Morning journal and courier., 1892-04-19
Tuesday, April ie, 1892.
tors. Sinclair & Sons, of this city, have

tors. Sinclair & Sons, of this city, have
 had charge of the stone work.
 Ever since Marble hall was begun at the
 very foundation the greatest secrecy in al
 the operations has been observed. Watch
 men nave been employed who, with huge
 St. Bernard dogs as companions, patrol
 the grounds day and night, and every un-
 autnorized person who succeeds in passing
 the gates Is promptly ejectsd. So strict
 are tne arrangements that the decorators
 employed to decorate one room are taken
 away from the building as soon ss their l work is done and replaced by other men who decorate the next room. While at work the men are not allowed to enter any other room where others are working. for fear a detailed description of the decors
 uons in the various rooms will become public. As soon as the decorations in one
 room are finished that room is locked and
 not opened again. From what can be gleaned, however, the interior is one mag
 nificent production of Mexican onyx and
 Numidian marble carvings, plastic and painted decorations of the most gorgeous description.
 It is interesting to an American work man to see who is doing the work in this new palace of the Van6erbilts All of the decorative work Is being executed by Frenchmen-the real imported article at that. Allard & Sons, of this city, who employ nobody but Frenchmen, are doing the color decorations, the hangings, tapes try and furnishings. while about thirty Frenchmen, imported especially for the purpose, and of whose landing as contract laborers there is no record in the bureau of emigration, are doing the plastic and carving work These men are kept away from the native mechanics who are em- ployed in the building, and are not even allowed to mix with their countrymen who are employed by the Allards. When the men leave their work at night every man, artist, mechanic or lsborer, is searched to see that he carries away no written de- scription of the place with him, and every one who has the temerity to make pencil and paper notes about anything is at once approached by a watchman and his work | carefully scrntinized. No stranger is al- | lowed to pass the gates. and SO strict is | this rule that early in February MT. and | Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt tried to gain | admittance, but signally failed and were | obliged to go away, although the gate | keeper knew them perfectly well.
 It has been found impossible to obtain | the dimensions of the building. as the | architect is pledged to secrecy and will | give no information of any kind. The calculations of man often fail, however, and those of William K. Vanderbilt did | when he thought he could erect the cost Hest and undoubtedly the most pslatisl residence in America in absolute secrecy from the general public. While MT. Van derbilt was enjoying himself at Monte | Carlo the reporter of Frank Le.lie's Week. ly, disguised an electrician, armed with | a coil of wire, gimlets and kodak, entered | the grounds and in a twinkling of an eye had the representation of Marble hall in- delibly impressed upon the photographic negative. How true it is that "the best laid schemes gang aft sgley."