The Coolidge examiner., 1938-07-21
ARIZONA
IN WASHINGTON
BY BOB MERKLEY

1t is not often that the world
thinks of erecting a memorial to
a man before he is dead. Usually
it is years before the world realizes
that the man deserved one. But
back in the early days Of our ma
tion there was a man who had plen-
" Of chances to see his image
astride a bronze horse. He was
General Washington.
The General would have none of
it. He asked them to wait until
he was no longer here in person.
They waited. Congress was hber-
al with resolutions before his
death. but later. when the real
time came for a monument, there
was little action shown by the
lawmakers.
Chief Justice John Marshall was
president of an association of
Capitol residents devoted to the
task of building a memorial to the
first President of the United States.
Mershall's original pan was not
merely to put George Washington
on horse. Instead, the Father
of his Country was to ride in
chariot drawn by six fiery steeds.
This memorial was to be no puny
thing. Besides Washington, it was
to bear the Signers of the Declara-
ton. The principal battles OF the
Revolution were to be shown i'll
in bas-relief. A colossal shaft OF
marble was TO rise six hundred feeI
from its center.
Like so many great plans, those
for the Washington Monument had
to be trimmed down to meet the
funds. In July of 1S4S, they laid
the cornerstone. Gone from the
plans were the battles of the Revo-
luton. the Signers of the Declara-
ton of independence, the chariot
with its six fiery steeds, and Wash
ing himself. The six hundred foot
shaft was all that remained.
1t took fifteen years to raise $751;,
600. That vase enough to build
only 156 feet The panic of 1857
the Civil War and the assassination
of Abraham Lincoln became his
tory while the stump of the shaft
stood untouched for a quarter OF
a century. Then Congress took
over the job. 1t was finished at
height of 555 feet.
Today the Washington Monu-
ment is probably the most attract
i've sight in a sightseers paradise.
Other things are interesting only
from a historical angle There is
nothing particularly fascinating
about any building as long as II
is only a building. If the sightseer
is not tod that it houses the e.
men. the mine Old Man" or the
President of the United States, it
is lust another building to him.
Rut not so with the Washington
Monument. 1t is worth seeing for
itself alone. Though it never quite
reached the height of six hundred
feet, il stands well above anything
else in its neighborhood. An elect
ric elevator reaches the lookout
room at 500 feet. From there, the
view may or may not be good.
Washington has some nasty wea-
ther But the descent by way of
the S9S steps is always interesting.
There is no outside view between
the top and the bottom, but the
walls are decorated with memorial
plaques presented by cities, lodges
and states. Near the top, ana
topping them all for novelty, is one
from Arizona. 1t is pertified wood.
Washington's friends might have
saved the chariot, the horses and
the Signers of the Declaration OF
independence, but it would be
nothing more than another statue.
AS it is, they left something we,
and the coming generations, can
really enjoy while we are paying
tribute to the Father of our Coun-
try.