Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-04-28
FIFTY YEARS Ago
In THE STAR
Patent
Office.


Office of the Interior Department
was then. and is still, called.
In The Star of April %, 1857, Is a news
paragraph descriptive OF the stage Of the
work.
THE unfinished portion of the excava-
ton of the foundation for the north wing
of the patent Office has been commenced
The court wall Is in active progress
and will soon be finished. The foundation
wall Of the F street, front will be COM
menced in few days. large portion Of
the foundation stone, which is of granite, Is
already cut. AID workmen are busily en-
gagged on the foundation cutting. Some
twenty laborers have already been put on
the excavation and in short time the
area wall will have been completed. The
west wing is progressing rapidly toward
completion under the management Of Mr.
James Walker, the skillful master work
man. The beautiful portico is nearly fin
ished, and the expectation Is that the entire
west front will be finished In one month
The fine doric columns, forming the chief
feature of this portico, are all set, the
futing very nearly finished ana the sur
mounting entablature Is being set on.
Preparations are being made for the erec-
ton of the geometric stairway in the rear
of this wing. This stairway forms the
means of egress and ingress from the court
and will wind from the base to the top Of
the wing. connecting with all the floors OF
the main building.
Washington has not in recent years been
seriously infested with street beggars. but.
judging from a paragraph
Street in The Star of April "A,
Beepars. 1857, this nuisance was at
that Time a subject OF ear
nest protest on the part Of the citizens:
THE Italian or gypsy women who beg
on the principal streets OF Washington are
an irterminable nuisance, and 1t Is high
time that the police had put a stop to their
business. All of them are strapping, ana
the babies they almost invariably carry In
arms or lead by the hands are as invarla-
bly, old enough to be bound out Their
faces anc calling are familiar to every po-
lice officer In the second. third and 1ourth
wards They refuse to take no for an an
swer and pursue strangers, especially, with
the pertinacity Of the lazzaroni of Naples.
Take them in hand without delay. Messieurs
Police. for every one OF them Is healthy.
strong and large enough to earn an honest
and fair living.
The situation in Utah was a cause o.
grave concern to the people Of the east in
1857, and speculation to
Mormon the outlook for a breach of
Problem. the peace was rife. In The
Star Of April "a Is an editorial
article on this subject. in part as fol-
lows:
THE solution of the Mormon problem by
the government is destined to be one of
great difficulty. Its embarrassments have
multiplied rapidly of late. while public opin-
ion is clamorous for action on the part of
the authorities here. Those who are not
responsible for whatever the government
may eventually do may fancy that 1t is
the easiest thing imaginable to root out the
nuisance of the Mormon settlements in
Utah. and that there will then be an end
of all the trouble and the disgrace to the
civilization of the age existing there. We
wish 1t were so: but unfortunately the case
is otherwise. The government cannot sup
press Mormonism legally by force Of arms,
even under its threats, as provocative:
and to do it illegally would be to set
precedent more disastrous in its conse-
quences, it may be, to our country's future
than the present continuance of the Tester
ing moral sore existing in that quarter.
Although nearly all believe that it is the
purpose of Brigham Young and his church
to contemn the authority Of the general
government, 1t is probable that they will
essay to do so by getting around the law
rather than by openly setting it at defiance;
in which case there be no legal cause
for placing their territory under martial
law and subjecting them to military gov
eminent. Our belief is that the evil will
cure itself under the prudent management
thOrities here
Washington was somewhat on the boom
half a century ago, and had visions Of
future greatness which were
Local soon to be obscured by the
Boom. war clouds. In The Star of
April %, 1857, is an editorial
expressive of the vigorous public sentiment
then in evidence:
THE present prosperity Of Washington
and her future prospects are exciting the
attention of active business men. The I'M
precedentedly rapid rise of population, now
nearly 100000, is a fair index of what may
De expected during the ensuing five years
Capitalists. stockholders, bankers and
spectators will, for PERIOD keep things
moving, and in an excited, feverish state
making us familiar with the bulls and bears
of Wall street transactions-the great
sharks will have their faithful little pilot
fish actively employed. The advantage and
disadvantage Of each location will, in turn,
be discussed. and reported sickly
healthy, as circumstances may be, to buy
or SELL no effort will be too great to secure
good sale or purchase. To intimidate the
weak minded and urge sales, suggestions
will be made of the probable change of
location of public buildings to more suitable
already secured locations the prospect of
public buildings being erected will become
the common topic of conversation.
This activity In our city affairs Is the
herald Of its approaching greatness, which
must, as the metropolis of great republic
become the wonder of after ages, in its
magnitude. elegance and attachments in art
and science. When speculation is most ac-
tive, men will be distrustful; doubts will
exist as to the course Improvements will
take: where lots and farms have been pur
chased at low prices. we may expect the
greatest efforts will be made: of course,
this distribution of capital will, for time,
appear dsadvantageous: we think the re-
suit will prove beneficial. Those who are
easily warned of the dangers of straying
too far, and watch the signs of the times
will do WELL always remembering that
there is a tide in the affairs of men which,
when taken at the flood. leads to for
tune"
BACK on The JOB.