THE GREAT EXHIBITION.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 81879, 2 November 1906, Page 2

THE GREAT EXHIBITION.

I BRILLIANT OPENING CERE- 1 MONY, 1 AN UNQUALIFIED SUCCESS. 1 (Per l-ress Association). < Chrtacburch, November i. ! Only once in it* history has the City of the Plains b«cn so thronged and enthusiastic, as tg-day- {lie previous occasion was the Re.ief of Malok n/{, a joyous ending' to a sailguinaiy snuggle. The present one was entirely joyous and peaceful, and signalised such progres of a new land as history g'ves no examp o. It i- scarcely two jears ago that l he late Premier, the Right Hon. R. J. Seddon, visited Christchureh to set this Exhibition scheme on foot, and when one looks at the magnitude of the undertaking and the success from a a illustrative point of view which has been achieved, the self-gratula-tions which arc so freely expressed ale held to to be not undue vanity. The undertaking has been gigantic for so small a country, and its maglvtude under existing conditions formed the subject of special reference by the Governor. The opening cere-' mony was satisfactory in every respect, and was carried out without a singe h:tch, and was witnessed by a gathering containing more prominent men of the Empire than probably any function which had been held in die Southern Hemisphere. Ihe Governor of the Colony and his Ministers, the representatives of the Mother Country, and the sister colonies, proud of the spirit of the youngest daughter in the family; the committees which have worked for tli; promised success; the army of workmen and exhibitors, and, lastly, tli3 cjowd of tl le uninvited citizens! outride the gates eager to lend all the 1 assistance in their power—all these combined to form a gathering that wi , long be remembered m me annals ol tne city and the colony. the Exhibition could have had no moie auspicious start in life than the warm "send off" that has gone lar towards securing its success. At quite an eaily hour in the morning volunteers in their gayest unioims commenced to move about in town, and to congregam at the"JLmg Eouaul Barracks. By ten v dock most of tin in had paraded, and they moved oft to the Exhibition. the various corps on loot formed . guaid on part of Kilniore street, and Th, r i dtfl; at tllu main entrance, ee biass bands stood ins;do the U"! :!"f V and ,° thtT guarded ■ doois TiT Jndy,; t0 Uu; luaiu ■ • ilic of die volunteers, tne various mounted corps, arrived in a , I,roi;ossluu as a guard to h.s Ex■re ched r ! Govcrnor ' an 'l as they IP ri f ' cmi ? acc g' ate turned !o the right along P a ,k terrace. the arrangements were nicely timi , ; mearr-in UL u i.irt.-. While the ... . .. * nu mb e r W o£ • I,ubllc tound their way to the where ffr ° U - 1 ? d behind tlle buildings, vhe,e a military display was „ iv ° I by he mounteS-m.ii! and a c£ ; ® nt ot from ihe I tlio I nnhiir" P ° rt ' Tlle attc ' nda nce of _ public was comparatively small, , btcaUb « the number admitted to the ' S| u und» prior to the ceremony was ed'n i, mit f ,' rhe prwcediDisi openi », i f me "¥' as tllc mo ""ted men ere unable to reach the grounds at '' L P lo l )Cr time. The men-of-wars-'Zl hj!. d ' h(: firSt si S" of the i the '''SS'ng a field gun round giounds to the accompaniment of music from a na val band. ; At the first announcement of the L-(lt t? a PP r oaeh, Sir Joseph and • sT, L r! Executive Commisuiius, Chairman of Committees, and ■ he Ceremonial Committee, had advanced to the fountain attended by the Naval and Military officers and other .-notabilities. Meanwhile the uuaid oi Honour furnished by the Canterbury Highland Rifles had been spiead ,11 two diagonal lines converging on the mam entrance, and tiu troops lined the approach with fixed bayonets, 1 ■lhe Governor's approach was heraded by two outriders, followed by me handsome green uniforms of the -o. 2 Nouh Caniorbury Mounted KUlcs, the Vice-Regal escort "Guard. The Koyal Salute. Present aims,"' came staccato order from a kilted officer. There was a double clap as from one man, as the guard ijairie into the saluting position. The Garrison Band burst into the inspiring strains of the National Anthem, and tne official reception followed. As the party ascended the steps and filed into the Grand Hali, the choir and orchestra rendered a' verse of the National Anthem, the Nos. i ant: 3 Battalions of Norm Canterbury inlantry lined the pasage way at the salute, and the procession passed on to the reserved seats.

Outside tile entrance there was a tremendous' army of photographers and cinematograplusts,' but tae'y in 110 way disconcerted liis txceffeuey, and lie appeared to be highly pleaseded wiih the whole train of events.

The ceremony was a very brilliant one. Tile mam corridor in which it took place was wed suited to tne purpose. Quito an hour beiore tne hour lixed for the reception of His Excellency, the corridor was well filled with invited guests, many of whom took an early opportunity of securing their seats.

The men from the Imperial men-of-war weie marched into tne corridors and l.ned one side of it, while the local vo.tiiiteeis lined the other side, making a picturesque background. Several of ihe notabilities also anived etuly, and look tile seats allotted to them, immediately in front ot the large platform erected at the end of the corridor for tne orchestra. Ani.mgst these wci'e the officers of the men-of-war, the Ueilaiy-Mayor (Mr G Payl.ng), several not the Executive Commissioners, Bishop Julius and Archbi'liop Redwood, and representatives of the Legislature and the Educational, Institutions, and tho judical Bench, who were applauded as they walked up the passage. Ihe National Anthem was played, and there was a ripple of excitement in the gathering when Sir Joseph \\ aid, accompanied by Lady Ward, the Maimers of tho Crown, Sir John Gorst (Representative of the British Government), Captain Atkiu (British loner), Colonel Bauchop,, Lieut.-Colonel Slatter, Mr A. A. Langden (Representative of the British Government in Arts and Crafts) arrived, and a few minutes afteiwards Ills Exce lency and Lady Plunkct took their -eats.

The Ode written by Johannes C. and set to music by Alfred Hill, was then rendered. it is writUu in seven distinct phrases and °IH-ns witn a chorus of welcome \yhi('h is raiher dramatic in character. The mu s ic is intoiuk'cl to be descriptive, ariu the way it was played indicated that the orchestra w li be a yerv pronounced attraction of the Inhibition. J lie Hoh;ists ami chorus were excellent. Ai tiie conclusion of the Od<*, tlnTii was ,i round of !<»ud applause, which \v;is cujuiniK'd for sevcra! muv uie>. Vtr Mill was introduced t<> lli^l

i-'.xcelli-ney who shook him by the hand and heartily congratulated him. Mr Kayo aljt. mtruducec! Mr Johannes C. Andeison, and he also received His Excellency's congratulations. llis Excellency, amicEt tumults of app au-e, then rose, to address die va-t ooncuur-o. J[c said it was with feelings of deepest pride and satisfaction that he rose to cany out the honourable duly, which had beui conferred upon him. That satisfaction -.v.,5. however, tempered with sorrow thai the New Zealand Statesman and British Imperialist w;h o laid the fdafon figuratively O, ihe Uiideita Xv , (B ni)( liu , r(i (() complete ,]| C l Exhibition ever Held beneath the Southern Cross, and II witness the response which the .Mi.tihT Country and lut children had ■ male to New Zealand's vital ion i (Cheers.) "\Ve cu'l this the New /.i-abmd International Exhibition.'' ; 'd 1 he (Wernor. "Proud as I am to be a-sociated with so important an undertaking, I am even mure inter-1 es e;| m the object undeiiying its con cepiton. That object. : f 1 interpret it rightly, was to show to their follow citizens of the Empire what NewZealand. with a history of but a mail's In'etime, has accomplished. It tt -as 'ho to demonstrate to the world that there ,sri-ing here a vonng nation which, though furlliest'from the Mother Country, and nine hundred miles from hor nearest neighbour, is Brit- ! m thought ami blood, happy and I

prosperous, standing only on the j threshold of ucr splendid future. It ' ' may l>u ibou:;Dt out by some that it is i pii'Suiapniuu; if nut i.dicunus ior icss J than a mUi on of pe.ple, living un a men: spec,; ;ii t-..e i'aciiic Ocean, to anticipate Ijiicmn ng tne i\cw England of ihe Souinein Seas, or for a land of but yesterday to expect 10 compare wit.i the greatest maritime and manufacturing naaon of the Old World; but it is in no such doubmg spirit thai in i-, New Zealander regards lus futuie. lie points to the ilur.tyfeven millions or Gfcat Britain and proudly tells you taat his own country is as large, as healthy, I and as iert.le; indeed, nothing has J impressed me more during my visits ■ to diifeiuit parts of tne colony tnan | the fact that beneath the surface of their general content the pioneer and ' tin fanner, the merchant and the artisan, are look ng lonvard confidently to their children s heritage. 1 ' Proceeding to refer to the colony's natural resources, the Governor said: "If this country had the material to build her ships, she has ah.o men to man tnem, fir the New Zealander has eminently the seafaring naiuie of the Englishman. Was it," he asked, "difficult to believe tWa,t with humanitarian legislation for the workers, and wise . treatment of capital there will arise before long manufacturing- towns differing only from those at Home in that grinding poverty, overcrowding, and dirt, smoke and fog will be . absent ? fie did not think that the peop.e of New Zealand would consider he had. over-estimated tne probable I future of this land m which they take : ->0 much pride and it seemed to him ; that at an epoch such as this Exhibition was likely to prove, it was a fit- | ting occasion to dwell upon her fu- : ture.' ;

The Governor then welcomed the visitors in the name of the King, and expressed appreciation of the honour iho people of the colony invariably paid to the representative of the Sovereign. His Excellency sat down amid applause. Sir Joseph Ward expressed his deep regret at the absence of the man who started the Exhibition. He had that clay received the following telegram from Mrs Seddon: "To-day our thoughts turn towards Christchurcfr, and we sincerely hope everything' will pass off satisfactorily, and that the Exhibition will be the success that Mr Seddon would have wished it.—Janie Seddon." (Applause.) He also expressed his regret at the absence Uiiough ilness of Sir John Hall. He extended a warm welcome to the visitors, naming primarily Sir John Gorst, Representative of the British Government, and then mentioned .hose of the Commonwealth representatives. The Premier concluded as tollows; "Tne late Premier intimated ,n Christchurch that the great undertaking was to be gone on with, cind later on Mr Munro, the Chairman of the Exhibition Commissioners, was appointed by the Government to initiate the work, and on him the organisation at its inception was cast, it is due him to say that he "fi&s earned out an enormous mass of work, and done work which reflects the highest credit upon him. (Applause|) 1 desire to say, ladies and gentlemen, diat it is known only to those who are actively engaged in this Exhibition the mass of work that has been done by the Chairman of Commissioners, Mr Munro, and I take this opportunity, the first time since the Exhibition has been inaugurated, of saying that the Government 'lecognises iliat he had a most difficult task to discharge." Sir Joseph was loud.y applauded when he sat down. The rooth Psalm was then sung, and Sir Joseph then handed jewelled gold passes to Lady and the Hon. Kathleen Plunket on behalf of the Exhibition..

After that, His Excellency declared ihe Exhibition open, and despatched a telegram to His Majesty the King announcing the fact.

The massed bands outside, the orchestra and the chorus inside, joined .a the National Anthem. The Exhibition bells were rung, the flags of all nations were unfurled, and the public were admitted..