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EXHIBITION, CENTENNIAL. 



The display of porcelain and pottery was ex- 

 tensive. The iron-masters of the country made 

 a good representative display. The watch-com- 

 panies exhibited their watches, and all the 

 principal gun, scale, safe, scientific instrument, 

 clock, telegraphic instrument, railroad-car, 

 glassware, furniture, piano-forte, organ, paint, 

 chemical, paper, book, and stationery manu- 

 facturing houses, and all the largest industrial- 

 ists in every branch did credit to themselves and 

 to their country. The gas-fixtures were spe- 

 cially admired ; and the displays of silver-ware 

 and jewelry and precious stones by the leading 

 New York and Philadelphia jewelers were the 

 largest and in some respects the finest collec- 

 tions of the kind in the fair. 



The British exhibition was the strongest in 

 textile fabrics, embracing a great variety of 

 dress-goods, of woolens, the broadcloths, che- 

 viots, kerseymeres, and all the well-known 

 materials for men's apparel; of poplins and 

 linens, lawns and laces, from Ireland; of cur- 

 tain brocades, from Morris & Co., of London, 

 and made-up ladies' garments from Hitchcock 

 & Co., which were behind the French display in 

 the same line in taste, rather than in richness of 

 material. There was a very extensive display 

 of Axminster carpets, imported Indian carpets, 

 oil-cloths, etc., which contrasted favorably 

 with the still larger but cheap and badly-de- 

 signed collection of American floor-coverings. 

 The display of chemical products represented 

 eighty-five houses, and contained crystallized 

 masses of caffeine, aloin, codetac sulphas, 

 chlorate and bichromate of potassium, the es- 

 sence of egg, a novelty, a new indelible ink, 

 soda, soaps, paints, inks, etc. The metallur- 

 gists and iron and steel workers of England 

 made a very slender exhibit of her principal 

 industry ; there were only nineteen exhibits, 

 the chief of which were models of Dr. Sie- 

 mans's regenerating furnaces for iron and 

 glass, wire ropes, and a single exhibit of ores, 

 pigs, rails, and steel. The gunsmiths' exhibit 

 was fine, seventeen exhibitors taking part; 

 and there was a good display of the only two 

 of the Sheffield cutlers who thought it worth 

 while to exhibit. In literary manufacture, 

 Bradbury, Agnew & Co. had a good exhibit; 

 Dickman & Higham showed a hexaglot Bible ; 

 and the Illustrated London News and London 

 Graphic made showy displays, the latter paper 

 having a pavilion hung around with the origi- 

 nal drawings of hundreds of its best engrav- 

 ings, and a private office for the use of its 

 artists and correspondents. There was a fine 

 show of scientific and philosophical instru- 

 ments by the best English makers. The first 

 London and Liverpool watchmakers combined, 

 to the number of fourteen, in a fine display; 

 M. F. Dent exhibited different systems of com- 

 pensating balances. Other articles exhibited 

 were Aberdeen and Beesbrook granite, roof- 

 tiles, Portland cement-blocks, fire-brick retorts, 

 chalk, whiting, emery, etc. British jewelers 

 made a very scanty show. The largest London 



houses were not represented. Not a single pre- 

 cious stone or piece of jewelry of value was sent. 

 Artchison, of Edinburgh, made a large display 

 of Cairngorm stones, Scotch pebbles, among 

 them the largest one ever found, and fancy ar- 

 ticles. A new description of cutlery, in which 

 the silver plating is made to penetrate the sub- 

 stance of the steel, was exhibited, with a con- 

 siderable variety of jewelry, by John Neal. 

 The most interesting portion of the British 

 section was the very fully represented class of 

 artistic manufactures, pottery, furniture, and 

 domiciliary ornamentation, illustrating the ex- 

 traordinary revival of art-feeling and good 

 taste which has been going on in England for 

 many years. The English exhibition of ce- 

 ramics, ornamental metal-work, and furniture, 

 probably engrossed the attention of the visitors 

 more than any other separate collections in the 

 Exposition. Doulton, of Lambeth, sent a vast 

 variety of his famous earthenware and terra- 

 cotta fabrics. The Lambeth faience presented 

 all the rich soft hues of blue, green, brown, and 

 buff, which are peculiar to it, and all the quaint 

 and graceful forms, and the brilliant glaze, by 

 which it is also distinguished. Many of the 

 objects were covered with raised and painted 

 devices, human and animal figures, flowers, 

 fruits, leaves, and conventional ornaments, of 

 artistic conception, and spiritedly treated. In 

 terra-cotta, there were a pulpit and font, man- 

 tels, etc. ; of the use of encaustic tilss in fire- 

 place decoration, there was a striking exhibit; 

 two tiled hearths had fenders of the same ma- 

 terial, and were covered with clocks, vases, 

 plaques, etc., one of Doulton ware, the other 

 of Lambeth faience. One set of chimney-tiles 

 represented scenes from Shakespeare. A series 

 of plaques, painted by George Tin worth, con- 

 tained child-scenes of the Bible. The two 

 Mintons and Maw & Co. had not less profuse 

 displays of painted tiling; conspicuous among 

 the designs, which often covered a number of 

 blocks combined, were a water-view with 

 cranes and lily-buds, a large domestic scene, 

 allegorical and grotesque figures, falcons, and 

 a series of genuine canine portraits. Many of 

 the figures were colored, some in outline, on 

 grounds of all colors, but oftenest white, drab, 

 or buff; there were hand-painted, printed, en- 

 ameled, and majolica, glazed and unglazed tiles, 

 and ceramic tessersa for coarse- mosaic, in 

 which work there was a copy of an ancient 

 fresco, and other examples. Daniel & Son ex- 

 hibited a good collection of finer porcelain, in- 

 cluding a splendid Prometheus vase, and imita- 

 tions of antique vases decorated in pdte sur 

 pdte, by L. Solon ; also copies of Henry II. 

 ware, and of Limoges enamel, panels represent- 

 ing Shakespeare's seven ages, by H. S. Marks, 

 and a gorgeous display of table-ware richly 

 decorated with Oriental and floral patterns, etc. 

 The exhibition of the cabinet-makers was varied 

 and fine; specimens of fully-furnished aoart- 

 ments were shown in many exhibits ; the East- 

 lake style was prominent. Other styles ex- 



