THE CALIFORNIA BUILDING.
The California building was of the Spanish renaissance style of architecture. The broad steps that led up to the five large arches which opened on to the wide portico or colonnade were eighty feet long, and through any of the five broad doors that fronted the arches visitors entered the main exhibition hall. This hall was one hundred and forty feet square with gallery on all four sides twenty-one feet high and thirty feet wide. Four flights of easy stairs, one at either corner, led to the spacious gallery. Light was diffused from side windows under the gallery and in the gallery high enough from the floor so as not to interfere with the wall for exhibit purposes, and from an iron-framed skylight sixty-four feet square. On either side of the main building and in line with the front there were wings thirty-two feet wide and thirty-five feet long. This gave a total frontage to the building of two hundred and ten feet, or a little more than two-thirds of an average city block. The wings were so arranged as to provide a lecture hall, offices, parlor, reception room, buffet, and living rooms for the Representatives and some of the employees. The structure as a whole presented an imposing appearance and was ideal for the purpose intended. It was designed and built by the State Engineering Department, with an occasional inspection by one of the Representatives. Builders figured on the plans and variously estimated the cost at from $50,000 to $56,000. We had asked for a building to cost not exceeding one-third of the appropriation. For a time we feared the dimensions would have to be reduced, but State Engineer Ellery, after figuring carefully on the job, expressed the opinion that he could erect the structure as planned for an amount pretty close to our figures. He was finally requested to go ahead with the work. He put one of his trusted superintendents in charge, hired his help by the day, and when completed as nearly as desired for exposition purposes, it was found to have cost, including preparation of grounds and finishing of lecture room, just $40,333.84, and it was better finished outside and more substantially constructed than Exposition buildings usually are.