Year: 1876

| ul>IliiN- ii' !a,ent Ollice shows DOsA


models arru '-'! inclasSes. cocoon ua,en,,


bound in series: central ofiice-of AL.


ministration in which the workings o


Americas favorite bureau is illustrated


Strangely enough, one finds the Patent


Office section of the Interior Department


IN the possession of the original Declara


ton Of Independence, and the Commits.


sion Of General Washington from the


Continental Congress; also, the relics OF


Washington, his clothes, camp equipage
punch-bowl and furniture. The Nation
al Museum once sought a fireproOfplace
Of deposit in Washington, and so did
branches of the Government The Pat
ent Ofiice-about one-sixth of the pres
ent building-was selected as safe place.
This was about 1910, and now the Bureau
and Department are rewarded by the
proud opportunity TO display what they
have so long and So carefully keptand so
jealOusly guarded.


Next comes the Treasury Department
with a profuse display of money, not
gold and silver altogether, but printed
money. The array of specimens of
Treasury notes of every description and
denomination ever issued, is study for
the admirer Of beauty and fine art. In
no land under the sun is so much skill
shown in the manufacture of paper
money. The paper for the continental
money was made only few miles hence.
at the ivy Mills" and the mill is run
ming yet and in the hands ola descend
ant Of its old proprietor, but when the
writer visited it some time ago, it was
making a nasty kind ofa thick wrapping
paper of straw and old ropes. Franklin
used TO get his paper there. Even the
old mill has been burned down once or
twice, it is-more certainly than the boys
old jack-knife which had had five new
blades and four new handles-the same
mill, and it ought to drop the straw and
junk and make some more handmade,
water-mark, linen-stOck paperwith some
of old Benjnminis shrewd advice printed
on it in old-fashioned type.


And here is the Navy Department
which shines-as it has a right to do-in
bunting. One reads the history of the
American flag suspended from the col
umns in the various forms of the colonial
and convention periods; the pine tree,
the English "Union," with a red and
white "fy," a white anchor on blue field,
white stars on a blue field, and eventu-
ally the flag Of to-day, showing largest of
all, as it had grown in size as well as de-
veloped i'll design. The navy shows a
variety of guns for special services, such
as boat howitzers and gunwale guns; it
also has piles of naval stores, with smell
ing ropes, and things to eat and to wear;
the provisions TO go TO the great cooks
galleys and the furnishing of the mems
kits; the instruments of the Transit of
Venus expedition, as the War Depart
ment has those of the signal Service.
This Department has also some boats of
the Polaris expedition, one scow made in
an emergency from an abandoned vessel.
Around lie many piles of shot and she'll
and of material suggestive of long
service, when "they that go down to the
sea in ships" have to depend upon the
forethought of the providers, who must
be ready to supply everything from a
mainyard 10 a sewing needle at mo-
ments notice. We pass with great in
terest the more scientific portion of the
collection, the compasses, barOmeters,
sounding instruments, ships logs, and
velocimeters. One begins with the arts
of peace, and wanders through the build
ing to the southeastern end. He steps
out at the door with the big guns on
each side, which are pointed in mimic
hostility at the other buildings, and
stands upon the terrace to listen to the
music of the band which plays in the
pavilion near by.


One letter covers so small portion of
the whole exhibition that / am obliged
to stop after having but just begun.
Probably Machinery Hall and the State
buildings will be the next most interest
ing feature TO your readers, and follow
ing these we will journey through the
main building. This last is the place to
study human nature. cannot think of
any place where one would find such a
variety of specimens of the genus homo,
in, as the naturalists says, "all stages OF
preservation" Coming down from the
government building yesterday passed
through the carriage manufacturers
structure, and have never so fully real
lied the force of that familiar simile
pretty as red wagon" as / do after a
glance at the fine display of vehicles 1t
was stated last week that showers of the
queer were working off counterfeit fifty
cent pieces through the outside specula-
tors in change, but / cannot learn that
much was done at it, and of course ithas
been wholly stopped now.


1t is about settled that there will be no
further reduction in railway fares, and so
the committee appointed by the Centen-
NAL Commission to confer with the rail-
way authorities have reported. The
Pennsylvania Central people assert that
they would do passenger business at an
actual loss if they acceded to this demand,
as the extra Centennial travel at the low
rates would not equal the falling off of