The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1877-10-16
The Egyptian Obelisk.

The project of bringing to New York and
setting up there the obelsk familiarly known
as "Cleepatra's Needle" which is now stand
ing at Alexandria, receives much and serious
attention. Already considerable progress
had been made toward obtaining by subscrip-
ton the sum necessary,-a hundred thousand
dollars-to pay the expenses of transporta-
tion when the World, in whose columns the
announcement was first made that the Khe-
dive would permit the removal of the stone,
stated that wealthy citizen of New York
would assume the whole expense himself So
rthe success of the plan seems assured.
1t would certainly be a fine thing for New
York were the great monolith to come into
her possession. She would have an archi-
tectural ornament enriched by the historical
associations of three thousand years, and as
gift from the Oldest nation of the earth to
the youngest it would possess value as SYM
Dol of the close intercourse of the peoples oi
the world, and of the universal brotherhood
of man. The erection of the shaft in some
public square of New York would mark. the
beginning of period when our greatest city
shall have sights to show worthy the atten-
tion of tourists of the world, and when she
can exhibit to the traveller from overseas, OF
to the eager American objects of interest
other than her prisons and her hospitals.
The spectacle of a monument which has
seen the historical vic issitudes of thirty CEN
trrios +ba roiopo of Phor,obs o,d ptoJano;a ;ae
and Caesars and Fatimites and Ottomans,
which has stood for three thousand years in
a land where civilization came to birth in the
travail of time, must exercise great and SOL
emn power over the imaginative mind and
exert an educating influence of no small
value to young and growing nation. For
these reasons it is good that New York
should have an obelisk.
But other things of more worth should
not be sacrificed to the possession of an obe-
lisk. The expense of transportation will be
but a small portion of the total expense ol
placing the monolith. Much money will be
required to arrange public square suitable
for it, for Central Park evidently is not fiji
place. A half million OF dollars is not an
extravagant estimate of the sum required
1t is urged as reason for the expenditure o.
this large sum the great influence to be ex
erted upon the study of art and history and
antiquities by the possession of the mono
lith. That influence is vastly exaggerated.
The Metropolitan Museum, inadequate as il
is, is of incomparably more benefit to the
students of art and of ancient history. a
half million dollars expended upon it woulG
give it good position with its kind in The
Old World. The Castellani collections, o
great value to artists, antiquarians and histo.
rians, can be obtained for third of the sun
which Cleopatra's Needle cost, and when OBJ
tanned will be of far greater worth to the CITY
With the two-thirds the Museum can be still
further enriched. The rich men of New
York should see that the Metropolitan Muse
um is properly equipped and endowed. Then
if their generosity will carry them SO far, the.
may bring the obelisk of Thothmes from thu
Nile-Land to the New World.