The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1892-10-26
Anaerspt. gnte1ltgentst.
Tho Worlds Fair.

"People have thought for SO long that
Chicago was merely place to do busi'
ness in" said James ". Scott, publisher
of the Chicago Herald, "and have aass-
ciated it with the stockyards, where SO
many hogs are killed and packed per
second, that the idea of its doing any
thing in the artistic way seems ridicu-
lous. But want to say to you that the
Worlds fair will be the most beautiful
thing ever seen.
'The Paris exposition was magni6.
cent, but think the Worlds fair will be
finer. It is generally conceded that
American architects are the best. We
have more styles and more style. Well,
the best architects in the country have
been formed into a board, and while
each has been accorded free hand as to
building which he has to design, yet
there has been certain uniformity of
design-say, for example, in the size Of
the openings-which makes all the
buildings seem the work of one great
mind of wonderful versatility.
"Already you can see and appreciate
the magnifcence of these buildings.
They are magnificent. There is nothing
cheap looking about them. The mate
rial of which they are built looks like
marble or any other kind of stone you
choose to make it, and yet it doesn't
seem shabby.
"Here's point. You know the iron
girders of structures covering as much
ground as these do are usually ugly.
The architects realize that this ironwork
could not be hidden. They have frankly
exposed it, and they have glorifed the
commonplace. As you stand and look
up at the ironwork it seems like lace.
"Ths trouble in all these expositions
has been that there has been no grand
scheme of color or architecture. One
building would have been handsome If it
had been placed right or if its color had
not Jared with that of its neighbor. All
that hes been avoided at Chicago. Fred
eric Law Olmsted, who is landscape
architect, has planned the site of.each
building with reference to the lagoon::f
"Frank D. Millet, whose position in
American art is we'll known, has chsrge
of the whole scheme of color and deco
ration. There won't be popcorn stand
the lines of which won't be in harmony
with that of its surroundings. There
will be electric launches plying on the
lagoon to carry people about, and even
the color of their awnings has been con-
aidered. I know people had an idea Chat
anything Chicago would do would be
big, but they also thought it would he a
sort of rough pine lumber affair, deco
rated with red, white and blue print
stuff, with rows of stars in it. 1t won't.
Chicago people have made their brags to
their friends and then have gone down
to the grounds and come away stupefed
to find that their widest boastings have
been double discounted.
"Why, take the matter of flowers.
Your MIR. John Thorpe, of Flushing,
man known to every florist in America,
and friend to every wealthy man who
has an interest in beautiful plants, has
said to them, Il want the best you've
got and these rare plants he has set out
in their own earth already, 30 that by
the time the fair is opened for visitors
those plants will look as if they had been
there a hundred years.
81 can't begin to tell you of all the
wonderful things there will be to all, but
I do wish it could be understood that
this is dIstinctively an American work
and demonstration to the whole world
that while we can make money We have
the very best artistic feeling, and can do
anything we choose when We give our
mind to it. Exhibitors from the Euro.
pean governments who have had expert.
euce in Paris, in Vienna, in London, in
Berlin, when asked to make suggestions
have thrown up their hands in despair.
They have made suggestions, though,
which have been of value, but they are
amazed at the way in which the thing
has been handled.
GAS a sample of the artistic feeling Of
the thing, let me tell you that the art
building, which is in the style of the
Parthenon, is the delight Of all the archi'
tects, because it is more purely Greek
than the Parthenon itself. That was
added to people who took bits from out
side styles, but the man who designed
the best building had the Greek feeling
so thoroughly that he out Greeks the
Greeks. And yet it isn't stiff and for
NAL, but full of that, I don't know what,
that shows the man took pleasure in his
work and made it almost living thing.
"There will be buildings devoted en-
tirely to departments that in other expo.
sitions have been showed off in corner.
For example, mines and mining will
have building 1000 feet long by nearly
400 feet wide. Then the new art de-
partment of modern engineering, dyna.
mics and electricity will have a building
entirely to itself. 1t il worth it. Dairy
products have always been included in
the agricultural department.. They will