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| THE LOWER STATUARY ON THE ADMINISTRATION
BUILDING - The Administration
Building stood on a rectangular lot containing a little over one
and a half acres. At each corner of this lot square houses were
built that did not reach one another. Touching each inner corner of
these square houses, an iron rotunda rose to a height twice as great
as the houses, and from the top of the walls of this rotunda the dome
sprang once more. At the outer quarters of the top of the rotunda
under the paneled dome sat eight groups of large winged figures with long trumps of
victory. Far below, on each of the three outer corners of each
corner-house in the great composite edifice, sat smaller and less
animated groups, two of which are portrayed in our engraving. On the
left is Industry, a mother at her spinning-wheel, tempted by love to
leave her labors for a moment. The group is very noble and
successful. On the right the sculptor has been more adventuresome
and less fortunate in portraying Reflection by the use of a mirror in
the hands of a female figure. It follows that there were twelve of
these smaller groups, but all were heroic in size. In looking at the
beautiful Administration Building, nobody could conceive the mere
bulk and labor of all its statuary. But there was a time when only a
moiety of these groups filled one-half of the hall of the Forestry
Building, and occupied the entire time of Carl Bitter's corps of
sculptors for months. The artists thus employed were Carl Biel, W.
Anton, Max Mauch, P. Wiehle, Gustav Gerlach, E. Saile, J. A.
Blankinship and G. Wuertz. |
