North Park union., 1901-06-28
vandais at Washington.

Nearly every tourist who visits
Washington wants to take away
souvenir. Souvenir stores In the ma
tional capital are us plenty MS saloons,
but your true souvenir hunter wants
something that he has culled himself.
By preference he will hammer, hew
or slice It of from some monument or
landmark. That Is why 1t costs Uncle
Sam a fortune to guard his treasures
Of history, wonder and beauty. What
ever public building you enter. your
cane, umbrella, or whatever you may
have that would make a good ham
mer. il taken from you and checked.
and at the Congressional Library and
Corcoran Art Gallery you are watched
very closely, lest you might get an op-
portunity to use your heels. These
two places are particularly enticing to
the vandal. with all their statuary and
carved marble.
Unfortunately the Washington Mon
ument has not been 80 well guarded,
consequently 1t is badly Scared by
the depredations of the souvenir
fiends. Inside 1t is very dim in spots.
the light being supplied by an occa'
siopal incandescent lamp, along the
stairway. It Il In this atmosphere that
vandalism nourishes. Like white
squares and the blacks Of q huge
checker board stand the memorial
slabs presented by the states in the
Union at the time Of the monuments
erection, and by the societies and or
ganiaations of the nation wishing their
names to be immoftalixed at the ma
tional capital. There are more than
LEO Of these, and many Of them are In
q distressful condition of mutilation.
Missing heads, arms, legs and drapery
from statuary bear eloquent witness
to the appreciation Of visitors who
were 90 favorably impressed with tho
monument that they couldn't tear
themselves away without taking some
thing with them to remember 1t by.
Just exactly what value, real or senti-
mental, the left ear lobe of the God
dess of Prosperity, for instance. can
have for any person liz hard for . sane
man to understand. Somebody got II,
however.
AT Mount Vernon there il q small
army of ''spotters" on the lookout for
the worker of souvenir iniquity. A
quarter admission Is charged and the
money goes to defray the expense Of
guarding the place. In Washington's
old home there 10 one thing that strikes
the notice by its contrast to the pre-
vailing simplicity~ 1t is the carved
mantelpiece Of Cafara marble in the
dining room. One who Is not q van
dal cannot gaze. upon It without an
alternating the whole race of relic
seekers. Even with watchers In every
room some Individual managed to "get
in his work." and knock OF the head
of a galloping deer In the center OF
the group. The animal remained head.
less for months. Then one day back
came the head In a little box post.
marked Paris. The culprit had real.
lied the evil Of his ways, the villainy
of his vandalism. Said the accom-.
panying note, ut did not occur to me
In my own country, where everything
Is 30 perfectly preserved. the outrage
that 1t IL to mutilate historic places
for relice. Here nothing 10 preserved
everything IL Clipped and marred and
broken by travellers like myself. I re.
turn herewith. ETC." Signed-not at all
The head was stuck on, the glue
stained the marble. and the milk white
deer has n yellow streak around his
neck.