Oh, what a hour that wuz for the world! and what a seen that wuz for Josiah Allen's Wife to be a-passin' through, watched by the majestic figger of Woman.
The green, tree-dotted terraces bloomin' with flowers a-risin' up from the blue water, and above the verdent terraces the tall white walls of them gorgeous palaces, a-risin' up with colonades, and statutes, and arabesques, and domes, and pinnacles, and on the smooth white path that lay in front of 'em, and on every side of 'em, the hull world a-walkin' and a-admirin' the seen jest as much as we did.

And if there wuzn't everything else to look at and admire, the looks of that crowd wuz enough--full enough--for one pair of eyes; for they wuz from every country of the globe, and dressed in every fashion from Eve, and her men folks, down to the fashions of to-day.
And anon we would come to a bridge gracefully arched over the water, and float under it, and then sail on, and on, and on, past the vast palace 45 acres big, and every single acre of 'em majestic and beautiful more than tongue can tell or give any idee on, and then by some more of them matchless marvels of housen crowned with pinnacles, and domes, and wavin' banners, and then by the electrical buildin', with white towers, and battlements, and sculptured loveliness, on one side of us, and, on the other, that beautiful Wooded Island, that is a hantin' dream of beauty inside of a dream of matchless loveliness.
Acres and acres of flowers of every kind and color; the perfume floated out and wrapped us round like a sweet onseen mantilly, as we floated past fur dim isles of green trees, with domes and minarets a-risin' up above the billows of emerald richness, and then anon, under another bridge, and more of them enchantin' wonders of Art, and on, under another one, and another.
And my emotions all of the time wuz what no man might number, and as for the size of 'em, there hain't no use of talkin' about sortin' 'em out, or weighin' 'em--no steel yards on earth could weigh the little end on 'em, let alone weighin' the hull caboodle of 'em.
No Rasfodist that ever rasfodized could do justice to the transcendent grandeur that shone out on every side of us.
No, the rasfodist would have to set down and hold up his hands before him, as I have done sometimes before a big pile of work, when I have seen a wagon load of visitors a-stoppin' at the gate to stay all day.
I have just clasped my hands and sez, "Oh dear me!" Or in aggravated cases I would say, mebby, "Oh dear me suz!" And that wuz about all I could say here.
Yes, my feelin's, I do believe, if they could have been gazed on, would have been jest about as a impressive a sight to witness as the Columbian Fair.
But anon my rapt musin's wuz broke into sudden; I heard as through a dream a voice say-- "If she forgets to take the dough off from the dry oven, the pancakes will run over." "_Pancakes!_" It wuz like Peri in Paradise callin' for root-beer; it brung me down to the world agin, and anon I heard my pardner say-- "Wall, I wish I had a few of 'em this minute, Miss Plank." Eatin' at such a time as this--the idee! But I wuz brung clear down, and I don't know but it wuz jest as well, for it wuz time for us to alight from our bark.
And with the feelin's I had ever sence I started, I wuz that riz up that I could almost expect to step over the lagoon at one stride and swing my foot clear over the hull noble flight of marble steps, and the wide terrace, and land in front of the Woman's Buildin'.

With my head even with its highest cupalo, I wuz fearfully riz up, and by the side of myself.
But these allusions to pancakes had brung me down, so I stepped meekly out on to the broad, noble flight of steps, and the full beauty of the Woman's Buildin' riz up in front of us.
Even Josiah wuz impressed with the simple, noble perfection of that buildin'.

I heard him say-- "By Crackey! not a bit of lace or tattin'; not a streamer of ribbin.
Well done for wimmen; they have riz up for once above gauzes, and flummeries, and ornaments." "No," sez I; "if you want to look at ornament, you might look at the Adminstration Buildin', designed by a man.

Men love ornament, Josiah Allen." He quailed; he hadn't forgot the pink necktie he wanted to adorn himself with, and the breastpin he wanted to put on that mornin'.
The waters of the lagoon in front of the buildin' is as wide as a bay; from the centre of this rises the grand landin' and staircase, leadin' to a terrace six feet above the water.
The first terrace is laid out in glowin' flower-beds, and anon, green flowerin' shrubs, above which the ivory white balustrade shines out, separatin' it from the upper terrace.
And along the upper terrace, about one hundred feet back, the beautiful Woman's Buildin' rises, with a background of stately old oak trees.
This most artistic and beautiful buildin' consists of a centre pavilion, flanked at each end by corner pavilions, connected by open corridors forming a sheltered and beautiful walk the hull length of the structure.
On goin' through a wide lobby you come into a vast open rotunda reachin' clear up to the top of the buildin', where the sunlight falls down most graciously through a richly ornamented skylight.