Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-04-06
TO RESTORE NAME OF DAVIS
BIDS OPENED FOR RECARvING
CABIN JOHN BRIDGE TABLET.
Present Inscription to Be Removed
and New Letters to Be Cut
in the Fresh Surface.

Proposals were opened today at the
Office of the engineer in charge of the
Washington aaueduct for restoring the
name of Jefferson Davis to the stone
tablet on Cabin John bridge, six miles
west of the city. from which II was
expunged in President Lincolns ad-
ministration. The name is to be re-
stored in accordance with orders given
by President Roosevelt on Washing
toms birthday. less than two weeks
before he left the office of chief exec
utive. Although the amount of WORK
to be done is comparatively small and
the cost very little. yet II took con-
siderable time to get the orders
through the various channels to the
officer directly in charge of the work.
who at once went about completing
the necessary details. The bridge IS q
high structure and considerable scat
folding has had to be erected where
the mechanics will do their work.
elimination of Efforts.
The restoration of Mr.. Davis name
to the tablet will mark the culminatio
of many efforts with that object in
view. which. however. will finally be
accomplished without the Immediate
appeal of any organization or indivId-
ual. but by the direct orders of Mr.
Roosevelt himself. An allotment of
$3.50 was made for the work by the
engineers Office. The specifications
asking bids for the restoration of the
name read as follows:
Restoring the name of Jefferson
Davis on the granite tablet on the west
abutment of Cabin John bridge by re-
moving the entire face Of the stone
about five by eleven feet to a depth
approximately one inch or sufficient TO
form A new. clean smooth pushed sur
face and recruiting the legend now upon
the tablet with the addition of the
name JEFFERSON Davis as shown upon
the rubbing with 'v'-cut letters The
present ogee marginal border around
the tablet is to be pushed to q clean
bevel cut one and one-half inches
wide"
The Inscription.
Two stone tablets are built in the
bridge, one on each abutment (south
face). One bears the inscription:
Union Arch
Chief Engineer. Capt Montgomery G. Meiss,
L. S. Corps Of Engineers.
Esto Perpetua.
Washington Aqueduct.
Begun AID. 1883
President Of the Z. S.. Franklin Pierce.
,- Building AID. 1851.
PRESIDENT Of the II. s.. Abraham Lincoln.
Secretary Of War; Simon Cameron
The blank space in the above descrip.
ton indicates the place formerly filled
by Mr.. Davis name. Its absence from
the tablet all these years has always
stimulated curiosity on the part Of sight
seers. who made inquiries az to why the
space was blank and whose name II
any. had filled 1t. The presence of the
name there. as an army officer pointed
out today. will put Mr.. Davis name in
the same category as the others now on
the tablet. which because of its com.
paratively inconspicuous position will not
attract the attention that 1t heretofore
has and will relieve the ubiquitous guide
of one of his subjects for comment and
an object of interest to be pointed out
to tourists.
1t will probably take workman two
weeks to do the work, required by the
specifications. The use of the W. shap-
ed letters to be chiseled in the tablet
is less expensive and less laborious than
the square cut letters usually adopted
but at the same time they are con-
spicuous.