davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

makes what the Rambler feels to be an
interesting picture. the canal at TINS
point lies Stagnant. or ut least piacld,
in a gorge formed by rough rock walls
and tall brick buildings which have a
warehouse or factory-like architecture
and whose foundations are sunk close
by the side OF the towpath. leaving
only a narrow footing for the mules
and their drivers between the water
and the walls.
The facts chiseled on the little monu-
ment outline a good deal of the history
of an enterprise Of noteworthy magni-
tude when the canal was conceived,
undertaken and completed-an enter
prise which has long been associated
with the commercial and the senti.
mental life of Washington. The canal
presents pictures that are interesting
to all people and thousands of Wash
ingtonians walk the towpath and
snapshot canal scenes and views
The canal between the Aqueduct
bridge and it's exit into Rock creek
lacks the beauty and the sentiment or
the stretches or levels which wash
ingtonians know so we'll, and perhaps
only a small percentage of the people
who have the towpath habit have ever
seen the canal monument. or read its
inscriptions, or looked upon this some
what dismally unitarian and certainly
unbeautiful section of the canal.
At various times in the years that
are gone the Rambler has had occa-
sion to make reference to the Potomac
Improvement Company, an olden
scheme that contemplated a union OF
the Atlantic ocean and the great lakes
by means of the Potomac river, short
portage over the Allegheny mountains.
one of the streams flowing into the
Ohio river from the western slope of
those mountains. river flowing
southwark into the Ohio and short
canal thence connecting with one of
the rivers flowing northward into Lake
Erie. The pioneer of this idea prob
ably was. and the first promoter of the
plan certainly was, George Washing
ton. 1t engaged his attention before
the revolution and claimed a large
share of his time between the surrender
of his military commission at Annap-
oils and his Inauguration as President
of the United States at New York.
OF Washington's purpose in the fur
therance of this grand project the
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

cylinders. and according as each is
charged. 10 drawn within its axis. The
cylinders being charged alternately. the
effect is to cause the bar to pass from
one to the other. The induction and.
cessation OF the electrical currents
rapidly follow each other, and as a mats
ural consequence the bar moves with
corresponding speed.
Attached to this bar of iron is a
shaft which turns a crank connected
with a large fly wheel. A band passing
over this wheel and connected with
others would set in motion a great
amount of machinery When we were
present a lever of eleven feet long was
made to press upon the circumference
of this fly wheel. and upon the extrem-
ity of this lever hundred pound
weight was placed. causing a pressure
on the wheel of more than LOO pounds
Notwithstanding this. the engine did
not seem to be at all impeded in It's
motion. With some Improvement this
motive power might be applied with
success to mechanical purposes. and
should this be the case. it would OBJ
viate many of the objections now
brought against the use of steam as a
motive power This invention of Mr..
Pages is undoubtedly a great inven-
ton. and we see no reason why IL
should not in time supersede the use of
steam, at least as a propelling power.
In the Scientific American in 1854
there is a controversy between a cor
respondent signing himself y. J. G..
New York, July %. 1854" and one J.
Mascher, on the subject of electro
magnetism. and in one of his letters
]. J. G. says:
II do not propose to discuss his CT.
Mascher's) fallacies, or be drawn into
any controversy on the subject. My
reason for noticing the article at all is
to correct statement therein con-
tanned which is utterly false, namely.
that the engine of Prof. Page was
failure. Prof. Pages engine has not
yet been proved defective in any par
ticular, and there has never yet been
published by the most scientific and
learned, or by any one else, any tan
gible reason why the machine of Prof.
Page will not operate cheaply and eff
GENTLY"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

the sum of 100000. and from the sale
of these bonds the canal was completed
to Cumberland in October, 1850.
An immense volume of literature OF
one kind and another had been written
about the Chesapeake and Ohio canal.
An excellent sketch Of the enterprise
was written in 1907 by Horatio n:
Parker of the geological survey and
incorporated in a comprehensive work
on the Potomac river basin--its geo
graphic history. rainfall and stream
flow. pollution. typhoid fever and char,
acter Of water, relation of soils ana
forest cover to quality and quantity
of water and effect of industrial wastes
on fishes. Another valuable contribu-
ton to the history Of the canal Is G. W:
Wards account of the development OF
the waterway, which is one OF the
Johns Hopkins University studies In
historical and political science: :,
The Rambler loitered along the cana!
in the gorge formed by rock walls and
brick factory-like buildings. In the
neighborhood Of the canal monument
are many things which should be OF
interest to Washington people. Not
far from the monument is quaint old
church building of gray stone which
dates from 1866 1t is Grace Episcopal
Church. Its main approach is through
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01
4 Sporting Editor Director of the Governments Mint

from the sport desk to report part Of
the Parker campaign of 1904, and since
then the sporting page has not known
him. After a brief stay in San Antonio.
Tex, where he edited the San Antonio
Light through one political campaign
and kept the publisher in a state of
continual terror by the vigor and pug
naciousness of his editing-he returned
to New York.
For time-in 1903 and early in 1905
he was editor of a high class sporting il
Illustrated weekly, so high class that il
made no money-and at another time the
New York World had him with its staff in
Washington. Bit by bit he had edged
into the magazine game. and in 1909
he abandoned newspaper work for that
field, writing on national political
topics chiefly. AS an investigator and
anti-graft campaigner he made name
for himself. On leaving the daily news
paper field he took up his residence at
Fairfax Court House. Va, near Wash
ington, where he has since lived.
In 1912 he became the chief investi-
gator-and virtual stage manager-of
the Stanley committee of Congress in
vestigating the operations of the steel
trace, Work WHICH OCCuplcu uHtii
the national campaign began. Then
Josephus Daniels, now Secretary of the
Navy but then al the head of the pub
licity committee of the national demo-
cratic committee, asked him to pre-
pare the democratic campaign text
book. which he did.
During the campaign Mr.. Daniels had
to be away part of the time because
of illness in his family, and Mr.. Wool
lev was x-officio head of the publicity
bureau and glad -hander of the organi-
cation.
A rotund merry-faced. genial Ken
tuckian, with the gift of humor and
quite gregarious, he shone in this &C.
cupation. When the campaign was
over Mr. Woolley was marked down
to be an assistant secretary of the
Treasury. In fact, his appointment was
regarded as a certainty. But nothing
is certain in politics. and instead Mr..
Woolley became auditor for the De-
partment of the Interior. Then. March
last, he was made director OF the
mint And now he is making money
for everybody. ASHMUN BROWN.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

trouble, after having expended S.00,-
600, and in 1919 on applying to the Vir-
ginia board of public works for relief.
that board directed it's chief engineer,
ThomaS Moore, to make survey with
the idea of determining the. cost and
feasibility of a canal from the noun
tains to tidewater. This plan had been
discussed in the Virginia assembly in
1916.
Moore's report was made in 1920 and
his estimate of cost was $1,114, OOO.
Committees were appointed by the as
semblies of Maryland and Virginia to
examine the affairs of the Potomac
Company, and this joint committee,
which met at Georgetown July 2, IS2l'
found that the company was bankrupt
commission from this joint commit
tee with competent engineers went over
part of the route surveyed by Moore,
who died and was succeeded by Isaac
Briggs The Virginia assembly incor-
porated the Potomac Canal Company in
February. 1923, but the Maryland as
sembly, under pressure from the bust
ness interests of Baltimore, which
feared that trade would be diverted by
the canal from the wagon roads lead
ing through that town, refused to JOIN
in the Incorporation
Public sentiment in Virginia, Mary
land and Pennsylvania was strongly
aroused in favor of the canal and there
was convention in Washington in
bringing about an understanding be-
tween the three states named and Sc
curing aid from the national govern
ment, at that time opposed to federal
aid for internal Improvements. The dis
cussion of this question occupied the
attention of the nation at that time
and finally, in 1924. both Virginia and
Maryland incorporated the company,
the United States confirmed the incor
poration and President Monroe signed
the bill March 8, 1925 Pennsylvania
also committed itself to the canal
board of United States Army engi-
neers was detailed with Gen. S. Ber
nard at it's head. and this board made
it's report in 1926. The board proposed
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

connection and maintain intercourse with the
have grown the great states Of the middle west.
Again. he wanted the trade of the Ohio valley
anu the the akr vsev than through
the Hudson the Susquehanna valley: The big
project much, if not more, political than
commercial.
which was chartered as the Potomac
Improvement Company, long list OF
distinguished names were connected
and at some time the Rambler may go
into this matter, but just now 1t is an
other story Those interested in the
matter will find their material in Wash
ington's correspondence, the letters of
Thomas Jefferson, "Hening's Statutes
of Virginia., THE Acts of the Mary
land Assembly, and in the Maryland
and Virginia gazettes.
The purpose of the company was not
to build canal along the Potomac
but to make the river navigable for
canal barges, which were poled instead
of being drawn by mules. by cutting
channel through certain distractions in
the river and building short canals
around other distractions. The chief
obstacles in the Potomac were five
The first of these was at House Falls,
five miles above Harpers Ferry, where
a canal fifty yards long, with total
fall of three feet, was built. The sec
ond difficulty was at Shenandoah Falls,
Immediately above Harpers Ferry.
where a canal one mile long, with
fall Of fifteen feet, was built. A third
obstruction was at Seneca Falls, where
a canal three-quarters of mile long.
with a fall of seventeen feet, was built.
No locks were built in these canals.
The greatest obstruction was Great
Falls, where a canal 5000 feet long,
with locks, was built, and the remains
of this canal are familiar to many
Washington people. A canal over two
miles long, with a fall Of thirty-seven
feet, was built on the Maryland side or
the river around Little Falls.
The company was chartered in 1854.
After years of delay the new water
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01
WHERE 32D STREET CROSSES THE CANAL.

that the canal was Commenced at
Georgetown July 4, 1925 all the read
ing by the Rambler seems to show that
a party was formed at washington
July 4, 1928, and this party going to
Little Falls, near where the Chain
bridge is now. President Adams re-
moved the first spadeful of earth and
speeches were made by a number OF
men distinguished in the public life OF
that period. From Seneca creek to a
point close to Georgetown the canal
was completed in 1881.
The first spadeful of dirt for the
Baltimore and Ohio railroad was
turned by James Carroll of Carroll
ton July 4, 1928. the same day on
which President Adams inaugurated
the Chesapeake and Ohio canal. A
suit at law arose between the canal
and the railroad over the right of way
at Point of Rocks, where there was
not room along the river for the canal
and the railroad tracks. and this suit
was decided in favor of the canal COM
pany in 1882. but the canal company
was bankrupt and federal aid had
been withdrawn. The history of the
dispute and the final compromise and
relations between the canal company
of the long stories in American trans
portation history. The canal company
bankrupt and compromise effected
with the railroad, the state of Mary
land loaned the canal company $1,000
600 in 1884 and 100000 more in
1886.
In 1887 the canal had been completed
from Georgetown to point 1877 miles
west Funds had again given out and
Maryland advanced. in 1886. $1.375,000.
In 1841 the canal had been nearly COM
pleted, but it was again in financial
difficulties and Maryland, it would
seem, was also in such financial
straights that it could give no further
aid. But, in 1914, the state permitted
the canal cOmnanY to issue h0ndS in
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

a canal to be called the Chesapeake
and Ohio canal, which should extend
from Potomac tidewater to Pittsburgh,
and another to be called The Ohio and
Erie canal. from Pittsburgh to Lake
Erie. The estimate of cost for the east
ern canal to Pittsburgh was considered
Notwithstanding over $S.000.000.
Another canal convention was held at
Washington in December, 1926. and
new survey was ordered by President
Adams, the survey to be made under
the direction of James Geddes and Ma
than S. Roberts. Their estimate was
in round numbers four and half mill
lion dollars. Subscription books were
opened October /, 1927. Though the in
scription on the canal monument says
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01
To Promote Matrim0ny.

THERE'S nothing like seashore life for
u promoting matrimony-or, at least.
promoting engagements" said Mayor Rid
die of Atlantic City.
"A very pretty girl said to me the other
day:
81 am going to learn to swim this
summer.
But said /. thought Jim taught
YOU to swim last summer
81 know, she answered But I'm no
longer engaged to Jim.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01
Rambler has previously written what

Rambler has previously written what
follows:
In personal sense he wanted confirmed his
conviction of the practicabilty of the plan. He
wanted his name should he associated with such
stupentous work of Nil tional improvement. He
also the owner of large tracts Of land in
the Ohio Shenandoah and Potomac valleys, which
there was money to be made out OF the scheme,
but he wanted none of the cash dividends. In
much larger than personal he wanted the
United States. then a sparsely settled confedera
tion along the Atlantic seahoard, to control the
trade of the continent east of the Mississippi
river, first. because he believed it would he good
thing that the United States should have this
trade and second, because he believed 1t would be
prejudicial to the United Sta ties that England, in
control Of the st. Lawrence valley. or Spain. In
control of the Mississippi valley. should have II.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

culation. In Germany, France. Italy.
Holland and elsewhere gold coins are
coins of ordinary use. There is paper,
of course, but the preference seems to
be for gold. Nowhere is this better
shown than at the gambling tables of
Monte Carlo.
But in the United States gold coins
circulate freely only in the extreme
west. and there their popularity is on
the Wane as a medium of exchange
The average easterner" is not even ia
miliar with the appearance of the
newer designs of gold coins. The pres
entation OF an eagle. for example. at
ticket sellers window in a New York
subway station has been known to Gre
ate small riot.
In the west, particularly on the Pa
cifc coast, the preference always has
been for hard money There the silver
dollar still circulates freely. although
it's coinage was discontinued in 1904 :;
and in getting change at the bank, I'M
less you specify to the contrary, the
teller is apt to give you silver dollars
up to twenty dollars There also flves
are paid out the teller's cage, as rule,
in gold. paper fives being the exception.
The same holds true of tens and TWEEN
ties.
But, within year, a noticeable
change is taking place in the west.
Paper money is being used in larger
quantities. The fondness for hard
money there has been traditional and
a matter of custom. traceable, no
doubt. to the fact that in gold-produc-
ing regions there Is always prefer
ence for metal money. Then, too
and this is largely responsible for the
period when mining was one Of the
chief occupations of the people-the
fact that the people are so far re-
moved from the source of the paper
money supply has worked a prejudice
against paper money.
All printed at the bureau of print
ing and engraving in Washington, the
paper money. by the time it has
reached the west in ordinary circula-
ton. is tattered. greasy and torn. The
western people have a justif1able COM
plant that it is insanitary.
Two causes are operating to remove
this complaint and to make paper more
important there in common circula-
causes is the operation Of the federal
reserve bank system. with it's regional
banks and the issuance of fresh re-
serve bank currency from those banks.
now. nearly dozen kinds, in fact,
though. by the way. you should un-
derstand that the bureau of the mint
has nothing to do with their printing.
The mint puts out only metal money
There are indications that the federal
reserve bank paper hereafter is to play
larger part In circulation all over
the country.
The second cause for a change in
media is found in fact which, curl
ously. is little known in the west. the
chief user of gold, but quite we'll un-
derstood in the east, where compare
lively little gold is used This IL that
gold coin. under the law Is redeema-
BILE at bank or by the government
only at the value of the exact weight
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

way was opened. to traffic from Cum
berland to tidewater. but it did not pay;
Two reasons for the failure were that
during the summer there were periods
of low water which barred the passage
Of even the light-draught boats, and
there were periods of high water when
the navigation of the rocky courses of
the river was too hazardous, and in the
winter the river and the short canals
were closed by ice.
The idea of an all-canal route to the
AIleghenies had taken root in some
ambitious minds. The Potomac I'M
proyement Company was clearly in
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01
ROBERT W. WOOLLEY,
Director Of the mint.

may be represented by certificate bars
instead of gold coin.
For export purposes and for large
shipments, bankers and fnanciers
greatly prefer their gold in what we
term fine bars. Thus all the great
movements of our gold in this year of
the European war have been in bars.
Last August, as the public will recall.
when the demand came for the expor-
tation of gold, we brought $75,00O.000
in bars from Denver to New York, con-
veying it from Denver by special train
at a cost of $500.
Now, with the shifting in our bal
ance Of trade. gold is flowing back to
this country at remarkable rate. 1t
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

has been coming in. installments of
about s2,5oO,0oo a day from Ottawa.
been in our own bars. Possibly soon
we will be receiving foreign bars or
coin. All foreign gold coin we receive
is promptly melted and converted into
our own bars.
"Accessions of foreign gold promise
to be extraordinary, at least during the
period of the war. OF course, we al
ways are receiving a great deal of
eign-produced gold, the Rand of
South Africa furnishing much of the
gold purchased at the New York assay
office. That Office. l may add, paren-
thetically. buys not only for govern
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-08-01

sons who make up pay rolls and others
who handle money in quantity are boy
cotting the halves and giving prefer
ence to quarters, and hence the banks
are calling on US less and less for
halves. One possible explanation is that
a man who puts down half for
quarter purchase is apt to forget an 1
to walk out without his change. What
ever the reason, the fact is there, and
if the people do not want halves we are
not going to coin them.
LAS an indication of their lowering
popularity l might mention that while
in 1878 we coined more than $7.500,00O
of halves, we got down to $2.600,000 in
1912. less than 100000 in 1913 and t"
only little more than 100000 in 1914.
From all of these facts you may OBJ
serve the tendencies of American
money habits. First the demand for
coined gold is falling off and the de-
mand for gold bars is increasing; sec
ond, paper all over the country is
taking the place of coin for all transac
lions of 81 and multiples thereof. and,
third, we are using more and more
minor and subsidiary coinage. of 25
cents and less. with a distinct disin-
clination manifest to use the half"
X *
Like several other notable figures in
this administration, Mr.. Woolley came
into high executive position trained
neither in politics nor law-the tradi-
tional schools for high government po-
sition-but thoroughly trained in the
broad school of newspaper work, from
which school so many executives in
public and private employ are being
graduated in recent years. During the
past ten years the Treasury Depart
ment, in which Mr.. Woolley ranks as a
bureau head, has developed a number
of such graduates to high place in the
financial world.
But that Mr. Woolley was not trained
to the law Is more the fault of acct
dent than design. After studying at
the Kentucky State University and at
Fordham University. New York-from
neither of which institutions he grad
one to his native Lexington. KY, to
build up his health, shattered by in
tense study. There, his father having
a stock farm, he acquired some thor
oughbred horses and found health and
employment in breeding them for the
track.
with a natural taste for writing he
began to write about horses. Then he
wrote a great deal about horses ana
then, without generalization, he sud
denly found himself managing editor
and city editor and editorial writer of
Lexington newspaper.
After two years of this he decided TO
study law. But right on top of the de-
cision came a Geographic offer to go
to Chicago as sporting editor of the
Chicago Tribune. Sporting editor of
big paper at twentyfour! 1t was too
much for his just-formed resolution.
He went. And then, after year and
a half. he journeyed on to the New
York World to be a writer on sporting
topics and then sporting editor.
But his bent for political writing
was quite as we'll marked as his bent
for sporting writing. He was drafted