Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-02-16
THE QUAKER CITY.
One House that Swallows Up
Mheeiiag.
Reyelling in Figures Of Enormous Wealth
The New Public Buildings Of PhiIadei-
phia Described-A Magnificent
Railway Depot.
FROM OUR REGULAR CORRESPONDENT.

special Correspondence Of IA. Reyister.
PHILADELPHIA, February l4.-Ohio is the
richest OF the fifty-four counties of Wes
Virginia. Its real estate and personal prop
erty combined are valued, | believe, a
something like saO,oOo,O0O. 1t may bt
somewhat in excess of these figures now
but they are about last years returns.
Think OF one building worth as much a:
all the houses and all the land and
| All the Money In Ohio County.
The suggestion sounds wild, and yet
Philadelphia proposes to have just such {
building, and has gone a good ways toward
its erection. When complete, she proposes
to put it at the head Of the list, not only In
America but in the world so that she can
point to it as the oostliest public structure
reared by the hand of man. refer 10 the
new public buildings in the Quaker City.
They were begun more than fifteen years
| ago. and yet to-day they are not half com
| plete. Two of the finest and most popu-
| lous streets in Philadelphia are cut of by
the great walls which encircle four acres OF
ground, and the impeded highways pass
through the heavy arches.
| There is a crude weather-stained scat
folding which obscures view OF the erte-
rior from distance; but a closer observa-
ton will repay the visitor. The gigantic
| structure is of marble and that grey gran
ite of New England which takes the most
! delicate touch Of the chisel and deties the
| frost and rain.
| From the first stone of the foundation
| to that freshest from the mason's hand
there is not one without the mark OF spe.
| cial adaptation TO its place. In the first
place, the architecture is simple. 1t is
| boldly grand. Every ornament is wrought
| to harmonic with the general design.
| There is none Of the cut up work or light
| hippery that has made the millions spent
| on the state, war and
Navy BUiIdings In Washington
| such poor investment. On the other side
| there is an open court Of fully half an acre
| From it fine view can he had of the best
work yet done, and an intelligent idea
formed Of what the great structure will be
| when completed.
Four grand entrances lead in from the
streets cut off by the building Passing
| under the arches of each, one sees above
| him the massy stone wrought into humid
red shapes to touch strength with the ten.
derness of beauty or tn expression of de-
| sign Justice is several times portrayed as
"the blind goddess" and the staid Quaker
| face OF Penn peers at you from various
| views. Allegorical scenes are portrayed in
stone with the most delicate perfection.
Under the most ornate arch are six mono.
| liths of red marble twenty-five feet high
| surmountcd by bronze capitals that cost
| about 81 900 each
On the inner side of this entrance rises
the main tower of the building, now about
| hundred feet high, IL is barely begun,
| for il is destined to lift its head to the
| awful height of five hundred and forty
| feet, three feet higher than the tallest OF
| the Strasburg cathedral spires, and the
| loftest pinnacle in the world. On its cap
| stone is to stand q statue of William Penn,
and to make it appear lifesi2e to the peO-
| pie in the street away below, the figure
| must be forty.ive feet high. To support
| this great tower, in addition TO its mighty
| wall, are four marble pillars five feet in
diameter but not more than ten feet high.
tiefr" heaus 'a9h. their arms thrown over
| their burden s,r 3. straininig to uphold
scnting faithfully the types OF Caucasslan,
Monaghan, Malay and African races. From
out the inner arches peering at them from
| the four sides are life size heads Of lion, tiger,
elephant and OK, chiseled so fine that you
| can almost see the hairs or count the
wrinkles of the skin.
There are many other points OF interest
| that could be mentioned, but, all given,
they would enable one who has not seen
| the building to form but a poor idea OF its
proportions or finish.
Already il has cost the city about eight
| millions of dollars, and when completed a.
| now designed, the total cost will be in the
neighborhood of twenty millions. II is
proposed to appropriate about million q
| wear until the work is done. How long it
| Utt
| appropriations, is hard to surmise. The
| capital at Washington is now the costliest
| building in America, but with all the
waste OF money on its squatty expanse the
| Government has spent over five millions
less than this city proposes to put into its
offices.
is considered by some people the finest
/ building in America, and yet IT cost far
les tban the present bare walls tor three
| or four stories of this wonderful venture.
| The Nespie of Philadelphia are, Justly
proud tf Il, and there is not,apt toSbe any
delay in the appropriations necessary to
crown the work with n timely, perfect com
pletion. a.,
Just across the street from this monu-
ment of Philadelphia's wealth and public
spirit stands what is beyond doubt, the
finest railroad depot in the world. After
several years building it was thrown open
by the Pennsylvania railroad, and is used
principally for its through trains. What
made this cost so great Is the heavy eleva.
ted railway from the old depot away out OF
the live part OF town. A great deal OF
property had to he bought. and more is
clamoring for purchase BY the road, claim
ing irreparable damage, and asking, as usu'
al. from a rich corpoi alton, about twice its
worth.
But already the outlay hass been enough
To stagrer any but such CrTsus Of corpo.
rations. II foots up about six million dol
lars. When you roll into the depot you
are glad the money has been spept, for you
are in luxuriant apartments with abund'
ance of electric lights, tesselated floors,
richly furnished saloons, ready elevators,
and, in short, every luxury the traveller
wants. Enough spent on depot TO build
a railroad hundred miles long through
almost any difficulties.
Philadelphia is, in many respects
The Most Remarkable City I'm America.
Il was supposed by many that it was the
leading city in manufactures, but the cen
sus puts New York forty millions per year
ahead OF IL.
Nevertheless. Philadelphia has more
American born people than the great me
tropoIis with its mOngrel mass OF humani
ty. 1t covers more ground than New ! ork
and, with only about twothiris OF the pop
ulation, has forty thousand more houses
II is not crowded like New York. Even
| the poorest classes do not live in such nest
| as are seen in that human hive. The bet
ter class of families live in separate houses
the French fiat and tenement system in IL
| most compact from being almost entirely
unknown. The Philadelphia plan is thu
healthier, morally, hysically-every way
While there are few Of those colossal
fortunes here, more people live on theii
incomes in this city, probably, than in an!
other in the Union. Wealth seems 70 b
better distributed than in New York. Their
is less display, less Of what the world call
style, less. too. of what its own bitter tear
and gaunt despair name wretchedness.
And yet there are numerous instance
Of enormous wealth. The other day Mr
Weld, whom scarcely anybody knew; ;, DIE
here and disposed OF twenty-five million tt,
OF property in his will A grocer who live
ON a not yery busy street. after leng hf