BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1902-10-09

have built what was then popularity
called the "Presidents Palace" on the
same theory with lawns and gardens
extending down to the waterfront.
They even went further and developed
plans for an artificial basin south of the
White House, into which they expected
the incipient canal system of the city
was to focus. At that time the river
ran much further inland than now,
and this part of the old canal has been
obliterated within the recollection Of
many people now living in Washing on.
1t is only as one stro1ls cat in the
gardens south Of the White House that
one really understand. the mine of the
structure, or comprehends the singular
beauty embodied in the plans of its res
toration. The generic scheme of the
mansion was selected by Washington
himself, in conference With lanes
Hogan, the architect, and they were
frequently in consultation with Teffer-
son. The guide-books all say that it
was modelled after Leinster Castle in
Dublin; but this is incorrect. Glenn
Brown, the historian of the fam
ous architecture and the Washing
ton representative of McKin, Mead
and White, in charge of this particular
work, sent to Dublin and had photo
graphs made of the. castle. Nothing
there justifes the view that the White
House is a. copy Of it. Both are in
Italian renaissance, but the White
House is far the finer of the two. Mr..
McKin, probably our foremost critic,
says that it is still the best residence
house in its exterior lines in this coun-
try; others have been built costing vast
ly more, but none which approach it in
beauty and refinement.
JefersOn's Impress.
The White House is peculiarly Vir-
ginian in it's genesis. Not only did the
design chosen of Washington and its
relation to the waterfront conform to
prevailing Virginia customs, but Tef-
ferson, who was to become President
while it was still in a formative stage.
stamped his ideas upon the structure in
a respect which is today the key to the
present Improvements. The visitor at
Monticello notices the basement wings
OF terraces, which Jefferson threw out
from the main part of his mansion
house. These were for the colored
servants, and they reflect something of
the social conditions of the times. The
White House had the same projections,
one of which in course of time became
by conservatory on the top,
and SO cloaked on the south front by
propagating gardens as to lose its dis
tlnctlve character, while the terrace on
the other side, extending towards the
treasury, was removed altogether in
Buchanan's time. The old pictures of
The white House, certainly every thing as
ate as IS4o, show both Of these terrace
wings, as does an oil painting displayed
BY one of the Washington bookstores
sor the edifcation of those who think that
he present architects are building a
piece on" to the White House.
These terraces deserve plain descrip-
ion, since they are so fundamental tol
he new plans. One story brick struc-
ures, they extend out on the ground
evel both east and west, and form
,art of the basement. The top of the
GRACE IS absolutely flat, and on subs
antially the same level as that of the :
lrst floor of the White House; their
reatment has been suggested by SINH
ar work in Versailles, and this was
oubtless the intention of the designers
the White House; there will be on
ach side a parapet wall. about two and
halt feet high, to be adorned with T
otted trees and box shrubbery. This
Ill afford a beautiful vista of green M
ztending two hundred and fifty feet
each direction from the center of A
le White House. B.