The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-04-27
LIVE TOPICS ABOUT TOWN.

! Ex-senator Chandler. Chairman of the
| Spanish Treaty Claims Commission has
left the city for a short trip North, and
there VIII he no meeting of the body until
| h returns In the meanwhile plumbers,
decorators, and carpenters are Al work in
| the house IN which the Commission Is
quart cred The structure stands on the
north side OF II Street. Just west of Four
JeeuJh. IL has a plain exterior. but the
anterior, with its large rooms and spacious
corridors, tells tale of the grandeur Of
oldca times The house used to be one of
the finest in the city. ana the heavy oak
and walnut door frames and wainscoting
show that it was built at great expense.
When the alterations proposed are made
the mansion viii have lost all its
! old appearance. and viii come out
new and bright as a pin. with every
modern convenience. When the cleo
I tricians have finished their work every
conceivable kind of appliance for
saving time and steps to the members
of the Commission viii have been install
/ co PUSh-buttOnS, with innumerable
wires, viii connect each and every room
ard cali bells and telephones will be
/ Plentiful There viii be electric lights. Of
course ard brass electrOliers VIII replace
! Tn" DOnderOUS bronze affairs that now
hang from the ceiling in the halls and
I Htti'tS- ] ne queer OiG wall paper ana the
peculiarly designed fresc0es viii be re-
moved from the walls and a paper Of
modern hue and stripe viii be put in their
! place The fine hardwood floors viii be
! covered with thick Administer carpets,
and, in fact. the old mansion viii be
! transformed from place with all the
/ characteristics of half century back into
= Splck and span up-tO-date house
Il viii be filed with fine furniture too
! 4 great deal of that used in the Paris
/ FaIr Commissioner office at Paris has
/ been shipped to Washington. and viii be
used TO help in the furnishing \ great
! deal will have to be bought in Washing
ton, and the Department of Justice will
| foot the bill
There are wild vioIets elsewhere II. the
District than in the fields beyond the
city limits. Half a dozen small negro
| children discovered this fact yesterday
while playing in the grounds Of the old
St Matthew'S Church. They had con-
( Sresated at the corner Of Fifteenth and
II Streets and were the source Of consid-
cradle annoyance to DdsSeTs-by and pas
sengers alighting from the street cars
! They raced and Tomped and shouted and
/ had finally extended their playground by
slipping between bent rods in the iron
fence and taking possession Of the park
! ing at the side of the old church. Hardly
/ had the first froBzy-headed child enter
Z t1lttl the enclosure DeIDre ne uttered
I shout, dashing across the sod and bent
down to pick something from the grass
: He held II Up TO the view Of his ragged
( companions who had followed him. and
/ said but one word. '-FiIutS. Immediate
I ~ the entire six were on aii-fGurS and
I with heads close to the ground. they be
san 4 hunt for the flowers They had q
/ substantial reward After a quarter of an
( hours search they became content and
! satisfied that there were no more vio-
lets to be found in that field Then they
al hunted for a buttOnhOle in Their
clothing to which they could transfer the
blossoms from their brown hands Proud
as DeaCOckS they marched up and down
the sidewalk until a new mischief sJGE-
gested by their leader carried them of
. to another street.
The bicycle season opened yesterday \
glance At the racks outside of the de-
Dartment buildings was enough TO bring
a realization that the love Of wheeling in
Washington has not diminished nor IS
it even in danger Of doing so Il seemed
that every clerk had taken advantage of
the hrst real spring day, to get out his
or her machine. polish it up. wipe the
dust and cobWebs out of its spokes. and
take spin TO the Office The racks which
have been empty during the winter
months. became again the stalls Of hun
dreGS Of steel steeds. The streets took on
a gayer appearance because OF the bright
colored dresses of the women awheeI 1t
was after dark that the real popularity
Of the bike became manifest. and the up
town avenues became bright with the
moving lights on the wheels of men and
women Cut for their evening spins. An
almost continuous procession of f.u1gDIgs
passed mp and down Sixteenth Street and
Massachusetts, Avenue until far into the
night