The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-09-14
WASHINGTON LETTER
Ispecial Corresponaence.l

" ShDu kS tuc vi u llOSl vi
cities i'll the world. 1t is not far away
now. The dream Of the great man for
whom The national capital was named
Will practically be realized.
In buildings and bridges now under
construction Washington is spending
100000 are projected. The senate
and house office buildings will repre-
sent an expenditure of $7,0Oo,00o. The
eastern front of the capitol is To be
extended in marble at a cost of ST.
100000.
Supreme Court Building.
A fine building for TIC supreme
fourt is in contemplation. The rail-
roads are %expending $4,000 Oo on a
magnificent union passens-s.' depot.
Two steel bridges are to be thrown
across the Potomac river, and the
largest cement bridge in the world will
span Rock creek. There will ae a
new war college for the army and sew
eral imposing university buildings. and
extensive improvements are to be
made at the navy yard and the sol
diers' home.
When the house and senate office
buildings are completed the plaza east
of the capitol will be nearly surrounded
by one of the most magnificent groups
Of public buildings in the world.
When the supreme court building goes
up it will probably be without a rival.
The Capitol Kitchens.
During the last session Of congress
Elliott Woods. superintendent of the
capitol, got from the senate rules COM
mittee an appropriation of $4,000
with which TO go ahead and make of
the senat kitchen and restaurant a
Clearly and sanitary place. He also
got from the powers that be III the
house permission to spend a tidy sum
for the overhauling of the house
kitchen and its enlargement to twice
its present size.
To Danish Rats.
Some idea of the conditions under
which the senate cooks prepared the
viands in the past may be given when
it is stated that the senate kitchen was
a regular paradise for rats.
Now it has been decreed that the rats
must go. To accomplish this a new
floor, composed of broken glass. a
sprinkling of lime, and over that four
inches of cement and thing, will be
laid. No rat, it is calculated, could
bore through the combination. The
plumbing and sewerage will also be
done over. There will be a cold stor-
age room built, ten feet square, and in
this all the perishable supplies for the
restaurant will be kept.
An Ice Making Plant.
In connection with the cold storage
room an ice plant will be installed
with a capacity Of two tons. This will
be the first ice making plant installed
in the capitol and will add the duty Of
manufacturing ice to the many other
activities Of the capitol %caretakers. It
will also presage the building Of a still
larger ice plant for chilling the air Cir
culated in the house and senate cham
bers through ventilating shafts. Big
six foot yentilating fans will bring
fresh air into the kitchens. An impor-
N0AS d0OlI1OA WALL O0 u OdhCSuOP AL
which fresh bread and pastry may be
cooked every day under government
supervision.
Government Mapmakers.
A United States geological party I'M
der the direction of Charles Hartmann,
Jr., is now at work completing the sur
vey Of an area Of about 220 square
miles between Hanover and Wood
stock, N. H., undertaken largely
through the efforts Of Senator Proctor
and Dean Fletcher of Dartmouth col
lege. At the conclusion of that work
surveys near Lake Winnepesaukee and
SQuam lake will be taken up. This
work will not be completed this year.
The maps will be useful to those inter
ested in forest preservation, to Dart
mouth college, railroads and power
companies.
Surveying Maine.
A field party in charge Of Hersey
Munroe is now at work on topographic
surveys of portions of Kennebec, An
%droscoggin, York and other counties in
Maine. The party is nov engaged in
mapping an area Of about 220 square
miles about Lewiston, and on the
completion of this work will take up
and finish mapping an area between
Auburn and Poland. That work &C
complished some preliminary surveys
will be made about Fryeburg and
Hiram, including surveys of the roads.
Elevations will also be ascertained
preliminary to the work Of mapping
this section geographically next year.
1t is believed that the maps made as
the result of these surveys will be
helpful to tourists, to railroad and
power companies. to the state in its
work Of improving the highways. to
cities and villages as we'll as to pri-
vate citizens. They will be engraved
on q scale of one mile to one inch and