Evening star., 1923-12-09
Heard and Seen

From the days when mankind built
edifices over the lakes of Switzerland
or even before that, when he huddled
In caves. down through the ages o.
architecture, he has had a prime in
terest In habitation.
Houses as places to live early asso-
ciated themselves with houses as
temples, halls and other communal
buildings. Today, however, when one
speaks of a house he generally means
a home. Public edifices and r.er-
such are buildings"
Surely no city in the United States
presents a greater array OF houses
and buildings than Washington, the
National Capital.
A regular panorama of houses is
afforded any one who VIII take the
trouble TO board a street car running
east along F street from the George
town gas works.
Try 1t early some morning. when
the sun is breaking over the river
and the world seems light in COM
parison with the gloomy days just
past.
No part of the National Capital re-
minds one more Of other cities than
this. 1t brings back. to the man from
the middle west. pictures of cities.
large and small, nesting upon a
rivers bank.
To the south gleams-almost-th
somewhat tarnished silver of the Po-
tomac.
There loom the gas tanks. like
great hills. such as might have been
thrown up by ancient mound build
ers. One notices, IN the morning
gleam, that they are covered with a
viscid substance. probably TO keep the
gas from leaking out. Some OF II
still seeps, however, ones nose re-
minds him.
Small frame houses sit up on high
banks. These are homes. too, where
people live and are happy. according
to their personal way Of looking at
the world. Perhaps they are far hap
pier than thousands living In costly
mansions.
See the white cat sitting on the
window sill in the sun! Leave 1t to
cats to And the warm spots on a cool
winter morning. She is curled up on
the warmest place in sight, just
the front Of the house.
Her tail is in shadow. but all the
rest OF her CLEANS in the sun.
X
Farther along one comes to more
pretentious houses, old ones. broad
and deep, made with infinite care as
to the brick work. Do they make
houses like that any more?
Every brick in sight Is faultlessly
placed, just SO so. telling to him who
rides a tale OF painstaking pride, or.
perhaps. just ordinary desire to do
ones work right.
Every brick is flush and true: every
one placed in line; every speck OF
mortar where 1t ought to be. and not
a speck any place else. Row after
row, up, down. sidewise, all Is the
same.
At 18th street We come to Wash
fngton grown up"
There the Commerce Department
and Interstate Commerce Commission
buildings rear themselves to the
north, while right at hand lies the
splendid bulk of the Interior Depart
ment building.
= X
In another part Of Washington i
can show you building placed
squarely in the middle OF a block
that is building up around IT, =
Like a lion at bay 1t stands. its
narrow porches. like galleries, bris-
Ting with drying clothes. Haunting
at the back yards of the encroaching
neighbors.
Two sides OF the block already are
built up. and the passerby wonders
! what will happen when the old house
q 4 IL ta1 hnv, aI t,1 r. r,th
VIII the inhabitants sell out at last
or will they barricade the doors and
| settle down to a long siege?
CHARLES Z. TRACEWELL