Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-09-20

into an urban way along part of its
course AS many persons know who
ride in street cars and visit the Sol
diers'' Home and Rock Creek cemetery,
a street which was cut through a good
many years ago, but is not yet paved
or bordered with footwalks connects
the eth street road with Rock Creek
Church road 1t is Upshur street, and
the cars which cross over from the
ancient eth street road. or Georgia
avenue, come to the end of their rails
and discharge their passengers close
by the Eagle gate, or the main west
gate of the Soldiers Home.
The upper part of Upshur street
shows a big surface of raw clay and
steep banks. On the left YOU travel
east, and high above the grade of the
street is copse of oaks which re-
minds you that within the memory of
men who now walk that way heavy
woodland covered that part of the
District. In these remaining woods are
benches and swings, and there is a
sign nailed to one of the oak trees
which indicates that the place is a
semi public park. At the junction of
Upshur street and Rock Creek Church
road is the yard of a stone cutter, who
specializes in tombstanes, or, as they
are more often called in the language
of tn epresent day, monuments" In
the neighborhood of cemeteries may al
ways be found these reminders that
life is short.
If You turn to the northward, a few
steps brings you opposite the Eagle
gate, so called because of the big
brown-painted spread eagles that perch
as though about to fly on the tops of
the great brick gateposts. The gate
n of he
entrance, and as you pass along, no
doubt, you will glance at the cluster
of handsome buildings, groves, lawns,
flower beds, polished brass cannon that
glitter in the sunlight and groups of
men, some young, but most of them
old, some erect and some bent, some
who walk with a sprightly step and
others who limp with crutch or cane,
who are coming and going beneath the
deep shade of the trees.
Rock Creek Church road along this part
of its way is much travelled by teams and
autos, but on the right hand is a mar
row footwalk of brick, and you closely
hug the iron picket railing on the low
brick wall which bounds the grounds.
On the left the road is bordered with
small trees and shrubs, their green al
most turned to gray by the dust of the
road. There are sassafras trees, al
lanthus, stunted catalpas, famished
elnls and vines, and because of this
screen, perhaps, you will not see the
titled fields that lie on the other side.
a bend in the road to the eastward
and you come upon a clean gravel way
leading into the glebe of Rock Creek
Church, and the assumption of the
Tam bier was that it leads to the, rec
tory, for down that road you can see
a dignified house with lawn and
flower beds before it.
A little house stands off the left of
Rocl. Creek Church road near this
point. Age has put it's mark upon it
and there are many signs that it is not
of modern build. II is frame, and the
Notwithstanding is what was called
clapboards-very wide planking, each
plank overlapping the other. 1t is one
story high, is covered with a single
roof and has an outside chimney. At
the roadside and nearly in front of this
decaying cottage, a man sat on the
grass in the shade of a big tree. Per-
haps he sits there every day, but at