Democratic Sentinel, Volume 19, Number 44, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 8 November 1895 — LINCOLN MONUMENT UNSAFE. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

LINCOLN MONUMENT UNSAFE.

Parts of the Structure Thought te Have Been Murblc Are Brick. The Lincoln monument nt Onk Ridge Cemetery, near Springfield, which has for the lust twenty yenrs been admired by thousands upon thousands of people from all over the world, will huvo to" be torn down. It Is too far gone to be repaired, and, besides, its construction la such that it will not admit of repair. Instead of being u substantial pile of solid granite, us external nppeuruuecs would Indicatei it is a rickety structure of brick veneered over with slabs of granite. Thla is the verdict of State, trustees who have charge of the monument. During the last session of the General Assembly the pile was turned over to tho State, $.'10,000 wus uppropri-

ated for ropalrs, and a law passed making tho Governor, State Treasurer, nnd State Superintendent of Instruction trustees of the monument to care for it nnd make the much-needed repairs. When the trustees set about to arrange for the repairs they discovered that tho magnificent monument erected to the memory of “Honest Old Abo" was a sham and a fraud. What appeared to be huge blocks of granite were nothing but thin slabs laid over brick. “Tho Lincoln monument Is simply a shell,” said Governor Altgeld. “It Is a brick monument and has a veneering of granite slabs three inches thick. Thla veneering is coming loose, just as all veneering will.” “Can It be repaired?” was asked. “It would be impossible to repair that monument and make It permanent.” “The other two trustees and I feel that the great Btate oMUinois should have a monument to Lincoln that'll not a sham, but a solid structure, and that in order to get this, this brick and veneered monument should be taken down and in its stead build a monument of solid granite from bottom to top, so that it will last for all ages and require no attention from anybody. We have almost enough money to do this. However, the trustees do not feel like taking so radical a step unless they should be requested to do so by the surviving members of President Lincoin’s family.” The Lincoln monument was completed In October, 1874, nnd cost $200,500, which amount was raised by popular subscription.

THE LINCOLN MONUMENT.