The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-08-05
LIVE TOPICS ABOUT TOWN.

The external appearance Of the Capitol
from the east ~ anything but attractive
1T present, owing to the repairs now be
ing made in the Supreme Court chamber,
and the House wing Of the big building
From the windows Of the Supreme Court
20 the plaza Just east Of the wing. huge
chute has been erected completely Gov
cred, through which is sent all manner
Of debris. Not particle Of dust is al
lowed 70 escape. and except for the rum
bling sounds which issue from the long
boN-like structure il would never be
known that tons Of worthless material
are being removed. to be supplanted later
by new wood ard new stone and brick.
The masses Of broken brick and mortar
shoot the chute" from the Supreme
Court chamber to the wagon drawn up
immediately under the mouth Of the
chute.
Great care is necessary In handling this
material on account Of the injury which
me particles of dust might do to the or
nate Sculpturing Of the Capitol The deli
cate carvings Of the pillars and various
VI HdihtnJS form many CreyiCes into which
uust would settle, dishRuring the beauty
OF the building, and producing an eXpen-
SlNe item in the CLEANING of the big mar
pie wings used by the Senate and House
II IS difhCult enough q IS IL IS to keep the
bullulhE clean and attractive. and the
contractors having In charge the repairs
now being made on the interior Of the
building are taking special precautions
10 reduce the amount of dirt In SDitp OF
the fact that great quantities Of rubbish
nave been removed from the interior Of
5llt DullCluS, so well has the work been
done that scarcely a speCk has found its
way 70 the handsome exterior. The i'm
hehSe chute, protruding Ike a mammoth
tongue from the window of the Supreme
Court. mas been the cause of no end Of
ha g.@s- --T~-F
tors TO the Capital. and all manner OF
causes nave been attributed TO its cree
tion one visitor few days ago wanted
10 know II books were taken from the
Library 10 the Capitol Ia that way
What is probably the most interesting
settlement in the vicinity Of Washington
Is a colony OF cliff swallows. who have
made their homes in the red clay banks
across the Eastern Branch. opposite the
Arsenal Grounds The swallows are a
source OF never-ending delight to students
and lovers OF birds. They have hurrowed
INTO the cliffs in this neighbornoOd hon
eNcomblnG the red surface Of clay. and
forming a colony whose perfect social
lstc scheme Of local government might
be probably initiated by their human
observers. on any sunny morning the
chiTp Of the birds is heard as they 90 to
ana FRO They appear to live in perfect
harmony, although occasionally the sound
OF disc0rd rises. and the chirp becomes
a scream OF rage In the bird language.
A solitary kiugtisher. a bird rarely seen
around Washington, may be observed al
most any afternoon plying his trade Of
fisherman of the Arsenal point. His an
tics and capers afford considerable
amusement TO those who have been for
tunate enough to discover him. and who
have sufficient interest in bird life TO have
cultivated his acquaintance. The bird is
quite fine specimen. and many attempts
have been made TO ensnare him. but so
far without success. The kingfsher has
a beautiful crest or crown. or headgear
He is one OF the prOudest birds inhabirtng
the banks OF the Potomac. Who his mate
Is and where the kingfSheT home IS 10
Gated is a mystery which many have tried
to solve. Ducks. gulls. and fish-hawks
are also commonly seen about the river
and within short distances Of the city.
1T takes rainy spell to show up
cheap shoe" remarked a well known shoe
dealer on rainy day last week, while
standing under an Avenue awning wait
ing for the shower to cease. Il don't
mean well worn or an Cd shoe. A
cheap shoe can be spotted by an observ-
or on a rainy day though It may have
come within an hour from the store
( Watch the feet Of people the next time
IL rams, and you can pick out the mex
when the paVemeuts are wet Artificial
stone pavements especially show them up
! The sole Of a cheap. common shoe is
made Of imitation leather, composed Of
pressed paper, and water sOftens II and
makes the wcarer slide along while walk
| ing You can always tell cheap shoe
in this way
Expensive mahogany furniture viii greet
the members Of the next Congress when
they assemble in the House Of Represen-
| tatives in December. and laws will be
made hereafter with a So coo background
l This is the amount Of money appropri-
I atCd by the last Congress for rcfuruish-
/ ing the House side Of the Capitol No
| longer viii dignihed Representative sit
l upon hard and uncomfortable chairs. nor
/ will they write their letters upon the top
| Of cheap walnut desks Heretofore these
! were good enough FOR the members Of The.
| lower house. and some Of the more eco
! rOmical members objected strcnuouSIv
/ when the item for furnishing the HOust.
/ with mahogany desks was brought up.
/ but ihciT objections were OVcTTUlrd and
( the costly desks and chairs Will be ready
! for the House which meets in December
/ A Washington firm has the contract for
! supplying the furniture BY this means
| the committee can keep IN touch with the
] progress Of the rpfuruishiug. and can
/ carefully study all samples Of goods ura-
! scented for inspection for the Capitol The
/ committee consists Of REPRESENTATIVES
/ Cannon. Dalzeu. and Richardson Archi-
! tect Clark has charge Of the work
Chief Wilkie OF the United States Secret
! Service has broken all records He was
| the first chief of a bureau Of the Treas
/ ury Department TO hand his report 20
/ Secretary Gage. Chief Wilkie is more
than month ahead Of his predecessor in
| getting out his report. The fiscal wear
| ended on June 30. The manuscript Of the
| report was presented 10 the Secretary on
| July ]. and printed copies have been ready
| for distribution for some time This Is
| an Indication OF the business met hOdS mr.
| sued by the Secret Service branch of the
| Government
THE TEXAS OIL FIELDS