The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1895-06-22
WHAT IS THE DELAY DUE TO?
THE SLOW PROGRESS THAT HAS
BEEN MADE WITH THE Pun
Lie BUILDING.

A Report That the Plans Are Worked
On Only by Spurts When some
Complaint l. Made-Sccretary Car
Isle Looked On as the Responsible
Party. A. il Is Reported, He Il
Holding Tight Reins on the Treas
ury-Congrcssman Lester Says the
Plans Are All Ready, But He Does
Not Understand Why They Have
Not Been Published.
Congressman Lester takes issue with
the reports that come from Washington
with regard TO Savannah's new public
building The statement received yester-
day by the Morning News was TO the
effect that it was one of the victims Of
q depleted treasury. and that the plans
were being worked on only by spurts ana
starts, whenever they were urged on by
Congressman Lester or some of Savan-
nahs prominent citizens.
II is stated that for the last month or
more the officials of the supervising
architects department have been telling
the citizens of Savannah that the plans
for the superstructure would be adver-
tised within ten days. but nothing has
yet been heard from them. 1t is stated
that whenever a complaint is made there
IS a squirt in the department and the
plans are taken up for day or two,
and when a complaint comes in from an
other quarter with regard to another pub
lie building under construction its plans
are taken up for a time. and then dropped
until another complaint comes in.
The reports from Washington hold Sec
rotary Carlisle responsible for this state
of affairs, saying that he refuses to let
out any more money for work
on public buildings than is posi-
lively necessary. 1t is stated that he
is holding down the expenditures 10 a
minimum in order TO keep prop under
the treasury. These statements have
been obtained by the correspondent OF the
Morning News from reliable authority,
and the indications are that the building
is being held back.
THE plans for the superstructure were
all ready when | left Washington" Con-
gresham Lester said yesterday, when
asked about the matter, land 1 do not
know why they have not been published
before now. 1 went there to see about the
public buildings and why it could not be
hurried up They told me the plans had
been entirely completed, and that all the
changes necessary had already been made.
81 am of the opinion from what l have
learned that the present contract has
DELAYED the work. The basement story
was to have been done last October, hut
1t has not yet been completed. 1t win
readily be seen that bids for the super
structure could not have been advertised
for at that time. So far as the money
is concerned it is forthcoming at any
time. No installment on the contract
could possibly be due until sometime after
the contract had been accepted and the
work had begun. Whatever may be the
situation now, there would certainly lie
no danger about the money being ready
as soon as the work on the superstructure
has been advanced far enough to make
a payment on the contract necessary.
From all / learned in Washington l I'M
derstood the plans for the entire super
structure were ready to be advertised at
any time. l saw no one but Supervising
Architect Aiken, and this information
came from him. l endeaVored to see Secre-
tary Carlisle, but he was not there at the
time. Mr.. Aiken, however, assured me that
the plans were ready, and that there would
be no difficulty about advertising for bids.
Why the bids have not been called for by
this time l do not know. The present con-
tract is near enough to completion for the
publication of the advertisement for bids,
and there is no particular reason that
know of why they should not be out"
1t is hard TO understand why the bids
for the superstructure are not advertised
for. if, as is stated the plans for it are
ready. So far as spurts and starts are con-
cerned. the people of Savannah have been
pushing the matter hard enough, and there
is no reason why there should not have
been a sufficient numbet of spurts by this
time to have completed the building.
The Board of Trade and the Cotton Ex-
change passed resolutions some time ago
urging the government TO take immediate
action and to push the work to compile
ton. In spite of this, and in spite of the
fact that the department has been called
on since that time the work has been GO
ing on very slowly so far as the plans for
the superstructure are concerned.
1t has been nearly eight years since the
first steps We're taken toward having new
public building for Savannah, and still
the work has not been completed. A num-
Der of citizens have taken an interest in
the matter and it may be that they will do
something toward urging the work for
ward.
CANnIn ATEeS rATErEn on