The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1902-10-26
AMERICAS BIGGEST BUILDING.
" ~ fHE CITY HtiI N
PHILiDELPHIt.
After Thlri,-onc Years of Work u L. Just
Nearing Complexion e. >lread, Too
snsli for It's tses Curious statistics
tbout II and the Bronze statue
~ william Penn on Its Tower.


another +" he cfTec, tia, the big pile j.
- overcrowdod that us i.Joo tenants are
beginning IT, call for the addition Of another
story 1Ai- despite the fact that The ~truc,-
urc, Philad' luhia's City Hall. has So rooms
with tot al dor space Of lis acres
George G. Pierre Chief of the Bureau Of
city Property, and John NJ Bunker. the
buildings superintendent, are being both
cred with another complaint They are
told continually that the buildings twenty
two elevators cannot accommodate the
thousands Of persons who enter the hall
daily
What can No do?" Mr. Bunker asks
We've put III and put in elevators until
we've no place TO install another. But
something will have to be done soon TO
relieve tie jam The only vacant rooms
now at our command are the eight IN the
tower, the highest in the world but they
are 50 poorly lighted and ventilated that
they are Of no Use except az store rooms
II another story Is ever added 10 the CITY
hall it viii be only one of hundreds of
queer things that have become 4 part Of
the Buildings history. The leading ducer
thing to Philadelphia taxpayers, is how the
city hall, even # it it the largest structure
in the Western II ,mispherc and the world',
largest municipal building. the Parliament
building excepted, ever came to take s25,-
rooo" from their pocketbook-
recent report, IN endeavorng to cx-
plain this expenditure. reveals some inter-
rsting facts. II states that $4,000 Ina,
been paid 10 M" arc'itrct and his assistants
in salaries since 1871. when the building
was begun, 1851 ,iHo for paint and raiuting.
S,1H,~n for ,i8i Goa cubic wards of marble.
for marble work. $1,000, 900 for fitting mn
rooms, si.3,3,WO for watchmcn and clean
er-, $4,000 for electric installation. and
so on.
The installation Of electricity furnished
an Interesting incident in the Hall, hist DRY.
When Tia" walls were erected elect, rio light
ing Wa unh"ard of, but when it, useful
ness was demonstrated the now extinct
Public Buildings Commission ordered cleo
lric equipment,
The electricians had 70 chisel through
IA In" stone walls for the wire, at all ex-
rcnsc of thousands of dollars, and il took
them the better part of five years Of steady
work 20 wire the building Now. how.vrr.
the Hall has a plant capable Of furnishing
all Nh" light IA city of 10000 OF 40 900 in.
''n'' "'N : 'Pi"l iJorrlblN use,
The dynamo room j. one of fiftv-nne
N the bindings basement. which runs
not only under the Hall. bur the plaza in
the centre a. we'll These basement room,
TEEN with surprises For one thing
there L. sand bed filter with daily
capacity of l,O00,0 600 gallon, of water. ana
the employees and thousands of strangers
who daily tread the corridors. manage
practically to consume this amount Thou.
sands OF gallons are carried 10 their homes
by the employees, for the water furnished
the PlIiadp.p hd householder il about
the worst GA earth and will be until the city
gets lis big filter beds in working order.
Like the lowest portion, the highest
part OF the building. the tower, is an interest.
lns and curious place. II contains the
Iarg, :, stone ia the building a bIocK of
granite Hcighing thirty tons. Il il /? Tee,
"ld", 70 feet long and $ inches thick
The tower, walls az, 20 ect thick.
The s"coLd highest elevator in the world
l. IN ta' tower. II runs from the seventh
moor. ld' i"t' above ground, 10 the base of
Ia" icun statue. an upward course of 372
irrt inches Ihe air cushions aluu. cos,
$500 one of the 400 telephones in tie
building l. located ia the tower, at th, base
IT the statue.
Then there il the great clock and the little
CLOCK lld' governs II. compressed air j.
the motive bower.
The dial of the great clock are 36l feet
abov" the earth, and the diameter Of each
i t"eHty--iN feet. The long minute and
hour hands az" fifteen and twelve feet
respectively and their weights 225 and l.5
pounds. Inc weight Of the dial frames,
with glas /, five and onc-half tons, and
tn" total weight Of the clock j. fifty tons
he little OF master clock, the clock that
really runs. Is li3 feet below the great clock
10y which the city and country folk. for
miles around regulate their watches. Two
mechanism IL as delicate as that of the
finest yatch.
II rests in a metallic case on platform
BUM INTO wall 50 no vibration can affect
i, pnt" unlike the big clock. " hch in
four years collected three tons Of dirt. H.,
cas-" kccrs II free from dust
Once every minute this clock, which is
regulated from Washington, opens the
valve which admits compressed air to the
tubes connected with the gears The air
moves th" hands Of the clock up Ia tho
tower which, after all is just a dummy
clock. for il has only four faces and lets the
little clock down below do all the actual
work.
Another peculiar thing about the tower
l. mat M The culi So of day contraction
and expansion, due to the suns rays. make il
lean ihrCc-QuarierS Of al inch out of plumb
This popularity has been determined Gy
means II a tub Of mO,a--oS placed far up
in tl" tower, the surface of the mulasSeS
varying thr"r-quartcrs Of an inch, accord
Ing 20 the lean Of the tower.
lhCu, too, IA" tower il an Unsuitable
and mvcl"rI" destroyer If the birds Of
: h" air. The ring # sixteen powerful arc
lights that glow AZ the base Of PENIS
s'a'u" blinds the bird 50 that they ~
against Ill" tower. are killed and fall 10
& he roofs below. One Of the halls employees
has CpIroiiD ION of over thousand birds
that were killed u this manner.
I'll" statue of William Penn that CABS the
tower weighs j334> pounds and Is ~ foot
~ hight. Tho ha' l. feet In diameter
h" rim % feet IN circumference, the
buttons ca the coat are inches in
diameter and tho coat cuffs are 2 fcnt
long
Penn hims"lf has "A nose Il inches long,
eyes / inches ~ length and 4 wide. a
mouth 4, inches from corner to corner:
Lalr 4 feet long, a fac" Of 3 fee 2 inches
from hat 20 chin, a waist Of "a feet,
fin scr. foot q inch", long nail, 3 inches
l,ug, l'g, ~ feet from ankle to knee
1"w""u tower ard basement are many
queer tW1gs IT." lal gc>t room measure,
iNN7l ic'l and has a floor area Of Ills SQUARE
."''. IN- /, 'ho Common Council Cham
irr, and w. 'hrrc--'ury houses phila,lnI.
phn style. could easily bc placed in il
Thirteen Of the rooms occupied bv tho
cry H"Ici.ar~ Department arc furnished