Evening star., 1899-03-11
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''There Is a something in departmental
life that dtverts or blunts ambitions OBJ
served an old dsps rtmental clerk to Star
reporter especially when ambitions run
TO things outside of departmental lines and
limits. / know of a number of men who
sought and obtained positions In depart
ments for the purpose of using 1t as step
ping stone to other things In many cases
they were unable to carry out their in
clinations or ambitions, for the reason that
If they attended to their official duties hon.
estIy and fairly they found themselves
unable to get the time necessary to attend
to other matters-now. take my own case
as an illustration. / was d school teacher
in Ohio and had devoted a great deal OF
thought to the preparation of schooI
arithmetic: indeed. had the greater part
of the work completed. Gen. Garfield. who
was then in Congress. insisted that should
come here to finish the book. My idea in
taking a place here to complete the
work. The character of the duties L was
assigned to here. a position in the customs
branch Of the Treasury Department, was
entirely foreign to school teaching and
everything connected with il that before
/ could realize it / found that my thoughts
were gradually getting away from school
teaching, at least as far arithmetic was
concerned. and that, while / grew to be
rather expert in customs and tariff mat
terS, all the school teaching ideas had got
out of my head. Seventeen years have
passed. and my arithmetic is no further
completed than when l first came to this
city. and the chances are that l will never
do any more work on it, number of bet
ter arithmetics than l could prepare have
since appeared. and, while l was in ad-
vance in the way of teaching arithmetic
once. / have sense enough to realize that
j am a back number now. as far as educa-
ton is concerned. When clerk can secure
employment in the departments that is in
the line of his study and ambitions he is all
right. but it is seldom that the two things
go together, and, unless it happens his way,
the chances are all against him. Depart
mental lfa is such big thing that it eff
fectualy Sidetracks all side things in the
way of personal ambitions. Now, with the
scientific branches of government service
it is somewhat different. If man is a
chemist, geOlogist. naturalist or botanist
and he secures employment in his own
line he can advance steadily in his study
and the government service gives him the
opportunity 10 apply his reading and de-
velOp his thoughts. but these opportunities
are Tara. for the departments have a way
Of putting their employees at the work that
II. the government. wants done instead of
that the employe desires TO do
''The mystery of Balaam Birch was a
sensation in the early forties." volunteered
an old resident to a Star reporter. ''and
though it vas cleared Up in a week So
IL proved 10 be a very lively one as long as
it lasted. Balaam Birch was a well-known
carpenter, and lived in The old third ward
He was last seen at the corner of 5th and
F streets enc afternoon during heavy
rain storm. From that moment all traces
Of him wee removed as completely as if
he was swallowed up in the ground. Hun
dreds engaged in the search for him, and
all kinds of stories were put into circulation
to 1i.1.r, 4
yard in that part of the city was thorough
ly searched. without result citizens gen.
orally joining the local police force in the
Search He was seen by several on Jth
street at different points between Louisiana
avenue ana u street though last seen, ac-
cordinS TO a comparison of time near the
corner Of 9TH and F streets The mystery
was how he could SO suddenly disappear in
broad daylight. During that time and for
many years after, stream OF water ran
through Judiciary Square which connected
with Tibe- creek. which was very matte
rally Increased by sudden rain storms and
though the suppositiOn most generally in
duIged in was that he had fallen in the
stream and had been taken down to Tiber
creek, and from there to the canal il took
a search OF week to prove it, 1t proved
10 be the correct theory. however for his
b0dy was found a week afterward in the
stream which was a kind of a natural
sewer under a shop which then stood at
ID AMI ID streets. on which the drup store
Is now located. The water had carried II
there from the corner of 5th and F streets.
ihiS was not the cnly case of drowning in
connection with the stream. but 1 think it
was the one which caused the biggest SEN
sauon. from the circumstances and mys-
terry surrounding it,
Though but few of the people of the
present day know it," remarked a veteran
fireman to a Star reporter. there is TODAY
very large cistern under the concrete al
the public hack stand at the corner of
Louisiana avenue and 7th street In the
early days of the city. before the aoueduct
was built and Potomac water introduced
thereby throughout the city this cistern
was one of the main reliances of the fire
men of those days. for it was always full
and held an enormous quantity of water
Though it was afterward arched over the
walls Of the cistern are still in the ground
there. though the water supply was cut off
The water came from what was then
known the city spring on c street be-
tween 1ia and 9th streets. From this spring
the running pumps at the corner of 9Th
street and on 9TH street and PENNSYLVANIA
avenue We're also supplied Besides these
Two pumps. which ran a constant stream
night and day, this spring furnished water
for half dozen big stables and other
places. and kept the cistern constantly fulI
the overflow running into the canal. Ii also
supplied what was known as the CITY baths
one Of the very few public bath houses In
the early days of the city. and which was
located on the north side of c street i'm
fnedidtely To the east of the United States
mailbag repair shops The spring runs
today as freely ever, though most of the
water from 1t now goes directly into the
sewers This cistern ! speak of furnished
Ihe water for nearly all the downtown
hres. and have seen suction engines work
ing from ii through a line Of hose reaching
len to hfteen squares away. The introduc-
tlon OF the Potomac water did away witt
the necessity of il, though it is there vet
the top Of the ctstern being about two feet
under the level of the street.
x
"One of the most Interesting clocks in the
War Department is that in the map room
OF the office of chief of engineers ex-
planned an old official to a Star reporter