THE AQUARIUM AT THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. . 145 



The weather of the winter and spring was an almost uninterrupted succession of 

 storms, which embarrassed and delayed preparations in Chicago and practically broke 

 up again and again our held operations on the Great Lakes and on the Illinois and 

 Mississippi rivers; nevertheless, May 1, "opening day," the aquarium was in good 

 working order throughout, with the interior decoration of the tanks completed; nearly 

 all were stocked fairly well — some profusely — with a good variety of marine animals 

 and fresh- water fishes; and the machinery of maintenance and further supply was 

 thoroughly organized and at work on a scale to insure an abundance of material 

 throughout the season. By June 1 we had probably the largest collection of fresh- water 

 fishes in number and variety ever brought together in the world, and a marine exhibit 

 which, considering the great distance from the sea, reflected the highest credit on the 

 officers and men of the Commission whose energy and resources had brought it together. 



Without entering into unprofitable detail of our experience, I have thought it 

 desirable to give here such a description of our plant and equipment and of certain 

 special features of our work as may be supposed to have a value for the guidance of 

 others similarly engaged, together with such contributions to biological knowledge as 

 we were able to make under the peculiarly disadvantageous circumstances surrounding 

 us in the midst of the rush and turmoil of a great exposition season. 



The Fisheries Building was erected and equipped by the Exposition Company 

 substantially according to plans made by the architect, Henry Ives Cobb, the 

 aquarian management having had nothing to do with plans or construction previous 

 to January 1, 1893, at which date the aquarium annex was transferred to the control 

 of the U. S. Commissioner of Fisheries, and by him placed in charge of the writer. 

 This annex or wing, connected with the main building by an open corridor, had the 

 form of a circle 131 feet inside diameter. The outer walls were comparatively low 

 and the roof conical, the interior part of the cone being elevated above the outer part 

 upon a low wall with many windows. The aquarium tanks were arranged in two 

 concentric circles: an outer circle of smaller tanks with glass fronts within lighted 

 by windows in the outer wall of the building and by heavy glass in the roof above; 

 and an inner circle with both outer and inner faces glass and lighted only from 

 the roof, the two being separated by a passageway 15 feet wide. This aisle was so shut 

 in above by a vaulted ceiling that the only light admitted to it, except that from the 

 general entrances to the building, reached the spectator through the glass fronts of 

 the aquaria. 



Between the outer circle of aquarium tanks and the wall of the annex wasa narrow 

 passage for the attendants, who were of course thus behind the scenes when at work. 

 The inner tanks were reached by ladders going from this passage over the vaulted 

 ceiling of the aisle above mentioned and thus also concealed from view. Above both 

 sets of aquaria were panels of darkened glass (covered by us with heavy felt), some of 

 which were hinged to permit the introduction of specimens to the tanks. The central 

 portion of the room was occupied by a circular pool 26 feet across, separated from the 

 inner circle of tanks by a corridor or aisle about 15 feet wide and lighted by windows 

 in the vertical part of the roof. 



The entire glass frontage of the aquaria amounted toG65 linear feet, approximately 

 3,000 square feet in all, the total capacity of the 50 tanks being 140,000 gallons, of 

 which about 40,000, in 15 tanks, were devoted to the marine exhibit. The central pool 

 contained about 0,000 gallons of fresh water additional. The tanks of the outer series 



F. C. 15. 189::- io 



