The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1876-05-21
A REVIEW OF THE TEN DAYS
Considerations About Philadelphia as
the Centennial City.
THE NEW TOWN OF CENFEHHIALVlLLg
Failure and Success Of Hotels, Restaurants
and Lodgings.
P,nLAprLrurA. Nay 20, 1875


Tho Centennial is ten days old And your readers
may ask What the result Of ten day existence
How does IL compare with other exhibItionss Where
Ia strength and where its weasnesss How fnr does
Il realize the anticipatons Of the country
THE DAYS
The ten days which have passed since the formal
opening or the Exposition not 70 be regarded
test Of merit Wc have been
the weather, In delays OF exhibits the DIM
Guilty OF putting the machine running order. II Is
impossible " speak OF exposition as IN my
representative with Russia Turkey and Portugal abb
sont, with France, Mexico Italy aud portions OF
the United States still unfinished with several build
inys stlll in the hands carpenter There
Is OF bcwildcrment and incom pleteness the
Exhibition and somehow you the feeling that you
have Iaicn upon vanity fair The surroundings
arc not favorable 20 rcpose. Instead Of throw
ing the main buildings back from the
highway, with easy sioping approaches was the
casc IN Vienna the building and the Machinery
Huh almost line with tho One wonders
how they could escape if OF the hundred wooden
shells called ''houses" and "hotes" which swarm
tho Exhibition were tako fire. row in O beer
shop ana tho breaking OF kerosene lamp might de-
stray the main palace There much OF exterior
an interior show at the Centennial II IL hard
just where one begins and the other ends The only
division Is not very wide street and board fence
Then, when inside the gates, comes the oppressive
OF what and where 70 60 Your first in
is pay hive cents aud ride the steam
gauge passenger railway and don't know any
thing better. You carried past the main bading
With and points, which so typical of
our national sentiment OF unrest; past tho Memorial
Hal. which may be Q tine building IN ten
years, when the walls are frcscoed, but is
now raw and cold; past the shells known
IS tho Judges Pavilion, and certain business
exhibits, which arc gay enough in their paint but
would have a hard time In thunder storm; past the
government building with Its outer displays Of can
mons, tents and imitation Monitor turrets; through
The village Of State buildings whore tho politicians and
statesmen TO and loaf the long after
moons; past tho green, Gothic-arched Agricultural
BALL. with its stores Of starch and corn past the Hor-
lcutura Hall In tho distance, looking beautiful
bird OF Oriental plumage, its Arabian architecture
gold and blue sparkes the SUM- past the every
Hail. which not ready; past tho Japanese and Eng
llsh buildings, which models OF national SKILL and
twenty other buildings which have value; past the
printing press exhibit half dozen exhibits still in
the carpenters hands; past tho Machinery Hail. which
Is not than half ready, and sweep around the
lake, passing two three nanished fountains and
you have the first glimpse Of the Centennial
THE UNITED STATES COMPARED WITH THE STATES
Your nrst glimpse Is that of q city still building.
The only complete department IL the United States
Government Hail. This is tho most satisfactory ex-
hbt II you fortunate you will fall into tho hands
Of l. eutcnant Metcalfc young ordnance officer, who
looks il he might day DO Lieutenant General
be Is SO well Informed and polite. Whom Lieutenant
Hescae has told you all about the guns and the MILL
larry affairs you will seek out Professor Blake tell
you tho rest Ono mourus, he soes how complete
~, hs,itd 10
States did not follow out tho principle. Hero
,cicn,inc panorama, It wcro Of the Republic be-
thinning with the flint arrows and stone utensils OF
Arizona and running down to tho mighty ordnance
which bids defiance to every foe. There is scarcely
question that can be asked in reference to tho United
States, nation that cannot be answered
here Its fruits and flowers Its animals It's
FISH, us topography, It's agricultural resources, its
Mines its systems OF education, postal SERVICE mill
sary strcngth--a arc presented palpablc the ego
and touch How much better, as the HERALD says. 1t
would have been to have presented New York,
California and Pennsylvania in this form than have
thrown their exhibits general hoap and
erected buildings which ornamental or useful
end Two OF the States, Kansas and Colorado-whch
are under tho most intelligent government Of any
bere-propose to take the HxRALDs advice and do this
They have building together aud will make display
theft ind attractions England does this
with her colonies. Yop pass through them aitor
the other-Csnada Australia New Zealand, her Indian
aud West Indian possessions, her colonies In Africa
and each colony makes intelligent dispisyas clear
a problem In Mathematics as interesting as poem.
And no State Ii so ucnclcnt as New York.
PHILADELPHIA Az The CENTENNIAL CITY,
While the American part tho Exhibition falls in
this respect and Instead OF being an cpitome OF our
States, little more than scemns Vanity Fair, we
cannot fail also the ncongruity OF holding
lair in Philadelphia feel that this brings upon
ground dangerous that journcying In a steamship
with one Of Thomassen's dynamite machines Is safety
sornpared with IL There a sentiment about Phlz-
delpha-sbr,hplaco Of liberty" .cradls OF independ.
snce," grave Of Franklin" and on-which made
any centennial exhibition hero historically appro-
pirate SO far as Now Workers. are concerned those
who thought anything about tho Centennial thought
that rs Phadep hia still the fact that tho
mutations Of trade the growth OF the West and tho
necessity or It's finding seaboard had given New York
the metropolitan ascendancy, Philadelphia should have
the Exposition There strong public spirit here,
municipal loyalty peculiar to fhladeIphia, which
made the Centennial an enthusiasm. In New York .
would have been forgotten along with Moody and
Sankey's prayers aud 0nenLacn's music, aud
there Is strong probability that u the
Aldermen could have had hand III u there
you'd have bcen some stealing But Philadelphia
made the Centennial passion. II grew into her life
In your hurried, tcemIng, busy iown-n your metro
potan, cosmopolitan Nannahsttx, where you care Tor
no one but yourselves and where lci too short and
TOO busy Tor emotions--you cannot comprehend u
Philadelphia gained her Centennial largely through
he zeal o. her own people and tho influence OF gen
Ilcmcn who abroad like Colonel rorncy, and nc
Centennial bcacons cvcry European capital In
spite Of codness at Washington; in spite OF the con-
slant streams Of cold water which Mr.. Fish kept pour
Ing on u from tho state Department; in spite Of the
arm denial BY Congress 10 do anything FOR ii In spite
Of obstacles arising OF scsnncss jealousy rvaires
and The hard times the Centennial kept Now that
1 here even Phisdelphians say II Is homogeneous
hts grating worlds iar upon inland manutactur
ing cy. For iew days there effort 70 grasp
with metropolitan energy. We 10 have the
nt problem solved. Cars 70 run At all hours.