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THIE BENCHI AND BAR.
The Peculiar Character of the District of Columbia-Laws of the States of Virginia and Maryland Continued in Force Therein - Rights Preserved - Appeals to the Supreme Court - The Circuit Court - The Orphans' Court - Police Court - District Marshal -The Jurisdiction of the Courts - Kendall versus the United States - Chief Justices of the Circuit Court -Thomas Johnson - William Kilty - William Cranch - George W. Hopkins-James Dunlop - Associate Justices-James Mar- shall - Nicholas Fitzhugh - Allen R. Duckett - Buckner Thruston - James S. Mor- sell - William M. Merrick -The Supreme Court of the District of Columbia - David K. Cartter-Edward F. Bingham - Abraham B. Olin -George P. Fisher
CONTENTS.
Andrew Wylie D. C. Humphries Arthur MeArthur - A. B. Hagner - Walter S. Con - Charles P. James Martin V. Montgomery -Andrew C. Bradley The Criminal Court - Thomas Hartley Crawford - The Police Court- Celebrated Cases in the Courts of the District of Columbia - The Lawrener Case - The White Case The Gardiner Case- The Herbert Case The Sickles Case- The Assassination of President Lincoln - Hallett Kilbourn The Quitean Case -- The Star Route Cases Members of the Early Bar Francis S. Key -- William 12. Brent - Philip R. Fen- dall - Richard S. Cove -- Joseph H. Bradley-James M. Carlisle - Henry May The Present Bar. 716 758
CHAPTER XXIIL.
The Prosecution of Claims Against the Government - Claims Growing Out of the Wars of the Country -The Board of Commissioners on Mexican War Claims - Nature of These Claims Requires Lawyers of the Highest Standing and Ability - The Court of Claims - Amounts Paid Ont in Pensions - Importance of the Profession George E. Lemon's Building - Names of Some of the Attorneys Engaged in the Prosecution of Claims 754-759
HISTORY OF WASHINGTON.
CHAPTER I.
NATURAL ADVANTAGES.
Situation and Natural Surroundings of the City-The District of Columbia-Prime Meridians of the World-Design of Making and Attempts to Make the Merid- ian of Washington a Prime Meridian-History of the Efforts to Determine the Latitude and Longitude of Washington- Efforts to Establish an Astronomical Observatory at Washington - William Lambert's Work - Andrew Ellicott's Work - Errors in Mr. Lambert's Work --- R. T. Paine's Work-Sears C. Walker's Work - Latitude and Longitude of the Four Corners of the District of Columbia, of the Washington Monument, and of the Naval Observatory-Ellicott's Azimuth Mark -- Other Original Landmarks -- The Center Stone-The Center of the District of Columbia -The Climate of Washington -Thermometrical and Barometrical Eleva- tions-The Potomac River-Jefferson's Description of the Confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers -The Great Falls-Captain John Smith's Explo- ration of the Potomac-The Potomac Fisheries-Theoretic Geology of the Vicinity of Washington - Economic Geology -The Botany of the District of Columbia.
HE first question to be asked about a place is as to its situation; and
1 usually this has reference to its latitude, longitude, elevation above the sea, and natural surroundings. In answering such questions as these with regard to Washington, the Capital of the United States, it is proper to begin with its latitude and longitude, and the history of the determination thereof, although these were not determined even approximately until some years after its selection as the site of the Capital of the Nation. However, it may be briefly stated that Washington is situated on the north side of the Potomac River, about one hundred and sixty miles from its mouth. It is within the District of Columbia, which, as originally laid out, was in the form of a square, ten miles in length on each side, and hence containing one hundred square miles of territory. The sides of this square extended at an angle of forty-five degrees with the meridian line, so that the several corners of the square pointed respectively to the north, east,
2
17
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HISTORY OF WASHINGTON.
south, and west. The south corner, or point, was at the north cape of Hunting Creek, was known otherwise as Jones's Point, and was on the right bank of the Potomac River, just below Alexandria. The north corner is about a mile from Rock Creek, in Maryland. The west corner was near the Four-mile Road, in Virginia, and the east corner is about two miles east of the Eastern Branch, near Bladensburg, Maryland.
Inasmuch as it is necessary to introduce an account of the establishment of the meridian of longitude passing through Wash- ington, it is deemed appropriate to present in the same connection brief mention of the various first meridians of the world. The earliest astronomer to determine longitude by astronomy was Hipparchus, of Rhodes, who chose for his first meridian that of Rhodes, where he observed. This island is on the dividing line between the ZEgean and the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. Ptolemy adopted a meridian running through the Insula Fortunater, as being the farthest known land toward the west; while the Arabs adopted the meridian of the Straits of Gibraltar. In the eleventh century, Alphonso X., of Castile, adopted the meridian of Toledo. After the discovery of America by Columbus, and the voyages of the Portuguese navigators, Pope Calixtus caused the adoption of the meridian thirty-five degrees west of Lisbon: but later on, the first meridian was set back two degrees toward the east. Meanwhile, Protestant nations remained refractory to any action in this respect taken by Rome. The Dutch adhered to the meridian of Ptolemy until they changed it to that of the peak of Teneriffe: but a scientific congress, assembled by Richelieu, at Paris, in 1630, selected the meridian passing through the island of Ferro-one of the Canary Islands -for this purpose. Other famous first meridians have been that of Uraniemberg, and that of San Miguel, one of the Azores, twenty-nine degrees and twenty-five minutes west of Paris. These continued to be used for a long time, yet the meridian of Ferro, anthorized by Louis XIII., April 25, 1634. gradually superseded all the others. In 1724, the longitude of Paris from the west coast of Ferro was found by Louis Feuillee, sent there by the Paris Academy, to be twenty degrees, one minute, and forty-five seconds: but upon the proposition of Guillaume de Lisle, the meridian of Ferro was assumed to be precisely twenty degrees west of the Paris observatory. The English held to the meridian of London, and added that of Jamaica, which island they had just conquered. During the first half of the seventeenth century, Mercator traced his first meridian through the Azores, his choice being determined by the circumstance that, in his time, at that longitude, the magnetic needle
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NATURAL ADVANTAGES.
invariably pointed to the north. Mercator, however, was unaware of the fact that the magnetic meridian undergoes a constant but imper- ceptible oscillation, and that its extreme positions vary by many degrees.
Since the establishment of the meridian passing through the island of Ferro by Louis XIII., in 1634, each nation has held to the meridian passing through its principal metropolis, the three most in use since that time being that of this island, that of Paris, and that of Green- wich. The proceedings of the Washington Meridian Conference, held in 1884, with the view of establishing a first meridian of the world, will be detailed in their proper place.
The history of the determination of the longitude and latitude of the city, or rather of the Capitol building, is briefly as follows:
On October 20, 1804, Mr. William Lambert made observations on the occultation of Alcyone, one of the Pleiades, by the moon, from a position near the President's House. This was on Saturday evening. On Tuesday, November 14, 1809, Mr. Lambert prepared an abstract of calculations made for the purpose of determining the longitude of Washington from the observatory at Greenwich, England. In the introduction to this abstract of calculations he said :
" By the plan of the city of Washington, in the Territory of Columbia, the Capitol in that city is intended as a first meridian for the United States of America; but in order to establish it as such, the distance between it and some known meridian in Europe or elsewhere, measured or estimated on a parallel to the equator, and referred to the center of the earth under the respective meridians for which the computations may be made, should be ascertained on correct principles and with due precision. As many of our navigators and geographers are in the habit of taking their departure, or reckoning their longitude, from Greenwich Observatory, England, it will not, it is hoped, be considered as an instance of unpardonable presumption for attempting to extricate ourselves from a sort of deprecating and unnecessary dependence on a foreign nation, by laying a foundation for fixing a first meridian of our own.' >
Thus, from the first, it is evident that besides the object of finding the longitude of the city of Washington, another object was likewise entertained, namely, that, of establishing a first meridian for the United States, in order that this country might be independent of other nations astronomically as well as politically. Of course it will be expected by no one that the details of Mr. Lambert's calculations will be presented here. The reader will desire to be
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HISTORY OF WASHINGTON.
instructed mainly as to the results of those observations and calcula- tions. After presenting the rules for obtaining most of the elements necessary in the computation, Mr. Lambert collected and arranged the results obtained as follows: "Latitude of the Capitol in Wash- ington by observation, thirty-eight degrees, fifty-two minutes, and thirty-seven seconds; latitude of the Capitol, reduced (334 to 333 ), thirty-eight degrees, forty-two minutes, and fifty-two and nine hundred and thirty-nine thousandths seconds; latitude of the Capitol, reduced (230 to 229), thirty-eight degrees, thirty-eight minutes, and nineteen and four hundred and sixty-five thousandths seconds; estimated longi- tude from Greenwich, five hours, seven minutes, and thirty-six seconds, or seventy-six degrees and fifty-four minutes west." But with reference to the longitude, Mr. Lambert closes as follows: "Sup- posing the error of the watch and the apparent times of immersion and emersion to have been exactly as they are here stated, the longitude of the Capitol in the city of Washington from Greenwich Observatory, by actual calculation, is determined as follows: Without reduction of latitude with the moon's horizontal parallax, seventy-six degrees, fifty-six minutes, and eleven and seventy-seven hundredths seconds: reduced (334 to 333). seventy-six degrees, fifty-four minutes, and four and one hundred and twenty-five thousandths seconds; reduced (230 to 229), seventy-six degrees, fifty - three minutes, and six and ninety- three hundredths seconds."
By the first process above, the form of the earth was assumed to be a perfect sphere: and in the second and third, it was assumed to be an oblate spheroid, with the ratio in the second between the equatorial and polar diameters of 334 to 333, and in the third, with a ratio of 230 to 229. Upon the assumption of a ratio of 282 to 281, the longitude of the Capitol was found to be seventy-six degrees, fifty-three minutes, and thirty-five and five hundred and twenty-seven thousandths seconds.
On March 9. and April 2, 1810, Mr. Lambert submitted other calculations. On March 28, Mr. Pitkin, from the committee on Mr. Lambert's memorial, submitted to the House of Representatives a report closing as follows:
"Resolred, That it is expedient to make provision by law author- izing the President of the United States to cause the longitude of the Capitol in the city of Washington from the observatory at Green- wich, in England, to be ascertained with the greatest degree of accuracy, and also authorize him, for that purpose, to procure the necessary instruments."
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NATURAL ADVANTAGES.
July 3, 1812, President Monroe submitted to Congress the report of his Secretary of State approving the project of establishing a first meridian for the United States, and on January 20, 1813, Hon. Samuel L. Mitchill, M. D., reported in favor of the establishment of an astro- nomical observatory at the city of Washington. Some time in 1815 Mr. Lambert revised his original calculation by another method of computation, assuming the ratio between the equatorial and polar diameters of the earth to be 320 to 319. Afterward he obtained observations founded on an occultation of Aldebaran, which occurred in January, 1793, the result being that the longitude of the Capitol was seventy-six degrees, forty-six minutes, and seventeen and fifty-five hundredths seconds, and by the observations of October 20, 1804, it was seventy-six degrees, fifty-four minutes, and twenty-seven and seventy-three hundredths seconds. From observations on an eclipse of the sun, September 17, 1811, the longitude was found to be seventy- seven degrees, five minutes, and twenty - three and seventy - seven hundredths seconds. From observations on the occultation of Gamma (y) Tauri, which occurred January 12, 1813, the longitude was found to be seventy-six degrees, fifty-five minutes, and fifty-two and fifty-five hundredths seconds, and from the solar eclipse of August 27, 1821, it was seventy-six degrees, fifty-five minutes, and twenty-eight and sixty-five hundredths seconds.
Collecting all these results in the form of a table, we have the following:
Stated in report.
From occultation, January 21, 1793 76° 46' 17.85"
From occultation, October 20, 1804 76° 54' 26.97"
From solar eclipse, September 17, 1811 ... 77º 5' 23.88"
Occultation of January 12, 1813
76° 55' 52.85'' 76° 55' 52.55"
Solar eclipse, August 27, 1821
76° 55' 28.20"
76° 55' 28.65"
Mean result. 76° 55' 29.99"
As corrected.
76° 46' 17.55"
76° 54' 27.73"
77° 5' 23.77''
76° 55' 30.05"
The variance between the stated and corrected results was, there- fore, six hundredths of a second, or about five feet, nine inches of linear measurement.
A joint resolution was adopted by the two Houses of Congress March 3, 1821, authorizing the President of the United States to cause to have astronomical observations made by methods which, according to his judgment, might be best adapted to insure a correct determination of the longitude of the Capitol in Washington from Greenwich, or from any other known meridian in Europe. Under authority of this resolution, on the 10th of April following he selected Mr. Lambert
HISTORY OF WASHINGTON.
to make the necessary observation, by lunar observations, observations of lunar occultations of fixed stars, by observations of solar celipses, or any other approved method adapted to ascertain the longitude of the Capitol in the city of Washington from Greenwich, and requiring him to return the data, with accurate calculations founded thereon, to the President to be laid before Congress at its next session. Mr. Lambert thereupon resigned the inferior clerkship which he then held in the Pension Office of the War Department, on the 30th of April, moved to the vicinity of the Capitol, and selected Mr. William Elliot, a well- known teacher of mathematics in Washington, to make the transit and other necessary observations. The instruments required were obtained from the Government, consisting of a transit instrument, a circle of reflection, an astronomical clock, and a chronometer. A true meridian was first established by means of concentric eireles on a large platform nineteen feet west of the original line through the center of the Capitol, marked by Andrew Ellicott in the carlier history of the city. The daily rate of the chronometer was ascertained with due precision.
Some years before, Mr. Andrew Ellicott had obtained the latitude of Washington, to the nearest minute of a degree, to be thirty-eight degrees and fifty-three minutes north. The method of obtaining the latitude of the Capitol by Mr. Lambert was by altitudes of the sun on the passage of his eastern limb over the meridian at the south wing of the Capitol, sixty yards from the center of the building, and it was found to be thirty-eight degrees, fifty-two minutes, and forty-five seconds. On June 6. 7, and 8, 1821, the longitude of the Capitol was again sought for, and found to be west from Paris seventy-nine degrees, fifteen minutes, and twenty-seven and twenty-four hundredths seconds, from which, by deducting the longitude of Paris east from Greenwich, two degrees, twenty minutes, and eleven and fifteen hun- dredths seconds, the longitude of Washington west from Greenwich was found to be seventy six degrees, fifty-five minutes, and sixteen and nine hundredths seconds. On the 22d of June, the longitude of Washington was found to be seventy-six degrees, fifty-five minutes, and nineteen and eighty-four hundredths seconds. Numerous other observations were made during the summer and autumn of that year with the view of securing the greatest possible accuracy, with a minimum result of seventy-six degrees, fifty-five minutes, and fourteen and eighty-one hundredths seconds, and a maximum result of seventy- six degrees, fifty-five minutes, and forty-three and thirty nine hundredths second -. The result of all the observations may be summed up as follows:
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NATURAL ADVANTAGES.
From Paris.
From Greenwich.
From observations prior to March 3, 1821 .. 79º 15' 41.46"
76° 55' 30.31"
Transit observations 79° 15' 42
76° 55' 30.85"
Solar eclipse of August 27, 1821 79° 15' 41.60"
76° 55' 30.45"
Mean result.
79° 15' 41.69'
76° 55' 30.54"
The President's House is north seventy degrees west, one and a half miles and fifty feet, or seven thousand nine hundred and seventy feet, from the center of the Capitol, and hence the longitude of the President's House is as follows:
From Paris.
From Greenwich.
Longitude of the Capitol
79° 15' 41.69"
Difference of longitude.
1' 34.79"
76° 55' 30.54" 1' 34.79"
Longitude of the President's House ... 79º 17' 16.48"
76° 57' 05.33"
In concluding his report, Mr. Lambert said: "The greatest vari- ance in the result, allowing ninety-four thousand eight hundred and six yards to a degree of longitude in our latitude, was fourteen yards and eight inches, from which, if nineteen feet be deducted, -the distance of the transit from the Capitol center,- there are left seven yards, two feet, and eight inches. If we compare the mean result of all the observations with that which has been recorded in the abstracts of calculations heretofore furnished the two Houses of Congress, and allow the same deduction, the variance nearly vanishes, and does not amount to eleven inches of our admeasurement. If we admit the dif- ference in the meridians of Paris and Greenwich to be two degrees, twenty minutes, and fifteen seconds, as stated in Connaissance des Temps for the present year, instead of two degrees, twenty minutes, and eleven and fifteen hundredths seconds, applied to the results of the transit observations which have been made, the variance would still be . less than the length of the Capitol; namely, one hundred and twenty yards. Under all the circumstances in which the foregoing result can be viewed, allowing a small error to have been made in ascertaining the reduction of longitude from a sphere to a spheroid according to the ratio of three hundred and twenty to three hundred and nineteen, and to the distance of the meridians of Paris and Washington, it is not believed that it differs one-fourth of a minute of longitude from the truth."
Mr. Lambert then added, that it was in his opinion the duty of Congress to establish an astronomical observatory at Washington, in order that the right ascension, declination, longitude, and latitude of the moon, planets, etc., might be ascertained with sufficient accuracy,
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HISTORY OF WASHINGTON.
and thus it would be possible to compute a nautical almanac or astronomical ephemeris for ourselves, and then, but not before, we should be independent of the labors of European men of science.
With reference to the accuracy of the results as obtained up to this time (1821), it should be observed that Mr. Lambert used, all the way through, the lunar tables of Burg, which contained errors sufficient to throw the longitude of the Capitol to the eastward too far by about twenty-five seconds of are, or about five statute miles. These errors had been pointed out by Dr. Bowditch, but Mr. Lambert had omitted to make the necessary correction of his work. Some time afterward, a German mathematician named Wurm, by using Mr. Lambert's observations, arrived at the same result as that of Dr. Bowditch. Then, too, with reference to the accuracy of the longitude of the Capitol as determined by Mr. Lambert, D. B. Warden, in his "Chorographical and Statistical Description of the District of Columbia," published in 1816, makes the following observation :
"A celebrated astronomer, the Baron Lindenau, to whom we communicated this calculation, was pleased to favor us with the following observations concerning it:
"'On the 20th of October, 1804, the immersion of Eta (77) Pleiades was observed at Washington at nine hours, twenty-two minutes, and thirty-six and thirty-two hundredths seconds [true time]. From this the caleulator deduces the conjunction of the moon and star at ten hours, forty-two minutes, and fifty-nine and two hundred and seventy-seven thousandths seconds. Calculating the place of the moon by tables, he finds this 6 or conjunction for Greenwich at fifteen hours, five minutes, and thirty-five and five hundred and fifty-six thousandths seconds; and hence the western longitude of Washington equal to five hours, seven minutes, and thirty-six and two hundred and seventy-nine thousandths seconds. This caleulation is perfectly just; nevertheless, the longitude which results from it remains uncertain, and may be defective by several minutes of the arc.
"'1. The calculator supposes the right ascension of Eta (77) Ple- iades fifty-three degrees, fifty-nine minutes, and six and twenty-seven hundredths seconds, the declination twenty-three degrees, twenty-nine minutes, and forty-five and fourteen hundredths seconds; whereas the catalogue of Piazzi, generally considered as the best, gives the right ascension fifty-three degrees, fifty-eight minutes, and thirty and nine-tenths seconds, and the declination twenty-three degrees, twenty- nine minutes, and thirty-four and five-tenths seconds.
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NATURAL ADVANTAGES.
"'2. The conjunction for Greenwich having been calculated, not by real observations, but by the places of the moon, taken from the tables of Mason, perhaps incorrect by from ten to fifteen minutes, an error may result, from twenty to thirty-six minutes, in the time of this conjunction, and also in the longitude of Washington. Uufortu- nately, I have not been able to find an observation in Europe corresponding with this, which would have enabled me to repeat the calculation and establish the longitude of Washington above mentioned.
"'From the observatory of Lieberg, October 10, 1812. "' B. LINDENAU.'"
The solar eclipse of February 12, 1831, was observed at Washı- ington by F. R. Hassler. His observations were reduced by Robert T. Paine, and the difference of time between Greenwich and Wash- ington found to be five hours, eight minutes, and seven and two- tenths seconds. This difference of time gives for the longitude of Washington seventy-seven degrees, one minute, and forty-eight sec- onds, which is six minutes and seventeen and forty-six hundredths seconds of longitude more than Mr. Lambert's average result.
It was on account of the errors in Mr. Lambert's calculations that, in December, 1841, a memorial was presented to Congress, signed by Peter S. Du Ponceau and forty-three other citizens of Philadelphia, and a similar one signed by W. A. Duer, president of Columbia College, and eighteen other citizens of New York, among them Theodore Frelinghuysen, John W. Draper, and Charles Anthon, praying that measures be taken for ascertaining the precise longitude of the Capitol. These memorials were presented to Congress by Hon. W. W. Boardman, of Connecticut, May 12, 1842.
Retracing our steps a little, it may be said that, in 1838, Mr. R. T. Paine, editor of the "American Almanac," determined the position of the Capitol from observations upon the eclipse of the sun, which was nearly central there. In coming to Washington, three chronometers made the difference between the meridian of the Capitol and that of the statehouse in Philadelphia, seven minutes and twenty-five and four-tenths seconds, and in returning to Philadelphia, seven minutes and twenty-six and five-tenths seconds. The mean of these two, added to the longitude of Philadelphia, five hours and thirty-nine and six-tenths seconds, gave for the longitude of the Capitol at Washing- ton, five hours, eight minutes, and five seconds. By observations upon the annular eclipses of 1791, 1811, 1831, and 1838, the longitude was
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