THE ILLINOIS pRanr EXHIBIT. 



1 1 THEN the Executive Board of the State Horticultural Society 

 l/l^ organized as a Board of Control and took charge of 

 the fruit exhibit of Illinois* in the National Horticultural 

 building on the first day of May, they found that they had 

 plenty of work on hand to get the tables in shape and to se- 

 cure sufficient fruit and maintain a creditable exhibit to. the 

 close of the Exposition. The fruit placed in cold storage the 

 fall before by the Southern and Central Horticultural Socie- 

 ties stood them in good stead, for with this large amount of 

 fruit they were enabled with the small fruits which soon came 

 to hand to make the tables look very inviting indeed. The 

 amount of space assigned to Illinois was 1,622 square feet. 



By the first of June a pavilion had been built forty feet 

 long and twelve feet in depth. Along the front of this were 

 glass-covered refrigerators for the exhibition of small fruits 

 and similar fruits of a perishable nature. Back of the re- 

 frigerators and above the same, shelves were arranged for 

 fruit, and these were reinforced by large mirrors which added 

 very much to the appearance, as the effect was to practically 

 double the show of fruit. To the rear of the mirrors and re- 

 frigerators was enclosed a room about six by thirty feet, where 

 the fruit was received, unpacked, and prepared for exhibition. 

 Stairs led up to a balcony on top of the pavilion, and here vis- 

 itors were received, and a desk was placed for the use of the 

 secretary. Thirty-two tons of ice were used in the refriger- 

 ators during the Exposition, doing away with the necessity of 

 renewing the fruits in a large degree. 



In addition to building the pavilion a new table was built 

 in front of same, six by thirty feet, with the shelves and center 

 piece covered with mirror glass. The whole surmounted by 

 an ornamental center-piece ten feet in height. 



The balance of the tables were also fitted up with mirrors, 

 and later on three arches were thrown over the longest table 



