New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1892-05-11
rnp RrrrER PrKLIC BUILDINGS.

There is bill before Congress to improve
the quality and diminish the cost OF Federal
bindings. 1t has been favorably reported 10
tbe House and is winning general commenda-
ton. We have seen no sign of hostility IN any
quarter, and there is reason, therefore, TO nope
that the measure may be enacted nc thls ses-
sion. 1t ought to be. The system under Whlch
our public buildings are now constructed Is
producing unfortunate results In all parts OF
the country. When the settled territory OF the
United States was much smaller than 1t Is now
and the population comparatively scanty, the
supervising architect of the Treasury vas able
to meet the demands upon his time and skill,
and to discharge the functions for which his
office was created At that time the law which
Is still in force worked well or if it did not
the individual rather than the system was at
fault.
But with the growth of the country there
has come about complete and unexpected
change in the practical operation OF the law
As the report of the committee to the House
aptly puts the case, it was not intended that,
as now, clerks and copyists should do the work
of the learned architect. and that the learned
architect should be occupied with the work OF
clerks and copyists" Yet precisely that is the
way the business of the supervising architects
office is divided, and necessarily must be so
long as the existing methods are retained The
official in control is not at fault. His time and
energy are almost completely engrossed by the
administrative duties dcvolvcd upon him, and
the original work is consequently assigned to
subordnates who are not professionally quail
fled to perform it. In reality it generally is
not original, but merely initiative, and often
not even good within those narrow limits. Old
designs are duplicated from the records for new
buildings without regard to the differences of
situation and purpose which make them inap-
propriate. The work of construction is super
viscd by persons having only an accidental and
temporary connection with the supervising
architects Office and possessing as a rule no
special qualification for such task. More
over, as experience has unhappily shown, they
are very commonly actuated more strongly by
a selfish desire to rctard the work than by
sense of obligation TO complete it.
Thus it has come to pass that our public
buildings are generally ugly, incommodious and
e1travagant. They ought to be teaching ex-
ampes Of beauty and utility in combination,
influence and testifying to the existence of an
enduring and enlightened government. And
in the hope that this is what in time they may
become the bill now before Congress was pre-
pared IL provides that tho Secretary of the
Treasury may hereafter obtain designs for pub
lie buildings from competing architects the
general oversight remaining as now in the office
of the supervising architect. Thus the pur-
pose OF the measure is TO secure to the Coy
eminent as high degree of knowledge and
skill and fidelity as private citizens engaged in
building operations are able TO obtain. The
successful competitors would supervise the
execution of their plans, would be responsible
for the quality of the work. and would receive
as compensation the usual commission upon
its cost 1t is believed that the introduction
of this system would result in raising the quail
iy of public buildings at least to the prevailing
standard of private structures and in bringing
down the cost 10 about the figure which salts
ies private owners. And We cannot see why
this expectation should not be largely realized.