The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-08-05

AZAY LIE R1DEAU.
A dome has more mass and monumental
character and has more effect in giving
nobility Of architectural potentially to
a city than lofty tower, though the lat
ter is the next finest feature that city
can have. In this case dome is an OBJ
vious impossibility. Then X is desirable
in order to give a tower It's full value
that it be sufficiently contrasted with
comparatively low and level buildings.
The Campanile at Venice may be men
toned as very effectively placed in this
respect, while the clock. tower at West
minister loses much of its effect from i'm
mediate contnguity with buildings which
are rather too high for it and have a
strongly marked vertical tendency In
their lines. This great column is certain
~ the best way out of a very bad prcdica-
ment. The small tower which is nearly
a miniature of the proposed tower is
marked with an Italian influence al
though the details are RomanesQue. The
windows and porches are a pleasing de-
Walton from the efforts higher up. The
Washington street entrance In particular
is fine example Of the pure Romanesque
arch. Many such doorWays are scattered
over the ancient cathedrals and chateaux
Of old Touraine. The doorway illus
trated Is from a photograph of a ruin in
Rouen, possibly gaZed upon by Jean d.
Arc many times during her sutferings
before her trial. In both the old archway
and theWashington street archWay the re-
semblance is carried out even into the
details. The capitals In both instances
are Byzantine although in neither case
pure.
The steep Mansard roof Is tiled in much
the same manner of the chateaux men
toned before. In several cases among
the castles Of Touraine similar red tiles
were used, and although time and
weather have toned down the color to a
deep brown, when new they must have
appeared as this oneadoes. Mansard was
Frenchman Of the Renaissance period,
who brought this style of roofing into
| fashion, probably littlet suspectings that
| the simple idea would be the only re-
membrane of him in after years. The
same thoughts have been expressed in
| the interior work that are so simply sug-
gested on the exterior, The finishing is
in the latest and most approved STYLE
money being iavisiIed in a manner not
often found in similar government work
The finishing of the ground floor except
at the foot of the elevators has not been
started, as there Is no intention of i'm
mediately moving the postoffice but all
the other ifoors are complete The second
will be entirely occupied by the revenue
CI11SSES anu C4SLhSs lie lillTQ Dy the dis
trict court, judges chambers and law
library. The rooms of every department
are connected, some having a dozen or
more en- suite; several are provided with
separate bath rooms and all have been
arranged with an idea to convenience
The reading room of the law library,
facing Washington, is a light airy apart
ment finished in Spanish mahogany and
profusely decorated with intricate wood
carvings.
Naturally the most costly and exquisite
apartment in the entire building is that
of the United States Court of Appeals.
The rather small court is marble
throughout except the ceiling which Is
a net work of glass darkly' stained. Light
is admitted through narrow windows in
serted behind a row of heavy octagonal
marble columns. The entablature is
tastefully decorated with classic frieze
plain, but thoroughly in harmony with
the massive simplicity carried out as it is
on small scale. Several richly carved
emblems and monograms symbolical of
the United States are introduced in sew
eral ways
The United States district court room
Is a gem of the interior decorators art.
The first impression is the mahogany
Wa1nscoating about three wards in height
surmounted by carved border of the
same wood. At the further end OF the
court is an imposing dais, backed by a
row of massive mahogany pillars The
Byzantine capitals are modernized from
st. Sophie in Constantin5ple. The orig
mails are to be found on the columns near
the Porte Fuperaire Close by is 2 large
fire place of the purest white marble
The general effect is the old English fire
place, but what a difference of detail
The drop overhead is heavy piece Of
mahogany finely carved and supported by
on the right facade of Saint Mark OPP
posite, many windows admit a flood of
sunshine so that the proceedings will no
longer be carried on In semi-daPkness
The heavy Orders supporting the ceiling
are decorated with egg-and-lip plaster
work
The supervising architect in Washing
ton is James Knox Taylor, who, as bow
will be remembered by many of the older
| architects as having served his appren-
ticeship together with Cass Gilbert and
Clarence johnson, all three Of whom
have a national reputation, In the Office
and drafting room of E. P. Bassford, a
well known ST. Paul architect of the
| highest standing as he must have been
to turn out three such men. Naturally
the erection of such a structure in his
native city has been a matter of great
pride and care to MIR. Taylor and on this
account the department. and particularly
Mr.. Taylor himself, have given this
building, even to- the Details the most
special attention. Any one must be par
doned a little vanity at the result En-
bodying the finest architectural taste to-
gether with-the utmost simplicity, the
conception has been well carried out to
a conclusion. The details have been
taken from Remanesque and French Re-
Nuisance, ideals, and thus far they have
been executed in a manner above criti-
cism.
During the first years of the republic.
classic columns and lines predominated in
all civic structures. The national capitol
at Washington is among the purest ex-
hibitions Of the classic built in modern
times While buildings modelled after the
ancient Parthenon on the Acropolis may
have been suitable for those churches and
temples in which dim, religious light is
requisite, 1t is not often that the best re-
suits are obtained for public building,
even under the most skillful treatment