| Show PERDITA AT THE FAIR 1 4 1 I CHICAGO may 16 two weeks have passed since the opening of the great columbian fair and step by step the exposition shapes itself towards the goal bf f completion though the progress is seemingly slow yet the end of each two or three days sees a perceptible enough advance made in each building and department part ment to justify the conclusion that ejot only those who wait for the fall days before visiting the white city will have 10 a fair chance of seeing the better part of the display promised by the great exhibit for the latter part of may will see threat at strides accomplished in matter of finishing the fair i rr though it is somewhat exasperating for sight seers to find at present so much more work in course of progress than completion there is a certain fascination to one whose stay is certain of extension to watch the gradual development of the ae great fair the successive surprises appearing Vp earing in different buildings and departments from dayto day to day as some slew space is filled up some more exhibits added to a display or some clearer idea carried out in arrangement which puts a new and charming aspect upon ith the e general beneral view of the exposition i of U course the visitor who is here but for a short time does not enjoy so gradual an unfolding of its wonders for each presumably wishes to see all that is within his round each day without fear va va missing issing some important feature of the display by failing to make a short delay which might possibly secure him the benefit of of seeing scein some interesting exhibit for him however lo however wever there is yet variety of wonders already to bobe be se seen en and what he misses bv actual seeing can perhaps be made up by drawing upon the work at present finished for imagination to realize what jagsch ach and every building will be like when completed to us however who have time before us there is enough boing on each day to lend additional interest to the fair to make it seem in jact a anew new exposition however often it may anay be viewed so that we can hardly a crumble at the gradual and probating process which marks its develop anent 3 ain in ahe the womans comans building especially is this interesting progress noticeable one ione day dax will see the great spaces and in the building either piled with cases desolate with unfinished booths or showing a confused assort want of exhibits heaped Zo together gether in in process of arrangement and afew daks days later will behold the same spaces lied filled with artistic displays of the e best work of the women of a country or state each adding a new step to the stately measure by which the is becoming a temple of handicraft and art f the spaces near the door have been the first to be completed norway and siam which occupy con jemous si anous booths being the first finished spaces aces which greet one upon entering the ahel building sweden has some exquisite places laces and quaint tapestries with royal portraits and coats of arms done in silk embroidery and norway some rare old bibles and prayer books of kings and queens and a collection of dolls show ang the costumes cortum es of the people through different centuries s new south wales whose booth has been for sometime completed has a collection of rugs portieres eres and fine needlework the latter forming a particulars fine display I 1 are imminent above all other exhibits in fine needlework in the homans womans building however is that comprised in the sections known as the philanthropic work of british women and the most of which is offered or at least marked as being on sale atthe at the fair one beautiful piece of work in this department is a border for a court train seven yards in length worked by mrs mitchell irmes of Somerset shire the material is of pale green silk done in embroidered silk and pearls and edged with feather trimmings a piece of finery dainty enough to be worn by a princess there are specimens of a set of curtains worked by order of the queen for windsor castle in the design of rose shamrock and thistle done in lace work and silk embroidery an exquisite set of draperies and a portiere with embroidered broi dered design representing the work of which is also marvelously fine A magnificent threefold three fold screen with embroidery and frames frame of the time of louis XVI is one of many beautiful pieces of work executed by the ro royal al school of design and another is a zur fourfold four fold screen ot of pale green reseda silk set in in a gold old frame the former embroidered wil with designs 0 of two harps guitars tambourines tambour ines and flutes suspended ed in ribbon streamers and garlands of flowers royalty has contributed a large amount of work done by hand crocheted rests spreads silken cushions etc the princess may adelaide Ade luide and H R H the princess victoria of teck having a very creditable and extensive display in the british handicraft section is an excellent exhibit of busts and relieves reli evas in clay done by women a beautiful bust of dorothea in middlemarch Middle march by miss marian ferguson being particulars good and a number of fan leafs and friezes making up an interesting collection parry rack a swansea firm have an exhibit of fine flannels in this department and also a loom at which sits a i young girl in native costume weaving flannel throughout the day in the welsh department is an interesting piece of work done by miss Au thomson representing an arab train of soldiers on horseback armed with spears S sabres fabres shields etc the whole work being done in pieces of rag flannel calico linen cordway etc as the costumes or figures demand with pieces of tin and steel for the sabres fabres and the whole making a raised work set on a velvet background and producing the most striking and realistic effect Besides this artistic and novel frieze the principal exhibits in the welsh display are the lines of cloths claths and wool manufactures tweeds shirt shir ines tines hand woven stockings etc with wax figures Welsh in costumes showing the hand spinning process which still holds with much of odthe the welsh work other countries france germany and spain are still in the midst of arrangements and a glimpse at the preparations shows a foretaste of the treat that each has in store some of the states have already done finely indiana showing a beautiful display of rare hand painted china beautiful laces and exquisite embroideries the gem of these latter consisting of a table spread napkins and dollies of fine linen embroidered in silk a design of leaves leaved and rosebuds in deli delicate citte green and rose tints one of the most elaborate and elegant table sets it has been my fortune to behold I 1 I 1 I 1 new york state claims an absolute pre eminence eminence haher inkier loom exhibit having a splendid display of rare laces lac some of them claiming an antiquity of more than ten centuries there is a piece of point de france which was made for marie antoinette and with specimens of guilme de flanders dating from iago 1690 and a score of other ancient and rare laces with histories connected with royal personages that make the collection interesting both from an artistic and romantic standpoint cincinnati has a room offered as a special presentation to the womans comans building which is a credit both to the city the building and the exposition itself the room is one of the most handsomely furnished of auy any upon the grounds and the display of ceramics to which it is principally devoted makes one of the interesting features ot of the fair cincinnati has attained a fame for her achievements in ceramic art and the ahe history of her progress and accomplishments in its line form an interesting chapter in the history of the city the japan room contains a number of screens whose elegance and beauty make the average visitors eye glisten with covetousness and only the boop 1000 price marke on the frames restrains the almost impulse ovle one feels to risk all things for their possession there are several separate and individual displays outside the state exhibits which form an interesting feature of the womans comans building one of these is a display of art paper work by the firm of G H sleuth pager co and consists of a booth literally blooming with flowers and other paper ornaments a wire trellis extending around the top has mornin morning g glory vines and flowers wound rou round ri it in in a natural arrangement and inside the stand are flowers lamp shades mats hats bonnets doll dresses fancy cards and booklets gotten ap in the art paper designs and the whole forms a gleaming bower which makes a charming note of color in the midst of its more prosaic surroundings roun dings among exhibits of a scientific nature which have found place in the womans comans building none are more interesting than the british nursing exhibit which occupies a small room opening from the upper gallery around the walls are ace hung pictures of women who have distinguished themselves in philanthropic work florence nightingale sister dora and others of the profession while large cases are ranged about the die sides of the room containing articles relating to the profession of nu nursing arsing i arranged arrange arranged 5 in specific departments in one are padded splints cut dressing bandages su anc surgical addressing dressing al syringes thermometers ana medicine glasses especially arranged or pouring out medic medicine at night another case shows designs or models of hygienic clothing whick chic the royal british nurses association commends rec for nurses an attractive feature of the exhibits is also a case of dolls dressed in costumes worn by the nurses of aalthe all the principal british hospitals invalid appliances and furniture form an interesting feature in themselves the most helpful device being the model of a bed bath so arranged that the tub can be brought to the level of the bed one side draped and the patient moved gently over into it without fatigue or trouble to the sick one or the attendant A receptacle underneath provides for the draining off of the water before the patient leaves the bath other beds shown in the exhibit are made with round springs and are covered with linen as are also the mattresses and all this can be removed for washing they are also furnished with large wheels so that a touch can move them nurses and in fact all people interested in such work can certainly gain many interesting and useful suggestions from the display since many of the appliances are of entirely new design and would be likely to prove invaluable in a sick room another interesting exhibit i is s mrs model kitchen comprising a complete display of the nicest most ingenious and most convenient cooking utensils that have as yet been invented A lecture is given each day in the hall in which the kitchen is is set up illustrating the easiest and cheapest models in cooking foods all of which will furnish matter of present interest to the housewife the building which is perhaps most perfectly finished in its preparations of any on the grounds is that known as the fisheries building situated nearly opposite the womans comans building at a distance of about two blocks to the east the building is in three parts a main building teet feet long and feet wide and two polygonal buildings each feet 6 inches in in diameter connected with the main building by two curved arches the side buildings or wings are donated principally to the exhibit of canned and bottled fish a dozen different firms having here vied with each other in pres presenting presentia entin a splendid display vessels while fishing vessels smacks nets rods and every appliance used for the capture and preparation of the finny tribes for food is also represented one booth in this department is roofed with the skeleton of an immense whale the huge carcass extending from the rear end of the space occupied by the exhibits and far beyond the entry the door or entrance is formed with two single bones taken from the same skeleton and the walls are ornamented with enormous ears joints teeth etc which once did service to the kin king g of the seas the specimen is a pacific hump back whale found stranded on long beach being forty feet in girth and foi forty ty seven and a half in length in the main building which has been fitted for the display of live fish everything that man has wooed or forcibly taken captive from the depths of ocean sea lake or river is here displayed the centre of the circular interior is a fountain formed of natural rocks and in its basin are the different varieties of gold fish swimming comfortably in the coo cool I 1 brown pond around this centre are ranged a double row of walls one behind the other and each fitted with glass tanks in whose different departments and through whose transparent faces are seen the accumulated wonders of the deepest places devil fish and and coral builders the patrician speckled trout of mountain lakes and streams and the coarser cod and perch and catfish that haunt the shallows of both stream and sea A fish restaurant is connected with the building in which food is supplied composed of fish and other animals taken from the water for the benefit of visitors who wish to gain ain a conception of the value of fish as I 1 a food an interesting exhibit is that prepared by the smithsonian institute consisting of of groups in in papier mache representing the fur seal and walrus industries on the alaskan coast one of these represent ing a seal drive shows a school of seals which a group of aleuts aleuns are driving to the killing grounds with many hands and cloths claths the figures of the men and animals are done in clay and help materially in forming an im i impression of the methods employed in the te chinque of the great seal industry myriad other exhibits of a moral and interesting kind are shown a description of which would occupy at present too much space but whose importance as an illustration of the science by which the denizens of the sea are made to contribute to mans life comfort and pleasure can hardly be overestimated over estimated other of the government buildings are not ne arlyth nearly so advanced in the arrangement e ment 0 of their er displays and after taking i in n the scattered booths which represent the work that has been completed in the liberal arts mining and other buildings the visitor turns with something like relief to the state buildings whose work is complete and opened to general inspection though the number of these at present is not large yet there is an excellent showing made by those buildings already finished and a visit to their quiet and elegantly furnished rooms is a great rest after the confusion and tumult in the other buildings one of the most elegant of the state buildings is that of pennsylvania which while possessing the advantage and charm of luxurious furnishings has also the added interest of containing some interesting relics and momen mementoes toes of the revolution in the entrance hall stands the great liberty bell around which a crowd of patriotic people are continually congregated gre gated and up stairs in the gallery are cases containing various revolutionary relics among them being the dress sword of john hancock the sword of arthur payne and also a sword used in the war of 1812 by john hancocks nephew A silver lamp used in philadelphia during the revolution a match rest and pair of stockings worn by charles carroll of carrollton when he signed the declaration of independence and a punch bowl from which gen washington and his staff with many other of his officers were regaled during the years of the war are also amon among g these inheres interesting ti ng momen mementoes toes and constitute a collection which adds much to the importance and interest of the building A stained glass memorial window a handsome reading room |
