Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-08-19
FIFTY YEARS AGO
IN THE STAR

In The STAK
In The Star of August IS. 1857. is
printed the correspondence in the re-
m0va1 of Sec
President Removes rotary Stanton
Secretary Stanton. letters also be-
tween Gen. Grant, President johnson
and the Secretary involving the desig-
nation of Gen. Grant as acting Secre-
tary and Mr.. Stanton's denial of the
Presidents right to suspend him. The
Secretary. however, Acknowledged that
he had no alternative than to submit
under protest ito the superior force OF
the President" This matter caused q
tremendous stir In the country. Tho
Star of August 10. 1867, says:
$50 far as we can perceive every Jour-
nal in the country that was loyal to the
Union cause during the war strenuous
ly deprecates the act of the President
I'm assuming power to suspend Secre-
tary Stanton, while 1t meets the hearty
approval of every journal that has
openly advocated the cause of the re-
bellion or that gave 1t aid and COM
fort by efforts to embarrass the war
measures. Ere the suspension was or
dered The Star predicted that 1t would
result in the Presidents prompt Inn
parchment on the return of Congress. a
measure we have always deprecated
in the power of the Senate. on receipt
of the Presidents announcement OF
Mr. Stanton's suspension, to disapprove
his act. which of itself will restore Mr.
Stanton to the control OF the war De-
partment in twenty-four hours: he GER
tainly will not return there unless inn
pressed with the belief that otherwise
its affairs will be controlled by inter-
ests adverse to the policy Of the nation
as laid down by Congress We continue
to deprecate impeachment. because no
good for the country can possibly come
out of it. while it is in the power OF
Congress to save the public interest
from any considerable injury at the
hands of those who dictate the insane
measures for the Presidents warfare
on the national legislature. Congress
will surely carry out every feature OF
its policy Of reconstruction. despite the
each succeeding one of which has
merely proved an additional blow
without being SO intended-at tho
south"
new jail, plots to escape from the old
one standing on Judici-
More Plots to airy Square continued to
:, be Matched, frequently
Break Jail. with success. In The
Star of August 1s. 1867. is news item
telling Of the discovery Of such a project
One of the prisoners, Jailed for horse
stealing, was put through what would
now be called the third degree. When
threatened with the leg irons" he ac-
knowledged that there were jail-break
ing tools in his cell. With one Of the
guards he returned to the cell and. pulling
up one Of the bricks in the floor. took out
These had been brought in and given to a
prisoner named Conover, who had lately
been sent from Washington to Albany to
serve a ten-year sentence for perjury.
A storm of great violence and excep-
tionally prolonged visited the eastern part
Of the country during the
Damage BY middle of August and
caused heavy damage. In
Ssoim. The Star Of August II.
1867. is a summary Of destruction. due
to the storm, in Philadelphia, Baltimore
and other nearby cities. In Washington
the high wind and tremendous down.
pour of rain scored a heavy record of
damages. 1t was estimated that the
losses in Philadelphia alone from the
rain were at least 100000.
4 x
Fifty years ago Washington was lack
ing in small houses available to reason
able rent for depart
Shorta oe of ment clerks. Partly
owing to this condition
heSluences. and partly in conse-
quence of the uncertainty of tenure due
to the lack of civil service protection,
many of the government employees ap-
pointed from the states left their families
back home when they came to Washing
ton. This condition Is noted in an article
in The Star Of August II, 1867:
I'm a conversation with a gentleman
connected with the Treasury Depart
men we learned a fact today worthy
of the serious consideration of property
holders and those interested In the
prosperity of this city. That is. that
checks to the amount of from $780, 900
to $4,000 per month are sent through
the Treasury Department alone by
clerks for the support of their families
at the north, where they board them
for want of suitable houses at rea-
sonable rent in this city. The fact that
this large amount of money-upward
of half a million dollars-is lost to the
city yearly. should induce our business
people to supply on a comprehensive
scale the want here shown. The at
tempts Of single builders seem to fail
to meet the needs of the clerks It
would suit many of the clerks to have
houses of moderate size and moderate
rent with sufficient ground attached to
permit them to get healthful exercise
in cultivation. These houses might be
built in suburban localities within easy
access of the street cars. Others not
inclined to horticultural or open air
pursuits would be suited by houses of
the same moderate rent, minus the ru-
raj surroundings and somewhat nearer
the city's center. We would suggest
that some study be given to this mat
ter, as all here are interested in making
so large a proportion of our daytime
population as the large body of depart
ment clerks permanent residents.
X \
In these days of pay-as-you-enter
and pay-within cars it may be well to
bring back to mind
Conductorless the type OF street