Evening star., 1902-01-15

already partially formed, would come pre-
cisely at the head Of the proposed boule-
ward making with the hospital, a compo-
sition of remarkable dignity.
About Soldiers Home.
Swinging around the new building of the
Soldiers Home to the north, the continual
ton of the parkway would pass south of
the two cemeteries and would follow the
valley along the boundary Of the home
to Harewood road. To secure good grades
and preserve the beauty of the valley GER
tain additional lands would have to be
quired and thrown into the grounds, COM
pensating for some of the boundary strips
that would elsewhere have to be taken
from them. Following Harewood road the
parkway would skirt the beautiful open
valley to the west, and near the southeast
ern corner of the grounds would turn with
in the edge Of the woods into the valley
and follow it's course, thus avoiding a grade
crossing of the electric cars and surface
traffic of Michigan avenue, which now
crosses the valley In fill and would pass
over the parkway by a suitable bridge.
A lessening Of grades and doing away
with some Of the abrupt turns in the Sol
diers' Home grounds is recommended and
the opportunity for grand formal en-
trance to the park at the head Of North
Capitol street is pointed out The new res
ervoir can be made an important supple
ment to the park system. A strip of land
should be acquired next to Howard Uni
FerSlty 1Or a drive connect howard ParK
with the reservoir and the Soldiers Home
grounds.
lexington Parkway.
The connection from Soldiers Home to
the proposed park on the Patterson proper
ty should follow at first the valley extend
ing south from Michigan avenue toward
lexington. This valley, now crossed dag
onally by Lincoln avenue, Is charmingly
wooded for distance of half a mile, and
oh hn tIa otvv,t ~, Aytp fhn 40
ries to preserve this charm to the utmost.
The Metropolitan Branch railroad
would be crossed by an overhead bridge
and the parkway would join the wooded
portion Of the Patterson property at high
level. so that the continuation Of the drive
through the park woods would not be COM
picated by the new location of the BaIti-
more and Ohio tracks, which should pass
under this part Of the park by a short
tunnel
Patterson Park.
about a mile and quarter northeast Of
the Capitol just beyond Florida avenue
and west Of the large tract Of finely wood
ed land occupied by the Columbian Institu-
tion for Deaf Mutes, is beautiful piece of
land, formerly the Patterson estate. It is
on the edge of the hilly section overlook
ing the city proper, and its northern part,
high and undulating, is covered with q
grove of large old trees, from the edge of
which there Is an inspiring outlook over
the open Southerly slope leading down to a
broad gentle pasture enlivened by very
few outstanding trees There is probably
no better example in the whole District of
the 'park-like type Of landscape, using the
word in it's stricter sense, and it's acquis-
ton is desirable not only for the sake of
it's great natural beauty, but because its
stretch of nearly level green sward, lying
between lexington and Northeast WASH
ington, would be of the utmost value to the
future population Of the surrounding re-
gion. The grove about the old mansion and
to the north of 1t would be hardly less VAL
uable, for 1t Is of such character and
upon such comparatively gentle slopes as
to adapt it to use by large numbers of
people better than any other large piece of
woodland available for park purposes.
Railroad Tracks In Tunnel.
"The wooded portion is crossed by the
line fixed by act of Congress for the Balti-
more and Ohio tracks, which would here
be fifty-five feet below grade, and it is very
desirable, If the region is to become park
that the hill should be tunneled rather
than gashed by a wide, open cut. Parallel
to the track and about two hundred feet
from it is the line of New York avenue, as
shown extended on the highway plans. If
the tracks are placed in tunnel the ave-
nue. might be diverted slightly to the north
around the hill and made the limit of the
park, or it might be carried straight
through as traffic street below grade in
a comparatively narrow cut crossed by the
park drives and paths upon masonry
arches, as is done in the case of the trans
verse streets in Central Park. New York.
Between the Patterson property and
Mount Hamilton there are no natural feat
ures of much attractiyeness and a formal
type of parkway would seem to meet the
requirements of the case. Two routes are
open-to the north or to the south of Mount
Olivet cemetery. Either would be con-
venient and agreeable, but on the whole
that to the north seems the better chiefly
because of easier grades in passing the
base of Mount Hamilton and continuing on
to Anacostia Park. Here again considera-
tions Of land cost as ascertained by nego-
tiations with the owners should largely In
fiuence the final selection Of route
Improving Anac0stia Park.
] The desirability of improving Anacostfa