Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1904-09-21
Disgruntled Artist Would En-
join Capitol Commission Be-
cause He Was Rejected
SAYS JOB REQUIRES NO TALENT
Decorating the State Capitol Building
Was Let to the Most Noted Artist
In the World But Des Moines Me.
chanic objects-He Sues For An
Injunction.

Des Moines, Sept. 21.-Believing, as
he alleges, that THE Iowa state capitol
commission, composed Of Hon. A. b.
Funk, Charles A. Cumming and Il. p.
Schoentgen, is about to pay Elmer q.
Garnsey, the New York artist, to ex-
coed 100000 purely for the sake of his
artistic temperament and his name and
| fame, w. j. Chamberlain, one of those
DESTROYS of landing. the contract for
the decorative work on the state house
| was brought "a suit in the distric,
court of Polk county asking that the
commission be enjoned from carrying
out it's contract with Mr.. Garnsey.
Mr. Chamberlain says that the work
can be done for about one-half of the
| amount suggested in the CONTRACT
which Mr. Garnsey is to complete with
the capitol commission. The contract
price of the decorative work on the
state house is something over $4,000
which Mr. Chamberlain says is toe
much by half.
In bringing the action he says there
>--~
| cont%a with requires the use OF
brains OF any particular tact He says
| that the work is purely of mechani-
cal nature, and necessitates the use Of
substantial paint and good big brush
with which to apply it in a manner
most realistic. The work to be done in
| the state house is that OF decorating
| the ruined chamber of the representa-
tives and Of retouching several of the
| frescoes about the rotundas. This, ac-
cording to Mr. Chamberlain, can be
done with a great deal less expenditure
than the members of the commission
are about to make.
Mr. Chamberlain states that he, or
any other we'll meaning painter can
provide paint and brushes for the work
at a price of $4,000, with the actual
labor of applying the same thrown in.
Good paint is not half so costly as Art
list Garnsey would have it appear, and
the matter of fame should not enter
into the simple operation OF applying
a quantity of paint to a certain num-
Der of square feet of plain surface.
No Pay For Brains.
From his allegation it is drawn that
thing for his art as, according to Mr..
Chamberlain's petition. there is no
brain work required to execute a
simple contract which requires only
the application of yellow ochre with
brush.
He thinks that the capitol commits
sion has been duped into giving Mr..
Garnsey the contract for the work
without even allowing the contractors
of Iowa an opportunity to bid on the
same. He says that in public work
such as the kind in question, 1t is the
proper thing for the state to receive
bids for the work and the contract to
be let to the lowest bidder. He says
that this precedent has not been fol-
lowed in this instance but instead
there was no reception of the bidders
nor was the contract let to the lowest
man, but on the contrary the members
of the commission went clear to New
York, where they secured an artist to
smear the interior of the state house
with paint at price far in advance
of what it should really be.
Mr.. Chamberlain says that $61,500 is
far too much to be paid for the work
and that the taxpayers of the state
are being relieved of the difference If
the contract with the artist is carried
out.
He therefore asks that sln injunction
from the district court be issued at
once to restrain the members of the