Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-03-06
Thoroughfares UsedBefore the Adop-
ton of LEufant's Plan.
RESEARCHES BY DR. MARCUS BAKER
Mr.. Charles Moote's Review of
Life Of Judge>Woodward.
BEFORE HISTORICAL SOCIETY

The usual monthly meeting of the Column
bla historical Society was held last evening
at the banquet hall of the Shoreham Hotel
and was largely attended. In the absence
of the president of the society, Mr.. John A.
kasson. Judge Hagner, one of the vice
president presided. The first paper of the
evening was presented by Dr. Marcus
Baker, the photographer of the United
States geological survey, who gave the re-
suits of his efforts to locateF the old roads
ON the site of the city before the plan was
laid down. A map showing the city and
District was displayed and on it Dr. Baker
had caused to be marked four of the prin-
opal roads to the city. He also indicated
the probable course of these roads through
the city, admitting frankly that he had
been unable to determine the exact lines.
he pointed out that the road from Bla-
densburg divided into two roads short dis
lance west from that place. One of these
ROADS came down to what is now the
boundary of the city at the head of Mary
rama avenue, and then passed, DR.. Baker
thought. by an almost direct course across
the city to what was known as the Eastern
Branch ferry. a short distance west of what
Is now the Pennsylvania Avenue bridge.
r rom the other side of the Eastern branch
there was road to Marlboro and another
tc a ferry opposite Alexandria, and still
another east to BladenSburg
LIZ Baker thought there was road from
georgetown running east across the city
and then south to the Eastern Branch fer
ry. The other road from Bladensburg pass
ed along what is now the line of the Brent
wood road and touched Florida avenue be-
tween sun and 9th streets northwest and
then followed the present line of Florida
avenue to ford across Rock creek short
distance north of the p Street bridge This
was the principal road from Bladensburg
In IlGn y,,,i, tod
route of the Rock Creek road. which came
INTO the city along the lines of the present
Columbia road.
Citizen Of Two Cities.
The result of DR.. Bakers researches in
this interesting field was the subject of dis
cussion. and then the next paper of the
evening was presented by Mr.. Charles,
Moore. the clerk of the Senate District
committee The title of this paper was
Augustus Brevoort Woodward-A Citizen
OF Two Cities" This proved to be a schol-
ariy as well as an interesting review of the
lite OF one who was identified with the early
years of this city and also of Detroit Mich.
me paper showed much patient research
as well as discrimination in handling the
material, ami Mr.. Moore held the attention
OF his audience from beginning to end, ....
At the outset Mr.. Moore said:
1.-The Circuit Court of the District of CO.
lumbia convened for its first session in the
nal finished Capitol on the I'D day of
March, 1901. Among the lawyers who pre-
sented themselves for admission to practice
before the honorable dourt was Augustus
Brevoort Woodward. Unusually tail slen-
der. with sallow complexion, and with
something of the air of the scholar, Mr..
Woodward was yet attired in a manner to
attract attention even al time when
mems dress was much more exuberant than
1t is at present. A sWallow-tailed coat of
blue, with brass buttons; buff waistcoat,
widely opened to allow the protrusion of a
mass of rufiies, alas soiled and crumpled;
a f1amboyant red cravat, and a plentiful
head of hair fresh from the loving minis
tratons of the first tonsorial artist of the
metropolis of the United States-all COM
blned to produce striking figure.
The first trace to be found of Wood
wards early history OCCURS in a casual ref
erence to his residence in Rockbridge. Va
in 1895, where and when he had worked out
a plan for an executive council to advise
with the President of the United States
much as The cabinet has come to advise.
Shortly after this date he first met Jeffer-
son at Monticello, and began friendship
that lasted for more than a quarter of a
century.
~Certainly as early as the March of 1897
Mr.. Woodward had crossed the mountains
to locate himself in the then thriving town
of Alexandria. from which vantage ground
he could contemplate the investments Of
fered by the pl oprietors of lands in the fed
eral city. On the Goth day of the month
named ne had purchased from William
Prout divers and sundry lots in Washing
ton, on which ne gave a deed of trust for
the entire purchase price of $4,000. On the
he is described resident of
Greenbrier county, Va, which might or
might not have been the case.
Where his prospective treasure was
there his heart also found an abiding place
He loved the federal city, and to her service
he brought a voluminously stored mind, an
education broad and liberal for that day
and generation, and pen at once tren-
chant, good tempered and interchangeable.
He was a master of the English language
could quote the Latin poets, understood the
structure of Greek and was familiar with
the writings of the French philosophers of
his day. In craftsmanship he was a dis
ciple of Bentham; he believed in tearing
down old fallaces in order to build new
and enduring structures on the broad foun-
dation of the greatest good to the greatest
number. For Thomas jefferson he had
veneration akin to idolatry, and language
was all too poor to afford words adequate
to the reverence he felt for the sage Of
Monticello.
MIR. woodward's Position.
I'm a series of eight papers on the gov
eminent of the territory of the District of
Columbia Mr.. Woodward proclaimed him
self as belonging neither with the party
who shouted for the repeal Of that clause in
the Constitution which gave Congress ex-
elusive jurisdiction over the ten miles
square nor yet was he willing to be num-
bered with those who stood ready to be de-
favored excluding the individual states from
legislation over the District. but he con-
tended vigorously for distinct representa-
ton in the federal councils. and for local
government energetic and free
.Futurity' systematically says he, is
an object of curiosity to all; but in some
that curiosity is mingled with hope, in 9TH
ers with fear Many there were who, re-
garding the United States as only an enthu-
siastic prediction of that age looked for
ward to a dissolution of the Union into in
dependent states. or at best into separate
Another numerous party
aimed to build up a strong government,
which should finally erect itself into a SOW
ereignty. mild and humane. indeed, but not
derived from the will Hof the people. Be-
tween the Scyllaf. Of disunion and the
Charybdis of monarchy, Woodward would
steer the ship of stateJinto seas made Sc
rene by confidence in the virtue and intel
ligence of people to whom all the avenues
of Information are open, and to whom the
enjoyment of liberty and the exercise of
self-government are at once sweetened by
habit and regulated by reflection He re-
garded the seat of government as the de-
positary of national wealth, the key to our
resources and to our power. To deny rep
resentation to the. citizens of the District
of Columbia was, In his view, to contra
vene the inherent and :naHenable rights
which appertain to all, men, in all places
and at all times; it is to make an impoiitic