Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-05-15

bridge will be 10 feet which is thirty
Ave feet wider than the Brooklyn bridge.
There will be two floors. one carrying
eight railroad tracks and the other VIDE
roadway for vehicles and two paths tor
pedestrians.
This bridge was designed by Gustave
Lindenthal. and 1t will be the greatest
suspension bridge in the world.
Largest Arch Bridge.
The largest arch bridge in the world Is
proposed by the Pennsylvania company
to carry its trains across He'll Gate, in
East river. from Long Island to Connec-,
ticut to connect with the New York. New
Haven and Hartford tracks for its New
England traffic. The PENNSYLVANIA COM
pany has recently constructed an enor-
nous pier at Greenville. on upper New
York bay. and from there will float It's
freight cars across to Bay Ridge station
l.. l. There it has track running
through East New York around the out
skirts of Brooklyn. and Long Island City
to He'll Gate. the western end of Long
Island sound at Wards island and Ran
dall's island: and there 1t proposes to
cross to Connecticut by d steel vladuct
more than three miles long. which is
designed to carry four tracks upon
give an all-rail connection through the
tunnels under the city of New York via
the Pennsylvania and the New York. New
Haven and Hartford 1airoad between
Boston and the west.
The proposed He'll Gate bridge. as it is
called. will have clear span of l.ND feet,
with the top Of the arch 300 feet and the
floor Of the bridge 40 feet above the wa
ter. The towers will be 20 feet high ana
will be built of granite. The total weight
of metal In the proposed bridge Will De
5000 tons.
Objection to the Design.
This bridge was also designed by Mr.
Gustave Lindenthal, associated with Pal
mer & Hornbostel. architects. and last
fall the plans were submitted to the mu-
nicipal art commission. under an act or
the legislature, which has supervision
over all public edificies in New York city
The designs were rejected by the COM
mission upon the following report:
The proposed He'll Gate bridge is a
monumental structure which will be visi-
BILE from far and wide. 1t furnishes an
unusual opportunity for artistic treat
ment. Had these plans been purely
structural. and had the treatment Of this
bridge in all its parts been strictly utili-
tartan. your committee would nevertheless
have recommended the approval of the
plans. though they would have regretted
that this opportunity for artistic treat
ment had not been awaited of. They are
quite ready to accept the judgment of Mr..
Lindenthal on all engineering or structu-
raj questions. 1t has been attempted.
however. to give decoration to the towers
and to the bases of the towers. This at
tempt has not in the opinion of your COM
mittee. been satisfactory from an artistic
point of view. Your committee cannot
approve these decorative features as they
would have been ready to approve a
strictly unitarian construction. or. better
still. scheme Of ornamentation which
would seem to them artistic and appro-
pirate. They therefore recommend dis
approval of the plans without prejudice
to their resubmission and with different
treatment of the towers and their bases. =
The municipal art commission is COM
posed of eminent artists appointed by the
mayor and Mr.. John Quincy Adams.
formerly of Evanston. ILL.,. is the secre-
tary. Nothing of monumental charac-
ter can be erected in New York city
without it's approval. It's taste is severe
its judgment is final and 1t has protected
the city against several architectural
monstrosities. 1t is understood that the
Pennsylvania Company will submit re-
vised plans for bridge to meet the OBJ
lection of the commission as soon as the
financial condition of the country will
justify such an expensive undertaking.