34 THE HISTORY OF THE CONGRESS 



effect upon American thought, and then formally announced the 

 Congress closed. 



OFFICIAL BANQUET 



The official banquet given by the Exposition to all participants, 

 members, and officials of the Congress, on Friday evening, at the 

 Tyrolean Alps banquet hall, proved a charming conclusion to the 

 labors of the week. No better place could be imagined for holding it, 

 within the grounds of an exposition, than the magnificently propor- 

 tioned music and dining hall of the " Alps." A room 160 feet by 105 

 feet, capable of seating fifteen hundred banqueters; the spacious, 

 oval, orchestral stage at the south end; the galleries and boxes along 

 the sides of the hall done in solid German oak; the beautiful and 

 impressive mural decorations, the work of the best painters of Ger- 

 many; the excellence of the cuisine, and the thoroughly drilled corps 

 of waiters, rendered the physical accessories of a banquet as nearly 

 perfect as possible in a function so extensive. 



The banquet was the largest held during the Exposition period, 

 eight hundred invitations being issued and nearly seven hundred 

 persons present. The music was furnished by the famous Garde 

 Republicaine Band of France, as the Exposition orchestra was 

 obliged to fill its regular weekly assignment at Festival Hall. The 

 decorations of the hall, the lights and flowers, the musical pro- 

 gramme, the galleries and boxes filled with ladies representing the 

 official and social life of the Exposition, and the distinguished body 

 of the Congress, formed a picture which appealed to the admiration 

 and enthusiasm of every one alike. No attempt was made to assign 

 seats to the banqueters outside the speakers' table, and little coteries 

 and clusters of scientists, many of whom were making acquaintances 

 and intellectual alliances during this week which would endure for 

 a lifetime, were scattered about the hall, giving an interest and an ani- 

 mation to the scene quite beyond the powers of description. In one 

 corner were Harnack, Budde, Jean Reville, and Cuthbert Hall, chat- 

 ting as animatedly as though their religious theories were not as far 

 apart as the poles; in another, Waldeyer, Escherich, Jacobi, Allbutt, 

 and Kitasato formed a medical group, the counterpart of which would 

 be hard to find unless in another part of this same hall; still again 

 were Erdmann, Sorley, Ladd, Royce, and Creighton as the centre of 

 a group of philosophers of world renown. So in every part of the 

 picture which met the eye were focused the leaders of thought and 

 action in their respective fields. The tout ensemble of the Congress was 

 here brought out in its strongest effect, as, with the exception of the 

 opening exercises at Festival Hall at which time many had not arrived, 

 it was the only time when the entire membership was together. The 

 .banquet coming at the close of the week was also fortunate, as by this 



