Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-07-05

bill authorizing and providing for the
change 1t was not particularly and
specially bscause IL was 1eTds or Bur.
net county granite that | wanted the
change, but 1t was for the reason that
1t was GRANITE and would make a
grander and more durable building. l
am not Of the opinion that
1t is the province OF the
state to advertise anybody's
rock. But the Burnet granite is being
about as we'll advertised, however, by
this muddle as II would be II used In
the capitol building. The three mil.
lion acres of land were not set apart
for that purpose by the constitutional
convention, either directly or indi-
rectly, nor is 1t limited at In the law
or laws pertaining to it, nor In the
contract 1t Is
COLD FLOODED BUSINESS VENTURE
on the part Of two and half or three
millions OF people, but few of whom
are In the rock business, to get the
best possible building for their land.
If the proposition was submitted to
the people OF the state to vote on to
tax themselves $4,000 to have the parts
of the building into which Indiana
stone is TO he put built Of Texas
stone simply because 1t Is Texas stone,
don't believe 1t would get 5000 votes.
Twenty thousand dollars were APP
proprlated year or more ago to have
all the resources of the state adver-
tised at New Orleans, and you meet
men everywhere you go who think the
money was wasted. What do you
think they would say OF spending Il
few thousand for the sole purpose of
bringing two or three rock quarries
into notice and putting the rock into
market? 1t is my Judgement that
the people of the state wanted and
want granite, because it Is better
material, and that the last
thing they are thinking about ia
where it comes from, who is selling II
or being profited by its use. Allow
yourself TO think for moment that
the contractors had offered Indiana
granite instead of Indiana limestone
on the same terms and conditions and
we had re fused it and replied OAtman-
vile stone to them. Don't you think
we would have deserved to be kicked
into the Gulf of Mexico? Now the
fact appears to be that the Indiana
stone is as much superior to the Dat.
msnvllle stone as granite is to Indiana
stone. The Indiana stone is as much
superior TO the specimen stone stipu-
lated for as good tire'burnt brick is
to q sun-burnt brick, and 1t is free
from all stains and discolorations, as
the contract demands.
A QUESTION MERELY or RELATIVE
MERIT.
81 don't want TO be misunderstood
and to avoid it will state this:
wanted the best possible structure for
the )nsideration we were giving, so
that all the people of the state, what
ever their pursuit might be and in
whatever their property might con-
sist, would be benefited by ii; and
therefore had there been limitless
quantities of the Oatmanville stone
should have preferred the Indiana
stone on account OF its superiority. 1t
will make not only a better-looking
house but it will make better house.
No man who has examined the sam
pies has questioned it either.
What do you suppose the
man who is blowing in North Texas
and making his living in that way, or
the man who is saving lumber in
East Texas and making his living
that way, or the man who ia stock
raising in the Panhandle or the West,
cares from what place the stone comes?
Each man, applying the same rules
and principles to public matters he
applies to his private affairs, would
say he wanted the best material that
could be procured for the money, no
matter where it comes from. The
state Is not known TO own any quar-
ries from which the stone could be
hpnnurhf no tha haf,aHf
the burthen of the building would
reach to all alike. How many OF
the two and half or three
millions people of the state
would reap any benefit from the use
of Texas stone, but don't you know
that all reap benefit by getting the
best possible material worked into the
walls of their public buildings? Some
men whose land is luckily or unluck-
lily rocks are likely TO take different
view of this question from the rest of
the citizenship OF the state not so
luckily or unluckily circumstsnc ed.
WHAT THEY HAD no CHOOSE FROM.
The majority OF the board, the
commissioners and the superintendent
of construction saw that they stood
between these two alternatives, to-
W ~ aGktDb
superior to that contracted TO be put
in the building or let the work be, not
merely suspended, but the
contract abandoned. 1t was in view
Of this condition of things they were
called upon to act, The men are few
who think that il this contract is
abandoned the man VINO is living
quarter Of century hence will see
Texas with a capitol building, but the
very beginning ola monumental struct-
ure will! be ruin ard stand as idle rs
a painted ship on painted sea. 1t
appears from what have read In some
of the papers of the state that there is
an egregrlous Misunderstanding of the
condition of things. For instance, /
have seen in more than one psper that
having the choice between the
two, that Is, indiana lime
stone and Texas granite, we
had deliberately chosen Indiana
stone. But, what was, in fact, offered
us, was Indiana stone or nothing.
Some OF Us preferred the Indiana stone
To nothing, but we would have pre-
ferred, or at any rate would, the gran
lite, no matter where it came from.
either to the Indiana stone or Texas
stone, such as that specified Ia the con
tract. Most OF the late delay has resulted
a.. L 4 \