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24 THE CAPITOL DOME In June 1860, Lassalle wrote to Secretary of War Floyd in an attempt to be reinstated. Floyd consulted Franklin, who explained that by the time Lassalle was dismissed the Extension work was nearly complete and it was then more cost effective to have a commercial bronze business finish the work. The doors for the Senate Chamber gallery were in fact finished by a bronze business operated by two workmen formerly employed in the Capitol Bronze Shop. Images and descriptions of the doors and frames suggest that they were the same in design as the twenty-four in the House Chamber gallery (fig. 11). They differed in number, with only 16 used in the Senate, four of which were dummies (again added for architectural symmetry), but they were made of the same wood and measured approximately the same size. 34 The bronze embellishments on the door fronts and frames were again cherubs, rosettes, grapevines, acanthus, and, above each door, a bronze head of a classical female figure. Charles W. Neale and James Smith, who had been previously employed in the Bronze Shop as chaser and a bronze filer, respectively, were by this time operating a bronze fin- ishing company called Smith & Neale. The company was paid for preparing bronze work for the Senate Gallery doors from 1860 to 1861 and also for finishing one bronze caryatid for a mantel. In July 1860 Lassalle continued to plead his case to be hired to finish the remaining bronze work. He sent Franklin a letter with a proposal for the work on the Senate Gallery doors and the mantle as well as some hat and coat hooks for the House of Representatives. The story of Lassalle and the Bronze Shop draws near its conclusion with a letter from Franklin to the War Department in August with which he forwards Lassalle's letter and proposal. In his letter, Frank- lin states that he has engaged the firm of the two previous Shop employees and that the work can be done cheaper by them than what Lassalle proposes; he summarizes his posi- tion succinctly: Lassalle may be a good workman. But he has acted badly in this business, and does not deserve any consideration. His bid certainly ought not be accepted, and to put the work in his hands to do by days' labor will give great trouble and annoyance on account of the fact that he and his men were always squab- bling and sometimes fighting…. If the Secretary desires, I will make an official report on the subject, but I think the proposition of Lassalle ought not be considered. 35 The records of the Architect of the Capitol contain only one additional letter, written ten days later by the chief clerk of the War Department to Franklin requesting a list of the prices agreed upon for the remaining work and the prices Lassalle proposed to charge for the work, but no subsequent letters or documents about the shop are known and the turbulence surrounding it dwindles into silence. Despite the unfortunate and precipitous manner of its clos- ing, the Bronze Shop and those who worked there are wor- thy of being remembered for their contribution to the Capitol Extension and American art. Situated among the trade shops for the Extension because of the mechanics of its operation, and while it would eventually cast functional objects, the Bronze Shop was first and foremost established for casting ornamentation and fine art. Although Meigs did not hesitate to employ established foundries when they were the best for the job, he was pleased to have on site a well-staffed shop that could do excellent work on smaller projects, as is evi- dent in the works that still exist and can stand beside the work of other foundries of the day displaying flawless cast- ing and skilled chasing. The Shop was unique in that among the early bronze foundries in America, it was the only one at the time operated by the government. Meigs, an army officer and engineer, was participating in the support and perpetuation of this new medium of sculpture in the U.S. that symbolized technical and artistic independence from Europe and at a building that was being expanded because of the growing size and power of America. JENNIFER BLANCATO is a museum curator in the Office of the Curator for the Architect of the Capitol. She previ- ously presented a paper on the bronze shop entitled "Hing- es, Handrails, and Fine Art: The U.S. Capitol Bronze Shop, 1855–1859" at the annual meeting of the Society for History in the Federal Government.