Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-02-26
NO ACTION TAKEN
Senate Hears Report on Old
Government Printing Office.
Is DECLARED UNSAFE
SENATOR SCOTT SAYS HE WOULD
NOT WISH TO WORK IN IT.
New Building Recommended by the
Committee Appointed to Examine
Condition of Old Structure
rs DECLARED UNSAFE

Senator Scott made a report to the Senate
| today of the deplorable condition which he
declared the old government printing Office
is in.
Some time ago Senator Hoar introduced a
resolution calling upon the committee on
| public buildings and grounds to report as
1 to the condition of the former government
A printing office building. Senators Scott and
! Latimer were appointed a subcommittee
| to do this work. They made a personal in
| spection of the building. and their report
1 today excited very animated discussion.
| which was taken part in by several sena-
4 tors. The report by the subcommittee
| which was approved by the full committee
| on public buildings and grounds, follows:
The Committees Report.
! THAT after thorough examination
| as We were able to make of the structure
| We find that the walls of the building are
| IL inches thick at the bottom and . inches
thick at the top; that it is four stories, and
| with the exception OF the walls is entirely
of wood
cement being used whatever. and are
cracked in several places from top to bot
| tom The roof is not trussed. and it is
pushing the walls out of line instead of
| tieing them together. it should.
| The floors are all in bad condition. and
| many of the floor joists are showing indi-
cations of dry rot. All through the build
| ing it has been necessary to place sup
| ports to the floor TO support the weight
! the walls not being strong enough for that
| purpose.
very infammable material. making the
| danger of fire very great. The means of
| exits are very poor, and the ventilation and
| hygienic conditions are a menace to health
nv ncSi xsa
weight is very great. and on account of the
| wooden construction of the interior its col
| lapse would occur without warning. We
| are of the opinion that the building is I'M
| safe. unhealthy and dangerous in it's pres
| ent condition. and that it should not be
| used for the heavy machinery and fixtures
| OF the government printing Office.
| "We are informed that the public printer
| is compelled to rent two buildings now at
| the rate of $1,000 per annum to afford the
| necessary space for the work of his office
| and every inch of the available space of
| the old printing office is in use.
''In view of these facts the committee
| recommends the following:
| That the old printing Office be torn down
| and new building erected on the site, to
| be seven stories in height and to CORE
| spond to the new printing office as far as
| possible 1t would be impossible. in our
| Judgment, to use any part of the old struc-
| ture for the reasons above set forth. That
| the annex to the old building and the ma
! chine shop in the rear be allowed to remain
! as they are, to be used for storage pur-
! poses. That the superintendent of the Cap
| itol be instructed to make an estimate of
the cost of taking away the old structure
| and replacing it with a new building to,
| conform with the new printing office and
| to report the same to this committee as
early as possible e.
Prompt Action Desirable.
Senator FIoar at once arose upon the
! close of this report and indicated how i'm
portant he considered it to be, in view of
| this showing of facts, that the Senate
should take prompt action. He said he UNI
/ derstood that statement of facts to mean
! that employees of the government were
obliged to go there to work or lose their
| places.
In reply to a question by Mr. Hoar. Sem
! ator Scott said several hundred persons are
| still employed in the old government print
| ing office building.
| Senator Hoar stated that the calamities
| in the old Ford's Theater in this city and
| In the Chicago theater fire were so fresh
| In the minds of every one that 1t should be
| a warning to take some prompt action to
| avoid any calamity at the government
| printing Office The richest government on
! the face of the earth should not rest under
| the sugma OF failing to provide properly
| for its employees.
| Senator Gallinger said that for his part
| ne old not think it was proper to send forth
| such an alarm to the country and to stjg-
! matise Congress as allowing it's employees
! 10 De In unsafe buildings until there was a
| report by an expert commission as to the
| safety or danger of the building Years
| ago, when in the House of Representatives
| ne was member of the committee to in
| Vestfgate the government printing Office
| building, and while he knew that it should
! be torn down and a new building put in its
place he did not believe It's danger was so
| great as had been pictured So far as he
| was concerned he would not hesitate 10
| work in that building
Building Absolutely Unsafe.
Senator Scott replied that while he was
not an expert yet he had had great deal
to do with fitting up buildings in which
machinery was to be placed, and he knew
enough about that to satisfy him that the
old government printing office building was
| absolutely unsafe. The dry rot in that
| building, the condition of the walls and ALI
the circumstances that he had recounted.
| satisfied him of that fact. He did not mean
| to say that the building would fall within
| twenty-four hours or ten years but 1t was
In fact unsafe. and he would not wish to
| work In it.
AnVnaf Cow