WINDOW LIGHTS AND THEIR VA1UE. 361 



the color of light can be found in more prosaic subjects. Build- 

 ings offer examples. Ordinary brick and stone often have more 

 influence than is imagined upon the light that enters windows. A 

 brilliant although exceptional example of this occurred once in 

 the writer's office. It has an eastern exposure and nearly opposite, 

 at a distance of over one hundred feet, is a large red-brick build- 

 ing. The sky area exceeds all others, and ordinarily the amount 

 of gray or light-blue light entering is enough to entirely overcome 

 the effect of the red surface. On this special occasion, however, 

 after a rainy day the sun suddenly burst through the clouds. The 

 face of the building was illuminated by clear white sunlight, and 

 stood out brilliantly against a backing of heavy, dark clouds. 

 The effect in the office was most noticeable. Where had been 

 nothing but a cold gray light in an instant a glare of red was cast 

 over everything. Table and book that had been dull looked warm 

 in color, and the walls appeared, as if by magic, in the most deli- 

 cate rose tint fit for a fairy's boudoir. True, these were conditions 

 most admirably adapted to illustrate the point that surfaces oppo- 

 site windows can affect the quality as well as the intensity of the 

 light reflected, but others more common lead to the same con- 

 clusion. 



An excellent opportunity for alternating contrast is offered by 

 a ride on an elevated city railway. Let one select a time in the 

 afternoon when the eastern sky is not so bright as to obliterate 

 the effect, and seat himself on the right-hand side of a down-town 

 train in New York city. If the buildings are not too far removed 

 from the track, a very decided change is noticed as each block is 

 passed. Where the opening of the street brings a considerable 

 sky area into view an ordinary gray light is cast upon the news- 

 paper. This is succeeded by a sudden flush of rose as a high block 

 of red-brick buildings is passed, and again a street opening allows 

 the western sky to assert itself. Moreover, let it be noted that this 

 may occur not with a bright sunlight pouring upon the buildings, 

 but when they are in shadow, except as the eastern sky illumi- 

 nates them. 



Occasionally the effect of surfaces opposite the windows upon 

 the color of the light can be noticed inside of buildings, even with 

 no exceptional atmospheric conditions existing. On any clear 

 day, by limiting the rays striking a marble slab in a certain 

 room chiefly to those from a brick building opposite, one can 

 change the white marble to a deep rose tint of a most beauti- 

 ful shade. 



These various illustrations have many corroborations in ex- 

 perience. They show that the light entering windows must be 

 considerably influenced in color by reflecting surfaces opposite, 

 even though the effect be not noticeable. Usually this is not a 



