Repository: UIHistories Project: Course Catalog - 1895-1896 [PAGE 29]

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LIBRARY

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fineness, copied from the great national portrait galleries of France. Other collections of special value to art students embrace a large number of casts of ornament from the Alhambra and other Spanish buildings, presented by the Spanish government ; a set of casts from Germany illustrating German Renaissance ornament; a series of art work from the Columbian Exposition, and large numbers of miscellaneous casts, models, prints, and drawings, such as are usually found in the best art schools. A notable feature of the collection of works of art is the gift of Henry Lord Gay, architect, of Chicago. It consists of a model in plaster and a complete set of drawings of a competitive design for a monument to be erected in Rome, commemorative of Victor Emanuel, first king of Italy. The monument was to be of white marble, an elaborate Gothic structure, beautifully ornamented, and 300 feet high. Its estimated cost was to have been seven and a quarter millions of francs. The design was placed by the art committee second on a list of 289 competitors. LIBRARY The library, selected with reference to the literary and scientific studies required in the several courses, had, March 1, 1896, 28,200 volumes and 6,200 pamphlets. The large library hall is' open throughout the day for study, reading, and reference work. It is intended that the use of the library shall largely supplement the class-room instruction in all departments. Constant reference is made in classes to works contained in the library, and their study is encouraged or required. On the same floor as the library is the reading room of the University, well supplied with daily papers and the more important weekly and monthly periodicals, both literary and scientific. The new library building, in process of erection, will soon enable the University to offer its members greatly increased library facilities. The library of the State Laboratory of Natural History and that of the Agricultural Experiment Station are both open to students of the University. They contain over 7,000 volumes, several thousand pamphlets, and 150 series of periodicals.