The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1881-12-14
farill aud Garden.
Conducted by DIR. THOMAS POLLARD, State
Commissioner of Agriculture
Atlanta Exposition-The City of
Atlanta.
ATLANTA, NOV. Both. 1881

p0SlGlOu uOW UeluS Helu at Atlanta, IL Is
not inappropriate to say something of the
town itself. This city is distant from
Richmond about 500 miles, and is an i'm
portant railroad centre for the South /;
this and its large cotton trade is making
it rapidly growing town, its population
now being 10000, the larger portion of
which has been acquired since the war,
during which, it was almost destroyed by
Shermans army. 1t is now the capital
of the State, and capitol building is
soon to be erected on the site of the pre-
sent City Hall, a new City Hall being in
process of construction at this time. We
are afraid this will not be in keeping with
the future probable growth of the city
1t is part brick and part granite. 1t
should have been entirely Of granite, of
which, we understand, Georgia has an
abundant supply. Better have waited
awhile, until the finances of the city
would have justified the erection of at
least million dollar structure. We
hope Richmond will not be induced to
follow the advice of some of her author
tiles who wish a cheap City Hall erected
now. Better wait until we can afford
two million dollar Hall, or at least half
that sum. Look at Baltimore with her
City Hall costing more than two millions,
and Philadelphia with hers, now build
ing, which when finished will cost ten
millions.
Many of the streets of Atlanta are sad
ly needing pavements. After a little
rain they, and the crossings, are in a
wretched condition; and we think it
would be well for the city to declare spit
ting nuisance, and forbid it on the
streets, for we never saw so much of it
done on any other streets. Probably the
number OF strangers here now may help
to account for this great nuisance. The
city is crowded, and will reap rich har-
vest from this exhibition, which is even
now in full blast, after nearly two months
continuance, and is still to continue dur
ing the month of December.
Now as to the Exposition or "World' s
Fair" it is a great success. 1t is not in
deed Worlds Fair" as every thing
exhibited comes from the United States,
unless it be some teas, and some samples
of foreign manufacture, furnished by the
State Department of the United States,
and sent to this Department by United
States consuls. They add but little to
the Exposition, and do not speak much
for the taste and diligence of our consuls,
or else little for the skill and advance
ment of the countries they represent.
We noticed in the collection the cele-
brated Cosmos Fibre" from Europe, we
think from some of the German States,
which is making a noise in the world, as
a substitute for wool 1t is prepared
from some vegetable fibre, by chemical
process, and if not an entire substitute for
wool, is claimed as mixing much better
with wool than cotton can be made to do.
It will make nice fabrics of itself
We regretted to see Virginia so poorly
represented in the Exhibition. While
most of the Southern States, and some of
the Western, are finely represented, Vir-
ginia has nothing but some minerals from
the line of the Virginia Midland Road,
coal and natural coke from Chesterfield,
and some grains and seeds, quite good
selection), and very handsome granite
monument, prepared from our granite,
by the Richmond Granite Company"
Among the Virginia minerals were iron
ores and manganese from Green Bay,
the finest soapstone from Arlington
Station, marble from Madison Station,
brownstone from Manassas, Prince Will
liam paint ores, copper from Green Bay,
iron, (red hematite,) and manganese from
Happy Creek, copper, and kaolin, and
sand glass from Beverly Station. The
great iron deposits of Pittsylvania, Bed
ford, Campbell, Amherst, Botetourt, AL
leghany, and the Valley of Virginia,
were unrepresented, as were our extern
sive deposits of gold, kaolin, spar in Mid
die Virginia, and the coal, salt, plaster,
lead, zinc, and other minerals of South
west Virginia. While Virginia is as rich
IN minerals as any other State in the
Union, unless it be North Carolina, and
In coal we surpass that State, and we
think probably in iron, (the two most i'm
portant of all minerals), we were worse
represented than any other State, repre-
sented at all. While other States had
large exhibits of all their cereals, grasses
and forage plants and fruits, we had
nothing in this respect but the grains Gin
bags mentioned. We warned our peo-
pie of the great show that was to be made
at Atlanta, and the importance of their
being properly represented, but no atten-
ton was paid to it, and while other States
are destined to reap great and lasting
benefits from it, we shall obtain very little
AS an Industrial Exposition, we be-
heve it is the best which has ever been