Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1883-08-21
THE BARTHOLDl STATUE 0F
LIBERTY.
Surveys and History by Professor
LOckett Of the University
','' Of Tennessee.
Interesting and Graphic HIS.
tory Of the Great Work.

Tribune of the 18TH ut, by Prof. S
H. Lockett, Professor of Applied
Mathematics and Mechanical Philos'
ophy in the University of Tennessee
at Knoxville. Major Lockett, as he il
familiarly known, is a native, we be.
lieve, of Louisiana, at least he went
into the Confederate service from
that State. He is West Pointer
aud during the war achieved splen-
did reputation as an engineer. After
the war he accepted service under the
Khedive of Egypt, and was in the
famous but unfortunate expedition
sent into Abyssinia, and narrowly es-
capped the fate of so many who never
returned. Whilst in that service he
drew for the Khedive the best map Of
Egypt in existence, = map covering
the whole side of large room in the
palace. 1t was during his sojourn in
Egypt that he formed the acquaintance
of General Stone. The article that
follows gives the best idea we have
vet seen in print of the great statue to
be erected in New York harbor as q
gift from France:
when l was called to New York
bv General c. p. Stone, about six
month ago, | supposed the General
wanted me for work in connection
with the Florida Ship Canal, and Sc
stated to my friends in Knoxville. But
on nv arrival in New York | found
General Stone more urgently pressed
by the work on the great Statue OF
of Liberty, EnlIghtening the World,
than by that Of the great Ship Canal.
So | was set to work on the statue,
and during my stay 10 New York, un-
der General Stones direction. made
a survey of Fort Bedloe's Island, the
site chosen for the statue. | drew an
accurate plan of the fort as it now
exists; and then drew plan, a Sec
ton. and an elevation Of the fort and
statue. as they will be when the statue
il finished, aud stands as another
Wonder Of the World in the middle
of New York bay Having by this
brief connection with the statue be
come well acquainted With it's history
| take the liberty Of requesting that
YOU allow me the use OF your columns
to make your readers acquainted with
it. and thus arouse 10 them some in
terest in the progress aud completion
Of the work, of preparing pedestal
for the statue. That work is nov vel
begun. The soldiers barracks aud
officers quarters which stood in the
parade or interior of Fortwood have
been pulled down aud removed Ii
the middle Of the parade an excava'
ton ninety feet square and httee1
feet deep has been dug to reach q
good bed for the foundation of the
pedestal When | lett New York
bonagq were being made to test tn,
nature of the substrata OF that bed OF
the Foundation. Preparations werG
also making for laying the foundation
which isto be 40 enormous mass o.
"beton,' or hydraulic cement con
crete, ninety feet at the bottom, sixty
feet square at the top, and forty eigh
and a half feet thick. On this ioun'
dation, after it has had nearly veal
to set and settle, the pedestal will b,
elevated, That pedestal will be /
granite column sixty-f8ur feet square
atits base, forty feet square at the toI
aud about one hundred and fifteeI
feet high, making, with the foundation
mass a height of little more than o ut
hundred and sixty three feet. o.
top of this grand pedestal will stant
the statute. Itself little over forty
six French meters, Or one hundred
and fifty.one feet and ono inch il
height. So that, adding all thesl
numbers together, and taking 10 tn
elevation OF the bed Of the lounda tiol
above the water line, the total eleva
ton of the whole structure will b
three hundred and twenty
four feet and two inches
This is much higher than tn
enormous towers OF Brooklyn bridge
even higher than the spire Of Trinit
church, though the latter has tn
advantage Of being erected on highe
ground. In fact. the Goddess of Lib
erty, enlighteOing che world, will
from the torch which she holds in he
upFrlssd right hand, throw dowpwar
upon every structure In the cities Z
New York, Brooklyn, Hoboken an
Jersey City, her brilliant rays Of elet
trio light.
such then, in brief, will be Il
statn when finished. The origin
the sta, lie has been frequently recite
Ia the public prints, but people readil
forget what u.hey read in their dali
papers. | will, therefore, repeat in
few words as possible the history
che movement which eliminated
che creation Of the statue. Mr.. Ba
tholdi is an Alsacian Rrenohmal
After the last Franco German war il
stead of returning to his native pro
ince, then filed With Prussians
came to Amer,Ja. His French bio
rapher says while he was thus
apostle of French art among Il
Yankees. he conceived the first thougl
OF erecting Statue OF Liberty in Il
harbor OF New York. facing the ocel
and looking toward France. NJ Ba
tholdi subsequently returned toFranC
took up his quarters in Paris and
1875 A sJciety was formed to take pa
:, our Centennial coiebratiea, call
~ Uni n Franco. Am rcaine
France. adopted VI Bath ldi's idea
r. S,siue II Liberty, ani set to VOL
=, 49, :, On, Il wss ypeeted tn
tbe stauur wan,> lie c mp,eted AZ
f.lm = part v. iar %, 'ieI mai Exhlb