Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1906-10-04
Our Aladdin's Palace.

Gov. Samuel W. Pennypacker OF
Philadelphia and Auditor General W.
p. Snyder Of Chester county, as two of
the members Of the Board of Public
Grounds and Buildings, have seen fit to
publish ard scatter over the state a
statement of the public moneys expend-
ed by them on the equipment and or
namentation of the State Capitol
The other member Of the Board
State Treasurer Berry, refused TO sign
this statement, and the name of ex-
Treasurer Mathues does not appear, and
the statement bears date of Sept. 20,
1906.
1t shows that IS, ,119, ,34306 have al
ready been spent on the equipment and
ornamentation of the building, and that
s422. 579. II, plus s., 10000 are yet due;
in addition to the 81. 900. GOO paid by the
Capitol Commission to the contractors
for the building itself, as per act of As
sembly.
The authority for this expenditure is
said to be found in two innocent look
ing paragraphs added to the last two
general appropriation bills, passed by
the Legislature; and some OF the items
of this statement" are go remarkable
as to call for special notice, viz:
Bronze standards, chandeliers and
brackets 81. .O67, 55735," and specially
designed chandeliers and brackets $9Si.
965 61"-that makes 5000, ,522.96 paid
for these things; made Of bronze Ia mix
ture of copper and tim whereas. were
they so heavily plated with pure gold that
the members of the next Legislature
could scrape their salaries off them, it
would be impossible to believe that they
were worth two million of dollars.
Another item is 81, 5S4 $500 for spe-
cially designed fire proof cases for filing
papers, etc. The whole building is sup
posed to be ''fireproof,. the vaults and
safes certainly should be. What these
filing cases are made OF we do not
know, but were they made of silver
plates OF the fneness of our current
coin one would suppose that a million
and a half dollars worth of them would
fill the entire building. from basement
TO attic, or, as one man put 1t, buy
enongh to make line of them from cne
end of the state to the other.
Other items are $780, $4,000 for carved
panels, wainscoating, mantels, etc;
sS76. .O66. 40 for desks. chairs and tables;
S779, 472 96 for gliding, decorating, and
painting and raised work; s400, 10000
for bronze fronts, gallery, screens, and
bronze trimmings on the fireproof cases;
S27S, 109.47 for marble wainscoatiDg,
mantles. etc.
The architect, Huston. has been paid
$23j, 900. 90 by them, and there is bal
ance of s104, 5s5 AZ due him; also bal
ance due E. A. Abbey Of s2O7, ,sS7. so for
mural art painting"
Men who have seen the inside of the
new capitol say that it is overly fur
nished, that the ceiling ornamentation
and chandeliers make some of the
rooms look top-heavy. but as Penny
packer and Snyder say in their circular
1.-The building and its appointments are
here to speak for themselves, and
they await with entire confidence the
Of the people.
They cite the City Hall of Philadel-
phia. costing over eighteen millions, and
the state capitol at Albany. n. Y, cost
ing over twenty-four millions. in de-
fense of their expenditure, both notori-
GUS botches, and made infamous by the
graft in their building; but they do not
cite the Pittsburg or Allegheny county
Court House, with its made to order |
and specially designed brass work, the
total cost of which was something over
three millions