Evening star., 1925-03-03
MANY OLDCAP|TAL
LANDMARKS PASS
Business Advance Puts
Cleaners Shop in Once
Proud Imperial Embassy.

The diplomatic landmarks of old
Washington are passing. Other his
toric landmarks of the National Can
1tal also are giving way before the
progress of new day, and the casual
visitor who prided himself on know
ing his way about Washington 20
years ago viii find himself quite lost
now. Recent events serve to en-
phasize the changes in the diploma tic
quarter.
Following closely upon the depar-
ture of Jules j. Jusserand. Ambassa-
dor of France for % years--a land
mark all in himSelf-came the an
nouncement that the old British en-
bassy, on lower Connecticut avenue,
was being abandoned for a more mod
ern and fashionable location. The
great Victorian building which has
housed the British embassy so many
years is to be converted for business
purposes. Among the great figures in
the life of the British commonwealth
of nations that lived there was Sir
Lionel Sackville- West. who got his
walking papers for meddlng in
American politics during Clevelands
time. The new embassy will be 10
Gated near the Naval Observatory.
Once Proud Embassy Cleaners shop.
The building that was the Austro-
Hungarian embassy in the old DAYS
which was located for so many years
on Connecticut avenue just above n
street northwest, and opposite Rob-
ert Lansing's home on Eighteenth
street, and which proudly fioated
three flags from its fagstaffs, has
been remodeled as a business house
and now is used as a cleaning and
dyelng shop. Count Dumba. the Am
bassador, who also, by the way. got
his walking papers, was a brilliant
host there.
The former Mexican embassy in the
heart of the uptown business sec
tton now is real estate office, while
the embassy occupies a palace in en-
passy row on upper Sixteenth street
The Italian embassy soon is to move
into million-dollar palace across the
way.
The Russian embassy has stood
closed and boarded up for several
years. Built by Mrs. George NJ Pull
man OF Chicago as her home, she sold
IT to John Hays Hammond, the mining
engineer, who in turn disposed of il TO
the Russians just before the collapse
OF the czarist regime. BY a strange
trick of fate the Spanish and Cuban
embassies stand close together, and.
so far as anybody knows. the Spanish
Ambassador. Senior Don Juan Riano.
ana his Cuban neighbor, Senor Tor
rlente, are good friends.
Buildings and Faces
a number of new legation build
lngs which have brought with them
new faces have come since the war
by the partition of the old European
states. Among these are the lega-
tfons of Czechoslovakia, Egypt. Es-
thonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania
and the legation of the Serbs, Croats
and Slovenes. Social gatherings find
the former enemies generally on
speaking terms
The German embassy still occupies
the site it did when Count Won Bern
storff presided, and his successors
have occupied it, If it could be said
that any diplomat in Washington has
hard shedding socially, it probably is
the representative of Germany
The only Ambassador still resid-
ing downtown is Japans representa-
tive He lives in Franklin square, in
"a house built and occupied by John
sherman when he was Secretary of
State.
Other historic landmarks which
have changed include the house
where Mrs. Surratt lived when she
participated in the conspiracy that
eliminated in the assa ssination of
Lincoln, which is now a. radio shop:
Daniel Webster's house and that of
Slidel, one of the Confederate COM
mtssioners, which gave way for the
new home of the Chamber of Com
merce& of the United States, and the
old home of John Hay, recently sold
and probably soon will be used for
business.