REPORT ON THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE NEW PENSION BUILDING. SUPERVISING ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT OFFICE, Washington, D. C., October 27, 1884. SIR: At the date of the last annual report of this office, September 15, 1883, the work which had been begun by breaking ground on the 2d of November, 1882, had reached the level of the second floor. The cellars were completed and arched, and a portion of the exterior frieze, 1,200 feet in length, surrounding the whole building, was in place. The centers for building the vaulted arches supporting the second floor were being set, and the lower tier of columns of the arcade and to support the galleries which give access to the rooms of the second floor had been erected. Contracts had been made for materials and for the heating apparatus under which the work was making rapid progress. Since that date the exterior walls have been raised on the south and west fronts to the height of 644 feet above the site, which is to one foot above the heads of the third tier of external windows and within 10 feet of the top of the exterior wall. All the terra-cotta, except the rosettes and lions' heads which are to decorate the cornice, has been manufactured, delivered, and paid for. On the other half of the exterior wall the average height is that of the top of the jambs of the third tier of windows. The walls of the court-yard, or interior hall, and the division walls between office-rooms are 64 feet 9 inches high above the stone foundations. The three vaulted floors are entirely completed, supporting 107 rooms. The galleries surrounding the central hall are built; they contain 152 columns, the lower tier Doric, constructed of terra-cotta blocks covered with Portland cement, to be finally finished with surface of Keene's cement. The upper tier Ionic columns are of cast iron. The arched floors and parapets of these galleries are completed. The masonry of the shafts of the eight columns which in two lines cross the central hall to support its roof, and which will be 75 feet high above a concrete foundation 17 feet deep, is completed; that of the capitals of two of them is also completed. A contract, after due advertisement, was made on the 11th of October, 1884, with the Pittsburgh Bridge Company as the lowest bidder, for constructing and erecting all the iron work of the roofs of the whole building, covering 80,000 square feet of ground, at the price for the whole of $39,492. This iron frame is to be covered with hollow terracotta tiles 4 inches thick, 2 feet long, and 1 foot wide, most of which are already delivered and paid for. These tiles, which are incombustible H KAR 1 The pet if the maze DDOS E DelisC ZONA Leia Que trar pay neat in all of the leĮ KOULUTS VIS TAČE unfire natal nena upon completa to the 10016 wek V the tow and term TEA DUENCE THE VICE NO an fhe the En upon de doorng and long je trenches, FILL DOES I ILANCIN for meget uges and online of smok÷SKI VIA AS NG Ileaded a fie contact Theme like " +Ijendel the SEM TÓ BLAMIST. A 4inch Trai vita ngelina stadiges N1 11mber, risThe woont door 16 21 21 Dnd nested by pressure of 230 pounds The amantpines Late 20a bose ontlers on fist and Donates these stadi goes most be extended to tane raders and erobertina ke boe and for water A MEAT TOMA On excel for. In will probably be necessary ven fome ponga tiles the tunnel now under construction be vieweng the eity water sup1.3 is completed within the next eight The male of the third story are, by recessity of the style of the architextores order of the exterior, Ligher than needed for comfort. At 19 text abuse the less of the third poor a tier of windows or doors opening through the interior walls into the great halls are provided. If a brick Boor upon rojed-iron beams were placed at this level the thirdKom, ofer 10GBs would still be of sufficient height, and a fourth story would be gamed containing thirty-six large rooms of 12 feet height, brejora atajirasr, and all this would add to the cost of the building only the cost of their flooring. These rooms, absolutely fire-proof, would be well lighted and ventilated, and would provide accon modation for 300 to 400 more clerks and a very great quantity of publie records. There have been used in the building to date, 5,9562 enbic yards of comegete, 3.516 cubje yards of rubble-stone masonry, and 113 millions of brick have been laid. Terra cotta to the value of $32,396,94 has been The remainder of the terra-cotta is on the ground Bet in the walls. ready for use when the walls reach the proper height. There have been used as iron beams, ties, and clamps, 154 tons of wrought iron. Seventy thousand two hundred and eighty-nine days' work of all employments have been given to the building, not including contractors' work. A large quantity of material is on the ground ready for use, and the work will be prosecuted as long as the weather permits during the rest of the season. The appropriations and expenditures to date have been The law of August 7, 1882, appropriated. The law of March 3, 1883, appropriated.. The law of March 3, 1883, for heating apparatus, appropriated The law of July 7, 1884, for building Total appropriation available Amount expended to 15th September, 1883, date of last annual report for the construction of Pension Building.. Since that date and to October 27, 1884 Total... Balance available Amount expended on heating apparatus to date of last annual report, 15th September, 1883.. Since that report and to October 27, 1884 Total Available October 27, 1884, for Pension Building. Total $250,000 00 150,000 00 40,000 00 266,559 62 706, 559 62 176 970 14 259,886 89 436,857 03 239, 7902 59 519 45 10,059 74 10,579 19 229,702 59 29, 420 81 259, 123 40 For more detailed information I inclose documents showing the ob jects of expenditure, a list of contracts made since last report, and plans of the roofs of the building. Cellar plans and plans of the several stories and elevations and cross-sections of the building accompanied the last annual report and were printed by Congress. It is not necessary, therefore, to repeat them. I remain, very respectfully, your obedient servant, Supervising Engineer and Architect new Pension Building, Hon. H. M. TELLER, Materials received for the fire-proof building for Pension Office, to October 27, 1884. REPORT OF THE FREEDMEN'S HOSPITAL. FREEDMEN'S HOSPITAL, Washington, D. C., September 17, 1884. SIR: I respectfully submit the annual report of this hospital for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1884. During the year there have been 1,723 patients admitted and treated; 1,021 were colored, 702 white. Of the colored, 515 were males, 506 females. Of the white, 577 were males, 125 females. The whole number admitted was 1,509. The average admissions were 125 per month. The accompanying tables will set forth the conditions and the diseases for which patients were admitted and treated. During the year there have been 176 deaths. The table marked A will show the causes of death. That some idea may be had of the condition of many of the cases when admitted, I submit the following table marked B, showing the number of deaths occurring within ten days after admission, and the time each was in the hospital prior to death. During the year there were 95 surgical operations performed. They were uniformly successful. I will mention the principal ones. Amputation of arm, 1; of thigh, 1; of leg, 1; of foot, 1; of fingers, 4; reduction of dislocation of shoulder, 2; removal of cancers, 2; removal of fatty tumors, 2; of fibrous tumors, 2; of tumor of eye, 1; of bursa, 1; of foreign body (hairpin) from uterus, 1; of necrosis of superior maxillary, 1; of malar bone, 1; fistulæ in ano, 8; vesico-vaginal fistula, 1; urethrotomy, 2; circumcision, 3; reduction of strangulated inguinal hernia, 3; paracentesis abdominis, 4; neuroma, 1; ectropion, 1; cataract, 2; setting of fractured forearm, 3; of humerus, 1; of clavicle, 2; of inferior maxillary, 1; of femur, 1; of leg, 1; of ribs, 3; gunshot wounds, 14. There were 77 cases of confinement. In this connection, I will mention the fact that during the past four years there have been 279 women confined in the hospital and not a death has occurred; there has not been a case of puerperal fever. I attribute this absence of puerperal complications to the strict observance of sanitary rules. The patients are kept scrupulously clean in their persons, and great attention is given to the bedding, clothing, and surroundings. The table marked C contains a full list of the injuries, surgical cases, and of the diseases. |