The Express.
London, England, 1851-07-12 00:00:00

TILE WEEK AT THE GLASS PALACE.

MONDAY.

The attractions of the Palace of Industry seem to
increase as the season progresses, Monday having been
one of the fullest days since the opening. The great shilling
public had it almost all to themselves, there being but very
few titled persons noticed among the visitors. Prince
Albert was present fur an hour or two in the morning ae-
companied by one gentleman, but so quiet and unobtrusive
was his visit, that be escaped general recognition. The
only persons of rank and likelihood whom we noticed in
addition were the Countess of Zetland and Sir 11. Inglis ;
but to make up for the absence of English hoot ton,
there were troops of visitors from almost every part of the
civilised world. Frenchmen were there in every variety of
grotesque costume and every degree of hirsute ugliness.
Broad-shouldered and fair-haired German men and
women, looking as if they had just arrived from Kent
or Sussex, with Hengist at their head, showed their
dinky to the English race by being generally provided
with rielbelbelleilt briskets. There was every shade et
negro Mesa from " Hengelo" to " Dustee ; " Spaniards,
Italian nod Hollanders, detachments frum the military and
naval services of our own and foreign countries, and lastly,
a vast body of our working classes principally from the pro-
vinces. The boys of the Naval Asylum, Greenwich, steamed
up to Chelsea in the Arid, and, forming on the Terrace,
marched gaily to the Crystal Palace, preceded by their
band, and with colours flying. These juvenile heroes had
hit upon an admirable plan for recovering any stray hays
who might lose themselves in the vast avenues. The male
body was accompanied by the cornet is piston of the band,
who, every time he tame to a prominent tort of the gallery,
or nave, struck up a flourish which soon brought all the
wanderers about him, but very much astonished such
visitors as had not seat the plan of the campaiga. There
was, also, a large party of naval cadets from the
Norwegian corvette " Ellida," now lying at Sheer-
ness. These young gentlemen were accompanied by
an interpreter, and marched through the building with a
sedate gravity almost as striking as that for which
English middies arc so remarkable. The other naval con-
tingent consisted of the boys of the Vengeance, 84, now
under orders fur the East Indies. We were glad to per-
ceive that the hint we gave some days since, to the large
employers of London labour, tuts not been wholly thrown
away. The men of several large establishments in town
were present, the most conspicuous being a body of 500
from the great printing-office of Messrs. Clown, the printers
of the catalogue. It was understood that these men had
been treated by their employers without any deduction
from their wages for the day lost. This is as it
should be, and merely puts the London operative
on a level with his brethren from the pro-
vinces. The excursion trains were also numerous, and
poured vast numbers into the Crystal Palace. One from
Hull brought up 1,000, among whom was a Hull Exhibi-
tion dub, consisting of 100 members, who came in a body,
headed by the mayor, and with a distinctive flag flying.
There was another Exhibition train, from Swindon, which
brought up a large detachment; but indeed to judge from
the variety of dialects, English, Scotch, and Irish, which
resounded through the building, every corner of the three
kingdoms must have contributed to swell the crowd. Ihe
only thing to be regretted was the scarcity of the well
known London physiognomy. It is still very evident that
the metropolitan operatives are only very partially enjoy-'1
big the Exhibition, but it is to be hoped that the few good
examples which we have been so careful to chronicle, may
lead to the general adoption of arrangement of means by
which they may see the wonders of the Crystal Palace on
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