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About The Sunday Oregonian. (Portland, Ore.) 1881-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 16, 1919)
TTTE SXTXDAT OltEGONIAN, POItTTiATTD. NOYISSIIiEIl 16, 1919. - 1 - , - - . - - V ? t f: i, .. 4.. ; -. . ftfc."- X , -art . - -.. . -M --v '. - 3 VJ ; .-- i - i'. t -i T-. l .. 4 . -- t y Mil, i i ' t - 2f uidergraEfid .. : . "i , 0 1 51 ir'V How Doubling the Size of the House Office Building Will Necessitate the Extension of the Private Sub- way Interesting Facts About the Burrows Under the Famous Capitol Plaza -v. The Monorail VBdersroand Trolley Vaed by Membera amd Clcrlu la Traaatt Bctmca tka Capitol and Of Mcea. BT REIN El BACH HI. THE hng office bnlldltiff of the house of representatives Is to be doubled !n size. It now occupies a whole block, with a total frontage en Its four aides of about one-third of a nule. With the contemplated addi tion. It will cover two blocks of round, and will have 1100 rooms. This Is In order that each member lot the house may have a suite of room for office purposes. Each senator now has a suite a room for fctmejlf, another for his secretaries, and a marble-lined lavatory and representatives are convinced that they are entitled to enjoy quarters qually luxurious and commodious. It is likely that the contemplated architectural improvement will lm wolw an extension of the subway Which connects the house office building- with the capltol. A similar un derground pasaase runs between the eapitol and the senate office building- and Is traversed by topless cars running on a monorail trade which Barry aenators to and fro. Am CbIaowb LabyrinOw Tha everyday etrang-er who visits Washington has no knowledge of the system of subterranean tunnels that Is hidden beneath the great capltol plaza and Its neighborhood. Tet It is In Its way very remarkable, and most Interesting from an engineering viewpoint, comprising aa It does not ""J "Jo suoways above mentioned, but also a number of other big concrete-lined burrows. Ann whuk connects the capltol with the library tl congress. The eubways are in appearance re- HuK.aoiy nice inose through which trains are run "nowarta v in nn, nn clpal cities. Though of short length relatively, they re almost equally spacious lined with vitrified brick ana oruuanuy -lghted by electricltv In effect they are underground streets. For the transportation of senators through their subway there was first provided an automobile, which even now remains avaiiaDie, though prac tlcally OUt Of "SO. 'it has nun ra placed by two of the topless cars cluovo mentioned, driven by electric motors, one or tnem arcomniodatln v . 1 - - '- -l aa-n'afrilrts- - jr. ,-, v :. ' Mi" i if.' Antomoblla In Padergrsuad Passag Used fr Traaansi Mas seaatora. Bsc Paenaatle Tab Caaaeetlas Capltol with Boos Offlee Buildings 18 persons and the other IS. When a senator wishes to use a car. If it be not ready at band, he summons it by pushing a button, as he would call an elevator. No vehicle has been provided for carrying representatives to and fro through their subvay. They walk as, for the matter of that, do many senators, a concrete sidewalk running- along one side of their tunnel. The reason why is mainly that the mere "members" are such a multi tude that a whole flock of csrs would be required to transport them; and apart from this consideration Is the fact that they are mostly younger men. Some of the senators are elder ly and disposed to economise physical effort. Half a mile south of the capltol Is a superbly equipped power plant, which supplies light and steam heat not only to the main legislative build ing but also to the two great office buildings and the library of congress. The steam pipes and eleetrle feed wires run through concrete-lined tun nels, the electricity being delivered as an alternating current of (000 volts at sub-stations In the sub-basements of those buildings, where It Is con verted Into direct current and "stepped down" suitably for use on the premises. Part of its Job Is to keep 15,000 lamps of 1 candle-power (or the equivalent) going- la the cap ltol alone. The ventilation of the capltol is ac complished by the use of huge re volving fans, which draw fresh air in through the top of a tower outside and at some distance from the build ing. The air, on Its way Into the building, passes through masonry Uned subterranean passages, and by this means Is reduced In temperature several decrees. In winter it is drawn over steam eofls, to- heat It- Forced beneath the floors of the house and senate chambers, it ris through openings provided for the purpose, the senate receiving 30,000 cubic feet per minute and the house CO. 000 cubic feet. The tunnel that connects the capltol with the library of congress Is of Just about the length of three ordinary city blocks, and Is used for no purpose other than the carrying of hooka Representatives and senators are In constant need of books for reference purposes, and It saves them a lot of trouble to be able to get them with out going after them. For Instance, a senator finds that he needs a certain volume. He writes the title on a Scrap of paper and hands It to a page. The page takes It to a little room Just off statuary hall, and gives It to a clerk. The clerk fires it through a pneumatic under ground tube to th library of con gress reading desk, and presently the desired volume arrives In a leather receptacle that looks like a dress-suit case. This magical performance Is accom plished by an endless-chain arrange ment running through the tunnel, sus pended wire baskets serving to carry the books. The basket containing the volume wanted by the senator sud denly appears at a hole In the wall of the little room (It looks like a cup board): the clerk hands the book to the page, who departs with it, and halt a minute later It Is delivered at the desk of the grave and reverend legislator. Tet another tunnel that is almost a little subway la Itself runs under ground from beneath the house of representatives to the house office building. It was built to accommo date a. huge pneumatlo tube designed for carrying printed documents. For some reason not very well understood, it has never been used the tube, that Is to say though in perfectly utlll sable condition. lMf e Below Grraad. The existence of this oomplex sys tem of burrows beneath the capltol plasa and Its vicinity Is hardly known to most of the people who live In Washington: but the great legislative building has other and very extensive underground works, hidden from the view of the casual visitor. In Its sub-basement are Immense mechanl cal and heating plants, machine shops, plumbers" shops, painters shops, car penters shops, storage rooms for doc uments and the overflow of the law library (which occupies the former quarters of the supreme court), and by no means least important, the vast kitchens of the house and senate. These are ths days of luxury, the spirit of which has thoroughly per vaded oongress. Formerly represen tatives and senators were content to do at home L a. In quarters they rented for domiciliary purposes such offics work as could not be conveni ently accomplished at the capltoL It they needed help, they hired It. But the senators voted themselves private secretaries, to be paid from tha treas ury; so th plain "members" decided that they must have them too. The senate rented the near-by Maltby building, at government expense, us ing it for office purposes. Th house demanded equivalent rights, and hence the comparatively recent erec tion of the two great white marble annexes known as th office buildings of th house and senate. The house has always been, and Is today. Jealous of the senate Jealous of the assumption on th part of sen ators that they are legislators of a superior breed, and particularly Irri tated by their disposition to vote themselves privileges and luxuries which representatives, fearful of crit icism by their constituents, hesitate to adopt. The two orric buildings are Just alike In respect to else, but that of the senate, requiring fewer rooms, has no fourth side to Its magnificent quadrangle. The money that might have gone to construct the fourth side was thus made available for expendi ture on more costly materials; and. accordingly, the marble lining of the senate building Is In the house build ing largely replaced by plaster, cheaper woods are substituted for mahogany and so with other detalla To cap ths climax, $3,400,000 was spent on the senate office building, whereas that of the house cost only $3,100,000. But the really exasperat ing fact Is thst each senator has a suite, while to each representative Is allotted only one room. There are la the senate building 8 suites. Wlcs th Hons Rebels. Against this "outrage" th houss has finally rebelled, and. as a result. Its office building Is to be doubled la else. When It Is finished, each rep resentative will have a suite. Ala three secretaries, for that is the num ber now declared requisite even tor a plain "member." In the double-six edifice there will be 24 elevators, magnificent baths (including Turkish and other kinds appealing to a taste for luxury), at least one barber shop and a huge dining room, with a kitch en for supplying "short orders." Most of ths cooking, however, will be dons la th great kitchen la the sub-basement at tha house and of th capitoU th "eats" thus prepared being; cetohed through th subway In Insu lated boxes on hand-drawn tracks No, not Th representative In Con gress Is not to be ground down any longer or treated as If h were a per son Inferior. Be is golns to have all th luxury that Is properly coming to him and then some, possibly. Aa for electric cars In the subway, he does not care particularly. Give him what he wants above ground and h is indifferent to tbe subterranean. DISTILLING OF ALCOHOL IN U. S. IS DECLARED TO BE GROWING INDUSTRY Prohibition Haa Sounded' Death Knell for John Barleycorn bnt Now Spirits Are Being- TJsed for New Commercial Purposes Noted Chemist Gives Interesting- Particulars. THE king Is dead, long live the klngl As bone-dry prohibition draws near in the United States a good many folks have come to be lieve that king alcohol Is about all In. But if for a moment they think lie Is knocked out In this country for steeps, they must guess again. As a Blatter of fact, there are some far seeing Americans who are ready to render homage to king alcohol as a sew monarch of the realm of power. In the days before prohibition loomed on the horizon those among us with a thirst drank cbout 169.000. 000 gallons of alcohol annually. Now tt Is estimated that In the days to come probably ten times as much al cohol as was consumed before pro hibition will be utilized by the Amer icas people, not as a beverage, of course, but lu a hall-hundred. aw di rections whnch can and no doubt win be tapped. B. B- Tunlson, a well-known chem ist and prominent member of the New i org Chemical society, has mad a deep study of the various new sources of spirits and is loud in his praise of king alcohol as a brand-new power. "To attempt to predict the future of industrial alcohol." remarked Mr. Tunlson. "is similar In t-tny respects to making an attempt to foretell tbe outcome of a battle In the great war. The phases of the question are so numerous and complex however. If present Influences are considered. It Is possible to anticipate at least some of the more Important developments. The future development of the man thyl alcohol industry In this country should be very rapid. As the chemi cal industries are progressing so rap idly, greater and greater quantities of this very essential alcohol will be used. If, aa Is hoped and expected, the United States becomes on of th largest exporters of dyes, chemicals and allied products, the use of men thyl alcohol will constantly Increase. New uses will undoubtedly develope and as these new uses and new Indus tries are expanded menthyl alcohol will be of very increasing importance In this country. Prosactloa Is Reeeat, "While many other alcohols are of commercial significance in th United States, their production to any extent In this country has been very recent. The principal reason for this Is tliat np nntil th tlm of th world war Is was possible to Import an adequate supply During tha products of which the higher alcohols are necessary could not be Imported and tbe Importation of the alcohols was almost completely cut off. This had the effect of greatly stimulating the production of them in th United Statea Larre quantities up to this time were discarded by many manu facturers because they were in ad mixture with other bulky wast ma terials and their separation more or less difficult. Some manufacturers sold for solvsnt purposes mixtures of these alcohol because they could not make the separation and com pete with the alcohols brought Into the United Stages from foreign parta "The production, separation and purification of higher alcohols Is on of th new and rapidly growing in dustries of this country. It is hoped that It may survive any periods of depression that may be encountered and that the United States may be In. dependent of any importation of these valuable and necessary alcohols. "During the last two years -ery lit tle alcohol has been produced world over from th various grains. This Is largely due to th fact that th grains are so much In demand as food m 1 tariala at a hifch figure. 2a this country th only tlm It Is feasible to use grains for th production of Industrial alcohol Is when a crsp has been damaged in some manner so that It cannot be utilized a a food. "Labor and agriculture conditions have been and are such In this coun try that potatoes cannot be grown economically enough to compete with trade wastes aa sources of alcohol. "Fruit In this country Is now so valuable as food that It sannot be employed as a source of Industrial al cohol. Fruit wastes do not occur in sufficient quantity to supply even a centrally located distillery and trans portation of such products Is. of oourse. feasible. 'Sugar beets sad" best molasses bar not been used to any extent for ths production of Industrial alcohol In this country, because at present they are required for feeding purposes and they cannot be In competition with other trade wastes. Black Strap sfalaases "At present the chief source of In dustrial alcohol In th United States la therefore, black strap molasses Only a few years ago, especially in th East and Vest indies, ths dis posal of molasses by the sugar mills was a serious trade wast problem, but it Is now very largely used the world over as a raw material for al cohol manufacture. The conversion of molasses Into alcoholic liquor, espe cially into rum. la an old enterprise. West India rum has been found in New England for more than too yeera But the use of molasses In large quan tities for Industrial alcohol produc tion Is a development of the last few years. Aa far as as of manipula tion is concerned, molasses unques tionably surpasses any other known material. A large portion of the world's molasses Is stalll a waste prod uct due to the difficulty and expense of transportation to tbe commercial centers, bat steps are being taken to overcome this, "In other countries there are many raw materials not yet used extensive ly which will probably become Im portant sources of Industrial alcohol. In tropical regions there are large numbers of plants from which alco hol can be readily produced. As an example may be mentioned the Nips which flourishes In ths far east. In dia. Africa, etc. Tho Mexicans brew s fiery boar from th sotol plant, a variety at agave which exists In very larg quantities in their country from which millions of gallons could b distilled. By changing the cellulose of sawdust and other wood waste Into sugar and then fermenting that sub stance, plenty more alcohol can also be obtained. It Is Identical with that derived from grain and Is quite dif ferent from the menthyl or so-called wood alcohol which Is made by an other process. Cooslderable alcohol can also be derived from the waste Of gas works." SB, 000 Cars Idle in Germany. BERLIN. Fifty-five thousand rail way cars are lying idle In Germany because of th lack of locomotives. Minister of Railways Oeser told th diet. Further reduction of trala schedules has become necessary be cause of coal scarcity, Oeser declared. Snows Benefit Montana. HELENA, Mont. Recent snows have been heavy and of inestimable value to Montana. Old-timers say they spell the end of the three-year dry spell. a
