Wilmington daily commercial., 1876-06-27


THE RAGE FOR PoTTERY-RoYAL NEEDLE-
WORK.
Correspondence Of the Commercial.
PHILADELPHIA, June 27.-The Swedish
Department. Of the Great Exhibition has
oeen already 80 we'll and thoroughly des-
,ribed in the COMMERCIAL that I presume
[ shall not be wise to touch it at all, though
tempted, as everybody is, to expatiate on
those life-sized wooden figures which por-
trsy 80 we'll the appearance, habits, and
life of the healthy, and worthy-looking
Swedish peasantry. Their open, honest,
blonde faces show the national type to very
good advantage, and are well set off by the
one contrasting group of Laplanders, whose
dwarfsh figures and dark kalmuck faces
resemble nothing go much as the Esqui-
maux of our own continent resemblance
due, mayhap to the fact that both races
are relics of the people OF the prehistoric
glacial period ; at least that is my private
little bit Of theory. Those groups afore-
said are
CERTAINLY A GREAT HIT,
and it is they, above all, which make the
Swedish department one OF the most popu-
larly attractive features of the Main Ex-
hibition. Still, as patriots, we cannot join
in the frequently expressed wish that every
nation were represented there in the same
manner, rejecting what very poor figure
we people of "the States " would be likely
to cut in that case among the old nationali-
ties where immutable distinctions OF class
have created unchanging specialties of coz
tune.
An Italian contadini or a Breton fisher
man would be very picturesque; but Penn
sylvaniap, or Western farmer would be
alike unmasked by costume, a Wall street
broker in full war-paint would show nolh'
ing to distinguish him outwardly from a
mere ordinary honest citizen, and even a
gold-digger, now that muscle has in man
ner given place to machinery, could boast
few distinctive peculiaritles.
Apropos of gold digging, Gin writing
about the great show, as in visiting it one
is constantly tempted to fly about in the
most discursive manner,) there is nice
specimen of statistics-made-easy to be seer
in the Australian and New Zealand depart.
ments, in the shape of great columns, ap'
parently of solid gold, divided off into Sec
tions, each of which
REPRESENTS THE GOLD YIELD
of the colony exhibiting it during the yeal
which is marked upon the section, the
whole column showing the great bulk Of al
the gold found in those new lands since the
first discovery of the precious metals there
Facts which in figures would attract little
attention strike the most careless eye anG
awaken interest when illustrated in thi!
practical way. New Zealand appears to b'
in Yankee vernacular, "tuckering out" 81
| great has been the decrease of her yielC
since 60 but Australia seems not to have
neared the bottom of her pile yet. An i'm
mense pile it is, though little enough afte
all, for all the stir it has made in the world
THE CERAMIC DEPARTMENTS
Of Great Britain and of France are in clos'
neighborhood and make of themselves al
exhibition worth much attention and study
We heard malcontent wandering among
the almost endless displays of "artisti
faience express an opinion that they wer'
"running this china shop business into th'
| ground, but IN each separate array thert
is some speciality to be observed whicl
makes it interesting and prevents mono
tony. One of the most striking displays il
that of the Palissy ware, made in perfec
| imitation of the original works of tn
| Huguenot potter, by M. Barbzet of Paris
the descendant of Palissy, who fifty year
| ago re discovered the secret method whicl
had died with him when he persisted in til
/ Bastille. This celebrated ware, which every
body has heard of but which most of u
will see for the first time in the Oentennis
Exhibition, is certainly unique if not beau
tiful. Most of the originals are in th
Museums of the Louvre and of Oluny 8
Munich. INT theaa copies are quite as el
quisite in their ugliness, which appears
be the desirable ceramic quality. They al
mostly plates OF peculiar finish and pre-
vailing green color, ornamented with tis
and marine creatures Of all kinds IN hig
relief, evidently of no common sensibl
use, only to be put up on the walls to b
looked at. Haviland d Co., of Limoges
have very fiue display, especially of artil
tic vases, rculpturcd III relief and admirabl
colored. Two enormous vases sculpture
by the Chevalier Delaplanche, and painte
by Braquemont, are specially dedicated
tie Centennial the one for l776 represen
ing
| ,n,rt, 1En,rrr. on ANfEQTOA