Evening star., 1945-08-26
Capital Sidelights
Bu Will p. Kennedu.

By VIII p. Kennedy.
Washington, the worlds capital of
today, is modelled after the most mag
nificent cities of Europe, because the
founders, although very republican in
theory, and in speech proposing to build
a Spartan capital, were aristocratic in
descent and education and proceeded
to develop this Federal City out of a
swamp and forest, with every inherited
idea OF culture, art and magnihcence
Next to Washington. Jefferson took the
deepest personal interest in the embryo
Capital, and he was the art connoisseur
Of the time. Writing to Washington
from Philadelphia, April TO-, 1871, he
saids II received last night from Mai
LEnfant . request to furnish any plans
OF towns could for examination I
accordingly send him by this post, plans
of Frankfort-on-ehe Main, ETC., which
procured while in those towns respec-
lively. They are none Of them, how
ever, comparable to the old Babylon
revived in Philadelphia and exempli-
fed" The other plans included Karls-
ruhe. Amsterdam, Strassburg, Paris,
Orleans, Bordeaux, Lyons, Montpelier,
Marseille, Turin and Milan. But the
mercurial French engineer could not
satisfy his soul by attempting a capital
for the new Nation built on the acute
angles of old Babylon received through
the arid and level reaches of Philadel-
phia. So, this city of magnificent dis
tances" grew out of magnificent in
tentions" to become progressively de-
veloped Capital unmatched in all the
world.
From the pen of Washington we have
the earliest public communication re-
garding the laying out of Washington,
named in his honor, dated March II,
1871. He first called 1t the Federal
City" in letter dated April 30, 1891,
but four months later the first Com
nissioners-Thomas johnson, David
Stewart and Daniel Carroll-wrote from
Georgetown, September 9. 1871, notify
ing Maj. LEnfant that they had agreed
that the Federal district should be
called THE Territory of Columbia" and
the Federal City 1.-THE City of WASH
ington," and directing that he entitle
his map accordingly.
Congressmen,s secretaries, harassed
to distraction by importuning visitors to
their Offices, may be surprised to learn
that George Washington anticipated this
situation when the Capital was being
laid out. John Adams was insistent that
the department buildings should be
clustered around the Capitol. but WASH
ington decided otherwise, for reasons
disclosed in letter shortly before his
death: Where or how the houses for
the President and the public ofIices may
be fixed is to me, as an individual, a
matter of moonshine. But the reverse of
the Presidents motive for placing the
latter near the Capitol was my motive
for fixing them by the former. The
daily intercourse which the secretaries
of departments must have with the
President would render a distant situa-
ton extremely inconvenient to them,
and not much less so would one be close
to the Capitol; for it was the universal
complaint Of them all. that while the
legislature was in session, they could do
little or no business, 50 much were they
interrupted by the individual visits Of
members in of1ice hours, and by calls for
papers. Many Of them have disclosed
to me that they have been obliged often
to 60 home and deny themselves In
order to transact the current business"
And as the administrative branch OF the
Government grew, spreading farther and
farther from the White House neigh
borhood, cries were raised for decentral-
ization Of the Government establish
ment. This was tried out through
executive orders during the war emer-
gency, with the result that multiplying
costs and delays have convinced those
In charge that the Government work
shop should be kept convenient for
presidential consultation, and for prompt
interdepartmentsl and interbureau
transactions.