NEW ZEALAND AT THE VIENNA EXHIBITION.

Evening Star, Issue 3270, 13 August 1873, Page 3

NEW ZEALAND AT THE VIENNA EXHIBITION.

Sir Charles Oliflord, the special commissioner for New Zealand at Yiepna, writes to the Government; — On May Ist the Exhibition wag opened in state by the Emperor and Empress of Austria, attended by a large number of distinguished visitors from every quarter of the world. After taking part in the ceremonies of the occasion, the Commissioners were requested to proceed to their respective Courtsto meet the Emperor and Empress on their tour of the building, I had the honor of doing so at the entrance of the New Zealand Court, and, although there was nothing at that time to arrest attention, I was gratified to find from the remarks made that our Colony was exciting much interest. After this, daily additions made the Court mpre attractive. Among the earlier arrivals I mgy mention an admirably arranged collection of the phor-. mium tenax, showing it in every pyopess of manufacture,from the raw leaf into rope and twine of every description, audits other products from the coarsest sacking to the most perfectly bleached table linen of the finest texture. This was exhibited by Mr Thorne, and was much noticed. Somo line watercolor drawings of New Zealand coast sceneyy were also much examined and admired. The specimens of gold, wool, and coal had arrived, apd, with the single exception of the Cape of Good Hope, we were far more forward than any other British colony. As the representative of the Colony of New Zealand, I was honored by command to attend dinners given by the Emperor of Austria and the Prince of Wales, and received much hospitality from the Austrian Minister of Commerce, and others of the leading men in Vienna. An opportunity of which I availed myself, was in this way given me of serving the interests of tho Colony by describing its capabilities to 'some of the most influential men in Europe. After a residence of sixteen days in Vienna —having ascertained that the larger proportion of the New Zealand exhibits had arrived I felt "that I could safely leave our Court in the hands of Mr Bevan. I was less reluctant to return to England, as Professor Von Hochstetter had, in conversation with mo, manifested great anxiety fo, assist us, and had under taken to '' superintend our collection of specimens in natural history. When he has completed the setting up of the skeletons of the moas forwarded by Dr Haast, this will be quite unique of its kind. The careful classification by Dy Hector of many of the specimens ncpt direct from the Colony naturally calls for attention, as it increased their educational value and prevented an otherwise unavoidable los# of time in un-

packing and re-arranging them. I left Vienna on May 14th, and returned to England with the strong impression that the New Zealand Court at Vienna would be far from the least interesting part of the most magnificent exhibition that the world has yet seen. I may perhaps be allowed to suggest that many articles exhibited by the Government and by individuals, which have little or no intrinsic worth, would be highly valued by museums and scientific societies, and that it would be a graceful recognition of their courtesy to us, as well as useful to the Colony, if they were presented through Professor Von Hochstetter to the various institutions of this kind in Vienna. Botanical, minerological, and zoological specimens and collections of raw material might thus be utilised.