Evening star., 1928-01-22

LAM GctSt lhHtH ih. Sil
<tI YOU to plant trees and keep
on planting them!"
The big, imperious.l .lookine
speaker pounded his huge fist
On his desk to emphasize his words.
He puffed furiously on his cigar. Two
nervous highway officials stood before
him. Their interview was at an end
They turned on their heels and left the
room.
Nobody knew just what to expect
from Boss" Shepherd. Strange fancies
sprouted in the brain of this practical.
impulsive visionary Sometimes he was
radical and recklessly extravasant.
Sometimes he lashed the backs Of his
Subordlnates with fundamental. con-
scrVative common sense
The man had erandiose dreams. He
thought III four dimensions, He had
taken muddy little city, where pigs
ran loose III iunk-Strewn streets. and
projected it with his minds eve into
some distant. fantastic future. He had
endowed this city of his dreams with
something Of the grandeur o! ST. Johns
New Jerusalem II f1oated in the skies
like a sunset city. whose tinted cloud
towers continually were tumbling and
rebuilding themselves.
Dream pictures arc we'll enough for
a poet or a musician. But this house
builder and real estate developer was
not practitionI Of any OF the fine
arts, He was public Official. with his
biz hands in the collective pocketbook
Of the city Of Washington. He was not
content--as Shelley or Turner would
have been-to let his dream city remain
q structure of clouds and light. He was
trying TO copy II In stone, at the ex-
pense OF the taxpayers
The citizens of Washington so wears
ago were reasonably progressive But
they had been pressed to the limit of
endurance for public improvements to
which. they felt. the Capital of the
United States. with its extremely linz
iteo commercial and manufacturing in
tereStS, would not grow Tor genera tions
Such things. for instance. as extending
city streets for couple of miles through
cow-pastIres north OF Florida avenue
we're altogether too Utopian for those
who must foot the bills
Building good roads for pigs" they
snorted, Boss Shepherd seemed To
have the idea that. some time. folks
would build houses in these cow-pas.
lures and come into the city every day
to work. Possibly he thought this cx-
pansion would extend even for five miles
or more over the Maryland line.
Very likely" the estimab.e taxpayers
said. And the day may come when
carrisees will run without horses and
men Will fly"
OF late Boss Shepherd" had been
engaged in the widest extravaganza of
all He vas hiring men. actually pay
inS them wages. 10 plant trees along
the sides OF these country roads that
people might be using a few hundred
years IN the future. Spending the pub
lies money 10 plant trees-cou.dn't
something be done about it, The farm
ers wcro paying men 10 chop down
trees. Thsce were thousands and thou
Sands OF trees all around the District
o. Columbia. The common sense pro-
ceoure vas 10 set rio of them instead
OF aodin. new ones, II the folks who
were 10 live in this visionary city of
SHEPHERDS wanted trees, let them 20
out in the country.
HE men engaged in the planting Of
these trees along roa;ls beyond the
limits OF the city that was heard g-um-
bling On every hand. Two Scotchmen.
Smith and Saunders, were in charge OF
the work. In the face OF the iaceasant
public criticism they were beginning 70
ioss their nerve. Perhaps they had