Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1886-12-01

III is O phase or the Norman somewhat
modernized and adapted to the present wants.
This style is directly opposite in its character
istics from the Queen Anne, is severe to clum-
siness and will undoubtedly have its run"
"'What do you think will be the next fash
ion7p
"Romanesque and Gothic viii surely follow
the present fashion. M after that time we
will have arrived at the period when fashion
in architecture will have to take a back seat
and individual judgment based upon refined
taste will reign in the land. Our people learn
quickly; and our stages of progress are much
shorter than those of other countries. We
have such q cosmopolitan population, and we
import SO much of the brains and experiences
of the old countries, that we go further ahead
in a decade than other countries dc in a cent
ury.n
"How about our public huildingsY'
eThe architecture Of our government build
ings is more pretentious, but is actually be-
low tie average private architecture in New
York, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, etc.
The public buildings are big, and the costly
materials used in them, such as fine marble,
bronEes, rich ~fnishings, ETC., run through
them all. There is little artistic conception
in them, and they are lacking in those archi-
tectural qualities which should be found in
the works of a great nation. The trouble
with our government architecture is that the
immense amount Of routine work which
occupies the attention of the supervising
architect, who makes all these plans, the
very nature Of the duties which devolve upon
him, and the fact that he is at no time free
from interruption, leave him no opportunity
for the proper study of his designs. This
work is done under all the disadvantages of
want of time and almost entire preoccupa-
ton with other matters, which must
always result in imperfect and unsatis-
factory work. Government buildings
should be let out for competition to the best
architects of the country and the best plans
taken. In this way VIZ would have a variety
of designs and the best talent in the United
States to draw FROM
@What do you think of the Washington
monumentg'
sit is not the conception of the present
age but that of a past age. It belongs to
our first stage of monumental architecture,
to the period when the first rays of monu-
mental architecture dawned. when bigness
ruled, supremacy. 1t corresponds to the idea
that some people have of America, in that it
is a wonderful country on account of the big
ness Of its territory. This desire for bigness
Is always the first stagesof a nations monu-
mental architecture. You find it in the
pyramids, in ths Tower of Babel, amt III the
Washington monument. We have gotten
over that now to q certain extent, and are
now In the second stage in which we want
our national structures not only big but
gaudy. Nations are like individuals, and we
are now In the position of a young son who
has suddenly inherited all his fathers i'm
mense wealth. We graduate the value of a
thing by its cost, and we throw our money
around more with an idea to show that we
nave it than to bring usefulness or beauty
out of it.'n
sWhat do you think of the durability of
the monumenta7
aHow long it will last is a question that
time only can decide. The experiment of a
structure of this size has never been Sried be-
fore. The monument weighs nearly 100, 900
tons and you can see how time has affected
its lower half. The difference between it
and that which was built during the last few
years - very plainly visible"
sWhat are the chief faults Of the public
buildings of Washington
T b chief one is that they are not fire.
proof. The main old parts of the Capitol
have wooden ceilings and roofs, and a fire on
either side of the great dome would bring it
luOWH W tHe STouHu. IL WOulQ consume the
national library and would destroy millions
of dollars worth of property. The state, war
and navy department. is not strictly freproof.
and should a big fire bre4k out in the treas
ury department. nothing could save it. The
White House is not fireproof, and in fact the
only public building in Washington which is
freproof are the two wings of the interior
department which were rebuilt after the fire
of a few years ago.
Another great fault of our public build
ings,n continued Mr.. Smithmeyer, sis that
Lthey are teo small. Ths great increase of
the public business has outgrown them. The
Capitol ought to be twice its size, and almost
all the departments have their clerks scat
tered about in rented and insecure buildings.
There was a scheme for enlarging the White
House before congress, and some legislation
cGiin have to be done to give the president
more room. Congress has the matter, in
charge. There oegghhtt- tte. be an addition to
the White House. President Hayes had the
right idea of IL. He told me one day that
he thought the old building should be en-
larged in every direction, but be preserved
on account of the historical associations.
Here, said he, sour presidents have lived
and here have been enacted many of the
chief scenes Of our nations history. The old
White House, the White House of our presi-
dents, should stand as long as the country
stands 1T should be kept sacred to the
memory of the past .@F
y think President Hayes was right con-
tinued Mr.. Smithmeyer, Eve could edd to
it and make q beautiful building. This j.
the way most of the great palaces of Europe
have been built, andi think it is the way in
which the presidents mansion viii be i'm.
proved some day
FRASE g. CARPENTER.
Advice 10 Meihers.
sEl4Aro vru 1ihknrhoI otnSuhk cpd hr,bo,