Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-04-29

cost Is startling. In four days the estimate
has jumped from six months of delay. and
expenditures and losses footing up $4,000.
to one year of delay and aggregated ex-
penditures and losses reaching the COM
paratively enormous sum of S295, 600. If
Congress proposes to have the infiammable
roof removed 1T should act instantly; every
fieetfng moment has great money value; q
week of congressional hesitation may send
the price of that roof up to $1,000, 900 and
paralyze the nations finances.
The intimated desire to avoid delay in the
completion Of the building and to save the
people the money now disbursed in the
renting OF office-Quarters has at least the
Merit of novelty: it is late in making its
appearance, but If it is genuine it should
De heartily welcomed. Work On the site
was commenced four years. two months
and ten days ago, and the task Of preparing
FOR the walls was pushed forward so stead
lily and so speediIy-when measured by the
accepted and slow standard Of the Super
vising Architects ofice-that for awhile
the new post-oftice was regarded as likely
10 De reccrd-breaker. More than three
years ago there came a change of admin
lstratloE and then there followed dimuni-
tlon IN constructive speed until the use of
the term speed" was inexcusable Mag
Lihcent office buildings were erected In New
york and Chicago while the Supervising
architects office was debating a minor
change In the plans, and thousands of
me houses came into being and were &C.
cupied in the time wasted while waiting
Tor something that somebody had neglected
to order in season.
linen when there was sufficiency of ma
terial on hand there was insutficiency of
men; two or three score of mechanics and
laborers We're frequently the limit of a
force that should have been enumerated by
hundreds and that would have been so
enumerated had the building been the prop
erty OF any business man or corporation
lnere was no thought then of the valuable
Time which was being wasted no official
declaration as to the money which was
unnecessarily being expended OH rented
quarters; not until the inefflciency of the
Supervising Architects office was conspicu
ously laid bare in this matter of an in
namrnable roof was there any manifesto
uon or concern because rentals were drain
ing the Treasury.
The Secretary's letter is not self-explana-
tory there are statements in it not easily
TO be understood by those who look at this
AFFAIR from purely business standpoint
The poSt-office design was as the Secretary
says, approved by officials of the Harrison
administration, but it is quite improbable
ina any of those officias-perhaps not
even the then Supervising Architect, since
dead-knew anything of the specifications,
OF the details the minutiae, the methods by
"hch the design was to be carried to COM
pletion. These officials are, however bur-
dened with the responsibility by the present
Secretary and Supervising Architect vet
the present Secretary and Supervising Ar
chitect insist that the roof of the building
as now designed conforms to the buildinSa
ordinances Of the cities of Chicago and
New York as being a fire-proof structure.
and In this respect also conforms with the
requirements of the acts Of Congress of
August 30. 1890. and March 3. 1881" If the
roof Is all right. why try to blame a de-
parted administration for 1t? If it is sat
isfactory roof, why should the present
Supervising Architect tell the House Com
mittee that If he had to do the thing over
again he would use only incombustible ma
terial In place of thin pine boards? If the
Supervising Architect who Is dead blum
dered in his specifications, why did not the
Supervising Architect who is living change
the specifications before he made the con-
tract for the roof which he says is at once
all wrong and all right?