Dorothy's Tour Part 18

"Oh!" gasped Alfaretta. "Isn't the floor lovely? All little colored marbles. I hate to step on it. What is that bra.s.s disk for?"

"Those little pieces of colored marbles are the essential materials for mosaic work, and the bra.s.s rayed disk is to show the points of the compa.s.s," said Mr. Dauntrey, kindly looking at the girl with an amused expression.

"Look!" cried Dorothy, "over that way, way far back. See the carved figures?"

"Yes," answered Aunt Betty. "The one thing the arch typifies is study.

The youth eager to learn and the aged man contemplating the fruits of knowledge. It is a very famous group. I have a postcard picture of it that a relative sent me and I always remembered and liked it."

"Here is something I always thought was interesting, on this side,"

said Mr. Dauntrey, leading them to the other side of the hall. "These two boys sitting beside the map of Africa and America. The one in the feathered head-dress and other accoutrements represents the original inhabitants of our country, the American Indian, the other, showing the lack of dress and the war equipment of the ignorant African. Then those two opposite, the one typifying the Mongolian tribes of Asia, the other in cla.s.sic gown, surrounded by types of civilization indicating the pre-eminence of the Caucasian race in all things, such, for instance, as your chosen profession, music."

"That would be a good way to study geography," said Alfy. "Then you would hardly ever fail if you had those interesting figures to look at."

Aunt Betty then called their attention to the ceiling which was elaborately ornamented with carvings and stucco work with symbols of arts and sciences. The southern walls were full of rare and beautiful paintings, the most striking of these being, "Lyric Poetry," painted by Walker. It represents Lyric Poetry in an encompa.s.sing forest, striking a lyre and surrounded by Pathos, Beauty, Truth, Devotion, and playful Mirth.

The east end of this hall which looks out on the reading rooms is reserved for Senators and members of the House of Representatives. It is decorated in subjects chosen from Greek mythology.

"Come in here," said Dorothy, entering the periodical or public reading room. "See here, any one, no matter where he is from, can find one of his home papers."

"Can any one stay here and read anything they want, and as long as they want?" inquired Alfy.

"Yes. It is free to anyone," answered Mrs. Calvert.

Next they pa.s.sed into an exhibition hall, where in cases of gla.s.s made like a table they saw a great number of rare and curious books representing the beginning time of printing and bookmaking. There were a great many early printed Bibles and specimens of famous special editions of Bibles. Some of them, so they learned, dated back to the fifteenth century and were of much value on account of their rarity.

One table in this room especially interested Dorothy. It contained ma.n.u.scripts, autographs and curious prints relating to the history of our United States.

The print room interested Alfy greatly. This room is devoted to an extensive exhibit of the art of making pictures mechanically. Here are a great series of prints ill.u.s.trating the development of lithography, and the processes a lithograph goes through whether printed in one or in varied color. Also here are examples of every sort of engraving upon wood, copper and steel. About the walls hang examples of etchings and engravings.

They then entered the Rotunda Galleries. They paused for a moment to look at two paintings there, one of Joy and the other of Sadness.

"I like Joy the best by far," exclaimed Alfy. Joy, here, was represented by a light-haired, cheerful woman, amid flowers and happy in the sunshine. She went nearer the picture and read out loud the beautiful words of Milton's famous "L'Allegro."

"Come thou G.o.ddess, fair and free, In Heaven ycleped Euphroysine, And by men, heart-easing Mirth.

Haste thee nymph, and bring with thee Jest and youthful jollity, Quips and cranks, and wanton wiles, Nods and becks and wreathed smiles, Such as hang on Hebe's cheek, And love to live in dimple sleek."

"I learned most of that poem by heart when I went to school at Oak Knowe," said Dorothy.

"Indeed, and so did I," answered Mr. Dauntrey, "at school but not at Oak Knowe," he laughed. "But my favorite was the other poem, 'Il Penserose.'"

"The other picture represents that," said Mrs. Calvert.

"Listen while I recite to you the lines that inspired that picture,"

said Mr. Dauntrey, and in a wonderful voice he brought out each shade of meaning:

"Hail, thou G.o.ddess, sage and holy!

Hail, divinest Melancholy!

Come; but keep thy wonted state, With even step and musing gait, And looks commercing with the skies, Thy rapt soul sitting in their eyes, There held in holy pa.s.sion still Forget thyself to marble...."

The stack rooms or apartments where the books are kept open out on each side of the rotunda. The cases rise way up to the roof and are filled with adjustable shelves. There are decks at intervals of every few feet from top to bottom by which the attendants reach the books.

Each of these stacks will hold eight hundred thousand books, and although they may be consulted by any one, very few are ever lost, for only members of Congress and about thirty other officials can take books out of the library.

"As there is a constant call for books of reference from the Capitol when legislators often want a volume for instant use, an underground tunnel has been made between the two buildings. This contains a cable carrier upon which books can be sent back and forth," explained Mr.

Dauntrey. "But haven't you seen enough of the library now?"

"There is Mr. Ludlow!" exclaimed Dorothy, "and I think he is calling us."

"Yes, let us go over to him," added Mrs. Calvert. "Come."

"Ah, here you all are," said Mr. Ludlow. "I called to you just now because there is one painting I would like to have you all see before you go upstairs to the restaurant."

"Is it here?" questioned Dorothy.

"No. You follow me and I will bring you to it in just a few seconds,"

answered Mr. Ludlow.

"Here we are. I want you all to follow this series of pictures."

"It is called the evolution of the book," added Mrs. Calvert.

The series begins with a picture representing the means that the prehistoric men took to commemorate an event singly--the creation of the cairn, nothing more nor less than the piling up of stones. Then comes a picture ill.u.s.trating oral tradition--an Arab story writer of the desert. The third represents an Egyptian carving hyroglyphics on a tomb. These are the forerunners and the next is picture writing, represented by an American Indian painting some tribal story or event.

In lieu of paper he uses a skin. The fifth is shown by a figure of a monk sitting by the embrasure of his cell, laboriously decorating the pages of some sacred book of the Middle Ages. And finally, the initial attainment of modern methods is shown by a scene in the shop of Guttenburg, where the original printer is seen examining a proof sheet, while an employe looks over his shoulder, and another a.s.sistant has the lever of a crudely constructed press in hand.

They all thought this series of pictures a beautiful one, and very interesting.

Dorothy commented, "If they had not discovered how to print and make books, I wonder if we would have had a library like this one here, filled with stones all covered with hyroglyphics?"

"I hardly think so," answered Mr. Ludlow, "for we could never get so much stone in a building. But come now. We will go upstairs to the little restaurant and sit down and rest for a few minutes."

So taking the elevator they reached the restaurant which is located in the upper floor of the building, and finding a large table, they seated themselves.

They ordered ice cream for the girls, and the men took lemonade.

While refreshing themselves, Mr. Ludlow said, "I would like to see you all in the morning at ten o'clock. I will then disclose our plans to you for the next few weeks. Also, to-morrow, our number will be increased by three more singers who will join us here. They are Miss Dozzi and Mrs. Helmholz and Signor de Reinzzi."

Every one said they would be on time in the morning, and started to go back to the hotel. On the way out from the library, Dorothy asked, "Mr. Ludlow, are all these pictures and pieces of statuary done by Italians and other foreigners?"

"No, indeed," he answered. "The decorations are wholly the work of American architects, painters and sculptors, more than fifty of whom partic.i.p.ated in the work. So that, you see, the library is an exhibit of the native art and ability of the citizens of the United States and a memorial to them."

CHAPTER XIII.

SIGHT-SEEING.