New-York tribune., 1900-09-23
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
WORK NOW BEING DONE AT THE Uni
NERSITY - STUDENTS HALL
SOON TO BE BEGUN.

Many improvements and additions have been
made within the last few weeks to the buildings Of
Columbia University, on Morningside Heights.
Perhaps the most important of these is the begin
ming Of work on the story of University Hall.
The alumni for several years have been trying to
obtain the S125000 necessary to complete the first
floor Of the building, but II not until last June
that their efforts successful. 1t may now be
confidently anticipated that at the next commence
ment the alumni will be able to assemble in the
hall which is 10 be their gift TO Columbia. The
floor plan shows that the dimensions of the Alumni
Memorial Dining Hall 81 feet by 11S feet. Be
sides the Memorial Hall there will be a considera-
BILE number of smaller the first floor.
These will probably he dining rooms eventually,
but at present they will be used the admins
trative Offices of the register bursar and superin-
tendent There will also be a large lecture room.
which will occupy the space over the gymnasium.
THE Columbia University Quarterly comment
ing editorally upon the appearance of the building.
says: 1t is not to he expected that the building
will be a pleasing architectural feature in its partly
completed condition. on the contrary, its lack of
proportion and its temporary wooden roof will il
is feared, render quite the reverse but the
practical advantages to be secured should far more
than compensate for any temporary artistic de-
fects."
The second feature of Importance in the work
already begun is the erection OF the dormtory for
the students of the Teachers College, in
Amsterdam-ave. between One-hundred and -twen-
tieth and One-hundred-and-twe twenty-first SITS The
building and plant will represent investment of
approximately 100000. The complete plans to-
gether with sketch of the building it will look
when finished, in 1901, have already appeared in
The Tribune
The new building Of the Horace Mann School at
Broadway and One -hundred-and twentieth and
Ore-hundred nd twenty first SITS. has been com
pleted externally but the interior work is advanc-
ing slowly. and il is not thought that the house
will be ready for use before spring Edgar A.
Josselyn. the architect, has embodied the latest
sanitary and hygenic ideas in the construction of
the building and the home of Horace Mann
School is believed be type of the model school,
In the basement will be the gymnasium and two
rooms luncheon. The first floor will contain the
auditorium seven large, airy cassrooms, the re-
ception room and the superintendents private Of
fee On the second floor will be the gallery of the
auditorium eight classrooms and recitation
rooms Above these will he the high school office
and the library, besides seven class and recitation
rooms. The fourth floor will consist of laboratories
and conference and class rooms. The top floor
will contain studios, storage rooms and half a dozen
for special purposes Elevators will put the
students in easy communication with the teachers
without the necessity of mounting score OF flights
of stairs daily, is done Columbia
Besides these there have been some minor i'm
pTovements. The steps approaching the university
library and the stonework and masonry of the
library itself. have all been scraped and cleaned
The interior walls have been painted Last winter
the floor of the library reading was subject
10 certain mysterious subterranean disturbances
which resulted in alarming upheavals of the
wooden floor, and made II thing OF hills and dales
The laying of a cement floor has changed all that
The building of most interest to students is the
Students Hall. Work 1t has been begun
but ground probably will be broken within a few
weeks. This building is an anonymous gift and
its purposes best explained In letter from the
giver TO the trustees. which is, in part. follows
/ desire to erect free OF expense to Columbia
University, a building to be placed under the charge
OF the Young Mems Christian Association of the
city OF NewYork. subject 10 the reserved right OF
ConIrSl com OF the trustees OF the university, TO be
thropic and religious life of the university.
II Is my desire that the building should not be
used for distinctly dogmatic denomina tional
teaching, but | want the charter under which II
is 10 be administered TO be broadly interpreted
as TO permit organizations of Roman Catholic.
students or OF Hebrew students to hold their meet
ings in this building freely any others. In
WORD, my desire Is that the building should be
70 Columbia what Barnes Hall Is Cornell what
the Philips Brooks House is TO Harvard. what
the parish house IL a city church-a centre ~
religious and philanthropic activity.