498 



NEW YORK. 



by lumbermen, and were therefore subject to fire, 

 axe, and devastation, all of which were progressing 

 fast. The commission, consisting of Lieut.-Gov. 

 Timothy L. Woodruff, State Engineer Campbell W. 

 Adams, and State Forestry Commissioner Charles 

 II. Babcock, in their first report, showed that the 

 board purchased, within the confines of the Adiron- 

 dack Park, 250,117 acres, making the State's total 

 holdings 911.117 acres. The purchases were made 

 at a cost of $921,699, an average price of $3.68 an 

 acre. Very nearly all the land so purchased is 

 virgin forest land, surrounding the lakes, the pro- 

 tection of which insures the water supply of the 

 Hudson valley and the Erie Canal. Although the 

 act under which the board was created expressly 

 conferred the power to condemn lands and appro- 



Eriate them without the consent of the owners, it 

 as been unnecessary to resort to that remedy, ex- 

 cept in two cases. More than $2,000,000 worth of 

 Adirondack lands are still in the market, which 

 have either been offered for sale or can be bought. 

 Historian. The care of the historical records 

 is under the charge of the State Historian. The 

 incumbent during the year was Hugh Hastings, 

 who in his report announced the publication of a 

 volume of military papers of Daniel D. Tompkins, 

 which gave much information concerning the part 

 taken in the War of 1812 by New York. It also an- 

 nounced that the work of compiling the colonial 

 muster rolls from 1664 down to the outbreak of the 

 Revolutionary War has been concluded. But few 

 rolls of troops between 1765 and 1775 were found, 

 which is due to the fact that when Gov. Tryon re- 

 tired to the British ship " Asia," in May, 1775, he 

 took with him all the colonial records, and subse- 

 quently shipped many of them to London, including 

 probably many of the colonial muster rolls. By 

 dint of considerable correspondence, Mr. Hastings 

 succeeded in obtaining the list of names of New 

 York State men who participated in the first in- 

 fantry fight of the civil war; the names of the 100 

 men of the Eighty-ninth New York who volunteered 

 to cross the Rappahannock at the battle of Fred- 

 ericksburg, Dec. 11. 1862. and drove out the Con- 

 federate sharpshooters who had prevented the 

 construction of the pontoon bridges ; a list of the 

 members of Company D, One Hundred and Sixty- 

 first Regiment, who were aboard the United States 

 gunboat " Sachem " on the Sabine Pass expedition ; 

 and a list of the men of the One Hundred and 

 Sixty-ninth New York, who specially distinguished 

 themselves in the assault on Fort Fisher, Jan. 15, 

 1865. With a view for the better preservation of 

 army records, the State Historian suggests the crea- 

 tion of a new officer for every regiment, who shall 

 be known as the " regimental recorder." 



State Capitol. The Capitol was not finished at 

 the end of the year. In July State Architect Perry, 

 by reason of lack of funds, was compelled to dis- 

 miss his force of draughtsmen. Mr. Perry had 

 charge of the erection and alteration of all the 

 State institutions, and to carry on the work of his 

 office an item for $35,000 was inserted in the sup- 

 ply bill, which was cut down to $20,000. The 

 original sum was the minimum with which the 

 work planned and ordered by the Legislature could 

 be carried on. Some changes in connection with 

 the artistic work of the grand stairway in the Capi- 

 tol building were decided on during the year. One 

 of the features of the stairway is the carving of 

 heads in the caps of the columns, and it was deter- 

 mined to select four women as types representing 

 women in four distinct spheres, and directions were 

 given that their portraits should be carved in the 

 stairway caps. T'he four women chosen were 

 'Capt." Molly Pitcher, Harriet Beecher Stowe, 

 Clara Barton," and Susan B. Anthony. 



State Library. This is under the care of the 

 Regents of the University of the State of New 

 York, and the librarian is'Melvil Dewey. His re- 

 port for 1898 shows 217,933 volumes in the State 

 library, besides 43,525 volumes in the traveling 

 libraries; a total of 261,458 volumes, exclusive of 

 duplicates. Of the 9,999 volumes added to the 

 State library proper, 4,117 were given, 2,812 were 

 acquired by exchange and by binding serials and 

 pamphlets, while only 8.070, or about one third of 

 the accessions, were bought. Of the 21,366 new 

 pamphlets, 20,706 were gifts, 609 exchanges, and 51 

 purchases. 



Niagara Reservation. The commissioners ap- 

 pointed to the charge of this reservation met on 

 May 19, and organized by electing Andrew II . 

 Green as their president. The work outlined by 

 them included the building of a stone arch bridge 

 between Goat and Sister islands, to replace the 

 wooden and iron suspension bridge now connecting 

 them. It was also proposed to undertake extensive 

 plantations of trees and shrubs on the shores of the 

 reservation, and particularly on Bath island, with 

 a view to restoring the original woodland effect 

 which is so peculiar to the region, and makes it 

 specially attractive. 



Omaha and Paris Expositions. On Feb. 2<J 

 Gov. Black appointed a_s delegates to represent th.) 

 State at the Trans-Mississippi and International 

 Exposition, held in Omaha from June to Novem- 

 ber, 1898, the following : Chauncey M. Depew, John 

 Jacob Astor, G. Creighton Webb, Henry B. Herbert, 

 Abel E. Blackman, Charles N. Stow, Jacob Amos, 

 and John C. Graves. 



The following honorary commission to represent 

 the State at the Paris Exposition in 1900 was ap- 



B)inted by Gov. Black on Dec. 24 : First Judicial 

 istrict, Emil Twyffort, New York ; Second Judi- 

 cial District, Ludwig Nisson, Brooklyn, Norton P. 

 Otis, Yonkers; Third Judicial District, Urban 

 Weldon, Cohoes ; Fourth Judicial District, Clark- 

 son C. Schuyler, Plattsburg, Mrs. Mary Harrison 

 McKee, Saratoga; Fifth Judicial District, Henry 



A. Phillips, Lowville, Thomas R. Proctor, Utica; 

 Sixth Judicial District, Mrs. Nanny W. Metcalf, 

 Owego; Seventh Judicial District, Lamotte M. 

 Blakely, Lyons ; Eighth Judicial District, William 

 L. Marcy, Buffalo, George E. Spring, Franklin- 

 ville. The commission will serve without compen- 

 sation. Its duties are to encourage and promote 

 a complete exhibit of the artistic, commercial, in- 

 dustrial, agricultural, and other interests of the 

 State at the Exposition ; to provide for the comfort 

 and convenience of the citizens of the State in 

 attendance ; and to make arrangements for the ex- 

 hibits made by the citizens of the State. The com- 

 mission met at Albany on Dec. 27, and organized 

 by the election of a president and vice-president. 

 It is authorized to appoint a secretary. 



Political. On Sept. 27 a Republican State Con- 

 vention was held in Saratoga Springs. Benjamin 



B. Odell, Jr., chairman of the State Committee, 

 called the convention to order, and named Con- 

 gressman Sereno E. Payne as temporary chairman. 

 For the permanent organization Horace White w.-is 

 made chairman. Concerning national issues the 

 platform said : 



" We congratulate the country upon the con- 

 clusion of the war with Spain. It was not under- 

 taken for conquest, but for the sacred cause it 

 humanity and for the just protection of American 

 interests. 



"We have abiding confidence that the Preside it 

 will conclude this peace upon terms that will sat- 

 isfy the conscience, the judgment, and the high 

 purpose of the American people. We have As- 

 sumed the responsibilities of victory, and wherever 



