The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-12-06

commissioner, with Il view to securing
| all attainable information necessary to
| full and complete understanding by Con
gress i'm regard To the participation of
! this Government in the Paris Exposition.
| was laid before YOU by message of De
| cember 9th, 1891. and showed the large
opportunities opened TO make known our
national progress in arts. science ana
/ manufactures, as well as the urgent need
of immediate and adequate provision to
enable due advantage thereof to be taken.
: Mr. Handy's death soon afterwards rem
dered it necessary for another to take up
and complete his unfinished work, and
on January 18th last Mr.. Thomas w.
Cridler, third assistant Secretary of
State, was designated to fulfill that task.
| His report was laid before you by my
message of June 14th, 1898. with the
gratifying result of awakening renewed
interest in the projected display. BY a
provision in the sundry civil appr0pria-
tion act of July LIST. 1898. n sum not to
exceed $4,000 was allotted for the or
ganiZation of commission to take steps
for the proper preparation and installa-
tion of American exhibits and for the
display of suitable exhibits by the sew
eral executive departments. particularly
by the Department Of Agriculture, the
Fish Commission and the Smithsonian
Institution, in representation of the Gov
eminent of the United States.
S1,000,000 APPROPRIATION REC
OAMENDED.
Pursuant to that enactment I appoint
Ell Mr. Ferdinand w. Peck. Of Chicago,
commissioner general with an assistant
commissioner general and a secretary.
Mr. Peck at once proceeded to Paris,
where his success in charging the scope
and variety of the United States cx-
hibit has heen most gratifying. Not
withstanding the comparatively limited
area of the exposition site-less than
One-half that of the Worlds Fair at
Chicago-the space assigned to the
United States has been increased from
the absolute allotment Of 157, 403 square
feet reported by Mr.. Handy to some
100000 square feet, with corresponding
augmentation Of the field for a truly
characteristic representation of the vari-
Gus important branches of our country's
development. Mr.. Peck's report will he
laid before YOU In my Judgment its
recommendation will call for your early
consideration, especially as regards an
increase of the appropriation to at least
one million dollars in all, so that not
only may the assigned space be fully
taken up by the best possible exhibits
in every class, but the preparation and
installation be en- so perfect n scale as
to rank among the first in that I'M
paralleled competition of artistic and in
ventive production and thus counterbal-
ance the disadvantage with which we
start as compared with other countries
whose appropriations are on more
generous scale and whose preparations
are i'll state of much greater forward
ness than our own.
Where our artisans have the admitted
capacity to excel where our inventive
genius has initiated many of the grand
est discoveries of these later days of the
century, and where the native resources
OF our land are as limitless as they
are valuable to supply the worlds needs,
1t is our province, as it should be our
earnest care, to lead in the march of
human progress and not rest content
with any secondary place. Moreover, il
this he due to ourselves, it is no less
due to the great French nation whose
guests we become and which has in 50
many ways testified it's wish and hope
that our participation shall beft the
place the two peoples have won in the
field of universal development
Taking up trade relations with France
and Germany, the hope is expressed that
more advantageous tariff schedules will
be secured, and that German restrictions
on American. fruits may be softened