Distances." Possibly one of the best descriptions of Washington and its characteristics is that of the poet in the _Washington Post_: A city well named of magnificent distances; Of boulevards, palaces, fountains and trees; Of sunshine and moonlight whose subtle insistence is-- "Bask in our radiance! Be lulled by our breeze!" A city like Athens set down in Arcadia; White temples and porticoes gleaming 'mid groves; Where nymphs glide and smile as though quite unafraid o' you, The home of the Muses, the Graces, the Loves; The centre of Politics, Letters and Sciences; Elysium of Arts, yet the Lobbyist's Dream; Where gather the clans whose only reliance is Gold and the dross that sweeps down with its stream; An isle of the lotus, where every-day business Sails on its course all unvexed by simoons; No bustle or roar, no mad-whirling dizziness O'er velvety streets like Venetian lagoons; A town where from nothing whatever they bar women, From riding a bicycle--tending a bar; Ex-cooks queen society--ladies are charwomen-- For such the plain facts as too often they are. A city where applicants, moody, disconsolate, Swoop eager for office and senseless to shame; The "heeler" quite certain of getting his consulate, Although, to be sure, he can't sign his name; A town where all types of humanity congregate; The millionaire lolling on cushions of ease; The tramp loping by at a wolfish and hungry gait; And mankind in general a' go as you please. A city in short of most strange inconsistencies; Condensing the history of man since the fall; A city, however, whose piece de resistance is This--'tis the best and the fairest of all. THE POTOMAC AND THE ALLEGHENIES.