Evening star., 1962-01-14
Cities
and People
Time Proved
He Was Right
BY ROBERT ]. LEWIS

clair Lewis "Babbitt," his
most successful caricature,
had already begun to turn
the country toward a doubt
full introspection.
So clear was the image of
George F. Babbitt that the
American Mercury could ad-
vertise for bscriberS in
these words:
''Mr. Babbitt knows every
thing, but nothing that he
knows is true. What he needs
is better reading matter e.
You have to listen to him
every day. Here is a chance
to improve his conversation.
Send him The Am eric an
Mercury"
Like it or not, the old Mer-
curry under H. L. Mencken
helped to improve American
conversation, change the peo-
pie and shape the present.
Much between it's covers is
as dated as a Stutz car ad-
vertiSement. But one article,
in particular, in the August,
1926, issue, could have been
written last week.
"The New Washington" it
was titled, and the writer was
Ebert Poets, now a 75-year-
old resident of this city who
had a prophetic vision and
the courage to speak out.
IN THAT YEAR, IS years
ago, Congress had just au-
thorized a huge construction
program. The Federal Tri-
angle was to be built, and
Lafayette Square was to be
filled with massive stone Of
flee buildings.
Mr.. PeetS was appalled,.
THE White House is a resi-
dence, and few things look
more uncomfortable than a
residence surrounded by non
residence buildin G s." he
wrote in the Mercury article.
Lafayette Square ought to
:. have about it the resi-
dence scale and atmosphere.
The houses might be used by
clubs and organization head
quarters that do not induce
tides of population and traf-
fic, but they ought to be of
red brick and safely under
the scale of the White House.
Of the official proposal for
a pile of Greco-Roman build
ingS for the Federal Triangle,
he wrote that they were
conceptions of architecture
and civic art no longer cur
rent and valid-aS if a pha-
lanx of turgidly formal boxes
of sham masonry will be set
up, a permanent monument
to unlearned lessons" He
then added:
There is a lot of talk about
respecting the sacred plan
made by L'Enfant and Wash
ington, but not a voice is
raised when some architec-
tural Brahmin signs a fat
contract and sends a wreck
ing crew to make rubbish of
the honest work of a father
Of his own guild, a build
ing that in Avila or Bang
kok would be preserved with
out question as a national
shrine"
He pleaded for respectful
consideration of historic
houses "to save some traces
of the real men who have
lived and worked here" and
called for critical discussion
of rebuilding plans.
Il Il
MIR. PEETS later became a
member of the National Fine
Arts Commission. He was CO.
author, in 1922, of "Civic
Art" one of Americas most
notable works in the field of
city design.
To many, his criticism of
those projects Of long ago
must have appeared reason
able. His words today seem
strangely applicable, for
somehow Lafayette Square
has escaped much of the
change so frequently pro-
posed for it.
A long time has p SIS e d
since Mr.. Peets wrote:
"Th e White House is a
small building depending for
its impressiveness on the diff
ficulty of comparing it with
other buildings, and on the
sharp contrast of it's white
color. Both these means OF
distinction will be seriously
weakened d when Lafayette
Square is lined with 1,4OO feet
of limestone facade, more
than half again as high as
the White House"
Everyone today agrees ii
would have been a great mis-
take to carry out the plan
against which Mr.. Peets
I@ReEoI - ,,,oryoi,ax fIoor VII ~,