Year: 1873

surroundings.


= Gigantic are the preparations for the
worlds fair in Vienna, everything is
in state of forwardness, and likely to
be ready by the 1st of May. The huge
building resounds with hammers and
smells of paint, and there is still heavy
work for blacksmiths and carpenters
but the galleries are all finished, ex-
cept the exhibition cases which are to
fill them The central dome is alive
with busy laborers, and is as noisy as
an iron ship building yard. Here
spreads outan enormous roof of iron,
and in all the centre arises a sort of
wooden tower of Babel, whence come
confused cries and bursts of hammer
ing


The dome is the largest ever attemp-
ted, and is to other domes what the
Great Eastern is to other ships. 1t is
so vast that one looking up to the far
platforms can hardly believe that the
animated specks moving about on them
are men.


The building itself is one mile long
and will afford ample exercise for pc
destrians who want to run back and
forth and compare things at the ex-
tremes. And there are four square
miles of circumferent gardens and
pleasure grounds in which one
can wander at will. The main front
of the building is quite imposing, and
for the kind may be considered an ar
chitectural success. Thirteen mil
lions of forms is large sum to put
into one building, but when one has
seen 1t he wonders that so much could
have been accomplished with the
money. Evidently the commission
haven't stolen any of it.


Outside the railing of the exhibition
grounds. in the corner of the Prater
nearest Vienna, has sprung up a city
of wooden huts and sheds, theatres,
restaurants and peep-shows, giving one
the impression when he enters it that
he is in the worlds fair itself. But
this is only the work of outside spec
ulators, and is only tariff to the scale
OF the inside arrangements.


Besides the main building the en-
closure contains detached gallery for
machinery, a separate department of
considerable size for works of art and
numerous smaller structures scattered
about the garden. The Khedive of
Egypt has pavilion where Egyptian
life is exemplifed, the Prince Schwar-
tenburg another pavilion for his val
liable collection, and close to the wes-
tern entrance the Neue Freie Presse
newspaper has established itselfin a
royal manner becoming the great mod
ern power of the world. Here its ex-
hibition number will be printed and
published during the season, and there
is to be no cOncealment of its opera
tons. People may see how q great
newspaper is edited and produced.
and perhaps learn whence comes the
wisdom which is so 1nfallible in pol
itics, literature, science and religion.
There will be a double issue of the
paper, one containing the political and
commercial news and the other devO-
ted TO special articles of the exhibi-
ton, and for the latter large corps of
special contributors is engaged. This
extra number will be given away to
regular subscribers to the journal.
The pavilion in which this newspaper
is accommodated is to cost 100000
horins, and it must make large out
lay besides. 1t is a piece of newspa-
per enterprise hitherto unmatched in
the world, and throws all other spe-
cies ofreporting in the shade. But, we
shall see what our metropolitan Jour-
nails will do when our centennial
comes.


Visitors to the Vienna exhibition
will need to go well provided with
money. Prices have already doubled
for nearly everything.