THE CENTENNIAL EXHIBITION AT PHILADELPHIA.

Globe, Volume VI, Issue 644, 12 July 1876, Page 3

THE CENTENNIAL EXHIBITION AT PHILADELPHIA.

The Argvs special correspondent supplies that journal with a full account of the opening ceremony, from which we extract the following passages:— The Great Exhibition was successfully opened on Wednesday, the 10th May, not with much pomp and circumstance, f recessions, banners, and noise of trumpets, nor with clouds of dust and other accompaniments of a triumphant progress, bat with the plainness and simplicity befitting a people who have discarded titles and decorations and most of the magnificence employed with effect in the displays of the Old World, There was enough rain the day before not only to dispose satisfactorily of the dust, but to render it doubtful whether the ceremonies could be held iu the open air. The weather, however, took a propitious turn in good time, and the public was gratified with as favorable a view of the spectacle as could be looked for under the circumstances. The world now knows pretty well the purpose of the Exhibition, and has heard often enough of the memorable event it is meant to celebrate. We have arrived at the 100th anniversary of the birthday of the nation, and look upon the achievements of a century of progress. The time would be an appropriate one to turn back to the primitive customs of one hundred years ago compare the roughnesses of' the now

remote past with the smooth and pleasant ways of to-day. Many of the arts which have given us the comfort and conveniences of to-day have arisen since 1776. At that time, as the President said in his address, the inhabitants of the American continent had enough to do to fell timber, clear land, and build houses. The only telegraph line then in operation was the string of the philosopher’s kite. The famous Declaration of Independence has been brought down from Washington to Philadelphia in order to have a place at the Exhibition. There still exist many contemporary memorials of the early days of the nation. The hall in which the first Congress met stands in one of the busy streets of the city, though no more important business is now transacted in it than what relates to the miintenance of public highways. There the resolute, but as wa may suppose seriously anxious band, put their names to the Declaration, and then stepped to the door to read it to the citizens in waiting to hear what should be done. Philadelphia has developed immensely since the day that Franklin had the courage to walk into it, on a well-remembered occasion with all his wealth in his pocket, to begin his career. The inhabitants were honest and made no hotel charges of such a character as to intimidate the slout philosopher. The city has now a population of 800,000 souls. Preparations for the Exhibition were begun five years ago, when Congress, to give effect to a suggestion from the outside, mads provision for the appointment of a commission and a board of finance, the one to raise, if necessary, £2,000,000, and the other to see that the project grew into a splendid success. It had perhaps as little choice in deciding what the form of the celebration should be as in selecting the place for it. An Exhibition is the nineteenth century way to bring the nations together for a grand festival. The Americans hitherto have been careful to shut out the products and manufactures of the rest of the world, in order to restrict themselves as much as possible to what can be got at home. The end which, therefore, is chiefly aimed at is a comparison of results, and one of the effects may be an opening of the eyes of the people on a subject which they have had very little liberty to look into. There is no need to notice the difficulties which have arisen from the fact that there are more states than one which would have liked to have had the entertainment of visitors to the show, becauae those difficulties have been chiefly felt by the Board of Finance. Congress apparently over-estimated the zeal with which all states would subscribe to the expenses. They have all been glad to share in the direction of affairs, but much of the success must be due to the princely liberality of the State of Pennsylvania and the city of Philadelphia, which between them have provided for more than a third of the estimated expenditure. The cost up to the 10th of May has been £1,400,000, and the payments of the state and city have amounted to £500,000. Of course Pennsylvania, with its mines and manufactures, second only in population and importance to the State of New York, could well afford to be generous in the promotion of its own honor and glory. A sum nearly as large as the contribution of the state and the city corporation had been collected from private individuals by the sale of stock, which is to be redeemed, with interest, out of the proceeds of the building when the Exhibition is wound up, and by the division of the surplus receipts. The intention was to render the undertaking self-supporting, but the failure of supplies from expected sources, and the small sums sent In even by states disposed to contribute, has compelled Congress reluctantly to disburse £BOO,OOO from the national treasury. The total cost will be somewhere about £1,700,000. The opening ceremonies were plain. The principal dignitaries present, in addition to the President of the United States, were the Governors of States and their retinues. Of foreigners of distinction there were only the Emperor and Empress of Brazil. The Emperor has come to America in the character of a private gentleman, and the object of his visit is chiefly to look into native institutions and get some hints for the development of the resources of his own country. Honors in plenty would have beeu paid to him and the Empress if they had not beeu at the pains to discourage all public marks of attention. His Majesty, during the short time he has been in the country, has exploicd some thousands of miles of railroads, and has found it very difficult to get through large towns unnoticed, unless he appeared at an unexpected hour, and drove by roundabout routes to the private door of his hotel, There were not two more plainly-dressed gentlemen at the Exhibition than the President and the Emperor, and had it not been for the representatives of foreign courts and commissioners from Europe, there would have been none of the splendours which we are accustomed to associate with public triumphs. The President, who had taken up his abode at the house of a private citizen, was escorted to the grounds by the troops under the command of the Governor of Pennsylvania and the Governor of Massachusetts, There were thousands and thousands of persons who postponed their visit to the Exhibition in order to. get a good stand in the streets and see the President, and the soldiery in attendance upon him. The arrangements made for the disposal of the multitude looked very well on paper, but were loosely carried out, evidently because the authorities had had small experience of the management of large masses of people. This surprised us, as in other instances the organisation was remarkably complete. The estimated attendance inside the Park gates was 130,000, and nearly all were concentrated on an open space between the main building and the Memorial-hall. An immense platform had been erected in front of the hall for the invited guests, who numbered 5000 or 6000. Opposite to it, some distance off, were the elevated seats of the musicians, who numbered 1000. Between these two reserved areas the ordinary spectators found places for themselves. From the reserved seats very little was seen or heard of the ceremony. The American people are not demonstrative. When they had squeezed themselves into as good positions as were available to persons unprovided with special cards, they had little amusement for an hour or two save what they could extract from good humored differences with the peace officers. At last a commotion was noticed at the doors of the Memorial Hall, The President of the United States descended the steps and came down through the passage left open between the reserved seats to the frontof the platform, and we had the opportunity before the commissioners had fully paid their respects, to look for a few moments on the chief of the nation.. The multitude, as soon as they recognised him, gave some hearty cheers. They were

equally polite to the Emperor of Brazil The ceremonies which followed were somewhat of a disappointment. Invited guests were mixed up so incongruously, though there had been an intention to put everybody in his place, that it was hardly possible to distinguish senators from judges, and notable men of the army from ambassadors and commissioners. The pro* gramme consisted of music, prayer, addresses, and speeches, and the greater part of it was lost on the audience, and particularly on those whose comfort was supposed to have been specially cared for. Even when the latter stood up on forms and chairs to look over heads in front, they could hardly get a glimpse of the speakers, much less hear what they had to say. One of the principal items was the Centennial March, composed by Wagner, and expected to produce a great sensation. Unfortunately, the conditions were unfavorable, and the labor and pains of M. Theodore Thomas and his orchestra were thrown away. Much of the music was quite inaudible at a distance so removed, and what was heard came upon the ear in such disconnected passages that nobody attempted to form any opinion about it; More success was achieved by the works of less eminent composers, and the honors of the day were carried off by vocalists, and notably by Mr Whitney, of Boston, a basso of wonderful power, to whom had been entrusted the solo part of a cantata. He got tremendous applause from the multitude, and was persuaded to do a little of his work over again. When the President rose to reply to the Commissioners’ address, so much enthusiasm had been aroused by the music that he was cheered again and again in the warmest manner.