The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1896-09-02
The Displays More Numerous
and Extensive Than
Ever Before.
GROUPED IN UNIQUE DESIGNS.
Exposition Hall Clothed in Gay Decor.
ationS and Brilliantly
Illuminated.

SACRAMENTO, CAL, Sept. L. The
State Fair opened to-day. This afternoon
all the talk was horse, and nearly all the
street cars in the capitol city ran to the
race track. Tonight all the street cars
ran to the pavilion, and all the talk was
of ex hibits. The racetrack and pavilion
are now the common destination of the
crowds that are daily growing larger.
Every body who went anywhere in par
ficular tonight wendell his way to the
exposition building, which is another
name for the pavilion. In the vast space
of this building every inch of room is
taken. There never was anything like it
before in the history of the State Agri-
cultural Society. The space is not all
quite covered yet, neither is the sound of
the hammer and the hoarse rasp of the
rip-saw entirely hushed, but before an
other day or two are passed all exhibits
will be standing forth complete in the
beauty of their design.
Coming down to figures, the finishing
touches have been put on fully 90 per cent
OF the exhibits. Long curtains still sur
round some of the exhibits, awaiting the
last artistic ornaments. These served to
increase the attention and curiosity of
spectators tonight. Groups of people
stood before blank walls of red and white,
heard the murmur of voices behind them
and wondered with more than ordinary
curiosity what was inside. A glimpse
now and then indicated that when the
curtains do drop the spectacle will be
worth coming again to see.
Visitors are coming in by every train.
The fair Will remain open nearly three
weeks, instead of two weeks, as in former
years. Exhibitors are proverbially slow
IN getting ready for the opening day, oW-
ing to the fact that large crowd is, as a
rule, not in attendance on that day, but
this year the pavilion is further along on
opening day than it has ever been before.
This morning the art gallery was chaos,
paved with scattered pictures and rough
boxes. Tonight the works of art were
hanging in beautiful array and order on
the walls, under the rays of aceteline gas,
the powerful new illuminator whose birth
place was the brain of Boston genius. In
all there are about 500 pictures, embracing
all descriptions of art on canvas, from
fruit and landscapes and studies in what
Trilby would call "the altogether down
to many admirable pen sketches by news
paper artists. The newspaper artists
sketches excite curiosity more than a
study in oil and water colors, and there is
always crowd before this Renaissance Of
the pen applied to current events.
The art gallery is one of the principal
features of the fair. One may step from
the inspection of livestock and blooded
horses to a contemplation of the works of
the old masters. There are not very MANY
large canvases, but there is not picture
IN the entire collection that has ever been
on the walls before. II is a compliment to
San Francisco art and artists TO say that
most Of the loans are from that City and
from artists both at home and abroad. A
novelty, introduced this year is sketches
Ill l.
which were made from nature, and from
which larger and more ambitious works
were produced. This collection includes
clever fragments from Jouillin, Stanton,
Robinson, Pages, Peixotto, Martinez and
others There are also new Yosemite pic
lures from the brush of Thomas Hill.
Among the other clever ones whose
work adorns the walls are Jules Tavernier.
Eva Withrow, Alice Chittenden, Henry
Roschen, G. D. Robinson, Joe D. Strong
and Miss May Hinkson. large Egyp-
tian scene, with vista of a ruined palace.
pyramids, sphinxes and obelisks serves
as a sort of background for the array of
pictures.
The scene from the main entrance of
the. pavilion is one of spectacular beauty.
The galleries are draped in green and the
other predominating colors are blue red
and yellow, with here and there strip or
an expanse of white. The flags and ban
ners, together with the main colors of all
States of the Union and all nations and
principalities of the Old World, hang
from the lofty roof or adorn the walls.
Great draperies of color also hang from
the rafters, and the pinnacles of some of
the taller exhibits are lost in the clouds of
flags and festoons. Much in evidence are
the bear flag and "Old Glory" ,er the
entire main floor there is a sky of varia-
gated coIors.
The first thing that confronts the spec-
tator on entering the pavilion is the
shapely figures Of horses, haruessed to
carriages or standing alone. They seem
to have come down from the racetrack
and to stand as the head of procession of
immovable displays. Directly in front is
an obelisk Of light, tower of electricity
which extends upward into the canopy Of
color. Surmounting it in bright yellow
bulbs are the letters ''S. E. G. and Ry.
Co."-Saclamento Electric, Gas and Rail-
way Company.
This tower tops a beautiful pagoda
which has been erected by the company in
the center of the main floor, in which are
displayed cooking utensils and other an
planes illustrating the practical or do
mestic uses to which electricity may be
put. The company furnishes the entire
electric power for Sacramento, and the
people here give it credit for inauguratlng
a new era in the history of the capital
City-an era of com paratlvely cheap man.
ufacturing. On one side of the tall black
column are the words IN glowing electric
letters: LET there be light" and on the
opposite side the names, edison, Teslar,
Thompson and Franklin"
To the left is Machinery Hall, with its
rattle and Yhirr, and off to the right the
first thing that catches the eye is bril-
iantly illuminated arch of fruit.
The semi-circle is composed of hand
some glass jars of preserved fruit, and
across the top OF the arch is an electric
flag, the red, white and blue portrayed in
incandescent electric bulbs, even to the
forty-five white stars on field of blue.
This arch spans the entrance to the great
wing of the main building, in which is
located the department of horticulture
and viticulture. This is one of the most
beautiful departments of the fair. It is
also deliciously romantic.
In order to offset the difficulty of keep
ing perishable and delicate fruits during
the entire fair, there will be a special ex.
hibit of peaches, nectarines, plums, prunes
and figs during the second week of the fair
Down wide center aisle and at the far.