The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1858-08-29


their turn, give an enormous impetus to the
trade of the world, and diHdse more generally
the advantages enjoyed by the more favored of
the commercial nations.
Our PUBLIC BULDMas.-The destruction by
fire Of the cupola of the City Hall has again
brought up before the minds of the community
the subject of our public buildings. Since the
conHagration, some two or three years ago, of
the unsightly range of ediflces that was then
known as the new City Hall, and that was used
for courts and Offices, the question as to the
character and location of the new edi6ce that
was to replace it, has been discussed with
good deal of warmth but up to the present
time nothing definite has been, we believe, re-
solved upon. Now, however, the question has
been revived, and must be promptly decided one
way or the other. The committee of the Common
Council to which was referred the subject of
the repairs made necessary by the recent fire,
reported last Tuesday, recommending that the
upper floor of the City Hall be raised to the
height of q full story; that the dome and cupola
be rebuilt, and that q bell tower be erected at
to find with the first portion of the committees
recommendations; but how they should have
come to recommend the building of the bell
tower we cannot so readily understand. The
subject referred to them was simply as to the
repairs to the hail. not as to the erection of a
bell tower. The committee, however, in the
preamble to their report, falsely assume that
Al. 3 l~Ax
they say that they had before them "a recon-
mendation from his Honor the Mayor that the
bell tower and bell now on the City Hall be re-
moved therefrom, and q building with the ne.
cessary accommodations for the bell ringers be
erected therefor in portion of the present
Park"
The fact was that they had no such recon-
mendation before them, nor was any such sub
ject referred to them. The only excuse they
could have for considering and reporting upon
it is that the Mayors message on the subject of
the burning of the cupola was referred to them,
and that that message contained the following
paragraph
that the bell b permanently removed from the Oy Hail.
believe tina. more suitable location be obtained
time in the cupola OF tho building.
1t would be an insult to the intelligence of
our readers for us to enter into any argument
to show that the preamble to the report of the
committee of the Board of Aldermen is q false
assumption, so far as the erection of bell
tower in the Park is concerned. We leave
1t to those Aldermen who signed the report
to explain, If they can, why they have delbe-
rately falsi6ed the record, and shall proceed to
discuss the merits of the recommendation itself,
admitting, for the sake Of the argument, that
they had the right to embody IL In their report.
Last year, when 1t was proposed to cede to
the general government the lower end of the
Park for the purposes Of post Office and fede-
raj courts, we opposed that project on the
ground that the enclosure known as the Park Is
at present even too small In its dimensions, and
that its space should certainly not be any fur
Their encroached upon or curtailed by buildings,
for any purpose. We advocated the purchase
by the city of square Of ground in the neigh
borhood Of Centre street and the Five Points,
and the erection thereon of splendid and spa
cious building, which would suffice for the ac-
commodation Of oil the federal, State county
and municipal courts and Offices Our idea
was TO have such building erected there az
would be an architectural ornament to the
city-not a nondescript concern, with one front
marble and another brown stone, but q building
which we and our descendants, throughout all
coming time, might point TO with pride. With
such building there, the whole character of
that VIGOROUSLY bad section of the city would
be changed, and it would be converted into the
most valuable business portion of the city.
The present City Hall might be preserved as a
sort Of Louvre, where treasures of art should
be collected and where the guests of the city
should be received.
The arguments which we used then In favor
Of this plan, we adhere 10 STILL No better plan
can be devised. The City Hall and adjacent
buildings are much too small TO accommodate
the immense and daily increasing business of
our courts and public Offices; and the Park is
too diminutive to admit of more public build
ings being raised within its boundaries. On the
contrary, IL should be preserved and embellish-
ed with statues Of our great men, 30 as to be
really public garden, and down town substi-
tute for park. Such barbarous, vandalic
Idea a. that Of raising an ungainly bell tower
upon its southern end, which would be a
nuisance to the entire neighborhood, could only
have entered into the heads of some stupid
Aldermen; unless indeed, Il was suggested
through corrupt and speculative motives. The
report comes up next Tuesday when we expect
to see that portion Of it, at least, expunged.
A GENERAL HOLIDAY ON THE FIRST OF SEP |
TESBER.-We publish today number of COM
munications relative to the celebration of the |