Evening star., 1940-06-22
Article Tells
OF ['Enfant
Plan Departures
House and Garden
Pictures Capitals
Three Phases

Portraying Washington's nearly
$50 years of growth as the only city
in the world which was planned as
national capital before 1t was built,
House and Garden Magazine, in its
July issue. states that the Capital is
a vastly different city from the one
envisioned by Pierre L'Enfant, the
French military engineer who drew
the original plans.
Writing in a special double num-
Der of the publication Ebert Peets,
chief of the site planning section
of the United States Housing Au-
thority, says: Not neglect. but mis-
Interpretation, defeated the Len
fant plan. L'Enfant intended not a
group of buildings. but city, in the
midst of which there was to be a
splendid garden so designed as to be
an integral part of the community
plan. For this comprehensive plan
has been substituted a formal en-
semble of monumental buildings, iso-
lated in the midst of civic dishevel-
ment. The buildings are impress
sive-and appallingly permanent"
This challenge is taken up by
Frederic A. Delano. uncle Of the
President and chairman Of the pres
ent National Capital Park and Plan
ming Commission. In his article for
House and Garden he explains the
prospective plans for the future and
points out how today's defects can
be, to large degree, eliminated. The
article is illustrated with a model of
the Capital as it will appear 20 years
from now.
Rare Prints Included.
The magazine devotes two sep
arately bound volumes to the COM
plete story of Washington-past,
present and future-revealing many
interesting and little-knoWn facts in
its history. Rare prints and engrav-
ings are used to portray the city in
its early stages, and striking photo
graphs paint a vivid picture of con-
temporary Washington.
The pictures which will be of
greatest interest to Americans are
the color photographs of the in
teriors of the White House. They
were made exclusively for the maga-
zine by Edward Steichen. and show
the famous blue, red, green and east
rooms, as well as the state dining
room and the Presidents study. OF
almost equal interest is group of
ID additional color photographs, fea-
turing interiors of such famous
houses as Mount Vernon, Arlington
and Dumbarton House
According to House and Garden,
Washington was first laid out as a
canal port. French in character.
LEnfant wished to have the city
completely built before people set
tied there, but Gen. George WASH
ington, practical man. treated it as
q real estate proposition. People
moved in while roads were still be-
ing hacked out of the virgin forest.
Design Then Forgotten.
AS was to be expected, the plan
Of the city was trampled under by
this influx. BY the beginning of
the 10th century L'Enfant and his
design had been forgotten and for
the next hundred years Washington
''just grew" At first it maintained
q leisurely pace. but with the Civil
War and the hurly -burly of the post
war period the tempo accelerated
tremendously. Buildings shot up
helter-skelter. It was not until the
turn of the century that Americans
pile to another did not necessarily
create fine city. And it was then
that the Capital returned to the
concept of the planned city; under
the sponsorship of the Mcmillan
Commission.
While the first section of the mag
J a1ne high lights the Federal City,
the second section presents WASH
= ington-the city of homes. Here are