The evening times., 1900-01-06
4 new PUBLIC BUILDING
The Dedication of the C0urtht use
i'm Baltimore.
The Ground, Building, and Furniture
Cost s2,75O,OOO, Coming Within
the ApprOPriation-Add TO
BE Delivered by Judge Harlan,
Mayor Hayes, and John II. Foe.

BALTIMORE, Jan. 6.-on Monday at
noon the new courthouse will be officially
turned over to the city by the members
of the courthouse commission.
The ceremonies will take place in ths
room reserved for the law library in the
new courthouse at noon on Monday. All
of the Judges have been invited to attend,
as have the mayor the members of the city
council, and other officials. In addition
invitations have been sent to many mem
bers of the Baltimore bar. The programme
will consist of an address by Chief Judge
Henry d. Harlan. of the courthouse com
mission, who will turn over the building
to the city of Baltimore. Mayor Hayes
will respond, accepting the building on
the part of the city. and later Mr.. John p.
Poe, representing the Baltimore bar. Will
make an address.
The opening of this new courthouse
marks an era in the history OF Baltimore,
for in il the city has a building which, in
the opinion Of experts who have seen 1t
since its completion, is, compared 10 9TH
er temples of justice. second TO no other in
the world 1t is a monument to the prog
ress of the great city of Baltimore and
will remain for years TO come an attraction
10 visitors.
While no pains have been spent to make
the new courthouse a model of its kind, il
has been built entirely within the appro-
Priation, including the ground and the
furniture. In round numbers the building
itself has cost about Si,750, 600. and the
building, the ground and other appoint
ments has cost about 81, I50. 600.
The building occupies the block bounded
by Calvert. Fayette st. Paul. and Lexing
ton Streets, the exterior dimensions being
19l feet on Calvert Street and St. Paul
Streets by els feet on Fayette and LeXing
ton Streets. 1t has taken about four years
to erect the courthouse and a brief resume
of the steps leading to it's inception may
not be amiss at this time.
In the first place. Baltimore decided that
it needed a new courthouse and a commits
sion was appointed TO Superintend the
building OF it and the expenditure of the
moneys which had been or might he ap-
propriated. This commission consisted
originally of Judge Harlan. Robert H.
Smith, Felix Agnus. Frank y. Hoen. DR..
Augustine ]. DalrympIe, J. Olney Norris,
and Mayor Hooper Later James f. Tate
and James Hodges were made members OF
the board. These two gentlemen dying,
their positions were filed by General Fer
dinand c. Latrobe aad Judge Samuel ID.
Schmucker. These gentlemen are still on
the board. with eXMayors Hooper and
Malster as members eX-officie.
II was in July, 1894 that a firm of Bal
timore architects, had their plans accepted
by the commission from seventy competi-
tors
The basement story is OF Woodstock
(Md) granite, and the rest Of the stone
used en- the exterior is white marble. UR-
like many public buildings. the marble is
not merely a facing of marble but all the
blocks are solid. making the building al
most as strong as modern fortresses con-
structed to withstand the attack of an
enemy. 1t was originally intended that all
the marble should come from the Beaver
Dam Quarries at Cockeysville. Nd, and the
greater part of the marble did come from
that quarry. Subsequently difficulties arose
regarding the quality of the stone being
turned out and it was found necessary to
get the assistance of quarres at South Do
yer, n. Y. East Dorsett, Vt, and Lee,
Mass. in order to finish the building.
The architectural style of the building is
that of the Renaissance, with treatment of
the Ionic order. Among the principal fea-
lures are the eight monster monolithic col
umns over the main entrance on Calvert
Street, forming a loggia that is not to be
equaled in architectural beauty in Amer
lea. These columns are 81 feet 8 inches in
height, exclusive of the base and the cap
ital, and have a diameter Of feet 9 1-2
inches at the base. In detail they are pure
ly Ionic. and their bases and capitals are
richly carved. They cost about s., ,08e
apiece. and their erection was one of the
most interesting incidents in the construe-
tion OF the building.
The original blocks out Of which these
nonoliths were carved weighed about for
ty y-five tons each. They were hauled from
the Cockeysville quarrfes on a specially
car, and it required twenty
five horses TO haul each one of them from
the railway station to the building gi-
gantic shear-leg derrick was rugged TO hoist
them into their positions and before many
witnesses the heavy columns
were lifted TO the porticO which in all