Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1894-12-17

An Architect who Thinks They WIN
Kuu Up 10 Forty StOlieG

Al Architect who Thinks Ihey VIII
Kuu Up 20 Forty StOrieG
PHILADELPHIA Pr So
An interview with Bruce Price, the
architect Of the American Surety Com
pany's building, corner Pine and Broad
way, recently appeared IN the New
York Herald. According TO Mr.. Prices
views as there presented, the POSSIBLE
lilies for tall buildings exceed very large
ly the ordinary expectation on the sub
jeeL he tells that structures Of thirty
aud forty stories are by nc means diff
cult fsats, and that they may be looked
for 10 the near future. He says that
now the only check to erecting such
buildings is the elevator, about 800 OF
400 feet being the limit to their capac-
ity as at present perfected.
Even this requires a piston Of so feet
In length, and the friction which the
rod encounters sometimes heats IL red
hot. Those who take Offices In these
high buildings, however. are not z DING
TO the trouble OF changing elevators,
not at least until the price Of realty
forces rents far higher than they are
to day.
This is really the greatest drawback
TO the present time, aud there Is no rea-
son 20 suppose that 10 will remain.
Some one will invent an elevator that
will lift 3 car sheerY to an indefinite
height. Then we shall 60 on building
higher and higher until we reach a
point beyond which no one will care TO
60. What that point will be is hard 70
say. Five years ago many would have
hesitated TO have taken an office on the
twentieth story OF a building, just as
ten years ago they would have hesltated
TO have taken the twelfth or four
teenth door. People become educated
slowly 10 greater and greater eleVa-
tions, aad Ii won't be so very long be-
fore the thirtieth floor will seem no
. higher than does the twentieth now.
Mr.. Price looks on the construction
Of one OF these buildings as but SIM
pla AFFAIR, 3 question, as heputs II, OF
statistics" computation OF the
weight OF the persons who are 10 oc-
euDy it. Then Ii resolves itself simply
into providing sufficiently heavy beams
TO carry this live and dead load. The
foundations, however, Mr.. Price looks
upon IS a most important problem, as
here the whole strain must eventually
come with very tall buildings. He
says:
However, the plan is TO make the
foundation OF the same size and area as
the building itself, and TO distribute
the entire weight Of the building evenly
over the foundation. Given this latter
broad enough aud firm enough and we
could rear tower so high that we
should have to take into consideration
the fact that the top OF the tower
moved faster than the base. In truth,
the day when this latter calculation
must be made is not very far of"
Freauenters OF the Architectural
League will remember the exsmpliflca-
tiOn OF bis idea shown in tail building
exhibited by him three seasons ago.
This was built on base 80 feet square,
was about 500 feet high, and TO contain
thirty-four stories. This imaginative
sketch at the time excited considerable
attention and comment. Such build
ing, however, is soon TO appear in lower
Broadway. IL Is TO occupy lots and 8,
Joining the Field building. and will be
thirty stories high. Mr.. Price does not
feel that this class or buildings are
necessarily monstrosities and defy the
artistic lasts Of the profession to over
come their inherent ugltnesS.
Concerning the artistic possibilities
of the high building, Mr.. Price added
that so far from being necessarily ugly,
the sky-scraper may be made srchi-
tecturally perfect. Thus, for example,
n buiIdiuR NAV be run up TO a height
ten times the diameter and IL will then
assume the proportions Of COrinthian
column, which is the most perfectly
symmetrical form known 10 architec-
ture.
Incidentally, it is easier 30 design
3 tall building with truly artistic lines
upon a narrow base, making IL approach
the proportions of tower or column,
than IL Is TO design building OF con-
Adorable height upon broad base.