Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-06-14

THE first public street bootblack that !
ever saw worked on lower Broadway in
New York city in 1851" explained a pension
office clerk to a Star reporter. Il resided
in New York city at that time and knew
the boy well His name was Reddy Walsh.
He generally was TO be found near the
Astor House. All of the hotels had a staff
OF b0otblacks then much larger than they
do now. for muddy or very muddy streets
Seveu in New York are things of the past.
There was plenty of work for them. how
ever. Reddy was a character in his way,
but it was not long before he had OPPOSE
ton. and inside of a year there were hun
d-eds of street bootblacks in downtown
New York 1 came to Washington with the
7th New York Regiment at the breaking
ont of the civil war early in 1861. and with
the regiment came two three of these
bcOtbiacks. They were packed into our
baggage cars ard came as baggage. The
boys remained here. and as as the
men in Gur regiment learned that it was the
proper thing for soldiers to look after their
own boots. for shoes were not much worn
then, the bOOtblackS drifted away from the
regiment and went to work the streets.
They made their headquarters generally
near the old Willard They were, ] under
stand. the first street bOotblacks ever seen
on the streets of Washington. AS there
was more mud than anything else on the
streets then. it was not long before they
had hundreds OF followers At one time
during the war fifty bootb1acks could be
seen on the avenue in distance of four or
five blocks
Haven't you noticed" remarked the
veteran conductor to The Star man, ''how
the knowing ones avoid the rear seats of
the open cars during the evening in the
summer time? Well. the reason is simple.
The brilliantly lighted car attracts myriads
OF gnats and other winged insects and the
breeze caused by the moving car drives
them TO the rear. There they buzz around
the passengers heads like mosquitoes in a
Jersey swamp. How they stick to the ear
and are not blown away is something can
not explain. Another peculiar feature of
the matter is that the pests are always
thiczest over the rear seats of the front
car and seem to avoid the rear end of the
trailer where the smokers sit"
With all it's architectural beauty and
wealth OF mural ornament the Capitol
building is in many ways very deficient in
utilities that any private concern would
provide with the greatest liberality. Very
few senators have more than one room at
the Capitol in which TO conduct their WORK,
and the room is used for COMMITTEES
meetings and for the accommodation of
two or more committee employees beside tie
senator himself An especially prominent
example Of this lack of accommodations Is
shown in the case of the Senate committee
on the District of Columbia That commit
tee has what is in many respects the mos.
magnificent room in the building, it's ceiling
frescoed by BrUmidi. being one of the
sights that guides seek TO show to visitors.
The committee room is often called the
office OF the mayor of Washington, and
the things that have been arranged there
viii go a long way to make up a history of
the most beautiful and important features
OF the city. More people call at that room
OF business than at any other in The build
Ing. and yet there is no waiting plac9 eX-
cept in the one room that is used III COM
mon by Senator Mcmillan. Mr.. Moore ard
others connected with the committee work.
This makes the privacy of the room an i'm
possible condition unless the outer door is
closed is done when the committee
meets. and then callers find waiting place
in the corridor.
A department clerk on his way to office
few mornings ago occupied the rear seat of
a street car and was enjoying an after
breakfast smoke. the rules Of the COM
pany permit. when a young woman. passing
several vacant seats. took her position next
to him
4 beg your pardon she said to the clerk
but would YOU mind throwing away that
cigar
Il most assuredly would was the mans
response. Il paid nickel for this cigar
and | certainly did not buy it to throw
away. This cigar is a part of my Lreak-