American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1864-09-21
VOLUME |.
COMMUNICATIONS.
A Biz Dnnr,

our country, | shall endeayor to interest
the children who read your paper, by q
description of big door, now in the com
mon thoroughfare of the capitol, but de-
signed to be the vestibule door to the
grand entrance. know they will like to
read OF such a door; it will remind them
of their fathers barn-door, or perhaps their
uncle SAINTS baln-door This is the great
door of Uncle Sans house, which is now
nearly completed; the entire building
covers three and one half acres of ground,
and is from the basement floor to the
crown of the head Of the Goddess Of Lib
erty, 264 feet; the entire structure is
built in the most durable and magnificent
style of the age in which We live, and is
a credit to the genius of the nation.
This door was designed by Randolph
Rogers. an American artist, and nodded
by him in Rome, in 1858. 1t vast cast
in bronze by 7. Won Muller, at Munich,
in 1861 1t is a magnificent work Of art,
being so large and massive. and at the
same time, so delicately minute in all its
details, each figure being a perfect gem
of art. 1t is double, or folding II feet
high, . feet wide, weighs 10000 pounds,
and cost $4,000 The door represents
the history of Columbus and the discov-
cry of America. 1t has eight pannels
beside the semicircuar one at the top in
each of these is separate picture. The
first represents columbus undergoing
an examination betose the council Of Sal
amanca." lie is seen here zealously uu-
fold 'ng his grand theory to the bigoted
audience here he was nsuccessruk
The second represents Columbus de-
partme from the convent Of La Rabida
near Palos-he is just setting out to visit
the Spanish court. He came to this con-
vent weary and on foot. with his little son
Diego, begging bread for him."
The third represents His audience at
the court of Ferdinand and Isabella, where
the Queen is evidently more interested
than the King, in what Columbus is say
ing"
The next pannel, at the top of this,
half of the door represents The starting
of Columbus from Palos" He is here
confding his son to the monks, before he
embarks. His ships lie waiting in the
harbor
A panncl which occupies the semicir-
cular sweep over the whole door, repre-
sents the first landing of the Spauiards at
San Salvador.
The first pannel over the other leaf of
the door, is the earliest encounter of the
DISCOVERIES with the Natives.
The next represents the triumphal en-
try of Columbus into Barcelona; but the
paunel below represents very different
scene. The Admiral in Chains You
will remember he was sent back to Spain
in chains, which he said lie would wear as
a"mcmento Of the gratitude of Princes y
In the last pannel is the " Death Scene"
Columbus lies in bed--around him are
his friends and attendants; a Priest holds
up Crucifx, upon which is fixed the
dying eyes of Columbus
In inches which surround the pannels,
are figures of sixteen of the eminent CO.
temporaries of Columbus.
Altogether the representationsarc very
appropriate for the door to the grand en-
trance of the Capitol, of the principal
government of the continent, discovered
by Columbus. No school boy but almost
sheds tears, as he reads of the treatment
of the discovcrer of his country-mis-
used and imprisoned in chains by the King
to whom he had given an Empire, and by
his fellow beings to whom he had given
a new world, and at last, poor and discon-
.SulubG, lllllC HIS HlSitIl, blluS
massiveIy represented should form the
door to the Capitol of the greatest and
most magnanimous country on earth; he
died at Valladalid, the goth of May,
1906, aged 70 years. His last words
were, Into thy hands 0 Lord com
mend my spirit" Those closing eyes,
doubtless opened upon country brighter
than the Western Antilles, where discov-
cry is bliss, and the persecution of Kings
is not known.
My young readers, this door belongs to,
and opens into the Capitol of the United
States. Areyou willing that it shallever
open into the Capitol of divided coun-
try, or that we shall stoop to give one half
of this historic door, to be remoddled and
reaast by the hands of traitors, to be the
door of new Confederacy: the first pan
mel of which representing the landing of
the first SLAYER at jamestown, Va, 1870
the nextrepresenting the building of the
Missouri COMPROMISE line, 200 years al