Evening star., 1946-08-04
Fifty Years Ago

"A nlut OF LnlngS 10 come was contained
In short news item in The. Star of
July 10, 1895, wherein
Municipal 1T was set forth that
Illumination unless the Washing
ton Gaslight Com
pany, complied with the wishes Of the
Commissioners" and signed a contract
ito light the city upon the District spe-
c1fleations" with gas, there is every rea-
son to believe that before long" local
streets will be lighted by incandescent
electric lights" The Potomac Electric
Light and Power Company, it was ex-
planned, was eager to obtain the busi-
ness. Allegedly, "the only question that
remained to be settled is: Have the
Commissioners the power to permit the
Potomac Company to lay underground
conduit"
The Star on July II, 1896, reported
the demise OF Edmond Louis Antoine
de court
Edmond de Goncourt one of the fam
Dead in Poris GUS novel writ
ing brothers
still remembered as the most notable
literary team of the late 10Th century.
He had survived his partner in life and
art by more than Is years. The net
effect Of their joint career, as sum-
married by Arthur Symons, was that:
In order to render new sensations, q
new vision OF things, they invented a
new language'-their own variety of
French. lola was their immediate fol-
lower. The American perhaps most dis
tinctively influenced by them was Henry
Bellamann, author of Kings Row" An
annual prize for works of fiction was
provided in Edmond's will. The books
collected by the brothers were sold at
auction so that their distribution among
bibliophiles might be as wide as possible.
In The Star OF July 80, 1895, there
appeared an announcement to the ef-
feet that the
Memorial TO Famous monument to
General and President U. S. Grant
in Riverside
Drive, New York "is practically COM
pleted." The scaffolding, it was ex-
planned, "has been removed, showing
the structure in it's beauty of design
and execution" Greek In its style of
architecture, the memorial to the IA
nous Union general and President was
100 feet long, 100 feet wide and ITO feet
high. THE only modern feature "
is colossal equestrian statue = above
the portico." Grants body, then in
temporary vault was to rest ''in a sar-
cophagus to be placed few feet above
the floor /" in the center" of the ed
ifce. The cost of the entire monument
was given as $500,000-a small sum ac-
cording to the standards of half a CEN
tury later.
A cable from Lon0on to The Star for
July 81, 1896, said: THE rumor that
Queen Victoria intends
Exit to retire in favor of the
Victorio? Prince Of Wales is again
current today, and it is
added that court circles are greatly
troubled regarding the condition of the
Queens health. Such reports have fire.
quently appeared in recent years, only
to be semiof1ciauy contradicted later.
But it now seems that there may be
some actual foundation for the state
ments made. There is no doubt
that the Queen seems to feel greatly
the weight of her years and bereave-
ments, and Her Majesty is quoted as
having repeatedly remarked during her
last stay in this city =: This is
my last visit to London" Color al
legedly was lent to the rumor of the
Queens proposed retirement by "the
deep emotion" which she displayed when
bowing to the crowds which lined the
route from Buckingham Palace to the
railroad station when she left for Wind
sor after the marriage of the Princess
Maud to Prince Charles Of Denmark.
But Victoria defied the gossips, kept her
crown, her throne and every single yes
tige Of her royal and imperial preroga-
tives until the final moment Of her life,