The WHY and WHERE all questionings defy,
Until we find, far back in youthful nurture,
Prophetic facts that constitute the WHY.
All merit comes from braving the unequal,
All glory comes from daring to begin;
Fate loves the state that, reckless of the sequel,
Fights long and well, whether it lose or win.
XXV
STATE, WAR, AND NAVY DEPARTMENTS
The State, War, and Navy departments are in one handsome four-storied granite building, with a frontage of 343 feet and a depth of 565 feet, situated on Pennsylvania Avenue, just west of the White House. The building is one of the handsomest in the city, being of the French Rennaissance, modified by American ideas. It has five hundred rooms and two miles of marble halls. In the west wing of the building the Secretary of War, Hon. Elihu Root, and General Miles, Commander of the Army, have handsome rooms for themselves and their many assistants. In the east wing can be found the Secretary of the Navy and rooms for the Admirals and their corps of helpers, and in the south wing the popular Secretary of State, the Hon. John Hay, with a comparatively small number of assistants.