The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1871-10-07 00:00:00

THE CLOSE OF THE INTERNATIONAL

EXHIrITICII IN LOP-ON.
The Inte.md 'ailed Industrial ExLibition, vAlich has
till, I the halls and galleries of the S. uth Kensington 1
Ma.,enta !Ina, the Ist of May last, and which in the
twenty-two weeks dining which it remained I pen has
attracted nearly a million and a quarter of visitor', was
clnueil on Saturday evening last. The day was a fine
one fir the SeaMll --grey and cold in the morning, but
twale,:itely sunshine in the afternoon, and. as a is inSe•
games, the few mill:inns of poiple who still remain in
depopulated Isinmin sent a respectable contingent
of loungurs awl sight seekers. Fur the firmer
class the Exliiiiition had during the fine weather ,
curtain un I•inbte•l attractions. 'l'o wander throngh
the lativrinthlne passages, tit pus•p jut, the ,
great Albert Hall. to stumble suddenly on the
Ceramic court or the Belgian pit-tore gallery, and
hi,callv t.. emerge on the open acr galleries which °Ver.
look the Italian i birder_ cc? the his irticultnral Society, was
a delightful pastime for the gaily ihesseil lutp4 ladies
and their atten•lant cavaliers, who formjd the main
staple of the season's visit is,. lint when a working
man and bis fancily, tempted hy the " industrial
charai;ter of the ExhiLitnsi, wade a pilgrimage to
South Kensington, the ease was cc-1y littecent ;it was
a long wav fir him to cc.me, and idthough the Metro-
politan Vistiict Railway shortened the distance,
yet the railway and omnibus fan, mails a serious
turoad into his holiday funds. When the work-
ing man and MS family bad got safely within the
walls he found himself list in a perfect maze cif
roundalsalt ilaisageil, through which his Wile awl
himself patiently tramped, each carrying a young
pledge id connubial affection, awl the two •n 0c m!
tion dragging three or four laore ct their skirts ; alai it
• was only at long intervals that they dnipped quite
promiscuously" upon line of the sh••w-risinis, blown,
tired. and diassaistied. It has been stated by many
working men that whgn they twik a day from th••ir la-
bour, and went to Kensington with their fatuities, ;it
li•ast one-half 4pf the visit was occupied in trudging
through the COrridora ta. sea!hvg. the Alpine heights at
which some piirtions of the Exhibition were to be seen.
As the Exhibitiun is to be an annual one. and as it is
likely to be euery year more awl twin' interesting tic
the classes for whese instruction and amusement it is
avowedly intended, these hints will perhaps not lie
overlimked by its managers. A little more symmetry
in the internal amangements and a few guides and
guide posts Wf add save the workingl•eolde a Lfreat deal
of 11111,,,ary fatLftle, 1111.1 1,11,4 60111 fresh awl
unwearied to the objects intew led for their inspec-
Coin. . • • • •

The machinery in motion has always been on object j
of untlaggieg interest to the last - whether it was a ,
thrashing machine, or carding machine, at a sewing !
machine --and Saturday's crowd made no exeeption to ,
the rule. One enterprising exhibitor, who halt a print- t
big mesa at work, and who struck off " keys to
tie 'Exhibition " and programme-I incessantly, was !
surrounded by an eager crowd who watched the ,
stiiking off with altSorbed interest, MP I scram- !
11,1 for copies as they came damp from the ,
pre4s. Next to the machinery in motion, the visitors ,
s“onetl to take their farewell of the Belgian pictures
with the greatest regret. The fatuous "Lady Godiva"
held a tinnier, tusly attended let cc, and the sheep piece
of the Flemish Landseer was almost in:gamma:Ode.
Then everylesiy asked for the ceramic and French tine
arts courts, or besieged the stalls of the London t
Stereoscopic Company to purchase souvenirs of the
ttttt egst whieh the beautifully executed
group, " What are the wild waves saying," was in ,
great tlemand.
At half-past three the crowd hurried to the outer
galleries tit listen to the bawls in the gardens, awl at
half-past four thete aa: a concert within 11,11, Isy the
London Glee and Madrigal I'Mon. In the interim
Mr. Buckmaster improved the occasion with a !tinting I
lecture, detailing some of the lea- big facts of the sea-
sin which was so ciii about to terminate.
I The total admittsions during the twenty-two weeks
hail been 1,121,011, to which was to he 104011 the
lay's nuntloerS, tie, greatest nnullsor present was
on Whit Met-lay, when 21,910 itts,ed the turnstiles,
and the smallest on the loth of August, when there
i were only 5,400. There had not been a single case of
wilful injury to pictures, marl he, in- tactile, rwr any
instance of miscontlut•t calling for the intervention of
the police. No theft had taken place, and the
arrangement which is tompo,ed to have contributed to
this gratifying n cult was the employment of retired
policemen as cheektakerr at all the tut nstilei. The
light-fingered gentry on presenting themselves were at
once recognistsl by their oil acquaintances, and retired
in disgust at the invasion of their incognito.
Looked at from the commercial point of view, the
surer,i of the Exhibition has been complete, both for
itself and the exhibitors. It is said that after all
expel-Vt.'', the receipts I.f the se.won will leave a balance
of somewhere about 1::21,0G0, and that all the goods
which were saleable Itasl found ready and liberal pur-
chasers. The I:30,000 will afford means of expand-
ing next year's Exhibition, as well as improving the
interior arrangements, and the experience of this
year's exhil atom will attract much greater numbers in
tlw next. But one accident occurred timing the season,
when two ladies fell on one of the huge staircase',;
anti there wa: not a single rmarrel Or assault atnongst
the whole millittn and a quarter of visitors. At five
minutes to six o'clock the grand sounds of theNationai
Anthem pealed through the building, and then came
the elearittg out, which was effected with great rapidity
and the most perfect order.
It is understood that next year's Exhibition will not
be no comprehensive as the inaugural one which has
just been °lowed, and which included fine arts, pottery,
I woollen fabrics, educational works and appliances,
scientific inventions and diAcoveries, new and rare
plants, ftIVI 411ything showing speciality of cultivation.
I It in-toiled 22,:-.17 articles sent in by British exhibi-
t tors, from the I'ttlonies and ft deign countries, tad
to speak of 3,4r52 which were rejected by the
mittee of Selection.
The gross number of visitors during Whit-week
'r was 71,390, and one of the largest attendances of the
season was ou the Friday preceding the closing day.