The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1893-08-30


the guards closed the gates on July
31st one half OF the Worlds Fail
passed into history, only three
months more and the exhibitors viii
commence to move their wares, and
pack up. While it is to be regretted
that the attendance has not been az
large as was anticipated, yet the ont.
look for the future is brighter, the
crowds are increasing and better
facilities are ofte<ed by way OF
cheaper fares, one of)the essentials of
travel. The exhibits of the different
nations are elaborate, and are life
lessons to the masses.
Take, for instance, the Java village
in the Midway Plaisance, where
aside from the peculiar quaintness
of the different dwellings, all indus
tries and customs are shown at the
various booths, cotton and textile
looms distinctly primeval 10 their
4 working parts, and the different de-
;, signs are unique an original. The
natives are as a rule, lite small in
stature, especially the women but are
possessed Of more thanordiuary intel
igence,not addicted to the use of in
toxicating liquors, and are very
courteous and obligiDg. In one part
of their space you notice an eDor-
nous fish made from wood, which
represents huge gold fish and Is
used as call to quarter or to make
them assemble b in a body, when
needed, by simply being tapped on
with wooden maliet. 1t is made of
wood and partly hallcwed out and
when tapped resembles bell and
can be heard quite distance. They
have a large theatre constructed
chiefly of bamboo and the perform
ance is very creditable to them.
The street scenes of Cairo also in |
the plaisance are a source of great |
amusement as we'll as attraction |
The booths aud buildings are exact |
reproductions of the originals in |
Cairo; but as to the contents of the /
booths, the articles or curios exposed |
for sale, that's little different. For
instance, perfume purporting to
come from Arabia--well, it might
have come from there---no need to
give its exact history or analysis.
But il it did, why then it got over
heated and tired on the way, and
lost all its remarkable fragrance with
the exception of that absorbed by
by the cork. Then again the picture
of Oriental scenes, groups of donkey
boys and camels, Arab riders and
dancing girls, etc.
In this instance distance lends en-
chantment to the view. Not but that
the views are very pretty-some of
them are gems, but remember at a
distance. For this simple reason.
If you go to booth and price one
you will find that you can have your
choice of any from So to SIS, but if
they were what they represent or
purport to be, oil paintings, they
would be not only remarkably
cheap but remarkable souyeniers of
the fair. These articles In their in
fancy were photographs, but as they
proved to be a glut in the market,
and some ingenious artist, with oil
colors on hand that he could not
use In any other way, has lightly
touched up the figures, at the same
time making it represent an oil
painting. At the end of the street a
temple is erected, supposed to repre-
sent the temple of Rames as 1000
years old, containing the sacred !
Egyptian mummies, but as to their
sacredness little can be said, except
that they may have been made by
some Egyptian or Nubian now de-
funct. 1 said made for the simple !
reason that although they are very
correctly and neatly tagged, PAPER
mache or sawdust and glue are
what they are chiefly or conformity
composed Of.
In some of the booths are what are
supposed to be beads OF sandal wood.
These you are assured last a long 6
time; but then / presume that to be i
the case If you pack them away In '
camphor SO that the moths can not !
get at them, for If you examine !
closely they are not exactly wooden
nutmegs shrunk to order, like '
moulded coffee beans, but just simply
a compound of sandal or lockwood 9
mixed with glue and favored
with little mahogany or sandal /
wood oil, not, Of course, to make them L
palatable, but TO give them aroma. T
But enough of Cairo and its .
wares. Aside from all these,
the street scenes are very humor- d.
Gus and amusing there are :
five or six camels and donkeys, !
and donkey boys seem to be without 2
end. The attitude that the riders l
assume is far more amusing than i
that of the camels, who let themselves i
down in sections, on their knees first, Q
and then allow the hind legs to fol- q
low at their leisure; the camels seem e
to enjoy the fun Hugely. By the way, !
they seem to smile at each other; not
so the riders, however. AS Micro u
or iugglers the Nubians and Il
are very clever, and so do
some of the visitors in the audience r
think themselves to be; but woe to t
the unfortunate one that wants to ex- Z
plain a trick that an Egyptian or NJ T
bian performs. For instance, while =
performance, one of the !;
audience who professed to know it =
II 70 10, 20 a ~ | L