The Express.
London, England, 1855-05-19 00:00:00

I THE PARIS UNIVERSAL EXHIBITION.

(YllOll 7:111 DAILY MIMI

PARIS, MAI 17.
I am enabled to inform your readers, on official
mihority, that it is the Intention of her Majesty's
3overnment to isms !gratuitous passports to workiog
men visiting the Paris Universal Exhibition. This'
dberality, which you advocated some time ago, is an
opportune concession to those dawns of the comm .
nay for which an industrial exhibition is spesielly
interesting. It is to be hoped that other countries
will follow the example of England.
I have now thoroughly examined the Adel cata-
logue issued yesterday ; and regret to inform your
madam that it is so faulty in plan as to be a work
from which it is hopeless to expert assistance. Itl
costs three hues ;it is balky. It has no denription
of the distribution of nations in the venom build-
ings; it gives the visitor no rules to guide him. The
whole exhibition is simply divided into nations ; each
nation having its contributions numbered, beginning
with number one.
Thus, No. 28 may be in the gallery, and No. 29 me
the ground floor; No. 30 may be m the Palate de
l'lminstrie, and No. 31 in the long gallery near the
Seine. There is no guide whatever to the part of the
beading in which any elms is placed. The catalogs*
should have been divided into buildings in the first
place; then each building should have been sub-
divided into nations—the part in the building met
pied by each nation being carefully, laoidly specified.
Again, the nave, in which are remarkable objects draws
teem the thirty :classes, and from the tiontributioos d
mime countries, should have had a distinct, well-
written chapter. However, at the present moment
them is not a single number placed threagheitt the
Man; ',that the bearer of a antelope has, at the
present moment, an idiotic aspect to the initiated
visitor, who knows that if this catalogue were per-
fect, instead of being useless, not a figure which it
',tains has yet a corresponding figure upon a single
•bjset exhibited.
The bad weather yesterday kept hundreds away
from the building. Still, in the afternoon, long rows
of carriages were waiting outside to set down visitors,
giving some idea of the crowds a little fine weather
will bring. The main eitrance is gay with banners,
and on each sides splendid show of flowers, enlivened
by foantains, gives effect to the seas.
Wt bin the building the hammers of workmen at,
heard on all sides; groups of sculpture are being
hourly added to the nave; and the foreign courts
are rapidly approaching completion. The machinery
gallery is still far from finished; and the Panorama,
where the imperial manufactures are to be placed, is
blocked up. At the present moment, visitors cannot
have refreshments of any kind in the Exhibition.
This is a serious mistake.
Among the objects around which wondering
groups of French visitors collect are—the Austra-
lian OM of gold nuggets, in the south-
east angle of the building (although neat
of these nuggets exhibit gold so pyre r
the nuggets in Phillips' case); the beautiful solise-
don of silver work and jewellery, worth about
12,0004, free .Steer and Mortimer, including some
beautiful dienessils, the testimonial presented to
Lord Ilksbersegh bv his Indian friends, one pre-
sented to Lisulemeat-Generel Sir Charles Napier, and
one to Lord 'ffinvingtea ; the envelops machine from
De lease (which reminds every Englishman of 861) ;
Bell's Eagle Slayer, placed in the nave near the mer-
cantile navy trophy; the candelabra contributed by
the Goldsmiths' Company ; the English photographs
and wood carving. Minton and Co.'s Paley ware
of mares continues to astonish all French visitors—
who bed no ides that we could rival even the worst
specimens of Siena ware. In crystal productions we
have also astonished them—thanks to Oster and to
Defries, who exhibit colossal candelabra of wonderful I
purity. In short, up to this time the English are
essarded as having made a complete eneeme—a sw-
am beyond the expectation even of the most sec-1
plies patriot.
FA., 8 o'clock.—Since writing the above I have
umertained on authority that, in spite of the bad
weather yesterday, 1,700 persons paid at the doors,
the receipts being about 8,000 franca, or 3201. To-
dos, the tete of the Assumption, there have been
more MUM tickets and more general visitors in the
building than yesterday:

(FROM • 001113STONDIDIT OF THE DAILY news.)
Paris is to-day itself again. This may be called a
triplefsta. In the first place it is Thursday, a slay
second only to Sunday for oat of doors amassment .1
all kinds ; in the next pleas, it is the Assert" a
festival of the Roman church, ranking in 'aspartame
after Christmas, Easter, and the aneamptkm of the
Virgin Mary; and thirdly, it is the first Ins datjaii
Parisians have had for nearly
.a week. Such
the cue every living being in the town is out
doors, and—excepting always a few ill-dressed,
strong-minded Englishmen and women—all sorts
and conditions of men look happy, contented,
and well dressed. In the Champs Elysess,
equipages of all kinds and descriptions may be
counted by the hundreds, and pedestrians by the bum
of thousands. The military are all out walking in
their fall-dress uniforms, many of which are tutu*
new. Amongst these the most remarkable are the
" Zonaves of the Guard," a new regiment which the
Emperor has formed by drafts from the other regi.l
moots of Bowes, and who have put on their new
uniform to-day for the first time. in short, a gayer'
scene than Paris presents to-day, or a more complete
contrast to what the town has been sines Sunday last,
it would be difficult to conceive. But, with all this,
the Exhibition does not fill. I stood for nearly
an hoar close to the principal entrance to-day
during the time when most people were ex-1
peoted to visit the building, and I did not ass
a dozen persons apply for admission, exempt
such as were exhibitors or season ticket-holders;
sad very few of those who thronged the Champs
Ripka turned aside to enter the building. The Ex-
hibition does not as yet seem to take with the French :
inside the building the spectators were amere handful.
The din the workmen make in unpacking the cases
prevents anyone from enjoying the sight of what is
already unpacked and exposed. The dust and dirt
caused by the work going on will no doubt spoil a
great many
.of the more fragile articles which have
been pat up in the various stalls. Notthat there ismaoh
toneless yet. Judging from the progress mods ease
the opening, I should say that it would take Wiest a
couple of months to have everything put in its place.
The Commissioners themselves acknowledge that, as
yet, all their arrangements have ended in utter
failure, and the strangers that have been deluded into
visiting Paris for the opening of the Paoli' de
fin-
dueetrie are wild at the manner they have spent their
money and lost their time, with no result whatever.
It is a thousand pities that the ceremony of Tuesday
last was not a bona jtels opening of the whole build-
ing, as in the CYO of the Crystal Palace on the Ist
May, 1851. The strangers now here are all writing
to their friends in various parts of the world, advie•
ing them not to come to Paris at all this unusual
Oa the lbtb, just after the ceremony of the epee-
kft was over, an equestrian statue of the Emperor,
in bronze, which has been erected on a pedestal op-,1
posits the east front of the Exhibition, was uncovered
for the first time. The status is of the size of naturs,
and was cast by M. Gaillard, from a model by M.
Delay.
- -Those is one thing which Wiles every Englishman
swim Paris, and that is the great number of French
=I all classes who now speak maser len
This is particularly remarkable emengst
the isms of the French army. A few years ago
bat very few of these gentlemen mold bete been
Mad who knew a word of our Lovers Now
meet of the juniors, and many of the sada% both
emderstand and speak it.

ADMINISTRAITII ItEl,olol.—The conisittew for
amagias a public meeting on this Babied at Maaehester,
onnoussa that, in coosequeuce of the abuses front that city
daisy lafaentiel pram who would be expected to take
put * the prouediap, the meeting is unavoidably post-
PM& Is the meantime the committee will be happy to
toodu omatunications frogs soatleassa into/sated in the
,eater;, addressed to the Beantary of the Maultostaz
Adethisirative Reform howdation, No. 3, Crow-strut
VOMUCithlie HALL.—The following are the
auks of gmtlesses who passed their ezaaaiaatios is the
edam sul prudes of Iledkdas, sot reeolved sertifleates
to palls, ea Thursday the 17th of May, 1866 :—Georse
Turnabout Navin, DriSeld, Yorkshire; Bergen% Jobs
Sa::NAOS Wert Men*, llessal hassleWiatet
; Thaw eserard, Petereasid, Huts ; Own Web.
4 Nor, Newton Haub, Masobalsoc.