Evening journal., 1898-11-07

through an orfice In the basement floor
caused by the explosion and attacked
the consultation room Of the supreme
court justices. on the main floor. Some
damage was done to the furniture and
fittings Of this room. but It was incon-
siderable as compared with that done
elsewhere. The robng room OF the JUS
tices practically was undamaged
IL was evident that the FIRE could not
be extinguished until the gas from the
main was cut Off That this might be
accomplished the firemen turned two
streams upon the main. choking the
flow Of gas and at the same time cool
ing the pipe. Electrician GLEN. brav-
lng the intense heat. entered the meter
room and cut of the gas at the floor
valve OF the main.
Throughout the lower central portion
OF the old capitol building doors. win
dows and fittings in committee rooms
and other apartments are badly dam
aged. Just north or the crypt an arch
way almost over the meter room was
completely blown out and great masses
Of masonry torn from the floor were
hurled 20 the ceiling with such force as
TO burst the stone and plaster OF the
walls above. Ponderous fagstones were
wrenched from their resting places, and
throughout the corridors the frescoing
and wallis were utterly ruined. No dam
age was done to the main foundations
OF the buildings, as these are Of solid
masonry deeply imbedded and 25 feet 4
inches thick.
The electric lighting apparatus. in
cluding dynamos. boilers and wirlngs.
was not damaged. In order to enable
the firemen TO work without peril from
live wires Electrician Gliem cut off the
current from all wires except one cir
cult, which lighted the lower western
part of the building. Within 80 feet of
the scene Of the explosion a solitary in
candescent lamp. marking the exact
center Of the capitol structure and
hanging directly over the bier In which
Il was proposed to lay the remains of
George Washington, burned brilliantly.
Among the losses which viii be most
sincerely regretted are those OF busts Of
Chief Justice Marshall and other dis
tinguished members OF the supreme
court, which were arranged on small
pedestals about the supreme court
chamber In the smoke and ruin which
followed the explosion these valuable
works Of art were either damaged or
wholly destroyed and with their de-
struction the country has suffered an
irreparable loss. Many of them have
been treasured as exhibits In the su-
preme court chamber for half a cen
tury.
The capitol building has been dam
aged a number of times before, but it
Is believed that last nights fire will
prove TO be the most disastrous in the
history of the building; on two occa-
sions prior to this fires have been start
ed by explosions Of gas. Seventeen years
ago a large amount OF damage was
done TO the same part of the building
by an explosion of this kind, and in 1870
there was an explosion of gas that kill
cd one man and came near killing an
other.
No intelligent estimate of the money
loss by the explosion and fire can yet
be made. In the opinion Of capitol ofIi-
GERS and mechanics who examined the
structure last night the loss will reach
probably 5000 600 TO the building. The
loss on the library and records. as stated
above. can be scarcely estimated in dol
lars and cents. A million dollars could
not replace them because many of them
have no duplicates in existence.
Arrangements were completed last
night by Librarian Clarke OF the SUI
prome court and Colonel Richard D.
Bright, sergeant-at-arms OF the senate
by which the sittings of the supreme
court will not be interrupted. The court
will convene for the present In the room
Of the senate committee on the District
Of Columbia, one of the most spacious
rooms in the capitol. How long the
sessions of the court will be held there
will be determined by the Justices them-
selves.