Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-05-17
FIFTY YEARS AGO
IN THE STAR

| 1t is difficult for residents of Washing
ton of this date to think Of the Capitol
Park as OF smaller dimen-
Capitol sons than at present, but
! in The Star of May 10. 1853.
Is to be found evidence
that the subject of charging the grounds
was then acutely under consideration:
I'VE have already noticed that Senator
| Bright. from tlfe committee on public
buildings. reported a bill a few days
ago providing for the enlargement OF the
Capitol grounds 1t is proposed in this
| bill to extend the Enclosure to the two
I'd streets east and west and to the two
c streets north and south. and condemn
| all the property within the space des-
| ignated. The bill directs the Secretary
of the Interior to make application to the
| Court of Claims and requires that court
to make just and equitable appraise-
| ment of the cash value of the interest OF
| each owner.
There are unusual and summary fea-
lures in the bill and 1t will probably un-
dergo some radical amendments before
| becoming a law. For instance. 1t recog-
nizes in the Court of Claims a jurisdic-
| ton hardly contemplated in the creation
|
of the property condemned and the adj
! Indicator between the owners and the
government. Again. 1t implies a right
on the part of the government to take
the property at a cash valuation. and
| that. too, after that value has been
fixed by an instrument of the govern
ment-the Court of Claims. This is sure
ly supersedence of that clause of the
Constitution which declares: Private
property shall not be taken for public use
| xx-it i,,cf
| X
The following paragraph in The Star
of May II indicates that while perhaps
the crime wave had some
Lively what subsidized, the local
r. atmosphere was by no
means undisturbed:
Last night the merry folks. big and
| little. white and colored, spent jolly
time after the fashion that pleased them
! best. The guards and police were kept
busy until late hour quieting some who
could be quoted and arresting others who
would not. Whisky and lager appeared
to he plentiful and of particularly in
| toxicating and belligerent quality. Con-
sequentIy the games began at an early
| hour. First a number of cOlOred DANES
In Hog alley entered the ring and fought
until some of the whipped party started
for the police. Next two parties Of ju-
| veniles. rallying under the names OF
! Tigers and 'Butternuts,' got into a stone
| fight on the avenue in the third and
fourth wards. greatly endangering heads
and shins in that vicinity by the volley
OF stones and brickbats thrown Next a
number of young gentlemen near the cor
ner Of 9th and ID streets raised a 'muss
| which came near ending in a fight. This
was caused by u person who had evident
| ly been taking "A little too much shout
ing: oh. you paint skins" The watch
returns show that the police were attend
| ing to duty as we'll as they could with the
force in active service. and the night
proved to be profitable to the police Of
ficers. though very expensive to their
| customers"
| The residents of Georgetown. which
was a separate municipality fifty years
ago. were greatly agitat ed
Georgetown in 1858 over a proposition
to slice off part of its ter
ritory and give 1t to the
county of Washington. In The Star o
May II. 1858. in Spectators regular cor
respondence of The Star from Georgetown
was printed the following:
| THE proposition of these petitioners Is
| certainly such a downright outright abb
| surdity that We do not believe it can
| possibly meet with any favor from Con
gress. especially when it is made known
| that the proposition comes from but a
moety of the persons living in the To-
| caltiy in question. and that the only OBJ
ject of the disaffected parties Is TO save
| themselves from the payment Of the diff.
4, ference of the county and our city taxes
| while they would still receive. in an IN
! direct manner. from our town all the
protection offered by our police regula-
tons and one-half the amount necessary
| to keep their roads In repair. to say
| nothing Of the benefit they have already
| received from our corporation treasury
| We therefore in the name of at least
| observation-disclosures of our Prepayment citi-
Zens demonstrate and protest agains
thu execution of the project of thes'
| few disaffected. restless individuals. /
! Congress in its wisdom shall act upon
| this principle In the case now in question
| we have no fears about the matter. The
petition will meet the fate it deserves
| an eternal sleep upon the table of the
| house in which it may be presented or in
the pocket OF some OF the gentlemen com
| posing the District committee"
| The process of calling a quorum in Con-
gress fifty years ago was more difficult
| one than 1t is at present
Delinquent with all the means Of rapid
| transit and with the tele-
phone at present available
| for speedy transmission of intelligence
| In The Star Of May IL. 1853. is an arti-
Gle descriptive of a scene in the House
of Representatives. when a quorum was
being obtained by the methods in vogue
| at that period.
Those who had been for six hours -
| says The Star ''plodding patiently
through the heavy work they had ac-
complished at once voted call of the
House: whereupon scene arose that
baffied all attempts at description. The
! sergeant at arms and his assistants were
dispatched to bring there the bodies OF
| the absentees. Such of them were a!
| their lodgings. on the avenue or elsewhere
within the reach of the nabbers. were
of course. caught and duly led to the bar
| of the House, where some OF them were
! excused on the allegation Of sickness and
a large number were fined 81 each. II
| seemed as If a dreadful epidemic had
suddenly broken out among the members
so many of them proved to be sick We
felt for such of them. positively: they
seemed to be suffering SO much bodily
anguish. poor fellows. That is for those
| who were only sick enough to be at home
AS for the lucky ones who were SO very
| sick not to be able to reach their re-
| spective quarters. SO as to be found by
| the sergeant alarms. they saved their
81 each as well as their consciences. get
! ting off scot-free. These proceedings
| occupied the House from about 5 pm
until near midnight. OF course. no real