REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1910. 58 
for the attachment of pictures. Measuring only 13 feet 11 inches 
high, an open interspace of 3 feet occurs between the top of the gen- 
eral inclosing walls and the under surface of the ceiling girders which 
span the piers. All inside wall surfaces have a 6-inch base of pink 
Tennessee marble, surmounted by a wood base of the same height, 
and followed by a molded wainscot rail 3 feet above the floor. All 
interior compartments, except the south room and the corridors, are 
also provided with a 24-inch round handrail of oak at the same 
height as the wainscot rail, supported on ornamental cast-iron brack- 
ets. This rail is generally about 2 feet from the wall, but in some 
places the distance is reduced to 1 foot 4 inches to avoid obstructing 
openings. With the exception of the handrail, all exposed wood- 
work, including the doorway trims and the molding along the tops 
of the screens, is of cypress. 
The surface for the hanging of pictures measures 104 feet high from 
the wainscot rail to the top molding, and has a total linear extent, 
excluding openings, of about 950 feet. It is covered with burlap, as 
is also the space between the baseboard and the wainscot rail, the 
color of this material being a dark green in the rooms and a light 
brown in the corridors. 
The exterior surfaces of the inclosing walls, used for ethnological 
subjects, are provided with marble and wood bases of the same char- 
acter as those in the interior, but they lack the wainscot and hand- 
rails. The burlap covering is of the light-brown color used in the 
corridors. 
The construction of the Gallery screens was finished in February, 
1910, and the hanging of the paintings about the middle of March. 
The installation, directed by the curator of the Gallery, Mr. William 
H. Holmes, proved most effective and resulted in a harmony of 
arrangement which elicited the warmest praise. It should also be 
stated that, upon the completion of this task, the lighting conditions, 
though designed for another purpose, were found to be exceptionally 
good. 
In these new quarters the Gallery was informally opened to the 
public from noon until 5 o’clock on the afternoon of March 17, 1910. 
Admission was by card, partly to prevent undue crowding and partly 
to bring the event specially to the attention of Congress, the official 
body in Washington, and all other persons known to be interested in 
the promotion of art at the Nation’s Capital. The attendance reached 
about 1,600, and the appreciation manifested was extremely grati- 
fying. The space prepared for the occasion, including also the sur- 
rounding parts of the main hall and the adjacent ranges, which 
contained some of the best of the ethnological groups and historical 
exhibits, provided ample room for the circulation and comfort of the 
guests. Since that time the Gallery has continued open. The num- 
