Evening star., 1924-10-01
THIS AND THAT
BY c. Il. TRACEWELI..

If there Is a street in Washington
with real individuality. it is Wiscon-
sin avenue, that narrow, i'll paved
somewhat dirty way striking out
through Georgetown to Maryland. Nc
need here for emulating the cigarette
ads
wisconsin avenue is as distinctive
as Robert La Toilette, bristling sor
of the far Western State. 1t has q
flavor decidedly it's own, redolent OF
old things and new things strangely
mixed.
1t does not belong to the National
Capital at all, in one sense, yet in an
other there is no more important
thoroughfare in the Capital of the
Nation. Dating from 1854, with ar
honorable history. it can look forward
to even greater things.
Wisconsin avenue does not need II
set up signs declaring itself dis
tinctive." or There's something about
it you'll like" or I'D walk a mile tc
| walk on Wisconsin avenue
II 1t ever adopts any motto at all
1t should be that mouth filling, classic
phrase of the organization that came
near splitting the late lamented ma.
tional Democratic conventions:
we were here yesterday, we are
here today, we will be here tomor-
row."
Who sighs for Bagdad and it,
quaint streets, when right here al
home he has Georgetown and it's Wis.
consin avenue?
Basdad was one OF the first cities
to have press agent. The guy who
got up the Arabian Nights" put Bag.
dad on the international map. More
! children today know more about Bag
dad than they do about Washington
cfnr
famous eastern city appeal nightly
to the imagination, but probably
bore the inhabitants of Ragdad tc
tears Imagine a romantic Bagdadiar
| standing beneath a minaret OF
something like that, signing:
Gee. if only I might travel tc
| that romantic city on a far river
! Georgetown. Oh, that 1 might trav
erse for 4 brief while that curious
odd, unique Wisconsin avenue!"
This is our privilege, without TAX
ing any particularly long journey. II
is only our unfortunate habit of al
| lowing the familiar to become com
! monplace that permits US to overlook
| Wisconsin avenue.
| High street was the old name for
| Wisconsin ayenue-a better name, in
some ways, IL seems 10 me, than It's
modern one.
Those were the days when George
| town, then part of Frederick
County, WAS chartered. "a quarter OF
| IA century before the Revolution
Those first settlers chose George
| town because il was on the Potomac
! sitting picturesquely above the river
| on its hills.
Hence the name OF High street FOR
3 h. NJ. IL,
| the rises out into Maryland in the
direction of Rockville and Frederick
! The latter town was in existence
| then. being a point toward whicll
! George Washington later projected
| his canal.
| Today, as then, Wisconsin avenue
! is high street. Rising abruptly
! from the river. il runs I few blocks
north. then makes AN abrupt turn
and stage by stage rises higher and
! higher.
When il was laid out no seer pos
| sibly could have foreseen modern auto
| mobile traffic, so the street was made
| narrow. Road building was expensive
! in those days as well as today, hence
| the necessity for keeping a road as mar
| row possible.
! So High street grew up, rambling out
over the hills into Maryland. and so it
/
! row. OF late years the thoruughfare-
! Wisconsin avenue-has been widened
| from Massachusetts avenue to the Dis
/ trict line, but improvements TO the road
! bed are needed badly.
! In town the street is far too narrow.
! 1t was all right in George WaShington's e
! day. and can be struggled along with
/ even now. but il ought to be widened
and repaved clear in to NJ street. Just
4 Il
| ried out ii is difficult TO say. As il is,
! the street cars are SO near to the side
| walk that there is scarcely room for
! automobiles TO pass.
| The way to See Wisconsin avenue,
| the Wisconsin avenue in Georgetown,
| is to get off the Toonerville trolley
at + street and walk down the street
! That way you get a taste of it not to
| be gotten otherwise.
! This is high point, r street, with
| its old houses, and the ancient reser-
voir on the southeast corner. Is
| there water still in that battiemented
| place? Some say there is, some say
| there is not. Take your choice.
! Frame houses sit side by side with
! brick as one walks slowly along past
! where Thirty-third street cuts in.
| off to the right there is the Seventh
| Precinct station, where Capt. Bean
| presides.
Sand and dust mingIe on Wiscon-
! sin avenue. The sand comes from the
| car tracks, much Of it being needed
| on these steep slopes, while the dust
| is everywhere. have never been able
! to make up my mind that Wisconsin
| avenue is actually dirty, but GER
| tainly it gives somewhat that impress
| sion. Cobble stones are hard to clean.
1t is an old street, with old houses
| along it. The color of age, that inde-
| scribable dull, olive gray, is over all.
Surely the street cleaning depart
ment neglects Wisconsin avenue! If
| the fire department would get out
| some day and give it a good washin 6
and the street cleaning department
| give it a good scrubbing, it would
! look better for it.
| At the car pit at p street stands a
grocery store, meat market, an un-
! dertaker's shop and a drug store, side
| by side. as chumrNy as can be. On
! the undertaker's steps play happy
children, barefooted, carefree.
This is a happy street. People mind
| their own business here. If one
wants to walk along with bag of
| cookies, eating as he goes, no one
will say you nay. or even so much as
| notice you.
! There are several old bakeries
! along Wisconsin avenue, so old that
! one hesitates to ask as to their age.
Here you find old-fashioned cakes and
| cookies, the kind they make in coun-
/ try towns.
| Inside a pleasant girl doles you out
! a dozen immense cookies for 20 cents.
You proffer dollar bill. She searches
| the cash register, then returns.
Haven't you something smaller?'
| she asks.
! "Well, I have a good dime and a
| bent dime. 1 didn't want to offer it