THE GOVERNMENT ADOPT THE SCHEME.

Otago Witness, Issue 1933, 7 December 1888, Page 16

THE GOVERNMENT ADOPT THE SCHEME.

(Feom Our Own Cobeespondent.) Wellington, November 30. The Cabinet have decided to accede to the terms proposed o them oo behalf of the Eshjbi-

tion Company by Mr Twopeny, subject to the approval of Parliament. Of course Ministera have had several consultations with Mr Twopeny, who verbally explained to them at length the scheme contained in the official letter (which you will receive to-night from the Press Association, the main heads of which I sent you on Wednesday night), and went into the reason for the concessions requested from the Government. Ministers were from the first greatly taken with the novelty and distinctiveness of the scheme, and felt that so likely an opportunity of advertising the colony abroad and drawing out the energies of the people at home should be taken advantage of to the fullest! extent, and that it would be a fatal mistake in the interests of the colony at large to allow the exhibition to be a purely Otago concern when it could with a very little Government expenditure be made of such advantage to the whole of New Zealand, and. save the expense of any other celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the foundation of the colony. They therefore adopted the directors' proposals in globo, and have expressed to Mr Twopeny their hearty and enthusiastic approval of every detail of the scheme and their determination to do everything in their power to increase the importance of the exhibition and make it a thoroughly worthy celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of New Zealand. It will be adopted as the official celebration of this event, and the Government will, officially and privately, request the official co-operation of the Governments of the other colonies, and are wiring to-morrow both, to the Agent-general and Earl Onslow to try and secure as many of the pictures, now in Melbourne as possible. They will spare no paiua to make the national collections of early history, Maori, geological, mineral, zoological, and botanical objects complotely representative, and carry out in the fullest and most liberal sense the terms of Mr Twopeny's letter, with the single modification that instead of erecting their own building for the national collections and picture galleries they will make a liberal grant according to an architect's estimate, subject to the approval of Parliament, for a suitable building, leaving it to the Exhibition Company to carry it out, and merely retaining the right to see that the plans are of such a nature as to be worthy of the occasion and give as much dignity to the exhibition as is compatible with a temporary structure. Mr Twopeny was somewhat loth to accept direct assistance from the Government in this way, but seeing that Ministers had acceded to all his requests so liberally— that the question of whether the Government erected this building or gave the company the money to do it was practically as broad as it was loug, and that the grant was to be confined to the providiug of space for the Government exhibits, and hence involved no real infringement of the principles on which the exhibition was star ted— he felt it would have been at once ungracious and impolitic to object to the modifications ; whilatallthe Ministers wereuuanimous in approval of the proposal so soon as ho had explained that it was no ordinary repetition of former exhibitions that was intended. Mr Twopeny expresses gratitude to the Hon. Mr Fergus for the part he has played in furthering the interests of the proposal. At the request of Ministers he has promised, on behalf of the directors, to do all in their power to raise the guarantee f and to £L 5,000, in view of the enlarged proportion which the enterprise seems likely to assume.

December 3.

Mr Twopeny has arranged with Count | D'Abbans, French Consul, who is shortly returning to France, io endeavour to induce the French Government to allow the New Caledonian and Tahitian exhibits at Paris to be shown in Dunedin on their way back. The New Caledonian and Tahitian Governments have been at great trouble and expense in collecting these exhibits, which include a complete native village, which is expected to be one of the sensations of the Paris Exhibition. The exhibits are being taken to France in a French man-of-war, and will be brought back in the same way, hence it would cost but little for them to be exhibited in Dunedin, but they could not arrive in time for .the opening of the Dunedin Exhibition—probably not till the end of December. Count D'Abbans is writing to the French Commissioner in Melbourne to endeavour to obtain the French educational and other exhibits, and is ready to do all in his power to forward the interests of the Dunedin Exhibition at Paris. In return he desires the Dunedin commissioners to assist him in the representation of Otago at Paris, to which Mr Twopeny replied that it washout of the .question that New Zealand should send manufactures to Paris on account of the expense, which it would be wrong for the Government to undertake in the present financial situation, nor could he see that any advantage could result from manufacturing exhibits. On the other hand, he was sure the Dunedin Exhibition commissioners would be glad to help in getting exhibits of the natural products of Otago for Paris, such as wool, wheat, &c., if the Government were prepared to take the cost of carriage and installation, which would be a small and reasonable request. The Government are writing to the Victorian Government to find out the terms on which the pictures are exhibited at Melbourne, and as many particulars about them as may be needful, with a view to completing by cable the instructions mailed yesterday to the Agent-general. Sir William Jervois has written personally to Earl Onslow to ask him to exert himself personally about getting the pictures. Both the Governor and Sir James Hector think that tne only chance of getting any of the collection will be by using Earl Onslow's personal influence with the owners, as they were only got for Melbourne through the Prince of Wales making it a matter of personal request.