JAPAN-BRITISH EXHIBITION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14857, 11 June 1910, Page 8

JAPAN-BRITISH EXHIBITION

A WONDERFUL DISPLAY.

THE NEW ZEALAND PAVILION.

(Fbou Our Own Cobhespondent.)

LONDON, April 22. The Prince of Wales has . consented to open the Japan-British Exhibition some day next month, whea Londoners and the many visitors to the metropolis will havo a delightful vision of the Land of the Rising Sun. The White City has been, transformed, and some assort that oven tlio glories of the ' Franco-British Exhibition will be surpassed. In any event, the Now Zealand Government will have cause to congratulate itself on having decided to occupy aißiiri the pavilion where the Dominion lias been represented during the past two years. New Zealand is. without "competitors at this exhibition, a-nd_ the. industries and attractions of the country should • haver an excellent advertisement. : '

The Japanese have proved themselves •wonderful little workers. It .is doubtful whether at any exhibition of similar magnitude the operations have been so welt in hand withm a fow weeks of opening. A tour over the grouudsi gives ono already a good impression of the general aspect- of the exhibition so Boon to be opened. It is evident there will be no want of realism, for the Japanese are giving an exquifiit? finish to their panoramio efforts. On 4 sees so many things distinctively associated with Japan, including celebrated temples, Fuji-yama, and other noted sights,. as. well as the wondrous c'her;~y blossoms, and wisteria. ■

Visitors will be confronted by complete reflections of the Orient immediately on pawing through the turnstiles. Japan is spread before one at once.. It .is safo to predict from the appearance of the entrance hall that the illusion will bo astonishingly effective. No exhibition of decorative work in London has -ever received mora thorough and ingenious treatment.

Everywhere about the, Japaneso buildings is proceeding the opening of packingcases Biiil the arrangement of costly and beautiful exhibits. In the ( trade section the muss of exhibits—including eome magnificcnt. models—appears to be already in position, and here again the publlo should fin<R an vnusurJ polish and finish ' about -the methods and accessories .of arrangement;. Most, of tho inuch-fcalked-of tableaux, representing the history of Japan are ready, and near by are some interesting scenesettings, shortly to bo filled by pageant figures of England l of today. Three latter cabinets are to be devotod to fashion, arid, while virtually trade exhibits, they'should provide an attractive and' realistic spectacle. They are divided' into seasons, and such soenea as C&odwood and Henley are reiprtsentad. The first fcablciu, "of Spring,' shows a christening, and, roughly, the sequence seems - designed .to illustrate the life of a society; girl'. Her wedding and presentation ,at court are the Most ambitious episodes of tho series. Tho exhibi-t-ion'authorities prepare the settings, which they lot for the whole term of the exhibition for £500 to any firm desirous of completing the picture with models. Very few things Japanese are yet to arrive. The gardens need only their final carceses and the starting of the cascades. Whole forests of dwarfed and ancient trees—maiiy of them just breaking into spring foliagestand out on the grass to catch the showers and the eun.

Th'.-ro is ovory indication that the JapanMa aro doing oredit to themselves and honour to the exhibition. Two acres of the ground at Shepherd's Busli Have been laid out by Japanese artist gardeners either with full-sized gardens or with " landscapes in miniature," in which the visitor will see beauty in a form hitherto comparatively unknown.

"The Treasures of the Nation" to bo found in the Palace of Fine Arts, are representative of the skill of a pre-eminently artistic nation, which was producing great painters as far back as the ninth eßntury, and great sculptors two oentaties earlier In it only as a compliment to Great Britain thai Japan ha? allowed these precioui pictures, rarely seen in Nippon ami neve: before out of it, to be sent to London, an<! in no circumstances will suoh a complinionbe paid again ip the same way. The visitor will see wonciarful naval e:: hibits, displays of . old armour, Japan a< she appears in each of the four seasons what women have achieved in art aiu poetry, and what they have aocoinplishei' when stirred by the sacred) glow- of patriot itm. The production of. silk from th<i cocoon to the graoeful folding fabrio will be shown; also agriculture in a sories of instructive tableaux, and til© agricultural implements .used, Lastly, thoro is to be a charming 'Japanese Fair, with oraftnrnen at work; a village of Formosans—the once famous head-hunters,—and another of the .original inhabitants of Japan, tho Ainos, who still retain the habits anil customs of their prehistoric anoestora. Thero will bo Japanese theatres, and places where the ancient will bo performed;. With all these wondorful things to bo it is well that New Zealand has determined to do herself proud. The pavilion will be a great improvement on the previous two years, and the work of restoration and decoration is now in hand. Under the direction of Mr H. -C. Cameron (Produce Commissioner), with Mr J. G. Morrij son as oflic&'-in-charge, tho New Zealand

display will bo thoroughly up-to-date and effective, and calculated to giro visitors p. favourable impression of the country's vast resources. The trade and oommercc of tlio

Dominion will be represented bj wool.. grain, moat, timber, minerals, flax, and lcauri gum, to mention only a few things. Messrs H. A. Neiteon, of Auckland, intend showing a collection of kauri gum worth £5000. The Pavilion is sure to be ft favourite rendezvous with New Zcalandora. Tho Dominion will be well advertised from the sporting and tourists' points oi view. The collection of sporting trophic* has been enlarged, and includes tho lie«b of eome of tho descendants of the red'dew. sent by tha Prince Consort many years ago from the Homo Park at Windsor to be liberated in the wilds of New Zealand.