[801] - In presenting to the reader the sectional exhibits of the west and those of the Pacific slope, I will begin with the state of Illinois, whose elaborate display, together with those of Iowa, Kansas, California, Washington, Idaho, and others is among the features of the Exposition, forming, as it were, a fair within a fair, though on a minor scale as compared with what each has to show in the main departments. Of all the state buildings and exhibits those of Illinois are by far the largest, with a floor space of more than three acres, or about the same as in the Woman�s building adjacent, costing, moreover, nearly twice the amount expended on the latter.

Occupying one of the choicest sites in the northern portion of the grounds, the Illinois mansion is a cruciform structure, its longer axial line 450 and its shorter axis 285 feet in length, with an average width of nearly 100 feet. The design is suggestive of the Italian renaissance; but with certain points of accentuation that belong to no special order of architecture. From the spot where the arms of the cross intersect, a galleried dome, capped by a lantern, rises some 240 feet above the floor, altogether too lofty and narrow for the building which it surmounts. Above the principal entrance-way is a figure with outstretched arms representing "Illinois Welcoming the Nations," and among other themes expressed in sculptural art are "The Birth of Chicago," "Education," and "La Salle and Companions." Within is a wide longitudinal nave dividing the exposition sections, with apartments for the governor and his suite, and the state and women�s board; in the eastern portion is an elaborate school exhibit; in a memorial chamber on the north, an historic collection from the state capitol, and the western division is devoted to agriculture, horticulture, floriculture, forestry, archaeology, and the contributions of the Fish commission and the Geological survey.

The agricultural display is mainly from the state college of Agriculture in conjunction with the government experimental station at Champaign, and was prepared by Professor Morrow, dean of the former. Back from the gallery was erected an ornamental pavilion, in which is a collection of grass seeds, its walls, roof, and ceiling covered with grains and grasses. Near by, in glass jars containing 3,600 specimens and several hundred varieties, are grouped in three sections the principal cereals of Illinois, the ceiling of each, with its supporting pillars, decorated in the grain which it contains. On a mural panel, with framework of yellow corn, is depicted a model prairie farm, its buildings and picket fence, its live-stock and poultry, growing crops and fallow fields, all fashioned of native grains and grasses, and draped with a grass curtain held by a rope and tassels of [803] corn. A miniature car, filled each day with different grains, shows how cereals are brought to market and sorted according to grades.

An interesting group from the experimental station is that which demonstrates how forest and fruit trees can be cultivated, cross sections showing their growth in periods of five years, and lateral sections, their grain and fibre. Here also are illustrated the processes of grafting and cross fertilizing, with the treatment of plant diseases and the laboratory equipped for such purposes. Of weeds there is a large collection, and here are arranged all the insects injurious to vegetable like. Horticultural and floricultural specimens are numerous, some in wax and others in their natural state. In a booth formed of interlacing branches of trees is the state display of forestry, rustic benches showing segments cut in various directions, transverse, radial, and oblique. Near the central rotunda is a grotto of artificial rocks with stalagmites and stalactites, cascades, waterfalls, and rustic bridge. In the pools below are the food and other fish contributed by the commission, including carp, perch, pike, and catfish; black and rock bass; dog-fish, sunfish, buffalo fish, and others in several varieties. Goldfish, red white and black, occupy a separate pond, and within the grotto are illustrated methods of hatching and propagation.

In the geological section are pyramids of coal and boulders of granite, limestone, and sandstone, with glacial rock and gravel, glass-sand, fire-clay, and kaolin. Elsewhere is a pyramid of tiles, terra-cotta moldings, and other articles, more than twenty feet square at the base and embellished with floral designs. This is exhibited by the Illinois Brick and Tilemakers� association, and is not only a specimen of ceramic art, but represents an important branch of industry, affording employment to 85,000 operatives. The archaeological collection is from the state museum, and contains many specimens relating to the stone age, gathered from Indian mounds, with others in tribal groupings and arranged with reference to age and utility.

In a projecting space on the northern side of the building are war relics from the state-house at Springfield, with articles of historic interest relating to those to whom was intrusted the safe-keeping of the union. Here are the battle flags of nearly all the Illinois regiments, 155 in number, enrolled for their country�s service. Many are rent with shot and shell, and not a few are stained with blood, among them the one that Sergeant Riley bore, and for which he laid down his life [805] at Ringgold gap. By Sergeant Hunter of Grant�s old regiment, the Twenty-first Illinois, are shown the colors which he carried to the front. Here also are the saddle and bridle of General Logan, and the wooden leg of Santa Anna, captured by the Fourth Illinois. Of Lincoln and Grant there are many things to remind us, including the table-cloth used at the wedding breakfast of the former, the dresses worn by his wife on state occasions, and that which she wore at the theatre on the night of her husband�s assassination. Thee is the saddle used by Grant and the lantern which he carried as a part of his outfit, with photographs pertaining to both these central figures of the civil war.

Here and elsewhere are many curiosities gathered from various sections of the state, among them the first bell whose notes were heard in the Mississippi valley, cast, as appears from inscriptions, at Rochelle in 1741, and presented by Louis XV to the mission church at Kaskaskia. Of scenes characteristic of this ancient settlement there are many photographs, including one of the hotel where a banquet was given to Lafayette in 1828. The mantel itself is shown which spanned the capacious fireplace of the dining-room, somewhat the worse for wear after its century and a half of existence. There is a view of the building in which the earlier state legislatures convened, the fist brick structure erected west of the Alleghany mountains, with materials brought in boats from Pittsburgh. From the grandson of Pierre Minard, the first lieutenant-governor of the state, are some of the articles imported from France to furnish his family mansion - a pier glass, mahogany sideboard, and bedstead with carved posts and canvas canopy. Near by is the table on which Elias Kent drafted the original constitution of Illinois.

The eastern half of the building is almost entirely occupied by the educational exhibits and those of the woman�s board. First is the kindergarten display in a cheerful apartment adjoining the vestibule, the children trained under the Froebel system occupying the room for the first three months of the Fair, and then giving place to those of the Chicago association, under whose care are more than a score of free kindergartens in various portions of the city, all supported by voluntary contributions. Then come the public school exhibits, beginning with a model school-room, supplied with the latest inventions in the way of furniture and apparatus, including instruments for the demonstration of problems in chemistry and physics. Next are those of the country schools, the graded schools, and the high schools, all arranged in logical sequence and with numerous samples of work. So with the normal schools in an adjoining section, the specimens shown in cases and grouped according to subjects.

But the feature in this department is the elaborate display of the state university, in connection with which are those of the experimental station and the laboratory of natural history. The educational exhibits proper were arranged by T. J. Burrill, one of the regents, in conjunction with E. E. Chester, state commissioner on education. The literary division is under charge of F. F. Fredericks, and there is also shown the work of the school of art and design. A bacteriological group, with the results of scientific investigations and the instruments used for the purpose, was prepared by Doctor Burrill, a man of more than national repute. By Professor Forbes were arranged the collections in natural history, among which are 300 mounted specimens of birds, including all that are native to Illinois. Many branches of physics and natural science are here represented; [806] and there are cases filled with samples and models relating to various branches of engineering, while architecture and mineralogy also find expression, the latter in long rows of labelled crucibles, with the tests for which they were used.

Woman has played well her part in connection with the state exhibit, contributing or gathering many of the most valuable collections, and using to excellent advantage the $80,000 - one tenth of the entire appropriation - devoted to a representation of the arts and industries of Illinois women. A board was organized, with committees on domestic science, on historic and scientific collections, on literature, on educational, charitable, and professional work, and on art in all its branches, fine, practical, and decorative, musical and dramatic. Thus were culled the choicest specimens of woman�s achievement in all the wide sphere of her labors and influence. The exhibits in domestic science, pertaining chiefly to the kitchen, dining-room, and pantry were housed in the Woman�s building, where all such contributions are grouped. Of the historic and personal relics, and the articles displayed in the educational sections, and even in the scientific departments of the university, not a few are the offerings of women.

In the library, tastefully equipped and with decorated walls and frieze, are several hundred volumes from the pen of Illinois women, the oldest among them, entitled Early Engagements, written by Sarah Marshall Hayden in 1841. Next to this in point of age is Wau Bun, a story of early days in the northwest by Mrs. John H. Kinzie, published in New York in 1856. There are also many rare and valuable works, with an abundance of newspapers and magazines. By one of the committees a report was published giving, among other information, the number of women wage-earners, of teachers, and of those who are caring for the sick, the poor, the aged, and the defective classes.

The art display includes statuary, paintings in oil and water colors, etchings, and pastels, an entire wall being hung with the collections of the palette club. Of ceramic art and decorative needlework there are many excellent specimens; but as to what has been accomplished by women in the way of decoration, the best examples are in the reception parlor, with its silken hangings of deep olive hue, designed and woven by women, its panelled frieze with allegorical and other paintings by female artists, and its arabesque designs for the [808] arches above the windows. The furniture is of itself a work of art, the handsome mantel of carved maple, the old arm-chairs, clock-cases, and escritoires all fashioned by feminine hands.

Thus it will be seen that in the home of Illinois are reproduced in miniature the main departments of the Fair, in all of which the state was largely represented, the local exhibition forming a complete and well ordered display of her resources, industries, and arts, with all that pertains to the social life of this cultured and prosperous community. No wonder that here people were proud of their fair, of the city which contains it, and of the part which the state has played in contributing to the general effect. Especially was this apparent on days of public celebration, on dedication day, Illinois day, and above all on Chicago day; for on such occasions her citizens unite as the members of a single family, and for a single purpose.

The building was dedicated on the 18th of May, with the usual exercises held on the plaza in front. On Illinois day, the 24th of August, nearly 300,000 people gathered on the grounds, the largest attendance to that date with the single exception of the 4th of July. Among them were many farmers from the prairie state, here assembled for a few days of sight-seeing, probably the hardest days� work of their lives. The edifice was profusely decorated with flags and streamers, the balconies draped in red, white, and blue, and the interior redolent with floral tributes. There were the usual speech-making, feasting, fireworks, and reception; but the feature of the celebration was the parade of state soldiery, who, marching to the grounds from their encampment at Windsor park, headed by the governor and his staff, passed in divisions some 5,000 strong the reviewing stand erected in front of the building.

But it was for Chicago day that the people of Illinois, and especially its metropolis, reserved their strength, and this was in truth a celebration such as never before was recorded in the annals of international expositions. The date selected was the 9th of October, when in a single night, just twenty-two years before, the city was swept out of existence, now resurrected in tenfold glory, and with the crowning glory of its Fair. The city was crowded with visitors, each incoming train increasing their number, so that on the eve of the great occasion at least 1,000,000 strangers wree housed within her gates. But not all were housed; for many there [809] were with well filled purses who, finding no place to sleep, were compelled to walk the streets, to seek shelter in doorways, unfinished buildings, restaurants, or wherever they could find a resting place.

The morning of the 9th was an ideal autumn day, radiant and bright, the soft, warm breeze of Indian summer caressing with velvet touch the myriads of banners that almost hid from view the towering structures of the midcontinent metropolis. The city was early astir, and all were hastening toward a common goal - the gates of Jackson park. Throughout the entire day, and far into the night, railroads and steamboats were paced to their utmost capacity. The street-cars running to the park were wedged together for scores of blocks, awaiting a chance to move, and on none of them was there a spare inch of seating or standing room, men and women perching on the roofs, crowding on the platform, on the foot-boards, or wherever they could find a foothold. As recorded by the superintendent of admissions 761,942 persons entered the grounds, against 275,000 and 397,000 as the highest figures respectively for the Philadelphia and Paris expositions. For once it must be confessed that Jackson park was crowded, and the means of communication all insufficient for this unwieldy throng.

The Fair was profusely decorated, and especially the mansion of Illinois, though other state buildings donned their festal robes, the associated boards keeping open house, and in the name of Chicago extending to all a hearty welcome. As to the exercises they were but incidents of the day, the feature of which was the vast, surging multitude assembled in honor of the fete, to bid all hail to a city that many remembered as a black, charred ruin, the commiseration of the world, of which now its Fair was the wonder. At noon the Exposition flag was unfurled in the court of honor above the liberty bell, whose tones were presently heard afar in the grounds. Then was presented to its mayor the original deed to the site of Chicago, transferred to the government by the chief of the Pottawattomies. A procession of school children followed, representing various states and cities, a drill of the Chicago hussars, with music and further bell-ringing by the representatives of many nations concluding the programme of the day.

At night there was a procession of floats, at the head of which, one drawn by fourteen coal-black horses contained a female figure, led with silken cords by two other figures, typical of love and liberty. The former was radiant with spangles, on her head a phoenix with outstretched wings, and on her breast, the words "I Will," the motto of the Chicagonese. Elsewhere on the float young women in classic garb, beneath which, let us hope, they wore some warmer and less transparent clothing, represented science, literature, music, and art. Near the central group were a stand of colors and the national coat-of-arms, and around the base of the superstructure were grouped the flags of all nations, beneath it children in Grecian costume, each with a coat-of-arms, symbolic of the forty-four states of the union. The "I Will" float was followed by one named "Chicago in 1812," the date of the Fort Dearborn massacre. Then came "Chicago in War," with others allegorical of "Peace" and "Chicago Prostrate," the latter accompanied by an engine used at the great fire of 1871. At this point the crowd broke in on the procession; for now the display of fireworks was at hand, the remaining floats, those of "Commerce," "Columbus at the Court of Isabella and Ferdinand," and others belonging to foreign participants being excluded from the pageant.

On the morning of the 10th the earlier visitors to Jackson park found there a number who had tarried all night on the grounds, not from choice it is presumed, but to avoid the crush which cost the lives of several [810] and injured not a few. Far into the morning hours the main avenues leading from the Fair were thronged with serried lines of vehicles in every form, from a four-in-hand to a butcher�s cart, bearing homeward their loads of weary sight-seers; yet on this and the following day the attendance for each was more than a third of a million, the largest recorded except for the Chicago celebration. Thus did the people of many states and nations do honor to the city and its fair.

In common with many others, the Indian building is devoted solely to official and social purposes. It is plainly but neatly built and furnished, the wood, glass, tiling, and stone work forming exhibits of the natural products of the state. Of French-Gothic design, its cathedral windows, its towers and gables, with the spires at either end, give to it the aspect of a chateau of moderate dimensions. The foundation story is of graystone, around which is a broad veranda, simply but tastefully embellished, and over the dormer windows are coats-of-arms in bas-relief. At all points of the compass are entrances leading into tiled hallways, one of them opening into a large semi-circular assembly room, connected with corridors by arches ornamented with Gothic fretwork. This chamber, occupying the entire southern section, is finished in white oak highly polished, its floors laid in mosaic or encaustic tiling, and among its decorative features are female figures symbolic of agriculture, education, and the Indiana maiden. On the northern side are parlors and reception chambers finished in sycamore and locust. Above are reading rooms, supplied with state papers and the works of native authors, prominent among the latter being several editions of Ben Hur and the poems of James Whitcomb Riley. Black walnut and curly maple are mainly used in these portions of the building, the larger rooms containing fireplaces in which Bedford stone is the chief material.

Apart from the building and its furniture Indiana has no individual display, except in the fine and decorative arts, and these intended rather as a portion of the equipment than as exhibits. Among them are several landscapes by native artists, with portraits of prominent men, while in one of the reception rooms is a collection of painted chinaware, the handiwork of the late wife of ex-President Harrison. But even artistic and literary themes are here but slightly represented; for the home of Indiana is intended merely as a pleasant rendezvous and place of entertainment for visitors from that state and those whom they choose to invite.

Dedication day fell on the 15th of June, the feature of the occasion being an impromptu speech from Benjamin Harrison. By B. F. Havens, executive commissioner, the keys were delivered to Clement Studebaker, president of the state board, the former pointing to the portraits of those whose names were linked with the history of the commonwealth, and the latter referring briefly to the tasteful structure now to be opened to the sons and daughters of Indiana. By Governor Matthews the building was dedicated to the youth of the state, and as a member of the woman�s board, Mrs. Virginia C. Meredith spoke of woman�s participation in the Fair. Then J. L. Campbell called attention to the resources and industries of Indiana, one of the largest cereal producing sections of the republic. As to her representation at the Fair, he claimed for his state a foremost rank among the manufactures and educational exhibits, while the most massive exhibit of all was in Chicago�s Museum of Art, constructed entirely of Indiana limestone. After some further exercises, varied with music, a reception in the assembly room brought to a close the celebration of the day.

Of the $150,000 appropriated by the legislature of Ohio, some $35,000 was used for the state building, which is of colonial pattern, its main entrance on the east, in the form of a semi-circular colonnaded porch, extending to the upper story. The wood work and tiling are all of native materials, the red tiles used for the roof being a contribution from New Philadelphia. Windows of stained glass bear the names of such men as Chase, Grant, Sheridan, and Sherman, while near the main entrance is a monument surmounted by a graceful figure, symbolic of Ohio, below which upon sub-pedestal are statues of those whom state and nation love to honor. Opening from the main lobby are parlors and committee rooms, and in the centre is a hall decorated [811] with buckeyes molded in stucco, the coat-of-arms worked in stained glass appearing above its spacious fireplace. Back of the hall is an open court, one of the enclosing wings containing the quarters of the bureau of information, and another a parlor for men, with writing and smoking rooms. On the second floor of the two wings are the assembly hall and a chamber for press correspondents.

Among the portraits displayed in the Ohio building is that of General Sherman, from the brush of Mrs. Ellen Elizabeth King, copied by special request from one in possession of the war department. It represents the great soldier in full uniform and wearing the insignia of the army of Tennessee and the military division of the Mississippi, the latter including the badges of several corps of which he was the commander.

Though less demonstrative than other states Ohio was not without special days of celebration. In June a reception was tendered to ex-President Harrison, informal but attended by several thousand people. Governor McKinley also received an ovation, and on Ohio day, the 15th of September, the chief executive and his staff were received by the director-general in front of the Administration building, where there was ringing of the liberty bell by the governor, with other exercises that need not here be described.

For Michigan�s home, adjoining that of Ohio, a choice location was assigned, west of the Art palace and fronting on two of the boulevards. It is a spacious edifice, with broad verandas on each of its sides, of no special order of architecture, but pleasing in general effect, with framework of pine colored in light gray, dormer windows, and lofty shingled roof, above which a balconied clock-tower rises to a height of 130 feet. On the first floor is the main hall, a bright and cheerful apartment when illumined by electric lights, with bureau of information, check rooms, news-stands and other accommodations. But more attractive apartments are those finished and furnished by Saginaw, Muskegon, and Grand Rapids, the two first in the form of men�s reception and reading rooms. The ladies� parlor, the special creation of the latter, is tastefully decorated in stucco and hung with beautiful tapestries designed by the women of that city, while in its furniture the leading factories present their finest products. From Grand Rapids also comes the carved marble mantel in the main corridor, 50 feet in width, the floor, together with those of the minor passages, being paved with Michigan tiling.

In the central corridor is a marble bust of Governor Cass, one of the fathers of the northwest, and at the head of the stairway leading thence to the second story is a portrait of General Custer, attired in nondescript costume, with broad-brimmed hat, sailor shirt, army blouse, and red necktie, loosely covered by the insignia of his rank. Here also are other famous characters in the annals of state and nation. In the room reserved for the press is the last copy of every paper issued in Michigan on the 30th of April, the day before the opening of the Fair, with all subsequent issues printed during its progress. On this floor is an assembly room for social, musical, and religious gatherings, in which is a handsome pipe organ constructed by a Detroit firm. Across the corridor is the natural history collection from the state university, consisting of mounted deer, bears, birds, reptiles, and other specimens of Michigan fauna, past and present.

Michigan day fell on the 13th of September; but as the exercises differed but little from those already described, it is unnecessary here to relate them. Of this and other state celebrations brief mention is made under the heading of World�s Fair Miscellany.

Wisconsin�s building, with its high, abrupt roofs, turrets, and dormer windows, its body of pressed brick and brown sandstone, resembles rather the home of one of her substantial citizens than a structure intended for public use. Standing on a semi-circular plat of ground, its main front near the lagoon, with Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio for immediate neighbors, it differs from most of the others in that no staff is used in its construction, all the materials being of [812] domestic production. Walls and ceilings are finished in polished oak, cherry, bird�s-eye maple, elm, butternut, birch, and other woods from Chippewa country, the wainscoting of the first floor being especially elaborate. Most of the panelling is also in hardwood, and the reception room or lobby, which occupies the entire ground floor, is paved with tiles made of Wisconsin clay by Wisconsin manufacturers. This chamber is divided into three compartments by spandrels of oak, on one of which is the coat-of-arms. The furniture is chiefly of rattan, of the pattern seen at hotels and summer resorts.

Among the pictures are several loaned by General Fairchild, when minister to Spain, including portraits of Columbus and his descendant, the duke of Veragua, of ex-Senator Doolittle and his wife, and of S. Fillmore Bennett. In the reception rooms for men and women are also works of art. From the watchword of the state, "Forward," Jean Pond Miner, a Wisconsin sculptress, has taken the theme for a marble group executed with singular delicacy and yet with sufficient boldness. In the prow of a boat stands a female figure, one hand uplifted, the other grasping an American flag, the pose suggestive of eager expectation and strength of will. The drapery seems to be carried backward by the wind, as if the craft were approaching land, the eagle which stands on the bow of the boat being recognized as the famous bird, Old Abe, which accompanied its regiment throughout the civil war. Among other works of note are "The Genius of Wisconsin," a quiet composition in marble by Nellie Mears, also a resident of the badger state. Features which largely partake of the artistic are the three handsome fireplaces on the ground floor, and the carved stairway of white oak leading to the chambers above. Midway is a window of stained Venetian glass, a contribution from the city of Superior, and at the head of the staircase are decorated glass panels overlooking the balcony without. On the second story are the rooms occupied by the state board, of which A. L. Smith is president, with an art loan collection, and the exhibit of the State Historical society, including works by Wisconsin authors and a bibliography of writers either native to the state or those who have made their reputation therein.

Opposite the western annex to the Art palace is the clear-cut, two-story structure, built in the style of the Italian renaissance, which represents the state of Minnesota, its frame of wood, covered with staff, and its roof of Spanish tiling. A square portico, with pillars supporting the balcony, is the architectural feature of the main entrance, within the shadow of which stands the muscular figure of Hiawatha, with martial head-gear of feathers, quiver at his back, and tomahawk in belt, bearing [813] across the stream the slender form of Minnehaha, as she passes not unwillingly from the wigwam of her father to that of her future husband. This is a contribution from the women and school children of Minneapolis, due largely to the efforts of Mrs. H. F. Brown of that city. The statue, fashioned in plaster, is to be cast in marble and placed in the state park, within sound and sight of the falls of Minnehaha.

Within the building is a bureau of information, with postal and other accommodation. In the exhibition hall are mounted cariboo, moose, deer, bear, foxes, and smaller animals, many of them prepared by R. O. Sweeny of Duluth. There are some noble specimens of elk and moose heads, with a collection of game birds and photographs of famous fishing resorts on northern streams. In this section are several Indian curios, some of them reviving memories of the massacres of early days. Opposite the entrance is the main staircase rising from the rear of the hall, and about midway there is a semi-circular alcove lighted by windows of stained glass. At the head is worked on another window the coat-of-arms and its motto, "L�Etoile du Nord." Most of the decorative effects, however, are produced by sheaves of wheat and timothy, clover and other grasses, with numerous heads of elk protruding from the walls and antlers interlocked in the form of a chandelier.

The general reception hall and the parlors for men and women are handsomely furnished, and especially worthy of note are the mantel and cabinet in the ladies� reception room. In the decorative scheme of the former the central feature is in the shape of a volume inscribed "Songs of Hiawatha," and near it a calumet, or pipe of peace, across which is a hatchet, a block of polished pipestone more than three feet square furnishing the material for the work. In several of the apartments are tastefully frescoed walls, many of the color decorations being the handiwork of women, while the finishing in pine is executed with pleasing effect.

On the eastern shores of the northwest ponds are the buildings of the two Dakotas, Nebraska standing between them. Each has features of the colonial style of architecture, with broad verandas in front, that of the northern commonwealth with columns extended to the upper story, thus forming porch and balcony. The two divisions of this structure are separated by a broad band or frieze between windows in which wheat, the principal staple of North Dakota, is used for the plan of decoration. The main hall, where are the agricultural exhibits, is entered directly through the principal doorway, and here the embellishments are also in grain, the [814] grade of wheat known in the market as "No.1 hard" being worked into many artistic devices, both in the kernel and the sheaf. Varieties of nutritive grasses, to the number of about four-score, are also used in the formation of panels and the depicting of cattle, agricultural machinery, and farm scenes. To the wealth of the state as a producer of wheat further attention is called by a large painting from the brush of Carl Gutherz, representing a farm in the Red River valley.

In the second story are reception parlors and rooms for the members of the press and the state commission. Here are specimens of decorated china and other forms of woman�s handicraft. By women also was contributed the old-fashioned cart in which was brought to Pembina the bride of the pioneer settler of North Dakota, attached to it an ox so mounted that he still appears to be dragging his precious burden. Here likewise are moose, deer, and buffalo, all of them in the best style of the taxidermist�s art.

While in the mansion of South Dakota her agricultural resources are freely illustrated, most of the exhibits, together with the structure that contains them, are suggestive rather of her wealth as a mining region. The exterior of the building is finished in Yankton cement, and in front is a semi-circular portico and balcony, on either side, and beyond is the exhibition hall lighted from the dome above the roof. Opening from the galleries are offices and rooms for the use of the state board and press correspondents.

Among the features of the exhibits are a cabinet of fossils and a collection of paintings by women of Yankton, Sioux Falls, and other cities, with specimens of hand-painted china, and photographs of Dakota�s artesian wells. Under the dome is a massive pillar of Sioux Falls jasper, upon which is a gilded globe surmounted by an eagle with outstretched wings. Elsewhere is shown a diamond-like mineral capable of cutting glass, with ores of gold, silver, copper, tin, gypsum, and mica. There is also a large assortment of petrifications, and there are cases filled with stalactites and stalagmites from the Cave of the Wind, in Custer county. Among other curiosities is a model of a cottage constructed from minerals gathered from the Black hills, in the vicinity of Custer city. It is about three feet in height, and of Gothic design, sandstone being worked into the foundation, and the tower at the corner capped with gold and silver quartz. Above the second story are quartzes, stalactites, stalagmites, slate, marble, and various ores, the roof being of mica cut into shapes resembling slabs of slate. This is a contribution from the women of Custer city, and not far away is a model of a farm-house with yard and outhouses, constructed of varieties of wood gathered from many states.

Of Iowa�s home at the Fair a portion was in existence long before ground was broken for the Columbian Exposition. This was in the form of a building called The Shelter, erected on a commanding site near the margin of the lake, a spot well known to habitues of Jackson park. It was a substantial edifice, with granite base, slate roof, and conical towers, the addition conforming to the architectural design and giving to the entire structure the aspect of a French chateau, decorated with flags and streamers. Over the southern front appears the word Iowa; on one of the towers are the names of her leading cities, and on another, medallions and bas-reliefs illustrative of the industries and annals of the state, while on the highest point of one of the roofs the figure of a farmer represents perhaps the most prominent of her wealth-producing classes.

Yellow is the prevailing hue of the walls and decorations, symbolic of one of the greatest corn producing states in the union, her crop approximating and at times exceeding 300,000,000 bushels. In the hall, grain, and especially corn, is exclusively used for its decorative scheme; but this is best described in the words of him to whom the work was intrusted. "We have used," he says, "in decorating this room, 1,200 bushels of [815] corn and three and one half carloads of cereals. The capitals of the columns are worked out in corn shucks and millet heads. From the roof-tree to the walls the ceiling is divided into three sections, the top one being general in design and made of all the field products of the state. The next section has fourteen panels, those on the side ceiling containing figures illustrating the different industries of the state. At each end of the ceiling are panels containing the American eagle and shield worked out in grains, and in the four corners of the ceiling are shields with the device, "Iowa, 1846-1893," worked out on a blue field in white corn and shucks. Where the pillars join the roof is a frieze, with an elaborate scroll-work made of festoons of corn and wheat and millet seeds. In the centre of the hall is a model of the state capitol, made entirely of glass and filled with grain. It is 21 feet high, 23 feet long, and 13 feet wide. Facing the eastern entrance is a heroic group, the centre figure being a woman. It represents Iowa fostering her industries. Grouped around by the pillars are small pavilions and pagodas, on which are displayed the different products of the farm and mine."

[816] - From the rear of the hallway a broad flight of stairs leads to the assembly and other rooms above, the ground floor of this, the new portion of the building, containing reception parlors, offices, and headquarters for the state board and its committees. Opposite the landing of this stairway is a huge fireplace, upon the mantel of which is the inscription: "IOWA - The affections of her people, like the rivers of her borders, flow to an inseparable union." Passing into the assembly chamber, the visitor finds its walls hung with native works of art, the feminine industries which border upon art being also here displayed. Opening from the hall is a parlor for women, its frieze and panels containing floral and other tasteful designs. For men there are general reception rooms and special apartments for smoking and writing, while for the press are reserved two handsome chamber, one of them adorned with figures symbolic of the fraternity. Newsboys are shown in eager pursuit of customers; the printer�s devil appears, and there are bas-reliefs of shears, paste-pots, and other implements of the craft. In the other chamber are newspapers, desks, and all journalistic equipments, including telegraph service. Finally, connected with the assembly hall is a room in which is installed the exhibit of the State Historical society.

As agriculture is the foundation of Nebraska�s wealth, it is fitting that her exposition hall should be well stored with specimens of grain and other products of the soil. These are for the most part arranged by counties, a map of Platte, one of the riches of them being fashioned of wheat, oats, rye, and grass seed. But that which attracts most attention is the exhibit of beet-sugar industries, in which for several years the state has been largely engaged. These are displayed in photographic form, and in the centre of the hall is a pyramid composed of jars in the contents of which are shown the various stages of growth and manufacture, from the seed to the full-grown beet, and from pulp and juice to syrup and granulated sugar. After studying this exhibit, together with the ornamental display of golden grain on wall and frieze, the visitor takes no exception to the mottoes worked in native grasses, "Corn is King," "Sugar is Queen." In rear of the exhibition chamber is a room curtained off from the main floor, in which a woman who claims to be "the greatest butter artist in the world" gives daily exhibitions of her skill in moulding. Here, with paddles, sticks, and other simple implements, she fashions from this plastic material the seal and arms of the state, together with fruits and grains, floral and other designs.

The building itself is of the later colonial style, with massive columns and spacious portico approached by broad flights of steps, and with the seal of Nebraska boldly executed on the architrave. On the ground floor are accommodations for the state board, a post-office, and a parlor for men, a double stairway leading to the rooms above. On the second story are several handsome apartments, with an art exhibit and a collection of all the more prominent newspapers published throughout the state. In one of the rooms, completely furnished by Nebraska women, is a display of decorated china, paintings on plaques, artificial flowers, fancy needlework, and other evidences of feminine skill and taste. The Indian tepee and the buffalo, which also form a portion of the exhibits, are but memories of an age, not many years distant, when Nebraska was till in the grasp of the savage, and when herds of bison roamed over one of the most fertile regions of the west.

[817] - "Ad Astra per Aspera" is an ambitious watchword for individual or state, but one that is fully justified in the history of Kansas. In Exposition affairs she has evinced all the typical western vigor, her buildings itself being among the largest and most attractive on the grounds. It is cruciform in shape, nearly 140 feet in either direction, and of unique and substantial design. A broad arch forms the main entrance, a large, tower-like projection, surmounted by a cupola, forming the point of architectural emphasis. In bas-relief upon the walls of this projection is the seal of the state, with its star-like motto placed within the rim of a medallion, and flanked on either side by seraphim with broad-spread wings. Above the main body of the structure is a glass dome, elliptical in shape and bearing upon its interior surface the watchword of the state in letters of gold wrought on a star-lit sky. On the main floor are sheaves of wheat, stalks of corn, and other native products, the cobs being cut into sections and grains and grasses fashioned into mounds, ornamental cornice work, dados, and wall bases. In another section are arranged the fruits and vegetables of Kansas, all of excellent quality, and especially her apples, beets, and melons.

In the second story the decorative features are mainly the handiwork of women. The exhibition hall is beneath the dome, and around it are parlors neatly furnished and with paintings by local artists. Of the mural decorations the most pleasing are those in which the golden face of the sunflower is repeated, while banners hung upon the walls present sheaves of such grains as are raised to advantage in special localities. One of these chambers was furnished by Jewell county, which claims to excel in production of corn; but here the state flower still asserts itself, even in the carvings of the easy chairs. Elsewhere are special exhibits of woman�s industrial art, with one representing the public school system of Kansas.

But the feature of the display, and in truth one of the features of the entire Exposition, is the collection of specimens in natural history, arranged in artistic groups in an annex erected for the purpose. Contributed by the University of Kansas, this collection was mainly gathered and prepared [818] by its custodian, Lewis Lindsay Dyche, for several years professor of zoology and curator of birds and mammals. To secure these 120 specimens was a ten years� labor of love, and to mount them, even with the aid of skilled assistants, was the task of four additional years, the professor travelling far into the mountainous regions on the northern verge of British Columbia, and elsewhere venturing where never before white man had ventured. Among these groups are many animals which are rapidly becoming extinct - the moose, the elk, the Rocky Mountain sheep, and others of which, a few years hence, not a single specimen will remain alive. An additional value is imparted by the skill of the taxidermist who, in addition to a perfect mastery of his art, is also a naturalist, one who has studied his subjects, not in cages, but in forest lair and on mountain slope, has reproduced them in their natural habitat and with their natural environment, as they crouch or walk or leap, even to the rigid tendons, the swelling muscles, the look of fear or pain or defiance with which they yield their life. In a word, the Kansas collection is rather an exhibit of animal sculpture than of taxidermy, bringing that science into close relation with plastic art.

In front of the collection is a pair of bull moose, fighting as only moose can fight when each one struggles for the supremacy. Admirably are here portrayed the fury of the combat, the tension of limb, and contraction of muscle, this group holding in taxidermal science the place accorded to Landseer�s famous painting of forest monarchs engaged in a duel to the death. Near by are mountain lions quarrelling over the carcass of a deer, and close at hand is a lioness with cubs not larger than kittens. Next is a cluster of foxes, among them a silver fox whose fur is valued at $150; and then a pair of ocelots or tiger cats, with lynxes in life-like posture. Wolves are tearing at the remains of a buffalo, of which little is left for a group of coyotes awaiting their share of the feast. Three young coyotes are faring better, one having secured the tail of a rabbit, and the others tearing the body apart. Close to the wall is a group of buffalo, one of them, as is claimed, the largest and best mounted specimen on exhibition anywhere in the world.

At the head of a band of elk stands a magnificent Wapiti bull, measuring ten feet nine inches from tip to toe to point of antler, the poise and contour perfectly reproduced, and in the head and face an air of conscious superiority. This was killed in Colorado in 1890, and in common with most of the specimens met his fate at the hands of the professor. In close proximity is a band of antelope of a variety seldom met with in haunts accessible to man, and in a miniature canon in the background are two grizzly bears, one of them facing the spectator. On a rocky promontory in line with the canon are ten Rocky Mountain sheep, this by far the best collection extant of a species rapidly becoming extinct. On the topmost crag the leader keeps watch and ward, a veritable king of the big horns, of phenomenal stature but perfect in shape and color. On another peak are Rocky Mountain goats, a ram with ewes and young bucks, the former standing guard and the others grouped below in realistic attitudes.

But the most imposing group in the collection is a family of seven moose, arranged as though in the swamp lands near the lake of the Woods, where all the animals were killed. At their head is an enormous [819] bull, a leviathan of his kind, with a measurement of more than nine feet from toe to antler and seven to the top of the withers. On rocky, moss-covered ground near by are caribou, and near the moose are Virginia deer feeding on a grassy slope. Of mule deer there is a herd of nine, in front, a noble buck, and all in natural shape and posture, as in their mountain home. In addition to these is a score of heads all handsomely mounted and of smaller animals there is a liberal display, from wolverines to jackrabbits and prairie dogs. The entire exhibit is arranged in panoramic form, with artificial groundwork, in places twenty feet high, and so constructed as to represent, as far as possible, the natural habitat of all the species.

Turning to the exhibits of the Pacific states may first be mentioned those of California, which in her own, as in the main departments of the Fair, is represented as befits this enterprising and ambitious commonwealth of the furthest west. Of her contributions to the latter, and especially to the Mining, Agricultural and Horticultural divisions, sufficient mention has been made, and many of these are duplicated, or rather supplemented, in her home at Jackson park. That the state appears to such advantage is due in part to the liberal appropriation of her legislature, largely increased by the subscriptions of counties and individuals, and amounting in all to $750,000. But here also were the materials for a choice and elaborate display; for in few sections of the republic is there a greater diversity of products, and in few have greater results been achieved in all the more prominent branches of industry.

California�s edifice is a reproduction of the mission buildings of her golden age, the era that preceded the age of gold, when Franciscan padres dozed away their harmless lives, and amid peace and plenty ate and drank of the products of the soil planted and garnered by their neophytes. It is a composite design, the exterior resembling those of the Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo missions, with traces of that which Junipero Serra founded at San Diego, far back in the eighteenth century. Unless it be for the belfries, the central dome, and roof garden, there is little attempt at external decoration, while in the interior the spacious nave and intersecting aisles impart a church-like aspect, and also afford ample room for exhibits. Erected as it is on one of the choicest locations in the park, this antique structure, with its massive walls of adobe and roof of Spanish tiles, is one of the landmarks of the Fair; but while not without elements of the picturesque, it would seem that a more appropriate design could have been selected for the display of mineral specimens, of fruits and cereals fresh gathered from the rich soil of the golden state.

As to the decorative scheme may first be mentioned the seal of the commonwealth above the principal [820] entrance-way, and on either side an inscription referring to the admission of California into the union. Within the portal is a colossal statue of California, with girdle of gold, bearing in her right hand the olive branch of peace, and at her feet a cornucopia filled with fruits. In the southern gallery a large canvas illustrates the process of placer mining in pioneer days, and this is flanked by models of primitive mining implements, wrought in pine cones and cedar. Opposite is depicted a farming scene, adjoining which are farm products and utensils, other paintings in the northern gallery and elsewhere representing the flora of the state and her production of wine. Thus are symbolized the several industrial eras; first the mining era which succeeded the pastoral age; then agriculture which gradually supplanted mining as the leading industry, this in turn giving place to horticulture and the making of wine. The balustrade which encircles the rotunda on the second floor is adorned with branches of oak, manzanita, and pine, from which depend mosses and ferns, the posts extending thence to the summit of the dome wreathed with the foliage of palms. Pendent from arches and beams are baskets filled with semi-tropical plants.

In connection with the decorative features may also be mentioned the eschscholtzia and wild flower rooms, adjoining each other in the gallery and separated only by portieres, one of them made of sixteenth century cloth, bordered with poppies and with fringe of fold. In the eschscholtzia chamber, so-called after the plant which bears the name of Eschscholtz, the botanist, the design is everywhere suggestive of the wild poppy, the flower of California. The decorations are in white and gold, and the canvas ceiling is stretched on frames and adorned with floral wreaths and garlands, in the centre of each being the name of one of the counties. On the horizontal portion of the ceiling is a panel representing a comely damsel, ruddy of hue and with flowing auburn tresses, scattering the golden poppy broadcast over the land. In the wild flower room, the floral wealth of the state is depicted in a number of water colors executed by Mrs. Marianne Matthieu, a San Franciscan artist. The walls and ceiling are draped in olive-green silk, and of the same color are the draperies of brocaded satin fringed with gold. Pressed flowers are displayed in a cabinet, and ferns on a pedestal of marble and in a vase set on a rustic stand, an handsome specimen of ceramic art.

Unlike the majority of the state edifices, California�s domicile is not merely a club-house or place of rest and social intercourse for visitors, stored with historic and personal relics. While serving for these and other purposes, it is also an exposition building, and if, as I have said, some of its exhibits are duplicates, they are [821] such as will bear duplication; for here is represented a state which ranks among the foremost of the sisterhood in the production of cereals and fruits, supplying, since 1848, more than two-thirds of the total yield of gold, and with manufacturing and other industries yet almost in their infancy, but capable of infinite development.

The collections are from many counties, and are classified under the general departments of mining, agriculture, horticulture, and viticulture; but include also exhibits of forestry, fisheries, fauna, and flora, with such as pertain to the arts and to education. In the mining display are nearly all the metals and minerals of commercial value found in California, among them gold, silver, and nickel; lead, tin, copper, antimony, aluminum, and iron; sulphur and salt; gypsum and kaolin; asphalt, borax, and petroleum. Of farm and market-garden products there are wheat, oats, barley, maize, broom and Egyptian corn, honey and sorghum; pumpkins, squashes, and beets; Irish and sweet potatoes; beans of thirty descriptions; tomatoes, onions, cabbages, carrots, and turnips. Fruits, fresh, canned, and dried, crystallized and preserved, are here in every species and form. There are oranges, lemons, and limes; apples, quinces, and pears; peaches, plums, and nectarines; figs, prunes, and dates; olives, cherries, and bananas, with berries and currants of many kinds, and grapes and raisins in scores of varieties; of jellies and marmalades, wines, and brandies, there is an elaborate display; and of nuts there are the English, Eastern, and California walnut, with chestnuts, pecans, peanuts, and almonds. There are palm-trees a century old, a specimen from Santa Barbara county rising from a Spanish fountain in the centre of the dome to a height of 60 feet. There are sections of the giant redwoods of which all the world has read, one from Humboldt county hollowed from a tree more than 400 feet in height, 76 in circumference near the ground, and containing, it is said, 400,000 feet of lumber. Finally, there are miniature groves of orange, date, citron, lemon, lime, cocoanut, guava, and loquat trees, with subtropical plants arranged in artistic groupings. By many of the counties exhibits of their products and resources were arranged in separate sections, some of them containing choice and varied collections.

As to special features may first be mentioned the heroic [822] statue in bronze of James W. Marshall, the discoverer of gold, at the base of which are cases of nuggets and other specimens, and around it larger cases of minerals and ores. Here and elsewhere are more than 6,000 samples of metals and minerals, contributed from all the more prominent mining properties. In the section devoted to southern California is the "Palace of Plenty," a cruciform structure fashioned of the products of southern counties. In glass cases around its base are 40 kinds of grain, and near it a display of English walnuts in a revolving tower of glass, silver line and octagonal in shape, adjoining which is a large globular structure entirely covered with oranges. Not far away is a pyramid of fruit, 16 feet in height, and surmounted by the figure of a bear. Santa Barbara county has a tower of olive oil, 30 feet high, its frame of iron, its apex of pampas plumes, and on the shelves, 1,600 bottles or nearly two tons of oil. Santa Clara county has an exhibit of prunes wrought in the shape of a horse, and Humboldt, a bear cave, with a fierce looking brute at its mouth. Ventura shows a pagoda constructed of beans; San Diego, a portiere of silk cocoons, and Fresno a miniature temple of redwood roofed with stalks of grain and pampas plumes. Kern county�s structure is in the form of a bridge, on the top and sides of which are arranged in glass jars her cereal, fruits, and cotton, while beneath the span is a collection of minerals. The base of the bridge rests on two globes labeled "Orient" and "Occident," and thus is suggested her world-wide range of products. Under the western gallery the chamber of commerce has an elaborate display of grains from several counties, of citrus fruits from Riverside, Los Angeles, and San Bernardino, and of wines from the largest cellars in California, containing about one half of the aggregate production of the United States.

In the art gallery are contributions from the foremost of California artists, such men as Thomas Hill, William Keith, Norton Bush, and Virgil Williams. Women are also largely represented, with a dozen or more exhibitors. Not a few of the works are loans from private collections, and of all that were submitted to the committee less than one third were accepted. Here also is an exhibit of the arts and industries of women, among which are included music and literature. For this purpose a large and handsomely furnished chamber was prepared, with partitions of carved redwood, and in the corners, spaces filled with divans. At the entrance is a golden gate, designed by Mrs. Vance Cheney and fashioned of large gilded leaves, above which are rugged trunks of trees adorned with foliage and fruits, all worked in tints of gold and gold-bearing quartz. [824] On one of the walls are portraits of California musicians, and near them the works of composers, with Hawaiian, Indian, Japanese, and Chinese instruments hung on panels in each of the corners. Elsewhere, in bookcases of carved native woods, are contributions from California authors, some of them of more than local celebrity. There are also shelves containing painted china and pottery, and there are panels on which are fire etchings and poker work, with designs in brass and iron, embroidery, needlework, and other articles fashioned by the deft fingers of California women.

In the historical display are many mission and Indian relics, the former freely contributed by those in charge of the collections gathered by the Franciscan fathers. From the Los Angeles school of art and from Santa Fe are paintings and photographs of the missions, and of men who have played a prominent part in the annals of the state. Kern, Butte, and Chico counties send a large number of Indian baskets and curios, and in this connection may be mentioned the pictures of Alaskan scenery, including the Muir and Taku glaciers, Juneau, and an ocean view from Sitka, these the property of the Pacific Coast Steamship company. Wells, Fargo and company have also an historical collection, with portraits of the presidents and other officials of this famous express and banking association, from Henry Wells and William G. Fargo, its founders, to John H. Valentine, elected president as successor to Lloyd Tevis in 1892. There are also the portraits of agents of the company who have manfully resisted the attacks of highwaymen, with broken treasure boxes and other articles from plundered stages and trains. For the fourteen years ending with November 1884, there were no less than 313 actual and 34 attempted stage robberies, the loss from these and train robberies exceeding $927,000. Since that date no general report has been made; but, as the company remarks, "this has not been due to dearth of material." George D. Roberts is here, George Hackett, Aaron Ross, Hank Monk, and other celebrities. There is the oldest railroad pass in existence, granted in 1836 to W. C. Gray, then in charge of the express traffic on the Boston and Lowell line. There are signs more than half a century old; there are posters offering large rewards for the apprehension of desperadoes; there are the stamps used by the Pony express, and finally there is the double-barrelled shot-gun with which, as his only weapon, "Black Bart" played the role of the lone highwayman.

By the San Francisco board of directors was prepared, in the form of a circular relief map, a panoramic outline of the city, its bay, and the shores adjacent. The model is more than 100 feet in circumference and seven in height; but depressed beneath the level of the floor so as to afford a perfect bird�s-eye view. All the principal streets and buildings are shown, with railroads, park, and plazas, on the scale of one square foot to the block, and thoroughfares two inches in width. Among the objects of this exhibit was to show the geographical and other advantages of San Francisco, as the western gateway of the nation, and with one of the finest harbors in the world.

[826] - Still another special exhibit is the collection of astronomical photographs illustrating the work of the Lick observatory in the space allotted to Santa Clara county, where, near the summit of Mount Hamilton, more than 4,000 feet above the sea-level, is the site of this well known institution. Of these, three specimens are here reproduced, the one representing the total solar eclipse of 1893 being a copy of a photograph taken in Chile by the members of an expedition specially despatched for that purpose. Among other valuable work accomplished by the observatory, of which E. S. Holden is director, are the observations of the transit of Mercury in 1881, of the transit of Venus in 1882, and the discovery and measurement of a large number of double stars.

Second to California�s elaborate display, and second only, is that of Washington, one of the youngest and most vigorous among the Pacific coast sisterhood. To her rich and multiform resources, and to her thriving industries, as exemplified in the main departments of the Fair, and especially in the Agricultural, Horticultural, Forestry, Fisheries, and Mining divisions, I have called attention in other sections of this work. For her home at Jackson Park a choice location was allotted, near one of the principal entrances, this being accorded, as explained by the director-general, on account of her liberal appropriation, and her prompt application for space on which to erect a separate building, the first one received on all the list.

Of the forest and mineral wealth of Washington there is an excellent illustration in the building itself, the materials for which were collected and shipped from her logging camps, quarries, and factories at considerable expense of time and money, and with results that speak for themselves. Nearly all the materials; not only the lumber, logs, and stone, but the doors, window frames, and sashes; the moldings, panellings, and wainscoting; the stairs and railings were contributed by her citizens; for nowhere was displayed a more general interest in the great World�s Fair, and a more worthy ambition that the state should be well represented.

The Washington edifice cannot be readily mistaken; for it is unique and characteristic in appearance, and in front of it is one of the tallest flag-staffs in the world, 238 feet in height, and cut from the fir-tree forests that encircle Puget sound. For the plan competition was invited from architects resident in the state, the one selected by the director of works, to whom were submitted the prize drawings, being that of Warren P. Skillings, who thus became the artificer of the building. The foundations and lower walls are of fir logs, some of them [827] 127 feet long, eight in diameter, and yet so cut away that the timber squared from the surface of each would suffice to build a room cottage. The roof is shingled, and supported by massive timber trusses, and the interior finished in cedar and fir; all the materials used coming from the evergreen state, even to the nails and the paint. The first floor is almost absorbed by the central hall, and on the second story is a reception chamber, with parlors and committee rooms. In the wings are grouped the principal exhibits, one of them having a solid concrete floor, on which are arranged the mineral collections. Of the two main entrances, the one facing the lagoon is constructed of carved building stones, and the other, fronting on the grounds, of ores with veins of silver, lead, and various metals, with mosses and vines in the crevices.

The building is plainly furnished, and with a view to display the exhibits to the best advantage. As to decorative features, there is first of all the seal of the state carved from native woods, the centre of spruce, with stars made of quaking asp surrounding the head of Washington, whose features are fashioned of madrona, his wig of elderberry, his coat of black cedar, and his ruff of mountain pine. Among the decorated panellings are those which display the rhododendron, or state flower, carved on white maple, and a spray of hops on native oak. On larger panels carved in birch are shipping, mining, lumbering, and farming scenes, with a vessel loading grain at the wharf; a train of freight cars issuing from the tunnel of a mine; a saw-mill, with operatives at work, and a farm with harvesters in the grain fields and a large cornucopia from which are pouring the fruits of the earth.

Entering at the south wing the visitor is confronted with great sections of fir, spruce, cedar, oak, and maple, from the timber regions of Puget sound, some of them the full diameter of the trees, and others displaying the finish they will take. A huge fir stump has a cedar log entangled in its root, thus showing that the fir has grown above the cedar, and as the latter is perfectly sound, and the former at least two centuries old, we have here sufficient proof of the durability of Washington timber. In this section are also rolls of wrapping paper made from the pulp of the fir and cottonwood. Among other manufactures are wooden vessels, shingles, and lumber in various forms. Near by is the mining and mineral exhibit, mainly of gold, silver, lead, onyx, coal, iron, copper, asbestos, mineral paint, and building stones. Here is a block of coal from the Rosslyn mine, weighing more than 25 tons, and probably the largest that was ever mined in a single piece.

Connecting the southern wing with the body of the building is a corridor neatly draped with cereals and fruits, the former in sheaf and wondrous large. On the ground floor of the main structure is a model farm in miniature, with houses, barns, and fences; fields in summer fallow, with ting gang ploughs at work, and all the machinery and implements represented on a diminutive scale. Here also are mounted specimens of the fauna of Washington, her elk, deer, and bear; her seals and sea-fowl; her silver salmon, her mountain trout, and other varieties of fish, with the skeleton of a mammoth elephant, thirteen feet high and with tusks nearly ten feet in length. Thence to the north wing leads another corridor where is a display of garden vegetables - cabbages, beets, potatoes, onions, parsnips, and turnips of phenomenal size and yet of excellent quality.

In the northern wing are the educational and art exhibits, with a collection of woman�s work, including needlework, lace-making, embroidery, and panel-paintings. The school buildings and systems of Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, and other cities are shown in photographic form, with the pupils at their studies or exercises, and there are numerous specimens of chirography, drawing, and drafting. In the art display are excellent paintings in oil and water colors, all of local subjects and by Washington artists. In photographs are also views of the homes and business structures of Tacoma, whose site, a dozen years ago, was little better than a wilderness of forest primeval, and where now are business blocks and residences worthy of a city of metropolitan rank. [828] Ascending to the upper floor the visitor is entertained by cultured men and women, in apartments handsomely furnished, and with no lack of the hospitality characteristic of the evergreen state. Especially was this apparent on the day selected for celebration, for which the simple exercises were arranged by the state commission, with N. G. Blalock as president.

Idaho�s representation at the Fair is largely due to her commissioner, James M. Wells, the only one appointed for that state. Through his persistent and well directed efforts, a region rich in resources and possibilities, but before comparatively unknown, has taken rank at the great Exposition with many of the older and more populous sections. The state building, one of the most unique and original structures in Jackson park, is a modified form of a Swiss chalet, built of logs of uniform thickness on a foundation of lava rock, these and all other materials of home production. The logs are rough hewn and represent more than twenty varieties of timber which grow in the forests of Idaho, among them, pine, fir, cottonwood, aspen, cedar, tamarack, hemlock, alder, yew, thorn, and willow. In front of the edifice, beneath its overhanging eaves, is the seal of the state cut in stone, and over the shield of the commonwealth, a mounted specimen of a stag. The entrance is in the form of a rude archway of lave rock, and a wainscoting of minerals is a feature of the hallway, the offices opening from them being finished in fir, cedar, tamarack, and pine. The outer doors are composed of mica instead of glass, thus calling attention to a mineral found only in Idaho and North Carolina in deposits of commercial value. The fireplaces are made of white marble, basaltic rock, and pressed brick, the last representing a recent but promising industry. In pictorial form are illustrated here and there the scenery and characteristic flora of the state.

On the second floor are reception rooms, separated transversely by what is known as Mica hall, its doors and windows fashioned of blocks and sheets of mica and with wainscoting of the same material. The parlor for men is furnished as an old-time hunter�s lodge, with fireplace of native marble, three-pronged andirons resembling bear traps, and on the walls various trophies of the chase. [829] Mounted deer, elk, caribou, and sheep are picturesquely grouped, and here is also a cougar slain by the knife of a noted huntsman. Above the fireplace is the rifle of the Modoc chief, Captain Jack, and among other articles are Indian relics and costumes of brilliant hues. The doors of the lodge are of hewn oak, the hinges and fastenings in the form of dirks, flasks, arrows, pistols, and other weapons and implements. Elsewhere in the building the bracings and hinges of the doors, most of which are mode of a single slab of timber, are in imitation of miners� tools. In the women�s parlor are a mantel of white marble, homespun carpet, and tea-set arranged on an oaken sideboard. Old-fashioned candlesticks are fastened to the rough-hewn logs, where also hang Indian baskets and fabrics, while vegetables, corn, and tobacco speak of the domestic products of the state.

On the third floor is the exhibition chamber, about 50 feet square, in which is an elaborate display of cereals, with hundreds of jars of fruit and a complete herbarium of flowers and grasses. Here also is an exhibit of taxidermy, including members of the deer family with bears and wolves, all in life-like attitudes. The rarest specimen among them is of a black wolf, which appears with a rabbit in its mouth, amid what appears to be a patch of sagebrush. In a glass case is a collection of more than 100 varieties of birds indigenous to the state.

In the collection and organization of Montana�s exhibits woman plays a prominent part, and a liberal share of the appropriation was set aside for her use, five lady managers having charge of all matters pertaining to dairy products, poultry, pantry stores, needle-work, floriculture, and such of the fine arts, plastic and ornamental, as are the products of woman�s hands. The president of the woman�s branch is Mrs. J. E. Rickards, wife of the governor, with Mrs. Clara L. M�Adow as associate, Stephen De Wolf being at the head of the board.

The state building is a one-story structure of Romanesque design, its arched vestibule with marble floor, in front of which is a trophy of precious ores, surmounted by a lordly elk. On one of the panels at the side is the state motto, "Oro & Plata," and on the other the inscription, "A.D., MDCCCXCIII." Within are parlors and a general reception room in the form of a rotunda, the architectural feature of the interior being its heavy Roman pilasters with massive caps and bases. The rotunda, which is [830] octagonal in shape, is finished in native pine, the upper panels decorated with the heads of buffalo, elk, bear, and other animals indigenous to the state. Light is admitted through the stained glass roof of a dome beneath which are paintings that speak of the picturesque scenery and mineral wealth of Montana. The walls are tinted an olive green, as are those of the women�s parlors to the right, all the furniture being upholstered in leather. Back of the main reception room is a banquet hall, in the centre of which is a group of mounted elk, and elsewhere are smoking and reading rooms supplied with desks, tables, and easy chairs.

Among the paintings most admired is that of Shoshone Falls, representing a seething mass of water falling over projecting cliffs, on the brow of which is a pine tree about to plunge into the rapids below. Among Indian subjects are the crossing of the Lo Lo trail by the Nez Perce tribe, and one named "Me," showing a plumed and painted brave gazing at his own portrait. Russell, "the cow-boy artist," entirely self-taught, has several subjects selected from incidents of his life, as "The Bucking Broncho," "The Buffalo Hunt," and "The Indian Tepee." From the women of Montana are several portraits, with photographs of early settlers and prominent citizens. In a broad gallery surrounding the rotunda are specimens of Montana�s fruits, natural and preserved, together with samples of feminine handiwork.

On a site adjoining that of the Washington building, Colorado erected a neat and commodious edifice in style of old Spanish architecture, with slender towers, in which are spiral staircases, rising from the main facade to a height of nearly 100 feet. The color scheme is in ivory white, and the decorations, though not elaborate, are sufficient to relieve the broad, plain surface of the walls. Passing through portals 40 feet in width, the visitor enters the central hall, whence stairways lead to the floor above. At the end of the hall is a large mantel of onyx, flanked by glass doors opening into the offices, and on the sides are smoking and reception chambers. On the second story an assembly room, with vaulted ceiling, extends across the centre of the building, and adjoining it are reading and writing rooms, from which is access to hanging balconies.

The home of the centennial state was intended merely as a place of rest and entertainment, and apart from relics and curiosities, contains no special exhibits, Colorado reserving her strength fro the main departments of the Exposition. While nearly all the western states are well represented, there are some to whom special credit is due, and among them is Colorado, whose display is worthy of her resources and achievements. A generation has not yet passed away since, in 1859, the discovery of gold drew westward the second great migration across the plains; and yet within that time Colorado, standing almost in midcontinent between the west and the further west, has already surpassed her older sisters, and with a future the greatness of which no man can foretell. As a mining region she ranks first in the production of silver and second in output of gold. Stock-raising has ever been a profitable industry, nearly 2,000,000 cattle grazing among her valleys and [831] foothills, with annual shipments east of 100,000 head. Her yield of cereals and fruits is rapidly increasing, and her irrigation system is among the best in the republic. In civic growth no state has a prouder record, Denver, which in 1860 was a straggling village, with but a single pound of nails in all the settlement, having in 1880 a population of 36,000, and in 1890 of 107,000, or nearly a threefold gain within a decade.

Utah�s participation in the Fair is largely due to the enterprise of her Mormon population, by whom were also subscribed most of the necessary funds, a legislative appropriation of $50,000 being vetoed by the governor. In the territorial building and its contents, as in the principal departments of the Exposition, is strongly expressed the individuality of the Mormon community, a statue of Brigham Young, for instance, standing in front of the edifice, while the arch near the main portal is a partial reproduction of the old Eagle gate of the Mormon temple. But the industries and resources of Utah are also fully exemplified, [832] and especially the industries of women, no less than twenty-six county associations, with clubs innumerable, working in unison with the territorial board, of which R. C. Chambers is president.

The home of Utah stands on the northern verge of the grounds, its front resembling, on a smaller scale, the classic structures that surround the central court. For the foundations, columns, pilasters, and other portions, the materials used are in imitation of native building stones, while the walls are fashioned as in a structure of adobes. The portico, with its Ionic pillars, is the point of architectural emphasis, and this is approached from a spacious terrace, to which a broad flight of steps leads from the avenue adjacent. In the centre of the building is an exhibition hall, open from floor to skylight, and elsewhere are reception rooms, offices, and a bureau of information, with other offices on the second floor, where also is an apartment for special exhibits.

In oaken cases around the central hall and in the gallery chamber the exhibits are neatly grouped, and in such manner as to illustrate to the best advantage the resources and possibilities of Utah. Gold, silver, and sulphur are the principal minerals displayed, and with them is shown the process of reducing sulphur and of handling rock salt and borax, both of which are found in large deposits. The silk and beet-sugar industries are well represented, and of cotton there are several specimens. A feature in the display is the collection of woman�s work, and especially the articles contributed by the board of lady managers. Among them are portieres of broadcloth richly decorated; rugs made of the skins of the grizzly bear and mountain lion, and a table and clock of native woods and onyx. Photographs are abundant, showing the scenery of Utah, her homes, her temple, and her tabernacle. Finally there is a large collection of Indian relics, including weapons, ornaments, and pottery, with an Indian mummy reposing at full length, discovered in one of the mountain caves.

Arizona, New Mexico, and Oklahoma jointly occupy a long, low, two-story building, a garden upon its flat roof displaying the typical vegetation of the southwest. Beds and columns of gigantic cacti are arranged in front of this structure, its plain veranda surmounted by a balcony, with plants in large vessels along the railing, overshadowing the entrance-ways to the headquarters of the three territories. To a certain extent the small exhibition rooms are a duplication of that which was displayed in the general departments, and among them are mineral specimens from New Mexico and Arizona, with the grains and vegetables of Oklahoma. Int eh second story are parlors nearly furnished and not without evidences of artistic taste. In New Mexico�s chamber are beautiful specimens of woman�s work, including that which comes from the Navajos, and here are also paintings of more than average merit. Among Arizona�s collection is a life size crayon portrait of General Crook, and near it a picture of an old log-house built in Prescott in 1863, the pioneer building of that locality and the residence of the first governor. In photographic form are other historic spots, with several views of the Grand canon. There is also a collection of pottery from one of the Indian agencies, and from the wife of General O�Neil comes a quilt in which are reproduced the corps badges of the United States army.

World�s Fair Miscellany - On the eve of Chicago day A. F. Seeberger, treasurer of the Fair, signed his check for $1,565,310.76, in payment of the balance due on debenture bonds, thus cancelling all the indebtedness of the Exposition.

The Illinois mansion, the most expensive of all the state buildings, cost $250,000, and in its construction were used 3,000,000 feet of lumber and 650 tons of iron. The governor�s suite of apartments is supplied with antique furniture, all from native woods, and with [833] carvings in high relief. A chamber was set apart for the Illinois Press association, the members of which held a special celebration on the 16th of June. In connection with the education exhibits may be mentioned those of the state institution for the training of the deaf and dumb, contained in two cheerful sunny rooms in the southeastern corner of the building. In this institution are on an average about 500 inmates, the specimens of work displayed resembling those described in connection with other institutions in the chapter on Liberal Arts.

Michigan�s building was dedicated on the 13th of September, in the presence of at least 20,000 of her citizens, among them Governor John T. Rich, ex-Governor Russell A. Alger, ex-Senator Thomas W. Ferry, General A. T. McReynolds, and I. M. Weston, president of the state board. In an eloquent speech, Thomas W. Palmer, president of the Exposition, sketched the earlier history of Michigan, and then spoke of the material and social development evolved from the work of its founders and pioneers. Then came brief addresses from those who were identified with the history of the state. Director-general Davis, Fred Douglass, and Mrs. Annet Laura Haviland were also among the speakers. Mrs. Haviland was a prominent figure during slavery days as one of those who assisted in the escape of negro fugitives, by means of what was known as the "underground railway."

The home of Minnesota was dedicated by the members of the State Editorial association before it was formally opened, J. A. Johnson presenting the building to Senator Keller, by whom it was accepted in the name of the state. Of special interest were the impromptu remarks of L. P. Hunt, its superintendent, to whose exertions was largely due Minnesota�s creditable display in all departments of the Fair. The building was christened in behalf of the press by Mrs. Oscar Lineau.

Much of the credit for North Dakota�s standing at the Fair is due to Martin Hector, president of the state board. Aside from her display in the Agricultural department, there was a most interesting exhibit in the Forestry building, showing what intelligent effort may accomplish in reclothing denuded lands. October 10th was North Dakota day, Governor Shortbridge, ex-governors Burke and Miller, and the president of the state board participating in the exercises.

The forty-seventh anniversary of Iowa�s admission into the union was celebrated on the 21st of September by one of the largest assemblages gathered on special days. There was a military parade, together with a cadet corps and a brigade of girls attired in blue uniforms. At Festival Hall the exercises included music by the Iowa state band and addresses by James O. Crosby, president of the state board, Governor Boies, Chief Buchanan, of the Agricultural department, and Mrs. Isabella Hooper.

During the early portion of September the people of Kansas devoted an entire week to celebrations and festivities, the 12th being selected as Kansas day. Among the participants were L. D. Lewelling, leader of the people�s party, M. W. Cobun, president of the state board, and solon O. Thacher, one of the pioneers and founders of the state, with musical societies from Topeka and the state militia. Here also was one who, more than all others, revived the memories of early days when Kansas was the centre of political interest. This was Captain John Brown, whose father was the strongest factor in the agitation which prevailed in Kansas for several years before the civil war; the captain, himself a noted abolitionist, taking part in the sack of Lawrence, but not in the attack on Harper�s ferry, and at the outbreak of the war raising a company of cavalry. He is still a hale and vigorous specimen of manhood, though several years beyond the allotted span of life.

The cost of the California building exceeded $100,000, its decorative scheme being intrusted to Mary C. Bates of San Francisco. In the rotunda the effect of the fountain, with circular basins and a lofty palm with spreading crown rising from its centre, is extremely beautiful, the green of the tree and the plants around its base contrasting with the terra cotta of the fountain, and the water trickling over moss-covered rocks, or rather their semblance in staff. To the right of the palm-tree is the pampas palace exhibited by Mrs. Strong, of Whittier, Los Angeles county. It is decorated with pampas plumes as soft as feathers and worked in tasteful designs, the interior furnished with articles made of the same materials. From the women of Alamada county came an attractive exhibit, the feature in which is a clock with framework of onyx and surmounted by marble figures, the numbered hours on the dial-plate encircled with pictorial illustrations of prominent buildings. A craved wooden mantel is the joint work of two Alameda damsels, and from this depends a curtain embroidered by the sisters of the convent of Notre Dames. The building was dedicated on the 19th of June, the keys being delivered to Governor Markham by James D. Phelan, vice-president of the state board. The governor�s speech was followed by several others, and then came a feast of fruit and wine. On the 5th of August a number of argonauts met in their Jackson park home to exchange reminiscences of pioneer days. The 9th of September was selected for California�s celebration; for on that day of 1850 she was admitted without a probationary term. There were the usual addresses, with music, singing, and recitations.

The Utah celebration was also on the 9th of September, Utah being admitted as a territory simultaneously with the admission of California to statehood. At Festival hall Mormons and Gentiles met together, nearly 3,000 in number, among them Caleb West, the governor of the territory, and Wilfred Woodruff, the president of the church, with whom were George Q. Cannon and Joseph F. Smith. After singing by the Mormon choir, Mrs. Richards, president of the woman�s board, spoke a few words of welcome, and then came the governor�s address, in which he referred to the exodus from Nauvoo, the toilsome journey across plain and mountain, and told how, amid the sage-brush plains of the desert, the Mormons planted their homes, living at times on boiled thistles and stewed thistle tops. The exercises concluded with an address from George Q. Cannon, followed by music and song.

A fountain, the base of which was formed of crude ores and the pedestal of cut crystals, was a contribution from the women of Lewis and Clarke counties, Montana. The bowl was of native silver, with a tube resembling the clematis vine. From Beaverhead county came, also as the gift of women, a table of native woods, its top of mosaic work in several hundred pieces, and on its side a panel made of silver furnished by the Hecla mine.