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Show TIPPED WITH GOLD Few People Know the Purpose of Bands at the Apex of Washington Wash-ington Monument. FEW persons who have seen the Washington monument, even those who have lived within sight of It all their lives, have noticed that the apes of the monument monu-ment is surrounded with parallel bands. Such is the fact, however ; and moreover, the bands are studded with golden points. The bands are made of gold-plated iron a foot wide, and the points are spaced a foot from one another. For a moment in each sunny day of the first week of the new year the golden fillet that binds the brow of the Washington monument is visible to human eyes. Then, the angle of incidence in-cidence of the sun's rays Is such that r " . ; : - . ''J'" "'' -y'fr-- .-tJ.-.. :i,:'JtA Washington Monument. they are reflected downward to the windows of the buildings north and west of the monument, and the cool, gray surface is seen to be marked with 11 shining lines of gold. Theoretically, n similar effect could be obtained from some point of observation ob-servation at each moment when the sun's rays are intercepted by the sloping slop-ing top of the monument, but only an airship could attain the necessary vantage point. To protect the monument from lightning light-ning the men of science agreed on a. number of iron bands, heavily galvanized galvan-ized and gold plated to prevent rusting. rust-ing. The bands are eonuected with the aluminum point of the monument and the framework of the elevator, and at the base iron cables lead the electricity elec-tricity into a deep well, where It harmlessly harm-lessly expends its force. The protection protec-tion has pn.el to be perfect. Youth's Companion. |