The Sun.
London, England, 1862-02-13 00:00:00

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POLAND.
FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.
WARSAW, FEB. 5.

THE GREA7 EILLIBITION.

Yesterday marked the first great era in the pro-
gress of the building, when Messrs. Kelk and Lu-
cas virtually completed their contract by formally
giving up possession of the vast structure, and
handing it over to the care of the Royal Commis-
sioners. By the terms of their agreement the
contractors were bound to give over the entire
building finished at twelve o'clock yesterday; but
as the works advanced it was seen that so many
alterations were necessary, and such difficulties
arose from the unexampled magnitude of the
whole undertaking, that it would be strain.
ing matters almost to harshness to look for a
literal fulfilment of the terms of the con-
tract. Nevertheless, from the very first Messrs.
Kelk and Lucas never took this doubtful view of the
question, and announced themselves confident and
determined that they would do their work within
the allotted days. It was a very hard struggle
against time, and at one period it seemed more than
probable that, in spite of all their skill, energy, and
lavish expenditure, the contractors would be beaten.
Fortunately, however, they were favoured by the
mild weather, and this unlooked-for aid, together
with their own untiring personal exertions, at last
turned the balance in their favour, and at 12 o'clock
yesterday, the day and hour named in their contract
nine months ago, they gave over the building vir-
tually in a finished state. As a matter of course,
though the structure is nominally given over, an
immense amount of work still remains to be done,
but all this is now well in hand. The whole place
is roofed in, the courts in the southern side are
floored and painted, and at least one half of the
entire edifice is ready now for the reception of goods,
and the other half will be floored and ready within
a fortnight, if necessary. It is a fact that never has
the same amount of solid and most difficult work
been done within the same short space of time, and
it would be difficult to overpraise either Mr. Kelk
or Messrs. Charles and Thomas Lucas for the zeal
and care with which they have worked almost
night and day to bring about a result so gratifying
to our national reputation for skill and punctuality
in these matters. There was no ceremony or public
form observed yesterday when the structure was
given over. The Royal Commissioners were the
Duke of Buckingham, Sir Wentworth Dilke, and
Mr. Fairbairn, who, with the three contractors, went
round all the building shortly before 12 o'clock, and
as the clock struck they accepted its delivery, and
in the most condial manner thanked Messrs. Lucas
and Kelk for the promptitude and completeness
with which they had adhered to the letter of their
agreement, and still more for the liberal spirit in
which they had met the suggestions of the Commis.
sioners, and executed a great deal more work in the
buiiding than they were bound under their contract to
do. As soon as the Royal Commissioners had received
the building a detachment of police, under Mr. Dur-
kin, were stationed in it, with a division of the Fire
Brigade, who instantly proceeded to make them-
selves acquainted with the mains and stand pipes,
and to arrange lengths of hose to reach all parts of
the interior. With these also came a fine detachment
of commissionaires to make themselves generally
useful, and a company of Sappers and Miners to
assist in unloading, &c. The latter, singularly
enough, arrived on the same date and almost at the
same hour as the Sappers who were sent in for the
same work at the Exhibition of 1851. These now
remain in charge of the building for the Royal Com-
missioners, and from this date goods will be received
through the entrance left open for this purpose in
the Cromwell-road. No goods, however, are expected
for a day or two. Belgium is likely to be the first in
the field, and perhaps after her Norway and Russia.
and with or after them will come a general delivery
of manufactures and works of art from_ all parts of
England and the world. It is said that the French
will spend nearly £lOO,OOO sterling on the decora-

I made in my last letter a passing allusion to the
declaration which the Government asserts to have
been written and signed by the Canon Bialo-
brzewski, after his trial by the court-martial, to
the effect that he had ordered the churches of War-
saw to be closed, in order to avoid the profanation
of them by the singing of the pi ohibited political
hymns. As this declaration was published in the
official journal, and the authorities are parading it in
other papers, both here and abroad, it is but just to
remark that such a declaration on the part of
this worthy prelate would be in manifest
contradiction with the letter which, on the
16th October last, when enjoying his liberty, and
with the advice of the assembled chapters of the
diocese, he addressed to Count Lambert, the Gover-
nor of the kingdom.
" The acts of profanation," wrote Canon Bialo-
brzewski, " committed yesterday in the Cathedral
and other churches by the Russian soldiery have
filled with horror and indignation the minds of the
inhabitants of this city, and of the whole country
to whatsoever religious creed they may belong. In
view of such facts I cannot remain silent. Placed
at the head of the clergy, it is my duty to inform
your excellency of the gravity of such a crime, per-
petrated at the time when people were engaged in
singing religious hymns approved by the Church.
" The sanctuary of God was surrounded by the
troops; nearly 2,000 persons kept in it during the
whole day and night, without nourishment and
without any regard to their natural necessities, the
church door broken in, and the house of God en-
tered in the night by the soldiers armed and with
their shakos on their heads, striking with the butts
of their muskets all those who would not go away,
for fear of being arrested immediately. These are
the undeniable facts which are a disgrace to the
soldiers of a Christian Government, and would
make ns believe that the days of Attila have
returned.

"I have, therefore, in conformity with the rules
of the Church, thought it necessary to take mea-
sures which, while restraining from despair this
justly indignant and exasperated people, would
make it:feel, however, the barbarity of the per-
petrated acts."

tion and fitting up of their court. The tree which
was preserved with such difficulty in the centre of
the south side of the English court was yesterday cut
down. It was found impossible to keep it, as it stood
in the midst of the space allotted to Sheffield, and the
constant watering it would have required in summer
would have rusted the steel goods around it most in-
juriously. On Monday last, before the building was
formally delivered over, it underwent a most severe
test as to its strength of galleries and stairways, &c.
Before the dimensions of the columns, girders, and
timber rafters of the building were decided on a pre-
liminary test was adopted by crowding 80 "navvies"
on to a weigh-bridge of 79 feet (superficial) space.
This number of very heavy men gave a weight of
1531 b. to the superficial foot—a weight that, broken
up as the floors and galleries will be by counter
space, and allowing for the number of women and
children in even the densest crowd, could not
by any possibility come upon any one part of
the building. When, therefore, the size of the
columns and girders was decided on it was deter-
mined to load them to the extreme strain of 1401 b.
to the foot before erecting. At this weight the de-
flection of the trussed beams was trifling, and on
the removal of the load the rods recovered them-
selves to the fraction of an inch. But not satisfied
with this, the still more severe test of the vibration
and concussion produced by a body of men march-
ing was resorted to on Monday last. The testing
occupied nearly three hours, and during that time a
body of 400 navvies went through all the picture
and side galleries and stairways of the building,
first marching, then at a quick march, and then at

And it is after putting this man several times in
prison—after condemning him to death—and then
transporting him to a Russian fortress, that the
Government publishes a document in which the
canon throws all the blame of profanation on the
people, and calls the hymns revolutionary. If the

prelate really made the statement contained in the 1 "the double," stamping hard. The greatest defiee-
Government document, why then sentence to death tion of the iron beams under this heavy ordeal was
or to confinement in a fortress, so able a defender of only one-eighth of an inch, and of the iron and
the Russian rule; why not recompense him by wooden tresses of only from three-eighths to five-
raising him to the dignity of the Archbishop, in- eighths. In fact, all the galleries showed a firmness
stead of appointing a young priest, who spent all which even those who were acquainted with the
his time in St. Petersburg, and is comparatively heavy test they had previously undergone were not
a stranger to the so-called kingdom of Poland. prepared to find. Opinions as to the great strength
The matter is clear—the Russian authorities of the interior were therefore definitely set at rest
wanted to create an impression upon the people by all parts of the structure bearing this severe trial
unfavourable to this patriotic clergyman, but it has without complaint or sign of weakness of any kind.
miserably failed in the attempt, as no one will be- On Saturday the last centres were removed from
lieve one iota of this fabricated document, under the domes, and they were left to stand alone.
The state of siege which was to have been raised Every part of these huge works were found, on
at the commencement of this year continues in all examination, to be as rigid as a single bolt, Much
its terror. The court-martial is permanently in- of this is of course due to the perfection of work-
stalled in the citadel, and the judges being hand- manship with which the Thames Iron Company has
somely paid make it their interest to prolong the tnrned out all the component parts of each struc-
proceedings, and to increase the number of the tore, but a good deal is also owing to the extreme
victims consigned to their tender mercies. Every care which Mr. Hussey and Mr. Ashton have taken
one is asking how long is all this to last, and ru- respectively in the erection of the eastern and
mours are afloat that the Emperor Napoleon, who western domes. The western one is already being
hitherto has remained silent on the Polish affairs, glazed, and the eastern will progress with equal
intends to represent to the Emperor Alexander the rapidity, and when the painting is done the removal
necessity of changing the system, if he does not like to of the immense scaffolding will at once commence.
follow into the footsteps of his brother monarch the Mr. Crace has designed a very rich and most effec-
late King of Naples. Though the Poles do not place tive decoration for the dome interiors, the leading
any reliance on the promises of Princes, yet the colours in which are blue, crimson, and gold, and,
marked attentions of which the late Prince Czar- as far as can be judged from small designs for a
toryski was, and now his son Prince Ladislas work of such magnitude, we think the effect will
Czartoryski is the object, on the part of Louis Na- be satisfactory. The painting of the 50-feet courts
poleon, may lead to this supposition. on the south side is finished in all save toning
As ever, the Russians endeavour to indispose the down the rather full red capitals of the co-
peasants against their proprietors, and several mili- lumns. The body of the column is tinted a pale
tary officials betrayed their seal in that respect, but bronze green, with the vertical moulding re-
it is consoling to observe that the peasants invari- lieved with a yellow stripe. The upper cornice is
ably turn a deaf ear to all insinuations, and show marked with a bright line of crimson, which shows
confidence and respect for their masters. The mea- the dimensions of each court with full effect. As
sure regarding the property to be given to them is these courts will be filled with goods of the richest
still under the deliberation of the Council of State. and most varied colours, it was absolutely necessary
The son of the Marquis Wielopolski, who was to keep the surrounding columns of as quiet and.
made Chamberlain of the Emperor, has, it is said, neutral a tint as possible. The walls of the picture
by high inspiration, written a long article in the galleries are to be tinted with a very pale neutral
Russian organ, _Le Nord, published at Brussels, colour, but the coving of the ceiling will be deco-
showing that the Emperor would willingly restore rated in panels. The heavy cornice will also be
to the Kingdom of Poland its rights, constitution, lightened by decorations, and the upper end wall of
and the national army, as guaranteed by the each gallery painted in festoon gi.rlands ani medal-
treaty of Vienna, but the Imperial mind lions. It is difficult to judge of what the whole
has a doubt whether in the present deter- effect will be in such a large interior as these
mination of the Poles to see their entire galleries until a great deal of them is done; but
country restored, such a concession would prove Mr. Crace's design seems at least to promise high
acceptable. This is regarded here as a feeler success. The decoration of the nave is advancing
sr hat the Poles would really accept—and the very rapidly. Five of the bays will be finished this
general opinion on this point is, that the Emperor week, nine next week, and 12 for each week after-
would not object to the restoration of the rights wards until both nave and transepts are done. Of
provided the Poles would accept for their Lieu- course, the painting of the domes will go on simul-
tenant one of the Russian Grand Dukes. taneously with the rest of the building. The re-
In the Russian circles it is loudly talked that the freshment departments are advancing as rapidly as
Emperor attached much importance to the English all the rest, though in connexion with these a most
Parliamentary debates on Poland last year, and unsightly effect is produced in the interior of the
that to avoid the repetition of them, he is full of building by tiers of four or five kitchen 'windows
promises, which are most readily made, but they rising one above another in the wall on the north
may never be performed. side of the courts. These give to this portion of the
building much the same effect as would be produced
by taking in as a boundary four or five oddly-built
houses. Surely the cooking might be done by gas-
light, and this hideous eyesore removed ? A 12ft.
gallery is to be erected round this side of the
building, with properly apportioned entrances to
the dining-rooms overlooking the Horticultural
Gardens.

The western annexe for machinery in motion is
at last, we are glad to say, getting ir.to a forward
state of readiness, though still by no means on a
par with the progress of the rest of the building.
Three square sewers, if we may so call them, have
been built along its entire length for the steam,
waste, and exhaust pipes. These are all constructed
of very solid brickwork, and as carefully finished
as the noble entrances under the domes themselves.
Along the edges of these rows of sunk brick walls
a tramway will be laid, on which the heavy machi-
nery and locomotives will be moved up to their
places. Still, apparently there is no preparation
made for the most difficult task of all—that of fixing
the shafting by which the machinery is to be driven.
Fixing the shafts to the light wooden framework of
the annexe itself is, of course, out the question, and
it is equally certain that there is no proper roora
for them, with their drums, where the steam pipes
are to be laid. Of course, like all the :)ther difficul-
ties in the structure, these can be got over; but,
unfortunately, their consideration has been so long
delayed that it seems unlikely that the machinery
will be in work by the Ist of May. The annexe in
the eastern side is going on very well indeed, and
this will be ready as soon as it is wanted. In both
these annexes the plan of colouring adopted, now
that it is finished, comes out remarkably well. All
arrangement has been concluded between the Corn'
missioners and Mr. Robert Hunt, who compiled the
Synopsis and Handbook of the Exhibition of 1851,
by which that gentleman has undertaken to pro-
duce two similar works for this display. The
Synopsis is to be ready by the Ist of May, and the
Handbook before the Ist of June, and both to be
sold for 6d. The wet weather during .the last foci'
weeks has tested the covering of felt and tar over
the flat roofs of the building apparently beyond its
endurance. If a fortnight's fine weather could have
been depended on it would have been easy to re-tar
it all and make it perfectly water-tight. Last week,
however, Messrs. Kelk and Lucas determined to
risk nothing on this head, and at their own expense
covered all the flats (a superficial extent of nearly
200,000 ft.) with zinc roofing over the felt. Now,
therefore, it is truly a waterproof building in the
most literal sense of the word. The extra cost of
making it so, however, has been a large sum.