Some Advantages Enjoyed by Students of Washington Training College
By J. W. Lawhead
THE city of Washington became the seat of the federal government in the year 1800, so that almost all the history of our nation is centered in this city, which is, because of this, one of the richest in storied memory and in historical associations. The city itself was located by Washington during his first term of the presidency, and it was under his direction that the city was laid out, the sites of the public buildings located, and all the detail work done incident to establishing a city for the purpose of making it the capital of the nation. In this respect Washington is unique, as the capital cities are almost without exception chosen because of the commercial importance or other facts which make the cities prominent. All the government buildings are open to visitors, who are freely admitted to all departments, under such restrictions as have been found wise by the officials in charge of the different departments, and an acquaintance with the contents of these buildings and of the scope and character of the work done in them is in itself an education. Perhaps the most important of all the public buildings is the Capitol, where the sessions of Congress are held, where the Supreme Court sits, and where the statesmen of former days have won their fame and have swayed the destinies of the nation for weal or woe. When we think that in this building laws are enacted for the government of upward of eighty millions of human beings, when we consider the vast and varied interests centering in that legislation and the amount of human interest connected with every action of the Congress, it makes this one feature of our city of the greatest interest to every student. And the school has arranged to give its students opportunity to visit Congress from time to time for the purpose of studying parliamentary law in practise, and of becoming acquainted with the issues confronting the nation and with their presentation as given in the speeches of the different members. The students of the past two years have found this one of the most engrossing studies, and have received not only pleasure, but profit, from attending these sessions. Some of the young men have likewise enjoyed attending the sessions of the Supreme Court, which present a study quite the reverse of that offered by Congress. During the sittings of the Court the utmost decorum is rigidly enforced, and the proceedings are scrupulously confined to the routine established by long usage, while every argument presented is an illustration of pure reasoning, since the Court deals with logic, and can not be swayed by emotion. Aside from the living, moving facts of recurrent events, we find here centered the greatest of American historical associations, and one can spend many days in the studies suggested by painting and sculpture and by facts and conditions here existing. To all who are interested in the history of our nation, here is offered one of the richest possible fields for study. Another very important public building is the Congressional library, which is altogether modern in its structure, and is ranked as one of the greatest, if not the very best, building of its kind in all the world. This one library has books and pamphlets aggregating between one and a half and two millions, bearing on every point of human study. Every one of this vast number of publications is freely accessible to every student, and the building is so constructed that it can accommodate a thousand readers at a time, and give them the privilege of undisturbed and quiet study, with a trained attendant close at hand to procure any book that is desired, or to aid one in the selection of books if he will but state the topic in which he is interested. It is impossible in this connection to enumerate the list of public institutions or the advantages for study or for inquiry afforded by them. A mere mention of some of the leading ones, such as the Smithsonian Institution, the National Museum, the Corcoran Art Gallery, the Patent Office, the Bureau of Education, the Bureau of Ethnology, the Army Medical Museum, the Naval Observatory, the Botanical Gardens, and the Zoological Gardens, will suffice to suggest the scope of the possibilities that are open to our students, as all these institutions, with the varied libraries and their millions of books and the subjects in the museums, are freely accessible to the students of all colleges incorporated in the District. Aside from these purely governmental institutions there are many others, chiefly educational in their nature, such as the Georgetown University, the George Washington University, Howard University, the National University, and the American University. The officers of these institutions are very kind and cordial, and the advantages offered by these different institutions are freely available to any who want to take advantage thereof. Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C.