The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1904-11-15
INTERESTING OLD PAPERS.


Norwich CConn.) Morning Bulletin,
dated December Is. 1858. 1t is of four
page, six columns to the page. Unde
the Heading "a Tennesseean's View OF
Washington City appears the follow
ing:
Washington City, the capita; CT tce
nation, the home. during term lime, OIL
the president. falso the temporary resi-
dence of five hundred and ten men who
confidently expect to be ~president,) and
the seat Of the United Sta-es gas works,
technically called c~ongress), is situat-
ed in the District of Columbia, u terri
tory covering a horizontal surface OF
ten miles square,, n extending per-
p~endicularly all the way through. AS
every place in the city is from three
quarters of a mile to a mile and three-
quarters from everywhere else, Wash
ington is called in Fourth of July ora
tons, and that style Of literature gen.
orally, 1.-The city of magnificent dis
tances." 1t derives its name of Wash
ington from a celebrated continental
officer who built the pine huts, and
forged his way through a very hard
winter at Valley Forge, and made Corn
wallis acknowledge the corn at York
town. The principal public buildings
of the city are the patent office, where
the yankees are granted he exclusive
right to manufacture and sell India
rubber baby jumpers, double geared
rat-traps,. Railways Ready Relief
which is warranted to relieve you Of
your money, if nothing else, and other
valuable inventions of the age; the gen.
eral postoffice, where they s~uperintend
the management of the various mail
routes of the country; the national
treasury, an institution of learning
which has graduated more men in the
art of swindling the government than
any ten similar or dissimilar institu-
lions of the world: and the city jail.
which is the only public building in
Washington which is really devoted
to honest purposes, and that is devot-
ed to no purpose at all, both the per-
manent and temporary residents of the
city being too deeply engaged in their
~rascalities to think of Furnishing
other people for theirs.
There are two monument in WASH
ington, one Of red granite, erected to
the memory of Mr.. Smithson, at his
own expense; and a monument to the
folly, righteousness and ingratitude OF
the American people. The latter is
about SO feet high, with upward
Though hopeless) expectations of five
or six hundred feet. It is commonly
called the Washington or national mon-
ument. General Taylor caught his
death in 1850 at the laying of the cor
ner stone of this structure It is hard
ly probable that any of his successors
will perish at the laying of the cap
stone. 1t is much more probable that
presidents will be done with at least
six weeks before that event arrives.
The imports of Washington consist
principally of office-seekers and pick
pockets (both of which are frequently
combined in one,) and fast women.
who indirectly make half the laws that
are put through congress. It's exports
are disappointed politicians and whis-
key. The latter is generally bottled.
OF rather unbottled in members of con-
gress for transportation.
Taking it altogether, Washington is
an exceedingly hard place. The public
men there are all very honest and up
right, however, that is, until they go
home and turn against the Administra-
ton, when, of course, they become, like
Stephen A. Douglas, and John W.
Forney, the most scoun-
drels unhung. We have the authority
of a number of administration news
papers for saying so.
During the sitting of congress,
though, innumerable murders and rob-
meries are committed in the city; but
as everybody there is above suspicion
and wouldn't hurt a hair of your head,
o take the smallest coin from the
treasury, the perpetrators invariably
escape detection. Under these benign
auspices, it is no wonder that it cannot
or has not been said of Washington
as was recently said of a one-horse
town in Kentucky that if, at the las
day, Gabriel should happen to light
there first, the resurrection would be
indefinitely postponed, for some one OF
the inhabitants would swindle him out
of his horn before he could make a
single toot."
Accompanying this is also a repro
duction of the first issue Of The Chelsea
Courier, dated November 80, 1896 and
published in Norwich, Conn. This is
a four page, four column paper. Among
it's reading matter We find a prociama.
ton by President washington regard.
ing 1.-The treaty os amity, commerct
and navigation recently made between
the United states and Great Britain
| 1t contains two columns of war news
French n the allied powers. Til,
dates of these war news items run from
September 18th to October 9Th. 1t ais;
publishes the official notice of tn,
French minister, NJ. p. 4. Adet, to tn,
L American nnnnin +haA b. hna +An4 Ia,