The New Dormitory.

Harvard's new dormitory, which will be called the Walter Hastings Hall, after its donor, is now well under way, and will probably be ready for use in the fall of 1889. The basement and two lower stories are already built, and it is hoped that the building will be entirely closed in before winter, so that the plastering may be done during the cold weather. The exterior dimensions are 210x120 feet, and the material used in construction is a yellowish-brown brick, mottled with blue, which is made by the Perth Amboy Company in New Jersey. This material has been but little used as yet in this vicinity, and the house of Dr. Bradbury, at the corner of Marlboro and Exeter streets, is almost the only example. The bricks are laid in red mortar, and mottled terra cotta will be extensively used in the decoration of the interior. The basement is of rock-faced brown stone, and dark purple Maine slate will be used to cover the roof, while the copings are to be of copper, and not of stone as is customary. The high roof and numerous gables and bay windows add greatly to the beauty of the structure and cause it look like a block of houses. The effect of the whole from an artistic point of view is very picturesque, and is much more in harmony with the green lawns which surround the buildings on every side than the cold red of our other buildings.

The edifice will be composed largely of iron beams and terra cotta building blocks, and the hallways will have no wood finish with the exception of the doors, the stairs themselves being of iron with rubber treads. Thus, the building will be almost completely fireproof. The janitor's office is in the south end, and the proctors' rooms will be on the second floor in the south end, and in the southeast corner of the gable projection. If this arrangement is adhered to by the authorities, the centre of the building will be greatly sought after by those who like to have their nocturnal festivities undisturbed. The studies will have either two bedrooms, or one bedroom large enough for two beds attached, and each study will contain a bay window with a large window seat. The bedrooms will be on the north and east sides, looking out over Holmes Field, and the studies will face the south and west, thus securing as much sunlight as possible, and giving a superb view of Cambridge Common, the Washington elm, and old Christ Church. The inside finish of the rooms will be of quartered oak, with a dado of the same, three feet high, while the mantels are to be of Knoxville grey marble. The ceilings will be tinted in water colors, and there will be a handsome picture-moulding on the walls.

The heating, ventilating and sanitary arrangements are as perfect as modern science can make them. There will be hot and cold water throughout the building, and every stairway will contain a freight elevator. The fireplaces in the studies will be furnished with the Jackson ventilating grate, which receives cold air from a flue rising from the basement. This fresh air enters the room above the grate and ventilates the room, thus obviating the necessity of opening the windows in extremely cold weather. Steam heat will be used in the hallways and lavatories.

It was estimated that the edifice would cost $200,000, but it will probably take $30,000 more to complete it ready for the occupancy of the 115 students whom it is destined to accommodate.