New-York tribune., 1911-04-08
FEAR FOR STATE RELICS
Valuable Collections Temporarily
in Unsafe Buildings.
ABANDONED BREWERY USED
Geological Specimens Valuea at
s500,00O Placed There by
Director of State Museum.
lBy Telegraph to The tribune

Albany. April livery morning when the
omoia,s connoc.cd with the state Museum
wake up the first thing they do Is 'o 'o'h
over their morning papers; thch NV
breathe "A sigh Of relief in not reauIhs u
scare head lines of fire In a certain o'O
brewery building i'm lower Broadway i"e
money value placed on the eeo'os'",.
archnological and geological collectiohs ''
the state is more than N,e"V"' anu a.
John n. Clarke. the director OF the nv"
scum. said tonight that about nan VI IT,
nrincipaIly OF the geological coliectiohs' a
v,eu as hooks and records saved from tno
canitol fire. were now stored in TINS o''
brewery When asked about the hrePI"oi
Qualities OF the structure the state GeoI"s'-
cal officials merely shudder and then say
flo. thev don't care to discuss the S'tud
,,o, The building, however. Is geherauF
,,o-,coded ,o he not the safest in the world
,or q collection worth more than nan 4"
million dollars in money and priceless lioi"
~ ,oi,, of yiew of its worth to collectors
since the Capitol fire. in which so niue"
of the states irrepiaceable Archaeological
collections and historical records were de-
urovea Dr Clarke and those connected
Win the State Museum have been IN coh'
the six or seven buildings in this city III
which the states collections are now s'o'eu
.If there were "A fire in the old TaVIoI
brewery. could not the stones OF 'ho 0i'
geological collection be easily saNed ''o'"
10" DR. Clarke was asked to-high''
They would he entirely destroyed IL All
liability" he replied. those that "e,e
not spllt by the heat would lose t"eH
labels. and without the labels the stones
might lust as well be thrown INTO SCRAP
hean Such a fire would undo the paUeh''
constant work Of seventy-tVe years. ne
state museum Of this state Is uhiVerSalE
conceded 10 be the largest Of all OF 'he
state museums in the country; IN iact' ]"
& larger than all Of them put tosethei'
For this reason II will he great reiel 10
us when we can get our collections al 10
eether In the freproof Educational buiid-
ing when 1t is completed.
Nc Immediate Relief in Sight.
r-om present indications the relief sought
hv DR. Clarke will be a long time deferred
as r T Ford. the contractor for the kou-
cational building. has again asked for
more time. II IS now figured that the
briIdinr will not be ready for occupancy
until a year llOUl IfAt Ioii' - i"
expected 20 be able 70 get into II next VIII
,er The other buildings besides the ola
brewery. in which the state museum no"
has its collections are the state House
where DIR. Clarke has his office; the oid
Geological Hall, I'm State street, "here i
the geological collection; the CniveTsahs'
Church building. i'm JAY street. where Is
stored the archaeological collection or The
Jroo,.ois nation provided by special foun-
dation given By Mrs. 7. F. Thompson the
daughter Of the late Governor hYron ii
clarke and one ot the buildings Of the
rural cemetery where are kept the larger
e.ones az the geological collection.
Dr. Clarke tonight returned from otta-
va canada. where he visited the DOMINION
orcbivist in the hope Of replacing some oi
tho Indian collections lost. tie though'
that this could he done. as many OF the
Indian tribes moved TO Canada from TINS
state but found that he could replace ie"
ar none of the articles lost in the Capitol
The Roosevelt inauguration gold mccall
which was lost in the Capitol fire, has oeen
found and returned 10 Commissioner Draper
Of the State Education Department. II
was black from the effects Of the fire ana
was picked up by a national guardsinan
who carried II in his pocket several days
re Va1uP