The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1911-06-30
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER

Washington, D. c., June 16, 1911.
Mr.. Editor.
There is widespread idea that
Washington is adepopulated city during
the summer. Its normal population is
over three hundred thousand, and it is
probable that the summer population
of 1911, owing to the fact that Con-
gress is in session, is not less than this
number Washington has become a
great center for conventions, whether
religious, industrial, social or what not.
They come here in great numbers and
there is of course no city on this side of
the globe where visitors can see as much
or enjoy themselves as we'll as at the
capital. The railroads bring large
numbers of excursionists to the city in
the summer-people who are on their
way to the seashore and who are glad
to avail themselves of an opportunity
to see the national capital at minimum
expense. Fully rs per cent of the resi-
dent population remain here through the
summer months and those who take
it for granted that Washington is dull
at this SESSION are mistaken. Ambassa-
dor Bryce of England said in recent
address that Washington enjoys the
distinction of being the most beautiful
city in the world through it's multitude
of public buildings, its wide shaded
streets and in its symmetry of plan.
The most beautiful capital Of it's kind
the world has ever seen, is, believe,
the exact languageused by the ambassa-
der. The words ''of its kind" are of
course limiting. The ambassador is a
cosmopolitan as we'll as a diplomat,
and he no doubt weighs his words and
is careful in his statements. There
are of course many other cities, not only
in Europe and Asia, but also in America
that go far beyond Washington in
population and some of them far excel
Washington in wealth and in architec-
tural effects, but with Ambassador
Bryce's limitation, 1.-THE most beauti-
full capital Of its kind his statement
will perhaps defy criticism. The cities
of the world with regard to population
and in the order of their bigness are
London, New York, Paris, Tokyo,
Chicago, Vienna, Berlin, ST. Petersburg
Philadelphia and Moscow. 1t will be
seen three of the largest as we'll as the
next to the largest are in the United
States, and it is predicted that within
thirty years New York will be the
largest city in the world. 1t is, how
ever, bumptious to boast of big cities,
and the excess of city population is be-
lieved by many to be symptomatic of
national disease or degeneracy The
most thrifty and best-governed nations
in the world are those which have a
larger rural than urban population.
Our age is one Of bewildering change
and progress. Distance has been
diminished in so many ways and is in
process of still further humiliation by
inventions Of yesterday, that it is i'm
possible to tell what tomorrow may
bring fourth. At the capital of the
United States, the densely built streets
on each side of Pennsylvania Avenue
which were few years ago the centers
IF fashion, have long since been aband-
,ned by the well-to-do and large part
If the weather. population of Washing
ION is living from three to ten miles dis
amt from the Capitol. But the time and
abor required to reach the White
House, the Capitol, or any of the mar
Die department buildings is less now
han it was twenty years ago. Automo-
,iles and electric cars have taken the
,lace of horse-drawn vehicles. 1t is
lot unusual to see coal, brick, lumber
md other articles moving along the
vide asphalt streets of the capital under
electric or gasoline propulsion. The
ew fine horse-drawn equipages of |
ther times have an antiquated ap-
,earance, and will no doubt soon be
bsolete.
There is but little of interest going
n in the legislative and executive
apartment of the government. The
tho HnI7Cp of