Bisbee daily review., 1909-04-25
MONEY APPROPRIATED
 FOR DECENT BURIAL

WASHINGTON, D. C., April 24.- The body of Major Charles L'Enfant, the stormy petrel of the early days of the city of Washington, will lie in state in the rotunda of the capitol April 2s, just prior to it's reburial in Arlington cemetery. The designer of the plan of the capitol spent his last days in poverty as the guest of VII liam Dudley Digges at Green Hill, Maryland. and he was buried there. At it's last session congress appropri- ated 5000 to transfer. the body to Arlington and to erect a memorial oy- CT the grave. Brief services will be held in connection with the reburial and Vice President Sherman and the French ambassador, NJ. Jusserand. will speak.
 In connection with the revival Of plans for the Identification of Wash ington much sentiment has grown up regarding the services of Major L'En- fant. Nobody knows precisely what he did in designing the city of Wash ington, though 1t is a matter of rec ord that he tried the temper of Wash ington and Jefferson beyond endur- ance. But congress always is long on sentiment and made the requested appropriation without batting an eye. And maybe it was right, though con gress itself doesn't know.
 LEnfant was a 22-year-old provin- cial officer when he came to Amerf- ca from France to join the continent al army. He was commissioned cap tain of engineers and after the revolu- ton he remained in America as a civ il engineer and architect When the time came to plan the federal city l. LEnfant was commissioned to draw uD the design Both Jefferson and Washington were in constant consul tation with him and it is reasonable to suppose that they were more re- sponsible than the engineer for the final plan. Washington had a natuT- al gift for laying out grounds, as his Mount Vernon estate proves. More over. he had grand ideas-using grand" in it's finest sense-and he believed that the original design or more inhabitants Without such powerful backing 1t is fair inference that LEnfant would not have ven tured to plan on such a vast scale as he did.
  plished advisor. Jefferson had cuI- ture. enriched by foreign travel. He had seen far more of the world than the provincial French officer, who left Europe at 22. Indeed, one of his letters to L'Enfant is preserved, which shows the sort of help he gave. He says:
 Tn compliance with your request I have examined my papers and found the plans of Frankfort-on-the-Ma Main, Carisruhe, Paris, Amsterdam. Stras- burg. Orleans, Bordeaux. Lyons. Mont pelier. Marseilles, Turin and Milan. which I send fin a roll by post They are on a large and accurate scale. having been procured by me while in those respective cities myself. As they are connected with notes I made lon my travels. and are often neces- lsary to explain them to myself, I will beg your care of them and to return them to me when no longer useful to you"
 Nobody could get on with L'Enfant and President Washington dismissed him. For his years work he was of fered 5000. about the salary of a cabinet officer of that day He felt this. was not enough and there were endiess bickerings between him and congress.
 The general scheme of the city was worked out by LEnfan; To him is due the plan Of radlaiing avenues. the location of the presidents house and the capitol and the mall between then. He seems to have been re garded by the men of his time as hay. ing marked artistic ability. but CT ratio and without the practical gifts necessary to carrying out the great enterpr.se that for a time was en- trusted 10 him.
 
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