Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1870-09-28
Strasbourg Cathedral, Clock, &c,

One Of the most lamentable results
of the siege of Strasbourg, leaving out
Of view the loss Of life, says the Hart.
fort Times, is the injury which the
bombardmcnt has inflicted upon the
noble cathedral aud It's wonderful as.
Economical clock. The vast cathe-
dral, which, perhaps, more than any
other one thing, has made the name
Of Strasbourg celebrated, is one of the
finest Gothic buildings in Europe. 1t
was founded A. ID. 504. The choir
was built by Charlomagne, probably
about 1888 The material Of which
the cathedral is built isa brown stone,
very much resembling our Connecti-
cut Portland freestone, so extensively
used in Fifth Avenue. 1t was oh.
tanned from a quarry at Wasscbonne,
in the valley of Couronne, a few miles
from Strasbourg. The architect of
the existing ediiicc was Erwin Won
Steinbach, of Baden One John Hu.
ellis, Of Cologne, was the architect of
the peerless tower. Its spiro is the
lofllcst in the world. Its height, 466
feet, surpasses st. Peters, and is about
equal to that Of the Great Pyramid.
The greater part Of the entire struc-
ture was destroyed by lightning in
1907, and the restored ediico was be-
gun in 1915 and completed in 1880
The cathedral is in every part richly
decorated with sculptures; and the
western front, rising 2S0 feet, is, or
was, particularly fine with its wealth
Of statutes, ornamental carvings, and
bas'rcliefs. 1t hasa circular window
forty-eight feet in diameter. The
Prussian heavy artillery has made, it
is said, ruin Of part of the vast build.
ing
The astronomical clock, the product
of a German clockmaker, in about
the year 1850, is a marvel of ingenui
ty and mechanical skill and has no
counterpart 1t performs not only
the ordinary clock, but exhibits the
day, the months and the years, the
progress Of the seasons, the signs of
the sodiac, and the names and move.
ments of the heavenly bodies. At
each quarter hour an angel comes out
and strikes one stroke on a bell; at
every hour another angel comes out
and strikes twice; and at twelve, meri |
dian, a figure Of Christ appears, ac
companied by the twelve apostles, all |
of whom move around central point
and pass in, out of sight, by another
door, tho stroke Of twelve being Civ. /
Gu, and cock flaps bis wings and
crows. The clock is enormous in size |
like everything else connected with |
the vast cathedral, and is invisible /
from The outside street.-The spectator
passing through tho nave of tho cathe.
dral to see it, It has suffered from
fire and violence before the present
year, having been out Of repair and
motionless since the revolution Of 1893
until the year 1912, when it was re-
paired BY matchmaker of Bas. Rhin.
and has been in operation since. II
is to be hoped that this ingenious piece
Of mechanism has not been irrepara
bly, injured by the present lombard.
nent.
The loss of the Strasbourg library
"a vast collection Of 100000 volumes,
including many collection of rare and
iurious nonkish parchmcuts-is total
md irreparable. 1t can never bo re.
placed by any collection hereafter
made. 1t was tho slow result of a
thousand years and It's destruction
" fire, caused by the Prussian hot
hot is like the burning Of the Alex
Indrian library in this, that Of a great
number of the works destroyed no
duplicates can ever be obtained
a Missouri newspaper claims that
lOgs OF that Stntp nrn ao fat tLo, :,