Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-11-23

An interesting turn to the capitalize
moval question was given. fifty years
ago. by the New
Retrocesx;on and York Herald, re-
Capital-Moving. puts regarding
the retrocession to Virginia OF the part
of the original District coded by that
state, as thus reproduced in The Star OF
November IS, 1869:
THE question Of the constitutionalty
of the retrocession Of Alexandria in
1846 to the state Of Virginia is likely
to come up shortly after the meeting Of
Congress in a method very little ex-
pected, and should it be settled against
the Old Dominion the question Of the
removal Of the capital will also be in
volved in such a way as to give a
quietus to the removers. 1t is said that
la program has been arranged to re-
sist the admission of Mackenzie. the
lately elected member of Congress from
Alexandria, on the ground that he is
not a constitutionally elected represen-
tative. The members who have ar
ranged this plan will argue that Con-
member the District Of Columbia by
the retrocession of Alexandria; that
the intention of the Constitution was
that the territory for the location
of the Capital once having been
foot of it could subsequently be parted
with without an amendment Of the Con-
stitution. II Congress, upon having this
point precipitated upon them, should
decide to deny Mackenzie his seat II
will be something Of a point gained by
the people of the District who oppose
removal"
Washington's house numbers, nifty
years ago. were far different from the
present system. The,
Numbering followed the streets in.
Discriminatory. with ne
Aouses. regard for loc1ttun>> and
without any relation between streets
Judging from the records Of number:
as borne in the advertising column.
of The Star of half a century ago
wholly unlike those borne by build
ings in the same locations today, thu
local system was not much unlike
that which is said to obtain in some
| old-fashioned European cities where
the houses are numbered in the ordel
of their construction.
| Half a century ago the city councils
| were wrestling with the problem Of
| working out logical and progressive
plan of building Enumeration. The
board of aldermen had approved {
proposal for plan practically iden
| tical with that now in vogue. Blu
| before it was finally adopted doubt.
| arose in some minds and other plans
| were outlined. One Of them was t
start the numbers at the river enc
| Of the north and south streets and tt
| number upwards as far as the stree
| then went, or up to Boundary" nov
/ Florida avenue; then to jump to thu
| corresponding street in the eastern
| secutively southwark to the river. No
body seemed to think there was an!
| difficulty on the score of the futur,
| growth of the city beyond it's thei
boundaries. Another plan. proposed
in a letter printed in the columns o
to begin the numbers at the ''perma
nent boundaries of the city west an
| south, thus leaving room at the op
posite boundaries north and east TO
the indefinite extension Of the streets.
| The then western boundary of Wash
ington was the eastern boundary o
| Georgetown, a separate municipality
| since merged into the greater capital
The Star. in commenting upon tn
letter, stressed the point that it woul
| be better to begin at the center,
fixed and permanent point of depart
ure, and to number outward, thu
establishing the grand divisions o
northwest, northeast, south-wes
and southeast. This plan wa
adopted
Street numbering, however. was no
so pressing a matter Of public improve
msnt as stree
Wood pavements pavement, ant
| The Star con
oecoAAne"ue"' tinued fifty year
ago to stress the urgent need OF a bet
ter system of paving for the capital
In the issue Of November II, 1869, II