THE EXHIBITION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2309, 2 June 1898, Page 20

THE EXHIBITION.

Wednesday, May 25.

A very large number of people visited the Otago Industrial Exhibition yesterday, and the entertainments giv^en were uniformly success Inl. The exhibition proper continues attractive and interesting, and the exhibits were Inspected by many people yesterday, including not a few country visitors. As might have been expected, the display of photographs has added a very interesting and pleasing feature, as the collection is large and excellent. Then the Art Gallery aud Early , History court cannot be done justice to without more than one vwifc, and the orchestra engaged by the Committee of Management play frequently and admirably. In the afternoon there was a novel entertainment in the shape of- indoor bicycle sports. This proved both attractive and successful. There were over 2000 spectators, and each of the five events was well contested, although there were only five entries and four competitions. The trick riding of Mr Wickins (of Auckland) was remarkably good, and "all the events proved aatisfactory, as was shown by the applause of the spectators. In the figure-writing two competitors were rqual. This contest consisted in writing on a blackboard while the competitors rode on their bicycles — a very difficult feat. The pin riding ' Was a competition in steering, the riders having to wind ifr and out between pegs that were placed oloser .together after each successful attempt. The slow .riding in another way was a test of skill in the management of the machines ; and the term " comic trick riding *' explains itself. The successful competitors ' were : — Pin rfding, John Dey ; slow ridiDg, George Moore ; trick riding, B. Wichii'St figure-writing on blackboard, ftloore iind J)ey <>qual) ; and comic trick riding,' O. W. •). Chamberlain,

In the evening the great hall was densely "crowded, and numbers were unable to gain admission. The bicycle display by the Mimiro Club, under the direction of Signer Borzani, proved a great success, and apart from its taovelty it was a very entertaining spectacle, the graceful, rapid, gliding motion being effective, ?nd the evolutions almost faultlessly performed. No more gratifying proof of success could have Jaeen desired than was expressed by the repeated and general applause of the spectators. A good exhibition of trick riding, and some pretty dancing closed the performance. Thohsday, May 26.

A display of competitive lantern slides was the attraction at the Jubilee Exhibition last evening. There was a fair attendance. Tbergr were five sets of slides— viz., (1) " From Te id.nau to the Head of the Cleddsu," (2) ,*' Queensfcown and Lake Wakatipu," (3) " Out yvith my One-Eyed Friend," (4) "A Holiday *Trip to Catlins," (5) "A Ramble Through Dunedin." The views, taken as a whole, were -very beautiful and conveyed a splendid idea of the scenic glories of Otago. Friday, May 27.

The lower part of the Agricultural Hall was crowded to excess on Thursday evening when, after a short absence in the north, Madame Amy Sberwin's concert company renewed its acquaintance with Dunedin music lovers. ' The reception accorded the members of the company was of the most favourable nature. Madame Sherwin appeared to be in excellent jvoice, and her contributions throughout, it need scarcely be added, were thoroughly appreciated.

Saturday, May 28.

Another large audience assembled ab the exIribifcion on Friday evening, attracted thither by the second of the Madame Amy Sherwin Company's concerts. An excellent programme was submitted, and, as on each of the previous occasions that the members of this talented comjbination have appeared here, the audience was jncst demonstrative in its expressions of approval.

Monday, May 30.

Saturday was quite a field day at the exhibition, and in spite of the very bad •weather — the worst, in fact, since the exhibition opened — there was a fair attendance. A school excursion from Balclutha and Matau Schools brought about a* hundred, and great interest was taken in the exhibition by them. There was a Punch and Judy show in the afternoon, which specially, delighted the children. ftlr Ceorge Dickie with his happy family also contributed to their enjoyment, while the Garrison Band discoursed sweet anuiic.

There wai a cycling competition in the main hall in the afternoon, which was witnessed by a good many spectators. Four competitors entered for the various event?, and gome of the ,trick riding was remarkably clever. The ■winner of the trick riding competition was Wiekens, of Christcburch, whose riding was both- daring and clever. Some difficult feats on the wheel were' performed by him with ease. iDey was declared the winner of the pin riding, ana Moore of the figure writing competition.

In the evening the -Amy Sherwin Company w&b the attraction, and - although the weather Has particularly boisterous and cold, a very fair undience turned out: The programme conlisted of vocal and instrumental item*, all of which' were received with loud applause, and for most of which encores were demanded. Tuesday, May 31.

There was only a moderate attendance at the exhibition on Monday, although a fair number attended in the evening to witness Signor Borzoni'a cycling display, which was pretty much a repetition of previous displays at the exhibition. A novelty was an exhibition hi trick riding by a very small" boy, Master Richard Stedman. This little fellow, who is only 5£ years of age, on a bicycle as diminutive as the rider, performed a number pi very clever tricks. In fact, he seems to the intnner born, and can do almost anything on (ha bicycle. The youthful rider was roundly applauded at the conclusion of his display, and had to come back again.

The orchestra, under the conductorship of Mr Robertehaw, played durirsg the cycling display and in the exhibition afterwards.

Last night was the last entertainment in connection with the Jubilee Exhibition, which has proved such an endless source of attraction for so many people sinca it opened, and the Orchestra has contributed its full share to the entertainment of the public. There will be a pmsicßl performance in the exhibition every evening, and all the various side attractions will be kept going.

PHOTOGRAPHIC SOCIETY'S EXI-1181- . i ■ TION.

An additional jiltracUon was added to the exhibition on the 23rd, when the, Dunedin Photographic Society's iatercolonial exhibition was Dpened in the Agricultural .Hall. The photographic display is the largest .that the local society has yet been able to present to the public, and is in many respects highly creditable. The majority of the frames have been placed on the gallery walls, bub these have nob afforded sufficient space for all the pictures, and there ia an ovejjjow on fcne vyall dowOfttftVP

underneath the north gallery. For the first time the exhibition is largely competitive. There are practically 10 classes that are open for competition. For the Otago Yacht Club's competition, which is confined to yachting pictures, there are only four competitors who arerepresented by 10 photographs, aad ia the " Kapai " competition there are but four competitors, represented by 15 frames. For the main competitions, however, there is exceedingly satisfactory rivalry, and it is in these that the intercolonial nature of the present exhibition is shown. In the class for landscape works there are no fewer than 30 competitors with an aggregate of 112 photographs. Of oatargemenls of animals there are 11 examples contributed by eight competitors, and of enlargements of landscape photographs there are 27 examples representing the work of 15 competitors. Of genre works there are 31 frames with 15 competitors ; marine subjects are represented to the number of 49, the work of 20 competitors ; in the portrait competition 17 framss are shown by 11 exhibitors ; eight frames are exhibited by three competitors in the class for the best set of three hand-camera views ; and in a class for workers under 18 no fewer than 46 subjects are shown by 21 competitors, all of them pupils at Wellington College, where photography appareutly is greatly practised, for the exhibitors in other classes include three or fonr of the masters at the institution. Besides the photographs that are shown in th<* co<opetitive classes there are over 250 frames which are for exhibition only. These latter include many that have been shown previously, but on the -present occasion, as it was recognised that the exhibition would certainly be inspected by a very much larger number of people than had been at any of the society's exhibitions in the past, it was agreed that the fact of a photograph having been exhibited before by a member should 'uot be c. bar to its beiDg ag*in shown. The exhibition is not only the largest that has been given here but is far and away the most representative, members of the Wellington Camera Club, Wellington College Camera Club, Christchurch Philosophical Photographic Society, Southland Camera Club, Nelson Camera Club, North Otago Photographic Society, Hawke's Bay Camera Club, New South Wales Photographic Association, and Adelaide Photographic Society, in addition to . members of the local society, being represented 'by works on the walls. An exhibit which was expected from the Queensland Photographic Society has unfortunately not come to hand. There is, moreover, also a small loan collection, consisting chiefly of — what is intensely interesting at the present juncture — nine frames of Cuban views. These have been lent by Mr F. W. Maclean, and include views of Havana and Martanzas. In consequence of the fact that the catalogues (which have been artistically produced by Messrs J. Wilkle and Co.) were not ready until late in the day, and that after that time it was impossible, owing to the crush in the building and to the artificial light, to examine the frames either conveniently or favourably, a more particular notice of the exhibits must be deferred. It is only necessary now to commend the exhibition, which will be open for a few days, to the notice of the public.

Tha.com petitlve elasg^s, with the exception oi that for yachting subjects aiad lantern slides, were judged during the day by Mr J. R. Morris, jun., with the following results :—

Landscape. — J. S. Steaning, Sydney ("Broughton Vale"), 1; Buckley Joyce, Wellington ("Eventide"), 2; A. C. Gifford, Wellington College ("The Track to. the Sutherland Falls"), 3. Enlargements. — Animals — A. C. Gifford, Wellington College ("A Local Branch of the AntiBot My Association "), 1. Landscape — A. M. M'Donald, Invercargill (" A sleepy land where under the same wheel the same old rut would deepen year by year"), 1 ; A. J. Barth, Dunedin ("Mitre Peak, Milford Sound"), 2; A. C. Gifford, Wellington College ("On the Clinton River"), highly commended. Genre.— W. Livingston, DnneJin ("Crossing the Stream : Is it Firm?"), 1; C. O. M'Kellar, Dunedin ("Her Pet"), 2.

Marine Subjects. — T. Pringle, Wellington ("An Early Start"), 1; E. A. Bradford, Sydney (" After the Storm, Early Morn "), 2 ; G. F. Green, Napier ("Driven by the Winds and Tossed "), highly commended ; G. M. Green, Napier ("Towed into Harbour"), highly commended.

Portraits.— G. F. Green, Napier (" Portrait Study"), 1 ; W. Williams, Dunedin ("Fiddle and I"), 2; G. F. GreeD, Napier (" Cutting Beans"), highly commended ; F. Buckley Joyce, Wellington ("The Village Schoolmaster"), highly commended.

Hand Camera.— A. C. Gifford, Wellington College (three views, Lake Te Anau). 1. Class for Workers Under 18.— W. H Tustin. Wellington College ("A Cloudy Evening"), 1; H. B. Solomon, Wellington College ("An Incident "), 2 ; W. H. Tustin, Wellington College (" An Evening Scene "), highly commended ; W. H. Tustin, Wellington College ("After the Storm"), highly commended. "Kapai" Competition. — Miss A. G. Shaw, Wellington, 1.

Mr C. W. Kerr, president of the Dunedin Photographic Society, had intended, if opportunity had offered, to have addressed a few remarks to ,the audience iri'ihe evening in opening the exhibition. He would have explained that some 1 months ago when the exhibition committee became aware of the intention of the society to hold its annual show, arrangements were made for holdiog it in connection with the Industrial Exhibition, and the matter was taken up by the members of the society in a very energetic manner, as it was evident that there would be a large amount of wall space to be covered, and the result was what they saw that evening. Mr Eerr would also have acknowledged the indebtedness of the local society to kindred sooieties for their assistance, and have mentioned that the New South Wales collection included the exhifeit that gained the silver medal >at Calcutta. The Queensland collection was, unfortunately, short shipped at Sydney.

The judge, Mr J. R. Morris, jun., has completed his judging so far as the photographs are concerned, and the following are his remarks :—: —

Class I.— Landscapes,

First prize, No. 92, " Broughton Vale," by J. S. Steading (Sydney). — A niceiy-chosen and most artistic little landscape. Atmospheric effect both in the hills and sky most effective. Might be better mounted.

Second prize, No. 81, " Eventide," by Buckley Joyce (Wellington). — Might also be better mounted.

Highly commended.— No. 36, "The Track to the Sutherland Palls," by A. C. Gifford, Wellington (a well-lighted, sunny little bush scene) ; No. 86, " Audley," by E. T. Davis, Sydney ; No. 52, " Dart River," by H. Ziele, Dunedin; No. 59, "Dart River," by H. Ziele, Dunedin ; No. 54 " Lake Te Anau," by H. Ziele, Dunedin; No. 65, "On the Thrum, Switzerland," by J. Kauffman, Adelaide ; No. 46, " Lake Wakatipu and Mount Cecil," by A. J. Barth, Dunedin ; and No. 40, " Mount Earnslaw," by A. C. Gifford, Wellington.

All the exhibits in this class are very good, and make a very creditable display, many pictures being of special merit, but they are too numerous to mention in detail.

Class ll.— Enlargements. ANIMALS.

First prize, No. 4, "A Local Branch of the AntlBot My Association," by A. C. Gifford (Welling, ton). —Very good indeed. A first-class enlargement*

Second prize, No. 11, "Fez," by F. C. East (Ohriatchiu-ch).— P'lat, over-exposed enlargement.

LANDSCAPE ENLARGEMENTS. First prize, No. 5, " A Sleepy Land where under the same wheel tha same old rut would deepen year by year," by A. M. Macdonald (luvercar- # gill). — A beautiful and perfect enlargement ; almost perfect photography ; would perhaps have been belter for a tree or two. Second priz-, No. 27, "Mitre Peak," by A. J. Barth (Dune.iin).— A good picture of a very hackneyed subject. Exceedingly good enlargement , nicely lighted, plenty of atmosphere. ■ Highly commended.— No. 12, "On the Clinton River," by A. C. Gifford (Wellington College).— Would have a second place had it uot been on the foggy side.

Class IV.— Genre. First pnze, No. 21. " Crossing the Stream : Is it Fnm?" by W Livingston (Dunedin). — The stream and tree=; nicely lighted ; might be much better, and also better mounted. Second prize, No. 11, "Her Peb," by C. O. M'Kellar (Dunedin) — Sunny bit and nice perspective ; almost stereoscopic effect. None of the subjects in this class are above ordinary merit.

Class V.— Marine Subjects. First prize. No. 5, "An Eavly Start," by T. Pringle (Wellington) — A very nice picture ; another atmoapheric effect ; well mounted and finished.

Second pme, No. 16, " After tlie Storm, Eavly Morn," by E. A Bradford (.Svdney).— Would bave been awarded first prize if the glare in the sky had been cut out a little.

Highly eoranieodeit— Nos. 25 to 28. a set of sixsnapshots by G. M Green (Napier). No. 22 would have been awarded a place ouly the shadows have 'been touched up.

Class Vl.— Portraits. First prize, No. 10, " Portrait Study," by G. F. Green (Napier).— Most artistic very good indeed ; could not be much better ; nicely framed and mounted.

Ssccmd prize, No. 1, " Fiddle and I," by 'W. Williams (Dunedin).— A well-modelled face ; a good portrait. Very highly commended.— No. 11, " The Village Schoolmaster," by Buckley Joyce, Wellington (evidently a good portrait, too black in the shadows); No. 5, "The Little Machinist," by G. F. Green, of Napier (a little hard, otherwise exceedingly good) ; No. 4, " A Portrait," by Mrs Girdlestone, Wellington (would have had a place, only not such good modelling) ; No. 6, " Cutting Beans," by G. F. Green, Napier. All the exhibits in this .plass are exceedingly good. The only class where there was any close competition. Class Vll.— Hand Camera. First prize, No. 20, "Three Views Cleddau River," by C. F. Gifford (Wellington).— Three little gems done by a careful man. Second prize, No. 19. " Thiee Views Late Te Anau," by C. P. Gifford (Wellington).— Three carefully taken little ma-rine views. Class VIII.— For Workers Under Eighteen. First prize, No. 45, "A Cloudy Evenipg," by W. H. Tustin (Wellington).— Most artistic; also nicely framed and mounted. Second priz?, No. 6, "An incident, the came, the dispute, settlement, friends again," by J. V. Solomon (Wellington).— A very good illustration of the subject and nicely done.

Very highly commended— No 43, "An Evening Scene," and No. 44, "After the Storm," by W. 11. Tustin (Wellington).

Kapai Competition. For best three pictures illustrating any three verses of the poem " Sunshine." First prize, Nqs. 7, 8, and 9, Miss A. G. Shaw (Wellington).— Firit-class photography. The only views in this competition showing poetic feeling, also artistic ability.

Yachting. Firvfc prizs, No 35, "A Flying Start," by W. Williams (Dunedin).— A good enlargement, bub not so -good a subject r better in tone, however, than No. 28.

Second prize, No. 28, " Ronar," by G. Orichton (Dunediu).— The best yachting subject ; but lacks tone — rather flat

All of the pictures in this section are somewhat disappointing ; plenty of room for improvemant.

The judge h&3 givan the following decision ia the lautern slide competition held oa Wednesday evening : —

First prize, " A B.amble Through Dunedin," W, Williams.

Second prize, "Out with my One-eyed Friend," A. C. Gifford (Wellington College).

• Mr W. Williacos's fir»t prize was an exceedingly good, bright lot of slides.

The five sefcs shown were very good indeed, and all were neatly mounted and well put together ; and it may be specially mentioned that among the slides of both prize-takers were many of exceptional merit, both artistically and technically.

JURORS' AWARDS.

The following additional awards were made known on Saturday : — HORSESHOES. The only' exhibitors were Messrs J. Hair (Oamaru) and Thomas Moir (Clarksville). Mr Hair exhibits a yery large variety of shoes, all of which are beautifully finished. Gold medal. Mr Moir's shoes are a really good artjele, but the exhibit is not so exfcenaivo as Mr Hair's. Silver medal. BOOKBINDING. A very handsome display of various kinds is made by Messrs Fergusson and Mitchell. The workmanship in all classes is first-class. Gold medal. LITHOGRAPHIC WORK. Messrs Fergusson and Mitchell and J. Wilkie and Co. Gold medal. PAPER. A large quantity of white and brown papers are shown by the Mataura Falls Paper Mill Company and Messis Jb'ergusson and Mitchell, each of whom is awarded a gold medal. ROPE, TWINE, AND "CORDAGE. Messrs Donaghy's Rope and Twine Company have a large exhibit. The goods are of superior quality and mamifacture. Ropes, gold medal. Twine, gold medal. Cordage, gold medal. Messrs Beggßros. have a small exhibit of twine, which is awarded a silver medal. CARDBOAIU) BOXKS. The only exhibit in this line is made by the Evening Star Company, to whom a gold medal has been awarded. SOAP, CANDLES, FANCY SOAP. The candles exhibited by M'Leod Bros. (Limited) are of every description and variety of shape and size, from an altar candle to the selffitting chamber. Quality very excellent, aad quite equal to the imported. Gold medal. Toilet soap is shown by M'Leod Bvos. in great variety of tablets, bars, and balls. The quality is fir3t class, and does credit to the exhibitois. Gold medal. The kinds of soap most noticaable in the exhibit by the same firm are the Victory and Laundrine. The former ia done up in. neat' wrappers, and each, j bar is partially divided into four tablets, which is particularly handy for the bathroom and toilet, especially as it is agieeably perfumed. It may fairly claim to possess all the qualities stated on the wrapper. The Laundrine soap is deserving of special mention for its washing and cleansing properties. Gold medal. STEEL TOOLS. A very fine exhibit is made by Mr B. Edwards, of Invercargill. The quality of the steel is very superior, and the workmanship is first class. Special gold medal. HAIR WORK. A capital display is made by Mr J. M Queen. The various exhibits are too numerous to detail, but, as a whole, the workmanship is first class, and where necessary artistic. Gold medal. BRUSHWARE. The OlaRO Brush Company exhibit a case of these goods, which are capitally finished. In appearance they are quite equal to the imported article. Gold medal. INCUBATORS Mr J.F. Roberts shows an incubator to hatch 100 eggs, and a kerosene tilt. Both are handy in liz« (wd simple ia their oouatouctinn., CoASiaer.

the incubator a creditable production. Bronze medal and certificate of meric respectively.

- BAND COMPETITION.

The following is the report of Mr Welis, of Christchurch, on the p'.ay of the various bands at the recent exhibition band contest: —

Fiest Night. Naseby (Selection: " Joan of Arc ").

The band that played this selection had one or two strong points. The cornet and baritone and euphonium were good, although at times a little unsteady and out of tune. For an up-coiiutry band it gave a satisfactory account of itself. In the first movement the accompaniment was too loud for the bass solo, and part of the comst cadenza was a little out of tune.- In thelarghetto the euphonium commenced rather weakly, but improved towa'rda the end. The ff were not strong enough. The tempo di marcia was effectively rendered. In the andante the horn and baritone did their parts well. The under horn was out of tune. The chorale was-h*rdly "ben marcato," and the time of the allegro agitato was not quick enough. The allegretto wa* the best played number, and in the "piu mosso" the euphonium, baritone, and cornet shone out to advantage

Roxburgh ("The Bohemian Girl" Selection).

The baud was weak in many points. In nearly every movement I find by my notes that the time was not up to the metronome mark. There was very little attack or crispness, the phrasing was poor, the marks of expression were omitted, and the general eiJeci was weak. The euphonium produced a good tone, and the saxhorn played his part well. I should imagine the. band was composed mostly of young members, who will, of course, improve as time goes on.' I would strongly recommend them "to stick to it," and not to be discouraged.

Mosgiel (" Lurline").

This is a five baud, with good instruments. It has a bright quality and crispine^s of tone. The attack was good all through, The weight of ff was well given, and the so'os by the cornet, euphonium, baritone, aad tronibons-3 were, on the whole, good ; but the accornpguiment was a little too heavy, and the second' cornet and rapieno were out of tune, and occasionally played wrong notes. The euphonium in the codenza of the ballet music was not quite in tune, but was very good in the audante. The trombones should have a word of praise, as thsy did the work uniformly well, with one or two exceptions. The weak number was the andante, sixty-six to the crotchet. This lost the band the first place. The allegro was stood, the bass arpeggios well played, and the general effect crisp and brilliant. .

Port Chalmers (Verdi Selection).

This band was decidedly the best on the first •night. The attack, legato, and nuances of all the instruments were exceptionally UDiform and: good. Cadenzas, accompaniments, and passages. of difficult character were well given, and the quality of the trombone was good. The soprano cornet did not take all the high notes, and was occasionally a little too sharp ; and the rapieno was a trifle unsteady, and some of the movements were not quite up to time. The moderato maestoso was too quick and the andante (84) too slow ; and the vivacissimo, too, erred in the same way.

Second Night. Port Chalmers (Beethoven Section),

In this selection this band was not so happy as in the Verdi. It did not. coranienee well, and the staccato notes at the end of the phrase ware too marked. The rhythm and phrasing and nuonces were faulty and undignified, and the sf overdone. The sustaining accompaniment was only moderately played, and the euphonium, soprano, sax, baritone, and trombone were occasionally out of tune. Although the bass in the heavy passages was good at times it was too heavy. The chorale was a Httle too quick, yet, taken on the whole, the band must be congratulated on giving his selection.

Roxburgh (" Lucrezia Borgia," No. 1).

This band acquitted itself much better than in the first selection, for the cornet played the larghett6 beautifully, and the euphouium was <<<.'od. There was better time, and the accompaniments were all good, with one or two exceptions Taken as a whole, it was a good performance for a. small band.

Naseby (" Lucvezia Borgia," No. 2).

This band did not play so well as on the first night. It was rougb, and not in time. The bass was sharp, and the cornet and euphonium did not blend. The time also was unsteady, and not up to the metronomo.

Mosgiel (Rossini's Selection),

This band gave a very good account of itself. I find by my notes that there are few weak spots. The tone, weight, phrasing, and general execution were very good. The time of the andantino (88) was too slow, and the staccato iv the allegro maestoso was too loud ; but with these exceptions I have nothing but praise.