The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1905-06-29
The Passing of the Fair.

Laying the fair in Ruins" is the sub
ject Of very interesting article in the
Record-Herald by ". E. Curtis. The
mammoth St. Louis exposition buildings
are now being torn down by the Chicago
Wrecking Co., the same company which
purchased the buildings at the close of
the Chicago, Buffalo and Omaha expo
sitions. $17,000,000 worth of archi-
lecture is thus being raised from the
earth. Destruction is more entertaining
than creation says Curtis. as for in
stance Admiral Togo.
The Chicago Wrecking Co., consisting
of 1900 experienced men, keeping up
their own fire and police department.
They paid 100000 for everything with
in the grounds, including the fence,
excepting a few of the foreign and
state buildings. They paid 5000 for the
Ohio building, which cost $4,000 and
$4,000 for the Pennsylvania building,
which cost 100000, including all the
furniture, carpets and other equipments.
They paid 5000 for the German building,
which costs over 100000, and were
much disappointed when they discover
ed that all of the beautiful decorations
on the walls and ceilings We're painted
on canvas and had been sent back to
Germany. But there is said to be more
than $500 worth Of copper on the roof
and dome.
When the wreckers tear down one of
the big buildings they started at the
topmost pinnacle and work gradually
downward. After they have removed all
the towers and ornaments and slid them
to the ground in chutes, they uncover
the ridge pole and take Off the roof.
The same gang of men have done this
sort of work SO long that they do it very
rapidly and with comparative ease.
AS fast as an object reaches the ground
it is seized by other workmen and car
ried to its proper place. All the glass
| is carefully saved, and 10000 tons Of it
have already been sold to the Pittsburg
Plate Glass Company at dollar a ton
1t will be ground up and worked
into plaster. Three million pounds of
copper wire which originally cost the ex-
position company 100000, has also been
sold. 1t is the most profitable item
Every foot of tits carefully inspected as
| it is reeled upon the original spools which
were preserved, and the large part of it
is as good as new. The wrcckers have
about a million electric bulbs, which
they are disposing of in lots to dealers
and contractors in that sort of supplies
There We're 125,O00 bulbs on the varied
industries building, and there were
nearly 100000 on the electric building
inside and out. About 900 carloads OF
sewer pipe have been taken up from
the soil and it is all being cleaned and
inspected, ready to be offered for sale.
1000 carloads of lumber have already
been shipped to various parts of the
country and several carloads of doors
and windows have been sold to contrac-
tors who are building factories, ware
houses and other cheap structures
Forty-fve miles of railroad iron have
been sold to a suburban trolley railroad
company in Illinois for SIG ton which
cost $24; 100000 ties at 30 cents each
which cost so; 400 tons of spikes for l.,
cents each, which cost 2 cents each
and 5000 telegraph or trolley poles for
50, which cost S12 each. The trestle
work on the intramural road has also
been disposed of to the same suburban
company.