Salt Lake Telegram | 1928-06-10 | Page 21 | Historic French Monuments Are Doomed by Time

5 Historic French I Monuments Are Doomed by Time Famed Charlemagne Tower Tow Tow- er at Tours Splits Into Two Parts Relics S Threatened By JOHN OBRIEN O'BRIEN United Press Staff Correspondent PARIS June 7 United Press Press Press- France is in danger of losing many mans of her historical documents The Thre famous Charlemagne tower at Tours built In 1001 and so named because the fourth wife of the king Is buried burled there suddenly split into two parts one of which crumbled I Into dust Luckily the people in Ic the nearby houses had ample warning cracks havin having been noticed noticed no no- no- no S in the tower ver several hours before before be be- be- be fore the collapse Two other monuments in the same district are threatened with lith the same fate One is the Church of 01 Claise about forty-five forty miles from Tours Cracks Clacks have been seen in the walls and an inspector S of the department of fine arts which L has charge of historic monuments S ordered the place closed and the public excl This church ch was constructed in 1009 and is the oldest oldest old old- est vestige in France of the Romano Romano- Byzantine epoch The northern I tower of the Cathedral St. St Gratian L at Tours is also in a very bad con con- S TIME AND WEATHER DESTROYERS Experts of the fine arts department depart depart- ment meat explained to the Unit United d Press correspondent that the principal reason for the collapse of ancient monuments is that they were vere originally origInally mu much h larger buildings consisting con conSisting con con- of four fOUl four or Or more towers each of which was dependent on the others othel'S giving each cach other mutual support but when ed the single they were divid towers lowers were unable to withstand the effects of time weather and Regarding the Charlemagne tower tow tow- er said one of these experts it was vas one of two parts of the thc old Church ot of St. St Martin which was divided into two and badly d aged by damaged dam darn the th-e vand vandals ls of the tire nIneteenth nine nIne- century The great gleat the tower mass of ot was inclined to bend tho place where over orel and the the nave was Vas Olig lack of the latter brought on the towers catastrophe If one of o Noho Dame Dame- isolated isolate in tire the were same way a similar collapse would be Inevitable When after the tire Charlemagne collapse of the tower it was to propos proposed destroy tire part still dynamite t th there re re was standing by violent nation in Tours The indignation indignation indig indig- people of that city love the old at landmarK half destroyed and even they be didn't want Want- to p of it PUBLIC SUBSCRIPTION They even prop proposed sed public subscription to hate hae a is not known to rebuild it It whether will be done or not this but at least of tho towel towel- the half blown to pieces remaining will not be Criticism of the work vork of the d de dO- dO of ot fine arts Is not not wanting Writing in the weekly review tire the noted archeologist ar gist Roland archeologist sa says Is it right to transform old Church the wonderful WonderfUl won Won- of St St. Caen Etienne at into a garage for forthe the street street- S f I 1 V 1 cleaning automobiles W Wh Why skeleton of a whale ex exhibited nave of the Church of f St Si S Sin in the same town Why dopie do t tl Pie of Tours so proud bf magne tower allow tire old of the representatives 0 league to be used as nl an the h. h sewer de department