Evening star., 1934-10-07

England. came to this country when a young
man. Shortly afterward he settled in WASH
;ngton, the date being con njectured to be about
1902 He was a printer by trade and at
time was foreman Of the composing room Of the
National Intelligencer. Some six years after his
arrival in Washington, about the year 1908, he
received an appointment in the Treasury De-
partment and remained in that employment
to the time of his death, which occurred Febru-
ary %, 1862.
"'Of pure, moral blameless life says the
Intelligencer in account of his death, in
telligent and useful as a citizen, he was re-
spected by everybody in the city, MI SeSsford
had reached the age of s6 at the time of his
death During his residence in Washington of
some go years, he occupied house on the
south side of D street or Pennsylvania avenue.
between Eleventh and Twelfth streets, por-
tion of the site now occupied by the Post ONCE
Department Building"
Some Of his notes are peculiarly significant
to the Sunny Southwest. In 1924 he refers
to an extension wharf having been built for
the Southern Steamboat Line; 1925, he says:
Considerable range of buildings erected at
Arsenal; and 1926, he notes that the sheds
and workshops there are nearly completed. In
1927 he tells that the penitentiary and
keepers house were nearly completed. There is
little he did not cover, and 1880 he notes the
erection of frame Baptist meeting house south
of the Mall, near Four -and-a-Hah street.
D EGARDING the Governments failure to
n bear its burden of the ctys running ex-
penses which has always been in issue, MIR.
Sessford, in 1886, states:
There have been during the year scarcely
any improvements other than contingent, owing
TO the embarrassed situation of the city and
ward finances. Had the city been in posses
sion of the funds derived from the sales of
public lots. and the unsold lots contributed
their proportion Of taxes, equally with those
owned by individuals, the city would not at
the present day have been in need Of funds to
free 1t from its debts and obligations; but the
proceeds were paid into the Treasury of the
United States, instead of being placed to the
credit of the city for its improvement and en-
bellishment, and which was contemplated by
its great founder Washington and President
Jefferson, is fully shown by their acts and
correspondence.
1.-THE amount raised for city uses by sales Of
lots and donations from Maryland and Vir-
ginia was up to 1880, as follows: From lots,
s732,717.68; donations from Maryland, $4,000;
from Virginia, 100000, making the sum of
$924,717.68; nearly all of which was obtained
in the infancy of the city. Had this amount
been invested in stock it would have afforded
yearly revenue of upward OF $4,000, to
which might have been added small assess
ment tax, and licenses would have enabled the
corporate authorities to accomplish every de-
sirable improvement, and of a permanent
nature"
DUT to South Washington the ward question
- was always an unsatisfactory one and in
deed this condition continued until 1846, when
nearly all of the southwest section of the city
was covered into the seventh ward by the forty
third City Council, and by act of June 8, 1853,
which approved, "re-established, fixed and de-
termined" their boundaries as follows:
First Ward-All that part of the city west
of the center of Fifteenth street west shall
constitute the first ward
Second ward-An that part north of the
center of the Washington Canal east of the
eastern boundary OF the first ward. and west