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Within the last few months the Court of Honor I has become a household word in millions of American i homes. The glOlY of this unique creation is almost beyond description, and whether it be viewed in broad sunlight or at night under the glare of the electrical search lamps it never ceases to charm. The unity and harmoniousness of design exhibited by the buildings which fringe the Grand Basin testify to the rare skill of the architects, while the exquisite proportion of the various buildings makes the Court of Honor at once a triUIllph of elegance, syulllletry and dignity. The lower or lake end of the Court of Honor, illustJated herewith, which is terminated by Mr. C. B. Atwood's highly effective peristyle, probably affords the finest single view on the grounds. At the extreme right will be seen the end pavilion of the Agricultural building crowned by one of the horoscope groups. Beyond is the Casino, which is at right angles to the peristyle. Although the Casino fell into financial difficulties several times, Htill lIlany can look lJaek upon the Casino with pleasant lIleltlOties of the hours spent in rest and refreshment under the hospitable roof. The Casino IItntcheR the Music Hall, which is at the other end of the peristyle. The peristyle is COlllposed of f(,rty-eight columns, twenty-four on either side. These columns are sYlIlbolieal of the States and Territories. It is two hundred and thirty-four feet from each corner building to the grand Columbian Areh, whieh is surmounted by a quadriga representing The Triumph of Colulllbus. The chariot is drawn by four mettlesome horses held in cheek by two women. Mounted heralds on each carry banners. In front of the arch on an isolated pedestal rises the heroic statue of the Republie, which is a masterpiece of the SCUlptor, Daniel Chester Freneh. The statue is sixty-five feet high and rests on a pedestal thirty-five feet in height. This bold creation, which is of a rugged and almost archaic type, worthily embodies the spirit of the New World. It is not altogether an independent work of art, but it is intended primarily as a piece of architectural sculpture, and is a complement of the surrounding build- ings. At the left in our engraving, one corner of the Manufactures and Liberal Arts building will be no- ticed. Directly in front is one of the six Roman I rostral pillars, whose tapered shafts are decorated with the representations of prows of captured galleys, and which are surmounted by statues of Neptune. It is a pity that this great dream of beauty could not be made permanent, but it will live for years in the minds of the millions of visitors who gazed upon its unparalleled magnificence, and in the photographs and engravings of illustrated histories. I I Reptiles and fuseet in the PhilIppine Islands. The British consul at Manila, in his report on the Philippine Islands for last year, says : The reptiles and insects are various and abundant. Crocodiles are found in most of the deep rivers and uncultivated tracts. Enormous lizards, frogs, snakes, crabs. centipedes, huge spiders, auts, cockroaches, mosquitoes, beetles, etc., abound, more or less, everywhere. In the dry weather the trees around Manila are quite illuminated with fireflies. With insects in the house, however, one is less troubled than in most tropical ('ouTltries, owing, it is said, to the predominance of the lizards and ehacons, which devour them, and which swarm sometimes on the ceilings by lamplight, and are quite harmless, while beneficial. There are huge pythons in the interior of the forests and various poisonous snakes in the fields and woods, some of whieh have a deadly bite, but people Illay pass theit lives here without seeing a snake. Although a harmless speeies, the ratsnake frequently takes up his lodging under the roof, and only makes his presence known by the squeals of the rats which he seizes. The ants, white and red, and others, and the cockroaches and mosquitoes are more troublesome and desh'uctive. Against the white ants precautions have to be 'taken by putting the legs of tables and sideboards into basins filled with water to prevent the insects climbing up and attacking articles of food. The destruction of wood by the white ants is something incrediblenone but the hardest fibers withstand their ravages.
