, and the town was
| a whole lot torn up about it, l remember
| that when the other system prevailed men
| with government jobs were afraid to buy
| homes here, for fear of losing their places,
and they stored up their money tighter n
! a drum for the rainy day that used SO fire.
| quently to overwhelm government people
| prior to civil service reform. Even for sew
| eral years after l got here there wasn't en-
| tire belief in the perpetuity of the civil
| service plan as a system and only when
| the government people became assured that
the system would be maintained did they
open up and begin to buy Washington
property.
| sixteen years ago or whereabouts we had
| a ball team that could waliop any other
| team in the country, and now look at usi
Sixten years ago we used to speak OF
| Swampoodle' with derision. Now some OF
| the prettiest homes in the city are going
I'D in that vicinage Sixteen years ago the
old government printing office building was
| falling down 1t is still falling down.
| Made Rapid Strides.
1.-The region known up in the northwes
] section as .Helrs Bottom where Grim,