The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1905-08-07

WALLS OF
4 SHADES

Washington Aug. "A new cleansing
fluid has been used on the outer walls
Of the United States treasury building.
and the inventor. who is but laborer in
the department is thinking OF having the
device patented 80
Several weeks ago the laborer told the
treasury department authorities that he
had discovered means of cleansing gran
ite and sandstone that beat scrub brushes
and sand blast all hollow.
The cleansing material proved TO he
murky liquid. kept in pail which the
inventor allowed none Of the other work
men 10 approach. for fear that they would
discover the secret process by which the
liquid is compounded
The inventor showed some Of the treas
ury officials what he could do In the way
Of cleaning a small block Of granite. He
dipped large brush in the mysterious
liquid and quickly covered the surface OF
the stone. Then a man with garden
hose turned on a jet OF water and I'm
minute the stone was as clean as when
II first came from the quarry.
The process looked so easy and the re-
suits so surprising that the department
authorities told the man 10 go ahead and
clean the foundations of the building and
az much more of the structure as could
be reached conveniently by man stand
ing on the ground. Two or three years
ago a part OF the building was cleaned
with saudblast and the results were
even more unsatisfactory than the sand
blasting Of the city hall in New York.
A MARVELLOUS SIGHT.
The treasury building Is regarded by
many persons as the noblest type of
classic architecture in Washington. and
this estimate is usually the verdict Of
foreigners visiting the capt
tai Around the outside of the building
are 6s Ionic columns. each 30 feet long
and about feet IN diameter. About half
Of them are monoliths. Besides these
there are more than 100 square faced
monolithic columns between 80 and 40 feet
long.
The sandblast played havoc with the
treasury building from an artistic point
OF view. hut since the man with the mvs
terious blue black liquid began his work
the building has presented a marvellous
sight. The huge granite blocks which
form the founda ations of the building on
all four sides are Al free from smoke or
other discolorations as they were when
they were quaried
II time has wrought a faw In any Of
the stones the defect stands out with dis
tinctness and the seams OF mortar are
The building now appears
i'm four shades. ranging from light gray
to very dark gray. The foundation stones
and the finely cut lamp and fence posts
q bout the building are almost white. The
same color obtains on the lower part Of
the magnificent ionic pillars as far up
as man can reach.
The upper part Of the pillars is medium
gray or about the same as they were i'm
medately after the sandblast Of two years
ago The granite OF the treasury walls
above tho great columns is dsrkly dis
colorrd by smoke from soft coal furnaces.
or all the government buildings in
Washington the treasury has probably
been treated with the least regard for its
beauty as an example of good architec
ture. 4 few years ago the grard rotunda
formed by tho arch stairways on the west
side Of the treasury was ruined by the
installation OF extra elevators. one for
freight and another for passengers.
Many wires for electric bells. a system
which nearly every secretary of the
treasury rearranges IN suit his own CoU=
vcnience. are strung along the corridors
outside the walls and dusty electric bat
teries occupy the shelf Of the transom
over nearly every door.