Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1906-10-10
all the people. And yet this admins
tration pretends to stand for reform
and against grating.
80. 600. 900 for Chandeliers.

Is there anything free from the faint
of republican graft? The new Penn
sylvania capitol, at the dedication of
which on Thursday President Roose-
welt made speech, was supposed to
be such an exception. Last winter a
Pennsylvania congressman bOasted in
the house of representatives that the
capitol had been constructed for less
than the original appropriation, the in
ference, of course being that it was
honestly built. The people, not know
ing any better, good naturedly accept
ed this view of the case, though not
without wondering that such strange
thing could happen in the corrupt boss
ridden state of Pennsylvania. Now,
however. it appears that this view
was an illusion, and that the new cap
itol differs only from the other recent
public undertakings in that state in
being more rotten than any of them.
The real facts i'll the case are stated to
be as follows:
The Pennsylvania legislature fixed
the limit of cost for the construction
of the new capitol at $4.000000, and
the building has been CONSTRUCTED"
for $3,600,000. The popular impression
has been that this sum included the
bulk of the necessary expenditure and
that. with the furnishings included, the
cost had not greatly exceeded the
amount appropriated by the legislature
Until lately no one had inquired. how
ever. what the expense of furnishing
1 h..
But now, the new democratic state
treasurer, who by virtue of his state
office became member of the build
ing committee, has aStonished the
commonwealth by showing that the
real cost of the capitol has been about
13,000,0 900. Some $4,000 900 or $4,000,
600 has been expended on furnishings,
so that the equipment has cost twice
as much as the structure itself. For
chandeliers alone the sum of S2,000000
was spent, a monstrous expenditure
which at once suggests an infamy of
corruption. That the excess charges
for the furnishings of the building
amounted TO between 100000 and
S4,000,000 is the conviction, apparent
" of State Treasurer Berry.
The whole story, of course, now
comes out. The building commission,
which was able to construct" the cap
-tOl and also to provide for its mural
decoration for IS 600 900. construed lit
orally its task and left entirely to the
board of public buildings and grounds
the furnishings or equipment of the
structure. AS 4 matter of fact, it is
probable that the building commission
spent altogether too much on the work
that it undertook, but the other body
seems to have cast all ideas of econo-
my and strict accOuntab lily for public
funds to the winds. Very few people
seemed to know that the furnishing
and equipment of the capitol devolved
upon the board of public buildings and
grounds. The legal authority the
BOARD had was derived solely from an |
obscure clause in an appropriation bill !
some minor repairs, and !
his was easily construed as granting !
'ull power to the board to spend on |
capitol furnishings any money in the |
state treasury not otherwise appropri- |!
ited." A large treasury surplus that I
III IOI udpp6ll W DS OIHeIWlSe
Driated' gave the board ample elbow |
'oom for singing the commemorative /!
cash about, and it did that with an |
abandon of which the $2,OO0,000 chan !
ieliers leave no shadow of doubt.
Those chandeliers should be worth |
going miles to see for generations to |
come. They are a dazzling memorial |
o Governor Pennypacker's administra- |
ion. for the governor himself was |
of the board of furnishers. |
The inscription on the capitol DOME |
irawn from the writings of William !
Penn, Will ever after scintillate with /
1 hint of sarcasm, for it says: There |
may be room for such a holy expert |
nent, and truly God will make it the |
seed of nation. that an example may
De set up to the nations that we may |
10 the thing that is truly wise and |
ust''