The Sun.
London, England, 1862-05-10 00:00:00

21IE FRENCH ritEss ON THE

EXHIBITION,

Several of the Paris journals have now given an
account, more or less partial, more or less accurate,

of the opening of the Great Exhibition. The
Moneteur Industriel also gives its views in a letter
from its London correspondent ; and some people
may be curious to know what this avowed orgaa
the Protectionists says of that undertaking. "The
construction in Cromwell-road," it begins,
" Well merits the:criticism passed upon it. People
may call it Exhibition House,' or anything else
they please ; but no one will call it the Palace of
the Exhibition.' The name of Palace' applied to
this heavy and shapelas mass of masonry would be
a derision. The internal arrangements aro not de-
fective, and thus far the result is satisfactory. In
the middle is a vast nave, terminated at each ex-
tremity by a cupola, frightful to look at from with-
out, but which from within produces a grand effect.
The interior is divided into four large courts; the
French and English occupy exclusively two of
these courts. At each extremity are two large
galleries. The interior is certainly much better
distributed than that of the Palais de l'lndustrie in
the Champs Elysees. The first and greatest im-
pression one receives on visiting the galleries is the
industrial power of England and France. There
is in the exhibitions of the two countries a character
of universality which is striking. Their activity is
applied to all branches of industry; and assuredly
these two are foremost in the march of civilisation.
The English Exhibition denotes breadth and force.
Ours is, above all, brilliant—elegant in form, and
pure in taste. Harmony of line and colour are the
features which a comparison with our neighbours
will show to be this most prominent. In truth,
Parisian industry constitutes the entire French ex-
hibition. It is Paris that furnished forth our
exhibition. The great producers have abstained
en masse, and iron, for instance, is nowhere
found. Oat of forty ironme.sters who gave evi-
dence during the inquiry on the Commercial
Treaty, only M. Barbezal, M. Baudry, and two
others, whose names I do net remember, have
presented themselves. MM. Schneider, Wendell,
Kcechlin, Meyer, and Gorilla do not figure here.
Fourchambault, Denain, Deeazeville show nothing.
There is the same absence in other branches of in-
dustry. The cotton trade is represented by MM.
Gros and Roman only; but not by a name known
by Alsace or Rouen. Even M. Jean Dollfus is ab-
sent ; and of the wool, linen, glass, and crystal
manufactures, there is no trace. Banaret and Cirey
are not here ; St. Gobain sent a magnificent piece,
which the English engineer entrusted with setting
it up broke, in consequence of having employed
ropes too slight. One is never betrayed but by
one's own friends ! This absence of all our great
manufactures is one of the remarkable facts of the
Exhibition. We look in vain for those names to
which our industry owes its progress. In this Lon-
don Exhibition France is, in reality, represented
only by Paris ; but Parisian skill displays its mar-
vale, and rules absolutely in all the articles of
luxury—bronzes, goldsmith's work, jewelry, furni-
ture, carpets, crystal, and porcelain, fancy arms,
marbles, upholstery, silks, and magnificent speci-
mens of the Imperial manufactories. It is actually
dazzling, and all these splendid articles have been
admirably arranged. Paris profusely throws dust
in your eyes, and makes you forget that her pro-
ductions only have entered the lists. The vine ex-
hibition is also very brilliant ; the exhibitors of
this class form nearly a fourth of the whole of the
exhibitors. The manifest superiority of the Pari-
sian exhibition has made many people jealous. It
attracts the visitors, who are in general more curious
about beautiful objects than useful ones. For the
greater number our exhibition is but a show ; for
a small number only a matter for study. If you
resist the sort of fascination which the view of the
French Court holds over you, and listen to reason,
the English exhibition will have, indeed, great
attraction. You find in it the practical good sense,
the love of the substantial and the comfortable, ever
mingled with eccentricity, which distinguishes
the English mind. If you want to have a high
idea of what the English do, you must enter
the annexe or gallery of machinery. This
gallery has four rows of machines, each served
by a railway. The placing of the machines
was effected with marvellous rapidity, by means of
two cranes—one outside, which lifted the packages,
and the other inside, which took and dropped them

into their places. The cranes were moved by steam.
In this gallery of machinery the English have a
crushing superiority in number, strength, variety,
perfection, and the innumerable applications of me-
chanical power. In this consists the triumph of
England; and our triumph is in Parisian pro-
ductions."
M. Theophile Gautier, in his letter to the
illoniteur describing the opening of the Exhibi-
tion, asks:—
" To what style of architecture does the building
belong ? We cannot design it by any classic name.
Modern industry has requirements so unknown to
antiquity that a sacrifice must be made to them ex-
clusive of recognised types. The palace of the In-
ternational Exhibition is consequently of that order
which we will call mechanical till we find a better
denomination, and which unites the qualities of the
terminus, the market, and the greenhouse. It is
evidently in that direction that future artists ought
to look for a new architecture. Constructions of
this kind give them the necessary lines. It is for
them to purify, to rectify and reduce them to
artistic proportions, and to find regular ornaments
for them. Have you seen the interior of a building
in a diorama, such as St. Mark, or St. Paul-extra-
Maros? The church is at first deserted, then a
few lamps are lighted, slight coloured shades ap.
pear, the surrounding parts are becoming visible,
and at length the nave is filled with devout or
curious people, come from nobody knows where.
We experienced a similar effect in the palace of the
International Exhibition. While we were making
a drawing of the architecture persons arrived
so quickly that we were forced to put our
pencil in our pocket. A flood raised us up and
carried us off with the force of a human Gulf
Stream from the barrier on which we were lean-
ing, to sea ' the procession of the Court' pass.
delicate, and rosy, gently but
Young ladies, fair,
obstinately pushed us far from where we were
standing. Who could suspect that thero wore
muscles of steel in such elegant and delicate
bodies P" . . •
- " Tho solemnity had concluded, and while ap-
proaching the door through which we were to go
out we saw from the landing-place of the staircase
the procession moving to the carriages. Robes and
wigs, orange raantles with black fringe, dress coats
in the French fashion, and ancient un forms are worn
by the English with deep seriousness, an aristocra-
tic bearing and a severe grace, which would induce
anybody to believe
that they were their natural
costume.
They did not appear at all extraordinary
and one might have said that they had just quitted
their ancestors. The servants in their grand live-
ries had no appearance of being stage valets. They
were worthy of their masters by their sang froid,
distinction, and bearing. Out of doors there was
a bewildering tumult of eqei
ingee—patent safety
cabs, omnibuses, and other vehicles--for the Eng-
lish, in general silent, show their joy in' JeY rapidity.
Tee horse is commissioned to express part of their
animation. In the mi Ist of the tumult walked men
hearing on their backs advertisements of the most
laelici•ous character, and seated backwards on a dog.
cart, and dashing forward with extraordinary speed,
a little deformed being cast to the wind handfulls
of yellow prospectuses. The word Exhibition' ap-
peared in enormous characters, and the flags of all
nations were fluttering in the windows."
Whatever be M. Theophile Gautier's merits in
description, it is sad work when he copies from
English. 11,
takes an inscription on the frieze,
and manages in co •
'ling it to transform it into the
following :
" Power and might and .
titaedthhlonneohuarnedomitetoo
great of lord booth richesa ir
thou reignest over all and e th. theef make
me hand is."
The correspondent of the C • .
onatitutiontie4 says
In 1851 I had an opportunity of witnessing the
firm resolution, the regular, methodical-, and vieo
rous execution of the Commissioners of the Trst-
British Exhibition. But at the beginning of this
week, and at the sight of the inextricable chaos which

the interior of the building presented to my view,
I thought it impossible that any arrangement, even
temporary, could be completed, or that th.; passages
eeuld be cleared. It was not possible to pass on
Tuesday evening except through a mass of open or
shut packing -cases mixed up with planks and cranes,
and the hall presented the appearance of a place
disturbed by some great convulsion. Woe to any-
body who ventured there without a quick eye and
a strong hand and foot! Not a day in the month
of April passed without somebody having been
killed or wounded. . The general appearance
was grand—magnificent, and the lower stage
erected immediately at the foot of the orchestra
was ornamented with an almost irreproachable
taste. The coarse appearance of the carpets and
the hangings was happily softened by immense
baskets filled with the choicest flowers harmoniously
arranged. A sofa affecting the form of a throne
occupied the centre ; six others were' placed lower
down. Two or three hundred seats were placed at
the right and left, and were reserved for official
personages and privileged spectators, male and
female."
The Siecle says :
" Frenchmen are now BO numerous in the streets
of London that they occupy all the cabs and take
possession of all the omnibuses in Piccadilly. Even
yesterday four-wheeled waggons were conveying
enormous chests to the Palace of Kensington, which
had just arrived by railway, and contained articles
for which places had been secured at the Exhibi-
tion. In seeing this disorder—these innumerable
boxes, the multitude of men engaged in unpacking
them, the straw spread over the immense halls,
while hearing the noise of hammers and saws,
while contemplating statues without pedestals, and
pedestals without statues, I asked myself whether
the interior of this palace would not present the
sight of the opening of the most gigantic Caphar-
naum which was ever dreamt of, How in 24 hours
produce order from this chaos? And, nevertheless,
that prodigy was accomplished. The following
day I did not recognize the halls in which I
had walked the preceding day. All the
wonders of industry appeared in magnificent
unison. Colossal statues, large fountains send-
ing forth their brilliant streams over the shrubs and
flower 3, gigantic telescopes, monumental machines
which appear to be the behemoths of industry—all
in their places, and :all contributing to the general
harmony. In these richly decorated glass cases
lined with velvet, in these stalls loaded with
valuable articles, may be seen specimens of every
industry on the globe, as well as in that crowd of
representatives of every nation. All right. When
quitting the palace I found the same compact crowd
in Cromwell-road which had been standing there
from the morning. How, with the risk of being
crushed or ground, penetrate these masses of black
coats ? But the crowd made way politely, and I
reached a cab. Nobody incurs the risk of being
smothered in an English crowd—he has nothing to
fear but the light hand of the pickpocket, which
r wanders willingly towards the purse or the watch
of the gentleman.'