Sea-going Trades Exhibition.

Pelorus Guardian and Miners' Advocate., Volume 15, Issue 30, 15 April 1904, Page 4

Sea-going Trades Exhibition.

A London correspondent writes:—That fine old New 7. ''.aland liner, thes.s. Arawa. is about to em«r noon a new phase of her career. She is now known' as the Lake Megantic, and is about to take the British Sea-going Trades v Exhibition round the world. The vessel is to sail from London on the 27th April, and the idea is to fit her out with samples of goods manufactured by the best British industrial firms, and send her on a voyage round the principal ports of the Empire and foreign countries important as markets for British products. The exhibition saloon will make a clean sweep of the vessel fore and aft. The 'tween deck will be cleared of all cabins and storerooms, and the main saloon for the exhibits will be on this deck, stretching practically the whole length of the vessel.. This will make the principal exhibition ball. In addition, the after saloon on the main deck and part of the orlop deck will be specially fitted for displaying exhibits. The orlop or lower deck contains the heavy goods; it will be the machinery hall. •: The Megantic contains ample space for exhibiting the samples of about one hundred and fifty trades, and will easily accommodate the representatives of that number of firms. When the old Arawa leaves London at the latter end of April she will make her first call at Halifax, Nova Scotia, and from there will go on to St. John’s, Newfoundland, and Canada. Then the route will be by way of the West Indes to South Africa; leaving Durban she will steam to Bombay, via Mauritius. FroA Bombay, Colombo;. Madras, Calcutta, and Rangoon will be visited in turn, and then, journeying by Penang through the Straits of Malacca, touching Singapore, the exhibition will visit Hongkong, Shanghai, Nagasakai, Vokoama, and then go southward to Australia and New Zealand. The homeward voyage will be made by way of Buenos Ayres, Monte Video, Rio, and West Africa. Accompanying tbe Lake Megantic will be a representative of : each firm exhibiting, and a competent staff of officials for organising and carrying out details of the tour. A fixed amount otfclear space will be set aside for each partieijpant, in order that his goods may be properly displayed. At each port of call; the exhibition is to be opened by a prominent official, and the members of the ; local Chambers of Commerce, tjie leading traders, and others will be entertained on board the steamer. The advance agents of; the exhibition, assisted by the local press, will see that the advent of the exhibition is made widely known throughout the trading community of each country. The objects which the promoters have in establishing the expedition are summed up as follows :—(1) The promotion of interimperial commerce, (2) the personal introduction of the seller to the buyer; (3) to provide a means by which British manufacturers can fully investigate the pieduliar conditions and requirements of individual markets; (4) the advertisement of British industries by bringing to foreign >, and colonial ports a representative exhibition of ' British manufactured articles^