Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-03-16

mittee of the centennial celebration of
the establishment of the seat of govern
ment in the District Of Columbia, in an
address which was reported in The Even
ing Star December 8. 1900. and which
was reprinted in the report OF the cele-
bration Of the one hundredth anniyer-
sary OF the establishment OF the seat or
government in the District of Columbia,
said:
In the original plans Of the capital 1t
is clearly shown that 1t was the inten-
ton of our forefathers to reserve the
territory on the south side of Pennsyl-
vania avenue in which to erect public
buildings. The demands for business
purposes led to the temporary abandon
ment of this policy, but more than ten
wears ago, Seth Milliken, then chairman
of the House committee on public build
ings and grounds, revived the plan of pre-
serving the south side of the Avenue for
administration buildings, and indeed. 1t
may be said in consequence of his EFFORTS
the project has been kept alive.
: "The members OF the centennial COM
mittee were in thorough sympathy with
this proposition and subsequently they
recommended to Congress in compre-
hensive plan. which should include the
connecting of the Mall and the Potomac
Park with the national Rock Greek Park,
the Improvement of that part of Wash
ington.''
In the report of the committee on parks
and reservations Of the Board of Trade
sires to publicly express its thanks ITO
Senator Mcmillan and to Charles Moore,
the efficient secretary of the Senate Dis
trict committee, for the interest they
have manifested in the suggestions made
before that committee and that I'VE
also desire to express our grateful appre-
citation to the citizens committee on the
National Capital centennial for the un-
firing efforts of its members i'm getting
legislation to unite the disjointed parks
Znn1nQical
Creek parks-into one comprehensive
scheme
That 1900 was busy and prosperous
year for park development plans is fur
Their shown by the report of the Board
of Trade for 1901, that las a result OF
ceaseless agitation on the part of many
individual citizens, and especially the
Board of Trade. Congress at its last ses-
sion provided for a commission to ex-
anime and report upon a comprehensive
treatment of the entire park system of
the District of Columbia and that Your
committee took care to send to the COM
mission a careful paper embodying its
own views as to several very important
features of the park development plans,
notably the reclamation of the Eastern
branch flats, the Fort Stevens reserya-
Rock Creek. valley as the ideal low
grade entrance to the upper Rock Greek
parks, and the use of the Boyce tract
on Georgetown Heights as valuable
park site and entrance to the main park
system
The development of the Washington
park system, then proceeding logically,
received a setback by reason Of the death
of Senator Mcmillan of Michigan, and
in the report OF Thomas w. Smith, presi-
dent of the Board of Trade. presented to
the board in November. 1902. was this:
The park commissions plan lis a grand
one; the way to it's completion was blazed
by grand mind now laid In the dust. We
cannot now feel the great loss this Dis
trict has sustained by the death of Sena-
tor James Mcmillan. Only time and
events will determine the value of his
services to us. He saw clearly the flu
ture needs of this people and shaped leg
islatior for our present benefit and also
for the benefit of the national city of the
future. His motto was to preserve the
beauty of the District as it now is and to
perfect plans for future grandeur
In the report on the Board of Trade
committee on parks and reservations for
that year QS92) Is this:
a heavy blow at the rapid contamination
of the noble park plan which owes it's
existence as a definite proposition more
to him than to any other one person, and
it remains to be seen what public man of
equal influence will come forward to take
UP the task he was not allowed to COM