[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 35 (Thursday, March 24, 1994)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: March 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
      SUGGESTED INTRODUCTORY LANGUAGE FOR THE U.S. BOTANIC GARDEN 
                        COMMEMORATIVE COIN BILL

                                 ______


                           HON. RALPH M. HALL

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 24, 1994

  Mr. HALL of Texas. Mr. Speaker, one of Washington, DC's most historic 
institutions is poised to celebrate an important milestone. In 1995, 
the U.S. Botanic Garden will mark 175 years of fulfilling George 
Washington's vision of a botanic garden at the seat of Government.
  The U.S. Botanic Garden is this country's oldest continuously 
operating botanic garden with a history almost as old as our Nation 
itself. Established in 1820, it is a valuable resource and a living 
library of permanent, international collections of tropical, 
subtropical and desert plants. Its purpose as an educational display 
garden is to inform and educate visitors about the importance, and 
often irreplaceable value, of plants to the well being of humankind and 
to the fragile environments that support all life.
  The programs provided by the garden include opening its doors free of 
charge to thousands of visitors from all over the world 365 days a 
year, hosting group tours and sponsoring horticultural, botanical and 
environmental classes at no charge.
  In recognition and celebration of this significant milestone in the 
life of our Capitol's closest neighbor on the Mall, several of my 
colleagues and I are proud to introduce legislation to authorize the 
minting of coins to commemorate the 175th anniversary of the U.S. 
Botanic Garden. Proceeds from the sale of these coins will be paid to 
the National Fund for the United States Botanic Garden for the purpose 
of building the new National Garden at the U.S. Botanic Garden. 
Companion legislation, S. 1952, has been introduced in the Senate by 
Senator J. Bennett Johnston and 13 original co-sponsors.
  The Architect of the Capitol, under the supervision of the 
Congressional Joint Committee on the Library, has been authorized by 
legislation passed by the Congress in 1988 to design and construct the 
National Garden. Under a contract with the National Fund for the United 
States Botanic Garden, the Architect has designated the Fund, a 
charitable (501)(c)(3) organization, as the primary means for 
soliciting private contributions for that purpose.

  The new National Garden will be a premier showcase for unusual, 
useful and ornamental plants that grow well in the mid-Atlantic region. 
It will be built on a three-acre site immediately adjacent to the 
Botanic Garden Conservatory, located on the Mall between Maryland and 
Independence Avenues. The three major features of the National Garden--
the Environmental Learning Center, the Rose Garden, and the Water 
Garden--will provide a hands-on, living laboratory and beautiful place 
to exhibit our national flower, the rose.
  The National Garden will expand the U.S. Botanic Garden's ability to 
address the public's concern for the environment. It will examine, in 
formal and informal settings, natural habitats and the 
interrelationships between plants, humankind and nature. Through its 
collections, exhibits, displays, and educational programs, it will 
communicate a benevolent attitude toward nature and will illuminate for 
the visitor the ecological and environmental responsibilities of 
individuals and society. It will be equipped to serve all people, 
including those who are physically challenged.
  Visitors will leave the National Garden with a heightened sense of 
stewardship and an understanding of their role and responsibility to 
preserve and protect nature for future generations. The National Garden 
will commemorate the Bicentennial of the U.S. Congress and will be 
dedicated in 1995 in conjunction with the U.S. Botanic Garden's 175th 
Anniversary.
  Sales of this commemorative coin will be an essential part of a 
national, broad-based effort to raise the funds necessary to build the 
National Garden and ensure that the dream becomes a reality. The coin 
presents an opportunity to invest in the future of the Botanic Garden 
and enhance George Washington's vision of the Botanic Garden as a place 
where people of all ages and from every corner of the world can come to 
study, be inspired and enjoy. I urge speedy support of this legislation 
so that this coin can be minted and sold in 1995 as a centerpiece of 
the Botanic Garden's 175th anniversary celebration.

                          ____________________