Democratic Sentinel, Volume 15, Number 26, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 July 1891 — WORLD'S FAIR GROUNDS [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

WORLD'S FAIR GROUNDS

MINUTE DESCRIPTION OF THE TOPOGRAPHY. The Different Building* Will To Marvels of Beaatif.il Architecture—Description of Some of the Principal Ones— Peerless in the World’s Bistory. Many thousands, no doubt, have begun -to be curious as to how the buildings and grounds of tho Columbian Exposition will appear—what sort of a spectacle they will ■present. A bird’s-eye view of the site and buildings and a series of cuts of drawings showing the elevations of the soveral structures and their ground plans will soon be Issued. Without waiting for these, however, a general idea can be given. In the northern portion of tho grounds we •will see a ploturesque group of buildings, iperhaps forty or fifty of them, constituting veritable village of palaces. Here, on a hundred acres or more, beautifully laid out, will stand the buildings of foreign nations and of a number of the States of the Union, surrounded by lawns, walks, and beds of flowers and shrubbery. They will be ranged on wide, curving avenuos, will include some of tho most ornate, costly and palatial structures, and constitute perhaps the most fnteresting portion of the entire exposition. In the western part of the group will stand >tho Illinois building, 400 by 100 and -fifty feet in height, and costing £350,000. It -will be severely classic in style, with a -dome in the center, and a great porch facing southward. In this portion of tho park, too, will stand the fine arts building, which 4s to be a magnificent palace costing half a ■million. Just south of the foreign and State buildings may be observed a considerable expanse of the lagoon, with Inlet to ~the lake, and encompassing three islands. On the largest one will stand the United States fisheries building, 700 feet In length, and fianked at each end by a curved «rcade connecting it with two round pavilions in which will be aquaria and the tackle -exhibit. This building, designed by Henry

Ires Cobb, of Chicago, will be in tho Spanish -style, and conspicuous because of a liberal ■ use of color. A little further' south, across an area of the lagoon, will ho the Unltod States Government. Building, measuring throe hundred and fifty by four hundred and twenty '■feet, and having a dome one hundred and 'twenty feet in diameter and one hundred

• and fifty feet high. It will be constructed -of stone, iron, and glass, classic la style, cover four acres, and cost s+oo,ooo. On the - lake shore, east of its building and In part -In the Intervening space, the Government will have a gun-battery, life-saving stations complete with apparatus, war balloons, and a full-size model of a f 3,000,000 ‘battle-ship of the first class. Tho visitor arriving by steamboat will probably see, also, anchored near by. a Columbus fleet—--a reproduction, as near as may be, of the •one with which the great discoverer sailed from Palos—and also a Government reve- ' nue cutter and one or two torpedo boats. The largest building of the Exposition—'that of manufactures and liberal arts—will measure 1,700 by 800 feet, with two Interior -courts, and at its center a great dome 350 feet In diameter. This building, of French renaissance, Is designed by George S. Post, • of New York. Alter passing this Immense structure, the steamboat will drop alongside the pier. This, as designed by Augustus Saint Gaudens, of Paris, will be a thing of beauty • and a source of nriich enjoyment to visitors. Two parallel* piers will extend from the -shore about +OO feet, where, taking out • curves, they will partly enclose a circular harbor, from the center of which will rise, ■on a great pedestal, a commanding statue of Columbus or of the Republic. On the •embracing portions of *tho piers will stand •forty-four exquisite, Isolated columns, representing the forty-four States, each one bearing the coat of arms of the State it symbolizes. The north t:r main pier will •extend a total distance of 1.500 feet, taking there a deflection several hundred feet to the southward, and having at its extremity • Greek pavilion 200 feet In diameter, gayly colored and adorned. From the pier, extending westward, will be a long avenue or court several hundred feet wide, affording. Chief Burnham says, **& spectacle unparalleled In the world—a •marvel of architectural grace and sublimity, an exposition of itself." To the right. :et the entrance of tide grand avenue, will 'he the great mannlhctuies building, and 'farther back the other attractions already referred to. To the left will be the agricultural building: measuring eight hundred hy five hundred feet, designed by Architect McKlm, of New York. This, Chief Burpham says, will bo a “dream." Its cost will 'he half a million, between this and the thnge manufactures building juts a branch -of the lagoon. All down this grand •encompassing a beautiful sheet of water, wbl stand Imposing buildings, along the •majestic facades of which will sweep the of the visitor until it rests upon the administration building of the exposition, •which terminates the vista wile •distant- Upon traversing this, the Visitor will find It a veritable BuU do Boulogne or

Versailles, In point of beauty of effects produced by landscape achitecturo and gardening. Passing the agricultural building tho visitor will come to the great machinery hall, which lies to the westward of It, and which is connected with it by a horseshoe arcade doubling a branch of the lagoon. It

will be nearly identical with it in si/p and cost, but will differ considerably In appearance, being “serious, Impressive, and rich In architectural line and detail,” Chief Burnham says, “and the best work of its designers, Peabody & Stearns, of Boston.” Opposite machinery ball and north of it, in the center of tho “long walk.” will stand tho exposition administration building.

This will be one of the most imposing, and, In proportion to its size, the most expensive of the large structures. Richard M. Hunt, President of the American Institute of Ari hitects, is its designer, and ho has made It stately and simple yot exceedingly striking in appearanco, and an excellent representative of Italian renaissance. It will cost $650,008, be adorned with scores of statuary figures, and t e surmounted by a gilded dome rising 250 feet To the northward of the administration building, on either side and facing the grand avenue, will be two moro immense buildings, one for tho electrical and the other for the mining exhibit. These wl.l be about equal in size, covering each a little more than five acres and a half. Both will bo French renaissance. The former,

designed by Van Brunt & Howe, of Kansas City, will be the moro expensive, however, costing $650,000; while the latter, designed by S. 8. Beman, of Chicago, will cost $350,000. The board'of architects have declared that both will be exceptionally Imposing structures. North of these buildings in the main lagoon will bo an Island of twenty or thirty acres in area. It is the. Intention to have this kept as wild and primitive as possible. There the visitor may wander through a miniature “forest primeval,” pathless and untransforraed by art, and may hunt' the fragrant wild flower or the saucy chipmunk. and generally commune with nature in its native haunts. Proceeding from the administration building still further westward, or, more accurately, southwestward. tho observer will arrive at the railway facilities for the arrival and departure cf visitors. Six parallel tracks will sweep into the grounds in a huge circle at the exlreme southwest portion, entering and leaving at nearly the same point. Around tills loop the trains. In arriving and departing, will sweep at Intervals of a few minutes, and the depot accommodations will bo so extensive and well arranged that it Is believed there will be almost no confuslou or crowding. Within this loop made by the radway

tracks will be the machinery annex—a huge building covering several acres and containing the overflow exhibits from machinery hall, with which It will be connected by subways. Within the doop also Will be the main power-house, from which power will be furnished to sufch buildings on the grounds as require It.

To the southward of tho lino of buildings which are ranged along tho south side of tho grand avenue Is a vast open expanse which will be devoted to the live stock exhibit. Here immense stock buildings, show ring, and whatever else will contribute to the success of the live stock feature of tho exposition will be constructed. Jackson Park resembles a right-angledj

triangle In shape. The visitor lias thus far, on his tuur of inspection, traversed the lake shore or hypothec use of the triangle, and across the southern end, or the base. It remains only to turn toward the north and note structures ranged along the perpendicular. The flr9t one arrived at is the transportation building. This will be Romanesque in style and one of the largest of all, measuring one thousand and twenty by two hundred and sixty feet, exclusive of a great annex in tho rear. The transportation building, together with tho depots, will cost $1,000,000. North of this will be the.horticultural building, another immense structure, oue thousand by one hundred and fifty feet, with three domes, one at ouch end and a larger one in the center. Tuls will be constructed chiefly of glass and

iron, and will cost $250,000 Still farther north, and directly opposite the park entrance of “midway plaisancC,” will stand the woman’s building, which is to be four hundred by two hundred feet in dimensions, two stories high, and will cost $200,000. Here the Lady Managers will, have their headquarters, and here will be collected a doubtless wonderful exhibit illustrating the progress and attainments of women In the various branches of Industry.' Passing the woman’s building the visitor can turn toward the northeast and inspect the foreign aud State buildings in the northern portion of the park, of which he is supposed to have caught a general view from the steamboat dock, or he can turn sharply to the west into “midway plalsance” and ascend the Proctor Tower. This will be constructed of steel and be one thousand and fifty feet or about one hundred feet higher than the Eiffel. From its top the view attainable of the exposition grounds and buildings and of the great city lying to the northward will be magnificent beyoud all description. West of the tower, along the plaisanCe and overflowing into Washington Park, will be a large and curious aggregation of structures. Including probably some of the foreign and State buildings, and many of semi- private construction, aud of a nature

which cannot yet be described. Almost Innumerable structures and exhibits, such as reproductions of famous buildings, etc.,, most of them novel and striking In character, have been proposed, and It Is not yet possible to tell how many or which of them will be erected. That there- will be an astonishing array of them there can be no doubt, and unquestionably &>me of them will be Important and exceedingly interesting features of the great exposition. All the important buildings will stand on terraces four feet above the general park level, thus greatly Improving the general landscape effect and rendering their own appearance more-imposing. From scores of domes and towers and minarets, flags 'and streamers will be floating, and both the exterior and Interior of the buildings will be “warm.” with a liberal display of color. The beautiful park, with Its magnificent array of architecture, will surely present one of the finest spectacles the eyes of man ever beheld.

Frussels and Tapestry. Brussels and tapestry carpets are so similar in appearance that they might readily be regarded, on a casual consideration, as fabrics of the same structure. But when the principles on which the pattern is obtained in the respective articles are examined, it is at once evident that there is practically no actual resemblance; for while in tire brussels the design is purely a woven effect, in the tapestry it is merely a print, says the Upholsterer. The weaving of brussels affords some characteristic features for investigation. The pile warp, for instance, instead of running off ordinary yarn beams, is wound on bobbins or'miniature beams, fixed in frames or a, huge creei stationed behind the loom. Each color requires what is technically called a separate frame. A five-frame brussels is a carpet with this number of colors succeeding each other in the same line of fabric. The manner in which the various colors are controlled—in other words, in which they are concealed from or brought into view—is an important factor in the manufacture of this article. On examining a brussels carpet, it will be observed that the individual threads forming the pile seem either to be composed of seveial colors or to be substituted by yarns of other shades, according to the section of the pattern being formed. For instance, in the same line of the design, looking at the fabric lengthwise, apparently in the same thread, as many as from three to five colors, such as black, green, drab, scarlet, and blue, form the pile in succession. If these effects are not due to a variegated yarn, they result from the employment of five distinct threads, each of which is so controlled that it only appears in the pile when assisting to develop the design. To obtain a three-frame pattern composed, say, of black, scarlet, and olive, at least three separate weaves are necessary—one for each shade. Thus the weave used in forming the shed in the warp for the black pile is so arranged as to depress the scarlet and olive, while that for giving the scarlet pile conceals the black find

olive threads, and, lastly, that for producing the olive pile hides the black and scarlet ends; so that, by an appropriate application of these respective weaves to the design, the colors are brought np in the figure where required.

PERSPECTIVE VIEW OF THE AGRICULTURAL BUILDING.

HOME OF THE FISHERIES EXHIBIT.

MACHINERY HALL.

FRONT ELEVATION OF THE HORTICULTURAL BUILDING.