Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1893-08-08

| .lour the White City seems divine rather
| han a human creation. The Scr pturc
| lessons Of childhood are yiyidly repro
| .lnced In memory and the old man uncon-
| .ciously repeats st. Johns wonderful por-
| trayal Of that city he saw in the apocaiyp-
| tic vision. But even as | gazed sad
! thought impressed me. In three months
more all this fair creation Of genius must
| fall into nothingness. All the people will
| have returned To their homes, all the woEl-
| ders Of art will have been removed, and
even before the last visitors leave Chicago
the White City will have passed away like
| the baseless fabric Of q vision, leaving,
however, considerable wreck behind
| Like the enchanted palace Of the Ara
| bian Nights story IL rose suddenly on the
bosom of the marsh and sand plain; like
that enc hant.d palace it will vanish. but
| much more suddenly than il rose. OF all
the structures only the Japanese building
| on the wooded island is certain to remain,
though it is possible that permission may
yet be granted for one other. The Japan
csc expended $500 on their structure
and made il a present 10 the park coEnmis-
siouers. Pursuant to the terms on which
use as a park, the law transferring it for
fair purposes provided that none Of these
buildings should remain, but the legisla-
ture Of Illinois passed special act allow
ing the Art hall 10 remain if the Chicago
people should vote for it. 1naiana's first
proposition was TO eraet "a permanent
bnilding and present it To the sons Of In
diana resident in Chicago, but untisr the
law it could not be done.
In truth il Is salready too evident that the
buildings are Of a very transient character
and soihe OF them show signs of age and
hard usage | saw where an awkward
teamster had knocked three or four square
yards Of surface beauty from the corner
Of one building; di-coloration had pro-
ceeded rapidly and the results were ludi-
crous. Elsewhere the structure looked
like marble with an average finish; there
t showed the common laths and stall
am sorry To add that the Indiana building
shows rather the most wear, as II Is but a
social hall and lunch room. Very appro-
pirate. toe. for sociability is Indiana's
hest and most noted product The only
state exhibit there. if exhibit 1t may be
called, j. "A case full of books by native
authors. And as an Indiana man feel
bound il common honesty to say that the
exhibit afforded me the best laugh | have
had at the fair
Possibly one-third of the authors of the
state are represented, those who sent, or
whose friends for them sent, copies Of
their works. There are two or three good
novels Lew " alLice'sj few good dialect
zeal poems {Riley's). one good history
Ridpath',} and then lot Of conpi uions,
"digests, law cases, old speeches, argu-
ments on obsolete religious issues, a mass
OF reports OF one sort or another and
then vast piles Of the most dreadful poetry
that an affective providence ever sent on a
sinful state.
It is an odd fact in literary history that
whenever an old lawyer whose whole-life
has been passed in pursuits from which
sentiment is rigidly excluded fof course |
do not mean a jury lawyer, whose very
brain would seem to have grown dusty
and his heart overloaded with the debris
of complaint, answer and rebutter, rejoin-
der and sure ioinder, with the various ar
tifices, expetlients and dodges of legal
acumen: when, | say, such one turns
to light literature for the recreation of bis
leisnrely age he always writes the most
gorgeous gush of which the language is
capable. We have several specimens III
Indiana The author of one collection
in particular which / saw in this Eek
hibit" need never fear the Horatian judg-
ment. ~Middiing verses gods and men
despise" Whatever his poetry may lie
much Of it is not 'middling" 1t is 50 bad
that it's good.
The twenty nations and colonies which
have special buildings on the grounds are
France. Germany. Great Britain, Spain,
Australia, Sweden, Brazil. Japan, Costa
Rica. Colombia, Guatemala. Turkey, Cey-
lon, Canada, Hayti. Venezuela, Nicaragua.
New South Wales and India, and of
course this does not include the side shows
of the piaisaBce. Several others have ia
the general exhibits such elaborate struc-
lures that they may be called special
buildings. For a delightful surprise
among the minor nations | WA, indebted
10 O long felt want, one evidently suffered
by many, fer the commonest request on
the grounds and in all southern Chicago
is, DO tell me where can get good cup
Of coffee
Go TO the Costa Rica building. - said
my mentor and friend. went. got the
good coffee, though painfully small cup
il served, and saw with astonishment that
this little commonwealth has a very goOi
building and really remarkable display
II hard woods, medicinal plants, minerals
and handmade articles Of delicate finish
1t really seems as If the dark races Of man
kind have mere patience ia working out
those very fine details in fingeF-work, ami
here sa- a small feather picture equal TO
the finest painting, on which, said the at
tendsnt, the artist had expended the labor
of years Even the delieately tinted sky
Of the picture proved On close examine
ton to be composed Of red, white and blue
feathers, or rather flaments Of feathers 50
minute that one square inch contained
hundreds.
Near hy is the Colombia building, coz
timing much greater variety Of miner
als and plants, and these two buildings
are almost hidden in natural grove near
the northeast corner of the park. The
lake shore is but few rods away, the
breeze is nearly always fine, the
shade IL dense and this is one of the incest
places on the ground to rest In addition
to the regular products Colombia has On
exhibit many interesting aboriginal curl
osities. some fine gold ornaments among
them. and a startling array Of nlurInliss.
These last are far from pretty, but they
viii keep" In truth they are horrible
looking objects AID ought not 70 be come
On suddenly by nervous people. They
look 50 very dry and hard and CHASTITY
that readily believe the statement thss
they are 5000 years old They might be
So.e0. If looks prove anything.
have said that the dark races seem to
have most patience in delicate hand work,
b1t there are some pieces Of wood carving
hers. done b. men Of all races. that every
American ought to see. In truth a com
plete study Of them would amount 20
I,er-i education in that line. Probably
the finest plete is in the British East India
section of the Forestry building. in the
northwest corner. In fact in all the East
India exhibits In nearly all the buildings
there Is some fine wood carving. In the
Wctnan's building are some very fine
carvings from the Pitman home This is
in what Is called the Cincinnati room. As