Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-06-02
FIFTY YEARS AGO
IN THE STAR
James Buchanan was not renowned as a
nimlod. nevertheless one of the most inter-

James Buchanan was not renowned as a
nimIod nevertheless one of the most inter-
esting episodes of his presi-
buck-horn Dental career the pre-
sentation to him of chair
composed of the antlers Of
thirteen bucks, slain in the west by noted
! hunter of that day. In The Star of May
25. 1857. is the following description of the
occasion:
| ION Saturday the formal ceremony of the
! chair to President Buchanan took place In
| the East Room. in the presence of a large
and interested audience. Seth Kinman. the
| mighty hunter of California. whose Prov
| ess and ingenuity have achieved the chair.
was of ~course the observed of all observ-
ers In his hand he bore the famous rife
| Old Tom with which he killed those thir-
| teen deer whose spreading antlers go to the
| composition of this unique work. Seth is a
| fne-looking specimen OF the genus homo.
| being upward of six feet in height and
straight as one of the pines of his we'll
| loved forests. His face is ornamented with
a full and flowing beard giving him an air
| of gravity and wisdom. But his eye is the
| striking feature of his countenance; We
would trust Seth with life on that eye
alone. 1t expresses true nobeness of char
acter and the ample reflective developments
upon his forehead show him to be a man Of
no ordinary stamp.
'On the entrance of the President Mr..
Kinman introduced to him by Hon. Mr..
Denner of California. Mr. Kinman then
addressed the President In simple. straight
| forward backwoods style. but with much
/ appropriateness of language. giving some
what Of his personal history and the history
! Of the chair. The President was evidently
! impressed by the frank. sincere manner OF
| the, hunter and expressed himself as much
| in his kindly reply"
Local poultry owners were in sore straits
! half century ago, for an epidemic Of
| thievery broke out in 1857
that caused a sharp decrease
Thieves in the fowl population of the
capital In The Star Of May
| 25. that year. is the following:
so many of our citizens have taken to
keeping fowls since the introduction of the
| Shanghai and other fine breeds that an ir-
resistible bait is afforded to the chicken
| thieves, who have lately carried their
| depredations in wholesale style. Capitol
Hill has suffered particularly from the
gang Of organized thieves. Lately the
fowls were stolen from the yard Of Mr..
Brent. also from Col. Roans. A very fine
| lot Of fancy fowls were taken about the
same time from the premises Of Mr.. Moran.
| On Monday night last. during the heavy
! rain. nineteen fowls were stolen from Mr..
Jardella's. On Wednesday night Mr.. Barnes
| night the thieves visited the premises Of
| Mr. Matthiot and stole fifteen very fine
fowls. and on Friday night Mr.. Mitchell
| had all his fowls stolen. At Mr.. Matthiot's
the thieves removed a portion of the palingS
| from the fence that they might enter under
cover of the stable and left well-deffned
footprints in the garden soil. and these
| prints indicate that the depredators were
full-grown man and a boy Of from sixteen
| to eighteen years of age. Persons who know
| anything going to show who are the guilty
parties will forward the ends of justice by
communicating to the police. who are en-
deavoring to ferret out the thieves
| 1nasmuch as the omnibus was the only
| means Of public local transportation half
| century ago, the public
| comfort and convenience de-
Quarrel, pended to a large extent
upon the temper and capac-
| ity of the drivers. There was intense
rivalry between the iehus Of the two COM
peting lines. AS the following paragraph in
| The Star of May 90, 1857. shows
Yesterday morning a collision occurred
| between one of the drivers Of Wander
| werken's line and the driver Of Hazfe's
coach between this city and GEORGETOWN.
We do not know whether there was any
previous quarrel between the two drivers.
but we take the statement from an eye
witness of the transaction. Tt seems that
| the driver Of the Vanderwerken bins was
| hailed when opposite the bank of Messrs
| Riggs & Co. by a gentleman who came out
| of the bank. The driver of the other line
was Immediately behind the Wander
werken coach and endeavored to drive be
| tween it and the curbstone- He succeeded
| so far as to put the gentleman to the in
convenience of walking around so as to
| reach the Vanderwerken coach. He got in
and the driver. Muller, started off. The
other coachman, whose name is Massey.
| Immediately drove up beside and locked his
WI np1 wit n Of Null
| he. being unable to extricate himself drove
| along some distance. nearly opposite the
Presidents house. when Massey forced him
| up against the curb and struck his coach
| against a tree box. breaking down the
| tree. which Is small one. and smashing
Mullers coach. throwing Muller off against
a tree with great violence. Muller, who is
| a stout man, got up, supposing he was not
| much hurt. but he shortly afterward ex-
perienced a severe hemorrhage, which IS
| likely to lead to fatal result
X
| The Capitol, the patent office building
| the general post Office. on 7th and F
streets. and the treasury
Public were all in course of con-
pui1din,s struction fifty years ago and
Washington was in a high
state of activity. In The Star Of May 80,
| 1857. is an interesting comment upon this
! condition and its probable sequel:
| finished is common expression among
| those who reflect little upon the progress
! of the country in agriculture. the arts, in
| dustrial improvements. etc. It involves an
entire misrepresentation Of fact assuredly
incidental to the future Of Washington II
! the Union holds together and this city con-
| tinues to be the seat of It's government SO
| long as these two things continue, the gov
| eminent works here will never be fin
| shed' AS our country increases every
| where. in population: as new railroads.
| farms, water courses. etc. are opened as
| more machinery. steamboats,. ships etc.
| come into use-all requiring the transac-
! ton of more business on the governments
| behalf in this city-so must the edifices and
| facilities for its transaction multiply.
| When Franklin was Postmaster General.
| it will be remembered, all the accounts of
| the general Post Office Department of all
descriptions, were kept in q single ledger.
| Now. thousands are required to the same
J end.
| HE who entertains the idea that the
| government can ever cease putting up
| great structures and making vast improve
ments here must surely be looking for
ward to the advent Of the era when our
| country will cease growing in power. COM
merce. agriculture. population and in the