Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-03-20
The New District Building.
!itor of The Evening Star:

To the Editor Of The Evening Star: =,
There seems to be so much difficulty in
deciding on the stone for the proposed
new District building, the use of statues
for ornamentation, travelling about the
country to examine stone quarries and
buildings, that citizens begin to doubt
whether we will ever have building erect
ed. June 6. 1902. congress appropriated
S550.000 for the site, and the act pro-
vided that "as soon as the purchase was
completed the commission should proceed
at once to contract for the erection and
completion of the building; and on the
18th of the same month Congress appro-
priated 100000 more for the building That
was nearly three years ago. and the only
thing done toward complying with the
requirement of Congress above mentioned
is to contract for the foundation which
was to be completed last January but is
not near done yet.
In the meantime quarries were visited.
and some eight more bids for the stone
were opened In Octobel, last and still
larger number of samples of stones were
furnished at the same time. Then the
commissioners concluded that in order to
complete the building according to the
plans and with the desired white granite
100000 more would be required. and at the
recent session Congress gave what they
asked for, and we all rejoiced in the hope
things would begin to move. But now
we are told that there is not enough money
that more will have to be furnished or
that the "twenty-eight statues" with which
the building according to the plans) Is to
be ornamented will have to be omitted!
Who those twenty-eight statues are to
represent-whether it be the Commissioners
past, present and future, or some other
celebrities or heroeS-the taXpayfng citizens
who have to pay one-half Of the cost would
like to know, but which under this best
form of government" they so far have not
been permitted to know. Pending this
important question of whether cheaper
and inferior quality of stone shall be used
or those twenty-eight statues shall be
omitted and the 100000 that 1t is said they
will cost shall be added to the $500 600
given by Congress to secure the better and
more desirable stone, we are told by the
papers that another campaign OF quarry
and building visiting is to be entered upon!
And. as the papers state that this inves-
presumption, of course. is that if possible
the cheaper marble is to be substituted for
the white granite and thereby save those
precious twenty-eight statues!
Judging from the progress thus far made,
II looks though 1t will take as long to
complete this building 1t did to build
the postoffice building. which was consid-
cred national disgrace. If / might be
permitted to offer suggestion, 1t would
be that those twenty-eight statues should
be eliminated and the 100000 used to Sc
cure granite, ana that contract should
be let at the earliest possible moment for
the entire construction and completion of
the bulding-the contract to be given to
some concern that can complete the job
in the least possible time. as was done
with the Star building. the New Willard
and the Walsh building. The rent being
paid by the District during this long de-
lay Is a matter of some Importance to the
District and should not be permitted to
continue a day longer than Is absolutely
necessary. to say nothing of other impor-
tant considerations. w. G. DODGE.