kl K Iff. Jfer
M If Ha
x,o Bedloes
rfCSSPKSsM More Than R
-. .1 - m. - ass
Surroundings
Islahd liardly
uihs. After
Twenty Years of Neglect
. ..,"vV, ? .-a Ki. v- v -v A. , a. , .!- .. -sai ' r w M
', - '. " . i
S'fe.rrJ&'y which K&S bccD 'fem'porary for 20 yc&rs.
A
I,''-'
FTER nf arlytwenty e;rsof prac- to nmke out tho namen of the visitor
tlcal neglect It has at last been who hui g-one before him. Maybe ft
declili'd to Calnt the Statue of thought the Inscriptions Wpre In the nature
Utterly. Thpy are going to ilojol! prayers to tho goddess maybe. Any
tlila In the hope that the InroadK how, the careh ..nes of thoso in authority
ma do by a too long exposure toiwaa plain enough fur even him to read. jtlJust about as It Is now. He luid riporluJ
the salt ateeped air of the Upper island out 'boldly In the atatue. round the I flilst to the deartnlpnt. which had lm-
atwiwerany ques.tlona as to what tiad been
done beTore his regime, because no recur.
hud been turned over to him. He knev
nothing save that In lWfi, when he .-issumi d
comiTKind. the condition of affairs mis
Bay may be cheeked and the tot il ruin of
the statue stayed.
Ltm;lte ihe faet that the authorities now
In Charge of the statue and Uedloe's
Iflarnt emphatically deny the report
which h is been circulated, to the effect
that the stairways und very walls of the
at i tup itself are unsife. It la rerttiln that
ft great deal of danuge has buen done dur-
tatue and on the atatue. And nobody
seem to give it a thought.
Down In the area of the fort also It Is
to he marked. There the massive brick
walls are rapidly crumbling to decay, the
huge stones of the steps leading to the top
of the fagade ore all awry, and grass Is
growing everywhere. Hut the most tla-
medlately set about procuring the funds
witrt which to put the atatue In rcpilr.
After a long wait Congress, at Its lasl
session, came to the rescue with JtH.HW
$i",.'x0i for the renovation of the national
goddess after twenty years of neglect.
XVIbh this money what Is to be done?
The bill which appropriates It reads In
part as follows:
ma
i.v .- u.,.jH-... - . .' ."n '' " i. .'"i'V .TTPtt' m
f ! ' iife
sitL 1
J jr jm- : . .. . .-st- -rv "V ai &y.ipr. rir ia ijti I Jill ra ri I i i " ' ..... .
.a. )' 2 1 I ii
St&Tyjdj m old Fort Wood.
Gs.rin forfKe SbJue of Liberty
tag the period of Indifference through
which the tlgure hua passed. Standing on
the ground, beside the walla of old Fort
Wood, great yellow streaks of rust stains
an be seen spreading over the delicate
tr-icery of green which time has laid on
the bronze plates. These stains are par
ticularly noticeable Just below the knot
where the robes of the figure are Bath-'
area on tne left breast and in the coil of
hair which falls below the diadem on Ml
Uberty's head.
And this is not all. Inside the statue
the salt nlr has been even more ravenous,
pitting the structural ateel which forms
the skeleton of the figure and rendering
the cast Iron s-talrway more or lesa uncer
tain. That it U aba-olutely unsafe Cap
tain (leorge C. llurnell, of the fnlicd
Slates Bisnal Corps, Who la the command
ant of the military post on the island, de
li. e emphutically. Captain Burnell has
had charge of the statue ever Blnce It was
turned over to tho War Department for
aafe keeping by the government, who re
lieved tile American Statue Committee of
lis labors in that respect. It Is said the
men composing this committee did every
thing lu their power to obtain enough
money to maintain the atatue In the way
they conceived It should be, but wera not
successful In their enUeavors.
The effect of Una lack of money la plain
ly diacernlblo everywhere about the statue
as soon as the visitor puts bis foot on the
Island. The vary spirit of rum hangs over
the place. It meets one on the wharf grant of tit many 'Indlacretlons" which
where the boat lands, for that matter 1; have t been committed on the Temple ot
la to tie aeen on the boat itself before you Liberty iH that perpetrated by some aenti
lana; it la In the walks leading up to the nient-shy Individual who has. apparently
pedestal, which are weather beaten ana by and with the consent of the Senate and
rotten plankj that give um the foot or Houso of Representatives built himself a
band touches them. The old cannon on hideous red painted thing 'which he call a
the facada ot the fort have not escaped, "cafe." This he has put rlcht in front of
but are pock marked by the flying spray the main entrance of the pedestal. Also
and incruated aa.lt of the bay. Even tho it is in plain view of the passing in-bound
big concrete base of the statue has come ships, with their loads of foreign "future
In for Its snare ot tha general dilapidation cillsens" aboard 'No wonder some or
and la marked iiy great star shaped seams these assert that "liberty has grown rusty
and cracks snowing vividly agalast the 'in America." when the Ural really typical
Whits walls. I American thing their eves light upon In
Most unseemly of all la the state, border-l the harbor o. New York Is the blatant
ln7 as It does on the dangerous, of the' announcement of the merits of a well
"temporary" stairway up which one must known "soft drink" under the very nose
cllmu to the main entrails ot the pedestal, of the American goddess herself and on
This Is ul wood, wx-ather scarred wood, ground supposed to be sacred to her alone
pitched and shored lu Innumerable places Possibly Uieir suspicions are confirmed
by the signal corps people since they came when they enter tho first floor of the ped
Into power, and was originally put up for ar.. greeted bv n. huare black
the purpose of hastening tne day when the 8nJ wt,ii sign walch sings in the boldest
SUtus could be thrown open to the puulle.'or tne superlative ' excellence of
It waa meant for a week'a or a montn s . u,-,,boliv'. tee .Cream" for coolfng pur-
at the lonjest, but It has etood there ,uri.n.. vandalism, hand
the best part of twenty years the T a ........... i.,a i making of the
island something mighty like a junx snop.
of n resort for old iron In the Uaya when
all good has passed from It.
There is another phase of the matter
that deserves mention, the more so that
is'wl'i
"Kt
,
Conarete base retrjned with, tfar-shaped crocks
A.HEDLf Y
"Statue of Liberty, New York Harbor.
To equip with the proper machinery and
lighting apparatus, to lUht Statue of Lib
erty, at Fort Wood, Bedloe's Island, In
cluding electrio elevator and necessary re
paiis to place the statue, pedestal, found
ations and surroundings 1n a aafe condi
tion, I6J.SO0."
This was passed on June 17, of this year.
In response to ths demands of several
had at heart for a, long time, and In speak
ing of which he showed his enthusiasm
strongly.
"I have been overwhelmed with letters."
said he, "for some time past, particularly
since a rumor became current that the
statue was to be painted. Where this origi
nated I don't know. I certainly have re
ceived no official communication aa yet
regarding the painting of the outside of the
statue. The Inside, certainly, will be
acraped to remove, the rust and repainted
with a light colored preservative that will
protect the walla of the statue and reflect
the light, making the Interior easier to Il
luminate. The lights, which we hope to
New York members of the House, promi
nent among whom was 11 r. Joseph A.
11. ml, ton Tti.t ul tna j.in:..min im oi l-
marllv 'mnkina: the surroundings it the. install by the frst of next year, will be
tutua into inn of nark, where, as Cap- ample for their purpose. I don't know
tain Burnoll says, ' honeymoon couples Just how many there will ba, but about ; dellvery to the iampi The elevator Is to
can enjoy themselves." jone for every turn of the stairway, Ijrun from the base of the foundation to the
The Captain is very euthusiastlc oyer I think. , Qf the desla, on, , 8te ,hdt some
the outlook for the Improvement of stafuet 'The torch lights will be Increased, both statements have been' made that it Is to
and grounds, which are matters he hasjas to number and power. As things arejrun to the top of the atatue. but that la
now the power we are able to generate In
the post power house Is Insufficient for our
needs, but ona of the ' Improvements, as
you see by the bill, Is a new Illuminating
plant. Of course, the electric elevator will
be run by the power from ths same sta
tion, which will be ample for all the needs
of the Island.
Not to Go to t-$ Top.
"The boilers of the Dew power house will
furnish power to run two 16-kllowatt dyna
mos, only one of which will be used at a
time. All the wiring, which has been up
to the present ot the old fashioned, ex
posed kind, will be led through conduits to
the statue and kept enclosed to the point or
manifestly absurd, and on a par with other
'Statements regarding the Island."
I On having the dilapidation of the place
! pointed out to him the Captain said:
j "Yes, I know It is bad as bad as it can
be, but these things cannot be undono In
a hurry. Contracts have already been If"!
for part of the work and the rest will fol
low soon."
Asked what part of the work he referred
to he replied that "the boilers for the en
gine room and the machinery for llghtln
the status might be expected any day,"
and added that the cost of these improve
ments would consume 333.000 of the P'il,
appropriated by Congress.
The question a to Whether or not tne
government proposed to grade the ground
around the statue to the level of the tops
of the walla of Fort Wood and fill In the
stdr" area of the fort drew laugh, a
did the query regarding the seams In the
concrete base of the statue. Of the latter
he said: "Those cracks amount to Both
lng: they are merely on the surface. A
neat cement face was put over the roncrt-te
for appearance sake, and that has craWie I
but the base Itself Is unuffected. Tlieie is,
however, plenty of Work to be dune In and
around the area. The roping stonea on t e
brick wull have long since disappeared;
they were gone before my day, and the re
sult Is that the wsll Is pretty much a ruin.
Giass has grown In and driven apart the
bricks, and the whole wall Is crumbi ng
iThat is to be repaired, a new facing put on
the bricks, coping atones laia in place ami
the tumbled ateps put back where they be
long. Next In order will be the tearing
down of the weather beaten stairway anl
the substitution of an ornamental one of
wrought iron.
"We have patched and repaired that
about as far as Is safe, and It really needs
replacing. It la safe enough as It stands.
I suppose, but It does not look well."
It doosn't; the picture shews that.
Bedloft'a Island, en which the Statue of,
Liberty stands, contains about twelve
acres of land and was at one time the alte
of one of the subsidiary fortifications of
New York Harbor. In 1SO0 the State of
New York, through Its Legislature, ceded .
the Island to the United States for military
purposes. When the French government
announced Its Intention of presenting to
this country UartholdK masterpiece, this
Island was, after much discussion, chosen
as Its future home. Originally the atatue
was placed In tiie custody of a body or
governors known aa the American Statue
Committee. This body was In charge until
liS, when the government assumed con
trol. Since that time the ofllcer In com
mind ot the Signal Corps station on the
Island has been held responsible not only
for the condition of the post, but of the
statue und -ts surroundings as well
Mexican Fleas Innocuous if
You Eat Fiery Mexican Food
for
0
NE of the first things that the
traveller from the united Btates
has Impressed upon toim when he
enters Mexico Is ne nea. i ne
moment he cross! the Llo
Grande Into Cludad Juaies, tho
Mexican town opposite Kl Paso,
the fleas benln to nip him, and if he Jour
neys southward to the City of Mexico
these Indefatigable insects ke p busy every
innmani in his return tourney, however,
after he has had his baggage perfunctorily
examined by the Mexican
lnmla In the United States'
torn house he feels a senae of relief that
at first he Is unable to account for. Boon
he realms that he 1b once more In tho
land of freedom from fleas,
feoole who have lived in Mexico for
vears suv they ale as mucu
nothing but flea bites,' that there was noi
cure except to leave thescountry. and that
his fee was five dollars. The man tiad
come to Mexico with considerable money
of 'his own to Invest, thinking to mako It
his home, but he swore that If they would
'present him with as much as the national
Tne Mexican flea Is considered by Euro-I'bt amounted to he would not remain in
pan exper-s to be larger and more raven- me country.
ous than anything of tne kind even in' ' he etory ia told that a couple of Amer
southern Italy. The Mexicans have not:k'an ' "T,r Wer riding In one of the City
the patience to train their fleas to dojf lco tramcars-as they call Uiein
iinn. ri,. in ih that some Furo- there one afternoon. One of the girls no-
peans have. In Kurope. every few years, ,na' lns 'her h:ul a paper of pins was to make
r .,i,...ori o win I . m e.hl- anl 'as busily engaged, durins con vorsa-i chine who la
bliton but these collections of talent ere,lon- in rtlt'kln them Into herself, appar- bonds, margins, race tracks and cotton my young coualn fr..m tne West. ' plea 1.
oulckl'v broken un bv the escaDa of the ! ent"r ' 'amlom. I futures-toilet the nerve racking pursuit fd the Bithemer, who wished to kill two
aptlve artists. In Mdtico they take dead
A Man's Idea of Paradise
as Elicited by a Woman
I diae
a ch
RLL me a man's Idea of para-
?" This Question was asked by
charming girl, with big blue eyes
and Titian hair, who also possessed
a soul atllli'tkd wuh a m. salon, and that
the modern business ma-
a medley of stocks ana
ing, Charley Tattle, having a great natural
talent, has by education and Industry be
come the most successful professional 1 ar
in New York, uiid of course leads l'
worldj Now 1 would like to outwit th s
ohamplon in his chosen field, and with
your help I can. Jut let me Introduce .u
fleas and put tiny clothes on them, gurb-
oltloiaJa ana; ing them after the fashion of that coun
frontier cua-
What On earth are von dolrnr with th, of th .7 a Au.,r ami In thai birds with one stonr
pins. May?" she Inquired. . Igood old summer time on his brief vaca-l 'hen the Titian head was bowed In as-
posture. The lie as that are dressed to rep-
lliem as the tlrst day they crossed the relent bull-fighters, however, are stood on
border. The Mexican fleas seem to have j their hind legs. Over the box Is placej a
an especial lik-ng for white folks, and j iagni(ying glas of small power. These
doubtless regard them as excepuoiianj souvenirs are so eagerly purchased by the
flea bites now, so 1 guess I'll have to aban
don that remedy."
Chasing fleas is a great breaker down of
decorum in Mexico. At first the new
tatue mas thrown opm October
growing more ana more dishevelled, more
and more unsightly and unsafe until to
day. VWa Aid the Kuin.
Vandalism and carelessness have nlaved nn ranwri can slve any Idea of It. The
their part In the preaeiu woful atate ofiinsido of the monument la totally and ab
tue goddess and her temple. From head solulely black. It Is Impossible to see the
to foot she Is, marked and marred. In the'iiexi steb. ami one must "feel" one's way
Uny room In tne crown of her head there during the entire climb. There are pusal
are several hundred names of Various per-jbly two or three lights, of the oil lamp va
ons who, from time to time, have been 1 ri'ly. swung between the crown chamber
smitten with a desire for cheap fame, to!"1 the head and the sandalled feet which
attain whlc.i they have scrawled t'leir Vest on the pedestal; nothing mora In the
names m straggling letters wherever there ' hape of Illumination save the tiny
Was an ln.h .f n.i.u Th.... ... 'ult-aiii nf lltcht that strueele thruuifli Din
- . ---- i,ae even - ....i .w.,1 - . . . '.,' ' .. -" . " . ... i. ...... . ..., n,. .i.i..iu
oumue. UllOUgh the Windows In' ln l" u'oe piaiea oi me aiaiue i Mexicans Ol ail classes - Wlin Hie uemaiiu. iiitjr Beii--raijy sen lur '!"'"' a.i,Nifi ........ ..... .... -. --i,,uira,iu.To ,- m,.h that ,..
th- .u ... . .. . oiuows is . . -.-...., ,.,.- h. a ,,i,. , . . ...... inia in i h least. I t. .i. ... i-it.i , -t. .,, ,nvut. m-ti twin r inm.h r,,.i . hx.u-r ! m.irae f..r h saw in tne distance a youth . 111 ion . 10 nsve a moum tnat reacnea
" , a 11 ,1 uoiie lllelr worst In t V, . . , . - " " ' ' ' ' . " - 1 " " 11 1 lie nmi i ojuui u.ii M..m. m v. ..... . - v , . j - - r - -' .. . irrntii Vaw VnrU t . . U . n
i as a suoi iroiii a gun. z ,
'Why, It'a Just these darned fleas. Some tlon drink honevsuckla hlxhballa and In-
tiv's ionnlar l.lol thH bnll-nyhtar Thenl""" lum ne lnat wnen i reii ona bile I uuige in a seashore flirtation.
they are stuck in their correct position aH'",lou'' stlc-k hlm wlth P'n nd th,t would Site pins with rare graue a lotus bloa
about a littlo arena mad of the cover11" r,',n- But tnese fl"as are either tpo'som on his coat, which causes a loss of
of some pill box. The bull 13 some partlcu- j "'J' or '1"9 ''m to" slow. f(,r 'hey get outjmeinory. and he is totally oblivious of the
larly larae Ilea and the hursws art) other 1,1 ""' can jau mem. 1 nun i,in ini ne oousui, wnii a oinrrmti 11
similar Jnsecls placed in tneir natural, know which are pinpricks and which are
ashamsd to hunt the tormenters' Lovers' line with the Titian
choice morsels. As a general thing the lou,Bts that the supply cannot keep paceexcept in the seclusion of hia room, but, siippoJ on tne banana peeling
sent the man felt he had won the steeple
chase. Charley Tattle did great stunts
with the family suitcase. Ills friend
urged him on with the keenest enjoyment
thinking all the poison had been extracted.
When the devil's understudy ha1 passed
cense and a wedding ring a fashionable " ir group 10 piy nis trade, the
wife who has swooned under the weight c.?,e'",er1' "lth 'h ' ""elief, sald:-
of bridge whist and is now taking the , .i,'e' llke a twentieth century Milton "
rust cure and sun baths for her complex- Z1 h.ttt reminds me of the question 1
Ion. But one day when walking down!asKed ',u "''v aiternoon. What
wails of the pedestal. In the fort whtrever nts- ot thtse latter holes ths Ukralu re
they could; these ersons have gone alio it !,oru'r counted one hundred, and then gave
disllgurlng to the oest f their ability Th il up s ba1 ob' but on moJel"ate es-
pity VI it all Is that this is tne n ... nt "mate mere are iuny nve nundreu. just
rs ir.. v, . .
arrival In this coumrv in .i... i . to know, but
every day a stream of visitors passes up
the narrow Iron stairway or pauses to gax
reverentlally at the statue itself. .. nen a
reporter for the Htmia. paid a visit to ihe
place th?re werw a party of Germans a
couple of Fr--nchnien and wonder of
won.lt-rs-a Ch!ne.e. not one of t:.e nian-
wanua una urari so mucn aooul and whose
exclusion casisca tr.c ro
all others" where forelunera A ,u..,. what caused these holes no one seemed
iu . i u w , u u b . u a hit i Ofllllon sa
that they are rust marks. As they are on
the side of the statue it was impossible
to reach them and examine them care
fully ln order to ascertain their character
exactly.
Bu.-h is. In brief, the present state of
statue of "I Ihertv Knllg litening the
World" and lledloe's Island, on which It
tlll,ld J.l-l WI.V It -1,.1'lt.t 1.. ..... ...
ICUU. but lil.tr n n . . .. . .... . . ... 13
eirdiuary "washee washe" n,. i, lJ" w'"'r 11 easi nooooy win nobody
TL,' ,1 v"!lT w'"''i nia-n. He was seems to know and nouoJy seems to care
ojoyln, hiuW. too. vy much. Uiuig Captain burtiiil said he was unable to
and 3m surprised when an American I rency.
is about. It Is a common thing ln the'eoming as straight
uiri ha:" " man s iuea ot paradise? '
of Con-i I shall answer for the average
He- 1 " na "o met my ntian naired
re a muum tnat reacnea
San Francisco, by the
way of New Orleans, so he ran take In alt
.. . '1'i.u ..knoui.ua ..... .tr .... 1. ... . - .i . .. m v I . . . .1 r..' till, villi II idiimiihii K.i Ul I ua
complains auoill llieiu. i"" . inere are u nui OI uiueitni aiuus ot iiy oi jh-iuu i see nan u. uuni Ui,.! ...a -....- - - - r m . .'ma nrellv irlrla nn Ida mnllninl ailK
their prevalence, but say that tney are ttviL tad,.r sold in the drug stores in the these flea hunta going on at the same tlme'tree aJvertisiug ugeni o: an oi ins menus , . - h. .. . . m,n..
harmless and never annoy them. Some Clly af MeXl o wheie Lu?l.sa ts spoken, wl.hin the space of a block. Th Mexl-1 affairs and was an understujy of Hl i Dar'dl '' i nai is a tnan s earthly
peoola who have looked Into the matter Utn one of wt,Uvh is said to be the pur-leans look at the frantic men and women ' Satanlo Majesty In the uiiScuief making.
claim that the Mexican's Immunity from Veyor of the sudJeneU Kind of dousth to 'and smile pityingly. All Americans ura.hne. 'to-morrow- and als.. that 1 h .k .!
rtea arises irom nis aiei oi peppery i Innect. None of them Is much use. crazv. they say. and such qu.'er actions: furgatory naa thi upon mm. ',. . i.u.hL. ,k- ... . ,
ar. but another form of tneir many kind, the rut biax. o a na ..... -u.t ,h.Valk7j I away. And h. .h dr.-J
vengeaiv. between the devil and the deep, honeysuckle highballs In an enchanted
. ... ...,.. ur. iuvnr.,1 aiih ns,.i.ar . . t ., u . . t,-,n.. .. ,.n i i r.,i.. . i.i. .i i. .a 4 r,A t.it.u Lit. a ti Ul li wurk ciulli made 1 r ' " ' ' 1 on i ne ireaamill of ex.
and other fiery vegetables that will mak.iHa waa very much alarmed anj took h! .'rum 12 to li com a g lloii. und :t is s.iulcp of the a raps of tune; and he own.d a isieno. ana Because one. more mere bus.
an American think he is .hewing red- temperature wlrh a t-linica! therm .nie-er! to make an excellent fuel for running en- r. oil collecilou of domestic avrM given .mess nm nn.
hot sealing wax. Few Americans, in fact, 'every lew moments between the t.me heig-nes. It produces no soot or disagreeable him by his Marvel-waved spoue. . Ul,ur trai , a
v.r become accustomed to tbelr nerylglH up In tne morning and th- lirre t ti - -i I .rs. When the law recently passed by Kt nieii.bei ing Yok. epr....on In "Tha " . , " , ,n uu-
foods. Those that do say they are Immune '.i.. if.e arrive.l n.. was nre in it h ,.t i'njri to denatunso m. I n. th Darlini of the Gods." "better a little It a I 1 u '" Popu.ar.
from fleas, but to the man from the 'smallDOX-which is really urev .U-nt in I'm t. d Stales becomes oi.erative It la ex- t.ian uu. ii s jit erini;.-' he pi -a. e.d-.-d to ap-1 ' .,.., J., ..., ,',.J.f ' "h-
1 great y to lncre.ee the us. of the I u ' "-uy,r' ' , .... will make thein advanta-aoo. VrU "J
wsv
tll.l
foods. The average Mexican win eat ra however. t
peppers witn as mucn gusio as a scnooi- An American ni naa b.n in thu M.-x-,0f insanity.
a.ri win cauuv. mi iiTuiuv mui iiiiican capita, iwii uas iuuiiu nis uooy io-'
was sure mat h
"Stales' who has felt tiie tortuces of botnjMeic all the y-ar n in ! T.ie d.ciji- ex-
there sceuia to be lillle choice
-U'-i a' . neeos
auuaud turn earvtully, told h ui li was r:lsl. both for foe! i-1 other pjrpjses
u.y i; to his
"Do 1'JJ thmk u liar Is born or made?" wlu m"
he uarted. "For the man Bv approach-1 "n r'"