Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-07-26
White Lot Fairgrounds.

Regarding the chldren's Fairgrounds Colo
mel Bingham says:
THE laws on this subject are as follows:
Act Of Congress, approved August 80.
1880 (Stat. L., 2j. p. 1865: The officer in
charge of public buildings and grounds may
authorize the temporary use of a portion of
the monument grounds or grounds south of
the Executive Mansion or other reserva-
tions, in the District of Columbia, for a
chltdrens playground, under regulations to
be prescribed by him.
Act approved March ., 1895 (Stat. L.. IS
p. 9f3): The officer in charge of public
buildings and grounds shall authorize the
use of a portion of the ground within the
circle south of the Executive Mansion for a
chlldrens playground, under regulations to
be prescribed by him.
"A playground was set aside between B
the Washington monument THIS plat of
ground covers an of about eight
acres"
Requests for Lean of Plants.
In chapter on the Propagating Garden,
Colonel Bingham says:
This office is frequently in receipt of re-
quests for the loan of plants from the gar
dens for the use of churches fairs festi-
walls. etc, and demands are constantly made
for Towering and decorative plants for pri-
vate purposes All such requests have to
be declined, as either the loan or gift of
any plants would be in violation of the fol-
lowing extract from the act of Congress ap-
proved June 20, 1873: Provided, That here
after only such trees. shrubs and plants
shall be propagated at the green houses
and nursery as suitable for planting in
the public reservations, to which purposes
only the said productions of the green
houses and nursery shall be applied
After the annual spring planting in the
parks is completed it sometimes happens
that there is a small surplus of bedding
plants on hand. These are divided among
such pubic reservations or institutions as
the State, War and Navy building marine
barracks, Washington aqueduct grounds,
Fort Myer military reservation and va
rious hospitals and orphan asylums After
these are supplied, should there still be a
few such surplus plants remaining they
are given to whoever may ask for them
This office also furnishes, after its park
planting is completed, many plants and
shrubs for beautifying the grounds of the
various executive departments
The Government Reservations.
The area covered by the park spaces of
the District of Columbia under the charge
OF Colonel Bingham's office is 44O25 acres.
There are in all 305 reservations, VARYING
in size from $50 square feet to 81 acres. OF
these reservations 107. of $500 acres. are
improved; "a. of 2SO7 acres, are partially
improved, and l04, of 5s.s5 acres, are unim-
proved.
Between June 80, 1901. and June 80 1902
one-haif Of the $4,000 appropriated by Con-
gress for improving various reservations.
was devoted to unimproved ground and the
first stage of Improvement was accom-
plished on twenty reservations, comprising
2.0S acres, in various parts of the city
This first stage of Improvement consists
OF marking by stones, grading, introducing
water, covering with soil, sowing with
grass seed, planting with trees and shrubs
and, in some cases, inclosing with low, open,
Iron post-and-chain fences or wire fences