The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1906-05-12


handsomest apartments in the capitol.
These two court rooms viii givesthe state
courts foura meeting experiments. and will
enable the three branches Of the supreme
court and the court of chancery to sit
simultaneously. This has been possible
in the past only by crowding the chancery
court into small ante-room, where it
was almost impossible to tranact business
properly.
The second floor will also contain sew
en- offices to be occupied by the depart
ments Of charities and correction and
labor. Both of these departments were
created within recent years, and neither
has ever had a permanent home in the
capitol. They have been housed in sen
ate committee rooms, until the legislative
session made change imperative, when
they were placed in the branch court
room in the senate wing. This often in
terfered with the work Of the court.
The main suite of four rooms on the
third floor will be occupied by the de-
partment of public roads. These will be
at the northeasterly corner facing both
State and Delaware streets. At present
this department occupies two of the most
unsuitable offices in. the whole capitol.
The only windows open into narrow
passage between the main building and
the assembly wing. and both light and
ventilation are miserable. Commissioner
Hutchinson and his assistants will be
able to transact the business connected
with managing over 1000 miles of inn
proved roads, besides building new roads.
with much greater facility under the new
conditions. This floor will also contain
nine other offices.
The fourth floor will be occupied by
the state board of agriculture, which will
have two offices; the state board of
health. which will have six, and the lab
oratory of the health board which will
have five. For several years the state
| board of agriculture has been crowded
into one of the assembly committee
rooms. There has been no room what
ever in the capitol for the laboratory,
l
and it has occupied rented kuarters in
the Broad Street National bank building
at cost of $40 month.
Architect Poole has paid particular at
tention to light and ventilation in de-
signing the structure He has been able
to do this because three sides Of the
wing will be open to the air. The win
dows will be unusually large.
A new elevator will be built at the
junction of the present main corridor of
the state house with the corridor in the
new wing. This will give ready access
to the five floors of the addition.
Few visitors to the State House realize
the full size of the building, owing TO its
peculiar construction. The present struc-
ture is an evolution from a small build
ing erected in 1897 Custodian Weseman
discovered few years ago the original
bill of Sale for the State House grounds
1t shows that. the plot contained four
acres, which cost 4S5 pounds sterling.
The original building cost 42,216 pounds
6 shillings and pSence. This money was
raised as follows:-A popular donation
of 750 pounds, grant of the Legislature
amounting to 1900 pounds and 1900
pounds as gratuity received from
lottery then being operated in the State
It is a curious fact in connection with
the capitol that sport now constitu-
tionally prohibited in the State should
have contributed largely to the erection
of the structure in which the laws of the
commonwealth were to be made.
An item in the bill found by Mr. Wese-
man shows that 1900 pounds of nails
were used, which cost the construction
committee SO pounds, 6 shillings and
pence, or over $780, The nails could be
purchased now for less than 500. An
nails in those days were hand wrought.
The original state house was little
building which stoodo back from the pub
lie road. which is now State street. 1t
stood very much as the front wing of
the present structure stands, except that
narrow walk led to the front door,
This was chained off to keep the rural
statesmen off the grass. The old build
ing was only about 30 feet daap. Now
the tape line when run from the front
sill to the rear building line viii measure
off $50 feet giving convenient prom
enade from the street to the water power
bank. The present front is 172 feet wide
and the width of the handsome portica
flanked by the elegant granite. column, is
so feet.
I'M