Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1902-08-28

seen and admired miles upon miles
away, would be an edifice of which
| every citizen of the county would be
proud-that it would be worthy cap
i itol building for old Grant. At the
time Mr.. Koch submitted his design he
had not worked out the details of his
plan, but he was very confident that
the building he proposed could be
erected within the appropriation. Mr.
Koch has reputation, as an architect
over the whole Northwest. He stands
in the front rank Of his profession
But no man can be good architect
who has not a vivid imagination
knowledge of material to be used in
building and of geometrical lines is
not enough. The building he proposes
to erect must take form in thought
and be seen by his minds eye before
he begins to trace its lines on paper
Mr.. Koch saw the size of the building
that must be built to meet the future
as well as present needs of the county.
He knew the money the committee had
to expend upon it, and mentally he
laid his lines accordingly; but as the
vision of the thing to be grew in his
mind from base to summit his imagi-
nation adorned it's walls with sculp-
tured stone and terra Gotta, its inter-
Tor with marble and capped the whole
with beautifully proportional dome
sheathed with FURNISHED copper that
it might return the kisses of the sun
beams. This fair vision ere it faded he
placed upon paper that it might live.
as the poet writes down an inspiration
aud the composer the music he hears
in the chambers Of the soul. But
contractor has no imagination. He is
matter of fact man. He cannot see
two dollars where there is only one.
So when the bids were opened it was
found that the building as designed
could not be built for less than $780,
600. Shakespeare says:
"When we mean to build,
We first survey the plot, then draw the
model
And when we see the figure of the
house,
Then must we rate the cost of the
6r6CClOQ.
Which if we find outweighs ability,
What do we chen but draw anew the
!, model
In fewer offices, orR..at least desist to
build at all"
The committee were sOrely per-
picked They could not desist from
, building, The old court house had al
ready been torn down. 1t Was essen
tial that there should be new one as
; soon as practicable. To call the coun-
ty board together in special session
, might lead to excited discussion and
misunderstanding, and postpone the
commencement of the building SO that
but little progress could be made up
on it this year. The duty had been
placed upon them to erect the build
ing and they must act. Restricted in
} the amount to be expended upon it, to
construct the building of their choice
outweighed their ability. They we're
under the necessity of calling upon the
architect to redraw the model. This
he did upon the lines of the first plan,
not with fewer offices but the same
} number, and with but slight decrease
in the size of the building In inter
nal arrangement the two plans were
the same, and nearly all that made for
durability in the first plan was pre-
served in the second. According to
the new model the court house could
be built for something less than $780,
600, and TIE committee promptly en-
tered into contract for its erection.
AS now being built the court house will
be one in which the citizens of the
county may we'll take pride. Of fire
proof structure and with strong walls
it will stand when we the builders are
long gone and forgotten. It's capacious
vaults cannot be filled with the records
of two hundred years. And yet we
cannot but regret that the edifice OF
beauty as we'll as strength shown in
the first design will not be seen if this
court house is finished according to
the present plan. The dome which
would give character to the building
will be gone, the pillars at the front,
the terra-cott work, the marble CORR
doris, and, Oh, the pity of it. Instead
of the fine stone cornice there will be
one of galvanized iron-a thing that
will cheaper the whole.
No one realized more than each
member of the committee the superb
GRITTY of the first plan. 1t was lack of
means alone that compelled them to
abandon it. Although they had not
the ability to build according to the
first design, the county had, and 1t
hardly admits of doubt that if the
county board had foreseen the situa-
ton in which the committee would be
placed, and with what ease the tax
payers of the county could pay for a
court house costing as much even as
S135, 900 they would have given the
, committee the right to expend that
sum if necessary. When the question
of building a court house was before
the county board in November, 1900,