Daily American telegraph. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1851-1852, 1852-02-18
AMERICAN TELEGRAPH.
Correspondents d. the Baltimore Clipper


Correspondents Of the Baltimore Clipper.l
WASHINGTON, Feb Id, 1862.
The E1tension Of the Capitol--7he Cause Of the
Delay IN as E1ecation--TAe Bill now before
The House.
Your correspondent &C., who has in several
of his recent letters manifested commeniable
interest in the extension of the Capitol, now
under the direction of the most experienced and
accomplished architect in America, refers to that
subject IN his letter of yesterday. The necessity
1or ms improvement no man at all familiar
with the inconyeniences to which Congress is
subjected, from the character of the present
building, can for moment doubt The Hallof the
House is the most i'll contrived, miserable affair
ever occupied bya deliberative body. Its appear
ance is well enough, but it's adaptation to legis-
lative purposes is the very worst possible, and
thousands of dollars are annually wasted from the
public treasury, in consequence Of the wretehed
construction of the Hail. Three-fourths of the
members are constantly kept in utter ignorance
Of what is said upon the floor, simply because
the reverberatiohs are such as to prevent their
hearing. Timeis wasted in explanations, votes
are given under Misrepresentation, and members
who are well informed forbear to speak, when it
would be profitable to do so, in consequence of
this defect. But this is not all The committees
OF the House are not accommodated, for want of
room. Many of the rooms have two committees
in them and the officers of the House are crowd
ed into miserable little apartments, not much
larger than the bar-room upon North river
steamboat. For the Capitol of the greatest ma
ton upon earth, this is shameful!
1t would seem, in view of these facts, that
every patriot in the land would feel just pride
in carrying into completion the important i'm
provement which is to remedy such great defects.
regret to say however, that such is not the fact,
and that mercenary and malicious men are en-
gagged i'll dsreputable effort tosarrest the work.
Members OF Congress, gentlemen who are pa
trlotic and otherwise sagacious and sensible, are
| imposed upon by the mportunate clamor of n set
of disappointed applicants for the position of
| architect, or for contracts upon the extension,
| and are induced to enter into q crusade against
the work, the effect Of which will be to retard its
progress for a long period. / alMde to the in
vestigation instituted in the House in regard to
| the sutficiency of the foundations. 1t has, no
doubt, been stimulated by certain men whose
bids were rejected, or whose genius, professed
| architects, was not equal to so great an under
taking. No man with reputation worth pre-
serving, or with the experience Of an apprentice
| boy, can examine the work already done, and
say with any regard to truth, that it is not done
in the most substantial and workmanlike manner.
| As practical mechanic, accustomed to such
work, j do not hesitate to say that | have never
seen a more solid, substantial, and, in every re-
spect, creditable job in my life. | have inter
est in this work, and never had, either in fact
| expectancy; but regard the whole investigation
as frce, only calculated to cast ridicule upon
those engaged in it, and shameful waste of the
public time.
| The material of which the foundations are
built is the solid blue rock (gneiss of this neigh
borhood, and the very best stone in the vicinity
| of the District for such purpose
| | understand one of the witnesses who have
testified before the committee, and whose evidence
is thought to cast doubt upon the sufficiency OF
the foundation, was an applicant for architect
and disappointed. The journals of Congress
show that he has now pending before that body
a memorial to change the whole character of the
Improvement, By adopting a plan which he submits,
and which has been heretofore rejected. Another
of this class Of witnesses is disappointed bid
der for the bricks and stone contracts. How many
more of the same sort may be called to testify,
| time only will develop. \ few dismterestcd men
of character would settle the whole matter in a
| few days
This investigation becomes important only be-
| cause it delays the progress of the work. The
| Senate has prepared bill making an appropria-
ton for its continuance; but it is opposed in the
| House, for the reason that members will not in
| form themselves in regard to this matter. Hun
dreds of honest, hard-t -toiling mechanics, many OF
| whom are here from distant cities are in conse-
quence kept from employment, unable for want
| of means to get home, and without dollar to
provide for their daily necessities. Members OF
Congress have, am compelled to say, too little
| sympathy with this class of citizens. They do
not seem to know that they work by the dsy, and
are only paid for the time they make. If rain or
snow, or storm, occurs to prevent them from
working, they receive pay only for the number of
hours they are employed. The stone-cutters may
be as well employed now at any other period
of the year, and why not continue them in the
service!
call up the resolution of the Senate, the
members of the House will allow it to be con-
sidered. He will, no doubt, satisfy every mem
ber of the propriety of the appropriation.
| A MECHANIC.