Berlin Exchange.—Figure 4 gives the ground-plan and Figure 5 the interior perspective of the main hall of the Exchange or Bourse at Berlin, built in 1860-1864 by the merchants of that city from plans by Privy Counsellor Hitzig, and under his direction. The building has a handsome facade adorned with cohnnns and statues, and the interior is treated in a rich, tasteful, aud substantial manner. The ground floor, shown in the plan, has an open portico (a) in front, leading into the large vestibule (b); in the rear of this, the centre of the edifice is occupied by the Exchange (c, c), extending through two stories in height, with arcades ou columns on the second story, and divided on the first floor into Stock and Produce Exchanges by a similar arrangement of columns and arcades. Niches are formed on the lower floor by pilasters, and over these, in the second story, are narrow galleries bordered by the arcades. All the columns in the hall, one hundred and twenty-eight in number, are monoliths of pol ished granite. The light is supplied by the windows and by passages at the rear; the building is warmed by large heaters in the basement. The ceiling, in the form of a flattened arch, is highly original in design, and produces a fine effect. The iron ceiling-ribs are strongly outlined, and above them sickle-shaped iron girders, invisible to the eye, span the hall at distances corresponding with the columns. Iron beams are arranged between the former, and the squares so formed are filled in with highly ornamental plaster bays. The flooring is of oak planks enclosed in a marble framing.
At the left hand, near the vestibule, are the wardrobe (al) and closets (c), and in the corner a porter's room (f), reached through a special small passage (g). A stairway leading to the upper floor and gallery is also accessible from the same passage. Farther back, in the left wing, are the telegraph-offices (h-m). At the rear are a back stairway lighted by a well (n), the bulletin-rooms, and two other apartments (fi, q). In the rear is the large open exchange (r) for suimner use, adorned with colonnades and fountains. To the right of it are the brokers' room (s), a passage (t), and the Liquor Exchange (u). The right wing on the front is not so import ant, owing to its shape; it contains only a few cabinets (v), stairs, and another wardrobe (w), with closets (x). Finally, on the right of the wide vestibule are the main stairs to the upper floor and rooms for the porter's use (y, s). In the second floor, directly over the vestibule, is a session room ; on the left are the cashier's office and registry; at the right, rooms for committees; and in front is the library. The left wing and rear of the building to the right are occupied by dwellings.
Arcades: Galleria Vittorio the erections intended for business interchange should be mentioned those collections of shops which in some cities are called "arcades." Those intended for the finer classes of merchandise are frequently styled " bazaars," while those of a gallery-like construction, forming cross-connections between two streets and covered with glass, are known as "glass-passages" or "galleries."
Almost all important cities in Europe have now these elegant structures. One of the newest and largest is the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, in Milan (p/. r9,fig. 7); it connects the Piazza del Duomo with the Scala. This gallery, built (1865-1867) by the architect Mengoni, has a cruciform ground-plan, and over the centre is au octagonal cupola decorated in its upper part with four large fresco paintings. The side-walls, which are richly and taste fully finished, have double pilasters with corresponding semicircular iron roof-girders. The roof over the galleries, as well as that over the cnpola, is of glass; so that the elegant shops on both sides of the passage are well lighted by day, and the entire edifice is profusely illuminated at night.
Public- Libraries are situated either in buildings used for other purposes or in edifices built expressly for use as public libraries. The chief room of the library is the reading-hall, open to general use, and provided, as a rule, with accessory apartments, but sometimes serving only for the stor ing of volumes, being fitted with suitable cases upon the walls.
Imperial Libraly, PaY-is.—Figure 6 shows a reading-room of imposing dimensions. It belongs to the public library of Paris, formerly known as the Imperial, the most important in Europe. It was opened for nse in 1S65 in one of the new wing-additions to the Hatel Mazarin of the old library. The bold construction and .the elegant gilded finishing, render the interior very imposing. The vaults of the domes, which are light—or, at least, made to appear so by skilful coloring—are furnished with skylights, and are supported on slender iron pillars, making at once an elegant and a fireproof ceiling. Around the walls in the spaces between the pilasters are bookcases in three rows, whose two upper ranges are reached by light iron galleries. In the hall are large tables for the use of the readers. The rear of this immense hall is semicircular, and here the attendants have a place of resort behind a railing. The library is heated by a hot-water system.
The New Library of Congress, at Washington, D. C., will, when com pleted, be the largest library-building in the United States. The plans, which have been substantially decided upon, contemplate a building in the Italian Renaissance style of architecture. The exterior walls will be of stone and the interior will be constructed of iron and concrete, to render the building as thoroughly fireproof as possible. The inside finish will be generally plain except in the reading-room of the rotunda and in the main stair-hall, or vestibule, which will be suitably enriched with marble, iron, and stucco. If erected according to the plans now awaiting approval, the building will accommodate, at once, 1,5oo,000 volumes, and ultimately (as the proposed exteasions are added) 3,5oo,000 volumes. The elevation of this projected building is shown in Figure 2 (pl. is). Its dimensions will be 45o feet long by 33o feet wide.