Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1954-03-25
Editor:

notice that you frequently re.
fer to Citizens For Good Govern
ment as a COMMITTEE" This
seems just bit inaccurate to me-
The word COMMITTEE connotes a
small body of people appointed to
do some piece of work. A group
which now numbers in the hun
dreds seems like pretty big
committee" to me! In fact, there
are about 10 different commit
tees i'm Citizens For Good Govern
ment!
1t may have been a commit
tee" when it started, but it is
something more than that now,
and 1 wish you would call it
something that is more accurate.
ly descriptive of it's position in
this town.
r. P. Smith
ED. Note: The word Commit
tee" referred to above is and has
been used because it is part of
the official name of a group
which has organized as "The Citi-
zens' Committee For Good Gov
eminent" Use of the entire name
is bit unwieldy in news stories
and is sometimes shortened to
Committee" or good govern
ment" group as time and space
saving device.
Editor:
Montgomery County Sentinel
The recent death of Gordon
Strong, owner of Sugar Loaf
mountain, also the fine editorial
in the Sentinel on MAN With a
Dream, inspire me with the
thought that many of the new
citizens of Rockville and suburbs
may not know either the subject
or the history of the Post Office
mural. They, like myself, per-
haps may not have visited the
original freak of nature which
dawns upon the vision, clearly
outlined on a fair day, as one
arrives at Derwood on Route 240.
Soon after the completion of
the Rockville Post Office in 1889,
the subject of a mural was taken
under consideration by the Post
Office Department. Hon. Smith
w. Purdum, Fourth Assistant
Postmaster General actively es-
pousing the benevolent project of
then President Roosevelt, that all
talented youngsters (mural art
lists included) should be afforded
opportunity to pursue their avo-
cations, the Government to foot
the expenses and pay a liberal
bonus upon completion and &C.
ceptance of the work.
The result was, the plain, dig
nified, unadorned walls of the
Government buildings and u. S.
Post Offices were covered with
horrible nightmares, labeled muir
ais, which to this day startle Wis
itors who are not prepared for
such exhibitions in the halls and
offices of the Government.
There was at that time a resi-
dent of Rockville who took great
pride in the handsome new Post
Office and registered vow that
a sample of any of the murals
she had seen elsewhere would be
reproduced in her home town on
ly over her dead body. To thor
oughly inform herself, she care
fully studied the one hundred or
more original murals on exhibit
ton in the Corcoran Art Gallery;
collected numerous magazine dis
plays and noted the ill-propor-
toned absurdity at that time in
the Bethesda Post Office.
Well equipped with informa-
ton and convictions, she proceed
ed to lombard the Rockville
Chamber of Commerce, the Town
Council, all the mems and wom-
ems clubs and the leading bust
ness men of the town, securing
their public and private endorse
ments. The Washington Star pub
lished two interesting articles on
the worthy undertaking of the
'lone woman fighter in a good
cause"
Judson Smith of New York,
artist appointed by Post Master
Purdam to select an appropriate
subject for the mural, visited
Rockville and for three days
studied. the surrounding terrain
and local atmosphere. The Tone
fighter" Immediately located him,
spending several hours discussing
the subject, accentuating the
bill of Rights" as applying to
the cultured, dignified citizens
whose ancestors laid the founda-
tons of the village and had con-
tinued the building of the struc.
lures from 1740 to the then date,
1889.
Smith sounded the lady's views,