New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-12-04
WANING GRANTS TOMB.
Weather Vas Harming the Granite
This VII STOP 1t.

Fresh evidence that mans own name is the
most indestructbe monument Il man can raise
is to be found in General Grants tomb en- River
side Drive. Built of the stOutest granite at a cost
of nearly SG00O00 it has been found advisable
to coat a portion of the solid stone roofs of the
portico and gallery with parafIine wax as was
done with the Obesl nineteen years ago in
order to protect the stone from disintegraton
and to stop the leaks which have developed The
same persons who coated the Obelsk effect
lively are doing The work. The tomb. which
was the testimonial Of the more than ninety
thousand persons who contributed to its con-
struction, will not be permitted to suffer injury
if it is possible to prevent it. The tomb was
dedicated less than eight years ago. and is one
of the most costly tombs ever erected.
The possibility of damage resulting from
leaks was discovered by George ID. Burnside.
the custodian of the mausoleum He noticed
that the plaster on the ceiling the north side
of the gallery around the dome was beginning
to flake off and that the under side of the
portico over the entrance was turning white
from the deposit of salts called efIlorescence
These deposits were due to the percoIation of the
rain through the thick stone of the roof AS
the moisture came through it brought with it
certain of the mineral constituents of the
granite. When it evaDorated from the under
part OF the stone it left the mineral on the sur
face. 1t is said that if this is permitted to
accumulate for long enough time it will APP
preclably decrease the strength of the stone
About seven hundred and eighty pounds of
stone faxed off from the Obelisk in Central
Park under the influence of the storms of this
climate before it protected from the ee-
ments by the application of a waterproof coat
of parafine. There appears to be no stone into
which water will not work its way. The stones
through which the water percOated i'll Grants
tomb were over two feet in thickness.
When the work of repairing the tomb was
begun it was found that considerable guam
uty of the cement in the joints between the
stones had disintegrated also, permitting water
to enter between the stones In some places
it was possible to drive a tool three inches
into the joint Wherever the pointing has
shown disintegration, it is being done over APP
parently this is not due TO any carelessness in
Porter through whose efforts, in a large meas
ure, the funds for its completion were raised
gave great deal of his time to watching the
work
In the work now being done, the stone is
warmed by means of a fiat stove before the wax
is applied. This stove is a simple affair being
practically nothing more than sheet iron box
about two feet square and six inches deep. one
side of the box is a wire screen This re-
tains the charcoal which is burned in the stove
and at the same time permits the free radiation
Of the heat upon the stone. The stove is sus-
pended against the stone whose pores are to be
filled. 1t almost touches the stone. and is held
there for two or three minutes That is suffi-
cient time TO heat the stone to a depth of per-
haps a quarter of an inch. Then melted paraffins
wax is painted on the heated surface with a.
brush 1t soaks into the stone to the depth to
which the stone has been heated, filing all the
lnterstices between the crystals of the rock
Great care has to be taken not to heat the STONE
unnecessarily as only a small portion can be
heated at one time Uneven expansion of tho
stone might cause it to crack a square yard
Continued O seventh page.