Evening star., 1932-09-18

post office. has been completed. the area paved
with white marble, the fOOtWaT outside with
large flags"
IOWEVER, there were several additions made
to this building after the department took
UP its quarters here, but the original part of
the structure, as we see it today, was, even in
its incomplete form, in 1843, regarded as
magnificent structure, as we find by the city
directory of that date, which prints the fellow
ing remarks:
This building, being of marble is of the
most gorgeous exterior. Its lively, brilliant
and Spangled whiteness, when brought in COM
par1son with its motleyed and dingy compeerS
begetS the idea of bloated imbecility and pre-
mature decay standing side by side with
youthful, healthy and elastic beauty But this
edlhce requires that emblem of strength and
dignity-the portico. with its majestic pillars
to give it the true characteristic of national
structure. Though, perhaps it is fortunate
Tor the fame of all public buildings that may
be erected in future in this city that this one
exists in any of the forms of rich and solid
marble; from which material only form
an allegory of permanency that may take
as the type OF the durability of the Union
The sandstone structures have ever appeared
to us the suitable embodiment and proper
symbol for the apprehension of weakness.
Union crumbling to pieces by its weight.
But, thank heaven the solid minds that formed
this Nation have transmitted to their poSerity
the strength and the skill to uphold it. Then
let this strength and skill be preserved, by
presenting to the public mind. in the architec-
ture of the country, such sentiments of fairly
propUtioned grandeur aS will forbid the
establishment of that weakness of thought
which only can destroy-
iC h0 cit 0ft fret
telegraph Office in the world for the receipt
and dispatch Of messages. which was opened
April l. 1845, under the direction of the Post
Once Department.
With the intention of extending the original
building on the Seventh street side, the Gov
eminent had purchased two brick buildings ad-
Joining it en- the north, facing Seventh street.
and it was in one Of these buildings that the
telegraph office was first opened and operated
under Samuel F. B. Morse
In 1857, when the ground vas to be prepared
for the new wing, these buildings were removed,
and in 1913 a bronze tablet was erected there.
~ the Committee on Historic sites to mark the
saAe Of the first public telegraph Once.
CVEN the neighborhood hereabout has its his
L toric spots. notably among which Is the site
o( the SeAton residence On the south side of
street between Seventh and Eighth streets where
~ W. ocaLoO eQtetEAl0e0 Gen. Lafayette at
reception given In the Autumn Of 1924. The
company on that occasion numbered $50 and
Mrs. Seaton had to give up her bed chamber
and nursery to be used Is card and supper
rooms.
Here on Eighth street, west side near street,
was one of the first grocery stores in Washing
ton. kept in the basement of two-story frame
house by French1nan named Pick and other
places Of business were In this vicinity at an
early date
Many will recall when the Post Office Depart
nnent was at Seventh and streets for this ONCE
was removed from there only about 33 years ago.
when it changed its headquarters to the present
site at Pennsylvania avenue and Eleventh street
Indeed, many of us still recall the old build
ing far back the eighties and earlier,
when it was still occupied, also by the City Post
once And it is a pleasant recollection to look
in our minds eye. the enormous mail wagons
horses They were painted and decorated like
the big omnibuses We used to 60 to pcnics in,
and were quite as large.
Across the street from the writer's home,
when he was a boy, lived man named Rivers,
who drove one of these big teams He was
tall. angular man. perhaps so years of age, who
had when he was about 35 the writer was
told married girl 13 years old. and they were
then living happily together. They had three
sons, little fellow. and two around 10 and