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BOTANICAL. INWEX. 
on the walks through the grounds or on the stone steps leading up and down the 
terraces; everything is kept in perfect order by those whose duty it is to look after 
certain portions of the grounds, each day. The inmates, and in fact all connected 
with the Home, were dressed in the neat National uniform of blue, and no differ- 
ence whether at work on the grounds, lounging under the trees and telling of their 
hair breath escapes in battle, or whiling away the time in the barracks, reading, writ- 
ing, or in sweet communion with loved ones, perhaps, far away, or more likely, with 
those passed away, and the little group of photographs pinned to the wall by the 
bedside is all that is now left of a once happy family; still they all seem happy, and 
thankful that there has been a home prepared to make them comfortable in their 
helpless condition; Again, as if to impress the visitor with the true military char- 
acter of the place, in nearly every prominent and conspicuous position were large 
mortar and seige guns of almost every form, with pyramids of shot or shell by their 
side; while one of the first objects seen upon entering the grounds is a battery of 
field artillery, immediately north of the depot, from which is given the usual mili- 
tary salute announcing the rising and setting of the sun. 
We give at the head of this article a bird’s eye view of the place, but of course, 
many things of great interest must necessarily be too dimly seen to obtain a good 
understanding of it. Again, each year, through the untiring ell'orts of its Board of 
Managers, many great improvements and changes are made, so that a view of the 
place this year will not fully represent all the improvements and additions of the 
next. Perhaps, it would be instructive to study the illustration at the head of this 
article, the cut of which was so kindly loaned us to use in connection with this ar- 
ticle by the Home Avenue Railroad Company, Dayton, Ohio, whose trains leave the 
Union Depot every half hour, and land their passengers at a neat little depot di recti y 
in front of general headquarters. The picture gives a faithful representation of the 
Home as it was when the sketch was made, as well as a good general view of the 
improvements carried out up to that time. First, the large building to the right, 
in the centre of the picture, is the beautiful and commodious hospital, 293x40 feet 
wide in the main building, while the large diagonal towers and wings add nearly 
half as much more capacity to the structure, making it capable of accommodating 
nearly 400 patients, it is the finest building on the grounds and the most complete, 
in its interior arrangement, of any similar institution in the country. The next 
building, as shown in the picture, is the chapel, a handsome gothic stone edifice al- 
ready well covered with growing Ivy, an almost indispensable accompaniment to a 
gothic church. Here we found that worthy friend of the soldier, Rev. W. Earn- 
shaw, chaplain at the Home, in his study. Chaplain Earnshaw served his country 
during the whole of the civil war in the Forty-ninth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and 
is thoroughly alive to the responsibility resting upon his position. The next build- 
ing seen in the picture is the general headquarters, 130x41 feet square. It contains 
the governor’s rooms and offices, the office of the secretary and treasurer of the Home, 
the Putnam library, etc., and is well fitted up to meet the desired wants. Between 
the chapel and headquarters, but not seen in the picture, (as it was only just fin- 
ished) stands the opera house, a large brick building, without much architectural 
beauty on the outside, but within it is one of the finest building in the west. From 
the balcony over- the main entrance the visitor obtains excellent views of the beauti- 
ful surrounding landscapes, and of the city of Dayton lying directly in front and 
below, while the picturesque Miami Valley, with the surrounding hills, is seen to 
its best advantage, presenting a picture of unrivaled beauty. Directly in front of 
the chapel, and near the depot, to the right, is a large new brick building, to be used 
as reception rooms for visitors, offices, etc., while immediately back of headquarters 
are seen the homes of the soldiers, the barracks, each 100 feet long and 40 feet wide, 
while in the centre of the group stands the large spacious dining hall. 
All the improvements at the Home are done by the invalid soldiers, of which arc 
now 4,000 quartered there. They represent all kinds of trades and occupations, and 
as it is necessary to continually add new buildings for barracks, shops, etc., to ac- 
commodate the increased demand for accommodation, there is employment for all 
who are willing and capable of working. Nearly all the buildings are of brick or 
stone, and built in a permanent and substantial manner. At the present writing a 
large force is at work converting a natural valley of about 10 acres into a lake, which 
will be connected with the other three already constructed. 
But our object in visiting this charming place was to see the grand success of 
Landscape Gardening and the Floricultural beauties developed in a few years, and 
although our expectations were high, sti 1 1 we found we had not over-estimated the 
beauties wrought by the hand of man in converting forests and bare fields into a 
small and beautiful city in a short space of time. Immediately in front of head- 
quarters stand the Martindale conservatories and greenhouses, well filled with the 
choicest of plants. It is really a marvel of neatness and taste, and speaks volumes 
in praise of Mr. Charles Beck, its capable chief guardian. A number of the houses 
stand on the edge of the bluffs overhanging the lakes, while others are on the low 
