The Sun.
London, England, 1853-06-23 00:00:00

THE AMERICAN EXHIBITION.

progress
NEW YORK, JUNE 9.—lt is the boast of ,t ,
from a small beginning, it advances with everyr7:
a more perfect development But in the esterfprien wta
" World's Fair"—and speaking brag.
its American successor—this boast becouiehys.
ied to
The glittering avalanche of Hyde-park has
tt'illest cant
a snow-ball; and the country proud of the ,
bably pre.
solely with re e 3
racts," and the "loudest thunder," will pro
p, held in
duce an Exhibition inferior to that now bal.
the Irish metropolis. 're the sine'
An undertaking so vast seemed to require
tpiroins
e. and
Nseuvpeprotirltel
Nevertheless
theo eftohriinugoi morethe than.s rpirciavral tie)oelnteitce_arli
system, and the constitutional restrictions imposi.n.
the Federal Executive, rendered it impossible, that the
matter should be taken up and carried through by
antyhu;
Government. It therefore devolved upon a „c°,nute-
and it is but just to add, that the directors or
rican " Association for an Exhibition of the Indu.strYa
rn
all Nations" have laboured energetically, if not with .
very brilliant success, to carry out the immense and °sYt
beneficial design. In
Difficulties of all kinds beset them at every turr.r. i...,
the very outset, local jealousies refused to permit a .
o
city to usurp the importance of a national e
poru
Boston demanded that it should be the favoured lochlolw
and so with Philadelphia, Baltimore, &0. As' wed,
ever, a display of European products was conteleP
the commercial, financial, and geographical pre ou
n
nence of New York was reluctantly conceded ; "io
the 11th of March, 1852, the Legislature granted to ics_
provisional directors a charter of incorporation..:
the 17th of the same month, Theodore Sedgwick, -r4O
a lawyer of some celebrity, was elected president oil ,
association, and Mr. William Whetten, treasurer and
secretary. with
The company was chartered for five years, „o
liberty to raise a capital of $300,000, in shares of Si:3.
each, no one subscriber to hold more than fifty shay •
The City Corporation granted a site for the building_ir,
Reservoir-square, and it was announced by the dir_e_,
tors, without reserve, that the Exhibition should "
mence upon the Ist of May, 1853."
mice
Mr. Charles Buschek, of London (whose exPeri- 0
as Austrian Commissioner at the Hyde Park Pa'athea
recommended him), was now appointed to organise
Foreign Department of the enterprise ; and the f°relogrt
Ministers at Washington promised the cordial supP
of their respective Governments. Mr. C. B. Detliwiei•
and Mr. Horatio Allen were appointed consulting, 03r
chitects and engineers ; and it now only remained
find a proper plan for the building.
Sir Joseph Paxton gratuitously furnished one d.sin:
gular beauty, but the paltry desire to make an "
rican" Exhibition of it induced the directors to &elle/
his offer. Finally, however, they were necessitateto adopt the design of two German architects,
but recently settled in the country, Messrs. Carstensee
and Gildemeister. The masonry contracts were taken
by Messrs. Smith and Stewart and Mr. Lorenzo doses'
while the iron works required were portioned out to nut
less than eleven contractors. According to agreen2,eild
the foundations were to be laid, and the greater pa"' -
the iron delivered, by the 21st of last October. ,of
It is now the Bth day of June, and the mere husk ~,
the'Palace—that was to be finished and freighted by
Ist of May—is.not yet completed ! About one-third 0
it requires to be glazed, and the rounding of the d°11:13
is more a matter of ingenious experiment than n 10113,11;
cal skill. True, the directors state that the Exhil,l4o
,'„-t
will commence on the 16th of next month (July) ;
having failed so egregiously in their first engage
which failure, by the way, they left unannounced
still
unexplained up to the last moment—the public are
far from satisfied that they will prove more faithful
their present promise.
The original idea of this edifice was that of a Greek
cross 365 feet in each, diameter, each arm of the cross
149 feet broad and 75 feet high, the whole to be tur,
mounted by a central dome 100 feet in diameter and
feet up to the crown, a ball 31 feet higher than the '4
of the dome surmounting the whole. The galleries 01
24 feet from the floor, and octagonal iron towers, 8 fie:i
in diameter, and containing winding staircases, stand
each corner. In view, however, of the deficienCY °
space, the angles of the cross were finally enclosed 814
roofed in to where the galleries strike the sides of
building ; so that we have an octagon on the gr.V7),.,-
floor, while the galleries retain their original cruciform
design. Each arm of the cross is divided into a central
nave, 41 feet wide, with two side aisles 54 feet each,
cl 4
covered by galleries of a similar width ; so that If
Crystal Palace contains a total area, on floor and P.
leries, of some inconsiderable fraction less than four
acres.

This building of glass and iron is placed within a feS
yards of the great reservoir, from which Croton Water',
served out to the city, and there is a harsh displeasil
contrast between the brilliant lightness of the onet
the massive granite buttresses of the other. n
neighbourhood of the palace has been occupied by srti
culators of all sorts ; there at least fifty groggeries 6.110
drinking saloons within a stone's throw of the TemP
of Industry ; and half-a-dozen menageries, panorama*
and petty theatres have likewise sprung up around it.
All the apace in the American department has bee!
allotted to exhibitors ; but it is to be regretted that
many of the first manufacturing and commercial house°
have held aloof from, or, at best, given but a cold Or
tdie concern.
The newspapers—except those directly paid to adver
tise the palace—have abused the association as a e°ll3,
pang of "jobbers," who seek to make money by mat
calculated to injure domestic trade ; and none of t""
public men of the country (the late Daniel Webster er
cepted) ever gave any efficient countenance or credit t,,,°
the directors in their attempts to place the undertaltiob
on a national basis.

In spite of all obstacles, the palace: approaches COli
pletion,' and, unless something unforeseen occurs, wi
certainly open on the 16th of July next. The French
and English departments are expected to be well fille
but of these I must postpone a description to my 33e1ti
letter. I thought it best, in my first letter, to give
(even at the risk of being a little wearisome)
count of the embarrassments through which the Ainer'o:
can "World's Fair" has struggled ; you will then aPPr,'"
ciate more keenly the triumphs, or condemn less severely
the reverses I may hereafter have to chronicle.—Carter
pondent of the Morning Chronicle. afull s_c;

AQUATICS.—The Teignmouth Regatta takes places 00
Tuesday, the 26th, and the Torbay Royal ißegatta 011
Thursday, the 28th, July.
EXTENSIVE ROBBERY OF AN AUSTRALIAN GOLD
A
DlGGER.—Yesterday afternoon information was receive'
by the police on the Surrey side of the water of a NA'
bery of some magnitude from a person recently Will--
by the Queenstown, from Port Philip. The name of t.°
party robbed is Frank Evylyn Frank, who two yekr,°,
ago left England for the gold diggings in Australia. Pi
succeeded, alter a great deal of labour, in realising ab°,ll),,
2,0001., and left Port Philip in January last by
Queenstown, which arrived in London on the 18th 105,"
";
On Wednesday night he went to the Victoria Tbentr-
with a fellow-passenger, having at the time 109 so-
vereigns, besides some silver, in his possession. Of-
he left the theatre he entered a public-house situate In
Blackman-street, Southwark, and all of a sudden he lost
his senses, and on his recovery he found himself in the
11
street minus his money. He informed the police that all
the recollection he had was of a tall man with a whito„a
hat, who sat next bim in the public-house and converse`,
about the diggings, and he was missed suddenly fror„
the house. The police have received some clue to til"
thief, and most likely he will soon be apprehended. Ill:
robbery was, no doubt, effected by a class of thieves Wu'
look out for fresh arrivals from Australia.
LAUNCH OF AN IRON SCHOONER YACHT.—On irtieft-
day last we had the pleasure of witnessing one of those
gratifying spectacles, the hunch of an iron schooner
yacht, built by Mr. J. Scott Russell for Robert Stepend
son, Esq., M.P. This yacht is named the Titania, an is intended to replace the other of that name, which, as
r
our readers are aware, was destroyed by fire soon ailed
competing with the famed America. We understan
that the Sverige, belonging to Vice Commodore
Bart-
lett, R.L.Y.C., will meet the Titania at the forthcoming
regatta at Lowestoft, when a spirited contest inaY
anticipated.
THE FRUIT SEASON ON THE CONTINENT.—The fruit
season on the Continent appears to be remarkably bac•-
ward. A fortnight before this time last year thousands
d
of baskets of cherries, besides other fruits, were inipor!
into Southampton from France. Up to this time notion;
hardly but hothouse fruit from the Channel Islands has
been imported into the above-named port. The quan-
tity of potatoes which have been imported into South'...
ampton from Lisbon has been unusually large this Yen:
Latterly the potatoes from Lisbon have betrayed gYIIS
toms of the now perpetual disease which every Ye
affects that root.
in"
INTRALIURAL INTERMENTS.—The abomination of ,
tramural interment; which has so long disaraeed
metropolis, is about to be abated. SeverafOrdersor.
IR
Council were issued on Tuesday week, requiring, in p
suance of powers given by the 15th and 16th Victor no
that at and after certain dates therein specifieu% of
less than 93 burial grounds in and about the city
London are to be closed. The fearful and relin'.,urr.
disclosures relative to these receptacles made by
George Alfred Walker, whose indefatigable exertionns are
worthy of all praise, and the continued assaults ti
desirable result. We trust this is only preliminat
is
Yever,
posures of the press, have at length accompl.ishaedttoh
more widely extended measure ; and that wher
eriy
whether in town or country, graveyards improperly
or
situated are to be found, speedy efforts will be me
__.ee
their abolition. This we hoped to have seen tire 7_t
se
before 64 time in our own town, where the
ipe
general bSrying ground has been long condenn
utterly insufficient for the decent interment of thee de`
and as a probable source of disease. Some prngr sriate
been made towards the proN:sion of a more applep
is
place, but the works proceed languidly, and what ite:Lt
expected would be done in a few months at the p
rate of progress, will require years to complete.'r
Banbury Guardian. pats
THE NEW ACT ON COUNTY ELECTION
forSC 0 TL
Edinburgh,AND.— 0 next, at
whichat trheoneciovuendtytheel electron
assent a few days back, will, if contested, take
effect.
The object of the act is to restrict the continuance Scotland
tbSeatunredwayae
alte-
rationto one day, and to provide for the increase or
of
of the polling at any contested election in
duration
the act 2 and 3 Wm. IV., C. 65, relating to the is
of polling places. By this statute, a pall.
of polls, &c., at elections, is repealed, and power is
now given to the sheriff, with the consent of the lierue.
Advocate, to increase or alter the number and arrange'
anent of polling places, so that not more than 311!
electors shall poll at one place. No alteration is to take
place until notice shall be advertised. Voters inaf
claim to vote in other district; and non-resident vote
rs
with island qualification may vote at the county town•
two days in
The poll is to be kept open one day, and for
Orkney and Shetland.

Atoxey
IXTEL

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