Evening star., 1924-07-27
Capital Sidelights
BY WILL T.. KENNEDY.


suit of which David Lynn, architect
OF the Capitol, has been besieged to
have new edition printed of an au-
thoritative book on Works of Art i'm
the United States Capitol Building,
which was complied more than ten
year ago by Charles f. Fairman, a
veteran employe, whose work as
curator for more than a score of years
has been veritabIe labor of love.
Westward the Course of Empire
Iakes It's Way, the large wall paint
ing over the west side of the stair
case landing between the House
chamber and the gallery, is the only
example in the Capitol of a peculiar
method of applying the paint to the
wall. 1t is the work of a noted Ger
man artist, Emmanuel Leutze, and
was ordered by Gen. Montgomery c.
ed IN 1862.
The representation of pioneers with
lheir wagons and camping outfits, the
mountain scenery and the portrait of
Daniei Boone always attract the at
tention of visitors
The basis of this portrait panorama
IS a thin layer of cement of powdered
marble, quartz, dolomite and worn
iime. The watercolors are applied on
TINS cement and fixed by a spray of
employed 1T is much easier to make
corrections in the painting than with
ordinary fresco work.
Much of the mural decoration of the
oapltoi was done by Constantine
Brumidi, at the rate of SO a day. be-
tween 1855 and 1860. Some Of his
most notable work includes the old
committee on agriculture room, now
USED by the appropriations commit
zee, which was done in 1855 as the
nf
duced in America; the Presidents
room back Of the Senate chamber,
which would be destroyed if proposals
to extend the legislative hall to the
outer walls is carried out; the can
opy or the dome above the rotunda:
the better portion of the historical
trleze in the rotunda which was:un-
nhished when Brumid died: the
painting "Cornwallis Sues for Cessa-
1lon or Hostilities Under Flag of
truce which is on the wall of the
House of Representatives, and the
rooms occupied by the Senate com
Hiittee on appropriations and on the
District Of Columbia
brumidi was captain in the ma
tlonal guard and during the pontifi-
cate of Plus TX was commissioned by
MIN TO restore the LOggia of Rapha 81
IN the Vatican. AS captain of the
guards he refused to order his COM
mand to hre on the people. He was
arrested and confined in prison for IA
months. He was released without
triai through the friendship of the
rope, who counseled him to leave
ItaIy. HIS own description of his
mural decorations in the Capitol, as
round in a statement filed with the
architect of the Capitol. saws that
the solid construction of this ma
tlonal building required a superior
style or decoration in real fresco, like
Ine palaces of Augustus and Nero, the
baths or Titus and Livia in Rome
and the admired relics of the paint
ings Of Herculaneum and Pompeii"
lie made the frescoes of the Capitol
his life work.
one OF the biggest men physically
in Congress is Representative Will
liam c. Hammer of Asheboro. \ C.
whose heart is as big as his body and
whose hearty chuckie is ntagious,
AS very active member of the House
District committee he has made a
host of friends in the National Capi-
tai. With a background of nearly
40 years practical experience in
school work as teacher member of
the school board, county superintend-
ent OF public instruction and editor
he was able to do valiant service in
having progressive legislation put
through Ito make the. schools of the
National Capital models for all the
country' as he has frequently re-
marked they must be.
Always a booster for his home dis
trlct, Representative Hammer is very
Pleasantly reminding his particular
trends here of some of the good
things produced in his neck of the
woods by sending them very pretty
baskets of fancy peaches.
There are in Congress some score
or more of men who boast that they
Were born or lived in a log cabin.
Senator Lynn j. Frazier of North
Dakota goes them one better-he
lived in sod hut. His parents were
natives of the Rangeley Lakes
region in Maine. but became early
Western pioneers. first in Minnesota
and later in Red River Valley. North
Dakota. The present senator start
ed work when he was SIX years Old
driving an old prairie wagon from
Grand Forks. the then end OF the
railroad, 90 miles to the homestead.
he stu owns part of that same
filed on in 1880 When he was seven
years old he helped to build their
first house He has always been a
working farmer and. although he
was governor for three terms and
is in the United States Senate. he drove
a binder on his homestead of 4su
acres last fall.
While in college Senator Frazier
attained wide distinction in ath-
letics, especially in foot ball. and
was captain of the varsity eleven tor
two years.
This 10 tho SEASON of manufactured.
when some forty million minds turn
to the open road" Washington
sees a large percentage of these
tourists, many of whom are back
trailing the course their sturdy par
ents took with the cry of West
ward ho"' opening up new empire
territory which has been feeding the
world.
Government agencies here tlgure
that more than 10.00O,O0U passenger
automobiles are following the lure OF
adventure this season over the great
est highway system the world has
ever known. Tourist parties seeing
Washington" are unanimous in say
ing that by cooperation with the
States in building this great high
way system Uncle Sam has done
more for building up the country,
neighbors, making farm life int-
nitely more worth living and giving
the people an opportunity to see
more of their country and love 1t
better the more they see 1t.
X X x
Representative Henry T. Rainey,
who has lived all his life in Green
County, H., where he owns a mag
nificent estate which he has turned
into public playground, boasts that
his grandfather, Samuel Thomas, was
the first settler in that county His