Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1911-03-30
HOLD CONFERENCE
On REBUILDING Of
WRECKED CAPITOL
Reconstruction to Cost Approx.
mately S4,OOO,0 900, Wiping
Out State Surplus.
BURNING OF RECORDS
PREVENTS HISTORY PLAN
Famous Papers Taken From Ma.
ior Andre and Other DOcu=
ments Are Lost.

ALBANY, March 3o.-The work Of re-
h~ahilltating the flre-swept State CAPT
toi begun yesterday while the flames
we're still cracking in the western wing
was continued today with increasing
vigor. First efforts were directed to
drying out the portions of the great
building untouched by the fire but
soaked By the tons Of water poured
upon the conflagration.
To-day the legislative leaders are ex-
pected to confer with Governor Dix and
state Architect Ware regarding the ap-
preparation necessary to repair the
building. The State architect has rec
commended thai the Legislature author
izs Immediately the preparation OF
plans for rebuilding the ruined third
and fourth Aoors In the west end. This
work will include the replanning of the
interior to meet the demands OF the
Offices that will occupy the quarters
from which fire drove the education
department.
Repair Cost to Approximate SA'ovV,VVV'
Unofficial estimates place the cost Of
reconstruction close to $4,000, 900. 1t is
said that an appropriation of this size
would practically wipe out the estt-
mated surplus remaining in the State
treasury at the end Of the present hs-
cal year. The State cannot bond itself
for this rebuilding. and the money must
be taken from the treasury.
A large part OF the papier mache CELL
ing In the assembly chamber will have
10 be renewed. Before they q be
used again the members desks will
have to be refnished, and 1t may be
necessary to purchase a new outfit of
assembly-room furnishings.
Several fire engines pumped water
into the ruins OF the State library all
dax,
Twice today the flames burst out
afresh in the smouldering stacks of
books, but were quickly subdued.
The Senate chamber is practically I'M
damaged and It's w-ater-soaked lobby
can be made ready for use by next
Monday. It will take longer to repair
the Assembly chamber. There is still
a foot Of water in the well" Of the
room.
The workrnen To-Day found large
quantities of books in the State Library
in a good state Of preservation, some
OF them only stained outside by smoke
and water. and others with the backs
of the bindings burned off, but the
pages intact.
CupoIa Walls Unsafe.
The first inspection after the smoke
cleared away convinced the State archt-
tect that the remaining walls of the
southwestern cupola were unsafe, and
The occupants OF houses on the oppo-
site side OF state street have been di-
rected to vacate until the walls are
pulled down or stored safely in place.
A complete history Of New York
state, planned by the New York His
torical Society and regarded by experts
as one of the most important projects
of It's kind in recent years, will never
DO written. The fire In the Albany cap
ltoi has wiped out the ancient colonial
and revolutionary documents, which
were to have furnished the basis for
the work.
According to r. II. Kelly. historian
Of the Historical Society, the loss is in
c~aiculable.
No Complete History of state.
There is no complete history of the
State In existence now says Mr..
Nelt.v. 1T has not been written. and
now the priceless documents, upon
which 1t must have been based, are
gone.
1.-THE loss is a most terrible thing.
1t Is simply impossible to state any
value for the destroyed documents.
Their value was not to be determined.
They simply cannot be replaced, and
for documents of that kind a statement
Of a money value is an impossible
thing.
THE State has gotten out -four cata-
logues OF the various documents. Those
catalogues are In 4arious libraries. but
not copies OF the documents themselves.
1.-THE various documents remaining
from the days OF the Dutch colonies
we're catalogues under n head, the
English documents under another and
the land papers under 4 third. These
3ast, OF course, had a tremendous
value"
The library's collection of Americana
vas In many respects the finest In the
world. Its irreplaeeable treasures in