Evening star., 1901-06-29
A WONDERFUL MAP
Will Soon Be Placed in the White
House War Room.
PRESIDENT TO STUDY WITH PINS
Every Country Shown, as Well as
Their Armies and Fleets.
ABSOLUTELY UP TO DATE

Written for The Evening Star.
The most remarkable map of the world,
and in the world is shortly to be installed
in that unique sanctum, the war room of
the White House. l have just watched
the finishing touches which are being put
upon It, 1t is twenty feet long by eight
feet wide, and the parallels and meridians
which form its projections would cover 1000
feet If placed end to end. 1t has required
four months of hard work to make it. All
of its lines and tints have been painted in
by hand. yet such ckill has been employed
that it appears to be gigantic lithograph.
Upon this colossal chart President Nc
kinley and his successors will study all
future wars and diplomatic conflicts excit-
ing the world. Over its face. as though it,
were a great chess board, miniature repre-
sentations of the armies and fleets of the
world Will be moved, while skilled geogra-
piers and photographers will continually
alter it to represent changes of boundaries.
new cable lines, interoceanic canals and
v hatsOver may alter the political COM
lleXiXon of Mother Earth.
President Mckinley has developed a pen
chant for the game which Napoleon played
with pins of different colors and to which
other great generals have reSorted when
confronted by complex military problems.
This fad took possession of the chief magis-
trate during the war with Spain. While
other statesmen have found relaxation at
the billiard table OF chess board. not to
mention other boards, he has realized
greater enjoyment in tracing out the desti-
MES OF the world upon maps skewered
with darts, bearing flags and miniature
ships, representative of military and naval
forces. struggling to alter the charts which
have been his playthngs
Miniature Ships and Armies.
No drawing board in the world would hold
the paper on which this remarkable map
was made. Hence 1t had to be drawn upon
two immense strips of paper, which are
now being pasted together. The seam thus
necessitated will run lengthwiset with the
finished sheet but will be so neatly effected
as to be invisible. The heavy paper is back
ed with thick cloth, such as will con-
veniently receive the flags and miniature
ships stuck into it. 1t will exactly fill the
west wall space of the war room Beneat IN
the cloth backing will rest a mat of compo
board, which is composed of small pieces
of wood cemented together upon a paper
foundation, in such manner as to prevent
warping or bulging by contraction or ex-
pansion. A handsome frame will surround
the entire map. The work of installing the
map will commence as soon as the Presi-
dent departs on his summer vacation. When
he returns ii will contain the exact military
status OF the world marked out for the hour
he first sets foot in his war room.
Facing the great chart, Mr.. Mckinley
can see every point of strategic Importance
upon the entire face of the earth. North
and South America loom up in the center
of the great rectangle. To the right, and
therefore to the east. appear Europe, Asia
and Africa in their entirety, except for a
small corner of Siberia. To the west is
shown the broad eXpanse of the Pacific,
Australia, Oceanica and a repetition OF
nearly the entire eastern coast of Asia.
This repetition is made to again show the
philippines, which also appear at the ex-
treme eastern end of the map. Thus the
President can trace the progress of ships
all the way to Manila by either the At
iantic or Pacific route. He follow
them by way Of the Mediterranean, the Red
sea. the Indian ocean and the China sea,
starting from New York. or. embark
from San Francisco, he can indicate their
progress by way Of Hawaii and Guam. In
neither voyage will his miniature ships run
off the edge of the map.
Fourteen colors are employed to indicate
the political divisions Of the world There
are eleven distinct colors. each representing
territory of one of the eleven colony-hold-
ing powers. Countries without detached
possessions are designated each by one of
three other colors. distributed about. To
make the many collected colors harmonize,
great artistic judgment had to be applied.
The colors were applied to the great map
with an airbrush, the hand of the most
skilled map painter In the world not being
sufficiently uniform in touch to effect tint
ing which might appear perfectly homo
geneous when so widely distributed. The
airbrush used was sort of fountain pen
arrangement, through which the paint fed
by reservoir and tube. was emitted by COM
pressed air pressure and fell upon the pa
per in the form of delicate spray.
Thousand Moving Flags.
Over thousand little flags and emblems
bearing flags are being made to represent
the positions Of our army and navy alone.
1t will take one man a week to put them
all in place, after the map has been mount
ed and before the President returns to view
1t. Each flag is a square of parchment OF
about three-Quarters of an inch dimension,
fastened with red wax to long steel pin
with white glass head
A blue flag stuck through q cardboard
ship will represent each vessel of our navy
and will have the latter's name neatly let
tered thereon. Each army transport will
be represented thus. with an addition Of
blue and white flag surcharged In black,
with the number Of officers and men
aboard. Each regiment of infantry will
be designated by a white flag, cavalry by
diagonal red and white, signal corps by
white with red center and hospital corps
by a red cross. Each general and admiral
will be designated In the war room by
flag bearing his name. 1t will be placed
upon the map with any regiment or fleet
which he may happen to command in an
engagement. Each of the foreign armies
and navies will be similarly represented.
Absolutely Up to Date.
All naval stations Of the world and ports
where there are docks sufficiently large to
repair our war vessels are shown on the
| map. also all coaling stations of the world s
| navies. All of the sixteen submarine cables
| crossing the Atlantic, the entire series of
new cables wiring together the Philfppines