Evening star., 1902-03-01

monotonouS the surroundings OF Rome.
permanent system of highways. ap-
proved by Congress. regulates the subdi-
vision OF lands In the District, and the
engineers have paid more or less attention
to topography In their plans for this section:
but for the most part the only possible re-
course is Immediately to acquire those ra-
vines and heights which will afford the mos,
desirable park connections. and leave to
government or other public institutions and
to seekers for villa sites the preservation Of
q few from among the multitude Of natural
beauties.
In the Northwest District.
Already the ample grounds OF the long
established Georgetown University COM
mand the Potomac and the Virginia hills:
and farther to the north gleam the white
buildings Of the naval observatory. stand
ing In circle encompassed by Massachu-
setts avenue. The observatory one Of the
most satisfactory OF Richard M. Hunts
creations, can be seen for miles across the
District affording a fine example to be fol-
lowed In future building. The newly -estab-
Eshed bureau of standards (by means Of
"nich the United States purposes to create
a set oe standards that will make the manu-
Iacturers of this country independent OF
Germany and England) has acquired fine
site IN the northwest section. where are
also located the Episcopal Cathedral foun-
datlon. which includes the Phoebe A. Hearst
school for girls and the American Uni
Versity, for which the Methodists have al
reaoy gathered several millions of dollars
The Forts Of '61-5.
Here. too, the District has placed a high
service reservoir on the beautiful and COM
manding site of Old Fort Reno, one of a
chah OF notifications that protected Wash
ington during the civil war.
"hen the highway system was laid out
an or these abandoned forts were connected
by streets, and the park commission ad-
wise that the graSs-grown earthworks he
brought into the park system because rho
same reasons that made them available for
fortlficauons now make them desirable for
small parks. One of them, Fort Stevens.
possesses a unique interest On July 1o
lso4- Gen. Jubal Early, with Ewell's corps
or Lees army, suddenly appeared at Rock
vile, ten miles from the District Of Column
pa. ana the next morning marched down
me seventh street pike to capture the
met by the Sixth Corps which had
been detached from Grants army and
sent up the Potomac for the pro-
lection OF Washington Surprised and baf-
ned by finding a veteran body of men
"here he had reasonably hoped to encoun-
ter only department clerks and the rem
nants' of regiments left in Washington,
Early was himself attacked. and In the hot
engagement that followed, one of the cool
est ana keenest observers who stood on the
parapet Of Fort Stevens. amid whistling
bullets and screechng Shells was Abraham
Lincoln When a surbeon standing by the
President's side was wounded by a mimic
ball Gen. Wright ordered Lincoln down
The President reluctantly obeyed the order:
but nevertheless he would persist in climb
ing up again and again to have look at a
real battle
A Vista.
Along the eastern side of Rock Creek
Park extends 10th street. running in a
mathematfcally straight line from the
White House to the District boundary
Where the street surmounts the hill, a mile
and half from the Presidents house Is a
superb site for a great memorial arch or
column. whence the beholder may COM
mand the entire panorama of the city,
dominated by the graceful dome of the
CepltOl and the serene shaft Of the monu-
ment, and having for a BACKGROUND the
long silver band of the river and the purple
hills Of Virginia. The beauty Of the scene
Is marred to a degree by the restless roof
OF OF the state. war and Navy building, and
by the impertinent tower of the city post
clace as insistent as spoiled child both
arcfltectural warnings for future guidance
Near the northern boundary Of the Zoo
logical Park the Piney branch falls into
Rock creek; and not only is the wild valley
or the tiny tributary highly picturesque
but also in its westerly course 1t cuts
across both the great thoroughfares Of 10Th
ana l4th streets. and thus it is fitted by
nature TO form In part the parkway to the
Soldiers Home. Where Piney Branch val
ley rises to the level of the plain Is a tract
OF thirty acres recently purchased as the
site for group of municipal hospital build
lngs; and by suitable arrangement these
proposed structures may be brought into
reciprocal relations with the new building
to be erected at the Soldiers Home. so
that by widening the connecting avenue a
fine parkway may be completed between
he
and those on the axis of the Capitol
Soldiers Home.
The grounds of the Soldiers Home. now
500 acres in extent, are highly developed
in an informal manner, with borders Of
forest and great central meadows through
which flows small stream that forms
ponds and miniature cascades. The white
stone buildings on higher land at the north
ern end of the grounds command an ex-
tensive view of the city. For years the
Soldiers Home was the only driving park
in the District, as it is now the only one
Of any considerable extent. The original
purchase was made in 1888. with the pro-
ceeds of the indemnity that General Scott
exacted from Mexico for the benefit Of the
soldiers of the United States army Dur
ing the civil war Lincoln often used the
quarters Of one Of the officers as refuge
from the cares and worries Of the White
found strength in the cool of the hills and
serenity in the wide prospect. Today the
grounds are the favorite drive alike of
WashingtonianS and of visitors. while the
blue-coated soldier inmates of the home
willingly share with the black-gowned stu
dents of the neighboring Catholic Univer-
sity of America the enjoyment of we'll
shaded walks and wide stretches OF
meadow.
From the Soldiers Home westward the
parkway extends to the high wooded hill
adjoining the extensive grounds of the Co
lumbia Institution. national college for
the higher education of the deaf and dumb;
thence ii continues until it strikes the Ana
costa or Eastern branch of the Potomac,
including in its course one two tree
topped elevations that should be acquired
for breathing spaces. in anticipation of the
not distant day when the growth of popula-
ton will lead to the occupation of the entire
District.
The Anacostia.
There was time when the town of Bla-
densburg, at the head of naviga ton on the
Anacostia, disputed with Georgetown and
Baltimore for pre-eminence as a shipping
port of tobacco. In 1855 portion of Brad
docks army was quartered on it's peo-
pie, and thence marched to death on the
banks of the Monongahela. There. too.
was the famous dueing ground which
claimed Commodore Decatur among its vic