Editorial 
Houses Garden 
Vol. II. FEBRUARY, 1902. No. 2. 
Price: 
United States, Canada or Mexico, $5.00 per annum in 
advance ; elsewhere in the Postal Union, $6.00. 
Single Numbers, 50 cents. 
Address: 
HOUSE AND GARDEN, 
1222 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Penna. 
Copyrighted , iqoi , by The Architectural Publishing Company . 
Entered at the Philadelphia Post Office as Second Class Mail Matter , 
June , iqoi. 
T HE hopeful part of the proposed plans 
for the improvement of Washington is 
that they are already far on the way to real¬ 
ization. The opinion of the Park Commis¬ 
sion has been sought and followed in connec¬ 
tion with undertakings already provided for. 
The new buildings for the Departments of 
Agriculture, of State and of Justice, the 
Union Station for the railroads and the abo¬ 
lition of grade crossings throughout the City, 
the Municipal Hospital, the railroad and 
highway bridges across the Potomac, the 
Grant, Sherman and Sheridan memorials :— 
all these take their place in the new scheme. 
Other projects are about to be authorized, 
such as office buildings for the House and 
for the Senate, a hall of records, the improve¬ 
ment of the Anacostia flats and the War Col¬ 
lege. T hese also will carry into effect parts 
of the comprehensive plan which was put be¬ 
fore the public on January 15th. While the 
design has been prepared under the direction 
of the Senate Committee on the District of 
Columbia, the cooperation of other Congres¬ 
sional committees and of members of the Cab¬ 
inet has brought about a harmony of action 
and a constant endeavor to provide for exist¬ 
ing and well-recognized needs. 
The chief benefit of the designers’ work 
recently completed for the Capital City is the 
opportunity given to initiate public undertak¬ 
ings so that they may each finally come into a 
complete and harmonious unity. Such a fore¬ 
sight has always characterized well-managed 
private institutions and the public corporation 
should possess it no less. That the wisdom 
of these preconceived designs for our cities 
has become appreciated is shown by the sug¬ 
gestion just made to Mayor Low by the Fine 
Arts Federation of New York City. That 
society has urged that a commission of 
distinguished experts be appointed to ma¬ 
ture a plan for the future development of 
New York in much the same manner that 
has made it possible for Washington to 
become one of the most monumental cities 
of the world. 
There seems to be a popular notion that 
these schemes are devised by architects solely 
to dazzle the public with the huge figure of 
cost their immediate execution would involve. 
It would not only be impossible to execute 
at once such a vast project in its entirety, but 
there is little to be gained by such despatch. 
It would mean useless extravagance. From 
the point of view of wise economy the design 
should be carried into execution piece by piece, 
as needs for the different sections arise and as 
funds are forthcoming to carry them out. In 
the case of Washington all the circumstances 
are most fortunate. Particular sections of the 
work have been left to the care of certain in¬ 
fluential persons who have willingly set their 
hearts upon the ultimate completion of the 
several features. Senator Cullom is fathering 
the Lincoln section and we can trust Mr. 
Root to see that the scheme for the War 
College may not lapse. T he railroads have 
aided the cause by agreeing to deflect a por¬ 
tion of their tracks and to put underground 
the remainder. T he opinion of the Com¬ 
mission has been heeded in fixing the location 
of the new Union Station at an appropriate 
point. T he preparation and exhibition of 
the admirable scheme, its position in our 
mind’s eye, is a large part of the task done. 
The fulfilment should now be a com¬ 
paratively easy matter making an interest¬ 
ing growth during the next fifteen or twenty 
years. 
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