The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-06-29

Extensive Repairs in TsrOEr SsS in the
south Wing of the CnPitOI-New
Desks, Furniture, and Carpets-An
Improved system of Ventilation.
The perplexing proposition how to
squeeze thirty-one additional Representa-
t1ves into a chamber Inadequate for the
convenient accommodation of the present
membership Of the House Of Representa-
tives has happily been compassed-
The House committee. Representatives,
Cannon. DaIzeu and Richardson, acting
with the Architect Of the Capitol after
many conferences. carefully considering
various plans and methods. have Practi-
caIIy fixed spon the pattern of a desk 10
be used and how TO place the seats 4
new system of ventilation will be subSti-
tuted for the old one The work viii be
completed in ample time for tho Conven-
ing of the Fifty-seventh Cong ress next
December
The hail of the House has been com
pIetely gutted- Ancient floors. piers. of
brick and iron, gas pipes, and other ma
terial heretofore utilized in various make
shift repairs. have all been cleaned out
until nothing remains but the bare roof to
the first story; in fact the chamber re
sembIes a drained artificial lake
Having literally reached bed rock the
! Architect viii ro1s proceed 70 install ar
up-to-date system for the ventilation of
the hall, its heating in winter and its
/ cooling in summer He viii also build a
new and substantial floor and furnish the
/ chamber with modern desks For these
( improvements Congress appropriated ST.
/ 00o at the last session
! In connection with the problem OF ven
tilation two systems are being considered
the upward and the downward. The for
mer has hitherto been used and it is quite
/ probable that the same system. with the
/ latest methods, will be chosen It pro
vides for current of air drawn from
! near the surface of the earth and forced
/ upward. ultimately escaping through the
/ shutters a the top of the building The
/ downward system takes the air from the
1 top of the building and either forces OF
draws it downward discharging it
4 through the basement of the building
] The objection TO the latter system is that
should a window or door be open ad-
Joining the hail. notably cIoakroom
+ door. the effect would be to draw the foul.
smoky air through this opening instead
of from the roof, thus filing the cham
Der with smoke instead Of pure air.
The last investigation made with
view TO asCertaining the condition of tn
. atmosphere in the House chamber was il
1894 1t had been said that the air was
. foul and experts were employed to 90
/ into the matter exhaustively.
The experts reported that one
and three-teHths In each 10000
F cubic feet OF air in the ventiIating shaft
! were composed Of carbonic acid gas and
that the average IN the hall of this nox-
ious gas was eight and three-tenths feet
in each 1890 feet The experts said no
person ought to breathe air with over
four feet OF gas TO every 10,0e5 feet
The system In operation since 1876 fore
ed 500J0 cubic feet Of fresh air into the
hall every minute on the basis that
the hall contains upon an average of ]. 900
persons during the day this would afford
every person 80 feet Of fresh air per min
ute The air is brought into The building
through tunnel 10 feet in diameter and
Coz feet in length. finding its entrance
through tower - feet high located in
the southwestern portion Of thu Capitol
Grounds Air in the vicinity of his tow
4 ct has been subjected TO analysis and is
said TO be as pure as that upon Mont
Blanc.
After being drawn through TIE tunnel
TO the fan the air IS forced through a
room % feet square, containing S miles Of
iron pipes. In winter these pipes are
heated and il summer they are filed with
cold water Connected with this room by
q large archway is another room. some
what smaller, supplied with a shallow
vat. filed with steam pipes immersed in
water. The pipes are kept at the proper
heat to evaporate the water in sufficient
quantities to give the current of air pass
ing through the room and up into the
chamber just the proper degree OF humid
ity
The old fan which for forty years has
been blowing 50, 900 cubic feet Of air into
the House every minute was sixteen feet
in diameter. making sixty turns per min
uue II viii be superseded by the latest
improved electrically driven fan, much
smaller in size bat revolving high
rate Of speed. which viii be situated after
the coils of pipe so as 10 draw instead Of
blowing the fresh air through II Is said
that II will be possible 10 take cold pure
air from the tower and force II into the
House at temperature Of 20 degrees,
thus perfectly heating and ventilating the
chamber at one operation
The chief points Of difference in the
new over the old system OF ventilation
viii be the manner Of introducing the air
into the chamber and drawing the foul
air from the upper portion Of the room
Heretofore the air has been forced up two
large ducts beneath the House floor and
at the sides and permitted TO get out
through the gratings and registers as best
il could As a result the distribution has
not been uniform and some portions of the
hall have had air ana heat while other
paris OF the room we're insuf1ciently ven
tiiated and heated
Iader the new system Two floors viii be
/ built, the upper enc being for support Of
/ desks. and the second, placed about six
inches beneath, provided with slides
I through which the air Is permitted 10
/ reach the hall BY an ingenious scheme
these slides viii be under control of the
chief engineer, enabling him 10 maintain
a uniform temperature throughout the
chamber The air comes 10 the lower
! floor with considerable force, but it viii
drift into the chamber without pressure
Two plans ara under consideration for
the Introduction Of the air into the hall
First. through the supports or legs 10 the
desks. which may be made hollow with
openings at the bottom. TO permit the air
To enter. and with gratings on the sides
for its escape. This IS the system now
in vogue in the United States Senate and
the results are satisfactory If this meth
/ Cd is not adopted the air viii enter
/ through gTatings upon the fronts Of the
stairs or lifts making The raise III the
floor which is the amphitheater style
each row Of desks being six inches higher
than the one in front. In either event a