The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-09-03

L
| territory for che District Of Columbia. as
! Congress called the Federal district in
! memory OF Columbus. and personally
| conducted the negotiations with the nine
| teen owners of the land. mostly cut up
| into farms on which the city of Washing
| ton was 10 be built. He included on the
| Maryland side Of the Potomac. in the
i ldEEtE portion OF the District. sixty nine
| out Of the one hundred square miles. the
/ city of Georgetown. founded by Scotch
| and English in l15f, and ON the Virginia
| side OF the Potomac his own home town
| Of Alexandria. both towns then ambitious
| and hopeful OF commercial greatness.
! which Washington himself sought to
/ bring 20 them by the Chesapeake and
I with the country beyond the mountains.
! then called the West But the Federal
| city ne placed on the map between Rock
| 'Ee"k. the eastern boundary OF George
! town, on the west. and the AnaCostia
! River on the east with the Potomac as
I the southern boundary.
! The National Government was Door
| as wei as weak Il could not AFFORD 10
/ buy out the original proprietorS. It could
| not duord TO put UP the necessary build
] ings for its own use. Therefore. IN the
/ decade from 1880 10 1880 given to Wash
! inEton for the preparation Of the Ma
| uonal Capital. he had TO arrange with the
! owners 10 make them stockholders. in a
I sense IN the national city. b. securing
| thriT donations of more than half Of the
! land 10 the National Government, IN con-
! Sideration Of the enhanced value which
| would accrue TO the land which they kent
/ Ihen. with ample reservations Of land
/ IOT avenues. streets. and parks. some Of
/ the rest was sold on the Government &C
/ count as DuuulnE lots TO raise funds for
/ buildings in connection with appropria-
lions of money made BY Maryland and
| virginia. Washington. who in this forma-
/ i've period had TO overcome many diff
| cuIties. at last just before his untimeIy
death IN 1893. saw his work so well done
I mat II could not De und0nc. and derived
/ from II "a pleasure which nothing else ex-
J successes - Int 4
I IN the adoption Of The Constitution had
/ yielded TO him.
TWO IMPORTANT STRUCTURES.
But although the Federal district had
been established and the Federal city had
Deen Iali out on paper. the general ap-
pearance Of the farms that stretched
/ from the low hills in the north of the dis
/ trict down 90 the fishing hamlets on the
I SHore OF the Potomac. showed very little
| change when, in 1900 the National Gov
| ~ IlllehI Slowly removed from PhiladeI-
phla 10 Washington The Executive Nh
! SION, which was Of the same size bur not
4 OF the same color. as today and tba ga
] Cdpllol building, Ouc-third the size of thar
4 OF To-Day. were the only important new
( structures, although buildings for the
1 small executive departments Of that time
l ll<ta Deen constructed and d number Of
4 CIV cling houses with few small hotels
and boarding houses. PcnusyIy-9 mia Ave-
nue. was rather plainly marked as "A road
80 TX
] Mansion. and a few other avenues and
I streets IN the southern and central uor-
Z t-pll OF tne yolnS city were traced through
! the groves and pastures in a similar va y
! The population Of Washington in mo
/ year 100, when the National Government
! mao become established in f. was less
/ tIliu -FOUR thousand, Georgetown having
/ less than three thousand. Alexandria near
. ~ hN- thousand, while there were nearly
/ lhrct thousand in the rest of the Dis
J tT1ct The total population OF the Dis-
. Of D fs.Fes D IH-1
! The National Government was a small
| o"oy OF men and its business was com
. paralvely small in amount The nation
] itself was felt TO be stu an eyr,a--r1.v,t
/ and II was not regarded as certain That
tntIt would continue To be National
! Government or National Capital Chief
I JuS.lce MaTshaii however. took lis seat
/ on tne supreme bench in February. ISH.
! ana began, IN that mastery series of de
Z C4slouH, 10 draw out OF the new COnstitu-
! Ton the powers Tor mighty National
J Government which could never be broken.
/ except by revolution While that uyreat
! statesman in the robes Of a Itrist was
/ thus carrying George WashingtOn's ideas
J INTO practical and permanent fleet the
{ National Governments continued To be 50
! poor that II vas not able 10 build uD and
/ improve the Federal City as Washington
/ had intended And even as the nation
Z grew IN wealth and power, and larger
! measures Of both came 20 the National
/ Government, II continued 10 leave the i'm
] proyement Of the city Of Washington. and
\.
Z practically TO the people who lived iE H.
3 For seventy years Congress did not even
I give the District OF Columbia a form of
! government, although Washington was
/ given what Georgetown and Alexandria
I had Of municipal government BIZ MAYOR
/ and city councils
/ In that time Congress spent $4,000. 900
/ IN constructing buildings and other con
/ Veuiences for the business Of the Gov
/ eminent in the District Of Columbia but
I what seems Ike neglect Of the interests
I Of Fa1 loft b..
/ eral improvements and maintenance Of
/ the local governments largely TO the in
/ habitants Of the District II was not
{ perhaps. Intentional neglect 1t WAS Un-
/ alive poverty Of the National Govern
] ment. and afteTward the very conditions
4 resulting prevented that pride and inter
I est which ought 10 have been taken in
/ the National Capital
No CHANGE OF LOCATION.
/ Then, too, It was not until after the
/ civil war that it was finally settled that
/ the National Capital would not be moved
/ from the District Of Columbia IL had
/ hardly been established there before agi-
tatiOu for its removal began. first on the
I part Of those who were dissatisfied with
I Do as "a place % residence. and afteFyya ri
! by those who desired for other places the
honor and advantage IF having the Ma
I ion4l Capital. As the expansion OF the
/ country. begun by Washington and JET
I ferSDn, proceeded westward over the Al
J i-EIeuleS ana beyond the Mississippi. and
/ X became apparent that it might 40 on
! until the Pacific was reached. the men Of
/ the West began 10 mi muir because The
/ National Capital was gu the eastern edge
I OF The Continent. and communication vii p
/ II was slow and difficult The railroad
! and the telegraph were removing Jue only
] SUBS tauIl1l reason for n change. when the
/ civil war made change impossible by
] E1ilUWIug the District Of Columbia with
/ nc sentiments OF S-cEiuCc and glory 1t
( had not been improved as Washington
I desired The city Of Washington had not
! been made beautiful II was stiI uu-
/ 70 nrl and neglected ia its general as
| poets. but great armies Of The best and
/ IFaE'St II 1h. North ana south had
I fought 10 possess q. and many thousands
I Of them had poured out their IirehIo0d
Tor IT, Inc hundreds and thousands Of
/ men VINO marched through il % IL. zst-
tirnrlls all around ID felt O new interest
/ ~ It, and those who survived ana return
/ cd 10 their homes ali over Tho Union com
! munlcatDd that interest 10 their relatives
I and friends IN these DAYS or travel II Isl
/ hard 10 realize how few Americans had
/ visited Washington before the war and
/ tAereioTe how dim and shadOwy the Ma
| uondl Capital seemed 10 the people OF the
/ country But the National CAPITAL like
the National Government became. in
! teussly real and intensely precious 10 the
! ihth 'iilo women whose dear ones went 20
! b-lllt Tor IT, and after the success Of the
| lnirn armies had given new meaning
! 10 both the GDyerumsn t and TIE t'auit4I
! inc SUGGESTION OF giving the Government
/ a new home met only with ridicuIe
| %. greatest captain Cf the war the
| general OF the triumphant armies shared
] The new interest in the old CauitaI for
I which hc had probably cared very little
| Ike most OF his iollOw-Citizcus. before
! IN" war. when General Grant became
! President Of the United States in 1863 no
! came into close official relations with The
/ district OF columbia, and IL was easy for