Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-07-28
FIFTY YEARS AGO
IN The STAR

The recent invasion of the presidential
precincts at Oyster Bay lends especial
interest to the following
Army paragraph, taken from The
Star of July 20, 1857:
WORN. "A singular spectacle is
just now presented in the large oat field
between the Smithsonian Institution and
the (unfnished) Washington monu-
ment. Thousands of army worms are
marching through the field in west
erly direction. cutting down in their
progress the few stalks of oats which
were spared by the late hail storm The
people in the neighborhood are watching
the progress of these voracious destroy
ers with considerable interest. and 1t
seems to be the prevailing impression
whereabouts that 1t is the purpose of the
'varmnts to hold national worm con-
vocation at the base of the Washington
monument, as they are headed III that
direction. Whether they have been sum-
moned by the monument board, or come
at their prompting to affiliate yith
the management in completing the mon
ument remains profound secret, as
reporters are not admitted to their mod
ern Diet of Worms"
Items like the following, taken from
The Star Of July 81, 1857. were by no
means rare in those days,
Warl1ke though many years have
passed since the frontiers
were alarmed in the same
manner by restless aborigines:
The Indians of Enthusiastically all
the bands in the territory-exhibit very
bad state of feeling toward the whites,
dian bureau in this city. Superintendent
Cullen is at Yellow Medicine (the upper
Sioux agency. and according to instruc-
tons, refused to pay the annuit1es until
the Spirit Lake murderers should be
brought in and given up. He finds that
the Indians Of that agency sympathize
with the Misunderstanding ah- du- tabs
band-and are not disposed to surrender
them. and are manifesting hostile dis
position. He reports about 5000 Indians
concentrated there. and he apprehends
serious trouble If the annuities are not
at once paid, which will not be done
unless the murderers are brought in. The
government is, of course, taking due
measures TO hold the savages IN check"
1t has been so many years since the small
brick building in the Mall. south of the
Pennsylvania railroad sta
Armory ton. was used for its origi-
D.,.. nal purpose as an armory
that few Washingtonians
ever think Of it in that connection. For a
number of years it has been the headquar-
tiers of the fish commissioner. In The Star
of July %. 1857, Is the following item.
which indicates that the modest structure
had a pronounced local significance in
those days:
The improvements in the New Armory
Park are progressing. Under the superin-
tendence of the commissioner Of public
off and graded The grade will be an in
clined plane from the surrounding streets
toward the line of the canal. with flag runs
at proper intervals to carry Off the water.
The whole Armory Square "a to be sur
veyed and planted with beautiful silver
maple shade trees this fall. The grading
will be completed by the first Of October.
and the space contained within the grounds
will be sufficiently large for light artillery
practice. The improvements are calculated
to beautify and adorn that portion OF our
city. which has been too much neglected.
The new armory building Is undergoing
finishing process under the active superln-
tendence of Maj. Bell. The exterior por-
ton Is now receiving a coat of paint at the
hands of Messrs. O'Brien and Scott, while
the inside work is being rapidly closed up:
the carpenters work Is nearly all done and
the workmen expect to have the building
completed. inside and outside, by the first
day of October next. The new building has
three principal floors. and is arranged SO
as to furnish the very best accommoda-
tions for our volunteer military
One of the greatest drawbacks to local
urban life half century ago was the great
number Of animals loose in
Dogs and the streets of Washington
Hogs. a.,'' W., was s ,,Iaue IN . .'aa
dog nuisance In The Star of July "a. 1857
Is a paragraph headed Dogs and Hogs"
as follows:
For the information Of those who are
owners Of the animals above mentioned we
would state that while the officers are op-
Grating in the lower wards against the
one kind they are at work in the mid
die and upper wards against the other.
It is said that though there are be-
tween two and three thousand dogs In
the second ward, there are only about
! forty licenses granted. Since Monday
last the number Of dogs has decreased.
having eaten too freely of the luscious NOR
sells prepared by order of the authorities.
In addition to the strychnine mode Of de-
creasing the number. the officers in the
ward have determined to fine the owners
Of dogs who have not paid the taxes pre-
scribed by law. This, they think, will in
|
law.
1.-The owners of hogs. too. will see the
necessity of securing those animals. as the
time has arrived in which the officers
usually seize upon swine going at large.
The work was commenced on Wednesday
in the fifth and sixth districts and caused
quite a rush Of hog owners to the city hall
to recover their missing porkers. Section
3 chapter H. of Shehans Digest of the Cor
porat ton Laws makes it unlawful for hogs
to go at large: makes it the duty of the
police officers to take and convey them to
the asylum; forfeits them to the corpora
ton and appropriates them to the use OF
the asylum. Twenty-three fine hogs were
taken to the asylum on Wednesday morn
ing from the fifth and sixth districts"
KOREA'S TROUBLE.
From the Minneapolis Journal.
Korea aupears to be in the position Of