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| CENTRE OF THE WOODED ISLAND - The engraving
places us centrally in the Wooded Island, among the fairy lamps, and
facing the dome of Horticultural Hall,
which, owing to this broad view, ranked as the second conspicuous
object in the park. On the other side of the island, opposite this
dome, rose the Manufactures Building, like
a mountain, a structure too large for immediate view. In the park,
the Administration Building was first;
this vista of dome and thought of flowers was second; but in the lake,
a mile away, the big building was given scope, and scenes like this
receded into littleness or nothing. In 1891, this beautiful place was
a reedy marsh. For a mile, the blackbirds sang and the frogs piped
their ship-caulking chorus. Under the direction of Superintendent
Ulrich, with thousands of men, with sand-cars, dredges, and
steam-shovels, the very aspect of nature was changed within the space
of sixty days. Some of the marsh was dug into lagoons, and the sand
beneath was placed in the centre for dry land. Black earth was first
skimmed away and piled into a hill at one side of the park, and
afterward spread forth upon the yellow expanse. The scene was one of
Creation. The leading spirit in the park during its fiercest turmoil
was Dion Geraldine, Superintendent of Construction, and subsequent
failure to open on time, because, perhaps, of his absence, seemed to
prove that but for his astonishing energy, there would have been no
complete Fair even in July, 1893. The fairy lamps seen here have been
used in Europe for ages. |
