The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1912-07-13
THE NEW CATHEDRAL.
An Era in It's Construction.

granite cross which crowns the
facade of the new Cathedral will
be blessed and uplifted to it's posi-
ton above the main entrance of
the sacred edifce. The ceremony
will be performed by the Most
Reverend Archbishop and, no
doubt, large concourse of peo-
pie will be present to witness it.
After the ceremony the Archbish-
OPP will address the assembly on
the progress of the work up to the
present time.
The cross which is to be blessed
weighs five and half tons. It
is ten and half feet high, and
the arms measure five feet two
inches. When placed in position
it's base will be one hundred and
fifteen feet above the main floor
and one hundred and forty feet
above the floor of the basement.
The facade which it surmounts is
one hundred and forty feet in
width including the twin towers
which, when completed, will rise
to height Of one hundred and
seventy-fve feet.
The work of construction has
progressed so far that the walls
have attained their height of
eighty feet almost all around the
building. All the granite to be
used in the superstructure has
been contracted for; and in a
few weeks the contract for the
construction Of the granite por-
ton of the twin towers, the drum
of the dome and the approaches
to the Cathedral will be let.
When this is placed in position
the whole granite construction
will be completed. After that the
roof of the main building, Of the
cupola and of the twin towers
will be added. The twenty foot
cross which will surmount the
dome will rise three hundred feet
above the main floor.
The following sums have been
collected and expended On the
building of the Cathedral: the
total amount collected to date is
1862, 388.O5; the total amount ex-
pended is 1858, 342.73. The con-
tract for the granite for the whole
superstructure, including the
towers and dome, calls for an ex-
penditure Of $473, $1,000; the con-
tract price for completing the
walls up to the cornice is $179,-
117.64.
These items give an idea of the
large sum Of money required for
the construction Of the new Ca
thedral and indicate the mag
nitude of the undertaking. Those
in charge of the project are
deeply grateful for the generous
response made by the Catholics of
the Archdiocese of st. Paul who
have shown their interest in the
new Cathedral in this tangible
way They can look with legiti-
mate pride upon this majestic
temple which they are helping to
erect for the glory of God and the
honor of religion
How rapidly the work will go
on hereafter depends entirely
upon the amount of money avail
able for this purpose. In the
future, no doubt, contributions
will come in much slower than in
the past, as the larger amounts
subscribed have already been re-
ceived and many Of the parishes
throughout the Diocese have paid
their respective portions in full.
Now is the time for those who
have not yet shown their interest
in the new Cathedral in a sub
stantial way to come forward and
| do their share In order that the
sacred edifice may be speedily
brought to completion. If all, or
nearly all, did their duty, as many
have already done it, the new
Cathedral of St. Paul would soon
be finished exteriorily and In
teriorily and ready for dedication
to the service of God. 1t is unfor-
tunate that many have not yet
subscribed to this project accord
ing to their means and that others
have not paid their subscriptions.
May the sight of the magnificent
temple now rising in its massive