Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1899-06-22
n Letter From Washington. D. 6.

Mrs. Hyde OF TINS city has Just re-
ceived letter from her son Charles 5.
Hyde who holds responsible position
in the department of the Comptroller
OF the Currency in Washington. The
letter contains descriptions of things
in New York and Washington of gen
eral interest.
Writing of New York Mr. Hyde says:
The gate-keeper of the Navy Yard
did not seem disposed to admit me
until told him was employed
in the U. S. Treasury piece of in
formation that made another man of
him. The Indiana one of the grand
est looking boats atloat, was in dry
dock, and | went all through it
Then | went aboard the Iowa, the
Massachusetts,, the Oregon superior
to the Indiana mainly as to her ma
chinery,) the Winslow and several
others. saw where the shot struck
the deck of the Winslow before it kill
led Ensign Bagley.
1t is hardly necessary to say that
there are many things to be seen in
New York. Fifth avenue is weather.,
but Woodward avenue in Detroit, and
Euclid avenue in Cleveland, are in
comparably more beautiful. On the
whole, however, like eastern better
than western cities. At every turn
in New York, you see something that
you have always heard about but have
never seen before. New York would
be impossible without Broadway and
the Bowery, Blocker Street and
Maiden Lane, Trinity Church looking
down Wall Street, Central Park and
the Battery. | took the Third Avenue
elevated, rode to the end of the line,
and then walked TO Fordham to see
the cottage in which Poe once lived,
While in that part of of the city,
strolled through large and beauti
cemetery (Woodlawn, belieye) with
a gentleman that had lived in New
York some thirty years and had never
visited it before. We saw costly
monuments of wealthy unknowns
everywhere, but think neither OF us
saw one familiar name. How differ
ent in Mt. Auburn-the Westminster
Abbey of America!
reported at the Bureau of Engrav
ing and Printing on March and re-
manned there three months. This
committee is annually appointed by
the Secretary of the Treasury, the
chairman representing the Secretary's |
office, the other two members repre-
senting the Bureau of Internal Revc
nue. and the Comptroller of the Cur
rency's office. Six times we were
driven to the navy yard in carriage
with our other eye on dray-load of
plates, dies and rolls. Some 5000 |
pounds of steel plates that had been
used in printing money to the amount
of millions of dollars were melted in a |
blast furnace and we not only watched
every move of the furnace operators
but went below and waited until the |
liquid metal was drawn off. Sundry and |
manifold souvenirs were cast. One,
now on my dresser, contains your
picture. 1t is a fancy frame cast from
the copper plates used in printing
Worlds Fair Diplomas. While mem
bers of the committee we were "our
own boss" On the last day of our
work, | went to dinner with the Gus
todian and Chief of the Engraving
Division. There is one engraver that
is paid more than the U. S. Senators
SO, 900 a year-and is one of the best
in the country. He engraves portraits
on the original dies. The Bureau is
one of the most interesting places in
the city and is visited by so many
people that force of guides is neces-
sary. The fine, lace-like work that
you see on bills is done by the geo
metric lathe. 1t is one of the most
ingenious machines ever invented and
requires 1T would seem, genius to
run it, as probably not more than a
half dozen persons in the world can
operate geometric lathe.