THE MELBOURNE EXHIBITION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 8419, 16 February 1889, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE MELBOURNE EXHIBITION.

THE CLOSING CEREMONY,

THE RESULTS OF THE EXHIBITION.

(Condensed from the Argus.) The Centennial International Exhibition which has so long been a centre of attraction and a source of enjoyment to the people of ictona, was officially closed by his Excellency the Governor on Thursday, January 31, With such pomp and ceremony as was deemed to be appropriate to the occasion.

When the exhibition was opened the event was celebrated by a general holiday. Distinguished visitois from all the colonies honoured us with their presence, and there wsa an imposing demonstration which evoked great I enthusiasm. Yesterday, when the exhibition was closed, the city wore its wonted aopearauce of bustle and activity; there was no festivity nor excitement, and it was evident that very little importance was attached to the ceremony winch was being performed in the Carltou hardens. The public were admitted at the usual charge, but were excluded from the Grand Avenue of Nations. As compared with the opening day the number of guests was small and the accommodation provided proved ample for the occasion There was no outdoor demonstration A urocess.on of the military officers, ex- i hibuioii commissioners, the Ministry, & 0 was ! lormed inside the building and marched up the ! Grand Avenue of Nations to the northern dome ' where his Excellency and party took their stand i upon the dais erected.

I'ollowing the precedent set at the opcnine ceremony, the proceedings were formally owned with a prayer offered by Sir James Macßain lue popn.ar and beautiful overture, Leonora iSo S, beethoven, was thon performed by the orchestra, after which Sir James Macßaiu, accompanied by Licntenant-coloud S.ugocd Sir j Anlliain Clarke (vice-presidents), and Mr G X A. Lavater (secretary), ascended the dais, and presented an address to his Excellency the Governor setting forth in brief the history of the exhibition, and requesting him to perform the closing ceremony. His Excellency read a reply offering his most cordial congratulations upon the great success which had attended the Internationa! Exhibition, and concluding by declariue it officially closed. The orchestra then introduced a pleasant variation to the proceedings by performing the . cutracte to "Lohengrin" (Wwrner), by which they have so often delighted the audience* at the qxhibiH,,n r-.-^Prls, Another address folloivea was from tae chairman of Hirers (Mr J Bosisto, C.N.G , Si.L.A.). " Mr Bosisto then handed to the Governor the rolls of awards, which his Excellency proceeded to distribute with ths usual ceremony, the fUg of each nation being unfurled as its representative ascended the dais. The unfurlinp of the ilag was m each case the sigual for a hearty round of applause. The Union Jack of England and the stars and stripes of Amerca appealed most to tho sympathies of the ! audience, because of the feeling of kiushio and patriotism that they awakened ; but tho foreign ila;;s also received very cordial recognition. The New Zealand awards were received from the Governor by Mr W. P. Street, formerly mayor of Dune.lin. After the overture, " Buy | Biass ' (Mendelssohn) by the orchestra, the Union Jack was hoisted over tho dome as s. signal for a salute to be fired by the ships in the bay and by the batteries, and the National Authem was .-.gain performed by the orchestra, throe cheers were given for her Majesty the Queen mid for his Excellency the Governor and Limy Loch, and the ceremony which closed the grauoesb exhibition that has been hold iv the Southern Hemisphere was at au end. The Oentenuisl International Exhibition has amply served the purpose foe which it was proposed. It has formed a fitting climax to the celebrations of the close of Australia's first century; it has exemplified the present prosperity and the immense natural resources of tho Greater Britain upon whose firiure development the destiny of the empire so largely depends; it has promoted the_ cause of federation by bringing the various colonies into friendly competition in the industries, the arts, and the sciences, and by aftordmg many opportunities for that closer intercourse which is necessary to dissipate the patty local jealousies that form so serious an obstacle to that union which is so much desired by all true patriots; and, further.it has induced other countries to display the products of tbeir arts and manufactures. There is, and will always be, a difference of opinion as to the results of the exhibition, regarded from the somewhat selfish point of view of monetary loss or gain ; but all intelligent persons must agree that in its higher and more important aspects it has been a great success. When the undertaking was first proposed by the Chief Secretary (Mr Alfred Deakin) in the Legislative Assembly the calculations made with regard to it were of a somewhat modest character. It was estimated that nine acres of floor space in the permanent building and 15 acres of floor spaco in the temporary annexes to bo constructed would be ample for all requirements, and thai, the co.-,t to the colony would not exceed As the demands for space poured in it became evident, however, that the accommodation would have to be greatly increased. Probably the applications were multiplied by the condition that do charge should be made. At any rate, they continued to expand, new annexes had to be constructed ou the east, west, and north ;it was decided to form an education court and an armament court, for which space had to bo provided, and eventually, instead of 23 acres, there were 38 acres of ground covered, forming the noble pile which now stands in the Carlton Gardens. The commissioners, however, did not materially increase their estimate of cost. A rough estimate was prepared at the opening of (■h.2 exhibition, in which tho deficit was set down at about £111,000. Their estimateof receiptsfrom admissions have been more than realised, bub the_ exjN-iudtture has so much exceeded their anticipations that now it is certain that the cost of the undertaking to the country will amount to from £250,000 to £300,000. It is not a Cabinet secret that the Government arc very much dissatisfied at this result. They aro of opinion that tho commissioners, having a frees hand with regard to money that was not iheir own, have been unduly extravagant. Tu«y think that by judicious management, at least £ICU,OOO could have been saved without any serious injury to the exhibition. This is certainly an exaggeration; but that iii'-'iHjy could have been saved with advantage is ! k'Vimd dispute. It must, however, be conceded that, considering tho small population of tho Australian colonies, the cost of the exhibition, drspito tho alleged extravagance of the commissioners, has not been of so serious a character as to call for strong comment. It does not represent miK'h mnre than is spent by a few wellknown firms in England every year in advertising. The exhibition has been a big advertisement, and if Ihe effects of it could be traced, it would probably bu found that it has been worth all tht! money paid for it. But exhibitions held in England and on the Continent, where there is an enormous population, are not always a financial success. On the contrary, some of them have been attended by heavy loss. At tho Vienna Exhibition of 1883 the expenditure was £1,600.000, and tho receipts £206,479; at tho Philadelphia Exhibition of 1876 the expenditure was £1,600,000, and tho receipts £762,745 ; and at the Paris Exhibition of 1878 tho expenditure was £1,400,000, and the receipts £500,000, Com-

pared with these, the cost of the Melbourne Exhibition has been a mere bagatelle, and it would not he difficult to show that it has been more than counterbalanced by the i-idireet gam. The official expenditure, that is the cost to the various Governments exhibiting.escluMv or Victoria, has amounted to about £70,000 I.he cost to the New South Wales Government is given as about £25,000; to the British Governed ™°V UV dd. itio" t0 "Men. Victoria voted £5000 for the insurance of the picture* and paid the expenses of the London committee ; Germany, £12,500; United State,-, £10.000Queensland, £SOOO ; South Australia £6,500•' £f_ wJpcaand, £6000; Tasmania, £5000; France', I i.SoOO. In addition to these there are all the : smaller courts, Austro-Hungary. Belcium ! Canada, Italy, Switzerland, &c. J>elSlum. That the colony will recover indirectly more than it has spent upon the exhibition is admitted by the Government. The indirect results cannot be traced, but it is indisputed that the period of the Exhibition has been one of exceptional prosperity to the colony 1 he customs receipts have shown a large increase and also the railway revenue. The railway returns show that for tie five months from August, when the exhibition opened, till December that an increase of over eight nrllions m the number of passengers was carried, as compared with the same five mouths of the previous £W0 000 th° CXtra reCeiptS were close 0!1

i The exhibition has attracted an immonse I number of v lS itors to Melbourne. Every visitor to the colony nas spent his quota; the hotels, the ooftee palaces, the tramways have benefited largely, and generally trade has been stimulated fht T Vl Pr°Ved- Thl colony has got back more than the money it has spent upon the exhibition and permanent results will accrue from t which are well worthy of consideration. It may be that new avenues of trade will be opened up At any rate the colony has had the benefit of a splendid advertisement, and Colonel Sargood contends that the evidence which the exhibition has afforaed of our prosperity and resources has contributed largely to the success which attended the floating of the recent loan ,i- i* 1' ?\, Tul. loch- the accountant, has suppied the following return of the receipts and attendance during the six mouths the exhibition has been open, viz.:

ihis gives a daily average attendance of 12 669 LNote.—The exhibition remained open for'two days beyond January 31-namely, till the Saturday night, on which days there were over 50 000 Vl*^l The total attendance at tho last fqn'o'lnf f°, l- t, hQ S- even months ifc was open was 1,309,496, which gives a daily averaga of 761" Making all due allowances for the increase of population, this must be regarded as a hi»hlv satisfactory result. The following shows how the attendance here compares with that of other exhibitions:—

If the comparison is made on the basis of population, it will be found that the attendance at all the colonial exhibitions is immensely greater than that of any exhibition held in England or on the Continent. Nearly two to one ot the population of Victoria visited the present exhibition, whereas only about one iv seven of the population of the United Kingdom visitsd tne Colonial and Indian Exhibition, which was ? much the most successful of the exhibitions that S have recently been held In London

City. | Year, j Visitors. I A DllUy j i I average. London... ... 1851 ! 0,170,000 i 36 94*~ i? ns - - 1867 ! 9 062 965 41958 Pl'TlV;- - 1873 7.354 867 I 30,004 Philadelphia ... | 1S76 i 9,789,302 j 81 SM o 7 s "• -1 lsrs I 12.623,8-17 65'-103 Me bourne ... isso 1,309 400 -«9 Fisheries Exhibition I I 1>3Ul''4-m ''(il2 London ... i 9 7,-10 =m ,»,.. flealthExlKbitlon... j f| Inventions Exliibi- i *<.ou:> DotenVandlndtan! ! 3>7S0'5S1 23 '071 Exhibition ...! 5550711 -nmc ¥^?^L«1 »• ! 1SSS-9 I 1.901.'79S ! 12 6OT