The evening world., 1911-06-05
HOODOO Of DELAY
At MANHATTAN
BRIDGE STICKS
Plaza Can't Be Finished Till
"Next Week" Settles
Transit Middle.
MEANS RUIN TO MANY.
Merchants and Others Suffer
Heavy Loss, and Thousands,
Inconvenience.
A RUIN TO MANY.


haitian Bridge the very moment the res
oiution calling for It's erection was
adopted on Dec. 40. 1899, remains I'M
broken, n Kingsley Martin will 70 ont
Of once az Commissioner OF Bridges
with his hope that the completion OF
the structure which Is Intended to re-
nsve the crush on the Brooklyn Bridge
would DO the browning achievement OF
HE Administration u~nrealized. Commits |
mcner Martin feels his disappointment
kssnly. His connection with the Man.
haitian Bridge dates from the drafting
OF the original set OF blue prints, and
y consulting engineer and finally as
Commissioned the bridge has beer the
dominant thought Of his waking hours
and has pursued him In his dreams.
A dozen sets Of plans are in Tire safe
oe Chief Engineer johnson OF the Bridge
Department showing the completed
bridge with a beautiful plaza at each
end; but the practical value Of those
plans at the present time u no more
h q 30 much waste paper, because of
the powerlessness of the Department
TO 20 or and carry them out. Nor will
any one Of them be of use until the
hopeless muddle of New York ira al
situation Is Strengthened out. and the
contracts finally signed for the building
OF the new subways some day next
week." whenever that happy time Will
be. So far no one has been abls 10
md out.
FIVE Commissioners Of Bridges have
each In their own time spoken optim-
istically OF rushing the Manhattan
Bridge TO completion and presenting II
TO the people as the "crowninb achieve
mont Of my administration" First
cane Commissioner John L. Shea, act.
Ing under the resolution signed By May
or Van Wyck; but he had hardly
touched the plans for the bridge before
the "hoodoo OF delay" got busy, and
he handed over an Inheritance Of trouble
to Commissioner L%indenthai, who made
. determined effort to get the plans,
which had been approved by the Mu-
nicipal Art Commission, started toward
realization. But when he came 10 look
the plans over he didn't like them and
threw them into the waste-basket and
II was not until 1908 tina new plans
were approved. and the Board OF Esti-
mate voted $4,000 900 for the beginning
Of construction.
AGAIN NEW PLANS AND OLD
STORY OF DELAY.
Now 1t was hoped that things would
start with a rush. but the Board of
Aldermen balked and a row broke out
between Mayor Low and his Commits
sioner on one side. ant the Board of
Aldermen on the other. which lasted
until Commissioner L%indenthal made
way for Commissioner Best. Best did
practically the same thing with Lin
denthal's plans which Lindenthal had
done with shea's. but finally. after four
years Of dreary waiting. on Feb. 20. 1905,
contracts were let for the construction
Of the an%chorages on both sides Of the
river.
For a long Time two gray stone towers
faced each other across the river until
people forgot their original purpose and
began TO wonder what they had ever
been put up for at all. The two towers,
grim and reproac hful. waited for an ap-
parently endless litigation to run Its
course and the contracts for the steel
s~uperstructure to be awarded to one
OF the various claimants for the Job.
Finally. under Commissioner Steven
son. with the present Commissioner as
consulting enbineer. the work was
started. There We're more delays. now
due to labor troubles; now due to fires
consuming all OF the wood work and
threatening TO warp the steel wires and
buckle the Orders; now due to the
- cha IntarhArAN,h pA-A.l
Company in lowering the elevated rail-
road structure on Division street to
permit the Manhattan approach &c
cross. but On Dec. 81, 1910. Mayor
Mcclellan slgnalized the close of his ad.
m~inistration by Gg.vns across the
completed" bridge.
The trlumphal r.de of Mayor McClel.
Ian across the bridge was a joke. anC
The whole city laughed. 1t began in
wide expanse OF debris and dirt. over
looked by rows OF partly demolishe,
houses on the Manhattan side. and IN,
chauffeur Of the Mayors automobile ma,
to pick his way gtngerly through an
other vista Of debris and dirt OF TN
Brooklyn side.
And SO il has remained. To the casua
oSsSisSi looAlhb aSioSs iHc
lyn Bridge or up from the decks of
ferryboat. the Manhattan Bridge /
complete. But to the thirty thousan
people who walk across 1t in the morn
ing and at night to and from work. an
TO the hundreds Of merchants. hotel
keepers. theatre owners ana banker,
who are the victims, the incomplete
plazas mean hardship. loss and eve
ruin.
LOSS AND EVEN RUIN Is RgSul'
TO MANY
Atlantic Garden, one Of the city
historic places Of amusement. has bee
virtually ruined by the delay In com
Melting the Manhattan Plaza. th