THE PROGRESS OF SCIENCE. 



479 



SCHEME P*J 2 



Administration Building. Plan of Second Floor. 



Utah. These efforts have met with 

 some degree of success, but radium 

 from carnotite is not yet on the market. 



NEW BUILDINGS FOR THE DE- 

 PARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



AT WASHINGTON. 

 The plans for the new buildings for 

 the National Department of Agricul- 

 ture contemplate a group of ten build- 

 ings, arranged in the form of a quad- 

 rangle, with an administration build- 

 ing as the central feature. The nine 

 laboratory buildings will be units, and 

 will be connected with the administra- 

 tion building by covered corridors. 

 They will be 60 by 200 feet each in 

 size and 4 stories in height above a 

 high, well-lighted basement. The ad- 

 ministration building will be about 135 

 by 160 feet and 5 stories high. The 

 latter, with a laboratory building on 

 either side, will present an imposing 

 front of 700 feet, which will face south 

 on the broad parkway planned to ex- 

 tend from the Capitol to the Wash- 

 ington Monument. 



The appropriation of $1,500,000 

 made by congress will provide for the i 

 erection of three laboratory buildings, 

 leaving the administration building 

 and the others to be provided for later. 

 As the new site is some distance re- 



moved from the site of the present 

 buildings, the latter can remain in use 

 in the meantime. The three new build- 

 ings will provide accommodations for 

 the laboratories and offices of the de- 

 partment now occupying rented build- 

 ings, as was directed by congress. 



' The buildings will be classic in de- 

 sign and will probably be built of 

 marble. The construction will be of 



j the most substantial character, with 

 thick walls carrying heating and venti- 



I lating flues. The interior space will 

 be divided into units 20 by 20 feet, and 

 each unit will have access to a conduit 

 furnishing water, steam, gas, electric- 



I ity, air pressure and exhaust. The 



I actual arrangement of the laboratories 

 has not yet been settled, nor has it 

 been definitely decided which three of 

 the laboratory buildings will be erected 



I now. 



The department is now occupying 



I very inadequate and in many cases 

 temporary quarters, and is paying an 

 annual rental of about $25,000 for 

 buildings located outside the depart- 

 ment grounds. Its main building was 

 long since condemned and is in no 

 sense a modern structure. The staff 

 of the department at the time it was 

 erected included less than 100 persons; 

 the present enrollment is about 4,200 



