748 CONGRESSIONAL PROCEEDINGS. 



Erection of building. A committee of the board of the respective 

 Departments was appointed to take into consideration all the matters 

 relating to this building, and to consider plans for the same; and from 

 several offered them, that of an edifice in the form of a cross, designed 

 by James H. Windrim, of Philadelphia, was selected. The floor of this 

 occupied 102,840 square feet, of which 20,840 was taken up by passages, 

 leaving a space remaining of 82,000 square feet for exhibition purposes. 

 It was completed and ready for occupation March 1, 1876, on which 

 date it was accepted by the board. The space assigned to each Depart- 

 ment was as follows: 



Feet. 



War Department 1 1, 200 



Navy Department 10, 400 



Treasury Department 3, 000 



Post-Office Department 3, 800 



Interior Department 20, 600 



Agricultural Department 6, 000 



Smithsonian Institution 20, 600 



Fish Commission 6, 000 



81,600 



The original contract for the cost of this building was $67,201.61, 

 but subsequent changes somewhat increased the amount. These, with 

 other expenses, such as grading the grounds, etc., made the total 

 amount to be deducted from the available fund and divided pro rata 

 among the various Departments, with the exception of the Treasury 

 and the Commission of Food Fishes, about $94,000, leaving about 

 $411,000 for the actual purposes of the display. 



The building was entirely of wood, and of course liable to damage 

 from fire. A careful guard was, however, maintained, and no accident 

 of any kind occurred during the exhibition. 



Completeness on opening day. Although the time at the command 

 of the board for the preparation of the exhibit was short, and the 

 amount of money appropriated to carry out the plans of the several 

 Departments was considered by them insufficient for the purpose, on 

 the opening day of the exhibition most of the articles were in their 

 places, this being especially the case with those of the Army and Navy; 

 and the remainder were ready within the course of a few weeks later. 

 In this respect the Government display was in advance of those in the 

 other buildings, the internal arrangements of which were more or less 

 incomplete for a long time after the 10th of May. 



THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITl'TION. 



This illustrated, first, the operations of the Institution itself; sec- 

 ond, that of the National Museum of the United States under its 

 charge. 



